Biographies (M-S)

Dorothy Provine

2010-04-28T12:56:00.000-07:00

Dorothy Provine was born January 20, 1935 in Deadwood, South Dakota.

Dorothy Provine is best remember for her role as Emeline Marcus-Finch in It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963).

Dorothy Provine made her film debut as Bonnie Parker in The Bonnie Parker Story (1958). She also appeared in Riot in Juvenile Prison (1959), The 30 Foot Bride of Candy Rock (1959), Wall of Noise (1963), Good Neighbor Sam (1964), The Great Race (1965), Kiss the Girls and Make Them Die (1966), and Never a Dull Moment (1968).

Dorothy Provine's television credits include Lawman, Mike Hammer, The Real McCoys, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Alaskans, The Roaring 20s, 77 Sunset Strip, and Police Story.

Dorothy Provine passed away on April 27, 2010 at the age of 75. Dorothy Provine is survived by her husband (Robert Day) of forty two years and one child.

Al Pacino

2010-04-25T12:46:00.000-07:00

Al Pacino is one of the most celebrated actors today. He has won Tony Awards, Emmy Awards, Golden Globes, and an Academy Award.

Alfredo James "Al" Pacino was born April 25, 1940 in East Harlem, Manhattan, the son of Rose Gerardi and Salvatore Alfred Pacino.

Al Pacino attended the High School of Performing Arts, a division of the Fiorello H. La Guardia High School of Music and the Arts in New York City. Al Pacino failed nearly all of his classes except English and dropped out of school at the age of 17. He next worked at a string of low-paying jobs, including messenger boy, busboy, janitor, and postal clerk, in order to finance his acting studies.

He acted in basement plays in New York's theatrical underground, and then joined the Herbert Berghof Studio (HB Studio), where he met acting teacher Charlie Laughton, who became his mentor and best friend.

In 1966, after many previous unsuccessful attempts, he auditioned at The Actors Studio and got accepted. He studied under legendary acting coach Lee Strasberg .

Al Pacino made his film debut as Tony in Me, Natalie (1969).

In 1972, Al Pacino was cast to play Michael Corleone in The Godfather. He would be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance.

Al Pacino would receive two more Academy Award nominations for Best Supporting Actor one for Dick Tracy (1990) and one for Glengarry Glen Ross (1992).

Al Pacino would received Academy Award nominations for Best Actor for Serpico (1973),
The Godfather: Part II (1974), Dog Day Afternoon (1975), and for And Justice for All (1979).

Al Pacino would win the Academy Award for Best Actor for Scent of a Woman (1992).

Al Pacino would win a primetime Emmy award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie for: "Angels in America" (2003).

In 2001, Al Pacino would receive the Cecil B. DeMille Award.

Al Pacino has also won three Golden Globe awards: Best Motion Picture Actor - Drama
for: Serpico (1973; Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama
for: Scent of a Woman (1992); and Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television for: "Angels in America" (2003).

Al Pacino made his Broadway debut in 1969 in Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie? He has also appeared in King Richard III, The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel, American Buffalo, Hughie and Salome.

Al Pacino has received two Tony Awards: 1977 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Actor in a Play & 1977 Tony Award Best Actor in Play both for The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel.

Harry Morgan

2010-04-10T12:49:00.000-07:00

Long before he was Detective Bill Gannon on Dragnet (1967-70) and Colonel Sherman T. Potter on M*A*S*H (1975-83), Harry Morgan was one of the most popular character actors of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, appearing in more than 100 films.

Harry Morgan was born Harry Bratsberg in Detroit, Michigan on April 10, 1915.

A statewide debating champion in high school, Harry original aspired to obtain a law degree. However, when Harry was a junior in college he joined the acting club.

Morgan began acting on stage under his birth name, joining the Group Theatre in New York City in 1937, and appearing in the original production of the play Golden Boy, followed by a host of successful Broadway roles including plays such as The Gentle People, Thunder Rock, and Heavenly Express.

Harry Morgan made his screen debut (originally using the name "Henry Morgan") in the 1942 movie To the Shores of Tripoli. His screen name later would become "Henry 'Harry' Morgan" and eventually Harry Morgan, to avoid confusion with the then-popular humorist of the same name.

Harry Morgan appeared in films such as The Ox-Bow Incident (1943), State Fair (1945) ,Dragonwyck (1946), The Big Clock (1948), High Noon (1952), Bend of the River (1952), The Glenn Miller Story (1953), Thunder Bay (1953), The Far Country (1955) Strategic Air Command (1955); The Teahouse of the August Moon (1956), Inherit the Wind (1960), Cimarron (1960), How the West Was Won (1962), Frankie and Johnny (1966), Support Your Local Sheriff! (1969), Support Your Local Gunfighter! (1971), The Apple Dumpling Gang (1975), and The Shootist (1976).

In 1980, he won a Prime Time Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy or Variety or Music Series for: "M*A*S*H." He was also nominated seven other times for his role as Colonel Potter. He was also nominated in 1972 for a guest appearance on M*A*S*H when he appeared as a crazy general in the episode The General Flipped at Dawn.

A talented painter, in several episodes of M*A*S*H, Colonel Potter is seen painting, these are actually works by Harry Morgan.

Harry Morgan has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for radio. Why he doesn't have one for television and motion pictures is beyond comprehension.

Kurt Russell

2010-03-16T16:10:00.000-07:00

Kurt Vogel Russell was born on March 17, 1951 in Springfield, Massachusetts. He is the son of Louise Julia Crone, a dancer, and Bing Russell (photo below), a character actor, best-known for playing Deputy Clem Foster on Bonanza.

Kurt Russell began acting at the age of 6 when he appeared in several episodes of Sugarfoot (1957-1958). In 1960, Walt Disney himself signed Russell to a 10 year contract. He made his movie debut in It Happened At The World's Fair (1963).

As a child actor, Kurt Russell appeared in episodes of The Dick Powell Show, Sam Benedict, The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Virginian, Lost in Space and The Fugitive.

On February 6, 1965, Russell, not quite fourteen, played the role of Jungle Boy on an episode of CBS's Gilligan's Island.

As a child actor, he appeared in films such as Guns of Diablo (1964) Follow Me, Boys! (1966) and The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (1969).

During the early 1970s, Kurt Russell had a baseball career. He played second base for the minor league team the El Paso Sun Kings. Kurt Russell's baseball career ended when he tore a rotator cuff during a game. Before his injury, he was leading the Texas League in hitting, with a .563 batting average. The injury forced his retirement from baseball in 1973 and led to his return to acting.

As an adult, Kurt Russell has appeared in films such as The Barefoot Executive (1971), Fools' Parade (1971), Now You See Him, Now You Don't (1972), Superdad (1973), The Strongest Man in the World (1975), Used Cars (1980), Escape from New York (1981), The Thing (1982), Silkwood (1983), Swing Shift (1984), Overboard (1987), Tequila Sunrise (1988), Tango & Cash (1989), Backdraft (1991), Tombstone (1993), Escape from L.A. (1996), and Poseidon (2006).

In 1979, Kurt Russell gave a classic performance as Elvis Presley in John Carpenter's ABC-TV movie Elvis. He was nominated for an Emmy for his performance.

Kurt Russell married actress Season Hubley, whom he had met on the set of Elvis in 1979 and they had a son, Boston Russell, in 1980. They divorced in 1983.

In 1983, he began a relationship with Goldie Hawn while filming Swing Shift. They had a son, Wyatt, in 1986. They have been together 26 years.

Dean Stockwell

2010-03-04T15:23:00.000-08:00

Dean Stockwell was a popular child actor of the 1940s, known for his air of innocence, beautiful dimples, sparkling eyes and his crown of curls. Sixty plus years later, Dean Stockwell is still an actor in demand. He is one of the few child actors to transition to successful adult actor.

Dean Stockwell was born Robert Dean Stockwell on March 5, 1936 in Hollywood, California. Dean's father was Harry Stockwell, an actor an singer. His mother was Nina Olivette, an actress and dancer. Dean's elder brother is actor Guy Stockwell.

Dean's father Harry is most famous for supplying the speaking and singing voice for Prince Charming in Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937).

By the age of 10, Dean Stockwell had appeared on Broadway and in several movies.

Dean Stockwell made his debut in 1945 at the age of 9 in the film The Valley of Decision.

Dean's next role was Donald Martin in Anchor's Aweigh (1945) starring Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra and Kathryn Grayson.

In The Green Years (1946) he played Robert Shannon, as a child. In 1947, he played Nick Jr., son of Nick and Nora Charles in Song of the Thin Man. He also played Gregory Peck's son in Gentelman's Agreement (1947). In 1948, he had the lead role in The Boy with Green Hair. In 1949, he appeared in The Secret Garden. As a child actor, Dean also appeared in The Happy Years (1950) and Cattle Drive (1951).

In 1943, at the age of 7, Dean Stockwell appeared on Broadway in The Innocent Voyage.

In 1956, Dean Stockwell turned 20 years old and was still very active in movies and on television.

In 1957, Dean Stockwell appeared in the Broadway production of Compulsion.

In 1959, Dean Stockwell would appear in the film version of Compulsion.

During his 20s, he also appeared in films such as Sons and Lovers (1960), Long Day's Journey Into Night (1962) and Rapture (1965). On televison, he appeared in Climax, Cimarron City, General Electric Theater, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Wagon Train, The Twlight Zone, and The Defenders.

As Dean Stockwell entered his 30s, he was still very much in demand. His movies include Psych-Out (1968), The Dunwich Horror (1970), The Last Movie (1971), The Loners (1972), The Werewolf of Washington (1973), and The Pacific Connection (1974) . He appeared in episodes of televsion shows such as Dr. Kildare, Mannix, Mission Impossible, Bonanza, and The Streets of San Francisco.

During Dean Stockwell's 40s, he appeared in such films as Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood (1976), She Came to the Valley (1979), Dune (1984) Papa Was a Preacher (1985), To Kill a Stranger (1985), The Legend of Billie Jean (1985), and To Live and Die in L.A. (1985). He appeared on episodes of Police Story, McCloud, The A-Team, Simon & Simon, hart to Hart, and Miami Vice.

In 1986, Dean Stockwell turned 50 years old and had been acting for 41 years. The former child actor was still popular in films and on television. He appeared in movies such as Blue Velvet (1986), Banzai Runner (1987), Gardens of Stone (1987), Beverly Hills Cop II (1987), The Blue Iguana (1988), Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988), Married to the Mob (1988), Buying Time (1989), Friends and Enemies (1992) and The Player (1992) He appeared in episodes of televsion shows such as Hunter, Murder She Wrote, Burke's Law, and Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman.

At the age of 53, Dean Stockwell received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Married to the Mob (1988).

In 1989 to 1993, Dean Stockwell starred as Admiral Al Calavicci in Quantum Leap. He would receive four Emmy nominations for Oustanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.

After Quantum Leap and now in his 60s, Dean Stockwell was not slowing down. He appeared in films such as Last Resort (1996), Mr. Wrong (1996), McHale's Navy (1997), Midnight Blue (1997), Living in Peril (1997), Air Force One (1997), The Rainmaker (1997), The Shadow Men (1998), Restraining Order (1999), Face to Face (2001), Inferno (2002), and The Manchurian Candidate (2004).

He also had a reoccuring role on the television drama JAG as SecNav Edward Sheffield.

Now 70 years old, Dean Stockwell was cast as John Cavil in Battlestar Galactica.

Dean Stockwell is an accomplished artist. He creates both digitally enhanced photographs and original collages in the style of his friend and fellow artist, Wallace Berman. He is also a friend of musician Neil Young and designed the album cover art for "American Stars'n'Bars".

Dean Stockwell has a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for motion pictures.

Jean Simmons

2010-02-28T15:33:00.001-08:00

Jean Merilyn Simmons was born on January 31, 1929 in London, England. The daughter of Charles Simmons and Winifred Loveland. Her father, a physical education teacher who had represented Great Britain in the 1912 Summer Olympics.

During World War II, the Simmons family was evacuated to Winscombe in Somerset.

After the war, she returned to London and enrolled at the Aida Foster School of Dance at the age of 14. She was spotted by the director Val Guest, who cast her in the Margaret Lockwood film Give us the Moon.

Her films include Black Narcissus (1947), Hamlet (1948)
Affair with a Stranger (1953), The Actress (1953), Guys and Dolls (1955), The Big Country (1958), Elmer Gantry (1960), Spartacus (1960), The Grass Is Greener (1960),
Divorce American Style (1967), Heidi (1968), and The Happy Ending (1969).

In 1950, she married the English actor Stewart Granger and they divorced in 1960. They had one daughter, Tracy Granger. Granger and Simmons appeared together in Adam and Evelyne (1949), Caesar and Cleopatra (1945), Young Bess (1953),
and Footsteps in the Fog (1955).

In 1960 she married director Richard Brooks, divorcing in 1977. They had one daughter Kate Brooks. Brooks directed Jean in Elmer Gantry (1960) and
The Happy Ending (1969).

Jean Simmons received two Academy Award nominations for Best Actress, one for Hamlet (1948) and one for The Happy Ending (1969).

