Michael Childers Presents: THE DAY OF THE LOCUST: 50th Anniversary

Michael Childers Presents

For The Palm Springs Cultural Center

50th Anniversary Screening of "The Day of the Locust"

Join us for a unique cinematic celebration in the Historic Camelot Theatre at the Palm Springs Cultural Center. Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Director John Schlesinger's cult classic THE DAY OF THE LOCUST with a special screening event, hosted by famed celebrity photographer and Hollywood insider, Michael Childers.

🎥 Event Highlights

Exclusive Digital Restoration: Experience the film in its digitally restored glory, ensuring it's seen just as the director intended with breathtaking cinematography by legendary Academy Award-winner Conrad Hall—on the big screen!

Special Pre-Show Exhibition: Arrive early to enjoy a cocktail in the lobby while exploring a rare exhibition of Michael Childer’s on-set photographs taken during the making of the film. All prints available for purchase.

Filmmaker Q + A: At 6:30 PM, take your seats in the theatre for an engaging on-stage Q+A session with Michael Childers, Paramount VP Peter Bart, Actor William Atherton, and Actor Pepe Serna, moderated by the renowned Dave Karger, Turner Classic Movies host and entertainment commentator.

Film Screening: Following the Q+A, the film will screen at 7 PM

🌟 VIP Experience
Get the star treatment with our VIP Experience for just $30! Gain access to a special meet and greet with our distinguished guests in the VIP Lounge at 5:30 PM. Enjoy selecting the best seats in the house for an up-close experience of the evening's festivities. VIP tickets include the pre-show meet and greet, filmmaker Q + A, and priority seating.

🎟 General Seating:
General seating tickets are available for $15, including access to the filmmaker Q + A and the film screening.

Proceeds from this event will benefit the Palm Springs Cultural Center, supporting its mission to foster community through cultural and educational initiatives.

🗓 Date: May 25, 2024

• VIP Meet and Greet: 5:30 PM
• Film Q + A: 6:30 PM
• 50th Anniversary Screening: 7 PM

THE DAY OF THE LOCUST (John Schlesinger, 1975)

Academy Award-winner John Schlesinger with blacklisted screenwriter Waldo Salt, who won the Oscar for this screenplay, revisit Hollywood's golden age through "The Day of the Locust." The film follows Tod Hackett, a painter and Hollywood art department staffer, who becomes entangled in unrequited love with the aspirational but doomed starlet, Faye Greener. Portraying a dark, satirical look at the American Dream, this film offers lush visuals and stellar performances, making it a poignant study of ambition, disillusionment, and survival.

Michael Childers was a founding photographer for Andy Warhol’s Interview and After Dark magazines; and produced Dance magazine covers featuring the Joffrey Ballet, The Royal Ballet, and Alvin Ailey Dance Company, and co-authored Bejart: The World of Dance.

From his LA studios, Michael photographed 200+ magazine covers including GQ, New York, TV Guide, Esquire, Los Angeles, Elle, Paris Match, Life, London Sunday Times Magazine, and English and Italian Vogue. He created 150+ album covers and film posters for major studios and worked as a photographer on many films.

Recently, Michael won a Best Short Documentary Film Award in 2019 from the Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival for the film he produced called I Knew Andy Warhol. He can be seen in the 2023 Oscar shortlisted documentary, Desperate Souls, Dark City and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy.

EMERGENCE, a collection of Childers’ works was on display in 2022 at the Joshua Tree Gallery of Contemporary Art and most recently, AI Photography opened spring 2024 at Melissa Morgan Fine Art.

Michael’s photography is represented by Melissa Morgan Fine Art, Palm Desert, CA.

Peter Bart began his career as a staff reporter for The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times before his entry into the movie business, becoming Vice President for Production at Paramount. At that studio, he played a key role in such films as The Godfather, Rosemary's Baby and Harold & Maude. He later served as Senior Vice President for Production at MGM and, later, as President of Lorimar films. He was Editor-In-Chief at Variety from 1989 -2016 when he moved to Deadline. Peter is also the author of nine books, and is a member of PMC's board of advisors.

William Atherton’s career has spanned motion pictures, Broadway and television. He first achieved international recognition as the lead in Steven Spielberg’s debut feature The Sugarland Express and next starred in John Schlesinger’s The Day of the Locust, Robert Wise’s The Hindenburg and Richard Brooks’ Looking For Mr. Goodbar. He is known worldwide for what have become his signature film characters: the TV reporter, Dick Thornburg in Die Hard I and 2; the EPA official, Walter Peck in Ghostbusters; Professor Hathaway in Real Genius and the mad scientist, Dr. Faulkner in Bio-Dome. Among his more than 30 feature films are co-starring roles in John Landis’s Oscar, Bill Duke’s Hoodlum, Richard Pearce’s No Mercy, Alan J. Pakula’s The Pelican Brief, Costa Gravas’ Mad City and Ed Zwick’s The Last Samurai. Recent work includes four documentaries on his most iconic films, Ghostbusters and Die Hard as well as the new sequel Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire in which he returns as the comedic villain, Walter Peck.

Pepe Serna is a veteran supporting character actor with over100 film roles and more than 300 episodic television credits over his long 46 year career that includes such films as the Western classics Shoot Out opposite Gregory Peck (filmed near Bishop, Ca) directed by veteran Western filmmaker Henry Hathaway, The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez \starring with Edward James Olmos, Lawrence Kasdan’s Western epic Silverado, The Rookie, opposite Clint Eastwood, John Schlesinger’s Day of the Locust, Dalton Trumbo’s Johnny’s Got His Gun, and the Science fiction cult classic The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai.

Serna’s Life and career as an actor and artist is the subject of a 2019 PBS documentary, Pepe Serna: Life Is Art .

Dave Karger is a host on Turner Classic Movies and has also made over 200 live appearances as an entertainment commentator on NBC’s Today show. His first book, “50 Oscar Nights,” was published in 2024.