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- Actor
- Soundtrack
Burt Mustin was a salesman most of his life, but got his first taste of show business as the host of a weekly radio variety show on KDKA Pittsburgh in 1921. He appeared onstage in "Detective Story" at Sombrero Playhouse in Phoenix Arizona, and played the janitor in the movie version, (Detective Story (1951)), after moving to Hollywood. Hundreds of screen appearances later, he announced his retirement while filming an episode of Phyllis (1975). In the episode, his character married Mother Dexter, played by actress Judith Lowry. Lowry died one month before, and Mustin died one month after the episode aired.- Gloria Talbott was born in the Los Angeles suburb of Glendale, a city co-founded by her great grandfather, Benjamin Franklin Nye Patterson. Growing up in the shadows of the Hollywood studios, her interests inevitably turned to acting, with the result that she participated in school plays and landed small parts in films such as "Maytime" (1937), "Sweet and Lowdown" (1943) and "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" (1945). After leaving school, she started her own dramatic group and played "arena"-style shows at various clubs. After a three-year hiatus (marriage, motherhood and divorce), Talbott resumed her career, working extensively in both TV and films. Her sister is actress Lori Talbott.
- Actor
- Director
- Additional Crew
Billy Barty was born William John Bertanzetti on October 25, 1924 in Millsboro, Pennsylvania. He began performing at age three and began making pictures in 1927. He played Mickey Rooney's little brother in the "Mickey McGuire" comedy shorts series. He was equally adept in both comedy and drama, and generally gives an added zest to any production he is associated with. He founded the Little People of America in 1957 and the Billy Barty Foundation in 1975. He possessed an immense talent and energetic charm that added a much needed shot in the arm to many series and films. Billy Barty died at age 76 of heart failure on December 23, 2000 in Glendale, California.- Actor
- Additional Crew
With an intimidating face like craggy granite and a towering 6'5" solid frame, Mike Mazurki (born Mikhail Mazuruski or Mikhail Mazurkiewicz) was one of cinema's first serial thugs and specialized in playing strongarm men, gangsters and bullies for over 50 years on screen. Nearly always portrayed as a lowbrow muscle, in real life Mazurski was highly intelligent, very well read and a witty conversationalist. He was also an accomplished sportsman, having been a football player and a professional wrestler. He first appeared onscreen in uncredited roles in films such as Gentleman Jim (1942) and About Face (1942); however, his daunting bruiser looks were soon noticed and he became phenomenally busy in the 1940s, appearing in nearly 50 movies during the decade, including his well remembered performance as ex-con "Moose Malloy" in the film noir thriller Murder, My Sweet (1944) and as the gruesome "Splitface" in Dick Tracy (1945).
He continued his menacing onscreen presence throughout the 1950s and 1960s, often showing he could be quite adept at deadpan comedy in films including Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in Hollywood (1945), It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963), Donovan's Reef (1963) and The Adventures of Bullwhip Griffin (1967). Demand for his talents slowed down in the late 1970s and most of the 1980s, as younger villains came to the fore; however, he still turned up in support roles and was still acting at the age of 83 when he passed away in December, 1990.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Although known as the uncle/patriarch and judge "Philip Banks" on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990), James Avery was a classically trained actor and scholar. A native of Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA, he joined the US Navy after graduating high school and served in Vietnam from 1968 to 1969. Upon leaving the military, he moved to San Diego, California and began writing TV scripts and poetry for PBS. He won an Emmy for production during his tenure there and deservedly won a scholarship to the University of California at San Diego, from which he earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Drama and Literature. (Sidenote: His wife Barbara is the Dean of Student Life at California's Loyola Marymount University.) In addition to his sitcom popularity, he lent his voice to over a dozen animated television series and features. He was also the primary host of the popular PBS travel and adventure series Going Places (1997). Armed with a diverse resume of credits, James Avery remained a unique creative force as convincing a comedian as he was a Shakespearean character.- Actor
- Director
- Soundtrack
Vic Tayback was born on 6 January 1930 in New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor and director, known for Alice (1976), Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974) and All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989). He was married to Sheila McKay Barnard. He died on 25 May 1990 in Glendale, California, USA.- Actress
- Music Department
- Executive
Ja'Net DuBois was a multi-talented and diverse performer. She grew up in Brooklyn, New York and began her career on Broadway. She has appeared in various plays, including "Golden Boy" with Sammy Davis Jr. and Louis Gossett Jr., and "A Raisin in the Sun". She moved onto TV roles, receiving a Peabody Award for a 1969 CBS children's movie J.T. (1969). She then appeared in a daytime serial, Love of Life (1951); she is the first African American actress to have a regular serial role.
She was best known for her role as the sexy, confident, gossipy "Willona Woods" on Good Times (1974). She composed and sang the theme song, "Movin' On Up", for another Norman Lear series, The Jeffersons (1975). She appeared in many films, including the blaxploitation parody, I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1988), as a tough and loving mother. She also did voice-over work, for which she received two Emmys.
She co-founded the "Pan African Film & Arts Festival", which showcases global films about people of African descent and fine arts. She is a community activist whose DuBois Care Foundation's mission is to empower youth by supporting after-school programs. She was also a painter who regularly exhibited her work. She released a CD in 2008, "Hidden Treasures", which includes the well-known TV theme song, "Movin' On Up".- Actress
- Soundtrack
Meg Wyllie was born on 15 February 1917 in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, USA [now Hawaii, USA]. She was an actress, known for The Last Starfighter (1984), Marnie (1964) and Dragnet (1987). She died on 1 January 2002 in Glendale, California, USA.- A stage actress, Urecal made her screen debut in 1933. For the remainder of her career and two hundred plus movies, she played cleaning women, landladies, shopkeepers and the like. She was known as a Marjorie Main type actress and later went on to a career in television playing in such shows as "Tugboat Annie" and "Peter Gunn." Minerva claimed her name was an anagram of her hometown, Eureka, California.
- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
Albert was born on June 24, 1919 to Raffaele Molinaro and Teresa Marrone. His father was born in Calabria, Italy and immigrated to the US when he was 15 years old and worked as a water boy with a railroad crew going west from New York. He ended up in Kenosha Wisconsin where he met and married Albert's mother Teresa on December 22, 1901. His father named Albert after his favorite Italian Prince, Umberto II who was born 15 years earlier. A school teacher later suggested that "Albert" might be more suitable. His mother chose his middle name Fransico after Santo Francisco since he was born on Saint Francis Day. The midwife who's English was only slightly better than Albert's parents spelled his middle name with a feminine "A" at the end which was never corrected. His legal named remained Umberto Francisca Molinaro. He was the ninth child of what would later become a family of ten children, eight boys and 2 girls. At 19 years of age Albert became a union leader at the Vincent-McCall furniture spring factory after working there for only 4 months. He later became the special assistant to the Kenosha City Manager when he was 20. At this time Albert's best friend from Kenosha, Mills Tenuta, who had moved to Southern California to work in an aircraft plant, began harassing him to come out to Hollywood. He was sure that Albert could be a movie star. Albert left a promising career with the city after only a year to head to Hollywood to become an actor. Albert had many jobs while pursuing his acting career. His first job was at Reginald Denny's Hobby shop in Hollywood. He spent 2 years as a live action animator at George Pal's studios. If Technicolor hadn't gone on a sympathy strike with the Studio Carpenters union he might have spent his career as an animator. He managed the M&G Grand Variety Store for a year and then became a bill collector for the "Collection Agency of America" in downtown LA. He quickly learned the art of bill collecting and was able to become a salesman who procured collection accounts for another agency which he later purchased. This gave him flexible hours and a steady income so he could focus again on his dreams of Hollywood. Even after his acting career took off he kept his Bill Collection business until he retired. Albert married Jacqueline Martin in 1948. They moved into a home in Granada Hills, CA and adopted their son Michael Molinaro. Albert and Jacqueline were divorced in 1980. Albert then married Betty Sedillos in 1981 and they lived in Glendale CA until his death in 2015. Albert had two step children, Jim Sedillos & Victoria Sedillos and a total of 6 grandchildren and 2 great-grand children. Albert's movie debut happened when he was 25 years old. After appearing as the lead in a Chekhov play called "The Bear" at the old Sartu Theater that used to be on the corner of Hollywood Blvd. and La Brea Ave. A movie producer saw the performance and cast him in a picture that had three separate stories, one of the stories was Chekhov's play "The Bear" but changed from a Russian setting to a Spanish locale. The movie was titled "Love Me Madly". Albert was not told that some of the scenes they shot without him were R rated in today's standards but X rated for 1954's standards. He was surprised and upset during the movies premiere and vowed to never again be in a film that his mother couldn't watch. During the early 1950's Albert began producing live television shows for local televisions stations channel 5 KTLA, channel 9 KHJ & channel 11 KTTV. He Co-created "Insomnia" a late night live show and a "Ski Show" in which Warren Miller allowed him to use some of his skiing footage. He created "Star Finder" a pre-teen amateur show, "Square Dance Party" and "The Tiny Late Show" which was his own late night one man show that filled the few minutes of time between the end of the late night movie and the station signing off for the night.
All the time Albert was working to pay his bills he was also acting in small plays in theaters all over Hollywood. After 25 years of theater acting he was convinced to play a small part in a play directed by his friend, Leo Matranga, at the Hollywood Horseshoe Theater. After the show, a commercial agent named Don Schwartz offered to represent him. Albert swore off acting and never called Don. One year later, Don called Albert telling him that he already set up an appointment for him and convinced him to audition for a national commercial. Albert got the commercial for the Volvo 140. You can see his commercial debut on youtube "Volvo 140 advertising". It's 3 min. & 30 seconds into the video (they have strung many vintage Volvo ads together). Take a look at his first commercial and you will see the face that went on to land over 100 commercials. 42 of them were nationals. He also landed a 10 year deal with "Encore" frozen dinners becoming their spokesperson. A friend from George Pal's Studios named Glenn Grossman cast Albert whenever he could in the industrial films that he would make from time to time. It was while working on one of Glenn's films that Albert met another working actor named Harvey Lembeck. When Harvey wasn't acting he ran an actor's workshop. Harvey convinced Albert that he could help him with his comedy timing. Gary Marshall's sister Penny was also a member of Harvey's workshop. One night Penny asked her brother to come down and see Albert. Gary was in the process of producing a movie starring Jacquiline Bissett called "The Grasshopper" and wanted Al to play the part of a truck driver. Albert did not play the part because the shooting dates conflicted with a Pepto-Bismol commercial he was scheduled to shoot in Phoenix. A year later, when Albert learned from his writer friend, John Rappaport, that Garry Marshall was casting for The Odd Couple TV show, John convinced him that he would be perfect to play one of the poker players. Albert first refused to call Gary but John badgered him enough to finally make him call. Albert made numerous phone calls but got no response so he decided to dress up like a delivery man and deliver a 2'x3' card with many pictures of himself glued to it stating that "Al Molinaro is a Poker Player. ...Assorted Poker Faces ... More faces available upon demand. Just Call (his Phone #) Dear Gary, If you don't call me for an audition, I'll put a curse on you to make you sterile for life. Sincerely, Al Molinaro. The delivery outfit did not get him past the guard at the Paramount gate but it did get the card delivered and Albert got an audition and landed the part of Murray the Cop. Later, Gary stated that, "Although we thought Albert was wrong for the part, we decided to take a chance on Al because of all the men who we auditioned, he was the funniest. Albert spent 5 years on The Odd Couple and when it finished, due to the fact that Jack Klugman wanted to do drama, he was offered the roll of the Malt Shop Owner on Gary's new show "Happy Days". Albert turned down the role feeling he did not want to work with a "bunch of kids". After the first season of Happy Days, Pat Morita, who was cast in the role of the malt shop owner, was offered his own show so Gary once again asked Albert to work on the show. Albert asked Gary that if he didn't like working on the show, could he quit whenever he wanted. Gary said he couldn't put that in writing but that they would shake on it. Albert enjoyed 10 years on "Happy Days" from 1974 to 1984 and 1 more year on "Joanie Loves Chachi. He guest starred on many television shows during and after the filming of the Odd Couple and Happy Days. He also worked on a short lived sitcom called "The Family Man" from 1990-1991 but decided to stop taking roles by the mid 90's. He completed his 10 year contract with Encore Frozen Foods and as his last job he surprisingly accepted an offer to be in a music video with Wheezer.
Albert was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in the mid 90's and lived with the illness for 20 years. Early diagnosis and careful medication allowed Albert to enjoy life until he had a small heart attack in May of 2015. He was a wonderfully kind man. He taught himself to play the piano, clarinet and ukulele and even had a few real gigs in Reno playing the clarinet in his youth. His family believes that his improvisational skills allowed him to mask his Alzheimer's disease from most people until just before he died. He continued to personally answer his fan mail until his health did not allow it. In June he celebrated his 96th birthday but he was declining quickly. He developed a gall stones and due to his age and the recent heart attack, surgery was not recommended. Albert died on October 30th 2015.- Actress
- Music Department
- Producer
Russi Taylor was an American voice actress from Cambridge, Massachusetts. She was the official voice of Minnie Mouse from 1986 until her death from colon cancer in 2019. She also voiced a lot of minor characters from The Simpsons including Martin Prince, Sherri and Terri. Grey DeLisle-Griffin succeeded her roles from The Simpsons. She was married to Mickey Mouse voice actor Wayne Allwine from 1991 until his death in 2009.- Joe Maross was born on 7 February 1923 in Barnesboro, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor, known for Sometimes a Great Notion (1971), The Time Tunnel (1966) and Dallas (1978). He was married to Lucille Rita Everin and Carol Kelly. He died on 7 November 2009 in Glendale, California, USA.
