“To Catch a Thief” steals into the new year

Movie Night at the Museum begins the year with a showing of the 1955 romantic thriller “To Catch a Thief” starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. The film screens 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 24, at the Northwest Montana History Museum. 

John “The Cat” Robie (Cary Grant) no longer steals for a living. The former jewel thief is happily living on the French Riviera, tending his vineyards and enjoying the good life when a string of burglaries cause the police to suspect that Robie is up to his old tricks again. Facing arrest for crimes he did not commit, Robie realizes that the only way he can prove his innocence is to find and catch the actual thief. 

Thinking like a burglar once again, Robie identifies the individuals and families living and visiting the area whose wealth and possessions make them the most lucrative targets. That list includes a rich American tourist Jessie Stevens (Jessie Royce Landis) and her daughter Frances (Grace Kelly). Robie strikes up an acquaintance with both ladies and from there, the story moves through plot twists and turns that only writer-producer Alfred Hitchcock could create.

When he was offered the role of Robie, Grant, like his character in the movie, had retired. But after accepting the role, he continued to remain active in the movie business for 11 more years. 

This film is the third film in which Hitchcock featured Kelly as the leading lady, citing her “elegant sexiness” as a reason he selected her for the role.  

Admission and popcorn are free, but donations are accepted to defray costs. Soda pop, water, beer and wine are available for purchase. Seating is provided, but viewers can bring their own cushions or seating if they like.

Located in the former Central School in Kalispell, the Northwest Montana History Museum brings the past alive through exhibits, artifacts, educational programs and events. Regular museum hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays at 124 Second Ave. E., Kalispell. Call 406-756-8381 or visit nwmthistory.org for more.

Amy Grisak presents on “History of Fire Lookouts in Northwest Montana”

Author, radio co-host, and sustainable-food practitioner Amy Grisak will present her years of research on fire lookouts of Glacier National Park and Northwest Montana as part of the museum’s 21st annual John White Series.

Grisak will cover fire suppression efforts and events starting with the Big Burn of 1910, which consumed 3 million acres and 87 lives, prompting creation of the lookout system. In Northwest Montana, with its predominant logging industry, such measures were critical to the economy and livelihoods of the area. “It’s one thing to learn about the number of acres burned,” she says, “and another to learn the personal stories.”

“I’m a fire-lookout nut,” says Grisak, who has hiked into many existing lookouts, such as trekking the 11 miles to Huckleberry Lookout in Glacier National Park. She also will present information and images of fire lookouts that have been lost along with ones such as Hornet, which marked a century this year up in the North Fork.

A former resident of Coram, where she built 220 raised garden beds out of stone on her property, Grisak now lives in Great Falls, where she co-hosts the radio program Front Range Outdoors and writes books and articles. She will sign copies of her Nature Guide to Glacier and Waterton Lakes National Parks and Found Photos of Yellowstone at the event.

The John White Series is named for John Whites Sr. and Jr., whose friendly faces warmed up Kalispell and area learners for decades. 

Details:
2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 15; half-hour social time and refreshments after the presentation.

Tickets for individual events are $15 (members)/$20 (nonmembers).

Visit nwmthistory.org/programs/john-white-speaker-series for tickets and more info. Tickets also may be purchased by stopping in or calling the museum and talking with Terri or Margaret, 406-756-8381 option 5 or 6.

Regular museum hours:
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday
Northwest Montana History Museum, 124 Second Ave. East, Kalispell, MT 59901; 406-756-8381; nwmthistory.org

Experts set to expound

We have four wintry Sundays of fun on tap, through Feb. 26.

Amy Grisak (second from right) works in words, radio, and her backyard “farm” in Great Falls. She launches the series Jan. 15 with a talk on historic fire lookouts of Northwest Montana, one of which—Hornet Lookout, 45 miles north of Columbia Falls—just marked a century.

On Jan. 29 Jim and Randy Mohn (second from left) present a program you won’t find anywhere else: a review of Kalispell’s historic theater scene.

After decades as a wildlife biologist, John Fraley (right) turned to writing books. At first he focused on historical figures of Glacier National Park and the Bob Marshall Wilderness. Now he’s turned his keen eye on himself. His fifth book, My Wilderness Life, is just that: a reflection on a life spent nagivating and making sense of the natural world. Hear how his story made it to the page, and about the people and sights that inspired him along the way on Feb. 5.

Maritime archaeology photographer Kyren Zimmerman (left) goes deep to find his subjects, which lurk under the surface of Flathead Lake and other waters. He talks Feb. 26 on what lies beneath. From sunken boats to train cars, he takes his passion for noninvasive marine photography to a technical level. He converts image files into 3D renderings and uses an ROV (remote-operated vehicle) to document and photograph his finds. Zimmerman has traveled as far as Fiji and the Channel Islands and all over Montana to work and hone his skills, always innovating.

Visit nwmthistory.org/programs/john-white-speaker-series/ for tickets and info. All talks start at 2 p.m. and are followed by a Q&A and a half-hour casual social time.

A note about tickets: You can order the series online or individual tickets through the link above, or you can call Terri or Margaret (406-756-8381 option 5 or 6, respectively) or come by the museum 10 to 5 Monday through Friday.

Kalispell turns out for new exhibits

“Norris Road,” by Jeff Corwin

The uniforms stand at the ready in our new “10 Items” exhibit focusing on “The Way We Wore.” You’ll never see a cleaner Dairy Queen getup. Also featured: Oddfellows gear, hats for many occasions, and a meter maid outfit (including the incredibly courteous note that out -of-town visitors received despite lack of parking skill). Dozens turned out at the opening Dec. 15 to see the new offerings and share in some holiday cheer. With the area foresters partying on the second floor, it was quite a lively night.

Also downtstairs and across the hall from the uniforms, Jeff Corwin’s photography of Western landscapes, many of them Montanan, show vistas from all over, including Norris (above).

Corwin’s photography stays up through April, the uniforms through August.

However, you might as well visit soon because our decorations and bits of holiday history that appeared in every room–courtesy volunteers and a hundred schoolkids from Bigfork to Kalispell–many only be up for another week or two. Don’t miss ’em!

The holiday party runs for a month

If you missed our open house Dec. 1, never fear: The decorations stay up through December.

Volunteers led the effort to have dozens of kids from Kalispell to Bigfork decorate our museum, as explained in-depth by reporter Hilary Matheson at the Daily Inter Lake (https://dailyinterlake.com/news/2022/dec/01/local-youths-help-decorate-museum-history-mind/).

Every room received a festive, historic, and regional touch, from information about how Montana trees went to Washington, D.C., to holiday celebrations by Glacier National Park employees.

Come visit, and see for yourself. Happy Holidays!

Montana landscape photography

Exhibits focus on Montana landscape and “The Way We Wore”

“Landscapes of the American West: Photography of Jeff Corwin” Dec. 15, 2022-April 30, 2033
“10 Items: The Way We Wore” Dec. 15, 2022-August 31, 2033

Join us for an opening reception 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 15, 2022, at the Northwest Montana History Museum.

On Dec. 15, museum visitors will get two exhibits for the price of none as the Northwest Montana History Museum opens new shows in its two temporary-exhibit spaces.

After 40-plus years working in commercial photography around the world, Montana photographer Jeff Corwin turned to fine art and found inspiration in landscape. Of the 17 pieces in “Landscapes of the American West,” most feature rural views of Montana, including areas near Sourdough, Dillon, Livingston and Wilsall. Two images are of Eastern Washington.

A vacation near Ennis planted the seed for Corwin’s move to east of Bozeman. Now he lives in Cardwell, where he’s building a house. Even so, Corwin says, “I go out and shoot every day.”

His work speaks to the quieter country. “I tend towards the emptiness of landscapes, not the glory of mountains and meadow and late afternoon light,” he says. “I don’t seek out that emptiness, but after so many years, just react to it.”

From a pillowlike snowfield constrained only by a fence in Bozeman, to the lush green leadup to a low butte in Rapelje, Corwin finds much to focus on and frame in his Montana journey.

“The Way We Wore” represents the latest in the “10 Items” installations for which curators take a roundabout look at the collection and present a select group to illustrate a certain theme.

Volunteers Judy Elwood and Sharon Bristow and board member Jane Renfrow will put on display a selection of uniforms connected to the Flathead Valley.

Most of us know the psychological impact of pride felt at the act of putting on a uniform, whether enlisting in military service or joining a sports team or club. The people who wore the uniforms included in the exhibit must have felt a similar thrill. They signaled the high honor of belonging.

The uniforms prepared for the exhibit range from a 1950s Boy Scout uniform and a nurse’s cape and cap to school gym clothing and a band uniform from the Kalispell Fire Department. Also included: a ceremonial coat that belonged to Judge Joseph E. Rockwood, a member of the Patriarchs Militant of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Rockwood served two terms as a judge in the 11th Judicial District, then two terms in the Montana House of Representatives. His 1920s home, on the National Register of Historic Places, stands at 835 First Ave. East.

Details:
5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 15, 2022; free admission
Northwest Montana History Museum, 124 Second Ave. East, Kalispell; 406-756-8381

Come on out to Northwest Montana History Museum’s open house

The Northwest Montana History Museum will open its doors to the community for the museum’s annual holiday open house 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 1. Admission is free.

“This event is the perfect way for everyone to start the holiday season,” museum executive director Margaret Davis said. “We’ve got a lot of fun planned for the evening, and we expect a great turnout.”

Highlights of the evening include a kids’ reading soon after the doors open of Jo Parry’s ’Twas the Night Before Christmas in Montana, followed by a presentation at 6:15 p.m. by Ferndale author Leslie Budewitz, who has written more than a dozen books, including the Spice Shop and Food Lovers’ Village mysteries. This will be the first Kalispell book signing for her latest title, Blind Faith.

In addition, Flathead Valley favorite John Fraley returns to the museum book and gift shop to sign copies of his books, including his newly published My Wilderness Life. A history writer and wildlife biologist, this is Fraley’s first account of his personal experiences in the wild.

Of course, the open house is an opportunity for guests to explore the main event: the museum’s exhibits themselves, which cover many aspects of Kalispell and Northwest Montana history and life in the Flathead Valley and beyond.

“Our open house is a wonderful example of community collaboration and our ongoing commitment to education and preserving history,” Davis said. “We will have new holiday displays for which nearly a hundred kids from scouting groups, Bigfork ACES after-school program, and Kalispell Middle School are creating ornaments and other decorative elements, many based on their own class research.

“It is exciting to see this all come together,” she said. “I can’t wait to see the community response to the great work these kids, their leaders, and our volunteers are doing together.”

Refreshments will be served, including fun treats drawn from the recipes in Budewitz’s holiday mysteries Peppermint Barked and As the Christmas Cookie Crumbles.

Chuck Suchy concert

Live in Concert: Chuck Suchy

North Dakota’s official state troubadour Chuck Suchy – also a good friend of the Northwest Montana History Museum’s late ambassador Pete Skibsrud – comes to perform 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5, at the Northwest Montana History Museum.

A folk musician, songwriter and farmer from Mandan, N.D., Suchy has released seven albums, many on the well-known Flying Fish label, with songs ranging from ones that celebrate Burma-Shave road signs (“Burma Shave Boogie”), a 15-year-old who died saving her siblings during a 1920 snowstorm (“The Story of Hazel Miner”) and Indian motorcycles and father-son relationships (“Indian Dreamer”).

Suchy brings high-plains music, ace guitar work and emotive singing for an event that honors his friend Skibsrud, whom he met while performing in Kalispell about 15 years ago. “I was doing concerts at the KM theater downtown, and at one of the first ones he just showed up,” Suchy remembers. “We visited afterwards and then he wrote me a letter of appreciation. He offered to put up posters, take tickets, sell CDs for me – in true Pete fashion.”

Skibsrud, who died at 76 in November 2021, lived simply and expansively. He often made the rounds in downtown Kalispell, undertaking special projects for his causes, and making friends wherever he went. His maverick ideas, such as buying the Old Steel Bridge, led to the creation of large-scale art.

“I knew of no one more dedicated to the Kalispell and Flathead Valley community than Pete Skibsrud,” says Jacob Thomas, former executive director of the Northwest Montana History Museum, who will introduce Suchy on Nov. 5. “Not only did he always volunteer to lend a hand whenever needed, but he actively sought out reasons to be helpful and involved. Pete meant a great deal to a number of nonprofits and organizations around the valley, the Northwest Montana History Museum being just one of many.”

Come honor the memory of Skibsrud and feed your soul and ears with original music.

Details:
6:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5
Northwest Montana History Museum, 124 Second Ave. East, Kalispell, MT 59901; 406-756-8381
A donation of $15 is suggested to cover Suchy’s travel expenses and support the museum, one of Skibsrud’s favorite causes.

“Kalispell: Montana’s Eden” Grand Opening

About 3,500 people came down to the freshly laid railroad tracks in the center of Kalispell on New Year’s Day, 1892, to celebrate the completion of the Great Northern line to St. Paul. Kalispell was officially incorporated as a city a short time later, in April. The earliest occupations in Kalispell related to agriculture, flour milling, and the lumber industry. Traffic in town slowly shifted toward tourism as Kalispell became the Gateway to Glacier National Park.

The railroad brought Northwest Montana into the larger world; now, for the first time ever, the Northwest Montana History Museum tells the story of Kalispell in a permanent exhibit that brings the early town to life. “Kalispell: Montana’s Eden” details the story of this thriving city, from the railroad’s arrival up to the present day. Highlights of the display include a 20-foot-long model of Kalispell’s 1892 Great Northern railroad depot, a movie projector from the old Orpheum theatre, the first printing press of the Daily Inter Lake, THE OLDEST BALD EAGLES IN THE WORLD, and hundreds more historic artifacts!

As the largest exhibition curated in the past 12 years at the Northwest Montana History Museum, “Kalispell: Montana’s Eden” is a project more than three years in the making and the museum’s most ambitious undertaking in decades.

Everyone is invited to attend the free opening reception for “Kalispell: Montana’s Eden” from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, June 30.  We will serve the same period-appropriate snacks that the revelers would have enjoyed in 1892. To add extra pomp and circumstance to this occasion, the fine folks at Portal Spirits Distillery have come up with historically inspired drink recipes that they will pour for guests at the reception.

“We Burn Like This”: A Flathead Valley Film Premiere plus Q&A with Director Alana Waksman

Filmed in Billings, Butte, and Missoula in 2019 and following its world premiere at the 2021 Santa Barbara International Film Festival, international premiere at Deauville American Film Festival, and year-long film festival tour, “We Burn Like This” comes home to Montana audiences at the Northwest Montana History Museum on June 12.

The “We Burn Like This” Montana tour kicks off on June 9 in Billings at the historic Babcock Theatre, with stops in Livingston, Bozeman, Anaconda, Kalispell, Helena, and Missoula. Writer/director/producer Alana Waksman will be in attendance for a Q&A following the screenings with cast and crew joining her for select showings.

“We Burn Like This” is a coming-of-age story of Rae (Madeleine Coghlan), a young Jewish woman living in Billings, Montana and is written, directed, and produced by Alana Waksman in her feature debut. The film stars Madeleine Coghlan (THE ROOKIE) and Gotham Award and Indie Spirit Award winner Devery Jacobs (RESERVATION DOGS). Also featured are Montana-based actors Kendra Mylnechuk, Casidee Riley, Angelo Rizzo, and Megan Folsom. The film is produced and edited by Billings native Marshall Granger, produced by Montana native Jeri Rafter, and executive produced by Peabody and Emmy award winning producer Neda Armian (RACHEL GETTING MARRIED, THE BALLAD OF LEFTY BROWN) and Eleanor Nett.

When 22 year-old Rae, a descendant of Holocaust survivors, is targeted by Neo-Nazis in Billings, Montana, her ancestors’ trauma becomes real. Inspired by true events, this coming-of-age story shows the inherited effects of historical trauma and the strength of survival and healing.
Waksman’s own family history, as well as the spread of antisemitism in Montana, is what inspired her to write this story.

“We Burn Like This” is a recipient of the Big Sky Film Grant, Montana Arts Council Strategic Investment Grant, State Trade Expansion Program Grant from Montana Department of Commerce, Visit Billings Association Grant, and is now sponsored by Montana Film Office and Humanities Montana for its Montana Tour. “We Burn Like This” received the Audience Choice Award at the 2021 Montana International Film Festival among other noteworthy awards this past year.
“We Burn Like This” writer/director/producer Alana Waksman will be in attendance for the screening on June 12th and will host a special Q & A after the film.
Alana Waksman is an Ashkenazi writer, director, producer, and first generation descendant of Holocaust survivors from Poland. She is an alum of the USC School of Cinematic Arts MFA in Film & Television Production, and Connecticut College BA in Theater and English. As an actor, she trained at Shakespeare & Company, Berkshire Theater Festival, St. Petersburg Dramatic Arts Academy in Russia, and The O’Neill National Theater Institute where she studied under Colman Domingo. While at USC, Alana was chosen as one of ten top directors to co-direct USC’s first feature film, DON QUIXOTE: THE INGENIOUS GENTLEMAN OF LA MANCHA (Palm Springs International Film Festival) with the guidance of James Franco. Her short film BLACKOUT, written by David Haskell, received the Audience Award at the LA Shorts Fest, and Best Actor and Best Cinematography at the Women’s Independent Film Festival.

Tickets to “We Burn Like This” are $15 for the general public and $10 for Museum members. They are available by phone or in person at the Northwest Montana History Museum and online at Eventbrite – https://www.eventbrite.com/e/northwest-montana-film-premier-we-burn-like-this-qa-with-director-tickets-342420618287

The Northwest Montana History Museum is at 124 2nd Avenue East in downtown Kalispell. Call 406-756-8381.