Henry Fonda shines on TCM throughout February

Henry Fonda is Turner Classic Movies’ “Star of the Month” for February, but he’s also a star for all time.
The Oscar, Tony and Grammy-winning performer — and the patriarch of an acting dynasty, also including his children Peter and Jane — established his typically dependable image early in his career, yielding a bounty of classics that stretched across six decades and virtually every genre. With TCM celebrating him each Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning during the month starting Feb. 1, here’s a look at some of the featured highlights.
“Young Mr. Lincoln” (1939; Feb. 1): One of Fonda’s earliest triumphs was this John Ford-directed portrait of the pre-presidential Abraham Lincoln, detailing how he decided to pursue law — and how a murder case involving brothers helped make his career.
“Fort Apache” (1948; Feb. 2): Easily among the best of the many Westerns that Fonda made, director John Ford’s saga casts him and John Wayne as officers who run into conflict at a cavalry outpost.
“Mister Roberts” (1955; Feb. 8): Fonda reprised his stage role as a well-liked but dissatisfied Navy officer in this comedy, a hit despite its famously troubled production that saw director John Ford replaced; co-star Jack Lemmon won an Oscar, and William Powell made his last movie appearance here.
“12 Angry Men” (1957; Feb. 8): In the only movie that he also produced, Fonda was part of a superb acting ensemble and also gave celebrated director Sidney Lumet his film debut with this drama (originally done as a television play) about a jury deliberating the fate of a teen accused of killing his father.
“The Best Man” (1964; Feb. 9): A political convention is the setting of this excellent adaptation of Gore Vidal’s play about the battle between an ethical candidate (Fonda) and a scheming rival (Cliff Robertson) to secure their party’s presidential nomination.
“The Lady Eve” (1941; Feb. 15): Filmmaker Preston Sturges’ “screwball” comedy makes Fonda the target of a con artist (Barbara Stanwyck) and her father (Charles Coburn).
“Yours, Mine and Ours” (1968; Feb. 15): One of Fonda’s most popular movies (shown frequently by TCM) teams him with Lucille Ball in a fact-inspired comedy about single parents who marry and bring their large broods of children together … and none too comfortably. Notable among the kids are Tim Matheson and later “Dallas” co-star Morgan Brittany, billed here by her birth name, Suzanne Cupito.
“On Golden Pond” (1981; Feb. 22): A year after he received an honorary Oscar, and not long before he passed, Fonda earned a competitive Academy Award by teaming with his daughter Jane (who also produced the film) and Katharine Hepburn in the tale of a deeply meaningful family reunion.