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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.- Actor
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German actor Christian Oliver worked in the entertainment industry for more than 15 years, with, among others, Steven Soderbergh in The Good German; with Brian Singer and Tom Cruise in Valkyrie; and with the Wachowski sisters in Speed Racer. He also starred in Europe's Number One action series Alarm for Cobra 11 (RTL) for two years and had numerous other TV appearances in the US and Germany.- Actor
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David Soul achieved pop icon status as handsome, blond-haired, blue-eyed Detective Kenneth Hutchinson on the cult "buddy cop" TV series Starsky and Hutch (1975), Soul also had a very successful singing career recording several albums, with worldwide number one hit singles including "Silver Lady" & "Don't Give Up on Us Baby".
Originally from Chicago, Illinois, David Soul is the son of a minister who was at one time serving as the religious affairs advisor to the U.S. High Commission in Berlin. At 24 years of age, young Soul joined a North Dakota musical revue, was noticed by a keen-eyed talent scout, and signed to a studio contract. He went on to study acting with the Irene Daly School of The Actors Company, and with the Columbia Workshop in Hollywood. He first appeared on TV in small roles in shows including I Dream of Jeannie (1965), Flipper (1964) and All in the Family (1971). Regular TV work kept coming in for Soul including making masked appearances on The Merv Griffin Show (1962), as the popular singer known only as "The Covered Man."
In 1973, Soul was fortunate enough to be cast as one of the corrupt motorcycle cops in the Clint Eastwood thriller Magnum Force (1973), where his talents came to the attention of several TV execs who were looking for someone to play one of the lead roles in the upcoming Starsky and Hutch (1975) TV series. After four seasons, the show came to an end, yet Soul's talents were still in demand. He quickly went on to appear as the meek writer turned terrified vampire hunter Ben Mears in the chilling television mini-series Salem's Lot (1979), and then as Jake in the interesting television movie Homeward Bound (1980).
Several undemanding movies and TV series appearances followed for Soul. However in 1988 he scored rave reviews for his portrayal of real life, cold-blooded cop killer Michael Lee Platt in In the Line of Duty: The F.B.I. Murders (1988). It was considered highly controversial for its intense level of violence in a made for TV production.
David Soul remained very busy throughout the 1990s and beyond, in both film and on stage productions. He has toured internationally in several theater productions, including playing the narrator in the critically-acclaimed production of Willy Russell's Blood Brothers, plus a successful UK tour performing in Ira Levin's Deathtrap. Fans of the original TV series were glad to see Soul back with Paul Michael Glaser doing a cameo appearance in the big-budget movie version of Starsky & Hutch (2004).
Throughout his life, Soul has continually championed social causes often utilizing his own funds to raise awareness on issues including the impact of the Vietnam War, the shutdowns in the US steel industry, animal welfare, world hunger and HIV education. Soul has for several years made his home in the United Kingdom, where he has appeared at the Edinburgh Festival, on several British TV shows and has become a keen soccer fan supporting English club, Arsenal FC.- Actor
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- Director
Adan Canto is a Mexican-American actor and director. He left home at the age of 16 to pursue a career as a musician. Canto wrote for and produced several songs for film and television while living in Mexico City. He began acting in a handful of commercials in Mexico City and was soon cast in a television series called Estado de Gracia. Canto eventually turned to the stage after being cast as a lead for the adaptation of Pedro Almodovar's All About My Mother.
In 2013, Canto made his debut in American television, playing the role of Paul Torres on the Fox drama series, The Following. In 2015 Canto played real life politician Rodrigo Lara Bonia in Netflix drama series Narcos. In 2016, he was cast in the ABC political drama series, Designated Survivor, playing White House Chief of Staff Aaron Shore opposite Kiefer Sutherland, Natascha McElhone, and Maggie Q. Canto wrote and directed his first short film Before Tomorrow in 2014. His short film The Shot earned several festival awards for Best Narrative Short Film in 2020.- Actor
- Writer
- Camera and Electrical Department
Peter Crombie was born on 26 June 1952 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for Se7en (1995), My Dog Skip (2000) and The Blob (1988). He was married to Nadine Kijner. He died on 10 January 2024 in Palm Springs, California, USA.- Actor
- Writer
- Camera and Electrical Department
