In Memoriam 2012 - Movie & TV personalties that passed away this year
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- Actor
- Additional Crew
Ian Abercrombie began his theatrical career as a lad during the Blitz in World War II. After his footwork years during which he earned Bronze, Silver and Gold medals in dance for the stage, he performed in London, Holland, Ireland, and Scotland. He made his American stage debut in 1955 in a production of "Stalag 17" with Jason Robards and Jules Munshin. Many plays in summer stock, regional and off-Broadway followed in a variety of theatrical offerings, from revues to Shakespeare. During a particularly low period, he worked as a magician's assistant for $10 per performance.
In 1957, he was drafted into the Army and stationed in Germany. He was in Special Services, where he directed the Continental premiere of "Separate Tables" and toured with Olivia de Havilland in her show. Back in the USA, Ian went to California for a backers' audition. That fizzled but he began his long and successful film and television career. For four decades, his theatrical work highlights have included; "As You Like It", "Hamlet", "Misalliance", "The Good Doctor", "The Way Of The World", "Mary Stuart", "Crucifer Of Blood", "Journey's End", "The Wrong Box", "The Cocktail Party", "Bert & Maisy", "Other Places", "Bent", "Natural Causes", "The Vortex", "Rough Crossing", and "Lettice and Lovage".
He received acclaim for the one-man show "Jean Cocteau - A Mirror Image". Another highlight was playing Alfie Doolittle in "My Fair Lady". He received awards for his work in "Sweet Prince" with Keir Dullea, "Teeth N'smiles", "A Doll's House" (with Linda Purl), and "The Arcata Promise" (opposite Anthony Hopkins).- Stunts
- Additional Crew
- Actor
Bob Anderson was born on 15 September 1922 in Gosport, Hampshire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983), Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and The Mask of Zorro (1998). He was married to Pearl Anderson. He died on 1 January 2012 in West Sussex, England, UK.- Tall and rangy, usually sporting long mangy hair, and frequently projecting a strong and intense on-screen presence, character actor Luke Askew made a potent and lasting impression playing a substantial volume of mean and fearsome villains in both motion pictures and television shows alike in a career that spanned over forty years.
Askew was born on March 26, 1932 in Macon, Georgia, of English and Scandinavian descent. He first developed an interest in acting towards the end of his high school years. He attended the University of Georgia (where he initially planned on getting a B.A. in Business Administration), Mercer University, and the Walter F. George School of Law. Askew served in the U.S. Air Force in strategic air command intelligence during his college years.
Following college Askew worked as a radio deejay and television announcer prior to beginning his acting career in Off-Broadway stage productions in New York City (Askew lived in Greenwich Village in the early 1960s and kept himself afloat working as a furniture mover). Luke moved to Los Angeles in 1966 and made his film debut in 1967 in "Harry Sundown". Best known as the stranger on the highway in the hippie counterculture cult classic "Easy Rider", Askew's other memorable roles included the redoubtable Boss Paul in "Cool Hand Luke", the peaceful hippie commune leader Jonathan Tremaine in "Angel Unchained", the scary and brutal thug Automatic Slim in the grim revenge thriller "Rolling Thunder", the sleazy coroner Dexter Ward in "The Beast Within," and the no-nonsense Irish gypsy crime lord Boss Jack Costello in "Traveller".
Askew also appeared in a sizable number of Westerns made throughout the 1960s and 1970s: he had a rare lead role in the spaghetti Western "Night of the Serpent" and gave an especially fine performance as tough and stoic veteran cowpoke Luke in the gritty gem "The Culpepper Cattle Co."
Among the many TV series Askew popped up in throughout the years are "The High Chaparral", "Mission: Impossible", "Cannon", "Quincy, M.E.", "The Six Million Dollar Man", "Fantasy Island", "T.J. Hooker", "The Fall Guy", "Airwolf", "Murder, She Wrote", "Walker, Texas Ranger", "Everwood", and "Cold Case". He had a recurring role as the dangerous polygamist Hollis Greene on the acclaimed cable TV program "Big Love".
Askew died at age 80 at his home in Portland, Oregon on March 29, 2012. He was survived by his wife and his son, Christopher, a painter and tattoo artist. - Director
- Producer
- Writer
William Asher was born on 8 August 1921 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA. He was a director and producer, known for Bewitched (1964), Fireball 500 (1966) and I Love Lucy (1951). He was married to Meredith Coffin, Joyce Bulifant, Elizabeth Montgomery and Danni Sue Nolan. He died on 16 July 2012 in Palm Desert, California, USA.- Actor
- Additional Crew
Born Norman Adelberg in 1924, he served in the Army during World War II. At the end of the conflict he had the opportunity to benefit from the GI Bill program meant to help returning soldiers to start or resume studying. That is how, while attending Texas Christian University, he discovered on the boards of on-campus theater that he had a talent for acting. This was the beginning of a long, long career. Though most of the time in small or even bit parts, Alden, worked for such big names as Howard Hawks, Jerry Lewis, Walt Disney, Woody Allen and Tim Burton. He might have become a major star himself after Richard C. Sarafian chose him for the title role of Andy (1965). The director must have been very pleased with Alden for, as Andy Chadakis - the retarded son of elderly Greek immigrants - he showed remarkable acting ability . Unfortunately, the film was little seen and the gifted actor landed no other parts of such importance and quality afterward.- Actor
- Soundtrack
A golden career was reflected in his name. Robert Golden Armstrong ("Bob" to his friends) was born in Birmingham, Alabama on April 7, 1917. He attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. While there, he was frequently performing on stage with the Carolina Playmakers. After graduating, R.G. headed to New York, where his acting career really took off. In 1953, along with many of his Actors Studio buddies, he was part of the cast of "End As a Man" -- this became the first play to go from off-Broadway to Broadway. The following year, R.G. got his first taste of movies, appearing in Garden of Eden (1954). However, he returned to New York and the live stage. He received great reviews for his portrayal of Big Daddy in the Broadway production of "Cat On a Hot Tin Roof" in 1955.
In 1958, R.G. took the plunge to Hollywood -- he appeared in two movies, a television series, and did numerous guest appearances on television series that year, usually in Westerns such as The Rifleman (1958), Have Gun - Will Travel (1957) and Zane Grey Theatre (1956), among others. He would go on to appear in 80 movies and three television series in his career, and guest-starred in 90 television series, many of them Westerns, often as a tough sheriff or a rugged land baron. R.G. was a regular cast member in the television series T.H.E. Cat (1966), playing tough, one-handed Captain MacAllister. During the filming of Steel (1979) in Kentucky, watching the mammoth Kincaid Tower being built, he made some good friends in the cast: "You become a family on the set," he said in an interview at the time.
Even though he had a long, versatile career, the younger generation knows him as the demonic Lewis Vandredi (pronounced VON-drah-dee), who just would not let the main characters have a good night's sleep on the television series Friday the 13th: The Series (1987). Finally retiring after six successful decades in show business -- his last film appearance was Purgatory (1999) -- R.G. and his lovely wife Mary Craven were mostly just enjoying life in California, and still traveled and vacationed in Europe occasionally. His upbeat, fun-loving personality made him a delight for all who came in contact with him. R.G. Armstrong died at age 95 of natural causes in Studio City, California on July 27, 2012.- Actor
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Soundtrack
Neil Alden Armstrong (August 5, 1930 - August 25, 2012) was an American astronaut and aeronautical engineer, and the first person to walk on the Moon. He was also a naval aviator, test pilot, and university professor.
Armstrong was born and raised in Wapakoneta, Ohio. A graduate of Purdue University, he studied aeronautical engineering; his college tuition was paid for by the U.S. Navy under the Holloway Plan. He became a midshipman in 1949 and a naval aviator the following year. He saw action in the Korean War, flying the Grumman F9F Panther from the aircraft carrier USS Essex. In September 1951, while making a low bombing run, Armstrong's aircraft was damaged when it collided with an anti-aircraft cable, strung across a valley, which cut off a large portion of one wing. Armstrong was forced to bail out. After the war, he completed his bachelor's degree at Purdue and became a test pilot at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) High-Speed Flight Station at Edwards Air Force Base in California. He was the project pilot on Century Series fighters and flew the North American X-15 seven times. He was also a participant in the U.S. Air Force's Man in Space Soonest and X-20 Dyna-Soar human spaceflight programs.
Armstrong joined the NASA Astronaut Corps in the second group, which was selected in 1962. He made his first spaceflight as command pilot of Gemini 8 in March 1966, becoming NASA's first civilian astronaut to fly in space. During this mission with pilot David Scott, he performed the first docking of two spacecraft; the mission was aborted after Armstrong used some of his re-entry control fuel to stabilize a dangerous roll caused by a stuck thrust. During training for Armstrong's second and last spaceflight as commander of Apollo 11, he had to eject from the Lunar Landing Research Vehicle moments before a crash. On July 20, 1969, Armstrong and Apollo 11 Lunar Module (LM) pilot Buzz Aldrin became the first people to land on the Moon, and the next day they spent two and a half hours outside the Lunar Module Eagle spacecraft while Michael Collins remained in lunar orbit in the Apollo Command Module Columbia. When Armstrong first stepped onto the lunar surface, he famously said: "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." It was broadcast live to an estimated 530 million viewers worldwide. Apollo 11 effectively proved US victory in the Space Race, by fulfilling a national goal proposed in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy "of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth" before the end of the decade. Along with Collins and Aldrin, Armstrong was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Richard Nixon and received the 1969 Collier Trophy. President Jimmy Carter presented him with the Congressional Space Medal of Honor in 1978, he was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1979, and with his former crew-mates received the Congressional Gold Medal in 2009.
After he resigned from NASA in 1971, Armstrong taught in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at the University of Cincinnati until 1979. He served on the Apollo 13 accident investigation and on the Rogers Commission, which investigated the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster. In 2012, Armstrong died due to complications resulting from coronary bypass surgery, at the age of 82.- Writer
- Producer
- Director
Gerry Anderson was born on 14 April 1929 in West Hampstead, London, England, UK. He was a writer and producer, known for Joe 90 (1968), Invasion: UFO (1974) and UFO (1970). He was married to Mary Robins, Sylvia Anderson and Betty Wrightman. He died on 26 December 2012 in Henley-on-Thames, England, UK.- Director
- Writer
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Pete Ariel was born on 20 January 1941 in Berlin, Germany. He was a director and writer, known for Peter Strohm (1989), Tatort (1970) and Unendlich tief unten (1977). He died on 7 August 2012 in Berlin, Germany.- Phillip R. Allen was born on 26 March 1939 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor, known for Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984), The Lady in Red (1979) and The Bad News Bears (1979). He was married to Joanie. He died on 1 March 2012 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
Fred Alexander was born on 16 June 1927 in Augsburg, Germany. He was an actor, known for The Secret Life of Pets 2 (2019), The Liberation of Prague (1977) and Dny zrady (1973). He died on 15 December 2012 in Augsburg, Bavaria, Germany.- Actress
- Sound Department
Dimitra Arliss' acting career began at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, she first caught audience's eyes appearing in Arthur Kopit's Broadway play "Indians", she played a Native American character who spoke with an Italian accent. While she continued acting on stage, she began to appear in several television and film productions, such as The Sting (1973), Xanadu (1980), Firefox (1982) and It's My Party (1996). To horror film aficionados, Dimitra is best remembered as Dahnya in Bless the Child (2000); it would be her last film before dying from complications of a stroke, she died at the Motion Picture and Television Fund Hospital in Woodland Hills, California. She was 79.- Actor
- Director
- Producer
Vadim Glowna was born on 26 September 1941 in Eutin, Germany. He was an actor and director, known for Cross of Iron (1977), Desperado City (1981) and Dies rigorose Leben (1983). He was married to Vera Tschechowa. He died on 24 January 2012 in Berlin, Germany.- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Towje Kleiner was born on 4 April 1948 in Föhrenwald, Germany. He was an actor and writer, known for Der Durchdreher (1979), The Odessa File (1974) and Familie Meier (1980). He died on 9 January 2012 in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.- Actor
- Director
- Executive
Robert Hegyes was born in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, to an Hungarian-American father, Stephen, and an Italian-American mother, Marie Dominica (Cocozza). He is the eldest of their children. The others are: Mark Hegyes, MD - Billings, Montana, Ms. Stephanie Hegyes - Princeton, New Jersey, and Ms. Elizabeth Cocozza - Los Angeles, California.
Robert began studying acting in earnest at Metuchen High School under the direction of Dr. Barton Shepard, Ph.D, in the mid-1960s. He was accepted into the Theater Program at Rown University of New Jersey (formerly Glassboro State College) and, in the early 1970s, graduated with a BA in Theater & Secondary Education. Hegyes then ventured into New York City to practice his trade, immediately taking up with the "Greenwich Village Children's Repertory Companies", "Theater in a Trunk", and "The NYC Children's Puppet Ensemble". In short order Robert hooked up with his third Greenwhich Village troupe, "Jack LaRumpa's Flying Drum & Kazoo Band", performing improvisational anti-war comedy in Washington Square and the Provincetown Playhouse.
Within a year of graduating from Rowan, Hegyes was cast to co-star in the Manhattan Theater Club Emsmble's highly-acclaimed drama, "Naomi Court", which starred another young actor, Brad Davis (of Midnight Express (1978)). After completing that successful engagement Robert was tapped to co-star for Tony Award-winning actor/director Len Cariou, A Little Night Music (1977) & Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1982), in the Broadway drama, "Don't Call Back", starring Arlene Francis at the Helen Hayes Theater. It was during the run of that Broadway drama that he was cast by producer James Komack to star in the award-winning comedy series, Welcome Back, Kotter (1975) and, at the age of twenty-five, became one of the show's directors.
Robert has guest-starred in over thirty episodic series, including Saturday Night Live (1975) with host Quentin Tarantino, Diagnosis Murder (1993) with Dick Van Dyke and The Drew Carey Show (1995). He has starred in the award-nominated "Passat" commercial, "The Chase", for director Kinka Usher and in the feature films, Honeymoon Hotel (2004) opposite Jane Kaczmarek, Underground Aces (1981) with Melanie Griffith, Bob Roberts (1992) for director Tim Robbins, Purpose (2002) starring Mia Farrow, and Bar Hopping (2000) alongside Kevin Nealon.