- Burly, stentorian-voiced John Hamilton, worked on Broadway and in touring theatrical companies for many years prior to his 1930 film debut. He was in the original Broadway company of "Seventh Heaven" and would appear in the film remake (Seventh Heaven (1937)) in 1937. For Warner Bros, he starred with Donald Meek in a series of short mysteries based on S.S. Van Dine stories. He was often typecast as prison wardens, judges and police chiefs, but played various types of characters in an almost limitless number of films from the 1930s to the 1950s. He became famous when he was cast as Daily Planet newspaper editor Perry White in the 1950s TV classic, Adventures of Superman (1952). He died of a heart attack in 1957 and is survived by a son. Hamilton is often confused with John F. Hamilton, an American actor whose career began in the 1920s, John Hamilton, a British actor who worked during the same period but exclusively in the UK, and with several other actors of the same name.
- Actress
- Writer
- Composer
Highly alluring Czech-born actress Florence Marly, born on June 2, 1919, initially expressed intentions of being an opera singer. At the age of 18, however, she was discovered by the 33-year-old renowned French director Pierre Chenal while a student of art and literature at the Sorbonne. Chenal put her immediately into his film The Alibi (1937) and an acting career was ignited instead.
Chenal and his protégé married the following year and Florence continued to figure into many of his films including The Lafarge Case (1938), Sirocco (1938), and The Last Turning (1939). Managing to flee Paris prior to the Nazi occupation, the couple arrived in Argentina in 1944 and stayed there for several years where she appeared in a few films -- La piel de Zapa (1943), El fin de la noche (1944) and, for her husband, Viaje sin regreso (1946). Returning to France in the post-war years, she was nominated for a Cannes Film Festival award for her performance in The Damned (1947) [The Damned] directed by René Clément and also starring Marcel Dalio and Henri Vidal.
Exotic foreign imports were popular in Hollywood in post-war years and in 1949, sultry-eyed Florence took a chance on Hollywood when she was signed by Paramount. When not appearing in the typical intrigue and espionage movies expected of her opposite such stars as Ray Milland in Sealed Verdict (1948) and Humphrey Bogart in Tokyo Joe (1949), she entertained American troops in Korea and took time to appear in a homeland movie Krakatit (1948). During this period she also received top billing in the US/Japan co-production Tokyo File 212 (1951) and was featured in the minor comedy Gobs and Gals (1952) which showcased pantomime American comedians George Bernard and Bert Bernard [aka The Bernard Brothers].
Florence's American career was cut short when she was branded a Communist and blacklisted. Leaving America for a time, she was eventually cleared after it was discovered that her name had been confused with the Russian club singer Anna Marly who was on the "subversive" list. The damage had already been done, however, and her film career never recovered.
Appearing in her husband's films El ídolo (1952) [The Idol] and Confesiones al amanecer (1954) [Confessions at Dawn], their marriage, which was marked by long separations, crumbled and she and Chenal divorced in 1955. Florence married an Austrian count the following year, but that marriage too would not survive. With her film career practically finished (one of her last during this period of upheaval was the "C" grade movie Undersea Girl (1957) with Mara Corday), she turned to TV and worked occasionally for the next decade or so on such popular shows as "The Millionaire", "Dragnet", "77 Sunset Strip", "The Man from U.N.C.L.E" and "Love, American Style". She also returned to a small spate of low grade films including Queen of Blood (1966), Doctor Death: Seeker of Souls (1973), The Astrologer (1976) and the movie short Space Boy (1973), in which she also served as writer and composer.
Florence died suddenly in the Los Angeles area at age 59 of a heart attack.- Additional Crew
- Actor
- Writer
Ray Combs was born on 3 April 1956 in Hamilton, Ohio, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for Overboard (1987), Family Feud (1988) and Me & Mrs. C. (1986). He was married to Debra Jo Loomis. He died on 2 June 1996 in Glendale, California, USA.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Prime character veteran Doris Packer has one of those placid, glowering veteran faces you know you've seen over and over again but just can't seem to place. Close your eyes, however, and that bosom-heavy voice of hers is absolutely unmistakable. Found quite comfortably amid plush settings, she usually was the possessor of the bluest blood in town.
A Michiganite, the delightfully austere "Mrs. Moneybags" was born on May 30, 1904, and was still quite young when her family relocated to Southern California. Doris enjoyed acting in plays in high school and studied at UCLA. Eventually she decided to move to New York and attended The Drama School under the guidance of Evelyn Thomas.
Doris graced such Broadway productions as "Back Fire" (debut, 1932), "Something More Important," "The Old Women," "Strip Girl" and "Elizabeth the Queen," while also meeting and marrying stage director Rowland G. Edwards. An avid radio performer in New York, she was a popular player on such shows as "Henry Aldrich" and "Mr. & Mrs. North."
In 1943, during World War II, Doris enlisted in the U.S. Army Women's Army Corps (WACs) and reached the rank of Technical Sergeant before her discharge. Following her husband's death in 1953, Doris relocated to the West Coast to try out film and TV. Though she never obtained a series of her own, she found a niche for herself as a haughty comedy foil, offering her inimitably huffy self to scores of sitcoms.
Doris found a recurring role on the popular comedy series, The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show (1950), but is even better remembered for her stern, by-the-book "Principal Rayburn" on Leave It to Beaver (1957) and as disdainful society snob "Mrs. Chatsworth Osborne, Sr." on The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis (1959). TV guest appearances would include the comedies "I Love Lucy," "The Andy Griffith Show, "The Beverly Hillbillies," "The Jack Benny Show," "The Dick Van Dyke Show," "Pete and Gladys," "Green Acres," "The New Dick Van Dyke Show" and a final spot on "A Touch of Grace" in 1973. More dramatic appearances occurred on "City Detective," "State Trooper," "Maverick," "The Thin Man," "Perry Mason" and "The Twilight Zone."
A few minor movie roles came Doris' way, but not many. They included Meet Me at the Fair (1953), Teen-Age Crime Wave (1955), Anything Goes (1956), Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation (1962), Walt Disney's Bon Voyage! (1962), Paradise, Hawaiian Style (1966) and The Perils of Pauline (1967). Her last film was a small part in Shampoo (1975) starring Warren Beatty. Unforgettable no matter how small the part, 74-year-old Doris passed away on March 31, 1979, in Glendale, California, of natural causes.- Pepper Martin was born on 20 September 1936 in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. He was an actor, known for Superman II (1980), Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut (1980) and General Hospital (1963). He died on 18 March 2022 in Glendale, California, USA.
- Back in the day, winning the title of "Miss America" sometimes provided a springboard to Hollywood and a film career as a leading lady. This was certainly true in the case of California-born Rosemary La Planche.
