Joan Blondell: The Bombshell of 91st St.
Tired of famous directors getting all the retrospectives and art house re-releases? Come check out MoMAs ode to a career co-star with their series [Joan Blondell: The Bombshell from Ninety-First Street]. Bondell (1906-1979) was a fixture of the studio system, appearing in nearly sixty films in the 1930s alone. Though talented, she never rose to stardom, more often playing the supporting role beside a lead like Joan Crawford, Bette Davis or Barbara Stanwyck. Today, the series features Blondell as Eleanor Parker's drunken aunt in Lizzie (6pm) and There's Always a Woman (8pm) is from the period when her fans voted her "Public Gold Digger #1."
And three films on Saturday: 1931s Night Nurse (2pm), where Blondell plays sidekick to Stanwycks investigative nurse; Three on a Match (4pm), which finds Blondell playing the younger Davis in flashbacks, and features an early Humphrey Bogart appearance; and finally John Cassavetess 1977 Opening Night (5:30pm), has Blondell playing an annoyed playwright whose lead actress (Gene Rowlands) is racked with guilt.
The series ends on January 1. Museum of Modern Art, 11 W. 53rd St. (betw. 5th & 6th Aves.), 212-708-9400; $10/$6.