12th – 18th April: Discover This Fascinating Week in Film History

This week we cover the period between 12th – 18th April as we look back at the the fascinating history of the film industry. We love to celebrate the history of cinema here at More Movies and we really enjoy delving into and highlighting some of the most interesting moments in the world of movies, including milestone releases, births and deaths of the industry’s most notable characters, along with other historic happenings.

British actor and comedian Charlie Chaplin, the most famous actor of the silent screen, known for his films Modern Times, The Great Dictator and The Kid, was born in London

16th April, 1889

1st public showing of Thomas Edison’s kinetoscope (moving pictures)

14th April, 1894

British actor John Williams, famous for his roles in Dial M for Murder, To Catch a Thief and Midnight Lace, was born in Chalfont St. Giles, Buckinghamshire

15th April, 1903

American actor Louis Jean Heydt, famous for his roles in Roadblock, Test Pilot and Gone with the Wind, born in was Montclair, New Jersey

17th April, 1903

Russian actor Leonid Kinskey, famous for his roles in On Your Toes, Casablanca and Duck Soup, was born in St Petersburg

18th April, 1903

British stage and screen actor and director Sir John Gielgud, famous for his roles in Arthur, Richard III and Julius Caesar, was born in London

14th April, 1904

American actress Lita Grey, famous for his roles in The Devil’s Sleep, The Gold Rush and The Kid, was born in Hollywood, California

15th April, 1908

American character actor Walter “Walt” Gorney, famous for his roles in Friday the 13th, Trading Places and Cops and Robbers, was born in Vienna, Austria

12th April, 1912

Scottish actor David Langton, famous for his roles in Witness for the Prosecution, The Hound of the Baskervilles and The Whistle Blower, was born in Motherwell

16th April, 1912

Irish-British actor and comedian Spike Milligan, famous for his roles in History of the World Part I, The Hound of the Baskervilles and Postman’s Knock, was born in Ahmednagar, India

16th April, 1918

American actor William Holden, famous for his roles in The Blue Knight, Sunset Boulevard and The Bridge on the River Kwai, was born in O’Fallon, Illinois

17th April, 1918

American actor, singer and president of the Screen Actors Guild Howard Keel, famous for his roles in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Calamity Jane and Kiss Me Kate, was born in Gillespie, Illinois

13th April, 1919

British actor Peter Ustinov, famous for his roles in Death on Nile, Logan’s Run and Billy Budd, was born in London

16th April, 1921

American film director and producer Stanley Donen, famous for his films Singin’ in the Rain, Bedazzled and Charade, was born in Columbia, South Carolina

13th April, 1924

American actor Rod Steiger, famous for his roles in In the Heat of the Night, The Pawnbroker and Doctor Zhivago, was born in Westhampton, New York

14th April, 1925

French actress Dany Robin, famous for her roles in Follow the Boys, Topaz and Julietta, was born in Clamart

14th April, 1927

Grand Hotel, directed by Edmund Goulding and starring Greta Garbo and John Barrymore, premiered in New York

12th April, 1932

English actor Edward Fox, famous for his roles in The Day of the Jackal, A Bridge Too Far and Gandhi, was born in Chelsea

13th April, 1937

British actress Julie Christie, famous for her roles in Doctor Zhivago, Darling and Don’t Look Now, was born in Chukua, Assam, India

14th April, 1941

American actor James Woods, famous for his roles in Once Upon a Time in America, Casino and Salvador, was born in Vernal, Utah

18th April, 1947

Canadian actor Rick Moranis, famous for his roles in Honey I Shrunk the Kids, Little Shop of Horrors and Ghostbusters, was born in Toronto, Ontario

18th April, 1953

British actress Emma Thompson, famous for her roles in Nanny McPhee, Sense and Sensibility and Love Actually, was born in London

15th April, 1959

English actor Sean Bean, famous for his roles in The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Troy and GoldenEye, was born in Handsworth, Sheffield

17th April, 1959

Scottish actor Robert Carlyle, famous for his roles in Trainspotting, The Full Monty and Angela’s Ashes, was born in Glasgow

14th April, 1961

Jimmy Stewart accepts an honorary Oscar on behalf of his friend Gary Cooper, who was too ill to attend

17th April, 1961

English actor Sydney Chaplin, half brother of Charlie Chaplin and his business manager, died aged 80

