Ruth Rendell, on reading:

 

Some say life is the thing, but I prefer reading.
- Ruth Rendell.

Recommended reading - The Revenant (2002)

 

The Revenant

by Michael Punke

Published by Picador.
Movie tie-in edition published in 2015.
Paperback.
 
ISBN-10: 9781250072689
ISBN-13: 978-1250072689
 
Description:
 
Read the book that inspired to major motion picture.
 
A thrilling tale of betrayal and revenge set against the nineteenth-century American frontier, the astonishing story of real-life trapper and frontiersman Hugh Glass.
 
The year is 1823, and the trappers of the Rocky Mountain Fur Company live a brutal frontier life. Hugh Glass is among the company’s finest men, an experienced frontiersman and an expert tracker. But when a scouting mission puts him face-to-face with a grizzly bear, he is viciously mauled and not expected to survive. Two company men are dispatched to stay behind and tend to Glass before he dies. When the men rob and abandon him instead, Glass is driven to survive by one desire: revenge. With shocking grit and determination, Glass sets out, crawling at first, across hundreds of miles of uncharted American frontier. Based on a true story, The Revenant is a remarkable tale of obsession, the human will stretched to its limits, and the lengths that one man will go to for retribution.
 
“The makings of a western classic, Michael Punke's novel The Revenant provides muscle and sinew to the vengeful and epic tale of mountain man Hugh Glass that even a sow Grizzly couldn't rend asunder.” – Craig Johnson, author of the Walt Longmire novels.
 
“One of the great tales of the nineteenth-century West.” – The Salt Lake Tribune.

Born on this day – Albert S. Rogell:

 

Albert S. Rogell

Director

August 21, 1901 – April 7, 1988

Credits:

A Damsel in Distress (1937); Air Hawks (1935); Air Hostess (1933); Aloha (1931); Among the Missing (1934); Argentine Nights (1940); Atlantic Adventure (1935); Below the Sea (1933); Broken Arrow (1957–1958); Buster Keaton: A Hard Act to Follow (1987); Butch Minds the Baby (1942); Carnival Boat (1932); Cheyenne (1929); City Streets (1938); Courageous Fool (1925); Crack o' Dawn (1925); Cyclone Cavalier (1925); Desperate Chances (1921); Double Reward (1922); Earl Carroll Sketchbook (1946); East of Fifth Avenue (1933); Easy Money (1925); Escape from Devil's Island (1935); Fighting Fate (1925); Fog (1933); For Love or Money (1939); Fugitive Lady (1934); Galloping Gallagher (1924); Geared to Go (1924); Goat Getter (1925); Grand Jury (1936); Grinning Guns (1927); Hawaiian Nights (1939); Heaven Only Knows (1947); His Brother's Blood (1922); Hit Parade of 1943 (1943); Hollywood (1980); I Can't Give You Anything But Love, Baby (1940); In Old Oklahoma (1943); Jail House Blues (1942); Laugh It Off (1939); Lightning Romance (1924); Li'l Abner (1940); Love, Honor and Goodbye (1945); Mamba (1930); Men of Daring (1927); Men of the Night (1926); Murder in Greenwich Village (1937); My Friend Flicka (1956); Name the Woman (1934); No Man's Gold (1922); No More Women (1934); North of Nevada (1924); Northwest Stampede (1948); Painted Faces (1929); Phantom of the Hills (1922); Priorities on Parade (1942); Private Affairs (1940); Public Enemies (1941); Red Hot Leather (1926); Roaming Lady (1936); Rough and Ready (1927); Sailors on Leave (1941); Senor Daredevil (1926); Shadow of Fear (1955); Sleepytime Gal (1942); Somewhere in Sonora (1927); Song of India (1949); Start Cheering (1938); Streak of Yellow (1922); Suicide Fleet (1931); Super Speed (1925); Sweepstakes (1931); Tangled Trails (1921); The 20th Century-Fox Hour (1956–1957); The Admiral Was a Lady (1950); The Black Cat (1941); The California Mail (1929); The Canyon of Adventure (1928); The Circus Cyclone (1925); The Claim Jumpers (1922); The Danger Point (1922); The Dangerous Coward (1924); The Devil's Saddle (1927); The Eagle Man (1921); The Fear Fighter (1925); The Fighter of Diamond X (1921); The Fighting Sap (1924); The Fighting Three (1927); The Flying Marine (1929); The Ford Television Theatre (1956); The Glorious Trail (1928); The Greatest Menace (1923); The Hell Cat (1934); The Knockout Kid (1925); The Last Warning (1938); The Lone Wolf in Paris (1938); The Lone Wolf's Daughter (1929); The Magnificent Rogue (1946); The Man from the West (1926); The Mask of Lopez (1924); The Midlanders (1920); The Overland Stage (1927); The Patent Leather Pug (1925); The Phantom City (1928); The Queen of Hearts (1921); The Ranch Mystery (1921); The Red Raiders (1927); The Rider of Death Valley (1932); The Shepherd of the Hills (1928); The Silent Stranger (1924); The Snob Buster (1925); The Sphinx (1933); The Stranger (1921); The Sunset Derby (1927); The Tip-Off (1931); The Unknown Cavalier (1926); The Upland Rider (1928); The Western Rover (1927); The Western Whirlwind (1927); The Wrecker (1933); Thundering Hoofs (1924); Tight Shoes (1941); True to the Army (1942); Unknown Woman (1935); West Meets East (1922); You May Be Next! (1936); Youth on Parade (1942); Youth's Gamble (1925).

