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Irish-themed Classics

TCM, beginning at 3 a.m.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! To help you get into a celebratory mood, Turner Classic Movies is airing several Irish-themed and/or -set films. The lineup begins early with Little Nellie Kelly (1940), a musical comedy based on George M. Cohan’s stage musical and starring Judy Garland as the title character. Among the tunes that Garland sings here are “It’s a Great Day for the Irish,” written for the film by Roger Edens, and “A Pretty Girl Milking Her Cow,” a traditional Irish ballad sung partly in Irish-gaelic. Up next is 1947’s Odd Man Out (pictured), a BAFTA Award-winning British film noir set

in Belfast and led by James Mason. After this comes a little break as TCM re-airs last night’s Noir Alley feature like it usually does at this time on Sundays (the film is Le Samouraï). Several more Irish-themed films then follow: The Rising of the Moon (1957), an anthology film containing three stories set in Ireland directed by John Ford; Flight of the Doves (1971), a British children’s movie shot in Ireland and based on the novel by Irish writer Walter Macken; Young Cassidy (1965), a British biographical drama based on the life of Irish playwright Seán O’casey (portrayed by Rod Taylor); Finian’s Rainbow (1968), a musical fantasy led by Fred Astaire and Petula Clark that was an Irish-american co-production and one of the earliest films from director Francis Ford Coppola; Far and Away (1992,

TCM premiere), director Ron Howard’s epic that follows Irish immigrants played by Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman as they seek their fortune in 1890s America; and The Quiet Man (1952), Best Director Oscar winner Ford’s Best Picture-nominated romantic comedy/drama led by John Wayne, Maureen O’hara, Barry Fitzgerald and Best Supporting Actor nominee Victor Mclaglen.

CAROL REED