On this day in movie history - Rififi (1955 movie & book):

Rififi

French title: Du rififi chez les hommes,

directed by Jules Dassin,

written by Auguste Le Breton, Jules Dassin and René Wheeler,

based on the novel by Auguste Le Breton,

was released in France on April 13, 1955.
Music by Georges Auric.

Cast:

Jean Servais, Carl Möhner, Robert Manuel, Janine Darcey, Pierre Grasset, Robert Hossein, Marcel Lupovici, Dominique Maurin, Magali Noël, Marie Sabouret, Claude Sylvain, Jules Dassin, Armandel, Alain Bouvette, Alice Garan, André Dalibert, Jacques David, Émile Genevois, Marcelle Hainia, Marcel Lesieur, Daniel Mendaille, Huguette Montréal, Lita Recio, Fernand Sardou, Jean Bellanger, Jacques Besnard, Teddy Bilis, Jenny Doria, René Hell, Gilbert Moreau, Maryse Paillet, Marcel Rouzé, Roger Rudel.

Recommended reading:

Rififi

By Alastair Phillips.

Ciné-File French Film Guides.

Published by I.B.Tauris.

Published 2009.

Paperback.

ISBN-10: 1848850557

ISBN-13: 978-1848850552

Description:

Du rififi chez les hommes (1955), directed by the exiled American film director Jules Dassin, recounts the nail-biting tale of a Parisian gangster heist gone wrong. Famed for its extended dialogue free robbery sequence, it is both a classic French film noir and one of the greatest, most influential crime films. In this lively companion to the film, Alastair Phillips reveals Dassin’s role as a director of socially conscious Hollywood film noir and argues that his seminal contribution to the regeneration of the thriller in post war France therefore uniquely complicated relations between French genre cinema and American mass culture.

Phillips also examines the film's innovative narrative construction and use of sound, its performance style and mise-en-scène, and discusses the film's legacy, showing how even today, the term ""Rififi"" remains a byword for both criminal glamor and the enduring virtues of French popular classical filmmaking.

On this day in movie history - Two O’clock Courage (1945):

Two O’clock Courage

directed by Anthony Mann,

written by Gordon Kahn and Robert E. Kent,

based on the novel by Gelett Burgess,

was released in the United States on April 13, 1945.
Music by Roy Webb.

Cast:

Tom Conway, Ann Rutherford, Richard Lane, Lester Matthews, Roland Drew, Emory Parnell, Jane Greer, Jean Brooks.

Born on this day – Elisabeth Trissenaar:

Elisabeth Trissenaar

Actress

Writer

April 13, 1944 – January 14, 2024

Credits:

A Love in Germany (1983); When Hitler stole the pink rabbit / When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit (1978); Angry Harvest (1985); Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980); Bluebeard (1984); Charlotte (1980); Countdown - The Hunt Begins (2011); The other Smile (1978); The End of a Career (1978); The Brain on Horseback (1986); That Käthchen von Heilbronn (1980); Der Fall Franza (1986); The captain of Köpenick (1997); Der mit dem Schlag (2016); The Devil of Milan (2012); Derrick (1992); The Bubi Scholz Story (1998); Die Familie oder Schroffenstein (1984); The Bat (La chauve-souris) (2001); Die Geschichte vom Brandner Kaspar (2008); The Purity of the Heart (1980); Die Schwärmer (1985); Die Tote vom Deich (2006); Doctor Martin (2009); Double Triangle (1999); Dorothea Merz (1976); Emilie Richards (2011); Extinct Times (1988); Fast Forward (2012); Franza (1987); Hedda Gabler (1974); Heinrich Penthesilea von Kleist (1983); Il était une fois... (2012); In a Year with 13 Moons (1978); Innocence Unknown (1988); Everyman Remixed (2011); Journey Into a Secret Life (1983); Kalt ist der Abendhauch (2000); Lie and Other Truths (2014); Mario and the Magician (1994); Marleneken (1990); No Sky Limit with Africa (2004); Nobody Loves Me (1994); Oskar and Leni (1999); Pattbergs Erbe (1987); Shadow Border (1979); Divorce a la carte (1991); Schumann Schubert and the Snow (2006); Siska (1999); I've never been so happy (2009); SOKO Kitzbühel (2005); Stockinger (1996); The Making of 'Berlin Alexanderplatz' (1979); The Marriage of Maria Braun (1979); The Old Fox (1990–1999); The Stationmaster's Wife (1977); Theater Talk (1984); Vera - The wife of the Sicilians (2005); Promise Me That There Is Heaven (1999); Wanda (1984); Weekend Stories (1985).

