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1-50 of 146
- Actor
- Soundtrack
River Phoenix was born River Jude Bottom in Madras, Oregon. His mother, Arlyn (Dunetz), a Bronx-born secretary, and his father, John Bottom, a carpenter, met in California in 1968. They worked as itinerant fruit pickers, and later joined the Children of God religious group (John was originally Catholic, while Arlyn was born Jewish). By the time River was two, they were living in South America, where John was the sect's Archbishop of Venezuela. They later left the group and, in 1977, moved back to the United States, changing their last name to "Phoenix". They lived with River's maternal grandparents in Florida, and later moved to Los Angeles. His parents encouraged all of their children to get into movies and, by age ten, River was acting professionally on TV. His film debut was in Explorers (1985), followed rapidly by box-office successes with Stand by Me (1986) and The Mosquito Coast (1986), and as young Indiana in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989). His role as Danny Pope in Running on Empty (1988) earned him an Academy Award nomination as Best Supporting Actor. His best role was probably Mike, the hustler in My Own Private Idaho (1991).
A dedicated animal-rights activist and environmentalist, River was a strict vegetarian and a member of PeTA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals). River was a talented musician as well as an actor, and he played guitar, sang, and wrote songs for his band, Aleka's Attic, which also included his sister Rain Phoenix, while living in Gainsville, Florida. Although the band never released its own album, their song "Across the Way" can be found on PeTA's "Tame Yourself" album, used to fight animal abuse. River was in the middle of filming Dark Blood (2012), playing the character Boy when he died. The film couldn't be finished due to too many unfilmed crucial scenes. His mother was later sued.
River died of acute multiple drug intoxication involving lethal levels of cocaine and morphine at age 23 outside the Viper Room, Johnny Depp's Los Angeles club.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Carolyn Sue Jones was born in 1930, in Amarillo, Texas, to homemaker Chloe (or Cloe) Jeanette Southern (1906-1979), and Julius Alfred Jones (1897-1979), a barber. Her sister was Bette (later Mrs. Moriarty). Carolyn was an imaginative child, much like her mother; she and her mother shared the same birthday (April 28).
In 1934, her father abandoned the family and her mother moved them in with her own parents, also in Amarillo. As a child, Carolyn suffered from severe asthma. Although she loved movies, she was often too sick to attend, so she listened to her favorites, Danny Kaye and Spike Jones and read as many movie fan magazines as she could. She dreamed of attending the famed Pasadena Playhouse and received many awards at school for speech, poetry, and dramatics. In 1947, she was accepted as a student at the Pasadena Playhouse, and her grandfather agreed to pay for her classes. She worked in summer stock to supplement her income, graduating in 1950.
She gave herself a complete head-to-toe makeover, including painful cosmetic nose surgery to make herself ready for movie roles. Working as an understudy at the Players Ring Theater, she stepped in when the star left to get married. She was seen by a talent scout from Paramount and given a screen test, which went well. She made her first appearance in The Turning Point (1952). She did some other work during her 6-month contract, but when it ended, Paramount, suffering from television's impact, let it lapse. She quipped, "They let me and 16 secretaries go!"
She started working in television but kept busy on stage as well. There, she met a fellow Texan, a young man named Aaron Spelling, and they became a couple. She made a breakthrough in the 3-D movie House of Wax (1953) and garnered excellent reviews. Aaron was still struggling, so he felt he wasn't able to propose to Carolyn; she finally proposed to him. They were married in April 1953. Neither was earning much, but they really enjoyed each other and their life. Many saw them as an ideal couple. She decided against having children as she felt she could not juggle the demands of both a career and a family.
Columbia Pictures saw her and wanted to test her for the part of prostitute Alma Burke in From Here to Eternity (1953), but she got extremely sick with pneumonia and the part went to Donna Reed, nine years older, who won an Academy Award. Jones did, however, achieve success in the science-fiction classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956), a subtle allegory of the times (McCarthyism). And the famous filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock cast her in The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) opposite James Stewart and Doris Day. Meanwhile, Aaron had little success as an actor and Carolyn pushed him to become a writer, even threatening to leave him. She constantly promoted his scripts whenever she could and he was ultimately hired by Dick Powell. Carolyn, meanwhile, was successful once more in The Bachelor Party (1957) (famous line, "Just say you love me--you don't have to mean it!"). For this role, she surprised cast members by dyeing her hair black and cutting it short. This stunning look served her well for a number of roles. For her eight minutes on screen, she received glowing reviews and was nominated for an Academy Award but lost. However, she did win the Golden Globe Award and the Laurel Award for Marjorie Morningstar (1958). She followed this with an impressive appearance in King Creole (1958), generally regarded as Elvis Presley's best film. She then gave arguably her best performance ever in Career (1959), but the film was not commercially successful. She played a serious role in this, leaving the kooky role she might have played to Shirley MacLaine.
As Aaron's career soared, the marriage started to fail. They separated in October 1963 and amicably divorced in August 1965, with Carolyn asking for no alimony. They remained friends. She worked at various roles including two episodes of Burke's Law (1963) for which she received a Golden Globe nomination. Soon, she got the part for which she will best be remembered, that of Morticia Addams in The Addams Family (1964). She spent two years in this role. Her costume was designed to copy the cartoon drawings and no doubt inspired such imitators as Cassandra Peterson (Elvira, Mistress of the Dark). The show went head-to-head with The Munsters (1964) and Bewitched (1964).
The show was a hit and she received all the fame she had craved. However, the network decided to cancel the show, despite its success, after only two years. Typecast as Morticia but without the income that a few more years would have provided, she found life difficult and roles few. While acting on the road, she married her voice coach, Herbert Greene, a well-known and respected Broadway conductor and musical director, and they moved together to Palm Springs, California. After seven years, she left him and returned to Hollywood, determined to try to restart her career. She was surprisingly successful and performed in several shows, including Wonder Woman (1975), where she played Hippolyta, the mother of Wonder Woman (Lynda Carter) and Wonder Girl (Debra Winger). She also appeared in the landmark miniseries Roots (1977). She appeared in four episodes of Fantasy Island (1977) and one episode of The Love Boat (1977), two shows produced by her former husband, Aaron Spelling. In 1979, both of Jones's parents died; her mother from pancreatic cancer. She took on the role of Myrna Clegg on the soap Capitol (1982) from 1982 to 1983, despite having been diagnosed with colon cancer in 1981. She underwent aggressive treatment for the cancer, but it returned during her time on the show and she was told it was terminal.
She played some scenes despite being confined to a wheelchair and working in great pain. Knowing time was short, she married her boyfriend of five years, Peter Bailey-Britton, in September 1982. She died on August 3, 1983, aged 53. She had told her sister Bette that she wanted her epitaph to be "She gave joy to the world." She certainly had many friends who loved her greatly, and many fans who enjoyed her wonderful performances.- Actor
- Music Department
- Additional Crew
Salvatore (Sal) Mineo Jr. was born to Josephine and Sal Sr. (a casket maker), who emigrated to the U.S. from Sicily. His siblings were Michael, Victor and Sarina. Sal was thrown out of parochial school and, by age eight, was a member of a street gang in a tough Bronx neighborhood. His mother enrolled him in dancing school and, after being arrested for robbery at age ten, he was given a choice of juvenile confinement or professional acting school.
