Film events
- The first sound film, The Jazz Singer, was released, with Al Jolson in the lead role. One of the first songs audiences heard in a sound film was “Blue Skies” by Irving Berlin.
- The musical film The Wizard of Oz premiered at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood after several changes of directors, scripts and cast. The film helped make Judy Garland's song “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” famous.
- The film The Wizard of Oz premiered in New York. Judy Garland became famous through the film, notably for the song “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”.
- The film “Holiday Inn” had its world premiere at the Paramount Theatre in New York. The film introduced the famous song “White Christmas.”
- Chuck Berry, LaVern Baker, Frankie Lymon and Connie Francis began work on the film “Rock, Rock, Rock!”
- Elvis Presley began the first day of filming his first movie, “The Reno Brothers”, later renamed “Love Me Tender”. The drama, set during and shortly after the American Civil War, tells the story of Clint Reno, the youngest of four brothers. Elvis originally had only a supporting role, but after his song “Love Me Tender” was added to the film, the movie was renamed after the song. It was the only Elvis film in which he was not the leading actor. He began work on the film just four days after “Don't Be Cruel” and “Hound Dog” reached No. 1 on the U.S. chart. Elvis wanted to continue his film career and gradually created his own film subgenre known as the “Presley Picture”.
- Elvis Presley began filming the movie “Love Me Tender”, originally titled “The Reno Brothers”. It was his first major film role.
- Elvis Presley was released from filming the movie Love Me Tender because all work required to complete the production had been finished.
- Filming began on the movie "Don't Knock the Rock", featuring Bill Haley.
- The film “Loving You” starring Elvis Presley premiered in London.
- Elvis Presley watched a special screening of the film Jailhouse Rock with his parents.
- Bobby Darin signed a six-year film contract with Paramount, which was expected at the time to earn him $1 million. As he transitioned from a teenage idol to a more universal artist, he wanted to move beyond roles aimed solely at teenage audiences and insisted on quality acting and serious filmmaking.
- The film A Private's Affair, starring Sal Mineo, premiered in New York. It also featured the song “The Same Old Army”.
- MGM released the film Girls Town starring Mamie Van Doren, Mel Tormé, and Ray Anthony. Paul Anka made his acting debut in the film and sang four songs: “Lonely Boy,” “It's Time to Cry,” “Girls Town Blues,” and “Ave Maria.” The Platters performed “Wish It Were Me” in the nightclub scene.
- Elvis Presley was fitted with brown contact lenses for his role as Pacer Burton in the film “Flaming Star,” intended to change his naturally blue eyes to brown. He ultimately did not use them in the film.
- Principal photography began on Elvis Presley's film Flaming Star at Conejo Movie Ranch in Thousand Oaks, California.
- A preview screening of Elvis Presley's film G.I. Blues was held in Dallas, Texas.
- The film “Flaming Star” was released during Elvis Presley’s Hollywood career.
- Connie Francis began work on her acting debut when MGM began filming the movie “Where the Boys Are” in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The film became a box-office success, but the planned sequel “Where the Girls Are” was never made.
- Elvis Presley was associated with the film Flaming Star.
- The film “Come September,” starring Bobby Darin and his wife Sandra Dee, was released in cinemas.
- The film Follow That Dream, starring Elvis Presley, was released as part of his film career. Elvis portrayed the lead role of Toby Kwimper, and the film was his first picture for the Mirisch Company.
- The film Follow That Dream, starring Elvis Presley, was released in New York. Elvis portrayed the lead role of Toby Kwimper, a member of a family that settles along the Florida coast.
- Elvis Presley's tenth feature film, "Kid Galahad", premiered in US cinemas. Elvis played an amateur boxer in the film. Gig Young, Lola Albright, Joan Blackman, and Charles Bronson also appeared in the film.
- The film It Happened at the World's Fair starring Elvis Presley was released.
- Production began in Seattle, Washington, on the film It Happened at the World's Fair. Elvis Presley arrived in Seattle for location filming and stayed in a suite on the 14th floor of the Doric New Washington Hotel.