Hegyes made his Los Angeles stage debut to rave notices as Chico Marx in Arthur Marx's play, "An Evening with Groucho", and was shortly thereafter cast as a series regular starring in the award-winning drama, Cagney & Lacey (1981). Robert has been awarded a lifetime artist-in-residence status at his alma mater and has taught there and continues to guest lecture regularly. He is also a California Certified Secondary Education Teacher and teaches for the Los Angeles Unified School District at Venice High School.
As a long-time resident of Venice, California, Robert and partner Craig Titley, (Cheaper by the Dozen (2003)) developed the original Internet series, "The Venice Walk".- Jenny Tomasin shot to fame in the UK in the early 1970s when she joined the cast of Upstairs, Downstairs (1971) playing the scullery maid Ruby. She stayed with the series right until the end, appearing in forty one episodes. When the series ended in 1975, plans were drawn up for a spin-off series following the further adventures of Ruby with Hudson and Mrs Bridges. Sadly the series was never made following the sad death of Angela Baddeley who played Mrs Bridges.
After that, Tomasin joined Emmerdale Farm (1972) for a stint as Naomi Tolly from 1981-82 and made guest appearances in such shows as That's My Boy (1981) and Doctor Who (1963).
Tomasin worked mainly in the theatre after that. Shows including a tour of Lettice and Lovage and a West End run in 2004 in The Marquise by Noël Coward playing yet another maid, this time called Alice.
In later years Tomasin's TV appearances had been confined to talking about her time in Upstairs, Downstairs (1971) but in 2005 all this changed when she returned to Emmerdale Farm (1972) - this time as a new character Noreen Bell, a cantankerous villager who seems certain to cause strife for those who get in her way. - Actor
- Soundtrack
James Farentino was an American actor, with many appearances in film and television. He is better known for playing fisherman and apostle Simon Peter in the miniseries "Jesus of Nazareth" (1977), and revenge-seeking psychiatrist Dr. Nick Toscanni in the soap opera "Dynasty". He played the role of Toscanni from 1981 to 1982.
Farentino was born in Brooklyn, New York City. He studied drama and acting in a Catholic school. He was frequently cast in guest-star roles in television through the 1950s and 1960s. His first recurring role was that of lawyer Neil Darrell in the legal drama "The Bold Ones: The Lawyers" (1968-1972). He appeared in 19 of the series' 29 episodes.
Farentino found critical acclaim in his role as Simon Peter in "Jesus of Nazareth" (1977. He was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie, but the award was instead won by rival actor Howard Da Silva (1909-1986).
Farentino next found a notable recurring role in the soap opera "Dynasty" as psychiatrist Dr. Nick Toscanni. Originally introduced as an old friend of protagonist Blake Carrington (played John Forsythe), Carrington was eventually revealed as a secret enemy of Carrington who held a grudge against him. Toscanni's vengeful plots were among the main subplots of the series' second season, but he was then written out.
In the 1990s, Farentino continued working an an actor, but he gained more notoriety for his personal life. In 1991 he was arrested for cocaine possession, and in 1993 he was charged with stalking his former girlfriend Tina Sinatra. Later he had a troubled marriage with his fourth wife Stella Farentino.
In the 2000s, Farentino entered retirement from acting, due to health problems. In 2010, Farentino was arrested on suspicion of misdemeanor battery, because he tried to physically remove a man from his house. Farentino was briefly held by the Los Angeles Police Department. He was released after posting a 20,000 dollars bond.
In January 2012, Farentino died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. His death was caused from complications due to a right hip fracture. He was 73-years-old at the time of death, dying a full month before his 74th birthday.- Costume Designer
- Director
- Production Designer
Eiko Ishioka was born on 12 July 1938 in Tokyo, Japan. She was a costume designer and director, known for Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992), The Cell (2000) and The Fall (2006). She was married to Nico Soultanakis. She died on 21 January 2012 in Tokyo, Japan.- Producer
- Director
- Actor
Zalman King was born on 23 May 1942 in Trenton, New Jersey, USA. He was a producer and director, known for 9½ Weeks (1986), Galaxy of Terror (1981) and In God's Hands (1998). He was married to Patricia Louisianna Knop. He died on 3 February 2012 in Santa Monica, California, USA.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Ben Gazzara's screen career began with two critically acclaimed roles as heavies in the late 1950s. He turned to television in the 1960s but made a big screen comeback with roles in three John Cassavetes films in the 1970s. The 1980s and 1990s saw Gazzara work more frequently than ever before in character parts. If he never became the leading man his early films and stage work promised, he had a career notable for its longevity. He was born Biagio Anthony Gazzara on August 28, 1930, in New York City. The son of a Sicilian immigrant laborer, he grew up on New York's tough Lower East Side. After seeing Laurette Taylor in "The Glass Menagerie," Gazzara decided he wanted to become an actor. He studied engineering (unhappily) but quit after receiving an acting scholarship (he worked under well-known coach Erwin Piscator).
Gazzara then joined the Actors Studio, where a group of students improvised a play from Calder Willingham's novel End as a Man. The tale of a brutal southern military academy reached Broadway slightly changed in 1953 but with Gazzara still in the principal role. It was a star making part (he won a Theatre World award) and he then played leads in the original productions of "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" (1955) and "A Hatful of Rain" (1955) (he was nominated for a Tony). Bigger names Paul Newman and Don Murray played those last two roles on the big screen but Gazzara made his movie debut in The Strange One (1957) the film version of "End as a Man." The film was a critical but not commercial success. His next role was as the defendant in Anatomy of a Murder (1959) which was a big hit.
Gazzara followed this with an Italian venture co-starring Anna Magnani, The Passionate Thief (1960), two Hollywood films The Young Doctors (1961) and Convicts 4 (1962) and then another Italian film Conquered City (1962). None of these did much for his career, and he turned to television. He appeared in the successful series Arrest and Trial (1963) and Run for Your Life (1965). In between, he made A Rage to Live (1965), a film version of John O'Hara's novel. He returned to films in The Bridge at Remagen (1969) and with a cameo appearance in If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium (1969). His buddy in the cameo was John Cassavetes, who directed and co-starred with him in Husbands (1970), a critical success. Gazzara made two more well-received films with his good friend Cassavetes: The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976) and Opening Night (1977).
Gazzara's other films in the 1970s were undistinguished apart from the sprawling Voyage of the Damned (1976) and a rare leading role in director Peter Bogdanovich's Saint Jack (1979). Bloodline (1979) and They All Laughed (1981) (also directed by Bogdanovich) were only notable because of Gazzara's off-screen relationship with co-star Audrey Hepburn (ironically, Gazzara had declined to make his screen debut in War and Peace (1956) starring Hepburn). Tales of Ordinary Madness (1981) was another lead for Gazzara, but it received a mixed critical reception. Other big-screen roles in the 1980s were scarce apart from Road House (1989), a Patrick Swayze vehicle that Gazzara believed out of all his films had been the most repeated on television. He worked much on the small screen, including the groundbreaking television movie An Early Frost (1985), playing the father of an AIDS victim.
The 1990s saw Gazzara working like never before, appearing in 38 films. Most were for free-to-air television or cable but he also worked on the big screen in The Spanish Prisoner (1997), The Big Lebowski (1998), Happiness (1998) and Summer of Sam (1999). His television work included a guest appearance as an executive assistant attorney in a 2001 episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999)- a nice touch since
Gazzara has often returned to the stage throughout his career-in "The Night Circus" (1958) (where he met second wife Janice Rule), "Strange Interlude" (1963), "Traveller Without Luggage" (1964), Hughie/Duet (1975) (nominated for a Tony), "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" (1976) (again Tony nominated), and "Shimada" (1992). He has also worked as a director on episodes his series Run for Your Life (1965) and The Name of the Game (1968) and the television movies A Friend in Deed (1974) and Troubled Waters (1975) featuring his friend Peter Falk. The unreleased Beyond the Ocean (1990) (which he also wrote) was his final film as a director.
In 2003 Gazzara appeared in the independent Dogville (2003) adding Lars von Trier to the list of interesting and acclaimed directors with whom he has worked. There can't be many actors who can boast that they have acted in films by Otto Preminger (Anatomy of a Murder (1959)), John Cassavetes, Joel Coen (The Big Lebowski (1998)), Spike Lee (Summer of Sam (1999)), and Lars von Trier, among others. Ben Gazzara died at age 81 of pancreatic cancer on February 3, 2012.- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Edgar Bessen was born on 11 November 1933 in Hamburg, Germany. He was an actor and writer, known for Tratsch im Treppenhaus (1966), Blankenese (1994) and Tratsch im Treppenhaus (1962). He was married to Heidi Koehn. He died on 2 February 2012 in Hamburg, Germany.- Breck was born Joseph Peter Breck, the son of a jazz musician also named Joseph (nicknamed "Jobie"). Over time, his father worked with such legendary greats as Fats Waller, Bix Beiderbecke, Paul Whiteman and Billie Holiday. Nicknamed "Buddy" while young, Peter's parents were on the road for much of his early life and he was sent to live with his grandparents in Haverhill, Massachusetts, a move that provided more stability.
His parents eventually divorced and young Peter returned to Rochester to live with his mother and her new husband, Al Weber, who was a sports editor of the Rochester Times-Union. Following his schooling at John Marshall High School in Rochester, Peter served in the United States Navy. He then turned his attention back to education and studied English and drama at the University of Houston in Houston. While performing in college plays, he started to apprentice at Houston's Alley Theatre, where he appeared in such productions as "Stalag 17", among others. He had a talent for singing and performed in several clubs in and around the Houston area.
Breck extended his stage resume at Washington D.C.'s Arena Theatre. While performing there in a 1957 production of George Bernard Shaw's "The Man of Destiny", he was "discovered" by Robert Mitchum, who cast him in an unbilled role in the film Thunder Road (1958), which Mitchum himself produced, co-wrote and starred in. Mitchum invited the young tenderfoot to Los Angeles and helped set him up out there. While Breck struggled trying to establish himself in films (he played a juvenile delinquent in the movie The Beatniks (1958)), it seemed that rugged TV roles came easier to him. He found his first series lead as "Clay Culhane" in the western Black Saddle (1959), the story of a gunfighter (Breck) who switches guns for law books and tries to tame the West through reason. Co-starring Russell Johnson (later the "Professor" on Gilligan's Island (1964)), who plays a suspicious U.S. Marshal, the series was canceled after two seasons.
A Warner Brothers studio contract, however, did come out of this-and a new visibility. Tall, dark and handsome at 6'2", Breck guest-starred on all the top Warner Bros. TV shows of the day: Sugarfoot (1957), Surfside 6 (1960), Bronco (1958), Hawaiian Eye (1959), 77 Sunset Strip (1958), Cheyenne (1955) and played a recurring "Doc Holliday" in the popular series Maverick (1957). He returned to the movies as well, but this time in stronger leads or co-leads. Handed a choice co-starring assignment in Portrait of a Mobster (1961) opposite star Vic Morrow, who played the infamous "Dutch Schultz", Peter also managed to show a rare, gentler side in the outdoor family drama Lad: A Dog (1962).
He left Warners after only a few years but managed to score the leads in two low-budget cult thrillers in its wake: Shock Corridor (1963)_ and The Crawling Hand (1963), along with a very dismal lead in the musical outing Hootenanny Hoot (1963), in which he was given no songs to perform despite his singing capabilities. Again, TV came to the rescue when he won the brotherly co-lead on The Big Valley (1965). Despite a uniformly strong ensemble cast that included oldest brother Richard Long, younger brother Lee Majors and sister Linda Evans, Stanwyck was the only performer on the show who was nominated for an Emmy during its four-season run; she was nominated twice and won once.
Following this TV peak, Breck abruptly left Hollywood and focused on the theater both in the U.S. and Canada throughout the 1970s, appearing in such showcase vehicles as "The Gazebo", "A Thousand Clowns", "The Rainmaker" and "Mister Roberts". Married to former dancer Diana Bourne since 1960, the couple settled in Vancouver, Canada, with their son Christopher, where Breck checked out the film scene. He also set up a full-time acting academy school, The Breck Academy, which ran for ten years. Tragically, it was during this time that their son, Christopher, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia and died (two years later).
Breck decided to lay back following this traumatic period, but still manages to perform in films and TV from time to time. As he grew older, he joined the cast of some very offbeat "B" films: Terminal City Ricochet (1990) and and Highway 61 (1991). His more recent "B" movies included Decoy (1995), Enemy Action (1999) and Jiminy Glick in Lalawood (2004). He also wrote a western column and showed up occasionally at nostalgia conventions until he was diagnosed with dementia. He made his last film with a small role in the Martin Short vehicle Jiminy Glick in Lalawood (2004). Breck died on February 6, 2012, in Vancouver, Canada. - Actor
- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
S. William Hinzman was born on 24 October 1936 in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor and cinematographer, known for FleshEater (1988), Night of the Living Dead (1968) and The Crazies (1973). He was married to Bonnie Hinzman. He died on 5 February 2012 in South Beaver Township, Pennsylvania, USA.- Actor
- Additional Crew
Sam Coppola was born on 31 July 1935 in Jersey City, New Jersey, USA. He was an actor, known for Saturday Night Fever (1977), Fatal Attraction (1987) and Jacob's Ladder (1990). He was married to Helen Elizabeth Shinnick. He died on 5 February 2012 in Leonia, New Jersey, USA.- Music Artist
- Actress
- Producer
Whitney Elizabeth Houston was born into a musical family on 9 August 1963, in Newark, New Jersey, the daughter of gospel star Cissy Houston (née Emily Lee Drinkard) and John Russell Houston, Jr., and cousin of singing star Dionne Warwick.
She began singing in the choir at her church, The New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, as a young child and by the age of 15 was singing backing vocals professionally with her mother on Chaka Khan's 1978 hit, 'I'm Every Woman'. She went on to provide backing vocals for Lou Rawls, Jermaine Jackson and her own mother and worked briefly as a model, appearing on the cover of 'Seventeen' magazine in 1981.
She began working as a featured vocalist for the New York-based funk band Material and it was the quality of her vocal work with them that attracted the attention of the major record labels, including Arista with whom she signed in 1983 and where she stayed for the rest of her career.
Her debut album, 'Whitney Houston', was released in 1985 and became the biggest-selling album by a debut artist. Several hit singles, including 'Saving All My Love For You', 'How Will I Know', 'You Give Good Love', and 'The Greatest Love of All', were released from the album, setting her up for a Beatles-beating seven consecutive US number ones. The album itself sold 3 million copies in its first year in the US and went on to sell 25 million worldwide, winning her the first of her six Grammies.