She won the Golden Globe for Best Musical/Comedy Actress, Guys and Dolls (1956).

In 1983, she received the Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress for a Series or Special for her role in The Thorn Birds.

Jean Simmon's final film was Shadows in the Sun (2009).

Jean Simmons passed away on January 22, 2010 at the age of 80 from complications of lung cancer.

Gavin MacLeod

2010-02-27T16:53:00.000-08:00

Gavin MacLeod has been a familar face on television and movies for over fifty years.

If you grew up watching 1960s televison, you remember Gavin MacLeod as Seaman Joseph 'Happy' Haines on McHale's Navy from 1962 to 1964.

If you grew up watching 1970s televison, you remember Gavin MacLeod as Murray Slaughter on The Mary Tyler Moore Show from 1970 to 1977.

If you grew up watching 1980s television, you remember Gavin MacLeod as Captain Merrill Stubing on The Love Boat from 1977 to 1987.

If you love classic movies, you know Gavin MacLeod as one of the most memorable character actors working alongside Cary Grant, Tony Curtis, Steve McQueen, E.G. Marshall, Susan Hayward, Gregory Peck and Donald Sutherland.

Gavin MacLeod was born Allan George See on February 28, 1930 or 1931 (sources differ as to the year he was born) in Mount Kisco, New York. His father was a Chippewa (Ojibwa) Indian.

Gavin MacLeod studing acting at Ithaca College, graduating in 1952. After serving in the Air Force, he moved to New York City and worked at Radio City Music Hall while looking for acting work.

Gavin MacLeod made his acting debut in an episode of The Walter Winchell File in 1957.

After two uncredited roles in the films The True Story of Lynn Stuart (1958) and Young and Wild (1958), Gavin MacLeod received his big break.

Gavin MacLeod was cast to play a police lieutenant in the film drama I Want to Live (1958) starring Susan Hayward.

The Hollywood elite noticed Gavin MacLeod and his next role was as Padua, District Attorney Horn (played by E.G. Marshall) assistant in Compulsion (1959).

Gavin MacLeod's next film was Pork Chop Hill (1959) starring Gregory Peck in which MacLeod played Sexton.

In 1959, Gavin MacLeod gave one of his most memorable performances as Ernest Hunkle in Operation Petticoat starring Tony Curtis and Cary Grant.

Blake Edwards, the director of Operation Petticoat quickly cast Gavin MacLeod as Professor Thayer in his next feature High Time (1960) starring Bing Crosby.

In 1966, Gavin MacLeod played Crosley in The Sand Pepples starring Steve McQueen.

Gavin MacLeod's most memorable performance as a character actor was in Kelly's Heroes (1970) in which he played Oddball's (Donald Sutherland) sidekick Moriarty.

Gavin MacLeod has also appeared in films such as Twelve Hours to Kill (1960), McHale's Navy (1964), A Man Called Gannon (1968),and The Thousand Plane Raid (1969).

Gavin MacLeod has appeared on episodes of My Favorite Martian, The Untouchables, The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Andy Griffith Show, Hogan's Heroes, The Big Valley, The King of Queens, That '70s Show, Touched by an Angel, JAG and so many more.

Sidney Poitier

2010-02-19T17:01:00.000-08:00

Sidney Poitier was born on February 20, 1927 in Miami, Florida to Evelyn Outten and Reginald James Poitier. His family had traveled from Cat Island, Bahamas to Miami to sell tomatoes and other produce from their farm when Sidney was born prematurely on their trip to Florida.

Sidney Poitier began his acting career by joining the American Negro Theater, but was initially rejected by audiences. His tone deafness made him contrary to what was expected of African American actors at the time unable to sing or dance.

However, Sidney Poitier was determined to refine his acting skills. He spent the next several months to achieving theatrical success. On his second attempt at theater, he was noticed which led to him being cast in the Broadway production of Lysistrate for which he received excellent reviews.

In 1949, Sidney Poitier faced a difficult decision: leading roles on the Broadway stage of accept an offer to appear in the film No Way Out.

Sidney Poitier choosed the film No Way Out (1950) which led to more roles in the film industry.

In 1955, he was cast in the Blackboard Jungle (1955).

In 1958 he played opposite Tony Curtis in The Defiant Ones. He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his performance becoming the first African American male actor to be nominated in a competitive category.

In the late 1950s, Sidney Poitier returned to the Broadway stage performing in A Raisin in the Sun. He would receive a Tony award nomination for his performance.

In 1961, Sidney Poitier reprised his Broadway role in the movie version of A Raisin in the Sun.

In 1963, Sidney Poitier became the first African American to win an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Lilies of the Field. He also won the Golden Globe for Best Actor for his performance.

In 1965, Sidney Poitier starred in The Bedford Incident (1965). This would mark the first time he would play a role in which his character's race was not an issue.

Sidney Poitier also appeared in such films as Edge of the City (1957), Pressure Point (1962), A Patch of Blue (1965), Duel at Diablo (1966), To Sir, with Love (1967), In the Heat of the Night (1967), Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967), They Call Me MISTER Tibbs! (1970), Buck and the Preacher (1972) and Sneakers (1992).

Sidney Poitier has also had a successful career as a director. He has directed such films as Buck and the Preacher (1972) and Ghost Dad (1990). His most successful film as a director is the 1980 Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder comedy Stir Crazy.

Sidney Poitier has received many awards including Cecil B. Demille Award (1982), AFI Life Achievement Award (1992), SAG Life Achievement Award (1995), Kennedy Center Honor (1999) and a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for motion pictures.

On August 12, 2009, Sidney Poitier was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States of America's highest civilian honor, by President Barack Obama.

Sidney Poitier is currently the Bahamian ambassador to Japan, a post he has held since 1997.

Sidney Poitier was to Hollywood what Jackie Robinson was to major league baseball: the man who broke the color barrier. An actor, director, and producer, he forever altered the racial perceptions long held by both motion picture audiences and executives.

Kevin McCarthy

2010-02-14T16:26:00.000-08:00

For the past seven decades, Kevin McCarthy has had a long and distinguished career on stage, television and in film. He is one of the most in demand character actors.

Kevin McCarthy was born on February 15, 1914 in Seattle, Washington the son of Martha Therese Preston and Roy Winfield McCarthy. Kevin McCarthy was orphaned at the age of four when both his parents died in the great flu epidemic of 1918. He was raised by his father's parents in Minneapolis, Minnesota and later by an uncle and aunt.

In 1938, Kevin McCarthy made his Broadway debut in Abe Lincoln in Illinois. Kevin McCarthy's Broadway credits include Flight to the West, Joan of Lorraine, Cactus Flower, and Advise and Consent.

In 1944, Kevin McCarthy made his film debut in an uncredited role in Winged Victory.

In 1949, Kevin McCarthy was cast as Biff Loman in the London company production of Death of a Salesman. He reprised his role in the 1951 film version, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and won a Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year.

Kevin McCarthy has appeared in films such as Drive a Crooked Road (1954), The Gambler from Natchez (1954), An Annapolis Story (1955), Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956), The Misfits (1961), The Hell with Heroes (1968), The Howling (1981), Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983), Hostage (1987), Love or Money (1990), The Distinguished Gentleman (1992), Fallen Angels (2006)and Her Morbid Desires (2008).

Kevin McCarthy has appeared on episodes of Boston Common, Dream On, Tales From The Crypt, Murder She Wrote, Matlock, China Beach, Simon & Simon, In The Heat of the Night, The Colbys, The Golden Girls, The Love Boat, Fantasy Island and Flamingo Road.

Kevin McCarthy's made for television movies include Rosie: The Rosemary Clooney Story (1982), Deadly Intentions (1985), Poor Little Rich Girl: The Barbara Hutton Story (1987) Liz: The Elizabeth Taylor Story (1995) and The Second Civil War (1997).

At age 96, Kevin McCarthy has no intention of retiring. He is currently filming
The Ghastly Love of Johnny X (2010) in which he will play The Grand Inquisitor.

Kim Novak

2010-02-12T19:01:00.000-08:00

Kim Novak was born Marilyn Pauline Novak on February 13, 1933 in Chicago, Illinois. The daughter of Joseph Novak, a railroad clerk, and Blanche, a teacher.

Kim Novak won a scholarship to the Art Institute of Chicago. After leaving school, she began a career modeling teen fashions for a local department store. She later received a scholarship at a modeling academy and continued to model part-time. She worked as an elevator operator, a sales clerk and a dental assistant.

She also toured the country as a spokesman for a refrigerator manufacturer, "Miss Deepfreeze."

After moving to Los Angeles, Kim Novak landed her first film role in an uncredit part in The French Line (1954).

Kim Novak's big break came when she was cast opposite Fred MacMurray in Pushover (1953). Kim Novak captured the attention of critics and audiences alike as femme fatale Lona McLane.

In 1955, Kim Novak won the Golden Globe award for Most Promising Newcomer - Female.

Kim Novak was one of the biggest box office stars of the 1950s and 1960s. She appeared films such as Phffft! (1954), Picnic (1955), The Man with the Golden Arm (1955), Pal Joey (1957), Vertigo (1958), Bell, Book and Candle (1958), Strangers When We Meet (1960), Boys' Night Out (1962), Of Human Bondage (1964), Kiss Me, Stupid (1964), The Amorous Adventures of Moll Flanders" (1965) and The Great Bank Robbery (1969).

After 1969, Kim Novak appeared in barely a dozen films and television appearances. She played Kit Marlowe during the fourth season of Falcon Crest.

In 1991, she made her final appearance in the film Liebestraum.

For her contribution to motion pictures, Kim Novak was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Kim Novak married veterinarian Dr. Robert Malloy on March 12, 1976. The couple met when he treated her sick horse.

The couple now reside on a ranch where they raise horses and llamas. Kim is an accomplished artist who expresses herself in oil paintings and sculptures.

Kim Novak began writing her autobiography in 2000, but it was lost when her house caught on fire, destroying the computer that contained her only draft. Included in the loss were scripts to some of her movies (Vertigo (1958) and Picnic (1955)). Spared, however, were her menagerie of animals.

Ronald Reagan

2010-02-06T12:31:00.000-08:00

Long before becoming Governor of California and President of the United States, Ronald Reagan graced the silver screen.

Ronald Wilson Reagan was born on February 6, 1911 in Tampico, Illinois. The son of John Edward "Jack" Reagan and Nelle Wilson.

After high school, Ronald Reagan attended Eureka College where he was a member of the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity where he majored in economics and sociology. He was very active in sports especially football.

After graduating from Eureka College in 1932, Reagan drove himself to Iowa, where he auditioned for a job at many small-town radio stations. He was hired by the University of Iowa to broadcast home football games for the Hawkeyes.

Aided by his persuasive voice,he moved to WHO radio in Des Moines as an announcer for Chicago Cubs baseball games.

After completing fourteen home-study Army Extension Courses, Ronald Reagan enlisted in the Army Enlisted Reserve, as a private assigned to Troop B, 322nd Cavalry at Des Moines, Iowa. He was appointed Second Lieutenant in the Officers Reserve Corps of the Cavalry on May 25, 1937, and on June 18 was assigned to the 323rd Cavalry.

In 1937, while traveling with the Cubs in California, Ronald Reagan took a screen test in 1937which led to a seven-year contract with Warner Brothers studios.

Ronald Reagan made his movie debut in Love is on the Air (1937).

In 1938, Ronald Reagan co-starred in the film Brother Rat with actress Jane Wyman. They were married on January 26, 1940. Jane and Ronald would make four more movies together: Brother Rat and a Baby (1940), Tugboat Annie Sails Again (1940), An Angel from Texas (1940) and It's a Great Feeling (1949).

Following arguments about Ronald Reagan's political ambitions, Jane Wyman filed for divorce in 1948, citing a distraction due to her husband's Screen Actors Guild union duties, the divorce was finalized in 1949.

Ronald Reagan was ordered to active duty for the first time on April 18, 1942. Due to his nearsightedness, he was classified for limited service only, which excluded him from serving overseas. Reagan was assigned to AAF Public Relations and subsequently to the 1st Motion Picture Unit where he was promoted to First Lieutenant. By the end of the war, his units had produced some 400 training films for the AAF and Ronald Reagan left the service at the rank of Captain.

After his military service in World War II, Ronald Reagan returned to motion pictures.

Between 1937 and 1964, Ronald Reagan made over 50 films including Sergeant Murphy (1938), Boy Meets Girl (1938), Brother Rat (1938), Secret Service of the Air (1939), Dark Victory (1939), Murder in the Air (1940), Knute Rockne All American (1940), Kings Row (1942), Desperate Journey (1942), The Hasty Heart (1949), Bedtime for Bonzo (1951), Law and Order (1953), Cattle Queen of Montana (1954) and his final film The Killers (1964).

Ronald Reagan has a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for television. His television credits include Wagon Train, General Electric Theater, The Dick Powell Show and Death Valley Days.

Ronald Reagan was the first to be elected to the Board of Directors of the Screen Actors Guild and would later serve as President.

In 1949, Ronald Reagan met actress Nancy Davis. She contacted him in his capacity as president of the Screen Actors Guild to help her with issues regarding her name appearing on a communist blacklist in Hollywood (she had been mistaken for another Nancy Davis). The couple married in 1952 and were married 52 years until his death.

