Free film series offers insightful entertainment
OKLAHOMA CITY – Movies about religious leadership on the frontier, both historical and fictional, are the subject of this fall’s final four-week Western Movie Matinee film series at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.
Featuring a mix of drama, comedy, and action-adventure, the films will be shown at 1:00 p.m. on Wednesdays, Oct. 30 – Nov. 20. Admission to both the museum and the movies is free on these “Wide Open Wednesdays,” sponsored by Oklahoma’s Ford dealers.
Curated and hosted by film historian Elizabeth Anthony, president of Reel Classics, the four films selected for this “Frontier Clergy” series offer insight into the unique challenges faced by religious leaders in communities on the edges of civilization.
“Religion motivated and inspired many pioneers and settlers in the American West, sometimes leading the westward expansion and at other times arriving relatively late,” said Anthony. “The films in this series depict the challenges particular to the lives of frontier clergy – not only logistical, but also personal, political and familial. They are all dramas, but there’s a little levity and plenty of inspiration mixed in too. Conquering sin can be surprisingly entertaining.”
Films in the “Frontier Clergy” series will include:
Oct. 30 – Stars in My Crown (1950) starring Joel McCrea and Ellen Drew*
*Joel McCrea’s grandson, Wyatt McCrea will be in attendance during the screening of STARS IN MY CROWN. *
Nov. 6 – OF HUMAN HEARTS (1938) starring Walter Huston, Beulah Bondi and Jimmy Stewart
Nov. 13 – BRIGHAM YOUNG(1940)starringDean Jagger, Tyrone Power and Linda Darnell
Nov. 20 – ROOSTER COGBURN (AND THE LADY) (1975) starring John Wayne and Katharine Hepburn
The sequel to Wayne’s Oscar-winning performance in TRUE GRIT (1969), the ROOSTER COGBURN (1975) screening presages the Museum’s “Two Grits: A Peek Behind the Eyepatch” exhibition about the iconic 1969 film and its 2010 remake, opening November 15, 2019.
In addition to the movies and commentary, free popcorn is provided at each showing.
More information on the Western Movie Matinee film screenings at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, running through November 20, 2019, for more information, visit nationalcowboymuseum.org/calendar/category/westernmovie-matinee/.
About the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum
The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City is America’s premier institution of Western history, art and culture. Founded in 1955, the Museum collects, preserves and exhibits an internationally renowned collection of Western art and artifacts while sponsoring dynamic educational programs to stimulate interest in the enduring legacy of the American West. For more information, visit nationalcowboymuseum.org .