- Elvis Presley took part in filming the movie "It Happened at the World's Fair" in Seattle. MGM closed part of the World's Fair grounds to the public for filming, and after word spread that Elvis would be there, hundreds of fans and curious onlookers gathered around the closed area.
- Elvis Presley filmed It Happened at the World’s Fair in Seattle; production ran from September 4 to 13.
- Film „Beach Party“ s Frankiem Avalonem a Annette Funicello byl uveden v kinech po celých Spojených státech. Hudbu k filmu nahráli Dick Dale And The Del Tones a film do konce roku utržil 1,2 milionu dolarů.
- Elvis Presley filmed a dance scene for the song “C'mon Everybody” at the University of Nevada gymnasium in Las Vegas for the film Viva Las Vegas.
- Rehearsals and filming began for a dance scene in the film Viva Las Vegas and continued for two days. The scene was set in a Las Vegas nightclub, where Elvis Presley and Ann-Margret first danced to a version of “The Climb,” followed by Elvis singing “What'd I Say.”
- The musical film Viva Las Vegas starring Elvis Presley was premiered.
- The Beatles' first film, A Hard Day's Night, premiered in New York.
- A Hard Day's Night was released in U.S. theaters and became a major film success for The Beatles.
- Following the success of The Beatles film A Hard Day's Night, The Dave Clark Five signed a film deal with Warner Bros. for the project Catch Us If You Can, which was released in the US under the title Having A Wild Weekend and premiered in the UK in July 1965.
- Disney released “Mary Poppins”, the Sherman brothers' musical starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke. It was Andrews' first film role, and she won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of the title character.
- Bobby Darin began filming his eighth movie, That Funny Feeling, in Hollywood, starring alongside his wife Sandra Dee.
- During the filming of “Easy Come, Easy Go,” a freight train collided with a flatcar carrying filmmakers and actors due to faulty signaling. Jan Berry was thrown from the impact and suffered a complicated fracture of his left leg. Director Barry Shear was also seriously injured, and at least 12 to 17 people were injured in total. Paramount Pictures subsequently canceled the project, and the film was never completed.
- Jan Berry broke his leg on the first day of filming “Easy Come, Easy Go,” and several other people were injured. Paramount subsequently canceled the film.
- The Beatles' second film, Help!, premiered in New York, two weeks after its London premiere. The band members were not particularly happy with the film.
- The film Help! premiered in New York. It was the US premiere of The Beatles' second film, which had already been released in London on July 29, 1965. The US release of the album of the same name also took place that day.
- The Beatles' second feature film “Help!” went into wide theatrical release across North America following its London premiere on July 29 and New York premiere on August 11.
- Jerry Lee Lewis was cast as Iago in the film “Catch My Soul”, a rock version of Shakespeare's “Othello”.
- John Lennon flew from London to Hanover, Germany, to begin work on his role as Private Gripweed in Richard Lester's film How I Won the War, which was filmed in Spain. The glasses worn by his character later became a defining part of Lennon's look.
- Filming began on The Fastest Guitar Alive, a comedy set during the American Civil War featuring Roy Orbison and Sam the Sham.
- Elvis Presley filmed exterior scenes at the Long Beach Naval Station.
- The film Double Trouble, starring Elvis Presley, was released in theaters. Elvis portrayed American singer Guy Lambert, who becomes entangled in a criminal plot while on a European tour.
- Elvis Presley was released from Speedway and was due to begin two nights of recording at RCA Studio A on Sunset Boulevard. However, because of an accident near Elvis's home in Bel Air, Colonel Parker, fearing negative publicity, sent Elvis and Priscilla to Las Vegas.
- Roy Orbison co-starred with Sheb Wooley in the musical comedy western The Fastest Guitar Alive, his only leading film role. The film was released in theaters in the United States and Canada. Its bizarre plot portrays Orbison as a Confederate spy who uses a special bullet-firing acoustic guitar to successfully rob the federal mint of its gold, only to be caught off guard when the Civil War ends immediately after the robbery.
