Airport

(George Seaton, US 1970, 137 min., DCP)

The all-star film that started the disaster film craze in the 1970s, Airport is based on Arthur Hailey’s bestselling novel of the same name. Mel Bakersfeld (Burt Lancaster), the general manager of a Chicago-area airport, must contend with a massive snowstorm and the closure of its longest runway due to an airplane that is stranded on the field. Meanwhile, distraught construction worker D. O. Guerrero (Van Heflin) thinks he has solved his family’s financial problems by buying a large amount of life insurance before he boards his plane with a bomb. Veteran pilot Vern Demerest (Dean Martin) must jump into action and return the plane to Chicago while also dealing with his pregnant mistress/stewardess, Gwen (Jacqueline Bisset), and an elderly stowaway (Oscar winner Helen Hayes). The film also features George Kennedy, Jean Seberg, Maureen Stapleton, Barry Nelson, and Lloyd Nolan. Nominated for ten Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Airport was also the second-highest grossing film of the year—truly a cultural phenomenon.