On this day in movie and book history - The Last Detail (1973)

The Last Detail

directed by Hal Ashby,

written by Robert Towne,

based on the novel by Darryl Ponicsan,

was released in the United States on December 12, 1973.

Music by Johnny Mandel.

Cast:

Jack Nicholson, Otis Young, Randy Quaid, Clifton James, Carol Kane, Michael Moriarty, Nancy Allen, Gilda Radner, Jim Hohn, Luana Anders.

Recommended reading - The Last Detail (1970)

The Last Detail

by Darryl Ponicsan.
 
First published 1970.
Published by Skyhorse.
Paperback.

ISBN-10: 1510727752
ISBN-13: 978-1510727755

Description:
 
The acclaimed novel that was the basis for the classic movie starring Jack Nicholson.
 

Unlike the other branches of the armed services, the navy draws its police force from the ranks, as temporary duty. The risk is that men on Shore Patrol might bring their humanity to the task. This accounts for the underlying tension in "The Last Detail", which takes place during the height of the Vietnam War. Billy Bad-Ass and Mule Mulhall, two career sailors in transit in Norfolk, awaiting permanent orders, are given a "chaser" duty. Their assignment is to escort and deliver Larry Meadows, an 18-year-old sailor, from Norfolk to Portsmouth, N.H., where he is to serve an eight-year sentence in the brig. It's good duty, on the face of it, until the two old salts realize the injustice of the sentence and are oddly affected by the true innocence of their prisoner, even though he is guilty as charged. Failure, or refusal, to carry out their duty is never a question, no matter how much they hate the detail or how wrong it seems, and yet something must be done, some gesture made in order to help their hapless prisoner survive the long ordeal he faces, and to purge their own sense of shame. "The Last Detail" was Darryl Ponicsan's first book and it catapulted him into the front rank of American novelists. It was made into the 1973 film starring Jack Nicholson, and has become a classic of the Golden Age of American cinema. This new edition of "The Last Detail" coincides with the publication of its long-awaited sequel, "Last Flag Flying", also available from The Wright Press.

On this day in movie history - Carrie (1976)

Carrie

directed by Brian De Palma,

written by Lawrence D. Cohen, and based on the novel by Stephen King,

was released in the United States on November 3, 1976.

Music by Pino Donaggio.

Song: I Never Dreamed Someone Like You Could Love Someone Like Me performed by Katie Irving.

Cast:

Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, Amy Irving, William Katt, John Travolta, Nancy Allen, Betty Buckley, P. J. Soles, Priscilla Pointer, Sydney Lassick, Stefan Gierasch, Michael Talbott, Doug Cox, Harry Gold, Noelle North, Cindy Daly, Deirdre Berthrong, Anson Downes, Rory Stevens, Edie McClurg, Cameron De Palma.

On this day in movie history - The Gladiator (1986)

The Gladiator

directed by Abel Ferrara,

written by William Bleich, Tom Schulman and Jeffrey Walker,

based on a story by William Bleich,

was released in the United States on February 3, 1986.

Music by David Frank.

Cast:

Ken Wahl, Nancy Allen, Robert Culp, Stan Shaw, Rosemary Forsyth, Bart Braverman, Brian Robbins, Rick Dees, Michael Young, Harry Beer, Garry Goodrow, Robert Phalen, Linda Thorson, Mary Baldwin, Thom Bierdz, José Flores, Stephen Anthony Henry, Gary Lev, Jan Merlin, Georgie Paul, Mort Sertner, Jim Wilkey, Royce D. Applegate, Jeannie Epper, Lyle Gold, Helen Kelly, Mark Munski, George A. Sack Jr., Chris Sundlee.