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1985: Nancy Lee Grahn debuted as Julia on Santa Barbara.

1985: Gh's Rick began to suspect Derrick was Mike's biological father.

1987: Dynasty's Alexis drove her car off a bridge. 1999: AMC's

Erica made her first public appearance since being disfigured."History speaks to artists. It changes the artist's thinking and is constantly reshaping it into d ifferent and unexpected images."

― Anselm Kiefer

"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.

On this date in...

1965: On Peyton Place, Claire (Mariette Hartley) stunned her mother, Grace (Edith Atwater), with the news that Dr. Vincent Markham (Leslie Nielsen) was actually Claire's husband. After learning Michael Rossi (Ed Nelson) knew Constance (Dorothy Malone) as an orderly...

This bona fide classic may be, as Gregory Mank says, the best American horror picture of the 1940s. The teaming of Boris Karloff and Henry Daniell is sensational. Producer Val Lewton gives the players career-best characterizations and dialogue, and director Robert Wise adds tension and chills. Bela Lugosi is in for a supporting part. Icing on the grave-robbing cake is a new 4K scan from the original negative — we can forget the dull and dark prints seen in the past.

The Body Snatcher

Blu-ray

Scream Factory

1945 / B&W / 1:37 Academy / 77 min. / Street Date March 26, 2019 / 29.99

Starring: Boris Karloff, Henry Daniell, Bela Lugosi, Russell Wade, Edith Atwater, Rita Corday, Haryn Moffett, Donna Lee.

Cinematography: Robert deGrasse

Film Editor: J.R. Whittredge

Original Music: Roy Webb

Written by Philip McDonald, Carlos Keith

Produced by Val Lewton

Directed by Robert Wise

Here’s a picture that we never expected to see in such good condition…...

1985: Nancy Lee Grahn debuted as Julia on Santa Barbara.

1985: Gh's Rick began to suspect Derrick was Mike's biological father.

1987: Dynasty's Alexis drove her car off a bridge. 1999: AMC's

Erica made her first public appearance since being disfigured."All true histories contain instruction; though, in some, the treasure may be hard to find, and when found, so trivial in quantity that the dry, shrivelled kernel scarcely compensates for the trouble of cracking the nut."

― Anne Brontë in "Agnes Grey"

"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.

On this date in...

1965: On Peyton Place, Claire (Mariette Hartley) stunned her mother, Grace (Edith Atwater), with the news that Dr. Vincent Markham...

Unsung actress Beverly Garland becomes TV’s first lady cop, in what’s claimed to be the first TV show filmed on the streets of New York City. This one-season wonder from 1957 has vintage locations, fairly tough-minded storylines and solid performances, from Bev and a vast gallery of stage and TV actors on the way up.

Decoy

(Policewoman Decoy)

TV Series

DVD

Film Chest Media

1957-’58 / B&W / 1:33 flat full frame (TV) / 39 x 30 min. / Street Date May 30, 2017 / 19.98

Starring: Beverly Garland

Art Direction (some episodes): Mel Bourne

Original Music: Wladimir Selinsky

Written by Lillian Andrews, Nicholas E. Baehr, Cy Chermak, Jerome Coopersmith, Don Ettlinger, Frances Frankel, Steven Gardner, Abram S. Ginnes, Mel Goldberg, Saul Levitt, Leon Tokatyan

Produced by Arthur H. Singer, David Alexander, Stuart Rosenberg, Everett Rosenthal

Directed by Teddy Sills, Stuart Rosenberg, David Alexander, Michael Gordon, Don Medford, Arthur H. Singer, Marc Daniels

How did I experience...

Special Mention: Dressed To Kill

Directed by Brian De Palma

Written by Brian De Palma

1980, USA

Genre: Thriller

Brian De Palma’s films, like Tarantino’s, are a cinematic mash-up of influences from the past, and in De Palma case he borrows heavily from Alfred Hitchcock. Obsession is De Palma’s Vertigo, Blow Out his Rear Window, and with Dressed to Kill the director set its sights on Psycho. Dressed To Kill is more thriller than horror but what a stylish and twisted thriller it is! The highlight here is an amazing ten-minute chase sequence set in an art gallery and conducted entirely without dialogue. There are a number of other well-sustained set pieces including a race in the subway system and even, yes, a gratuitous shower murder sequence. Dressed To Kill features an excellent cast (Michael Caine, Nancy Allen, Angie Dickinson), a superb score (courtesy of Pino Donaggio) and...

Stars: Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, Susan Harrison, Martin Milner, Jeff Donnell, Sam Levene, Joe Frisco, Barbara Nichols, Emile Meyer, Edith Atwater | Written by Clifford Odets, Ernest Lehman | Directed by Alexander Mackendrick

When it comes to Arrow and the releases they output I’ll always be a fan of the Arrow Video line because of my love of everything cult and horror. A close second though has to be their Arrow Academy range, whereas the name suggest they give more of an education based on films from the past which deserve our attention just as much as any modern movie does. Sweet Smell of Success is the latest release and gives an insight into one of the more unique Hollywood movies not only of its times in the fifties, but still remains just as good today.

When J.J. Hensecker (Burt Lancaster) a powerful New York newspaper columnist decides to come...