Paying homage to the heyday of ocean liner travel and the films that celebrated those voyages across the seas, and utilizing that setting for high drama, smart comedy and some of the most famous Fred Astaire dance numbers, The Film Society of Lincoln Center (FSLC) provides New York audiences with a summertime treat by presenting the film series, Cinematic Passages: Ocean Liners on Screen.

Sponsored by Cunard Line, the revered ocean liner company whose iconic voyage experience personifies the Golden Age of Ocean Travel, the series runs 26-30 August at the Walter Reade Theater (165 West 65th Street – New York City). Tickets go on sale on Tuesday, 9 August, both at the theatre box office and online.

“Cunard voyages offer guests the ongoing fascination, glamour and sophistication of the Golden Age of Ocean Travel,” said Peter Shanks, president of Cunard Line. “As portrayed in the iconic films of Cinematic Passages, Cunard vividly brings to life this storied travel experience for today’s ocean liner enthusiasts to discover and enjoy.”

Highlights of the series include the Marilyn Monroe/Jane Russell romp Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Preston Sturges’ classic screwball comedy The Lady Eve, the Fred Astaire musicals Shall We Dance and Royal Wedding, and a rare 70mm presentation of James Cameron’s box office record breaker Titanic.

Another highlight will be the presentation of Ocean Liners in Fact, Fiction and On Screen: An Illustrated Lecture by Bill Miller on Friday, 26 August at 7:00 p.m. A frequent, immensely popular speaker in Cunard’s award-winning on board enrichment programme, Cunard Insights, and an international authority on the subject of the great “floating palaces” of the past and current generation of cruise ships, Miller is known as “Mr. Ocean Liner.” He has written more than 75 books and 1,000 articles, lectured on more than 50 liners and sailed nearly 350 voyages to date. His presentation will be complimentary with the purchase of a three-film pass to the film series.

Continuing FSLC’s effort to offer free-to-the-public programming, Robert Neal Marshall’s documentary on Bill Miller, Mr. Ocean Liner, as well as his documentary Three Queens-International Rendezvous (2008), about the final voyage of Cunard’s longest serving Cunarder, QE2, will be screened at the FSLC’s Film Center Amphitheater throughout the run of Cinematic Passages. Mr. Ocean Liner makes its New York City debut as part of the presentation.