NOIR CITY 23 - evening - January 21, 2026 - Wednesday

7:00 pm

Love Me or Leave Me

1955, MGM [Park Circus]. 122 min. Dir. Charles Vidor

The life of singer Ruth Etting gets the full noir treatment. Doris Day gives a powerhouse performance as Etting, both dramatically and vocally, while James Cagney chews the scenery as the gangster who refuses to let her out of his grasp. The film won the 1956 “Best Writing, Motion Picture Story” Oscar and “I’ll Never Stop Loving You” was nominated for Best Original Song.

9:20 pm

Pete Kelly’s Blues

1955, Warner Bros. [Park Circus]. 95 min. Dir. Jack Webb

Jack Webb pulls double-duty as director and star in the festival’s lone Technicolor offering. The titular bandleader refuses to bow to Prohibition-era bootleggers and is forced to watch as those closest to him fold under the pressure. With vocal powerhouses Ella Fitzgerald and Peggy Lee. Lee scored a 1956 Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for her performance as a boozy torch singer.

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Host or Publisher Film Noir Foundation