Movies for the Day, Saturday, April 1, 2017

Today's movies acknowledge April 2017 as Cancer Control Month and Jazz and Blues Appreciation Month and the Final Four of the NCAA Men's Basketball Championships ("March Madness").



April 2017 is Cancer Control Month.  Ikiru (1952)
is a great Japanese film about a minor bureaucrat
who is dying of cancer and seeks the meaning of
life.






Ikiru





April is Jazz and Blues Appreciation
Month.  The Blues Brothers (1980) is an
iconic comedy featuring John Belushi
and Dan Ackroyd and their blues
music.




The Blues Brothers









Today is the Final Four of the Men's NCAA Men's
Basketball Championship.  Blue Chips (1994) is an
underrated movie about basketball at the college
level.




Blue Chips

Movies for the Day, Friday, March 31, 2017

Today's features include a French flick, a Russian classic, and a beloved television medical series.

Breathless (1959) is about a small-time thief, cops,
and romance.  This French film is very well regarded
by critics.  It is set in Paris and I select it for this day
because this is the anniversary of the Eiffel Tower from
1889.





Breathless

The Overcoat (1959) is a Russian movie
based on the classic story by Nikolai
Gogol, born this date, March 31, 1809.  It
is about a man and his new overcoat, but
also about much more.



The Overcoat







Dr. Kildare (September 27,1961 to
August 30,1996) is a television
series medical drama which stars Richard
Chamberlain, born March 31, 1934.  191
episodes aired.  A number of episodes were
nominated for Emmys in various categories,
especially "Shining Image" in 1962 and
"What's God to Julius?" in 1964.  In 1966,
actress Margaret Leighton was nominated
for Emmys for her role in several episodes.


Dr. Kildare

Movies for the Day, Thursday, March 30, 2017

Today's movies feature Vincent Van Gogh, a voyage into the body, and President Ronald Reagan. 



Lust for Life (1956) is a film about the life of
Vincent Van Gogh, a tormented but great Dutch
painter, who was born this date, March 30, in
1853.  It is based on the Irving Stone biography.
Van Gogh is played by Kirk Douglas who won
a Golden Globe for the role.  Anthony Quinn, as
the French painter Gauguin, famous for his
Tahiti paintings, won an Oscar for his portrayal.


Lust for Life





Today, March 30, is Doctor's Day, a
good day to watch Fantastic Voyage
(1966).  In this medical science fiction
story, a medical team and their ship are
shrunken down to microscopic size and
injected into a patient.  The movie won
Academy Awards for Art Direction/Set
Direction and Special Visual Effects.



Fantastic Voyage





The Day Reagan Was Shot (2001) is a television
movie about the day an assassination attempt
was made on President Ronald Reagan on March
30, 1981.





The Day Ronald Reagan Was Shot

Movies for Wednesday, March 29, 2017

Today's movies include an old Western, a right to die television movie, and a baseball picture.




In Old Arizona (1928) is an early Western starring
Warner Baxter as the Cisco Kid, a kind of Robin
Hood of the West.  Baxter, born this date in 1889,
won an Oscar as Best Actor.





In Old Arizona

In the Matter of Karen Ann Quinlan (1977)
is a heart-rending right to die television movie
about Quinlan's parents and her after she entered
into a persistent vegetative state, a coma
from which she would not recover.  Karen Ann
was born this date, March 29, in 1954, and died
about eight years after the movie aired, on June
11, 1985.



In the Matter of Karen Ann Quinlan






Moneyball (2011) is the story of Billy Beane,
born this date in 1962, and the influence of
sabermetrics on professional baseball.  Beane
was a professional baseball player, general manager
of the Oakland Athletics from 1997 to 2015, and
is currently an executive with the team.  Baseball
season is almost here!




Moneyball

Movies for the Day, Tuesday, March 28, 2017

Today's movies are about the circus, medical students and a near nuclear plant disaster.

