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8 | AUGUST 26, 2013 - SEPTEMBER 01, 2013
“Champion: The Stanley Kramer Centennial” at UCLA film & television archive through Sept. 29
(L-R)Mickey Rooney, Karen Sharpe Kramer and Katharine Kat Kramer. -Photo by Bob Delgadillo
“ C h a m p i o n : The Stanley Kramer Centennial,” a film series presented by the UCLA Film & Television Archive continues at the Billy Wilder Theater in Los Angeles, CA through September 29, 2013, on what would have been the late legendary awardwinning filmmaker, Stanley Kramer’s actual
Centennial birthday. Upcoming screenings in the film series include: So This is New York and Cyrano De Bergerac (August 22nd) with Garry Marshall and Fred Willard in person; Champion and The Men (August 23rd) with Richard Erdman and Sally Kellerman in person; Pressure Point and Bless The Beasts and Children
(September 20th) with Tippi Hedren, Bill Mumy and Marc Vahanian in person; Ship of Fools (September 21st) with BarBara Luna and Karen Sharpe Kramer in person; On The Beach (September 27th) with Donna Anderson, Ed Begley, Jr. and Pete Hammond in person; and The Secret of Santa Vittoria with Lainie
Kazan in person and High Noon (September 29th) with Karen Sharpe Kramer in person. All screening times are at 7:30 p.m. in the Billy Wilder Theater, except for September 29th when The Secret of Santa Vittoria will screen at 3:00 p.m. and High Noon will screen at 7:00 p.m. The film series, “Champion: The Stanley Kramer Centennial” kicked-off with a starstudded Opening Night on August 9th with the World Premiere screening of Stanley Kramer’s film, Death of a Salesman, based on Arthur Miller’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play of the same name. The restoration of the film was made possible through the generosity of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and The Film Foundation, which was overseen by Grover Crisp of SONY. Members of Stanley Kramer’s family, including his wife, the Golden Globe Awardwinning and Emmy Award-nominated actress, Karen Sharpe Kramer and one of the Kramer’s daughters, Katharine “Kat” Kramer, as well as members of Arthur Miller’s family, including his grandson Zach Miller, and his wife, Andrea Miller, were in attendance along with many celebrity and VIPS guests, many of whom, appeared in some of Stanley Kramer’s 35 films. All upcoming programs in the film series, “Champion: The Stanley Kramer Centennial” will screen at the Billy Wilder Theater in Westwood Village, 10899 Wilshire Boulevard (at the corner of Westwood Boulevard), Los Angeles, CA 90024. Advance tickets are available for $10 online at http://cinema.ucla. edu/programs/ticketinginformation. Tickets are also available at the Billy Wilder Theater box office starting one hour before showtime: $9, general admission; FREE to all UCLA students with valid ID; $8, other students, seniors and UCLA Alumni Association members with ID. Parking is available at the Billy Wilder Theater for a $3 flat rate on weekdays after 6:00 p.m. and all day on Saturdays and Sundays. Enter from Westwood
Boulevard, just north of Wilshire Boulevard. For more information, please call 310-206-FILM (310206-3456) or visit online at www.cinema.ucla.edu. The Stanley Kramer Centennial will continue for a period of five months, August – December 2013. In addition to the salute to Stanley Kramer in Los Angeles at the UCLA Film & Television Archive, other Stanley Kramer Centennial Celebrations will be held in other major cities as well. Please visit the new website, www. stanleykramer100.com for information concerning other upcoming Stanley Kramer Centennial Activities and events. During the Opening Night, Sidney Poitier presented Karen Sharpe Kramer with a tribute to his late friend and colleague, director Stanley Kramer. Karen Sharpe Kramer read Sidney Poitier’s comments to the audience, as follows: "I welcome this opportunity to honor the life of a great friend and filmmaker. It was a profound experience for me to have had the privilege to work under the direction of such a remarkable talent. It allowed me the great opportunity to work with Spencer Tracey, Katharine Hepburn, Tony Curtis and many, many others. It was a fabulous experience that galvanized, for me, a career I had never dreamed possible. ‘The Defiant Ones,’ ‘Pressure Point,’ ‘Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner,’ were films that pushed the limits of the status quo and changed the game of the film industry, not to mention, the world, considerably. “Stanley Kramer was
quite a remarkable human being. He was an unusual person in so many ways, especially in regard to the motion picture industry. In the many years I knew him, I will never forget the extraordinary gifts that personified the essence of Stanley Kramer – film director, film producer, visionary, family man, friend – all of which added up to his life having become a remarkable example of what the American film industry has made of itself – a competitor worldwide. “There were experiences that had a profound impact on me as a young actor in a film industry that was not inclined – in those days – to hire or embrace young African-American actors. It took a certain kind of person to have had the insight and courage to bring to the forefront social issues that were difficult to address, and commonly ignored, by the general public. “Many of Stanley’s films did just that – and although he was not the only one – he was one of the first among a considerable body of extraordinary filmmakers much like himself – like Joe Mankiewicz – like George Stevens – like James Clavell – all of whom were of the Stanley Kramer texture. “I was fortunate enough to have been chosen by each of them and I stand here in true appreciation of the Stanley Kramer I knew. His craftsmanship continues to raise the bar higher and higher yet – to levels that will forever enrich the future and art of filmmaking and filmmakers worldwide.” – Sidney Poitier
(L to R) Karen Sharpe Kramer, Katharine _Kat_ Kramer and Sidney Poitier -Photo by Bob Delgadillo