The 1987 follow-up album, 'Whitney', which included the hits 'Where Do Broken Hearts Go' and 'I Wanna Dance With Somebody', built on her success but it was the 1992 film The Bodyguard (1992) that sealed her place as one of the best-selling artists of all time. While the movie itself and her performance in it were not highly praised, the soundtrack album and her cover of the Dolly Parton song 'I Will Always Love You' topped the singles and albums charts for months and sold 44 million copies around the world.
That same year she married ex-New Edition singer Bobby Brown with whom she had her only child, their daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown in March 1993. It was about this time that her much documented drug use began and by 1996 she was a daily user.
Her 1998 album, 'My Love Is Your Love' was well reviewed but the drug abuse began to affect her reputation and press reports at the time said that she was becoming difficult to work with, if she turned up at all. She was dropped from a performance at The 72nd Annual Academy Awards (2000) because she was "out of it" at rehearsals. Her weight fluctuated wildly - she was so thin at a 'Michael Jackson' tribute in 2001 that rumors circulated the next day that she had died - and her voice began to fail her. She was twice admitted to rehab and declared herself drug-free in 2010 but returned to rehab in May 2011.
Her 2009 comeback album 'I Look To You' was positively received and sold well, but promotional performances were still marred by her weakened voice. Her final acting performance was in Sparkle (2012) (a remake of the 1976 movie, Sparkle (1976)), released after her death.
She was found dead in a Beverly Hills hotel room on 11 February 2012.- Born Dublin, Ireland on July 11 1929. Educated at Synge Street Catholic boys school. Started acting aged 8 in the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin. Playing everything from Beckett to Shakespeare, he has appeared in theatre, TV and film constantly since 1959. Awards include: Helen Hayes Award, Outstanding Supporting Performer, Non-Resident Production (1991) for "The Playboy of the Western World"; nominated for SAG Award, Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role (1999) for Waking Ned Devine (1998); ESB Lifetime Achievement award for work in the Irish theatre. He lived in Dublin, Ireland, where he died on 12 February 2012 at the age of 82. Children: Son, David. Daughter, Miriam.
- Actor
- Music Department
- Writer
Davy Jones left home to become a jockey. While he was an apprentice, he was encouraged to go into acting and got a role in a production of "Peter Pan". From there, he played on Coronation Street (1960) and The Pickwick Papers (1952) before landing the role of "The Artful Dodger" in "Oliver!". This job took him to America's Broadway, where he was discovered by Ward Sylvester and brought to Los Angeles. From there, he was given a role in The Monkees (1965). With this sitcom, he made 58 television episodes, 9 albums, a television special, and a movie before calling it quits in the early 1970s. In the mid-1970s, Davy rejoined fellow Monkee Micky Dolenz and songwriters Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart to make an album and do some touring. Davy had gone on to perform in more plays, including "The Real Live Brady Bunch" and "Oliver!" (again), and had also fulfilled his dream of becoming a jockey. He rejoined The Monkees for touring from 1986-89 and 1996-97. Davy Jones died at age 66 of a heart attack on February 29, 2012.- Actor
- Composer
- Music Department
In his childhood he was trained on the piano. As a 16-year-old student, he played piano in the Black Clan school orchestra. Later he learned to play the trumpet. In 1940/41 he was trained in harmony and composition at the Bern Conservatory by Albert Moeschlinger. After graduating from high school, he became second trumpeter in Fred Böhler's formation. Afterwards, military service briefly interrupted his music career. He then started in Jeo Grandjean's orchestra. From 1943 he played again in Fred Böhler's newly founded big band. The following year he played music as first trumpet in saxophonist Eddie Brunner's band "Original Teddies", which was previously led by Teddy Stauffer.
In the same year he formed his own professional jazz band. Shortly afterwards, due to an increase in members, it became a nine-piece orchestra with singer Kitty Ramon. In 1947 he expanded the formation to a 12-man big band and then to 16 members. A year later, Osterwald founded the later legendary Hazy Osterwald sextet, which debuted at the "International Jazz Festival" in Paris, where renowned jazz artists such as Charlie Parker also performed. The initial band members included Ernst Höllerhagen (clarinet), Sunny Lang (bass), Gil Cuppini (drums), Pierre Cavalli (guitar), Francis Burger (piano). Osterwald's sextet quickly achieved international success - also through their humorous stage show. The musicians performed in major European cities, such as Stockholm and Lisbon. From 1954 onwards the film was attractive.
The Hazy Osterwald sextet appeared, among other things, in the film "A Little Big Journey" (1954). The big musical breakthrough in the entertainment genre came in 1959 with the hit "Criminal Tango". The following year, Hazy Osterwald was no longer able to quite match the previous year's success with the so-called Konjunktur Cha Cha, the second big hit "Go with the Konjunktur", which deals with the economic miracle, as well as with the title "Panoptikum" ( 1960). In 1961 the feature film "The Hazy Osterwald Story" was made with Gustav Knuth, Eddie Arent and Peer Schmidt, which showed the band's success story. At the beginning of the 1960s, television audiences were able to see the band leader in his own show. Until 1979, Hazy Osterwald went on tour with his sextet. During this time he renamed his band "Hazy Osterwald Jetset".
After a break, the musician began playing jazz again in 1984 under the new band name "Hazy Osterwald and the Entertainers". Hazy Osterwald played the classic jazz percussion instrument vibraphone. In 1984 he was awarded the Prix Walo. In 1985 Osterwald married the actress Eleonore Mathilde Schmid. The couple settled in Lucerne. In 1999 he published his biography "Criminal Tango". In 2009 he was awarded the Swiss Jazz Lifetime Achievement Award for his life's work.- Art Department
- Additional Crew
- Visual Effects
Ralph McQuarrie was born on 13 June 1929 in Gary, Indiana, USA. He is known for Cocoon (1985), Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) and Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980). He was married to Joan Benjamin. He died on 3 March 2012 in Berkeley, California, USA.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Philip Madoc was born in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales, and attended Twyn School. He became interested in acting when he was a teenager. He studied at the University of Vienna and pursued a theatrical career by attending the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. During the 1960s, he became a familiar face on British television, often cast in sinister roles due to his dark looks and deep voice. He became particularly familiar to fans of fantasy television, playing five different roles on The Avengers (1961) and four different roles on Doctor Who (1963). Into the 1970s and the guest appearances kept coming, including comedies such as Dad's Army (1968) (as a U-Boat captain in one of the most famous scenes on British TV) and The Good Life (1975). Although widely respected as a versatile actor adept at accents, Madoc never really became a star until 1981, when he portrayed former British prime minister David Lloyd George on an acclaimed television series, The Life and Times of David Lloyd George (1981). Madoc has not been short of work for the last 40 years, a rare accomplishment for an actor, and has worked on films, radio and on the stage as well as his prolific television career. Madoc died of cancer in 2012.- Doug Furnas was born on 11 December 1959 in Commerce, Oklahoma, USA. He was an actor, known for WCW Saturday Night (1985), WWE Raw (1993) and WWF Shotgun Saturday Night (1997). He was married to Martha D'Acri and Jody Thompson. He died on 2 March 2012 in Tucson, Arizona, USA.
- Music Department
- Composer
- Writer
Robert B. Sherman was born just before Christmas in 1925 in New York City. Parents, Rosa & Al Sherman didn't know how they would pay the doctor and delivery costs. Fortunately, upon their arrival home from the hospital, Al discovered a large royalty check in the mail. Ironically, it was Al's song, "Save Your Sorrow", which saved the day and covered the bill. In 1928, younger brother, Richard M. Sherman, was born. Years later, brothers Robert and Richard would form one of the most prolific, lauded and long lasting songwriting partnerships of all time.
As a youth, Robert excelled in intellectual pursuits, taking up the violin and piano, painting and writing poetry. Following seven years of frequent cross-country moves, the Shermans finally settled down in Beverly Hills, California. Throughout Robert's years at Beverly Hills High School, he wrote and produced radio and stage programs for which he won much acclaim. At sixteen years old, Robert wrote a stage play, entitled "Armistice and Dedication Day", which earned thousands of dollars worth in War Bonds and garnered Sherman a special citation from the War Department.
In 1943, Robert obtained permission from his parents to join the army a year early, at only age 17. In early April, 1945, he inadvertently led half a squad of men into Dachau Concentration Camp, the first Allied troops to enter the camp after it had been evacuated by the fleeing German military only hours earlier. On April 12, 1945, the day President Franklin D. Roosevelt died, Robert was shot in the knee forcing him to walk with a cane ever since.
During his recuperation in Taunton and Bournemouth, England, Robert was awarded the Purple Heart medal. While still rehabilitating, Robert first became curious about British culture, reading voraciously anything he could find on the subject. Once on his feet, Robert met and became friends with many Brits, attaining first-hand knowledge of the United Kingdom, her customs and people. His fascination with England would later prove an invaluable resource to his songwriting career; many of his most well-known works centering around Anglo-themed stories and subject matter.
Upon his return to the United States, Robert attended Bard College in upstate New York where he majored in English Literature and Painting. At Bard, Robert completed his first two novels, entitled "The Best Estate" and "Music, Candy and Painted Eggs". He graduated in the class of 1949.
Within two years, Robert and his brother Richard began writing songs together on a challenge from their father. In 1953, Robert married the love of his life, Joyce Sasner, which helped to neutralize what had become Robert's wildly bohemian lifestyle in the years following the war. In 1958, Robert founded the music publishing company, "Music World Corporation", which later enjoyed a landmark relationship with Disney's BMI publishing arm, "Wonderland Music Company". That same year, the Sherman Brothers had their first "Top Ten" hit with "Tall Paul", sung by Mouseketeer, Annette Funicello. The success of this song yielded the attention of Walt Disney, who eventually hired the Sherman Brothers on as Staff Songwriters for Walt Disney Studios.
While at Disney, the Sherman Brothers wrote what is perhaps their most well-loved song: "It's a Small World (After All)" for the New York World's Fair in 1964. Since then, "Small World" has become the most translated and performed song on earth.
In 1965, the Sherman Brothers won 2 Academy Awards for Mary Poppins (1964), which includes the songs "Feed The Birds", "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" and the Oscar winner, "Chim Chim Cher-ee". Since Mary Poppins (1964)'s motion picture premiere, the Sherman Brothers have subsequently earned 9 Academy Award nominations, 2 Grammy Awards, 4 Grammy Award nominations and an incredible 23 gold and platinum albums.
Robert and Richard worked directly for Walt Disney until Disney's death in 1966. Since leaving the company, the brother songwriting team has worked freelance on scores of motion pictures, television shows, theme park exhibits and stage musicals.
Their first non-Disney assignment came with Albert R. Broccoli's motion picture production Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) which garnered the brothers their third Academy Award Nomination.
In 1973, the Sherman Brothers made history by becoming the only Americans, ever, to win First Prize at the Moscow Film Festival for Tom Sawyer (1973), for which they also authored the screenplay.
The Slipper and the Rose: The Story of Cinderella (1976), was picked to be the Royal Command Performance of the year and was attended by Her Royal Highness, Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. A modern musical adaptation of the classic Cinderella story, "Slipper" also features both song-score and screenplay by the Sherman Brothers. That same year, the Sherman Brothers received their star on the Hollywood "Walk of Fame" directly across from the Chinese Theater.
Their numerous other Disney and Non-Disney top box office film credits include The Jungle Book (1967), The Aristocats (1970), The Parent Trap (1961), The Parent Trap (1998), Charlotte's Web (1973), The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977), Snoopy Come Home (1972), Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971) and Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland (1989).
Outside of the motion picture realm, their Tony nominated smash hit, "Over Here!" (1974), was the biggest grossing original Broadway Musical of that year. The Sherman Brothers have also written numerous top selling songs including "You're Sixteen", which holds the distinction of reaching Billboard's #1 spot twice; first with Johnny Burnette in 1960 and, then, with Ringo Starr, fourteen years later. Other top-ten hits include, "Pineapple Princess", "Let's Get Together" and more.
In 2000, the Sherman Brothers wrote the song score for Disney's blockbuster film: The Tigger Movie (2000). This film marked the brothers' first major motion picture for the Disney company in over twenty eight years.
In 2002, "Chitty" hit the London stage receiving rave revues. By 2005, "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Stage Musical" broke records becoming the most successful stage show ever produced at the London Palladium, boasting the longest run in that century old theatre's history. In Spring 2005, a second "Chitty" company premiered on Broadway (New York City) at the Hilton Theatre. In each subsequent year, new touring companies were formed in the UK, USA and Singapore. The Sherman Brothers wrote an additional six songs specifically for the new stage productions.
In April 2002, an exhibition of Robert's paintings was held in London, England at Thompsons' Gallery on Marylebone High Street. This marked the first public exhibition of Robert's paintings, ever, which is amazing considering Robert had been painting since 1941. The London Exhibition was widely covered by TV, radio and printed press. Robert subsequently enjoyed a succession of successful art exhibitions in the United States with the sale of many Limited Edition giclée prints of his work.
In 2002, Sherman moved from Beverly Hills to London, England, where he continues to write and paint.
In 2003, four Sherman Brothers' musicals ranked in the "Top 10 Favorite Children's Films of All Time" in a (British) nationwide poll reported by the BBC. The Jungle Book (1967) ranked at #7, Mary Poppins (1964) ranked at #8, The Aristocats (1970) ranked at #9 and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) topped the list at #1.
In June 2005, The Sherman Brothers were inducted into the Songwriters' Hall of Fame. Also, in June 2005, a tribute was paid to Robert B. Sherman at the Théâtre de Vevey in Switzerland by the Ballet Romand. "Chitty" will be commencing its full UK tour in December 2005.
The Disney/Cameron Mackintosh production of "Mary Poppins: The Stage Musical" made its world premier at the Prince Edward Theatre in December 2004 and features the Sherman Brothers classic songs. This show premiered on Broadway in 2006. In 2013, "Poppins" became the 22nd longest running musical or nonmusical show in Broadway history. Numerous touring companies have toured worldwide since 2008.
The Sherman Brothers were awarded the 2008 American National Medal of the Arts by President George W. Bush for their services to music. In 2009, a controversial documentary about the Sherman Brothers entitled, The Boys (2009) was produced by Sherman's older son, Jeffrey C. Sherman and brother Richard's son Gregory V. Sherman. In 2010 the Sherman Brothers were awarded a window on Main Street Disneyland. In 2011, the Sherman Brothers were each given honorary doctorates from their alma mater, Bard College. Sherman resided in London, England until his death on March 6, 2012.
