Tonight @ The Skirball Cultural Center - Peter Sellers in "I Love You, Alice B. Toklas"

The brilliant comic Peter Sellers stars in this slapstick send-up of America on the verge of the counter-cultural revolution. It's one of the few 1960s satires of the hippie culture that doesn't appear to be concocted by grumpy old men, I Love You, Alice B. Toklas. Harold Fine (the protagonist) is a staid Jewish attorney and engaged to the equally straitlaced Joyce (Joyce Van Patten), Harold wistfully dreams of having a more exciting lifestyle. Through a fluke, Harold is obliged to drive a station wagon emblazoned with "psychedelic" imagery; it is with this vehicle that he picks up his flower-child brother Herbie (David Arkin), and Herbie's groovy chick Nancy (Leigh Taylor-Young). Rather enjoying the company of people outside of his establishment orbit, Harold lets Nancy stay over at her place, and she plies him with marijuana-spiked brownies. His inhibitions released by the spiked pastries, Harold kicks over the traces, grows his hair to shoulder length, and embarks upon an affair with Nancy. But when the effects of the brownies wear off, Harold suddenly feels like the rather foolish middle-aged man that he is. The beauty of I Love You, Alice B. Toklas is that it patronizes neither the hippies nor the Establishment characters; both groups are shown as human beings rather than agit-prop stereotypes. Paul Mazursky co-wrote the script and Hy Averback Directed.
1968, 92 min. Rated R.

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Jews on Vinyl @ The Skirball - On view now through 9.5.

To create this multisensory exhibition, guest curators Roger Bennett and Josh Kun embarked on a far-reaching journey, scouring the country to collect thousands of vinyl LPs from attics, garage sales, and dusty archives. Pieced together, these scratched, once loved, and now forgotten audio gems tell a vibrant tale: the story of Jews in America.

Based on Bennett and Kun's findings, Jews on Vinyl spans the history of Jewish recorded music from the 1940s to the 1980s, weaving an account that begins with sacred songs and ends with the triumvirate of Neil Diamond, Barbra Streisand, and Barry Manilow. Set in a retro 1950s-style living room equipped with listening stations, the exhibition features a soundtrack of LP highlights—much of it no longer available in any format—providing an unprecedented opportunity to experience lost moments in American Jewish pop history and new perspectives on Jewish identity. Complementing the music will be an abundance of often kitschy and surprising album art to discover and enjoy.

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Tomorrow @ the Skirball Cultural Center - Images for Human Rights: Student Voices - Free!

Images for Human Rights: Student Voices

FREE!!

October 13, 2009–March 14, 2010

View twenty large-scale, provocative graphic-arts posters by students from the Art Center College of Design, created in celebration of the sixtieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Developed in the wake of the tragedies of World War II and modeled after the United States Constitution, this remarkable document represents the first global expression of rights to which all human beings are entitled. Adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 10, 1948, in Paris, it continues to serve as a model for state charters around the world.

Each one visually striking in its own way, the works on view illustrate the students' personal interpretations of the declaration's articles. The images not only reinforce its principles but also highlight human-rights violations around the world today—from the abuse of sweatshop workers to the conscription of child soldiers. Taking such powerful edicts as "No one shall be held in slavery or servitude" (Article 4) and "Everyone has the right to education" (Article 26), the young artists were challenged to represent these assertions through visual images. Each poster is accompanied by the text of the article(s) that inspired it, as well as insightful commentary by the student.

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Events for Tuesday October 6

SPOKEN WORD w/ Nick Hornby at The Skirball Cultural Center

Don't miss an evening with award-winning, bestselling British author Nick Hornby (High Fidelity, About a Boy) celebrating the publication of his latest work, Juliet, Naked. Called a "must-read" by Publishers Weekly, this much-anticipated novel centers around a reclusive 1980s rock star forced out of isolation when the re-release of his most famous album brings him into contact with some of his most passionate fans. Be there as Hornby reads from and shares insight into this engrossing, humorous story of two lonely people finding each other across decades and continents. A book signing follows the program.

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Coco Before Chanel Screening at the Skirball Cultural Center Tonight

Sneak-preview screening! Coco Before Chanel is the story of Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel (Audrey Tatou), who began her life as a headstrong orphan and through an extraordinary journey became the legendary couturier who embodied the modern woman. Shot in the Paris region and in Normandy, this elegant film portrays the formative years of Chanel’s life, spanning her experiences as a young girl growing up in the heart of France, a cabaret performer, a humble seamstress, a skinny courtesan, a woman in love, and ultimately a rebel, who found the conventions of her time oppressive and became a timeless symbol of freedom, success, and style.

The film also stars Alessandro Nivola, Benoit Poelvoorde, Emmanuelle Devos, and Marie Gillain. Directed by Anne Fontaine. (France, 2009, 110 min. Rated PG-13. In French with English subtitles. In theaters September 25.)

FILM PRINT COURTESY OF SONY PICTURES CLASSICS

*Come early for @ Coolhaus mobile ice cream sandwiches, 6:30 - 7 p.m.
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Coco Before Chanel (International Trailer) from background on Vimeo.

Tonight @ the SKIRBALL CULTURAL CENTER

Classic Films: Summer Road Trips

Road to Singapore

Today @ 1:30p

FREE!

In this first of the popular "Road to..." series of pictures, Bing Crosby and Bob Hope star as two American playboys in Singapore trying to get their minds off previous romances-that is, until they meet a gorgeous local, played memorably by Dorothy Lamour. Although scripted, much of the action is made even richer by material ad-libbed by Hope and Crosby. (1940, 83 min.)

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Tonight at Skirball - Alfred Molina in ART

"A nonstop cross-fire of crackling language [and] serious issues of life and art... a marriage of Molière and Woody Allen."-Newsweek

How much would you pay for a painting with nothing on it? Would it be art? Marc's best friend, Serge, has just purchased a very expensive-and very white-painting. To Marc, the painting is a joke, and as battle lines are drawn, old friends use it to settle scores. With friendships hanging in the balance, the question becomes: how much is a painting worth? Winner of the 1998 Tony Award for best play and the 1996 Olivier Award for best comedy.

Wednesday, April 15–Friday, April 17, 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, April 18, 2:30 p.m.
Sunday, April 19, 4:00 p.m.

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