Hotchka Movies by the Decade feature #101 :: June 29 to July 5

Sony Pictures

Nine decades have new movie premieres this week, but as the July 4th holiday falls during the week there aren’t too many blockbusters being released and 1982 took the week off with so many major films having already been released. The early part of the century didn’t have many notable releases until 1962 which had a true life story that earned several Oscar nominations, a teaming of horror film icons, and a comedy with a trio seeing renewed popularity. 1972 marks the second decade in which a film starring Vincent Price was released, and saw the film debut of a child actress who would go on to be an Oscar winner as an adult. 1992 gave us a classic baseball film with a twist, and had one of Eddie Murphy’s best reviewed comedies. 2002 brought a team of cartoon superheroes to the big screen for the first time, and 2012 rebooted a classic Marvel superhero. Did any of your favorite movies debut this week? Read on to learn more!

1922

July – The Bohemian Girl (UK)

• Cast: Gladys Cooper, Ivor Novello, C. Aubrey Smith, Ellen Terry, Constance Collier, Henry Vibart, Gibb McLaughlin
• Director: Harley Knoles, Josef von Sternberg
• Production Company: Alliance Film Corporation, distributed by Astra Film (UK), American Releasing Corporation (US)
• Trivia: The exact UK release date is unknown. The film was released in the US on February 4, 1923. Inspired by the opera The Bohemian Girl by Michael William Balfe and Alfred Bunn, which was in turn based on a novel La Gitanilla by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally released at 70 minutes, the surviving print is missing the first two reels and small portion of the last, timing at 46 minutes.

1932

• No new films were released this week in 1932.

1942

June 30 – Junior G-Men of the Air (USA, serial)

• Cast: Billy Halop, Huntz Hall, Gabriel Dell, Bernard Punsly, David Gorcey, Billy Benedict, Gene Reynolds, Lionel Atwill, Frank Albertson, Richard Lane, Frankie Darro, Turhan Bey
• Director: Lewis D. Collins, Ray Taylor
• Production Company: Universal Pictures

  Trivia: Third Universal series with the Dead End Kids and the Little Tough Guys. The serial was filmed at Metropolitan Airport, Van Nuys, California. Aircraft owners at the airport supplied the Hollywood studios with aircraft for both ground and aerial scenes.

July 1 – Jackass Mail (USA)

• Cast: Wallace Beery, Marjorie Main, J. Carrol Naish, Darryl Hickman, William Haade, Dick Curtis, Hobart Cavanaugh, Joe Yule
• Director: Norman Z. McLeod
• Production Company: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
• Trivia: Third of seven films pairing Wallace Beery and Marjorie Main released from 1940 to 1949.

July 2 – Sons of the Pioneers (USA)

• Cast: Roy Rogers, George ‘Gabby’ Hayes, Maris Wrixon, Forrest Taylor, Minerva Urecal, Bradley Page, Hal Taliaferro, Chester Conklin, Fred Burns, Sons of the Pioneers
• Director: Joseph Kane
• Production Company: Republic Pictures

1952

July 4 – California Conquest (USA)

• Cast: Cornel Wilde, Teresa Wright, Alfonso Bedoya, Lisa Ferraday, Eugene Iglesias, John Dehner, Ivan Lebedeff, Tito Renaldo, Renzo Cesana, Baynes Barron, Rico Alaniz, William Wilkerson, Edward Colmans, Alex Montoya
• Director: Lew Landers
• Production Company: Sam Katzman Productions, distributed by Columbia Pictures
• Trivia: The film premiered in New York City on June 7, 1952. It was released in Australia on August 29.

July 4 – Lady in the Iron Mask (USA)

• Cast: Louis Hayward, Patricia Medina, Alan Hale, Jr., Judd Holdren, Steve Brodie, John Sutton, Hal Gerard, Lester Matthews, John Dehner
• Director: Ralph Murphy
• Production Company: Walter Wanger Productions, distributed by 20th Century Fox
• Trivia: A reworking of Douglas Fairbanks’ 1929 screen epic The Iron Mask, an adaptation of the last section of the 1847-1850 novel The Vicomte de Bragelonne by Alexandre Dumas, père, which is itself based on the French legend of the Man in the Iron Mask. Alan Hale Sr. played Porthos in the 1939 The Man in the Iron Mask so his son’s appearance in the same role in this film may have been stunt casting. Barbara Payton was fired by producer Walter Wanger a week before the film was scheduled to go into production, replaced by Patricia Medina.