- Elvis Presley arrived in Sedona, Arizona, to film Stay Away, Joe.
- Principal photography on the Elvis Presley film "Stay Away Joe" began.
- The Beatles performed before a live audience for the first time in two years when they filmed promotional films for “Hey Jude” and “Revolution” before approximately 100 spectators at Twickenham Studios. The filming went so well that they decided to create a documentary, which became Let It Be.
- The Beatles filmed a short film for the song “The Long and Winding Road”.
- The film „Alice's Restaurant“, based on Arlo Guthrie's song of the same name, was released in New York and Los Angeles several days after its Boston premiere. It grossed $6.3 million in the U.S. and became the 23rd highest-grossing film of 1969.
- Elvis Presley’s film The Trouble With Girls (And How To Get Into It) premiered in the United States. It was a period film set in the 1920s and was Presley’s 30th film.
- The film Easy Rider, starring Jack Nicholson, Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper, premiered at The Classic cinema in London. The soundtrack featured music by artists including The Band, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Byrds, The Electric Prunes, Steppenwolf and others.
- The film “Performance,” starring Mick Jagger, premiered in New York City, United States.
- The sci-fi musical “Toomorrow”, starring newcomer Olivia Newton-John as a pop singer whose group is abducted by aliens, premiered in cinemas. The film was intended to promote the group of the same name, but flopped and directed Newton-John toward a solo career.
- The film “Super Fly” was released in theaters along with Curtis Mayfield’s soundtrack, which became an important landmark in soul music.
- The film American Graffiti premiered at the Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland.
- Byla uvedena filmová adaptace rockového muzikálu „Jesus Christ Superstar“ z roku 1971.
- George Lucas's film American Graffiti premiered in theaters. Set in 1962, the story sparked a wave of nostalgia for music from the 1950s and early 1960s and helped revive interest in older recordings.
- The film “Electra Glide in Blue”, starring Robert Blake, Billy Greenbush and Mitch Ryan and featuring several members of the group Chicago, premiered in New York. The film was produced and directed by James William Guercio, manager and producer of Chicago.
- Elvis Presley screened several films at General Cinemas in Whitehaven, including “The Spy Who Loved Me.”
- The film “Rock & Roll High School,” starring the Ramones, premiered in New York.
- The futuristic satirical film Americathon premiered in Los Angeles, starring Meat Loaf. The soundtrack featured songs by The Beach Boys, Nick Lowe and Elvis Costello.
- John Lennon and Bob Dylan were associated with the documentary Eat the Document, which was broadcast on PBS. The film contained footage from Dylan's 1966 British tour.
- The film „Rock & Roll High School“, starring the Ramones, premiered in New York. The title song became one of their classic tracks and the film gained cult status.
- The film The Rose, starring Bette Midler as a self-destructive 1960s rock star, premiered in Los Angeles. The character was inspired by Janis Joplin. The film received four Academy Award nominations, including nominations for Bette Midler for Best Actress and Frederic Forrest for Best Supporting Actor. David Keith also appeared in the film and later portrayed Elvis in Heartbreak Hotel.
- The semi-autobiographical film “One Trick Pony”, starring Paul Simon, premiered in New York. The film was also released in US cinemas, and the soundtrack song “Late in the Evening” reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100.
- Paul Simon's semi-biographical film One-Trick Pony, in which he also played the lead role, premiered in US cinemas. The film received mixed reviews and became both a critical and commercial failure, grossing less than $150,000 on a budget of approximately $8 million. The soundtrack was more successful – the title song reached No. 40 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and “Late in the Evening” climbed as high as No. 6.
- Animovaný sci-fi film „Heavy Metal“ měl premiéru. Jeho soundtrack obsahoval skladby interpretů včetně Sammyho Hagara, Devo, Blue Öyster Cult, Cheap Trick, Journey a Black Sabbath a film se později stal kultovní klasikou.
- The film “Pink Floyd The Wall,” starring Bob Geldof, premiered in theaters in New York. Roger Waters wrote it as a companion project to Pink Floyd's self-titled double album.
