On this day in movie history - Hard Times (1975):

Hard Times,

aka The Streetfighter,

directed by Walter Hill,

written by Walter Hill, Bryan Gindoff and Bruce Henstell,

based on a story by Bryan Gindoff and Bruce Henstell,

was released in France on August 13, 1975.
Music by Barry De Vorzon.

Cast:
Charles Bronson, James Coburn, Jill Ireland, Strother Martin, Margaret Blye, Michael McGuire, Felice Orlandi, Edward Walsh, Bruce Glover, Robert Tessier, Nick Dimitri, Frank McRae, Maurice Kowalewski, Naomi Stevens, Lyla Hay Owen, John Creamer, Robert Castleberry, Becky Allen, Joan Kleven, Anne Welsch, Fred Lerner, Jimmy Nickerson, Chuck Hicks, Walter Scott, Max Kleven, Valerian Smith, Bob Minor, Larry Martindale, Charles W. Schaefer Jr., Leslie Bonano, Ronnie Philips, Greater Liberty Baptist Church Choir and Congregation, Ron Centanni, M.C. Gainey, Brion James, Laura Misch Owens.

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.

On this day in movie history - Too Late for Tears (1949):

Too Late for Tears,

directed by Byron Haskin,

inspired by the April 1947 serial in the Saturday Evening Post,

and the July 1947 novel by Roy Huggins,

was released in the United States on August 13, 1949.
Music by R. Dale Butts.

Cast:
Lizabeth Scott, Don DeFore, Dan Duryea, Arthur Kennedy, Kristine Miller, Barry Kelley, Billy Halop, Denver Pyle, Smoki Whitfield.

On this day in movie history - Kiss of Death (1947):

Kiss of Death,

directed by Henry Hathaway,

written by Ben Hecht and Charles Lederer,

based on a story by Eleazar Lipsky,

was released in the United States on August 13, 1947.
Music by David Buttolph.

Cast:
Victor Mature, Brian Donlevy, Coleen Gray, Richard Widmark, Taylor Holmes, Howard Smith, Karl Malden, Robert Adler, Rollin Bauer, Harry Bellaver, Dennis Bohan, Nina Borget, Susan Cabot, Alexander Campbell, Harry Carter, Dort Clark, Eva Condon, Harry Cooke, Harold Crane, Frank DeKova, James Doody, Mildred Dunnock, Arthur Foran Jr., David Fresco, Harold Gary, Don Giovanni, Marilee Grassini, James Charles Heard, Eda Heinemann, Lou Herbert, Herbert Holcombe, Arthur Holland, Harry Kadison, Robert Karnes, Ronald King, Arthur Kramer, John Kullers, Harry Landers, Perc Launders, Franklyn Lenthall, Paul Lilly, Pat Malone, Iris Mann, John Marley, Gregg Martell, Charles McClelland, Norman McKay, Richard Midgley, Carl Milletaire, Millard Mitchell, Mary Morrison, Consuela O'Connor, Gloria O'Connor, William O'Leary, Wendell K. Phillips, Yvonne Rob, Stephen Roberts, Anthony Ross, Mel Ruick, Jack Rutherford, Lee Sanford, Bernard Sell, George Shelton, Irene Shirley, J. Scott Smart, A. George Smith, John Stearns, Richard Taber, Victor Thorley, Lawrence Tiernan, Tito Vuolo, Milton Wallace, Jesse White, Bill Zuckert.

Born on this day – Maria Rohm:

Maria Rohm

Actress

Producer

August 13, 1945 – June 18, 2018

Born on this day – Sabine Sesselmann:

Sabine Sesselmann

Actress

August 13, 1936 – March 1, 1998

Born on this day – Neville Brand:

Neville Brand

Actor

August 13, 1920 – April 16, 1992

Credits:

5ive Minutes with Marilyn (2007); Adventures of Nick Carter (1972); Alcatraz Express (1960); Alias Smith and Jones (1971–1972); All the King's Men (1958); Angels' Brigade (1979); Appointment with Adventure (1955); Arrest and Trial (1964); Backtrack! (1969); Badman's Country (1958); Barbary Coast (1975); Baretta (1977); Battleground (1949); Ben Casey (1963); Benjy (1951); Bicentennial Minutes (1975); Birdman of Alcatraz (1962); Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre (1963); Bobby Ware Is Missing (1955); Bonanza (1960–1971); Cahill U.S. Marshal (1973); Cain's Hundred (1962); Captains and the Kings (1976); Captains Courageous (1977); Chevron Hall of Stars (1956); Climax! (1956–1957); Combat! (1964); Compression (2023); Cry Terror! (1958); D.O.A. (1949); Daniel Boone (1967); Death Stalk (1975); Death Valley Days (1962); Destry (1964); Eaten Alive (1976); Evils of the Night (1985); Fantasy Island (1980); Fire (1977); Five Days from Home (1978); Five Gates to Hell (1959); Flame of Araby (1951); Footlights Theater (1952); Fury at Gunsight Pass (1956); General Electric Theater (1953–1958); Gun Brothers (1956); Gun Fury (1953); Gunsmoke (1965); Halls of Montezuma (1951); Harper Valley P.T.A. (1982); Here's Hollywood (1962); Hero's Island (1962); Hi-Riders (1978); Hitched (1971); Jane Wyman Presents the Fireside Theatre (1955–1957); John Wayne: Behind the Scenes (2007); Kansas City Confidential (1952); Killdozer (1974); Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (1950); Kojak (1975); Kraft Theatre (1958); Kraft Theatre / The United States Steel Hour (1954–1958); Laredo (1965–1967); Lock, Stock and Barrel (1971); Longstreet (1972); Love Me Tender (1956); Man Crazy (1953); Man from Atlantis (1977); March of Dimes Presents: Once Upon a Dime (1963); Marcus Welby, M.D. (1972); Marriage: Year One (1971); McCloud (1972–1975); Mobile One (1975); Mohawk (1956); My Foolish Heart (1949); My Name Is Buck: A Look Back at 'Eaten Alive' (2006); Naked City (1962); No Place to Run (1972); Off to See the Wizard (1967); Only the Valiant (1951); Peg Leg, Musket & Sabre (1973); Philbin's People (1970); Playhouse 90 (1957); Police Story (1975); Police Woman (1975); Port of New York (1949); Prince Valiant (1954); Psychic Killer (1975); Pursuit (1958); Quincy, M.E. (1979); Raw Edge (1956); Rawhide (1960–1963); Red Mountain (1951); Return from the Sea (1954); Riot in Cell Block 11 (1954); Rogue for Hire (1960–1961); Schlitz Playhouse (1954–1958); Screen Directors Playhouse (1955); Stage 7 (1955); Stalag 17 (1953); Straightaway (1961); Studio One (1955); Suspense (1964); Swiss Family Robinson (1976); Target (1958); Tarzan (1968); That Darn Cat! (1965); The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1960); The Bigelow Theatre (1950); The Charge at Feather River (1953); The Chicago Teddy Bears (1971); The Deadly Trackers (1973); The Desperados (1969); The DuPont Show of the Month (1959); The DuPont Show of the Week (1962); The Gator Creator with Tobe Hooper (2007); The George Raft Story (1961); The Joey Bishop Show (1962); The Last Sunset (1961); The Lieutenant (1963); The Lone Gun (1954); The Lonely Man (1957); The Mad Bomber (1973); The Magical World of Disney (1980); The Magician (1973); The Man Behind the Star (1973); The Man from the Alamo (1953); The Masterpiece That Almost Wasn't (2008); The Mob (1951); The Mouse and His Child (1977); The Ninth Configuration (1980); The Prodigal (1955); The Quest (1976); The Return (1980); The Return of Jack Slade (1955); The Scarface Mob (1959); The Seekers (1979); The Smith Family (1971); The Texan (1958); The Three Outlaws (1956); The Tin Star (1957); The Turning Point (1952); The Twilight Zone (1964); The Unexpected (1952); The Untouchables (1959–1960); The Untouchables (1959–1961); The Virginian (1965–1970); The Walt Disney Comedy and Magic Revue (1985); The Way to the Gold (1957); This Is a Hijack (1973); Three Guns for Texas (1968); Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970); TV's Western Heroes (1993); Two for the Money (1972); Video Nasties: Moral Panic, Censorship & Videotape (2010); Wagon Train (1964); Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse (1959); When the West Was Fun: A Western Reunion (1979); Where the Sidewalk Ends (1950); Without Warning (1980); Your Favorite Story (1953); Zane Grey Theatre (1959).