Ronald Reagan was originally a Democrat and an admirer of Franklin D. Roosevelt, and supporter of the New Deal. During the 1950s, his political leanings began to shift more conservatively. As a result, he endorsed the presidential candidacies of Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1952 and 1956 as well as Richard Nixon in 1960 while remaining a Democrat. In 1962, Ronald Reagan formally switched to the Republican Party.

California Republicans were impressed with Reagan's political views and charisma after his "Time for Choosing" speech, they nominated him for Governor of California in 1966. He was elected as Governor of California and served until 1975.

In 1976, Ronald Reagan challenged incumbent President Gerald Ford in a bid to become the Republican Party's candidate for president. In 1980 he successfully gained the nomination of the Republican party and won the 1980 Presidential election. He would serve as President of the United States until 1989.

On March 30, 1981, Reagan, along with his press secretary James Brady and two others, were shot by a would-be assassin, John Hinckley, Jr. Missing Reagan's heart by less than one inch, the bullet instead pierced his left lung.

Ronald Reagan was the first and only President of the United states to be divorced. He was also the first and only President to have been a member of a Union. To date, Ronald Reagan is the oldest man elected to President of the United States, being 69 at the time he was elected.

Ronald Reagan died on June 5, 2004 at the age of 93 due to complications from pneumonia and Alzheimer's disease.

Katharine Ross

2010-01-29T10:04:00.000-08:00

Katharine Juliet Ross was born on January 29, 1940 in Hollywood, California. Her father was in the US Navy and was away when she was born. His navy career shuttled the family around to Virginia, then Palo Alto and finally to Walnut Creek, outside of San Francisco, where Ross grew up.

Katherine Ross made her debut in an episode of Sam Benedict in 1962. She appeared on episodes of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, Ben Casey, The Virginian, Wagon Train and Gunsmoke before making her movie debut in 1965.

In 1965, she was cast to play James Stewart's daughter-in-law in the film Shenandoah.

She next appeared in The Singing Nun in 1966 an Mister Buddwing (1966) before getting her big break.

In 1967, she played Elaine Robinson in The Graduate. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance. She won the Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer.

In 1969, she would play Etta Place in Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid.

She also appeared in The Stepford Wives (1975) as Joanna Eberhart.

In 1976 she would win the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Voyage of the Damned.

During the 1980s, she was Francesca "Frankie" Colby on the drama The Colbys.

Katherine Ross is an accomplished author of children's books. Her books include
"The Baby Animals' Party," "Mama Loves," "Bear Island," "The Little Ballerina,"
and "My Favorite Things."

Katherine Ross currently resides in Malibu, California with her husband of 24 years, Sam Elliot.

Patricia Neal

2010-01-20T16:26:00.000-08:00

Patricia Neal was born Patsy Louise Neal on January 20, 1926 in Packard, Kentucky.

She grew up in Knoxville, Tennessee and studied drama at Northwestern University.

After moving to New York, she accepted her first job as understudy in the Broadway production of The Voice of the Turtle.

She made her Broadway debut in Another Part of the Forest (1946), winning a Tony Award as Best Featured Actress in a Play. She also appeared in the Broadway productions of The Miracle Worker, A Roomful of Roses, and The Children's Hour.

She often appears on the Tony Awards telecast, as she is the only surviving winner from the very first ceremony.

In 1949, Patricia Neal made her film debut in John Loves Mary. She next appeared in The Fountainhead (1949). Her film credits include The Hasty Heart (1949), The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), Operation Pacific (1951), Washington Story (1952), A Face in the Crowd (1957), Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), Hud (1963), In Harm's Way (1965) and The Subject Was Roses (1968).

In 1963, Patricia Neal won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in Hud, co-starring Paul Newman.

She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for The Subject Was Roses.

Patricia Neal was offered the role of "Mrs. Robinson" in The Graduate (1967), but turned it down, feeling it had come too soon after her strokes.

She later starred as Olivia Walton in the television movie The Homecoming: A Christmas Story (1971), which was the pilot episode for The Waltons. She was nominated for an Emmy Award for her performance and won the Golden Globe.

In 1975, Patricia Neal played a dying widowed mother trying to find a home for her three children in a moving episode of NBC's Little House on the Prairie.

In 1978, Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center in Knoxville dedicated the Patricia Neal Rehabilitation Center in her honor.

Patricia Neal's most recent role was Margie in Flying By (2009).

Patricia Neal was married to Roald Dahl from July 2, 1953 until their divorce on November 17, 1983, they had five children. She also has seven grandchildren.

Luise Rainer

2010-01-11T15:09:00.000-08:00

Luise Rainer was born on January 12, 1910 in Düsseldorf, Germany. The daughter of Heinz Rainer and Emmy Koenigsberger.

As a young girl, Luise was a terrific athlete, becoming a champion runner and an intrepid mountain climber.

Luise's training began in Germany from the age of 16 by leading stage director Max Reinhardt. After a few years, she became recognized as a "distinguished Berlin stage actress", acting with Reinhardt's Vienna theater ensemble. Critics "raved" at her stage and film acting quality.

She made her first appearance on the stage at the Dumont Theater in Düsseldorf in 1928, followed by appearances at various theaters in Jacques Deval's play Mademoiselle, Kingsley's Men in White, George Bernard Shaw's Saint Joan, Measure for Measure, and Pirandello's Six Characters in Search of an Author.

She later appeared in several German language films before being discovered in 1935 by MGM talent scout Phil Berg. Her first American role was in the film Escapade (1935).

She next appeared in a relatively small part in the musical biopic The Great Ziegfeld (1936). Despite her limited appearances in the film, she "so impressed audiences" that she won the Academy Award for Best Actress. For her dramatic telephone scene in the film, she was later dubbed "the Viennese teardrop".

In her next role, producer Irving Thalberg was convinced, despite the studio's disagreement, that she could play the part of a poor uncomely Chinese peasant in The Good Earth (1937), based on Pearl Buck's novel about hardship in China. She won her second Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance as O-Lan.

Luise Rainer also appeared in The Emperor's Candlesticks (1937) Big City (1937) The Toy Wife (1938) The Great Waltz (1938) and Hostages (1943). Her final film appearance was in The Gambler (1997).

Luise Rainer also appeared in the Broadway productions of The Lady from the Sea (1950) and A Kiss for Cinderella (1942).

Luise has a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for motion pictures.

Luise Rainer accomplished several Academy Award firsts:

1) She was the first actress/actor to win consecutive Oscars.

2) She was the first actress/actor to win two Academy Awards.

3) She was the first actor to achieve the perfect Oscar track record (two nominations-two wins).

4) She was the first and to date only German actress to win an Academy Award.

5) She was the first actress to win an Academy Award for portraying a real-life person (The Great Ziegfeld (1936).

Of all the living winners of a competitive Oscar she has had hers the longest, 74 years.

Currently lives in Eaton Square, London, in an apartment once occupied by Vivien Leigh.

She will be appearing at the Royal National Theatre in London on Monday February 1st, to talk about her extraordinary life and career.

A non-conformist to the MGM star-system, she used to parade around Hollywood untidily dressed, usually with no make-up and wearing pants. Her non-conformist style of behavior cost her contract with MGM in the late '30s

Luise Rainer has been married twice. First to Clifford Odets (January 8, 1937 to May 14, 1940, divorced) and to Robert Knittel (July 12, 1945 to June 15, 1989, his death). She has a daughter, Francesca Knittel-Bowyer, with Robert Knittel.

Sal Mineo

2010-01-10T10:39:00.000-08:00

Sal Mineo was born Salvatore Mineo, Jr. on January 10, 1939 in The Bronx. The son of Josephine and Sal Sr., Sicilian coffin makers.

Sal Mineo was enrolled by his mother in dancing and acting school at the age of three. Sal was thrown out of parochial school and, by age eight, was a member of a street gang in a tough Bronx neighborhood. After being arrested for robbery at age 10, he was given a choice of juvenile confinement or professional acting school.

In 1951, Sal Mineo made his Broadway debut in The Rose Tattoo. He next appeared in The King and I with Yul Brynner. Yul took a liking to Sal and helped Sal better himself as an actor.

Sal Mileno's film debut was in Six Bridges to Cross (1955) and his next film was The Private War of Major Benson (1955).

Sal Mileno's breakthrough film was Rebel Without a Cause (1955) in which he played John Plato Crawford. This role would earn him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

During the 1950s, Sal Mileno appeared in such films as Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956), Giant (1956), Crime in the Streets (1956), The Young Don't Cry (1957) and A Private's Affair (1959).

The 1960s brought Sal roles in The Exodus (1960), The Longest Day (1962), Cheyenne Autumn (1964), and The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965). He would be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and won the Golden Globe for his role in The Exodus.

A small role in Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971) as chimpanzee Dr. Milo would be Mineo's last movie appearance.

Sal Mileno's career also included frequent television roles. In 1948, he was nominated for an Emmy Award for Best Single Performance by an Actor for Studio One.

He also appeared on television shows as Columbo, Hallmark Hall of Fame, Kraft Television Theatre, The Ann Sothern Show, Dr. Kildare, My Three Sons, Hawaii Five-O, and Police Story.

In 1957, Sal Mileno recorded a handful of sons and an album. Two of his singles reached the Top 40 pop charts.

In addition to acting and singing, Sal Mileno also directed theater productions of Fortune and Men's Stages, The Medium, and The Children's Mass.

In 1976, Sal Mineo was playing the role of a gay burglar in the stage comedy P.S. Your Cat Is Dead in which he received substantial publicity from many positive reviews.

On February 12, 1976, Sal Mileno was arriving home after a rehearsal when he was stabbed to death in the alley behind his West Hollywood apartment building. He was 37years old. Sal Mineo was stabbed just once, but the blade struck his heart, leading to immediate and massive internal bleeding.

A pizza deliveryman, Lionel Ray Williams, was sentenced to in 1979 to 57 years in prison for killing Mineo and committing 10 robberies in the same vicinity. He was paroled in 1990.

Frank Sinatra

2009-12-12T08:31:00.000-08:00

Frank Sinatra was born Francis Albert Sinatra on December 12, 1915 in Hoboken, New Jersey. The only child of Italian immigrants Natalie Della Garaventa and Antonio Martino Sinatra.

Frank Sinatra left high school without graduating, having attended only 47 days before being expelled due to his rowdy conduct.

Frank Sinatra got his first break in 1935 when his mother persuaded a local singing group, The Three Flashes, to let him join. With Sinatra, the group became known as the Hoboken Four. He next teamed up with Tommy Dorsey.

Frank Sinatra became a successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s.

In 1943, he went before his draft board on December 11, 1943, and received on his file a 4-F "Registrant not acceptable for military service," classification for a perforated eardrum.

The 1960s version of the group included Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., Joey Bishop, Peter Lawford, and for a brief stint, Norman Fell (Mr. Roper from Three's Company). Marilyn Monroe, Angie Dickinson, Juliet Prowse, and Shirley MacLaine were often referred to as the "Rat Pack Mascots", a title which reportedly made these ladies feel like "one of the boys".

Frank Sinatra had a 62 year span of top-ten albums on Billboard -- from The Voice of Frank Sinatra which reached No. 1 in 1946 to Nothing But the Best, which reached No. 2 in 2008.

Frank Sinatra was the recipient of eleven Grammy Awards, including the Grammy Trustees Award, Grammy Legend Award and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

In 1944, Frank Sinatra made his film debut in Step Lively.

Frank Sinatra's first big break in films was in 1945, he and Gene Kelly starred in Anchors Aweigh. Frank and Gene Kelly would go on to co-star in Take Me Out to the Ball Game (1949) and On the Town (1949).

In 1946, he won an Honoray Academy Award for The House I Live In.

In 1953, Frank Sinatra won the Golden Globe and Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in From Here to Eternity.

In 1957, he won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy for My Pal, Joey.

Frank Sinatra and his fellow Rat Pack members appeared in Ocean's Eleven (1960) and Sergeants 3 (1962).

Frank Sinatra also appeared in such films as The Kissing Bandit (1948), The Man With The Golden Arm (1955), Guys and Dolls (1955), High Society (1956), The Pride and the Passion (1957), Never So Few (1959), The Manchurian Candidate (1962), Come Blow Your Horn (1963) and Dirty Dingus Magee (1970).

Frank Sinatra has three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame: motion pictures, recording and television.

In 1970, he was awarded The Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.

Frank Sinatra was honored at the Kennedy Center Honors in 1983.

In 1985, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Ronald Reagan.

In 1997, he received the Congressional Gold Medal.

Frank Sinatra had three children: Nancy, Frank Jr. and Tina by his first wife Nancy Barbato (married 1939-1951). He was married three more times, to the actresses Ava Gardner (married 1951-1957) and Mia Farrow (married 1966-1968) and finally to Barbara Marx (married 1976), to whom he was still married at his death.

Throughout his life, Sinatra had mood swings and bouts of depression, symptoms of bipolar disorder, formerly known as manic depression.

When Bela Lugosi died virtually penniless, Sinatra quietly paid for his funeral.