Born on this day – Friz Freleng:

 

Friz Freleng

Animator

Cartoonist

Director

Producer

Composer

August 21, 1905 – May 26, 1995

#WarnerBros #MerrieMelodies #LooneyToons #BugsBunny #PorkyPig #Sylvester #YosemiteSam

Born on this day – Frank Perry:

 

Frank Perry

Director

August 21, 1930 – August 29, 1995

Credits:

ABC Stage 67 (1966); Adventures in Rainbow Country (1969); Among the Paths to Eden (1967); Compromising Positions (1985); David and Lisa (1962); Diary of a Mad Housewife (1970); 'Doc' (1971); Dummy (1979); Faye (2024); Federico Fellini - un autoritratto ritrovato (2000); Festival of Family Classics (1973); Hawkeye and the Last of the Mohicans (1957); Hello Again (1987); Howard K. Smith (1963); Island Women (1958); J.F.K.: A One-Man Show (1984); Ladybug Ladybug (1963); Last Summer (1969); Man on a Swing (1974); Mommie Dearest (1981); Monsignor (1982); Moving Image Salutes Sidney Lumet (1985); On the Bridge (1992); Play It As It Lays (1972); Playwright at Work (1961–1962); Rancho Deluxe (1975); Skag (1980); The 68th Annual Academy Awards (1996); The David Frost Show (1970–1971); The Dick Cavett Show (1971); The Merv Griffin Show (1970); The Story of the Swimmer (2014); The Swimmer (1968); The Thanksgiving Visitor (1968); The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1970); Today (1973); Trilogy (1969).

Born on this day – Hugh Wilson:

 

Hugh Wilson

Director

Writer

August 21, 1943 – January 14, 2018

Born on this day – Jessie Jones:

 

Jessie Jones

Actress

Writer

August 21, 1950 – March 20, 2026

Credits:

Books / plays:

A Doublewide, Texas Christmas (2018); Always a Bridesmaid (2013); Buddy Bro Bubba Dude: Men in Twisted Shorts (2022); Christmas Belles (2007); Dearly Beloved (2005); Dearly Departed: A Comedy (1992); Deliver Us from Mama! (2020); Doublewide, Texas (2016); Farce of Habit (2017); Farce of Nature (2014); Funny Little Thing Called Love (2014); Honey Sugar Lady Doll: Women in Bodacious Shorts (2022); Honky Tonk Hissy Fit (2021); Last Round-up of the Guacamole Queens (2015); Lickety Split: Women and Men in Outrageous Shorts (2022); Mama Won't Fly (2012); Rex's Exes (2012); Sitting Ducks (2025); Southern Hospitality (2008); The Dixie Swim Club (2008); The Hallelujah Girls (2010); The Red Velvet Cake War (2010); The Savannah Sipping Society (2016); The Second-To-Last Chance Ladies League (2025); The Sweet Delilah Swim Club (2020); The Wild Women of Winedale (2019); 'Til Beth Do Us Part: (a Marital Confection) (2010).

Movies and television:

Backfield in Motion (1991); Border Line (1999); Caroline in the City (1996); Caught in the Act (1993); Cold Case (2005); Designing Women (1990); Ed and His Dead Mother (1993); Everybody's Baby: The Rescue of Jessica McClure (1989); For Their Own Good (1993); For Your Love (2002); Fudge (1995); Grace Under Fire (1995); Hooperman (1989); Judging Amy (2004); Jury Duty: The Comedy (1990); Kingdom Come (2001); Melrose Place (1997); Murphy Brown (1990); My Brother's Keeper (1995); Newhart (1989); Night Court (1990); Perfect Strangers (1990); Switch (1991); Teacher's Pet (2001–2002); The Crew (1995); The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom (1993); Unhappily Ever After (1997); Voices Within: The Lives of Truddi Chase (1990); Weird Science (1996); Who's the Boss? (1991); Wife, Mother, Murderer (1991); You're the One (1998).

