Oddball Films presents Monkey Time, a night of antique 16mm simian insanity from the archive. In this program we examine and explore the hilarious and sublime lengths humans go to entertain us via these proxy mammals. Before the heyday of television and the domination of cinema, vaudeville, theater, circus acts, magic shows, impossible and death-defying stunts were all that amused thrill-seeking audiences across the US. Animal acts were a big hit and monkeys basked in their glory. Hollywood primate Zippy the Chimp almost has his birthday party ruined by a bully, until quits monkeying around and gets revenge in Zippy's Birthday Party (1950s). Zippy then hits the big top in Small Fry Circus (1956). Monkeys do all kinds of crazy things like fixing cars and running film cameras in Monkies is the Cwaziest People! (1939). Monkey spy, monkey do with Lancelot Link Secret Chimp (1971), the crime-fighting slapstick simian. The range ain't no place for monkeying around, but one cow-chimp will have to make do in Chimp the Cowboy (1937) starring Shorty the Chimp. See how these plucky primates learn to do what they do in Chimps in Training and Show Business (1950s). Tiny capuchin monkeys zoom around the track in tiny little race cars in Monkey Go 'Round (1961). Make sure to meet Rikki: The Baby Monkey (1949), a little rhesus in the wild, and listen to the music with The Monkey and the Organ Grinder (1971). Plus, more simian surprises for the early birds.
Date: Friday, December 4th, 2015 at 8:00pm
Venue: Oddball Films, 275 Capp Street San Francisco
Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp (Color, 1971) in “To Tell the Tooth”.
Get Smart meets James Bond in this chimptastic TV spy spoof as the top agent of APE (Agency to Prevent Evil) detective Lance Link discovers a dentist working for C.H.U.M.P. (Criminal Headquarters for Underworld Master Plan) has been inserting secret radio transmitters into the teeth of military officials.
Monkies is the Cwaziest People!(B+W, 1939)
Part of Lew Lehr's "Dribble-Puss Parade" this odd and ridiculous short shows trained chimps doing all kinds of "people" things like cinematography, tooth brushing, fixing cars, carpentry and the obligatory riding on tricycles!
Zippy's Birthday Party (B+W, 1950s)
It's primate powerhouse Zippy the Chimp's birthday and he wants nothing more than a party with his friends. Everyone's having a grand old time, in their pretty party dresses, watching zippy roller skate in a white tuxedo and open his presents; until the town bully comes to the party with a jack in the box and a bad attitude. When the bully steals Zippy's cake, the birthday boy is done monkeying around and plots a sinister (especially for a children's film) revenge on the human child. Not necessarily the best lesson we've learned, but revenge by bodily harm certainly is sweet when administered by a chimpanzee.
Chimp the Cowboy (1937)
A mischievous chimp comedy featuring "Shorty", a trained chimp donning various costumes playing multiple “career” roles. In this western spoof, Shorty must fight off a group of bandits!
Small Fry Circus (B+W, 1956)
Zippy the anthropomorphic, clothes-wearing chimp is back and he's ready to help out the kids who have gathered together to put on a circus. With Zippy as the main attraction, it's sure to be a hit!
Chimps in Training and Show Business (B+W, 1950s)
Watch them get trained for circus and onstage action!
Monkey Go 'Round (B+W, 1961)
Tiny monkeys in tiny racecars! A retired circus performer in Germany falls on hard times. His family is made up of little capuchin monkeys, whom he can’t afford to feed anymore and is thinking of sending to a zoo. The monkeys repair the mini cars they had used in their old circus act and perform in a new act racing the cars on a mini race track. The crowd loves them. They sign a contract to start performing their show around the world.
Rikki: The Baby Monkey (B+W, 1949)
Tag along with a tiny rhesus baby as he hangs out with his family, has breakfast, and goes on an exciting adventure in the wild.
The Monkey and the Organ Grinder (Color, 1971)
"Traces a typical day in the life of three monkeys and their organ-grinder master, Bob Jones. As Bob plays lively tunes in the shopping section of a large city, Coco takes coins from passerby and tips his hat for silver. The sensitive photography in this non-narrative film suggests to children what it must be like to be a gentle man who is closer to his animal friends than to other people but who enjoys bringing pleasure to children as he moves about the city." - Publisher's Catalog.
For the Early Birds:
Monkey Tale with Marquis the Chimpanzee and Family (B+W, 1952)
Produced by the New Zealand National Film Unit for their national Transport Department, this bike safety film features “Marquis the Chimp and Family” as they reallymonkey around on their bikes!
Zippy the Chimp in Hot Shot Zero (B+W, 1950s)
Poor destitute Zippy in a shirt, overalls, a hat, a bindle stiff and his pet dog wander the street looking for food. He’s homeless and not treated kindly. But Zippy steps up saves little child on a runaway carriage that’s about to be hit by a train by mounting a horse and chasing after him. Crooks try to blow up the safe at the railroad station. A killer turtle comes out of its kennel/ doghouse which has the word “beware” over it. The chimp attaches a candle to its back and it causes an explosion in the badguys hideout.
About Oddball Films
Oddball films is a stock footage company providing offbeat and unusual film footage for feature films like Milk, documentaries like The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution, Silicon Valley, Kurt Cobain: The Montage of Heck, television programs like Mythbusters, clips for Boing Boing and web projects around the world.
Our screenings are almost exclusively drawn from our collection of over 50,000 16mm prints of animation, commercials, educational films, feature films, movie trailers, medical, industrial military, news out-takes and every genre in between. We’re actively working to present rarely screened genres of cinema as well as avant-garde and ethno-cultural documentaries, which expand the boundaries of cinema. Oddball Films is the largest film archive in Northern California and one of the most unusual private collections in the US. We invite you to join us in our weekly offerings of offbeat cinema.