Born on this day – Paul Sorvino:

Paul Sorvino

Actor

Opera singer

Writer

Sculptor

April 13, 1939 – July 25, 2022

Credits:

A Fine Mess (1986); A Perry Mason Mystery: The Case of the Wicked Wives (1993); A Place for Heroes (2014); A Question of Honor (1982); A Touch of Class (1973); A Winter Rose (2014); Abe & Phil's Last Poker Game (2017); Acts of Desperation (2018); Age Isn't Everything (1991); Airship Dracula (2012); Alleluia! The Devil's Carnival (2016); Almost Partners (1987); American Perfekt (1997); Angel and Big Joe (1976); As Long As We Both Shall Live (2016); Backstreet Justice (1994); Bad Blood (2017); Bad Impulse (2019); Beneath the Leaves (2019); Bert D'Angelo / Superstar (1976); Betrayed by Innocence (1986); Bloodbrothers (1978); Blue Heat: The Case of the Cover Girl Murders (1997); Bulworth (1998); Careful What You Wish For (2015); Carnera: The Walking Mountain (2008); Chasing Gold (2016); Cheaters (2000); Chiefs (1983); Chiller (1985); Ciao America (2002); Cold Deck (2015); Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey (2014); Cover Me (1995); Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders (2017); Cruising (1980); Cry Uncle (1971); Dead Broke (1998); Dealing: Or the Berkeley-to-Boston Forty-Brick Lost-Bag Blues (1972); Detours (2016); Dick Tracy (1990); Divorce Invitation (2012); DMZ (1990); Doc West (2009); Dog Watch (1997); Don't Touch My Daughter (1991); Drinks with Dee Dee Sorvino (2020); Duckman: Private Dick/Family Man (1997); Dummy (1979); Elementary (2014); Escape Clause (1996); Executor (2017); For the Love of Money (2012); Foreclosed (2013); God Don't Make the Laws (2011); Godfather of Harlem (2019–2021); Goodfellas (1990); Goodnight, Joseph Parker (2004); Grandfathered (2016); Great Performances (1974); Greetings from the Shore (2007); Gutfeld! (2021); Handy Manny (2011); Harlem Aria (1999); Hey Arnold! The Movie (2002); Houdini (1998); How Sweet It Is (2013); I Will... I Will... For Now (1976); I, the Jury (1982); Iggy Azalea Feat. Rita Ora: Black Widow (2014); Imaginary Friend (2012); Immigrant (2013); Insight (1979); It Couldn't Happen to a Nicer Guy (1974); Jack & Bobby (2004); Jersey Shore Shark Attack (2012); Joe Torre: Curveballs Along the Way (1997); Kidnapped in Romania (2016); Kill the Irishman (2011); Kiss-Kiss, Dahlings! (1992); Knock Off (1998); Last Hour (2008); Law & Order (1991–1992); Lily of the Feast (2010); Longshot (2001); L'onore e il rispetto (2006); Lost and Found (1979); Lost Cat Corona (2017); Love Is All There Is (1996); Made for Each Other (1971); Mafia Doctor (2003); Mambo Italiano (2003); Melanie (1982); Men with Guns (1997); Micmacs (2009); Mineville (2010); Money Talks (1997); Moonlighting (1986); Most Guys Are Losers (2020); Most Wanted (1997); Mr. 3000 (2004); Mr. Fix It (2006); Murder, She Wrote (1989); My Mother's Secret Life (1984); Nixon (1995); No Deposit (2015); Off the Wall (1983); Oh, God! (1977); Once Upon a Time in Queens (2013); Papa (2018); Parallel Lives (1994); Paulie (2013); Perfume (2001); Plan B (2001); Price for Freedom (2017); RebelTaxi (2015); Reds (1981); Repo! The Genetic Opera (2008); Rhode Island Blue (2001); Romeo + Juliet (1996); Rules Don't Apply (2016); Santa Baby 2: Christmas Maybe (2009); Scriptfellas (1999); See Spot Run (2001); Seventh Avenue (1977); Shoot It Black, Shoot It Blue (1974); Sicilian Vampire (2015); Slow Dancing in the Big City (1978); Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987); Still Standing (2004–2006); Streghe verso nord (2001); Surviving (1985); Tell Me Where It Hurts (1974); That Championship Season (1982); That's Life (2000–2002); The Amati Girls (2000); The Art of the Cigar (1996); The Bandit Hound (2016); The Birthday Cake (2021); The Brink's Job (1978); The Bronx Bull (2016); The Brooklyn Banker (2016); The Cooler (2003); The Day of the Dolphin (1973); The Devil's Carnival (2012); The Family Man (2000); The Firm (1993); The Gambler (1974); The Goldbergs' Excellent Adventure (2014); The Great American Heist (2022); The Greg Gutfeld Show (2015); The Hybrids Family (2015); The Oldest Rookie (1987–1988); The Panic in Needle Park (1971); The Red Maple Leaf (2016); The Rocketeer (1991); The Streets of San Francisco (1976); The Stuff (1985); The Thin Blue Lie (2000); The Trouble with Cali (2012); The Wild Stallion (2009); Today's F.B.I. (1981); Triggerman (2009); Turk 182 (1985); Undercover Grandpa (2017); Vasectomy: A Delicate Matter (1986); Very Close Quarters (1984); Welcome to Acapulco (2019); We'll Get By (1974–1975); Where's Poppa? (1970); With Intent to Kill (1984); Without Consent (1994); Wives' Tales (2008); Work with Me (1999).

