King Creole September 1 at the Museum featuring a Crawfish Boil

2017-08-24
Catalina Island Museum

The Catalina Island Museum invites you to experience a taste of the bayou during First Fridays at the Museum on September 1st. Whether you are a crawfish aficionado or you simply want to see Elvis Presley on the big screen, the upcoming First Fridays event is for you!

Diego Velasco, chef and co-owner of the acclaimed Memphis Café in Orange County, will serve up an authentic Louisiana-style crawfish boil on the museum’s second level from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. All the traditional fixings will be included in the dinner. Cold crisp beer and other beverages will be available for purchase. Only 60 tickets are available, so purchase them early.

The crawfish boil will be followed by a screening of King Creole starring the one and only Elvis Presley in the museum’s outdoor amphitheater.  Granted a 60-day deferment from beginning his military service to film this movie, Presley delivered the most critically acclaimed performance of his acting career. The story follows Presley's character who was forced to drop out of high school to support his father. He lands a gig singing in a club in the French Quarter of New Orleans and falls for a good girl named Nellie. But he is a magnet for trouble. A rival club owner, played by Walter Matthau, blackmails Presley into working for him which threatens his future with Nellie.

First Fridays at the Museum takes place from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm on Friday, September 1st. The crawfish dinner will be served from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm and the film will begin at dusk (around 8:00 pm). Tickets for dinner and the movie are $20 for members, $25 for non-members and $15 for children (3-15).

Not interested in the dinner? Simply enjoy the film, King Creole, in the museum’s outdoor amphitheater. To view the movie only, tickets are $3 for members, $17 for adults, $15 for seniors, military and students with a valid I.D., and children are free with a paid adult admission. Tickets are available online at CatalinaMuseum.org, or may be purchased in person at the museum’s visitor services desk, or upon arrival at the door.

Each month First Fridays at the Museum provides an opportunity to enjoy the museum’s exhibition galleries, digital theater, open-air plazas and Museum Store. Through December, it also offers rare late-night access to the museum’s special exhibition Chihuly at the Catalina Island Museum when its outdoor art installations are dramatically illuminated.

The Catalina Island Museum offers the best in art and history exhibitions, music and dance performances, lectures by guest speakers from all over the world, and the finest in silent, documentary and international film. Open seven days a week from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm, except Independence Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. The new Ada Blanche Wrigley Schreiner Building is located in the heart of Avalon at 217 Metropole Avenue. For more information, the museum may be reached by phone at 310-510-2414 or at its website.