Throughout the 1970s and a good part of the 1980s, Bill Hayes and his second wife, Emmy-winning Susan Seaforth Hayes, reigned as the Lunt and Fontanne of daytime soaps. Prior to this he had become a noted singer/actor on the Broadway stage and in night clubs. Born William Foster Hayes III in Harvey, Illinois, on June 5, 1925, and raised in the Midwest, his father was a bookseller (for 41 years). He got his talent from his dad who enjoyed singing and local community theater performing on the sly. Bill entered WWII as a naval airman, then studied at De Pauw University, where he met and married first wife Mary. They went on to have five children. He later received his master's degree at Northwestern. Blessed with a sturdy tenor, his interest in a professional career was piqued after happening upon a tour of "Carousel" in 1947. From singing telegrams to barbershop quartets to choir directing to jazz group vocals, Bill persevered musically until earning his first big break on TV. A lead singing/stooge role in Olsen & Johnson's zany burlesque revue "Funzapoppin'" in 1949 led to him joining the pair on their short-lived TV show and, ultimately, his resident crooning on Your Show of Shows (1950) starring Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca. In the meantime he also performed in vaudeville and broke into films with a supporting role in Stop, You're Killing Me (1952). Despite a wife and family to support, he left the show on his own volition for the chance to star in a new Broadway musical. "Me and Juliet" opened with moderate success in 1953 and lasted over a year, touring with the show in its aftermath. Bill also happened to record "The Ballad of Davey Crockett," which became a surprise #1 Billboard hit and sold over three million copies. A nightclub and TV-variety fixture in the late 1950s, he later managed to flex his vocal chords in such musicals as "Bye Bye Birdie" (national tour), "Brigadoon," "The Pajama Game" and "George M!" The 1960s were a slow, difficult time for Bill professionally and personally, which culminated in the breakup of his marriage. Luck and talent played a part when he was hired to join the cast of Days of Our Lives (1965) playing the role of Doug Williams. The character was originally a louse and con artist, but grew more reputable after his character fell in love with feisty troublemaker Julie Olson, played by Susan Seaforth. Their seesaw romantic relationship became one of daytime's top story lines of the 1970s. Off-screen the couple also ignited sparks and, despite their major age difference (she is 18 years his junior), they married on October 12, 1974. In 1984, after 14 years and two daytime Emmy nominations, he and Susan left the show due to their dwindling status. While Susan went on to join the cast of The Young and the Restless (1973) the following year, Bill refocused on his singing by performing on the cabaret circuit and recording a few albums. The couple returned on and off to their soap opera alma mater over the years, but in 1999 they became part of the regular cast again with a stronger story line. Bill is still performing on stage, more recently playing Beauregard in "Mame" and with his wife in productions of "A Christmas Carol," "Love Letters" and "Same Time, Another Year," which is a sequel to "Same Time, Next Year."- Actor
- Producer
Alec Musser joined the cast of All My Children (1970) in July 2005, playing the role of Del Henry. He won this role after emerging the winner of the second season of the SOAPnet original series I Wanna Be a Soap Star (2004).
Musser was born in New York City but grew up in New Jersey and other places. He graduated from the University of San Diego. Musser had a passion for sports and was an avid athlete. After college, he worked with the professional ski patrol at Mammoth Mountain, which is a ski resort in North America that is located in the eastern Sierra Mountains. When he was not working during the off-season, he worked as a lifeguard. During his third season, he was discovered by a modeling agent, which led to his first modeling job with Abercrombie and Fitch. He modeled for Gianfranco Ferre, GQ, Cosmopolitan, Men's Health, Speedo and Target.
While modeling, Musser started booking national commercials. It was at this time that he auditioned for I Wanna Be a Soap Star (2004), which landed him the role that brought him back to live in New York City.
Alec died 13 Jan 2024 of a self- inflicted gunshot wound.- Lovely, sweet-natured Joyce Randolph will forever be etched in the minds of "Golden Age" television viewers as the Bowery-like fourth party of the classic husband/wife quartet on the enduring TV family comedy The Honeymooners (1955) starring Jackie Gleason as the irrepressible hothead bus driver Ralph Kramden. As Thelma ("Trixie") Norton, the dressed-down, beleaguered wife of sewer worker Ed Norton (played by the adorably goofy Art Carney) and best friend to equally stern realist Alice Kramden (played by equally lovely Audrey Meadows), Joyce participated in nearly 100 episodes of the beloved show before it left the air in 1957.
Randolph's real last name was Sirola, being of Finnish descent. As a teenager, her interest in acting grew and she eventually found her way to become a part of the Wayne University Workshop. After high school graduation, Joyce found employment in retail at a Saks Fifth Avenue store in Detroit. Auditioning for a Workshop tour of the play "Stage Door" in Detroit, she won the part and traveled with the company. She followed that tour with another tour, a revival of "Abie's Irish Rose" that ran for a year.
At age 18, Joyce moved to New York City during war-time (1943) to try her luck. She made her Broadway debut in 1945 in the short-lived comedy "A Goose for the Gander" starring Gloria Swanson and Conrad Nagel at the Playhouse Theatre. She returned to Broadway with "Ladies Night at a Turkish Bath" in 1950. She also appeared in summer stock and once performed in the musical "No, No, Nanette" with Ms. Meadows.
She began on TV as early as 1946 at General Electric's experimental laboratory in Schenectady, NY. Having now changed her stage name from her christened name to the more inviting "Joyce Randolph," the actress began appearing on TV in 1950, finding parts on such regular programs as "The Colgate Comedy Hour," "Rocky King, Detective," "Buck Rogers," "The Clock," "I Cover Times Square" and "Famous Jury Trials." By sheer luck, Joyce was spotted in a Clorets chewing gum commercial by Gleason himself the following year and was asked to appear in a skit on the "Cavalcade of Stars," Gleason's variety show on the DuMont Network. He liked her, he cast her then as Trixie, and the rest is TV history.
