Uncharted Territory
Today marks the 220th anniversary of the start of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Fresh off of the Louisiana Purchase, Pres. Thomas Jefferson tapped his young secretary, Meriwether Lewis (who brought his friend William Clark), to chart the wilderness west of the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean. In addition to drafting detailed maps, Lewis identified 178 plants and 122 animals new to science, including the grizzly bear and prairie dog, on the storied 8,000-mile trek.
The Importance of Native American Women to the Expedition
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The A-List of B-Films
Roger Corman, the B-movie mogul whose career spanned six decades, died last Thursday. He was 98. Corman produced or directed hundreds of films, and in 2009 he was given an honorary Academy Award for lifetime achievement. His influence on American cinema was huge, in large part because of his discovery and promotion of young actors and directors, including the following.
Directors
Corman’s low-budget productions gave many noted directors their big break, including Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, Peter Bogdanovich, James Cameron, and Jonathan Demme. Corman also acted, and would appear in the films of those he helped, including minor roles in Coppola’s The Godfather: Part II and Demme’s Philadelphia.
Actors
Several actors who became stars honed their skills in Corman productions, including Robert De Niro, Ellen Burstyn, Dennis Quaid, and Diane Ladd. Jack Nicholson made his big-screen debut in Corman’s The Cry Baby Killer (1958), and played in several of his productions, including The Raven, The Trip, and Corman’s most enduring film...
Productions
The Little Shop of Horrors spawned a wave of stage musicals and remains his most popular film. Corman (pictured below) produced and directed the 1960 cult-classic, which was shot in just two days and one night. He also made a series of films based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe, most of which starred Vincent Price.
© 1960 Santa Clara Productions, Inc. with The Filmgroup
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