Events in Film & TV
- May 3 WDHO (now WNWO) TV channel 24 in Toledo, OH (ABC) begins broadcasting
- May 17 KFDO (now KVIJ) TV channel 8 in Sayre, Oklahoma (ABC) begins broadcasting
- May 20 19th Cannes Film Festival: "A Man and a Woman" directed by Claude Lelouch and "The Birds, the Bees and the Italians" directed by Pietro Germi jointly awarded the Grand Prix du Festival International du Film
Emmy Awards
May 22 18th Emmy Awards: "The Fugitive", Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore win
Mame
May 24 Jerry Herman's musical "Mame", starring Angela Lansbury and Bea Arthur, opens at Winter Garden Theater, NYC; runs for 1508 performances, wins 3 Tony Awards
- May 25 "Au Hasard Balthazar", French film directed by Robert Bresson, starring Anne Wiazemsky and François Lafarge, is released
Birthdays in Film & TV
- May 1 Charlie Schlatter, American actor (18 Again, Heartbreak Hotel), born in NYC, New York
- May 3 Firdous Bamji, Indian-American actor (The War Within), born in Bombay, India
- May 3 Peter Abbay, American actor (Another World), born in Brooklyn, New York
- May 11 Julian Joseph, British jazz pianist, bandleader, composer, (Dance of the Three Legged Elephants), and broadcaster (BBC), born in London, England
- May 12 Stephen Baldwin, American actor (The Usual Suspects), born in Massapequa, New York
- May 14 Marianne Denicourt, French actress
Janet Jackson (57 years old)
May 16 American pop singer (Control, "Nasty"), sister of Michael, born in Gary, Indiana
- May 16 Scott Reeves, American actor (Ryan-Young & Restless), born in Santa Monica, California
- May 19 Polly Walker, British actress
- May 19 Sophia Crawford, English actress and martial artist (Power Rangers), born in London, England
- May 20 Dan Abrams, American TV reporter (Nightline)
- May 20 Gina Ravera, American actress
- May 20 Mindy Cohn, American actress (The Facts of Life - "Natalie"), born in Los Angeles, California
- May 20 Paolo Seganti, actor (Damian-As the World Turns)
- May 21 Manon Kelley, Canadian actress (Red Lips 2), born in Quebec City, Québec
- May 24 Eric Cantona, French footballer and actor (Looking for Eric), born in Marseille, France
Helena Bonham Carter (57 years old)
May 26 British actress (Harry Potter, Fight Club, The King's Speech, Enid, The Wings of the Dove), born in London, England
- May 31 Jeremy Hotz, Canadian stand-up comedian
Deaths in Film & TV
- May 21 Pat O'Malley, silent film actor (Wild One, Quiet Man), dies at 75
- May 23 Ruth Gates, Denton TX, actress (Aunt Jenny-Mama), dies at 79
- May 26 Don Castle, American actor (Born to Speed; The Invisible Wall), and television producer (Lassie), dies of accidental pain medication overdose at 48
- May 26 Neal Dodd, actor (Only Women, You Belong to Me), dies at 86
Actors
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