He soon appeared in the theatrical production "The Rose Tattoo" with Maureen Stapleton and Eli Wallach and as the young prince in "The King and I" with Gertrude Lawrence and Yul Brynner. At age 16 he played a much younger boy in Six Bridges to Cross (1955) with Tony Curtis and later that same year played Plato in James Dean's Rebel Without a Cause (1955). He was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in this film and again for his role as Dov Landau in Exodus (1960).
Expanding his repertoire, Mineo returned to the theatre to direct and star in the play "Fortune and Men's Eyes" with successful runs in both New York and Los Angeles. In the late 1960s and 1970s he continued to work steadily in supporting roles on TV and in film, including Dr. Milo in Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971) and Harry O (1973). In 1975 he returned to the stage in the San Francisco hit production of "P.S. Your Cat Is Dead". Preparing to open the play in Los Angeles in 1976 with Keir Dullea, he returned home from rehearsal the evening of February 12th when he was attacked and stabbed to death by a stranger. A drifter named Lionel Ray Williams was arrested for the crime and, after trial in 1979, convicted and sentenced to life in prison for the murder, but was paroled in 1990. Although taken away far too soon, the memory of Sal Mineo continues to live on through the large body of TV and film work that he left behind.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Glynis Johns was the daughter of actor Mervyn Johns. Best known for her light comedy roles and often playful flirtation, Glynis was born in South Africa while her parents were on tour there (her mother was a concert pianist) but was always proud of her Welsh roots and took delight in playing the female lead (opposite Richard Burton) in the classic Under Milk Wood (1971). She was probably best known for her role as the suffragette mother in Mary Poppins (1964) although she is probably best loved for her fishy roles in Miranda (1948) and Mad About Men (1954). She had earlier showed she could take on the serious roles as well as in Frieda (1947). Most recently seen (at the time of writing) in Superstar (1999). Johns died in 2024, aged 100, having never received the damehood she had richly deserved for decades. Predeceased by her only son, she was survived by a grandson,Thomas Forwood, and three great-grandchildren.- Actress
- Soundtrack
One of television's premier African-American series stars, elegant actress, singer and recording artist Diahann Carroll was born Carol Diann (or Diahann) Johnson on July 17, 1935, in the Bronx, New York. The first child of John Johnson, a subway conductor, and Mabel Faulk Johnson, a nurse; music was an important part of her life as a child, singing at age six with her Harlem church choir. While taking voice and piano lessons, she contemplated an operatic career after becoming the 10-year-old recipient of a Metropolitan Opera scholarship for studies at New York's High School of Music and Art. As a teenager she sought modeling work but it was her voice, in addition to her beauty, that provided the magic and the allure.
When she was 16, she teamed up with a girlfriend from school and auditioned for Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts show using the more exotic sounding name of Diahann Carroll. She alone was invited to appear and won the contest. She subsequently performed on the daily radio show for three weeks. In her late teens, she began focusing on a nightclub career and it was here that she began formulating a chic, glamorous image. Another TV talent show appearance earned her a week's engagement at the Latin Quarter.
Broadway roles for black singers were rare but at age nineteen, Diahann was cast in the Harold Arlen/Truman Capote musical "House of Flowers". Starring the indomitable Pearl Bailey, Diahann held her own quite nicely in the ingénue role. While the show itself was poorly received, the score was heralded and Diahann managed to introduce two song standards, "A Sleepin' Bee" and "I Never Has Seen Snow", both later recorded by Barbra Streisand.
In 1954 she and Ms. Bailey supported a riveting Dorothy Dandridge as femme fatale Carmen Jones (1954) in an all-black, updated movie version of the Georges Bizet opera "Carmen." Diahann later supported Ms. Dandridge again in Otto Preminger's cinematic retelling of Porgy and Bess (1959). During this time she also grew into a singing personality on TV while visiting such late-nite hosts as Jack Paar and Steve Allen and performing.
Unable to break through into the top ranks in film (she appeared in a secondary role once again in Paris Blues (1961), a Paul Newman/Joanne Woodward vehicle), Diahann returned to Broadway. She was rewarded with a Tony Award for her exceptional performance as a fashion model in the 1962 musical "No Strings," a bold, interracial love story that co-starred Richard Kiley. Richard Rodgers, whose first musical this was after the death of partner Oscar Hammerstein, wrote the part specifically for Diahann, which included her lovely rendition of the song standard "The Sweetest Sounds." By this time she had already begun to record albums ("Diahann Carroll Sings Harold Arlen" (1957), "Diahann Carroll and Andre Previn" (1960), "The Fabulous Diahann Carroll" (1962). Nightclub entertaining filled up a bulk of her time during the early-to-mid 1960s, along with TV guest appearances on Carol Burnett, Judy Garland, Andy Williams, Dean Martin and Danny Kaye's musical variety shows.
Little did Diahann know that in the late 1960s she would break a major ethnic barrier on the small screen. Though it was nearly impossible to suppress the natural glamour and sophistication of Diahann, she touchingly portrayed an ordinary nurse and widow struggling to raise a small son in the series Julia (1968). Despite other Black American actresses starring in a TV series (i.e., Hattie McDaniel in "Beulah"), Diahann became the first full-fledged African-American female "star" -- top billed, in which the show centered around her lead character. The show gradually rose in ratings and Diahann won a Golden Globe award for "Best Newcomer" and an Emmy nomination. The show lasted only two seasons, at her request.
A renewed interest in film led Diahann to the dressed-down title role of Claudine (1974), as a Harlem woman raising six children on her own. She was nominated for an Oscar in 1975, but her acting career would become more and more erratic after this period. She did return, however, to the stage with productions of "Same Time, Next Year" and "Agnes of God". While much ado was made about her return to series work as a fashionplate nemesis to Joan Collins' ultra-vixen character on the glitzy primetime soap Dynasty (1981), it became much about nothing as the juicy pairing failed to ignite. Diahann's character was also a part of the short-lived "Dynasty" spin-off The Colbys (1985).
Throughout the late 1980s and early 90s she toured with her fourth husband, singer Vic Damone, with occasional acting appearances to fill in the gaps. Some of her finest work came with TV-movies, notably her century-old Sadie Delany in Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years (1999) and as troubled singer Natalie Cole's mother in Livin' for Love: The Natalie Cole Story (2000). She also portrayed silent screen diva Norma Desmond in the musical version of "Sunset Blvd." and toured America performing classic Broadway standards in the concert show "Almost Like Being in Love: The Lerner and Loewe Songbook." She then had recurring roles on Grey's Anatomy (2005) and White Collar (2009).
Diahann Carroll died on October 4, 2019, in Los Angeles, California.- A native Chicagoan of Polish descent, veteran character actress Arlene Golonka seemed destined for acting from the start, having been named after silver screen actress Arline Judge, and her childhood was dominated by singing and acting classes. She headed to New York at the age of 19 and began a career on Broadway and in films made in New York City, generally playing bubble-headed or eccentric blondes, often prostitutes.