On this day in movie history - L'amore a.k.a. Love (1948 movie & play):

L'amore

a.k.a. Love

directed by Roberto Rossellini,

written by Federico Fellini, Roberto Rossellini, Anna Benvenuti, Tullio Pinelli,

based on the play The Human Voice by Jean Cocteau,

released at the Venice Film Festival in Italy on August 21, 1948.

Music by Renzo Rossellini.

Cast: Anna Magnani, Federico Fellini, Peparuolo, Amelia Robert.

Recommended reading:

The Human Voice

Play by Jean Cocteau.

Translated by Daniel Raggett.

Published by Oberon Books.

Oberon Modern Plays.

First published 1929.

ISBN-10: 1786826542

ISBN-13: 978-1786826541

Description:

'I'm whispering into your ear – and we couldn't be further apart.'

A woman, a phone call, a final conversation. In this extraordinary and prophetic monologue, a woman fights for the person she loves. Jean Cocteau's iconic play explores our desperate need for human relationships – and the machine that has changed them forever. 

On this day in movie history - Wanda (1970)

Wanda

directed and written by Barbara Loden,

released at the Venice Film Festival in Italy on August 21, 1970.

Music by Dave Mullaney.

Cast: Barbara Loden, Michael Higgins, Dorothy Shupenes, Peter Shupenes, Jerome Their, Marian Their, Anthony Rotell, M.L. Kennedy, Gerald Grippo, Milton Gittleman, Lila Gittleman, Arnold Kanig, Joe Dennis, Charles Dosinan, Jack Ford, Rozamond Peck, Susan Clark, Linda Clark, Bill Longworth, Frank Jourdano, Valerie Mamches, Pete Richman, Ed Somavitch. 

On this day in movie history - The Longest Yard (1974)

The Longest Yard

a.k.a. The Mean Machine

directed by Robert Aldrich,

written by Tracy Keenan Wynn,

based on a story by Albert S. Ruddy,

was released in the United States on August 21, 1974.

Music by Frank De Vol.

Cast:

Burt Reynolds, Eddie Albert, Ed Lauter, Michael Conrad, James Hampton, Harry Caesar, John Steadman, Charles Tyner, Mike Henry, Jim Nicholson, Bernadette Peters, Pervis Atkins, Tony Cacciotti, Anitra Ford, Michael Fox, Joe Kapp, Richard Kiel, Pepper Martin, Mort Marshall, Ray Nitschke, Tony Reese, Sonny Sixkiller, Robert Tessier, Dino Washington, Ernie Wheelwright, Joe Dorsey, Gus Carlucci, Jack Rockwell, Sonny Shroyer, Ray Ogden, Don Ferguson, Chuck Hayward, Alfie Wise, Steve Wilder, George A. Jones, Wilbur Gillian, Wilson Warren, Joe Jackson, Howard Silverstein, Donald Hixon.

On this day in movie history - An American Werewolf in London (1981)

An American Werewolf in London

directed and written by John Landis,

was released in the United States on August 21, 1981.

Music by Elmer Bernstein.

Cast:

David Naughton, Griffin Dunne, David Schofield, Joe Belcher, Brian Glover, Lila Kaye, Rik Mayall, Sean Baker, Paddy Ryan, Jenny Agutter, Anne-Marie Davies, John Woodvine, Frank Oz, Don McKillop, Paul Kember, Colin Fernandes, Albert Moses, Jim Henson, Michele Brisigotti, Mark Fisher, Gordon Sterne, Paula Jacobs, Claudine Bowyer, Johanna Crayden, Nina Carter, Geoffrey Burridge, Brenda Cavendish, Christopher Scoular, Mary Tempest, Cynthia Powell, Sydney Bromley, Frank Singuineau, Will Leighton, Michael Carter, Elizabeth Bradley, Rufus Deakin, Lesley Ward, George Hilsdon, Gerry Lewis, Dennis Fraser, Alan Ford, Peter Ellis, Denise Stephens, Christine Hargreaves, Linzi Drew, Lucien Morgan, Dave Cooper, Susan Spencer, Bob Babenia, Ken Sicklen, John Salthouse, John Altman, Keith Hodiak, John Owens, Roger Rowland, Lewis Alexander, Jack Armstrong, Vic Armstrong, Alan Austen, Roy Beck, Kevin Brennan, John Cannon, Ina Clare, Simon van Collem, Harry Fielder, Noel Flanagan, Alan Flyng, Ryan Folsey, Laurie Goode, Dave Griffiths, Brendan Hughes, John Ketteringham, John Landis, Dave Lanning, Aileen Lewis, Tommy Little, Derek Lyons, Lou Morgan, Ralph G. Morse, James Muir, Terence Mustoo, George Oliver, James Payne, Quentin Pierre, Jack Ross, Terry Sach, Alecia St Leger, David Stone, John Timberlake, Terry Walsh.

