January 8, 1999. The legal flick
A Civil Action was released in the USA on this date. Stephen Zaillian wrote the screenplay and directed, based on a nonfiction book by Jonathan Harr. John Travolta starred as Jan Schlichtmann, the attorney who sued companies on behalf of families who felt they had been exposed to carcinogenic pollution. The movie scored two Oscar nominations.
Hi, Rob,
ReplyDeleteMy son Andrew who is an attorney here in NJ refers to this film often. He considers it outstanding since it's based on a true law case. As Andrew observes, an attorney can do the right thing, win in theory, but lose in reality. It's probably the best role Travolta ever tackled!
Cool movie and cool idea for a blog. Here's a date in January and one in February.
ReplyDeleteJanuary 21 (1992), the publication of Michael Connelly's debut novel, The Black Echo, which launched the Harry Bosch series. (Note: This is the initial publication date, for the original hardcover. Paperback, ebook, etc. will show different, later pub dates.)
February 14 (1929), the St. Valentine's Day massacre of "Bugs" Moran's gang members in Chicago, allegedly commited by rival Al Capone's mobsters.
Best wishes,
Peter DiChellis
A bit ahead of time but noteworthy. The first story with the Father Brown character created by G.K. Chesterton - "Valentin Follows a Curious Trail" - appeared in The Saturday Evening Post, 23 July 1910.
ReplyDeleteThe sixth story - "The Invisible Man" - appeared also in The Saturday Evening Post, 28 January 1911.