Illnesses

1. Russell Johnson

Long before he was known as "The Professor" in the cult comedy classic Gilligan's Island (1964), Russell Johnson was a well-known character actor, starring in several Westerns and Sci-Fi classics as This Island Earth (1955) and It Came from Outer Space (1953). Johnson grew up in Pennsylvania and ...

2. Mel Blanc

Actor | Who Framed Roger Rabbit

Mel Blanc, known as "The Man of Thousand Voices" is regarded as the most prolific actor to ever work in Hollywood with over a thousand screen credits. He developed and performed nearly 400 distinct character voices with precision and a uniquely expressive vocal range. The legendary specialist from ...

3. Scatman Crothers

Actor | The Shining

Scatman Crothers was born Benjamin Sherman Crothers on May 23, 1910 in Terre Haute, Indiana. Songwriter ("Dearest One"), actor, composer, singer, comedian, and guitarist who, after high school, appeared in nightclubs, hotels, and films, and on television. He made many records, including his own ...

4. Edward Winter

Actor | Porky's II: The Next Day

Edward Winter was born on June 3, 1937 in Ventura, California, USA. He was an actor, known for Porky's II: The Next Day (1983), M*A*S*H (1972) and The Greatest American Hero (1981). He was married to Linda Foster, Sandra Frances Ward and Ronda Faye Moe. He died on March 8, 2001 in Woodland Hills, ...

5. Alice Nunn

Actress | Pee-wee's Big Adventure

Very little is known about Alice Elizabeth Nunn with the exception that she appeared in one of the 1980s most famous films, Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985), as the infamous truck driver, 'Large Marge'.

She was born on October 10, 1927 in Jacksonville, Florida to parents N.G. Nunn and Alice Bush. ...

6. Karen Black

Actress | Five Easy Pieces

Karen entered Northwestern University at 18 and left two years later. She studied under Lee Strasberg in New York and worked in a number of off-Broadway roles. She made a critically acclaimed debut on Broadway in 1965 in "The Playroom". Her first big film role was in You're a Big Boy Now (1966), ...

7. Sidney Miller

Actor | Dungeons & Dragons

Sidney Miller was born Sydney L. Miller in Shenandoah, PA, on October 22, 1916, the son of Jewish immigrants from Poland, who already had two daughters. When Sydney was 14 his father, a tailor, sold his business and moved the family to Los Angeles. There Sydney got the acting bug, and his first ...

8. Gloria Swanson

Actress | Sunset Blvd.

Gloria Swanson was born Gloria May Josephine Svensson in Chicago, Illinois. She was destined to be perhaps one of the biggest stars of the silent movie era. Her personality and antics in private definitely made her a favorite with America's movie-going public. Gloria certainly didn't intend on ...

9. Gregory Peck

Actor | To Kill a Mockingbird

Eldred Gregory Peck was born on April 5, 1916 in La Jolla, California, to Bernice Mae (Ayres) and Gregory Pearl Peck, a chemist and druggist in San Diego. He had Irish (from his paternal grandmother), English, and some German, ancestry. His parents divorced when he was five years old. An only child...

10. Ingrid Bergman

Actress | Casablanca

Ingrid Bergman was one of the greatest actresses from Hollywood's lamented Golden Era. Her natural and unpretentious beauty and her immense acting talent made her one of the most celebrated figures in the history of American cinema. Bergman is also one of the most Oscar-awarded actresses, tied with ...

11. Peter Tork

Actor | The Monkees

Performed as a folk musician in Greenwich Village and Los Angeles before being selected for the Monkees TV show. Made 58 TV episodes 6 albums, a TV special, and a movie before leaving the Monkees in 1969 Released a solo single in 1982. Rejoined the Monkees for tours and an from 1986 to 1989. ...

12. Leslie Nielsen

Actor | Airplane!

Leslie William Nielsen was born in Regina, Saskatchewan, and raised in Tulita (formerly Fort Norman), Northwest Territories. His mother, Mabel Elizabeth (Davies), was Welsh. His father, Ingvard Eversen Nielsen, was a Danish-born Mountie and a strict disciplinarian. Leslie studied at the Academy of ...

13. Burgess Meredith

Actor | Clash of the Titans

One of the truly great and gifted performers of the century, who often suffered lesser roles, Burgess Meredith was born in 1907 in Cleveland, Ohio. He was educated in Amherst College in Massachusetts, before joining Eva Le Gallienne's Student Repertory stage company in 1929. By 1934 he was a star ...