On this day in movie history - The Big Easy (1987)

The Big Easy

directed by Jim McBride, and written by Daniel Petrie, Jr.,

was released in the United States on August 21, 1987.

Music by Brad Fiedel.

Cast:

Dennis Quaid, Ellen Barkin, Ned Beatty, John Goodman, Lisa Jane Persky, Ebbe Roe Smith, Tom O'Brien, Charles Ludlam, Grace Zabriskie, Marc Lawrence, Solomon Burke, Gailard Sartain, Jim Chimento, Edward Saint Pe, Robert Lesser, Cheryl Starbuck, Margie O'Dair, Arden Lo, Rickey Pierre, Nick Krieger, Gary Anthony Sturgis, Byron Nora, Archie Sampier, Jeff Hollis, Joy N. Houck Jr., Steve Broussard, Eliott Keener, August Krinke, John Schluter, Zephirin Hymel IV, Jack Harris, George Dureau, Patrick Frederic, Lane Trippe, Nik Hagler, Don Lutenbacher, Carol Sutton, Peter Gabb, Jim Garrison, Dave Petitjean, Buddy Quaid, Dennis Curren, Rico Wheat, Robert Kearney, Joe Catalanotto, Terrance Simien, Gene Chambers, Popp Esprite, Earl Sally, Rudy Chambers, Phillip V. Caruso, Duane Delco.

On this day in movie history - 1000 Women in Horror (2025 documentary & book):

1000 Women in Horror

documentary directed by Donna Davies,

written by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas,

based on the book by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas,

released at the Melbourne International Film Festival in Australia on August 21, 2025.

Cast: Tonjia Atomic, Roxanne Benjamin, Akela Cooper, Mattie Do, Brea Grant, Mary Harron, Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, Cerise Howard, Kier-La Janisse, Nikyatu Jusu, Nikyatu Jusu, Natasha Kermani, Roseanne Liang, Annalise Lockhart, Toby Poser, Sara Risher, Gigi Saul Guerrero, Lin Shaye, Kate Siegel, Chelsea Stardust, Jenn Wexler, April Wolfe.

Recommended reading:

1000 Women In Horror, 1895-2018

by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas.

Published by BearManor Media.
Published 2020.
ISBN-10: 1629333867
ISBN-13: 978-1629333861

Description:

Blowing a kiss back through time and space from Aaliyah to Jill Rae Zurborg, 1000 Women in Horror, 1895-2018 is a love letter to both the stars and the often-invisible women who have made the genre what it is today. From Classical Hollywood to alt-Nollywood, mumblegore to J-horror, this book offers a tiny global snapshot of the vast number of women who have worked in the creation of dark and spooky movies for well over a century, both behind and in front of the camera, and in films both widely known and comparatively obscure.

Featuring a selected filmography of over 700 feature films directed or co-directed by women, this book also features interviews with Rutanya Alda, Tara Anaïse, Tonjia Atomic, Anna Biller, Axelle Carolyn, Aislinn Clarke, BJ Colangelo, Mattie Do, Julia Ducournau, Jordan Hall, Catherine Hardwicke, Katherine Kean, Karen Lam, Izzy Lee, Barbara Magnolfi, Marsha Mason, Donna McRae, Patrushkha Mierzwa, Hannah Neurotica, Alexandra Paul, Isabel Peppard, Cassandra ‘Elvira’ Peterson, Debbie Rochon, Mia’Kate Russell, Gigi Saul Guerrero, Elizabeth Shepherd, Jen and Sylvia Soska, Brinke Stevens, Barbie Wilde and Silvana Zancolò.

About the Author: Alexandra Heller-Nicholas is a film critic from Melbourne, Australia. She has written eight books on cult, horror and exploitation cinema with an emphasis on gender politics, including Rape-Revenge Films: A Critical Study (2011), books on Dario Argento’s Suspiria (2015), Abel Ferrara’s Ms. 45 (2017) and Robert Harmon’s The Hitcher (2018), and the Bram Stoker Award nominated book Masks in Horror Cinema: Eyes Without Faces (2019). She is a member of the Alliance of Women Film Journalists and the Australian Film Crit-ics Association. Alexandra holds a PhD in Screen Studies from the University of Melbourne and is an Adjunct Professor at Deakin University and a Research Fellow at RMIT University.

On this day in music history - Sacred Heart, by Shakespear’s Sister (1989)

 

Sacred Heart

by Shakespear’s Sister

was released on August 21, 1989.

Track list:

Heroine; Run Silent Run Deep; Dirty Mind; Sacred Heart; Heaven Is in Your Arms; Twist the Knife; You’re History; Break My Heart; Red Rocket; Electric Moon; Primitive Love; Could You Be Loved; You Made Me Come to This.