December 16, 2009 saw the premiere of the James Cameron 
blockbuster science fiction film Avatar. One of the most
expensive films ever made, it was also one of the most
successful, holding the title of highest-grossing film of all
time for nearly a decade.

Starring: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, 
                Michelle Rodriquez, and Sigourney Weaver
              
              

Director James Cameron (69)

On November 14, 1941, Suspicion, a romantic thriller starring Cary
Grant and Joan Fontaine and directed by Alfred Hitchcock, made
its debut. The film, which earned a Best Picture Academy Award nomination and a Best Actress Oscar for Fontaine, marked the
first time that Grant, one of Hollywood’s quintessential leading
men, and Hitchcock, one of the greatest directors in movie history, worked together. The two would later collaborate on Notorious,
To Catch a Thief and North by Northwest.

Alfred Hitchcock (center) directing Cary Grant in a scene 
from Suspicion.
       

William Bendix in “Lifeboat” (1944) 20th Century Fox.

This is one of the iconic Hitchcock cameos mostly because of
the logistics of it. After all, this is a film about a group of people
stranded on a lifeboat. How could Hitch finagle himself in? Why
by having himself appear in an ad in a newspaper. Hitchcock
can be seen in the before-and-after photos for Reduco Obesity
Slayer.

Stone as a G.I. in Vietnam / 1968.

For his service, he received military honors such as the Bronze
Star with "V" Device for valor, the Purple Heart with Oak Leaf
Cluster, the National Defense Service Medal, the Vietnam Service
Medal with one Silver Service Star.

Film director, producer, and screenwriter William Oliver Stone is
77 years old today.

1991

David Jacobs, creator of such classic soap opera series as
"Knots Landing" and "Dallas," has died. He was 84.

Jacobs died of heart failure and suffered from several health
issues leading up to his death, including a battle with
Alzheimer’s and kidney problems.