14. Cesar Romero

Actor | Batman: The Movie

Tall, suave and sophisticated Cesar Romero actually had two claims to fame in Hollywood. To one generation, he was the distinguished Latin lover of numerous musicals and romantic comedies, and the rogue bandit The Cisco Kid in a string of low-budget westerns. However, to a younger generation weaned...

15. Frank Gorshin

Actor | Twelve Monkeys

Frank John Gorshin, Jr. was born on April 5, 1933 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His father was a railroad worker and his mother, Frances (Preseren), was a seamstress. His family was originally from Novo Mesto, Slovenia. While in high school, young Frank worked as an usher at the Sheridan Square ...

16. Vincent Price

Actor | The Abominable Dr. Phibes

Actor, raconteur, art collector and connoisseur of haute cuisine are just some of the attributes associated with Vincent Price. He was born Vincent Leonard Price, Jr. in St. Louis, Missouri, to Marguerite Cobb "Daisy" (Wilcox) and Vincent Leonard Price, who was President of the National Candy ...

17. Jim Nabors

Actor | Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.

Tall, spade-jawed, hopelessly genial balladeer/actor Jim Nabors was born in James Thurston Nabors on June 12, 1930 in Sylacauga, Alabama and raised there, graduating from the University of Alabama. A typing clerk at the United Nations in his salad days, he eventually moved to Los Angeles, ...

18. Charles Nelson Reilly

Actor | Millennium

Charles Nelson Reilly was born to Charles Joseph Reilly and Signe Elvera Nelson. His father was Irish-American and Catholic, his mother was Swedish-American and Lutheran. As a child he amused himself with improvised puppet theater performances.

He had a traumatic experience in 1944, when present for...

19. Katherine Helmond

Actress | Overboard

Katherine Marie Helmond was born on July 5, 1929, in Galveston, Texas. After her parents divorced, she was raised by her mother, Thelma (nee Malone) Helmond, and her maternal grandmother, both of Irish Catholic descent. She attended Catholic school, and appeared in numerous school plays and ...

20. James Best

Actor | The Dukes of Hazzard

American character actor and teacher. Born Jewel Guy in Powderly, Kentucky, on July 26, 1926, he was orphaned at three and adopted by Armen and Essa Knowland Best, who renamed him James Knowland Best and raised him in Corydon, Indiana. Following high school he worked briefly as a metalworker before...

21. Nedra Volz

Actress | Filthy Rich

An apple dumpling of a darling, character actress Nedra Volz had one of those slightly vacant, twinkly-eyed faces absolutely designed for light sitcoms and commercial work. Although she didn't come into her own until past retirement age, she enjoyed a solid two-decade ride delightfully amusing ...

22. John Ritter

Actor | Sling Blade

Jonathan Southworth Ritter was born in Burbank, California, on September 17, 1948. He was the son of legendary country singer/actor Tex Ritter (born Woodward Maurice Ritter) and his wife, actress Dorothy Fay (née Dorothy Fay Southworth). The couple married in 1941 and had their first child, Tom ...

23. Ray Charles

Actor | The Blues Brothers

A tragic fate may have given this visionary a heightened sensitivity, perception, awareness, even expansion to his obvious musical gifts that he may have never touched upon had he not suffered from his physical affliction. Whatever it was, Ray Charles revolutionized American music and was ...

24. Chuck Connors

Actor | Tourist Trap

Chuck Connors was born Kevin Joseph Connors in Brooklyn, New York, to Marcella (nee Lundrigan; died 1971) and Alban Francis "Allan" Connors (died 1966), Roman Catholic immigrants of Irish descent from the Dominion of Newfoundland (now part of Canada). Chuck and his two-years-younger sister, Gloria,...

25. Dabbs Greer

Actor | The Green Mile

Dabbs Greer was a very familiar face in films and especially on TV. He was a sort of "everyman" in his roles and played merchants, preachers, businessmen, and other "pillars of the community" types as well as assorted villains. With his plain looking face, wavy hair and mellow, distinctive voice he...

26. Bob Hope

Actor | The Ghost Breakers

Comedian Bob Hope was born Leslie Townes Hope in Eltham, London, England, the fifth of seven sons of Avis (Townes), light opera singer, and William Henry Hope, a stonemason from Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. His maternal grandmother was Welsh. Hope moved to Bristol before emigrating with his parents...