Born on October 11, 1923, in the Southern California city of Glendale, Rosemary and her older sister Louise La Planche (by four years) both expressed a desire to perform as children. Each found work as a toddler in a silent movie before focusing on a normal public school upbringing. The interest in acting didn't wane in either of them, however, and during her years at John Marshall High School, Rosemary was cast in minor roles in two of Deanna Durbin Universal film vehicles.
In the meantime, both girls entered the beauty pageant circuit. Louise earned the title of "Miss Catalina" in 1939 and then "Miss North America" the following year. This notoriety led to a minor MGM career with bits in such films as Strike Up the Band (1940) and Ziegfeld Girl (1941). Rosemary followed suit by being crowned both "Miss California" and "Miss America" in 1941. This led to a featured role in the Hal Roach "B' film Prairie Chickens (1943) and a minor RKO contract that included unbilled bits as various "tootsie" types as hat check girls and chorines.
The oval-faced Rosemary finally hit leading lady status, albeit minor and brief, with two cult "Poverty Row" horrors -- Strangler of the Swamp (1945) and Devil Bat's Daughter (1946), a sequel to the Bela Lugosi camp classic The Devil Bat (1940) in which she plays Lugosi's daughter who is tormented by her father's memory. Following this, Columbia signed her up and she was put in as the female lead in the serial Jack Armstrong (1947) starring John Hart.
In 1947 the actress married radio host and producer Harry Koplan and had two children by him, slowly letting her movie career fade away as she focused more and more on family life. Her last role was in the Republic cliffhanger Federal Agents vs. Underworld, Inc. (1949) before retiring. Rosemary did have a Hollywood talk radio show in which she talked about fashion. In addition, she and her husband were given a three-day-a-week radio show as well. Scattered TV and commercial appearances came and went with assignments on such TV comedies as "Hennessey" and "The Donna Reed Show".
Once she retired, Rosemary focused on oil painting and exhibited her work from time to time. The family moved to Gallup, New Mexico where husband Harry continued to produce local TV programs until his death in 1973. Rosemary returned to the Los Angeles area but little was heard from her until her death from cancer at Glendale Adventist Hospital on May 6, 1979, at age 55. Both she and her husband were interred at San Fernando Mission Cemetery in Mission Hills, California. Louise, who showed up in the original silent The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) and appeared primarily in uncredited roles throughout her 1930s and 1940s MGM and Paramount movie career, outlived her sister by over 40 years, dying at age 93 in 2012. - Fred Hurt was born on 10 July 1943 in Minot, North Dakota, USA. He was married to Jennifer Sheets and Lorrayne Frances Leier. He died on 11 July 2023 in Glendale, Oregon, USA.
- Actress
- Additional Crew
Connie Cezon was born on 28 March 1925 in Oakland, California, USA. She was an actress, known for Perry Mason (1957), Corny Casanovas (1952) and Female Jungle (1955). She died on 26 February 2004 in Glendale, California, USA.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Merie Earle was born on 13 May 1889 in Morrow, Ohio, USA. She was an actress, known for Crazy Mama (1975), Fatso (1980) and The Waltons (1972). She was married to Lawrence Nathan Earls. She died on 4 November 1984 in Glendale, California, USA.- Robert Knapp was born on 24 February 1924 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an actor, known for Days of Our Lives (1965), TV Reader's Digest (1955) and Mesa of Lost Women (1953). He was married to Marilyn Frances Remillard. He died on 17 May 2001 in Glendale, California, USA.
- Additional Crew
- Actress
J.D. Peralta was born on 12 August 1971. She was an actress, known for Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997), Chance (2002) and The Stonecutter (2000). She died on 12 November 2002 in Glendale, California, USA.- Character actor Billy Beck was born Frank Billerbeck on May 26, 1920 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Billy did drawings of clowns as a kid. Beck fought with the Allied Forces in France during World War II and returned in 1948 to Paris, France, where he began his show business career acting in French films. Billy went on to become a regular performer at Harry's Bar in Paris and was a featured clown on stage with Cirque Medrano. After moving to California in 1960, Beck went on to act mostly in small parts in a bunch of movies and television shows over the course of five consecutive decades. Moreover, Beck also appeared in many TV commercials, did paintings and portraits of female nudes, and was a regular with the San Fernando Valley Bango Band, which played for charity events and at retirement homes. Billy died on June 29, 2011 at age 91 of congestive heart failure at an assisted care facility in Glendale, California. He was survived by a great nephew and a great niece.
- Actor
- Sound Department
- Music Department
James MacDonald was born on 19 May 1906 in Crewe, Cheshire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Cinderella (1950), Alice in Wonderland (1951) and The Black Hole (1979). He was married to Sarah Roberta Cullen. He died on 1 February 1991 in Glendale, California, USA.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Mildreds star shone for what seemed like a split second and yet she knew everybody in town and the whole of tinsel town knew Mildred Shay. Adrian, Hollywoods premiere costumer made all her gowns and a pair of false breasts. She worked with, and unlike the rest of Hollywood got on with Joan Crawford despite the fact that as Helene, the French maid to Crystal Allen (Crawford) in George Cukors The Women 1939, Mildred Shay stole every scene.
She dated eligible bachelors in Hollywood and married three of them. Errol Flynn, naked but for his shirt and sock garters, held her captive in his apartment before she succumbed to his advances. Cecil B DeMille wine and dined her at his Paradise Ranch, feeding her oysters, complete with the pearls still attached.
Born into Palm Beach money, Mildred was educated at a Swiss school for genteel ladies in France. At fourteen her wealthy New York lawyer Father Joseph A. Shay brought Mildred and her younger sister to London. From London the family returned to their chateaux in Nice, then moved to Florence before finally settling in California.
Mildred's father had taken up work acting on behalf of the Hollywood powerbrokers at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, United Artists and Fox. So it was living in the heart of Hollywood that young Mildred rang her father and told him that she wanted to be an actress. Within weeks Mildred was making her first screen test for MGM.
Her first assignment was dubbing for Greta Garbo in Grand Hotel (1932). Later she played in The Women (1939) as well as Balalaika (1939) with Nelson Eddy, and All Women Have Secrets (1939). The following year Mildred headed East to New York where she appeared on Broadway. It was whilst in New York Mildred met and then eloped with Winthrop Gardner Junior, one of Americas finest and wealthiest bachelors. Gardner suffocated her with diamonds and furs. Walter Winchell jested on being shown an enormous gem, Mildred you could house Manhattan on that rock! As long as Mildred stayed in Hollywood she was always going to make headlines. She had a torrid affair with Victor Mature and Roy Rogers. In 1940 she met Geoffrey Steele, an army Captain in the Blue and Royals, they married the following year.
