On this day in movie history - Being John Malkovich (1999)

Being John Malkovich

directed by Spike Jonze,

written by Charlie Kaufman,

was shown in the United States on October 29, 1999.

Music by Carter Burwell.

Cast:

John Cusack, Cameron Diaz, Ned Bellamy, Eric Weinstein, Madison Lanc, Octavia Spencer, Mary Kay Place, Orson Bean, Catherine Keener, K.K. Dodds, Reginald C. Hayes, Byrne Piven, Judith Wetzell, John Malkovich, Kevin Carroll, Willie Garson, W. Earl Brown, Charlie Sheen, Gerald Emerick, Bill M. Ryusaki, Carlos Jacott, James Murray, Richard Fancy, Patti Tippo, Daniel Hansen, Mariah O'Brien, Gregory Sporleder, Kelly Teacher, Jacqueline Benoît, William Buck, Christine D. Coleman, Jeanne Diehl, Audrey Gelfund, Yetta Ginsburg, Sylvester Jenkins, Roy C. Johnson, Eddie J. Low, Ralph W. Spaulding, David Wyler, Flori Wyler, Kevin Lee, Marlowe Bassett, Jennifer Canzoneri, Kristie Cordle, Denise Dabrowski, Kristin Condon, Charlene Grimsley, Christine Krejer, Erica Long, Yvonne Montelius, Jessica Neuberger, Sara Rifkin, Elizabeth Rivera, Chelsa Sjostrom, Pamela Hayden, Jayne Hess, Michelle Madden, Greg O'Neill, Neil Ross, Bill Wittman, Lance Bangs, Kacee DeMasi, Andy Dick, Eddie L. Fauria, David Fincher, Jester Hairston, Isaac Hanson, Taylor Hanson, Zac Hanson, Dustin Hoffman, Victor Isaac, Spike Jonze, Sean Penn, Brad Pitt, Patrick Ryan, Winona Ryder, Gary Sinise, Trevor Lawrence Young.

On this day in movie history - The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999)

The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc

directed by Luc Besson,

written by Luc Besson and Andrew Birkin,

was released in France on October 27, 1999.

Music by Éric Serra.

Cast:

Milla Jovovich, John Malkovich, Faye Dunaway, Dustin Hoffman, Andrew Birkin, Jane Valentine, Vincent Cassel, Pascal Greggory, Richard Ridings, Desmond Harrington, Timothy West, Gina McKee, Tchéky Karyo, Joseph Malerba, Vincent Regan.

On this day in movie and book history - Marathon Man (1976 and 1974)

Marathon Man

directed by John Schlesinger,

written by, and based on the novel by William Goldman,

was released in the United States on October 8, 1976.

Music by Michael Small.

Cast:

Dustin Hoffman, Laurence Olivier, Roy Scheider, William Devane, Marthe Keller, Fritz Weaver, Richard Bright, Marc Lawrence, Allen Joseph, Tito Goya, Ben Dova, Lou Gilbert, Jacques Marin, James Wing Woo, Nicole Deslauriers, Lotte Palfi Andor, Lionel Pina, Church Ortiz, Tricoche, Jamie Tirelli, Wilfredo Hernández, Harry Goz, Michael Vale, Fred Stuthman, Lee Steele, William Martel, Glenn Robards, Ric Carrott, Alma Beltran, Daniel Nunez, Anthony Pena, Chuy Franco, Billy Kearns, Sally Wilson, Tom Ellis, Bryant Fraser, Igor Dega, Gene Bori, Annette Claudier, Roger Etienne, Raymond Serra, John Garson, Charlott Thyssen, Estelle Omens, Madge Kennedy, Jeff Palladini, Scott Price, Abebe Bikila, S.C. Dacy, Bobra Harris, Robert Hitchcock, Shawn McAllister, Irving Metzman, Monty O'Grady, N.J. Osrag, Harrison Ressler, Louis Tanno, Mark L. Taylor, Treat Williams.

Recommended reading:

 

Marathon Man

by William Goldman

First published 1974

Published by Random House Publishing Group.

Paperback.

ISBN-10: 0345439724

ISBN-13: 978-0345439727

Description:

William Goldman's remarkable career spans more than five decades, and his credentials run the gamut from bestselling novelist to Oscar-winning screenwriter to Hollywood raconteur. He's beloved by millions of readers as the author of the classic comic-romantic fantasy The Princess Bride. And he's notorious for creating the most harrowing visit to the dentist in literary and cinematic history – in one of the seminal thrillers of the twentieth century. . . .

MARATHON MAN

Tom "Babe" Levy is a runner in every sense: racing tirelessly toward his goals of athletic and academic excellence – and endlessly away from the specter of his famous father's scandal-driven suicide. But an unexpected visit from his beloved older brother will set in motion a chain of events that plunge Babe into a vortex of terror, treachery, and murder – and force him into a race for his life . . . and for the answer to the fateful question, "Is it safe?"

"Superb . . . One hell of a read." – The Washington Post.

“An exciting – often funny, often sad – chase … Goldman does a masterly job.” – Associated Press.