Frank Sinatra died on May 14, 1998 of a heart attack with his wife Barbara by his side. He was 82 years old.

Ricardo Montalban

2009-11-25T16:50:00.000-08:00

Ricardo Montalban's career spanned seven decades as a movie actor, television actor and Broadway performer.

Ricardo Montalban was born Ricardo Gonzalo Pedro Montalbán y Merino on November 25, 1920 to Ricarda Merino and Jenaro Montalbán in Mexico City, Mexico.

In 1941, Ricardo Montalban appeared in his first motion pictures, three minute musicals produced for the Soundies film jukeboxes.

Ricardo Montalban's first starring role was in He's a Latin from Staten Island (1941).

In 1967, he played Khan Noonien Singh in the Star Trek episode "Space Seed." In 1982, he would recreate the role for the film Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.

His most notable films roles include Five Were Chosen (1942), The Kissing Bandit (1948), Across the Wide Missouri (1951), Sayonara (1957), The Money Trap (1965), Madame X (1966), The Singing Nun (1966) and Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971). During the 2000s, he appeared as Grandfather Valentine in several of the Spy Kids films.

From 1977 to 1984 he starred as Mr. Roarke in the television series Fantasy Island. He also appeared in such classic television shows as Letter to Loretta, Bonanza, The Untouchables, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Dr. Kildrare, I Spy, Ironside, Gunsmoke, Hawaii Five O, The Virginian, Columbo, Dynasty, The Colbys, Murder She Wrote and Chicago Hope.

In 1978, he won an Emmy award for Outstanding Single Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy or Drama Series for How The West Was Won.

In 1955, he made his Broadway debut as Chico in the musical Seventh Heaven. He would later star in Don Juan in Hell and Jamaica. He would receive a Tony nomination for Best Actor for Jamaica.

In 1993, he received the Life Time Achievement Award from the Screen Actor's Guild.

He also has a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television.

For years, was a commercial spokesman for Chrysler Corp. automobiles.

In 1993, he had a 9 1/2 hour surgical operation on his spine to repair an old back injury he received while filming Across the Wide Missouri. As a result, he was confined to a wheelchair for the remainder of his life.

Ricardo Montalban married Georgiana Young (half sister of Loretta Young) on October 26, 1944. They were married 63 years until her death on November 13, 2007.

On January 14, 2009, at the age of 88, Ricardo Montalban died of congestive heart failure. His final acting credit was an episode of American Dad which aired after his death.

Burgess Meredith

2009-11-16T16:28:00.000-08:00

Burgess Meredith was one of our greatest character actors. He could do dramatic or comedy roles. He convincingly played the everyday heror or a sinister villian.

His career spanned sixty years on Broadway, television and the silver screen. He will also be remembered as the original Penquin from Batman and Mickey, Rocky's trainer in the Rocky films.

Burgess Meredith was born Oliver Burgess Meredith on November 16, 1907 in Cleveland, Ohio. The son of Ida Beth Burgess and William George Meredith, M.D.

During World War II, Burgess Meredith served in the United States Army Air Forces, reaching the rank of captain.

In 1932, Burgess Meredith made his film debut in an uncredited role in the movie Freaks. This film was followed by roles in such films as Idiot's Delight (1939), Of Mice and Men (1939), Second Chorus (1940) and The Real Gunner (1943).

In 1945, Burgess Meredith got his big break when he was cast as Ernie Pyle/ Narrator in The Story of G.I. Joe.

However, despite his success in The Story of G.I. Joe, he was cast in more B movies like The Diary of the Chambermaid (1946), Mine Own Executioner (1947), and On Our Merry Way (1948).

With the invention of television, Burgess Meredith became a frequent guest star on many classic shows such as The Twilight Zone, Your Show of Shows, General Electric Theater, Ben Casey, 77 Sunset Strip, Wagon Train, Rawhide, and Bonanza.

In 1966, Burgess Meredith became a hollywood icon when he played the Penquin in the film Batman. He would also play the Penquin in the television series the Batman.

Otto Preminger, recognized Burgess Meredith's true talent and was responsible for recharging his film career with roles in Advise and Consent (1962), IN Harm's Way (1965), Hurry Sundown (1967), Skidoo (1968) and Such Good Friends (1971).

Besides the Penquin, Burgess Meredith other most famous role was as Mickey in Rocky (1976), Rocky II (1979), Rocky III (1982) and Rocky V (1990).

In Grumpy Old Men (1993) and Grumpier Old Men (1995), he played Grandpa Gustafson.

In 1930, he made his Broadway debut in Romeo and Juliet. Between 1930 and 1956, he was a regular on the Broadway stage starring in such productions as Alice in Wonderland, Hipper's Holiday, The Barretts of Whimpole Street, Happy as Larry, Season in the Sun, The Teahouse of the August Moon and Major Barbara.

During the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, he turned to directing. He directed such Broadway productions as God and Kate Murphy, A Thurber Carnival, Midgie Purvis, Blues for Mister Charlie, and Ulysses in Uniontown.

In 1960, he won a Special Tony Award for A Thurber Carnival. He was also nominated for a Tony as Best Director for Ulysses in Nightown in 1974.

Burgess Meredith was nominated for two Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actor for The Day of the Locust (1975) and Rocky (1976).

He won an Emmy award for Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy or Drama Special for Tail Gunner Joe (1977).

Burgess Meredith also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for motion pictures.

Burgess Meredith passed away September 9, 1997 at the age of 89 due to complications from melanoma and Alzheimer's disease.

Claude Rains

2009-11-10T15:53:00.001-08:00

Claude Rains was born William Claude Rains on November 10, 1889 in London, England. He was the son of the British stage actor Frederick Rains.

Claude Rains made his stage debut at the age of eleven in "Nell of Old Drury."

Claude Rains decided to come to America in 1913 and the New York theater, but with the outbreak of World War I the next year, he returned to serve with a Scottish regiment in Europe. Claude Rains served in the World War I in the London Scottish Regiment with fellow actors Basil Rathbone, Ronald Colman and Herbert Marshall. Rains rose to the ranks of Captain. During the War he was almost blinded in one eye due to injury received in a gas attack.

After the War, Claude Rains studied at The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree recognized Rains' acting talent and paid for the elocution books and lessons he needed due to his poor diction. Later, Claude became a teacher at the school and taught John Gielgud and Laurenece Olivier among others.

During the early 1920s, Claude Rains was a star on the London Stage.

In 1927, Claude Rains returned to American and made his broadway debut in The Constant Nympth. He would appear in such Broadway productions as The Apple Cart, The Game of Love and Death, The Good Earth, Darkness at Noon, and The Confidential Clerk. He would win the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for Darkness at Noon (1951).

Claude Rains made his movie debut in Build Thy House (1920) playing the role of Clarkis. It would be 13 years before Claude would appear in another movie.

In 1933, Claude Rains was cast as The Invisible Man in the movie of the same name.

Claude Rains movie credits include Anthony Adverse (1936), The Prince and The Pauper (1937), They Won't Forget (1937), The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Four Daughters (1938), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), The Sea Hawk (1940), Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941), Now Voyager (1942), Casablanca (1942), Passage to Marseille (1944), Mr. Skeffington (1944), Notorious (1946), Lawrence of Arabia (1962) and The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965).

Claude Rains also appeared on television shows such as Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre, Dr. Kildare, Rawhide, Wagon Train, and Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

Claude Rains was nominated four times for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Casablanca (1942), Mr. Skeffington (1944) and Notorious (1946).

He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for motion pictures.

Claude Rains died on May 30, 1967 of an intestinal hemorrhage. He designed his own tombstone to read "All things once/Are things forever,/Soul, once living,/lives forever.". When Claude died he left $25,000 to the Actors Fund of America.

Steve McQueen

2009-11-06T16:43:00.000-08:00

Steve McQueen was born Terence Steven McQueen on March 24, 1930 in Beech Grove, Indiana.

His father, William, a stunt pilot for a barnstorming flying circus, abandoned Steve and his mother when Steve was six months old. His mother, Julia, was an alcoholic. Unable to cope with bringing up a small child, she left him with her parents (Victor and Lillian) in Slater, Missouri, in 1933. After the Great Depression began, Steve and his grandparents moved to his Great Uncle Claude's farm.

Steve spent his childhood and teenager years being shuffled back and forth between his Great Uncle's farm and his mothers.

Steve did not adjust well to this constant change and as a teenager he was running with a street gang and committing acts of petty crime. At age 14, Steve ran away and joined a circus for a period of time. He returned to his mother and latest step father in Los Angeles and resumed his life as a gang member and petty criminal.

Steve was eventually remanded to the California Junior Boys Republic in Chino Hills, California. Here, Steve McQueen slowly began to change and mature.

When Steve McQueen became a successful actor, he had an unusual reputation for demanding free items in bulk from studios when agreeing to do a film, such as electric razors, jeans and several other products. It was later found out that McQueen requested these things because he was donating them to the California Junior Boys Republic in Chino Hills.

After Steve McQueen left Chino, he met two sailors from the Merchant Marine and volunteered to serve on a ship bound for the Dominican Republic. Once there, he abandoned his new post, eventually making his way to Texas, and drifted from job to job. He worked as a towel boy in a brothel, on an oil rigger, as a trinket salesman in a carnival and as a lumberjack.

In 1947, Steve McQueen joined the United States Marine Corps and was quickly promoted to Private First Class and assigned to an armored unit. Initially, he reverted to his prior rebelliousness, and as a result was demoted to Private on seven different occasions. He even went AWOL once and spent 41 days in the brig when captured by the shore patrol.

After his stint in the brig, Steve McQueen showed improved and embraced the Marines' discipline. He once saved the lives of five other Marines during an Arctic exercise, pulling them from a tank before it broke through ice into the sea. Steve McQueen served until 1950 when he was honorably discharged.

In 1952, with financial assistance provided by the G.I. Bill, Steve McQueen began studying acting at Sanford Meisner's Neighborhood Playhouse. In 1955, he auditioned along with 2000 performers for Lee Strasberg's exclusive Actors' Studio. Only two were accepted: Martin Landau and Steve McQueen.

In 1955, he appeared in his one and only Broadway production in the play A Hatful of Rain, starring Ben Gazzara.

Steve McQueen made his film debut as an uncredited extra in Girl on the Run (1953). His next film would be playing Fidel in Somebody Up There Likes Me (1955)starring Paul Newman.

After appearing in several television shows like Studio One, West Point, Tales of Wells Fargo and Climax, he was cast as Martin Cabell in Never Love a Stranger (1958).

In 1958, he landed his first starring role in the cult classic The Blob.

In 1958, Steve McQueen got his big break when he was cast as Josh Randall in the television series Wanted, Dead or Alive. The show would last for three seasons and make Steve McQueen a household name. His character became famous for the holster that held a sawed-off Winchester rifle nicknamed the "Mare's Leg" instead of the standard six-gun carried by the typical Western character.

In 1959, he was cast as Bill Ringa in Never So Few directed by John Sturges. John Sturges would remember Steve McQueen when casting The Magnificent Seven (1960. Steve McQueen would be cast as Vin, one of The Magnificent Seven. Steve McQueen was now a movie star.

From 1961 to 1963, Steve McQueen appeared in The Honeymoon Machine (1961), Hell is for Heroes (1962) and The War Lover (1962).

In 1963, Steve McQueen once again teamed with director John Struges in The Great Escape.

During the 1960s, Steve McQueen starred in such movies as Love with a Proper Stranger (1965), The Cincinnati Kid (1965), Nevada Smith (1966), The Sand Pebbles (1966), The Thomas Crown Affair (1968), Bullitt (1968), and The Reviers (1969).

During the 1970s, Steve McQueen's films included Le Mans (1971), Junior Bonner (1972), The Getaway (1972), Papillon (1973), The Towering Inferno (1976), and An Enemy of the People (1978).

Steve McQueen's final film was The Hunter (1980).

Steve McQueen received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for The Sand Pebbles (1966).

Steve McQueen received four Golden Globe nominations for Best Actor for Love with the Proper Stranger(1964), The Sand Pebbles (1967), The Reivers (1970) and Papillon (1974).

Steve McQueen has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for motion pictures.

Steve McQueen was an avid racer of both motorcycles and cars. While he studied acting, he supported himself partly by competing in weekend motorcycle races and bought his first motorcycle with his winnings.

Steve McQueen performed many of his own stunts, most notably the high speed chase scene through the streets of San Fransico in Bullitt. With the exception of the Chestnut Street flying jumps (with Bud Ekins doubling McQueen) and the gas-station crash gag (Carey Loftin doubling him for that).

In The Great Escape, the actual jump over the fence in was performed by Bud Ekins for insurance purposes. However, Steve McQueen did have a considerable amount of screen time riding his 650cc Triumph TR6 Trophy motorcycle in the chase scences. At one point, due to clever editing, McQueen is seen in a German uniform chasing himself on another bike.

Additionally, McQueen designed and patented a bucket seat and transbrake for race cars.

Steve McQueen collected classic motorcycles. By the time of his death, his collection included over 100 and was valued in the millions of dollars.

