Mae West

A documentary reflecting on women in film and the entertainment industry through the ages led and hosted by some of its most beloved female icons.

Myron Breckinridge flies to Europe to get a sex-change operation and is transformed into the beautiful Myra. She travels to Hollywood, meets up with her rich Uncle Buck and, claiming to be Myron's widow, demands money. Instead, Buck gives Myra a job in his acting school. There, Myra meets aspiring actor Rusty and his girlfriend, Mary Ann. With Myra as catalyst, the trio begin to outrageously expand their sexual horizons.

From the A&E "Biography" series, a review of the birth, development and cinematic history of Betty Boop, the flapper cartoon character who has been a popular icon since the 1930s.

Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Peter Fonda host an examination of the history of decency standards for movies from the early 1920s onwards.

On the day of her wedding to her sixth husband, glamorous silver screen sex symbol Marlo Manners is sought to intervene in a political dispute between nations, which leads to chaos.

Film archivist and former director of the San Francisco Lesbian and Gay Film Festival Jenni Olson created this fast-paced and often funny, campy 75-minute film comprised entirely of spliced together movie trailers. Some of the segments have themes such as a breezy look back at John Travolta's career that includes trailers from such films as Saturday Night Fever, Staying Alive, Grease, Perfect, and Moment by Moment. Other trailers include Mae West in Sextette, the disco camper Thank God It's Friday, Raquel Welch in Kansas City Bomber, Pier Paolo Pasolini's The Gospel According to St. Matthew and the rarely seen Chastity, the serious acting debut of Cher.

Before the G, PG and R ratings system there was the Production Code, and before that there was, well, nothing. This eye-opening documentary examines the rampant sexuality of early Hollywood through movie clips and reminiscences by stars of the era. Gloria Swanson, Mary Pickford, Marlene Dietrich and others relate tales of the artistic freedom that led to the draconian Production Code, which governed content from 1934 to 1968. Diane Lane narrates.

For the first time one of Hollywood's greatest stars tells his own story, in his own words. From a childhood of poverty to global fame, Cary Grant, the ultimate self-made star, explores his own screen image and what it took to create it.

Bold performer Tira works as dancing beauty and lion tamer at a fair. Out of an urgent financial need, she agrees to a risky new number: she'll put her head into the lion's mouth! With this attraction, the circus makes it to New York and Tira can pursue her dearest occupation — flirting with rich men and accepting expensive presents.

Robert Preston hosts this documentary that shows what people of the 1930s were watching as they were battling the Depression as well as eventually getting ready for another World War.

Profiles the life of performer Hattie McDaniel, the first Black American to win an Oscar, and her unapologetic resilience in the face of critics.

Out-takes (mostly from Warner Bros.), promotional shorts, movie premieres, public service pleas, wardrobe tests, documentary material, and archival footage make up this star-studded voyeuristic look at the Golden age of Hollywood during the 30s, 40, and 50.

Period music, film clips and newsreel footage combined into a visual exploration of the American entertainment industry during the Great Depression.

Born in Mexico, Anthony Quinn became the family's main provider when his father died in an accident. Thus began the story of a man who had a thousand jobs before acting in a Cecil B. DeMille film…

The story of how Norma Jeane Mortenson became Marilyn Monroe (1926-62), a lucid path of self-discovery, from anonymity to stardom: the painful birth of a myth.

A retrospective of the life and career of actor Cary Grant, including clips from his films and interviews with his friends and co-workers.

New York singer and nightclub owner Lady Lou has more male friends than can be imagined. One is a vicious escaped criminal on the way to see 'his' girl, unaware she hasn't exactly been faithful in his absence. Help is at hand in the form of young Captain Cummings, a local temperance league leader.

"Cleavage" is an uplifting and informative journey to the most eye-catching destination on earth: The space between a woman's breasts. Cleavage is what happens when breasts collide--a merger that at once fascinates, scandalizes, and mesmerizes. Cleavage makes movie & pop stars, enriches surgeons, tempts politicians, and dominates fashion. When breasts are lifted and pushed together, all of society rubbernecks.

