Author Archives: dcaligari

June 9, 1947 –Another of Orson Welles‘ (The patron saint of Independent film makers) mangled studio films The Lady from Shanghai was released on this date. Orson Welles’ original rough cut of this picture ran 155 minutes (the released version ran 92 minutes). Numerous cuts made by Columbia Pictures executives included a shortening of theContinue reading “The Lady from Shanghai premiered”

June 9, 1934 –90 years ago today, an American legend made his first appearance on the silver screen. The Silly Symphony short The Wise Little Hen debuted; it’s star, resplendent in his trademark sailor jacket and cap. Since then, he has appeared in over 450 films in more than 200 languages, held lead roles inContinue reading “The Wise Little Hen premiered”

June 9, 1945 – The last appearance of a ‘nude‘ Tweety and before his famous pairing with Sylvester, , opened in the US on this date. Tweety rides on the back of a classic Vaudeville style horse in a salute to the popular radio drama The Lone Ranger.

June 9, 1978 –The Rolling Stones‘ 14th British and 16th American studio album, Some Girls, was released on this date. The album cover was a parody of a newspaper ad for wigs, but the women wearing the wigs were celebrities like Raquel Welch, Lucille Ball, and Farrah Fawcett. They had to remove the famous womenContinue reading “I’ve been holdin’ out so long …”

June 8, 1974 –Dolly Parton’s single I Will Always Love You went to No.1 on the US country charts on this date. Elvis Presley let it be known that he wanted to cover the song. Parton was interested until Presley’s manager, Colonel Tom Parker, told her that it was standard procedure for the songwriter toContinue reading “I Will Always Love You topped the charts”

June 8, 1946 – The very funny Looney Tunes cartoon, Kitty Kornered, was released on this date. It have a number of firsts going for it:1.) It’s the first appearance of Sylvester the Cat (as this point unnamed) in a Warner Bros. cartoon.2.) It’s the first pairing of Porky and Sylvester.

June 8, 1984 –Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together… mass hysteria! Ivan Reitman’s comedy – horror film, Ghostbusters, debuted on this date. In the middle of the film’s initial release, to keep interest going, Ivan Reitman ran a trailer that was basically the commercial the Ghostbusters used in the movie, but the 555 numberContinue reading “The original Ghostbusters premiered”

June 8, 1983 –John Landis‘ mega-hit comedy Trading Places, starring Dan Aykroyd, Eddie Murphy, Ralph Bellamy, Don Ameche, Denholm Elliott, and Jamie Lee Curtis opened in the US on this date. In 2010, as part of the Wall Street Transparency and Accountability Act, which was to regulate financial markets, a rule was included which barredContinue reading “Trading Places premiered”

Today is National Name Your Poison Day. As described on many websites, “… National Name Your Poison Day is observed each year on June 8. Over the years, bartenders have been known to use the phrase, “name your poison,” when asking patrons what they would like to drink. This observation celebrates that phrase and isContinue reading “I believe you know what mine would be”

June 7, 1975 –Elton John’s ninth studio album Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboys, went to No. 1 on the US album chart, on this date. It’s the first album ever to enter the US chart at No. 1. (where it stayed for seven weeks). Captain Fantastic‘ is a concept album that gives anContinue reading “Captain Fantastic topped the charts”