27. Ron Glass

Actor | Serenity

Ron Glass was born on July 10, 1945 in Evansville, Indiana, USA. He was an actor and director, known for Serenity (2005), Barney Miller (1975) and Firefly (2002). He died on November 25, 2016 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

28. Anton LaVey

Actor | The Devil's Rain

Anton Szandor LaVey was born April 11, 1930 to Joseph and Augusta LaVey. His father was a liquor salesman. They soon moved to the San Francisco, California area. The name LaVey came from an immigrant ancestor who in passing through Ellis Island was given the name of his place of origin, Levey, ...

29. James Brown

Actor | The Blues Brothers

James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 - December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer, and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honorific nicknames "Godfather of Soul", "Mr. Dynamite", and ...

30. Jerry Reed

Soundtrack | Smokey and the Bandit

Tall, blond haired country & western singer / songwriter from Atlanta Georgia, who usually appears in films portraying good humored Southern type characters. Reed was already writing and singing music in high school, and was signed by Capitol Records to a three-year contract in 1955. However, in ...

31. Jean Speegle Howard

Actress | Apollo 13

Jean Speegle Howard was born on January 31, 1927 in Duncan, Oklahoma, USA. She was an actress, known for Apollo 13 (1995), Scrooged (1988) and Cocoon (1985). She was married to Rance Howard. She died on September 2, 2000 in Burbank, California, USA.

32. Jim Backus

Actor | Rebel Without a Cause

Jim Backus was born James Gilmore Backus on February 25, 1913 in Cleveland, Ohio. He was one of the few actors to do it all: radio, Broadway, movies, television and cartoons. After attending preparatory school in his hometown Cleveland, Backus enrolled at the American Academy of Dramatic Art, to ...

33. Richard Bull

Actor | Little House on the Prairie

Richard Bull was born on June 26, 1924 in Zion, Illinois, USA. He was an actor, known for Little House on the Prairie (1974), Sugar (2008) and The Andromeda Strain (1971). He was married to Barbara Collentine. He died on February 3, 2014 in Calabasas, California, USA.

34. Doris Day

Soundtrack | Love Me or Leave Me

One of America's most loved actresses was born Doris Mary Kappelhoff on April 3, 1922, in Cincinnati, Ohio, to Alma Sophia (Welz), a housewife, and William Joseph Kappelhoff, a music teacher and choir master. Her grandparents were all German immigrants. She had two brothers, Richard, who died ...

35. Freddie Mercury

Soundtrack | Flash Gordon

Freddie Mercury was born on the Tanzanian island of Zanzibar. His parents, Bomi and Jer Bulsara, sent him off to a private school in India, from 1955 til 1963. In 1964, he and his family flew to England. In 1966 he started his education at the Ealing College of Art, where he graduated in 1969. He ...

36. Rafael Campos

Actor | Agent for H.A.R.M.

Rafael Campos was born on May 13, 1936 in Santiago, Dominican Republic. He was an actor, known for Agent for H.A.R.M. (1966), This Could Be the Night (1957) and Centennial (1978). He was married to Dinah Washington and Sally Boyd. He died on July 9, 1985 in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, ...

37. Slim Pickens

Actor | Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb

Slim Pickens spent the early part of his career as a real cowboy and the latter part playing cowboys, and he is best remembered for a single "cowboy" image: that of bomber pilot Maj. "King" Kong waving his cowboy hat rodeo-style as he rides a nuclear bomb onto its target in the great black comedy ...

38. William Hartnell

Actor | Murder in Reverse?

William Hartnell was born on 8 January 1908, just south of St. Pancras railway station in London. In press materials in the 1940s he claimed that his father was a farmer and later a stockbroker; it turns out that he had actually been born out of wedlock, as his biography "Who's There?" states.

At ...

39. David Lewis

Actor | The Apartment

David Lewis was born on October 19, 1916 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor, known for The Apartment (1960), General Hospital (1963) and The Absent Minded Professor (1961). He died on December 11, 2000 in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.

40. Henny Youngman

Actor | Goodfellas

A career of seven decades of snappy, irreverent one-liners put Henry "Henny" Youngman at the top of most comedians' list of favorite showmen. Born in London, England, and moving to the United States when he was a baby, Youngman started his professional career as a printer in a small store. ...

41. Arnold Stang

Actor | It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

A show-stopping comic for decades, the inimitable Arnold Stang, with the trademark Runyonesque voice and thick, black glasses, started out famously on radio before branching out to include Broadway, films and especially TV. Born on September 28, 1918, in New York City (for decades he himself ...

