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First Rate Actors: The Flawless Film Careers of Paul Muni, Katharine Hepburn, William Powell, and James Cagney. 

Instructor
Kurt F. Stone
SM483
Video Catch-up
Available

Course Description

Among the hundreds of stars who have graced the silver screen, only a few were truly first-rate actors. Conversely, few truly great actors ever became legendary movie stars. Paul Muni, Katharine Hepburn, William Powell, and James Cagney were among the very few who were both. They became "stars" from their first films and maintained that status until their last films. In this series, we will spend two weeks on each of these four cinematic legends, watching both their first and their last pictures. Paul Muni is the only actor to receive Academy Award nominations for both his first and last starring roles. Katharine Hepburn stole the spotlight from John Barrymore in her first film and dominated the screen in her last more than 60 years later. William Powell was just as dapper and distinguished as detective Philo Vance in 1929 as he was as "Doc" in 1955's Mr. Roberts. And James Cagney went from playing a bootlegger in his first film to the New York City Police Commissioner in his last. Dr. Stone will introduce each film, and then, following our viewing, we will engage in what should be a lively discussion on each of the six films starring our four flawless legends. The films will be shown in their entirety. Kurt Stone is a masterful presenter with a wealth of knowledge. - OLLI Patron

Lectures

  1. "The Valiant" (1929): In his first motion picture, Paul Muni plays a condemned murderer who desperately tries to convince two women that he is neither their son nor brother.
  2. "The Last Angry Man" (1959): In his 28th and final motion picture, Muni received a Best Actor nomination for his portrayal of Dr. Sam Abelman, a crusty old physician living in a decrepit neighborhood.
  3. "A Bill of Divorcement" (1932): In this, her first film, Katharine Hepburn literally steals the movie from legends John Barrymore and Billie Burke. Hepburn lights up the screen as the daughter of a man who escaped a mental institution.
  4. "Love Affair" (1994): In her 50th and final film, Hepburn leaves costars Warren Beatty and Annette Benning in the dramatic dust in this remake of "An Affair to Remember."
  5. "The Canary Murder Case" (1929): In his first talking picture, William Powell scored an immediate hit starring as the keen, debonair detective Philo Vance, some seven years before he was to play an equally debonair detective named Nick Charles.
  6. "Mr. Roberts" (1955): In Powell's 94th and final film, he plays a World War II Navy doctor aboard a U.S. cargo ship; James Cagney, Henry Fonda, and Jack Lemmon costar in this brilliant comedy/drama.
  7. "Sinner’s Holliday" (1930): James Cagney has a meaty role in his first film, which is also the debut film of Joan Bondell. Cagney plays a bootlegger who still lives with his mother.
  8. "Ragtime" (1986): Adapted from the novel by E.L. Doctorow. In this, his last film, Cagney plays the police commissioner in turn-of-the-century NYC.

Course Info

  • Time: 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
  • Date: Thursdays, July 11, 18, 25; August 1, 8, 15, 22, 29
  • Location: Friedberg Auditorium, Lifelong Learning Building
  • Fees: Member - $120
    Non-member - $160
    One-time guest pass, Member or Non-member at the door - $30.

About the Instructor

  • FAU's "Hollywood Brat," Dr. Kurt F. Stone is now in his 27th year with Lifelong Learning. A man who wears many, many hats (medical ethicist, best-selling author, essayist, historian, blogger and ordained rabbi), Kurt is the recent recipient of the "Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award" by "Who's Who in America." His intense love and knowledge of film is, as he has long said, "is the best part of my genetic make-up." ." In 2023, Dr. Stone was the recipient of the “Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award” presented by “Who’s Who in America.”

    Recipient of the 2004 Excellence in Teaching Award