Taking over the role played originally, and only once, by Elaine Stritch, when the part of Trixie was thought of as a burlesque girl, the skit format was changed to series form with The Honeymooners (1955). Caught in a terrible typecasting, Joyce would find it extremely hard obtaining other roles after the demise of the show. Interestingly, when "The Honeymooners" sketches were revived on a revamped Gleason variety show in the 1960s, the roles of Alice and Trixie were taken over by Sheila MacRae and Jane Kean. Only Carney remained. Joyce would later say she did not revive her Trixie role due to "personal and geographic reasons." Gleason had moved his company to Miami, Florida.
Joyce maintained her career for awhile on the musical stage, in commercials, and with a few solo appearances on such shows as "The Jack Benny Show," and "The Doctors and the Nurses," but eventually retired from acting altogether. She married Richard Lincoln Charles, a wealthy entrepreneur and marketing executive, on October 2, 1955, the day after The Honeymooners premiered. He died at age 74 in 1997. Their son, Randolph Richard Charles, born in 1960, followed in his father's, not his mother's, footsteps after attending Yale University. He became a marketing executive before taking over his father's business. Joyce is also the grand aunt of former Major League Baseball pitcher Tim Redding. - Actor
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Gary Graham was born on 6 June 1950 in Long Beach, California, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for Robot Jox (1989), Star Trek: Enterprise (2001) and The Jackal (1997). He was married to Becky Hopkins, Diane Patricia Vaughan, Caren Leslie Williams and Susan Lavelle. He died on 22 January 2024 in Spokane Valley, Washington, USA.- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Editorial Department
Hinton Battle was born on 29 November 1956 in Neubrücke, Germany. He was an actor, known for Dreamgirls (2006), Quantum Leap (1989) and Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997). He died on 30 January 2024 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Actress
- Soundtrack
An accomplished and versatile actress/singer/dancer, Chita Rivera has won two Tony Awards as Best Leading Actress in a Musical and received eight additional Tony nominations for an exceptional 10 Tony nominations. She recently starred in The Visit, the final John Kander/Fred Ebb/Terrence McNally musical directed by John Doyle and choreographed by Graciela Daniele on Broadway (2015), following the acclaimed production at the Williamstown Theatre Festival in the summer of 2014. She starred in the Broadway revival of The Mystery of Edwin Drood, the Broadway and touring productions of The Dancer's Life, a dazzling new musical celebrating her spectacular career, written by Terrence McNally and directed by Graciela Daniele and the revival of the Broadway musical Nine with Antonio Banderas. She trained as a ballerina (from age 11) before receiving a scholarship to the School of American Ballet from legendary George Balanchine. Chita's first appearance (age 17) was as a principal dancer in Call Me Madam. Her electric performance as Anita in the original Broadway premiere of West Side Story brought her stardom, which she repeated in London. Her career is highlighted by starring roles in Bye Bye Birdie, The Rink (Tony Award), Chicago, Jerry's Girls, Kiss of the Spider Woman (Tony Award), and the original Broadway casts of Guys and Dolls, Can-Can, Seventh Heaven and Mr. Wonderful. On tour: Born Yesterday, The Rose Tattoo, Call Me Madam, Threepenny Opera, Sweet Charity, Kiss Me Kate, Zorba, Can-Can with The Rockettes. Chita was awarded The Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama in 2009. She received the coveted Kennedy Center Honor in 2002 and is the first Hispanic woman ever chosen to receive this award. On November 6, 2015, Great Performances aired their special Chita Rivera: A Lot of Livin' To Do, a retrospective on her extraordinary life and career nationally on PBS. Chita's current solo CD is entitled And Now I Swing. Her most treasured production is her daughter, singer/dancer/choreographer Lisa Mordente.- Actor
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- Producer
Carl Weathers was born on January 14, 1948, in New Orleans, Louisiana. A famous and successful football star at San Diego State, he played with the Oakland Raiders and retired from the sport in 1974, in order to give full attention to his goal: to be a real actor.
Weathers first played small parts in two blaxploitation flicks, Friday Foster (1975) (in which he played "Yarbro") and Bucktown (1975) (playing "Hambone"), both made in 1975 and directed by Arthur Marks. However, his big break came the following year when producers Irwin Winkler and Robert Chartoff chose him to play "Apollo Creed" in the blockbuster "sleeper" Rocky (1976) (real-life boxing legend Ken Norton was originally signed for the part, but it eventually went to Weathers). He went on to play "Creed" in three other "Rocky" movies, and the characters' adversarial relationship eventually evolved into a warm friendship. After Creed's death in Rocky IV (1985), Weathers met with producer Joel Silver and agreed to play an important supporting role in Predator (1987), an action film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The following year, Silver produced Action Jackson (1988), a first starring role for Weathers, but it performed poorly at the box office and was panned by the critics.
