Alfred Hitchcock's "North By Northwest" is just about my favorite movie. No film has ever been more entertaining. (See Glenn Kenny's personal paen to the picture, "Obviously, they've mistaken me for a much shorter man.") And a piece of it is still alive and well in Lake Forest, IL. From The Lake Forester:
"I bought it about five years ago," Knauz, 81, said of the fully restored Navy N3N that he keeps in his hangar at the Kenosha Regional Airport.
The appeal of owning the plane used in the film -- named by the American Film Institute as the 7th greatest American mystery movie in history -- intrigued Knauz.
"It sat in a hangar in Bakersfield, California until I found it," Knauz said during an interview at his hangar, "Stick and Rudder," in Kenosha.
"The guy I bought it from actually restored it in Hawaii," Knauz said, explaining that the surplus Naval planes built before World War II were later converted to crop-dusters.
(photo by Michelle LaVigne)
Oh, and what a beautiful Blu-ray it is.
Hi Jim.
Glad to hear what a big fan you are of NxNW. If you've ever been to Chicago, I'm sure that you have attended screenings at our wonderful revival house, the Music Box, and have enjoyed the pre-show organ performances.
They publish their program quarterly, and earlier this year their program included NxNW, along with a brief blurb that mentioned "the classic desert biplane encounter." I wrote the program director the following e-mail asking him to correct the blurb in future printings:
"Well, although I have lived my entire professional life in Chicago, I was born and raised in rural Indiana. If you are not aware of it, Hoosiers have a rather large chip on their shoulders. Rightfully or not, people tend to ignore, or make fun of Indianans...just ask Letterman about that. (And please remember that it is in poor taste for non-Hoosiers to speak of us in that way.)
For one tiny example, the TV program Trading Spaces always started out with the host saying something like, "We're in Tacoma, Washington!" or, "We're in Phoenix, Arizona!" When my partner and I saw that an episode was made in my home state, I had to laugh when the host announced proudly with her arms outstretched over her head, "We're in Indiana!," with no indication of exactly where in Indiana they were. It is as if the concept of the entire state comprises the Platonic ideal of generic blandness, a place where nothing unusual or unique can be found, and where no specific area within its border differs from any other part.
Perhaps this is a reason, even over 50 years ago, that Hitchcock decided to incorporate my home state into one of his films.
Therefore, I must tell you that I was shocked (shocked I say!) to read in your Spring movie schedule that "North by Northwest" contains "the classic and indelible scene...[of]...the desert biplane encounter." I must have fallen asleep during the particular module of Mrs. Steinhelber's 4th Grade geography lesson in which the Great Hoosier Desert was discussed. Although now that I think about it, perhaps Vonnegut mentioned it in one of his novels.
Kindly either instruct me as to where I might find this heretofore unknown Wonder, or consider re-wording the movie description in future printings.
Thank you for your time and consideration. By the way, we love your theater."
I never got the courtesy of a response. What did I do wrong?