February 1979 in Film & Television History

Events in Film & TV

Theater Premiere

Feb 11 Marvin Hamlisch, Carole Bayer Sager, and Neil Simon's musical "They're Playing Our Song", starring Robert Klein and Lucie Arnaz opens at Imperial Theatre, NYC; runs for 1082 performances

Feb 15 Temple City Kazoo Orchestra appears on "he Mike Douglas Show"
Feb 16 Los Angeles premiere of Paul Schrader's allegedly fact based film "Hardcore"
Feb 18 Mini-series "Roots: Next Generations" premieres on ABC TV
Feb 20 29th Berlin International Film Festival: "David" wins the Golden Bear
Feb 26 CBS' premiere of NYC sitcom "Flatbush", which received many derision phone calls about it from Brooklynites to CBS

Birthdays in Film & TV

Feb 2 Christine Bleakley, Northern Irish broadcaster and presenter (BBC, ITV, UKTV), born in Newtownards, Northern Ireland
Feb 2 Shamita Shetty, Indian actress
Feb 7 Cerina Vincent, American actress (Stuck In The Middle), and author (Hot Chick books), born in Las Vegas, Nevada
Feb 8 Deng Chao, Chinese actor (The Mermaid, The Dead End), born in Nanchang, China
Feb 8 Josh Keaton [Weiner], American actor and singer (No Authority), born in Hacienda Heights, California
Feb 9 Zhang Ziyi, Chinese actress (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), born in Beijing, China

Brandy Norwood (44 years old)

Feb 11 American R&B singer-songwriter ("The Boy Is Mine"; "Have You Ever") and stage and film actress ("Moesha"), born in McComb, Mississippi

Feb 12 Jesse Spencer, Australian actor, born in Melbourne, Australia
Feb 13 Mena Suvari, American actress, born in Newport, Rhode Island
Feb 15 Kaj-Erik Eriksen, Canadian actor (Quarantine), born in Vancouver, British Columbia
Feb 17 Bear McCreary, American composer for film, television (Outlander; The Walking Dead: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), and video games, born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Feb 19 Mariana Ochoa, Mexican singer and actress, born in Mexico City, Mexico
Feb 21 Carly "Carlito" Colón, Puerto Rican professional wrestler, born in San Juan, Puerto Rico

Jennifer Love Hewitt (44 years old)

Feb 21 American actress (Sarah Reeves-Party of Five), born in Waco, Texas

Feb 21 Jordan Peele, American actor, comedian and director (Fargo, Get Out), born in NYC, New York
Feb 22 David Lopez, American actor (and God Created Women, Ghostwriter), born in Queens, New York
Feb 22 Lee Na-young, South Korean actress, born in Seoul, South Korea
Feb 25 David Hoflin, Swedish-born Australian Actor
Feb 25 Jennifer Ferrin, American actress
Feb 26 Shalim Ortiz, Puerto Rican singer and actor, born in San Juan, Puerto Rico

Divorces in Film & TV

Max Von Sydow

Feb 26 Actor Max Von Sydow (49) divorces actress Christina Olin after 28 years of marriage

Deaths in Film & TV

Feb 1 Mort Marshall [Mortimer Haig Lichtenstein], American actor (Kiss Me Deadly, Dumplings), dies of coronary arrest at 60
Feb 2 Jim Burke, Australian cricket batsman (24 Tests; record for most innings in a complete career without scoring a duck [44]) and broadcaster (ABC), dies of self inflicted gunshot wounds at 48
Feb 3 Jody Gilbert, American actress (Willard, Shaggy, Blonde Dynamite), dies at 62
Feb 12 Jean Renoir, French film director (Madame Bovary, Nana, Grand Illusion) and actor (Rules of the Game), dies at 84
Feb 16 Louise Allbritton, American actress (The Egg and I, Stage Door, Got a Secret), dies of cancer at 58
Feb 17 Bill Gargan, American actor (The Bells of St. Mary's; You Only Live Once), dies from a heart attack at 73
Feb 21 Ray Whitley, American country and western singer-songwriter ("Back in the Saddle Again") and actor (Tim Holt films), dies at 77
Feb 28 Jane Hylton [Audrey Gwendolene Clark], British actress (Adv of Sir Lancelot, Daybreak), dies of a heart attack at 52