Born on this day – Wendie Jo Sperber:

Wendie Jo Sperber

Actress

September 15, 1958 – November 29, 2005

Credits:

12th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2006); 8 Simple Rules (2003–2005); 1941 (1979); A Package for Me (2002); ABC Afterschool Specials (1979); American Dad! (2006); Babes (1990–1991); Bachelor Party (1984); Back to the Future (1985); Back to the Future Part III (1990); Bette (2001); Big Packages (1996); Bosom Buddies (1980–1982); Brothers (1985); Corvette Summer (1978); Delta Fever (1987); Designing Women (1989); Desperate But Not Serious (1999); Dinosaurs (1992); Entertainment Tonight (1990); Fortune Hunter (1994); Grease (1978); Grounded for Life (2005); Harry and the Hendersons (1991); Hearts Afire (1992–1993); History of the Sitcom (2021); Home Improvement (1999); I Wanna Hold Your Hand (1978); Imps* / Segment: Rock Video (1983); JAG (2003); Kirk (1995); Knots Landing (1981); Looking Back at the Future (2006); Love Affair (1994); Marblehead Manor (1987); Married... with Children (1991); Moving Violations (1985); Mr. Payback: An Interactive Movie (1995); Mr. Write (1994); Murphy Brown (1988); My Dinner with Jimi (2003); Noel's House Party (1996); Parker Lewis Can't Lose (1992); Partners in Life (1990); Pissed (2000); Private Benjamin (1982–1983); Showbiz Today (1998); Sorority Boys (2002); Special Collector's Edition (2011); Stewardess School (1986); Take 22: Behind the Scenes of Sequestered (2010); The First Time (1981); The Image (1990); The Importance of Being Funny in America (1987); The Return of Hunter: Everyone Walks in L.A. (1995); The Rosie O'Donnell Show (1998–1999); The Stockard Channing Show (1980); Touched by an Angel (2003); Unhappily Ever After (1999); Used Cars (1980); Who's the Boss? (1990); Will & Grace (1999); Women in Prison (1987–1988); You Wish (1997).

On this day in movie history - The Blob (1958):

The Blob

directed by Irvin S. Yeaworth Jr. and Russell S. Doughten Jr.,

written by Theodore Simonson and Kay Linaker,

based on an idea by Irvine H. Millgate,

was released in the United States on September 10, 1958.
Music by Ralph Carmichael.

Cast:

Steve McQueen, Aneta Corsaut, Earl Rowe, Olin Howland, Stephen Chase, John Benson, George Karas, Lee Payton, Elbert Smith, Hugh Graham, Vincent Barbi, Audrey Metcalf, Jasper Deeter, Tom Ogden, Elinor Hammer, Pamela Curran, Ralph Roseman, Charlie Overdorff, David Metcalf, Josh Randolph, George Gerbereck, Julie Cousins, Keith Almoney, Eugene Sabel, Robert Fields, James Bonnet, Tony Franke, Molly Ann Bourne, Diane Tabben, Russ Conway, Howard Fishlove, Jack H. Harris, Vincent J. Mastrangelo, Theodore Simonson.

Born on this day – L.J. Smith:

L.J. Smith

Writer

September 4, 1958 – March 8, 2025

Credits:

Books:

Black Dawn (1997); Bloodlust (2011); Dark Angel (1996); Dark Reunion (1992); Daughters of Darkness (1996); Destiny Rising / aka The Vampire Diaries: Volume 10 (2012); Heart of Valor (1990); Huntress (1997); Midnight (2011); Moonsong / aka The Vampire Diaries: Volume 9 (2012); Night World 1 (2008); Night World 2 (2008); Night World 3 (2009); Nightfall (2009); Origins (2010); Phantom / aka The Vampire Diaries: Volume 8 (2011); Secret Vampire / aka Night World (1996); Shadow Souls (2010); Soulmate (1997); Spellbinder (1996); Strange Fate (2010); The Asylum (2012); The Awakening (1991); The Captive (1992); The Chase (1994); The Chosen (1997); The Compelled (2012); The Craving (2011); The Divide (2012); The Fury (1991); The Hunt (2012); The Hunter (1994); The Initiation (1992); The Kill (1994); The Night of the Solstice (1987); The Night World Collection (2017); The Night World Series Books 1 -6 Collection Box Set (2023); The Passion (1995); The Possessed (1995); The Power (1992); The Ripper (2011); The Strange Power (1994); The Struggle (1991); The Temptation (2013); The Ultimate Fan Guide (2009); The Vampire Diaries: The Return & The Hunters Collection (2014); Unmasked (2012); Unseen (2013); Unspoken (2013); Witchlight (1998); Your Very Own Vampire Diary 2011 (2010).

