David Bowie (1947-2016): Happy Birthday Today!

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Born
January 8, 1947 · Brixton, London, England, UK

Died
January 10, 2016 · Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA (liver cancer)

Birth name
David Robert Haywood Jones

Spouses
Iman (April 24, 1992 – January 10, 2016) (his death, 1 child)
Angie Bowie (March 19, 1970 – February 8, 1980) (divorced, 1 child)

QUOTES:

[on whether he thinks he is a good actor] I took you in, didn’t I? I rest my make-up case.

[during an interview about his new album in 1999] I have nothing to say about the new album. Can I go now?
Talking about art is like dancing about architecture.

I rate Morrissey as one of the best lyricists in Britain. For me, he’s up there with Bryan Ferry.

[on receiving an honorary degree from Boston’s Berklee College of Music] Any list of advice I have to offer to a musician always ends with, “If it itches, go and see a doctor.”.

I know about Kylie [Kylie Minogue] and Robbie [Robbie Williams] and Pop Idol (2001) and stuff like that. You can’t get away from that when you hit the [British] shore, so I know all about the cruise ship entertainment aspect of British pop.

Elvis Presley (1935-1977): Happy Birthday Today!

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Born
January 8, 1935 · Tupelo, Mississippi, USA

Died
August 16, 1977 · Memphis, Tennessee, USA (cardiac arrhythmia)

Birth name
Elvis Aaron Presley

Spouse
Priscilla Presley (May 1, 1967 – October 9, 1973) (divorced, 1 child)

QUOTES:

[asked who he sounded like] I don’t sound like nobody.

[asked what kind of music he sings] I sing all kinds.

I don’t like being called Elvis The Pelvis. That’s gotta be one of the most childish expressions I’ve ever heard coming from an adult.

Some people tap their feet, some people snap their fingers, and some people sway back and forth. I just sorta do ’em all together, I guess.

[his acceptance speech from the 1970 Ten Outstanding Young Men of the Nation Awards] When I was a child, ladies and gentlemen, I was a dreamer. I read comic books, and I was the hero of the comic book. I saw movies, and I was the hero in the movie. So every dream I ever dreamed has come true a hundred times . . . I learned very early in life that “Without a song, the day would never end; without a song, a man ain’t got a friend; without a song, the road would never bend – without a song”. So I keep singing a song. Goodnight. Thank you.

Turning 60 Today: Michelle Forbes. Happy Birthday

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Born
January 8, 1965 · Austin, Texas, USA

Birth name
Michelle Renee Forbes Guajardo

QUOTES:

On turning down Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993): There were all sorts of rumors about why I didn’t take [the DS9 role] and that I was quite arrogant about the whole thing. It wasn’t that at all. It was, again, about wanting variety in my career. If I’d gone on to do DS9, I might not have had the variety I’ve been lucky to have in my career. That’s not to say I wasn’t grateful for the opportunity; I genuinely was. However, I had to make a choice that felt right for me, which was a difficult one, especially as a young actor being offered a steady job. (TV Zone Magazine, January 2005)

I was so shy as a kid that I was almost mute and was starting to have a stutter because I couldn’t talk to people. The shyness is debilitating actually, and my mother took me to see someone because she was worried about me. And he suggested she enroll me in acting class to draw me out of myself.

About her character on Battlestar Galactica (2004): I tend to play a lot of authoritative, strong women, so initially this simply wasn’t something I wanted to do. God bless them, though, for being so pursuant of me. The Galactica producers sent me a set of DVDs, because I had never seen the show, either. Galactica is amazingly good and well-written. I shudder to think I almost lost out on working with those wonderful people and on such a powerful story. (TV Zone Magazine, January 2005).

Turning 45 Today: Rachel Nichols. Happy Birthday

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Born
January 8, 1980 · Augusta, Maine, USA

Birth name
Rachel Emily Nichols

Spouses
Michael Kershaw (September 27, 2014 – present)
Scott Stuber (July 26, 2008 – 2009) (divorced)

QUOTES:

[on playing the role of Tamara in Conan the Barbarian (2011)] It was really important that she not be the damsel-in-distress. We wanted to update and empower her, and the best way to do that is to go toe-to-toe with Conan. So I give him attitude in the beginning, and there really is a hostile relationship.

