November 6, 1814 -
It's National Saxophone Day. Adolphe Sax, instrument maker and inventor of the saxophone, was born in Belgium.
Hey, you come up with something new every day. You may go on with your day.
November 6, 1947 -
Meet the Press, the longest-running show on network TV, premiered on NBC-TV on this date.
Meet the Press made its initial debut two years earlier – as a radio program American Mercury Presents: Meet the Press with Martha Rountree and Lawrence Spivak as producers.
November 6, 1948 -
Sylvester in his prime - Kit for Cat, premiered on this date.
The actors in the radio drama, Mel Blanc and Bea Benaderet, call each other by their real first names, Melvin and Beatrice.
November 6, 1965 –
The Rolling Stones song Get Off of My Cloud became their second song to hit #1 on the Billboard charts on this date.
There was a bit of controversy over this song, as it sounded like it could be about drugs. Some radio stations shied away from the song.
November 6, 1968 -
The Columbia Pictures cult classic film (although it's not what they wanted,) Head, starring The Monkees, Victor Mature and with cameos by Jack Nicholson, Teri Garr, Carol Doda, Annette Funicello, Frank Zappa, Sonny Liston, Dennis Hopper and Toni Basil, premiered to an unsuspecting public on this date.
The Coca-Cola Company reportedly wasn't amused at The Monkees' take on then-current Coke commercials (desert wanderer Micky Dolenz faces off against an uncooperative soda machine, as a jingle plays), and tried to get an injunction against the movie. When the movie reappeared on cable and home video in 1986, Columbia Pictures was owned by Coca-Cola, and the issue apparently forgotten.
November 6, 1981 -
One of Terry Gilliam's critically acclaimed features, Time Bandits, premiered on this date.
According to Terry Gilliam, David Rappaport believed he got his part for his acting ability alone, without size being a contributing factor. As a result, he didn't socialize with his co-stars. During the Invisible Barrier scene, when the other bandits retaliate against Randall, the actors were expressing their frustrations with Rappaport.
November 6, 1987 -
Richard Attenborough's biopix about South African civil rights leader Steven Biko, Cry Freedom, starring Denzel Washington, and Kevin Kline, premiered in the US on this date.
Lew Wasserman, the head of MCA/Universal, told Richard Attenborough to "clear his shelves of his Oscars" for Gandhi, as he was sure this movie was going to sweep the board at the Academy awards and in fact, pre-release test screenings resulted in many positive audience reactions. However, the film proved to be a disaster at the US box office and consequent!y failed to receive any nominations in any of the major Oscar categories, except Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Denzel Washington.
November 6, 1987 -
Twentieth Century Fox released the film version of Bret Easton Ellis' iconic 80s novel, Less Than Zero, starring Andrew McCarthy, Jami Gertz, Robert Downey Jr., and James Spader, on this date.
Because the novel didn't have a central plot or a core set of protagonists, but was more a set of interwoven events happening to a larger group of friends, this film differs considerably from the novel. In a surreal twist, the sequel novel, Imperial Bedrooms, has the original novel's characters aware of the film version of Less Than Zero.
November 6, 1990 -
Madonna released her her ninth #1 hit, Justify My Love, on this date. MTV immediately banned the video which immediately piqued interest in the song.
Lenny Kravitz helped Madonna write and produce this sultry song, where Madonna whispers most of the lyrics. It was the first single from her highly anticipated Immaculate Collection compilation album, and created plenty of sales-generating controversy for the singer, who was known for pushing the limits of sexual content.
November 6, 1996 -
Anthony Minghella's adaptation of the novel by Michael Ondaatje, The English Patient, starring Ralph Fiennes, Juliette Binoche and Kristen Scott Thomas premieres in Los Angeles on this date.
Originally, Twentieth Century Fox was to finance this movie but disputes arose between the studio and the producers over casting. In particular, Fox preferred a more well-known actress to play Katharine Clifton instead of Kristin Scott Thomas. Demi Moore was lobbying particularly hard for the role. After the producers refused to give in on a series of casting choices, Fox backed out of the movie, and the project was uncertain just as production was about to begin. Within a few weeks - during which the cast and crew stayed on in Italy without knowing if this movie would be made - the movie was picked up by Miramax Films.
November 6, 1998 -
Todd Haynes take on the early days of 70s glam rock in Britain, Velvet Goldmine, starring Ewan McGregor, Christian Bale, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Toni Collette, Eddie Izzard, and Alastair Cumming, went into limited release in the US on this date.
The film was originally supposed to feature some of David Bowie's music, hence the title, which was a Bowie song from the 1970s; however, when Bowie learned that the script for the film was partially based on the unauthorized biographies Stardust: The David Bowie Story written by Henry Edwards and Tony Zanetta and Backstage Passes written by Bowie's ex-wife Angie Bowie, he threatened the producers with a lawsuit. Bowie's songs were, therefore, not used, and the script was partially re-written to avoid unnecessary resemblance between Bowie and the Bowie-style character Brian Slade.
November 6, 2003 -
Richard Curtis' romantic comedy, Love Actually, starring Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson, Colin Firth, Laura Linney, Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Keira Knightley, Martine McCutcheon, Bill Nighy, and Rowan Atkinson premiered in the US on this date.
When casting the part of Sarah, writer and director Richard Curtis auditioned a great many British women, but kept saying, "I want someone like Laura Linney." The casting director eventually snapped and said, "Oh, for fuck's sake, get Laura Linney then." Linney then auditioned and got the part.
Another ACME Safety Film
Today in History (There will be a quiz at the end) -
November 6, 1860 -
US President Abraham Lincoln became the first Republican to be elected President on this date. He beat out three other candidates and won 40 percent of the popular vote.
By the time he was inaugurated in March of 1861, however, seven states had seceded from the Union and had elected Jefferson Davis as their president. The American Civil War began about a month later.
November 6, 1893 -
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, the greatest Russian composer of all time, was having the worst month in his life. Rumors of his homosexuality had become so well known that a coterie of his former classmates got together and forced him to drink cholera tainted (arsenic) water. Shortly after meeting with his 'old friends', Tchaikovsky suffered from acute diarrhea and stomach pains.
Tchaikovsky refused to call a doctor, and tried to carry on with his day, taking cod liver oil in an attempt to ease his stomach. Within days he was much worse, and a doctor diagnosed him with cholera. The mortality rate for cholera at that time was more than 40%, but he seemed to get better, then he would get worse again with more pains and cramps. Eventually his kidneys failed, a priest was called, and he died on this date.
The take away lesson from this is: avoid reunions with 'old friends'.
On November 6, 1911, Maine became a dry state on this date.
November 6, 1917 -
For some reason, Lenin and Trotsky take control of Petrograd to direct the October Revolution (even though it's November in most of the world.)
On November 6, 1923, the price of a loaf of bread in Berlin was reported to be about 140 billion German marks.
November 6, 1989 -
Today is the Feast of St. Katharine, the patron saint of the victims of long draw out campaign battles (see Pat Nixon, the Methodist saint.)
Before you go - First up this year of our cousins from across the pond, the worst of the worst holiday comercials. Coca-Cola’s promised something different this year from the bad commercial from last year. It's the same iconic red truck, but it’s driving through a snowy landscape where polar bears, hedgehogs and pandas (why pandas? Why?) look up through glazed, melty eyes to watch it drive past. Do not look to closely at them - they have no soul.
The cherry on top of the terrible cake? The terrible jingle that plays over the top of it. “It’s always a real thing!” the possibly AI-generated voices proclaim.
And so it goes
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