She relocated to Los Angeles in the late 1960s. There, while continuing to play small roles on the big screen, she established one of the strongest resumes in television of any character actress, appearing in dozens of programs over the following three decades, often repeatedly on the same program and sometimes playing different characters. Her TV appearances included such legendary programs as The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970), All in the Family (1971), and M*A*S*H (1972). She may have been best-known for her recurring role as "Millie" on Mayberry R.F.D. (1968). - He was born on Sakhalin Island at the far eastern end of the former Soviet Union and began studying dance at age 9 in the Riga State Ballet School. He later said his mother put him there to prevent his becoming "a hooligan". One of his classmates and friends at the school was Mikhail Baryshnikov. After graduating he toured with the Moscow Classical Ballet. He joined the Bolshoi in 1971; there he received rave reviews for the lead in "Swan Lake", "Giselle" and other classical and contemporary works. In 1973 he won a gold medal at the Moscow International Competition. The same year he received more praise when the Bolshoi toured the United States. He was then marked as a potential defector and not allowed to tour for five years. In August 1979 he did defect. The story grew in importance when his ballerina wife returned to the USSR a few days later. He joined the American Ballet Theater and danced with it until 1982 when he and its director Baryshnikov had a falling out. He was by then a frequent companion of Jacqueline Bisset. His first movie role was as the Amish farmer Daniel in "Witness" (1985). The NY Times reviewer described him as the film's "most riveting presence". The same critic did not take so kindly to his role as Karl in "Die Hard" (1988) ("a sight gag in his terrorist costume"). When he became a US citizen in 1987 he said he planned to celebrate by eating a "hamburger stuffed with caviar". He had been filming a movie in Budapest a few weeks before he was found dead in his West Hollywood home, of "natural causes" according to his physician.
- Margaret "Maggie" Blye attended the University of Texas, before transferring to UCLA in her senior year. She was quickly spotted by a talent agent, and the agent booked Maggie for her first audition in the Oscar-nominated film "Summer and Smoke" starring Geraldine Page. Maggie went on to participate, and star, in many feature films, working with some of the best in the business: "Hombre" with Paul Newman, "Waterhole #3" with James Coburn, "Hard Times" with Charles Bronson, "Diamonds Are For Breakfast" with Marcello Mastroianni, "Ash Wednesday" with Elizabeth Taylor, and the original "The Italian Job" with Michael Caine. In addition, her television roles included extensive guest stars and in numerous television series pilot trials. Maggie joined the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1968. Maggie was active in organizations, serving for many years on the Foreign Language Film Award (FLFA) Screening Committee. After a two year battle with cancer, Maggie passed away peacefully on March 24, 2016 at her home in West Hollywood, California, with her sister, Judy Blye Wilson, and her brother, John Richard Blye by her bed side. Per her wishes, Maggie was laid to rest next to her parents at Forest Park Lawn in Houston, Texas on March 30, 2016.
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Actor. Jack Cassidy, by his own design, defied mere definition from the day he was born in Richmond Hills, New York in 1927 until his tragic death in 1976. An actor, singer, writer, designer - the consummate showman and irrefutable creative entity - his life never followed a simple path nor did it ever lead quite where expected. Yet, in the end, his impact on the entertainment community has been unmistakable - and unforgettable. The youngest of five children born to immigrant parents, Jack Cassidy's story is one of success and inspiration. By the time he was sixteen, he'd worked fifteen jobs ranging from busboy to dishwasher to ice truck driver. His uncle, a renowned circus contortionist, showed him the show business ropes and at the tender age of sixteen, Jack stepped into the chorus of "Something for the Boys". After that point, Jack's acting talent and rich baritone voice took him from show to show. He graced the stage in several productions before landing his first lead role in "Wish You Were Here" in 1953. The reviews were outstanding and his career started to flourish including the role of Johnny O'Sullivan in "Sandhog." The role of an Irish immigrant would hit close to home and would be one of his favorites. His life had also been enriched with his marriage to dancer-choreographer Evelyn Ward in 1948 and the birth of their son David in 1950. Evelyn and Jack had met while working on a show together and their wedding was attended by a who's-who of The Great White Way. Jack started to pepper his career with appearances not only on stage but on various television shows, sharing his talent with a broader audience. He made several appearances on "Toast of the Town" and "Lux Video Theatre" and also surfaced on episodes of "The United Steel Hour," "Richard Diamond, Private Detective" and "Gunsmoke." He would even have his own television show in Great Britain. His television presence would only grow over the next 20 years reflecting not only his career but his notoriety and prominence in the industry. In 1955, Jack was cast in a State Department European tour of the Rogers and Hammerstein musical "Oklahoma!" with a young actress named Shirley Jones. Legally separated from Evelyn, Jack pursued Shirley and after their first date in Paris, he declared his intent to marry her - which he did between performances of "The Beggar's Opera" in 1956. Their marriage would be blessed with the births of three sons: Shaun, Patrick and Ryan. All four of his sons would carry on Jack's legacy in their own way - each with critically acclaimed careers in theater, film and television. Jack and Shirley would collaborate in other ways, appearing together on Broadway in "Maggie Flynn" in 1968 (Jack would receive a Tony nomination for his portrayal of "Phineas"), recording a number of albums including "Love From Hollywood" and "Brigadoon" and touring with the nightclub act "The Marriage Band" which was created by Jack and inspired by their relationship. As the country transformed through the 1960s, Jack Cassidy's career blossomed in all respects. In the theater, he took home the Tony for Best Featured Actor in 1963 for "She Loves Me" and followed that with Tony nominations for his work in "Fade Out, Fade In," "It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman" and "Maggie Flynn" and is one of the most nominated actors in Tony history. The West Coast beckoned to him and Jack started to truly establish himself in television. Whether it was a brilliant dramatic performance on "Alfred Hitchcock Presents,", "77 Sunset Strip," "Coronet Blue," "Lock Up," "Maverick" or "Wagon Train," a dazzling musical performance on "The Bell Telephone Hour" or "The Garry Moore Show" or a delightful comedic performance on "Bewitched" or "That Girl" - Jack was finally allowed to showcase his versatility and range to audiences unable to see him set foot on a stage. He even started his movie career in films such as "Look in Any Window", "The Chapman Report", "FBI Code 98" and the animated "Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol" in 1962. Often considered "larger than life" himself - even by co-stars Paula Prentiss and Richard Benjamin - Jack brought life to the character of Oscar North in the 1968 series "He & She" to the delight of both audiences and critics. His delivery of the classic "trapped in an elevator" routine has never been matched and his superior flair and uproarious comic timing would garner an Emmy nomination in 1969. His television presence would swell in the 1970s as he became a staple of both dramatic programs and game shows. Indeed it was nearly impossible to turn on the television and not see Jack's brilliant smile or hear his infectious laughter. He frequented "Columbo" and remains one of the more popular guest stars in the show's history. Other memorable performances include appearances in "Barnaby Jones," "Matt Helm," "McCloud," "Hawaii Five-O," "Alias Smith and Jones" and "Bonanza" as well as comedic interludes in "Love, American Style", "The Carol Burnett Show", "Laugh-In" and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." His career expanded into the television movie genre with "Your Money or Your Wife," "George M!," "June Moon," and "The Phantom of Hollywood." Yet it was his depiction of attorney Otis Baker in "The Andersonville Trial" that again brought him an Emmy nomination and critical acclaim. Jack Cassidy's film career in the 1970s was filled with wonderful, quirky roles in films such as "Bunny O'Hare" with Bette Davis and Ernest Borgnine, the Clint Eastwood action-thriller "The Eiger Sanction", "The Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County" with Mickey Rooney and his brilliant portrayal of the legendary John Barrymore in "W.C. Fields and Me". However, he craved the solid, dramatic roles where he could truly prove his abilities on a larger scale. Tragically, he had just started receiving these offers right before his death in 1976. Like the character he'd created on "He & She," Jack Cassidy was undeniably larger than life. His notorious sense of humor made him the life of the party from private gatherings to public charity galas. It is no surprise that his friends and fans read like a roster of Hollywood's top talent. Among them, Dick Van Dyke, Jack Lemmon and Dick Van Patten have counted themselves as admirers of his talent. Jack was the superlative example of the classic leading man with his charisma, dashing grin and sparkling eyes who conducted his life with nothing less than panache and style. His golden baritone voice will forever set him apart. His talent will never be matched. His wit and humor warm the memories of the friends and family he left behind. He was a creative powerhouse who was denied the time necessary to fully express the full spectrum of his talents - some of which are only now revealed through the talent and success of his sons in many facets of the industry. Despite the brilliance of his career, he had only started to tap into the expanse of his potential. It was a life cut short and a life that deserves to be celebrated- Actress
- Soundtrack
Dorothy Jean Dandridge was born on November 9, 1922 in Cleveland, Ohio, to Ruby Dandridge (née Ruby Jean Butler), an entertainer, and Cyril H. Dandridge, a cabinet maker and minister. Under the prodding of her mother, Dorothy and her sister Vivian Dandridge began performing publicly, usually in black Baptist churches throughout the country. Her mother would often join her daughters on stage. As the depression worsened, Dorothy and her family picked up and moved to Los Angeles where they had hopes of finding better work, perhaps in film. Her first film was in the Marx Brothers comedy, A Day at the Races (1937). It was only a bit part but Dandridge hoped it would blossom into something better. She only appeared in another film in 1940, in Four Shall Die (1940).
