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30 years ago - November 15, 1985

Once Bitten
Most audiences may think of Jim Carrey’s movie career as starting in 1994 with Ace Ventura, but did you know that he not only starred in a movie nearly 10 years earlier but that it also opened at #1? Credit his rising success as a stand up comic in the early 1980s; Carrey auditioned for SNL the same season that Eddie Murphy started, and was featured on The Tonight Show at age 20. In this comedy he plays one of the few remaining virgins in Los Angeles who becomes a target of a vampire played by Lauren Hutton. Once Bitten received poor reviews but still opened ahead of Jagged Edge (#2 in its seventh week) with $4 million from 1,095 theaters, and eventually exceeded its budget with a $9.9 million gross.

Rainbow Brite and the Star Stealer
Rainbow Brite was a franchise character developed by Hallmark Cards and Mattel in the early 1980s with dolls and and animated primetime specials. This film was produced by the same company behind Inspector Gadget and The Littles. Reviews were weak and audience interest wasn’t any better. Rainbow Brite opened at #7 with $1.8 million from 1,088 theaters and went on to gross $4.8 million.

And an extra anniversary this week...
35 years ago - November 14, 1980

Raging Bull
A couple of months ago I pointed out that we were celebrating the 25th anniversary of arguably one of Scorsese’s best - Goodfellas. The other side of that argument could be Raging Bull, Scorsese’s biopic of boxer Jake La Motta. Robert De Niro (in his fourth project with Scorsese) famously gained 60 pounds to portray the middleweight boxer in decline. Cathy Moriarty plays his wife in her film debut, and Joe Pesci plays his brother Joey. The movie was not initially well received by audiences, perhaps due to the violent relationships in the story and maybe even due to the film being shot in black and white. But Raging Bull went on to receive eight Oscar nominations (including Best Picture and the three main roles) and wins for De Niro and Editing. Ten years after release, the movie was entered into the National Film Registry and 35 years on, it’s still recognized as one of Scorsese’s best.


Come back next week for another installment of Marquee History!

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