Wishin' and Hopin' (2014)

 The 10th Anniversary of the World premiere of 

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Wally Lamb’s “Wishin’ and Hopin”

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Hosted by Wally Lamb and Producer Andrew Gernhard

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Wally Lamb’s  holiday coming-of-age tale classic, based on his best-selling novel  “Wishin’ and Hopin’ ” returns to the Garde’s giant screen ten years after its world premiere in 2014.

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The anniversary screening of the film, shot on location in Norwich, the Norwich Free Academy, Jewett City and Willimantic. will be hosted by author  Wally Lamb  and the film’s producer  Andrew Gernhard.

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Directed by  Colin Theys  with a screenplay by  John Doolan , the film stars  Molly Ringwald, Annabella Sciorra, Meat Loaf, Conchata Ferrell, Cheri Oteri, Danny Nucci, Wyatt Ralff, Quinn McColgan, Chevy Chase , and a large cast of  local extras.

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A vivid slice of 1960s life, Lamb’s Christmas tale is the poignant and hilarious story of a feisty parochial school fifth grader named Felix Funicello—a distant cousin of the famous Mouseketeer and teen movie queen Annette. Set in the beloved fictional town of Three Rivers, Connecticut,  “Wishin’ and Hopin’” follows Felix as he navigates through Catholic school and learns about life, culture and the birds and the bees. Published in 2009,  “Wishin’ and Hopin'”  is Lamb’s fourth fictional work.

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“Wally and I had not a moment of hesitation when we considered launching this movie ten years ago at the Garde Arts Center with their movie palace décor, giant screen, and state-of-the-art digital cinema,” Andrew Gernhard  said. “We can’t wait to do it again.”

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