During the 1990s, Weathers starred in four In the Heat of the Night (1988) two-hour TV specials that were much better received by critics and viewers alike. In 1996, he played the part of "Chubbs Peterson" in the blockbuster Adam Sandler comedy Happy Gilmore (1996). He returned to his "action roots" in two TV-movies with Hulk Hogan: Assault on Devil's Island (1997) and Assault on Death Mountain (1999).
In addition to his acting career, Weathers is also a member of the Big Brothers Association and the U.S. Olympic Committee, handling the career of athletes of various sports such as gymnastics, wrestling, swimming and judo.- Actor
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Don Murray is an American actor. He is best known for playing Governor Breck, the authoritarian ruler in the science fiction film "Conquest of the Planet of the Apes" (1972).
Murray was born in 1929 to Dennis Aloisius Murray and his wife Ethel Cook. Dennis worked as a dance director and stage manager, while Ethel was a singer. Ethel Cook served as a performer for the Ziegfeld Follies (1907-1931), an elaborate theatrical revue production in Broadway.
Murray attended the East Rockaway High School in East Rockaway, a village of Nassau County, New York. During his high school years, Murray served as a member of the school's football team, its track team, and its glee club. He graduated in 1947, at the age of 18. He later attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Manhattan, New York. He graduated in 1951.
Murray made his Broadway debut in 1951, when cast as Jack Hunter in a stage version of the play "The Rose Tattoo" (1951) by Tennessee Williams (1911-1983). In the play, Hunter is a sailor and the boyfriend of Rosa Delle Rose, the daughter of the play's female protagonist.
Murray's stage career was interrupted when he was drafted into the United States military. He registered as a conscientious objector during the Korean War (1950-1953), as he was a member of the Brethren Church. The Brethren Church is an Anabaptist Christian denomination, which strictly adheres to pacifism and non-violence. Murray was assigned to alternative service in Europe. He was honorably discharged from the military in 1954, and resumed his acting career.
In 1956, Murray made his film debut in the romantic drama film "Bus Stop". The film was an adaptation of a 1955 theatrical play by William Inge (1913-1973). Murray was cast in the role of Beauregard "Beau" Decker, a naive, overly enthusiastic, and socially inept cowboy from Montana. The film depicts Beau's infatuation with young singer Cherie (played by Marylin Monroe), which causes him to first kidnap her and then coerce her into marrying him. He is tragically unaware that Cherie barely knows him, and that his love is unrequited. The film was a box office success, and Murray was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1956, however the Oscar for that year was won by rival actor Anthony Quinn (1915-2001) for his role in Lust for LIfe.
Murray's successful debut helped him receive offers for more film roles. He was cast as Charlie Samson in the drama film "The Bachelor Party" (1957). Samson is the film's main character, a hard-working bookkeeper who struggles with the temptation to cheat on his wife. He was then cast as morphine-addict Johnny Pope in "A Hatful of Rain" (1957), a film about the then-innovative topic of drug addiction.
In 1958, Murray played in his first Western film, "From Hell to Texas". In the film, he was cast as Tod Lohman, an impoverished ranch hand who is suspected of murdering the son of a powerful cattle baron. The film deals with Lohman being hunted by the cattle baron's other son and his mercenaries, who seek revenge.
Murray's second Western film was "These Thousand Hills" (1959). The film depicts the rags-to-riches story of Albert Gallatin "Lat" Evans (played by Murray). But as Lat grows richer, he becomes a colder and harsher man. Leading him to betray his own lover, to alienate his only friend, and to marry a banker's daughter for her money.
Murray was also cast in a lead role in the war film "Shake Hands with the Devil" (1959), which depicts the Irish War of Independence (1919-1921). During the 1960s, Murray continued to appear regularly in films, often cast in period dramas. He played Wild Bill Hickok in the The Plainsman (1966), and ambitious ruler Justinian in "The Viking Queen" (1967).
In 1968, Murray gained a co-starring role in the Western television series "The Outcasts" (1968-1969). He played the character Earl Corey, an American Civil War veteran and formerly wealthy slave owner. In the series, Corey was cheated out of his wealth by a treasonous brother, and started making a living as a bounty hunter. He teams up with fellow bounty hunter Jemal David (played by Otis Young), an African-American freedman. The two men are not friends, but they are both social outcasts and need each other's skills to gain a profit. The series was considered groundbreaking for featuring an interracial team of characters, but was criticized for being overly violent. The series lasted only 26 episodes.
In 1972, Murray played the major role of Governor Breck in"Conquest of the Planet of the Apes". Breck is the authoritarian ruler of a human civilization using apes as a slave force, and he is the owner of the film's heroic protagonist Caesar. He eventually fails to defeat a slave revolt, and gets captured alive by his own slave. The film earned 9.7 million dollars in theatrical rentals at the North American box office.
Murray was offered the role of Breck in the film's immediate sequel, "Battle for the Planet of the Apes" (1973), but he refused to return. He reportedly felt that there was no fun in playing the tyrant twice. A character called Governor Kolp (played by Severn Darden) was introduced in the film as Breck's replacement.
