Enid Bagnold, on writing:

Who wants to become a writer? 

And why?

Because it’s the answer to everything …

It’s the streaming reason for living.

To note, to pin down, to build up, to create, to be astonished at nothing, to cherish the oddities, to let nothing go down the drain, to make something, to make a great flower out of life, even if it’s a cactus.

 - Enid Bagnold.

Recommended reading - Hell Hath No Fury

Hell Hath No Fury

by Charles Williams.

 

Filmed as The Hot Spot (1990), directed by Dennis Hopper.
 
Paperback.
First published 1953.
Published by Vintage.

ISBN 13: 9780679733294
ISBN 10: 0679733299
ASIN: 0679733299
 
Description:
 
A dark, brooding masterpiece of guilt, greed, and lust in a town ripe for felony.
 

Madox wasn't all bad.  He was just half-bad.  But trap a man like Madox in a dead-end job in a stultifying small town, introduce him to a femme fatale like the Harshaw woman, and give him a shot at a fast fifteen thousand dollars--in a bank just begging to be knocked over--and his better nature doesn't stand a chance.

 

Merciless in its suspense, flawless in its grasp of the ways in which ordinary people hurtle over the edge, The Hot Spot is a superb example of fifties roman noir.

Born on this day – Domenico Scarlatti:

Domenico Scarlatti

Composer

October 26, 1685 – July 23, 1757

Born on this day – Margaret Wycherly:

Margaret Wycherly

Actress

October 26, 1881 – June 6, 1956

Credits:

General Electric Theater (1955); Studio One (1954); Ponds Theater (1954); Kraft Theatre (1953–1954); The President's Lady (1953); That Man from Tangier (1953); Lux Video Theatre (1951–1953); Claudia: The Story of a Marriage (1952); The Man with a Cloak (1951); Kraft Theatre (1950–1951); The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre (1950); The Ford Theatre Hour (1950); White Heat (1949); NBC Presents (1949); The Loves of Carmen (1948); Forever Amber (1947); Something in the Wind (1947); The Yearling (1946); Johnny Angel (1945); Experiment Perilous (1944); Hangmen Also Die! (1943); The Moon Is Down (1943); Assignment in Brittany (1943); Keeper of the Flame (1942); Random Harvest (1942); Crossroads (1942); Sergeant York (1941); Victory (1940); Wanderlust (1938); Midnight (1934); The Thirteenth Chair (1929); The Fight (1915).

Born on this day – Mark Sandrich:

Mark Sandrich

Director

Writer

Producer

October 26, 1900 – March 4, 1945

Born on this day – Buddy Messinger:

Buddy Messinger

Actor

Assistant director

Stunts

October 26, 1907 – October 25, 1965

Credits:

A Family Row (1924); A Front Page Story (1922); A Howling Success (1923); A Lady of Chance (1928); A Regular Boy (1923); A Sorority Mixup (1927); A Star Is Born (1937); A Young Tenderfoot (1924); Ah Wilderness! (1935); Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp (1917); Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves (1918); All for a Girl (1925); All Over Twist (1923); Almost a Husband (1925); An All American Toothache (1936); Andy Hardy Meets Debutante (1940); Around the World in 80 Days (1956); Atlantic Flight (1937); Blackboard Jungle (1955); Blonde Trouble (1937); Bondage (1933); Boyhood Days (1923); Bringing Up Buddy (1923); Brooklyn Orchid (1942); Buckin' the Line (1923); Budding Youth (1924); Buddy at the Bat (1923); Cheer Up and Smile (1930); Citizen Kane (1941); Clear the Way (1925); College Coach (1933); College Holiday (1936); Crime by Night (1944); Dad's Boy (1923); Devil's Doorway (1950); Don't Fall (1924); Don't Get Fresh (1923); Don't Kidd Me, Monkey (1926); Dumb Belles (1927); Edgar and the Teacher's Pet (1920); Edgar Camps Out (1920); Edgar Takes the Cake (1920); Edgar, the Detective (1921); Edgar, the Explorer (1920); Edgar's Country Cousin (1921); Edgar's Feast Day (1921); Edgar's Hamlet (1920); Edgar's Jonah Day (1920); Edgar's Little Saw (1920); Edgar's Sunday Courtship (1920); Eyes of Hollywood (1925); Fan Fan (1918); Fast and Furious (1939); Fast and Loose (1939); Fighting Joe (1916); Flame of the Islands (1955); Four Girls in White (1939); Giant (1956); Gloriana (1916); Good Scouts (1927); Happy Days (1924); Henry Aldrich Gets Glamour (1943); Here He Comes! (1924); His First Degree (1924); Hold Back the Dawn (1941); Hold That Kiss (1938); Hot Stuff (1929); Hullabaloo (1940); Idiot's Delight (1939); Jack and the Beanstalk (1917); Jack Slade (1953); Jinx (1919); Keeping Company (1940); Kelly the Second (1936); Keyhole Katie (1933); Let 'em Have It (1935); Libeled Lady (1936); Love Thy Neighbor (1940); Low Bridge (1924); Midnight Madonna (1937); Mister Cinderella (1936); Modern Times (1936); Monkey Hula (1927); Monkeys Prefer Blondes (1926); Most Precious Thing in Life (1934); Nize Monkey (1926); Oh, Monkey, Be Good (1926); One, Two, Three, Kick! (1927); Our Relations (1936); Penrod and Sam (1923); Please, Teacher! (1924); Quit Kidding (1924); Ringside Romeos (1928); Sailing Along (1925); Sandwiches and Tea (1928); Sergeant Madden (1939); Sergeant Preston of the Yukon (1956–1957); Shadows (1922); She's a He (1923); Six-Shooter Andy (1918); Smarty (1923); So Long, Buddy (1923); Some Pets (1928); So's Your Monk (1927); Stage Mother (1933); Summer Knights (1928); Super-Sleuth (1937); Swell Clothes (1927); Taming the East (1925); Test Pilot (1938); Thanks a Million (1935); That's My Mummy (1927); The 3 Wise Guys (1936); The Abysmal Brute (1923); The Affairs of Martha (1942); The Age of Consent (1932); The Aggravatin' Kid (1925); The Andy Griffith Show (1962); The Atomic Kid (1954); The Babes in the Woods (1917); The Big Store (1941); The Blow Out (1924); The Caddy (1924); The Campus Hoofer (1934); The Clown and the Kid (1961); The Danny Thomas Show (1963); The Devil Is a Sissy (1936); The Flirt (1922); The Gay Amigo (1949); The Gay Sisters (1942); The Godless Girl (1928); The Hoodlum (1919); The Housekeeper's Daughter (1939); The King of Shebas (1928); The Lone Ranger Rides Again (1939); The Luck of the Irish (1920); The Mexican Spitfire's Baby (1941); The Old Nest (1921); The Public Menace (1935); The Racing Kid (1924); The Road to Denver (1955); The Sergeant Was a Lady (1961); The Shining Hour (1938); The Shopworn Angel (1938); The Story of Dr. Wassell (1944); The Valiant Hombre (1948); The Whispered Name (1924); This Side of Heaven (1934); Three of a Kind (1936); Timberjack (1955); Too Hot to Handle (1938); Trailing Trouble (1924); Treasure Island (1917); Trifling with Honor (1923); Turnabout (1940); Two Arabian Sights (1927); Undressed (1928); What an Eye (1924); When Love Comes (1922); Wild Boys of the Road (1933); Wings Over Honolulu (1937); Yellow Jack (1938); Young Ideas (1924); Zero Hour! (1957).

