On this day in movie history - The Longest Day (1962 movie & book):

The Longest Day

directed by Ken Annakin, Andrew Marton and Bernhard Wicki,

written by Cornelius Ryan, Romain Gary, James Jones, David Pursall and Jack Seddon,

based on the book by Cornelius Ryan,

was released in the United States on October 4, 1962.
Music by Maurice Jarre.

Cast:

Eddie Albert, Paul Anka, Arletty, Jean-Louis Barrault, Richard Beymer, Hans Christian Blech, Bourvil, Richard Burton, Wolfgang Büttner, Red Buttons, Pauline Carton, Sean Connery, Ray Danton, Irina Demick, Fred Dur, Fabian, Mel Ferrer, Henry Fonda, Steve Forrest, Gert Fröbe, Leo Genn, John Gregson, Paul Hartmann, Peter Helm, Werner Hinz, Donald Houston, Jeffrey Hunter, Karl John, Curd Jürgens, Alexander Knox, Peter Lawford, Fernand Ledoux, Christian Marquand, Dewey Martin, Roddy McDowall, Michael Medwin, Sal Mineo, Robert Mitchum, Kenneth More, Richard Münch, Edmond O'Brien, Leslie Phillips, Wolfgang Preiss, Ron Randell, Madeleine Renaud, Georges Rivière, Norman Rossington, Robert Ryan, Tommy Sands, George Segal, Jean Servais, Rod Steiger, Richard Todd, Tom Tryon, Peter van Eyck, Robert Wagner, Richard Wattis, Stuart Whitman, Georges Wilson, John Wayne.

Recommended reading:

The Longest Day: The Classic Epic of D-Day

By Cornelius Ryan.

First published 1959.

Published by Simon & Schuster.

Paperback.

ISBN-10: 0671890913

ISBN-13: 978-0671890919

Description:

The unparalleled, classic work of history that recreates the battle that changed World War II – the Allied invasion of Normandy.

The Longest Day is Cornelius Ryan’s unsurpassed account of D-Day, a book that endures as a masterpiece of military history. In this compelling tale of courage and heroism, glory and tragedy, Ryan painstakingly recreates the fateful hours that preceded and followed the massive invasion of Normandy to retell the story of an epic battle that would turn the tide against world fascism and free Europe from the grip of Nazi Germany.

This book, first published in 1959, is a must for anyone who loves history, as well as for anyone who wants to better understand how free nations prevailed at a time when darkness enshrouded the earth.

On this day in movie history - Beware, My Lovely (1952):

Beware, My Lovely

directed by Harry Horner,

written by Mel Dinelli,

based on the play The Man by Mel Dinelli,

was released in the United States on August 29, 1952.
Music by Leith Stevens.

Cast:

Ida Lupino, Robert Ryan, Taylor Holmes, Barbara Whiting, James Willmas, O. Z. Whitehead.

On this day in movie history - The Wild Bunch (1969):

The Wild Bunch

directed by Sam Peckinpah,

written by Walon Green and Sam Peckinpah,

based on a story by Walon Green and Roy N. Sickner,

was released in the United States on June 18, 1969.
Music by Jerry Fielding.

Cast:

William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Robert Ryan, Edmond O'Brien, Warren Oates, Jaime Sánchez, Ben Johnson, Emilio Fernández, Strother Martin, L. Q. Jones, Albert Dekker, Bo Hopkins, Jorge Russek, Alfonso Arau, Dub Taylor, Chano Urueta, Elsa Cárdenas, Fernando Wagner, Paul Harper, Bill Hart, Rayford Barnes, Stephen Ferry, Sonia Amelio, Aurora Clavel, Elizabeth Dupeyrón.

On this day in movie history - The Set-Up (1949 movie & novel):

The Set-Up

directed by Robert Wise,

written by Art Cohn,

based on the book-length narrative poem by Joseph Moncure March,

was released in the United States on March 29, 1949.
Music by C. Bakaleinikof and Roy Webb.

Cast:

Robert Ryan, Audrey Totter, George Tobias, Alan Baxter, Wallace Ford, Percy Helton, Hal Fieberling, Darryl Hickman, Kenny O'Morrison, James Edwards, David Clarke, Phillip Pine, Arthur 'Weegee' Fellig.