The Greatest Show on Earth (1952) is a movie
about the spectacle that is a circus.  One
of the greatest circuses, Barnum & Bailey, was
founded this date in 1881.  This movie won
Oscars for Best Picture and Original Screenplay.
It was directed by the renowned Cecil B.
DeMille, who was awarded a Golden Globe as
Director.


The Greatest Show on Earth






Doctor in the House (1954) is a
British comedy about medical
students.  It stars Dirk Bogarde,
born this date, March 28 in 1921.
It is based on stories by Richard
Gordon.  Also, Thursday, March
30, is Doctor's Day.



Doctor in the House







Today is the anniversary of the Three Mile
Island nuclear plant accident in 1979.  Thus,
one of today's selections, The China Syndrome
(1979), is a thrilling movie about journalism and
a nuclear plant that barely averts a nuclear
plant core meltdown.




The China Syndrome

Movies for the Day, Monday, March 27, 2017

Today's selections include movies about Hollywood, a fugitive and surrogacy.  




Sunset Boulevard (1950) stars Gloria Swanson, born
this date, March 27, in 1899.  She won a Golden Globe as
Best Actress for her portrayal of a faded screen star who,
with her butler, shelter a hack screenwriter.  This murder
black comedy was awarded Oscars for Best Story and
Screenplay, Musical Score and Art/Set Direction.  The
movie is listed on the National Film Registry.




Sunset Blvd.






The Fugitive is a 1960s television series which
starred David Janssen, born this date in 1931.
Janssen played a doctor wrongly convicted of
murdering his wife.  He escapes prison and
embarks on a crusade to find the real killer,
while eluding the police.  The series aired for
four seasons, from September 17, 1963, to
August 29, 1967, 120 episodes.  Janssen
was nominated for Emmys three times as
Lead Actor in a Dramatic Series.  The series
won an Emmy for Outstanding Dramatic Series
in 1966.

The Fugitive





Baby M (1988) is based on the real-life story of a
childless couple and the surrogate mother of Baby
M, born this date in 1986.  Their custody battle
litigated the validity of surrogacy in New Jersey
(537 A2d 1227, 109 NJ 396 [1988]).  John Shea
won an Emmy as Outstanding Supporting Actor
in a television miniseries or special.



Baby M

Movies for the Day, Sunday, March 26, 2017

Today's movies include a Tennessee Williams play, a movie about Jesus Christ, and a basketball movie.


Today is the birthday of author Tennessee
Williams, born in 1911.  In honor of him, consider
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), a great movie
based on his play.  The movie is about romance and
relationships and passion.  It stars Marlon Brando.  It
is listed on the National Film Registry.  It won Academy
Awards for Best Actress, Vivien Leigh, Best Supporting
Actor, Karl Malden, Best Supporting Actress, Kim Hunter,
and Art/Set Decoration.  Two television movies have
been made of a Streetcar Named Desire, aired in 1984
and 1995.

A Streetcar Named Desire




The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965) is
a life of Jesus Christ, appropriate for
watching on a Sunday in Lent as Easter
approaches.




The Greatest Story Ever Told








White Men Can't Jump (1992), a story about
urban basketball hustlers, is a good movie to
watch during March Madness, aka the NCAA
Men's Basketball Championship.





White Men Can't Jump

Movies for Saturday, March 25, 2017

The selections for today, Saturday, March 25, 2017, include a Greek movie and movies that celebrate the continuing Christian Lenten season and March Madness, also known as the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship.  Tomorrow's selections also include a Lenten season movie and a basketball movie.



Greece Independence Day is March 25 (1821).  In
recognition, one of today's selections is Never on
Sunday (1960), a Greek film in which an intellectual
who travels to Greece meets and tries to culture a
prostitute.  Never on Sunday was later on Broadway.
The song "Never on Sunday" won an Oscar.




Never on Sunday






Brother John (1971) is the story of
a modern African American
Messiah.  Its selection continues my
weekend movies honoring the
Christian Lenten season.