His autobiography "Moose: Chapters From My Life" was posthumously released by AuthorHouse Publishers and was edited by Sherman's youngest son, Robert J. Sherman. The book's release happened at the same time as the major film release of Saving Mr. Banks (2013) in which Sherman and his brother are portrayed by B.J. Novak and Jason Schwartzman respectively.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Pierre Tornade began his film career playing his first role in The Gangsters (1957). He then had supporting roles in many famous French films like The Gendarme in New York (1965) and What's Cooking in Paris (1966), both featuring Louis de Funès, I Don't Know Much, But I'll Say Everything (1973) directed by Pierre Richard and also featuring him, and Mais où est donc passée la 7ème compagnie (1973). Pierre Tornade is mostly well known for voicing several characters in many animated films and series. These include Vitalstatistix in Asterix films Asterix the Gaul (1967), Asterix and Cleopatra (1968) and The Twelve Tasks of Asterix (1976), Obelix in Asterix Versus Caesar (1985), Asterix in Britain (1986), Asterix and the Big Fight (1989) and Asterix in America (1994), and Averell Dalton in Lucky Luke films Daisy Town (1971), Lucky Luke: Ballad of the Daltons (1978) and Lucky Luke: The Daltons on the Run (1983).- Director
- Actor
- Producer
Jerome Courtland was born on 27 December 1926 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. He was a director and actor, known for Pete's Dragon (1977), Kiss and Tell (1945) and Make Believe Ballroom (1949). He was married to Marlene Juttner, Janet Rose Gumprecht and Polly Bergen. He died on 1 March 2012 in Santa Clarita Valley, California, USA.- Director
- Production Designer
- Writer
Well regarded for his stylish genre work of the 1970s, Robert Fuest may not have a very extensive list of feature film credits, but the quality of his output is what matters, not the quantity.
He certainly came to the business with a real talent for art. Born in London in 1927, he would spend some time serving in the Royal Air Force. After his service he would teach art as well as turning out his own paintings, which would be displayed at the Royal Academy. He moved into copywriting, with an eye towards getting into the movie business. In the late 1950s he joined the art department of Associated British Television, and became the art director for the legendary TV series The Avengers (1961). His first feature film was a low-budget production titled Just Like a Woman (1967), which got him some good notices, but other directorial offers did not start flooding in. At that point he went back to "The Avengers", albeit in the new capacity of a director. Two producers of the series, Brian Clemens and Albert Fennell, wanted to move into movies themselves, and chose Fuest to direct their debut effort, the incredible, chilling, rural thriller And Soon the Darkness (1970), which proved to be a success. After that came the literary adaptation Wuthering Heights (1970), made for American-International Pictures; the studio would cut a lot from the picture, only concerned with how much money it made, and it made enough to keep them happy. This would lead to Fuest's directing the revered Vincent Price vehicle The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971), which critics admired for its dark humor, sets and nasty but inventive murder sequences. A sequel proved to be inevitable, and Dr. Phibes Rises Again (1972) followed two years later. It was intended to be more blatantly comedic and a send-up the original, but the studio reduced the comedy content and, unfortunately, it was not so successful.
Next for Fuest came the cult favorite The Final Programme (1973), for which he himself wrote the script and convinced investors he could make it for 600,000 pounds or less. It would be a critical but not commercial success. The Devil's Rain (1975) was offered to him by producer Sandy Howard. Filmed in Mexico, it cost approximately $1.5 million to make and took about 29 days to shoot. However, the resources available weren't really enough, and it became quite a difficult shoot for the director, who says he nearly suffered a nervous breakdown. He would then return to TV for The New Avengers (1976) and spent three years in America shooting such TV movies as Revenge of the Stepford Wives (1980). His last theatrical movie to date was the 1982 French-made Aphrodite (1982). After more TV work, he became semi-retired, returning to painting and also lecturing at the London International Film School.
Years later, his movies continue to earn their share of admirers.- Production Manager
- Director
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Born in Belgium, Ulu Grosbard was educated at the University of Chicago, then attended the Yale Drama School. Becoming a stage director in 1957, Grosbard directed many successful Broadway shows. In the early '60s Grosbard journeyed to Hollywood, where he was hired as an assistant director on several productions, and several years later directed his first film - appropriately enough, an adaptation of a hit Broadway play (The Subject Was Roses (1968)). Grosbard's film career has been sporadic, however, and he has found much more success staging Broadway shows.- Writer
- Actor
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Legendary Italian screenwriter was born Antonio Guerra on the 16th of March 1920 in Sant'Arcangelo, Italy, south of Ravenna. He wrote several short stories, poetry and novels and in 1956 his first screenplay "Man and Wolves" (co-written by Elio Petri) was directed by Giuseppe De Santis. Three years later he wrote the masterpiece, "L'Avventura", which began his long collaboration with one of the greatest directors of all time Michelangelo Antonioni. Tonino Guerra earned Oscar nominations 3 times: for the Casanova 70 (1965), for Blow-Up (1966) by Antonioni and for Amarcord (1973) directed by Federico Fellini. He has worked with many other masters such as Francesco Rosi on _Lucky Luciano (1974)_ and and Andrei Tarkovsky on Nostalghia (1983). Tonino Guerra is a poet and one of busiest and the most important screenwriters of cinema who won Cannes Film Festival's Best Screenplay award for the "Voyage to Cythera" by Theo Angelopoulos and received an honorary award of the Venice Film Festival. Tonino Guerra is a great fan of two persecuted film geniuses Andrei Tarkovsky and Sergei Parajanov.- Warren Stevens was born in Pennsylvania and joined the Navy at age 17. His interest in acting was piqued while he was attending Annapolis, and this resulted in 12 weeks of summer stock in Virginia. His friends, Gregory Peck and Kenneth Tobey, later arranged interviews for Stevens at the renowned Neighborhood Playhouse in New York City. Following service as an Army Air Corps pilot in Europe during World War II, Stevens began concentrating on his acting career, working in radio and summer stock and joining New York's Actors Studio.. His break came via a key role in Broadway's "Detective Story", which in turn led to offers from Hollywood studios and a contract with 20th Century-Fox. In the half-century since his movie debut, he has acted in dozens of features and hundreds of TV episodes.
- Veteran little old man Italian character actor Leonardo Anthony Cimino steadily worked in both movies and TV shows alike from the late 1950's up until 2007. Cimino was born on November 4, 1917 in New York City. He was the son of tailor Andrea Cimino and his wife Leonilda. Leonardo played violin as a child and studied at Juilliard as a teenager. Moreover, Cimino studied acting, directing, and modern dance at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theater. A small, frail, and wizened fellow with a gaunt face, a slight build, and a distinguished air about him, Leonardo often portrayed shrewd Mafioso types, nice elderly gents, and various men of the cloth which include priests, cardinals, and even the Pope in "Monsignor." Cimino twice played Nazi concentration camp survivors: He was outstanding as the wise Abraham Bernstein in the excellent science fiction TV mini-series "V" and likewise marvelous as the kindly Scary German Guy in the delightful "The Monster Squad." Leonardo had a nice bit as the Baron's doctor in David Lynch's "Dune." Among the TV shows Cimino did guest spots on are "Naked City," "The Defenders," "Kojak," "Ryan's Hope," "The Equalizer," "The Hunger," and "Law and Order." Outside of movies and television, Leonardo acted on stage in such plays as "The Iceman Cometh," "They Knew What They Wanted," "A Memory of Two Mondays," "Mike Downstairs," "Night Life," "A Passage to India," "Handful of Fire," "The Liar," and "Cyrano de Bergerac." Cimino died at age 94 at his home in Woodstock, New York on March 3, 2012.
- "Chief" Jay Strongbow was arguably the most famous, beloved Native American wrestler of all time, and a consistent box office draw. As both a main event and mid-card performer, Strongbow was one of the most reliable, professional wrestlers of his, or any, day. A man who truly loved the wrestling business, when his ring career ended, Strongbow displayed his professionalism in another important, but far less glamorous role - that of a WWF road agent. Be it as a performer or as part of the management team, Strongbow made many sacrifices, and selflessly gave himself to the "sport." As a role model - for people of all races - there was none better, and "The Chief" proudly wrestled his entire career as a beloved fan favorite. And like all of the greatest champions in pro wrestling, he never allowed his ego to get the best of him. Strongbow understood how the wrestling business works, and was never above "doing the job" in order to help "the team." Truly, "Chief" Jay Strongbow was a consummate wrestler...
Strongbow began his career in the mid-1960s, and worked primarily for Vince McMahon Sr. and the World Wide Wrestling Federation. However, "The Chief" did venture outside the parameters of the WWWF on occasion, and was (for a time) a high-profile figure on TBS's NWA Georgia Championship Wrestling, the predecessor of WCW Saturday Night. At 6`2 and weighing 260, Strongbow was a formidable opponent for anyone who faced him in the ring. His Tomahawk Chop was a weapon to be feared, and led to many victories of the course of his 20 years in the ring. "The Chief" was also well-schooled in the science of "rasslin" and had a solid repertoire of moves, such as the Indian Deathlock (a punishing submission move) and several variations of the suplex. Strongbow could also brawl with the best of them, especially once his fiery temper had been ignited. If the Chief started his War Dance, the tens of thousands of fans in attendance knew the end was near, because no one could (or, perhaps more appropriately, was allowed to) stop him once Strongbow began circling his opponent with his "ancient tribal dance."
Winning titles was never the primary goal for Strongbow, especially during his latter years in the ring. Still, a wrestler as popular as Jay Strongbow couldn't help but pick up a fair share of championships. The most notable being the WW(W)F World Tag Team championship, which he won on 4 separate occasions. His first WWWF Tag title came on May 22, 1972 when he teamed with Sonny King to defeat Baron Mikel Scicluna & "King" Curtis Iukea at New York's Madison Square Garden. But Strongbow & Sonny would only hold the belts for a short time, as they were defeated by the powerful duo of Prof. Tanaka & Mr. Fuji on June 27, 1972. Then, on December 7, 1976 Strongbow regained his tag team campionship, this time with partner Billy White Wolf. Together, they defeated Nicolai Volkoff & Tor Kamata in the finals of a tournament for the then-vacant WWWF Tag Team championship. The Native American duo of Strongbow & White Wolf held the title for over 8 months before being forced to vacate the championship when White Wolf's neck was "broken" by Ken Patera's devastating finisher, the Swinging Neckbreaker. After seeking revenge on Patera for the loss of his partner, Strongbow then went on to face the WWWF World Heavyweight champion "Superstar" Billy Graham in a top-drawing feud. Strongbow also engaged in a notable feud with "The Big Cat" Ernie Ladd in the WWWF, a feud that carried over to the NWA's Georgia Championship Wrestling a few years later. Then, on June 28, 1982, Strongbow again brought home the gold, teaming with his "nephew" Jules Strongbow to defeat the Japanese tandem of Fuji & Saito. Lou Albano's rulebreaking team quickly regained the title, though, on July 13, 1982. But The Strongbows were not to be denied, and they regrouped, again defeating Fuji & Saito on October 26, 1982. This time, the Native American duo held on to the title belts, and defended them against the WWF's best teams. Finally, after nearly half a year as champions, The Strongbows were defeated by another Lou Albano-led team...this time the impressive and dangerous Wild Samoans.
After losing the title, The Strongbows remained a top WWF tag team, until Jules left the promotion. From that point forward, it was back to singles wrestling for Jay. Still one of the most popular wrestlers in the WWF, in the eyes of the fans, Strongbow was now the "elder statesman" for WWF wrestlers, having been with the promotion for so long. Despite his advancing age (and subsequent reduction in ring prowess) Strongbow was still one of the WWF's top draws as the 1980's rolled on. But with the creation of Titan Sports, and the transfer of the WWF from Vince Sr. to Vince Jr., Strongbow decided to pursue new challenges in the wrestling business. "Chief" Jay quietly faded away, while Joe Scarpa settled into his new life as a WWF "suit."
Throughout his long, prestigious career, Strongbow feuded with some of the biggest names in the wrestling business; Billy Graham, Ken Patera, George Steele, Ernie Ladd, the Wild Samoans, Larry Zbyszko, Ivan Koloff, Harley Race, Mr. Fuji, and many, many others. For over 30 years, Strongbow has been a role model for his fans, a teacher and friend to his co-workers, and a fair and respected boss to the wrestlers on the road. A man of both character and talent, the Ring Chronicle is proud to induct this important figure from wrestling history into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame. - Writer
- Director
- Actor
Claude Miller was born on 20 February 1942 in Paris, France. He was a writer and director, known for The Grilling (1981), L'effrontée (1985) and The Little Thief (1988). He was married to Annie Miller. He died on 4 April 2012 in Paris, France.- Director
- Producer
- Actor
Paul Bogart was born on 13 November 1919 in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA. He was a director and producer, known for CBS Playhouse (1967), All in the Family (1971) and The Golden Girls (1985). He was married to Alma Jane Gitnick. He died on 15 April 2012 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.- Producer
- Actor
- Additional Crew
Dick Clark was born and raised in Mount Vernon, New York on November 30, 1929, to Julia Fuller (Barnard) and Richard Augustus Clark. He had one older brother, Bradley, who was killed in World War II. At the age of 16, Clark got his first job in the mailroom of WRUN, a radio station in Utica, New York, which was owned by his uncle and managed by his father. He worked his way up the ranks and was promoted to weatherman before becoming a radio announcer. After graduating from Syracuse University with a degree in business administration, Clark began working at several radio and television stations before landing at WFIL radio in 1952. While working at the station, Clark became a substitute host for Bob Horn's Bandstand, an afternoon program where teenagers danced to popular music, broadcast by WFIL's affiliated television station. In 1956, Horn was arrested for drunk driving, giving Clark the perfect opportunity to step in as the full-time host.
After acquiring nationwide distribution the newly reformatted program, now titled "American Bandstand", premiered on ABC on August 5, 1957. In addition to the name change, Clark added interviews with artists (starting with Elvis Presley), lip-sync performances, and "Rate-a-Record," allowing teens to judge the songs on the show - and giving birth to the popular phrase, "It's got a good beat and you can dance to it." Clark also established a formal dress code, mandating dresses and skirts for the women and a coat and tie for the men. But perhaps the most impactful change that Clark made to the show was ending "American Bandstand's" all-white policy, allowing African American artists to perform on the show.