With motherhood, Mildred gave up her career, only to return in 1974 with a starring role in The Great Gatsby. Two years later, and Mildred was asked by Ken Russell to appear in his new film Valentino (1976). At 91, she shows no signs of retirement. Mildred has just recently been photographed alongside Kevin Spacey, Catherine Zeta Jones, Shirley Temple, Kirk Douglas and Stephen Fry for an exhibition of film actors to be held in London and Beverly Hills over Oscar week 2004.- Character actor Stuart Nisbet was born on January 17, 1934 in Los Angeles, California. The son of Emmet and Hazel Nisbet, Stuart grew up in Bakersfield, California before eventually moving to and settling down in Glendale, California. Nisbet studied acting at both Los Angeles City College and California State University in Los Angeles. Stuart first started acting in various films and television shows in the early 1960s. Outside of acting, Nisbet was also the owner and co-founder of the casting agency Baker-Nisbet, Inc. in Hollywood, California for twenty-four years. In addition, Stuart was proud of his Scottish ancestry and served as the President of the Nesbitt/Nisbet Society of North America for many years as well as was a dedicated member of several local improvisational Hollywood comedy groups. Nisbet died at age 82 at USC Verdugo Hills Hospital in Glendale, California on June 23, 2016. He was survived by his wife Nancy; his children Bill, Linda, and Scott; grandchildren Shane, Shilo, Brandy, and Hope; and children-in-law Denny and Delia.
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He began imitating birds and various barnyard animals as a child growing up in Watonga, Oklahoma. In his teens his family moved to Southern California where he got a promotional job with a dairy company and in between jobs performed animal imitations at various Los Angeles schools. In 1934 hearing that Walt Disney was looking for bird and animal recordings for his cartoons Clarence went to the studios and went through his repertoire of voices during which Walt walked in and said "That fellow sounds like a duck, lets keep him in mind if we ever create a duck character"
It wasn't long after that , that Donald Duck made his debut in "The Wise Little Hen" with Clarence providing his voice. When the film was finished and shown Donald stood out so prominently that he was put into the Mickey Mouse film "Orphan's Benefit" and soon after was getting star billing in his own films and has been in more than Mickey.
With the help of language coaches Clarence has quacked in Spanish, French, German, Swedish, Dutch, Portugese and Japanese.- Michael Galeota was born on 28 August 1984 in Smithtown, Long Island, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for Bailey Kipper's P.O.V. (1996), The Jersey (1999) and Clubhouse Detectives (1997). He died on 10 January 2016 in Glendale, California, USA.
- Leonard Strong was born on 12 August 1908 in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. He was an actor, known for Shane (1953), Cult of the Cobra (1955) and Get Smart (1965). He was married to Irene Richards. He died on 23 January 1980 in Glendale, California, USA.
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Born in Idaho in 1915, perky blonde Mary Kornman's acting career began at age five. She made her "name" as the cute, spunky little girl in the 1920s' "Our Gang" shorts, and was often paired with Mickey Daniels. The two returned to the screen as a pair again several years after leaving the "Rascals" series with a new series of comedy shorts for Hal Roach called "The Boy Friends" (in 1932 she made a cameo appearance, along with Daniels, in a Little Rascals short, Fish Hooky (1933), as the gang's teacher!). The "Boy Friends" series lasted three years, and after that Mary struck out on her own, but couldn't manage much beyond "B" pictures. She left the business in 1940, and died in 1973.- Actress
- Soundtrack
A mining engineer's daughter, blond, blue-eyed Betty Compson began in show business playing the violin in a Salt Lake City vaudeville establishment for $15 a week. Following that, she went on tour, accompanied by her mother, with an act called 'The Vagabond Violinist'. Aged eighteen, she appeared on the Alexander Pantages Theatre Circuit, again doing her violin solo vaudeville routine, and was spotted there by comedy producer Al Christie. Christie quickly changed her stage name from Eleanor to Betty. For the next few years, she turned out a steady stream of one-reel and two-reel slapstick comedies, frequently paired with Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle.
In 1919, Betty was signed by writer-director George Loane Tucker to co-star opposite Lon Chaney as Rose in The Miracle Man (1919). The film was a huge critical and financial success and established Betty Compson as a major star at Paramount (under contract from 1921 to 1925). One of the more highly paid performers of the silent screen, her weekly earnings exceeded $5000 a week at the peak of her career. She came to own a fleet of luxury limousines and was able to move from a bungalow in the hills overlooking Hollywood to an expensive mansion on Hollywood Boulevard. From 1921, Betty also owned her own production company. She went on to make several films in England between 1923 and 1924 for the director Graham Cutts.
During the late 1920's, Betty appeared in a variety of dramatic and comedic roles. She received good reviews acting opposite George Bancroft as a waterfront prostitute in The Docks of New York (1928), and was even nominated for an Academy Award for her portrayal of a carnival girl in The Barker (1928). She gave a touching performance in The Great Gabbo (1929), directed by her then husband James Cruze, as the assistant of a demented ventriloquist (Erich von Stroheim), with whom she is unhappily in love. That same year, she appeared in RKO's first sound film, Street Girl (1929), and was briefly under contract to that studio, cast in so-called 'women's pictures' such as The Lady Refuses (1931) and Three Who Loved (1931).
The stature of her roles began to diminish from the mid 1930s, though she continued to act in character parts until 1948.
Betty's personal fortunes also declined. This came about primarily as a result of her marital contract to the alcoholic Cruze, whom she had divorced in 1929. For several years, Cruze had failed to pay his income tax and Betty (linked financially to Cruze) ended up being sued by the federal government to the tune of $150,000. This forced her to sell her Hollywood villa, her cars and her antiques.
In later years, Betty Compson developed her own cosmetics label and ran a business in California producing personalized ashtrays for the hospitality industry.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Mickey Rooney Jr. was born on July 3, 1945, as Joseph Yule III to movie legend Mickey Rooney and his second wife (among his own wives was Merci Montello, the Playmate of the Month for December 1972 as "Mercy Rooney"). A beauty pageant winner ("Miss Alabama 1944"), the former Betty Jane Rase met Mickey Sr. when he was stationed in the Army in Birmingham, Alabama, during World War II. Mickey Jr. was the first of his father's nine children.
Growing up in Hollywood as the son of a famous movie star, Junior rubbed shoulders with some of the biggest stars on the planet, including Mae West, Elvis Presley and The Beatles. When he was 13 years old he met Judy Garland at a party at her Brentwood home. "So you're Mickey's first-born son," his father's most famous leading lady said. "You're a fine-looking young man." Unlike his extremely short father, the son would grow to be over six feet tall, taking after his tall mother.
His father, in his 1991 autobiography "Life Is Too Short", admitted that he cheated on Betty Jane. According to Mickey Sr., she was "totally oblivious to anything going on outside our home." Mickey Sr. summed up their relationship as, "We just weren't compatible." The marriage ended in divorce in 1948.
Mickey Jr. saw his father frequently after the divorce. Sharing the name of the #1 box office star of 1939, 1940 and 1941 opened doors for Mickey Jr., although making the most of the opportunities wasn't always easy. He found out he had to work twice as hard to prove himself because of his famous name.