In turn-of-the-century New York City, con artist Peaches O'Day befriends Captain Jim McCarey, a cop who must turn her in unless she leaves town. The clever Peaches returns transformed as sultry brunette and Parisian sensation Mademoiselle Fifi. After catching her show, a crooked mayoral candidate tries to shut it down when Peaches demurely declines his romantic overtures. McCarey jumps in the race for mayor, and the loyal Peaches fervently campaigns for him.

Looks at the stereotype-breaking films of the period from 1929, when movies entered the sound era, until 1934 when the Hays Code virtually neutered film content. No longer portrayed as virgins or vamps, the liberated female of the pre-code films had dimensions. Good girls had lovers and babies and held down jobs, while the bad girls were cast in a sympathetic light. And they did it all without apology.

In the aftermath of Stonewall, a newly politicized Vito Russo found his voice as a gay activist and critic of LGBTQ+ representation in the media. He went on to write "The Celluloid Closet", the first book to critique Hollywood's portrayals of gays on screen. During the AIDS crisis in the 1980s, Vito became a passionate advocate for justice via the newly formed ACT UP, before his death in 1990.

Essentially an advertisement for Murder at the Vanities (1934). Features Chico Marx, W.C. Fields, Duke Ellington and many others.

An unprecedented anthology of never-before-told true stories by and about some of Hollywood's most interesting stars, legends, and wannabes, and takes readers inside Hollywood's inner sanctum to show how casting decisions are made, who makes them, and who has the final word.

Nightclub entertainer Ruby Carter moves from St. Louis to New Orleans to escape Tiger Kid. At Ace Lamont's club, she gains fame but faces drama with Ace's ex Molly. A jewel theft and fixed fight lead to confrontations.

Bold performer Tira works as dancing beauty and lion tamer at a fair. Out of an urgent financial need, she agrees to a risky new number: she'll put her head into the lion's mouth! With this attraction, the circus makes it to New York and Tira can pursue her dearest occupation — flirting with rich men and accepting expensive presents.

New York singer and nightclub owner Lady Lou has more male friends than can be imagined. One is a vicious escaped criminal on the way to see 'his' girl, unaware she hasn't exactly been faithful in his absence. Help is at hand in the form of young Captain Cummings, a local temperance league leader.

In turn-of-the-century New York City, con artist Peaches O'Day befriends Captain Jim McCarey, a cop who must turn her in unless she leaves town. The clever Peaches returns transformed as sultry brunette and Parisian sensation Mademoiselle Fifi. After catching her show, a crooked mayoral candidate tries to shut it down when Peaches demurely declines his romantic overtures. McCarey jumps in the race for mayor, and the loyal Peaches fervently campaigns for him.

Nightclub entertainer Ruby Carter moves from St. Louis to New Orleans to escape Tiger Kid. At Ace Lamont's club, she gains fame but faces drama with Ace's ex Molly. A jewel theft and fixed fight lead to confrontations.

On her way by stagecoach to visit relatives out west, Flower Belle Lee is held up by a masked bandit who also takes the coach's shipment of gold. When he abducts Flower Belle and they arrive in town, Flower Belle is suspected of being in collusion with the bandit.

When her fiancé is killed, dancehall queen Cleo Borden inherits his wealth. Included are oil wells overseen by British engineer Carrington, whom Cleo sets out to win by becoming a 'lady'. She horseraces in Buenos Aires, gains social position by loveless marriage to bankrupt Colton, and even performs in an opera. But when she encounters Carrington again, he's become the Earl of Stratton!

Singer Rose Carlton, otherwise known as 'The San Francisco Doll', accidentally kills her controlling boyfriend when he tries to prevent her from leaving. To evade the police, Rose sets sail for Nome with captain Bull Bracket. When the ship takes on another passenger, reformer Annie Alden, Carlton's life is changed forever, and she sets out to honor a deeply personal debt.

Sensational movie star Mavis Arden's following spans the world and her personal appearance tours prove her popularity. On her way home from one such appearance, Mavis' car breaks down. She orders her publicity agent to find her a place to stay, suspicious that he planned the breakdown to keep her away from a man. However, she soon finds herself mooning over an attractive local repairman and listening to his ideas about inventing equipment for film.