Under Clark's influence, "Bandstand" became one of the most successful and longest-running musical programs, featuring artists including Chuck Berry, the Doors, the Beach Boys, Pink Floyd, and Smokey Robinson. Sonny and Cher, The Jackson 5, Prince, and Aerosmith were among the influential artists and bands that made their television debuts on "Bandstand", which is also credited with helping to make America more accepting of rock 'n' roll.
With the success of "American Bandstand", Clark became more invested in the music publishing and recording businesses, and began managing artists, hosting live sock hops, and arranging concert tours. But in 1960, when the United States Senate began investigating "payola", the practice in which music producing companies paid broadcasting companies to favor their products, Clark became caught up in the scandal. The investigation found he had partial copyrights to over 150 songs, many of which were featured on his show. Clark denied he was involved in any way, but admitted to accepting a fur and jewelry from a record company president. In the end, the Senate could not find any illegal actions by Clark, but ABC asked Clark to either sell his shares in these companies or leave the network so there was no conflict of interest. He chose to sell and continue on as host of "American Bandstand", which was unaffected by the scandal.
In 1964, Clark moved Bandstand from Philadelphia to Los Angeles and became more involved in television production. Under his company Dick Clark Productions, he produced such shows as "Where the Action Is", "TV's Bloopers and Practical Jokes", and more recently, "So You Think You Can Dance", as well as made-for-television movies including "Elvis", "The Birth of the Beatles", "Wild Streets", and "The Savage Seven". Clark also hosted television's "$10,000 Pyramid", "TV Bloopers and Practical Jokes" (with co-host Ed McMahon), "Scattergories", and "The Other Half". Clark also had several radio programs, including "The Dick Clark National Music Survey", "Countdown America", and "Rock, Roll & Remember".
In 1972, he produced and hosted the very first edition of "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve", a musical program where Clark counted down until the New Year ball dropped in Times Square, featuring taped performances from musical artists. "New Year's Rockin' Eve" soon became a cultural tradition, airing on ABC every year with Clark as host (except in 1999 when ABC aired "ABC 2000: Today", a news milestone program hosted by Peter Jennings). In December 2004, Clark suffered a minor stroke and was unable to host, so Regis Philbin stepped in as a substitute. The following year, Clark returned as co-host alongside primary host Ryan Seacrest. Many were worried about Clark due to his slurred and breathless speech, and he admitted on-air he was still recovering but that he wouldn't have missed the broadcast for the world. The following year, Seacrest became "New Year's Rockin' Eve's" primary host, but Clark always returned for the countdown.
Clark has received several notable awards including four Emmy Awards, the Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1994, and the Peabody Award in 1999. He was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1976, The Radio Hall of Fame in 1990, Broadcasting Magazine Hall of Fame, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame. Clark had been in St. John's hospital in Los Angeles after undergoing an outpatient procedure the night of April 17, 2012. Clark suffered a massive heart attack following the procedure. Attempts to resuscitate him were unsuccessful and he died the next morning of April 18, 2012.- Jonathan Frid's career in drama began when he first "offered his soul" to the theater as a young boy at a preparatory school in Ontario, Canada. Following his graduation from McMaster University, he attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA) in the UK and later earned a Master's Degree in Directing from the Yale School of Drama.
He was a leading actor in English and Canadian repertory and went on to work in many of the most celebrated regional theaters in the United States, including the Williamstown Theatre Festival, the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, and the American Shakespeare Festival under the direction of John Houseman, performing with Katharine Hepburn in "Much Ado About Nothing".
Frid appeared in major roles on-and-off Broadway, in such productions as "Roar Like A Dove", "Murder in the Cathedral" and "Wait Until Dark". However, it was his portrayal of a complex, conflicted vampire on ABC-TV's daytime drama series Dark Shadows (1966) (he also had a cameo role in the motion picture House of Dark Shadows (1970)) which garnered him his greatest fame in the United States. Other film credits included co-starring roles in The Devil's Daughter (1973) (with Shelley Winters) and Seizure (1974) (Oliver Stone's directorial debut).
In 1986, Frid joined the Broadway production of "Arsenic and Old Lace" (co-starring with Jean Stapleton). He won critical acclaim for his villainous turn as the homicidal nephew and spent ten months with the play's national tour. That same year, Frid founded his own production company, "Clunes Associates", to create and tour a series of one-man readers' theater shows across North America. Frid continued to perform his one-man shows, now under the banner of "Charity Associates", to raise money for a variety of charities. Combining the arts of his voice and his zest for entertaining", as one critic put it. In June 2000, he returned to the traditional professional stage in the play "Mass Appeal" at the Stirling Festival Theatre in Stirling, Ontario. - Actor
- Music Department
- Composer
Greg Ham was born on 27 September 1953 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. He was an actor and composer, known for Valley Girl (2020), The Groomsmen (2006) and Age of Summer (2018). He died on 19 April 2012 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.- Music Artist
- Actor
- Music Department
Levon Helm was in the right place at the right time. He saw the birth of rock and roll and, though he was too much of a gentleman to say it, his role in helping to keep that rebellious child healthy was more than just instrumental.
On May 26, 1940, Mark Lavon Helm was the second of four children born to Nell and Diamond Helm in Elaine, Arkansas. Diamond was a cotton farmer who entertained occasionally as a musician. The Helms loved music and often sang together. They listened to The Grand Ole Opry and Sonny Boy Williamson and his King Biscuit Entertainers regularly on the radio. A favorite family pastime was attending traveling music shows in the area. According to his 1993 autobiography, "This Wheel's On Fire", Levon recalled seeing his first live show, Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys, at six years old. His description: "This really tattooed my brain. I've never forgotten it." Hearing performers like Monroe and Williamson on the radio was one thing; seeing them live made a huge impression.
Levon's father bought him his first guitar at age nine. At ten and 11, whenever he wasn't in school or at work on the farm, the boy could be found at KFFA's broadcasting studio in Helena, Arkansas, watching Sonny Boy Williamson do his radio show, "King Biscuit Time". Helm made his younger sister Linda a string bass out of a washtub when he was 12 years old. She would play the bass while her brother slapped his thighs and played harmonica and guitar. They would sing songs learned at home and popular hits of the day, and billed themselves as "Lavon and Linda." Because of their fresh-faced good looks, obvious musical talent and Levon's natural ability to win an audience with sheer personality and infectious rhythms, the pair consistently won talent contests along the Arkansas 4-H Club circuit.
In 1954 Levon was 14 years old when he saw Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins do a show at Helena. Also performing was a young Elvis Presley, with Scotty Moore on guitar, and Bill Black on stand-up bass. They did not have a drummer. The music was early jazz-fueled rockabilly, and the audience went wild. In 1955 he saw Elvis once more, before Presley's star exploded. This time Presley had D.J. Fontana with him on drums and Black was playing electric bass. Helm couldn't get over the difference and thought it was the best band he'd seen. The added instruments gave the music solidity and depth. People jumped out of their seats dancing to the thunderous, heart-pumping rhythms. The melting pot that was the Mississippi Delta had boiled over and evolved. Its magnificently rich blues was uniting with all the powerful, new, spicy-hot sounds and textures that became rock and roll.
Natural progression led Levon to form his own rock band as a high-school junior, called The Jungle Bush Beaters. While Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis were making teens everywhere crazed, Levon would practice, play, watch and learn. After seeing Jerry Lee's drummer Jimmy Van Eaton, he seriously began thinking of playing the drums himself. Around this same time the 17-year-old musician was invited by Conway Twitty to share the stage with Twitty and his Rock Housers. He had met Twitty when "Lavon and Linda" opened for him at a previous show. Helm was a personable, polite teen who took his music seriously, so Twitty allowed him to sit in whenever the opportunity arose.
Ronnie Hawkins came into Levon Helm's life in 1957. A charismatic entertainer and front-man, Hawkins was gathering musicians to tour Canada, where the shows and money were steady. He had a sharp eye for talent. He needed a drummer and Levon fit the bill. Fulfilling a promise to Nell and Diamond to finish high school, Levon joined Ronnie and his "Hawks" on the road. The young Arkansas farm boy, once a tractor driving champion, found himself driving Hawkins' Cadillac to gigs, happily aware that all the unknown adventures of rock and roll would soon be his destiny.
In 1959 Ronnie got The Hawks signed to Roulette Records. They had two hits, "Forty Days" and "Mary Lou", sold 750,000 copies and appeared on Dick Clark's American Bandstand (1952). Hawkins and Helm recruited four more talented Canadian musicians in the early 1960s--Richard Manuel, Rick Danko, Garth Hudson and Robbie Robertson. Under Ronnie's tutelage they would often perform until midnight and rehearse until four in the morning. Other bands began emulating their style; now they were the ones to watch and learn from.
Eventually the students surpassed their teacher. Weary of Ronnie's strict regulations and eager to expand their own musical interests, the five decided to break from Hawkins. They called themselves "Levon and the Hawks."
About 1965 Bob Dylan decided to change his sound. He was ready to "go electric" and wanted Levon and The Hawks to help him fire it up. The boys signed on to tour with Dylan, but unfortunately Dylan's die-hard folk fans resisted. Night after night of constant booing left Levon without the pleasure of seeing his audience enjoy themselves. He called his drummer's stool "the best seat in the house," because he could see his fellow musicians and his audience simultaneously. What pleased him most, always, was that his audience had a good time. He temporarily left the group and eventually landed back home in Arkansas. Dylan and the rest of the band took up residence in Woodstock, NY. They rented a large, pink house where they wrote and rehearsed new material. Danko called for Helm to join them when Capitol Records gave them a recording contract.
Woodstock residents called them "the band," so they kept the moniker. The name The Band fit. The sound was no-frills rock-and-roll, but far from simplistic. They fused every musical influence they were exposed to over the years as individuals and as a unit. The result was brilliant. Their development as musicians was perfected by years of playing. Living together at "Big Pink" allowed complete collaboration of their artistic expression. Americana and folklore themes, heart-wrenching ballads filled with naked emotion, majestic harmonies, hard-driving rhythms and exquisite instrumentation made critics, peers and fans realize that this music was unlike any heard before. Their first album, "Music from Big Pink", released in July of 1968, made them household names, and as a result they were invited to appear on Ed Sullivan's The Ed Sullivan Show (1948) in autumn of '69. Following "Big Pink"'s success the next album, called simply "The Band", is considered by some as their masterpiece. They made seven albums total, including one live recording in 1972, "Rock of Ages". Many of their hits--such as "The Weight", "W.S. Walcott's Medicine Show" and "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down"--were spawned from stories of Levon's beloved South.
Helm was working in Los Angeles in 1974, at a Sunset Blvd. hotel, when he spotted a beautiful young brunette taking a dip in the pool. Her name was Sandra Dodd and when she looked up at him smiling, she didn't recognize him at first. The charming musician offered to take the lovely lady for sushi and never looked back. They were married on September 7, 1981, in Woodstock.
The barn and studio Helm built in Woodstock, which became his permanent home, was just about complete in 1975. He invited Muddy Waters to his new studio and they recorded "Muddy Waters in Woodstock". To the delight of everyone involved, it won a Grammy.
The Band held a farewell concert at Winterland in San Francisco on Thanksgiving 1976. It was a bittersweet time for many, who felt the group's demise was too soon. They called it "The Last Waltz", which included Ronnie Hawkins,Dr. John, Muddy Waters, Ringo Starr, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton and an all-star guest list of peers and friends that read like the "Who's Who" of rock and roll. The event eventually sold as a triple album and was also filmed--The Last Waltz (1978) became the first historical "rockumentary."
Group members went on to individual pursuits. Levon cut his debut album, "The RCO All-Stars", in 1977. His next effort was the self-titled "Levon Helm", followed by "American Son", released in 1980. That same year was pivotal, as Helm turned his attention to acting. He played Loretta Lynn's father in Coal Miner's Daughter (1980), winning great reviews for his first film appearance. He did another self-titled album and Hollywood again came knocking in 1983, giving him a role in The Right Stuff (1983). The authenticity he brought to his characters earned him numerous movie roles from 1980 until 2009. Levon gave a sensitive, convincing portrayal of a destitute blind man in the 2005 Tommy Lee Jones vehicle, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005). In 2007 he filmed Shooter (2007) with Mark Wahlberg. His last role was in 2009. where he portrayed Confederate Gen. John Bell Hood in In the Electric Mist (2009), again with his friend Tommy Lee Jones.
Rick Danko and Levon reunited to play music after Danko had been living in California. Rick moved back to Woodstock and the friends did an acoustic tour in early 1983. In San Jose the following year, they received excellent reviews when Hudson and Manuel joined them for their first U.S. appearance as The Band since 1976. They continued playing together until the tragic death of their dear friend and comrade, the 42-year-old Manuel.
During the 1990s three more Band albums were recorded: "Jericho", "High on the Hog" and "Jubilation". In 1998 Levon was diagnosed with throat cancer and the famous voice with the rich Southern nuances was silenced to a whisper. He still played the drums, mandolin and harmonica, often performing with his daughter, Amy Helm, also a vocalist and instrumentalist. A great emotional support to her father during this time, Amy appeared with him regularly at Levon Helm Studios. In 1999 Helm endured another tragic loss when Rick Danko passed away 19 days before his 56th birthday. His death marked the end of an era.
Miraculously, Levon's voice slowly returned. He felt comfortable enough to sing again live. With imagination and vision, he conceived The Midnight Ramble Sessions, a series of live performances at Levon Helm Studios in Woodstock. Named for the traveling minstrel shows of his youth, the first Midnight Ramble was held in January, 2004. It featured one of the last performances by great blues pianist Johnnie Johnson. Friends old and new joined Levon on his stage, including Emmylou Harris, Dr. John, John Sebastian, Allen Toussaint, Elvis Costello, Phil Lesh, Jimmy Vivino, Hubert Sumlin, Little Sammy Davis, Billy Bob Thornton and The Boxmasters, The Muddy Waters Band, The Swell Season, Donald Fagen, Steve Jordon, Hot Tuna, Kris Kristofferson, The Black Crowes, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Norah Jones, The Bacon Brothers, Robbie Dupree, My Morning Jacket, Shemekia Copeland, The Wood Brothers, Steve Earle, Jackie Greene, Sam Bush, Brewer & Shipley, Carolyn Wonderland, Ollabelle and The Alexis P. Suter Band. The monthly Rambles at "The Barn" were wildly successful, drawing a worldwide audience.