Born on this day – Don Siegel:

Don Siegel

Director

Producer

October 26, 1912 – April 20, 1991

Born on this day – Jackie Coogan:

Jackie Coogan

Actor

Comedian

October 26, 1914 – March 1, 1984

Born on this day – Vivian Nathan:

Vivian Nathan

Actress

October 26, 1916 – April 3, 2015

Founding member of the Actors Studio in 1947.
 
Credits:

The Equalizer (1989); Kojak (1976); Klute (1971); Breaking Point (1963); The Doctors and the Nurses (1962–1963); Arrest and Trial (1963); The Outsider (1961); Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1958–1961); The Young Savages (1961); Play of the Week (1961); Playhouse 90 (1958–1960); Shirley Temple's Storybook (1958); Pursuit (1958); Studio One (1956–1958); Encounter (1957–1958); Teacher's Pet (1958); The Seven Lively Arts (1957); Look Up and Live (1956); The Alcoa Hour (1956–1957); Playwrights '56 (1956); The Stranger (1954); Kraft Theatre / The Philco Television Playhouse (1953).

Born on this day – Faye Marlowe:

Faye Marlowe

Actress

Writer

October 26, 1926 – May 5, 2022

Credits:

Conrad Nagel Theater (1955); Hangover Square (1945); Johnny Comes Flying Home (1946); Junior Miss (1945); Rendezvous with Annie (1946); TCM Remembers 2022 (2022); The All-Star Bond Rally (1945); The Bed (1954); The Spider (1945); The Thief of Venice (1950).

Born on this day – Renato Casaro:

Renato Casaro

Artist

Movie poster designer

October 26, 1935 – September 29, 2025

Credits:

A Few Dollars for Django (1966); A Fistful of Dollars (1964); Angel Heart (1987); Army of Darkness (1992); Arte Journal (2025); Asterix and Obelix vs. Caesar (1999); Asterix and the Big Fight (1989); Blackie the Pirate (1971); Cliffhanger (1993); Conan the Barbarian (1982); Dances with Wolves (1990); Day of Anger (1967); Decameron proibitissimo (Boccaccio mio statte zitto) (1972); Delitto in Formula Uno (1984); Delitto sull'autostrada (1982); Don Franco e Don Ciccio nell'anno della contestazione (1970); Dove vai tutta nuda? (1969); Due cuori, una cappella (1975); Dune (1984); Ettore lo fusto (1972); Everything Happens to Me (1980); First Blood (1982); Flash Gordon (1980); Flesh+Blood (1985); Flight from Paradise (1990); Franco, Ciccio e le vedove allegre (1968); Hands of Steel (1986); Helsinki Napoli All Night Long (1987); I due assi del guantone (1971); I due maghi del pallone (1970); I racconti di Viterbury - Le più allegre storie del '300 (1973); Il burbero (1986); Il comune senso del pudore (1976); I'm for the Hippopotamus (1979); Innocent Blood (1992); Io e mia sorella (1987); Io non spezzo... rompo (1971); K2 (1991); Laser Mission (1989); Life After Flash (2019); Life After the NeverEnding Story (2024); Lo so che tu sai che io so (1982); Lock Up (1989); Love Sins (1987); Madly in Love (1981); Malone (1987); Man of the West (1958); Maniac Cop (1988); Misery (1990); My Name Is Nobody (1973); Now They Call Him Sacramento (1972); Once Upon a Time in America (1984); Once Upon A Time In... Treviso (2024); Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood (2019); Our Men in Bagdad (1966); Over the Top (1987); Pure as a Lily (1976); Rambo III (1988); Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985); Red Sonja (1985); Renato Casaro racconta le sue opere e la sua arte dai saloni della sua mostra (Treviso, 2021); Renegades (1989); Romeo & Juliet (1955); Sky Pirates (1986); Stormy Monday (1988); Supergirl (1984); Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991); The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988); The Art of the Blockbuster: An Interview with Renato Casaro (2018); The Bible in the Beginning... (1966); The Boss and the Worker (1975); The Care Bears Movie (1985); The First Power (1990); The Last Movie Painter (2020); The Mystery of Thug Island (1964); The NeverEnding Story (1984); The NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter (1990); The Postman Always Rings Twice (1981); The Price of Power (1969); The Princess Bride (1987); The Running Man (1987); The Taming of the Scoundrel (1980); Total Recall (1990); Trinity Is Still My Name (1971); Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975); True Lies (1994); Two Sons of Ringo (1966); What Am I Doing in the Middle of a Revolution? (1972); What's Your Sign? (1975); While There's War There's Hope (1974); Who Finds a Friend Finds a Treasure (1981); Wild at Heart (1990); Wild Orchid (1989); Young Guns II (1990); Zandalee (1991); Zwei blaue Augen (1955).

