Dustin Hoffman in The Graduate

On December 20, in 1967 an American comedy-drama film directed by Mike Nichols debuts:  The Graduate

This film it is based on the 1963 novel The Graduate by Charles Webb, who wrote it shortly after graduating from Williams College. The screenplay was by Buck Henry, who makes a cameo appearance as a hotel clerk, and Calder Willingham. The film tells the story of Benjamin Braddock (played by Dustin Hoffman), a recent university graduate with no well-defined aim in life, who is seduced by an older woman, Mrs. Robinson (played by Anne Bancroft), and then proceeds to fall in love with her daughter Elaine (Katharine Ross).

In 1996, The Graduate was selected for preservation in the U.S. National Film Registry as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”. Initially, the film was placed at #7 on AFI’ s 100 Years… 100 Movies list in 1998. When AFI revised the list in 2007, the film was moved to #17.

Adjusted for inflation, the film is #21 on the list of highest-grossing films in the United States and Canada.

The film boosted the profile of folk-rock duo Simon & Garfunkel. Originally, Nichols and O’ Steen used their existing songs like “The Sound of Silence” merely as a pacing device for the editing until Nichols decided that substituting original music would not be effective and decided to include them on the soundtrack, an unusual move at that time.

On the strength of the hit single “Mrs. Robinson”, the soundtrack album rose to the top of the charts in 1968 (knocking off The Beatles’ White Album).

Hello darkness, my old friend
I’ve come to talk with you again
Because a vision softly creeping
Left its seeds while I was sleeping
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains
Within the sound of silence…………………………

Some paper ideas from the same date from the past!

KO for eCharta

Happy birthday Mr. Steven Spielberg!

As today December 18, in 1946 a man that he finally became a symbol in the movie history was born; Ladies and Gentlemen we present you through paper memorabilia Mr. Steven Spielberg!

It’s really hard to talk about a living legend. In that case we say just a few words for his early life and we “shoot” some paper memorabilia to show to you very few of the famous and unforgettable moment he gave and still giving us this extraordinary director.

Spielberg was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, to a Jewish family. His mother, Leah Adler was a restaurateur and concert pianist, and his father, Arnold Spielberg was an electrical engineer involved in the development of computers. He spent his childhood in Haddon Township, New Jersey, where he saw one of his first films in a theater. In 1958 as a boy scout director he fulfilled a requirement for the photography merit badge by making a nine-minute 8 mm film entitled The Last Gunfight. As a teenager, Spielberg made amateur 8 mm “adventure” films with his friends, the first of which he shot at the Pinnacle Peak Patio restaurant in Scottsdale. He charged admission (25 cents) to his home films (which involved the wrecks he staged with his Lionel train set) while his sister sold popcorn.

Well… a brilliant mind back then. Even more nowadays!

We experienced tremendous moments through his amazing cinematography. We hope there is more to come! Thank you Mr. Spielberg and …happy birthday!

Some paper ideas from the same date from the past!

KO for eCharta