He owned several exotic sports cars, including: Porsche 917, Porsche 908 and Ferrari 512 race cars from the Le Mans film; 1963 Ferrari 250 Lusso Berlinetta; Jaguar D-Type XKSS (Right-Hand Drive); and Porsche 356 Speedster. To his dismay, Steve McQueen was never able to own the legendary Ford Mustang GT 390 that he drove in Bullitt.

In 1999, Steve McQueen was inducted into the Motorcycle Hall of Fame.

Steve McQueen was married three times: to Neile Adams, Ali MacGraw, and Barbara Minty. He had two children with Neile Adams: Terry (born 1959, died 1998) and Chad (born 1960 and one illegitimate child, Fred McQueen (born 1957.)

Steve McQueen's son Chad is also an actor and played Dutch in The Karate Kid (1984).

Steve McQueen's grandson, Steven R. McQueen is also an actor. He played Jeremy Gilbert in The Vampire Diaries and Kyle Hunter on Everwood.

In December 1979, Steve McQueen was diagnosed with mesothelioma. He passed away at the age of 50 on November 6, 1980. His ashes were scattered over the Pacific Ocean.

Although Steve McQueen has been gone for 29 years his legacy lives on. In 2005, Ford used Steve McQueen's likeness in a commercial for the 2005 Bullitt Mustang. The Town of Slater, Missouri hosts a Steve McQueen Festival each September.

The blue tinted sunglasses worn by Steve McQueen in the 1968 movie The Thomas Crown Affair sold $70,200 in 2006.

One of his motorcycles, a 1937 Crocker, sold for a world-record price of $276,500 in 2006.

Steve McQueen's 1963 metallic-brown Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta Lusso sold for $2.31 million at auction on August 16, 2007.

Joel McCrea

2009-11-05T15:57:00.000-08:00

Joel McCrea was born November 5, 1905 in South Pasadena, California to Thomas McCrea, an executive with the L.A. Gas & Electric Company, and Lou Whipple.

As a boy, Joel had a newspaper route and delivered the Los Angeles Times to Cecil B. DeMille and other people in the film industry. He also had the opportunity to watch D.W. Griffith filming Intolerance.

Joel McCrea graduated from Hollywood High School and then Pomona College, where he acted on stage and took courses in drama and public speaking and regularly appeared at the Pasadena Playhouse. While in high school, Joel worked as a stunt doble for cowboy stars William S. Hart and Tom Mix.

Joel McCrea made his film debut in an uncredited role in The Fair Co-Ed (1927). His first major role was in The Jazz Age (1929) and his first leading role was in The Silver Horde (1929).

From 1929 to 1939, Joel McCrea appeared in such movies as The Common Law (1931), The Most Dangerous Game (1932), One Man's Journey (1933), Gamblign Lady (1934), Woman Wanted (1935), and Dead End (1937).

In 1939, he was cast opposite Barbara Stanwyck in Union Pacific. This role would lead to major leading parts in Hitchcock's Foreign Correspondent (1940), Sullivan's Travels (1941), The Palm Beach Story (1942), The Virginian (1946), Colorado Territory (1949), Trooper Hook (1957), The San Francisco Story (1952), The Gunfight at Dodge City (1959), and Ride the High Country (1962).

During the 1950s, Joel McCrea appeared on radio in the Western police drama, Tales of the Texas Rangers.

Joel McCrea's final film was Mustang County (1976).

Joel McCrea married actress Frances Dee on October 20, 1933, they met while filming The Silver Horde (1930). They were married 57 years until his death (which was on their wedding anniversary). The couple had three children, David, who became a rancher, Peter, who both became a real estate developer, and Jody, who became an actor.

Joel McCrea and his son Jody McCrea appeared together in Trooper Hook (1957), The First Texan (1956), Gunsight Ridge (1957), Cry Blood Apache (1970) and on the television series Wichita Town.

Joel McCrea was a very well-respected as a horseman, he was regarded as one of the two best riders in Western films along with Ben Johnson.

Joel McCrea's career spanned 50 years and he appeared in over 90 films. He has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for motion pictures and one for radio.

Joel McCrea died on October 20, 1990 (his 57th wedding anniversary) of pulmonary complications. He was 84 years old.

Ann Rutherford

2009-11-02T16:32:00.000-08:00

Ann Rutherford is best known for playing Polly Benedict in the Andy Hardy movies and Carreen O'Hara in Gone With The Wind (1939).

Ann Rutherford was born Therese Ann Rutherford on November 2, 1920 in Vancouver, British Columbia to John Rutherford, a Metropolitan Opera tenor and Lillian Mansfield, an actress.

Ann Rutherford made her stage debut in 1925 and appeared in many plays and on radio (as Blondie) for the next nine years before making her first screen appearance.

Her first film role was in Waterfront Lady (1935). She appeared in eighteen films between 1935 and 1937 frequently westerns with either Gene Autry or John Wayne.

Ann Rutherford and Gene Autry starred together in Comin' Round the Mountain (1936), Melody Trail (1935), Public Cowboy No. 1 (1937), and The Singing Vagabond (1935).

Ann Rutherford and John Wayne starred together in The Lawless Nineties (1936), The Lonely Trail (1936) and The Oregon Trail (1936).

In 1937, Ann Rutherford was cast to play Polly Benedict (Andy Hardy's girlfriend) in You're Only Young Once. She would play Polly twelve times with her last appearance in Andy Hardy's Double Life (1942). She also appeared in The Courtship of Andy Hardy (1942), Andy Hardy's Private Secretary (1941), Life Begins for Andy Hardy (1941), Andy Hardy Meets Debutante (1940), Judge Hardy and Son (1939), The Hardys Ride High (1939), Andy Hardy Gets Spring Fever (1939), Judge Hardy's Children (1938), Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938), and Out West With the Hardys (1938).

In 1939, she played Scarlett O'Hara's sister Carren in the epic Gone With the Wind.

She also starred in a series of mystery/comedies with Red Skelton: Whistling in the Dark (1941), Whistling in Dixie (1942) and Whistling in Brooklyn (1943).

Ann Rutherford's other film credits include A Christmas Carol (1938), Pride and Prejudice (1940), The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947), and Adventures of Don Juan (1948). Her final silver screen appearance would be in Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood (1976).

Ann Rutherford also appeared on television classics as Perry Mason, The Donna Reed Show, Robert Montgomery Presents and General Electric Theater.

During the 1970s, she would play Aggie Harrison (Emily Hartley's mother) on The Bob Newhart Show.

Ann Rutherford has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for motion pictures and one for television.

Donald Pleasance

2009-10-27T20:37:00.000-07:00

Donald Pleasance was born on October 3, 1919 in Nottinghamshire, England, the son of Alice Armitage and Thomas Stanley Pleasance, a stationmaster.

Donald Pleasance began his acting career on the London Stage in 1939, in a production of Wuthering Heights.

However, his acting career was interrupted by World War II. He joined the Royal Air Force and served with the 166 Squadron, RAF Bomber Command. His Avro Lancaster was shot down on August 31, 1944 during a raid on Agenville. He was taken prisoner of war and placed in a German prisoner-of-war camp, Stalag Luft I near the Baltic Sea. While a prisoner of war, he organized a theatre company in order to pass the time. His productions included The Petrified Forest.

In the movie The Great Escape (1963), he played prisoner of war Flight Lt. Colin Blythe "The Forger." He was the only star of The Great Escape to actually have been a World War II prisoner of war. Hannes Messemer who played Col. Lugo, the camp commander, was a German soldier in WWII and was captured by the American troops and held in a POW camp until the end of the war.

When he kindly offered advice to director John Sturges, he was politely asked to keep his "opinions" to himself. Later, when another star from the film informed Sturges that Pleasence had actually been an RAF officer in a World War II German POW camp, Sturges requested Pleasance's technical advice and input on historical accuracy from that point forward.

After World War II, Donald Pleasance returned to acting.

He portrayed Ernst Stavor Blofeld in James Bond's You Only Live Twice (1967).

He would also play Dr. Sam Loomis in six of the Halloween movies.

Donald Pleasance other notable movie roles include A Tale of Two Cities (1958), Killers of Kilimanjaro (1959), Suspect (1960), The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), Arthur, Arthur (1969), Escape to Witch Mountain (1975), Oh, God (1977), Dracula (1979) and Escape from New York (1981).

Donald Pleasance also had a successful career on Broadway appearing in Wise Child, The Man in a Glass Booth, Poor Bitos, The Caretaker, Antony and Cleopatra, and Caesar and Cleopatra.

He received four Tony award nominations for Wise Child, The Man in the Glass Booth, Poor Bitos and The Caretaker.

Donald Pleasance also appeared frequently on televison. His television appearances include Mrs. Columbo, Centennail, Columbo, Hawaii Five 0, The Fugitive and The Defenders.

Donald Pleasance in his 42 year career appeared in more than 200 movies and televison shows.

Donald Pleasance died on February 2, 1995 from complications after a heart valve replacement.

Our Gang "Little Rascals"

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Our Gang was a series of American comdey short films about a group of poor neighborhood children and the adventures they had together.

In the mid 1950s, the shorts were syndicated for television under the name Little Rascals.

A total of 220 shorts and one feature film, General Spanky, were produced, featuring over forty one child actors. There were 93 silent shorts and 127 talkie shorts.

The very first Our Gang short premiered in September 10, 1922, entitled One Terrible Day.

One Terrible Day starred Peggy Cartwright, Jackie Condon, Mickey Daniels, Jack Davis, Weston Doty, Winston Doty, Allen Hoskins (Farina), Ernie Morrison (Sunshine Sammy), and Lincoln Stedman (Secretary).

The last Our Gang short was Dancing Romeo and premiered April 29, 1944.

Dancing Romeo starred Billy Laughlin (Froggy), Robert Blake (Mickey), Billie Thomas (Buckwheat), Janet Burston (Janet), Valerie Lee (Marylin), and Bobby Browning (Gerald).

Small Talk (1929) was the first Our Gang talkie.

Small Talk starred Wheezer (Bobby Hutchins), Mary Ann Jckson, Allen Hoskins (Farina), Joe Cobb, Jean Darling, Pete the Pup, and Harry Spear.

The most popular Our Gang stars were Wheezer (Robert Hutchins), Waldo (Darwood Kaye), Stymie (Matthew Beard), Spanky (George McFarland), Scotty Beckett, Darla Hood, Porky (Gordon Lee), Pete the Pup, Mickey (Robert Blake), Mickey Daniels, Jackie Cooper, Froggy (William Robert Laughlin), Farina (Allen Hoskins), Dorothy DeBorba, Dickie Moore, Chubby (Norman Chaney), Butch (Tommy Bond), Buckwheat (William Thomas), Brisbane (Kendal McComas), Bouncy (Harold Wertz), and Alfalfa (Carl Switzer).

Several Our Gang alumni, including Alfalfa (Carl Switzer), Scotty Beckett, Chubby (Norman Chaney), Froggy (Billy Laughlin) and Wheezer (Bobby Hutchins) met with untimely deaths before the age of 40. This led to rumors of an Our Gang curse. However, the majority of Our Gang members lived long healthy lives.

George (Spanky) McFarland starred in 95 Our Gang shorts, more than any Little Rascal. Buckwheat (William Thomas) starred in 83 Our Gang shorts, the second most featured member.

Most of the Our Gang stars have passed away. However, a few are still alive.

Jean Darling was born August 23, 1922 and is now 87 years old and is the only surviving member from the Silent period of the Our Gang shorts.

Jackie Cooper was born September 15, 1922 and is now 87 years old.

Dickie Moore was born September 12, 1925 and is now 85 years old.

Robert Blake (Mickey) was born September 18, 1933 and is now 74 years old.

Dorothy DeBorba was born March 28, 1925 and is now 84 years old.

The Marx Brothers

2009-10-27T16:51:00.001-07:00

The Marx Brothers were an American family comdedy act that enjoyed success in vaudeville, on Broadway and in motion pictures from the early 1900s to the 1950s.

2009 is the 80th anniversary of the first Marx Brothers' film.

The Marx Brothers were born in New York City and were the sons of Jewish immigrants from Germany and France. Their mother, Minni Schonberg was from Dornum in East Frisia and their father Simon Marx (nicknamed Frenchie) was a native of Alsace. The family lived on New York's upper east side.

Five of the Marx Brothers' thirteen films were selected by the American Film Institute as among the top 100 comedies of all time, with two of them (Duck Soap and A Night at the Opera) being in the top twelve.

The core of the act was the three elder brothers, Chico, Harpo and Groucho. Zeppo appeared in the first five Marx Brothers' films and left to pursue other adventures. Gummo, the youngest brother, was a member of the vaudeville act but left the group before motion pictures.

Chico Marx was the oldest brother born March 22, 1887 and originally named Leonard.

Harpo Marx was the second oldest brother born November 23, 1888, originally named Adolph (however he changed his name to Arthur in 1911).

Groucho Marx was the middle child born October 2, 1890 and originally named Julius Henry.

Gummo Marx was the fourth child born October 23, 1893 and originally named Milton.

Zeppo Marx was the youngest born February 25, 1901 and originally named Herbert.

There was a fifth brother, Manfred, the first child of Sam and Minnie, born in 1886, however he died in infancy.

