The year 1974 in film involved some significant events.
Quick Facts List of years in film ...
Close
The top ten 1974 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:
More information Rank, Title ...
Highest-grossing films of 1974
Rank | Title | Distributor(s) | Domestic rentals |
1 |
The Towering Inferno |
20th Century Fox / Warner Bros. |
$50,000,000[1] |
2 |
Blazing Saddles |
Warner Bros. |
$45,200,000[1] |
3 |
Young Frankenstein |
20th Century Fox |
$38,800,000[1] |
4 |
Earthquake |
Universal |
$36,300,000[1] |
5 |
The Trial of Billy Jack |
Warner Bros. |
$31,100,000[2] |
6 |
The Godfather Part II |
Paramount |
$30,700,000[1] |
7 |
Airport 1975 |
Universal Pictures |
$25,800,000[1] |
8 |
The Longest Yard |
Paramount |
$23,000,000[1] |
9 |
Death Wish |
$22,000,000[3] |
10 |
The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams |
Sunn Classic |
$21,895,000[4] |
Close
- February 7 – Blazing Saddles is released in the United States.
- May 28 - Joseph E. Levine, the founder of Embassy Pictures, resigns as president.
- June 20 – Chinatown, directed by Roman Polanski and featured Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, and John Huston, is released to worldwide critical acclaim.
- November 1 – Technicolor ceases its legendary dye-transfer printing process.
- November 8 – Frank Yablans announces his resignation as president of Paramount Pictures with effect from January 5, 1975 following Barry Diller earlier becoming chairman and chief executive office.
- Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer celebrated its fiftieth anniversary with big fanfare, including That's Entertainment!, a retrospective documentary celebrating its prestigious musicals (e.g. The Wizard of Oz, Singin' in the Rain, Meet Me in St. Louis, Gigi, An American in Paris, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers).
- October–December – Three "disaster films" are released in three consecutive months: Airport 1975, Earthquake, and The Towering Inferno respectively. All were box office successes.
- Kevin Costner made his film debut in Sizzle Beach, U.S.A., although the film was not released until 1986.
More information Category/Organization, 32nd Golden Globe Awards January 25, 1975 ...
Close
Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival):
- The Conversation, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, United States
Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival):
- The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, directed by Ted Kotcheff, Canada
- January 1 – Jennifer Podemski, Canadian actress
- January 5 – Daisy Bates, English actress
- January 10
- January 14 - Kevin Durand, Canadian actor
- January 16 - Johnny Trí Nguyễn, Vietnamese–American actor
- January 18 - Maulik Pancholy, American actor
- January 19 - Natassia Malthe, Norwegian actress and model
- January 21 - Vincent Laresca, American actor
- January 24 – Ed Helms, American actor and comedian
- January 28 - Ty Olsson, Canadian actor
- January 30
- February 2 - Oz Perkins, American actor, screenwriter and director
- February 4 – Urmila Matondkar, Indian actress
- February 8
- February 9
- February 10
- February 11 - Isaiah Mustafa, American actor
- February 12 - Lisa Brenner, American actress
- February 15
- Miranda July (née Grossinger), American filmmaker, performance artist and fiction writer
- Gina Lynn, American former pornographic actress
- February 16 – Mahershala Ali, American actor and rapper
- February 17
- February 18 – Nadine Labaki, Lebanese actress, director and activist
- February 25 – Divya Bharti, Indian actress (d. 1993)
- March 5
- March 7
- March 8
- March 14 - Etan Cohen, Israeli-American screenwriter and director
- March 15 - Renoly Santiago, Puerto Rican actor, singer and writer
- March 21 - Rhys Darby, New Zealand actor, comedian and voice actor
- March 23 - Randall Park, American actor, comedian and writer