July 4 – Lovely to Look At (USA)

• Cast: Kathryn Grayson, Red Skelton, Howard Keel, Marge Champion, Gower Champion, Ann Miller, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Kurt Kasznar, Marcel Dalio, Diane Cassidy
• Director: Mervyn LeRoy
• Production Company: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
• Trivia: The film premiered in New York City on May 29, 1952. It was released in the UK on October 20. Very loosely based on the 1933 Broadway musical Roberta. The film was originally to have starred Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland and Betty Garrett. Adrian designed more than 40 costumes for the fashion show finale, directed by an uncredited Vincente Minnelli, at a cost of $100,000. The song ‘Smoke Gets In Your Eyes’ was written for Roberta by Jerome Kern. The song ‘Lovely to Look At’ was Oscar nominated when it was used in the 1935 version of Roberta. Zsa Zsa Gabor’s movie debut. MGM bought the prints and negatives of the 1935 Roberta from RKO and withheld it from distribution for decades so as not to compete with Lovely to Look At. After the film was featured in MGM’s That’s Entertainment!, it was finally reissued because it was the only Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers film unavailable for screenings in revival houses.

1962

July – Time to Remember (UK)

• Cast: Yvonne Monlaur, Harry H. Corbett, Robert Rietty, Ernest Clark, David Lodge, Ray Barrett, Patricia Mort, Genine Graham, Jack Watson, Andre Charisse, Larry Taylor, Brenda Kaye, Marjie Lawrence
• Director: Charles Jarrott
• Production Company: Merton Park Studios, distributed by Anglo-Amalgamated
• Trivia: The exact release date is unknown. Part of the Edgar Wallace Mysteries film series made at Merton Park Studios, it is loosely based on the 1915 novel The Man Who Bought London. Final film of Brenda Kaye.

July 4 – Birdman of Alcatraz (USA)

• Cast: Burt Lancaster, Karl Malden, Thelma Ritter, Neville Brand, Betty Field, Telly Savalas, Edmond O’Brien, Hugh Marlowe, Whit Bissell, Crahan Denton, James Westerfield
• Director: John Frankenheimer
• Production Company: United Artists
• Trivia: The film’s Los Angeles premiere was held on July 3, 1962. The film opened in London on August 30, followed by a general UK release on October 22. A largely fictionalized version of the life of Robert Stroud, who was sentenced to solitary confinement after having killed a prison guard. Adapted from the 1955 book by Thomas E. Gaddis. Oscar nominated for Best Actor (Lancaster), Best Supporting Actor (Savalas), Best Supporting Actress (Ritter), and Best Black-and-White Cinematography. British director Charles Crichton was hired to direct but he and Lancaster clashed, so he was replaced with Frankenheimer. Strother Martin was replaced with Leo Penn when Crichton was fired, and Penn’s role was eventually cut from the film. The real Robert Stroud was never allowed to see the film about his life. The sympathetic portrayal of Stroud in the film prompted a campaign for his release, but Stroud was a vicious psychopath who murdered several people before and after he went to prison so his release was impossible.

July 4 – Tales of Terror (USA)

American International Pictures

• Cast: Vincent Price, Maggie Pierce, Leona Gage, Edmund Cobb, Debra Paget, David Frankham, Peter Lorre, Joyce Jameson, Basil Rathbone
• Director: Roger Corman
• Production Company: Alta Vista Productions, distributed by American International Pictures
• Trivia: The film opened in Italy on December 18, 1962, and was released in London on March 8, 1963 followed by the UK release on June 17. The fourth in the so-called Corman-Poe cycle of eight films largely featuring adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe stories and directed by Corman for AIP. Released as a double feature with Panic in Year Zero! For the conclusion of the ‘Morella’ segment, Corman reused some sets and event footage from the fiery climax of House of Usher. For the story ‘The Black Cat’, Vincent Price based his character of Fortunado on Ernie Kovacs’s television character Percy Dovetonsils. Between takes, the actors would toss Peter Lorre’s fake head around. Lorre did not participate as the fake head scared him.

