TV

Top 12 reasons to love Turner Classic film channel

Turner Classic Movies launched 20 years ago on Monday, when namesake media mogul Ted Turner pulled a ceremonial switch in Times Square as TCM host Robert Osborne, motion picture academy president Arthur Hiller and movie stars Van Johnson, Celeste Holm, Jane Powell and Arlene Dahl looked on. Here’s why we love TCM, along with comments by Charles Tabesh, the network’s senior vice president for programming:

Restoration of classic movies: “We’ve helped fund restorations as well as commissioning scores for silent movies.’’

Interviews with icons. “Robert Osborne has been doing these since we launched, and we’ve had an archive project that includes icons and behind-the-scenes people, many of them no longer with us.’’

Original programming: “Our documentaries help put the films in context. My favorite is ‘The Tramp and the Dictator,’ where I felt I learned a lot about Charlie Chaplin and Adolf Hitler.’’

Classic Film Festival: “People are really excited to see these films on the big screen for the first time. It’s for the hard-core film buff.’’

TCM Vault Collection: “As some of the studios have focused on newer titles on DVD, we’ve been able to work with them to bring out films audiences have been asking about for a long time.’’

31 Days of Oscars: “A perfection partnership that allows us to associate with the most prestigious organization for film and bring its history to life.’’

Summer Under the Stars: “We wanted another month-long franchise for summer, and people connect with movies for the most part through the stars. It’s fun combining the bigger and lesser names.’’

Robert Osborne: “The personification of our network, he knows the movies, he’s a historian, he’s classy. He beloved by our audience and all of us who work with him.’’

Ben Mankiewicz: “At first, so much of our audience was angry, how dare you put [on another host]? But he’s become accepted and loved by our audience. A slightly different look for him and his set helped.’’

TCM Anywhere: The new streaming app: “I use it all the time to check on TCM while my wife is watching something else. It’s another way to keep up with the times and reach out to younger people who are consuming movies in different ways.’’

Franchises: “The Essentials is where you come if you’re new to classic movies. TCM Underground or Silent Sunday nights are for hard-core cinephiles. Nobody else is showing silent movies, and we have a really passionate audience.’’

Guest programmers: “We started this several years ago because we were getting a lot of feedback from celebrity fans, including athletes and politicians, who wanted to help us bring classic movies to a larger audience.’’