"Jurassic Park" released 1993

Steven Spielberg's blockbuster Jurassic Park was released in US theaters June 11, 1993 and set box-office records across the world. Based on the Michael Crichton novel of the same name, the movie follows a billionaire's attempt to regenerate dinosaurs on an isolated island.  

What could possibly go wrong?

Jurassic Park starred Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Samuel L. Jackson, and Jeff Goldblum.  It became the highest grossing film at that time.  It reached $100M in a record nine days. It was the first film to gross over $500M overseas.

Jurassic Park won three Academy Awards: Bet Sound, Best Sound Effects, and Best Visual Effects.  Since it was a mix of science fiction and horror, it could not be nominated for Best Picture or any of the acting awards.  Spielberg won Best Directing but for Schindler's List, a drama film.  

Jurassic Park did not receive any Golden Globe awards because the science fiction adventure did not align "with the types of films that were often nominated" for Golden Globes.

It won four Saturn Awards: Steven Spielberg for Best Direction, Best Science Fiction Film, Best Special Effects, and Best Writing.  Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, Wayne Knight, Joseph Mazzello, and Arian Richards were nominated for their work.  John Williams was nominated for Best Music, and Jurassic Park received a nomination for Best Costumes. 

John Williams was also nominated for a Grammy Award for his original score. 

Happy birthday, Chris Pratt!

Hunky, adorable Chris Pratt, born June 21, 1979 in Virginia, Minnesota, has appeared in many blockbuster action movies.  His first big acting job came in 2002 when he starred with Treat Williams in Everwood.  Then in 2014, he landed the role of Peter Quill in the Guardians of the Galaxy, which has spawned two sequels.  As Quill, he has appeared in other MCU movies with the Avengers in Avengers: Infinity War, Endgame and Thor: Love and Thunder.  He appeared in the second Jurassic Park trilogy.

He won a Saturn Award in 2015 for his performance in Guardians of the Galaxy. He is currently voicing the character of Garfield in The Garfield Movie.

And he's has more performances in progress.  

Go, sexy!

"Jurassic Park" wins four Saturn Awards 1994

The Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films honored the best in science fiction, fantasy, and horror (sounds intuitive enough) in film, television for 1993 on October 20, 1994.   

Jurassic Park had a whopping 11 nominations and took home four awards. It won Best Science Fiction Film, Best Director for Steven Spielberg, Best Writing for Michael Crichton and David Koepp, and Best Special Effects.  Its nominations were for Best Actress for Laura Dern, Best Supporting Actor for Jeff Goldblum and Wayne Knight, Best Performance by a Younger Actor for Joseph Mazzello and Ariana Richards, and Best Music for John Williams.

The Nightmare Before Christmas won Best Fantasy Film and Best Music for Danny Elfman. It was nominated for Best Visual Effects, and Henry Selick was nominated for Best Director.

Happy birthday, Samuel L Jackson!

Sexy and talented actor Samuel L. Jackson, born December 21, 1948 in Washington, DC is one of my favorite actors.  He has won numerous awards for his acting and has been nominated for an Oscar.  He's appeared in many of my favorite movies, too.  He has played Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Mace Windu in the Star Wars movies, and he is the voice of Frozone in the Incredibles movies.

Other movies that I enjoy watching him in are Deep Blue Sea, Jurassic Park, and 1408.

"Coma" released 1978

Coma, the movie based on the novel by Robin Cook, was released on January 6, 1978.  It was directed by Michael Crichton, who wrote Jurassic Park and The Andromeda Strain.  The movie starred Genevieve Bujold, Michael Douglas, Richard Widmark and a young Tom Selleck.

I think it did for hospitals what Jaws did for the ocean.

"The Lost World: Jurassic Park" released 1997

The Lost World: Jurassic Park, the sequel to Steven Spielberg's blockbuster Jurassic Park, hit theaters May 23, 1997.  It saw the return of Jeff Goldblum as Ian Malcolm and Richard Attenborough as John Hammond. 

It was nominated for an Oscar for Best Visual Effects.  It held the record for biggest box office weekend opening until Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in 2001.  It was the second top-selling movie of 1997 behind Titanic.  It held the record for single-day box office take until Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace in 1999.

"Dante's Peak" released 1997

Dante's Peak, starring Pierce Brosnan and Linda Hamilton, was released February 7, 1997.  The story is about a fictional, dormant volcano, Dante's Peak, Washington, showing signs of erupting.  The eruptions threaten the picturesque town of the same name. 

Brosnan is a US geologist sent to assess the volcano to determine if it is preparing to erupt.  Hamilton plays the mayor/coffee shop owner in town.

Dante's Peak didn't receive favorable reviews although it was better at the box office than Volcano, released a couple of months later.  Its visual effects were not nominated for an Academy Award because it had some stiff competition with Jurassic Park: The Lost World and Titanic, which won the award.

"Batman Returns" released 1992

Batman Returns, the sequel to Tim Burton's blockbuster Batman, was released June 19, 1992 to positive reviews.  It starred Michael Keaton as Batman, Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman and Danny Devito as the Penguin.  It was the highest-grossing opening for a film at that time.  Jurassic Park beat its record the next year.

It received nominations for two Academy Awards: Best Visual Effects and Best Makeup.  The movie received criticism for its dark nature, violence and sexual references.

Happy birthday, Patricia Tallman!

Actress/stuntwoman Patricia Tallman, born September 4, 1957 in Pontiac, Illinois, is beloved by many sci-fi fans as the rogue telepath Lyta Alexander on the TV series Babylon 5.  I didn't realize this until reading her bio on imdb.com, that she was Laura Dern's stunt double in Jurassic Park.  According to the web-site, you can see her face after Dern's character falls off the T-Rex skeleton and the camera closes in on her face for a second.  I remember the scene and thought it was Laura Dern all the time!

I was upset when Andrea Thompson (Talia Winters) left Babylon 5 and held a grudge against Lyta Alexander as being responsible for her leaving, but got to appreciate her. 

"E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial" released 1982

One of the most beloved science fiction movies and one of the best of all time, E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial, was released June 11, 1982.  From the master Steven Spielberg, it was the highest-grossing film of 1982 and was the best-selling film of all time until Spielberg broke his own record with Jurassic Park in 1993.

It won 4 Academy Awards: Best Music, Original Score; Best Effects, Visual Effects and Best Sound Editing; and Best Sound.  John Williams won a LOT of awards for his music for this movie.