Humphrey Bogart dies after a long battle with throat cancer. He was 58 years old.
20th Century–Fox claims that there are now 46,544 CinemaScope installations around the world, with 17,644 in the U.S. and Canada alone. (There are a total of 20,971 movie theaters in the U.S.)
There are currently 6,000 drive–in movie theaters in the U.S. Many are equipped with children’s playgrounds, large cafeterias, and an “all weather” theater for those who prefer to sit indoors in bad weather.
The House Un–American Activities Committee (HUAC) has found the playwright, Arthur Miller, guilty of Contempt of Congress for refusing to reveal the names of members of a literary circle suspected of Communist affiliations.
The RKO studios have been sold to Desilu, the television production company founded by Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, stars of the famous “I Love Lucy” TV series.
This is the 30th year for the Academy Awards and the voting rules have changed. Instead of allowing industry guilds, industry unions, and Academy members to all have votes for the Academy’s award nominations, both nominations and final selections will now only be in the hands of Academy members.
Significant Films:
United Artists releases “Twelve Angry Men” starring Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb, E.G. Marshall, Jack Warden and Ed Begley. Based on a television play, the film served to establish a number of television talents in Hollywood, including its director, Sidney Lumet.
Roger Vadim’s French film “And God Created Woman” is released starring Brigitte Bardot and Curt Jurgens. Earning over $4 million in the U.S., this film becomes an important box–office breakthrough for foreign movies, creating a demand for foreign films that had not existed before.
United Artists releases Stanley Kubrick’s “Paths of Glory” starring Kirk Douglas, Adolphe Menjou, and George Macready. The film is set in France during World War I, and is considered to be one of Hollywood’s most powerful anti–militarist movies.
Columbia releases David Lean’s “The Bridge on the River Kwai” starring Alec Guinness, William Holden and Sessue Hayakawa. The film wins seven Academy Awards including the Oscar for “Best Motion Picture”. Once again, Michael Wilson is not given credit for helping to write the Oscar winning screenplay because he is officially blacklisted.