Frank Conniff is 69 years old today. That means he was born 30 August 1956.

He was TV’s Frank during seasons 2-5 on Mystery Science Theater 3000. I have complicated thoughts about that show. On the one hand, it presents low-budget films as nothing but fodder for mocking. On the other hand, it introduced viewers (including me) to a lot of great psychotronic films.

Conniff is a talented writer. I can’t call what he does on screen acting. But he is charming in his awkward delivery of lines. But I’m not highlighting him today for any of this.

During his time on MST3K, he was the guy who screened the films. People reported seeing him walking around with a tattered copy of The Psychotronic Encyclopedia of Film. You don’t do this if you don’t love the films, regardless of what happens on screen.

When I saw The Mads live, I had them sign my copy. Trace Beaulieu was very excited to see the book. Conniff wasn’t terribly excited about anything. He found all the fan service old hat. And it was new for Beaulieu. Not that Conniff was rude. I would describe him as “exhausted.”

Anyway, let’s celebrate Conniff’s birthday by watching one of his favorite films. Earlier this year, he posted his five favorite black & white films: (1) Citizen Kane; (2) Sweet Smell of Success; (3) The Night of the Hunter; (4) Dr Strangelove; and (5) Duck Soup. From this group, I have to go with The Night of the Hunter.

Happy birthday, Frank!

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Frank Conniff at Dragon*Con 2008 by Timdorr under CC BY 3.0.