Plenty of Nothing

Empire Quarry, Bloomington

The Bloomington, Indiana quarry featured in Breaking Way (1979) provided the limestone for the Empire State Building in 1931. Source.

Video Difference

Source.

Rolled Stockings (1927)

The Louise Brooks comedy Rolled Stockings was released on this date in 1927. Source.

The Holdovers' Marcus Aurelius

That edition of Marcus Aurelius with the 1970s cover in The Holdovers was a prop created for the film, so don't go looking for it in used bookstores. Source.

Himmelskibet (1918)

Avanti Planetaros gives a Powerpoint presentation on his upcoming flight to Mars aboard Excelsior. See the film.

Joan Hughes

Joan Hughes, a World War Two ferry pilot in the Air Transport Auxiliary, had a long career as an aviator and even flew a replica Santos-Dumont Mademoiselle monoplane in the 1965 film Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines. Source.

Source.

Niji Ikutabi (1956)

Ayako Wakao as Asako in the film version of Kawabata's 1951 novel Niji ikutabi. The book has just recently been translated into English as The Rainbow. It's strange that this book missed the cut when Kawabata's English-language canon was being assembled; it's a natural companion to The Old Capital, another story about sisters looking for each other. Source.

Del Toro, Herzog, Scorsese TV Appearances

Guillermo del Toro on Barry.

Werner Herzog on Parks and Recreation.

Martin Scorsese's American Express commercial.

Nancy Columbia

Nancy Columbia, born at the Chicago World's Fair on this date in 1893, became a film star in 1911, writing and acting in movies with aboriginal themes. Source. 

Rasputin

Publicity photo for Rasputin and the Empress (1932), released December 23, 1932, starring John Barrymore as Rasputin and Ethel Barrymore as Alexandra. It was a shame how he carried on. Source.