Author Archives: dcaligari

July 30, 1966 – The Dynamic Duo made the jump from the TV scene to the movie scene – Batman, The Movie, opened in Austin, Texas on this date. A follow up film was at one point considered. The film would have been released between seasons two and three, and would have been used toContinue reading “Batman: The Movie premiered”

July 30, 1982 –One of Ron Howard’s early movie directorial efforts Night Shift, opened on this date. Henry Winkler was scheduled to begin principal photography for this movie in New York City during his holiday hiatus from Happy Days, and would resume the following year, following production of the ninth season of Happy Days. WinklerContinue reading “Night Shift premiered”

Today is Lasagna Day. I’m not going to lie to you – I don’t believe you can just whip up a lasagna together in a day. It’s going to take you a day or two just to collect all of the ingredients. Why not have a nice family dinner this coming weekend by planning onContinue reading “Lasagna is the answer, who cares what the question is.”

July 29, 1965 – The Beatles movie Help! opened in London on this date. One of this movie’s original taglines was, “Please do not reveal the beginning of this movie to your friends (they’d never believe it, anyway)”. This is a spoof of the tagline from Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, which implored its audience, “Please doContinue reading “Eight Arms to Hold You premiered”

July 29, 1972 –Gilbert O’Sullivan topped the charts with his hit Alone Again (Naturally) on this date. (I will not take responsibility for the following ear worm; listen to the clip at your own risk.) This was Irish-born singer Gilbert O’Sullivan’s only American #1. It sold 2 million copies, spent six weeks at the summitContinue reading “Alone Again went to No. 1”

July 29, 1982 –Professional wrestler Jerry Lawler slapped actor Andy Kaufman in the face on the program Late Night with David Letterman, a staged event that prompted a several month ‘war’ between the two of them. It remains among the greatest Letterman moments of all time. The video went viral long before the Internet gaveContinue reading “Fisticuffs break out on The Letterman Show”

July 29, 1983 –NBC’s answer to MTV, Friday Night Videos, premiered on this date. The show, created by Dick Ebersol, had some big-name artists and videos, and there was a fun segment called Video Vote, which pitted two artists/videos against one another to see who fans enjoyed the most (submitting their votes via a 900Continue reading “Friday Night Videos first aired”

July 28, 1973 –Bill Graham produced the Summer Jam at Watkins Glen Rock Festival at the Watkins Glen International Raceway, that featured the Allman Brothers, the Band, and the Grateful Dead. The concert was estimated to have drawn some 650,000 people, The concert drew some 650,000 people, the single largest paying crowd in concert history.

July 28, 1948 – Bud and Lou’s biggest box-office success, Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, opened on this date, (this was one of my favorite childhood films.) Bobby Barber was employed for the film as a “court jester“. It was his job to keep the energylevel up through a series of practical jokes and deliberatelyContinue reading “Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein premiered”

July 28, 1957 –Jerry Lee Lewis appeared of TV for the first time when he performed on the Steve Allen Show on this date. Only a year earlier, Allen humiliated Elvis by making him appear in a tuxedo, singing Hound Dog to a dog, in an attempt to desexuallize Elvis‘ performance, Well, Jerry Lee LewisContinue reading “The naughty Jerry Lee’s first TV appearance”