Meanwhile, she dropped out of high school and became part of a musical trio which performed with the orchestra of Jimmie Lunceford. During the late 30s, she dated music composer Phil Moore, who was instrumental in launching her career as a nightclub singer and big band vocalist.
Her next few screen roles in the early 1940s tended to be small stereotypical roles of black girls or princesses - such as Bahama Passage (1941) and Drums of the Congo (1942), She was the singing star of the western themed all-black-cast "soundie" (short musical) Cow-Cow Boogie (1942) and appeared in movies that showcased her talents as actress and singer, like Hit Parade of 1943 (1943) as the vocalist of Count Basie's Band, and twice as the vocalist of Louis Armstrong's Band in Pillow to Post (1945) and Atlantic City (1944).
Those brought her headline acts in the nation's finest hotel nightclubs in New York, Miami, Chicago and Las Vegas. She may have been allowed to sing in these fine hotels but, because of racism, she couldn't have a room in any of them. It was reported that one hotel drained its swimming pool to keep her from enjoying that amenity.
In 1954, she appeared in the all-black production of Carmen Jones (1954) in the title role. She was so superb in that picture that she garnered an Academy Award nomination but lost to Grace Kelly in The Country Girl (1954). She did not get another movie role until Tamango (1958), an Italian film. She did six more films, including, most notably, Island in the Sun (1957) and Porgy and Bess (1959). The last movie in which she would ever appear was The Murder Men (1962) (1961).
Dandridge faded quickly after that, due to an ill-considered marriage to Jack Dennison (her first husband was Harold Nicholas), poor investments, financial woes, and alcoholism.
She was found dead in her apartment at 8495 Fountain Avenue, West Hollywood, on September 8, 1965, aged 42, from barbiturate poisoning. She left $2.14 in her bank account, and a handwritten letter: "In case of my death - whoever discovers it - Don't remove anything I have on - scarf, gown, or underwear. Cremate me right away - if I have any money, furniture, give it to my mother, Ruby Dandridge - She will know what to do.". She was cremated and her ashes were interred in the Freedom Mausoleum at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.
She was posthumously awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6719 Hollywood Blvd. on January 18, 1983.- Actress
- Music Department
American leading woman of films and television in the 1950s, whose career was hampered by injuries. Raised in San Francisco, Paula Raymond studied music, dance, and opera as a child. She made her film debut as a child by chance in Keep Smiling (1938) during a visit to Los Angeles. She remained to attend Hollywood High School and to appear in local theater productions. She returned to San Francisco for studies at San Francisco Junior College and, while there, entered into a brief marriage. Divorced, she came back to Hollywood and modeled. Although contracted to Paramount in 1947, she was released without working there and signed instead with Columbia. She made numerous television appearances and low-budget features before MGM signed her and began placing her in more important projects, starting with Adam's Rib (1949). Despite good notices and some successful films, she was eventually released from her contract. She made several unimportant pictures as a freelancer, then left the industry in 1955. She worked a number of non-film related jobs under a variation of her married name, then returned to acting in 1958. She had a long string of success in television, including State Trooper (1956), Mike Hammer (1958), Yancy Derringer (1958), Peter Gunn (1958), and others. This string of successes was shattered in a 1962 car crash. She was very nearly killed and had severe facial damage, requiring massive plastic surgery. Her beauty miraculously recovered, she managed to return to acting within a year and appeared occasionally into the 1970s. A series of subsequent falls injured her repeatedly, and she moved into business interests, though remaining an actor at heart.- Erica Hagen was born on 6 June 1946 in Sioux City, Iowa, USA. She was an actress, known for Soylent Green (1973), Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974) and Wonder Woman (1975). She died on 15 September 2018 in West Hollywood, California, USA.
- Karyn Kupcinet was born on 6 March 1941 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. She was an actress, known for The Little Shop of Horrors (1960), The Gertrude Berg Show (1961) and Hawaiian Eye (1959). She died on 28 November 1963 in West Hollywood, California, USA.
