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On March 14, 1972, one of the greatest movies ever made hit theaters. Months later, The Godfather would be crowned the highest-grossing film of the year, and later the highest-grossing Hollywood production, making approximately $250 million globally. Two years later, the film’s impact was still being felt. When the television rights were sold for a record $10 million to NBC for a single showing in 1974, the mob movie attracted a surprisingly large audience with an average Nielsen rating of 38.2 and an audience share of 59%, making it the eighth most-watched film on television at the time.

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Boxcar BerthaRDramaCrimeRomanceRelease DateJune 14, 1972Runtime88 MinutesDirectorMartin ScorseseCastSee All

Barbara Hershey Boxcar Bertha

David Carradine Big Bill Shelly

Barry Primus Rake Brown

Bernie Casey Von Morton

Where to watchCloseWHERE To WATCHStreaming

Writers Ben L. Reitman, Joyce Hooper Corrington, John William Corrington...

The upcoming film Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes will respect Caesar's legacy better than the widely panned 1973 flop, according to long-term franchise fans. The end of War for the Planet of the Apes was both tragic and hopeful, with Caesar preparing for his death and leading his fellow apes to safety. In the new film, the mantle of the protagonist passes from Caesar to his son Cornelius, who must navigate a dystopian society and clash with new ape clans that twist Caesar's ideals.

The original Planet of the Apes series ended with 1973’s Battle for the Planet of the Apes but ended the ape leader Caesar’s arc on such a note that both critics and audiences heavily panned it for the years to come. Caesar got a much better-received reinterpretation in the 21st century, starting with Rise of the Planet of the Apes, a reboot that kicked off two successful sequels.

Author: Cai Ross

The original Planet of The Apes movies occupied a curious netherworld of critical opinion. With each film, the budget was sawn in half, leading to a successive pattern of diminishing returns that led to a cheapening of its esteem. The spin-off TV show was quickly cancelled, further dulling the lustre and few people even remember the animated series that finally put the Apes to bed until a rude awakening in 2001.

However, for all their child-pleasing capers (the family-friendly G rating was a mandatory stipulation from the studios), the Apes movies deftly juggled important themes and arguments about slavery, free-will, nuclear war, vivisection, racism and oppression, and man’s innate capacity for cruelty. In pure storytelling terms, the circuitous plot links the first five movies (and the new post-Rise cycle) into a pleasing, if relentlessly pessimistic, self-perpetuating full-circle.

Enormous box office successes in their early stages, they spawned...

Warning: Spoilers for Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (and all of the Apes films, for that matter) When Battle for the Planet of the Apes ended the franchise’s first cinematic run in 1973, it concluded the series with something of a whimper instead of a bang. While many of the original Apes sequels are enduringly fascinating in their expanding narratives, trenchant topicality and surprisingly bleak endings, they were also assembly line products rushed through production annually, with nearly each successive entry’s budget slashed in half – a series constructed on a model of diminishing returns. Most of the normal creative team were not available for the fifth entry, so The Omega Man’s married screenwriting team of John and Joyce Corrington were hired to helm Battle despite being unfamiliar with the series. After inter- and intra-species conflict, Battle ends with a flash-forward (a bookending device) showing a monument of Caesar (Roddy McDowall) with a tear...

Director: Steve Carver; Cirio H. Santiago

Screenplay: John William Corrington and Joyce Hooper Corrington; Miller Drake; Howard R. Cohen

Starring: Pam Greir, Margaret Markov, Pat Anderson, Lenore Kasdorf, Lyllah Torena, Ken Metcalfe, Vic Diaz, Lindsay Bloom and Tara Strohmeier; with appearances by Dick Miller and Mary Woronov

To misquote Jack Nicholson, Roger Corman released so many movies, it's no surprise some real stinkers got into theaters. And the recent Shout! Factory Roger Corman Cult Classics release, Lethal Ladies 2 Collection, is intent on proving that statement. The two-dvd set includes a single-disc presentation of The Arena, and a second disc with the double feature of Fly Me and Cover Girl Models.

The best film in the collection, 1974's The Arena (aka Naked Warriors), is little more than a retelling of Spartacus with women as gladiators. Corman decided it was the perfect vehicle for Pam Grier and Margaret Markov, following their successful...

On this date in...

1980: Texas ("starring Beverlee McKinsey") premiered on NBC. The show was created by John William Corrington, Joyce Corrington, and Paul Rauch. The show lasted until December 31, 1982. Another World returned to 60 minutes (from 90) that day.

Celebrating a birthday today are:

Laurie Heineman (ex-Sharlene, Another World; ex-Mary, As The World Turns)

President Barack Obama - 50

Sebastian Roché (ex-Jerry, General Hospital) - 47

Crystal Chappell (Gina, Venice; Carly, Days Of Our Lives; ex-Olivia, Guiding Light; ex-Maggie, One Life To Live; ex-Jane, Santa Barbara; ex-All My Children) - 46

James Tupper (Andrew, Grey's Anatomy; ex-Jack, Men In Trees) - 46

Timothy Adams (ex-Ron, One Life To Live; ex-Rob, Guiding Light; ex-Casey, Sunset Beach) - 44

Daniel Dae Kim (ex-Jin, Lost; ex-Dr. Kim, All My Children) - 43

Mick Cain (ex-cj, The Bold And The Beautiful) - 33

Abigail Spencer (ex-Becca, All My Children; ex-Miss Farrell, Mad Men) - 30

Editor's Note: If you would like to...

This Friday sees the release of the first "Planet of the Apes" film in a decade, "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" starring James Franco. We'll have our review of the film up on Friday, but to help set the mood, here is a revised and updated version of a feature we first brought you in 2008 on the 40th anniversary of the original "Planet of the Apes." Below you'll find a guide to all six previous movies, with synopses, spoilers, continuity errors, and a celebration of all the high-minded social commentary and low-brow schlocky ape masks that make the "Apes" films one of the most satisfying of all sci-fi franchises.

Please note: Most "Planet of the Apes" films have a "shocking" twist that everyone at this point already knows. However, if you have somehow extricated yourself from forty years of pop culture references, by all means be wary of Spoilers ahead.