This impressive promo poster was made for the pinku actioner Kuroi Mehyô M, aka Black Panther Bitch M, in which Japanese superstar Reiko Ike plays an assassin tasked with getting rid of a troublesome gangster. This is far easier said than done, but she has all the skills a good killer-for-hire needs—she can run fast, climb well, throw knives (and handily placed pitchforks), read lips, perform acrobatics, crush testicles, endure pain, and wear a pantsuit like a boss. We’d love to tell you the film is great, but it’s all pretty silly, truthfully. But when Reiko and her soulful eyes and shiny café au lait skin are onscreen does the plot really matter? It might to you, but it doesn’t to us. The Japanese title of this, by the way, is actually “Black Rose M.” We don’t know where the panther thing came from, but it’s an apt description for Reiko. Kuroi Mehyô M premiered in Japan today in 1974.
1973—Allende Ousted in Chile
With the help of the CIA, General Augusto Pinochet topples democratically elected President Salvador Allende in Chile. Pinochet’s regime serves as a testing ground for Chicago School of Economics radical pro-business policies that later are applied to other countries, including the United States.