Jack Kost: 04/11/25

Friday, April 11, 2025

On this day in movie history - The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (1974 movie & novel):

The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz

directed by Ted Kotcheff,

written by Mordecai Richler and Lionel Chetwynd,

based on the novel by Mordecai Richler,

was released in the United States on April 11, 1974.
Music by Stanley Myers and Andrew Powell.

Cast:

Richard Dreyfuss, Micheline Lanctôt, Jack Warden, Randy Quaid, Joseph Wiseman, Denholm Elliott, Henry Ramer, Joe Silver, Zvee Scooler, Robert Goodier, Alan Rosenthal, Barry Baldaro, Allan Kolman, Barry Pascal, Susan Friedman, Jacques Durette, Jonathan Robinson, Edward Resmini, Henry Gamer, Lou Levitt, Sonny Oppenheim, Lionel Schwartz, Mickey Eichen, Robert Desroches, Judith Gault, Norman Taviss.

Recommended reading:

The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz

By Mordecai Richler.

Filmed as The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (1974), directed by Ted Kotcheff.

Published by Gallery Books.
First published 1959.
Paperback.
ISBN-10: 0671028472
ISBN-13: 978-0671028473

Description:

It is time to recognize Mr. Richler as one of North America's most powerful novelists. – The Washington Times.

A rasping humor pervades the book....It burgeons with its special talent and a vulgar vitality. – Chicago Tribune.

A fast-moving, entertaining, and bawdy novel. – The Washington Times.

Funny in the biting, subversive manner of Joseph Heller and Philip Roth. – Los Angeles Times.

Duddy Kravitz [is] Richler's most famous creation. – Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Richler has been praised for his clear-eyed vision and his realistic style.... The total effect is as brash and blatant as a sports car rally -- and as suggestive of power. It comes off brilliantly. – Alfred Kazin, The New York Times Book Review.

From Mordecai Richler, one of our greatest satirists, comes one of literature's most delightful characters, Duddy Kravitz -- in a novel that belongs in the pantheon of seminal twentieth century books.

Duddy -- the third generation of a Jewish immigrant family in Montreal -- is combative, amoral, scheming, a liar, and totally hilarious. From his street days tormenting teachers at the Jewish academy to his time hustling four jobs at once in a grand plan to "be somebody," Duddy learns about living -- and the lesson is an outrageous roller-coaster ride through the human comedy. As Richler turns his blistering commentary on love, money, and politics, The Apprenticeship Of Duddy Kravitz becomes a lesson for us all ... in laughter and in life.

On this day in television history - M Squad (1958):

M Squad

Season 1. Episode 29.
Episode entitled: The Twenty-Six Girl.
Released April 11, 1958.
Directed by Don Taylor.
Written by Jack Laird and Wilton Schiller.
Music by Stanley Wilson.

Cast:

Lee Marvin, Diane Brewster, Simon Scott, Paul Newlan, Ellen Parker, Ward Wood, Betty Edwards.

On this day in movie history - The Captive City (1952):

The Captive City

directed by Robert Wise,

written by Karl Kamb and Alvin M. Josephy,

based on a story by Alvin M. Josephy,

was released in the United States on April 11, 1952.
Music by Jerome Moross.

Cast:

John Forsythe, Joan Camden, Harold J. Kennedy, Marjorie Crossland, Victor Sutherland, Ray Teal, Martin Milner, Geraldine Hall, Hal K. Dawson, Ian Wolfe, Gladys Hurlbut, Jess Kirkpatrick, Paul Newlan, Frances Morris, Paul Brinegar, Patricia Goldwater, Robert Gorell, Glenn Judd, William C. Miller, Estes Kefauver, Charles Regan, Victor Romito, Charles Wagenheim.

Born on this day – Laurent Cantet:

Laurent Cantet

Writer

Director

Cinematographer

April 11, 1961 – April 25, 2024

Credits:

+ of cinema (2001); 120 BPM (2017); 2000 as seen by... An international collection (1998); 7 Days in Havana / Segment: La Fuente (2011); Arthur Rambo (2021); At the Movies (2008); C Tonight (2022); Tonight (or never!) (2008); Ceremonia of clausura - 57º San Sebastián International Film Festival (2009); Ceremonia de inauguración - 57º San Sebastián International Film Festival (2009); This night (1993); Charlotte Rampling, Cinema as an Essential (2022); Cinema 3 (2009–2015); Short Circuit (2001); Días de cine (2009–2024); Enzo (2025); Filmmelier Drops (2018); Filmoteca: Temas de Ciné (2013); Foxfire: Confessions of a Girl Gang (2012); Frankie (2019); Heading South (2005); Human Resources (1999); Games de plage (1995); Merry Christmas (1994); Katie Chats (2014); The gentle drift of a child of Petit-Goâve (2009); The Night of the 7 d'Or (2000); The Night of the Caesars (2001–2009); French cinema is on a business trip (2009); The Amazing Doc (2021); The bloodthirsty (1997); The Extended (1987); Memories of French Cinema, Libération à nos jours (2006); Pierrot le Fou / Cannes Film Festival (2008); Quan Arribin els Marcians (2018); Daily (2022); Return to Ithaca (2014); The 2008 European Film Awards (2008); The 2009 Independent Spirit Awards (2009); The Class (2008); The Workshop (2017); Time Out (2001); Tous à la manif (1994); Vigils of arms (1994); Vertical Living Made Easy (2008).

Born on this day – Nicholas Ball:

Nicholas Ball

Actor

Producer

April 11, 1946 – June 4, 2024

Credits:

A New Breed of Criminal (2023); A.D. (1985); Acapulco H.E.A.T. (1993); Alas Smith & Jones (1984); BBC Play of the Month (1976); Bergerac (1983–1988); Boon (1989); Cannon Fodder: The Making of Lifeforce (2013); Car Cruzin’ (2005); Casino (1989); Casualty (2007–2011); Championship (2002); Christmas Under Fire (2002); Claudia (1985); Cluedo (1990); Cold Feet (2000); Colin’s Sandwich (1990); Comic Roots (1983); Confession (1970); Coronation Street (1970); Couples (1976); Crossroads (1964–1988); Croupier (1998); Crown Court (1976); Dead Man Running (2009); Doctors (2020); Doom Room (2013); Double the Fist (2008); EastEnders (2007–2009); El C.I.D. (1991); Enchantress (2011); Fifteen (2012); Fifteen (2012); Footballers Wive$: Overtime (2005–2006); Footballers’ Wives (2006); From a Bird’s Eye View (1970); Hammer House of Horror / Episode: The House That Bled to Death (1980); Harbour Lights (1999); Hazell (1978–1979); Heartbeat (1997–2007); Hellboy (2004); Holby City (2015–2017); Hustle (2005); Insiders (1997); ITV Playhouse (1969); ITV Saturday Night Theatre (1972); Jamie (1971); Jonathan Creek (1999); Life for Christine (1980); Lifeforce (1985); Mr. Rose (1968); Muse (2019); Mutant Chronicles (2008); Nelly’s Version (1983); New Tricks (2005); No One Likes Us, We Don’t Care (1990); Out of Depth (2000); Overlord (1975); Pentagram (2019); Perfect Gift (1994); Peter (2011); Pie in the Sky (1996); Play for Today (1976–1981); Red Dwarf (1991); Respect (1996); Rogue Male (1976); Rosamunde Pilcher (2011); Running Out of Luck (1985); Silk Stalkings (1994); Sisterhood (2008); Softly Softly: Task Force (1975); South of Sunset (1993); Spooky (1983); Star Games (1979); Surgery (2015); Tales of the Unexpected (1988); Tarzán (1994); The Bill (1996); The Black Tulip (1970); The Commander: Blackdog (2005); The Commander: Virus (2005); The Coral Island (2000); The Courtroom (2004); The Crezz (1976); The Elusive Pimpernel (1969); The Famous Five (1997); The Gold Robbers (1969); The Governor (1995); The Gunpowder Plot (1968); The Haunting of Pendle Hill (2022); The Kingdom by the Sea (2024); The Krays: Dead Man Walking (2018); The Man Who Made Husbands Jealous (1997); The Manor (1999); The Pyramid Game (1981); The Stranglers - On Stage, on Screen (2012); The Young Ones (1982); Thief Takers (1997); Top Dog (2002); Trafficking (2023); Urban Gothic (2000); Video Stars (1983); Whatever Became Of Richard Blaine? (2019); Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? (1978); Windmills of the Gods (1988); Wogan (1985); Z Cars (1968).

Born on this day – Marlen Haushofer:

Marlen Haushofer

Writer

April 11, 1920 – March 21, 1970

Credits:

Books:

Die Mansarde / The Loft (1969); Die Tapetentür / The Jib Door (1957); Die Wand / The Wall (1963); Eine Handvoll Leben / A Handful of Life (1955); Himmel, der nirgendwo endet / Nowhere Ending Sky (1966); Schreckliche Treue / Terrible Faithfulness (1968); Wir töten Stella / We Murder Stella (1958).

Movies and television:

Killing Stella (2017); The Wall (2012).

Born on this day – Shirley Grey:

Shirley Grey

Actress

April 11, 1902 – August 12, 1981

Credits:

City for Conquest (1940); Phantom Ship (1935); The Public Menace (1935); The Girl Who Came Back (1935); The People's Enemy (1935); Circumstantial Evidence (1935); Public Opinion (1935); Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round (1934); Wednesday's Child (1934); Girl in Danger (1934); Beyond the Law (1934); His Greatest Gamble (1934); The Defense Rests (1934); Green Eyes (1934); One Is Guilty (1934); The Crime of Helen Stanley (1934); Sisters Under the Skin (1934); I Like It That Way (1934); Bombay Mail (1934); Twin Husbands (1933); Murder on the Campus (1933); Hold the Press (1933); Too Much Harmony (1933); Don't Bet on Love (1933); The Life of Jimmy Dolan (1933); The Girl in 419 (1933); Terror Aboard (1933); The Little Giant (1933); Out All Night (1933); Private Jones (1933); From Hell to Heaven (1933); Treason (1933); Uptown New York (1932); Virtue (1932); Drifting Souls (1932); Cornered (1932); Back Street (1932); The Hurricane Express (1932); Get That Girl (1932); The Riding Tornado (1932); Texas Cyclone (1932); Air Eagles (1931); One Man Law (1931); Secret Service (1931); The Public Defender (1931); The Golf Specialist (1930); Who's Got the Body? (1930); Hot Bridge (1930).

Born on this day – Marshall Neilan:

Marshall Neilan

Actor

Director

Producer

Writer

April 11, 1891 – October 27, 1958

Credits:

A Bottled Romance (1914); A Busy Day in the Jungle (1912); A Coupon Courtship (1913); A Face in the Crowd (1957); A Girl of Yesterday (1915); A Little Princess (1917); A Model Wife (1915); A Mountain Tragedy (1912); A Peach at the Beach (1914); A Star Is Born (1937); A Strange Adventure (1917); A Substitute for Pants (1914); A Thing or Two in Movies (1915); Absent Minded Abe (1913); Accidents Will Happen (1912); Amarilly of Clothes-Line Alley (1918); An Elopement in Rome (1914); Bits of Life (1921); Black Waters (1929); Bob Hampton of Placer (1921); Broadway Gold (1923); Bud, Bill and the Waiter (1914); Calamity Anne's Ward (1912); Catch-As Catch-Can (1931); Chloe, Love Is Calling You (1934); Classmates (1914); Cupid Backs the Winners (1914); Cupid Through Padlocks (1912); Cupid's Lariat (1913); Curing Her Extravagance (1913); Daddy-Long-Legs (1919); Dinty (1920); Diplomacy (1926); Dippy's Dream (1914); Don't Ever Marry (1920); Don't Monkey with the Buzz Saw (1914); Dorothy Vernon of Haddon Hall (1924); Everybody's Acting (1926); Ex-Sweeties (1931); Father's Favorite (1912); Fatty's Busy Day (1913); Fatty's Deception (1913); Fleeing from the Fleas (1914); Fools First (1922); For the Good of Her Men (1912); Forever Yours (1930); Freckles (1917); Getting Father's Goat (1915); Go and Get It (1920); Ham and the Sausage Factory (1915); Ham and the Villain Factory (1914); Ham at the Garbage Gentleman's Ball (1915); Ham the Iceman (1914); Ham the Lineman (1914); Ham, the Piano Mover (1914); Heart of the Wilds (1918); Hell's Angels (1930); Her Kingdom of Dreams (1919); Her Wild Oat (1927); His Last Haul (1928); Hit-the-Trail Holliday (1918); Hollywood Boulevard (1936); How Jim Proposed (1912); In Love and War (1913); In Old Kentucky (1919); Jones' Jonah Day (1913); Judith of Bethulia (1914); Landing the Hose Reel (1915); Little Pal (1915); Lizzie the Life Saver (1914); Love, Oil and Grease (1914); Madame Butterfly (1915); Man's Duty (1913); May Blossom (1915); McBride's Bride (1914); Men and Women (1914); Mental Suicide (1913); Mice and Men (1916); Mike (1926); Minnie (1922); M'Liss (1918); One, Two, Three (1912); Only One Shirt (1914); Out of a Clear Sky (1918); Parcel Post Johnnie (1913); Partners (1913); Pat, the Cowboy (1913); Penrod (1922); Percy's Wooing (1913); Put Me Off at Wayville (1915); Rags (1915); Ranch Girls on a Rampage (1912); Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm (1917); Rube, the Interloper (1914); Sally's Guardian (1913); Saved from Court Martial (1912); Screen Snapshots No. 2 (1925); Screen Snapshots, Series 1, No. 11 (1920); Screen Snapshots, Series 1, No. 21 (1921); Screen Snapshots, Series 1, No. 9 (1920); Screen Snapshots, Series 2, No. 17-F (1921); Screen Snapshots, Series 3, No. 6 (1922); Seeing Stars (1922); Sherlock Bonehead (1914); Sing While You're Able (1937); Si's Wonderful Mineral Spring (1914); Social Register (1934); Souls for Sale (1923); Spooks (1916); Stella Maris (1918); Stung (1914); Sweethearts on Parade (1930); Swing It Professor (1937); Take Me Home (1928); Tanned Legs (1929); Taxi 13 (1928); Tess of the D'Urbervilles (1924); Thanks for Listening (1937); 3-Ring Marriage (1928); The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1938); The Animal (1913); The Awful Truth (1929); The Bandit of Point Loma (1912); The Best Man Wins (1912); The Billionaire (1914); The Bingville Fire Department (1914); The Black Hand (1913); The Bold Banditti and the Rah, Rah Boys (1914); The Bottle Imp (1917); The Brand (1912); The Bravest Girl in California (1913); The Cat and the Bonnet (1913); The Chronicles of Bloom Center (1915); The Cold Storage Egg (1913); The Come Back of Percy (1915); The Comedy Team's Strategy (1913); The Commanding Officer (1915); The Country Boy (1915); The Country That God Forgot (1916); The Crisis (1916); The Cycle of Fate (1916); The Deadly Battle at Hicksville (1914); The Egyptian Mummy (1913); The Eternal Three (1923); The 'Fired' Cook (1913); The Foreclosure (1912); The Girl at Home (1917); The Greaser and the Weakling (1912); The Great Love (1925); The Guerilla Menace (1913); The Harvest of Flame (1913); The Hash House Count (1913); The Hobo and the Myth (1913); The Horse That Wouldn't Stay Hitched (1913); The House of Discord (1913); The Intrusion at Lompoc (1912); The Jaguar's Claws (1917); The Kidnapped Conductor (1912); The Lemon Drop Kid (1934); The Lotus Eater (1921); The Love Route (1915); The Manicurist and the Mutt (1913); The Matrimonial Venture of the 'Bar X' Hands (1913); The Mission of a Bullet (1913); The Outlaw Colony (1912); The Pasadena Peach (1912); The Peace Offering (1912); The Phony Singer (1913); The Picket Guard (1913); The Powder Flash of Death (1913); The Prince Chap (1916); The Reformation of Dad (1913); The Reformation of Ham (1914); The Rendezvous (1923); The Reward of Valor (1912); The River's End (1920); The Romance of a Dry Town (1912); The Rube and the Boob (1913); The Sentimental Sister (1914); The Sheriff of Stone Gulch (1913); The Silent Partner (1917); The Skyrocket (1926); The Slavery of Foxicus (1914); The Spirit of the Flag (1913); The Sporting Venus (1925); The Stranger at Coyote (1912); The Strangers' Banquet (1922); The Tattered Duke (1914); The Tell-Tale Shells (1912); The Tenderfoot's Troubles (1912); The Tides of Barnegat (1917); The Toilers (1915); The Unpardonable Sin (1919); The Vagabond Lover (1929); The Vengeance That Failed (1912); The Wages of Sinn (1914); The Wall of Money (1913); The Wanderer (1913); The Weaker Brother (1912); The Wedding Gown (1913); The Will of James Waldron (1912); The Winning Whiskers (1914); The Wooers of Mountain Kate (1912); This Is the Life (1935); Those Without Sin (1917); Three Men and a Girl (1919); Three Suitors and a Dog (1913); Toothache! (1913); Trixie and the Press Agent (1913); Vaccinating the Village (1914); Venus of Venice (1927); Walk, -- You, Walk! (1912); Wanted: An Heir (1914); War Mamas (1931); War Relief (1918); When Men Wear Skirts (1914); When the Fire-Bells Rang (1912); When Women Are Police (1913); Why Tightwad Tips (1912); Wild Oats Lane (1926); Women and War (1913).