TCM Spotlight: Juvenile Delinquents: School’s a Drag
TCM, beginning at 7 p.m.
School may be out for the summer in many cases, but three months of idle time can lead to trouble for some kids, including the ones seen in the movies featured each Thursday night this month on Turner Classic Movies. The June spotlight is on cinematic juvenile delinquents, with lineups featuring titles that fall into various themes. The initial theme for tonight’s programming block is “School’s a Drag,” with a number of films featuring youngsters who don’t care too much for the classroom or teachers’ authority. The evening begins with the 1958 cult classic “High School Confidential!” (pictured), with Russ Tamblyn as a young police officer who goes undercover as a high school student to infiltrate a drug ring. Mamie Van Doren also stars in the film, which features a cameo by rocker Jerry Lee Lewis, who performs the hit title song. Another classic tune of the early rock ‘n’ roll era can be heard in tonight’s next film, the Oscar-nominated “Blackboard Jungle” (1955), whose soundtrack gave Bill Haley and His Comets’ “Rock Around the Clock” more exposure and turned it into a hit. The film also featured a breakout performance by Sidney Poitier as a rebellious but musically talented student. Poitier also stars in tonight’s next feature, “To Sir, With Love” (1967), this time playing a teacher who tries to win over a classroom of rowdy students at a school in London’s tough East End. The rest of tonight’s curriculum includes: “High School Hellcats” (1958); “Diary of a High School Bride” (1959, network premiere); “The Careless Years” (1957); and “Street of Sinners” (1957).