Since April begins this Sunday, I thought I’d scan TCM’s schedule to see what features are being shown during the month that aren’t frequently aired on the channel in hopes that I might help you to discover (or remember) a worthwhile classic. Some of these recommendations are TCM premieres and/or can be seen during the evening hours, and others are not, but my intent is NOT to regurgitate the channel’s Star of the Month (April = Rita Hayworth) features, monthly themes ("No Animals Were Harmed", "Lost and Found") or other regular programming (e.g. The Essentials, etc.). Instead, my goal is to highlight the "must-sees" that don’t regularly appear and others you may have missed even if you’re a frequent viewer.

April 1 & 25 – The Desperate Hours (1955) – decades before one could find a home invasion story on at least one cable news channel on any given night, William Wyler directed this thriller featuring two former Best Actor Oscar winners, Humphrey Bogart and Fredric March, matching wits. Bogie is an escaped con murderer who, along with his softer younger brother and another thug, takes over March’s suburban home to hide out during a police manhunt. But March’s character is just as determined to protect his wife (Martha Scott) and family – a teenage daughter and son – as Bogie’s is to not get caught.

April 6 – A Raisin in the Sun (1961) – a TCM premiere! Not since the late 1930's in films like Stella Dallas (1937) and Of Human Hearts (1938) had a self-sacrificing mom been so well portrayed on screen until Tony nominated actress Claudia McNeil played a strong and loving Lena to Sidney Poitier’s struggling-to-find-himself Walter Lee Younger in this one. Lorraine Hansberry’s play was directed by Daniel Petrie, and the cast also includes Ruby Dee as Walter’s supportive and ever working homemaker wife Ruth (and Louis Gossett’s film debut).

April 12 – Once Upon a Time in the West (1969) – though I’m sure you’ve probably heard of this one, I’m listing it because this Western classic from director Sergio Leone, who cast Henry Fonda against type as the villain, hasn’t aired on the channel in years and you don’t want to miss it if you haven’t seen it (or you just may want to see it again), especially if (like me) you lust after Claudia Cardinale. It’s being shown as part of a "Starring Jason Robards" night; Charles Bronson, Woody Strode, and Jack Elam are among the other actors in this essential film.

April 20 – This Happy Breed (1944) – premiered one year ago on the channel; this comedy drama from producer playwright Noel Coward and director David Lean is like a more serious British middle class precursor to Life With Father (1947). Filmed in muted Technicolor, it starts slowly but is well worth the time investment. It stars Robert Newton, Celia Johnson, Stanley Holloway, John Mills and Kay Walsh (among others), and spans the years between World Wars.

April 22 – State Fair (1945) – great (if dated) family fun from a time gone by, this Richard Rodgers-Oscar Hammerstein II Technicolor musical version of the 1933 Oscar nominated hit features the lovely Jeanne Crain & (a too old for her) Dana Andrews, Dick Haymes & Vivian Blaine, Charles Winninger & Fay Bainter, character actors Donald Meek, Frank McHugh, Percy Kilbride & Harry Morgan (among others) and the Academy’s Best Original Song "It Might as Well Be Spring" (though I bet you’ll be humming "It’s a grand night for singing" when it’s over).

April 26 – Rasputin and the Empress (1932) – I’m looking forward to seeing this (historical fiction) story which earned future Oscar winning writer Charles MacArthur his first Academy Award nomination because it’s the only movie that stars the Barrymore triumvirate: John, Ethel, and Lionel.

April 27 – All the King’s Men (1949) – a TCM premiere! This original won the Academy Award for Best Picture of the Year and features a tour-de-force (and Oscar winning Best Actor) performance from Broderick Crawford as Willie Stark. Producer Robert Rossen also earned a nomination for his direction and screenplay from Robert Penn Warren’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel (ostensibly based on the life of Louisiana Governor Huey Long). Originally chosen as a pawn to draw the hick vote by a political machine determined to reelect its incumbent, Stark gets smart and bullies his way to his state's top office in the subsequent election four years later. The new governor is then transformed, illustrating that "absolute power corrupts absolutely".

April 29 – Germany, Year Zero (1947) aka Germania anno zero (1948) – a powerful foreign language film (with subtitles) from Roberto Rossellini about the desperate conditions in post World War II Germany, told through the eyes of a boy too young to be counted in his family’s food stamp allocation. The cities are in shambles, people are struggling to survive, and young Edmund is the only one that can help his family to keep from starving since his older brother Karl-Heinz, whom he worships, is too afraid to apply for a work permit for fear of being caught and imprisoned for his wartime activities as a soldier. Edmund eventually becomes involved in the Black Market, working for a former professor that he trusts. Watch it all the way to the end for its full emotional impact.