This week we cover the period between 15th – 21st March 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.
American actor and director Arthur Hoyt, famous for his roles in Gold Dust Gertie and Goldie Get Along, was born in Georgetown, Colorado
19th March, 1873
American actor Henry B Walthall, famous for his roles in Judith of Bethulia, The Birth of a Nation and Klondike Annie, was born in Shelby City, Alabama
16th March, 1878
American actor Broncho Billy Anderson, famous for being the first cowboy in a movie and for his roles in His Regeneration, The Great Train Robbery and The Lucky Dog, was born in Little Rock, Arkansas
21st March, 1880
American silent screen actor Harrison Ford, famous for his roles in Rubber Tires, Vanity Fair and Love In High Gear, was born in Kansas City, Missouri
16th March, 1884
Irish-British actor J Pat O’Malley, famous for his voice roles in Wind in the Willows, 101 Dalmatians and The Jungle Book, was born in Burnley, England
15th March, 1904
English actor Robert Donat, famous for his roles in The 39 Steps, Goodbye Mr Chips and The Citadel, was born in Manchester, England
18th March, 1905
American actress Judith Evelyn, famous for her roles in 13th Letter, The Tingler and Rear Window, was born in Seneca, South Dakota
20th March, 1913
American actress Patricia Morison, famous for her roles in Dressed to Kill, Kiss Me, Kate and The King and I, was born in New York City
19th March, 1914
American actor Wendell Corey, famous for his roles in Rear Window, Holiday Affair and Desert Fury, was born in Dracut, Massachusetts
20th March, 1914
American actress Mercedes McCambridge, famous for her roles in All the King’s Men, The Exorcist and Giant, was born in Joliet, Illinois
16th March, 1916
British cinematographer Christopher Challis, famous for his work on Gone to Earth, The Small Back Room and The Elusive Pimpernel, was born in London
18th March, 1919
American comedian, actor and writer Carl Reiner, famous for his roles in Oceans Eleven, The Jerk and The 2000 Year Old Man, was born in The Bronx, New York
20th March, 1922
German actor Walter Gotell, famous for playing General Gogol, head of the KGB, in the Roger Moore-era of the James Bond film series in films such as Octopussy, For Your Eyes Only and The Spy Who Loved Me, was born in Bonn, Rhenish Prussia, Germany
15th March, 1924
American comedian and actor Jerry Lewis, famous for his roles in The Nutty Professor, The King of Comedy and The Bellboy, was born in Newark, New Jersey
16th March, 1926
American actor Peter Graves, famous for his roles in The Night of the Hunter, Airplane! and Stalag 17, was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota
18th March, 1926
British actor Patrick Allen, famous for his roles in Roman Holiday, Dial “M” for Murder and The Body Stealers, was born in Nyasaland, Africa
17th March, 1927
British actress Eunice Gayson, famous for playing the first Bond Girl Sylvia Trench in Dr. No and From Russia With Love, was born in London
17th March, 1928
American-born Irish actor, writer, and director Patrick McGoohan, famous for his roles in Braveheart, Escape From Alcatraz and A Time To Kill, was born in Queens, New York
19th March, 1928
French film director Philippe de Broca, famous for his films That Man from Rio, The Man from Acapulco and On Guard, was born in Paris, France
15th March, 1933
Swiss model and actress Ursula Andress, famous for her roles in Dr. No, Casino Royale and She, was born in Ostermundigen, Switzerland
19th March, 1936
Rebecca, based on the book by Daphne du Maurier, directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine, premiered in Miami, Florida. The film was recently remade for Netflix by Ben Wheatley, a film we talked about, as well as the original, in Episode 10 of the Movie Show, which you can check out here.
21st March, 1940
Italian director Bernardo Bertolucci, famous for his films The Conformist, Last Tango in Paris and 1900, was born in Parma, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
16th March, 1941
Welsh actor Timothy Dalton, famous for being the fourth actor to play James Bond and for his roles in Hot Fuzz, Flash Gordon and The Rocketeer, was born in Colwyn Bay, Wales
21st March, 1946
American actress Glenn Close, famous for her roles in The Big Chill, Fatal Attraction and 101 Dalmations, was born in Greenwich, Connecticut
19th March, 1947
American actor William Hurt, famous for his roles in Body Heat, The Big Chill and Children of a Lesser God, was born in Washington, D.C.