There first film was Humor Risk (1921) and was previewed once and never released, no copy exists today. It starred Groucho, Harpo, Zeppo and Chico.

Harpo, Chico, Groucho and Zeppo starred in The Cocoanuts (1929), Animal Crackers (1930), Monkey Business (1931), Horse Feathers (1932) and Duck Soup (1933).

Harpo, Chico and Groucho starred in A Night at the Opera (1935), A Day at the Races (1937), Room Service (1938), At the Circus (1939), Go West (1940), The Big Store (1941), A Night in Casablanca (1946), Love Happy (1949) and The Story of Mankind (1957).

Groucho would appear in the most movies without his brothers including Copacabana (1947), Mr. Music (1951), Double Dynamite (1951), A Girl in Every Port (1952), Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter (1957), and Skido (1968).

Harpo would do two sole ventures in the movies in Too Many Kisses (1925) and Stage Door Canteen (1943).

After the last Marx brother's movie, Harpo made many appearances on television shows including I Love Lucy, The Red Skelton Show, General Electric Theater, and Playhouse 90.

Zeppo left acting after five Marx Brothers' movies and joined a a talent management company in Hollywood. In 1969, Zeppo Marx patented a wristwatch for cardiac patients, which sounded an alarm if the wearer went into cardiac arrest. He also developed clamping devices which were used in the first atomic bomb raids over Japan in 1945.

Gummo Marx became a talent agent after leaving the vaudeville act. He was also the only Marx brother to be drafted and fight in WWI in the U.S. Army.

Groucho Marx was the most known of the Marx Brothers and had the most successful solo career. In the 1950s he hosted You Bet Your Life, which ran for eleven seasons.

Groucho Marx is also the only Marx Brothers to receive an Honorary Lifetime Achievement Academy Award and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He also won an Emmy award in 1951 for Outstanding Television Personality.

Chico Marx died on October 11, 1961 at the age of 74.

Harpo Marx died on September 28, 1964 at the age of 75.

Gummo Marx died on April 21, 1977 at the age of 83.

Groucho Marx died on August 19, 1977 at the age of 86.

Zeppo Marx died on November 30, 1979 at the age of 78.

George "Spanky" McFarland

2009-10-27T16:50:00.000-07:00

George "Spanky" McFarland was born George Robert Phillips McFarland on October 2, 1928 in Dallas, Texas. His parents were Robert Emmett and Virginia McFarland. He had three siblings, Thomas ("Tommy," who himself appeared in a few Our Gang episodes as "Dynamite"), Amanda, and Roderick ("Rod").

Spanky began his career modeling children's clothing for a Dallas department store and also was seen around Dallas on highway billboards and in print advertsidements for Wonder Bread.

In January 1931, in response to a trade magazine advertisement from Hall Roach Studios, requesting photographs of "cute kids," Spanky's Aunt Dottie sent pictures from his portfolio. An invitation for a screen test soon arrived, which happened that spring, leading to his acting career in the Our Gang series (Later named the Little Rascals).

Spanky was three years old when he made his film debut in Free Eats (1932). He would continue to appear in more than 100 Our Gang films, the last being in 1942.

Spanky's famous double and triple-takes were taught to him by Stan Laurel, while a lot of his mannerisms (rolling of eyes, hands on hips, and his trademark exasperated expression) were inspired by Oliver Hardy.

In 1952, at age 24, McFarland joined the U.S. Air Force. Upon his return to civilian life, he was typecast in the public's mind as Spanky from Our Gang and was unable to find work in show business.

He took less glamorous jobs inclduing working at a soft drink plant, hamburgery stand and a posicle factory.

In the late 1950's, when the Our Gang Comedies were once again sweeping the nation on television, Spanky hosted an afternoon children's show "Spanky's Clubhouse" in Tulasa, Oklahoma. The Show included a studio audience and appearances by celebrities such as James Arness. It also ran the Little Rascals shorts.

After Spanky's Clubhouse, he continued at odd jobs selling wine, operating a restraurant and night club, and selling appliances, electronics and furniture. He was selling for Philco-Ford Corporation where he advanced to national sales director.

Spanky loaned his name and celebrity to help raise money for charities, primarily by participating in golf tournaments. Spanky also had his own namesake charity golf classic for 16 years, held in Marion, Indiana.

He wasl also an ardent golfer who, in his later years, could be frequently seen on the pro-am circuit.

George Spanky McFarland continued to do personal appearances and cameo roles in films and television, including an appearance on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.

Spanky's final television performance was in 1993 in an introductory vignette at the beginning of the Cheers episode "Woody Gets An Election".

Spanky was the only member of Our Gang to ever receive on-screen and poster billing. He received on-screen billing in Choo-Choo (1932) and the Pooch (1932). Most of the Our Gang posters during the mid-1930s were billed: "Our Gang, featuring 'Spanky' McFarland, in..."

Spanky was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, he and Our Gang co-star Jackie Cooper being the only other one to be honored with a star.

Spanky's star is located in front of the Labrea Plaza strip mall, at 7095 Hollywood Blvd on the North side of Hollywood Blvd, between the two closest cross streets of N. Labrea Ave and El Cerrito Place and his star is near the stars belonging to Actor Efrem Zimbalist Jr and composer Irving Berlin.

George Spanky McFarland died on June 30, 1993.

Walter Matthau

2009-10-27T16:49:00.002-07:00

Walter Matthau was born on October 1, 1920 in New York, New York, the son of Jewish immigrants Rose Berolsky, a sweatshop worker and Milton Matthau, an electrician.

During World War II, Matthau served in the U.S. Army Air Forces with the Eighth Air Force in England as a B-24 liberator radioman-gunner in the same 453rd Bombardment Group as James Stewart. Walter achieved the rank of staff sergeant.

After the war, Matthau became interested in acting. He took classes in the acting at the Dramatic Workshop of the New School in New York under German director Erwin Piscator.

Walter Matthau began his acting career on the broadway stage in 1948 in Anne of the Thousand Days. He would also star on Broadway in The Liar (1950), Twilight Walk (1951), Fancy Meeting You Again (1952), One Bright Day (1952), In Any Language (1952), The Grey-Eyed People (1952), The Ladies of the Corridor (1953), The Burning Glass (1953), Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter (1955), Guys and Dolls (1955), Once More, with Feeling (1958), Once There Was a Russian (1961), A Shot in the Dark (1961), My Mother, My Father and Me (1963) and The Odd Couple (1965).

He won the 1962 Tony Award for Best Actor in a play for A Shot in the Dark and in 1965 the Tony for Best Actor for The Odd Couple. He also received a Tony nomination in 1959 for Best Supporting or Featured Actor (Dramatic) for "Once More, with Feeling."

In 1955, Walter Matthau made his film debut as a whip-wielding bad guy in The Kentuckian opposite Burt Lancaster.

In 1966, Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau would make there first movie together, The Fortune Cookie and they became life long friends. They would go on to star in nine more movies together: The Odd Couple (1968), The Front Page (1974), Buddy, Buddy (1981), JFK (1991), Grumpy Old Men (1993), Grumpier Old Men (1995), The Grass Harp (1995), Out to Sea (1997), and The Odd Couple II (1998).

Walter Matthau also appeared in movies such as A Face in the Crowd (1957), King Creole (1958), Charade (1963), Fail Safe (1964), A Guide for the Married Man (1967), Hello Dolly (1969), Cactus Flower (1969), Plaza Suite (1971), Kotch (1971), Charley Varrick (1973), The Sunshine Boys (1975), The Bad News Bears (1976), California Suite (1978), Little Miss Marker (1980), and Hopscotch (1980).

He would receive Academy Award nominations for Best Actor for Kotch (1971) and The Sunshine Boys (1975). He did with the Golden Globe for The Sunshine Boys.

Walter Matthau won the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for The Fortune Cookie (1966). He was visibly banged up, having been involved in a bicycle accident shortly before the awards show. He scolded nominated actors who were perfectly healthy and had not bothered to come to the ceremony, especially three of the other four major award winners: Elizabeth Taylor, Sandy Dennis and Paul Scofield.

Walter also commonly appeared on television in such programs as The DuPont Show of the Week, Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre, The Evelenth Hour, Naked City, General Electric Theater, Route 66, and Alfred Hitchcock Presents. He was nominated for an Emmy for The Dupont Show of the Week.

Walter Matthau was married twice. First to Grace Geraldine Johnson (1948-1958, divorced) and they had two children, Jenny and David. His second wife was Carol Marcus (1959 to his death) and they had a son Charlie.

Walter Matthau died July 1, 2000.

Mickey Rooney

2009-10-27T16:49:00.001-07:00

Mickey Rooney has the longest movie career in history, totally 83 years. He made his first film appearance in 1926 in the film Not To Be Trusted. His next movie is scheduled to be released in 2010 entitled Johnny Blue.
Mickey Rooney was born Joseph Yule Jr. on September 23, 1920 in Brooklyn, New York to Joseph Yule and Nellie Carter. His parents were in vaudeville and were appearing in a Brooklyn production of A Gaiety Girl when Mickey was born. He began preforming at the age of 17 months as part of his parent's routine.
The Yules separated in 1924 and in 1925, Nellie Yule moved with her son to Hollywood, where she managed a tourist home. Mickey Rooney originally audtioned for the Our Gang series but was not selected.
After seeing an advertisement for a dark haired child to play the role of Mickey McGuire in a series of short films, Nellie took her son to the audition. Mrs. Yule could not afford to have her son's hair dyed so she applied burnt cork to his scalp. It worked, he got the part and appeared in 78 short films from 1927 to 1936. The first being Mickey's Circus released on September 4, 1927.
In 1937, Mickey Rooney was selected to portray Andy Hardy in A Family Affair starring Lionel Barrymore (although Lewis Stone would play the role of Judge Hardy in later films.) The film was a success and this led to thirteen more Andy Hardy films between 1937 and 1958.

Also in 1937, Mickey Rooney made his first film with Judy Garland in Thoroughbred's Don't Cry. Garland and Rooney became close friends and a successful song and dance team. They would appear in numerous movies together.
Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney were like brother and sister. Liza Minnelli wanted Mickey Rooney to do the eulogy at the funeral for her mother, Judy Garland, but the parties decided against it because Rooney felt he might not be able to get through it without breaking down.

In 1939, Mickey Rooney appeared with Judy Garland in Babes in Arms, this would earn Mickey Rooney his first Academy Award nomination, the category being Best Actor.
Known for his musical and comedy abilities, Mickey Rooney's breakthrough role as a dramatic actor came in 1938's Boys Town opposite Spencer Tracy.

In 1939, 1940, and 1941, Mickey Rooney was the biggest box office draw. In 1941, Tex Avery did a Warner Brother's Cartoon entitled Hollywood Steps Out which featured numerous celebrity caricatures. Mickey Rooney is the only surviving entertainer depicted in the cartoon.
In 1939, he received the Honorary Juvenile Academy Award.
During the 1930s and 1940s, Mickey Rooney appeared in such classics (in addition to the Andy Hardy films) as Manhatten Melodrama (1934), Reckless (1935), Captains Courageous (1937), The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1939), Strike Up The Band (1940), Girl Crazy (1943), The Human Comedy (1943), National Velvet (1944), and Summer Holiday (1948).
Mickey Rooney would receive an Academy Award nomination (his second) for Best Actor in a Leading Role for The Human Comedy (1943).
During the 1940s, Mickey Rooney took a break from films to enter World War II. He served for 22 months in the U.S. Army, five months of which were with Patton's 3rd Army. He was award a Bronze Star among other decorations, raising to the rank of Sergeant.

The 1950s brought the invention of television and like many movie actors of the time, Mickey Rooney branched his talents out to the television medium. He would star in The Mickey Rooney Show in the 1950s and in the 1960s he had his own series Mickey. His guest star credits include Playhouse 90, Alcoa Theatre, Wagon Train, Rawhide, and The Twilight Zone.

He would be nominated for two Emmys during the 1950s, one for Best Single Performance by an Actor (1959) for Alcoa Theatre and a second Best Single Performance by an Actor for The Comedian (1958). In 1964, he won a Golden Globe for Best TV Star Male for Mickey.
The 1950s and 1960s, in addition to his television appearances, Mickey Rooney also appeared in such classic films as The Bridges at Toko-Ri (1954), A Slight Case of Larceny (1953), The Bold and the Brave (1956), Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963) and 80 Steps to Jonah (1969).
He would receive his third Academy Award Nomination for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for The Bold and The Brave (1956).
During the 1970s and 1980s, Mickey Rooney's television credits included The Red Skelton Show, Night Gallery, The Year Without a Santa Claus, Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July, Bill, The Love Boat and The Golden Girls.

