Born on this day – Evelyn Preer:

Evelyn Preer

Actress

Singer

July 26, 1896 – November 17, 1932

Credits:

Birthright (1924); Blonde Venus (1932); Brown Gravy (1929); Deceit (1923); Georgia Rose (1930); Good Sport (1931); Husband's Holiday (1931); Ladies of the Big House (1931); Oft in the Silly Night (1929); The Brute (1920); The Conjure Woman (1926); The Devil's Disciple (1926); The Framing of the Shrew (1929); The Gunsaulus Mystery (1921); The Homesteader (1919); The Lady Fare (1929); The Melancholy Dame (1929); The Spider's Web (1927); The Widow's Bite (1929); Within Our Gates (1920).

Born on this day – Gracie Allen:

Gracie Allen

Vaudevillian

Singer

Actress

Comedian

July 26, 1895 – August 27, 1964

Credits:

100% Service (1931); 50 Years of Funny Females (1995); 5th Annual TV Academy Hall of Fame (1989); A Damsel in Distress (1937); American Masters (1997–2017); America's Clown: An Intimate Biography of Red Skelton (2014); Biography (2002); Bob Hope's World of Comedy (1976); Classic Comedy Teams (1986); Classic Stand-Up Comedy of Television (1996); Climax! (1956); College Holiday (1936); College Humor (1933); College Swing (1938); Dumb, Dumber & Dumbest (1995); Fit to Be Tied (1930); Going Hollywood: The '30s (1984); Here Comes Cookie (1935); Hit Celebrity TV Commercials (2004); Hollywood and the Stars (1963); Hollywood Couples (2000); Hollywood on Parade No. A-2 (1932); Hollywood on Parade No. A-9 (1933); Honolulu (1939); International House (1933); Jack Benny's 20th Anniversary TV Special (1970); Lambchops (1929); Larry King Live (2003); Legends of Comedy (1992); Let's Dance (1933); Love in Bloom (1935); Many Happy Returns (1934); Meet the Stars #3: Variety Reel #1 (1941); Mel Blanc: The Man of a Thousand Voices (2008); Mr. and Mrs. North (1942); Murphy Brown (1989); Oh, My Operation (1931); Olympic Fund Telethon (1952); Once Over, Light (1931); Our World (1987); Patents Pending (1932); Paul Henning & The Hillbillies (2005); Paul Merton's Palladium Story (1994); Pioneers of Primetime (1995); Pioneers of Television (2014); Pulling a Bone (1931); Screen Snapshots Series 33, No. 10: Hollywood Grows Up (1954); Screen Snapshots: Memories of Famous Hollywood Comedians (1952); Shower of Stars (1955); Six of a Kind (1934); Stars in the Eye (1952); Startime (1959); Stu's Show (2023); Television (1988); Television: The First Fifty Years (1999); The 8th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (1956); The Actor's Society Benefit Gala (1949); The Antique Shop (1931); The Babbling Book (1932); The Big Broadcast (1932); The Big Broadcast of 1936 (1935); The Big Broadcast of 1937 (1936); The Bob Cummings Show (1957); The Dawn of Sound: How Movies Learned to Talk (2007); The DuPont Show of the Week (1961); The Ed Sullivan Show (1957); The Factor (2008); The First Annual Comedy Hall of Fame (1993); The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show (1950–1958); The Gracie Allen Murder Case (1939); The Great Man: W.C. Fields (2005); The Great Radio Comedians (1972); The Great Standups (1984); The History of Comedy (2017); The Hollywood Palace (1982); The Jack Benny Program (1952–1964); The Jackie Gleason Show (1957); The World Our Stage (1957); This Is Your Life (1955); Two Girls and a Sailor (1944); Walking the Baby (1933); We're Not Dressing (1934); What's My Line? (1954); What's My Line? At 25 (1975); Your Hat (1932).

Born on this day – George Barr McCutcheon:

George Barr McCutcheon

Writer

July 26, 1866 – October 23, 1928

Recommended reading - The Stanley Kubrick Archives, by Alison Castle (2008):

The Stanley Kubrick Archives,

by Alison Castle (2008).

Made in cooperation with Jan Harlan, Christiane Kubrick and The Stanley Kubrick Estate.

Published by TASCHEN.