- Writer
- Actor
- Producer
John Randolph Webb was born in Santa Monica, California, to Margaret (Smith) and Samuel Chester Webb. His father left home before he was born; Webb would never know him. He was raised by his mother and maternal grandmother in dire poverty that preceded the Depression. Making things worse, Webb suffered from acute asthma from age six until adulthood, somewhat surprising for a man whose cigarette intake reached three packs a day at its peak. Webb's great love was movies, and his dream was to direct them. He began in radio, first as a disc jockey then as host of a comedy show (Believe It or Not!), finally as "Pat Novak, Private Eye", his first true success. A small role in the film noir classic He Walked by Night (1948) led to the creation of "Dragnet". During production, Webb befriended a LAPD police consultant assigned to the film and became fascinated with the cases he heard told. He successfully pitched the idea of a radio series to NBC using stories drawn from actual LAPD files. "Dragnet" first aired over NBC radio on June 3, 1949, and came to TV (Dragnet (1951)) on December 16, 1951. The show was one of the monster hits of early TV and was honored with satires by comics and even Bugs Bunny (!) during it's run, which lasted until September, 1959. The series' popularity could have ensured its continuation indefinitely but, by then, Webb had become a film director and would helm (and star in) five features: Dragnet (1954), Pete Kelly's Blues (1955), The D.I. (1957), -30- (1959), and The Last Time I Saw Archie (1961). The last two were box office flops, and Webb returned to TV in 1962. In February, 1963, he became Head of Production for Warner Bros. Television, a job he was fired from that December when his revision of 77 Sunset Strip (1958) sent its ratings into a death spiral. After two years of unemployment, a new opportunity arose, the made-for-TV film, of which Universal was then sole supplier. Coincidentally, they owned the rights to Dragnet (1951) and invited Webb to do a new "Dragnet" as a TV movie. It turned out so well in industry previews (oddly not broadcast until 1969) that NBC and Universal persuaded him to do a new Dragnet 1967 (1967) TV series, which lasted three-and-a-half seasons and went on to smash success in syndicated reruns. This later incarnation (co-starring Harry Morgan as "Officer Bill Gannon") is probably what Webb is best known for and unlike the 50's version, it was produced in color and increasingly focused on his personal conservative social agenda. Over the next five seasons, he regularly blasted marijuana, LSD (which was legal at the time of the revamped series debut), hippies, juvenile delinquency and disrespect for law enforcement. To be fair, the series was equally intolerant of police corruption and went to great lengths to show LAPD's self-disciplinary process as it was at the time. Webb was known as an extremely economical TV producer: his Mark VII productions routinely used minimal sets, even more minimal wardrobes (Friday and Gannon seem to wear the same suits over entire seasons, which minimized continuity issues.) and maintained a relatively tight-knit stock company that consisted of scale-paid regulars who routinely appeared as irate crime victims, policewomen, miscreants, and clueless parents of misguided youth. While the passing decades haven't been kind to all of the episodes--- several now seem camp, the manpower expended investigating some seemingly minor crimes is laughable and the outcome of many of the trials would be vastly different today--- they remain entertaining while representing somewhat fictionalized docudramas of 1960's police operations. With renewed wealth and industry status, Webb was also determined not to repeat his past debacle as a producer/studio boss. He parlayed Dragnet's renewed popularity into a second hit series, Adam-12 (1968), and scored an even bigger hit with Emergency! (1972) (casting his ex-wife Julie London and her husband Bobby Troup), a show that inspired thousands of kids to become EMT/paramedics for generations, perhaps Webb's greatest legacy. During the production of Dragnet 1967 (1967), he maintained a rigorous daily work schedule while ignoring his health. He loved chili dogs and cigarettes, enjoyed late nights playing cards and drinking with cast members, who were amazed to find him fully alert at 7:00 a.m. the next day, expecting the same from them. The combined effect of this lifestyle made him appear older than he actually was by the late 60s. Unbeknownst to fans, he possessed a healthy sense of humor (His 1968 "Copper Clapper" appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962) remains a classic.), and he was a jazz fanatic, amassing one of the world's greatest collections. Webb's sense of humor didn't extend to his self-image, however. In 1977, director John Landis approached him with an offer to appear as "Dean Wormer" in National Lampoon's Animal House (1978) and recalled Webb sitting stone-faced and unimpressed at the offer. Sadly, he rejected it as being too counter to his public persona. Webb managed to keep his company solvent until his untimely, yet not unexpected, death from a massive heart attack on December 23, 1982 at age 62. Webb was married four times: to Julie London (1947-54), Dorothy Towne (1955-1957), Jackie Loughery (1958-64), and to Opal Wright (1980-death). He had two daughters by London: Stacey Webb (1950-96) and Lisa Webb (born 1952).- Attractive, dark-featured character actor with a voice like thunder, and eyes like a wolf, who was featured in less than sympathetic roles throughout his career. Born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Albert Paul Shenar attended the University of Wisconsin. Soon after graduation, he relocated to New York City, where he quickly landed roles on the stage. These experiences led to a Broadway debut in 'Tiny Alice' as 'Brother Julian.' After a few satiating years on and off Broadway, Paul found himself again relocating, this time to Philadelphia. It was here where he made a considerable contribution to the arts. Along with fellow actors Rene Auberjonois and Bill Ball, to name a few, he co-founded the American Conservatory Theater, where he was not only a regular performer until the day he died, but a teacher and advisor as well. From there, roles on television, and the big screen followed. Shenar made a splash, portraying Orson Welles in The Night That Panicked America (1975). He received some of the best reviews of his career for this famous television film. Soon after he received more for his portrayal of another famous celebrity, as Florenz Ziegfeld in Ziegfeld: The Man and His Women (1978). He continued working steadily on television, even appearing in shot-for-television replacement footage for the disaster film, Two-Minute Warning (1976). And then feature films came calling. Shenar turned in credible and memorable performances in film, such as the diabolical Bolivian drug lord Alejandro Sosa, in Brian De Palma's Scarface (1983) (1983), and most notably, voicing the evil conspiring rat, "Jenner", in Don Bluth's The Secret of NIMH (1982). Other roles of note include Dr. Lawrence in Luc Besson's The Big Blue (1988), Joshua Adams in Deadly Force (1983), Paulo Rocca in the action packed Arnold Schwarzenegger film, Raw Deal (1986), and Ben Gardner, the father of a troubled Kristy McNichol, in Alan J. Pakula's Dream Lover (1986), respectively. Though not a household name in his time, his candor, energy, and aesthetic performances have left a long lasting impression, that only gets better with age, and will not soon be forgotten.
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Jan Clayton was born on 26 August 1917 in Tularosa, New Mexico, USA. She was an actress, known for Lassie (1954), This Man's Navy (1945) and Flight Angels (1940). She was married to George Greeley, Robert Warren Lerner and Russell Hayden. She died on 28 August 1983 in West Hollywood, California, USA.- Actress
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This pert and pretty number was probably better known for her not-so-private off-camera escapades than for her commendable "B" work as a light comedienne in 30s and 40s films. Nevertheless, actress Arline Judge enlivened a number of them with her blue-eyed, brunette beauty and colorful characterizations. Her numerous marriages and divorces (8) equaled that of the more notable Hollywood husband-hunter Lana Turner. She topped Ms. Turner only if you consider that Arline married 8 different men; Lana's eight marriages included one remarriage (to actor Stephen Crane). The two ladies even shared an ex-husband!
Connecticut-born Arline arrived on February 21, 1912. Her father, a newspaperman, moved his family to New York City while Arline was still young. She was eventually enrolled at the Ursuline Academy in the Bronx where, among other things, she studied dance. Briefly working in vaudeville, nightclubs and other New York musical shows, the petite-framed, eye-catching chorine was noticed for films in 1930 by an RKO talent agent who spotted her in the Broadway revue "The Second Little Show," and signed.
Arline made her film debut with a flashy bit part in Bachelor Apartment (1931). After appearing fairly non-descriptively in An American Tragedy (1931) and Three Who Loved (1931), among others, she finally had people taking notice of her as a tawdry good-time girl in Are These Our Children (1931). 1931 also marked the year of marriage #1 to Wesley Ruggles, nearly 24 years her senior (she was 19; he was 42), who directed her in the afore-mentioned movie. She subsequently gave birth to their son Wesley, Jr. Nicknamed "One-Take Sally", Arline proved adaptable at both snappy comedy and teary drama, easily alternating her services between a wacky Wheeler and Woolsey farce such as Girl Crazy (1932) or Helen Twelvetrees weepie such as Young Bride (1932). Her characters were often more trouble than they were worth as her scheming waitress in Is My Face Red? (1932) and adulterous wife in Flying Devils (1933) can attest.