In 1975, Murray starred in the thriller film "Deadly Hero", as the villainous protagonist Officer Lacy. In the film, Lacy is a veteran police officer of the New York City Police Department (NYPD) who has been demoted for violent tendencies and being overly trigger-happy. While on duty, Lacy kills the common mugger "Rabbit" (played by James Earl Jones) and briefly gains a heroic reputation. But a female witness to the death has seen that Lacy is a cold-blooded murderer, and that Rabbit was killed after disarming himself and surrendering to Lacy. Lacy decides to kill the witness in order to protect his reputation. The film was a box-office flop as film critics blamed its overly pessimistic attitude toward law enforcement. Among the few critics who actually liked the film was Gene Siskel (1946-1999), writing for the newspaper "Chicago Tribune".
In the late 1970s, Murray was reduced to mostly appearing in television films. In 1979, Murray had a career comeback when cast in the major role of Sid Fairgate in the soap opera "Knots Landing" (1979-1993). Fairgate was depicted as the owner of used car dealership Knots Landing Motors, and pater familias to a large family. Murray played this role until 1981, when he left the series due to a salary dispute. His character was written out as having died during a surgery.
During the 1980s, Murray had few appearances in theatrical films. They included the romantic drama "Endless Love" (1981), the mystery film "I Am the Cheese" (1983), the post-apocalyptic science fiction film "Radioactive Dreams" (1985), the time-travel film "Peggy Sue Got Married" (1986), the spy film "Scorpion" (1986), the reincarnation-themed fantasy film "Made in Heaven" (1987), and the ghost film "Ghosts Can't Do It" (1989).
In 1989, Murray gained a new co-starring role in the comedy-drama television series "Brand New Life" (1989-1990), playing the character of wealthy lawyer Roger Gibbons. In the series Gibbons marries novice court reporter Barbara McCray (played by Barbara Eden). Each of them has three children from previous marriages, and they now struggle to raise 6 kids. The series' creator and show-runner was young screenwriter Chris Carter (1956-), and its themes were mostly based on the old sitcom "The Brady Bunch" (1969-1974). The series was not successful, and only a pilot and 5 regular episodes were ever broadcast.
Murray next had a recurring role in the short-lived comedy-drama television series "Sons and Daughters" (1991), concerning the struggles of a single mother who tries to maintain the peace between the members of a large extended family. The series only lasted for 13 episodes, but 6 of them remained unaired at the time of its cancellation.
For the rest of the 1990s, Murray had guest star roles in various television series, and appeared in a hand full of television films. During the early 2000s, he had roles in three theatrical films: the romantic comedy "Internet Love" (2000), the stalker-themed thriller "Island Pray" (2001), and the comedy film "Elvis is Alive" (2001). In 2001, the 72-year-old Murray went into retirement.
Murray returned to acting in 2017, when offered the recurring role of insurance-company executive Bushnell Mullins in the third season of the mystery series "Twin Peaks" (1990-1991, 2017). Mullins was the boss of insurance agent Douglas "Dougie" Jones, one of several doppelgangers to FBI agent Dale Cooper (the series' main protagonist). The season was critically praised but there were no plans for a fourth season.
In 2019, Murray reached his 90th year and was still appearing in some films and on television into 2021.- Kenneth Mitchell was born on 25 November 1974 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He was an actor, known for Jericho (2006), Miracle (2004) and The Astronaut Wives Club (2015). He was married to Susan May Pratt. He died on 24 February 2024 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Charles Dierkop was born on 11 September 1936 in La Crosse, Wisconsin, USA. He was an actor, known for The Sting (1973), Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) and Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984). He was married to Joan Florence Addis. He died on 25 February 2024 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
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Richard Philip Lewis was born on June 29, 1947 in Brooklyn, New York and raised in Englewood, New Jersey. He went to Dwight Morrow High School and Ohio State University, graduating in 1969 with a degree in marketing and communications. Lewis wrote ad copy in New Jersey while also writing jokes for comedians such as Morty Gunty. He finally got the nerve to perform his own jokes in 1971 at New York's Improvisation and Pips.
After appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962) in 1974, he continued to tour and hone his act with help from David Brenner and Robert Klein. His film Diary of a Young Comic (1979) aired in the Saturday Night Live (1975) time-slot. His work on cable "I'm in Pain" for Showtime in 1988, The I'm Exhausted Concert (1988) earned a nomination from American Comedy Awards for Funniest Male Performer in a Television Special (for HBO); Richard Lewis: I'm Doomed (1990) (HBO) won him a second Ace Nomination for Best Stand-Up Comedy Special. His Richard Lewis: The Magical Misery Tour (1996) was filmed at New York's "Bottom Line" in December 1996. In December 1989, he performed to an SRO crowd at Carnegie Hall.- Actor
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Singer, composer, actor and author, educated at Brooklyn's Thomas Jefferson High School and a student of saxophone and piano. Between 1958 and 1960 he served in the US Army and was a vocalist with the US Army Band and Orchestra based in Fort Myers, Virginia. After he was discharged, he commenced his singing career on television, night clubs and recordings, both as a single performer and with his wife Eydie Gormé. He appeared in the mid-1960s Broadway musical "What Makes Sammy Run?". Joining ASCAP in 1957, his popular-song compositions include "After Midnight Waltz"; "All Of My Life"; "At a Time Like This"; "Can't Get Over the Bossa Nova"; "The Chase"; "Damila"; "Hi-Ho, Steve-O"; "Hurry Home for Christmas"; "I Gotta Run": "I'll Follow You"; "I'll Never Be Alone"; "It's Easier Said than Done"; "Just For Now"; "Laugh My Face"; "Let Me Be the First"; " A Little Bit Bluer"; "Oh, How You Lied"; "Only You"; "Pity, Pity"; "The Second Time Around"; "The Shortest Love Song"; "Sittin' on the Fence of Life"; "Tall People"; "Tell Me"; "Time to Say Goodnight"; "Two on the Aisle"; "What's the Use of Talking"; "When You're in Love"; "While There's Still Time"; "The World of You"; "You Better Run"; and "Your Kisses Kill Me".- Actor
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Wonderfully talented, heavyset character actor (from New York, but regularly playing Southerners) M. Emmet Walsh has made a solid career of playing corrupt cops, deadly crooks, and zany comedic roles since the early 1970s.
Michael Emmet Walsh was born in Ogdensburg, to Agnes Katharine (Sullivan) and Harry Maurice Walsh, a customs agent. He is of Irish descent. Walsh first appeared in a few fairly forgettable roles both on TV and onscreen before cropping up in several well remembered films, including a courtroom police officer in What's Up, Doc? (1972), as the weird Dickie Dunn in Slap Shot (1977), and as a loony sniper hunting Steve Martin in The Jerk (1979). On-screen demand heated up for him in the early 1980s with attention-grabbing work in key hits, including Brubaker (1980), Reds (1981), and as Harrison Ford's police chief in the futuristic thriller Blade Runner (1982). Walsh then turned in a stellar performance as the sleazy, double-crossing private detective in the Joel Coen and Ethan Coen film noir Blood Simple (1984), and showed up again for the Coens as a loud-mouthed sheet-metal worker bugging Nicolas Cage in the hilarious Raising Arizona (1987). As Walsh moved into his fifties and beyond, Hollywood continued to offer him plenty of work, and he has appeared in over 50 movies since passing the half-century mark. His consistent ability to turn out highly entertaining portrayals led film critic Roger Ebert to coin the "Stanton-Walsh Rule," which states that any film starring Walsh or Harry Dean Stanton has to have some merit. And the "M" stands for Michael!- Actor
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Louis Gossett Jr. was one of the most respected and beloved actors on stage, screen and television and was also an accomplished writer, producer and director. Off-screen, he was a social activist, educator, and author dedicated to enriching the lives of others. He was the first African-American to win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his unforgettable performance as drill Sergeant Emil Foley in "An Officer and a Gentleman".
Among his other awards were an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor for his portrayal of Fiddler in the groundbreaking ABC series "Roots", a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role for "The Josephine Baker Story" and a Golden Globe for "An Officer and a Gentleman". He was nominated for seven Primetime Emmy Awards, three Golden Globes, one Academy Award, five Images Awards, two Daytime Emmy Awards and in 1992 received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He received numerous other honors throughout his illustrious career.
His film debut was in the 1961 classic movie "A Raisin in the Sun" with Sidney Poitier. Other film credits include "The Deep," "Blue Chips," "Daddy's Little Girls," Tyler Perry's "Why Did I Get Married Too?," "Firewalker," "Jaws-3D," "Enemy Mine" and "Iron Eagle" 1-4, among many others. Television credits include "Extant," "Madam Secretary," "Boardwalk Empire," "Family Guy", and "ER", among dozens of others.
Gossett authored the bestselling autobiography "An Actor and a Gentleman", recounting the challenges and triumphs of his 50+ year career. Gossett was recognized as much for his humanitarian efforts as for his accomplishments as an actor. In 2006, he founded The Eracism Foundation which is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to eradicating racism. The foundation provides young adults with tools to live a racially diverse and culturally inclusive life. Programs focus on fostering cultural diversity, historical enrichment, education and anti-violence initiatives.
Gossett was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, and made his stage debut when he was 17 years old in "Take a Giant Step", which was selected as one of the 10 best Broadway shows of 1953 by the New York Times. He had two sons and resided in Malibu until his death in Santa Monica, California, in 2024, aged 87.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Chance Perdomo was born on 19 October 1996 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an actor, known for Gen V (2023), After We Fell (2021) and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (2018). He died on 29 March 2024 in New York, USA.- Cole Brings Plenty was born on 18 August 1996. He was an actor, known for Into the Wild Frontier (2022), 1923 (2022) and The Tall Tales of Jim Bridger (2024). He died on 5 April 2024 in Edgerton, Kansas, USA.
- The epitome of poise, charm, style and grace, beautiful brunette Barbara Rush was born in Denver, Colorado in 1927 and enrolled at the University of California before working with the University Players and taking acting classes at the Pasadena Playhouse. It didn't take long for talent scouts to spot her and, following a play performance, Paramount quickly signed her up in 1950, making her debut with The Goldbergs (1950).