20th March, 1950
American actor Kurt Russell, famous for his roles in The Thing, Overboard and Escape from New York, was born in Springfield, Massachusetts
17th March, 1951
Former American film producer for Miramax Harvey Weinstein, famously accused and convicted of sexual abuse which sparked the #MeToo movement, was born in New York City
19th March, 1952
American actor Bruce Willis, famous for his roles in Die Hard, Unbreakable and The Sixth Sense, was born in Idar-Oberstein, West Germany
19th March, 1955
American film director Spike Lee, famous for his films BlacKkKlansman, Da 5 Bloods and Malcolm X, was born in Atlanta, Georgia
20th March, 1957
American actress Holly Hunter, famous for her roles in Raising Arizona, The Piano and The Incredibles, was born in Conyers, Georgia
20th March, 1958
English actor Gary Oldman, famous for his roles in Darkest Hour, Léon: The Professional and The Dark Knight, was born in London, England
21st March, 1958
One of the first French New Wave films Breathless, directed by Jean-Luc Godard and starring Jean-Paul Belmondo and Jean Seberg, was released in France
17th March, 1960
American actress and activist Dana Reeve, the wife of Christopher Reeve, was born in Teaneck, New Jersey
17th March, 1961
American actor Matthew Broderick, famous for his roles in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, WarGames and Godzilla, was born in New York City
21st March, 1962
American comedian and actress Rosie O’Donnell, famous for her roles in A League of Their Own, The Flintstones and Beautiful Girls, was born in Commack, New York
21st March, 1962
English actor David Thewlis, famous for his roles in Naked, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, was born in Blackpool, Lancashire
20th March, 1963
British actor Paul Cavanagh, famous for his roles in Shadows on the Stairs, Goin’ to Town and Born to Love, died aged 75
15th March, 1964
American actor Rob Lowe, famous for his roles in The Outsiders, St. Elmo’s Fire and Youngblood, was born in Charlottesville, Virginia
17th March, 1964
American rapper and actress Queen Latifah, famous for her roles in Last Holiday, Set it Off and Hairspray, was born in Newark, New Jersey
18th March, 1970
The Godfather, based on the book by Mario Puzo, directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Marlon Brando and Al Pacino, premiered in New York City
15th March, 1972
American actress Eva Longoria, famous for her roles in Dora and the Lost City of Gold, Overboard and The Sentinel, was born in Corpus Christi, Texas
15th March, 1975
Annie, directed by John Huston and starring Aileen Quinn, Albert Finney and Carol Burnett, premiered in London
21st March, 1982
American actor Alan Gifford, famous for his roles in The Flying Scot, Phase IV and Passport to China, died aged 78
20th March, 1989
American courts award Peggy Lee $3 million in a lawsuit against Disney regarding payments for the home video release of Lady and the Tramp. This case set a precident in entertainment contracts going forward.
20th March, 1991
English actor John Boyega, most famous for his role as Finn in the sequel Star Wars trilogy and also for his roles in Pacific Rim 2 and Atttack the Block, was born in London
17th March, 1992
Canadian actor John Ireland, famous for his roles in All the King’s Men, Rawhide and Gunfight at OK Corral, died aged 78
21st March, 1992
American actress Helen Hayes, famous for her roles in Airport, Arrowsmith and A Farewell to Arms, died aged 92
17th March, 1993
English actor Paul Scofield, famous for his roles in A Man for All Seasons, King Lear and The Train, died aged 86
19th March, 2008
American actor Ron Silver, famous for his roles in Blue Steel, Timecop and The Arrival, died aged 62
15th March, 2009
English actress Natasha Richardson, famous for her roles in The Parent Trap, Wild Child and Maid in Manhattan, tragically died of a traumatic brain injury aged just 45
18th March, 2009
English actor Michael Gough, famous for the Hammer Horror Films and his roles in Batman, Sleepy Hollow and Konga, died aged 94
17th March, 2011
Disney movie John Carter records one of the largest losses in cinema history with a $200 million dollar write down
20th March, 2012
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, directed by Zack Synder and starring Ben Affleck and Henry Cavill, premiered in Mexico City
19th March, 2016
American actor Peter Brown, famous for his roles in Foxy Brown, Ride the Wild Surf and Summer Magic, died aged 80
21st March, 2016
Disney refuses to cut gay moment in film Beauty and the Beast for Malaysian censors, instead pulls film from Malaysia
15th March, 2017
Live-action remake Beauty and the Beast, directed by Bill Condon and starring Emma Watson, premiered in the U.S.
17th March, 2017
The Walt Disney Company acquires Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox entertainment business for $71 billion
20th March, 2019
American actor Yaphet Kotto, famous for his roles in Alien and Midnight Run, died aged 81
15th March, 2021
American actor Lance Reddick, known for his roles in The Wire and John Wick, died suddenly at the age of 60
17th March, 2023
Well there we have our picks for this week in film history between 15th – 21st March.
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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