TCM's Summer Under the Stars 2021

Ever since 2003 Turner Classic Movies has devoted  the month of August to the programming block known as Summer Under the Stars. From August 1 to August 31, each day is devoted to the films of a single star. For many TCM fans, Summer Under the Stars is the programming block to which they look forward the most. I must admit I look forward to it every year, although I must also admit I miss seeing Noir Alley this week!

As usual, this year's Summer Under the Stars features days dedicated to top name stars as well as some lesser known ones. For whatever reason this year's Summer Under the Stars schedule didn't denote which stars are being featured on Summer Under the Stars for the first time. That having been said, I think they could be Louis Armstrong, Margaret Rutherford, George Segal, and Setsuko Hara. Of course, there are plenty of big names featured this year, including Bette Davis, Robert Mitchum, Abbott & Costello, Kay Francis, Gregory Peck, Judy Garland, Gloria Grahame, Katharine Hepburn, Eve Arden, Tony Randall, Ingrid Bergman, and James Cagney, among others. 

With regards to this year's schedule, I probably would have placed some movies in different times and for some stars I would have probably included different movies. That having been said, my only major complaint is with Robert Redford's day on August 18. For the life of me, I don't understand why Out of Africa (1985) is at 7:00 PM and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid  (1969) isn't on until 10:00 PM.  The latter movie is not only far better than the former movie, it is far more popular as well.

Below are my picks for each day as to the movies you really don't want to miss. All times are Central.

August 1: Bette Davis
5:00 AM Marked Woman (1937)
9:00 AM The Corn is Green (1945)
11:30 AM What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)

August 2: Richard Burton
6:45 AM Look Back in Anger (1949)
4:15 PM Where Eagles Dare (1968)
7:00 PM Anne of the Thousand Days (1969)

August 3: Kim Novak
10:30 AM Kiss Me, Stupid (1964)
12:45 PM The Notorious Landlady (1962)
5:00 PM Picnic (1955)
7:00 PM Bell, Book and Candle (1958)
10:15 PM Vertigo (1958)

August 4: Louis Armstrong
5:00 AM New Orleans (1948)
9:30 AM Cabin in the Sky  (1943)
11:00 AM High Society (1956)

August 5: Margaret Rutherford
10:15 AM The Importance of Being Earnest (1952)
2:00 PM The V.I.P.s (1963)
5:30 PM The Mouse on the Moon (1963)
7:00 PM Murder She Said (1963)
8:45 PM Murder at the Gallop (1963)
10:15 PM Murder Most Foul (1964)
12:00 AM Murder Ahoy (1964)

August 6: Robert Mitchum
6:30 AM The Big Steal (1949)
1:15 PM Where Danger Lives (1950)
7:00 PM Out of the Past (1947)

August 7: Abbott & Costello
3:30 PM The Time of Their Lives (1946)
5:15 PM Buck Privates (1941)
7:00 PM Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)

August 8: Esther Williams
9:00 AM Neptune's Daughter (1955)
5:00 PM Million Dollar Mermaid (1952)

August 9: Kay Francis
6:15 AM Man Wanted (1932)
10:00 AM Mandalay (1934)
7:00 PM  One Way Passage (1935)

August 10: George Segal
7:00 AM Act One (1963)
11:00 PM Blume in Love (1973)
3:00 PM Bye, Bye Braverman (1968)
7:00 PM King Rat (1965)

August 11: Kathryn Grayson
7:00 PM Kiss Me Kate (1953)
9:00 PM Show Boat (1951) 11:00 PM Lovely Look At (1952)

August 12: Ramon Novarro
5:00 PM The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg (1927)
7:00 PM Ben Hur (1925)

August 13: Jane Fonda
9:15 AM Period of Adjustment (1962)
11:15 PM Any Wednesday (1966)
5:00 PM Sunday in New York (1963)
11:30 PM Barbarella (1968)

August 14: Gregory Peck
12:00 PM Captain Horatio Hornblower (1951)
10:00 PM The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit (1956)
12:45 AM The Omen (1976)

August 15: Judy Garland
1:30 PM Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
3:45 PM A Star is Born (1954)
7:00 PM Summer Stock (1950)
3:00 AM In the Good Old Summertime (1949)

August 15: Robert Young
1:00 AM They Won't Believe Me (1947)

August 17: Gloria Grahame
5:00 PM Human Desire (1954)
7:00 PM The Big Heat (1953)
9:00 PM In a Lonely Place (1950)
11:00 PM Crossfire (1947)

August 18: Robert Redford
10:00 PM Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

August 19: Setsuko Hara
12:30 Late Autumn (1960)
7:00 PM Late Spring (1949)
11:15 PM Tokyo Story (1953)

August 20: Van Heflin
11:00 PM Act of Violence (1949)
12:30 PM The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946)
7:00 PM Johnny Eager (1942)

August 21: Katharine Hepburn
11:15 PM Bringing Up Baby (1938)
11:15 PM The Lion in Winter (1968)

August 22: Tyrone Power
2:00 PM The Razor's Edge (1940)
9:15 PM The Mark of Zorro (1940)
11:15 PM Nightmare Alley (1947)

August 23: Eve Arden
5:00 AM Stage Door (1937)
7:00 PM Our Miss Brooks (1956)
8:45 PM Mildred Pierce (1945)
10:45 PM Anatomy of a Murder (1959)

August 24: Maurice Chevalier
10:00 AM Love in the Afternoon (1957)

August 25: Jane Wyman
8:30 AM Brother Rat (1938)
3:00 PM Stage Fright (1950)
7:00 PM Johnny Belinda (1949)
11:00 PM The Yearling (1946)

August 26: Tony Randall
8:45 AM Boys' Night Out (1962)
11:00 PM Pillow Talk (1959)
1:00 PM Lover Come Back (1961)
3:00 PM Send Me No Flowers (1964)
7:00 PM The 7 Faces of Dr. Lao (1964)
11:00 PM Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (1957)

August 27: Merle Oberon
5:00 AM The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934)
7:00 PM Wuthering Heights (1939)

August 28: Lee Marvin
12:30 PM The Wild One (1953)
2:15 PM Cat Ballou (1965)
4:15 PM The Dirty Dozen (1967)

August 29: Ingrid Bergman
2:45 PM Gaslight (1944)
5:00 PM Casablanca (1942)
7:00 PM Anastasia (1956)

August 30: James Cagney
3:00 PM White Heat (1949)
7:00 PM Footlight Parade (1934)
11:15 PM Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)

August 31: Fredric March
5:00 AM Nothing Sacred (1937)
8:30 AM The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1934)
5:00 PM Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1932)
7:00  PM The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
11:45 PM I Married a Witch (1942)
1:15 AM A Star is Born (1937)