He had his first taste of show business as one of the original Mousketeers on Walt Disney's The Mickey Mouse Club (1955) (his father claims that Walt Disney named the famous Mouse after him). He and brother Tim Rooney were hired in 1955 due to their ability to sing, dance and act. After appearing on the show for a year, their contracts were terminated after the mischievous boys got into a hassle with the studio's paint department (they sneaked in and poured different colors of paint in different cans). Six years later, at age 17, he hosted "The Andy Hardy Theater" on local TV. Musically inclined, he played bass in Willie Nelson's band and has recorded an album called "The Song Album." Like his height, his musical talent was inherited from his mother, who was a gifted vocalist. His maternal grandmother taught him how to play the ukulele by showing him how to play chords, which he then played on an acoustic guitar. In addition to playing bass and guitar, Mickey Jr. plays drums, harmonica and keyboards and writes music. He, his wife Laura and their friend John Whittinghill perform rock 'n' roll and gospel music as "Mickey Rooney Jr. and Friends."
A born-again Christian, Mickey Jr. met Laura, a Messianic Jew, in 1986. Through The Lord's Link Ministry, the couple minister and spread the Good News. Laura sings and plays a harp, while both she and Mickey Jr. testify to the "folly" of living "life in the fast lane." They reside in Hemet, CA.
Mickey Jr. and his brother Tim operate the Rooney Entertainment Group, a movie and TV production company. He has written his autobiography, "Which One's Your Mother?"- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Leo White started in comedy on the boards of English music hall in the late 1890's. He accompanied theatrical producer Daniel Frohman (later a partner of Adolph Zukor in Famous Players Lasky) to Hollywood in 1910. From 1914, he appeared in Essanay comedies and filmed the 'Sweedie' series with Wallace Beery. He then became a regular supporting player in Charles Chaplin's films at Essanay and, later Mutual, playing dapper, moustachioed continental (particularly French) villains and pompous aristocrats. That image remained with him, as he was contracted by Essanay to play the comic foil to their new French star comedian Max Linder.
White's major dramatic film credits of the silent period included Blood and Sand (1922) with Rudolph Valentino and the biblical epic Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1925). He successfully made the transition to talking pictures and had supporting roles in two Marx Brothers comedies, Monkey Business (1931) and the classic A Night at the Opera (1935), as well as playing a barber in Chaplin's The Great Dictator (1940). In the years just prior to his death, he worked as an extra in several films for Warner Brothers.- James O'Hara was born on 11 September 1927 in Dublin, Ireland. He was an actor, known for The Quiet Man (1952), Lux Video Theatre (1950) and Malaga (1954). He died on 3 December 1992 in Glendale, California, USA.
- George Gerdes was born on 23 February 1948 in Queens, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011), Bats (1999) and Hidalgo (2004). He died on 1 January 2021 in Glendale, California, USA.
- Peter Siragusa was born on 16 February 1955 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. He was an actor, known for Home Alone (1990), Dinosaur (2000) and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009). He died on 11 October 2022 in Glendale, California, USA.
- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Hobart Bosworth--pioneering movie director, writer, producer and actor--was born Hobart Van Zandt Bosworth on August 11, 1867, in Marietta, OH. He was a direct descendant of Miles Standish and John and Priscilla Alden on his father's side and of New York's Van Zandt family, the first Dutch settlers to land in the New World, on his mother's side. Bosworth was always proud of his lineage.
After his mother died his father remarried and the young Hobart took a dislike to his stepmother. Convinced that he was "ill used and cruelly treated," as he told an interviewer in 1914, he ran away from home for to New York City. He signed on as a cabin boy on the clipper ship "Sovereign of the Seas" and was soon out at sea.
After his first voyage, a five-month affair that took him from New York to San Francisco, he spent his wages on candy. Sleeping it off on a bench in the park in back of Trinity Church, the young boy did not know that the organ music he was listening to as he dozed was being played by his very own uncle. A Captain Roberts, who found stevedore work for the lad, told him of his uncle's presence in San Francisco. He continued as a sailor, as the sea was in his family's blood, eventually spending three years at sea. "All my people were of the sea and my father was a naval officer," he told an interviewer. He spent 11 months on an old-fashioned whaler plying the Arctic region, then was employed doing odd jobs in San Francisco. After turns as a semi-professional boxer and wrestler, Bosworth tried ranching in Southern California and Mexico, where he learned to become an expert horseman. Finally, his interest in art led him to the stage.
Thinking he'd like to become a landscape painter, a friend suggested that Bosworth work as a stage manager to raise the money to study art. Acting on his friend's advice, Bosworth obtained a job with McKee Rankin as a stage manager at the California Theatre in San Francisco. With the money he made, he undertook the study of painting. Eventually he was pressed into duty as an actor with a small part with three lines. Though he botched the lines, he was given other small roles. Bosworth was 18 years old and on the cusp of a life in the theater.
He signed on with Louis Morrison to be part of a road company for a season as both an actor and as Morrison's dresser, playing William Shakespeare's "Cymbeline" and "Measure for Measure" (during his time with the company, Hobarth and another writer wrote a version of "Faust" that Morrison used for 20 years in repertory). By 1887 he was acting at the Alcazar Theatre in San Francisco, and became proficient enough on stage to give Shakespearean recitals in costume the following year. He had acted almost all of the famous characters in the Shakespearean canon by the time he was 21 years old, though he admitted that he was the worst Macbeth ever.
Bosworth eventually wound up in Park City, UT, where he was forced to work in a mine, pushing an ore wagon in order to raise money. He escaped the pits to tour with magician Hermann the Great as the conjurer's assistant for a tour through Mexico. For the first time in eleven years, the 21-year-old Bosworth met his father. Hobarth recalled, "[H]e looked at me and said 'Hum! I couldn't lick you now, son.'" They never met again.
Bosworth arrived back in New York in December 1888, and was hired by Augustin Daly to play Charles the Wrestler in "As You Like It." He did so well in the role that Daly kept him on. Bosworth remained with Daly's company for 10 years, in which he played mostly minor parts. Seven times while he was with the company it made foreign tours, playing in Berlin, Cologne, London, Paris and other European cities.
Eventually, being kept in small parts eroded his confidence, and Bosworth left Daly to sign on with Julia Marlowe, who cast him in leads in Shakespearean plays. Just as Bosworth began to taste stage stardom in New York, he was struck down with tuberculosis, a very serious ailment in the 19th century. Bosworth was forced to give up the stage, as he was not allowed to toil indoors. Though he made a rapid recovery, he returned to the stage too quickly and suffered a relapse. For the rest of his working life he had to balance his acting with periods of rest so as to keep his T.B. under control.
Bosworth re-established himself as a lead actor on the New York stage, appearing opposite the famous actress Minnie Maddern Fiske (Mary Augusta Davey) in the 1903 Boradway revival of Henrik Ibsen's "Hedda Gabler." He also appeared that year on the Great White Way as the lead in "Marta of the Lowlands," which was produced by Harrison Grey Fiske, Mrs. Fiske's husband. The role propelled him to Broadway stardom. However, he was forced again to give up the stage when he lost 70 pounds in ten weeks.
