AUNTIE MAME (1958)
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 2 p.m.
Million Dollar Theatre, downtown Los Angeles
Color / 35 mm
2 hours 23 minutes

Screening hosted by Ross Melnick, Professor of Film and Media Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Guests include Emily Carman, Associate Professor, Chapman University, Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, Kristen Hatch, Associate Professor, UC Irvine, Film & Media Studies, and Lucas Hilderbrand, Professor, UC Irvine, Film & Media Studies.

A free Q&A session about the historic Million Dollar Theatre will follow the screening. Stay in your seat to learn more about its history and architecture! 

About the Film

Based on a hit novel and play of the same name, this beloved comedy makes a long-requested return to Last Remaining Seats! In her most famous performance, Rosalind Russell plays the flamboyant title character of the eccentric and free-spirited New York society woman Mame Dennis. Mame’s carefree existence gets a special addition when she becomes the sole caretaker of her orphaned child nephew Patrick (Jan Handzlik). Mame opens doors for Patrick that he never even dreamed existed, and together they go on many marvelous adventures: a thrilling fox hunt, a hilariously disastrous stage debut, a voyage around the world!

For Mame, anything is possible: after all, “life is a banquet!” Joining them are a colorful cohort of characters: A fabulous British actress from Pittsburg Vera Charles (Coral Browne), an educator and professional Yogi Acacias Page (Henry Brandon), the frumpy secretary Agnes Gooch (Peggy Cass), and many more. But when the stock market crash of 1929 hits and her nephew's cruel trustee Mr. Babcock (Fred Clark) threatens to take him away, Mame must use all her courage and wit to survive.

Over the years, Auntie Mame has become a special favorite of the LGBTQ+ community. Its message of appreciating free expression, living life to its fullest, and loving all, is as relevant and important as ever.

The films in this series are presented as originally created during a different time period and may contain negative attitudes, language, and depictions of people and/or cultures. The Los Angeles Conservancy does not condone these representations.