Born on this day – Claudia McNeil:

Claudia McNeil

Actress

August 13, 1917 – November 25, 1993

Born on this day – John Beal:

John Beal

Actor

August 13, 1909 – April 26, 1997

Born on this day – Rita Johnson:

Rita Johnson

Actress

August 13, 1913 – October 31, 1965

Born on this day – Charles Williams:

Charles Williams

Writer

August 13, 1909 – April 5, 1975

Credits:

Books:

A Touch of Death / aka Mix Yourself a Redhead; based on 1953 novella And Share Alike (1954); Aground (1960); All the Way / aka The Concrete Flamingo (1958); And The Deep Blue Sea (1971); Big City Girl (1951); Dead Calm; based on the novella Pacific Honeymoon (1963); Girl Out Back / aka Operator; based on 1957 novella entitled either Operator or Operation (1958); Go Home, Stranger (1954); Hell Hath No Fury / aka The Hot Spot (1953); Hill Girl (1951); Man on a Leash (1973); Man on the Run / aka Man in Motion (1958); Nothing in Her Way (1953); River Girl / aka The Catfish Tangle (1951); Scorpion Reef / aka Gulf Coast Girl; based on novella Flight to Nowhere (1955); Talk of the Town / aka Stain of Suspicion (1958); The Big Bite (1956); The Diamond Bikini (1956); The Long Saturday Night / aka Confidentially Yours; Finally, Sunday! (1962); The Sailcloth Shroud (1960); The Wrong Venus / aka Don't Just Stand There (1966); Uncle Sagamore and His Girls (1959).

Movies and television:

Banana Peel (1963); Confidentially Yours (1983); Dead Calm (1989); Diamond Bikini (1971); Don't Just Stand There (1968); Folio (1955); Joy House (1964); La fille des collines (1990); Le gros coup (1964); Mieux vaut courir (1989); The 3rd Voice (1960); The Deep (1970); The Dictator's Guns (1965); The Hot Spot (1990); The Man Who Wouldn't Die (1975); The Pink Jungle (1968).

Born on this day – Alfred Hitchcock:

Alfred Hitchcock

Director

August 13, 1899 – April 29, 1980

Born on this day – Regis Toomey:

Regis Toomey

Actor

August 13, 1898 – October 12, 1991

Born on this day – Sam Taylor:

Sam Taylor

Director

Writer

Producer

August 13, 1895 – March 6, 1958

Credits:

A Lunch Room Legacy (1916); A Pair of Sexes (1921); A Sailor-Made Man (1921); Ambassador Bill (1931); Among Those Present (1921); Coquette (1929); Counting Out the Count (1916); Devil's Lottery (1932); Dr. Jack (1922); Du Barry, Woman of Passion (1930); Exit Smiling (1926); For Heaven's Sake (1926); Funny Side of Life (1963); Girl Shy (1924); Grandma's Boy (1922); Harold Lloyd Comedy Collection: Mini Biographies (2005); Her Great Invention (1916); Hot Water (1924); Human Collateral (1920); I Do (1921); In Honor's Web (1919); Juggling Justice (1916); Kiki (1931); Kraft Theatre / The Philco Television Playhouse (1949); Lady of the Pavements (1929); Married Bachelor (1941); My Best Girl (1927); Never Weaken (1921); Nothing But Trouble (1944); Now or Never (1921); Out All Night (1933); Over the Garden Wall (1919); Princess Jones (1921); Safety Last! (1923); Setting the Fashion (1916); Skyline (1931); Tempest (1928); The Artful Dodger (1916); The Cat's-Paw (1934); The Freshman (1925); The Gamblers (1919); The Gray Towers Mystery (1919); The Midnight Bride (1920); The Mohican's Daughter (1922); The Quack Quakers (1916); The Taming of the Shrew (1929); The Woman Disputed (1928); The Wrecked Station (1917); Vagabond Lady (1935); Why Worry? (1923).

