Cineliteracy: What You Want and Need to Know about 1978 as Movie Year
Research in progress, July 23, 2025
My Oscar Book:
Top-Grossing Films of 1978
Rank Title Distributor Box-office gross
1 Grease Paramount $159,978,870
2 Superman Warner Bros. $134,218,018
3 National Lampoon’s Animal House Universal $120,091,123
4 Every Which Way but Loose Warner Bros. $85,196,485
5 Heaven Can Wait Paramount $81,640,278
6 Hooper Warner Bros. $78,000,000
7 Jaws 2 Universal $77,737,272
8 Revenge of the Pink Panther United Artists $49,579,269
9 The Deer Hunter Universal $48,979,328
10 Halloween Compass International $47,000,000
Events
February 6 –
David Begelman resigns as president of Columbia
March 1 – Charlie Chaplin’s coffin is stolen from a Swiss cemetery three months after burial. After recovery a few weeks later, the casket is sealed in a concrete vault prior to reburial.
March – Leigh Brackett completes the first draft for The Empire Strikes Back, but dies only two weeks later.
June – Daniel Melnick becomes head of Columbia Pictures after David Begelman scandal.
June 4 – Grease, starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, has its world premiere at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. It becomes the highest-grossing musical ever and Paramount Pictures’ highest-grossing film.
July 20 – Alan Hirschfield is fired as president and CEO of Columbia Pictures. He is replaced by Francis T. Vincent.
August – Production begins on Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
September – George Lucas purchases Bulltail Ranch, on Lucas Valley Road, for the development of Skywalker Ranch.
October 25 – Halloween is released.
November 17 – Star Wars Holiday Special airs on CBS. The special gives fans their first glimpse of Boba Fett, a character from the upcoming sequel. But he was not enough for the special to avoid negative reviews upon airing.
December 10 – Superman premieres at the Kennedy Centre in Washington, D.C., and has a European Royal Charity Premiere at the Empire, Leicester Square in London three days later in the presence of HM Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Andrew, Duke of York.
Awards
51st Academy (Oscar) Awards, April 9, 1979
Best Film: The Deer Hunter
Best Director: Michael Cimino, The Deer Hunter
Best Actor: Jon Voight, Coming Home
Best Actress: Jane Fonda, Coming Home
Best Supporting Actor: Christopher Walken, The Deer Hunter
Best Supporting Actress: Maggie Smith, California Suite
Best Screenplay, Adapted Oliver Stone, Midnight Express Alvin Sargent
Best Screenplay, Original Nancy Dowd, Waldo Salt, Robert C. Jones, Coming Home
Best Foreign Language Film: Get Out Your Handkerchiefs
Palme d’Or (Cannes Film Fest): The Tree of Wooden Clogs (L’Albero degli zoccoli), directed by Ermanno Olmi, Italy
Golden Bear (Berlin Film Fest): Trout (Las Truchas), directed by José Luis García Sánchez, Spain
What Max Said (Las Palabras de Max), directed by Emilio Martínez-Lázaro, Spain
Births
Deaths
Month Date Name Age Country Profession Notable films
January 5 Sally Eilers 69 US Actress
Bad GirlThe Black Camel
12 Arthur Sheekman 76 US Screenwriter
Duck SoupSome Came Running
23 Jack Oakie 74 US Actor
