Pick a Day

Music History Events: Movies

December 22, 1988 During an interview, Phil Collins jokes about wanting to make a film version of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" with Danny DeVito and Bob Hoskins. DeVito later reads the interview and contacts Phil about actually making the movie. Hoskins also signs on (as well as Kim Basinger as Goldilocks) but the film is never made.

November 4, 1988 The U2 documentary Rattle And Hum opens worldwide.

September 16, 1988 Phil Collins lands his first leading role in a film, playing real-life criminal Buster Edwards in the box-office bomb Buster. Musically, the movie isn't a bust, with two #1 hits on the soundtrack: "A Groovy Kind Of Love" and "Two Hearts."

August 6, 1988 Thanks to its inclusion on the Dirty Dancing soundtrack, the Contours' 1962 hit "Do You Love Me" makes another chart run, peaking at #11.

June 3, 1988 Tom Hanks and Robert Loggia play a memorable duet of "Heart and Soul" and "Chopsticks" on a foot-operated electronic keyboard in the fantasy comedy Big.

November 8, 1987 Generating footage for their Rattle and Hum documentary, U2 play a free "Save the Yuppie" concert at Justin Herman Plaza in San Francisco. An arrest warrant is issued for Bono after he spray paints "Rock n Roll Stops Traffic" on a fountain sculpture.

August 21, 1987 The film Dirty Dancing is released. In November, the soundtrack goes to #1 in America, where it sells over 11 million copies.

August 14, 1987 Rap trio the Fat Boys star in the movie Disorderlies, where they play caretakers hired for their incompetence.

October 10, 1986 The film True Stories, directed by and starring David Byrne, is released in theaters. The soundtrack serves as Talking Heads' seventh album.

July 2, 1986 The second Prince movie, Under the Cherry Moon, hits theaters. Unlike the first, Purple Rain, Prince directs it himself.More

February 28, 1986 The movie Pretty In Pink, based on the Psychedelic Furs song but with a very distorted interpretation of the lyric, is released in theaters.More

October 1, 1985 The low-budget independent film A Certain Sacrifice, starring Madonna, is released on home video to capitalize on the pop star's fame. It was filmed five years earlier but was never released in theaters.

July 19, 1985 The Legend of Billie Jean, starring Helen Slater and Christian Slater as teens who become accidental outlaws, debuts in theaters, boasting the hit theme song "Invincible" by Pat Benatar. The teen flick receives mixed reviews but goes on to become a cult classic, despite Benatar calling it "one of the worst movies ever made."More

June 7, 1985 The movie Perfect debuts in theaters, starring John Travolta as a Rolling Stone reporter who falls for aerobics instructor Jamie Lee Curtis. While the drama is a dud with critics, it portrays Rolling Stone as more than a music magazine – which is exactly what its editor-in-chief Jann Wenner hoped. More

July 20, 1984 The NeverEnding Story debuts in US theaters, featuring a theme song by former Kajagoogoo lead singer Limahl.

June 8, 1984 The movie Beat Street opens in theaters. One of the first films with a hip-hop backdrop, it features appearances by Doug E. Fresh, Melle Mel and Afrika Bambaataa & Soul Sonic Force.

June 7, 1984 The film Ghostbusters is released. Its theme song bears similarities to Huey Lewis' "I Want a New Drug." Ghostbusters theme writer Ray Parker, Jr. and Huey settle out of court.

December 16, 1983 Hoping to jumpstart her flagging acting career after the box-office bomb Xanadu, Olivia Newton-John reunites with Grease co-star John Travolta in the fantasy film Two of a Kind. It flops, but yields the Top 10 hit "Twist Of Fate."

July 30, 1982 The Ron Howard comedy Night Shift, starring Henry Winkler and Michael Keaton, debuts in theaters. The soundtrack features the song "That's What Friends Are For," performed by Rod Stewart. Written by Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager, it becomes a huge hit four years later when Dionne Warwick, Elton John, Gladys Knight, and Stevie Wonder (aka Dionne & Friends) cover it for AIDS awareness, winning Grammys for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals and Song of the Year.

July 23, 1982 Dolly Parton stars as a brothel owner in the musical film The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, alongside Burt Reynolds. She earns a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.

February 20, 1982 Death Wish II is released in the USA with a soundtrack by Jimmy Page.

July 17, 1981 Universal Pictures releases the romantic drama Endless Love, starring Brooke Shields. The film is quickly forgotten, but the theme song, a duet by Lionel Richie and Diana Ross, spends nine weeks at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earns Richie an Academy Award nomination for Best Song.

December 5, 1980 The movie Flash Gordon, with a theme song by Queen, opens in theaters.

June 6, 1980 Urban Cowboy, a Western romance film starring John Travolta and Debra Winger, opens in theaters. The mellow country soundtrack spawns hits from Kenny Rogers, Johnny Lee, and Anne Murray, and spurs a trend of pop-leaning fare in country music dubbed the "Urban Cowboy Movement."More

September 22, 1978 Tom Waits makes his film debut in Paradise Alley, written and directed by Sylvester Stallone, playing a bar-dwelling piano player named Mumbles.

February 11, 1977 Motown Productions debuts its first film, Scott Joplin, based on the life of the ragtime composer. Billy Dee Williams earns accolades for his performance as the "Maple Leaf Rag" mastermind, but the film is widely criticized for being too grim.

November 12, 1976 All This And World War II opens in theaters. The film is a disjointed collection of WWII newsreel footage and clips from other movies soundtracked to covers of Beatles songs, the most successful of which is Ambrosia's version of "Magical Mystery Tour."

October 20, 1976 The Led Zeppelin concert documentary The Song Remains The Same opens in London and New York, with the band attending the New York premiere.

June 20, 1975 John Travolta makes his film debut as a Satanist in the horror flick The Devil's Rain, starring William Shatner. Just two years later, Travolta struts his stuff in Saturday Night Fever.

March 14, 1975 The movie Rancho Deluxe, starring Jeff Bridges and Sam Waterston as Montana cattle ranchers, debuts in US theaters. It features a soundtrack by Jimmy Buffett, who appears in the film singing the tune "Livingston Saturday Night."