Born on this day – Herman Raucher:

Herman Raucher

Writer

April 13, 1928 – December 28, 2023

Credits:

Books:

A Glimpse of Tiger (1971); Maynard's House (1980); Summer of '42 (1971); There Should Have Been Castles (1978); Watermelon Man (1970).

Movies and television:

Sweet November (2001); Ode (1999); Morning Patrol (1987); The Great Santini (1979); The Other Side of Midnight (1977); Ode to Billy Joe (1976); Remember When (1974); Class of '44 (1973); Summer of '42 (1971); Watermelon Man (1970); Can Heironymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness? (1969); Sweet November (1968); Follow That Dream (1962); Studio One (1958); Matinee Theatre (1957); Goodyear Playhouse (1956); The Alcoa Hour (1956).

Born on this day – Stanley Donen:

Stanley Donen

Director

Choreographer

April 13, 1924 – February 21, 2019

Credits:

24th Annual Academy Awards (1952); A Date with Judy (1948); AFI Life Achievement Award (1985); American Masters (2004–2008); Anchors Aweigh (1945); Arabesque (1966); Audrey Hepburn Remembered (1993); Autodefensa (2022); Bedazzled (1967); Best Foot Forward (1943); Big City (1948); Blame It on Rio (1984); Broadway: The American Musical (2004); Cary Grant: A Celebration of a Leading Man (1988); Ceremonia de clausura 44ª edición del Festival de Cine de San Sebastián (1996); Charade (1963); Ciné regards (1979); Cinema (1969); Cinema 3 (1989); Cinéma cinémas (1986); Cover Girl (1944); Damn Yankees (1958); Deep in My Heart (1954); Der Klang der Bilder (1995); Fearless Fagan (1952); Film '80 (1980); Film Review (1967); Filmmakers vs. Tycoons (2005); Funny Face (1957); Give a Girl a Break (1953); Great Performances (1996); Hey, Rookie (1944); Holiday in Mexico (1946); Hollywood U.K. British Cinema in the Sixties (1993); Hollywood's Best Film Directors (2009); Indiscreet (1958); Inside the Actors Studio (1995); It's Always Fair Weather (1955); Jam Session (1944); Kansas City Kitty (1944); Killer McCoy (1947); Kismet (1955); Kiss Them for Me (1957); Les mystères du premier film (1995); Les rendez-vous du dimanche (1976); Lionel Richie: Dancing on the Ceiling (1986); Living in a Big Way (1947); Love Is Better Than Ever (1952); Love Letters (1999); Love's Labour's Lost (2000); Lucky Lady (1975); MGM: When the Lion Roars (1992); Moonlighting (1986); Movie Movie / Baxter's Beauties of 1933 / Dynamite Hands (1978); No Leave, No Love (1946); Omnibus (1995); On the Town (1949); Once More, with Feeling! (1960); Pierrot the Fool (1984); Pour le cinéma (1969); Private Screenings (2006); Revista de cine (1976); Rich, Young and Pretty (1951); Royal Wedding (1951); Saturn 3 (1980); Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954); Sex at 24 Frames