Irwin Allen had already thrilled audiences in 1972 with his disaster masterpiece "The Poseidon Adventure". To top that was going to take something immense and in making "The Towering Inferno" he created the all-time classic disaster movie.

"Earthquake" was also out that year but had to settle for fourth place as Allen's blazing masterpiece secured first at the US box office. It had more stars than its shaky counterpart, not least the double act of Steve McQueen as the lead fireman and Paul Newman as the architect of the combustible glass pyre. They both argued over who was to get star billing with the final compromise being both names appearing on the screen at the same time with McQueen's at the top and Newman's on the left, so both could be seen to be 'first'. McQueen also cut himself a 7.5% share of the profits bringing his pay packet for the film to an incredible $12m!

Appearing opposite these two towering egos was a galaxy of stars from film and TV. The financing for the film drew upon the combined resources of Warner Brothers and 20th Century Fox, and the notoriously tight Irwin Allen ensured that every last cent was up on the screen. The fantastic effects still look great today, especially on the new DVD release.

Should you be one of the few who hasn't seen the film then here's the plot. Paul Newman builds a stupidly high skyscraper, lots of rich people go into it and it catches fire so they have to escape. Perhaps what is so remarkable about this film is that it sustains a running time of 159 minutes despite such a flimsy premise. It truly is an epic event movie that improves with each subsequent viewing.