ISBN-10: 3822822841

ISBN-13: 9783822822845

Preface:

The making of this book has been something of an odyssey: two years of traveling through time and space to the heart of Stanley Kubrick's universe, where I not only had the unprecedented privilege of having access to his archives, but also the invaluable guidance of those who were closest to him. Kubrick's wife, Christiane, and executive producer, Jan Harlan, were not only immensely generous in allowing me to "excavate" the various parts of his St. Albans estate where the archives are stored, but they were also exceedingly kind, supportive, and helpful during the entire process. In addition, I was very fortunate to have the aid of Anthony Frewin and Leon Vitali, Kubrick's longtime assistants, who tirelessly answered my questions and offered invaluable advice and assistance.

Endeavoring to uncover each and every artifact that could cast light upon Kubrick's creative process, I scoured the archives, gathering the most illuminating items, from bits of paper covered with hurriedly scribbled notes to photographs taken by Kubrick on the sets of his films. Hunched over hundreds upon hundreds of contact sheets with my loupe, I was able to select images that had never been printed before, let alone seen; rifling through screenplay drafts I found references to scenes that were never filmed, and among the photos I found images of sequences that were abandoned; reading Kubrick's notes and letters, I discovered not only clues to his thought processes but also his curious love affair with various types of stationery, typewriters, and pens. Searching through the often chaotic mountains of material was an exhilarating experience: each and every "discovery" was like a minor miracle, a defining moment, an epiphany.

Part 2 of this book features the result of this gleaning: an eclectic collection of material that represents the nuts and bolts of Kubrick's creative history. To help guide readers through the expedition is a selection of articles and essays by noted Kubrick scholars as well as a generous selection of material "from the horse's mouth" (i.e. Kubrick letters, essays, and interviews), refuting the popular misconception that Kubrick was a recluse who didn't or wouldn't talk about his work.

The items presented in Part 2 offer valuable insight into Kubrick's filmmaking process, though the most important material from the archives is unquestionably the films themselves. Kubrick once said, "The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good." Part 1 offers plenty of opportunities for readers to test their affection: from Killer's Kiss to Eyes Wide Shut, Kubrick's twelve feature films are represented by a vast selection of stills (not including his first feature, Fear and Desire, which he withdrew from circulation). The stills, which were scanned directly from the film reels, are presented chronologically, unadulterated and without text.

In an interview about 2001: A Space Odyssey, Kubrick made a statement that reflects one of his central tenets: "Reactions to art are always different because they are always deeply personal.... [T]he film becomes anything the viewer sees in it." The goal of this book is to allow readers the chance to explore Kubrick's archives intuitively, absorbing the various puzzle pieces and assembling them into a personal interpretation. This is, I hope, the way Stanley Kubrick would have wanted it.

– Alison Castle, Paris, 2004.

Jhumpa Lahiri, on writing:

In fiction, plenty do the job of conveying information, rousing suspense, painting characters, enabling them to speak.

But only certain sentences breathe and shift about, like live matter in soil.

- Jhumpa Lahiri.

On this day in movie history - Lucy (2014):

Lucy,

directed and written by Luc Besson,

was released in the United States on July 25, 2014.
Music by Éric Serra.

Cast:
Scarlett Johansson, Morgan Freeman, Choi Min-sik, Amr Waked, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Pilou Asbæk, Analeigh Tipton, Nicolas Phongpheth.

On this day in movie history - Give ‘Em Hell, Malone (2009):

Give ‘Em Hell, Malone,

aka Malone,

directed by Russell Mulcahy,

written by Mark Hosack,

was released in the United States on July 25, 2009.
Music by David Williams.

Cast:
Thomas Jane, Ving Rhames, Elsa Pataky, French Stewart, Leland Orser, Chris Yen, William Abadie, Gregory Harrison, Doug Hutchison, Eileen Ryan, David Andriole, Thomas Olson, Mark Hosack, Melody Deatherage, Bart Heimburger, Patrick Treadway, Armand Jalayeri, Gary Pierce, Dane Farwell, Devon Graves, Brandon O’Neill, Gretchen Oyster, Jhon Goodwin, Kent Kimball, Katrina McKinley, Candy Richardz, Aaron Fink, R.J. Hampton, Dominic Salvatore, Randy Weatherbee.