Recommended reading - The Wall (1963):

The Wall

By Marlen Haushofer.

Translated by Shaun Whiteside.

Afterword by Claire Louise-Bennett.

First published 1963.

Published by New Directions.

Paperback.

ISBN-10: 0811231941

ISBN-13: 978-0811231947

Description:

While vacationing in a hunting lodge in the Austrian mountains, a middle-aged woman awakens one morning to find herself separated from the rest of the world by an invisible wall. With a cat, a dog, and a cow as her sole companions, she learns how to survive and cope with her loneliness.

Allegorical yet deeply personal and absorbing, The Wall is at once a critique of modern civilization, a nuanced and loving portrait of a relationship between a woman and her animals, a thrilling survival story, a Cold War-era dystopian adventure, and a truly singular feminist classic.

"An extraordinarily interesting writer, always underappreciated." – Elfriede Jelinek.

"The Wall is a wonderful novel. It is not often that you can say only a woman could have written this book, but women in particular will understand the heroine's loving devotion to the details of making and keeping life, every day felt as a victory against everything that would like to undermine and destroy. It is as absorbing as Robinson Crusoe." – Doris Lessing.

"Brilliant in its sustainment of dread, in its peeling away of old layers of reality to expose a raw way of seeing and feeling. Doris Lessing once remarked that only a woman could have written this novel, and it's true: I know of no closer study in claustrophobia and liberation, and of an independence whose severity is at once ecstatic and doomed. I’ve read The Wall three times already and am nowhere near finished." – Nicole Krauss.

Marlen Haushofer (1920–1970) was an Austrian author of short stories, novels, radio plays, and children’s books. Her work has had a strong influence on many German-language writers, such as the Nobel Prize–winner Elfriede Jelinek, who dedicated one of her plays to her. The Wall was adapted a film, directed by Julian Pölsler and starring Martina Gedeck.

On this day in movie history - The Raven (1963):

The Raven

directed by Roger Corman,

written by Richard Matheson,

based on the poem by Edgar Allan Poe,

was released in the United States on January 25, 1963.
Music by Les Baxter.

Cast:

Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, Boris Karloff, Hazel Court, Olive Sturgess, Jack Nicholson, Connie Wallace, William Baskin, Aaron Saxon, Leo Gordon, Dick Johnstone.

Recommended reading - Days of Wine and Roses (1958 & 1963)

Days of Wine and Roses (1958 & 1963)

Days of Wine and Roses

By J.P. Miller.

Published by Dramatist's Play Service.
Teleplay first published 1958.
Paperback.
ISBN-10: 0822202816
ISBN-13: 9780822202813

Description:

In the fast-moving milieu of Madison Avenue, social drinking is almost an occupational necessity, and one that fast-rising young Joe Clay adopts with too ready ease. Unfortunately, the girl he meets and marries shares his proclivity, and while they continue to tell themselves that they drink because they choose to, it is soon apparent that their habit has become a serious problem. But their failure to acknowledge this plunges them headlong into the shattering events of the play a career in shambles, a marriage destroyed, the esteem of friends and family lost, and a child who has become the innocent victim of their obsession. In the poignant ending of the play a spectre of hope arises but, more important, so does a galvanizing awareness of the depth of their torment, and of the lesson which their compulsive self-destruction must have for others.

Days of Wine and Roses

By David Westheimer.

Mass Market Paperback.

ISBN: B0000CLO9H

Published 1963.

Published by Bantam Books.

Description:

A story of Brandy Alexander and the insidious way alcohol can destroy a life. Based on J.P. Miller's play and includes three still pictures on back cover from the movie of the same name.

On this day in movie history - Move Over, Darling (1963):

Move Over, Darling

directed by Michael Gordon,

written by Bella Spewack, Sam Spewack, Leo McCarey, Hal Kanter and Jack Sher,

was released in the United States on December 25, 1963.
Music by Lionel Newman.