[on her first sex scene in a movie] They were nice enough to shoot the scene at the end of filming, so by then Jason [Jason Momoa] and I had become friends. But it still is awkward, especially when you have the director saying, “Grab her neck and bite her.”.

History is fickle. We know that. The good and bad come around and go around, and go around again. There are recessions and depressions and economic boom and bust. I’m concerned about the future. I think many people acknowledge we’re on a path that can’t be sustained.

I love the physicality side of roles, I really do. And when I get to do my own stunts, it’s that much cooler. I’ll do anything the production safety people will let me.

Turning 43 Today: Gaby Hoffmann. Happy Birthday

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Born
January 8, 1982 · New York City, New York, USA

Birth name
Gabrielle Mary Hoffmann

Spouse
Chris Dapkins(? – present) (2 children)

QUOTES:

[re her childhood growing up in and around the Chelsea Hotel] We lived in a classless society. We’d spend a summer at Gore Vidal’s house in Italy, but we were on and off welfare…

I love Beyoncé, I do. But I was walking down the street and saw this huge billboard for the documentary, she made about herself called, Beyoncé: Life Is But a Dream (2013). Underneath the billboard is this homeless guy, then there’s me with $2 in my bank account, and I’m thinking, Life is but a dream? I mean, I love you, B, but really?

[re other child stars] I was never as famous as all these kids. There was no social media. We weren’t celebrity-obsessed as a culture. I feel like these kids are under a crazy microscope; they’re basically brands. And they eventually implode and act out. They need a break, and they’re not getting one.

[re childhood days with friend Claire Danes] Growing up in downtown New York City in the ’80s, we were ensconced in art and progressive thinking,Our parents all experimented with raising us in a fairly loose, unorthodox way. A huge emphasis was placed on creativity, and our artistic efforts were never dismissed as childish. There was a sense that we – kids and grown-ups – all had the potential to make something of value. Our drawings were not simply destined for the refrigerator. We never felt patronized.

Turning 38 Today: Cynthia Erivo. Happy Birthday

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Born
January 8, 1987 · Stockwell, London, England, UK

Birth name
Cynthia Onyedinmanasu Chinasaokwu Erivo

QUOTES:

We’re in a dangerous place right now when people who have nothing to do with us are making decisions about our lives and our bodies. We’re watching changes that were made for our freedom getting rolled back.

Sometimes showing your faith brings embarrassment because of where we are in the world now.

I vividly remember my first time on stage. I was five years old and I played a shepherd [in the school Nativity]. They made me sing ‘Silent Night’ solo. I saw my mum smiling, maybe crying, and I remember knowing that people were really happy. That was the first time that I thought, ‘ooh, this might be what I’m supposed to do’.

I grew up in Stockwell, south London. We had a humble upbringing and my mum raised my sister and I on her own.

Today’s Submittable Deadlines – January 7th, 2025

FASHION Poetry – FREE submission or pay for a reading or movie

https://wildsoundwritingfestival.submittable.com/submit/303081/fashion-poetry-festival


LITERARY FICTION Short Story Festival (automatic acceptance)

Submit your short story 0-2000 words:

https://wildsoundwritingfestival.submittable.com/submit/314715/literary-fiction-short-story-festival-0-2000-words-everyone-wins

Submit your short story 2000-4000 words:
https://wildsoundwritingfestival.submittable.com/submit/314716/literary-fiction-short-story-festival-2000-4000-words-everyone-wins

Submit your short story 6000-8000 words:
https://wildsoundwritingfestival.submittable.com/submit/314719/literary-fiction-short-story-festival-6000-8000-words-everyone-wins


MEMOIR & AUTOBIOGRAPHY Novel Festival

Full Novel Reading:

https://wildsoundwritingfestival.submittable.com/submit/314018/memoir-autobiography-full-novel-festival

1st Chapter Novel Submission:

https://wildsoundwritingfestival.submittable.com/submit/314019/memoir-autobiography-1st-chapter-novel-festival

Novel Video Transcript Reading:
https://wildsoundwritingfestival.submittable.com/submit/314020/memoir-autobiography-novel-video-transcript-reading


STUDENT Screenplay Festival

https://wildsoundwritingfestival.submittable.com/submit/301216/student-screenplay-contest

STUDENT Screenplay Festival: Today’s Screenplay Deadline

NOTE: Submissions must be done by a STUDENT (college, university, high school, trade school etc…)!