July 4 – The Three Stooges in Orbit (USA)

• Cast: Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Joe DeRita, Emil Sitka, Carol Christensen, Edson Stroll, George N. Neise, Rayford Barnes, Norman Leavitt, Nestor Paiva, Don Lamond, Peter Dawson, Peter Brocco, Cheerio Meredith
• Director: Edward Bernds
• Production Company: Normandy Productions, distributed by Columbia Pictures
• Trivia: The film was born out of The Three Stooges Scrapbook, an unsold color television pilot produced in 1960 at a cost of $30,000. Producer Norman Maurer reprocessed the Scrapbook footage into black and white and built the plot around the concept of the Stooges rehearsing for their television show. Many props from Forbidden Planet were used. Footage from Columbia Pictures’ Earth vs. the Flying Saucers is used. Actors George N. Neise and Rayford Barnes, who play the Martians Ogg and Zogg, can be seen without the heavy Martian makeup as the airline pilot and co-pilot.

July 5 – Panic in Year Zero! (USA)

• Cast: Ray Milland, Jean Hagen, Frankie Avalon, Mary Mitchel, Joan Freeman, Richard Bakalyan, Rex Holman, Richard Garland, Willis Bouchey, Neil Nephew, O.Z. Whitehead, Russ Bender, Shary Marshall, Byron Morrow, Hugh Sanders
• Director: Ray Milland
• Production Company: American International Pictures
• Trivia: The film opened in London on March 8, 1962, with a general UK release on June 17. The film made its Canadian TV premiere on April 19, 2016. Also known as End of the World in some markets for a 1965 re-release. The film was originally known as Survival. The Saddle Peak Lodge featured in the movie is an actual restaurant still open today. Located in Calabasas, CA. One of the earliest post-apocalyptic films. Filmed in two weeks.

1972

July – Bone (USA)

• Cast: Yaphet Kotto, Joyce Van Patten, Andrew Duggan, Jeannie Berlin, Brett Somers
• Director: Larry Cohen
• Production Company: New World Pictures
• Trivia: The exact June release date is unknown. Larry Cohen’s directorial debut. The film includes a brief appearance by Ida Berlin, grandmother of Jeannie Berlin and mother of director Elaine May. Alternate titles for the film were Houswife, Beverly Hills Nightmare, and Dial Rat for Terror. The filming title was Unreal. The German Shepherd in the film was Larry Cohen’s own dog, and the red sweater sported by Yaphet Kotto in latter portions of the movie was also Cohen’s — which Kotto then took and never gave back. The house was also Cohen’s.

July 5 – Dr. Phibes Rises Again (USA)

• Cast: Vincent Price, Robert Quarry, Valli Kemp, Peter Jeffrey, Fiona Lewis, Hugh Griffith, Peter Cushing, Beryl Reid, Terry-Thomas, John Cater, Gerald Sim, Lewis Fiander, John Thaw, Keith Buckley, Milton Reid, John Comer, Caroline Munro
• Director: Robert Fuest
• Production Company: American International Pictures, distributed by Anglo-EMI Film Distributors Ltd./MGM-EMI (U.K.)
• Trivia: The film opened in the UK in September 1972. A sequel to The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971). AIP was said to be grooming Robert Quarry to replace Vincent Price once his contract was up. Hugh Griffith and Terry-Thomas appeared in both films but played different characters. Peter Cushing was supposed to be in the original film but had to withdraw due to his wife’s ailing health. He did supply a cameo for the second film that took one day to film. Terry-Thomas also filmed his cameo in a day.

July 5 – Napoleon and Samantha (USA)

• Cast: Johnny Whitaker, Jodie Foster, Michael Douglas, Will Geer, Zamba, Arch Johnson, Henry Jones, Vito Scotti, John Crawford, Mary Wickes, Ellen Corby, Rex Holman, Claude Johnson, John Lupton
• Director: Bernard McEveety
• Production Company: Walt Disney Productions, distributed by Buena Vista Distribution
• Trivia: The film was released in the UK on August 13, 1972. Jodie Foster’s feature film debut. Foster was mauled by a substitute lion used on the film set and still has scars on her back and stomach.

1982

July 5 – Countryman (Denmark)

• Cast: Edwin Lothan, Hiram Keller, Carl Bradshaw, Basil Keane, Freshey Richardson, Kristina St. Clair, Jahman, Papa Threecards, Munair Zacca, Dee Anthony, Ronnie McKay
• Director: Dickie Jobson
• Production Company: Island
• Trivia: The film was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 10, 1982. The film was the first from Island Records’ new film division. Final film of model/actor Hiram Keller.