Born on this day – Shelley Morrison:

Shelley Morrison

Actress

October 26, 1936 – December 1, 2019

Born on this day – Bob Hoskins:

Bob Hoskins

Actor

October 26, 1942 – April 29, 2014

Born on this day – Lydia Lisle:

Lydia Lisle

Actress

October 26, 1947 – May 11, 2017

Credits:

Beryl's Lot (1975); Drummonds (1985–1987); Marked Personal (1974); Marquis de Sade's Justine (1977); Pickersgill People (1978); Play for Today (1973–1978); Rooms (1975); Softly Softly: Task Force (1971); Sounding Brass (1980); Space: 1999 (1976); The Elephant Man (1980); The Professionals (1978–1979); The Sweeney (1978); The Tomorrow People (1975); Whodunnit? (1973).

Born on this day – Pascale Ogier:

Pascale Ogier

Actress

October 26, 1958 – October 25, 1984

Born on this day – Ted Demme:

 

Ted Demme

Director

Producer

Actor

October 26, 1963 – January 13, 2002

On this day in movie history - The Terminator (1984)

 

The Terminator

directed by James Cameron,

written by James Cameron and Gale Anne Hurd,

was released in the United States on October 26, 1984.

Music by Brad Fiedel.

Cast:

Arnold Schwarzenegger, Michael Biehn, Linda Hamilton, Paul Winfield, Lance Henriksen, Rick Rossovich, Bess Motta, Earl Boen, Dick Miller, Shawn Schepps, Bruce M. Kerner, Franco Columbu, Bill Paxton, Brad Rearden, Brian Thompson, William Wisher, Ken Fritz, Tom Oberhaus, Ed Dogans, Ed Dogans, Joe Farago, Hettie Lynne Hurtes, Tony Mirelez, Philip Gordon, Anthony Trujillo, Stan Yale, Al Kahn, Leslie Morris, Hugh Farrington, Harriet Medin, Loree Frazier, James Ralston, Norman Friedman, Barbara Powers, Wayne Stone, David Michels, John E. Bristol, Webster Williams, Patrick Pinney, Bill W. Richmond, Chino ‘Fats’ Williams, Greg Robbins, Marianne Muellerleile, John Durban, Robin Antin, Marian Green, J. Randolph Harrison, David Kristin, Darrell Mapson, Bob Ritchie, John Stuart West.

On this day in movie history - The Hot Spot (1990)

The Hot Spot

directed by Dennis Hopper,

written by Charles Williams and Nona Tyson,

based on the novel Hell Hath No Fury by Charles Williams,

was released in the United States on October 26, 1990.

Music by Jack Nitzsche.

Cast:

Don Johnson, Virginia Madsen, Jennifer Connelly, Charles Martin Smith, William Sadler, Jerry Hardin, Barry Corbin, Leon Rippy, Jack Nance, Virgil Frye, John Hawker, Margaret Bowman, Debra Cole, Karen Culley, Cody Haynes, George Haynes, James N. Harrell, Edith Mills, Shannon Quinlan, Roosevelt Williams, Kirk Hunter, Mark Lawyer, Lynn Speier.