E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is a 1982 American science fiction fantasy film co-produced and directed by Steven Spielberg. Written by Melissa Mathison, it stars Henry Thomas, Dee Wallace, Robert MacNaughton, Drew Barrymore, Peter Coyote and Pat Welsh. It tells the story of Elliott (Thomas), a lonely boy who befriends a stranded extraterrestrial. Elliott and his siblings help E.T. return home while attempting to hide him from their mother and the government. Filmed on a budget of $10.5 million, it was shot in rough chronological order, to facilitate convincing emotional performances from the young cast. E.T. was an immediate blockbuster, surpassing Star Wars to become the highest- grossing film of all time—a record it held for eleven years until Jurassic Park, another Spielberg-directed film, surpassed it in 1993. Considered one of the greatest films ever made, it was widely acclaimed by critics as a timeless story of friendship, and it ranks as the greatest science fiction film ever made in a Rotten Tomatoes survey. It was re-released in 1985, and then again in 2002 to celebrate its 20th anniversary, with altered shots and additional scenes.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E.T._the_Extra-Terrestrial

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1892:

William Heffelfinger was paid $525 by the Allegheny Athletic Association, becoming the first professional American football player on record. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Heffelfinger

1912:

The bodies of Robert Falcon Scott and his companions were discovered, roughly eight months after their deaths during the ill-fated British Antarctic Expedition 1910. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Falcon_Scott

1942:

World War II: The Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, the decisive engagement in a series of naval battles between Allied and Japanese forces during the months-long Guadalcanal Campaign in the Solomon Islands, began. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naval_Battle_of_Guadalcanal

1970:

A cyclone made landfall on the coast of East Pakistan (Bangladesh), becoming the deadliest tropical cyclone in history, with up to 500,000 people killed. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1970_Bhola_cyclone

2014:

The European Space Agency's Philae lander (artist's impression shown) became the first spacecraft to land on a comet when it touched down on 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/67P/Churyumov%E2%80%93Gerasimenko

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

foolhardy: Marked by unthinking recklessness with disregard for danger; boldly rash; hotheaded. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/foolhardy

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

In the construction of a country, it is not the practical workers but the idealists and planners that are difficult to find.   --Sun Yat-sen https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Sun_Yat-sen