AMC Showcases Heroic Men in the Movies With the "Tough Guys" Festival On Saturday, March 9.

Entertainment Editors

JERICHO, N.Y.--(ENTERTAINMENT WIRE)--March 5, 2002

On Saturday, March 9, AMC showcases six of Hollywood's most daring heroes when it presents the "Tough Guys" festival.

The four film line-up features Harrison Ford in RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK and its sequel INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM; John Wayne and Glen Campbell in TRUE GRIT; and James Caan and Mandy Patinkin in ALIEN NATION. Joanie Laurer, formerly known as the WWF's Chyna, will introduce the films. The festival also examines how Bruce Willis launched his film career playing the rugged Detective John McClane in BACKSTORY: DIE HARD, an encore episode of the popular AMC series that captures the moment in time that a film was created.

AMC's "Tough Guys" festival begins at 8:45 AM (ET) with Steven Spielberg's Oscar(R)-winning action adventure RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1981). As archeologist Indiana Jones, Harrison Ford encounters snakes, Nazi agents and other perils on a quest to find the sacred Ark of the Covenant - believed to hold the original Ten Commandments. The film was nominated for nine Academy Awards(R) and won four, including Best Film Editing and Best Visual Effects. Additionally, it garnered a Special Achievement Award for Sound Effects Editing. Karen Allen and Denholm Elliott co-star. (Also at 5:55 PM).

Following, at 10:50 AM (ET), Ford is back as the self-effacing adventurer, combing India for a sacred stone in the sequel, INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM (1984), which also won the Oscar(R) for Best Visual Effects. Kate Capshaw co-stars as a nightclub singer along for the ride, and Jonathan Ke Quan is Indy's formidable 12-year-old sidekick. (Also at 8:00 PM.)

In TRUE GRIT (1969), airing at 1:05 PM (ET), John Wayne proves that age only makes a tough guy tougher. The Duke won his only Oscar(R), for Best Actor, for his portrayal of the fearless Rooster Cogburn, a retired U.S. Marshall who agrees to help young Kim Darby (Mattie Ross) track down her father's killer. Glen Campbell co-stars as a greedy Texas Ranger. Next, at 3:30 PM (ET), the sci-fi cop thriller ALIEN NATION (1988) stars James Caan as a cynical Los Angeles detective who reluctantly partners with Mandy Patinkin, a "Newcomer," the name given to a group of alien refugees from another planet. Together they take on a Newcomer drug ring in the investigation of Caan's former partner's death.

AMC rounds out its "Tough Guys" festival with a look at how Bruce Willis emerged from playing a witty private detective on television's "Moonlighting" to create a new kind of action hero, in BACKSTORY: DIE HARD, airing at 5:25 PM (ET). This episode of AMC's critically acclaimed series reveals how Willis defied Hollywood skepticism and made an indelible impression in the film, as a maverick cop who saves a Los Angeles skyscraper from assault.

AMC is a premiere 24-hour movie network dedicated to the world of American film. With one of the finest, most comprehensive libraries of popular films, and a diverse blend of original series, documentaries and interstitials, AMC offers an elegant and contemporary entertainment destination. AMC is a fully distributed network reaching over 82,000,000 U.S. homes (as of Jan. 2002) and ranking #16 in size among all 55 networks.

Since its launch in 1984, AMC has been dedicated to deepening the movie experience for its viewers, featuring film-loving celebrity hosts and an increasingly visible, critically acclaimed slate of original programming. AMC has more than doubled its original programming over the past 3 years and garnered many of the industry's highest honors, including five Emmy awards.

AMC is owned and managed by Rainbow Media Holdings, Inc. A subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corporation (NYSE:CVC) and NBC, Rainbow manages American Movie Classics, WE: Women's Entertainment, Bravo, The Independent Film Channel, MuchMusic USA, Rainbow Sports, News 12 Networks and MetroChannels as well as the Rainbow Advertising Sales Corporation and Rainbow Network Communications. In addition, Rainbow is a fifty-percent partner in FOX Sports Net. AMC is one of the assets included in a new series of Cablevision common stock -- Rainbow Media Group tracking stock (NYSE: RMG) -- which began trading on the NYSE on March 30th. MGM (NYSE: MGM) owns a 20 percent stake in four of Rainbow's national networks - AMC, Bravo, IFC and WE: Women's Entertainment.