Releases produced by Levon Helm Studios from Helm's personal "vault," were Volume I and II of "The Midnight Ramble Sessions", plus a live RCO All-Stars performance from New Year's Eve 1977, at the Palladium. The vitality and magnetism of these recordings speak for themselves. In September of 2007, Dirt Farmer Music and Vanguard Records released "Dirt Farmer", Levon's first solo, studio album in 25 years. A project particularly close to his heart, the CD contains music reminiscent of his past, and songs handed down from his parents. "Dirt Farmer" was awarded a Grammy for Best Traditional Folk Album in February 2008 and landed Levon a spot in Rolling Stone's The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time. That same year he was also recognized by the Recording Academy with a lifetime achievement award as an original member of The Band and was given the "Artist of the Year" Award by the Americana Music Association. In 2009 Levon released "Electric Dirt", which marked his highest debut in Soundscan era at #36 and spent six consecutive weeks at #1 on the Americana Radio Chart. He won a second Grammy for "Electric Dirt" in the inaugural category of Best Americana Album in 2010. In September 2008 Levon took "The Midnight Ramble" on the road to Nashville's historic Ryman Auditorium. Buddy Miller, John Hiatt, Sheryl Crow, George Receli, Sam Bush and Billy Bob Thornton helped The Levon Helm Band create an evening of unforgettable musical joy. "Ramble at the Ryman - Live CD and DVD" (sold individually) won him his third consecutive Grammy, again as Best Album in the Americana category, in February 2012. Sadly, Levon's cancer returned shortly after this last triumph. He passed away on April 19, 2012. His funeral was a tearful, joyful, musical celebration of his life.
The intimacy of the shows performed at Levon's hearth offered a hospitality and warmth found in no other venue, not to mention the excellence of the performances themselves, hosted by a man whose gifts were truly legendary. Though always an enthusiastic and passionate performer, with sheer joy and gratitude, he effortlessly captivated his audience, young and old, with a rhythmic power all his own. During a career that spanned over five decades, Levon Helm nurtured a tradition of professionalism with a deep respect for his craft and remained refreshingly genuine in a world that often compromised integrity. He was a master storyteller who wove his tales with the magic thread of universality that ties us all. He beckoned us to come in, sit awhile and enjoy. We see ourselves in his stories and we are home.
--Dawn LoBue Copyright © 2006 ~ 2012 All Rights Reserved.- Actor
- Producer
Peter Carsten was born on 30 April 1928 in Weißenburg, Bavaria, Germany. He was an actor and producer, known for A Study in Terror (1965), Dark of the Sun (1968) and 11 Uhr 20 (1970). He was married to Lilijana, ??? and Divna. He died on 20 April 2012 in Lucija, Slovenia.- Writer
- Actor
- Script and Continuity Department
Carpenter began as an actor, having trained at the Old Vic Theatre School. Following repertory work he was first seen on screen playing character roles in television shows like Dixon of Dock Green (1955) as well as being regularly featured in Knight Errant Limited (1959) and The Citadel (1960). However, he became eventually dissatisfied with his acting career. By the end of the decade, he fulfilled a long-standing ambition and turned to writing adventure serials for imaginative young audiences. In addition, he made significant contributions to established series, such as The Adventures of Black Beauty (1972). At the centre of much of his own work are mysticism and English folklore.
Among his prolific output for ITV and BBC, he is perhaps best known for Catweazle (1970) (the story of an 11th Century wizard transported in time to the 20th Century where he is aided by a small boy), The Ghosts of Motley Hall (1976), Dick Turpin (1979) and Robin Hood (1984). 'Robin' was one of the most popular programs on British television, capturing a nationwide audience of 12-13 million viewers per episode. It still has a huge fan base to this day. From the mid 1980s, Carpenter alternated writing scripts for comedy (Out of Sight (1996)) with period adventure (The Baker Street Boys (1983), based on premises set forth in Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes and The Scarlet Pimpernel (1999)). Carpenter won Writer's Guild of Great Britain Awards for both 'Catweazle' and 'Out of Sight'. His published works include novelisations of many of his most popular shows.- Composer
- Music Department
- Sound Department
One of six children of the legendary composer Jerry Goldsmith, and the oldest son, Joel Goldsmith's own career in film scoring began in 1978, when he collaborated with Richard Band on the score for Laserblast (1978). Joel Goldsmith next worked as sound mixer for another Band project, The Day Time Ended (1979) before receiving his first solo scoring assignment, Olivia (1983), for cult German director Ulli Lommel. The stylish synthesizer score Goldsmith provided was succeeded by dozens more for film and TV, including The Man with Two Brains (1983) and Man's Best Friend (1993). His electronic expertise came in handy when he co-produced father Jerry's first all-electronic score, Runaway (1984), and helped in the same capacity for Jerry's theme from Hoosiers (1986). Joel also scored episodes of the TV series H.E.L.P. (1990), for which Jerry wrote the original theme; and Joel composed some 20 minutes of additional music (with credit) for his father's 1996 assignment Star Trek: First Contact (1996).
Joel Goldsmith composed his first symphonic score, for Roland Emmerich's Moon 44 (1990), in 1990. Surprisingly, this sweeping score did not lead to more similar assignments; but, in recent years, Joel Goldsmith's profile has been boosted in recent years with assignments such as TV's Vampirella (1996) and the 1997 cult hit Kull the Conqueror (1997), another big, bold symphonic score which helped nab him the assignment Shadow of Doubt (1998). Most recently, he has been the chief composer for the TV shows Stargate SG-1 (1997) and Stargate: Atlantis (2004). While Joel's style is recognizably similar to his father's (he seems to have a particular love for Jerry's The Wind and the Lion (1975)), it is recognizably distinct, which observers of the film music scene believe can only continue to ripen.- George Murdock was born on 25 June 1930 in Salina, Kansas, USA. He was an actor, known for Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989), Orange County (2002) and Breaker! Breaker! (1977). He was married to Catherine A. Miller. He died on 30 April 2012 in Burbank, California, USA.
- Patricia Paz Maria Medina was born on July 19, 1919 in Liverpool, England to a Spanish father and an English mother. She began acting as a teenager in the late 1930s and worked her way up to leading roles in the mid-1940s, then left for Hollywood. Medina teamed up with British actor Louis Hayward and they appeared together in Fortunes of Captain Blood (1950), The Lady and the Bandit (1951), Lady in the Iron Mask (1952) and Captain Pirate (1952). Voluptuous and exotic-looking, Medina was often typecast in period melodramas such as The Black Knight (1954). Two of her more notable films were William Witney's Stranger at My Door (1956) and Orson Welles's Confidential Report (1955), a follow-up of The Third Man (1949), based on the radio series "The Lives of Harry Lime". Although prolific during the early 1950s, her film career faded away by the end of the decade, leading to stage and television roles.
Medina appeared as Margarita Cortazar in four episodes of Walt Disney's Zorro (1957), and as Diana Coulter in two episodes of Richard Boone's Have Gun - Will Travel (1957). She returned to the screen in Robert Aldrich's adaptation of the lesbian-themed drama The Killing of Sister George (1968). She and her husband, American actor Joseph Cotten, toured together in several plays and on Broadway in the murder mystery, "Calculated Risk". Her appearances on television include episodes of Bonanza (1959) titled "The Spanish Grant" and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (1962) titled "See the Monkey Dance". She played Harriet Balfour in an episode of Perry Mason (1957) titled "The Case of the Lucky Loser", and as Lucia Belmont in an episode of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964) titled "The Foxes and Hounds Affair".
Patricia Medina retired from acting in 1978 after 40 years in the motion picture industry. She died at age 92 of natural causes on April 28, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. She was interred at Blandford Cemetery in Petersburg, Virginia, alongside Cotten. - Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
George Lindsey quickly became an icon on television in the 1960's playing the part of 'Goober Pyle" on the The Andy Griffith Show (1960). He replaced Jim Nabors who portrayed "Gomer Pyle" who ran the "fillin station" on "The Andy Griffith Show." As Jim Nabors was tapped for his own show Gomer Pyle: USMC (1964), cousin "Goober" was introduced to become the new mechanic and running the "fillin station" on "The Andy Griffith Show." He fit in perfectly with his country wit, impersonations of Cary Grant, "Judy, Judy, Judy," and playing the a dim-witted bulb often to the consternation of Sheriff Andy Taylor. He always wore his stocking type cap which always looked worn and dirty. Lindsay played this role also in Mayberry R.F.D. (1968) and continued playing basically the same and other characters on Hee Haw (1969) for many years. Although he did not perform in a myriad of shows, he was always recognizable as Goober and did not have a shortage of work. Between "The Andy Griffith show" and "Hee Haw," this provided him with almost 25 years worth of work a busy schedule for anyone. George frequented other country and western TV shows and movies including Gunsmoke (1955), Cannonball Run II (1984), Take This Job and Shove It (1981), and others. But he also found work on The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (1962), The Rifleman (1958), The Twilight Zone (1959), and many others. George provided much comedic relief to millions of viewers for over a generation and will never be forgotten by those who enjoyed him.- Actor
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Soundtrack
Günther Kaufmann was born on 16 June 1947 in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. He was an actor, known for Querelle (1982), Wickie und die starken Männer (2009) and Ludwig - Requiem for a Virgin King (1972). He was married to Patrizia, Alexandra von Herrendorf and Gabriele. He died on 10 May 2012 in Berlin, Germany.- Music Artist
- Actress
- Composer
Donna Summer rocketed to international super-stardom in the mid-1970s when her groundbreaking merger of R&B, soul, pop, funk, rock, disco and avant-garde electronica catapulted underground dance music out of the clubs of Europe to the pinnacles of sales and radio charts around the world.
Maintaining an unbroken string of hits throughout the 70s and 80s, most of which she wrote, Donna holds the record for most consecutive double albums to hit #1 on the Billboard charts (3) and first female to have four #1 singles in a 12 month period; 3 as a solo artist and one as a duo with Barbra Streisand.
A five-time Grammy winner, Donna Summer was the first artist to win the Grammy for Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female (1979, "Hot Stuff") as well as the first-ever recipient of the Grammy for Best Dance Recording (1997, "Carry On"). In 2004, she became one of the first inductees, as both an Artist Inductee and a Record Inductee (for 1977's "I Feel Love") into the Dance Music Hall of Fame in New York City.
Born Donna Gaines on New Year's Eve to a large family in Boston, she developed an early interest in music. From the age of eight, Summer sang in church choirs and city-wide choruses, and by her early twenties, was performing in musical theatre in Germany, winning parts in such highly-acclaimed shows as "Hair," "Showboat," "Godspell," and "Porgy and Bess" as well as performing with the Viennese Folk Opera. She released her first single, a cover of the Jaynett's girl group classic, "Sally Go Round The Roses," in 1971. While singing backup, she met producers Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte who produced her first single, "Hostage," which became a hit in the Netherlands, France and Belgium.
In 1975, Moroder and Bellotte produced the international hit, "Love to Love You Baby," which rose to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and triggered Summer's triumphant return to the United States as a key figure of the then-emerging disco genre. "Love To Love You Baby" paved the way for such international hits as "MacArthur Park," "Bad Girls," "Hot Stuff," "Dim All The Lights," "On The Radio," and "Enough Is Enough," as well as the Grammy and Academy award winning theme song "Last Dance," from the film "Thank God It's Friday," which remains a milestone in Donna's career.
In 1980, Summer became the first artist to sign with David Geffen's new label, Geffen Records, leaving her disco days behind and moving into the next phase of her career ." In the years that followed, Summer collaborated with writers and producers such as Quincy Jones, Michael Omartian and England's dance-pop production compound Stock Aitken Waterman and produced a steady stream of hits from "State of Independence," featuring Michael Jackson on backing vocals, to the abiding feminist anthem "She Works Hard For The Money," one of the most-played songs of all-time, and the infectious "This Time I Know It's For Real."
In 1994, she released "Endless Summer," a greatest hits retrospective containing a new song, "Melody of Love," which became Billboard's #1 Dance Record of the Year. She also released the critically acclaimed gem "Christmas Spirit," a collection of Summer's original songs and holiday standards recorded with the Nashville Symphony Orchestra. Summer spent the '90s continuing to tour, performing to sold-out audiences worldwide.
In 1997, when the new "Best Dance Recording" Category was created at the Grammy Awards, Donna Summer was the first winner with her fifth career Grammy award for "Carry On." In 1999, Sony/Epic Records released "VH1 Presents Donna Summer: Live & More - Encore!," an album and DVD of Summer's critically acclaimed VH1 broadcast taped at New York's Hammerstein Ballroom. The show premiered on VH1 as one of the network's highest rated shows to date and featured live performances of Summer's top hits.
In addition to her five Grammy Awards, Summer has won six American Music Awards, three consecutive #1 platinum double albums (she's the only solo artist, male or female, ever to accomplish this), 11 gold albums, four #1 singles on Billboard's Hot 100 Chart, 3 platinum singles, and 12 gold singles.
Summer is also the first female artist to have a #1 single and #1 album on the Billboard charts simultaneously ("Live & More;" "MacArthur Park" 1978) a feat she also repeated six months later ("Bad Girls" & "Hot Stuff" in 1979). She has charted 33 Top Ten hits on the combined Billboard Disco/Dance/Dance Club/Play charts over a period of 37 years with 18 reaching the #1 spot solidifying her as the undisputed Queen of Dance.
In addition to her recording and performing career, Summer is an accomplished visual artist whose work has been shown at exhibitions worldwide including Steven Spielberg's "Starbright Foundation Tour of Japan" and The Whitney Museum as well as a prestigious engagement at Sotheby's in New York. Since 1989, she has sold over 1.7 million dollars in original art - with her highest piece going for $150,000. In 2003, Random House published her autobiography "Ordinary Girl," co-authored with Marc Eliot. Also that year, Universal released "The Journey," containing all of her original hits, as well as two new songs.
In 2008, celebrating four decades of milestones, Summer adds another accomplishment to her list with the success of her new album "Crayons." The album debuted at #17 on the Billboard Top 200 Chart making it Summer's highest debuting album ever. It also debuted at #5 on the Billboard R&B chart - another personal best. "Crayons" is Summer's first album of all new studio material in 17 years and is her highest charting album since "She Works Hard For The Money" in 1983. To date, the album has spawned three #1 Dance hits "I'm A Fire," "Stamp Your Feet" and "Fame (The Game)."