Brother John






O (2000) is both a story of prep school
basketball and an updating of Shakespeare's
Othello.




O

Movies for the Day, Friday, March 24, 2017

Today's movies feature a magician, POW escape, and a police detective.



Today is the birthday of the great magician
Harry Houdini, born in 1874.  I honor his
birthday with the selection of The Cabinet of
Dr. Caligari (1919), a classic silent German
horror film about a magician who abuses his
hypnotic power.





The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari





The Great Escape (1963) is based on an
actual Allied POW escape during World
War II which occurred March 24 to March
25, 1944.  The movie is also based on
Paul Brickhill's 1950 book of the same name,
a non-fiction first-hand account of the
mass escape from the German POW camp,
Stalag Luft III, in Poland.




The Great Escape




Bullitt (1968) stars Steve McQueen, born this date
in 1930, as a no nonsense San Francisco police
detective.  This thriller features a classic car chase.
It is listed on the National Film Registry and won
an Oscar for Film Editing.  McQueen also starred
in The Great Escape, also featured for today (see
above).



Bullitt

Movies for Thursday, March 23, 2017

The movies for today, March 23, 2017, include a classic Japanese drama, a classic western, and a disaster film.



Rashomon (1950) is a classic film directed
by Akira Kurosawa of Japan, who was born
March 23, 1910.  It relates several
varying accounts of a rape/murder.  The
movie was awarded an Oscar for Best
Foreign Film.




Rashomon







The great screen actress Joan Crawford
was born this date in 1905.  The western
Johnny Guitar (1954) is one of her
best movies.  The film is listed on the
National Film Registry.



Johnny Guitar








March 23, 1989, is known as Near Miss Day,
the day the Earth and a large asteroid had a
"near miss."  Armageddon (1998) is a disaster
movie about an asteroid heading directly for
Earth.




Armageddon

Movies for Tuesday, March 21, 2017

Today's movies celebrate a Broadway impresario, a Mexican leader, and World Poetry Day with a children's program.


Florenz Ziegfeld Jr., the renowned Broadway
producer, was born on this date, March 21, in
1867.  The Great Ziegfeld (1936) is a story of
his life.  It won Academy Awards for Best
Picture and Best Actress, for Luise Rainer,
born January 12, 1910.





The Great Ziegfeld







The namesake of Juarez (1939) was Benito
J. Juarez, a great Mexican leader in the
time of Napolean III.  Juarez was born March
21, 1806.


Juarez








Today, March 21, has been designated World
Poetry Day by UNESCO.  Goodnight Moon
& Other Sleepytime Tales (1999) is an HBO
children's program appropriate to the day.  It
won Emmys for Outstanding Children's Program
and Individual Achievement in Animation,
for segments "Brahm's Lullaby" and "Twinkle,
Twinkle Little Star."


Goodnight Moon & Other Sleepytime Tales

Movies for Monday, March 20, 2017

The movies for today, Monday, March 20, 2017, feature imprisonment, obsession and war.

Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985) is the story
of a gay man and a political activist in a
South American prison cell.  The film stars
William Hurt, born this date in 1950, who won
an Academy Award as Best Actor.




Kiss of the Spider Woman








The Positively True Adventures of the
Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering
Mom (1993) is a television movie about
an obsessed high school mother.  It is
based on the true story of Wanda Holloway,
born in 1954.  It stars Holly Hunter, born
this date in 1958.




The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom




The Iraq War began this date in 2003.  The Hurt
Locker (2008) is an Academy Award winning
film which takes place during the war.  It won
Oscars for Best Motion Picture, Directing to Kathryn
Bigelow, Writing for Original Screenplay, Sound
Mixing, Film Editing and Sound Editing.  Bigelow
was the first woman to win an Oscar for Directing.



The Hurt Locker

Movies for Wednesday, March 22, 2017

Today's movies celebrate seals and African American airmen in World War II; the third takes a comical look at law school.





