Newsday (Suffolk Edition) from Melville, New York • 80

In Metropolitan Museum of Art Cinematheque Francaise Buster Keaton looks dangerously inquisitive in 'The A city festival of all-time films Film culture lives. You don't have to settle for "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls" or "Myra Breckenridge." The Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art are offering an alternative through the end of the summer. The Museum of Modern Art, at 11 West 53rd Street, is sponsoring a show in conjunction with Rochester's George Eastman House. From their joint archives they have chosen 37 movies such as "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" and "Warning Shadow" (Sunday and Tuesday); "The Last Laugh" (tomorrow and Monday); Buster Keaton's "The Cameraman" (next Friday); Murnau's "Sunrise" (Thursday and Aug.

1); Von Stroheim's "Greed" (Aug. 2 and 3), and Dupont's "Variety" (Aug. 4 and 5). Among the other notable silent films to be shown are Robert Flaherty'3 "Moana" (Aug. 8 and 10); Flaherty's "Nanook of the North" on a double bill with a British documentary, "Drifters" (Aug.

12 and 14); Pudovkin's "Mother" (Aug. 13 and 15); King Vidor's "The Crowd" (Aug. 16 and 18); D. W. Griffith'3 "Broken Blossoms" (Aug.

20 and 21); Josef Von Sternberg's "The Docks of New York" (Aug. 22 and 23), and the Russianmade "The Ghost That Will Not Return" (Aug. 25 and 26). The Museum of Modern Art charges $1.50 admission. Film tickets are available on a first-come, Airst-served basis on the day of performance.

For information and screening times call (212) 956-6100. Alt the Metropolitan Museum of Art on Fifth Avenue and 82nd Street, 70 films from the 50.000-film archives of the Cinematheque Francaise in Paris will be shown on 35 evenings from Wednesday through Sept. 3 in the Grace Rainey Rogers auditorium. The program is the first collaboration between the Cinematheque and City Center, which is currently preparing a New York Cinematheque of its own to be housed in three theaters in its basement at West 55th Street. The Met has volunteered its facilities until City Center's theaters are ready after Jan.

1. Films from 18 countries are to be shown evenings at 6 and 9 PM. There are 11 thematic series, priced at $7.50 to $15.00. Single admissions are $2 or $1.50 for July 24, 1970 Museum of Modern Stills Archive Melodrama marks this scene in "The Cabinet of Dr. students.

The films include such noteworthy items as Bunel's "L'Age d'Or" (Wednesday); Keaton's "The General" (Aug. 22); Langdon's "The Strong Man" (Aug. 29); a 1925 "Wizard of Oz" (Aug. 15); a Keaton western, "Go West" (Aug. 2); a Raoul Walsh western, "The Big Trail" (Aug.

16); a silent John Ford western, "Three Bad Men" (Aug. 30); a Fritz Lang 1927 thriller, "Spies" (Aug. 2); Griffith's "Birth of a Nation" (Sept. 1), DeMille's "Male and Female," in which Gloria Swanson takes her famous bath in a sunken tub (Aug. 18).

Among the programs are new films from Europe and Latin America never seen before in this country. They include Rossellini's "Apostles" Parts I and II (Sept. 2) and "The Little Theatre and Jean Renoir" (July 29). Dancers sidestep strike The precision-dancing Rockette3 and the Radio City Music Hall were back in step yesterday after a last-minute contract settlement averting a threatened strike. The agreement was reached shortly before a midnight strike deadline Wednesday.

Representatives for the high stepping chorus line had sought higher wages and had complained about Music Hall policy of calling back to work dancers who had accumulated time off. Details of the accord between the theater and the American Guild of Variety Artists were not immediately announced. Three years ago, the Rockettes struck the Music Hall for 27 days. City's money drama The demonstration was the thing yesterday as the New York Shakespeare Festival publicized its efforts to obtain funds for both its Public Theater and its "The Wars of the Roses" production in Central Park. On hand outside City Hall were cast members of "Wars of the Roses," "Sambo," the touring rock musical; producer Joseph Papp and actor George C.

Scott, chairman of the festival board. Papp said the company needs an additional $100,000 to keep the admission-free cycle of three of Shakespeare's historical plays running in Central Park through Aug. 29, instead of closing prematurely Aug. 9. He also wants the city to purchase the festival's Public Theater on Lafayette Street and lease it back to the Shakespeare Festival, renovate the 116-year-old building and pay off past bills.

The Board of Estimate has postponed hearings on a capital budget amendment for the $5,100,000 purchase. Show of varied talents The talents of community theater organizations in Nassau will be combined in a multimedia production called "From Then to Now and Beyond," which will be mounted for two admission-free performances in county parks. The production, under the aegis of the Nassau County Drama Societies Committee and the Nassau County Office of Performing and Fine Arts, will be given at 8:30 PM tomorrow in Wantagh Park and Thursday in Grant Park, Hewlett. The work combines popular drama excerpts, poetry and music. The drama section is directed by Donn Schrader of the Mohawk Players, the poetry section by Ferne Steckler, originally of the Long Beach Community Players, with Blanche Rothstein of the Vector Theater of Long Beach as assistant director, and the music section by Marc Goldstein of Theater Technics.

The stage manager is Mimi Gruber. Newsday Photo by George Angeroplos Ferne Steckler rehearses her poetryreading by water in Wantagh Park. Friday, 9A.