Retrofantasma Film Series Celebrates 11th Anniversary and Announces Schedule of Classic Double Features for January through June 2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 7, 2010
CONTACT: Aaron Bare
919-560-3040 x224
aaron@carolinatheatre.org

Durham, N.C. - The Carolina Theatre of Durham, Inc., has announced the schedule for the RETROFANTASMA FILM SERIES (RETRO) for January through June 2010. RETRO is a monthly film series that screens double features of classic horror, genre and cult films. November, 2009 marked the 11th anniversary of RETRO which is the second-longest running genre festival in the country. Screenings take place at the Carolina Theatre located at 309 W. Morgan Street in Downtown Durham. Tickets are $8, $6.25 for Star Members and are available at the theatre box office or online at www.carolinatheatre.org. Call 919-560-3030 to purchase tickets. Box office hours are weekdays from 11: 00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and from 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. and one-half hour prior to show time.
 
Created in 1998, RETRO is dedicated to bringing classic horror, genre and cult movies back to the big screen in 35mm. RETRO began with a screening of Friday the 13th Part II on Friday, November 13, 1998. On October 30, 1999, the tradition of double features began with screenings of Re-Animator and Bride of Re-Animator. Since then, RETRO has screened 156 classic horror movies while developing a large dedicated audience of movie enthusiasts whose desire to see their favorite terror flicks is matched only by their willingness to cheer at the screen. From John Carpenter to Dario Argento to Lucio Fulci, this diverse film series offers its audience a joyful jolt of terror and nostalgia.

RETRO fans enjoy the traditions that have built up over the years including the signature welcome trailer, classic movie trailers before each show and drawings to win door prizes that have included t-shirts, action figures, and autographed posters. For the 11th anniversary of RETRO, senior director Jim Carl has created a new action-packed, fast-paced welcome trailer. The unique Retro Trailer Experience, begun during the 10th anniversary will continue. Carl said, "The trailer rings are designed around the same year in which the feature presentation was released, meaning for example, that if you come to see Ghost Story at 7:00 p.m. on January 15th, you'll experience the same trailers that you might have seen if you'd been watching the film in a theatre in 1981. For Killer Klowns From Outer Space at 9:30 p.m. on March 19 you'll see trailers exclusive to 1988. We've picked some fantastic trailers! And stick around between films for the a sing-along, cartoons and more."

RETROFANTASMA FILM SERIES SCHEDULE
JANUARY THROUGH JUNE 2009

Friday, January 15 at 7:00 p.m.
Ghost Story
(US, 1981, R, 110 min)
The time has come to tell the tale.  Fred Astaire, John Houseman, Melvyn Douglas and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. play old friends who get together and tell ghost tales.  The scariest story of all is the one they never mention.  Fifty years ago, the four men accidentally killed a young woman, and now she's back (with much less meat on her bones) to seek vengeance.

Friday, January 15 at 9:30 p.m.
It Came...Without Warning
(US, 1980, R, 89 min)
Earth is the hunting ground.  Man is the endangered species.  Jack Palance, Martin Landau, Cameron Mitchell and a young David Caruso star in this hilarious, rarely-seen sci-fi horror gem that's never been released on DVD!  Made years before Predator, Without Warning features an 8-ft. tall alien who uses flesh-eating Frisbees (that look like hairy microwave pizzas) to capture human prey!

Friday, February 12 at 7:00 p.m.
The Howling
 (US, 1981, R, 91 min)
Imagine your worst fear a reality.  From the director of Gremlins comes the ultimate masterpiece of primal terror.  Severely traumatized by a near-fatal encounter with a serial killer, TV newscaster Karen White (Dee Wallace) takes refuge at a secluded wilderness retreat.  After nights of being tormented by bestial, bloodcurdling cries, Karen ventures into the woods and makes a terrifying discovery.  Now she must fight not only for her life but for her soul.

Friday, February 12 at 9:30 p.m.
Maximum Overdrive
(US, 1986, R, 97 min) 
The day horror went into overdrive.  Get ready for the ultimate battle of man vs. bloodthirsty machine in this terrifying Stephen King classic!  When Earth passes through the tail of a mysterious comet, all machines suddenly come to life and terrorize their human creators.  Now it's up to a small group of people trapped in a desolate truck stop to defeat the killer machines - or be killed by them!