After losing her RKO contract in 1933, Arline freelanced with lesser studios as various suspiciously-motivated ladies and was often cast for amusement. She enjoyed her many couplings with comic actor Jack Oakie in Looking for Trouble (1934), Shoot the Works (1934) and King of Burlesque (1936), and also worked time and again with her husband in the films Roar of the Dragon (1932), Shoot the Works (1934)Valiant Is the Word for Carrie (1936). Arline could always be counted on to sparkle up lightweight comedy material such as College Scandal (1935), Here Comes Trouble (1936) and, the Sonja Henie capade One in a Million (1936) with her trademark effervescence.
Divorced from Ruggles by 1937, she immediately got caught up in a tabloid triangle that resulted in marriage #2 (only hours after her divorce was finalized) with one of her battling beaus, Daniel Reid Topping, owner of football's Brooklyn Dodgers. This marriage to Topping, who in 1945 (after their 1940 divorce) co-purchased the New York Yankees, lasted about two years and produced another son, Daniel, Jr. Marriage #3 less than a month and came in the form of hotel executive James Bryant.
The trials and tribulations of Arline's hectic private life took up a lot of time and severely hampered the momentum of her film career. Five years after her last movie, she finally resurfaced again in the uneventful comedy Harvard, Here I Come! (1941), which led to a few war-era "B" and "C" rankers including The Lady Is Willing (1942), Song of Texas (1943), G.I. Honeymoon (1945) and From This Day Forward (1946). A bit part as a manicurist in the Harold Lloyd comedy The Sin of Harold Diddlebock (1947) (aka _Mad Wednesday) ended her 1940s movie run. In between there an eight-day marriage #4 to Royal Air Force Captain James Adams in 1942; a slightly longer marriage #5 to ad exec Vincent Morgan Ryan in 1945); and marriage #6 to wealthy sportsman Henry (Bob) Topping, brother of second husband Daniel. After her second Topping family divorce, Henry went on to marry Lana Turner. Marriage #7 was to insurance man George Ross III (1949-1950), and marriage #8 in 1955 to Beverly Hills inventor Edward Cooper Heard, her final union ending a lengthy (for her) 5 years.
Interspersed with all this marriage mayhem were some isolated TV guest roles in the 50s and early 60s in such series as "Perry Mason" and a final leap back in films as the mom of William Wellman Jr. in the poorly acted drama A Swingin' Summer (1965), which included surf music (!), and a role as one of the strangling victims of The Crawling Hand (1963), a low-grade horror opus.
By the mid-60s Arline had given up on pursuing both career (save a few commercials) and husbands. She lived out her final years in her West Hollywood digs and was found dead of natural causes ("aspiration of gastric contents") on February 7, 1974, just shy of her 62nd birthday . She was survived by her two sons and buried in her home state of Connecticut.- Actor
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Richard Jeni was born on 14 April 1957 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for The Mask (1994), Richard Jeni: Platypus Man (1993) and Platypus Man (1995). He died on 10 March 2007 in West Hollywood, California, USA.- Claire Griswold was born on 30 October 1936 in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. She was an actress, known for The Investigators (1961), Studio One (1948) and The Twilight Zone (1959). She was married to Sydney Pollack. She died on 28 March 2011 in West Hollywood, California, USA.
- Russell Collins was born on 11 October 1897 in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. He was an actor, known for The Enemy Below (1957), Bad Day at Black Rock (1955) and Fail Safe (1964). He died on 14 November 1965 in West Hollywood, California, USA.
- Pamela Curran was born on 6 February 1930 in New York City, New York, USA. She was an actress, known for The Blob (1958), The Green Hornet (1966) and The Loved One (1965). She was married to Robert 'Bob' Sweeny and Joseph Austin Wade Jr.. She died on 3 September 2023 in West Hollywood, California, USA.
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Alan Sues was born on 7 March 1926 in Ross, California, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (1967), The Americanization of Emily (1964) and The Twilight Zone (1959). He was married to Phyllis Gehrig. He died on 1 December 2011 in West Hollywood, California, USA.- Actress
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Dolores Michaels was born on 30 January 1933 in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. She was an actress, known for The Wayward Bus (1957), Warlock (1959) and One Foot in Hell (1960). She was married to Bernard Woolfe and Maurice Martine. She died on 25 September 2001 in West Hollywood, California, USA.- Actor
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Familiar character actor of Russian heritage who played in scores of films, mostly in the U.S. He studied at the University of Moscow but left there to attend the Moscow Academy of Dramatic Art. He joined the world- renowned Moscow Art Theatre, where he worked for the next decade as an actor and assistant director, eventually directing plays himself. In 1923, he emigrated to Berlin and spent most of the next decade acting in films there and in Austria. With the coming of the Nazis, he relocated first to Paris, in 1932, and then to the United States in 1937. He immediately found himself very busy with dozens of roles in many popular American films, ranging from Russian to Chinese, Mexican, and Italian characters. Although his specialty was gentle, beatific characters, he could and did on occasion play less noble types. Among his most memorable characterizations were Anselmo, the gentle rebel in For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943), and the wise peasant in The Magnificent Seven (1960). He died in West Hollywood, California in 1962.- Very little is known about Alice Elizabeth Nunn with the exception that she appeared in one of the 1980s most famous films, Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985), as the infamous truck driver, 'Large Marge'.
She was born on October 10, 1927 in Jacksonville, Florida to parents N.G. Nunn and Alice Bush. After the acting bug bit, she eventually made her way westward, and television shows, Camp Runamuck (1965) and Petticoat Junction (1963) were her first Hollywood acting jobs. She went on to appear in dozens of films and television shows, with some of her more memorable roles being in Mommie Dearest (1981) as 'Helga', Who's That Girl (1987), alongside Madonna as a Parole Board Official, and her last film role as 'Nurse Palmer' in Three O'Clock High (1987).
After battling breast cancer for several years, she suffered a stroke and passed away days later of cardiac arrest in her West Hollywood, California apartment on Friday, July 1, 1988. She was survived by her longtime companion, Martha Harris. Alice was cremated her ashes were interred with her parents back in her native Jacksonville.
Even though Alice didn't live long enough to bask in the late fame she so duly earned in the mid-late 1980s, in which she has since attained pop culture status, she did, however, run into Paul Reubens, not long after Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985) premiered in theaters, and remarked to him the recognition she got from children which had truly touched her.
Alice Nunn will always have a place in Hollywood history - even if it's just mostly being remembered as 'Large Marge' - about which she never complained. - Actor
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Ron made his way to Hollywood from England and appeared as an extra in many films including the 1952 version of The Ten Commandments (1956) and starred in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) and other Marilyn Monroe films. Also the Tattooed Man in There's No Business Like Show Business (1954). He was well-known as the policeman, Sgt. Charley in the Mannix (1967) series and also starred in Quincy M.E. (1976). Badly hurt during the filming of "Battlestar Galactica" prevented his working under the lights, thus ending his career in show business.- Mary Munday was born on 31 July 1926 in Los Angeles, California, USA. She was an actress, known for The Twilight Zone (1959), Ghost Dad (1990) and Serpent Island (1954). She was married to Tom Gries and Charles Eugene Adamick. She died on 30 September 1997 in West Hollywood, California, USA.
