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Outdoor Screwball Comedy Screenings
by Nadine Levyfield

Summertime is the season of escapist cinema. It’s when people flock to the movies to see some superhero in tights save the day, and as long as they can sit in an air-conditioned theater for two hours, it doesn’t matter that they’re watching a pretty crappy movie where the villain is a multi-tentacled menace or Kevin Spacey wearing a bald cap.

Of course, this phenomenon isn’t a new one. It dates back to the golden age of film in the ’30s and ’40s, when everyone found relief from the war, the Depression or just the lack of videogames by getting lost in a movie. The main difference between the escapist films of then and now, however, is quality. Classic flicks became classics for a reason—they were really good.

It was in this era that the screwball comedy originated, situational comedies with powerful characters, fast-paced dialogue and slapstick jokes. Screwballs had smart scripts, witty dialogue and talented actors; none of which relied on lame special effects or exaggerated publicity campaigns. Some classics from this genre include It Happened One Night, Bringing Up Baby, and The Philadelphia Story.

The humor in screwball comedies is refreshingly timeless, which is why the One Colorado courtyard of Old Town Pasadena has chosen to show them outdoors every Friday and Saturday night in July. While the faces of Clark Gable, Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn illuminate the screen in the Pasadena courtyard, shoppers and families will be enjoying the trip down memory lane for free. And those watching the films can pick prime seats at one of the restaurants that border the courtyard, sit in the provided seats, or even bring their own chairs and picnic dinners.

The next films to be shown in the series are My Man Godfrey, The Awful Truth, Bringing Up Baby, His Girl Friday, Ball of Fire and The Palm Beach Story. The One Colorado area is a city block between Fair Oaks, Colorado Blvd., DeLacey, and Union St. All films are free to watch and begin at 8:30 p.m. More information available at www.onecolorado.com.