- March 24 – Alyson Hannigan, American actress
- March 25 - Laz Alonso, American actor
- March 31
- April 2 - Harold Hunter, American professional skateboarder and actor (d. 2006)
- April 10 - Omar Metwally, American actor
- April 11 - David Banner, American rapper and actor
- April 12 - Marley Shelton, American actress
- April 15
- April 18 - Edgar Wright, English filmmaker
- April 21
- April 24 – Jennifer Paz, Filipino actress
- April 26 – Ivana Miličević, American actress
- April 28 – Penélope Cruz, Spanish actress
- May 2 - Matt Berry, English actor, voice actor, comedian, writer and musician
- May 3 - Joseph Kosinski, American filmmaker
- May 7 – Breckin Meyer, American actor, voice actor, writer and producer
- May 10 - Craig Hall, New Zealand actor
- May 11 – Benoît Magimel, French actor
- May 14 - Carla Jimenez, American actress
- May 15 – Russell Hornsby, American actor
- May 21 – Fairuza Balk, American actress
- May 22 – Sean Gunn, American actor
- May 23 - Jewel, American singer-songwriter and actress
- May 24 - Dash Mihok, American actor and director
- May 25 - Maria Fernanda Cândido, Brazilian actress and television presenter
- June 2 - Leah Cairns, Canadian actress
- June 6 - Danny Strong, American actor, writer, director and producer
- June 11 - Lenny Jacobson, American actor
- June 12
- Jared Bush, American screenwriter, producer and director
- Jason Mewes, American actor, comedian, film producer and podcaster
- June 13 - Brande Roderick, American model and actress
- June 14 - Phillip Rhys, English actor and filmmaker
- June 16 - Joseph May, British-born Canadian-American actor
- June 20 – Lenin M. Sivam, Sri Lankan-Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter
- June 23 – Joel Edgerton, Australian actor
- June 25
- June 28 - Kirsty Mitchell, Scottish actress
- July 1 - Jonathan Roumie, American actor
- July 3 - Corey Reynolds, American actor
- July 4 - Mick Wingert, American voice actor
- July 8 – Tami Erin, American actress
- July 10 - Imelda May, Irish actress and singer
- July 16 - Robinne Lee, American actress
- July 20 - Simon Rex, American actor, rapper and comedian
- July 22
- July 29 - Josh Radnor, American actor and filmmaker
- July 30 – Hilary Swank, American actress
- July 31
- August 2 - Angie Cepeda, Colombian actress
- August 5 – Kajol, Indian actress
- August 7 – Michael Shannon, American actor
- August 8 - Enzo Cilenti, English actor
- August 10 - Craig Kirkwood, American former actor
- August 11 - Chris Messina, American actor, director, writer and producer
- August 14 - Tomer Sisley, Israeli-French actor and comedian
- August 15 – Natasha Henstridge, Canadian actress and model
- August 20
- August 23 – Ray Park, Scottish actor and stuntman
- August 31 - Marc Webb, American music video director and filmmaker
- September 1 - Burn Gorman, English actor and musician
- September 4 - Nona Gaye, American singer and retired actress
- September 5 - Romina Yan, Argentine actress, screenwriter and singer (d. 2010)
- September 6
- September 7 - Noah Huntley, English actor
- September 10 – Ryan Phillippe, American actor
- September 11 - Ben Best, American actor, writer, musician and producer (d. 2021)
- September 18 - Xzibit, American rapper, actor and broadcaster
- September 19
- September 30 - Ashley Hamilton, American actor, comedian and singer-songwriter
- October 1 - Sherri Saum, American actress
- October 2 - Michelle Krusiec, American actress, writer and producer
- October 6
- October 7 - Numan Acar, Turkish-German actor and producer
- October 17
- October 20 – Brian Limond, Scottish comedian, actor and writer
- October 28
- October 31
- November 2 - Nelly, American actor, rapper and singer
- November 4 – Matthew Rhys, Welsh actor
- November 7 - Carl Steven, American child actor (d. 2011)
- November 9 - Ryo Kase, Japanese actor
- November 10 – Simone Singh, Indian actress
- November 11 – Leonardo DiCaprio, American actor