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Domino Harvey was born on 7 August 1969 in Belgravia, London, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Domino (2005). She died on 27 June 2005 in West Hollywood, California, USA.- Actor
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In his 50-year acting career, Mario Roccuzzo has worked with everyone from Hollywood legends such as Fred Astaire, who made an ill-fated attempt to teach Mario how to dance, to tyro writer/director Alexander Smith, who cast Mario in his debut film, Bottleworld (2009).
Incredibly versatile, Mario overcame initial 'bad guy' typecasting roles in the early '60's to land over 250 TV roles and 12 film roles. By the 70's he couldn't walk down the street without someone stopping him to ask for autographs, because he was 'that guy' they'd seen guest starring in their favorite show the night before.
Born in Boston, Mario witnessed his parents traveling up and down the New England coast to perform with an Italian repertory company. Instead of jading him to the life of an actor - watching rehearsals enthralled Mario and he knew early on what he wanted to be.
The tragedy of his father's death when Mario was ten years old led his mother to relocate to California with Mario and his sister in tow. Working a 'day job' at Wallach's Music City as a manager, Mario spent nights studying with acting coach Jeff Corey and later with Corey Allen. Determined not to leave his career to chance, in 1960 Mario infiltrated Columbia Studios and crashed the office of John Frankenheimer. When the director asked Mario what he was doing there, he replied simply, "I want to audition for you for your next film."
He got a cold read - and the part of Diavolo in The Young Savages (1961).
Later that year, Mario was cast as Nicky on the No. 1 show on television at the time, The Untouchables (1959). More 'bad guy' roles followed on shows such as The F.B.I. (1965), Stoney Burke (1962) and Surfside 6 (1960). Mario's chameleon versatility and the '70's 'anti-hero' revolution opened the floodgates to a string of diverse roles including Harold Wagner opposite William Holden in The Blue Knight (1973).
By the '80's, Mario had worked on practically every cop show on television including Baretta (1975), Barnaby Jones (1973), Barney Miller (1975), Police Story (1973), The Streets of San Francisco (1972), and Hill Street Blues (1981). By the 2000's he'd include NYPD Blue (1993) on that list, along with comedies such as Dharma & Greg (1997) and The Drew Carey Show (1995). He also continued to act in feature films, charming audiences as Jerry the Bartender opposite Jim Carrey in The Majestic (2001) and as the 'show closing' last customer in Bottleworld (2009).
Despite a still growing credit list, Mario states, "In my heart of hearts, I love acting just as much as when I first started out."- Mark Landon was born on 1 October 1948 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an actor, known for Goodbye America (1997), Double Edge (1985) and Us (1991). He died on 11 May 2009 in West Hollywood, California, USA.
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Audrey Christie was born on 27 June 1912 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. She was an actress, known for Splendor in the Grass (1961), Carousel (1956) and Mame (1974). She was married to Donald Briggs. She died on 19 December 1989 in West Hollywood, California, USA.- Actor
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Alexander D'Arcy was born on 10 August 1908 in Cairo, Egypt. He was an actor, known for The Awful Truth (1937), Blood of Dracula's Castle (1969) and Horrors of Spider Island (1960). He was married to Arleen Whelan. He died on 20 April 1996 in West Hollywood, California, USA.- Actress
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Mitzi Shore was born on 25 July 1930 in Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA. She was an actress and writer, known for Girls of the Comedy Store (1985), Pauly Shore Is Dead (2003) and Minding the Store (2005). She was married to Sammy Shore. She died on 11 April 2018 in West Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Barbara Pilavin was born on 27 September 1923. She was an actress, known for A League of Their Own (1992), 10 to Midnight (1983) and Constantine (2005). She died on 2 January 2005 in West Hollywood, California, USA.
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The son of the Wagnerian tenor and film star Lauritz Melchior, Ib Melchior was born and educated in Denmark. After graduating from the University of Copenhagen, he joined the English Players, a British theatrical company, and toured Europe with the troupe, first as an actor and later as stage manager and co-director. Just prior to the outbreak of World War II, Melchior came to the U.S. with the troupe to do a Broadway show. After 1941's "Day of Infamy", he volunteered his services to the United States Armed Forces, operating with the "cloak-and-dagger" O.S.S. and the United States Military Intelligence Service. He also served in the European Theater of Operations as a military intelligence investigator attached to the Counter Intelligence Corps. For his work in the E.T.O., Melchior was decorated by the United States Army as well as by the King of Denmark. After the war, Melchior became active in television, directing some 500 New York-based TV shows ranging from the musical "Perry Como Show" to the dramatic documentary series "The March of Medicine." Beginning in the late 1950s, he wrote a number of low-budget science-fiction films, among them "The Angry Red Planet", "Journey to the Seventh Planet" and "The Time Travelers". In 1976, he was awarded a Golden Scroll for Best Writing by the Academy of Science-Fiction (for body of work).- Simone Battle was born on 17 June 1989 in Los Angeles, California, USA. She was an actress, known for Zoey 101 (2005), What We Need (2014) and Meanamorphosis (2012). She died on 5 September 2014 in West Hollywood, California, USA.
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Onna White was born on 24 March 1922 in Inverness, Nova Scotia, Canada. She is known for Oliver! (1968), Pete's Dragon (1977) and The Music Man (1962). She was married to Larry Douglas. She died on 8 April 2005 in West Hollywood, California, USA.- Mona Knox was born on 1 May 1929 in Chickasha, Oklahoma, USA. She was an actress, known for Kid Monk Baroni (1952), Escape from Terror (1955) and Army Bound (1952). She was married to Leslie Spicer. She died on 11 June 2008 in West Hollywood, California, USA.
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Julia Phillips made history in Hollywood by becoming the first woman to win the Best Picture Oscar for producing the classic The Sting (1973), along with husband and producing partner Michael Phillips and Tony Bill. From there, she went on the produce other hits such as Scorsese's Taxi Driver (1976) and Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), becoming an important figure in the business on the wave of the rising figures of the New Hollywood era.
She was born in New York City on 7 April, 1944. Daughter of Adolph Miller (a chemical engineer) and Tanya, Julia Miller attended Mount Holyoke where she earned her bachelor's degree in political science and awards for her writings. After marrying Michael Phillips (of whom she got her last name. They married in 1964), she contributed as a book section editor for a magazine, and later as story editor for Paramount studios. When they moved to the West Coast, they had the chance to produce their first film, the comedy Steelyard Blues (1973). After that experience, their next move was with The Sting (1973), their second film together and produced when Julia was just 29 years-old. The movie was a critical and commercial success that established as a highly influential figure in Hollywood.
