US
2006
94 minutes
Director: Alex Hinton

A presentation of Pittsburgh Lesbian and Gay Film Society in association with The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. Tickets can only purchased through www.pgharts.com

Hollywood’s first golden boy, Tab Hunter, shares his personal experiences as a 1950s-era Hollywood screen idol in “An Evening With Tab Hunter” at the Byham Theater, 7:00pm on Thursday, October 26. Pittsburgh Lesbian and Gay Film Society in association with The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust proudly presents this exclusive, multi-faceted evening, featuring an onstage conversation with Tab Hunter and Eddie Muller, an audience Q&A, intimate book signing opportunity, and the World Premiere screening of a newly restored beach movie classic, Ride the Wild Surf.

Having starred in over 50 major motion pictures, including Damn Yankees, Gunman’s Walk, and Polyester, Tab Hunter has been directed by such filmmaking legends as John Huston, Sidney Lumet, Curtis Hanson and John Waters, while also enjoying a successful recording career underscored by a hit record and Billboard chart-topper (Young Love) that elevated his shining star. The multi-talented studio icon’s film career featured such on-screen leading ladies as Sophia Loren, Natalie Wood, and Rita Hayworth but, in reality, Tab’s boy-next-door charm and handsome heartthrob looks drew him adoring fans and admirers in women and men alike. In retrospect, Tab Hunter’s personal life as a closeted gay man often differed from his studio-shaped public image, from the off-screen romance with Anthony Perkins to his devoted commitment to a partner of twenty-plus years.

The details of these experiences are recounted in his acclaimed autobiography, Tab Hunter Confidential: The Making of a Movie Star, co-authored by Eddie Muller and critically lauded by the New York Times, Daily Variety, San Francisco Chronicle, Washington Post, Vanity Fair, Entertainment Weekly, New York Post, Good Morning America, Larry King Live, CBS Sunday Morning and dozens more. Eddie Muller, a frequent DVD commentator and an authority on film noir, is the author of three books on the subject, as well as two mystery novels.

Filmed at the height of Tab Hunter’s movie career, Ride the Wild Surf (1964) (co-starring PA native Fabian, Shelley Fabares, James Mitchum and Barbara Eden, and directed by Freeport, PA native Don Taylor) captures the screen-idealized fun of the 1960s summer sun, replete with bikini-clad beach bunnies, smooth and stylin’ surf hunks, wet and wild wipeout waves, and a groovin’ surf guitar soundtrack. Tab’s character, “Steamer Lane,” finds himself confronted by adulthood obligations and romantic commitments as the line between teenage revelry and adult responsibility is drawn in the sand, all on the eve of a climactic surf-off! Sony Pictures Entertainment finished a complete restoration this year, from which this never-before-seen 35mm print has been struck.

Admission to “An Evening With Tab Hunter” screening, onstage interview, Q&A and book signing is reserved seating, priced $25, $20, $10. For questions about this event or for more ticket information, please contact the Box Office at Theater Square at (412) 456-6666, or visit http://www.pgharts.org.