On this day in television history - Space 1999:

Space 1999

Season 1. Episode 20.

Episode entitled: Missing Link.

Released January 12, 1976.

Directed by Ray Austin.

Written by Edward Di Lorenzo.

Series created by Gerry Anderson and Sylvia Anderson.

Music by Barry Gray.

Cast: Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, Barry Morse, Prentis Hancock, Clifton Jones, Zienia Merton, Anton Phillips, Joanna Dunham, Peter Cushing, Nick Tate, Tony Allyn, Emily Bolton, Andy Dempsey, Alan Harris, Joy Harrison, Robert Phillips, Suzanne Roquette.

Recommended reading - City of the Dead (1976):

City of the Dead

By Herbert Lieberman.

Hardcover.

First published 1976.

Published by Simon & Schuster.

ISBN 13: 9780671222727

ISBN 10: 0671222724

ASIN: 0671222724

Description:

The grim and fascinating world of the big-city pathologist is the backdrop for this terrifying journey into the depths of the human soul.

In 1970s New York, a forensic pathologist must use his professional skills to save his own daughter in this “harrowing” award-winning crime novel (The New York Times).

In the gritty seventies, Manhattan is a dark, dangerous, and threatening place. One of the bright spots in this decaying metropolis is Paul Konig. As the city’s chief medical examiner, he has developed an impressive reputation for his skills in forensic pathology – skills that will be put to the ultimate test when a dangerous psychopath kidnaps Konig’s daughter.

Awakened by phone calls featuring his daughter’s desperate screams each night, Konig finds his life unraveling, not only personally but professionally. Between the case of a serial killer who leaves a trail of severed body parts in his wake, an investigation into the forensic work on an alleged prison suicide, and a nakedly ambitious deputy medical examiner, he is at the end of his rope, and it will take every ounce of his strength to save his own life – as well as his family’s.

Perfect for fans of Patricia Cornwell or Kathy Reichs, City of the Dead is a chilling thriller by the author of Crawlspace and a winner of the Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, featuring “a massive amount of authoritative detail” about the life of a coroner (Kirkus Reviews).

On this day in television history:

Space 1999

Season 1. Episode 19.

Episode entitled: Ring Around the Moon.

Released January 6, 1976.

Directed by Ray Austin.

Written by Edward Di Lorenzo.

Series created by Gerry Anderson and Sylvia Anderson.

Music by Barry Gray.

Cast: Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, Barry Morse, Prentis Hancock, Clifton Jones, Zienia Merton, Anton Phillips, Nick Tate, Max Faulkner, Tony Allyn, Andy Dempsey, Joe Dunne, Alan Harris, Robert Phillips, Quentin Pierre, Suzanne Roquette, Michael Stevens, Chris Williams.

Recommended reading - Swag (1976):

Swag

By Elmore Leonard.

aka Ryan's Rules.

Published by Mariner Books.

First published 1976.

Paperback.

ISBN-10: 0062227866

ISBN-13: 978-0062227867

Description:

The smallest of small-time criminals, Ernest Stickley Jr. figures his luck's about to change when Detroit used car salesman Frank Ryan catches him trying to boost a ride from Ryan's lot. Frank's got some surefire schemes for getting rich quick – all of them involving guns – and all Stickley has to do is follow "Ryan's Rules" to share the wealth. But sometimes rules need to be bent, maybe even broken, if one is to succeed in the world of crime, especially if the "brains" of the operation knows less than nothing.

On this day in television history - Space 1999 (1976):

Space 1999

Season 2. Episode 14.

Episode entitled: Space Warp.

Released December 26, 1976.

Directed by Peter Medak.

Written by Charles Woodgrove.

Series created by Gerry Anderson and Sylvia Anderson.

Music by Derek Wadsworth.

Cast:

Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, Catherine Schell, Tony Anholt, Nick Tate, Zienia Merton, Jeffery Kissoon, Peter Porteous, Tony Osoba, John Judd, Trevor Thomas, Andrew Lodge, Joe Dunne, Suzanne Heimer, Nick Hobbs, Jack Klaff, Quentin Pierre, Dinny Powell, Robert Reeves, Terry Walsh.

On this day in movie history - The Enforcer (1976):

The Enforcer

directed by James Fargo,

written by Stirling Silliphant and Dean Riesner,

based on a story by Gail Morgan Hickman and S.W. Schurr,

was released in the United Kingdom on December 16, 1976.
Music by Jerry Fielding.