Just prior to this, she had met fellow actor Jeffrey Hunter, a handsome newcomer who would later become a "beefcake" bobbysoxer idol over at Fox. The two fell in love and married in December 1950. Soon, they were on their way to becoming one of Hollywood's most beautiful and photogenic young couples. Their son Christopher was born in 1952.
While at Paramount, she was decorative in such assembly-line fare as When Worlds Collide (1951), Quebec (1951) and Flaming Feather (1952). She later co-starred opposite some of Hollywood's top leading males: James Mason, Montgomery Clift, Marlon Brando, Dean Martin, Paul Newman, Richard Burton and Kirk Douglas. In most cases, she played brittle wives, conniving "other women" or socialite girlfriend types.
Despite the "A" list movies Barbara was piling up, the one single role that could put her over the top never showed its face. By the early 1960s, her film career started to decline. She married publicist Warren Cowan in 1959 and bore a second child, Claudia Cowan, in 1964. TV became a viable source of income for her, appearing in scores of guest parts on the more popular shows of the time while co-starring in standard mini-movie dramas.
She even had a bit of fun playing a "guest villainess" on the Batman (1966) series as temptress "Nora Clavicle". The stage also became a strong focus for Barbara, earning the Sarah Siddons Award for her starring role in "Forty Carats". She made her Broadway debut in the one-woman showcase "A Woman of Independent Means", which also subsequently earned her the Los Angeles Drama Critics Award during its tour. Other showcases included "Private Lives", "Same Time, Next Year", "The Night of the Iguana" and "Steel Magnolias". Rush continued to occasionally appear onscreen, most recently in a recurring role on TV's 7th Heaven (1996). She died on March 31, 2024, aged 97. - Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Joe Flaherty was born on 21 June 1941 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for Happy Gilmore (1996), Back to the Future Part II (1989) and Detroit Rock City (1999). He was married to Judith Ann Dagley. He died on 1 April 2024 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.- Actor
- Director
- Music Department
Terry Carter, a native of Brooklyn, New York, is a graduate of Stuyvesant High School in New York City. He attended Hunter College, Boston University - School of Communications, U.C.L.A. - School of Theater, Film, and Television, and St. John's University School of Law. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications from Northeastern University (1983).
Carter studied acting with Howard DaSilva, Bret Warren, Uta Hagen, Herbert Berghof, and Stella Adler. He studied playwriting with Arnold Perl. He studied directing with Alan Schneider.- Marla Adams was born on 28 August 1938 in Ocean City, New Jersey, USA. She was an actress, known for Gotcha! (1985), The Young and the Restless (1973) and The Bold and the Beautiful (1987). She died on 25 April 2024 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Brian McCardie was born in Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He was an actor, known for Time (2021), Filth (2013) and Rob Roy (1995). He died on 28 April 2024 in Scotland, UK.
- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
Bernard Hill is an English actor. He is well recognized for playing King Théoden in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, Captain Edward Smith in Titanic, and Luther Plunkitt, the Warden of San Quentin Prison in the Clint Eastwood film True Crime. Hill was also known for playing roles in television dramas, including Yosser Hughes, the troubled "hard man" whose life is falling apart in Alan Bleasdale's groundbreaking Boys from the Blackstuff in the 1980s, and more recently, as the Duke of Norfolk in the BBC adaptation of Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall.- Producer
- Director
- Actor
Roger William Corman was born April 5, 1926, in Detroit, Michigan. Initially following in his father's footsteps, Corman studied engineering at Stanford University, but, while in school, he began to lose interest in the profession and developed a growing passion for film. Upon graduation, he worked a total of three days as an engineer at US Electrical Motors, which cemented his growing realization that engineering wasn't for him. He quit and took a job as a messenger for 20th Century Fox, eventually rising to the position of story analyst.
After a term spent studying modern English literature at England's Oxford University and a year spent bopping around Europe, Corman returned to the US, intent on becoming a screenwriter/producer. He sold his first script in 1953, "The House in the Sea," which was eventually filmed and released as Highway Dragnet (1954).
Horrified by the disconnect between his vision for the project and the film that eventually emerged, Corman took his salary from the picture, scraped together a little capital and set himself up as a producer, turning out Monster from the Ocean Floor (1954). Corman used his next picture, The Fast and the Furious (1954), to finagle a multi-picture deal with a fledgling company called American Releasing Corp. (ARC). It would soon change its name to American-International Pictures (AIP) and with Corman as its major talent behind the camera, would become one of the most successful independent studios in cinema history.
With no formal training, Corman first took to the director's chair with Five Guns West (1955) and over the next 15 years directed 53 films, mostly for AIP. He proved himself a master of quick, inexpensive productions, turning out several movies as director and/or producer in each of those years--nine movies in 1957, and nine again in 1958. His personal speed record was set with The Little Shop of Horrors (1960), which he shot in two days and a night.
