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1-34 of 34
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Lenore Aubert was born in present-day Slovenia, at the time still connected to the Austro-Hungarian Empire (her French name was pure Hollywood hokum, designed to make her background more exotic - though she did live for some time in Paris). Eleanore Maria Leisner was the daughter of an Austrian general and spent her formative years in Vienna where she studied acting and appeared in a few movies as an extra. Her marriage to a Jewish boy obliged her to leave Austria after the 'Anschluss' and the couple emigrated to the United States via France. In New York, Lenore found work as a model and was eventually offered a lucrative stage role as Lorraine Sheldon in "The Man Who Came to Dinner" at the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego. Determined to get the part, Lenore crossed the U.S. by bus.
Once settled in California, Lenore was 'discovered' twice. The first time, she was spotted by an agent for Samuel Goldwyn and signed to appear as the alluring Nazi spy trying to tempt Bob Hope in They Got Me Covered (1943). Though Dorothy Lamour wryly commented on Lenore's sexy walk, there was not enough screen time for the newcomer to seriously challenge the established star in the popularity stakes. After that, Lenore went into Action in Arabia (1944) opposite George Sanders. This picture did not make much of a splash either, but attracted the attention of Republic studio boss Herbert J. Yates, who was still desperately searching to find a replacement for his failed star Vera Ralston. Lenore was consequently cast in the period thriller The Catman of Paris (1946) which was launched with a (for Republic) bigger-then-average publicity campaign and went on to be exhibited at the better cinemas. Unfortunately, in the course of the 65 minutes, sets and cinematography were the real stars. Though the cast tried hard, they failed to overcome the deficiencies of lacklustre direction,a silly script and the even sillier makeup for the not very scary top- hatted 'werecat' monster. Needless to say, that 'Catman' did nothing for the careers of any involved.
During the next few years, Lenore appeared in a number of B-movies, such as The Return of the Whistler (1948) and Barbary Pirate (1949). Her own favourite among her screen roles was that of Viennese singer/actress Fritzi Scheff (1879-1954) in I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now (1947). Several times she had screen-tested, unsuccessfully, for A-grade productions. These included Saratoga Trunk (1945) and For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943), but on both occasions she lost out to Ingrid Bergman. Lenore's greatest success in film was probably retrospectively, due to the popularity and later cult status enjoyed by two films starring her with Abbott and Costello, made back-to-back: Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948) (generally regarded as the duo's best) and Bud Abbott Lou Costello Meet the Killer Boris Karloff (1949). A story goes, that, during production of the former, Lenore (attired all in mink) walked actor Glenn Strange -- in full make-up as the Frankenstein monster -- on a leash up and down the studio lot in full view of visiting tourists arriving on the tour tram (nothing beats good publicity !).
In the 1950's, Lenore joined her husband who was in the garment business in New York. The business succeeded, the marriage did not. With the exception of a couple of minor European films, Lenore's acting career was effectively over. She devoted much of her remaining life to charitable causes, doing work for the United Nations and the Museum of Natural History in New York.- This once popular silent screen star and older matinee idol for Paramount Studios is all but forgotten today; however, Thomas "Tommy" Meighan was one of the rulers of the Hollywood roost, between the years 1915 and 1928.
He was born in Pittsburgh, his father a president of a major manufacturing company. Meighan switched interests from medicine to acting during his mid-college years, joining Henrietta Crosman's Pittsburgh stock company as his initiation to professional theater.
During these years he met and married stage actress Frances Ring, who was the sister of actors Blanche Ring and Cyril Ring, enjoying a long and happy wedded life. Having developed a highly respected name for himself on Broadway right after the turn of the century, he decided, at the age of 36, to give up the stage in order to pursue the still-floundering medium of movie-making. It was a wise and prosperous move.
