A Marc Huestis Presents 20

“There’s always been two sides of me,” Marc Huestis told the San Francisco Chronicle’s David Wiegand three years ago. “One’s very razzmatazz and the other is very political. As a kid I either wanted to be an actor or president.” As Wiegand sensed a few years back, when Huestis conceived of his “Create Peace” benefit with Janeane Garofalo, Hector Elizondo, and Mike Farrell, the impresario behind a calvacade of the Castro’s most eccentric celebrity events was beginning to find ways to merge his passions.

This week, he inaugurates a new series, that — like the election of a new and possibly improved U.S. Congress — is, perhaps, the manifestation of a major mood shift. The first of Huestis’s “Movies that Matter” screenings features our beloved “Scout,” actor Mary Badham, with the film that made us all understand that “fear” is no way to motivate a populace. A little more than a week before “In Praise of Mockingbirds“overtakes the Castro, SF360 offers Huestis’s list of his past 11 years of A-to-Z-list celebrity-repurposing projects.

(Editor’s note: Monday, SF360 features an interview with Mary Badham. “In Praise of Mockingbirds,” Sun/19, 6:30 p.m. Gala, 10:15 p.m., VIP reception; noon screening free for children under 12 with autograph session to follow, Castro Theatre, SF. Tickets by calling 415-863-0611, or via Ticketweb.)

1. “The Unsinkable Debbie Reynolds” (July, 2005)
2. “Ladies and Gentlemen Prefer Jane Russell” (July, 2004)
3. “Create Peace” (July 2003) An All-Star Benefit for Artists United to Win Without War with Janeane Garofalo, Hector Elizondo, Mike Farrell
4. “An Evening with Ann-Margret” (Febrary, 2002)
5. “An Evening with Ann Miller” (July 2002)
6. “A John Waters X-mas,” with John Waters (December, 2003, December, 1996)
7. “A Judy Garland Christmas,” with Margaret O’Brien (December, 2004)
8. “Summer Beach Party,” with Troy Donahue & Sandra Dee (July, 1998)
9. “New Year’s Blow-out on the SS Poseidon,” with Carol Lynley and Stella Stevens (December, 2000)
10. “Valley of the Dolls,” with star Barbara Parkins (July, 1997)
11. “Christmas with Christina Crawford,” with Christina Crawford. (December, 1997)
12. “Hedwigged Out X-Mas,” (December, 2003)
13. “Ho Down with Karen Black” (July, 2000)
14. “Linda Blair Live!” with Linda Blair (October, 2001)
15. “The Bad Seed,“with Patty McCormack in conversation with Michael Musto (July, 1999)
16. “Gypsy Rose Lee’s Home Movies,” presented by Erik Lee Preminger (November, 1998)
17. “A Carrie White Christmas,” with Piper Laurie and greeting by Sissy Spacek (December, 1998)
18. “A Tribute to Billy Wilder,” with Edie Adams and the participation of Jack Lemmon (April, 2000)
19. “Heat,” with Sylvia Miles (May, 1996)
20. “The Nutty Professor,” with Stella Stevens (July, 1996)