Submit to the Festival HERE: https://studentfeedbackfestival.com/student-screenplay-festival-2/

FULL FEEDBACK on your screenplay from our committee of Professional Screenwriters, Production Heads and Script Consultants. Get your entire script performed at the writing festival.

SUBMIT your FEATURE, TV PILOT or SHORT SCREENPLAY.

Submissions take 3-5 weeks for evaluation. Looking for screenplays from all over the world.


This festival has a guaranteed 4-tier set up for each accepted script. (No matter what, all screenplays submitted receive FULL FEEDBACK on their work.)

1st Tier: FULL FEEDBACK on your screenplay (all submissions)

2nd Tier: Accepted scripts (25% on average of submitted entries) get a best scene of their screenplay performed by professional actors and made into a promotional video.

3rd Tier: We will send you a list of questions to answer for our blog interview that will promote you and your film.

4th Tier: Then we will set up a podcast interview on our popular ITunes show where will we will promote the winning writer and script.

(BONUS: 5th Tier. A winning screenwriter’s WhatsApp group has just been formed. Over 50 writers to date. Great way to share ideas and contacts with people in the industry.)

You can also take advantage of the Best Scene Screening Video Reading Deal:
https://tvfestival.org/best-scene-screenplay-deal/

What this festival does is give the writer exposure. With our best scene video reading, plus the 2 interviews, this festival simply makes the screenwriter’s name and script searchable and out there to the world. Plus, submissions receive full feedback on their script no matter what.

LITERARY FICTION Short Story Festival: Today’s Writing Festival Deadline

Submit your LITERARY FICTION Short Story to the Festival here and we will automatically have it performed by a professional actor and turned into a promotional video for yourself.

Submit your Short Story HERE: https://festivalfordrama.com/literary-fiction-short-story/

Accept only stories that fit into the LITERARY FICTION genres.

Watch Today’s Festival: BLACK Filmmakers Festival

Watch the Film Festival HERE: https://www.wildsound.ca/videos/black-filmmakers-festival-january-2025

Go to the Daily Film Festival Platform http://www.wildsound.ca and sign up for the free 7 day trial to watch a new and original festival every single day.

Go to the festival page directly and watch dozens of films:
https://www.wildsound.ca/todays-film-festival/

See the Full Lineup of Films:

AGOGO, 30min., Nigeria
Directed by Chloe Coko
In an era, where having only girl children or educating girl children was frowned upon by the community, a father defiles culture and religious doctrines to home school his daughters.

https://facebook.com/ChloeCoko
https://twitter.com/chloecokofilms
https://instagram.com/chloecokofilms

SALVO, 16min., France
Directed by Severine ROINSSARD, Julio Lisboa de Souza
Our HIV-positive couple, our family, our friends, society.
A socio-political documentary made with the power of love to deconstruct prejudice and free speech.

GIVE ME YOUR PHONE, 12min., UK
Directed by Itunu Olowo
A mugger on the streets of London is faced with a tough decision when his victim offers an unexpected proposal. The film follows two Black men from different socio-economic backgrounds as they navigate the dynamics of crime and compassion.

HAITI TO TIJUANA, 10min., USA
Directed by Jared Jacobsen
A Historian, the Director of an immigrant shelter, and a Haitian refugee cross paths in Tijuana, Mexico.

http://www.stephenjakevideo.com/
https://www.facebook.com/StephenJakeProductions/
https://www.instagram.com/sjakeproductions/