Movies and television:

Legacies (2018–2022); The Originals (2013–2018); The Secret Circle (2011–2012); The Vampire Diaries (2009–2017); The Vampire Diaries / Video Game (1996).

Recommended reading - The Doomsters (1958):

The Doomsters

By Ross Macdonald.

ASIN: 0307279049

First published 1958.

Published by Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.

Paperback.

ISBN-10: 9780307279040

ISBN-13: 978-0307279040

Description:

“Most mystery writers merely write about crime. Ross Macdonald writes about sin.” – The Atlantic Monthly.

“Ross Macdonald should not be limited in audience to connoisseurs of mystery fiction. He is one of a handful of writers in the genre whose worth and quality surpass the limitations of the form.” – Los Angeles Times.

Hired by Carl Hallman, the desperate-eyed junkie scion of an obscenely wealthy political dynasty, detective Lew Archer investigates the suspicious deaths of Hallman’s parents, Senator Hallman and his wife Alicia. Arriving in the sleepy town of Purissima, Archer discovers that orange groves may be where the Hallmans made their mint, but they’ve has been investing heavily in political intimidation and police brutality to shore up their rancid riches. However, after years of dastardly double-crossing and low down dirty-dealing, the family seem to be on the receiving end of a karmic death-blow. With two dead already and another consigned to the nuthouse, Archer races to crack the secret before another Hallman lands on the slab.

Murder, madness and greed grace The Doomsters, where a tony façade masks the rot and corruption within.

“Ross Macdonald is one of the best writers of the whipcord thriller.” – The Bookman.

Born on this day – Tom E. Lewis:

Tom E. Lewis

Actor

Musician

Artistic director

August 25, 1958 – May 10, 2018

Credits:

Albums:

Beneath the Sun (2013); Sunshine After Rain (2005).

Stage:

Bullie's House; Dead Heart; Doing the Block; Lift 'Em Up Socks; Muyngarnbi: Songs from Walking with Spirits; Othello; Our Country's Good; Shakespeare and the Songmen of Arnhem Land; Signs of Life; The Head of Mary; The Old Familiar Juice; The Recruiting Officer; The Shadow King; Thumbul; Up the Ladder.

Movies and television:

A Town Like Alice (1981); And Though the Music Ended, We Danced on Through the Night (2017); Australian Story (1996); Australia's Great Wild North (2018); Bad Habits (2005); Carols in the Domain (1997); Carson's Law (1983); Celluloid Gypsies: Making 'The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith' (2018); Century of Cinema (1996); Cleverman (2016); Correlli (1995); Crocodile Dreaming (2007); Double Trouble (2008); Finding Mawiranga (2017); Glenview High (1977); Goldstone (2016); Gulpilil: Man of Two Worlds (1979); Kangaroo Palace (1997); Li'l Elvis Jones and the Truckstoppers (1997–1998); On Location with 'Robbery Under Arms' (1985); One River, All Rivers (2008); R.F.D.S. (1993); Ratbag Hero (1991); Red Hill (2010); Red Hill: 24 Days of Adrenaline (2011); Red Hill: Deleted Scenes (2011); Red Hill: Interviews with the Cast and Crew (2010); Red Hill: Storyboard Comparisons (2011); Robbery Under Arms (1985); Rose Against the Odds (1991); September (2007); Silent Reach (1983); Slate, Wyn & Me (1987); Spear (2007); The Celluloid Heroes (1995); The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith (1978); The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith: Making Us Blacksmiths (2018); The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith: Melbourne Premiere from 'Willesee at Seven', June 1978 (1978); The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith: The Chant of Tom Lewis (2018); The Circuit (2010); The City's Edge (1983); The Curse (2007); The Don Lane Show (1982); The Flying Doctors (1988–1991); The Life of Harry Dare (1995); The Micallef Program (1998); The Mike Walsh Show (1978); The Naked Country (1985); The Nun and the Bandit (1992); The Postman's Privilege (2007); The Proposition (2005); The Skin of Others (2020); They Live in Forests, They Are Extremely Shy (2016); Touch the Sun: Top Enders (1988); Yellow Fella (2005); Wrong Kind of Black (2018); Vacant Possession (1995); Wolf Creek (2017); We of the Never Never (1982); Warrk Warrk (2007); Waiting for Rain (2016).

On this day in movie history - The Big Country (1958):

The Big Country

directed by William Wyler,

written by James R. Webb, Sy Bartlett and Robert Wilder,

based on the novel Ambush at Blanco Canyon by Donald Hamilton,

was released in the United States on August 13, 1958.
Music by Jerome Moross.

