We love to celebrate the history of cinema here at More Movies and enjoy delving in to the rich history of film. Each week, we like to highlight some of the most interesting moments in the history of cinema, including milestone releases, births and deaths of the industry’s most notable characters, along with other historic events. This week we cover the period between 26th October – 1st November.
American actor Edward Van Sloan, famous for roles as Frankenstein and Dracula in the Universal monster movies, was born in Chaska, Minnesota.
1st November, 1881
Ruth Gordon, American actress known for Rosemary’s Baby and Harold & Maude was born in Quincy, Massachusetts (d. 1985).
30th October, 1896
American film director Don Siegel, famous for Escape from Alcatraz and The Shootist, was born in Chicago, Illinois.
26th October, 1912
American actor Jackie Coogan, famous for The Addams Family, The Kid and Oliver Twist, was born in Los Angeles, California.
26th October, 1914
British actor Robert Hardy, famous for playing Cornelius Fudge in the Harry Potter films, was born in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.
29th October, 1925
Famed illusionist Harry Houdini died of peritonitis, secondary to a ruptured appendix after weathering a hail of blows from student J. Gordon Whitehead.
31st October, 1926
American actor Michael Landon, famous for Bonanza and Highway to Heaven, was born in Forest Hills, New York.
31st October, 1936
The infamous radio broadcast of H. G. Wells The War of the Worlds, narrated by Orson Welles, allegedly caused mass panic in America.
30th October, 1938
English actor and comedian John Cleese, famous for the Monty Python films, was born in Weston-super-Mare.
27th October, 1939
One Night in the Tropics premiered in the U.S. This was the first film for Abbott and Costello.
30th October, 1940
English actor Bob Hoskins, most famous for his role in Who Framed Roger Rabbit and The Long Good Friday, was born in West Suffolk, England.
26th October, 1942
American actor Richard Dreyfuss, famous for roles in Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, was born in Brooklyn, New York.
29th October, 1947
American actress Kate Jackson, famous for roles in Rookies and Charlie’s Angels, was born in Birmingham, Alabama.
29th October, 1948
Canadian actor John Candy, famous for roles in Cool Runnings and Uncle Buck, was born in Newmarket, Ontario.
31st October, 1950
Hattie McDaniel, the first African-American actress to win an Oscar for Mammy in Gone With the Wind, died of breast cancer aged 57.
26th October, 1952
Italian director and actor Roberto Benigni, famous for Life is Beautiful and The Tiger and the Snow, was born in Castiglion Fiorentino, Italy.
27th October, 1952
Rebel Without a Cause, directed by Nicholas Ray and starring James Dean and Natalie Wood, was released.
27th October, 1955
New Zealand film director Peter Jackson, famed for the Lord of the Rings trilogy, was born in Wellington, New Zealand.
31st October, 1961
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? is released released. Directed by Robert Aldrich, starring Bette Davis and Joan Crawford.
31st October, 1962
American actor Rob Schneider, famous for roles in Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo and Grown Ups, was born in San Francisco, California.
31st October, 1963
American actress Julia Roberts, most famous for her roles in Pretty Woman and Notting Hill, was born in Smyrna, Georgia.
28th October, 1967
American rapper Vanilla Ice, famous for his role in Cool as Ice, was born in Miami, Florida.
31st October, 1967
Cool Hand Luke, starring Paul Newman, George Kennedy, and Strother Martin was released.
1st November, 1967
American actor and director Erich Von Stroheim Jr, famous for Napoleon and Sunset Boulevard, died of cancer aged 52.
26th October, 1968
American animator, voice actor and director Seth MacFarlane, famous for his film Ted, was born in Kent, Connecticut.
26th October, 1973
American actor Joaquin Phoenix, famous for his roles in Gladiator, Walk the Line and The Master, was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
28th October, 1974
American actor Jon Heder, most famous for his role in Napoleon Dynamite, was born in Fort Collins, Colorado.
26th October, 1977
American actor and director James Broderick, famous for Dog Day Afternoon and Family, dies of cancer aged 55.
1st November, 1982
The Terminator, directed by James Cameron and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton, was released in the US.
26th October, 1984
English actor Charles Hawtrey, famous for his role in the Carry On films, died near London aged 73.
27th October, 1988
American actor Harry Lauter, famous for roles in Escape from the Planet of the Apes and Incident, died of heart failure aged 76.
30th October, 1990
American actor River Phoenix, famous for his roles in Stand By Me and The Mosquito Coast, tragically dies of a drug overdose outside of Johnny Depp’s nightclub The Viper Room. He was aged just 23.
31st October, 1993
Director Federico Fellini, famous for La Dolce Vita, died of a stroke aged 73.
31st October, 1993
Titanic directed by James Cameron and starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, premiered at the Tokyo International Film Festival.
1st November, 1997
The indie cult hit Donnie Darko, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, was released.
28th October, 2001
Bee Movie premiered in the US and the UK.
28th October, 2007
The 22nd James Bond film Quantum of Solace, starring Daniel Craig and Olga Kurylenko, premiered in London.
29th October, 2008
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1, based on the book by Stephenie Meyer, directed by Bill Condon and starring Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, premiered at the Rome Film Festival.
30th October, 2011
Walt Disney purchases Lucasfilm Ltd and its rights for Star Wars and Indiana Jones for $4.05 billion.
30th October, 2012
Spectre, the 24th James Bond film, directed by Sam Mendes and starring Daniel Craig, premiered in London.
26th October, 2015
Actor Kevin Spacey issues an apology after actor Anthony Rapp accuses him of inappropriate sexual behaviour.
30th October, 2017
American producer and actor Robert Evans, famous for helping to produce films such as Love Story, The Godfather and Chinatown, died aged 89.
26th October, 2019
Well there we go folks, that’s our picks for this week in film history. Be sure to check back next week for some more fun film facts. If you think we missed something important, be sure to let us know in the comments.
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