8 things that happened on this day in history as it relates to showbiz...
1838 Legendary abolitionist and orator Frederick Douglass escapes from slavery. Where's his biopic? Seriously.He shows up briefly as a supporting character in both the miniseries North and South and the feature film Gloryin the 1980s but since then, no films or TV about him, apart from documentaries?
1920 Way Down East starring Lillian Gish as a wronged young woman premieres...
It's now reached its Centennial. You can watch the full film on YouTube.
1937 A triple option weekend for hungry moviegoers as The Prisoner of Zenda (which will score 2 Oscar noms), the Luise Rainer/Spencer Tracy star vehicle Big City, and the Jeanette Macdonald musical The Firefly all open.
1939 Britain, France, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Canada all declare war on Germany following Germany's invasion of Poland two days earlier. World War II is now in full swing. (The US will sit on its hands for another 27 months)
1965 The Battle of the Villa Fiorita starring Maureen O'Hara and Rossano Brazzi opens
1993 Kalifornia, a serial killer picture starring Brad Pitt and then-girlfriend Juliette Lewis opens in US theaters. Juliette is excellent in it, as is her wont. (Yes, Juliette did multiple hard R violent crime pictures back-to-back-to-back. See also Romeo is Bleeding in 1993 and NBK in 1994.)
2021 Supposedly Jackass 4 (they're making another?) will open on this day
Today's Birthday Suit
Happy 77th birthday today to Oscar-nominated actress Valerie Perrine (Lenny) who appears to have retired. Aside from Lenny she's probably best remembered today for headlining the camp classic Can't Stop the Music (1980) which we totally lurve and for playing Lex Luthor's girl in Superman (1978).
Other showbiz types celebrating birthdays today
Actors: Carlo Aquino, Arjan Bajwa, Evgenia Brik, Pauline Collins, Paz de la Huerta, Jack Dylan Grazer, Garrett Hedlund, Nina Kiri, Shakti Kapoor, Clare Kramer, Costas Mandylor, Holt McCallany, Macha Méril, Vivek Oberoi, Irene Papas, Charlie Sheen, Nick Wechsler, and Christine Woods; Writers & Directors & Craftsmen: Directors Noah Baumbach, Serge Bourguignon, Bryan Buckley, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, and Daniel Myrick and cinematographer Joaquín Baca-Asay; Gone but not Forgotten: Sally Benson, Alan Ladd, Eileen Brennan, and Kitty Carlisle.