December in movie history - Assignment to Kill (1968):

Assignment to Kill

directed and written by Sheldon Reynolds,

was released in the United States in December, 1968.
Exact release date unknown.
Music by William Lava.

Cast:

Patrick O'Neal, Joan Hackett, John Gielgud, Herbert Lom, Eric Portman, Peter van Eyck, Oskar Homolka, Leon Greene, Kent Smith, Philip Ober, Fifi D'Orsay, Éva Szörényi, Cynthia O'Neal, Betty Bresler, Karl Bruck, Albert D'Arno, Walter Friedel, Walter Janovitz, Joanne Ludden, Martin Miller, Ann Prentiss, Charles H. Radilak, Erik Sorenson.

On this day in movie history - Lady in Cement (movie & novel):

Lady in Cement

directed by Gordon Douglas,

written by Marvin H. Albert and Jack Guss,

based on the novel by Marvin H. Albert,

was released in the United States on November 20, 1968.

Music by Hugo Montenegro.

Cast:

Frank Sinatra, Raquel Welch, Richard Conte, Martin Gabel, Lainie Kazan, Pat Henry, Dan Blocker, Steve Peck, Virginia Wood, Richard Deacon, Frank Raiter, Peter Hock, Alex Stevens, Christine Todd, Mac Robbins, Tommy Uhlar, Rey Baumel, Pauly Dash, Andy Jarrell, Al Algiro, Robert 'Buzz' Henry, Lanita Kent, Joe E. Lewis, Charlene Mathies, Shirley Parker, B.S. Pully, Jilly Rizzo, Chris Robinson, Coz Serrapere, Dick Sterling, Bunny Yeager.

Recommended reading:

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 - They Came to Rob Las Vegas (1968):

They Came to Rob Las Vegas

directed by Antonio Isasi,

written by Antonio Isasi, Lluis Josep Comeron, Jorge Illa and Jo Eisinger, based on the novel by André Lay,

was released in Spain on October 31, 1968.
Music by Georges Garvarentz.

Cast:

Gary Lockwood, Elke Sommer, Lee J. Cobb, Jean Servais, Georges Géret, Jack Palance, Fabrizio Capucci, Roger Hanin, Gustavo Re, Daniel Martín, Maurizio Arena, Enrique Ávila, Gérard Tichy, Rubén Rojo, Ingrid Spaey, Carlos Ballesteros, Luis Barboo, Rossella Bergamonti, Antonio Casas, Beni Deus, Fernando Hilbeck, José Marco, Julio Pérez Tabernero, George Rigaud, Lorenzo Robledo.

On this day in movie history - Bullitt (movie & novel):

Bullitt

directed by Peter Yates,

written by Alan R. Trustman and Harry Kleiner,

based on the novel Mute Witness, by Robert L. Pike,

was released in the United States on October 17, 1968.
Music by Lalo Schifrin.

Cast:

Steve McQueen, Robert Vaughn, Jacqueline Bisset, Don Gordon, Robert Duvall, Simon Oakland, Norman Fell, Georg Stanford Brown, Justin Tarr, Carl Reindel, Felice Orlandi, Vic Tayback, Robert Lipton, Ed Peck, Pat Renella, Paul Genge, John Aprea, Al Checco, Bill Hickman, Mal Alberts, Scott Beach, Mary Benoit, Barbara Bosson, Roger Bowen, Joy Carlin, Brandy Carroll, Joanna Cassidy, Julie Christy, Robert Cleaves, Tony Dario, Michael L. Davis, Jim Demarest, Chuck Dorsett, Thomas Duncan, Marjorie Eaton, Walker Edmiston, Sam Edwards, Mimi Fariña, Shirley Fitzgerald, Dick Geary, Frank Gerstle, Dennis Gribbon, Bob Harks, Stacy Harris, Bill Jones, Stu Klitsner, Jean Le Bouvier, Margo Lungreen, Larry D. Mann, Claire Merrill, Kathleen Morrissey, Ned Moss, Vic Perrin, Charlene Polite, Angel Sanchez Jr., Suzanne Somers, Eron Tabor, Liz Treadwell, John Vick, Erick Vinther, Regina Waldon.

Recommended reading:

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.

On this day in movie history - Coogan’s Bluff (1968):

Coogan’s Bluff

directed by Don Siegel,

written by Herman Miller, Dean Riesner and Howard Rodman,

based on the novel by Herman Miller,

was released in the United States on October 2, 1968.
Music by Lalo Schifrin.

Cast:

Clint Eastwood, Lee J. Cobb, Susan Clark, Tisha Sterling, Don Stroud, Betty Field, Tom Tully, Melodie Johnson, James Edwards, Rudy Diaz, David Doyle, Louis Zorich, Meg Myles, Marjorie Bennett, Seymour Cassel, John Coe, Skip Battyn, Albert Popwell, Conrad Bain, James Gavin, Albert Henderson, James McCallion, Syl Lamont, Jess Osuna, Jerry Summers, Antonia Rey, Marya Henriques.

On this day in the Star Trek universe:

Star Trek (1968)

Star Trek

Season 3. Episode 2.

Episode entitled: The Enterprise Incident.

Released September 27, 1968.

Directed by John Meredyth Lucas.

Written by D.C. Fontana, Arthur H. Singer.

Created by Gene Roddenberry.

Music by Alexander Courage.

Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Nichelle Nichols, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, George Takei, Majel Barrett, Walter Koenig, Marj Dusay, Joanne Linville, Jack Donner, Richard Compton, Robert Gentile, Mike Howden, Gordon Coffey, Roger Holloway, Eddie Paskey, Robert Strong.

On this day in the Star Trek universe:

Star Trek (1968)

Star Trek
Season 3. Episode 1.
Episode entitled: Spock’s Brain.
Released September 20, 1968.
Directed by Marc Daniels.
Written by Gene L. Coon / Lee Cronin, Arthur H. Singer.
Created by Gene Roddenberry.
Music by Alexander Courage.
Cast: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Nichelle Nichols, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, George Takei, Majel Barrett, Walter Koenig, Marj Dusay, James Daris, Sheila Leighton, Bill Blackburn, Frank da Vinci, Roger Holloway, Pete Kellett, Jeannie Malone, Eddie Paskey, Frieda Rentie.

Born on this day – Iris Junik:

Iris Junik

Actress

August 26, 1968 – March 29, 2009

Born on this day – Julian McMahon:

Julian McMahon

Actor

July 27, 1968 – July 2, 2025

Credits:

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Recommended reading - The Wages of Fear (1950):

The Wages of Fear

Original title: Le Salaire de la peur.

By Georges Arnaud.

Originally published in 1950.

This English language translation edition was published in 1968.

Paperback.

Avon edition.

ASIN: B000VDT4KS

Description:

Las Piedras, beaching port. There are hundreds of them, coming from who knows where, to forget the impasse of their existence in the tropics. For a handful of dollars, these low-rankers are ready to do anything. Ready to face kilometers of impassable track, behind the wheel of a dilapidated truck, to transport nitroglycerin. At the slightest deviation, at the slightest shock, it is death. An epic of pure anguish...