In the early 1960s, he began to take on more ambitious projects, gaining a great deal of critical praise (and commercial success) from a series of adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe stories, most of them starring Vincent Price. His film The Intruder (1962) was a serious look at racial integration in the South, starring a very young William Shatner. Critically praised and winning a prize at the Venice Film Festival, the movie became Corman's first--and, for many years, only--commercial flop. He called its failure "the greatest disappointment in my career." As a consequence of the experience, Corman opted to avoid such direct "message" films in the future and resolved to express his social and political concerns beneath the surface of overt entertainments.
Those messages became more radical as the 1960s wound to a close and after AIP began re-editing his films without his knowledge or consent, he left the company, retiring from directing to concentrate on production and distribution through his own newly formed company, New World Pictures. In addition to low-budget exploitation flicks, New World also distributed distinguished art cinema from around the world, becoming the American distributor for the films of Ingmar Bergman, Akira Kurosawa, Federico Fellini, François Truffaut and others. Selling off New World in the 1980s, Corman has continued his work through various companies in the years since--Concorde Pictures, New Horizons, Millenium Pictures, New Concorde. In 1990, after the publication of his biography "How I Made A Hundred Movies in Hollywood And Never Lost A Dime"--one of the all-time great books on filmmaking--he returned to directing but only for a single film, Frankenstein Unbound (1990)
With hundreds of movies to his credit, Roger Corman is one of the most prolific producers in the history of the film medium and one of the most successful--in his nearly six decades in the business, only about a dozen of his films have failed to turn a profit. Corman has been dubbed, among other things, "The King of the Cult Film" and "The Pope of Pop Cinema" and his filmography is packed with hundreds of remarkably entertaining films in addition to dozens of genuine cult classics. Corman has displayed an unrivaled eye for talent over the years--it could almost be said that it would be easier to name the top directors, actors, writers and creators in Hollywood who DIDN'T get their start with him than those who did. Among those he mentored are Francis Ford Coppola, Ron Howard, Martin Scorsese, Jack Nicholson, James Cameron, Robert De Niro, Peter Bogdanovich, Joe Dante and Sandra Bullock. His influence on modern American cinema is almost incalculable. In 2009, he was honored with an Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement.- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Mark Damon was born on 22 April 1933 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for House of Usher (1960), Monster (2003) and 11:14 (2003). He was married to Margaret Markov and Barbara Frey. He died on 12 May 2024 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Producer
For decades, Dabney Coleman has often appeared as a smarmy, selfish, nervous person, often with money, who is mostly out for himself. He did such a good job in this type of part that he's made a career of it in film.
Dabney Wharton Coleman was born in Austin, Texas, to Mary Wharton (Johns) and Melvin Randolph Coleman. He attended the Virginia Military Institute, and studied law in Texas. Coleman has a well deserved reputation as a fine character actor, and a reliable presence for almost any role in TV and movies. Dabney Coleman's early appearances in the cinema were in The Slender Thread (1965) and Downhill Racer (1969). On TV he starred in That Girl (1966). As the 1970s approached he became a well-known character actor in television and movies, appearing in The Towering Inferno (1974), Midway (1976), and Cinderella Liberty (1973). Television seemed Dabney Coleman's forum in the 1970s as Coleman played the role of Merle Jeeter in Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman (1976) and Fernwood Tonight (1977). Coleman made appearances in the popular North Dallas Forty (1979) and the Oscar-winning Melvin and Howard (1980). Dabney Coleman also became known for some satirical movies, starring in the comedy How to Beat the High Cost of Living (1980) and snatched a lead role for the TV movie Pray TV (1980). Coleman's reputation for playing world-class jerks became cemented in 1980 as the boss to Dolly Parton , Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin in 9 to 5 (1980). The next year, Coleman was in very good company working with legends Henry Fonda and Katharine Hepburn in On Golden Pond (1981). Coleman's hit streak would not end there.
In 1982 Coleman landed a key role in the classic Tootsie (1982), further cementing his role as an unlikable wealthy boss in some capacity. In 1983 Coleman starred in the Cold War classic WarGames (1983). During this period he also found many parts in lesser known movies like Young Doctors in Love (1982) and Callie & Son (1981). In 1984 he starred in The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984) and in 1985 he starred with Tom Hanks in The Man with One Red Shoe (1985). In 1987 the actor won an Emmy for Sworn to Silence (1987). In 1990 Coleman took two lead roles, one in the disastrous Where the Heart Is (1990), and the other in the quirky comedy Short Time (1990). In 1993 Coleman starred in the slapstick comedy Amos & Andrew (1993) (a very funny part) and in a remake of the TV show The Beverly Hillbillies (1993) as Milburn Drysdale. Coleman took an extensive line of TV movies, such films as Texan, In the Line of Duty, among others. Coleman took an unusual part in the ABC cartoon, Recess (1997), and then starred in a couple of big money grossers, the Tom Hanks comedy, You've Got Mail (1998), as Chief Quimby in Inspector Gadget (1999), and in Stuart Little (1999), both 1999.
Coleman is still very active.