He would receive an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Special for Bill: On His Own (1983).
Mickey Rooney would receive both the Golden Globe and the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Ator in a Mini Series for Bill (1981).
During the 1970s and 1980s, Mickey Rooney continued to appear in films such as Santa Claus is Comin' to Town (1970), Pulp (1972), Rachel's Man (1974), Journey Back to Oz (1974), The Magic of Lassie (1978), The Black Stallion (1979), The Fox and the Hound (1981), The Care Bears Movie (1985), and Lightning, the White Stallion (1986).
In 1979, Mickey Rooney would receive his fourth Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for The Black Stallion. He is quoted as saying he is most proud of his performance in The Black Stallion.
In 1983, he received the Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement.
The 1980s also brought a new venture for Mickey Rooney, Broadway. He would be nominated for the 1980 Tony Award for Best Actor (Musical) for Sugar Babies.
As Mickey Rooney was entering his 70s, he continued to be active in both television and movies. During the 1990s, his television credits include The Black Stallion, Murder She Wrote, Full House, Boys will be Boys and ER. His movie credits include Maximum Force (1992), The Legend of Wolf Mountain (1992), Revenge of the Red Baron (1994), Killing Midnight (1997) and Babe: Pig in the City (1998).

Mickey Rooney now in his 80s and his ninth decade in films and his sixth decade in television continues to be a major person in the entertainment industry. In this past decade he has appeared in such television productions as The Greatest Show Ever (2007). His movie credits include Internet Love (2000), Night at the Museum (2006) and Paradise (2004).
In 2009, Mickey Rooney has two films yet to be released: Now Here and Driving Me Crazy.
Mickey Rooney has four stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame: Movies, Television, Live Theatre, and Radio.
According to the Internet Movie Data Base he has 325 film and televison credits to his name. He is one of the most recognized actors in the world.
Mickey Rooney's personal life has had its ups and downs. He has been married eight times. His first marriage was to Ava Garnder but they divorced after 18 months. He was also married to and divorced Betty Jane Rase, Martha Vickers, Elaine Devry, Marge Lane, and Carolyn Hockett. His fifth marriage to Carolyn Mitchell end when she was killed in a murder/suicide.
Mickey Rooney is the father of nine children. Two of his children (Jimmy and Jonelle) with Carolyn Hockett; four of his children are from his marriage to Carolyn Mitchell (Kimmy Sue, Kerry Yule Rooney, Kelly Ann, and Michael); one child (Teddy) with Martha Vickers and two children (Tim and Mickey Jr.) with Betty Jane Rase.
His son Teddy Rooney appeared with him in Andy Hardy Comes Home (1958) as Andy Hardy Jr.
Mickey Rooney has been married to Jan Chamberlin for 31 years and in addition to appearing together in television commericals and movies, they also are outspoken advocates for veterans and animal rights.

David McCallum

2009-10-27T16:48:00.002-07:00

To a younger generation, he is Doctor "Ducky" Mallard on the hit television series NCIS.

To an older generation, he is Illya Kuryakin from the hit television series and movies, The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

But to classic movie lovers he is Lt. Commander Eric Ashley-Pitt "Dispersal" in The Great Escape (1963) and Judas Iscariot in The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965).

David McCallum Jr. was born in Glasgow, Scotland on September 19, 1933 to David McCallum Sr, a violinist for the London Philharmonic and Dorothy Dorman, a cellist.

David McCallum began his career in music, playing the oboe and studied at the Royal Academy of Music. He became the Assistant Stage Manager of the Glyndebourne Opera Company in 1951. He began his career as a bit-part actor in British films of the 1950s.

David's film debut was in Ill Met by Moonlight (1957) in an uncredited role. Credited roles soon followed in These Dangerous Years (1957), Violent Playground (1957) and Robbery Under Arms (1957).

David McCallum's movie credits include A Night to Remember (1958), Billy Budd (1962), The Great Escape (1963), The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), Around the World Under the Sea (1966), King Solomon's Treasure (1977), The Watcher in the Woods (1980), Hear My Song (1991), Fatal Inheritance (1993) and Batman: Botham Knight (2008) as the voice of Alfred.

In addition to starring in The Man from U.N.C.L.E., David McCallum has also appeared in such television classics as Law & Order, Sex in the City, Babylon 5, Murder She Wrote, Father Dowling Mysteries, Matlock, Heart to Heart, As The World Turns, The Six Million Dollar Man, Perry Mason and The Outer Limits.

In 1994, McCallum narrated the acclaimed documentaries Titanic: Death of a Dream and Titanic: The Legend Lives On for A&E television networks.

David McCallum has been nominated for three Emmys, two for his role on The Man from U.N.C.L.E. and one for Teacher, Teacher (1969).

He has also appeared on Broadway in The Flip Side, California Suite, and Amadeaus.

In the 1960s, McCallum recorded albums for Capitol Records. David did not sing on these records, but used the opportunity to make a different statement. As a classically trained musician, he conceived a blend of oboe, french horn, and strings with guitar and drums, and presented instrumental interpretations of hits of the day.

David McCallum was married to actress Jill Ireland from 1957 to 1967. He introduced Ireland to Charles Bronson when they were both filming The Great Escape. A few years later, she left McCallum and married Bronson. He later married Katherine Carpenter and they are still married.

Vera Miles

2009-10-27T16:48:00.001-07:00

Vera Miles was born Vera June Ralston on August 23, 1929 in Boise City, Oklahoma.

Vera Miles took her husband's last name because Republic Pictures' resident leading lady Vera Ralston got to Hollywood first.

In 1948, Vera Miles was crowned Miss Kansas which soon lead to small roles in Hollywood films and television roles. Her first appearance being in 1950 in John Ford's When Willie Comes Marching Home which she plays a girl next to the laughing sergeant.

Her first big movie break was in The Searchers (1956) where she played Laurie Jorgensen, Martin Pawley (Jeffrey Hunter) spirited love interest.

Vera Miles next success was in 23 Paces to Baker Street (1956) with Van Johnson and Autumn Leaves (1956) with Joan Crawford and Cliff Robertson.

She also appeared opposite Henry Fonda in Hitchcock's The Wrong Man (1956). Hitchock who put her under contract hailed her the new Grace Kelly.

A favorite of John Ford, she went on to star in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) opposite John Wayne and James Stewart.

She also appeared in such films as Beau James (1957) opposite Bob Hope; The FBI Story (1959) opposite James Stewart; Back Street (1961) opposite Susan Hayward; and Sergeant Ryker (1968) opposite Lee Marvin.

She also appeared in hundreds of television shows including Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Twilight Zone, The Fugitive, My Three Sons, Bonanza, Ironside, Columbo, Murder She Wrote, Hawaii Five-0, Hotel and Simon & Simon.

Her final appearance before retiring was in the 1995 movie Seperate Lives in which she played Dr. Ruth Goldin.

One of her most famous movies is Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho (1960) in which she plays Lila Crane, sister to Janet Leigh's Marion Crane. In 1982, she reprised her role as Lila Crane Loomis in the film sequel Psycho II.

Vera Miles had both talent and beauty but she is one of those underrated actresses who does not get the credit she deserves.

Maureen O'Hara

2009-10-27T16:47:00.000-07:00

Maureen O'Hara was born Maureen FitzSimons in Dublin, Ireland on August 17, 1920.

Maureen's first film appearance was in Kicking the Moon Around (1938) in which she played a secretary. Maureen's first starring role was in Hitchcock's Jamica Inn (1939).

Maureen was brought to Hollywoood by actor Charles Laughton who was mesmerized by her beautiful eyes. Laughton was so pleased with O'Hara's performance in Jamica Inn, he cast her in the role of Esmeralda opposite him in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939).

Known for her on screen chemistry with John Wayne, they made five movies together: Rio Grande (1950), The Quiet Man (1952), The Wings of Eagles (1957), McLintock (1963) and Big Jake (1971).

Maureen O'Hara's other film credits include Miracle on 34th Street (1947); How Green Was My Valley (1941); The Parent Trap (1961); and A Bill of Divorcement (1940).

She is the only surviving credited cast member of Miracle on 34th Street who is still alive.

As a child, Maureen O'Hara loved playing athletic games and excelled in sports, this is shown in her work as she did many of her own stunts in her films.

O'Hara had a soprano voice and described singing as her first love.

Maureen O'Hara was married three times. Her first marriage to George H. Brown was annulled. Her second marriage was to Will Price, to whom she had one child. Her third marriage was the love of her life, General Charles F. Blair.

She became an American citizen on January 25, 1946, but has retained her Irish citizenship. It was the first time in history that the United States government recognized an Irish citizen as Irish. This led to a change in process for all Irish immigrants.

Maureen O'Hara is now retired making her last appearance as Helen Parker in television's The Last Dance (2000).

Roddy McDowell

2009-10-27T16:46:00.002-07:00

During his lifetime, Roddy McDowell appeared in over 150 movies and was one of the few child stars who made the transition to adult actor.

Roddy McDowall was born Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall on September 17, 1928 in London, England. The son of Thomas Andrew McDowall, a merchant mariner, and Winsfriede Corcoran, an aspiring actress.

Roddy was enrolled in elocution courses at age five and by ten had appeared in his first film, Yellow Sands (1938), although it was an uncredited role. His first credited role was in Murder in the Family (1938) where he played the younger brother of Jessica Tandy and Glynis Johns.

He appeared in approximately a dozen British films before the family moved to the United States at the beginning of World War II.

Soon after arriving in the United States, young Roddy got the part of Huw, the youngest child in a family of Welsh coal miners in John Ford's How Green Was My Valley (1941) acting alongside Walter Pidgeon, Maureen O'Hara and Donald Crips. This film made Roddy McDowall a household name.

As a child actor, he appeared in such films as The Pied Piper (1942), My Friend Flicka (1943), Lassie Come Home (1943), and The White Cliffs of Dover (1944).

In 1946, at age 18, he moved to New York, where he played in a number of long successful Broadway plays including Misalliance (1953), No Time for Sergeants (1955), Compulsion (1957) and Camelot (1960).

In 1960, he won a Tony Award as Best Supporting or Featured Actor (Dramatic) for The Fighting Cock.

Roddy McDowall continued his film career as an adult actor, but usually in character roles. His film credits as an adult include The Longest Day (1962), Cleopatra (1963), The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), That Darn Cat (1965), Planet of the Apes (1968), Escape from Planet of the Apes (1971), Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971), Conquest of Planent of the Apes (1972), The Poseidon Adventure (1972), The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (1972), Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973), The Cat From Outer Space (1978), and Overboard (1987).

His final movie appearance was in 1998 when he provided his voice for the character Mr. Soil in A Bug's Life.

As an adult, Roddy McDowall appeared in numerous television shows including The Twilight Zone, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, The Carol Burnett Show, Fantasy Island, Columbo and Quantum Leap. He also frequently appeared on the Hollywood Squares. His final appearance was on television in Godzilla The Series (1999).

Roddy McDowall won an Emmy for Outstanding Performance in a Supporting Role by an Actor or Actress in a Single Program for Sunday Showcase: Our American Heritage: Not Without Honor (1960).

Roddy McDowell had an avid love of photography and published five acclaimed books of his photography.

On October 3, 1998 at the age of 70, Roddy McDowall died of lung cancer.

Final stage appearance was as Ebenezer Scrooge in the New York City production of "A Christmas Carol" in 1997

Edmond O'Brien

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Edmond O'Brien was one of the most respected character actors of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s.

Edmond O'Brien was born Redmond O'Brien on September 10, 1915 in New York City.

O'Brien began his show business career as a magician, reportedly tutored by Harry Houdini. In high school, was a student of theatrics and later majored in drama at Columbia University.

Edmond O'Brien made his Broadway debut at the age of 12 in 1936, playing in such plays as The Gravedigger, Hamlet, and Romeo and Juliet.

O'Brien made his film debut as Gringoire in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939).

He would later appear in such classics as Brute Force (1947), White Heat (1949), D.O.A. (1950), The Greatest Show on Earth (1952), The Barefoot Contessa (1954), The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), The Longest Day (1962), Birdman of Alcatraz (1962), Seven Days in May (1964), and The Wild Bunch (1969).

O'Brien was nominated for an Acadmey Award for Best Supporting Actor for Seven Days In May (1964).

Edmond O'Brien won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in The Barefoot Contessa (1954).

During World War II, he served in the U.S. Army Air Forces and appeared in the Air Force's Broadway play and film Winged Victory.

Edmond O'Brien died on May 9, 1985 of alzheimer's disease.

Agnes Moorehead

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Before she was Endora on Bewitched (1964-1972) Anges Moorehead graced the silver screen.

The four time Academy Award nominee was born Agnes Robertson Moorehead on December 6, 1900 in Clinton, Massachusetts. Her father John Henderson Moorehead was a Presbyterian clergyman and her mother, Mildred McCauley, was a singer.

When the family moved to St. Louis, Agnes joined the chorus of the St. Louis Municipal Opera Company. Later, the family relocated to Ohio.

Agnes Moorehead earned a bachelor's degree in biology from Muskingum College in Ohio. While there she also appeared in a number of college stage plays. She later received an honorary doctorate in literature from Muskingum and served for a year on its board of trustees. When her family moved to Wisconsin, she taught public school for five years. While in Wisconsin, she earned a master's degree in English and public speaking from the University of Wisconsin. She then pursued post-graduate studies at the American Acadmey of Dramatic Arts, graduating with honors in 1929.

Agnes Moorehead met Orson Welles and by 1937 was a member of his Mercury Theatre Group along with Joseph Cotton. She appeared in his radio production of Julius Casear and had a regular role in the serial The Shadow. She was also one of the players in his The War of the Worlds production.