42. Sid Haig

Actor | House of 1000 Corpses

Tall, bald and nearly always bearded, Sid Haig provided hulking menace to many a low-budget exploitation film and high-priced action film.

Sid Haig was born Sidney Eddie Mosesian on July 14, 1939 in Fresno, California, a screaming ball of hair. His parents, Roxy (Mooradian) and Haig Mosesian, an ...

43. James Doohan

Actor | Star Trek

Best known as Scotty in Star Trek he was educated at High School in Sarnia, Ontario, where he acted in school productions.

When WWII began he joined the Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery eventually obtaining the rank of Captain. He was wounded on D-Day, suffering severe damage to his right middle...

44. Merritt Butrick

Actor | Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

Merritt Butrick was an American actor from Gainesville, Florida. He is primarily remembered for portraying Dr. David Marcus in the science fiction films "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" (1982) and "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984). His character was depicted as a son of the Starfleet ...

45. William Hickey

Actor | National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

Son of Edward & Nora Hickey. Best known as the ancient Mafia don in Prizzi's Honor (1985), Hickey had a long, distinguished career in film, television, and the stage. Began career as a child actor on the variety stage. Made Broadway debut as walk-on in George Bernard Shaw's "Saint Joan" (1951 ...

46. Eva Gabor

Actress | Green Acres

Eva Gabor was born on February 11, 1919 in Budapest, Hungary, to Jolie Gabor (née Janka Tilleman) and Vilmos Gabor (born Farkas Miklós Grün), a soldier. Her older siblings were Magda Gabor, an actress, and Zsa Zsa Gabor, an actress and socialite. Her parents were both from Jewish families. She went...

47. Magda Gabor

Actress | Mai lányok

Magda Gabor was born on June 11, 1914 in Budapest, Austria-Hungary [now Hungary]. She was an actress, known for Mai lányok (1937), Tokaji rapszódia (1937) and The Colgate Comedy Hour (1950). She was married to Tibor Heltai, George Sanders, Tony Gallucci, Sidney R. Warren, William ...

48. Mark Blum

Actor | Desperately Seeking Susan

Mark Blum was born on May 14, 1950 in Newark, New Jersey, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for Desperately Seeking Susan (1985), Crocodile Dundee (1986) and The Sopranos (1999). He was married to Janet Zarish. He died on March 26, 2020 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA.

49. David Huddleston

Actor | The Big Lebowski

David Huddleston was born on September 17, 1930 in Vinton, Virginia, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for The Big Lebowski (1998), Blazing Saddles (1974) and The Producers (2005). He was married to Sarah C. Koeppe and Carole Ann Swart. He died on August 2, 2016 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA.

50. Roy Horn

Actor | Vegas Vacation

He grew up in broken circumstances. The father was a drug addict and he ran away from his parents' home when he was still a child. Attracted by big cats, he found a job at the zoo, where he became particularly friendly with a cheetah named "Chico." Here Roy found his talent for dressage, which he ...

51. Alan Merrill

Soundtrack | The Covenant

Alan Merrill was the singer and songwriter of the original version of the 1975 Arrows version of the classic song "I love rock n roll." The song has since been covered by Joan Jett and Britney Spears. Alan Merrill started his career as a foreign domestic pop-star in the Japanese market, and was ...

52. Hilary Heath

Actress | Wuthering Heights

British 60s leading lady and latterly producer, born Hilary Dwyer in Liverpool, the daughter of an orthopaedic surgeon. She studied ballet and piano as a child and in her teens embarked on an acting career on the repertory stage. On screen from 1965, she became best known for three horror films ...

53. Allen Daviau

Cinematographer | E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

Allen Daviau was born on June 14, 1942 in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. He was a cinematographer and writer, known for E.T. (1982), Empire of the Sun (1987) and Bugsy (1991). He died on April 15, 2020 in Woodland Hills, California, USA.

54. Joel Rogosin

Producer | The Virginian

Joel Rogosin was born on October 30, 1932 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. He was a producer and writer, known for The Virginian (1962), Ironside (1967) and The Bold Ones: The New Doctors (1969). He was married to Deborah. He died on April 21, 2020 in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.

55. Matteo De Cosmo

Art_director | 21 Bridges

Matteo De Cosmo was born on April 4, 1968 in Italy. He was an art director and production designer, known for 21 Bridges (2019), Precious (2009) and Choke (2008). He was married to Aris Mejías. He died on April 21, 2020 in New York, New York, USA.

