5 random things that happened on this day, January 4th, in history...
1853 New York born Solomon Northup regains his freedom after abduction and enslavery in 1841 in Washington DC. The abolitionist thankfully recorded his life story in the memoir 12 Years a Slave which became an instant best-seller. Over a century and a half later, the film version by the British auteur Steve McQueen deservedly won the 2013 Best Picture Oscar.
1903 A horrific end to a story of animal cruelty and a shameful event in the then nascent film-industry, too. Topsy, a 27 or so year-old elephant, who was ripped from her family as a baby in Southeast Asia and never adjusted well to life in the America circus, is famously electrocuted in Coney Island...
The event is filmed (for profit). Contrary to many reports the electrocution had nothing to do with The Current War which had already ended by that time.
1975 The first Broadway revival of Gypsy closes after just 120 performances. Nevertheless come Tony time that summer, Angela Lansbury wins her third statue. Here's a bit of trivia for you: Gypsy has been on Broadway five times and every opening-night Rose has been Tony nominated: Ethel Merman ('59), Angela Lansbury ('74), Tyne Daly ('89), Bernadette Peters ('03), and Patti Lupone ('08). But get this -- of the two that lost the Best Actress Tony one of them was the original Rose, Ethel Merman! My favourite Rose ever is Imelda Staunton though her show sadly didn't transfer from the West End... we guess that's because there'd already been two revivals of Gypsy in the Aughts and she was doing it in 2014 so not much time had passed.
1984 Eighties sitcom mainstay Night Court premieres on NBC as a mid-season replacement and would run for nine seasons. Emmy voters would mostly ignore its first short season (2 craft nominations and Supporting Actress nomination for Paula Kelly) but for seasons two through five they loved it with three nominations in Comedy Series and four consecutive trophies for John Larroquette in Supporting Actor. Emmy voters would mostly ignore the series from season six onward.
2007 Nancy Pelosi becomes the first female Speaker of the House, and the closest in line of succession that any woman has been to the Presidency. Until Kamala Harris later this month of course. Provided the seditious Republican party isn't successful in their attempts to overthrow Democracy this month.
Today's Birthday Suit
Happy 63rd to Julian Sands who was flaunting his body constantly in 1980s and 1990s movies.
Lightning is the fundamental force of the universe, the ether, the spirit!
He's still working consistently nearly 40 years into his screen career partially because he seems to be entirely unprecious about what kind of films he'll appear in. He's always alternated between artful costume dramas and B genre movies (or sometimes both simultaneously as in Ken Russell's insane Gothic, 1986, pictured above). Sands was recently in Crooked House with Glenn Close, and the Czech Oscar finalist The Painted Bird. Next up are two horror films Death Rider in the House of Vampires and The Ghosts of Borley Rectory.
Dyan Cannon in one of our all time favourite movies "Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice"Other showbiz people celebrating birthdays today:
Delightful Oscar nominee Dyan Cannon (Heaven Can Wait, Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice), wonderfully talented German actor August Diehl (A Hidden Life, Inglourious Basterds), brilliant Emmy nominee D'Arcy Carden (The Good Place), Oscar and Emmy nominated screenwriter Susannah Grant (Erin Brockovich, Unbelievable).
Plus: Dafne Keen (Logan), June Diane Raphael (Grace & Frankie, Long Shot), Julia Ormond (Sabrina), Michelle Mylette (Letterkenny), Graham McTavish (Outlander, The Hobbit), Matt Frewer (Max Headroom, Altered Carbon), Emma Mackey (Sex Education), Ann Magnuson (The Hunger), Dave Foley (Kids in the Hall), Kerry Condon (Rome, Better Call Saul), Jaeden Martell (St Vincent, It), Sterling Holloway (the voice of Winnie the Pooh), director Harmony Korine (Spring Breakers, Gummo), Dot Marie-Jones (Glee), French-Israeli star Yvan Attal (My Wife is an Actress, Munich) who is also Charlotte Gainsbourg's longtime partner, Spanish writer/director Carlos Saura (Cria Cuervos, Carmen), Lee Currerri (Fame), and Vanity of "Vanity 6" Prince-adjacent fame.