15th April, 1965

American comedian Martin Lawrence, famous for his roles in Bad Boys, Blue Streak and Big Momma’s House, was born in Frankfurt, Germany

16th April, 1965

American actor Anthony Michael Hall, famous for his roles in The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles and Weird Science, was born in Boston, Massachusetts

14th April, 1968

American actress Shannen Doherty, famous for her roles in Heathers, Mallrats and No One Would Tell, was born in Memphis, Tennessee

12th April, 1971

Scottish actor David Tennant, not only known for being the tenth doctor in Doctor Who but also famous for his roles in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Bad Samaritan and Mary Queen of Scots, was born in Bathgate, Scotland

18th April, 1971

American film director Eli Roth, known for his films Hostel, Cabin Fever and The Green Inferno, was born in Newton, Massachusetts

18th April, 1972

American actor Adrien Brody, famous for his roles in The Pianist, Detachment and The Grand Budapest Hotel, was born in New York City

14th April, 1973

American actor Richard Conte, famous for his roles in The Big Combo, Tony Rome and The Godfather, died aged 65

15th April, 1975

American actor Paul McGrath, famous for his roles in No Time For Love, Pendulum and A Face in the Crowd, died aged 74

13th April, 1978

American actress Claire Danes, famous for her roles in Romeo + Juliet, Stardust and Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, was born in New York City

12th April, 1979

Canadian actor and writer Seth Rogen, famous for his roles in An American Pickle, Pineapple Express and Knocked Up, was born in Vancouver, British Columbia

15th April, 1982

British character actor Francis De Wolff, famous for his roles in Clue of the Twisted Candle, A Christmas Carol and From Russia With Love, died aged 71

18th April, 1984

American actor Stephen Stucker, famous for his roles in Trading Places, Airplane! and The Kentucky Fried Movie, died aged 38

13th April, 1986

English actress Emma Watson, famous for her role as Hermoine Granger in the Harry Potter movies as well as her roles in Beauty and the Beast and Little Women, was born in Paris, France

15th April, 1990

American actor Henry Kendrick, famous for his roles in Wheels of Terror, Raising Arizona and Revenge of the Nerds, died aged 56

15th April, 1990

Swedish actress Greta Garbo, famous for her roles in Ninotchka, Camille and Grand Hotel, died aged 84

15th April, 1990

English film director David Lean, famous for his films The Bridge on the River Kwai, Lawrence of Arabia and Doctor Zhivago, died aged 83

16th April, 1991

Irish American actress Saoirse Ronan, famous for her roles in Lady Bird, Little Women and The Lovely Bones, was born in The Bronx, New York

12th April, 1994

American screenwriter and director Cyril Enfield, famous for his films Zulu, Hell Drivers and Sands of the Kalahari, died aged 80

16th April, 1995

American-born British-Argentine actress Anya Taylor-Joy, famous for her roles in Split, The Witch and Emma, was born in Miami, Florida

16th April, 1996

The disaster film Volcano, directed by Mick Jackson and starring Tommy Lee Jones and Anne Heche, premiered in South Korea

15th April, 1997

English actress Maisie Williams, famous for her roles in The New Mutants, The Owners and The Falling, was born in Bristol, England

15th April, 1997

British actor and singer-songwriter Anthony Newley, famous for writing the lyrics to the Goldfinger title song, scoring Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory and writing the musical film Dr Dolittle, died aged 67

14th April, 1999

Spider-Man 3, directed by Sam Raimi and starring Toby Maguire and Kristen Dunst, premiered at the Tokyo Film Festival

16th April, 2007

Thor, directed by Kenneth Branagh and starring Chris Hemsworth and Natalie Portman, premiered in Sydney, Australia

17th April, 2011

Iron Man 3, directed by Shane Black and starring Robert Downey Jr. and Gwyneth Paltrow, premiered in London

18th April, 2013

Avengers: Age of Ultron, directed by Joss Whedon and starring Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo and Jeremy Renner, premiered in Los Angeles

13th April, 2015

The Fate of the Furious, directed by F. Gary Gray and starring Vin Diesel and The Rock opened worldwide

14th April, 2017

Black Panther becomes the first film shown at a commercial cinema in 35 years in Saudi Arabia as cinemas are reopened

18th April, 2018

Well there we have our picks for this week in film history between 12th – 18th April.

Be sure to check back next week for some more fun film facts and tidbits. If you think we missed something important, be sure to let us know in the comments.

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