Per Second (2003); Singin' in the Rain (1952); Sobbin' Women: The Making of 'Seven Brides for Seven Brothers' (1997); Sodankylä Forever (2010); Staircase (1969); Stanley Donen: You Just Do It (2010); Surprise Package (1960); Take Me Out to the Ball Game (1949); That's Entertainment!: The Masters Behind the Musicals (2004); The 58th Annual Academy Awards (1986); The 70th Annual Academy Awards (1998); The Children of Lindos (1960); The Film Society Of Lincoln Center Annual Gala Tribute to Audrey Hepburn (1991); The Grass Is Greener (1960); The Hollywood Fashion Machine (1995); The Hollywood Soundtrack Story (1995); The Kissing Bandit (1948); The Lionel Richie Collection (2003); The Little Prince (1974); The Making of Lionel Richie's Dancing on the Ceiling (1986); The Nation's Favourite Dance Moment (2013); The Pajama Game (1957); The Story of Film: An Odyssey (2011); This Time for Keeps (1947); Two for the Road (1967); What a Glorious Feeling: The Making of 'Singin' in the Rain' (2002); Zapper n'est pas jouer (1990).

Born on this day – Mari Blanchard:

Mari Blanchard

Actress

April 13, 1923 – May 10, 1970

Credits:

It Takes a Thief (1968); The Virginian (1967); Burke's Law (1965); Valentine's Day (1965); Breaking Point (1964); McLintock! (1963); Twice-Told Tales (1963); Don't Knock the Twist (1962); Perry Mason (1962); The Detectives (1962); 77 Sunset Strip (1961); Hawaiian Eye (1961); Gunslinger (1961); The Roaring 20's (1961); Klondike (1960–1961); Rawhide (1959–1961); Sea Hunt (1960); Bronco (1960); Mr. Lucky (1960); Laramie (1960); Tales of Wells Fargo (1960); Shotgun Slade (1959); Bachelor Father (1959); Sugarfoot (1959); Not for Hire (1959); The Texan (1959); The Green Peacock (1958); Karasu (1958); The Witches from Another World (1958); No Place to Land (1958); The Frank Sinatra Show (1957); The Millionaire (1957); Jungle Heat (1957); She Devil (1957); Stagecoach to Fury (1956); Canasta de cuentos mexicanos (1956); The Cruel Tower (1956); Casablanca (1956); The Ford Television Theatre (1956); It's a Great Life (1955); The Crooked Web (1955); The Return of Jack Slade (1955); Son of Sinbad (1955); The Linkletter Show (1955); Climax! (1955); Destry (1954); Black Horse Canyon (1954); Rails Into Laramie (1954); The Veils of Bagdad (1953); Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953); Terry and the Pirates (1952); Your Jeweler's Showcase (1952); Back at the Front (1952); Assignment: Paris (1952); The Brigand (1952); Something to Live For (1952); The Frank Sinatra Show (1951); Overland Telegraph (1951); The Unknown Man (1951); Ten Tall Men (1951); Bannerline (1951); No Questions Asked (1951); On the Riviera (1951); Mr. Music (1950); Copacabana (1947).