Meighan made his debut opposite Laura Hope Crews in The Fighting Hope (1915) and became a Paramount favorite of producer/director Cecil B. DeMille's with leading man roles in Kindling (1915), The Trail of the Lonesome Pine (1916), Male and Female (1919), Why Change Your Wife? (1920), and Manslaughter (1922). Meighan lit up the silver screen time and time again paired up with Hollywood's top echelon of silent female stars including Lila Lee, Blanche Sweet, Lois Wilson, Pauline Frederick, Billie Burke, Norma Talmadge, Charlotte Walker, and Leatrice Joy.
Meighan would make his film masterpiece with The Miracle Man (1919), also starring Lon Chaney, in which he played Tom Burke, a notorious con-man, who tries one last scheme, a faith-healing scam, before going clean. Unfortunately, this 8-reel silent classic is now lost but for a minor portion. Meighan would earn between $5,000 to $10,000 a week during his prime years.
Although his first talking picture, The Argyle Case (1929), was a success, Meighan's career went into a rapid decline come the advent of sound, playing a few fatherly types in support at the very end. His last film was Peck's Bad Boy (1934) starring young Jackie Cooper. At about this time the actor discovered he had cancer and was forced to withdraw from the screen. He died two years later on July 8, 1936. He and wife Frances had no children. - John Gibson was born on 29 June 1905 in Oakland, California, USA. He was an actor, known for A Date with Judy (1951), Studio One (1948) and The Defenders (1961). He was married to Alice Deshon. He died on 14 September 1971 in Great Neck, New York, USA.
- Stanley Kaufman was born on 31 August 1922 in New York, USA. He was married to Janice Kaufman. He died on 25 July 2013 in Great Neck, New York, USA.
- Writer
- Additional Crew
Ellen Conford was born on 20 March 1942 in New York City, New York, USA. She was a writer, known for ABC Afterschool Specials (1972), Jackanory (1965) and CBS Schoolbreak Special (1984). She was married to David H. Conford. She died on 20 March 2015 in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, USA.- Actor
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Billy Sullivan was born on 18 July 1891 in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. He was an actor and assistant director, known for The Winner (1926), Broadway Billy (1926) and Over the Hill (1917). He was married to Edith ?. He died on 23 May 1946 in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, USA.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Joya Sherrill was born on 20 August 1924 in Bayonne, New Jersey, USA. She was an actress, known for Time for Joya! (1970), Adventures in Jazz (1949) and The Richard Pryor Show (1977). She was married to Richard Guilmenot. She died on 28 June 2010 in Great Neck, New York, USA.- Florence Engel Randall was born on 18 October 1917 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. Florence Engel was a writer, known for The Watcher in the Woods (1980) and The Watcher in the Woods (2017). Florence Engel died on 4 September 1997 in Great Neck, New York, USA.
- Janice Kaufman was born on 23 February 1925 in the USA. She was married to Stanley Kaufman. She died on 11 January 1989 in Great Neck, New York, USA.
- Music Department
- Writer
- Composer
Songwriter ("It Was a Very Good Year", "I Believe", "Tico Tico", "Perdido", "Quando Quando Quando"), composer, author and producer, educated at Juilliard, City College of New York, BSS. He edited the college magazine "Mercury". For the Broadway show "What Makes Sammy Run?", he wrote the stage scores and song lyrics. Joining ASCAP in 1958, his other popular-song compositions include "Come to the Mardi Gras", "A Room Without Windows", "When You Cry, When You Laugh", "Sonata", "Good Morning, Heartache", "Castle Rock", "Made for Each Other", "The Friendliest Thing", "Some Days Everything Goes Wrong", "A Tender Spot", "One God", "Beloved Be Faithful", "My Hometown", "Something to Live For", "Longing", "The Rickety Rickshaw", "I Wuv a Wabbit", "Street of Thirty Three Steps", "Father of Girls", "Meet Mr. Callaghan", and "My Friend".- Ruth Klinger was born on 31 October 1922. She was an actress, known for The Lords of Flatbush (1974), A Stranger Is Watching (1982) and Love of Life (1951). She died on 4 July 1982 in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, USA.
