Showbiz History: Anne & Ellen, Liz & Dick, Rosemary & Baby
Tuesday, June 12, 2018 at 11:28AM
NATHANIEL R in Anne Heche, Cleopatra, Dave Franco, High Art, LGBT, Mel Rodriguez, Moon, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Six Days Seven Nights, The Diary of Anne Frank, The Witches of Eastwick, on this day

Here's what was happening on this day in showbiz history...

1930 Jim Nabors (aka Gomer Pyle) born in Alabama

1942 Anne Frank receives a diary for her 13th birthday. The diary will become world famous and receive multiple stage and film adaptations, most famously in the Oscar nominated '59 version from director George Stevens.

1963 Cleopatra has its premiere in New York City after years of tabloid sensations during the making of courtesy of Liz & Dick. Ever courting controversy, Liz & Dick did not attend the premiere!

1965 Actress Cathy Tyson (niece of Cicely!) born in Liverpool. She'll make a big splash (and receive a Golden Globe nomination) for her film debut in Mona Lisa when she's just 21...

1968 Rosemary's Baby arrives in movie theaters. We'll celebrate its 50th in a bit.

← 1973 Actor Mel Rodriguez (just excellent in the shortlived TV series Getting On with Laurie Metcalf and Niecy Nash) born in Florida. Oof I loved that show so much and it barely got any attention. 

1981 Raiders of the Lost Ark opens in movie theaters becoming an instant smash hit and the top grossing movie of its year by a comfortable margin over runner-up On Golden Pond. Both films will be nominated for Best Picture. 

1985 Actor Dave Franco is California, baby brother of James, is born.

1987 The Witches of Eastwick opens in movie theaters. The combo of Cher, Susan Sarandon, and Michelle Pfeiffer nearly causes The Rapture for the world's actressexual population of the time. It becomes the tenth biggest hit of its year.

1990 Mariah Carey releases her multi-platinum debut album "Mariah Carey"

1994 Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman are brutally stabbed to death in Brentwood. Football star/actor O.J. Simpson is acquitted or their murders in 1995 but found liable in a civil suit in 1997. Hollywood still obsesses over the crime regularly (see: The People vs OJ Simpson's Emmy haul)

Anne and Ellen at the premiere of Six Days Seven Nights

1998 A big weekend for lesbians! High Art, about lesbians, opens in limited release while Anne Heche, becomes the first out lesbian to headline a movie with Six Days Seven Nights, opening in wide release. Of course we'd later clarify that Heche was bisexual but at the time it was quite exciting!

1999 Courtney Cox marries David Arquette resulting in that brief awesome gag in the Friends credit sequence when all of the stars suddenly had "Arquette" added to their last name.

2009 Moon opens reminding everyone what an excellent actor Sam Rockwell is... though it would take Oscar another eight years to notice.

Article originally appeared on The Film Experience (http://thefilmexperience.net/).
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