The Great DictatorLover Come Back
26 Leo Genn 72 UK Actor
Quo VadisThe Longest Day
27 Oskar Homolka 79 Austria Actor
SabotageI Remember Mama
29 Tim McCoy 86 US Actor
Texas CycloneTwo-Fisted Law
February 2 Wendy Barrie 69 UK Actress
The Hound of the BaskervillesThe Private Life of Henry VIII
14 Claude Binyon 72 US Writer, Director
The Saxon CharmDreamboat
15 Ilka Chase 77 US Actress
Now, VoyagerOcean’s 11
18 Kathleen Lockhart 83 UK Actress
A Christmas CarolBewitched
18 Maggie McNamara 48 US Actress
The Moon Is BlueThree Coins in the Fountain
24 Franco Arcalli 48 Italy Screenwriter
Last Tango in ParisZabriskie Point
28 Philip Ahn 72 US Actor
Never So FewParadise, Hawaiian Style
March 12 John Cazale 42 US Actor
The GodfatherDog Day Afternoon
16 Reb Russell 72 US Actor
Range WarfareBorder Vengeance
18 Peggy Wood 86 US Actress
The Sound of MusicThe Story of Ruth
24 Leigh Brackett 62 US Screenwriter
The Big SleepThe Empire Strikes Back
25 Leslie Fenton 76 UK Actor, Director
Boys TownWhispering Smith
25 Jack Hulbert 85 UK Actor
Bulldog JackJack Ahoy
25 Hanna Ralph 92 Germany Actress
FaustHelena
31 Astrid Allwyn 72 US Actress
Follow the FleetLove Affair
April 1 Lynne Roberts 56 US Actress
Girls of the Big HousePort Sinister
9 Michael Wilson 63 US Screenwriter
The Bridge on the River KwaiLawrence of Arabia
13 Paul McGrath 74 US Actor
A Face in the CrowdAdvise & Consent
22 Will Geer 76 US Actor
Winchester ’73Bandolero!
May 6 Loyal Griggs 71 US Cinematographer
White ChristmasShane
11 Philip Ray 79 UK Actor
A Night to RememberDracula: Prince of Darkness
12 Robert Coogan 53 US Actor
SkippyJohnny Doughboy
16 Robert Florey 78 France Director
The CocoanutsMurders in the Rue Morgue
June 20 Mark Robson 64 Canada Director
Peyton PlaceThe Inn of the Sixth Happiness
29 Bob Crane 49 US Actor
GusSuperdad
30 Frank Santillo 65 US Editor
Grand PrixJunior Bonner
July 3 James Daly 59 US Actor
Planet of the ApesThe Big Bounce
14 Jack Woolgar 64 UK Actor
Death Line
17 Thayer David 51 US Actor
RockyThe Eiger Sanction
19 Agnes Christine Johnston 82 US Screenwriter
Life Begins for Andy HardyBlack Beauty
August 5 Queenie Smith 79 US Actress
MississippiThe Killers
13 Ferenc Kiss 86 Hungary Actor
Cafe MoscowThe Talking Rob
23 Agustín Isunza 77 Mexico Actor
El TopoWild Flower
24 Louis Prima 67 US Actor, Singer
The Jungle BookRose of Washington Square
26 Charles Boyer 78 France Actor
GaslightAlgiers
28 Robert Shaw 51 UK Actor
JawsThe Sting
31 Lee Garmes 80 US Cinematographer
Detective StoryA Big Hand for the Little Lady
September 3 Karin Molander 89 Sweden Actress
HalvblodErotikon
9 Jack L. Warner 86 Canada Producer, Studio Executive
My Fair LadyCamelot
12 Frank Ferguson 78 US Actor
Rancho NotoriousThe Good Humor Man
18 Ann Shoemaker 87 US Actress
Sunrise at CampobelloAlice Adams
24 Ruth Etting 80 US Singer, Actress
Roman ScandalsGift of Gab
30 Edgar Bergen 75 US Actor, Ventriloquist
The Muppet MovieFun and Fancy Free
October 10 Kathryn McGuire 74 US Actress
Sherlock Jr.The Navigator
16 Dan Dailey 62 US Actor
It’s Always Fair WeatherThere’s No Business Like Show Business
19 Gig Young 64 US Actor
They Shoot Horses Don’t TheyThat Touch of Mink
30 Brian Hayles 47 UK Screenwriter