- Writer
- Additional Crew
- Script and Continuity Department
Weisinger was the long-time editor of DC Comics' Superman line of titles. He also branched out to being story editor of "The Adventures of Superman" live-action series in the 1950s and "The New Adventures of Superman" animated series in the 1960s. He retired from DC around 1970 and was succeeded by Julius Schwartz on the Superman titles.- Director
- Writer
- Producer
Dennis Kane was born on 26 February 1923 in Maryland, USA. He was a director and writer, known for French Quarter (1978), CBS Afternoon Playhouse (1978) and Dark Shadows (1966). He died on 12 May 1992 in Great Neck, New York, USA.- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Jimmy Maxwell was born on 9 January 1917 in Stockton, California, USA. He is known for The Client (1994), A Boy and His Dog (1975) and American Masters (1985). He died on 20 July 2002 in Great Neck, New York, USA.- Jack E. Hazzard was born on 22 February 1881 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a writer, known for Turn to the Right (1922), Playing with Fire (1931) and The Lambs' All-Star Gambol (1914). He was married to Alice Dovey. He died on 2 December 1935 in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, USA.
- Actor
- Composer
- Music Department
Oscar Brand was born on 7 February 1920 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. He was an actor and composer, known for The Fox (1967), Blue Chips (1994) and 8 X 8: A Chess Sonata in 8 Movements (1955). He was married to Karen Lynn Grossman and Antonia Rubyan Saber. He died on 30 September 2016 in Great Neck, New York, USA.- Additional Crew
- Camera and Electrical Department
William Gottlieb was born on 28 January 1917 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He is known for Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser (1988), Unsung (2008) and The Legacy Project (2011). He was married to Delia Potofsky. He died on 23 April 2006 in Great Neck, New York, USA.- Actor
- Director
Elwood Fleet Bostwick was born on 13 May 1878 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He was an actor and director, known for A Factory Magdalen (1914), Kitty (1929) and City Butterfly (1929). He was married to Daisy Starr and Vivian Blackburn. He died on 14 January 1953 in Great Neck, New York, USA.- Vivian Blackburn was born in 1876 in Leavenworth, Kansas, USA. She was an actress, known for Excuse Me (1915) and Doc (1914). She was married to Elwood Fleet Bostwick. She died on 23 December 1952 in Great Neck Estates, New York, USA.
- Tobias Schneebaum was born on 25 March 1921 in Manhattan, New York, USA. He died on 20 September 2005 in Great Neck, New York, USA.
- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Walter Greene was born in 1872 in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for Life's Whirlpool (1916), The Port of Missing Girls (1928) and The Light on Lookout Mountain (1926). He died on 20 February 1941 in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, USA.- Jean Margouleff was born on 16 December 1904. He was an actor, known for Ciao Manhattan (1972). He died on 8 February 1988 in Great Neck, New York, USA.
- Writer
- Actress
Lottie Blair Parker was born in 1854 in Oswego, New York, USA. She was a writer and actress, known for Way Down East (1920), Under Southern Skies (1915) and Way Down East (1935). She was married to Harry Doel Parker (director/manager). She died on 5 January 1937 in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, USA.- Irving Rosenthal was born on 31 July 1912 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA. He was married to Ruth Moss. He died on 18 May 2008 in Great Neck, New York, USA.
- Donald Brian was born on 17 February 1875 in St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada. He was an actor, known for The Man Without a Country (1937), The Voice in the Fog (1915) and The Smugglers (1916). He was married to Virginia O'Brien (actress, b. 1896). He died on 22 December 1948 in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, USA.
- Thomas "Tad" Aloysius Dorgan was born on 29 April, 1877, at San Francisco, the son of Thomas J. and Anna Dorgan. His father worked as a laundryman and later as a teamster in the Bay Area.
Dorgan began working in the mid 1890s as a cartoonist for the San Francisco Bulletin. In 1904 he joined the staff of the New York Evening Journal as a cartoonist and sports writer. Soon his cartoons and sports columns were being picked up by the Hearst wire service and published nationwide and abroad. While at the Evening Journal Dorgan was instrumental in advancing the career of fellow sports writer, Charles E. van Loan.
