Writer of Pop Culture

Cool and refreshing news about pop culture and entertainment.

This Day in Pop Culture for October 17

From Mother Teresa winning the Nobel Peace Prize to “Around the World in 80 Days” and “Birdman” winning Oscars, October 17 is packed with pop culture moments.

October 17, 2020

2–3 minutes

1979: Mother Teresa Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize

No one can deny that Mother Teresa was an incredible woman of faith and of service. She was named as one of the most admired women by Gallup’s yearly poll 18 times. However, it was on this day in 1979 that she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize “for work undertaken in the struggle to overcome poverty and distress, which also constitutes a threat to peace.” In typical fashion, she refused the ceremonial banquet but asked that the money used for the event to be given to the poor in India. (Image: Wikimedia)

1956: A Whirlwind Trip Around the World

Based on the novel of the same name by Jules Verne, Around the World in 80 Days opened in theaters on this day in 1956. With a screenplay written by James Poe, John Farrow and S. J. Perelman, the movie was directed by Michael Anderson and starred David Niven, Cantinflas, Shirley MacLaine and Robert Newton.

The film featured numerous cameos including Cesar Romero, Charles Coburn, Peter Lorre, Red Skelton, Frank Sinatra, Buster Keaton and Glynis Johns. Production of the movie included just 75 days of filming using 680,000 feet of film that was edited down to 25,734. Filming took place in England, France, India, Spain, Thailand and Japan. The cast included 68,894 people wears 74,685 costumes and 36,092 trinkets. 7,959 animals were featured in the film as well.

The movie was nominated for eight Academy Awards and won five including Best Picture, Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Music and Best Writing. Disney created a remake of the film in 2004 that starred Jackie Chan, Steve Coogan and Cecile de France and also included a slew of cameos. Unfortunately, the second film wasn’t able to capture the favorable reviews that the original did.

2014: Michael Keaton Couldn’t Escape ‘Birdman’

The fact that actor Michael Keaton has played the role of Batman at least three times throughout his career made him a great choice to have starred in the black comedy, Birdman.

Written and directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu, Keaton plays Riggan Thomson, a typecast actor who struggles to find work. Years earlier, he played the role of the superhero, Birdman but now, he struggles to make a comeback. Thomson really wants to write, direct and star in a Broadway show, but the voice of Birdman continues to haunt him wanting Thomson to return to the movie role that made him famous.

Birdman also starred Zach Galifianakis, Edward Norton, Andrea Riseborough, Amy Ryan, Emma Stone and Naomi Watts.

The movie was nominated for nine Academy Awards including Keaton for Best Actor. Although he didn’t win, the movie did win four other awards for Best Motion Picture of the Year, Original Screenplay, Directing and Cinematography.