March 1979 in Film & Television History

Events in Film & TV

Mar 1 ESPN and NCAA come to an agreement giving the network worldwide multi-media rights to NCAA championships for various sports

Television Premiere

Mar 4 "The Ordeal of Patty Hearst", television movie directed by Paul Wendkos, premieres on CBS

Mar 4 200th episode of "All in the Family"

People's Choice Awards

Mar 7 5th People's Choice Awards: Burt Reynolds & Olivia Newton-John win (Motion Picture) and Alan Alda, Mary Tyler Moore & Carol Burnett win (TV)

Mar 9 "The Passage", directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Anthony Quinn, is released in the United States
Mar 10 Eubie Blake, a 92-year old ragtime piano player and composer, and Gregory Hines are musical guest on Saturday Night Live

Music History

Mar 16 CBS-TV airs "Wings Over the World" with Paul McCartney

Mar 19 US House of Representatives begins live TV broadcasts via C-SPAN

Sports History

Mar 26 41st NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Michigan State beats Indiana State, 75-64; marks start of rivalry between future Hall of Famers Magic Johnson and Larry Bird; highest-rated game in history of televised college basketball

Mar 28 Frank Lazarus & Dick Vosburgh's stage musical comedy "A Day in Hollywood/A Night in Ukraine" premieres at the Mayfair Theatre, London, England

Birthdays in Film & TV

Mar 2 Amanda Ireton, Cast member of MTV's A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila
Mar 3 Alex Zane, English comedian
Mar 3 Patrick Renna, American actor
Mar 6 David Flair, American professional wrestler
Mar 9 Melina Perez, American model and WWE Diva, born in High Desert, California

Oscar Isaac (44 years old)

Mar 9 French Guatemalan-American actor (Scenes From A Marriage; Balibo; Inside Llewyn Davis), born in Guatemala City, Guatemala

Mar 10 Danny Pudi, American comedian and actor (Community), born in Chicago, Illinois
Mar 10 Edi Gathegi, Kenyan actor (Blacklist), born in Nairobi, Kenya
Mar 12 Nidia Guenard, American professional wrestler
Mar 14 Chris Klein, American actor (American Pie films), born in Hinsdale, Illinois
Mar 17 Nicole "Coco" Austin, American glamor model
Mar 17 Samoa Joe, Samoan professional wrestler
Mar 17 Stormy Daniels [Stephanie Clifford], American pornographic actress, claims had affair with Donald Trump, born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Mar 18 Danneel Harris, American actress
Mar 20 Bianca Lawson, American actress
Mar 20 Freema Agyeman, English actress (Doctor Who, New Amsterdam), born in London, England
Mar 20 Silvia Abascal, Spanish actress
Mar 24 Emraan Hashmi, Indian actor (Murder, Zeher), born in Pulgaon, Maharashtra
Mar 24 Lake Bell, American actress
Mar 25 Lee Pace, American actor
Mar 25 Natasha Yi, American supermodel
Mar 26 Heidi Zeigler, American child actress (Just the 10 of Us - "Sherry"), born in Lansing, Michigan
Mar 28 Park Chae-rim, South Korean actress

Weddings in Film & TV

Kurt Russell

Mar 17 Actor Kurt Russell (28) weds actress Season Hubley (28)

Bob Denver

Mar 26 Comedic actor Bob Denver (44) weds fourth wife Dreama Peery

Deaths in Film & TV

Mar 1 Dolores Costello, American actress (Noah's Ark, Expensive Women), dies at 73
Mar 2 Edith Craig, actress (Harmony Lane, Smashing Rackets), dies at 71
Mar 6 Charles Wagenheim, actor (Halligan-Gunsmoke), dies at 83
Mar 9 Barbara Mullen, American actress (Thunder Rock, Innocent Sinners), dies of a heart attack at 64
Mar 11 Victor Kilian, American actor (Gentleman's Agreement), dies at 88
Mar 19 Albert "Al" Hodge, American actor on radio (Green Hornet), and early television (Captain Video), dies of heart failure at 66
Mar 19 Richard Beckinsale, English actor (Doing Time, Porridge, Lovers), dies at 31
Mar 22 Ben Lyon, American actor (Hell's Angels, I Cover the Waterfront, Night Nurse), dies at 78
Mar 23 Philip Bourneuf, actor (Big Night, Frankenstein), dies at 71
Mar 27 Ronald Adam, actor (Phantom Shot), dies at 82