Turner Classic Movies premiered the documentary I’m King Kong: The Exploits of Merian C. Cooper tonight. Assuming that you’re reading this too late to tape the late-night rebroadcast, go directly to your calendar and mark Dec. 13, when TCM will air this again. If your VCR or TiVo works that far ahead, go ahead and set it up now. Run, don’t walk.

I really knew nothing of Cooper until some of the publicity for this special came out. Cooper was an aviator turned explorer turned documentary filmmaker turned dramatic filmmaker. When he and his partner Ernest B. Schoedsack directed “King Kong” in 1933, Cooper based the character of maverick adventure filmmaker Carl Denham on himself — and it wasn’t much of an exaggeration!

Cooper played a key role in promoting Technicolor and, later, Cinerama. He was a bomber pilot during World War I. He was a board member for Pan Am. He was chief of staff for the Flying Tigers (or, more accurately, for the official squadron that the Flying Tigers became after the U.S. officially joined the war). While a blustery, strong-willed personality himself, he was nonetheless a close associate of two other strong-willed Hollywood legends, David O. Selznick and John Ford, co-producing Ford classics like “She Wore A Yellow Ribbon” and “The Quiet Man.” While an executive at RKO, he decided to pair Fred Astaire with Ginger Rogers.

He was also, based on the audio interviews scattered throughout the documentary, quite profane! In one of the audio clips, he makes the title comment, “I’m King Kong!”, in describing his own remarkable life.

The on-camera interviews include Ray Bradbury, Ray Harryhausen and Harry Carey Jr. (the John Ford actor, no relation to the late sportscaster).

This is an incredible story, well-told by documentarian Kevin Brownlow (who’s profiled numerous film legends, particularly in silent film, for PBS and TCM). Must viewing, and especially timely with the release of Peter Jackson’s “King Kong” remake.