Recommended reading:

The Set-Up

By Joseph Moncure March.

Filmed as The Set-Up (1949), directed by Robert Wise.

The Lost Classic by the Author of The Wild Party.

Illustrated by Erik Kriek.

Book-length narrative poem.

Published by Korero Press.

First published 1928.

Hardcover.

ISBN-10: 1912740087

ISBN-13: 978-1912740086

Description:

"A ringside seat at a heavyweight bout is what is offered by Mr. March in this astonishing narrative… episodes that make the blood boil, and the hair rise…tragic pathos so deep as almost to defeat any faith in man." – New York Times Book Review, upon original 1928 publication.

"It’s a cross between a graphic novel and a heavily illustrated epic poem. It has the feel of a lost treasure one would find on a back shelf of some forgotten bookstore. And yet, somehow it seems crisp and new. . . . If you can imagine there was a month-long collaboration where Eric Powell, Charles Burns and Will Eisner were all locked in a studio together, you will be able to envision exactly what this art looks like. Kriek’s illustrations employ black and grey tones with a moody effect. And he’s not handcuffed into any formal page layout or size. Some illustrations are full pagers, some are spot illustrations in weird shapes, and some overflow to two pages. There are no word balloons, and as this is a poem, there’s great flexibility and freshness to each and every page layout." – Pop Culture Squad.

"So prolifically illustrated it reads like a graphic novel. Striking artwork." – Bud's Art Books.

"The tale is told in relentless rhyme and pitiless beats presaging modern Hip Hop culture. This is dawn-era storytelling with classical themes delivered as primordial Rap in its purest, most primal form." – Comics Review.

Written in 1928, The Set-Up is a long narrative poem about the boxing underworld - a hard-boiled tragedy told in syncopated rhyming couplets. When the work was first published it made the bestseller list, and in 1949 it was turned into an award-winning film featuring Robert Ryan and Audrey Totter. This reprinting of the original, unchanged 1928 poem features dynamic, specially commissioned artwork by Erik Kriek that vividly conveys the story of Pansy, an up-and-coming black prize fighter who takes on all comers. When he was in the ring, "It was over before you knew it. He'd carve you up like a leg of mutton. And drop you flat with a sock on the button." Pansy's complicated love life leads to a spell in prison and his career subsequently takes a nosedive; but he continues to box until the fateful night his fight managers and opponent triple-cross him and he meets a grisly end at the hands of a vengeful gang.

On this day in movie history - Bad Day at Black Rock (1955):

Bad Day at Black Rock

directed by John Sturges,

written by Millard Kaufman and Don McGuire,

was released in the United States on January 13, 1955.
Based on the short story Bad Time at Honda by Howard Breslin,

published in The American Magazine (1947).
Music by André Previn.

Cast:

Spencer Tracy, Robert Ryan, Anne Francis, Dean Jagger, Walter Brennan, John Ericson, Ernest Borgnine, Lee Marvin, Russell Collins, Walter Sande, Walter Beaver, Billy Dix, Mickey Little, K.L. Smith, Robert Griffin, Harry Harvey, Bobby Johnson, Francis McDonald.

On this day in movie history - On Dangerous Ground (1951 movie & novel):

On Dangerous Ground

directed by Nicholas Ray and Ida Lupino,

written by A. I. Bezzerides and Nicholas Ray,

based on the novel Mad with Much Heart by Gerald Butler,

was released in the United States on December 12, 1951.
Music by Bernard Herrmann.

Cast:

Ida Lupino, Robert Ryan, Ward Bond, Charles Kemper, Anthony Ross, Ed Begley, Ian Wolfe, Sumner Williams, Gus Schilling, Frank Ferguson, Cleo Moore, Olive Carey.

Mad with Much Heart

By Gerald Butler.

First published 1945.
ASIN: B0006AQZEY
Published by: Rinehart & company, inc.
Hardcover.

Description:

Filmed as On Dangerous Ground (1951), directed by Nicholas Ray and Ida Lupino.