Friday, March 19 at 7:00 p.m.
Lifeforce
 (UK, 1985, R, 110 min)
In the blink of an eye, the terror begins!  Tobe Hooper (Poltergeist) directs this thrilling sci-fi adventure about a mission to investigate Halley's Comet that discovers an alien spacecraft!  After a deadly confrontation, the aliens travel to Earth, where their seductive leader begins a terrifying campaign to drain the life force of everyone she encounters.

Friday, March 19 at 9:30 p.m.
Killer Klowns From Outer Space
(US, 1988, R, 88 min)
Finally the truth about clowns is out!  A spaceship disguised as a circus tent lands in a field near a small town, signaling the attack of deviant, red-nosed, balloon-twisting psychos from another world who plan to annihilate mankind by turning people into cotton candy!

Friday, April 23 at 7:00 p.m.
Videodrome
(Canada, 1983, R, 87 min)
Long live the new flesh!  When Max Renn goes looking for edgy new shows for his sleazy cable TV station, he stumbles across the pirate broadcast of a hyper-violent torture show.  As he unearths the origins of the program, he journeys into a shadow world of right-wing conspiracies and bodily transformation.  Videodrome is regarded as one of the most influential and mind-bending science fiction films of the 1980s.

Friday, April 23 at 9:30 p.m.
TerrorVision
(US, 1986, R, 83 min)
People of Earth, your planet is about to be destroyed...We're terribly sorry for the inconvenience.  When Stanley Putterman installs a satellite dish in his backyard, his family ends up getting a lot more than ESPN.  His satellite is a perfect receptor for extraterrestrial garbage zapped into his backyard: a hideous, two-ton alien blob with eyes and a never-ending appetite.

Friday, May 21 at 7:00 p.m.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2
(US, 1986, NR, 101 min)
The buzz is back!  From the director of the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre, this ghastly and hilarious sequel descends into your deepest, darkest fears as a wacked-out lawman (Dennis Hopper) goes after human meat-cutters with his own high-octane chainsaws in a horrific showdown with the legendary Leatherface and his entire cannibalistic family.

Friday, May 21 at 9:30 p.m.
Squirm
(US, 1976, R, 92 min)
When a powerful storm knocks Fly Creek, Georgia's power lines down onto wet soil, the resulting surge of electricity drives large, Bloodthirsty worms to the surface and then our of their soil-tilling minds!  Soon, the townspeople discover that their sleepy fishing village is overrun with worms that burrow right into their skin!

Friday, June 18 at 7:00 p.m.
It Came From Outer Space in 3-D
(US, 1953, NR, 81 min)
Terror in 3D...Reaching From The Screen To Seize You In Its Grasp!  This is director Jack Arnold's first science-fiction effort and one of the earliest to use a desert setting.  An astronomer and his fiancée witness a meteor crash-landing that turns out to be a spacecraft.  No one believes them until townspeople start disappearing.

Friday, June 18 at 9:30 p.m.
Invaders From Mars
(US, 1986, PG, 99 min)
There's no place on Earth to hide!  Face it: a movie in which Louise Fletcher eats a bullfrog can't be all that bad.  Tobe Hooper's remake of the 1953 classic is a total hoot, remaining loyal to the original while serving up a kaleidoscopic orgy of fang-toothed beasties, dazzling pyrotechnics and enough wretched dialogue to choke its enthusiastic cast.

Tickets for RETRO double features are $8 and $6.25 for Star Members and are available at the theatre box office or online at www.carolinatheatre.org. Call 919-560-3030 to purchase tickets. Box office hours are weekdays from 11: 00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and from 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. and one-half hour prior to show time. The box office is located at 309 West Morgan Street in downtown Durham.  Complete information for all Retro screenings is available at the official website: http://festivals.carolinatheatre.org/retrofantasma.

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About The Carolina Theatre of Durham

The Carolina Theatre of Durham, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization which manages the city-owned Carolina Theatre at 309 W. Morgan Street, Durham, NC 27701. Carolina Theatre of Durham, Inc. is dedicated to presenting vibrant, thought-provoking film and live performances that contribute to the cultural and economic vitality of downtown Durham and the Triangle Region.
 
Live performances at the Carolina Theatre are supported in part by the North Carolina Arts Council, an agency funded by the state of North Carolina, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the A.J. Fletcher Performing Arts Fund of the Triangle Community Foundation.