“Well-plotted, expertly characterized, and fast-paced." – Los Angeles Times.

On this day in movie history – Papillon (1973 movie & books):

Papillon

directed by Franklin J. Schaffner,

written by Dalton Trumbo and Lorenzo Semple Jr.,

based on the book by Henri Charrière,

released in the United States on December 16, 1973.

Music by Jerry Goldsmith.

Cast:

Steve McQueen, Dustin Hoffman, Victor Jory, Don Gordon, Anthony Zerbe, Robert Deman, Woodrow Parfrey, Bill Mumy, George Coulouris, Ratna Assan, William Smithers, Val Avery, Gregory Sierra, Ron Soble.

Recommended reading:

Papillon

by Henri Charriere.

ASIN: B01N8YET21

Published by William Morrow.

First published 1969.

Henri Charrière, called "Papillon," for the butterfly tattoo on his chest, was convicted in Paris in 1931 of a murder he did not commit. Sentenced to life imprisonment in the penal colony of French Guiana, he became obsessed with one goal: escape. After planning and executing a series of treacherous yet failed attempts over many years, he was eventually sent to the notorious prison, Devil's Island, a place from which no one had ever escaped . . . until Papillon. His flight to freedom remains one of the most incredible feats of human cunning, will, and endurance ever undertaken. Charrière's astonishing autobiography, Papillon, was published in France to instant acclaim in 1968, more than twenty years after his final escape. Since then, it has become a treasured classic -- the gripping, shocking, ultimately uplifting odyssey of an innocent man who would not be defeated.

Banco:
The Further Adventures of Papillon

by Henri Charrière.

Published by Granada Publishing Limited.

First published 1972.

ISBN 13: 9780586040102

ISBN 10: 0586040102

ASIN: 0586040102

The sensational sequel to Papillon. Banco continues the adventures of Henri Charriere – nicknamed Papillon – in Venezuela, where he has finally won his freedom after thirteen years of escape and imprisonment. Despite his resolve to become an honest man, Charriere is soon involved in hair-raiding exploits with goldminers, gamblers, bank-robbers and revolutionaries – robbing and being robbed, his lust for life as strong as ever. He also runs night clubs in Caracas until an earthquake ruins him in 1967 – when he decides to write the book that brings his international fame.

On this day in movie history - Lenny (1974)

Lenny

directed by Bob Fosse,

written by Julian Barry,

based on the play by Julian Barry,

was released in the United States on November 10, 1974.

Music by Ralph Burns.

Cast:

Dustin Hoffman, Valerie Perrine, Jan Miner, Stanley Beck, Frankie Man, Rashel Novikoff, Gary Morton, Guy Rennie, Michele Yonge, Kathryn Witt, Monroe Myers, John DiSanti, Mickey Gatlin, Martin Begley, Mark Harris, Richard Friedman, Lee Sandman, Jack Nagle, Phil Philbin, Bruce McLaughlin, Ted Sorel, Clarence Thomas, Mike Murphy, Susan Malnik, George DeWitt, Judy LaScala, Don Newsome, Allison Goldstein, Winston Lee, Bridghid Glass, Joe Mencel, Richard O'Barry, Beth Challis, Robert Parsons, Cecil Seay, Bob Collins.

On this day in movie and book history - Straight Time (1978)

Straight Time

directed by Ulu Grosbard and Dustin Hoffman,

written by Alvin Sargent, Edward Bunker and Jeffrey Boam,

based on the novel No Beast So Fierce by Edward Bunker,

was released in the United States on March 17, 1978.

Music by David Shire.

Cast:

Dustin Hoffman, Theresa Russell, Gary Busey, Harry Dean Stanton, M. Emmet Walsh, Rita Taggart, Kathy Bates, Sandy Baron, Jake Busey, Tina Menard, Stephanie Ericsson, Dave Kelly, Don Sommese, Kit Jee Wong, Peter Kwong, Jane Howard, Ronald L. Mellinger, Michael Blakley, John Colton, Edward Bunker, Corey Rand, John Gilgreen, Mary Craven, Peter Jurasik, Enid Hendershot, James Ray, Stuart I. Berton, Barry Cahill, Susan Sherman, Francesca Drown, Emily Le Rue, Ernest Taylor III, Fran Ryan, Bob Jarvis, Mark F. Hill, Mags Kavanaugh, Daniel Nunez, John McKinley Robertson, Mary Margaret Robinson, Deborah Sahagun.

Recommended reading:

No Beast So Fierce

by Edward Bunker.
 
Filmed as Straight Time (1978), directed by Ulu Grosbard and Dustin Hoffman.

Published by NO EXIT PRESS.
First published 1973.
Paperback.

ISBN-10: 1842432664
ISBN-13: 978-1842432662

Description:

“One of the great crime novels.” – James Ellroy.

An angry and mercilessly suspenseful novel about an ex-con's attempt to negotiate the "straight world" and his swan dive back into the paradoxical security of crime. It is airtight in its construction, almost photorealistic in its portrayal of L. A. lowlife and utterly knowledgeable about the terrors of liberty, the high of the quick score and the rage that makes the finger tighten on the trigger of the gun.