In 1939, Welles moved the Mercury Theatre Group to Hollywood, where he started working for RKO Studios. Several of his radio performers joined him, and Moorehead made her film debut as his mother in Citizen Kane (1941). She also appeared in his films Journey into Fear (1943) and The Magnificent Ambersons (1942).

Agnes Moorehead was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performances in Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964), Johnny Belinda (1948), Mrs. Parkington (1944), and The Magnificent Ambersons (1942).

Agnes Moorehead's other notable films include How The West Was Won (1962), Raintree County (1957), The Conqueror (1956), Magnificent Obsession (1954), Show Boat (1951), Fourteen Hours (1951), Dark Passage (1947), and The Big Street (1942).

In fact, she was the first female to co-host the Academy Awards in 1948.

Agnes never played a leading lady but her skill as a character actor earned her one Emmy Award, two Golden Globe awards and four Academy Award nominations and six Emmy Award nominations.

Agnes Moorehead skillfully portrayed puritanical matrons, neurotic spinsters, possessive mothers, and comical secretaries throughout her career.

Agnes Moorehead passed away on April 30, 1974 from uterine cancer.

Fredric March

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Fredric March was born Ernest Frederick McIntyre Bickel on August 30, 1897 in Racine, Wisconsin, the son of the son of Cora Brown Marcher and John F. Bickel.

Fredric March began his career as a banker, but an emergency appendectomy caused him to reevaluate his life, and in 1920 he began working as an extra in movies, first appearing in The Great Adventure (1921).

Frederic March made his Broadway debut in 1926. He would devote as much time to Broadway as to movies. He would eventually win two Tony Awards. One for the play Years Ago (1947) written by Ruth Gordon and his second for his performance in Long Day's Journey Into Night (1957).

His first major break in films came in 1930 in which he played Tony Cavendish in The Royal Family of Broadway. This role would earn March his first Academy award nomination for Best Actor.

In 1931, Fredric March established himself in Hollywood with this performance in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, earning his first Academy Award for Best Actor.

During the 1930s, he starred in many movies including A Star is Born (1937), Death Takes a Holiday (1934), Les Miserables (1935), Anna Karenina (1935) and Anthony Adverse (1936). He earned his third Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his perfomance in A Star is Born.

The 1940s brought fame with roles in The Adventures of Mark Twain (1944), One Foot in Heaven (1941), I Married A Witch (1942), The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), and An Act of Murder (1948). He received his second Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in The Best Years of Our Lives.

During the 1950s, he starred in Death of a Salesman (1951), Executive Suite (1954), The Bridges at Toko Ri (1954) and The Desperate Hours (1955). He would receive his fifth Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his performance in Death of a Salesman.

During the 1960s he starred in Inherit the Wind (1960), The Young Doctors (1961), and Hombre (1967). His final role was in 1973, in The Iceman Cometh.

Fredric March was married twice. The first time to Ellis Baker (May 3, 1925 - 1927, divorced). March later married actress Florence Eldridge in 1927, they would remain married until his death. They had two adopted children.

Fredric March and his wife Florence would appear together in The Studio Murder Mystery (1929), Les Miserables (1935), Another Part of the Forest (1948), An Act of Murder (1948), Christopher Columbus (1949) and Inherit the Wind (1960). On televsion, she appeared with him in the Producer's Showcase (1954).

Fredric March passed away on April 14, 1975 from complications of prostate cancer.

Fredric March was one of most talented leading men, in a career that spanned nearly fifty years. He earned Academy Award nominations in three consecutive decades.

Anna Karenina

The Best Years of Our Lives

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Fred MacMurray

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Fred MacMurray was born Fredrick Martin MacMurray on August 30, 1908 in Kankakee, Illinois and raised in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin.

Born to Maleta Martin and Frederick MacMurray (concert violinist). Fred MacMurray originally followed in his father's footsteps with a career in music, playing the saxophone and singing. Fred MacMurray played with the Chicago orchestra and later orchestras in Hollywood.

He played the vaudeville circuits and made his Broadway debut in 1930 in Three's A Crowd with Sydney Greenstreet, Clifton Webb and Libby Holman. He also appeared in the production of Roberta with Bob Hope in 1933.

Fred MacMurray's first movie was in 1929 in Girls Gone Wild where he was cast as an extra.

His first big movie break came when he appearred in The Gilded Lily (1935) where he starred opposite Claudette Colbert. He would go on to make six more movies with Claudette Colbert. These films include The Bride Comes Home (1935), Maid of Salem (1937), No Time For Love (1943), Pracitally Yours (1944), The Egg and I (1947), and Family Honeymoon (1949).

Carole Lombard was Fred MacMurray's another of his most popular leading ladies, appearing in four films together: Hands Across the Table (1935), The Princess Comes Home (1936), Swing High, Swing Low (1937) and True Confession (1937).

Fred MacMurray's most famous role was Walter Neff in Double Indemnity (1944) with Barbara Stanwyck, a role he initially turned down because of the dark side of the character.

Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray also appeared together in Remember the Night (1940), The Moonlighter (1953) and There's Always Tomorrow (1956).

Some of Fred MacMurray's other notable films include Alice Adams (1935), The Caine Mutiny (1954), The Shaggy Dog (1959) and The Apartment (1960).

Fred MacMurray's final film appearance was in The Swarm (1978) playing Mayor Clarence Tuttle.

To a younger generation, he is best known as Steven Douglas on the television series My Three Sons (1960-1972).

He was also the first choice to play the title role on TV's Perry Mason.

Fred MacMurray was married twice. He and his first wife, Lillian Lamont, were married on June 20, 1936, and they adopted two children. After Lillian dired on June 22, 1953 he later married actress June Haver, the couple adopted two more children.

After a longstanding bout with leukemia, MacMurray died of pneumonia on November 5, 1991.

Fred MacMurray was one of our most underrated actors, never receiving an Academy Award nomination. He appeared on Broadway, in more than 100 movies, and was on a successful television series, a career that spanned fifty years.

Walter Pidgeon

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Walter Pidgeon was born Walter Davis Pigeon on September 23, 1897 in New Brunswick, Canada.

Pidgeon studied law and drama at the University of New Brunswick. His studies were interrupted by World War I. He enlisted in the 65th Battery of the Canadian Field Artillery. He never saw combat as he was severely injured when he was crushed between two gun carriages and hospitalized for 17 months.

After the war, he moved to Boston, where he worked as a bank runner. His earnings financed his voice studies at the New England Conservatory of Music, he was a classically trained baritone.

Pidgeon began his career in theater, mainly stage musicals. He went to Hollywood in the early 1920s where he made silent films, his first being Mannequin in 1926. When talkies arrived, Pidgeon made some early talkie musicals, but never received top billing or recognition. In 1937, MGM put Walter under contract but only in supporting roles and the other man roles - such as in Saratoga (1937) and The Girl of the Golden West (1938). MGM loaned him out to Fox where he finally had top-billing in How Green Was My Valley (1941).

Some of Walter Pidgeon's other notable films are Funny Girl (1968), Advise and Consent (1962), Forbidden Planet (1956), Executive Suite (1954), The Bad and the Beautiful (1952), and Too Hot To Handle (1938).

He received two oscar nominations. The first was Best Actor in a Leading Role for Mrs. Miniver (1942). The second was Best Actor in a Leading Role for Madame Curie (1943).

Walter Pidgeon was nominated for Broadway's 1960 Tony Award as Best Actor (Musical) for "Take Me Along."

Pidgeon was active in the Screen Actor's Guild and served as president from 1952-1957

Pidgeon married twice. In 1919, he married Muriel "Edna" Pickles. This marriage was short-lived as she died in 1921 during the birth of their daughter, Edna. In 1931, he married his secretary Ruth Walker to whom he remained married until his death. They were married 52 years.

Pidgeon's hobbies included tending to his rose garden and playing bridge.

Walter Pidgeon passed away September 25, 1984 at the age of 87 after suffereing a stroke.

Robert Mitchum

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Robert Mitchum was born Robert Charles Durman Mitchum on August 6, 1917 in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Robert Mitchum was an American film actor, author, composer and singer. He also loved to play the saxophone and write poetry.

Mitchum briefly served in the US Army during World War II, from April 12 to October 11, 1945, as a medic at an induction department, checking recruits for venereal disease.

A nervous breakdown (which resulted in temporary blindness), apparently from job-related stress, led Mitchum to look for work as an actor or extra in movies. His first movie was in 1942 in Saboteur when he played an uncredited passerby.

His film credits include Rachel and the Stranger (1948), Out of the Past (1947), The Big Steal (1949), His Kind of Woman (1951), The Night of the Hunter (1955), Thunder Road (1958), Cape Fear (1962), The Longest Day (1962) and El Dorado (1966).

Because Charles Laughton had a personal dislike for children, Mitchum actually directed his child co-stars for the whole shoot of The Night of the Hunter.

Mitchum's voice was often used instead of that of a professional singer when his characters sang in his films. Notable productions featuring Mitchum's own singing voice included Rachel and the Stranger, River of No Return and The Night of the Hunter. A song he had written for the film Thunder Road, titled The Ballad of Thunder Road, reached #69 on the Billboard Pop Singles Chart.

Robert Mitchum passed away on July 1, 1997 of lung cancer and emphysema.

William Powell

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William Powell was born William Horatio Powell on this day (July 29, 1892) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He passed away on March 5, 1984 at the age of 91.

His film career began in 1924 when he signed with Paramount Pictures. Although is first actual film appearance was in 1922 in Sherlock Holmes as foreman Wells. His final film appearance was in 1955 as Lt. Doc in Mister Roberts.

In 1934, he would go to MGM studios where he was teamed for the first time with Myrna Loy in Manhatten Melodrama. MGM would make him famous with the role of Nick Charles, private detective in The Thin Man. Between 1934 and 1947, he would appear as Nick Charles in six Thin Man Movies.

William Powell and Myrna Loy appeared in fourteen films together. Their partnership was one of Hollywood's most prolific on-screen pairings.

In 1915, he married Eileen Wilson, with whom he had his only child, William David Powell, before an amicable divorce in 1930. In 1931, Powell married actress Carole Lombard, they divorced in 1933. They remained on good terms and she was his co-star three years later in My Man Godfrey. Powell married for a final time in 1940 to Diana Lewis (a woman he had only known three weeks) and the remained married until his death in 1984.

He was engaged to Jean Harlow at the time of her death in 1937. Powell was devastated by her death and would take a year off before returning to films. Powell and Harlow met on the set of Reckless (1935) and began dating almost immediately. Ironically, in 1907, the Powell family moved to Kansas City and lived only a few blocks from Harlow's family, although they never met.

Nick Charles was not the first detective William Powell played. He was also Philo Vance in five movies including the Kennel Murder Case.

During William Powell's 33 film career, he was nominated for an academy award best actor in a leading role on three occassions (The Thin Man, My Man Godfrey and Life with Father). Although he did not win an oscar, he was the recipient of the New York Film Critics Circle award in 1947 for his performances in Life with Father and the Senator Was Indiscreet.

William Powell could play any role although he did best playing authority figures whether in comedies, dramas or thrillers.

William Powell had it all, charisma, charm, good looks, a wonderful smile

Norma Shearer

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Norma Shearer, the first lady of MGM, was born Edith Norma Shearer on August 10, 1902in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Norma Shearer was one of the most popular actresses in the world from the mid-1920s until her retirement in 1942.

Today, Norma Shearer is widely celebrated as one of cinema's feminist pioneers, the first actress to make it acceptable to be single and not a virgin on screen.

Norma Shearer was nominated for an Academy Award on six occassions, winning for her role in The Divorcee (1930). The year she won for The Divorcee she was also nominated for Their Own Desire. Her other nominations include for A Free Soul in 1931, The Barretts of Wimpole in 1934, Romeo and Juliet in 1936, and Marie Antoinette in 1938.

Norma Shearer's first film appearance was as an uncredited extra in The Star Boarder in 1919. Her last film was Her Cardboard Lover in 1942.

In addition to her oscar nominated roles, her other films include The Women (1939), Idiot's Delight (1939), Strange Interlude (1932), Their Own Desire (1929), A Lady of Chance (1928), and Pretty Ladies (1925).

She and her brother Douglas Shearer (an academy award winning sound director) were the first Oscar-winning brother and sister.

Norma Shearer turned down the role of Scarlett O'Hara in Gone With the Wind (1939) and the titled Role in Mrs. Miniver (1942). After her retirement in 1942, she was offered the role of Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard (1950) but she turned it down.

However, even after retirement, Norma maintained an interest in the film industry. While staying at a ski lodge, she noticed a photo of the receptionist's daughter and recommended her to MGM - that girl in the photo was Janet Leigh.

Norma Shearer married Irving Thalberg on September 29, 1927 and remained married until his death on September 14, 1936. Together they had two children.

Six years after the death of Irving Thalberg, she married a ski instructor 20 years her junior and retired from the screen forever. They would remain married until her death in 1982.

Norma Shearer passed away on June 12, 1983 at the age of 80 due to complications from pneumonia and Alzheimer's disease.