Monday Is Marie Dressler Day On TCM

In honor of her birthday on Monday (November 9, 2009), Turner Classic Movies is showing Marie Dressler movies from 6 in the morning until 8 at night. They include her Oscar-winning turn in Min and Bill, her Oscar-nominated performance in Emma and Tillie's Punctured Romance from way back in 1914. Directed by comedy legend Mack Sennett, Tillie's Punctured Romance marks a couple of significant firsts—it was the first feature-length comedy ever produced and after years on the Broadway stage, was Marie Dressler's first Hollywood movie.

It may also have been the first performance by a very young Milton Berle in the role of a newsboy who gets slapped. Anyway, he said it was, but no one remembered him—he was only six years old—and no studio records exist to confirm his claim.

Tillie also marked a significant last: other than cameos, it was the last time Charles Chaplin appeared in a movie he didn't direct.

You might also check out The Patsy to see Marion Davies in her prime. Remem- bered now as William Randolph Hearst's mistress, skewered unmercifully in Citizen Kane as the no-talent "singer" Susan Alexander, Davies was actually a deft comic actress (I really recommend you track down Show People as well).

There are a lot of other name acts here as well—Mabel Normand, Bessie Love, Charles King, Jack Benny (in his first movie), Rudy Vallee, William Haines, Leila Hyams, Polly Moran, Wallace Beery, Jean Hersholt, Myrna Loy, Marjorie Rambeau.

Why, there's even Lillian Gish in a comedy.

Nothing but the best for Marie Dressler who was the biggest star in Hollywood during the Early Sound Era. Check it out.

Here's the schedule from TCM's website (as always times are Eastern Standard Time):

6:00am [Silent] Tillie's Punctured Romance (1914)
In this silent film, a con man dupes a wealthy country girl into marriage.
Cast: Marie Dressler, Charles Chaplin, Mabel Normand, Charles Bennett Dir: Mack Sennett BW-72 mins

7:15am [Silent] Patsy, The (1928)
In this silent film, a romantic young woman falls for her sister's fiancé, then discovers her sister is cheating on him.
Cast: Marion Davies, Orville Caldwell, Marie Dressler, Dell Henderson Dir: King Vidor BW-77 mins

8:45am [Musical] Chasing Rainbows (1929)
Musical performers fall in love while rehearsing for the big show.
Cast: Bessie Love, Charles King, Jack Benny, George K. Arthur Dir: Charles F. Reisner BW-86 mins

10:15am [Romance] Divine Lady, The (1929)
Lady Hamilton's love affair with Admiral Nelson rocks the British Empire.
Cast: Corinne Griffith, Victor Varconi, H. B. Warner, Ian Keith Dir: Frank Lloyd BW-99 mins

12:00pm [Musical] Vagabond Lover, The (1929)
A small-town boy finds fame and romance when he joins a dance band.
Cast: Rudy Vallee, Sally Blane, Marie Dressler, Charles Sellon Dir: Marshall Neilan BW-65 mins

1:15pm [Romance] Girl Said No, The (1930)
A college sports star surprises everyone with his money-making schemes.
Cast: William Haines, Leila Hyams, Polly Moran, Marie Dressler Dir: Sam Wood BW-92 mins

3:00pm [Drama] Min And Bill (1930)
Two crusty waterfront characters try to protect their daughter from a terrible secret.
Cast: Marie Dressler, Wallace Beery, Dorothy Jordan, Marjorie Rambeau Dir: George Hill BW-66 mins

4:15pm [Comedy] One Romantic Night (1930)
A princess engaged to a prince falls for her brother's tutor.
Cast: Lillian Gish, Rod La Rocque, Conrad Nagel, Marie Dressler Dir: Paul L. Stein BW-72 mins

5:30pm [Drama] Politics (1931)
Two women take on small-town racketeers.
Cast: Marie Dressler, Polly Moran, Rosco Ates, Karen Morley Dir: Charles F. Riesner BW-73 mins

6:45pm [Drama] Emma (1932)
A housekeeper faces unexpected snobbery when she marries her boss.
Cast: Marie Dressler, Richard Cromwell, Jean Hersholt, Myrna Loy Dir: Clarence Brown BW-72 mins