NOIR CITY: Hollywood – Tickets now on sale!
NOIR CITY returns to Hollywood’s Egyptian Theatre for two consecutive weekends April 3‑5 and April 10‑12 with an exciting 6-day program of crime and mystery films featuring … musicians. From early examples of Hollywood noir like Blues in the Night (1941) to jazz-fueled sixties’ gems like All Night Long (1962) and A Man Called Adam (1966), this year’s NOIR CITY: Hollywood movies feature genuine musical legends performing alongside film noir favorites including Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Ida Lupino, Kirk Douglas, and Ann Sheridan.
Among the real-life musicians appearing onscreen: Elvis Presley, Doris Day, Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Hoagy Carmichael, Sammy Davis, Jr., Peggy Lee, Dave Brubeck, Charlie Mingus, and Harry Belafonte, among many others.
“Back in the 1940s, nightclubs and jazz played a significant role in creating the noir vibe,” explains FNF founder and NOIR CITY: Hollywood co-host Eddie Muller. “So, it was fun to craft a program in which music plays a role in just about every story, either through the setting or because the characters are musicians.” Muller acknowledges that some of the year’s offerings veer outside the proscribed boundaries of noir, but he offers no apologies. “Jazz is America’s greatest contribution to the twentieth century,” he declares, “and mixing it up with film noir is a perfect way to showcase the music for a younger generation. The stories may be dark and depressing, but the music always soars.”
The Film Noir Foundation’s latest restoration, The Yellow Canary (1963) will premiere at NOIR CITY: Hollywood on Saturday night, April 4, at 7:00 p.m. on a double bill with 1945’s 64-minute The Crimson Canary. The Yellow Canary actors Pat Boone and Barbara Eden join Eddie Muller in a Q&A after the film screenings.
Live musical performances jazz up this year’s festival, all coordinated by Nick Rossi, renowned guitarist, jazz historian, and NOIR CITY music director. Local songstress Laura Ellis (the NOIR CITY Nightingale) headlines Opening Weekend – Friday and Sunday evenings. Elizabeth Bougerol, charismatic purveyor of traditional and original hot jazz – and this year’s Ms. NOIR CITY – will perform all three nights of the festival’s second weekend. Both singers will be accompanied by the Nick Rossi Trio. Additional musicians performing live during NOIR CITY: Hollywood include pianist Chris Dawson and the Nick Rossi Swing Four.
Hosts for NOIR CITY: Hollywood 2026 are Eddie Muller and Alan K. Rode.
For film schedule, music program, and tickets, please visit: AmericanCinematheque.com