Cast:

Gregory Peck, Jean Simmons, Carroll Baker, Charlton Heston, Burl Ives, Charles Bickford, Alfonso Bedoya, Chuck Connors, Chuck Hayward, Buff Brady, Jim Burk, Dorothy Adams, Chuck Roberson, Bob Morgan, John McKee, Slim Talbot, Richard Alexander, Rudy Bowman, Harry Cheshire, Chuck Hamilton, George Huggins, Jay W. Jensen, Donald Kerr, Burt Mustin, Carey Paul Peck, Jonathan Peck, Stephen Peck, Ralph Sanford, Scott Seaton.

Born on this day – David Steven Cohen:

David Steven Cohen

Writer

Producer

August 5, 1958 – March 17, 2025

Credits:

A Cool Like That Christmas (1993); ALF (1989); ALF Tales (1988); Arthur (2009–2015); Balto (1995); Cartoon Cartoon Fridays (2000–2001); Clifford's Really Big Movie (2004); Courage the Cowardly Dog (1999–2002); Fast Times (1986); George Burns Comedy Week (1985); Homeroom (1989); Kenny the Shark / Segment: Goodbye Ol' Chum (2004); Kirk (1995–1996); Little People (2016–2018); Living Single (1993–1995); Mr. President (1987); Parker Lewis Can't Lose (1991–1993); Pee-wee's Playhouse (1990); Peg+Cat (2014–2015); Phil of the Future (2006); Space Racers (2014–2017); Space Racers (2014–2017); Strangers with Candy (1999); The Ellen Burstyn Show (1986–1987); The Wickedest Witch (1989); The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss (1996–1997); Tiny Toon Adventures / Segment: Working Pig (1990); Treasure Trekkers (2019); Viva Piñata (2006–2007); Weird Science (1994).

Recommended reading - Shooting Star / Terror in the Night, by Robert Bloch (1958):

Shooting Star / Terror in the Night

By Robert Bloch.

ASIN: B000HWBAFU
Published by Ace Books, Inc.
Published 1958.

Two novels in one volume from the author of Psycho.

Born on this day – Barbara Rudnik:

Barbara Rudnik

Actress

July 27, 1958 – May 23, 2009

On this day in music history:

The Blues by B.B. King (1958)

Dark Before Dawn by Breaking Benjamin (2015)

The Blues

Album by B.B. King,

released June 23, 1958.

Track list: Why Do Things Happen to Me; Ruby Lee; When My Heart Beats Like a Hammer; Past Day; Boogie Woogie Woman; Early Every Morning; I Want to Get Married; That Ain’t the Way to Do It; Troubles, Troubles, Troubles; Don’t You Want a Man Like Me; You Know I Go For You; What Can I Do.

Dark Before Dawn

Album by Breaking Benjamin,

released June 23, 2015.

Track list: Dark; Failure; Angels Fall; Breaking the Silence; Hollow; Close to Heaven; Bury Me Alive; Never Again; The Great Divide; Ashes of Eden; Defeated; Dawn.

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

M Squad

Season 1. Episode 38.
Episode entitled: Accusation.
Released June 13, 1958.
Directed by Don Taylor.
Written by Harry W. Junkin.
Music by Stanley Wilson.

Cast:

Lee Marvin, Fay Spain, Ken Clark, Paul Newlan, Larry J. Blake, Dan Riss, George Eldredge, Cindy Ames.

Born on this day – Barry Michael Cooper:

Barry Michael Cooper

Producer

Writer

Director

June 12, 1958 – January 21, 2025

Credits:

Above the Rim (1994); American Gangster (2006–2008); Blood on the Wall$ (2005); Bloomberg Game Changers (2010); Classic Albums (2007); Grand Daddy I.U.: Something New (1990); Guilt... (2019); Inside the Label (2016); It's Good to Be... (2003); NBA 2K16 (2015); New Jack City (1991); Planet Rock: The Story of Hip-Hop and the Crack Generation (2011); Private Times (1991); She's Gotta Have It (2017–2019); Soul Deep: The Story of Black Popular Music (2005); Sugar Hill (1993); Tevin Campbell: For Your Love (1999).

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

M Squad

Season 1. Episode 37.
Episode entitled: The Woman from Paris.
Released June 6, 1958.
Directed by John Brahm.
Written by Oscar Millard.
Music by Stanley Wilson.

Cast:

Lee Marvin, Paula Raymond, Philip Ober, Paul Newlan, Jennifer Lea, Gine De Bard, Russ Bender, Paul Maxwell, Dan West.

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

M Squad

Season 1. Episode 36.
Episode entitled: The System.
Released May 30, 1958.
Directed by David Rich.
Written by Keith Hunter and Bernard C. Schoenfeld.
Music by Stanley Wilson.

Cast:

Lee Marvin, Tol Avery, Rose Marie, Ted de Corsia, Paul Newlan, Howard Wendell, Gregg Martell, Dehl Berti, Ann Doran, Paul Maxey, Joe McGuinn, Frank J. Scannell, Bess Flowers, Hans Moebus.

On this day in movie history – Vertigo (1958 movie & books)

Vertigo

directed by Alfred Hitchcock,

written by Alec Coppel and Samuel Taylor,

based on the novel D’entre les morts,

translation: From Among the Dead, by Boileau-Narcejac (Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac),

was released in the United States on May 28, 1958.
Music by Bernard Herrmann.

Cast:

James Stewart, Kim Novak, Barbara Bel Geddes, Tom Helmore, Henry Jones, Raymond Bailey, Ellen Corby, Konstantin Shayne, Lee Patrick, David Ahdar, Isabel Analla, Jack Ano, Margaret Bacon, John Benson, Danny Borzage, Margaret Brayton, Paul Bryar, Boyd Cabeen, Steve Conte, Jean Corbett, Bruno Della Santina, Roxann Delman, Harry Denny, Molly Dodd, Bess Flowers, Raoul Freeman, Joe Garcio, Joanne Genthon, Kenneth Gibson, Don Giovanni, Roland Gotti, Victor Gotti, Fred Graham, Robert Haines, Buck Harrington, Alfred Hitchcock, Jimmie Horan, Art Howard, Catherine Howard, June Jocelyn, Perk Lazelle, John Marlin, Miliza Milo, Lyle Moraine, Forbes Murray, Julian Petruzzi, Ezelle Poule, Kathy Reed, William Remick, Jack Richardson, Jeffrey Sayre, Nina Shipman, Dori Simmons, Ed Stevlingson, Sara Taft.

Recommended reading:

D’entre les morts

translation: From Among the Dead

By Boileau-Narcejac (Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac).

Filmed as Vertigo (1958), directed by Alfred Hitchcock.

Published by Pushkin Vertigo.

First published 1954.

ISBN-10: 1782279741

ISBN-13: 978-1782279747

Description:

In World War II-era Paris, a troubled-ex policeman is entangled in a web of deceit and lies when he investigates a woman’s strange behavior.

Flavières doesn’t really want to investigate his old’s friend’s wife, but he doesn’t feel he has much of a choice. Madeleine has been behaving strangely, and her husband wants answers – answers that she isn’t willing to give him.

As WWII rages around him, Flavières is drawn into an obsessive cat-and-mouse chase across Paris. Soon his intrigue is replaced by obsession and his dreams by nightmares, as he edges towards discovering a dark, terrible secret.

The most celebrated collaboration of a ground-breaking crime-writing duo, Vertigo is the timeless story of morality and revenge, and the inspiration for Hitchcock’s iconic film.

Vertigo

By Charles Barr.

Published by British Film Institute.

Published 2012.

2nd edition.

ISBN-10: 1844574989

ISBN-13: 9781844574988

Description:

Vertigo (1958) is widely regarded as not only one of Hitchcock's best films, but one of the greatest films of world cinema. Made at the time when the old studio system was breaking up, it functions both as an embodiment of the supremely seductive visual pleasures that 'classical Hollywood' could offer and – with the help of an elaborate plot twist – as a laying bare of their dangerous dark side. The film's core is a study in romantic obsession, as James Stewart's Scottie pursues Madeleine/Judy (Kim Novak) to her death in a remote Californian mission. Novak is ice cool but vulnerable, Stewart – in the darkest role of his career – genial on the surface but damaged within.

Although it can be seen as Hitchcock's most personal film, Charles Barr argues that, like Citizen Kane, Vertigo is at the same time a triumph not so much of individual authorship as of creative collaboration. He highlights the crucial role of screenwriters Alec Coppel and Samuel Taylor and, by a combination of textual and contextual analysis, explores the reasons why Vertigo continues to inspire such fascination.

In his foreword to this special edition, published to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the BFI Film Classics series, Barr looks afresh at Vertigo alongside the recently-rediscovered 'lost' silent The White Shadow (1924), scripted by Hitchcock, which also features the trope of the double, and at the acclaimed contemporary silent film The Artist (2011), which pays explicit homage to Vertigo in its soundtrack.