by Nathaniel R
Murder on the Orient Express (2017)
Happy June 5th, especially if it's your birthday. Is it your birthday? Do speak up this month if you're a Gemini please. Here's what was happening on this day in history as it relates to our favorite topic: showbiz.
1883 The first Orient Express leaves Paris. The train ride becomes mythologized in multiple pop culture works.
1953 Producer Kathleen Kennedy born in Berkeley. Currently rules the Star Wars franchise with a director-firing iron will.
Lisa Cholodenko with her two time muse Frances McDormand (Olive Kitteridge, Laurel Canyon)
1963 John Profumo resigns his post in the House of Commons due to an affair with an alleged prostitute. There's an underdiscussed movie about this called Scandal (1989).
← 1964 Happy 54th birthday to undervalued writer/director Lisa Cholodenko born in Los Angeles on this day in history. She goes on to make two bonafide lesbian classics (High Art, The Kids Are All Right)...
...and other interesting movies (Laurel Canyon), and hit TV things (Olive Kitteridge). She also becomes the life partner of Wendy Melvoin (of Prince and The Revolution's "Wendy and Lisa" fame) granting her infinite 'your faves could never' points. Her next project is supposedly the remake of Toni Erdmann.
1971 Actor Mark Wahlberg is born in Boston
1981 The first cases of AIDS are reported though it wasn't called AIDS yet but described as a rare form of pneumonia. There have been many wonderful films about the AIDS epidemic, but the first three (as far as we're aware) were: An Early Frost (1985) a TV movie starring Aidan Quinn and Gena Rowlands and two indie features, the little seen Buddies (1985) and the indie classic Parting Glances (1986).
The first AIDS films to interest awards bodies were An Early Frost (which was nominated for a slew of Emmys though it lost the big prizes) and the arthouse hit Longtime Companion (released in 1990) which received an Oscar nomination for Bruce Davison's moving work in Best Supporting Actor (he won the Independent Spirit, NYFCC, NSFC, and Golden Globe that season). Decades later filmmakers are still making great films about the epidemic. Have you gotten around to the stunning BPM (2017) yet?
1983 The 37th annual Tony Awards are held at the Gershwin theater. Cats is named Best Musical and Torch Song Trilogy best play. Jessica Tandy, Harvey Fierstein, Betty Buckley, and Matthew Broderick all win Tonys on this night, too, so it was quite a season. Incidentally Torch Song (the title newly truncated) is coming back to Broadway this October with Michael Urie and Oscar & Tony winner Mercedes Ruehl in the starring roles (they played the roles Off Broadway last season in a short smash-hit run).
1987 The Untouchables premieres in movie theaters during Peak Kevin Costner and wins a (basically lifetime achievement) Oscar for Sean Connery.
1998 Modern classic The Truman Show, which got shafted at the Oscars with only 3 measly nominations, opened in movie theaters on this day. I miss Peter Weir movies. And movies where Jim Carrey was trying to get Oscar attention. Both of those cinematic threads, which only intertwined here, were so enjoyable.
Reese & Ryan as newlyweds, six months after their wedding.
1999 Perpetually sunny Reese Witherspoon and sexy Ryan Philippe marry in South Carolina after two years of dating. They were only 23 and 24 at the time, their hit movie Cruel Intentions was still in movie theaters, and Reese was six months pregnant!
2009 The Hangover opens in movie theaters becoming a surprise blockbuster and catapulting Bradley Cooper to A list status.
2014 Clint Eastwood's drab take on Broadway smash Jersey Boys opens in movie theaters. We liked the fourth wall breaking ending at least.