Cast:

Doris Day, James Garner, Polly Bergen, Thelma Ritter, Fred Clark, Don Knotts, Chuck Connors, Edgar Buchanan, John Astin, Elliott Reid, Pat Harrington Jr., Alan Sues, Max Showalter, Eddie Quillan, Jack Orrison, Pami Lee, Leslie Farrell.

Born on this day – Carrie Hamilton:

Carrie Hamilton

Actress

Writer

December 5, 1963 – January 20, 2002

Credits:

Lunchtime Thomas (2001); The Pretender (2000); P.1 (1999); The X-Files (1999); Brooklyn South (1998); Touched by an Angel (1997); Walker, Texas Ranger (1995); Cool World (1992); A Mother's Justice (1991); Thirtysomething (1991); Beverly Hills, 90210 (1991); Equal Justice (1991); Murder, She Wrote (1990); Checkered Flag (1990); Carol & Company (1990); The 61st Annual Academy Awards (1989); Single Women Married Men (1989); Tokyo Pop (1988); Knightwatch (1988); Shag (1988); Tokyo Pop (1988); Hostage (1988); Fame (1986–1987); Love Lives On (1985).

Born on this day – Ted Demme:

Ted Demme

Director

Producer

Actor

October 26, 1963 – January 13, 2002

Recommended reading - Mute Witness (1963):

Mute Witness

By Robert L. Pike.

Filmed as Bullitt (1968), directed by Peter Yates.

Paperback.

First published 1963.

Published by Bloomsbury Paperbacks

ISBN 13: 9780747578628

ISBN 10: 0747578621

ASIN: 0747578621

Description:

'Rossi isn't dead yet. And from what I hear, the Rossi brothers are pretty tough monkeys.' Clancy's knuckles whitened on the steering wheel. 'Yeah,' he said. 'They're all tough monkeys. Until they lose those precious ten pints...' Lieutenant Clancy, a tough cop from New York's 52nd Precinct, has been handpicked for an assignment. Assistant District Attorney Chalmers needs him to protect a witness whose testimony is vital. That man is Johnny Rossi, an infamous gangster involved in every West Coast racket from prostitution to gambling, who has turned into a whistle-blower. Shacked up in a fleabag hotel, Rossi should be safe. But when a hood with a shotgun breaks past the police guard and blasts Rossi into a critical condition, Clancy has just seventy-two hours to find out why Chalmers can't keep his mouth shut about his so-called secret case, why Rossi came to New York in the first place, who else knows where he is and when they are coming to finish the job off.

Born on this day – Satoshi Kon:

Satoshi Kon

Director

Animator

Writer

Manga artist

Actor

Member of JaniCA (Japanese Animation Creators Association)

October 12, 1963 – August 24, 2010

Credits:

Ani*Kuri15 (2007); Anime Giga (2007); Dope Sheet (1997); Hashire Melos! (1992); Into the Blue - Perfect Blue Relay Interview File (2008); Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade (1999); Jojo's Bizarre Adventure (1993–1994); Lectures by Satoshi Kon (2007); Magnetic Rose (1995); Manga Entertainment: The Art of Anime (2005); Memories / Magnetic Rose (1995); Millennium Actress (2001); Paprika (2006); Paranoia Agent (2004); Patlabor 2: The Movie (1993); Perfect Blue (1997); Roujin Z (1991); Susumu Hirasawa: Berserk -Forces- (1997); Tokyo Godfathers (2003); Top Runner (2005); Wârudo apâtomento horâ (1991).

Recommended reading - Monte Walsh (1963):

Monte Walsh

By Jack Schaefer.

First published 1963.
Published by University of New Mexico Press.
Paperback.
ISBN-10: 0826358578
ISBN-13: 978-0826358578

Description:

Originally published in 1963, Monte Walsh continues to delight readers as a Western classic and popular favorite. The novel explores the cowboy lives of Monte Walsh and Chet Rollins as they carouse, ride, and work at the Slash Y with Cal Brennan. As the West changes and their cowboy antics are challenged, the two must part ways to pursue new ways of life. Chet marries and goes on to become a successful merchant and then a politician, while Monte can only find solace in continuing the cowboy's way of life until the very end.

