THE RONALD REAGAN PICTURE SHOW Begins 8/25 at Museum of the Moving Image

The outstanding new CNN Films documentary The Reagan Show uses archival footage of President Ronald Reagan, much of it documented by U.S. Naval Photographic unit for the White House and maintained by the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum. The documentary has inspired a week-long film series at Museum of the Moving Image. The series The Ronald Reagan Picture Show, which runs August 25 through 30, includes a special screening of The Reagan Show (on August 30) followed by a discussion with filmmakers Sierra Pettengill and Pacho Velez, CNN senior media correspondent and host of Reliable Sources Brian Stelter, and presidential historian Tim Naftali. During the weekend prior to this screening, the Museum will present rare screenings of some of Ronald Reagan's most memorable film roles, all presented in 35mm.

Ronald Reagan's rise from affable movie star and TV host to American president seemed incredibly unlikely at the time it happened. Although John F. Kennedy had shown the importance of television charisma, Reagan's ascension signaled, for many, a crossing of the line between entertainment and politics. Reagan cannily brought Hollywood techniques to the White House, skillfully stage-managing his presidency by nurturing and controlling his image. This series brings us Reagan as both movie actor-in some of his finest roles-and as president, easily his greatest performance. A consideration of Reagan as entertainer and political force feels especially timely today, as a real estate tycoon and former reality TV star who became president commands our attention daily. The film is also quite timely in its focus on U.S.-Russia relations.

The Ronald Reagan Picture Show will be presented in 35mm, with the exception of The Reagan Show. Films to be screened are: the classic sports biopic Knute Rockne All American (1940); Hellcats of the Navy (1947), in which the future Nancy Reagan stars; the three-time Academy Award-nominated Kings Row (1942); Bedtime for Bonzo (1951), a lighthearted, slapstick comedy; and Don Siegel's remake of The Killers (1964), based on the short story by Ernest Hemingway. This series also features introductions from Daniel Garber, editor of The Reagan Show, and co-directors Sierra Pettengill and Pacho Velez.

The full schedule is included below and online at: movingimage.us/programs/2017/08/25/detail/the-ronald-reagan-picture-show/. With the exception of The Reagan Show, tickets are $15 ($5 Museum members at Standard through MoMI Kids Premium levels / free for Silver Screen members and above). Advance tickets are available online.

The Ronald Reagan Picture Show is a presented in cooperation with CNN Films, the film's exclusive broadcaster, and organized by Chief Curator David Schwartz and Associate Film Curator Eric Hynes.

AUGUST 25 - 30, 2017 Screenings for most films take place in the Bartos Theater and tickets are $15 (discounted or free for Museum members ). The preview screening for The Reagan Show will take place in the Sumner M. Redstone Theater. Advance tickets are available online at http://movingimage.us. Knute Rockne All American

FRIDAY, AUGUST 25, 2017, 7:30 P.M. Dir. Lloyd Bacon and William K. Howard. 1940, 98 mins. 35mm. Ronald Reagan stars as Notre Dame football player George Gipp in this stirring biopic, a role that helped propel him to stardom. The movie celebrates the life of legendary player and coach Knute Rockne. It also provides the stirring line "win one for the Gipper" which became a common refrain on the campaign trail during Reagan's run for the presidency in 1980. Hellcats of the Navy
Introduced by Daniel Garber, editor of The Reagan Show

SATURDAY, AUGUST 26, 2017, 4:00 P.M.
Dir. Nathan Juran. 1947, 82 mins. 35mm. With Ronald Reagan, Nancy Reagan (as Nancy Davis), Arthur Franz. Both Ronald and the future Nancy Reagan star in this World War II drama, in which Ronald plays a stoic commander who is forced to leave his crew behind and retrieve a Japanese mine. Nancy Davis stars as Nurse Lieutenant Helen Blair, Commander Casey Abbott's devoted love interest. Kings Row
Introduced by Daniel Garber, editor of The Reagan Show

SUNDAY, AUGUST 27, 2017, 6:30 P.M.
Dir. Sam Wood. 1942, 127 mins. 35mm. With Ann Sheridan, Robert Cummings, Ronald Reagan. Nominated for Academy Award for Best Picture. A haunting, elegiac melodrama that takes place in a fictitious Midwestern town, Kings Row was the film that made Ronald Reagan one of the most popular young actors of his time. He gives a fine performance as Drake McHugh, a rich heir-turned-amputee who loses his fortune to embezzlement. "Where's the rest of me?" became Reagan's signature line and the title of his first autobiography. Seen as overly brooding and melancholy at the time of its release,Kings Row is one of Wood's best films, with atmospheric cinematography by the legendary James Wong Howe. Bedtime for Bonzo
Introduced by Sierra Pettengill, co-director of The Reagan Show

SUNDAY, AUGUST 27. 2017, 4:00 P.M.
Dir. Frederick De Cordova. 1951, 83 mins. 35mm. With Ronald Reagan, Diana Lynn, Walter Slezak. In this breezy comedy, Ronald Reagan stars as Peter Boyd, a jovial psychology professor who is determined to solve the nurture vs. nature question, in order to gain the approval of his fiance's father. Boyd's father was a legendary con man. In an effort to prove that environment trumps genetics, Boyd hires a young nursemaid to help him "raise" a lab chimpanzee. Reagan and Bonzo make for an entertaining duo, the former providing plenty of laughs and charm as the professor attempts to discipline the unruly monkey. The Killers
Introduced by Pacho Velez, co-director of The Reagan Show

SUNDAY, AUGUST 27, 2017, 6:30 P.M.
Dir. Don Siegel. 1964, 93 mins. 35mm. With Lee Marvin, Angie Dickinson, John Cassavetes, Ronald Reagan. Based on the short story by Ernest Hemingway and a remake of the 1946 film of the same name, this late film noir follows two professional hitmen who are piecing together the past of their assigned target, a teacher at a school for the blind. About to leave movies for politics, Reagan gives a notable final on-screen performance as Jack Browning, a sleazy yet disturbingly dispassionate mobster. PREVIEW SCREENING FOR MUSEUM MEMBERS
The Reagan Show
With directors Sierra Pettengill and Pacho Velez in person, and presidential historian Tim Naftali. Moderated by CNN media correspondent Brian Stelter

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 30, 2017, 7:00 P.M.
Dir. Sierra Pettengill and Pacho Velez. Masterfully assembled from a treasure trove of archival footage, the incisive and entertaining new documentary The Reagan Show reveals the workings of Reagan's carefully produced made-for-TV approach to politics, as he faces down America's greatest rival at the time, the Soviet Union. As Reagan confronts the equally charismatic Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, Communicator-in-Chief Michael Deaver uses his public relations skills to hone the president's image as a powerful world leader. Filmmakers Sierra Pettengill and Pacho Velez will discuss their unique cinematic approach, and CNN presidential historian Tim Naftali was offer perspective, looking at the impact of the Reagan presidency and at our long-running national obsession with Russia. The screening is free, for Museum Members only.