It is estimated that Summer has sold more than 130 million records worldwide.
Ranked #24 on Billboard Magazines 50th Anniversary issue's "Hot 100 Artists of All Time," Donna Summer was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame on April 18, 2013 in Los Angeles.- After his parents divorced, Felix lived with foster parents from the age of eleven. His interest in radio plays developed as a child. Early on he became the author of several articles, some of which were also broadcast. After finishing school with a high school diploma, he studied to become a teacher. From 1960 to 1965 he worked as a teacher at the primary and commercial school in Frauenfeld. Meanwhile, he worked part-time as a radio and television reporter. He also wrote plays and children's musicals. In 1965 he gave up his teaching profession. Felix became a program designer at Swiss television in the "Culture and Science" department. As an author and presenter, he also developed his own broadcast formats and trained as a television director.
In 1973 he moved to the "Entertainment" department. Here he created the series "Teleboy", an entertaining game show with a hidden camera, which was awarded the "Prix Walo" in 1977. This Saturday evening series achieved the highest ratings in the history of Swiss television. In 1978 he was awarded the "Chaplin Prize" and the "Rose of Montreux". In 1980, Kurt Felix invented the series "Do you understand fun?", which he also moderated himself. In the same year he married the singer Paola, with whom he released "Do you understand fun?" from 1983. became the Saturday evening entertainment program and one of ARD's most successful programs. In 1985 he was awarded the "Rose of Montreux" again.
For Swiss television he accompanied the major lottery show "Supertreffer" as a presenter and producer. Until 1990, Kurt Felix co-hosted the show "Do you understand fun?" with his wife, which became one of the most popular forerunners of the decade. In the same year, 1990, Felix received the German media award "Bambi". He ended his career as a presenter on his 50th birthday. From 1991 he worked as a consultant for various television companies. He has also had Italian citizenship since 1995. From 1995 to 2005 he was a weekly television columnist for "Schweizer Illustrierte". For his 60th birthday, SWR showed a 15-part television series called "Klassiker mit Kurt Felix", a look back at 20 years of "Do you understand fun?".
In 2002, Felix developed the "Quiz Today", which was broadcast on Swiss television in the main evening program from autumn onwards. In 2003 he co-authored the book "50 Years of Swiss Television". In the same year he was awarded the honorary Bambi for his life's work. In 2003 Felix fell ill with cancer. After his successful treatment and recovery, he was appointed ambassador for the "Swiss Cancer League" in 2004. In 2006 Kurt Felix largely withdrew into his private life. He lived alternately in Switzerland and Italy. In 2011 he received the Swiss Television Prize for his life's work.
Kurt Felix died on May 16, 2012 at the age of 71 from his long-term cancer in St. Gallen. On May 31, 2012, a public funeral service took place in the St. Laurenzenkirche in St. Gallen. - Actor
- Composer
- Music Department
Robin Gibb was born in 1949 on the Isle of Man, about half an hour before his twin brother Maurice. His parents, Barbara and Hugh, were both musical. Barbara sang and Hugh was a drummer and bandleader. Robin had four siblings - an older sister and brother, Lesley and Barry, twin Maurice and younger brother Andy. The family moved for some time to Manchester, England before emigrating to Australia in 1958.
During their childhood, Robin, Maurice and Barry began performing together. They played under various band names, but finally settled on The Bee Gees. It was in Australia that the band first tasted success, topping the charts there in 1965 with 'Spicks and Specks'. In 1966 they relocated back to the UK and landed a recording contract with Polydor. Chart success followed in the UK and USA.
In the late 60s, tensions arose in the band, and Robin briefly left to pursue a solo career, but the group reunited and continued having success, including switching to a more disco sound. In 1977, The Bee Gees wrote and produced five songs for the soundtrack of Saturday Night Fever (1977). The film was a smash and the soundtrack album went on to become one of the biggest selling of all time, elevating The Bee Gees to superstar group status.
Robin and the group also became known for penning hit records for other artists including Barbra Streisand, Diana Ross, Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers. The band continued writing and performing into the 1990s, but disbanded officially in 2003 when Maurice Gibb died suddenly at 53. Robin continued to write and perform solo material, and became involved in charity work in support of British troops. In 2011 it was announced that he was suffering with cancer. After a brave battle with the disease and other health problems, Robin Gibb passed away on May 20th 2012.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Heinz Eckner was born on 4 May 1925 in Dresden, Germany. He was an actor, known for Rudi, benimm dich! (1971), Kompanie der Knallköppe (1971) and Ein Kaktus ist kein Lutschbonbon (1981). He was married to Maria and Renate. He died on 30 May 2012 in Achim, Lower Saxony, Germany.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Richard Dawson was born Colin Lionel Emm on November 20, 1932 in Gosport, Hampshire, England. When he was 14, he joined the Merchant Navy and served for three years. During that time, he made money boxing. He had to lie about his age and remain tough so the older guys would not hassle him. In the late 1950s, Richard met a British actress named Diana Dors. On April 12, 1959, while in New York for an appearance on The Steve Allen Plymouth Show (1956), they were married. Richard and Diana's first child, a son named Mark Dawson, was born in 1960, and a second son, Gary Dawson, was born in 1962. Richard and Diana separated in 1964 and eventually divorced in 1967. When Richard moved to the United States, he began acting on the well-known series, Hogan's Heroes (1965), in 1965. Richard played the lovable British Corporal Peter Newkirk. The show ended in 1971. Not long after that, in 1973, he became a panelist on Match Game (1973) and remained there until 1978.
While still on "Match Game", he hosted his own show called Family Feud (1976). , which he is most remembered for by his trademark of kissing all the female contestants. Those kisses made the show a warm and friendly program, along with his quick wit, subtle jokes, and ability to make people feel at ease with being on camera. In 1987, Richard co-starred withArnold Schwarzenegger in the science fiction action movie The Running Man (1987). Richard portrayed an egotistical game show host, Damon Killian, whom many say was a mirror image of himself at one time or another, during his real-life career.
When Richard was 61, he hosted the third incarnation of "Family Feud" in 1994, but had only a short run. On April 6, 1981, the Johnson family appeared on "Family Feud" and Richard was introduced to 27-year-old Gretchen Johnson. They had a daughter, Shannon Dawson (Shannon Nicole Dawson), in 1990, and were married in 1991. They were still married and reside in Beverly Hills, California. Richard narrated TV's Funniest Game Show Moments (1984) on Fox in early 2000. On Thanksgiving Day, November 23rd, 2000, he hosted a "Family Feud" marathon, which was filmed in 1995. Some people hear the name Richard Dawson and may not recognize the name. But say his name, followed by his famous quote "Survey says...!" or mention "Newkirk on Hogan's Heroes (1965)", and they're sure to know who you mean. Richard Dawson died at age 79 of complications from esophageal cancer on June 2, 2012.- Writer
- Producer
- Actor
Ray Bradbury was an American science fiction writer whose works were translated in more than 40 languages and sold millions of copies around the world. Although he created a world of new technical and intellectual ideas, he never obtained a driver's license and had never driven an automobile.
He was born Ray Douglas Bradbury on August 22, 1920, in Waukegan, Illinois. He was the third son in the family. His father, Leonard Spaulding Bradbury, was a telephone lineman and technician. His mother, Esther Marie Bradbury (nee Moberg), was a Swedish immigrant. His grandfather and great-grandfather were newspaper publishers. In 1934, his family settled in Los Angeles, California. There, young Bradbury often roller-skated through Hollywood, trying to spot celebrities. He attended Los Angeles High School, where he was involved in the drama club and planned to become an actor. He graduated from high school in 1938 and had no more formal education. Instead, he learned from reading works of such writers as Lev Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoevsky, among others.
From 1938-1942, he was selling newspapers on the streets of Los Angeles, spending days in the local library and nights at the typewriter. At that time, he published his stories in fanzines. In 1941, he became a paid writer when the pulp magazine Science Stories published his short story, titled "Pendulum", and he was a full-time writer by the end of 1942. His first book - "Dark Carnival" - was a collection of stories published in 1947. That same year, he married Marguerite McClure (1922-2003), whom he met at a bookstore a year earlier. Maggie, as she was affectionately called, was the only woman Bradbury ever dated. They had four daughters and, eventually, eight grandchildren.
Ray Bradbury shot to international fame after publication of "The Martian Chronicles" (1950), a collection of short stories partially based on ideas from ancient Greek and Roman mythology. Then he followed the anti-Utopian writers Yevgeni Zamyatin and Aldous Huxley in his best-known work, "Fahrenheit 451" (1953). The film adaptation (Fahrenheit 451 (1966)) by director François Truffaut, starring Julie Christie, received several nominations. However, Bradbury was not happy with the television adaptation (The Martian Chronicles (1980), starring Rock Hudson) of his story "The Martian Chronicles". His other novels and stories also have been adapted to films and television, as well as for radio, theatre and comic books. Bradbury had written episodes for Alfred Hitchcock's television series, as well as for many other television productions. His total literary output is close to 600 short stories, more than 30 books and numerous poems and plays. He was writing daily.
In 2004, Bradbury received a National Medal of Arts. He was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6644 Hollywood Boulevard. An asteroid was named in his honor, "9766 Bradbury", and the Apollo 15 astronauts named an impact crater on the moon "Dandelion Crater", after his novel, "Dandelion Wine". He also received the World Fantasy Award for Lifetime Achievement, the Grand Master Award from Science Fiction Writers of America, an Emmy Award for his work as a writer on "The Halloween Tree", and many other awards and honors. Ray Bradbury died on June 6, 2012, at the age of 91, in Los Angeles, California.- Costume Designer
- Costume and Wardrobe Department
- Actor
Nolan Miller was born on 8 January 1933 in Burkburnett, Texas, USA. He was a costume designer and actor, known for Dynasty (1981), Mr. Mom (1983) and Honey West (1965). He was married to Sandra Stream. He died on 6 June 2012 in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Actor
- Producer
Richard Hugh Lynch was born on February 12, 1940 in Brooklyn, New York City, to Irish immigrant parents. He was one of seven children. Before starting a career as an actor, he joined the United States Marine Corps in 1958. He served for four years where he made Corporal, and did a tour of the Middle East with the Sixth Fleet. He began his training with Herbert Berghof and Uta Hagen at H.B. Studios in New York's Greenwich Village, and later went on to train extensively with Lee Strasberg at Carnegie Hall. In 1970, he became a lifetime member of the Actors Studio and spent years in the New York theater community playing in dozens of on- and off-Broadway productions. The more notable plays were: "The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel", "The Lion in Winter", "The Devils", "The Lady from the Sea", "Action", "Live Like Pigs", "Richard III", "Offi on a Tangerine", "A View from the Bridge", "The Man with the Flower in His Mouth", and Shelley Winters' "One Night Stands of a Noisy Passenger".
Lynch made his film debut in the classic film Scarecrow (1973), winner of the Grand Prix Award at the Cannes Film Festival. His performance in Scarecrow launched his film career and brought him to Hollywood, where he has worked in film and television for over twenty years. His more prominent film work has been in: The Seven-Ups (1973), Open Season (1974), The Formula (1980), Invasion U.S.A. (1985), Bad Dreams (1988), Little Nikita (1988), Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment (2002), and William Peter Blatty's The Ninth Configuration (1980). His performance as the evil King Cromwell, in the successful fantasy film The Sword and the Sorcerer (1982), won him the Saturn Award for Best Actor from the Academy of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Although best known for playing villains, he was cast as the President of the United States in Mil Mascaras vs. the Aztec Mummy (2007).
He also starred in numerous television series and Movies of the Week, such as Alcatraz: The Whole Shocking Story (1980), Sizzle (1981), Vampire (1979), Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979), Battlestar Galactica (1978), and the Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) two-part episode "Gambit". His work in a variety of independent films has won him a high profile internationally. He has also worked in China, where he played in the first joint production between the Screen Actors' Guild and the People's Republic of China, The Korean Project. In his spare time, Richard enjoys fishing, the arts, architecture, music and poetry. He is also fluent in several languages including German and Italian.- Stunts
- Actor
- Additional Crew
George Leech was born on 6 December 1921 in London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), For Your Eyes Only (1981) and The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976). He was married to Elizabeth Hopkins. He died on 17 June 2012 in England, UK.- Writer
- Producer
- Director
Nora Ephron was educated at Wellesley College, Massachusetts. She was an acclaimed essayist (Crazy Salad 1975), novelist (Heartburn 1983), and had written screenplays for several popular films, all featuring strong female characters, such as anti-nuclear activist Karen Silkwood (Silkwood (1983), co-written with Alice Arlen) and a mobster's feisty independent daughter Cookie Voltecki (Cookie (1989), also co-written with Arlen). Ephron's hard-headed sensibilities helped make Rob Reiner's When Harry Met Sally... (1989) a clear-eyed view of modern romance, and she earned an Oscar nomination for her original screenplay.
Ephron made her directorial debut with the comedy This Is My Life (1992), co-scripted by her sister Delia Ephron, which starred Julie Kavner as a single mother who struggles to establish herself as a stand-up comedienne. Ephron followed up by helming and co-writing Sleepless in Seattle (1993), a romantic comedy in which lovers Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan are separated for most of the film. Less about love than about love in the movies, the film drew inspiration from the beloved shipboard romance An Affair to Remember (1957), starring Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr.
Ephron was born in New York City, the daughter of stage and screen writing team Henry Ephron and Phoebe Ephron, who used her infancy as the subject of their play "Three's a Family" and based their comedy Take Her, She's Mine (1963) on letters their daughter wrote them from college. Their screenplays include There's No Business Like Show Business (1954), Carousel (1956) and Desk Set (1957). Formerly married to novelist Dan Greenburg and investigative journalist Carl Bernstein, Ephron was wed to crime journalist and screenwriter Nicholas Pileggi, at the time of her passing, who wrote such films as Goodfellas (1990). She was of Russian Jewish descent.- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Andy Griffith is best known for his starring roles in two very popular television series, The Andy Griffith Show (1960) and Matlock (1986). Griffith earned a degree in music from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In the 1950s, he became a regular on The Ed Sullivan Show (1948) and The Steve Allen Plymouth Show (1956). He was featured in the Broadway play "No Time for Sergeants" (1955) for which he received a Tony nomination, and he later appeared in the film version. His film debut was in the provocative and prophetic A Face in the Crowd (1957), in which Griffith gave a performance that has been described as stunning.