- George Strait made his film debut in “The Soldier”, where he sang his song “Fool Hearted Memory” in a honky-tonk during the outbreak of a fight. The song later became the first of his 44 country No. 1 hits.
- The film “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence”, starring David Bowie, premiered in New York.
- The film Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, starring David Bowie, was released in the United States.
- Francis Ford Coppola's film Rumble Fish was released in theaters. Tom Waits appeared in the film as the owner of Benny's Billiards, and his character was given an extended poetic monologue about life, time, and aging.
- The film "Purple Rain" starring Prince was released in cinemas across the United Kingdom, including special late-night previews. The film grossed more than $80 million worldwide and became a cult classic.
- The film "Desperately Seeking Susan" went into general release in the UK. It starred Madonna and Rosanna Arquette. The filmmakers originally intended Diane Keaton and Goldie Hawn for the roles of Roberta and Susan, but director Susan Seidelman ultimately chose the then relatively new actresses Rosanna Arquette and Madonna.
- The film “Stand by Me” was released in theaters. It is based on Stephen King's novella “The Body”, but director Rob Reiner decided to name the film after the famous song to emphasize the story of friendship and avoid making the title sound like a horror film.
- Madonna appeared in the film "Shanghai Surprise", which flopped at the box office and was harshly rejected by critics. The film was produced by George Harrison's HandMade Films, and Harrison said of Madonna that she had no sense of humor, which was unfortunate for a comedy.
- The film “True Stories,” directed by and starring David Byrne, was released in cinemas. The film's soundtrack served as Talking Heads' seventh album.
- The film “Who's That Girl,” starring Madonna, premiered in New York.
- Film „Back to the Beach“ byl uveden v kinech po celých Spojených státech a po 24 letech znovu spojil Frankieho Avalona a Annette Funicello. Film utržil 13 milionů dolarů.
- The film “Dirty Dancing” was released in US cinemas. In November, its soundtrack reached No. 1 in America, where it sold more than 11 million copies.
- The film Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll about Chuck Berry premiered in U.S. cinemas.
- The documentary film Imagine: John Lennon, commissioned by Yoko Ono and directed by Andrew Solt, premiered in theaters.
- The film Wild at Heart was released in North America. Nicolas Cage portrayed a character who was partly inspired by Elvis Presley.
- The film was released in limited distribution in the US. All four members of The Corrs appeared in minor roles, including the youngest, Andrea, in a speaking role as Sharon Rabbitte. During the film's auditions, The Corrs met future manager John Hughes, who helped them refine their sound and eventually helped the group secure a contract with Atlantic Records for their debut album Forgiven, Not Forgotten.
- The film “Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man” was released in U.S. cinemas. The film featured the song “The Bigger They Come” by Peter Frampton and Steve Marriott, their first collaboration since they had been members of Humble Pie 20 years earlier.
- Jimmy Page and Robert Plant filmed the concert film No Quarter, documenting their reunion.
- The film Dangerous Minds, starring Michelle Pfeiffer, premiered in US theaters. Its soundtrack reached No. 1 on the Billboard albums chart, driven by Coolio's lead single “Gangsta's Paradise.”
- The film “She's The One”, featuring a soundtrack by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, was released in cinemas. Jennifer Aniston and Edward Burns, who appeared in the film, also appeared in the video for the song “Walls”.
- The film “Studio 54” about the legendary New York nightclub premiered. Ryan Phillippe and Mike Myers, who portrayed one of the club’s owners, starred in the film.
- The film “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” about singer Frankie Lymon, frontman of Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, was released in theaters. Named after his famous song, the film was a biographical musical drama starring Larenz Tate, Halle Berry, and Vivica A. Fox.
- The film “Detroit Rock City,” produced by KISS, received its nationwide theatrical release in the United States.
- The film Detroit Rock City premiered in US cinemas. The story follows four young KISS fans trying to attend their favorite band's concert; the film was inspired by KISS and its fans and recalled the reunion of KISS's original lineup at the time.
