On this day in movie history - The Hot Rock (1972 movie & novel):

The Hot Rock

directed by Peter Yates,

written by William Goldman,

based on the novel by Donald E. Westlake,

was released in the United States on January 26, 1972.

Music by Quincy Jones.

Cast:

Robert Redford, George Segal, Ron Leibman, Paul Sand, Moses Gunn, Zero Mostel, William Redfield, Topo Swope, Christopher Guest, Graham Jarvis, Lynne Gordon, Charlotte Rae, Harry Bellaver.

Recommended reading:

The Hot Rock

By Donald E. Westlake.

Book # 1 in the Dortmunder series.

Published by Simon & Schuster.

First published 1970.

First Edition.

Hardcover.

ISBN-10: 0671205412

ISBN-13: 978-0671205416

Description:

John Archibald Dortmunder is the archetypal criminal manque. Brought up in an orphanage in the Midwest, he is 37 years old, served in the "police action" in Korea, was arrested twice for robbery following his release from the service, and was briefly married to a nightclub entertainer named Honeybun Bazoom from whom he was granted an uncontested divorce. For reasons totally beyond his comprehension, Dortmunder is chosen to lead a gang of master hoodlums. Their job: to steal an emerald valued at $500,000. Their employer: Major Patrick Iko, a mustached African diplomat whose country has just lost the gem through a thoughtless political decision. The specialists Dortmunder selects for his impossible mission include: Kelp: an ex-con with a penchant for stealing cars with MD license plates. Stan Murch: a crook who lives with his mother, a cab driver, and collects stereo records of "Sounds of Indianapolis." Roger Chefwick: the railroad nut, a skinny man of late middle age, whose three H-O gauge trains constantly couple and uncouple on H-O gauge track in a waist-high plywood platform in his basement. What follows in this delightful new novel by Donald E. Westlake is an unparalleled mixture of laughter and thrills, featuring a car crash into the New York Coliseum, a free-swinging helicopter attack on a police station, and a wild breakout from an insane asylum on a Tom Thumb locomotive stolen from a nearby amusement park.

Born on this day – William Redfield:

William Redfield

Actor

Writer

January 26, 1927 – August 17, 1976

Credits:

Mr. Billion (1977); Spencer's Pilots (1976); Rich Man, Poor Man - Book II (1976); Medical Center (1976); The Bob Newhart Show (1972–1976); One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975); Maude (1972–1975); Fear on Trial (1975); Death Wish (1974); For Pete's Sake (1974); The Odd Couple (1974); The Hot Rock (1972); Such Good Friends (1971); A New Leaf (1971); Dragon Country (1970); NET Playhouse (1970); The Sidelong Glances of a Pigeon Kicker (1970); Companions in Nightmare (1968); Androcles and the Lion (1967); All Woman (1967); Fantastic Voyage (1966); Duel at Diablo (1966); Bewitched (1965); Morituri (1965); Instant Love (1964); The Defenders (1963–1964); Mr. Broadway (1964); Hamlet (1964); Armstrong Circle Theatre (1952–1963); Naked City (1961); Great Ghost Tales (1961); The Connection (1961); The Million Dollar Incident (1961); Frontiers of Faith (1961); Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1957–1961); Gunsmoke (1961); Encounter (1960); The Comedy Spot (1960); Wrangler (1960); Deadline (1960); General Electric Theater (1959); Startime (1959); Kitty Foyle (1958); Colgate Theatre (1958); Kraft Theatre (1952–1958); I Married a Woman (1958); True Story (1957); Modern Romances (1957); Goodyear Playhouse (1954–1957); Studio One (1956–1957); The Big Story (1951–1957); The Kaiser Aluminum Hour (1957); Omnibus (1957); The Proud and Profane (1956); As the World Turns (1956); Kraft Theatre (1954–1956); Robert Montgomery Presents (1956); The Alcoa Hour (1955); Mr. Citizen (1955); Conquest of Space (1955); Justice (1954–1955); The Elgin Hour (1954–1955); Producers' Showcase (1955); The Marriage (1954); Jimmy Hughes, Rookie Cop (1953); Family Affair (1952); Lux Video Theatre (1952); Lights Out (1952); Tales of Tomorrow (1952); Suspense (1950–1952); Mr. District Attorney (1952); The Web (1951–1952); Schlitz Playhouse (1952); Somerset Maugham TV Theatre (1951); Hands of Mystery (1951); Pulitzer Prize Playhouse (1951); Treasury Men in Action (1950); The Ford Theatre Hour (1950); Kraft Theatre (1949); Actor's Studio (1948–1949); Back Door to Heaven (1939).

On this day in movie history - Death Wish (1974):

Death Wish

directed by Michael Winner,

written by Wendell Mayes,

based on the novel by Brian Garfield,

was released in the United States on July 24, 1974.
Music by Herbie Hancock.

Cast:

Charles Bronson, Hope Lange, Vincent Gardenia, William Redfield, Chris Gampel, Steven Keats, Stuart Margolin, Stephen Elliott, Fred J. Scollay, Kathleen Tolan, Jack Wallace, Robert Kya-Hill, Jeff Goldblum, Christopher Logan, Gregory Rozakis, Christopher Guest, Hank Garrett, Helen Martin, Olympia Dukakis, Marcia Jean Kurtz, Edward Grover, Saul Rubinek, John Herzfeld, Eric Laneuville, Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs, Sonia Manzano, Tom Hayden, Al Lewis, Billy Curtis, Paul Dooley, Robert Miano, William Bogert.