- November 14
- November 16 – Chloë Sevigny, American actress
- November 17 – Leslie Bibb, American actress and model
- November 21 – Tiit Sukk, Estonian actor
- November 24 - Stephen Merchant, English comedian, actor, writer, director and presenter
- November 25 - Kenneth Mitchell, Canadian actor (d. 2024)
- November 26 - Omar Chaparro, Mexican actor, comedian, television host and singer
- November 30 - Hinnerk Schönemann, German actor
- December 1 – Érica Rivas, Argentinian actress
- December 11 - Lisa Ortiz, American voice actress and voice director
- December 15 - P. J. Byrne, American actor
- December 17
- December 24 - Thure Lindhardt, Danish actor
- December 25 - Andrew McNee, Canadian actor
- December 27 - Masi Oka, Japanese actor, producer and digital effects artist
- December 29 - Mekhi Phifer, American actor
Month | Date | Name | Age | Country | Profession | Notable films |
January |
2 | Tex Ritter | 68 | US | Actor, Singer | |
3 | Gino Cervi | 72 | Italy | Actor | |
14 | Paul Whitsun-Jones | 50 | UK | Actor | |
31 | Samuel Goldwyn | 94 | Poland | Producer, Studio Executive | |
31 | Roger Pryor | 72 | US | Actor | |
February |
7 | Arline Judge | 61 | US | Actress | |
11 | Anna Q. Nilsson | 85 | Sweden | Actress | |
23 | Florence Rice | 67 | US | Actress | |
23 | Harry Ruby | 79 | US | Screenwriter, Composer | |
27 | Orry-Kelly | 66 | Australia | Costume Designer | |
28 | Carole Lesley | 38 | UK | Actress | |
March |
3 | Barbara Ruick | 43 | US | Actress, Singer | |
5 | Billy De Wolfe | 67 | US | Actor | |
7 | Alberto Rabagliati | 67 | Italy | Actor, Singer | |
8 | Martha Wentworth | 84 | US | Actress, Voice Actress | |
13 | Howard St. John | 68 | US | Actor | |
19 | Edward Platt | 58 | US | Actor | |
28 | Dorothy Fields | 68 | US | Songwriter | |
28 | Françoise Rosay | 82 | France | Actress | |
29 | Seton I. Miller | 71 | US | Screenwriter | |
April |
2 | Douglass Dumbrille | 84 | Canada | Actor | |
10 | Patricia Collinge | 81 | Ireland | Actress | |
13 | Stanley Smith | 71 | US | Actor | |
18 | Betty Compson | 77 | US | Actress | |
20 | Peter Lee Lawrence | 30 | Germany | Actor | |
24 | Bud Abbott | 78 | US | Actor | |
30 | Agnes Moorehead | 73 | US | Actress | |
May |
18 | Mary Maguire | 55 | Australia | Actress | |
24 | Duke Ellington | 75 | US | Composer | |
25 | Donald Crisp | 91 | UK | Actor | |
June |
6 | Blanche Yurka | 86 | US | Actress | |
10 | Lewis R. Foster | 75 | US | Director, Screenwriter | |
17 | Pamela Britton | 51 | US | Actress | |
28 | Frank Sutton | 50 | US | Actor | |
July |
13 | Joe Flynn | 48 | US | Actor | |
13 | Marthe Vinot | 79 | France | Actress | - Le Mort vivant
- Le Calvaire
|
27 | Julián de Meriche | 65 | Mexico | Actor | |
| 28 | Truman Bradley | 69 | US | Actor, Narrator | |
August |
13 | Ilona Massey | 64 | Hungary | Actress | |
16 | Maxwell Reed | 55 | Ireland | Actor | |
September |
6 | Olga Baclanova | 78 | Russia | Actress | |
6 | Otto Kruger | 89 | US | Actor | |
14 | Barbara Jo Allen | 68 | US | Actress | |
14 | Warren Hull | 71 | US | Actor | |
18 | Edna Best | 74 | UK | Actress | |
21 | Jacqueline Susann | 56 | US | Author, Actress | |
21 | Walter Brennan | 80 | US | Actor | |
22 | Stephanie Bidmead | 45 | UK | Actress | |
27 | James R. Webb | 64 | US | Screenwriter | |
October |
13 | Ed Sullivan | 73 | US | Actor | |
November |
7 | Rodolfo Acosta | 54 | Mexico | Actor | |
13 | Vittorio De Sica | 73 | Italy | Actor, Director, Screenwriter | |
14 | Johnny Mack Brown | 70 | US | Actor | |
17 | Clive Brook | 87 | UK | Actor | |
25 | Rosemary Lane | 61 | US | Actress, Singer | |
December |
4 | Lee Kinsolving | 36 | US | Actor | |
5 | Pietro Germi | 60 | Italy | Actor, Director, Screenwriter | |
10 | Paul Richards | 50 | US | Actor | |
11 | Reed Hadley | 63 | US | Actor | |
15 | Anatole Litvak | 72 | Ukraine | Director, Producer | |
21 | Richard Long | 47 | US | Actor | |
26 | Jack Benny | 80 | US | Actor | |