Cinema reflects society and both the Great Depression and WW II left their marks on film in different ways. The escapist fantasy of screwball comedy was one response to economic troubles; the gritty pessimism of film noir was one response to the threat of war. Yet the two styles aren’t completely distinct - the screwball, romantic and satiric comedies of the 1930s and 1940s occasionally explored similar themes to those of film noir, often dealing with the “haves” versus the “have nots.”

Some of Hollywood’s top talent had a foot in both camps. Billy Wilder was a screenwriter behind some of Ernst Lubitsch’s funniest films and such screwball favorites as BALL OF FIRE, with Barbara Stanwyck as nightclub singer Sugarpuss O'Shea. When Wilder moved to the director’s chair for quintessential noir DOUBLE INDEMNITY, he tapped Stanwyck to play cold-blooded femme fatale Phyllis Dietrichson. Among the most acclaimed writer-directors of the 1940s, Preston Sturges was among the few who tried to combine comedy and drama in a single film, succeeding spectacularly with road movie SULLIVAN’S TRAVELS.

Our series salutes the intersection of dark and light with pairs of films sharing talent, a locale or story elements. KEY LARGO and THE PALM BEACH STORY paint Florida as menacing and carefree, respectively. HIS GIRL FRIDAY and CALL NORTHSIDE 777 both employ Chicago reporters to clear the name of an accused man. We’ve got double weddings, double-entendres, double lives and double indemnity. Detectives, drifters, debutantes, drunks and detours. Kingpins and Wienie Kings. Gun-firing felons and rapid-firing reporters. Enjoy some of the best films of the B&W era with “Highballs and Screwballs.”

Series compiled by Grant Moninger. Program notes by Grant Moninger and John Hagelston