Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Pre-Code Classic "Baby Face" at Daystar Center February 18

“Stanwyck on State Street” Film Series: Baby Face
Where: The Venue 1550 at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State Street, Chicago, IL
When: February 18, 2017
Time: 6:45 p.m.
Hosted by Stephen Reginald

Baby Face (1933) was the Pre-Code Hollywood film that helped usher in the Production Code. Very frank for its time, the plot concerns one Lily Powers (Barbara Stanwyck) and her attempts to use sex to advance her social and financial status. After her father’s death, Lily leaves her home in Erie, Pennsylvania, for New York City. She lands an entry-level job at a bank by flirting with the assistant to the personnel director.


From this small job, she climbs the ladder by using the men who employ her. Along the way she has an affair with Jimmy McCoy Jr. (a very young John Wayne), but soon casts him aside when she seduces his boss. When the grandson of the company’s founder, Courtland Tenholm (George Brent) is elected president, Lily’s plans go in another direction.

This early Stanwyck film is an example of what movies were like before the studio-lead Production Code went into effect in 1934.

Theresa Harris and Barbara Stanwyck in Baby Face

This film is part of the “Stanwyck on State Street” series.


Have some Joe and Enjoy the Show!
You can bring food and beverages into the auditorium; we even have small tables set up next to some of the seats. General Admission: $5 Students and Senior Citizens: $3.

Join the Chicago Film club; join the discussion
Twice a month we screen classic films and have a brief discussion afterward. For more information, including how to join (it’s free), click here. The Venue 1550 is easily accessible by the CTA. Please visit Transit Chicago for more information on transportation options.


Stephen Reginald is a freelance writer and editor. He has worked at various positions within the publishing industry for over 25 years. Most recently he was executive editor for McGraw-Hill’s The Learning Group Division. A long-time amateur student of film, Reginald hosts “Chicago Film Club,” a monthly movie event held in the South Loop, for the past two years. Reginald has also taught several adult education film classes at Facets Film School, Chicago.

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