Moving to Tempe, AZ, to partake of the salubrious climate improved his chances of battling T.B., and eventually he got the disease under control. While he was not actually an invalid, he was forced to live like one and remain in a warm climate lest he suffer a relapse. The T.B. robbed him of his voice, but since he was no longer on stage, it didn't matter. There was a new medium for actors: motion pictures. Bosworth moved to San Diego, which had a reputation of having the most perfect climate in the continental United States, and in 1908 was contracted to make a film by the Selig Polyscope Co. Shooting was to be down in the outdoors, and he did not have to use his voice, which was in a poor condition. The arrangement was perfect for him. "I believe, after all, that it is the motion pictures that have saved my life," he recounted less than a decade later. "How could I have lived on and on, without being able to carry out any of my cherished ambitions? What would my life have meant? Here, in pictures, I am realizing my biggest hopes." Signing with Selig, Bosworth eventually spearheaded the movie company's move to Los Angeles. He is widely credited with being the star of the first movie made on the West Coast. Due to his role in pioneering California for the film industry, Bosworth often was referred to as the "Dean of Hollywood." He wrote the scenarios for the second and third pictures he acted in, and directed the third. According to his own count, he eventually wrote 112 scenarios and produced 84 pictures for Selig. Bosworth was attracted to Jack London's work due to his out-of-doors filming experience and the requirements of his health, which obviated acting in studios. "In all my reading I have never come across better material for motion picture plays than Jack London's stories, and I hope to go right through the whole lot."
In 1913 he formed his own company, Hobart Bosworth Productions Co., to produce a series of Jack London melodramas. He produced, directed and starred in the company's first picture, playing Wolf Larsen in The Sea Wolf (1913), with London himself appearing as a sailor. The movie was released in the U.S. by W.W. Hodkinson Corp. D.W. Griffith also released a Jack London picture earlier that year, Two Men of the Desert (1913), but Bosworth followed up "The Sea Wolf" with The Chechako (1914), with Jack Conway playing the lead as Smoke Bellew, the title character of the eponymous London novel the movie is based on. "The Chechako" and some of the subsequent Boswoth-London pictures were distributed through Paramount, the releasing arm of Famous Players-Lasky.
Conway also starred in the Bosworth-directed follow-up The Valley of the Moon (1914), in which Bosworth had a supporting role. He also appeared as an actor in John Barleycorn (1914), which he co-directed with J. Charles Haydon. He produced, directed, wrote and acted in Martin Eden (1914) and An Odyssey of the North (1914), playing the lead in the latter, which was released by Paramount. He finished up the series by producing, directing and playing the lead in the two-part "Burning Daylight" series: Burning Daylight: The Adventures of 'Burning Daylight' in Alaska (1914) and Burning Daylight: The Adventures of 'Burning Daylight' in Civilization (1914), both of which were released by Paramount.
Bosworth hooked up with the Oliver Morosco Photoplay Co., making its Los Angeles facility on North Occidental Boulevard his headquarters. Subsequently Bosworth Inc. and Oliver Morosco Photoplay were absorbed by Paramount in 1916. Between 1913 and 1921 Hobart Bosworth Productions produced a total of 31 pictures, most of which starred Bosworth. The company ceased operations after producing The Sea Lion (1921).
The merger with Paramount ended the period in Bosworth's creative life where he was a major force in the motion picture industry, which was undergoing changes as the industry matured and solidified. He directed his last picture even before the merger, The White Scar (1915), which he also wrote and starred in for Universal Film Manufacturing Co. After his own production company wound up, Hobart Bosworth began playing supporting roles as an actor. He divorced his first wife, Adele Farrington, in 1919, the year after their son George was born.
He survived the transition to sound. Aside from appearing in Warner Bros.' showcase film Show of Shows (1929), his talking picture debut proper was in the short subject A Man of Peace (1928) for Vitaphone, while his first sound feature was Vitaphone's Ruritania drama General Crack (1929), starring John Barrymore.
Though he appeared in small roles in A-list films, including some classics, Bosworth primarily made his living as a prominently billed character actor in "B" westerns and serials churned out by Poverty Row studios. In his roles in A and B pictures, he typically was typecast as a fatherly type, such as dads, clergymen, judges, governors and the like, though occasionally he got to play a heavy. His most memorable roles included playing John Gilbert's father in both King Vidor's classic The Big Parade (1925) and Clarence Brown's A Woman of Affairs (1928), and Conrad Nagel's father in Du Barry, Woman of Passion (1930). He also appeared in the Al Jolson vehicle Mammy (1930), directed by Michael Curtiz, and in the Little Rascals' only feature film, General Spanky (1936) (a flop).
In addition to Vidor, Brown and Curtiz, Bosworth worked with other great directors, including Ernst Lubitsch (in support of John Barrymore in Eternal Love (1929)), D.W. Griffith (playing Gen. Robert E. Lee in Abraham Lincoln (1930)), 'Frank Capra' (in Dirigible (1931)) and Lady for a Day (1933)) and John Ford (headlining Hearts of Oak (1924), starring in Hangman's House (1928) and playing the Chaplain in support of Will Rogers in Steamboat Round the Bend (1935)).
Bosworth had a featured role in the early science-fiction movie Just Imagine (1930) and played Chingachgook in support of star Harry Carey's Hawkeye in Mascot Pictures' serial The Last of the Mohicans (1932). As the sound era wore on, he was reduced to bit parts, frequently uncredited, in such A-pictures as the W.C. Fields comedy Million Dollar Legs (1932) and the Errol Flynn western They Died with Their Boots On (1941). He kept working until the year before his death, appearing in six films in 1942, including an uncredited bit role as a clergyman in support of Barbara Stanwyck in The Gay Sisters (1942), his penultimate picture. His last film was Universal Pictures' western Sin Town (1942), starring Constance Bennett and Broderick Crawford, which was advertised with the intriguing tagline "The Glory Hole of the Booming Oil Towns!"
Altogether, Hobart Bosworth acted in over 250 movies from 1908 to 1942, directed 44 known pictures from 1911 to 1915, and wrote 27 & produced 11 known pictures from 1911 to 1921. His actual count might be hundreds more.
Hobart Bosworth, the "Dean of Hollywood," died on December 30, 1943 of pneumonia in Glendale, CA. He was 76 years old. He was survived by his second wife, Cecile, and his son George.- Ruth Hall was born on 29 December 1910 in Jacksonville, Florida, USA. She was an actress, known for Monkey Business (1931), The Return of Casey Jones (1933) and Local Boy Makes Good (1931). She was married to Lee Garmes. She died on 9 October 2003 in Glendale, California, USA.