Born on this day – Mary Duncan:

Mary Duncan

Actress

August 13, 1894 – May 9, 1993

Credits:

Morning Glory (1933); The Phantom of Crestwood (1932); Thirteen Women (1932); State's Attorney (1932); The Age for Love (1931); Five and Ten (1931); Men Call It Love (1931); The Boudoir Diplomat (1930); Kismet (1930); City Girl (1930); Romance of the Rio Grande (1929); Thru Different Eyes (1929); The River (1928); 4 Devils (1928); Soft Living (1928); Very Confidential (1927).

Born on this day – James Van Trees:

James Van Trees

Cinematographer

August 13, 1890 – April 11, 1973

Credits:

My Mother the Car (1966); O.K. Crackerby! (1965); The New Phil Silvers Show (1963–1964); Vacation Playhouse (1963); The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis (1959–1963); The Comedy Spot (1960); The George Burns Show (1958–1959); The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show (1955–1958); Bold Journey (1957); Cavalcade of America (1957); The People's Choice (1955–1956); Celebrity Playhouse (1955); The Mickey Rooney Show (1954–1955); I Married Joan (1952–1955); For the Defense (1954); You Bet Your Life (1951–1953); Red Light (1949); The Babe Ruth Story (1948); The Fabulous Dorseys (1947); Angel on My Shoulder (1946); A Night in Casablanca (1946); Hit the Hay (1945); The Great John L. (1945); Bedside Manner (1945); The All-Star Bond Rally (1945); The Last Ride (1944); His Texas Playboys (1944); Two-Man Submarine (1944); Nine Girls (1944); The Racket Man (1944); Gun to Gun (1944); Wintertime (1943); Find the Blackmailer (1943); Adventure in Iraq (1943); Mechanized Patrolling (1943); The Rear Gunner (1943); The Gorilla Man (1943); You Can't Escape Forever (1942); Secret Enemies (1942); Busses Roar (1942); Escape from Crime (1942); Steel Against the Sky (1941); International Squadron (1941); The Nurse's Secret (1941); A Shot in the Dark (1941); Here Comes Happiness (1941); Flight from Destiny (1941); Just a Cute Kid (1940); Young America Flies (1940); Smashing the Money Ring (1939); Waterfront (1939); Over the Wall (1938); The Patient in Room 18 (1938); Expensive Husbands (1937); Love Is on the Air (1937); Wine, Women and Horses (1937); It's Love I'm After (1937); Let Them Live (1937); Career Woman (1936); Flying Hostess (1936); The Man Who Lived Twice (1936); They Met in a Taxi (1936); Palm Springs (1936); The Unguarded Hour (1936); Her Master's Voice (1936); The Bishop Misbehaves (1935); Every Night at Eight (1935); Shanghai (1935); The Girl from 10th Avenue (1935); A Night at the Ritz (1935); Sweet Music (1935); West of the Pecos (1934); Gentlemen Are Born (1934); The Age of Innocence (1934); Murder in the Private Car (1934); Stingaree (1934); Looking for Trouble (1934); Advice to the Forlorn (1933); Blood Money (1933); I Loved a Woman (1933); Baby Face (1933); Midnight Mary (1933); Heroes for Sale (1933); Lilly Turner (1933); Parachute Jumper (1933); The King's Vacation (1933); Silver Dollar (1932); They Call It Sin (1932); Big City Blues (1932); Life Begins (1932); A Successful Calamity (1932); The Heart of New York (1932); The Man Who Played God (1932); Taxi (1931); Alexander Hamilton (1931); The Star Witness (1931); The Reckless Hour (1931); Gold Dust Gertie (1931); Children of Dreams (1931); The Millionaire (1931); Captain Thunder (1930); Viennese Nights (1930); Old English (1930); Sweet Kitty Bellairs (1930); The Man Hunter (1930); The Man from Blankley's (1930); What a Life (1930); She Couldn't Say No (1930); The Green Goddess (1930); The Sacred Flame (1929); So Long Letty (1929); The Argyle Case (1929); The Lone Wolf's Daughter (1929); Children of the Ritz (1929); The Whip (1928); Sinner's Parade (1928); The Scarlet Lady (1928); The Heart of a Follies Girl (1928); The Noose (1928); Man Crazy (1927); The Crystal Cup (1927); The Prince of Headwaiters (1927); Lost at the Front (1927); Twinkletoes (1926); Midnight Lovers (1926); Don Juan's 3 Nights (1926); The Prince of Pilsen (1926); Fifth Avenue (1926); Chickie (1925); I Want My Man (1925); If I Marry Again (1925); Single Wives (1924); The Perfect Flapper (1924); The Woman on the Jury (1924); Lilies of the Field (1924); The Huntress (1923); The Rustle of Silk (1923); The White Flower (1923); The Young Rajah (1922); The Bonded Woman (1922); The Top of New York (1922); The Green Temptation (1922); Morals (1921); Wealth (1921); Sacred and Profane Love (1921); The Witching Hour (1921); The Furnace (1920); The Soul of Youth (1920); Jenny Be Good (1920); Nurse Marjorie (1920); Judy of Rogues' Harbor (1920); The 13th Commandment (1920); More Deadly Than the Male (1919); His Official Fiancée (1919); Widow by Proxy (1919); Girls (1919); Happiness a la Mode (1919); The Final Close-Up (1919); The Veiled Adventure (1919); Romance and Arabella (1919); Who Cares? (1919); A Lady's Name (1918); The Gypsy Trail (1918); Mrs. Leffingwell's Boots (1918); The Man from Funeral Range (1918); Sauce for the Goose (1918); A Pair of Silk Stockings (1918); Good Night, Paul (1918); Viviette (1918); Unclaimed Goods (1918); The Shuttle (1918); A Petticoat Pilot (1918); The Fair Barbarian (1917); Molly Entangled (1917); The Trouble Buster (1917); Little Miss Optimist (1917); A Kiss for Susie (1917); Giving Becky a Chance (1917); The Highway of Hope (1917); The Spirit of Romance (1917); Her Own People (1917); The Wax Model (1917); The Right Direction (1916); The Road to Love (1916); The Intrigue (1916); The Stronger Love (1916); An International Marriage (1916); The American Beauty (1916); The Making of Maddalena (1916); David Garrick (1916); The Heart of Paula (1916); The Code of Marcia Gray (1916); The Wild Olive (1915).

