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Pittsburgh Classic Movie Club kicks off Hitchcock series in Carnegie

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Courtesy of Chase Everette

Pittsburgh Classic Movie Club co-president Wendy Whittick delivers a film introduction inside the historic Carnegie of Homestead music hall, where the club recently wrapped a four-part silent film series. The next series promises to be thrilling, with four Alfred Hitchcock films playing at the Carnegie Carnegie.

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Katherine Mansfield/Observer-Reporter

Wendy Whittick introduces David Lean’s “Brief Encounter” March 11 before a special showing at the Harris Theater in downtown Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgh Classic Movie Club partners with local libraries and theaters to preserve, promote and share in the joy of watching classic films, which Whittick said are important for understanding current cinema.

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Katherine Mansfield/Observer-Reporter

In March, the PCMC partnered with Harris Theater in downtown Pittsburgh for a special screening of David Lean’s 1945 film “Brief Encounter.” Wendy Whittick, club co-president, delivered the introduction.

The silver screen is coming to a music hall near you.

The Pittsburgh Classic Music Club, in partnership with the Andrew Carnegie Free Library in Carnegie, kicks off a four-part Alfred Hitchcock series Wednesday, April 5, with a screening of “Vertigo” inside the library’s historic music hall.

“My big dream is that we fill the music hall at Andrew Free Carnegie Library,” said Wendy Whittick, film historian and co-president of the Pittsburgh Classic Movie Club. “It’s just a very beautiful venue. I think it’ll be a really nice, very comfortable place for people to come and watch a free Hitchcock film.”

The Pittsburgh Classic Movie Club (PCMC), which celebrated its fourth anniversary in February, aims to preserve and promote classic film in the community through free movie screenings and presentations, made possible in partnership with local libraries, theaters and establishments.

It’s difficult to narrow Alfred Hitchcock’s filmography to four movies – his career started in the early 1920s and lasted into the late ’70s, and includes the iconic horror film “Psycho,” recently revisited in the Netflix series “Bates Motel,” and “Rebecca,” a psychological thriller remade in 2020.

But the PCMC’s four-part series is impressive, with a heavy-hitting lineup.

Jimmy Stewart captivates audiences in “Vertigo” April 5; a charming uncle is suspected of murder in “Shadow of a Doubt” April 19; and Laurence Olivier stars in “Rebecca” May 3.

The series closes May 10 with Hitchcock’s natural horror picture “The Birds.”

“Alfred Hitchcock is still very much a well-known name. People are familiar with Hitchcock and familiar with his films. It’s something that will draw in a crowd, more so than other, lesser-known directors,” Whittick said.

All screenings begin with a club member introduction at 7 p.m.

Whittick encourages casual moviegoers and cinephiles of all ages to attend.

“I love seeing children (in attendance). I love that we’re sharing from generation to generation. That’s how we keep it alive.”

Reservations to the Hitchcock silver screen showings are recommended, but not required. You may register online at https://carnegiecarnegie.org/upcoming-events/.

In lieu of admission, guests to the Hitchcock series are asked to bring a nonperishable food item for donation to the Salvation Army Chartiers-Valley Service Center.

For more information on the Pittsburgh Classic Movie Club, including upcoming showings and the outdoor summer series, which kicks off June 9, visit https://pghclassicmoviegrp.wixsite.com/pghclassicmoviegroup.

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