Today is International Day of the Seals, also
declared by Congress in 1982.  Celebrate the
day with Seal Island (1948) set in Alaska's
Pribilof Islands.  It won an Academy Award
for Short Films, Two-Reel.




Seal Island








The Tuskegee Airmen (1995) is a
television movie about a squadron
of African American air combat
fighters in World War II.  The
Tuskegee Airmen squadron was
activated this date in 1941.



The Tuskegee Airmen








Legally Blonde (2001) is a comedy with a sorority
girl, played by star Reese Witherspoon, born March 22,
1976, at Harvard Law School.




Legally Blonde

Movies for Sunday, March 19, 2017

Today's movies include an Arabian Nights film, a movie about Jesus, and a movie about college basketball.




There are many movies about the Arabian Nights tales,
most derived from the English translation by English
explorer Sir Richard Burton, born March 19, 1821.  I am
selecting The Thief of Bagdad (1940) which won
Oscars for Cinematography, Interior Decoration and
Special Effects.




The Thief of Bagdad






Jesus Christ Superstar (1973) is a retelling
of the Passion story.  The story went from
Broadway musical and record album to
the movies.




Jesus Christ Superstar









March Madness is here and this movie, One on
One (1977) is the story of a high school
phenom dealing with college basketball and
life.



One on One

Movies for Saturday, March 18, 2017

The movies for today, Saturday, March 18, 2017, feature English royal history, the life of Jesus and basketball.  I will list movies about Jesus and basketball again tomorrow, Sunday, March 19, 2017. The weekend movies about Jesus and basketball recognize the continuing Christian Lenten season and the NCAA Men's Basketball championships, also known as March Madness.




The Sword and the Rose (1953) is mainly about
Mary Tudor, born this date in 1496, and the
younger sister of King Henry VIII, who became
Queen Consort of France.




The Sword and the Stone






Parable (1964) is a short but controversial
film about the Jesus story, featuring a circus
harlequin.





Parable








1950s Indiana high school basketball takes
center stage in Hoosiers (1986).  This
inspiring movie is on the National Film
Registry.



Hoosiers

Movies for Friday, March 17, 2017

Today, Friday, March 17, 2017, we commemorate St. Patrick's Day with two movies; we also remember the great ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev.




The Quiet Man (1952) is a love story set in
Ireland.  It stars John Wayne.  It won
Oscars for Director, to John Ford, and for
Cinematography, Color.  This movie, listed
today in honor of St. Patrick's Day, is also on
the National Film Registry.


The Quiet Man







Our second selection for St. Patrick's Day
is Finian's Rainbow (1968), a musical
fantasy set in the American South and
touching on Irish themes and racial
injustice.




Finian's Rainbow







The world famous ballet dancer, Rudolf Nureyev, was
born this date, March 17, in 1938.  We celebrate his
birthday with I Am a Dancer (1973), a biographical
documentary.




I Am a Dancer

Movies for Thursday, March 16, 2017

The movies for today, Thursday, March 16, 2017, feature the comedic genius of Jerry Lewis, the My Lai Massacre and high school wrestling.





The Nutty Professor (1963), a comedy worthy of
listing on the National Film Registry, stars Jerry
Lewis, born this date, March 16, in 1926.  He played
Professor Buddy Love.  A remake with the
same title starring Eddie Murphy, born April 3, 1961,
was released in 1996.  It won an Oscar for Makeup.
The Nutty Professor II:  The Klumps was released
in 2000.


The Nutty Professor




The My Lai Massacre occurred during
the Vietnam War on March 16, 1968.
Interviews with My Lai Veterans (1971)
was awarded an Academy Award for
Best Documentary, Short Subjects.




Interviews with My Lai Veterans









Take Down (1978) is a seriocomic look at
high school wrestling.  Today, March 16, 2017,
is the beginning of the men's college wrestling
championships in St. Louis.




Take Down