However, after the Oscar and the successful films, the excesses of fame came along with a drug addiction that cost her career in the 1980's - a period in which she producer only one film after spending some time in rehab. In 1991 she produced Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead (1991) which would be her final producing credit. That same year, Julia published her autobiography "You'll Never Eat Lunch in This Town Again", an infamous book about her reckless life and also of many stars and executives in the Hollywood industry. The book was a best-seller due to her candid and scathing revelations but also made her unwanted by the film industry. In 1995, she wrote her second autobiography "Driving Under the Affluence", accounting her experiences after addiction.
She died on 1 January, 2002.- Editor
- Editorial Department
David Brenner was born on 3 November 1962 in Hollywood, California, USA. He was an editor, known for Independence Day (1996), Avatar: The Way of Water (2022) and Born on the Fourth of July (1989). He was married to Amber Brenner. He died on 17 February 2022 in West Hollywood, California, USA.- Actor
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John Herman Shaner is an actor, writer, and producer, known for the Little Shop of Horrors (1960), Reds (1981), the Two Jakes (1990), the Rat Patrol (1966), Daniel Boone (1969), the Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1966), Halls of Anger (1970), Goin' South (1978),The Island of Dr. Moreau (1977), The Last Married Couple in America (1981) and His and Hers (1990).- Actress
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Christa Helm was born on 10 November 1949 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. She was an actress, known for Let's Go for Broke (1974), Wonder Woman (1975) and Legacy of Satan (1974). She was married to Gary Clements. She died on 12 February 1977 in West Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Actor
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Leonard Barr was a comic and eccentric dancer who was famous for truly being Dean Martin's uncle, as he was the brother of Dino's mother, Angela Crocetti (née Barra). They were Italians of mixed Neapolitan and Sicilian ancestry.
Born Leonard Barra on September 27, 1903 in West Virginia, he became a stand-up comic who delivered one-liners dead-pan, in the style of Henny Youngman. He first appeared on TV in 1950 as a comic dancer, thanks to his nephew Dino, when Martin was hosting the The Colgate Comedy Hour (1950), with his then-partner Jerry Lewis.
Barr didn't appear again, until 1964, when he next appeared as a comic dancer, this time on The Hollywood Palace (1964).
He continued to appear on TV, sporadically during the 1960s until his career as a TV comic and an actor took off starting in 1970. He appeared in the hit film, Diamonds Are Forever (1971), (which was Sean Connery's return to the role of Bond) as 'Shady Tree', and then appearing in the Oscar-winning film, The Sting (1973) - both times as a comic. He continued to work steadily in TV and in movies until his death on November 22, 1980, when he was 77 years old.- Producer
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Soon after World War II he started selling Red Ryder radio scripts written by his Shakespeare professor at Rutgers university. He was soon handling literary talent such as Raymond Chandler and Ben Hecht. He later joined Famous Artists Agency representing Lana Turner, Kirk Douglas, Richard Burton and many others. He resigned in '57 to form Seven Arts Productions with Elliot Hyman and supervised over 50 films including 'Night of the Iguana'and 'Reflections in a Golden Eye'.In 1966 he formed Rastar Productions to produce film versions of Broadway plays such as 'Funny Girl', winning an Oscar nomination for Best Picture, 'The Way We Were', 'Sunshine Boys', 'California Suite' and 'Robin and Marion'.- Charles Miller was born on 21 June 1878 in Saginaw, Michigan, USA. He was an actor, known for Black Hills Express (1943), Double Cross (1941) and The Green Hornet Strikes Again! (1940). He died on 25 November 1952 in West Hollywood, California, USA.
- Diane Linkletter was born on 31 October 1948 in California, USA. She was an actress, known for The Red Skelton Hour (1951), The Linkletter Show (1952) and Disneyland '59 (1959). She died on 4 October 1969 in West Hollywood, California, USA.
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Actress and screenwriter Leigh Chapman was born Rosa Lee Chapman on March 29, 1939 in Kannapolis, North Carolina. Following graduation from Winthrop College in Rock Hill, South Carolina, Chapman moved to Los Angeles in the early 1960s. Her first job was working as a secretary at the William Morris Agency. Leigh acted in a few TV shows -- most notably a recurring part as Napoleon Solo (Robert Vaughn)'s secretary on several episodes of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964) -- prior to embarking on a successful career as a writer of tough-minded action-adventure fare for both TV series and motion pictures.
Although possibly best-known for penning the gritty screenplay for the car chase cult classic, Dirty Mary Crazy Larry (1974), she also wrote scripts for such hard-edged action outings as Steel (1979), The Octagon (1980) and King of the Mountain (1981). She also did an uncredited script polish on Robert Aldrich's last movie ...All the Marbles (1981) and a script treatment for the blaxploitation blast, Truck Turner (1974), as well as rewrote the pilot for Walker, Texas Ranger (1993) (she attributed this latter credit to a pseudonym after she had a falling out with the creative people behind that particular program).
In her later years, Chapman pursued underwater photography; her work was featured at a 2011 exhibit at Calumet Photography in Hollywood, California. Leigh died of cancer, aged 75, at her home in West Hollywood, California on November 4, 2014. She was survived by her siblings (two sisters and a brother).- Writer
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Ralph Edwards was born near Merino, Colorado, in 1913, moving with his family to Oakland, California, when he was 12. He worked his way through college at radio stations in Oakland and San Francisco, graduating from the University of California at Berkeley in 1935 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in drama. Edwards moved to New York in 1936 and became one of radio's busiest announcers, doing as many as 45 network shows a week. In 1940, in response to this hectic pace, Edwards created, produced and hosted the landmark audience participation show "Truth or Consequences".
The show's great popularity led to his appearance in the Lucille Ball-Victor Mature film Seven Days' Leave (1942). He moved the show and his production company to Hollywood in 1945, where he made three more films for RKO: Radio Stars on Parade (1945), The Bamboo Blonde (1946) and Beat the Band (1947), all with Frances Langford. His big-screen career took a decided back seat in 1948, when Edwards first brought to the air his other long-running show, This Is Your Life (1950). On radio for its first two years, Edwards took the program to NBC-TV in 1952, where it remained until 1961, winning two Emmys (he also hosted a syndicated version from 1971-1973). His last feature film appearance came in the Susan Hayward MGM bio-pic of Lillian Roth, I'll Cry Tomorrow (1955), which ends with a recreation of Roth's appearance on This Is Your Life (1950).
Edwards' television career began in earnest in 1950, when The All New Truth or Consequences (1950) aired one season on CBS-TV and earned the first Emmy awarded for an audience participation show. He turned over host duties to Jack Bailey in 1954 and, in 1956, launched the career of Bob Barker as host of the daytime version. Edwards, also well-known for his extensive charitable and philanthropic activities, became one of TV's most prolific producers.- Actress
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Pat was a native New Yorker who worked as a receptionist and clerk in a box factory. She met Andy Warhol later and starred in his film "Heat" with Joe Dallesandro and Sylvia Miles. Later she met a fashion designer, Roy Halston and worked in his Madison Avenue store. From there, she decided to move to Los Angeles in the mid-1970s and appeared in such films as "Reform School Girls", "The Incredible Shrinking Woman", and "Foul Play".- David Renard was born on 22 July 1921 in Texas, USA. He was an actor, known for Burke's Law (1963), M Squad (1957) and Mission: Impossible (1966). He died on 19 August 1973 in West Hollywood, California, USA.