"Many consider Monte Walsh one of the best Westerns ever written." – True West.

Jack Schaefer was a journalist and writer known for his authentic and memorable characters set in the American West. Schaefer received the Western Literature Association's Distinguished Achievement Award in 1975 and the Saddleman Award in 1986 from the Western Writers of America. His popular Western novels include Shane (1949) and Monte Walsh (1963).

Recommended reading - The Chill (1963):

The Chill

By Ross Macdonald.

First published 1963.

Published by Vintage Crime / Black Lizard.

Paperback.

ISBN-10: 0679768076

ISBN-13: 978-0679768074

Description:

In The Chill a distraught young man hires Archer to track down his runaway bride. But no sooner has he found Dolly Kincaid than Archer finds himself entangled in two murders, one twenty years old, the other so recent that the blood is still wet. What ensues is a detective novel of nerve-racking suspense, desperately believable characters, and one of the most intricate plots ever spun by an American crime writer.

"The American private eye, immortalized by Hammett, refined by Chandler, brought to its zenith by MacDonald."

– The New York Times Book Review.

"The finest series of detective novels ever written by an American."

– The New York Times.

On this day in movie history - The Thrill of It All (1963):

The Thrill of It All

directed by Norman Jewison,

written by Carl Reiner,

based on a story by Larry Gelbart,

was released in the United States on July 17, 1963.
Music by Frank De Vol.

Cast:

Doris Day, James Garner, Arlene Francis, Edward Andrews, Reginald Owen, ZaSu Pitts, Elliott Reid, Alice Pearce, Kym Karath, Brian Nash, Lucy Landau, Paul Hartman, Burt Mustin, Carl Reiner.

On this day in movie history - The Great Escape (1963):

The Great Escape,

directed by John Sturges,

written by James Clavell and W. R. Burnett,

based on the book by Paul Brickhill,

was released in the United States on July 2, 1963.
Music by Elmer Bernstein.

Cast:
Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough, James Donald, Charles Bronson, Donald Pleasence, James Coburn, Hannes Messemer, David McCallum, Gordon Jackson, John Leyton, Angus Lennie, Nigel Stock, Robert Graf, Jud Taylor, Hans Reiser, Harry Riebauer, William Russell, Robert Freitag, Ulrich Beiger, George Mikell, Lawrence Montaigne, Robert Desmond, Til Kiwe, Heinz Weiss, Tom Adams, Karl-Otto Alberty, Arthur Atkinson.

On this day in movie history - Donovan’s Reef (1963):

Donovan’s Reef,

directed by John Ford,

written by Frank S. Nugent and James Edward Grant,

based on a story by Edmund Beloin,

was released in the United States on June 12, 1963.

Music by Cyril Mockridge.

Cast:
John Wayne, Lee Marvin, Elizabeth Allen, Jack Warden, Cesar Romero, Dick Foran, Dorothy Lamour, Marcel Dalio, Mike Mazurki, Jacqueline Malouf, Cherylene Lee, Jeffrey Byron, Edgar Buchanan, Jon Fong, John Alderson, Frank Baker, Clyde Cook, Carmen Estrabeau, Harold Fong, Dan Ford, H.W. Gim, Duke Green, Frank Hagney, Sam Harris, Tom Harris, Freda Jones, June Y. Kim, Richard Kipling, Carl M. Leviness, King Lockwood, Cliff Lyons, Mae Marsh, Michelle Mazurki, Midori, Ron Nyman, Yvonne Peattie, John Qualen, Branscombe Richmond, Chuck Roberson, Scott Seaton, Charles Seel, Leslie Sketchley, John Stafford, Sara Taft, Ralph Volkie, Aissa Wayne, Patrick Wayne, Lee Woodd.