56. Cookie Mueller

Actress | Pink Flamingos

Dorothy Karen "Cookie" Mueller was born 2 March, 1949 in Baltimore, Maryland. The daughter of Frank Lennert Mueller and Anne Mueller, Cookie had two siblings: brother Michael and sister Judy. Mueller grew up in the suburbs of Baltimore and acquired the nickname 'Cookie' when she was a baby. Cookie ...

57. Paul Swift

Actor | Pink Flamingos

Paul Swift was born on August 18, 1934 in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. He was an actor, known for Pink Flamingos (1972), Desperate Living (1977) and Female Trouble (1974). He died on October 7, 1994 in Baltimore, Maryland, USA.

58. Ian Holm

Actor | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Sir Ian Holm was one of the world's greatest actors, a Laurence Olivier Award-winning, Tony Award-winning, BAFTA-winning and Academy Award-nominated British star of films and the stage. He was a member of the prestigious Royal Shakespeare Company and has played more than 100 roles in films and on ...

59. Harry Morgan

Actor | M*A*S*H

Harry Morgan was a prolific character actor who starred in over 100 films and was a stage performer. Known to a younger generation of fans as "Col. Sherman T. Potter" on M*A*S*H (1972). Also known for his commanding personality throughout his career, he tackled movies and television in a way no ...

60. Billy Booth

Actor | Dennis the Menace

Billy Booth was born on November 7, 1949 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an actor, known for Dennis the Menace (1959), Assignment: Underwater (1960) and The Detectives (1959). He was married to Kathern. He died on December 31, 2006 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.

61. Leo McKern

Actor | Ladyhawke

Although he sounded very British, Leo McKern was an Australian. By the time he was 15 years old, he had endured an accident that left him without his left eye. A glass eye replaced it - one might conjecture for the better, as far as making McKern a one-day actor of singular focus (no pun intended; ...

62. Neil Simon

Writer | The Odd Couple

Neil Simon was born on July 4, 1927 in The Bronx, New York City, New York, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for The Odd Couple (1968), Murder by Death (1976) and The Goodbye Girl (1977). He was married to Elaine Joyce, Diane Lander, Marsha Mason and Joan Baim. He died on August 26, 2018 in ...

63. Edward Woodward

Actor | The Wicker Man

British actor Edward Woodward made a highly successful transition into Hollywood TV stardom in the mid 1980s thanks to a popular dramatic series. Possessing a magnetic, yet coldly handsome demeanor in the same mold as Christopher Plummer, he was born Edward Albert Arthur Woodward on June 1, 1930, ...

64. John Neville

Actor | The Adventures of Baron Munchausen

When John Neville was in his early sixties, Terry Gilliam cast him in the title role of The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988). Although the film was a financial failure, Neville's starring role in this major production, as well as his fine performance, led to an explosion in his career. He ...

65. Phil Spector

Soundtrack | Top Gun

Phil Spector was born on December 26, 1939 in The Bronx, New York, USA. He was a composer and actor, known for Top Gun (1986), Mean Streets (1973) and Dirty Dancing (1987). He was married to Rachelle Marie Short , Janis Lynn Zavala, Ronnie Spector and Annette Lee Merar. He died on January 16, 2021 ...

66. Franklyn Seales

Actor | Southern Comfort

Franklyn Seales was a stage and television actor best remembered for playing the finicky business manager Dexter Stuffins on the NBC sit-com "Silver Spoons." He also appeared in films, most notably as the real-life cop killer in "The Onion Field."

One of eight children, Seales was born in 1952 on ...

67. Charlton Heston

Actor | Ben-Hur

With features chiseled in stone, and renowned for playing a long list of historical figures, particularly in Biblical epics, the tall, well-built and ruggedly handsome Charlton Heston was one of Hollywood's top leading men of his prime and remained active in front of movie cameras for over sixty ...

68. Richard Hatch

Actor | Battlestar Galactica

Born in Santa Monica, California, USA, Richard Hatch was studying classical piano at the age of eight, and knew he wanted to carve out a career as a performer before he reached his teens. After attending Harbor College in San Pedro, he joined a Los Angeles repertory company with which he traveled ...

69. Robert Hogan

Actor | Species II

Prolific American supporting actor, a reliable presence in numerous classic prime-time TV shows for over half a century. One of three siblings, Hogan served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. Upon his demobilisation he studied engineering at New York University, but an aptitude test suggested ...