Cast:

Clint Eastwood, Tyne Daly, Harry Guardino, Bradford Dillman, John Mitchum, DeVeren Bookwalter, John Crawford, Samantha Doane, Robert Hoy, Jocelyn Jones, M.G. Kelly, Nick Pellegrino, Albert Popwell, Rudy Ramos, Bill Ackridge, Bill Jelliffe, Joe Bellan, Tim O'Neill, Jan Stratton, Will MacMillan, Jerry Walter, Steve Eoff, Tim Burrus, Michael Cavanaugh, Dick Durock, Ron Manning, Adele Proom, Glenn Leigh Marshall, Robert Behling, Terence McGovern, Stan Ritchie, John Roselius, Brian Fong, Art Rimdzius, Chuck Hicks, Anne Macey, Gloria Prince, Kenneth Boyd, Bernard Glin, Fritz Manes, Barbara Beebe, George Cheung, Michael L. Davis, Roger Ferreira, Jean Glaudé, Donald Li, Arthur Malet, George Reading, Joe Spano.

On this day in music history - Hotel California, by the Eagles (1976):

Hotel California

Album by the Eagles,

released December 8, 1976.

Track list:

Hotel California; New Kid in Town, Life in the Fast Lane; Wasted Time; Wasted Time; Victim of Love; Pretty Maids All in a Row; Try and Love Again; The Last Resort.

On this day in movie history – Network (1976 movie & book):

Network

directed by Sidney Lumet,

written by Paddy Chayefsky,

was released in the United States on November 27, 1976.
Music by Elliot Lawrence.

Cast:

Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Peter Finch, Robert Duvall, Wesley Addy, Ned Beatty, Arthur Burghardt, Bill Burrows, John Carpenter, Jordan Charney, Kathy Cronkite, Ed Crowley, Jerome Dempsey, Conchata Ferrell, Gene Gross, Stanley Grover, Cindy Grover, Darryl Hickman, Mitchell Jason, Paul Jenkins, Ken Kercheval, Kenneth Kimmins, Lynn Klugman, Carolyn Krigbaum, Zane Lasky, Michael Lipton, Michael Lombard, Pirie MacDonald, Russ Petranto, Bernard Pollock, Roy Poole, William Prince, Sasha von Scherler, Lane Smith, Ted Sorel, Beatrice Straight, Fred Stuthman, Cameron Thomas, Marlene Warfield, Lydia Wilen, Lee Richardson, Robert P. Cohen, Andrew Duncan, Todd Everett, John Gabriel, Tom Gibney, Lance Henriksen, Raymond Martino, John Pashley, Michael Tucker.

Recommended reading:

Mad as Hell:

The Making of Network and the Fateful Vision of the Angriest Man in Movies

By Dave Itzkoff.

Published by Picador.

Published 2015.

ISBN-10: 1250062241

ISBN-13: 9781250062246

Description:

"Dave Itzkoff takes us on an extraordinary journey, and in the process reveals Chayefsky's prognosis for TV, a prognosis we've chosen to ignore even as it's come true before our eyes." – Forbes.

"I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!"

Those words, spoken by an unhinged anchorman named Howard Beale, "the mad prophet of the airwaves," took America by storm in 1976, when Network became a sensation. With a superb cast (including Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Peter Finch, and Robert Duvall) directed by Sidney Lumet, the film won four Oscars and indelibly shaped how we think about corporate and media power.

In Mad As Hell, Dave Itzkoff of The New York Times recounts the surprising and dramatic story of how Network made it to the screen, and of Paddy Chayefsky, the tough, driven, Oscar-winning screenwriter who envisioned a world – outlandish for its time – that is all too real today. Itzkoff vividly re-creates the action behind the camera at a time of swirling cultural turmoil. The result is a riveting account that enriches our appreciation of this prophetic and still-startling film.

On this day in television history - Space 1999 (1976):

Space 1999

Season 2. Episode 11.

Episode entitled: Seed of Destruction.

Released November 21, 1976.

Directed by Kevin Connor.

Written by John Goldsmith.

Series created by Gerry Anderson and Sylvia Anderson.

Music by Derek Wadsworth.

