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25 YEARS AGO

Housesitter - June 12, 1992
In a sort of reverse Overboard, Goldie Hawn stars as a random woman who convinces everyone that she’s the wife of a reserved architect played by Steve Martin.  Housesitter opened at #3 with $9.1 million, and earned a total of $58.5 million, down from Father of the Bride’s gross the previous year.

Batman Returns - June 19, 1992 - HWDYK quiz
Michael Keaton returned under the direction of Tim Burton again, this time facing off against Christopher Walken as Max Shreck, Danny DeVito as the Penguin, and Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman.  Batman Returns took the opening weekend record from the first Batman (and held it for a year until Jurassic Park’s opening) with $45.6 million from 2,644 theaters.  Its domestic total of $162 million was the third highest of the year.

Unlawful Entry - June 26, 1992
This creepy stalker thriller starred Kurt Russell and Madeleine Stowe as a couple fending off a twisted cop played by Ray Liotta.  Good reviews helped land it in the #2 spot with $10.0 million and strong per-theater average, leading up to a domestic total of $57 million.
 

 
30 YEARS AGO

Predator - June 12, 1987 - HWDYK quiz
After a false start with Jean-Claude Van Damme in a goofy lobster costume (look it up, it’s a great story), Stan Winston nailed the design for one of modern cinema’s greatest monsters.  And although reviews weren’t great at release, this film has become a fan classic. Predator opened at #1 with $12 million and earned a profitable $59.7 million.  A sequel without Schwarzenegger was released in 1990, followed by two Alien crossover projects in 2004 and 2007 and the Adrien Brody offshoot Predators in 2010.  The next Predator film is scheduled for release in late summer 2018.
 
The Witches of Eastwick - June 12, 1987
This comedy was adapted from the novel by John Updike and stars Jack Nicholson as the devil incarnate in a contemporary town, where he seduces Cher, Susan Sarandon, and Michelle Pfeiffer.  Good reviews put The Witches of Eastwick at #2 for the weekend with $9.4 million.  It beat Predator’s per-theater and final gross, earning $63.7 million.
 
Roxanne - June 19, 1987
Steve Martin gets romantic alongside Daryl Hannah in this adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac.  His screenplay won a Writers Guild Award that year. Roxanne opened at #5 with $4.5 million from 847 theaters (the second-best per-theater average of the weekend) and eventually earned $40 million, his best result since The Jerk.

Dragnet - June 26, 1987
Dan Aykroyd and Tom Hanks team up to save the virgin Connie Swail from a P.A.G.A.N. cult in this contemporary comedy based on the 1950s radio and television drama about the LAPD.  Dragnet opened at #1 with $10.5 million from 1,337 theaters and went on to earn $57.3 million.

Spaceballs - June 24, 1987 - HWDYK quiz
A classic for 1980s fans, Mel Brooks spoofed Star Wars with absurdly quotable lines and sight gags.  Bull Pullman’s Lone Starr faces of against Rick Moranis as Dark Helmet.  Spaceballs was the best box office result for Brooks since his early 1970s hits, opening at #2 with $6.6 million from a Wednesday opening and finishing with $38.1 million.

Full Metal Jacket - June 26, 1987 - HWDYK quiz
Stanley Kubrick’s Vietnam war drama opened in limited release this weekend at 215 theaters and then expanded wide in the second week of July.  Though it starred Matthew Modine and Vincent D’Onofrio, the standout performance was by R. Lee Ermey as the sharp tongued drill instructor Gunnery Sergeant Hartman.   Ermey was passed over by the Academy, but the critical acclaim helped launch his long acting career.  Full Metal Jacket eventually earned $46.3 million.
 
 

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