The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas

We are dimming the lights, firing up the projector, and raising a glass (or two) to the late, great singer, actress, and philanthropist Dolly Parton with a screening of her onscreen performances that showcases her incredible charisma, legendary musical talent her particular brand of homespun magnetism, the 1982 musical screwball comedy THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS. Dolly followed up her smashing success in 9 TO 5 with a Golden Globe-nominated performance as Miss Mona in THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS, adapted from the stage musical of the same name. Miss Mona operates the Chicken Ranch, a brothel with a long history in a small Texas town. The locals have a good relationship with the institution, and Mona is respected in the community. The sheriff, Ed Earl Dodd (Burt Reynolds), also looks out for the Chicken Ranch due to his past with Miss Mona. However, when pious reporter Melvin Thorpe (Dom DeLuise) exposes the brothel, outside interests want it shut down, putting the governor (Charles Durning) in a tough spot. Parton's musicality features heavily on the soundtrack to this, notably her rendition of "Hard Candy Christmas" and her Grammy-nominated performance of "I Will Always Love You." "Dolly Parton is, on the basis of this one film, a natural-born movie star, a performer who holds our attention so easily that it's hard to believe it's her first film." (Roger Ebert) Monday, September 14 Doors 8:30 pm | Movie 9:00 pm *Start time subject to change. Please arrive on time. THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS (Colin Higgins, 1982 / PG / 114 mins) A town's Sheriff and regular patron of a historical whorehouse fights to keep it running when a television reporter targets it as the Devil's playhouse.