Recommended reading - In a Lonely Place (1947):

In a Lonely Place (1947).

By Dorothy B. Hughes.

Published by NYRB Classics.

Paperback.

ISBN-10: 1681371472

ISBN-13: 978-1681371474

Description:

“In a Lonely Place blasted my mind open to new ways of reading.” – Sarah Weinman, Los Angeles Review of Books.

Los Angeles in the late 1940s is a city of promise and prosperity, but not for former fighter pilot Dix Steele.  To his mind nothing has come close to matching “that feeling of power and exhilaration and freedom that came with loneness in the sky.” He prowls the foggy city night – bus stops and stretches of darkened beaches and movie houses just emptying out – seeking solitary young women. His funds are running out and his frustrations are growing. Where is the good life he was promised? Why does he always get a raw deal? Then he hooks up with his old Air Corps buddy Brub, now working for the LAPD, who just happens to be on the trail of the strangler who’s been terrorizing the women of the city for months...

Written with controlled elegance, Dorothy B. Hughes’s tense novel is at once an early indictment of a truly toxic masculinity and a twisty page-turner with a surprisingly feminist resolution. A classic of golden age noir, In a Lonely Place also inspired Nicholas Ray’s 1950 film of the same name, starring Humphrey Bogart.

“Crime was never Hughes’s interest, evil was, and to be evil, for her, is to be intolerant of others... With her poetic powers of description, she makes that evil a sickness in the mind and a landscape to be surveyed.” – Christine Smallwood, The New Yorker’s Page-Turner Blog.

“A tour de force laying open the mind and motives of a killer with extraordinary empathy. The structure is flawless, and the scenes of postwar LA have an immediacy that puts Chandler to shame. No wonder Hughes is the master we keep turning to.” – Sara Paretsky.

Cynthia Rylant, on reading:

I learned to write from authors.

I didn't know any, but I read their books.

- Cynthia Rylant.