Rene Ricard Presents CHELSEA GIRLS at Anthology Film Archives Tonight, 5/1

The Tenant's Association of the Chelsea Hotel presents a rare screening of Andy Warhol's 1966 masterpiece, Chelsea Girls, introduced by poet and Warhol superstar Rene Ricard, tonight, May 1, 2012 at 7:30 p.m. at the Anthology Film Archives, located at 32 Second Avenue at 2nd Street NYC. Admission is $25.

Rene Ricard is one of the few surviving members of the cast, and was a close friend and associate of Warhol from 1965 until the artist's death in 1987. In a rare public appearance, Rene Ricard will discuss the making of the film, as well as offering reflections on Warhol's larger career as painter, author, publisher and wit.

Chelsea Girls was shot in various rooms in the Hotel Chelsea (and the Warhol Factory) over three weeks in the summer of 1966. Rene Ricard lived in the hotel at the time, and he remains a current resident.

Appearing in the film, amongst others, are Nico, Ondine, Brigid Berlin, International Velvet, Mario Montez, Ingrid Superstar, and Marie Menken, with music by the Velvet Underground. Filmed at a cost of $3,000. The film grossed $130,000. in its first five months of its release, making it perhaps the most successful underground film of all time It has since earned cult status as one of the most stunning and provocative cultural documents of the 1960s, and is considered by many to be Warhol's filmic masterpiece.

Filmed in black and white and color and shown on two screens simultaneously, the film runs three hours and fifteen minutes.

At the premiere of the film at Jonas Mekas' Cinematheque, the film sequences were listed on the program accompanied by fake room numbers at the Chelsea Hotel. These had to be removed, however, when the Chelsea Hotel threatened legal action.

Today the residents of the Chelsea Hotel are fighting to retain and preserve one of the great cultural landmarks of New York City. The Chelsea Hotel is not only a historic landmarked building, but also a living National Treasure, and a vital part of the intellectual and artistic heritage of New York. Residents have incurred great expense fighting evictions and what they consider to be the illegal demolition of over a hundred rooms in the historic hotel.

The Tenant's Committee is group of residents represented by noted tenant's rights lawyer Samuel J. Himmelstein. Atty. Himmelstein and his staff have been working tirelessly on behalf of the Tenant's Committee. Scoring a great number of important victories thus far.