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Each film will take place at a different spot inside the museum; Wednesday's 'The Mummy' will be screened in the Lower Egypt gallery. (Photo courtesy Penn Museum)

The Penn Museum and Secret Cinema, known for screening classic films of all genres at various locations throughout Philadelphia for the past fifteen years, have teamed up for a particularly exciting 2011/2012 Film Series.

Jay Schwartz, Secret Cinema founder, has specially curated a series of films for the Penn Museum. On the third Wednesday of the month in September, October, November and January, you can view a mix of rare, culturally significant and still powerful vintage films from the early ’20s and ’30s, at cool locations throughout the museum complex, adding an evocative flair to the screening experience.

Secret Cinema selected the feature films (plus occasional surprise short subjects) for having themes and geographic settings that fit in with the museum’s exhibits, as well as its last century of archeological expeditions.

The lineup includes:

• September 21: The Mummy (1932). The dead will rise in this masterpiece of vintage cinema, featuring the iconic Boris Karloff as Im-Ho-Tep, a doomed high priest whose mummified remains are accidentally revived, freeing him to chase his lost love through the ages.

• October 19: The Thief of Baghdad (1924). Experience a special screening of this film, featuring live music by Don Kinnier. Douglas Fairbanks plays the ever-sunny Ahmed the Thief, who attempts to steal the heart of a beautiful princess in this opulent adventure based on the Arabian Nights stories.

• November 16: Charlie Chan in Egypt (1935). Swedish-born actor Warner Oland stars in this evocative early entry in the long-lived Charlie Chan series, which finds the proverb-quoting Chinese sleuth traveling to Cairo. There he investigates missing ancient treasures and a murdered archaeologist whose body is discovered inside a sarcophagus.

• January 18: Chang: A Drama of the Wilderness (1927). Legendary King Kong (1933) filmmakers Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack create a violent and exotic movie about the perils of jungle life for a Thai hunter named Kru and his family, living in a danger-filled Southeast Asian wilderness. Chang is one of the earliest movies created in 1920′s Hollywood depicting the drama, hardship and enduring spirit of life as a pioneer.

The programs are free with museum admission, and free popcorn will be provided!

Secret Cinema Series at the Penn Museum
Where: 3260 South Street
When: Third Wednesday of the month, September-January, 6 p.m.
Cost: $10 general admission, $7 senior citizens (65 and above), $6 for children 6 to 17 and students, free for children 5 and under, and PENNcard holders
More info: www.thesecretcinema.com