Film History: Kansas City gets 1948 noir screening with podcast host

Ticket buyers for a Nov. 11 film event in Kansas City will receive a discount code for season merchandise, including a perfume inspired by the signature scent of singer Libby Holman. The promotion is part of a multi-city tour led by Karina Longworth, host of the podcast You Must Remember This.

Longworth will screen Key Largo, a 1948 noir directed by John Huston, at Screenland Armour. The screening coincides with her current podcast season, titled "The Bisexuals," which examines the intersecting lives of Holman and actor Montgomery Clift. The season also covers other figures from that era, such as Tallulah Bankhead.

The tour is designed to pair podcast content with relevant film screenings at independent theaters across the country. Longworth selected Key Largo specifically because of its use of the song "Moanin' Low," which was Holman’s signature tune. She notes the song became a cultural signifier for a woman in disgrace or brought low by her sexuality.

Longworth spent a year at the George Eastman Museum in Rochester studying film preservation before deciding to take the season on the road. She says the experience taught her she has a talent for introducing films to audiences. This skill formed the basis for her decision to lead the tour, allowing her to directly connect with listeners in person.

The current season explores how sexuality and race were treated in Hollywood history. Longworth says previous biographies of Holman often treated these subjects superficially or with outdated perspectives. She aimed to bring a fresh angle to the stories, moving beyond standard revisionist biography approaches that had previously been rejected by publishers.

The podcast connects Holman’s life to several films, including Douglas Sirk’s Written on the Wind and Victor Fleming’s Reckless. Longworth points out that Written on the Wind was originally meant to depict the death of Holman’s first husband, Zachary Smith Reynolds, but details were changed to avoid legal trouble. Reckless attempts a broader look at Holman’s life after that event.

Longworth has covered classic Hollywood topics on her podcast since 2014. Recent seasons have addressed the Manson murders, 80s and 90s erotic thrillers, and the careers of stars like Joan Crawford and Boris Karloff. The tour continues through the fall, with the Kansas City stop serving as one of several locations for the "The Bisexuals" season.