10 Classic Movie Things to Do This Month

1. Watch a classic foreign-language film, such as Federico Fellini's Nights of Cabiria (TCM, June 18, 10:00 PM EDT), which features a moving, charming performance by Giulietta Masina (aka Mrs. Fellini).

2. Listen to Bernard Herrmann - The Essential Film Music Collection. You get to experience the rapturous themes of Vertigo, The Ghost & Mrs. Muir, The Day the Earth Stood Still, and others.

3. Watch a cult movie, such as The Horn Blows at Midnight (TCM, June 8, 11:30 AM EDT). Jack Benny made fun of it for years, but it's surprisingly amusing.

4. Read Hitchcock by Francois Truffaut, an incredible series of in-depth interviews with the Master of Suspense. Even if you're not a Hitchcock buff, you'll be fascinated by the insights shared by these two great filmmakers. And if you are a Hitch fan...well, you probably own this book already.

5. Watch a movie with a non-Beatles soundtrack by Paul McCartney. Well, there aren't many choices here, but you're in luck! TCM is showing The Family Way with Hayley Mills on June 27th at 6:00 PM EDT. By the way, Hayley went on to marry director Roy Boulting, who was 33 years her senior.

6. Host an Inspector Clouseau party, show A Shot in the Dark, and require all guests to talk like Clouseau. I recommend placing a stuffed monkey somewhere in the room just so a guest can make a remark about the "min-key."

7. Watch a famous movie that you don't like, but haven't seen for years. Then, re-evaluate it to determine if you like it now. I call this the "Marnie experiment," because I went from a Marnie detractor to a big fan over the span of several years.

Susan Hamphire in The Pallisers.

8. Watch one of the classic British TV miniseries of the late 1960s and early 1970s. While that's not technically movie-related, you'll see lots of past and future British stars such as Derek Jacobi, Roger Livesey, Susan Hampshire, Patrick Stewart, and Jeremy Irons. My personal recommendations include Poldark, The Pallisers, and Lord Peter Wimsey (start with "The Nine Tailors").

9. Support feminine Japanese monster equality by watching Mothra (TCM, June 15th, 11:00 PM EDT). She proves she's just as tough as Godzilla...but still loving enough to raise two offspring. You may want to break out the mothballs, however.

10. Build an elaborate tree house like the one in Disney's Swiss Family Robinson (the only tree house that can rival it is the one in the 1999-2002 TV series The Lost World).

You may need a big backyard!