Cast:

Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, Catherine Schell, Tony Anholt, Nick Tate, Zienia Merton, Jeffery Kissoon, Martha Nairn, Jack Klaff, James Leith, Albin Pahernik, Glenda Allen, Jenny Cresswell, Quentin Pierre, Robert Reeves, Pam Rose.

On this day in television history - Space 1999 (1976):

Space 1999

Season 2. Episode 13.

Episode entitled: Catacombs of the Moon.

Released November 14, 1976.

Directed by Robert Lynn.

Written by Anthony Terpiloff.

Series created by Gerry Anderson and Sylvia Anderson.

Music by Derek Wadsworth.

Cast:

Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, Catherine Schell, Tony Anholt, Zienia Merton, James Laurenson, Pamela Stephenson, Jeffery Kissoon, Lloyd McGuire, Brendan Price, Alan Hunter, Nova Llewellyn, Glenda Allen, Melita Clarke, Jenny Cresswell, Harry Fielder, Quentin Pierre, Robert Reeves, Saul Reichlin, Pam Rose, Felicity York.

On this day in television history - Space 1999 (1976):

Space 1999

Season 2. Episode 12.

Episode entitled: The AB Chrysalis.

Released November 7, 1976.

Directed by Val Guest.

Written by Tony Barwick.

Series created by Gerry Anderson and Sylvia Anderson.

Music by Derek Wadsworth.

Cast:

Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, Catherine Schell, Nick Tate, Ina Skriver, Sarah Douglas, Robert Rietty, John Hug, David Sebastian Bach, Sarah Bullen, Albin Pahernik, Yasuko Nagazumi, Glenda Allen, Jenny Cresswell, Harry Fielder, Quentin Pierre, Robert Reeves, Pam Rose.

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

Carrie

directed by Brian De Palma,

written by Lawrence D. Cohen,

based on the novel by Stephen King,

was released in the United States on November 3, 1976.
Music by Pino Donaggio.
Song: I Never Dreamed Someone Like You Could Love Someone Like Me performed by Katie Irving.

Cast:

Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, Amy Irving, William Katt, John Travolta, Nancy Allen, Betty Buckley, P. J. Soles, Priscilla Pointer, Sydney Lassick, Stefan Gierasch, Michael Talbott, Doug Cox, Harry Gold, Noelle North, Cindy Daly, Deirdre Berthrong, Anson Downes, Rory Stevens, Edie McClurg, Cameron De Palma.

Recommended reading:

Carrie

By Stephen King.

First published 1974.

ISBN 13: 9781416524304

ISBN 10: 1416524304

ASIN: 1416524304

Mass Market Paperback.

Description:

Unpopular at school and subjected to her mother's religious fanaticism at home, Carrie White does not have it easy. But while she may be picked on by her classmates, she has a gift she's kept secret since she was a little girl: she can move things with her mind. Doors lock. Candles fall. Her ability has been both a power and a problem. And when she finds herself the recipient of a sudden act of kindness, Carrie feels like she's finally been given a chance to be normal. She hopes that the nightmare of her classmates' vicious taunts is over . . . but an unexpected and cruel prank turns her gift into a weapon of horror so destructive that the town may never recover.

A modern classic, Carrie introduced a distinctive new voice in American fiction – Stephen King. The story of misunderstood high school girl Carrie White, her extraordinary telekinetic powers, and her violent rampage of revenge, remains one of the most barrier-breaking and shocking novels of all time.

Make a date with terror and live the nightmare that is ... Carrie.

"Stephen King’s first novel changed the trajectory of horror fiction forever. Fifty years later, authors say it’s still challenging and guiding the genre." – Esquire.

“A master storyteller.” – The Los Angeles Times.

“Guaranteed to chill you.” – The New York Times.

"Gory and horrifying. . . . You can't put it down." – Chicago Tribune.

On this day in movie history - Assault on Precinct 13 (1976):

Assault on Precinct 13

directed and written by John Carpenter,

was released in the United States on November 3, 1976.
Music by John Carpenter.

Cast:

Austin Stoker, Darwin Joston, Laurie Zimmer, Martin West, Tony Burton, Charles Cyphers, Nancy Loomis, Peter Bruni, John J. Fox, Marc Ross, Alan Koss, Henry Brandon, Kim Richards, Frank Doubleday, Gilbert De La Pena, Peter Frankland, Al Nakauchi, James Johnson, Gilman Rankin.