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1-8 of 8
- Actor
- Soundtrack
He was a notably short, Italian, nasal-toned and mischievous-looking fellow, a perfect type for the stand-up comedy circuit and for playing Brooklynesque characters in T.V. sitcoms and films...which is just what Ron Carey did. He was born Ronald Joseph Cicenia in Newark, New Jersey, on December eleventh, 1935, into a huge Italian family; his father was a singing waiter at one time. Ron earned his Bachelor's degree in communications from Seton Hall University in South Orange in 1956, but it didn't take him long to change directions. Together his pint-sized frame (actually, he was 5'7", but "acted" much shorter), pushy attitude and elastic face seemed like an ideal blend for inducing laughs, so he decided to begin a career in entertainment instead.
Ron moved to near-by New York and took to the comedy stage, finding work in such prime clubs as "The Improvisation". He soon earned notice for his "little man" humor, which was built around Italian family and Roman Catholic "guilt" jokes (in reality, he once considered being a priest). Ron finally gained some momentum on T.V. making various funnyman appearances on the talk/variety show formats hosted by the best of the best -- Jack Paar, Merv Griffin, Mike Douglas, Ed Sullivan and Johnny Carson. He also found lucrative work in commercials playing various feisty or hapless characters.
Ron finally broke into films with the Jack Lemmon/Sandy Dennis comedy The Out of Towners (1970) as a Boston taxi driver, then continued on with other minor bits in Who Killed Mary Whats'ername? (1971) and the cult film Made for Each Other (1971) starring Joseph Bologna and Renée Taylor. Earlier Ron appeared on Broadway in the couple's 1968 hit comedy "Lovers and Other Strangers." It wasn't until his work as a secondary staple in Mel Brooks' madcap company that he earned even a modicum of success in films. His participation in the zany parodies Silent Movie (1976), High Anxiety (1977) and History of the World: Part I (1981) occurred during the height of his T.V. fame. Likewise, he went on to deliver a substantial role as plus-sized Dom DeLuise's unsympathetic brother Frankie in Fatso (1980), directed by Brooks' wife Anne Bancroft.
As for the smaller screen, a regular player on the summer variety series The Melba Moore-Clifton Davis Show (1972) led to his being cast in the New York-area sitcom The Corner Bar (1972) and the ethnic family comedy The Montefuscos (1975). A steady pay-check was not to be had, however, until he was added to the second season ensemble of Barney Miller (1975) headed by Hal Linden and Abe Vigoda. Ron earned sympathy strokes as Carl Levitt, a brown-nosing, eager-beaver patrolman who yearned to be a plainclothes detective in Barney's police agency, but just didn't measure up because of his vertically challenged stature. Ron, whose character finally received a promotion after the long haul, stayed with the popular show until its cancellation in 1982.
His on-screen visibility decreased following the end of the police show. He was spotted in a few supporting roles (Johnny Dangerously (1984) and Lucky Luke (1991)) here and there both here and in Italy, and attempted to cash in on his Barney Miller (1975) fame with a follow-up sitcom, playing a priest in Have Faith (1989), but things didn't quite pan out. His final film was a major role in the eleven-minute piece Food for Thought (1999). Ron died of complications from a stroke at seventy-one years old in Los Angeles and is survived by long-time wife Sharon.- Actor
- Additional Crew
Born in Iceland, Peter began running track at a young age. He excelled in this sport and in his late teens was on the Icelandic National Team for the decathlon. He held several national records. While competing in Europe, he met a runner from the United States who was currently attending and competing for USC. After talking, the USC track athlete asked him if he would ever consider coming to the United States to run for USC. Peter said he would love to and after talking to the coach, Peter began attending USC on a full scholarship. He came to the United States with his 3 children (Lisa, Petur Jr., and Kristine). While at USC (being in the right place at the right time) casting for a movie was being done [Journey to the Center of the Earth] and the producer was having a hard time finding someone to play Hans [a tall, strong Icelandic native]. One of the producer's colleagues had a son who went to USC. At a social event the son of the producer's colleague learned about the trouble the producer was having finding someone to play Hans. You can guess what happens from here. The colleague's son was on the track team as well and told the producer "I have the perfect person for the part." An audition was arranged and Peter soon went to try out for the part. He was immediately cast in the role of Hans. After the movie was filmed, Peter was offered a long-term acting contract that he turned down. He felt that after making the movie he had no privacy and did not want to live a life in the public eye. Later on, Peter competed in the 1960 Rome Olympics for Iceland in the 110-Meter Hurdles. Since then he married a Southern California native (of Danish decent) Marie George (now Marie Ronson) and had two more sons, Brian and Stephen. Both are currently licensed physicians in Southern California and are very proud of their father.- Actress
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Gisela Uhlen was born on 16 May 1919 in Leipzig, Germany. She was an actress and writer, known for The Marriage of Maria Braun (1979), Rembrandt (1942) and The Indian Scarf (1963). She was married to Herbert Ballmann, Wolfgang Kieling, Hans Bertram, Beat Hodel and Kurt Wessels. She died on 16 January 2007 in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.- Flower the Meerkat was born on 15 March 2000 in Kuruman River Reserve, Northern Cape, South Africa. She died on 16 January 2007 in Kuruman River Reserve, Northern Cape, South Africa.
- Soundtrack
Pookie Hudson was born on 11 June 1934 in Des Moines, Iowa, USA. He was married to Delores (Dee) Brown, Mamie and Tina Owens. He died on 16 January 2007 in Capitol Heights, Maryland, USA.- Benny Parsons was born on 12 July 1941 in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, USA. He was an actor, known for Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006), Herbie Fully Loaded (2005) and Stroker Ace (1983). He was married to Teresa Kiel and Connie Parsons. He died on 16 January 2007 in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA.
- Rudolf August Oetker was born on 20 September 1916 in Bielefeld, Germany. He was married to Maja Oetker. He died on 16 January 2007 in Hamburg, Germany.
- Camera and Electrical Department
Chris Parry was born on 23 May 1952 in Manchester, England, UK. He is known for Theatre Night (1985), The Who's Tommy, the Amazing Journey (1993) and The 53rd Annual Tony Awards (1999). He was married to Vivien Gregg. He died on 16 January 2007 in San Diego, California, USA.