6 random things that happened on this day, January 9th, in showbiz history
1931 crime drama Little Caesar hits movie theaters making an unlikely star out of Edward G Robinson. It helped create the gangster drama and it's also of interest to queer movie fans since there's been debate for years about the titular character's sexuality.
1970 Tick, Tick, Tick opens in theaters starring Jim Brown as a black sheriff in a rural Southern town. Jim Brown's move from football icon to movie stardom is discussed in One Night in Miami so it would be nice if some streaming services would show his films? Do any streaming services pay any attention to these things? (Sigh) They miss so many opportunities to share older films that relate to the now.
1977 I dont know how true this is but supposedly on this date K-Mart pulled Steve Martin's debut comedy album "Let's Get Small" from their shelves for 'bad taste' reasons. LOL. When was the last time you heard of a retailer doing that? The album went platinum, with a million copies sold, and his "Excuse Me" bit especially hit the zeitgeist.
1984 Van Halen's most successful album "1984" drops. Hits include "Hot for Teacher" "Jump" "I'll Wait" and "Panama"
2006 Brokeback Mountain wins the 2005 Best Picture prize at the Critics Choice Awards. Weirdly, rather than trying to predict every acting Oscar category that year they chose a tie between Amy Adams (Junebug) and Michelle Williams (Brokeback Mountain) for Best Supporting Actress rather than the frontrunner Rachel Weisz (The Constant Gardener). Was fun discussing that supporting actress season on the Smackdown this summer.
2007 Apple announces a new product: the iPhone. The commercial debuts the following month on Oscar night (remember this movie clip heavy commercial?) and the phone hits the market in June. More than 2 billion have been sold since.
Today's Birthday Suit
Happy 32nd birthday to Steve Lund, polyamorous Jake on Schitt's Creek. He just headlined a Christmas movie for Hallmark.
Other showbiz people celebriating birthdays today: Oscar nominee Imelda Staunton (Vera Drake, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix), Oscar winner JK Simmons (Whiplash, Spider-Man), Director Nobuhiko Ôbayashi (House), Nicola Couglan (Derry Girls), Bob Denvers (Gilligan's Island), Oscar nominee Susannah York (They Shoot Horses Don't They, Superman) Nina Dobrev (Let's Be Cops), Joely Richardson (Nip/Tuck, Event Horizon), Joey Lauren Adams (Chasing Amy), Omari Hardwick (Sorry to Bother You, Kick-Ass), Lee Van Cleef (Escape from New York, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance), silent film star Vilma Bánky (The Son of the Shiek, A Lady to Love), Kai Bradbury (Motherland: Fort Salem), singers Crystal Gayle and Joan Baez, and disgraced President Richard Nixon who finally lost the title of "Most Hated President" to a much bigger loser.