Ruggles of Red Gap, a cinematic treasure from Hollywood’s past, was a Best Picture Nominee in 1936 and stars movie legends like Charles Laughton, Mary Boland and Zasu Pitts.

At the time Leo McCarey’s film was born, the world was reeling from a global depression, and authoritarian threats were multiplying. But the art form America helped define and popularize— the movies— offered a much-needed slice of magic. Glamour mixed easily with humor; actors and audiences delighted in good-natured satirizing of class and culture.

The plot of Ruggles the film centers on the plight of Ruggles the character, who is the dedicated valet of a wayward English lord who gambles his servant away to a rough-hewn American in a poker game. The fastidious butler faces hilarious adaptations to the dot-on-the-map town of Red Gap in the uncultured American West. But there is a serious, even redeeming, element: dutiful Ruggles is becoming his own man in his transplanted life, sparking a genuine wave of patriotism when he recites, from memory, Lincoln’s Gettysburg address.

Finally, this rollicking and timely movie provides an opportunity to re-encounter Zasu Pitts, and to be reminded of her memorable name.

Admission is free, but RAAC, which sponsors Rappahannock’s movie program, appreciates donations to cover production costs.