A Night at the Opera
For the holiday season, we are presenting three films that will put a smile on your face, while bringing a delightful breath of anarchy and impertinence. To be enjoyed individually or together: You Can't Take It with You, Frank Capra’s wonderful fable where solidarity and nonconformity triumph over the powerful; A Night at the Opera, the Marx Brothers’ hilarious adventure, which sweeps away all traces of proper conduct and snobbery; and the black comedy Santa Claus is a Stinker, in which every line has become a cult classic.
Preserved in our collections
Following an invitation, a wealthy lady makes a donation to the opera house to enable the hiring of an Italian tenor.
Sam Wood
Sam Wood was an American film director and producer, best known for having directed such Hollywood hits as A Night at the Opera (1935), A Day at the Races (1937), Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939), The Pride of the Yankees (1942), For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943), and for his uncredited work directing parts of Gone with the Wind (1939). As a youth, he developed an enthusiasm for physical fitness that persisted into his senior years and influenced his interest in making sports-themed films. Wood advanced from making largely competent yet routine pictures in the 1920s and 1930s to directing several highly regarded works during the 1940s at the peak of his abilities. His quick, efficient and professional execution of his film assignments endeared him to studio executives, and though not a "brilliant" director, his legacy represents "a long and respectable film career."
