Tag: 1939

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September 1, 1939 — Germany invades Poland

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It was the opening gambit of World War Two in Europe. After trying to press its geographical claims (especially to the Danzing corridor) through political means, Hitler decided to go ahead with an invasion of Poland.

Two weeks later, in accordance with the provision of a secret agreement between Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia, Stalin’s forces invaded Poland from the east, and within a month, the nation was conquered entirely, and partitioned between the two invaders.

But the war wasn’t over. Poland had allies – France, Britain and Britain’s Empire all declared war on Germany on September 3. World War Two had begun in Europe.

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July 14, 1939 — Betty Grable stars in “Million Dollar Legs”

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“Million Dollar Legs” – the 1939 film, not to be confused with the 1932 W.C. Fields vehicle of the same name – was not a subtle film. Its poster showed only Grable (and her expensive lower appendages), and its 65 minute running time featured few scenes in which she wore anything other than hot pants. Grable appeared in the film with her husband, Jackie Coogan, but the experience was not a good one, and the two divorced later that year after the film flopped upon its release.

Grable actually announced her retirement from show business at that point, but was wooed back at a bigger studio and wound up becoming a greater star than ever before. Coogan went on to play Uncle Fester in “The Addams Family”.

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May 13, 1939 — Harvey Keitel born

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One of those rare actors to not use a screen name, Harvey Keitel was a US Marine and later a court reporter before he became an actor. He first began to get attention for his roles in some of Martin Scorcese’s early films, such as Mean Streets and Taxi Driver. His career took a downturn after he was replaced by Martin Sheen on the set of Apocalypse Now after only a week of filming, although Keitel remained a prolific supporting actor for years.

It was not until 1992, when he played the role of Mr White in Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs, that his career really took off again. Throughout the Nineties, Keitel was one of the most well-known and respected actors in Hollywood, having starred or guests in some of the highest profile films of the decade.

HarveyKeitelNov09.jpg
By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Edwin L. Wriston – http://www.defenseimagery.mil/imagery.html#guid=46f2e9d0ea85153ce181dca28074749c5ffa7af, Public Domain, Link

As mentioned in:

The Chanukah Song (Part II) — Adam Sandler

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April 30, 1939 — The New York World’s Fair opens

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Dedicated to the promise of tomorrow, the New York City World’s Fair opened on Sunday, April 30, 1939. A crowd of more than two hundred thousand people braved the queues and the heat to investigate the attractions of the Fair. Many of the attractions were still not completed, but no one much cared. President Franklin D. Roosevelt made the opening address, which many of the crowd watched on the two hundred television sets – television being a new invention at the time.

Best known for the iconic Trylon and Perisphere built especially for it, the World’s Fair ran from April to October in 1939 and 1940, closing its doors for good on October 27, 1940. It was the largest World’s Fair ever – even the 1964 World’s Fair, which was held on the same site, was not as large.