On The Andy Griffith Show (1960), Griffith portrayed a folksy small-town sheriff who shared simple heartfelt wisdom. The series was one of the most popular television series in history. It generated some successful spin-offs, and the original is still seen in reruns to this day. Griffith created his own production company in 1972, which produced several movies and television series. In 1981, he was nominated for an Emmy for his portrayal in Murder in Texas (1981). In 1983, Griffith was stricken with Guillain-Barre syndrome, but he recovered after rehabilitation. In 1986, he produced and starred in the very successful television series Matlock (1986). The series spawned numerous television movies as well. When he accepted the People's Choice Award for this series, he said this was his favorite role. Andy Griffith died at age 86 of a heart attack in his home in Dare County, North Carolina on July 3, 2012.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Ernest Borgnine was born Ermes Effron Borgnino on January 24, 1917 in Hamden, Connecticut. His parents were Anna (Boselli), who had emigrated from Carpi (MO), Italy, and Camillo Borgnino, who had emigrated from Ottiglio (AL), Italy. As an only child, Ernest enjoyed most sports, especially boxing, but took no real interest in acting. At age 18, after graduating from high school in New Haven, and undecided about his future career, he joined the United States Navy, where he stayed for ten years until leaving in 1945. After a few factory jobs, his mother suggested that his forceful personality could make him suitable for a career in acting, and Borgnine promptly enrolled at the Randall School of Drama in Hartford. After completing the course, he joined Robert Porterfield's famous Barter Theatre in Abingdon, Virginia, staying there for four years, undertaking odd jobs and playing every type of role imaginable. His big break came in 1949, when he made his acting debut on Broadway playing a male nurse in "Harvey".
In 1951, Borgnine moved to Los Angeles to pursue a movie career, and made his film debut as Bill Street in The Whistle at Eaton Falls (1951). His career took off in 1953 when he was cast in the role of Sergeant "Fatso" Judson in From Here to Eternity (1953). This memorable performance led to numerous supporting roles as "heavies" in a steady string of dramas and westerns. He played against type in 1955 by securing the lead role of Marty Piletti, a shy and sensitive butcher, in Marty (1955). He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance, despite strong competition from Spencer Tracy, Frank Sinatra, James Dean and James Cagney. Throughout the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, Borgnine performed memorably in such films as The Catered Affair (1956), Ice Station Zebra (1968) and Emperor of the North (1973). Between 1962 and 1966, he played Lt. Commander Quinton McHale in the popular television series McHale's Navy (1962). In early 1984, he returned to television as Dominic Santini in the action series Airwolf (1984) co-starring Jan-Michael Vincent, and in 1995, he was cast in the comedy series The Single Guy (1995) as doorman Manny Cordoba. He also appeared in several made-for-TV movies.
Ernest Borgnine has often stated that acting was his greatest passion. His amazing 61-year career (1951 - 2012) included appearances in well over 100 feature films and as a regular in three television series, as well as voice-overs in animated films such as All Dogs Go to Heaven 2 (1996), Small Soldiers (1998), and a continued role in the series SpongeBob SquarePants (1999). Between 1973 until his death, Ernest was married to Tova Traesnaes, who heads her own cosmetics company. They lived in Beverly Hills, California, where Ernest assisted his wife between film projects. When not acting, Ernest actively supported numerous charities and spoke tirelessly at benefits throughout the country. He has been awarded several honorary doctorates from colleges across the United States as well as numerous Lifetime Achievement Awards. In 1996, Ernest purchased a bus and traveled across the United States to see the country and meet his many fans. On December 17, 1999, he presented the University of North Alabama with a collection of scripts from his film and television career, due to his long friendship with North Alabama alumnus and actor George Lindsey (died May 6, 2012), who was an artist in residence at North Alabama.
Ernest Borgnine passed away aged 95 on July 8, 2012, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California, of renal failure. He is survived by his wife Tova, their children and his younger sister Evelyn (1926-2013)- Ruth Hausmeister was born on 5 June 1912 in Stuttgart, Germany. She was an actress, known for The Bridge (1959), Ein idealer Gatte (1958) and Sechs Personen suchen einen Autor (1964). She was married to Carl-Heinz Schroth. She died on 1 February 2012 in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
- Garry Walberg was born on 10 June 1921 in Buffalo, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for Quincy M.E. (1976), King Kong (1976) and Johnny Staccato (1959). He was married to Florence M Apostol, Patsy Collett and Betty Jean Horner. He died on 27 March 2012 in Northridge, California, USA.
- Actress
- Producer
- Director
Silvana Gallardo was born on 13 January 1953 in New York City, New York, USA. She was an actress and producer, known for Centennial (1978), Death Wish II (1982) and A Walk in the Clouds (1995). She was married to Billy Drago. She died on 2 January 2012 in Paris, Kentucky, USA.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Rainer Penkert was born on 23 June 1921 in Berlin, Germany. He was an actor, known for Morituri (1965), The Winds of War (1983) and Paper Tiger (1975). He died on 11 April 2012 in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Walter Roderer was born on 3 July 1920 in St. Gallen, Switzerland. He was an actor and writer, known for Ein Schweizer namens Nötzli (1988), Der 42. Himmel (1962) and Der Herr mit der schwarzen Melone (1960). He was married to Anina Stancu, Ruth Jecklin and Lenke Mekkey. He died on 8 May 2012 in Illnau, Kanton Zürich, Switzerland.- Walo Lüönd was born on 13 April 1927 in Zug, Switzerland. He was an actor, known for Tatort (1970), Tristan and Isolde (1981) and Auf Achse (1980). He was married to Eva-Maria Bendig. He died on 17 June 2012 in Locarno, Switzerland.
- Producer
- Additional Crew
- Production Manager
Richard D. Zanuck was born on 13 December 1934 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was a producer and production manager, known for Driving Miss Daisy (1989), Cocoon (1985) and Jaws (1975). He was married to Lili Fini Zanuck, Linda Harrison and Lili Gentle. He died on 13 July 2012 in Beverly Hills, California, USA.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Sage Stallone was an American actor and film director from Los Angeles. His best known role was Robert Balboa, Jr. (Rocky Balboa's son) in the sports drama film "Rocky V" (1990).
Stallone was the eldest son of actor Sylvester Stallone (1946-) and his first wife Sasha Czack. His parents married in 1974, and divorced in 1985. Sage's paternal grandfather was hairdresser and beautician Frank Stallone Sr. (1919-2011). Sage's paternal grandmother was the astrologer Jackie Stallone (1921-). Through his father's side of the family, Sage had Italian, French, and Ukrainian-Jewish ancestry.
Stallone made his film debut in "Rocky V" (1990), when 14-years-old. From 1994 to 1995, Stallone studied filmmaking at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, a public art school located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. In 1996 Stallone and film editor Bob Murawski became the founders of the film preservation company Grindhouse Releasing. The company preserved, digitally restored and distributed exploitation films, B-movies, and cult films. It was also known for the restoration of Italian horror films directed by Lucio Fulci, Ruggero Deodato, and other horror directors.
In 2006, Stallone directed the drama film "Vic", concerning a down-on-his-luck actor who struggles to make a career comeback. For this film, Stallone won the Best New Filmmaker at the Boston Film Festival .
In 2010, Stallone played an unnamed Mafioso in the drama film "Promises Written in Water". The film did not receive distribution, and was mainly exhibited in film festivals. Stallone's last film appearance was a role in the short film "The Agent" (2010).
Stallone died in July 2012,at his home in Studio City, Los Angeles. His autopsy indicated that the cause of death was coronary artery disease, caused by atherosclerosis. He was 36-years-old at the time of death. His funeral was held at the St. Martin of Tours Catholic Church in Los Angeles. Stallone was buried at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery.- Actress
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
Celeste Holm was an only child, born into a home where her mother was a painter and her father worked in insurance. She would study acting at the University of Chicago and make her stage debut in 1936. Her Broadway debut came when she was 19 in 'The Time of Your Life'. She appeared in many successful plays, including "The Women", "Oklahoma!" and "Bloomer Girl". It was in the production of "Oklahoma!" that Celeste would sing the showstopper, "I Cain't Say No". She was signed by 20th Century Fox in 1946 and appeared in her first film, Three Little Girls in Blue (1946). With her third film, Gentleman's Agreement (1947), she would win the Supporting Actress Oscar and a Golden Globe. Celeste would be nominated twice more for Academy Awards in the Come to the Stable (1949) and All About Eve (1950). But, Celeste was a star who loved the stage so she left Hollywood, only to return for two MGM musicals in the 1950s. They were The Tender Trap (1955) and High Society (1956). In addition to her stage career, Celeste appeared on television in her own series, Honestly, Celeste! (1954) and as a panelist on Who Pays? (1959). In 1970, Celeste returned to television series as the chaperone to the president's daughter on Nancy (1970). For the next two decades, she would appear on television in regular series, miniseries and movies. Celeste Holm died at age 95 of a heart attack on July 15, 2012.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Norbert Berger was born on 12 September 1945 in Völklingen, Germany. He was an actor, known for Schlagerrevue 1962 (1961), Plattenküche (1976) and Baden-Badener Roulette (1968). He was married to Cindy Berger. He died on 14 July 2012 in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.- Composer
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Birger Heymann was born on 7 May 1943 in Berlin, Germany. He was a composer, known for Linie 1 (1988), Bangkok Story (1989) and Tatort (1970). He died on 18 July 2012 in Berlin, Germany.- The son of a car dealer, the British actor Simon Ward was born in London, England, in 1941, and educated there at Alleyn's School, the home of the National Youth Theatre, which he joined at age 13 and stayed with for eight years. After attending the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he worked in repertory in Northampton, Birmingham and Oxford, and occasionally in London's West End. His big break in theater came in 1967 when he played in Joe Orton's "Loot" which led to a number of small film and television roles. Perhaps his best work is his portrayals of the lead characters in Young Winston (1972) and All Creatures Great and Small (1975).
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Angharad Rees was born on 16 July 1944 in Edgware, Middlesex, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Under Milk Wood (1971), Hands of the Ripper (1971) and Poldark (1975). She was married to David McAlpine and Christopher Cazenove. She died on 21 July 2012 in Knightsbridge, London, England, UK.- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
Sherman Hemsley played characters known to be wise-cracking, "Weezy" loving, boisterous fools which America and the entire world laughed with kindheartedly. Sherman Alexander Hemsley, Air Force veteran and actor, was born on Feb. 1, 1938 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His father, William Hemsley, worked at a printing press while his mother worked at various factories during the war. As a child, Hemsley was introduced to acting during school where the teachers would ask students to play different characters. The first play he did as a kid in school was about fire prevention and Hemsley played the fire. He eventually ended up dropping out of school and joined the Air Force. During his adolescence he never considered acting as a profession until after he served in the military. Hemsley then moved from south Philadelphia where he had spent most of his life to New York City. He worked graveyard shift as a post office clerk during the night and actor during the day. He considered New York the best place to be as it had several acting workshops and theater companies such as The Negro Ensemble Company (NEC)founded by Robert Hooks which helped actors/actresses obtain roles on theater, television and movies. His former co-star, Roxie Roker, was also part of the NEC alumni. Hemsley made his professional acting debut on the Broadway play, Purlie, and toured with the show for a year. In 1971, while on tour for Purlie, he received a call from producer/creator/writer Norman Lear. Lear wanted Hemsley to audition for a role which was going to be part of his sitcom All in the Family (1971). Due to his commitment to the Purlie project, Hemsley declined the role. Norman Lear said he would have the role open for him and Hemsley joined the cast two years later. Hemsley and co-star, Isabel Sanford were chosen to do a spin off of the show All In The Family called The Jeffersons (1975). Despite the age difference between Hemsley and Sanford (twenty years apart), many described their on-screen marriage as truly hilarious. Hemsley was nominated for a Golden Globe for his outstanding performance as George Jefferson. The Jeffersons turned out to be a success spanning eleven seasons ending in 1985. After The Jeffersons, Hemsley steadily started working on other projects and in 1986 joined the NBC sitcom Amen (1986) where he played religious deacon Ernest Frye. The show ran for five seasons until 1991. Hemsley then made his debut as a voice actor as part of the ABC live action-puppet series, Dinosaurs (1991). Hemsley played Bradley P. Richfield, Earl's cruel boss. The show ran successfully for four seasons. In 1997, the remaining cast of The Jeffersons had a reunion on the Rolonda (1994) talk show, still having the same charm they did decades ago. Isabel Sanford and Sherman Hemsley made television guest appearances together on well-known television programs such as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990) and were in commercials for The Gap, Old Navy and Denny's. Hemsley and Marla Gibbs guest starred on the TBS show House of Payne (2006) in 2011. Sherman Hemsley will be remembered as an actor who was on shows that addressed serious issues but also one who brought laughter into homes every week.- Actor
- Director
- Soundtrack
Both a leading and a supporting actor in movies and on television, name a role - lawyer, airline pilot, rig foreman, doctor, gunslinger, real-life person, good guy, bad guy - and Chad Everett has probably played it. He was born Raymon Lee Cramton on June 11, 1937 in South Bend, Indiana. In high school, he did stage plays and wanted to become an actor.
After he graduated from Wayne University, Chad came to Hollywood and signed a contract with Warner Brothers. He first became known playing a deputy in the short-lived television series, The Dakotas (1962) but acted in a number of supporting roles, such as Get Yourself a College Girl (1964) and Made in Paris (1966), and played the title role in Johnny Tiger (1966) and Return of the Gunfighter (1966).
He was probably best-known for his seven-year run as "Dr. Joe Gannon" in the television series, Medical Center (1969), which earned him two Golden Globe nominations. After "Medical Center" was canceled, Chad starred in the mini-series, Centennial (1978), and played the title role in Hagen (1980). In the early '80s, Chad was in television films, including The Intruder Within (1981), and did a number of guest appearances on The Love Boat (1977) and Murder, She Wrote (1984).
Chad's recent work has included roles in the remake of Psycho (1998) and in Mulholland Drive (2001). Today, he is still seen on television in Manhattan, AZ (2000). He recently completed a new film with Gwyneth Paltrow, View from the Top (2003), which is soon to be released. Chad is married to Shelby Grant, and they have two daughters.- Susanne Lothar was born on 15 November 1960 in Hamburg, Germany. She was an actress, known for Funny Games (1997), The White Ribbon (2009) and The Reader (2008). She was married to Ulrich Mühe. She died on 21 July 2012 in Berlin, Germany.
- