Recommended reading - The Lady in Cement (1961):

The Lady in Cement

By Marvin H. Albert.

Also published under the pseudonym Anthony Rome.

ASIN: B000MOWZWA

Published by Pocket Books Inc.

1st edition.

Published 1961.

Paperback.

Description:

The private-eye business was slow, so Anthony Rome when skin-diving. But instead of treasure he found a woman's naked body – her feet embedded in a block of cement! She had last been seen alive at a ritzy party given by wealthy heiress Gretchen Forrest. Also at the party had been bigtime tough Al Mungo, who claimed he'd quit the rackets. Anthony Rome started asking questions. And one morning he woke up swollen, bruised and beaten. He hadn't learned much – except that Mungo hadn't lost his heavy touch, and that somewhere along the line, Mungo had picked up a very special interest in lovely Gretchen Forrest!

On this day in movie history - The Comancheros (1961):

The Comancheros

directed by Michael Curtiz and John Wayne,

written by James Edward Grant and Clair Huffaker,

based on the novel by Paul I. Wellman,

was released in the United States on November 1, 1961.
Music by Elmer Bernstein.

Cast:

John Wayne, Stuart Whitman, Ina Balin, Nehemiah Persoff, Lee Marvin, Michael Ansara, Patrick Wayne, Bruce Cabot, Joan O'Brien, Jack Elam, Edgar Buchanan, Henry Daniell, Richard Devon, Phil Arnold, Anne Barton, Steve Baylor, Danny Borzage, Don Brodie, Alan Carney, James J. Casino, Iphigenie Castiglioni, Jack Clinton, Dennis Cole, Booth Colman, Jackie Cubat, Gabriel Curtiz, John Dierkes, Ilana Dowding, William Fawcett, Eric Feldary, Joe Gray, Lenmana Guerin, Claude Hall, Tom Hennesy, Tom Hernández, George Holmes, Michael Jeffers, Joseph La Cava, George J. Lewis, Jon Lormer, Cliff Lyons, Casey MacGregor, John Marlin, Roger Mobley, Ralph Neff, Gregg Palmer, Thayer Roberts, Frank J. Scannell, Phil Schumacher, Bernard Sell, Leigh Snowden, Bob Steele, Lusita Triana, Ralph Volkie, Aissa Wayne, Guinn Williams, Henry Wills, Sam Wolfe, Kelly Yost.

Born on this day – James Gandolfini:

James Gandolfini

Actor

September 18, 1961 – June 19, 2013

Credits:

11th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2005); 12 Angry Men (1997); 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2007); 19th Annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards (2014); 2 Years of Love (2017); 20/20 (2006); 2002 MTV Video Music Awards (2002); 20th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2014); 6th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2000); 7th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2001); 8MM (1999); 9th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2003); A Civil Action (1998); A Stranger Among Us (1992); A Whole New Day (1999); Al rojo vivo con María Celeste (2007); Alive Day Memories: Home from Iraq (2007); All the King's Men (2006); All works are good (2020); Angie (1994); Autopsy: The Last Hours of (2018); Brilliant But Cancelled (2002); CBS News Sunday Morning with Jane Pauley (2024); Celebrity Page (2018–2019); Charlie Rose (2009); Chroma (2017); Cinema Verite (2011); City of Winners (2010); Club Soda (2006); Come Together: A Night for John Lennon's Words and Music (2001); Corazón de... (2005–2006); Crimson Tide (1995); De 'Los Serrano' a 'Cuenta atrás' (2007); Democracy Now! (2013); Días de cine (2013); Down the Shore (2011); El último golpe de Tony Soprano (2008); Elaine Stritch: Shoot Me (2013); Enough Said (2013); Entertainment Tonight (2019–2024); Fallen (1998); Film '06 (2006); Get Shorty (1995); Gun (1997); Guys Choice (2007 / 2010); HBO First Look (2001–2004); HBO: The Making of 'The Sopranos: Road to Respect' (2006); Hemingway & Gellhorn (2012); Her (2013); Hollywood Insider (2021); In the Loop (2009); Inside the Actors Studio (2004); Italian Movie (1995); James Gandolfini: Tribute to a Friend (2013); Jimmy Kimmel Live! (2008); Killing Them Softly (2012); King Cake: The New Orleans Mardi Gras Story (2024); Late Show with David Letterman (2004 / 2015); Lonely Hearts (2006); Making 'Cleaver' (2007); Making 'the Man Who Wasn't There' (2002); Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997); Mint Julep (2010); Money for Nothing (1993); Moving Image Salutes John Travolta (2004); Mr. Wonderful (1993); New World (1995); Nicky Deuce (2013); Night Falls on Manhattan (1996); Not Fade Away (2012); Perdita Durango (1997); Rank (2002); Reinventando Hollywood (2008); Romance & Cigarettes (2005); Saturday Night Live (2004); Secret Life of... (2012); Sesame Street (2002); Sesame Street: Being Brave (2013); Sex and the City: A Farewell (2004); She's So Lovely (1997); Shock! Shock! Shock! (1987); Special Collector's Edition (2013–2014); Stories of Lost Souls / Segment: A Whole New Day (2005); Stories USA / Segment: Club Soda (2007); Surviving Christmas (2004); Surviving Christmas: Unwrapping the Comedy (2004); Tell Them Anything You Want: A Portrait of Maurice Sendak (2009); Terminal Velocity (1994); The 2014 Film Independent Spirit Awards (2014); The 51st Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (1999); The 52nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (2000); The 53rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (2001); The 55th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (2003); The 56th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (2004); The 57th Annual Golden Globe Awards (2000); The 58th Annual Golden Globe Awards 2001 (2001); The 58th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (2006); The 59th Annual Golden Globe Awards (2002); The 59th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (2007); The 5th Annual GQ Men of the Year Awards (2000); The 63rd Annual Tony Awards (2009); The 65th Primetime Emmy Awards (2013); The Big Breakfast (2000); The Cinema Snob (2013); The Cove: My Friend is... (2010); The Drop (2014); The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013); The Juror (1996); The Last Castle (2001); The Making of 'Killing Them Softly' (2013); The Making of 'Lonely Hearts' (2007); The Man Who Wasn't There (2001); The Mexican (2001); The Mighty (1998); The Night Of (2016); The Oscars (2014); The Real Sopranos (2006); The Sopranos (1999–2007); The Sopranos: A Sitdown (2007); The Sopranos: Family Business (2001); The Sopranos: Road to Respect (2006); The Sopranos: Season 6 Invitation to the Set (2005); The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009); The Tony Danza Show (2004); The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling (2018); Today (2007); True Romance (1993); TV's Nastiest Villains (2014); Violet & Daisy (2011); Wartorn: 1861-2010 (2010); Welcome to the Rileys (2010); Where the Wild Things Are (2009); Wise Guy: David Chase and the Sopranos (2024); WTF with Marc Maron (2013); Zero Dark Thirty (2012).

Recommended reading - The Wycherly Woman (1961):

The Wycherly Woman

By Ross Macdonald.

Vintage Crime / Black Lizard.

Paperback.

First published in 1961.

ISBN-10: 0375701443

ISBN-13: 978-0375701443

Description:

“A fine yarn…. The pace is fast, the plot well-knit, with plenty of suspense and surprise as extra dividends.”

– Chicago Tribune.

Phoebe Wycherly was missing two months before her wealthy father hired Archer to find her. That was plenty of time for a young girl who wanted to disappear to do so thoroughly – or for someone to make her disappear. And before he can locate the Wycherly girl, Archer had to reckon with the Wycherly woman, Phoebe's mother, an eerily unmaternal blonde who keeps too many residences, had too many secrets, and left too many corpses in her wake.

“Macdonald is one of a handful of writers in the [mystery] genre whose worth and quality surpass the limitations of the form.” – Los Angeles Times.

September in music history - Woman Blues!, by Victoria Spivey with Lonnie Johnson (1961):

The album Woman Blues!,

by Victoria Spivey with Lonnie Johnson,

was released in September, 1961.

Exact release date unknown.

On this day in movie history - The Pit and the Pendulum (1961):

The Pit and the Pendulum,

directed by Roger Corman,

written by Richard Matheson,

based on the short story by Edgar Allan Poe,

was released in the United States on August 23, 1961.
Music by Les Baxter.

Cast:
Vincent Price, John Kerr, Barbara Steele, Luana Anders, Antony Carbone, Patrick Westwood, Lynette Bernay, Larry Turner, Mary Menzies, Charles Victor, Randee Lynne Jensen.

On this day in music history - Idle Hours, by Lonnie Johnson and Victoria Spivey (1961):

The album Idle Hours,

by Lonnie Johnson and Victoria Spivey,

was recorded on July 13, 1961.

Born on this day – Manny Coto:

Manny Coto

Writer

Director

Producer

June 10, 1961 – July 9, 2023

Credits:

24 (2006–2010); 24 Season 6: Inside the Writers Room (2007); 24: Day Six - Debrief (2007); 24: Legacy (2016–2017); 24: Live Another Day (2014); 24: Redemption (2008); 24: Solitary (2014); 24-7: The Untold Story (2009); Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1988); American Horror Stories (2021–2023); American Horror Story (2018–2022); Cover-Up (1991); Dead at 21 (1994); Dexter (2010–2013); Dr. Giggles (1992); Dr. Giggles: Special Edition (2023); Hostile Intent (1997); In Creative Company (2020); Inglorious Treksperts (2023); Jack in the Box (1989); Jack Is Back (2014); Mirror Universe: Part 2 (2008); Monsters (1989); Moving Pictures (1990); Next (2020); Odyssey 5 (2002–2003); Playroom (1990); Sidekick Vs Superhero (2013); Star Kid (1997); Star Trek Phase II (2007); Star Trek: Enterprise (2003–2005); Star Trek: Inside the Roddenberry Vault (2016); Star Trek: The Journey to the Silver Screen (2016); Strange World (1999–2002); Tales from the Crypt (1991); Tales from the Cryptkeeper (1993); The ½ Hour News Hour (2007); The 29th Annual Imagen Awards (2014); The Center Seat: 55 Years of Star Trek (2022); The Exorcist (2017); The Other Me (2000); The Outer Limits (1995); The Playboy Morning Show (2014); The Writers' Room (2013); Zenon: The Zequel (2001).

Born on this day – Solveig Dommartin:

Solveig Dommartin

Actress

Writer

Director

May 16, 1961 – January 11, 2007

Credits:

Ciné star (1987); Cinéma cinémas / segment: Lettre de la Sierra Morena (1983); Commandant Nerval (1996); Eiffel Tower Trilogy: Height, Weight & Gravity (1997); Faraway, So Close! (1993); I Can't Sleep (1994); It Would Only Take a Bridge (1998); Je t'ai dans la peau (1990); Navarro (1995); No Fear, No Die (1990); Spécial cinéma (1987); The Prisoner of St. Petersburg (1989); Tokyo-Ga (1985); Until the End of the World (1991); Wings of Desire (1987).

On this day in movie history - Underworld U.S.A. (1961):

Underworld U.S.A.,

aka Underworld USA,

directed and written by Samuel Fuller,

was released in the United States on May 13, 1961.
Based on articles written by Joseph F. Dinneen, published in The Saturday Evening Post (1956).
Music by Harry Sukman.

Cast:
Cliff Robertson, Dolores Dorn, Beatrice Kay, Paul Dubov, Robert Emhardt, Larry Gates, Richard Rust, Gerald Milton, Allan Gruener, David Kent, Tina Pine, Sally Mills, Robert P. Lieb, Neyle Morrow, Henry Norell, Alan Aaronson, James Bacon, Peter Brocco, Donald Douglas, David Fresco, Donald Gamble, Bernie Hamilton, Bob Hopkins, Tom London, Jerry Mann, William Meader, Joni Beth Morris, Cosmo Sardo, Rickie Sorensen, Charles Sterrett, Audrey Swanson.

On this day in television history - The Asphalt Jungle (1961):

The Asphalt Jungle,

directed by Herman Hoffman, Gerald Mayer and Joseph M. Newman,

was released in the United States on April 2, 1961 and ran for one season until June 25, 1961.
Inspired by The Asphalt Jungle (1950), directed by John Huston, based on the novel by W. R. Burnett.
Music by Calvin Jackson.

Cast:
Jack Warden, Arch Johnson, William Smith, Dallas Mitchell, George Kennedy, Bernard Kates, Terry Becker, Milton Selzer, Adam Williams, Barnaby Hale, Frank Maxwell, Ted Knight, Norma Crane, Douglas Odney, Robert Vaughn, John Ireland, Skip Homeier, Fritz Weaver, Philip Carey, Gerald S. O'Loughlin, Paul Stewart, Leo Penn, Edward Binns, Robert Douglas, Ellen Madison, Eric Berry, Vera Miles, Beverly Garland, Joyce Meadows, Virginia Christine, Linda Watkins, Ross Elliott, Paul Carr, Malcolm Atterbury, Robert F. Simon, Alexander Scourby, Leora Dana, Sydney Pollack, Lurene Tuttle, Ken Lynch, Eileen Ryan, Val Avery, Steve Brodie, Erin O'Brien, Paul Genge, Suzi Carnell, Carl Don, Gavin MacLeod, Morgan Woodward, Dabbs Greer, Robert H. Harris, Arthur Batanides, Jena Engstrom, Robert Sampson, Emile Meyer, Guy Raymond, Barry Russo, John Astin, Elizabeth MacRae, Josip Elic, Maxine Stuart, Nora Marlowe, Lew Gallo, James Bonnet, Robert Bailey, Jerry Wayne, Zolya Talma, Yvette Vickers, John Harmon, Than Wyenn, Jan Arvan, Hugh Sanders, Jack Reitzen, Mary Lawrence, Charles Cantor, Kay Doubleday, Pat Meikle, Michael Constantine, Ellen Corby, Robert Brubaker, Joan Tompkins, Will J. White, Jay Adler, Frank Behrens, Iphigenie Castiglioni, Ken Tilles, Frank Overton, Henry Beckman, James Seay, Warren J. Kemmerling, Gene Roth, Ollie O'Toole, Lou Krugman, Felix Deebank, Joan Staley, Everett Sloane, Frank Ferguson, Abraham Sofaer, Adrienne Marden, John Zaremba, Brad Morrow, Miriam Goldina, Marianne Stewart, Joseph Mell, Arny Freeman, Clegg Hoyt, David White, Joseph Ruskin, Natalie Trundy, William Keene, Dori Simmons, Michael Parks, Warren Parker, Joe Turkel, James Westerfield, Gene Coogan, Ken Berry, John Davis Chandler, Ian Wolfe, Robert Bice, Richard George.

On this day in movie history - Blast of Silence (1961):

Blast of Silence,

directed and written by Allen Baron,

was released in the United States on March 20, 1961.
Narrated by Lionel Stander.
Music by Meyer Kupferman.

Cast:
Allen Baron, Molly McCarthy, Larry Tucker, Peter Clune, Danny Meehan, Howard Mann, Charles Creasap, Bill DePrato, Milda Memenas, Joe Bubbico, Ruth Kaner, Gil Rogers, Jerry Douglas, Don Saroyan, Dean Sheldon, Bill Chadney, Ernest Jackson, Erich Kollmar, Betty Kovac, Mel Sponder, Lionel Stander, Bob Taylor.