If you grew up between roughly 1976 and 1995, chances are at some point you went to see a late-night screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Catching that gender-bending classic was a rite of passage for teens looking to interact with a movie screen and see a hard-to-find cult film in a more innocent time before Mystery Science Theater 3000, the Internet and Netflix made doing so commonplace.

While Rocky Horror will likely experience a revival thanks to its inclusion in the upcoming big screen adaptation of Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Philly will be ahead of the curve by featuring it as part of the TLA’s new Midnight Movie series.

Curated by WXPN DJ/new wave expert/all around good guy Robert Drake, the three-film event begins this Saturday with a screening of John Waters’ immortal classic Pink Flamingos. The Rocky Horror Picture Show follows on August 4th. This viewing of the flick will build antici… pation in that it promises a live performance from Philly’s great Transylvania Nipple Productions. Since the crowd at NYC’s Waverly theater — where Rocky Horror mania was born — dispersed long ago, this will be the next best opportunity to do the Time Warp with some tried and true fans. The series wraps up on August 11th with Mommie Dearest. (If you listen closely to you already camp-loving Delaware Valley residents practicing their screams of “NO WIRE HANGERS, EVER.”)

As you may or may not be aware, the TLA used to regularly feature screenings of cult flicks during South Street’s golden age, a time that Drake is rightfully obsessed with. That he is recapturing some of this vanished magic with these three showings is yet another example of his commitment to proving that the area can still be cool today. Seriously.

With any luck, this will be the start of a long-running repertory film program at the TLA. I don’t know about you, but I’d personally love to see flicks like Eraserhead, Breaking Glass, Times Square, Heavy Metal, Black Belt Jones, Urgh!: A Music War, and other cult gems get the TLA treatment.

Since tickets to each of the films only costing a measly $10, you really have no excuse not to check it out. If not to reflect upon a long-gone part of Philadelphia’s cultural heritage than at least to catch a great film.

TLA Midnight Movie Series

Pink Flamingos – Saturday, July 28th

The Rocky Horror Picture Show – Saturday, August 4th

Mommie Dearest – Saturday, August 11th

Tickets are available at The TLA (334 South Street) and Tattooed Mom. (530 South Street). $10. Ages 21+ only.