- Actor
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
A character actor whose film career spanned from Hollywood's Silent Era until the 1950s. Born in Kansas City, Missouri, on September 11, 1882, Erville would start his film career in 1918 at the age of 36 in Her Man (1918). Film pioneer D.W. Griffith utilized Erville in many of his films, including 1924's America (1924) and Isn't Life Wonderful (1924). In 1926, Erville was in Sally of the Sawdust (1925), and for the first time, worked behind as well as in front of the camera, as the movie's Assistant Director. By the time talkies became the norm, Erville found his age and white hair earned him many "old codger" roles as everything from a sheriff to a blank clerk, although a lot of his roles fell into the the "uncredited" bit category. Despite this, he did manage to make his mark in several credited roles, with one of the best being his portrayal of Nate Tompkins in 1941's Sergeant York (1941). His last film role would be uncredited in 1957's The Spirit of St. Louis (1957), and on August 4, 1957, he would pass away at the age of 74 in Glendale, California.- Charles Soldani was born on 1 June 1893 in Ponca City, Oklahoma, USA. He was an actor, known for Daughter of the Jungle (1949), Man from Oklahoma (1945) and The Pioneers (1941). He died on 10 September 1968 in Glendale, California, USA.
- Robert Adler was born on 24 March 1906 in Hoboken, New Jersey, USA. He was an actor, known for Bandolero! (1968), Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959) and The Time Tunnel (1966). He died on 19 December 1987 in Glendale, California, USA.
- A Pennsylvania Dutch girl who moved to New York in the late 19th century to pursue a theatrical career, she became one of early silent pictures' better known character actresses. Between 1910 and 1920 she appeared in over 90 films, but then her acting career all but ended, and she devoted the rest of her life to the study and teaching of an occult religion. In 1918 she had begun a correspondence with the English writer and occultist Aleister Crowley. In 1920 she left Hollywood to join Crowley at his "Abbey of Thelema" on the Italian island of Sicily where she lived for several years, becoming his student Soror Estai, and accepting his new religion of sex, drugs, and magick in the name of personal liberation. Later she returned to Southern California where she continued to represent Crowley, and taught his doctrines for many years until her death in 1958.
- Actor
- Additional Crew
Delmar Watson was born on 1 July 1926 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an actor, known for Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Heidi (1937) and Clipped Wings (1937). He was married to Antoinette. He died on 26 October 2008 in Glendale, California, USA.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Rex Evans was born on 13 April 1903 in Southport, Sefton, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Philadelphia Story (1940), Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943) and Merry Andrew (1958). He died on 3 April 1969 in Glendale, California, USA.- Script and Continuity Department
- Additional Crew
- Actor
Born and raised in Minneapolis, Lloyd Nelson also went to radio school there. He worked at a few stations in the mid-south and in the Twin Cities market before he was drafted; he later (1953) came out to Hollywood using the G.I. Bill to attend the Pasadena Playhouse. He made his movie debut in a small, uncredited role in "The Court Jester" (1956); producer-director Jerry Warren later saw him in a little theater production and gave him one of the starring roles in "Man Beast" (1956), Nelson's first of several Warren movies. (Because "Man Beast" was non-union, Nelson used the nom de screen "Lloyd Cameron.") The Pasadena Playhouse helped him get him a job as dialogue coach on the TV series "Lassie"; he coached child star Jon Provost, who (according to Nelson) couldn't read. During his long run on "Lassie," Nelson learned the duties of a script supervisor and switched over to that profession. After he retired from script supervising, he went through the police academy and became a reserve cop. ("Strictly administrative, believe me. I could no more do a foot chase than climb Mount Everest!")- Actress
- Soundtrack
Nora Bennett Schilling was born in Chester, Illinois. She grew up and went to school near St. Louis. After modeling for a time, she went to visit a friend in California and was noticed by someone in the film industry. She successfully passed her screen test and began playing small parts in silent films in 1927, taking on the name Lane. In her 17 year career she played in over 80 films. Her notable works include her role as Zerelda in Jesse James (1927), her role as Sally in The Cisco Kid (1931), the villainous role of Goldie in Western Frontier (1935), as well as her supporting part in Jimmy the Gent (1934) which starred James Cagney and Bette Davis. She played in four Hopalong Cassidy films, two of which she was cast as the widowed ranch owner, Nora Blake. In her personal life, she was noted as an excellent swimmer and won many awards. On August 5, 1931, she and fellow actors Warner Baxter and Edmund Lowe were involved in a Southern Pacific train crash 20 miles east of Yuma, Arizona, but managed to escape uninjured. In 1941 she married Burdette Henney and retired from movies in 1944. The two lived a happy marriage until tragedy struck in 1948 when they went on a fishing trip in Bishop, California, during which Nora's husband died suddenly of a heart attack. On October 16, exactly one month after Burdette's death, the grief stricken widow shot herself dead after leaving a note to her step-son, simply saying she could not go on without him.- Director
- Producer
- Actor
A graduate of Carnegie Tech, Arthur Lubin entered films as an actor in the 1920s, and after appearing in many films turned to directing in 1934, mainly for Universal. His forte was light comedy, but he helmed many different types of pictures for the studio. Lubin was the director Universal entrusted with its new comedy team of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello; he didn't let the studio down, and the team's films with Lubin, such as Buck Privates (1941), Hold That Ghost (1941) and Ride 'Em Cowboy (1942), rank among their best. Lubin has said that while shooting an Abbott and Costello film he would have one camera do nothing but focus on Costello, who had so much energy that he would run around the set doing wild improvisations, make up bits of business and mischievously throw actors wrong cues or not cue them at all, making it impossible to plan a shot before shooting; with one camera focused solely on Costello, whatever craziness he was engaged in could be edited in (or out; Costello was renowned for his off-color ad libs) later. Lubin's Abbott & Costello films saved Universal from bankruptcy, and as a reward he was handed the assignment of directing Universal's remake of its silent classic, Phantom of the Opera (1943). It was very successful, and remains as Lubin's highest-grossing and most critically acclaimed film. In the 1950s he was put in charge of the "Francis the Talking Mule" series, which also became successful, so much so that Lubin turned to television and developed another talking-animal series, the popular and long-running Mister Ed (1961).- Raven Grey Eagle was born on 25 May 1927 in St. Marys, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor, known for Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955). He died on 9 April 1998 in Glendale, California, USA.
- Director
- Actor
- Writer
Erle C. Kenton entered films as an actor with the Mack Sennett troupe (he was one of the original Keystone Kops). In addition to acting, he performed pretty much any kind of behind-the-scenes job he could get, and by 1919 Sennett gave him a job directing two-reel comedies. The next year he graduated to features. While specializing in comedies (he directed two of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello's best films, Pardon My Sarong (1942) and Who Done It? (1942)), Kenton also branched out into the horror field, turning out a few somewhat interesting efforts (House of Dracula (1945), House of Frankenstein (1944)) and one genuine classic: Island of Lost Souls (1932). In the 1950s, like many of his B-picture colleagues, he turned to television and finished his career there.