TCM's 31 Days of Oscar 2021

Those of you familiar with me know that 31 Days of Oscar on Turner Classic Movies may well be my least favourite time of year on the channel. Historically I have had two basic problems with 31 Days of Oscar. The first is that it pre-empts TCM's usual programming for four weeks. That means throughout 31 Days of Oscar, there is no Noir Alley, no Silent Sunday Nights, no TCM Underground. Now I could live with that (I don't seem to have the same problem with Summer Under the Stars), except for my second reason. Quite simply, more than at any other of time of year, it is sometimes the case that TCM shows fewer of my favourite movies. There have been years where I have watched far fewer movies on Turner Classic Movies during 31 Days of Oscar than any other time of year.

Fortunately, this year doesn't seem to be the case, as they are airing more of my favourites during 31 Days of Oscar. Quite simply, this is one of the best line-ups they have had for 31 Days of Oscar in a few years. This 31 Days of Oscar does differ from earlier blocks of 31 Days of Oscar in that this time they are airing the movies in alphabetical order.  Anyway, following are my choices of what you really don't want to miss during this year's 31 Days of Oscar. I want to stress that for the sake of brevity I didn't include every single one of my favourites. I love The Philadelphia Story, but given how often TCM shows it I am convinced there is no one who hasn't seen it yet! All times are Central.

Thursday, April 1
7:00 AM The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
1:15 AM Anatomy of a Murder (1959)

Friday, April 2
11:00 PM The Awful Truth (1937)
3:00 AM The Birds (1963)

Saturday, April 3
5:00 AM Blithe Spirit (1945)
1:00 PM Bullitt (1968)
3:15 PM Caged (1950)

Sunday, April 4
1:15 PM The Defiant Ones (1958)

Monday, April 5
11:00 PM The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T (1953)
12:45 AM Flower Drum Song (1961)

Tuesday, April 6
6:45 AM Forbidden Planet (1956)
1:00 PM 42nd Street (1933)
7:00 PM The 400 Blows (1959)

Wednesday, April 7
2:30 AM The Great Race (1965)
7:00 PM The Guns of Navarone (1961)

Friday, April 9
11:00 AM A Hard Day's Night (1964)
1:00 PM Harvey (1950)

Saturday, April 10
9:00 PM The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939)
1:00 AM I Married a Witch (1942)

Sunday, April 11
9:30 PM In the Heat of the Night (1967)

Monday, April 12
7:30 AM It Happened on 5th Avenue (1947)
9:30 AM It Happened One Night (1934)
4:15 PM It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963)

Tuesday, April 13
5:00 AM Kiss Me Kate (1953)

Wednesday, April 14
7:00 PM The Lady Eve (1941)
9:00 PM The Ladykillers (1955)

Thursday, April 15
11:00 AM The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (1972)
7:00 PM Lilies of the Field (1963)

Friday, April 16
9:00 AM Lover Come Back (1961)
5:00 PM The Maltese Falcon (1941)
11:30 PM The Manchurian Candidate (1962)

Saturday, April 17
7:30 AM Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)

9:00 PM Mister Roberts (1955)

Sunday, April 18
1:15 PM Mystery Street (1950)
9:15 Pm Network (1976)

Monday, April 19
8:00 AM Now Voyager (1942)
9:45 PM On the Town (1949)

Wednesday, April 21
7:00 PM Pillow Talk (1959)

Thursday, April 22
1:00 PM The Prisoner of Zenda (1937)
10:45 PM The Public Enemy (1931)

Friday, April 23
11:15 AM Rashomon (1950)
3:00 PM Rear Window (1954)

Saturday, April 24
9:30 PM Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954)
1:15 AM Shadow of a Doubt (1943)
3:15 AM Shaft (1971)

Sunday, April 25
10:00 AM Ship of Fools (1965)
5:00 PM Singin' in the Rain (1953)
11:00 PM Sounder (1972)

Tuesday, April 27
3:15 PM Strangers on a Train (1951)

Wednesday, April 28
Them! (1954)
10:00 PM The Thin Man (1933)12:15 AM The Third Man (1949)

Thursday, April 29
7:00 PM The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)

Friday, April 30
3:30 PM The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964)

Saturday, May 1
12:00 PM What Ever Happened to Baby Jane (1962)
5:00 PM White Heat (1949)
7:00 PM The Wizard of Oz (1939)