Turner Classic Movies Celebrates 30th Anniversary With Billy Dee Williams Tribute, New Podcast

Posted by Reinaldo Massengill on Wednesday, July 3, 2024

Turner Classic Movies has announced that the network will celebrate its 30th anniversary with special themes, spotlights and stars to be included in the 2024 programming slate and upcoming tentpole events.

The classic movie channel celebrated its 30th anniversary on Friday with a reception at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills. Charlie Tabesh, longtime TCM programming executive, confirmed at the gathering that filmmakers Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese and Paul Thomas Anderson have extended their deals to serve as consultants to TCM for another year.

At the 15th TCM Classic Film Festival in April, TCM will bestow film historian Jeanine Basinger with the Robert Osborne Award and present tributes to actor Billy Dee Williams and makeup artist Lois Burwell. Additionally, a new TCM podcast called “The Plot Thickens,” which focuses on “movies and the people who make them” will be released after a podcast made in partnership with Max, “Talking Pictures: A Movie Memories Podcast.” Moreover, Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood will begin offering a WB/TCM Classic Movie Tour in April.

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Mike De Luca and Pamela Abdy, co-Chairs & CEOs at Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group made a statement on the anniversary programming: “With the 30th year of TCM upon us, we both look back at all that’s been built over the last several decades and look ahead at what is undoubtedly one of the most exciting times in TCM’s history, Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy, co-chairs and CEOs of Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group, said in a joint statement. “TCM’s collaboration with Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg and Paul Thomas Anderson has infused an even greater love of cinema into our programming and inspired us to expand what TCM offers across a wide array of mediums for fans of classic movies to dive even deeper into the films and stories they cherish.”

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TCM parent company Warner Bros. Discovery angered movie lovers last year when word emerged that TCM was facing massive budget and staff cuts as part of broader cost-saving measure across the company that is home to Warner Bros., HBO, CNN, TNT and other cablers. WB Discovery quickly reversed course on its TCM plans and recruited Spielberg, Scorsese and Anderson as consultants to help quiet the storm.

Highlights of 2024’s extensive programming include the recent release of the docuseries “The Power of Film” and the addition of a new franchise called “Two for One,” in which notable filmmakers co-host double features on Saturday nights. Hosts will include Scorsese, Spielberg, Anderson, Spike Lee, Patty Jenkins, Olivia Wilde, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Ethan Hawke, Todd Haynes and Maggie Gyllenhaal, among others.

TCM also plans to highlight key Hollywood-related anniversaries, such as the 100th birthday of Marlon Brando, and will delve into various special themes throughout the year, from the Hays Code to film composers to cultural celebrations.

The TCM Classic Film Festival takes place from April 18-21 in Hollywood and will celebrate the theme “Most Wanted: Crime and Justice in Film,” featuring a lineup of films including “Law and Order” (1932), “Only Yesterday” (1933), “It Happened One Night” (1934), “On the Waterfront” (1954) and more titles.

Additionally, the TCM Classic Cruise will take place from Oct. 26-31, leaving from Ft. Lauderdale, FL and stopping along the western Caribbean.

Visit TCM.com for more information on the network.

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