1940 in film

Events

• February 7 - The animated movie Pinocchio is released.
• July 27 - Bugs Bunny makes his official debut in the animated cartoon A Wild Hare.
• October 15 - The Great Dictator, a satiric social commentary film by and starring Charlie Chaplin, is released.
• November 13 - World premiere of Disney's Fantasia, the first film to be released in a multichannel format called Fantasound. The film also marked the first use of the click track while recording the soundtrack, overdubbing of orchestral parts, simultaneous multitrack recording and lead to the development of a multichannel surround system.

Top grossing films

1. Pinocchio (Disney)
2. Fantasia (Disney)

Academy Awards

• Best Picture: Rebecca - Selznick, United Artists
• Best Actor: James Stewart - The Philadelphia Story
• Best Actress: Ginger Rogers - Kitty Foyle

Births

• July 7 - Ringo Starr, English drummer (The Beatles)
• August 3 - Martin Sheen, American actor
• November 27 - Bruce Lee
• October 9 - John Lennon, English musician, songwriter and singer (The Beatles)
• November 5 - Elke Sommer, actress
• December 21 - Frank Zappa, English musician, songwriter and singer

Deaths

• May 25 - Joe De Grasse, pioneer Hollywood film director
• July 1 - Ben Turpin, comic actor
• October 10 - Berton Churchill, pioneer Hollywood actor
• December 5 - Wilfred Lucas, actor, screenwriter, director

Other movies released

• Abe Lincoln In Illinois
• Alfred Hitchcock's Rebecca
• All This and Heaven Too
• Boys of the City
• East Side Kids
• Give Us Wings
• Junior G-Men
• Masked Mischief
• Strike Up the Band
• That Gang of Mine
• The Grapes of Wrath
• The Great Dictator, starring Charlie Chaplin
• You're Not So Tough