It's been 30 years since Baby and Johnny had the time of their life, but "Dirty Dancing" remains as popular as when it opened on Aug. 21, 1987. Actually, it's even more popular: When the ABC remake…
When Elvis Presley died August 16, 1977, at age 42, fans around the world went into a collective state of shock. According to Variety, he lay in state for three and a half hours on Aug. 17 at…
Casting director Carmen Cuba boasts a great set of credits, including "The Martian," "Magic Mike" and "The Knick." One of her specialties is casting the right children — as she did on Netflix's hit…
When the Detroit uprising of 1967 erupted, Variety covered it from only a showbiz angle. A brief story in our July 26 weekly edition read: "Negro riots here have closed film and legitimate theaters…
Happy birthday, Frodo. J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" debuted July 29, 1954; the next two books were published separately in the next 15 months. Tolkien's popularity…
Amid talk about Hollywood diversity, one group gets consistently overlooked: people with disabilities, who comprise 19% of the U.S. population (57 million). They're seeking more representation behind…
On July 16, "Game of Thrones," the medieval fantasy for people who don't normally like medieval fantasies, begins its seventh season on HBO. The battle scenes and the dragons are epic, but the…
Fox's "War for the Planet of the Apes" is generating strong buzz before its July 14 launch. When the film series began 50 years ago, nobody imagined it would last this long. In fact, they weren't…
It's National Bikini Day on July 5, celebrating Louis Reard's 1946 invention of the swimwear (of course it would be in France!). The swimsuit wasn't an immediate hit, though, due to 1940s standards…
June 25 is the 35th anniversary of the 1982 Ridley Scott-directed “Blade Runner,” one of the all-time science-fiction classics. The long-planned sequel, “Blade Runner 2049,” starring Ryan Gosling…
June 30 would be the 100th birthday of Lena Horne, who had it all: looks, charm, and a singing voice that was noted for its "expressiveness and dramatic intensity," as Variety once wrote. Hollywood…
