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1-6 of 6
- Writer
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Clean cut and smoothly handsome as a youth, Mike Evans got on board the Norman Lear TV train in the early 1970s and took a straight ride to sitcom stardom in both a landmark comedy series and its black-oriented spin-off. Born Michael Jonas Evans in Salisbury, North Carolina, on November 3, 1949, his dentist father and school instructor mother moved the family to Los Angeles when Mike was quite young. Graduating from Los Angeles High School, he attended Los Angeles City College before his abrupt TV success. Landing the role of black next-door neighbor Lionel Jefferson in Lear's iconic sitcom All in the Family (1971) was a lucky fluke -- something every fledgling actor should get to experience. In fact, Mike was still attending acting school when he was cast in the 1971 show at age 21. The series altered the course of TV comedy while tackling many then-taboo subjects, including racial prejudice. Due to the quality of the cast and writing, the series managed to thoroughly engage and entertain an audience despite being fronted by a blue-collar bigot in the form of Archie Bunker (played by the great Carroll O'Connor). As the calm, intelligent, level-headed Lionel, son of hothead George (Sherman Hemsley) and his beleaguered wife, Louise Jefferson (Isabel Sanford), Lionel's liberal-minded stance was more akin to Archie's live-in younger generation. As friend to Archie's daughter, Gloria, and her husband, Mike, Lionel had to somehow tolerate his grouchy neighbor's exasperating politically incorrect banter but made up for it with clever, carefully worded digs at the often-clueless Archie. During the run of the show, Mike also boosted his visibility with the TV movies Killer by Night (1972), Call Her Mom (1972), and Voyage of the Yes (1973), costarring Desi Arnaz Jr., not to mention the Disney family comedy feature Now You See Him, Now You Don't (1972), starring Kurt Russell. The hit series spun the Jefferson clan into its own "moving-on-up" sitcom The Jeffersons (1975) four years later. The "moving on up" was from Queens to a "deluxe apartment" in Manhattan, where the burgeoning, financially successful George now held court as head intolerant. Mike's character eventually met and fell for Jenny, the beautiful product of an interracial marriage. This became a major source of combustible comedy material that initially fed the new sitcom. In the meantime, Mike and writing partner Eric Monte also cocreated and were writing for another Lear sitcom, Good Times (1974), which was a spin-off of Lear's comedy hit Maude (1972), which in turn was a spin-off of sitcom daddy All in the Family (1971). The major responsibilities and hardships of writing for "Good Times", which became one of the first TV sitcoms to feature a primarily African American cast in quite some time, took its toll, and Mike began making fewer appearances as Lionel. In fact, he left the role completely in the fall of 1975 after only eight months to focus on his writing and was replaced by actor Damon Evans (no relation to Mike), who inhabited the part for four seasons. Mike eventually reclaimed the part in 1979 after the cancellation of "Good Times". His character of Lionel, however, had dwindled so significantly in importance that he left the show again in 1981, this time for good. The family show ended its long run in 1985 after a decade. Mike took on a low profile after his 1970s successes and was not seen onscreen again. By this time he had delved into Southern California real estate. He died of throat cancer in 2006 at age 57 at his mother's home in Twentynine Palms, California.- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Allie Wrubel was born on 15 January 1905 in Middletown, Connecticut, USA. He is known for Song of the South (1946), Blood Simple (1984) and The Wedding Planner (2001). He died on 13 December 1973 in Twentynine Palms, California, USA.- Jeff Neubauer was an actor, known for Hocus Pocus (1993). He died on 13 March 2004 in Twentynine Palms, California, USA.
- Frederick Burt was born on 12 February 1876 in Onarga, Illinois, USA. He was an actor, known for The Royal Bed (1931), Shadow of the Law (1930) and The Eyes of the World (1930). He was married to Helen Ware. He died on 2 October 1943 in Twentynine Palms, California, USA.
- Additional Crew
- Producer
- Production Manager
Anna Gross began her career with an 8 year stint with Dino De Laurentiis, where she worked in various capacities on 14 films, including Death Wish (1974), Three Days of the Condor (1975), The Shootist (1976), King Kong (1976) and Ragtime. She then served as Vice President of Production for Sydney Pollack, working on The Electric Horseman (1979) and the development of Tootsie (1982) and Out of Africa (1985).
Gross spent much of the 1980s working in Germany with European uber producer, Bernd Eichinger. She oversaw production of The NeverEnding Story (1984), The Name of the Rose (1986) and Last Exit to Brooklyn (1989). She then returned to established Constantin Film's Los Angeles operation.
In the early 1990s, Gross served as Vice President of Production for Italian producer/distributor Vittorio Cecchi Gori. She was the key executive on the Oscar winning Mediterraneo (1991), Giuseppe Tornatore's The Star Maker (1995) (best foreign language nominee), The Postman (1994) (five nominations). She handled the US sale and delivery of these films and was point person for Miramax on its distribution and Academy campaigns. She oversaw production for the Italian financier on Robert De Niro's directorial debut A Bronx Tale (1993). Her last project there was the Oscar winning Life Is Beautiful (1997).
Anna then began her own niche business of overseeing Oscar campaigns for foreign films. She has handled 11 nominees, including Eichinger's personal productions, The Baader Meinhof Complex (2008) and Downfall (2004).
She is an alumnus of Columbia University, Graduate Film Division, and a founding board member of the non-profit, FilmAid International.
Gross is currently a director and the corporate Secretary of Hypomania Content, Inc.- Sallie Fisher was born on 10 August 1880 in Wyoming, USA. She was an actress, known for The Little Shepherd of Bargain Row (1916) and Animated Weekly, No. 34 (1912). She was married to Arthur Houghton. She died on 8 June 1950 in Twentynine Palms, California, USA.