Through his wit and creative use of the English language, Dorgan became one of the most beloved sports journalists of his day. He was famous for assigning many sports celebrities with ingenious nicknames and for originating some of the most popular slang phrases of all time. Dorgan was thought to have been the first to use slang terms like: "Twenty-Three Skidoo", "He's a Hard-Boiled Egg", "Dumb Dora", "Finale Hopper", "Solid Ivory", "Drug Store Cowboy", "Cake-Eater", "The Cat's Meow" "Nickel Nurse", "There's Nobody Home", "You Tell 'Em the First Hundred Years are the Hardest", Dumb-Bell", 'As Busy as a One-Armed Paper-Hanger with Hives" and others.
Tad Dorgan died on 2 May, 1929, at his home in Great Neck, Long Island. He had been suffering from heart disease for several years and even though he spent most of that that time bedridden he was able to continue working up to a few days before his death. The end came not long after he came down with pneumonia. - Edwin S. Marks was born on 3 June 1926 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA. He was married to Nancy Marks. He died on 24 April 2003 in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, USA.
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Cinematographer
Leon Dobbin was born on 5 July 1917. Leon was a cinematographer, known for The Patti Page Show (1956), Mister Peepers (1952) and The Jonathan Winters Specials (1964). Leon died on 8 April 2010 in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, USA.- Director
- Actor
- Producer
Jewish actor Joseph Green came from Poland in 1924 to New York, and went in 1927 to Hollywood. He popularized the Yiddish movie, showing the life at the Jewisch shtetl in Eastern Europe, in Poland and the USA before WWII. He retired from business after WW II. He died after long illnes on June 20, 1996.- Henry K. Chambers was born on 28 November 1867 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Henry K. was a writer, known for An American Widow (1917). Henry K. was married to Maria Cristina Mena and Mary Williams. Henry K. died on 5 September 1935 in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, USA.
- William Helmreich was born on 25 August 1945 in Zürich, Kanton Zürich, Switzerland. He was married to Helaine. He died on 28 March 2020 in Great Neck, New York, USA.
- Ernest Chiracka was born on 11 May 1913 in New York City, New York, USA. He was married to Kathryn Chiracka. He died on 26 April 2010 in Great Neck, New York, USA.
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
Songwriter ("In the Cool of Evening"), producer, author, director and artist, educated at the University of Detroit and the Detroit Art School. He was an early designer of sheet music covers. In 1907 he came to New York, and designed and directed an act for Lillian Russell. In 1912, he became the chief writer and assistant to Florenz Ziegfeld, lasting to 1926. He composed Broadway stage scores and sketches for thirteen editions of the "Ziegfeld Follies" and two editions of "Ziegfeld's 9 O'Clock Revue", "No Foolin'", and "Zig-Zag" (in London), and he originated and directed eleven editions of the "Ziegfeld Midnight Frolics". He produced and directed the musicals "Yours Truly" and "Take the Air" (for which he also composed the score). He was president of the Catholic Actors Guild, and won an NAACC award. Joining ASCAP as a charter member in 1914, he became an ASCAP director in 1920, lasting to 1957. He served as ASCAP's president from 1924 to 1941. His chief musical collaborator was David Stamper, and he also worked with Rudolf Friml, Jerome Kern, Mischa Elman, Augustus Thomas, Werner Janssen, James Hanley, Ray Hubbell, Victor Herbert and Louis Hirsch. His song compositions include "Daddy Has a Sweetheart (and Mother Is Her Name)", "Hello, Frisco", "Have a Heart", "Hello, My Dearie", "Tulip Time", "Sally, Won't You Come Back?", "Sweet Sixteen", "Sunshine and Shadows", "The Love Boat", "My Rambler Rose", "'Neath the South Sea Moon", "Lovely Little Melody", "No Foolin'", "Florida, the Moon and You", "Some Boy", and "Garden of My Dreams".- Walter Percy Chrysler was born on 2 April 1875 in Wamego, Kansas, USA. He died on 18 August 1940 in Great Neck, New York, USA.