1992

July 1 – A League of Their Own (USA)

Columbia Pictures

• Cast: Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Lynn Cartwright, Madonna, Eunice Anderson, Lori Petty, Kathleen Butler, Rosie O’Donnell, Vera Johnson, Anne Ramsay, Barbara Pilavin, Megan Cavanagh, Patricia Wilson, Freddie Simpson, Eugenia McLin, Tracy Reiner, Betty Miller, Bitty Schram, Renée Coleman, Shirley Burkovich, Ann Cusack, Barbara Erwin, Jon Lovitz, David Strathairn, Marvin Einhorn, Garry Marshall, Julie Croteau, Bill Pullman, Janet Jones, Téa Leoni, Don S. Davis, Eddie Jones, Justin Scheller, Mark Holton, Pauline Brailsford, Rae Allen
• Director: Penny Marshall
• Production Company: Parkway Productions, distributed by Columbia Pictures
• Trivia: The film also opened in Canada on July 1, 1992, followed by a UK release on September 18. A fictionalized account of the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). Selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in 2012. The film was originally set up at 20th Century Fox but the studio passed on the script. Anne Ramsay (Helen Haley) broke her nose with a baseball mitt while trying to catch a ball and the huge bruise seen in the film on actress Renée Coleman’s thigh was real. Lori Petty reported that she had broken her foot, and Geena Davis said that many legs got skinned up sliding into home because of the baseball uniform skirts. Some of the stars took turns entertaining the unpaid extras between shots of the World Series game. Hanks did puppet shows over the dugout, O’Donnell did stand-up, and others sang Madonna songs when she refused to participate. While the more mature Dottie is played physically by Lynn Cartwright, her voice is dubbed by Geena Davis. Davis was a late replacement for Debra Winger, who backed out after Madonna was signed. Coaches used a Slip ‘n’ Slide to teach the actresses how to slide. The first three women got concussions. The song ‘This Used to Be My Playground’, co-written by Madonna, was nominated for a Golden Globe.

July 1 – Boomerang (USA)

• Cast: Eddie Murphy, Robin Givens, Halle Berry, David Alan Grier, Martin Lawrence, Grace Jones, Geoffrey Holder, Eartha Kitt, Chris Rock, Tisha Campbell, Lela Rochon, John Witherspoon, Bebe Drake, Leonard Jackson
• Director: Reginald Hudlin
• Production Company: Imagine Entertainment, Eddie Murphy Productions, distributed by Paramount Pictures
• Trivia: The film opened first in Italy on June 28, 1992. The Hollywood premiere was held on June 28, and the film was also released in Canada on July 1. It did not reach the UK until October 30. The script was based on an idea by Eddie Murphy. The cast rehearsed for two weeks before production started. John Witherspoon’s scenes were added after filming had wrapped. The film was the most expensive at the time with an all Black cast and production crew. Eartha Kitt was reluctant to take the role of Lady Eloise because she found some of her lines offensive. The lines were deleted from the script. The scene in front of the Empire State Building was shot at 2 AM when the lights are turned off. The film was reversed to appear that they were turned on which saved $40,000-$60,000 to have the lights turned on. Even though they play mother and son in the movie, Bebe Drake is 2 years older than David Allen Grier.

2002

July 2 – Chat Room (USA)

• Cast: Brian Hooks, Christopher Richards, Darryl Brunson, Deya Simon, Troy Winbush, Cindy Clark, LaNease Adams, Monica Mallet, Barry Bowles, Carl Gilliard
• Director: Barry Bowles
• Production Company: Inverness Media, distributed by Artisan Entertainment
• Trivia: This movie takes place in California, but all vehicles have New Jersey licenses plates.

July 3 – The Powerpuff Girls Movie (USA)

Warner Bros. Pictures

• Cast: Cathy Cavadini, Tara Strong, E. G. Daily, Roger L. Jackson, Tom Kane, Tom Kenny, Jennifer Hale, Jennifer Martin, Jeff Bennett, Grey DeLisle, Phil LaMarr, Frank Welker, Kevin Michael Richardson, Rob Paulsen
• Director: Craig McCracken
• Production Company: Cartoon Network Studios, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures
• Trivia: The film’s premiere was held in Century City, CA on June 22, 2002. It was also released in Canada on July 3. The UK release was on October 18. Based on the Cartoon Network animated television series The Powerpuff Girls. First theatrical film from Cartoon Networks Studios, and was the first Cartoon Network series to get a film. The newspaper reporting the girls ‘tag’ disaster has a picture of Powerpuff creator and director Craig McCracken in the top corner. The picture Bubbles drew and the Wanted Poster picture Sara Bellum shows the Professor were both drawn by fans. Cartoon Network had a drawing contest and those two were selected to be in the movie. Genndy Tartakovsky co-directed the film but didn’t received any credit in the end. During the television sequence, there are two characters in front of a record store being interviewed. Their lines are made up of Van Halen song titles.

2012

July 3 – The Amazing Spider-Man (USA)

• Cast: Andrew Garfield, Max Charles, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans, Denis Leary, Campbell Scott, Irrfan Khan, Martin Sheen, Sally Field, Chris Zylka, Embeth Davidtz, C. Thomas Howell, Michael Massee
• Director: Marc Webb
• Production Company: Columbia Pictures, Marvel Entertainment, Laura Ziskin Productions, Arad Productions, Inc., Matt Tolmach Productions, distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing
• Trivia: The film first premiered in Tokyo on June 13, 2012 followed by a limited release in Japan on June 23. The film opened in many international markets before the July 3 US/UK/Canada release. The film went into development after Sony cancelled Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 4, opting to reboot the franchise with a new cast. Raimi admitted he would not be able to meet the strict production deadlines and retain creative energy. Casting took place in 2010. The final American film scored by James Horner that was released in his lifetime. He died three years later in an aircraft accident. Jamie Bell, Alden Ehrenreich, Frank Dillane, Andrew Garfield and Josh Hutcherson all met with Marc Webb for the role of Peter Parker. Aaron Johnson and Anton Yelchin were also considered. Lily Collins, Ophelia Lovibond, Imogen Poots, Teresa Palmer, Emma Roberts, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead were considered for Gwen Stacy. Michael Fassbender was originally considered for the role of Dr. Curt Connors/The Lizard. Julianne Nicholson was in talks to play Peter’s mother. The film’s working title was Fiona’s Tale. It was the first Hollywood production to be filmed with the Red Digital Cinema Camera Company’s RED Epic camera and was shot in 3-D at 5K resolution. The film’s climax was filmed in a 1:78:1 aspect ratio for its IMAX DMR release. It was a creative decision by the filmmakers to have most of the stunts performed practically on rigs by actors/stuntmen, rather than extensively use CGI animation. Andrew Garfield took up yoga and pilates to help him be more flexible. Dylan Baker played Curt Connors in the two previous Spider-Man films but this marked the first time the character became The Lizard on screen. Sally Field said the only thinig she liked about the film was working with Garfield. In Peter’s bedroom a photo of actor/comedian Donald Glover, is visible. In 2010, when the movie was first announced and initial casting for the role of Spider-Man was underway, Glover used Twitter to somewhat jokingly campaign for an audition. Glover did eventually appear in Spider-Man: Homecoming. Proto-Goblin and Big Wheel were supposed to be two other villains in the film but were cut because the movie would have been too long, with too many origins and too many fight scenes.

July 5 – Katy Perry: Part of Me 3D (USA)

• Cast: Katy Perry, Glen Ballard, Shannon Woodward, Bonnie McKee, Angelica Cob-Baehler, Tasha Layton, Hugh Jackman, Hiroyuki Sanada, Rila Fukushima
• Director: Dan Cutforth, Jane Lipsitz
• Production Company: Imagine Entertainment, AEG Live, EMI Music, Perry Productions, Pulse Films, Magical Elves Productions, Splinter Films, MTV Films, Insurge Pictures, distributed by Paramount Pictures
• Trivia: The film’s Los Angeles premiere was held on June 26, 2012. It opened in Australia on July 3, followed by the US, UK and Canada on July 5. The film features credited cameos by Kesha, Adele, Rihanna, Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, Carly Rae Jepsen and Rebecca Black, and uncredited cameos from Russell Brand, Whoopi Goldberg, Justin Bieber, Jessie J and Bella Thorne. Production team The Matrix appear in archival footage. Katy Perry said the film was the closing chapter of the ‘Teenage Dream’ phase of her career. She cited Madonna’s Truth or Dare as a major influence on the film. One golden ticket to the movie premiere was placed in a random physical copy of Teenage Dream: The Complete Confection. Special 3D glasses were designed and distributed in theaters. The glasses featured a red and white ‘candy stripe’ motif common to Perry’s visual style and also featured the film’s official Twitter hashtag.