The Big Sleep (1939) is a hardboiled crime novel by American-British writer Raymond Chandler, the first to feature the detective Philip Marlowe. It has been adapted for film twice, in 1946 and again in 1978. The story is set in Los Angeles.
The Tall T is a 1957 American Western film directed by Budd Boetticher and starring Randolph Scott, Richard Boone, and Maureen O'Sullivan. Adapted by Burt Kennedy from the 1955 short story "The Captives" by Elmore Leonard, the film is about an independent former ranch foreman who is kidnapped along with an heiress, who is being held for ransom by three ruthless outlaws. In 2000, The Tall T was selected for the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."
Sherman Alexander Hemsley was an American actor. He was known for his roles as George Jefferson on the CBS television series All in the Family and The Jeffersons (1975–1985), Deacon Ernest Frye on the NBC series Amen (1986–1991), and B. P. Richfield on the ABC series Dinosaurs. Hemsley also played Judge Carl Robertson on the NBC series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. For his work on The Jeffersons, Hemsley was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award. Hemsley also won an NAACP Image Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Comedy Series or Special in 1982.
Dumb and Dumber is a 1994 American buddy comedy film directed by Peter Farrelly, who cowrote the screenplay with Bobby Farrelly and Bennett Yellin. It is the first installment in the Dumb and Dumber franchise. Starring Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels, it tells the story of Lloyd Christmas (Carrey) and Harry Dunne (Daniels), two dumb but well-meaning friends from Providence, Rhode Island, who set out on a cross-country road trip to Aspen, Colorado, to return a briefcase full of money to its owner, thinking it was abandoned as a mistake, though it was actually left as a ransom. Lauren Holly, Karen Duffy, Mike Starr, Charles Rocket, and Teri Garr play supporting roles.
Elaine Stritch was an American actress, known for her work on Broadway and later, television. She made her professional stage debut in 1944 and appeared in numerous stage plays, musicals, feature films and television series. Stritch was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 1995.
Abra-Catastrophe! is a television film initially released as the seventh, eighth, and ninth episodes of the third season of The Fairly OddParents, serving as the first special of the show. It was originally broadcast on Nickelodeon in the United States on July 12, 2003.
Hera Pheri is a 2000 Indian Hindi-language heist comedy drama film directed by Priyadarshan and written by Neeraj Vora, starring Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty, Paresh Rawal, Tabu, Om Puri and Gulshan Grover. The film is a remake of 1989 Malayalam film Ramji Rao Speaking which itself was inspired by the 1971 American TV movie See The Man Run. It is the first instalment of the Hera Pheri franchise. The plot revolves around two tenants, Raju and Shyam, and their landlord, Baburao Ganpatrao Apte, who are in desperate need of money. They chance upon a ransom call through a cross-connection and hatch a plan to claim the ransom for themselves.
Norman Gene Macdonald was a Canadian stand-up comedian, actor, and writer whose style was characterized by deadpan delivery, eccentric understatement, and the use of folksy, old-fashioned turns of phrase. He appeared in many films and was a regular guest on late-night talk shows, where he became known for his chaotic, yet understated style of comedy. Many critics and fellow comedians praised his frequent appearances on talk shows, while late-night host David Letterman regarded him as "the best" of stand-up comedians.
Piccadilly Jim is a novel by P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United States on 24 February 1917 by Dodd, Mead and Company, New York, and in the United Kingdom in May 1918 by Herbert Jenkins, London. The story had previously appeared in the US in the Saturday Evening Post between 16 September and 11 November 1916.
Masterminds is a 1997 American action comedy film directed by Roger Christian, written by Floyd Byers and starring Patrick Stewart, Vincent Kartheiser, Brenda Fricker, Brad Whitford, and Matt Craven. It tells the story of a computer engineering prodigy who matches wits with a security consultant who has taken over his stepsister's school that he used to go to as a ransom is demanded for their release.
The Enemy is the eighth book in the Jack Reacher series written by Lee Child. It is narrated in the first person.
Rome Express is a 1932 British thriller film directed by Walter Forde and starring Esther Ralston and Conrad Veidt. Based on a story by Clifford Grey, with a screenplay by Sidney Gilliat, the film is a tale about a European express train to Rome carrying diverse characters, including thieves, adulterers, blackmail victims, and an American film star. The film won the American National Board of Review award for Best Foreign Film. Rome Express was remade as Sleeping Car to Trieste (1948).
An Inspector Calls is a 1954 British drama film directed by Guy Hamilton and starring Alastair Sim, Jane Wenham and Eileen Moore. It is based upon the 1945 play An Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley and was adapted for the screen by Desmond Davis. It was shot at Shepperton Studios with sets designed by the art director Joseph Bato.
Mirage is a 1965 American neo noir thriller film starring Gregory Peck and Diane Baker, and released by Universal Pictures. Directed by Edward Dmytryk from a screenplay by Peter Stone, it is based on the 1952 novel Fallen Angel, written by Howard Fast under the pseudonym Walter Ericson; the novel is not credited by title onscreen. Walter Matthau, George Kennedy, Leif Erickson and Kevin McCarthy appear in support.
Three Weeks in Paris is a 1925 American silent comedy film from Warner Bros. starring Matt Moore and Dorothy Devore.
It All Came True is a 1940 American musical comedy crime film starring Ann Sheridan as a fledgling singer and Humphrey Bogart, who was third-billed on movie posters, as a gangster who hides from the police in a boarding house. It is based on the Louis Bromfield novel Better Than Life. Sheridan introduced the hit song "Angel in Disguise". The picture was produced by Mark Hellinger and directed by Lewis Seiler. The cast also featured Jeffrey Lynn as the leading man, Zasu Pitts, and Una O'Connor.
Buddy's Song is a 1991 British comedy-drama film starring Chesney Hawkes, Roger Daltrey, Sharon Duce and Michael Elphick, based on the 1987 novel of the same name by Nigel Hinton. The film follows a teenage boy, Buddy Clark (Hawkes), who is determined to make it as a pop star, aided by his father Terry (Daltrey). He struggles with young love, estranged parents and the problems associated with making it in the music business.
The Crime Smasher is a 1943 American crime comedy film directed by James Tinling and starring Edgar Kennedy, Richard Cromwell and Gale Storm. It is based on the Radio program Cosmo Jones featuring Frank Graham. The film's sets were designed by the art director Dave Milton. It is sometimes alternatively titled Cosmo Jones in the Crime Smasher.
Watch the Birdie is a 1950 American comedy film directed by Jack Donohue and starring Red Skelton, Arlene Dahl and Ann Miller.
Norm Macdonald: Nothing Special is a stand-up comedy special featuring Norm Macdonald, consisting of 50 minutes of previously unreleased material recorded by Macdonald in June 2020, and a half-hour roundtable discussion featuring his friends and colleagues reflecting on his life and career. It was released on Netflix on May 30, 2022, eight months after Macdonald's death from acute leukemia.
