On this day in movie history - 12 Angry Men (1997 movie & play):

12 Angry Men

directed by William Friedkin,

written by Reginald Rose,

based on the 1954 teleplay Twelve Angry Men by Reginald Rose,

was released in the United States on August 17, 1997.

Cast: Courtney B. Vance, Ossie Davis, George C. Scott, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Dorian Harewood, James Gandolfini, Tony Danza, Jack Lemmon, Hume Cronyn, Mykelti Williamson, Edward James Olmos, William Petersen, Mary McDonnell, Tyrees Allen, Douglas Spain.

Recommended reading:

Twelve Angry Men

Teleplay by Reginald Rose.

Introduction by David Mamet.

Filmed as:

12 Angry Men (1957), directed by Sidney Lumet.

12 Angry Men (1997), directed by William Friedkin.

Paperback.

Published by Penguin Classics.

First published 1954.

ISBN 13: 9780143104407

ISBN 10: 0143104403

ASIN: 0143104403

Description:

A blistering character study and an examination of the American melting pot and the judicial system that keeps it in check, Twelve Angry Men holds at its core a deeply patriotic faith in the U.S. legal system. The play centers on Juror Eight, who is at first the sole holdout in an 11-1 guilty vote. Eight sets his sights not on proving the other jurors wrong but rather on getting them to look at the situation in a clear-eyed way not affected by their personal prejudices or biases. Reginald Rose deliberately and carefully peels away the layers of artifice from the men and allows a fuller picture to form of them—and of America, at its best and worst.

After the critically acclaimed teleplay aired in 1954, this landmark American drama went on to become a cinematic masterpiece in 1957 starring Henry Fonda, for which Rose wrote the adaptation. More recently, Twelve Angry Men had a successful, and award-winning, run on Broadway.

On this day in television history: Taxi (1978 - 1983):

Taxi

written by James L. Brooks, Stan Daniels, David Davis and Ed. Weinberger,

was released on September 12, 1978, and ran for five seasons, until June 15, 1983.
Theme music by Bob James.

Cast:

Judd Hirsch, Danny DeVito, Marilu Henner, Tony Danza, Andy Kaufman, Christopher Lloyd, J. Alan Thomas, Jeff Conaway, Carol Kane, Randall Carver, T.J. Castronovo, Rhea Perlman, Gene LeBell, Jimmy Lennon Sr., Al Rosen, Louise Lasser, Susan Kellermann, Vincent Schiavelli, Melanie Gaffin, Ed. Weinberger, David Mendenhall, Suzanne Kent, Ellen Regan, Andrea Marcovicci, Julia DeVito, Jack Gilford, Anne De Salvo, Jill Jaress, Marc Anthony Danza, Carmine Caridi, Wendell Wright, Talia Balsam, Michael Mann, Paula Victor, Ted Danson, Rebecca Holden, Bubba Smith, Fran Ryan, Charlayne Woodard, Mandy Patinkin, Arlene Golonka, Gail Edwards, Allan Arbus, Rita Taggart, William Bogert, Dee Wallace, Jeffrey Tambor, Joan Hackett, Ruth Gordon, Scott Brady, Amanda McBroom, Lenny Baker, Constance Forslund, John Dukakis, Nancy Steen, Liz Miller, Susan Sullivan, Priscilla Barnes, Julie Kavner, Beverly Ross, George Wendt, Martha Smith, Barry Nelson, Allen Garfield, Tom Selleck, Joanna Cassidy, Eileen Brennan, Bob Larkin, Tom Hanks, Gayle Hunnicutt, Keenan Wynn, Sherrie Wills, Jean Hayworth, Marcia Wolf, Penny Marshall, Tracey Walter, Scatman Crothers, Cathie Shirriff, Judith-Marie Bergan, Michael Saucedo, Howard Witt, Brad Kesten, Charles Bouvier, Sharon Madden, Elizabeth Hill, Wendy Jewell, Rose Marie Klespitz, Joyce Mandel, Marshall Jay Kaplan, Paul LeClair, Jim Brooks, Debra Satell.