Warlords of AtlantisArabian Adventure
November 5 Denis O’Dea 73 Ireland Actor
Esther and the KingNiagara
9 Florence Marly 59 Czechoslovakia Actress
Sealed VerdictTokyo Joe
16 Claude Dauphin 75 France Actor
BarbarellaGrand Prix
20 Robert Alan Aurthur 56 US Screenwriter
Grand PrixAll That Jazz
23 June Martel 69 US Actress
Fighting YouthSanta Fe Stampede
26 Ford Beebe 90 US Director
The Green HornetBuck Rogers
27 Susan Shaw 44 UK Actress
Wide BoyFire Maidens from Outer Space
28 André Morell 69 UK Actor
The Bridge on the River KwaiThe Hound of the Baskervilles
December 7 I. Stanford Jolley 78 US Actor
King of the Rocket MenI Killed Wild Bill Hickok
10 Ed Wood 54 US Director, Screenwriter, Actor
Glen or GlendaPlan 9 from Outer Space
12 Fay Compton 84 UK Actress
OthelloThe Haunting
15 Chill Wills 76 US Actor
The AlamoGiant
19 Duncan Lamont 60 UK Actor
Frankenstein Created WomanBattle of Britain
23 Louis de Rochemont 89 US Producer
WindjammerThe Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone
Film Debuts in 1978
Karen Allen – National Lampoon’s Animal House
Pedro Almodóvar (director) – Folle…folle…fólleme Tim!
María Conchita Alonso – Savana – Sesso e diamanti
Tomas Arana – Blood Feud
Kevin Bacon – National Lampoon’s Animal House
Jonathan Banks – Coming Home
Ellen Barkin – Up in Smoke
Frances Bay – Foul Play
Jim Belushi – The Fury
Michael Biehn – Coach
Roy Brocksmith – The Rip-Off
Jake Busey – Straight Time
Tommy Chong – Up in Smoke
Billy Connolly – Absolution
Billy Crystal – Rabbit Test
Jamie Lee Curtis – Halloween
E. G. Daily – Jukebox
Eddie Deezen – Laserblast
Julie Delpy – Guerres civiles en France
R. Lee Ermey – The Boys in Company C
Corey Feldman – Born Again
Tovah Feldshuh – Nunzio
William Forsythe – Long Shot
Dennis Franz – The Fury
Joe Grifasi – The Deer Hunter
Harry Hamlin – Movie Movie
Daryl Hannah – The Fury
Mark Harmon – Comes a Horseman
Woody Harrelson – Harper Valley PTA
Ed Harris – Coma
Phil Hartman – Stunt Rock
Gregg Henry – Mean Dog Blues
Mary Beth Hurt – Interiors
John Kani – The Wild Geese
Michael Keaton – Rabbit Test
John Malkovich – A Wedding
Joe Mantegna – Towing
Cheech Marin – Up in Smoke
Laurie Metcalf – A Wedding
Liam Neeson – Pilgrim’s Progress
Natalia Nogulich – Stony Island
Deborah Offner – Rush It
Michael O’Keefe – Gray Lady Down
Mandy Patinkin – The Big Fix
Roddy Piper – The One and Only
Tony Plana – The Boss’s Son
Annie Potts – Corvette Summer
Robert Prosky – The Brink’s Job
David Rasche – An Unmarried Woman
Christopher Reeve – Gray Lady Down
James Remar – On the Yard
Jean Reno – The Hypothesis of the Stolen Painting
Peter Riegert – National Lampoon’s Animal House
Eric Roberts – King of the Gypsies
Deborah Rush – Oliver’s Story
Diana Scarwid – Pretty Baby
Gary Sinise – A Wedding
James Spader – Team-Mates
Mary Steenburgen – Goin’ South
Peter Stormare – The Score
Carel Struycken – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
Rachel Ticotin – King of the Gypsies
Tom Waits – Paradise Alley
Alberta Watson – Power Play
Norbert Weisser – Midnight Express
George Wendt – A Wedding
Alfre Woodard – Remember My Name
Grace Zabriskie – They Went That-A-Way & That-A-Way
Robert Zemeckis (director) – I Wanna Hold Your Hand
