"Crazy Cats! - The Cat Came Back" at Oddball Films October 16, 2009

Event: “Crazy Cats! - The Cat Came Back” Guest curator Pete Gowdy and Oddball Films present an evening of crazy cat shorts- films starring cats, about cats, and people dressed as cats! Highlights include: “The Incredible Cat Tale”, a live action cat adventure from Hungary; “The Perils of Priscilla”, a neglected pussy sets out on her own and hits the big city; “Of Cats and Men”, an animated history of Felis Cattus Domesticus; “Superstition of the Black Cat”; the sinister side of felines from 1934; “The Cat’s Meow”; hilarious educational short was the surprise hit of our previous program; plus Busby Berkeley, Felix The Kat, The “Fabulous Cat Girl” burlesque and much more!
Date: Friday, October 16, 2009 at 8:30PM
Venue: Oddball Films, 275 Capp Street, San Francisco 94110
Admission: $10.00 RSVP Only to: 415-558-8117 or [email protected]
Web: http://www.flarerecord.com/?p=354

"Crazy Cats! The Cat Came Back”
Feline Fantasies and Cat Tales Screen at Oddball Films

The Cat Came Back! On Friday, October 16, Guest Curator Pete Gowdy and Oddball Films present another evening of “crazy cat” films. Last January, the original “Crazy Cats!” was a howling, scratching, back arching, sold out success, so RSVP early to assure a seat. Our all-new cat program (except the return of “The Cat’s Meow” in a new print) features many more shorts and clips culled from Oddball’s seemingly bottomless archive! Showtime is 8:30PM and admission is $10.00. Seating is limited so RSVP is preferred to: [email protected] or 415-558-8117.

Films Include:

“The Incredible Cat Tale” (Color, c.1960)
This beautiful and heartwarming film from Hungary is the story of one incredible cat that will stop at nothing to be reunited with her kittens. A young boy and girl set off in their horse drawn cart unwittingly carrying her newborn kittens. It’s momma cat to the rescue! Rivers, cat-trapper/fur skinners, merry-go-rounds, vicious dogs and long distances are no match for this cat. I had no idea you could train a cat to do anything, let alone the amazing feats you will witness here.

“The Perils of Priscilla” (Color, 1969)
A poor, neglected pussy has to head out on her own when she is ignored and neglected by her family. This live action short directed by Carroll Ballard (who went on to direct The Black Stallion, Never Cry Wolf, and was 2nd Unit Director of the original Star Wars) features another amazing cat trying to make her way in a tough world. What will become of the adventurous, resilient Priscilla?

“Of Cats and Men” (Color, 1968)
Technicolor Disn*y animation traces the history of the domesticated cat- from deity-worthy reverence, rat-catching respect, to superstition and fear, and today’s mix of feelings…

“The Cat’s Meow” (Color, 1976)
Engaging, well-shot educational film about alley cats and house cats was the surprise hit of the original Crazy Cats! program. The deadpan, dry humor of the narration is a big part of the appeal of this British-made short, but the slow motion mouse acrobatics had the whole room in stitches. Oddball recently acquired a new, high quality print of this little gem.

“Superstition of The Black Cat” (B+W, 1934)
Comical history of the origin of the superstition of bad luck when a black cat crosses your path.

“Sittin’ On A Backyard Fence” (B+W, 1933)
Clip from the great Busby Berkeley musical Footlight Parade- Human kitties sing, dance and frolic to the Tin Pan Alley favorite.

“The Fabulous Cat Girl” (B+W, c. 1950s)
Exotic burlesque teaser-

Plus! “Felix the Kat” (very early animation), “Tub Film” and a few SURPRISES!
Curator Biography:
Pete Gowdy (aka DJ Chas Gaudi) is host of San Francisco’s Shellac Shack, a weekly 78 rpm listening party and a DJ specializing in vintage sounds: soul, jazz, country, punk and new wave. A graduate of the Vassar College Film Program, he is an associate producer of Marc Huestis Presents, the long-running movie legend tributes at the Castro Theatre.

Upcoming Programs
Fri Oct 16 – Crazy Cats! - The Cat Came Back (Cat films- all new program)
Sat Oct 17 - Home Movie Day, Strange Sinema- “World’s Strangest Home Movies”
Fri Oct 23 - Sonic Oddities Live
Sat Oct 24 – Scared Straight (Drug/Alcohol Scare Films)
Fri Oct 30 - Rock n’ Roll at the Movies
Sat Oct 31st Terror Noir- The House on Telegraph Hill in SF + Halloween Wet Dream

About Oddball Films
Oddball films is the film component of Oddball Film+Video, a stock footage company providing offbeat and unusual film footage for feature films like Milk, documentaries like The Summer of Love, television programs like Mythbusters, clips for Boing Boing and web projects around the world.
Our films are almost exclusively drawn from our collection of over 50,000 16mm prints of animation, commercials, educationals, feature films, movie trailers, medical, industrial military, news out-takes and every genre in between. We’re actively working to present rarely screened genres of cinema as well as avant-garde and ethno-cultural documentaries, which expand the boundaries of cinema. Oddball Films is the largest film archive in Northern California and one of the most unusual private collections in the US. We invite you to join us in our weekly offerings of offbeat cinema.

Official Website: http://www.flarerecord.com/?p=354