- The film “Coyote Ugly” premiered in U.S. theaters.
- The film “Rock Star”, starring Mark Wahlberg as the singer of a tribute band who eventually joins his favorite group, was released in theaters. The film featured several musicians, including Stephan Jenkins of Third Eye Blind and Brian Vander Ark of The Verve Pipe, whose song “Colorful” Wahlberg pretends to sing at the end of the film.
- The film Clambake starring Elvis Presley was released on DVD.
- The film School of Rock was released in cinemas. Jack Black plays a musician who poses as a substitute teacher and forms a band with his students. The film is filled with classic rock and includes songs such as “Highway to Hell,” “Smoke on the Water” and “Immigrant Song.” The latter song was obtained after Jack Black recorded a video literally begging Led Zeppelin for permission to use it. The film is also notable for the acting debut of Miranda Cosgrove.
- The film The Concert For George, documenting the benefit concert and star-studded tribute to recently deceased former Beatles member George Harrison, premiered in US cinemas.
- Status Quo filmed a cameo appearance for the British television series Coronation Street, where they were set to play themselves in three episodes.
- The Bob Dylan biographical film I'm Not There: Suppositions on a Film Concerning Dylan premiered at the Venice Film Festival in Italy. Directed by Todd Haynes, the film features six actors portraying different aspects or periods of Dylan's life and music, including Cate Blanchett, Richard Gere, Heath Ledger and Christian Bale. Before its wider release later in 2007, the title was shortened to I'm Not There.
- Connie Stevens began filming Saving Grace in Missouri, her directorial debut.
- Justin Timberlake portrayed Napster co-founder Sean Parker in the film “The Social Network”, which tells the story of the creation of Facebook and was nominated for an Academy Award.
- Martin Scorsese's documentary George Harrison: Living in the Material World premiered on HBO. Ringo Starr spoke about Harrison's personality in the film.
- The film Sparkle, in which Jordin Sparks portrayed an aspiring singer and Whitney Houston played her mother, was released in theaters. It was Whitney Houston's final film.
- Cinemas across the UK handed out earplugs to parents accompanying their children to the film One Direction: This Is Us 3D. The accompanying adults could therefore enjoy the film without worrying about the expected loud screaming and cheering in the theaters.
- Lady Gaga made her film debut as the shapeshifting assassin La Camaleon in Robert Rodriguez's action crime film Machete Kills.
- The concert film One Direction: Where We Are – The Concert Film was released in cinemas. Its worldwide theatrical run ended the following day, and the film set a record as the highest-grossing event cinema production, with net revenues of $15 million.
- Apple ended its Elvis Presley biopic project, which was backed by Harvey Weinstein.
- The Warner Bros. Pictures film Joker used Gary Glitter's song “Rock and Roll Part 2.” The use of the song caused controversy because of Glitter's conviction for sexual offenses and concerns that he might receive significant royalties from the film. The rights holders later confirmed that Gary Glitter would receive no royalties or other payments from the use of the song because he had previously sold his rights; in the US, the publishing rights are held by Universal Music Publishing Group.
- The film Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles premiered on Disney+. It featured Billie Eilish performing the album Happier Than Ever from beginning to end at the Hollywood Bowl with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, combined with animated sequences in which her avatar has various adventures in Los Angeles, her hometown.
- The concert film Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour opened in US theaters. It featured footage from three concerts in Los Angeles the previous August. US advance ticket sales generated a record $37 million on the first day and exceeded $100 million worldwide. The film became the highest-grossing concert film of all time, with worldwide box-office revenue of $267.1 million.
- The film "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice" opened in theaters with a soundtrack that revived 1970s songs including "MacArthur Park", "Tragedy" and "Margaritaville". The film also featured "Right Here Waiting" by Richard Marx and "Svefn-G-Englar" by Sigur Rós.
- The film Piece by Piece, a biographical story about Pharrell Williams told through LEGO-style animation, opened in cinemas. His close collaborators, including Gwen Stefani, Justin Timberlake and Snoop Dogg, also appeared as LEGO characters.