Natural History Museum in LA to offer free B-movie series

Join the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and the Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits for thrills, chills and, yes, all the goofiness of those vintage sci-fi and horror flicks!

Returning this summer for its third season, we're proud to bring back one of the quirkiest movie series around in this movie-mad town: B-Movies and Bad Science! From June 26 through August 29 we’re taking it outside. Guests are encouraged to bring picnic baskets and blankets, and cozy up to watch a movie either on the South Lawn of the Natural History Museum (Exposition Park) or in Hancock Park, the grounds surrounding the Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits.

Each evening starts with a lighthearted discussion led by our own science experts, as we introduce the day's featured movie to see if there's any common ground between science fact and science fiction.

On display will be a spotlighted specimen from the Natural History Museum’s collection of B-movie memorabilia, including lobby cards, posters, and even actual movie props, proving that real science can be just as wild and out of this world as “reel” science!

B-MOVIES AND BAD SCIENCE, SUMMER 2010:

7:30 pm Discussions
8 pm Movies

· Movies and discussions are FREE.
· Patrons are welcome to bring dinner, drinks and picnic blankets. Alcoholic beverages are permitted for those over 21.
· No tall chairs, dogs or barbeques, please.



Saturday, June 26:
Encino Man (1992)
Page Museum at La Brea Tar Pits — Hancock Park Lawn
Two high school “Valley boys” uncover a frozen caveman in their backyard, and use their new prehistoric friend to increase their coolness value at school. Little did they realize their new companion needs to adjust to the 1990s! Look for the real star of the film—the Page Museum itself!

Saturday, July 17: It Came from Beneath the Sea (1955)
Natural History Museum — South Lawn
A giant (six-armed!?) octopus is released from deep within the ocean. A Navy captain pursues the rogue mollusk after it attacks his submarine. The final showdown in San Francisco with the Golden Gate Bridge as a backdrop is not to be missed!

Saturday, July 24: The Killer Shrews (1959)
Natural History Museum — South Lawn
Stranded on an island, a motley crew fends off a group of mutant shrews, the result of an experiment gone horribly wrong! Complete with hauntingly eerie snarls and six-inch fangs, these babies are loose and ready to devour anyone they can catch! Can our hero save his colleagues from becoming shrew snacks?

Sunday, August 1: Gorilla at Large (1954)
Natural History Museum — South Lawn
At the sinister “Garden of Evil” carnival, the main attraction is Goliath, “world’s largest gorilla… cost the lives of 1,000 men before his capture.” The question now — is Goliath still on the rampage when dead bodies start piling up at the carnival? What about the other suspicious characters lurking about? The owner’s seductive wife? The circus barker? Or even the owner himself? Or is Goliath
himself the murderous culprit?

Sunday, August 15: Gammera the Invincible (1966)
Natural History Museum — South Lawn
A Japanese monster movie at its best! An atomic bomb explodes over the Arctic, thawing the ice to unleash a giant flying turtle, Gammera. The airborne reptile settles in Japan to wreak fire-breathing havoc on the local population! However, this turtle has a softer side as well.

Sunday, August 29: Caveman (1981)
Page Museum at La Brea Tar Pits — Hancock Park Lawn
A simple caveman accidently becomes leader of a clan of prehistoric misfits and outcasts. His dream, however, is to outsmart the bigger, stronger leader of his former clan, so that he can win the affections of Bond girl Barbara Bach.



About the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County:The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County is located at 900 Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles, near downtown. The Museum was the first dedicated museum building in Los Angeles, opening its doors in 1913. It has amassed one of the world’s most extensive and valuable collections of natural and cultural history—with more than 35 million objects, some as old as 4.5 billion years. The Natural History Family of Museums includes the NHM, the Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits (Hancock Park/Mid-Wilshire), and the William S. Hart Park and Museum (Newhall, California).

Natural History Museum Hours and Admission:
The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County is located at 900 Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles. Open daily from 9:30 am to 5 pm; Tickets are $9 for adults, $6.50 for children. For more information, visit the Museum’s website at www.nhm.org or call (213) 763-DINO.