Sounder, 1972
Sounder, directed by Martin Ritt and based on the book by William H. Armstrong, was released in September of 1972 and ended up as the 15th most successful film of the year. The movie stars Paul Winfield (King, 1978), Cicely Tyson (Roots, 1977) and Kevin Hooks (The White Shadow, 1978) and is guaranteed to bring a few tears to your jaded eyes.
I saw this one in the theater when I was six. I think it’s high time I gave it another viewing. Enjoy the trailer below.
“New York, London, Paris, Munich. Everybody talk about…” Pop Muzik, 1979
English musician Robin Scott, aka “M”, released his “Pop Muzik” single in May of 1979 in the UK where it rose to #2 on the charts. The song released in August ’79 in the US and it climbed all the way to #1.
I was a fan of the tune and bought the 45 when it came out. I’d have been 12 years old or perhaps a freshly-turned 13-yr-old if I picked it up closer to when it hit #1 in November in the US. New Wave for young teens. Turn up your internal synthesiser, put on your skinny tie and enjoy.
Return to the Planet of the Apes intro, 1975
DePatie-Freleng produced 13 episodes of the animated series Return to the Planet of the Apes and they aired on NBC in 1975 and ’76. The animation was quite limited and there was a distinct lack of Roddy McDowall and Kim Hunter, but hey, it was more Planet of the Apes, so we watched and vaguely enjoyed.
Here’s the intro. Hit the IMDb link below for full episodes if your ape interest is piqued.
Imagine the eyes blinking and the camera zooming and there you have it… spine-tingling animation!
Return to the Planet of the Apes Wiki,
Watch full episodes at IMDB.
Todd Rundgren and bird brows sing ‘Hello It’s Me’, 1973
Todd Rundgren originally recorded “Hello It’s Me” in 1968 with his band, Nazz. In 1972, Rundgren recorded a new version of the tune for his Something/Anything solo L.P. and it rose to #5 on the Billboard “Hot 100” US charts.
Here’s Rundgren performing “Hello It’s Me” on The Midnight Special in ’73 – feathers and all.
TODD RUNDGREN, ‘HELLO IT’S ME’ (LIVE, 1973)
Brady Bunch Moments: Greg serenades “Raquel”, October, 1973.
Welcome to another exciting entry in our series of posts we like to call: “Brady Bunch Moments”. This time around we have a nugget from the fifth season episode of The Brady Bunch entitled “Getting Greg’s Goat”, which originally aired on October 19, 1973.
Remember the episode where Greg stole the Coolidge High mascot? C’mon, you remember – the mascot was an attractive goat called “Raquel”. Robert (Mike Brady) Reed was notorious for voicing his disapproval of some of the more unbelievable Brady scripts that came down the pike. Well, he must have liked this one, despite the wacky premiss, as he directed the episode. Enjoy!
Ali MacGraw & Ryan O’Neal, 1970
Love Story, written by Erich Segal and directed by Arthur Hiller, was released in December of 1970. The film stars Ryan O’Neal and Ali McGraw as young lovers; Oliver Barrett and Jennifer Cavilleri. Many critics disliked this romantic and tragic tale but Love Story went on to become the highest grossing film of the year.
Check out this new photo of O’Neal and MacGraw who recently reunited for a Paramount Pictures 100th anniversary event and take in the original trailer from 1970.
Ryan O’Neal & Ali MacGraw at Paramount Pictures 100th anniversary, 2012 (Photo: Paramount Pictures/MPTVImages.com)
Yahoo! Movies/Movie Talk Quote:
“It was only the second time in the last decade that O’Neal and MacGraw have reunited (they appeared on ‘Oprah’ in 2010 to mark the film’s 40th anniversary). MacGraw, now 73, left California for New Mexico in 1994 after a wildfire destroyed her home. She devotes most of her time now to animal rights activism, but she told Yahoo! Movies that she was honored to be invited back to take part in the photo alongside her ‘Love Story’ costar.”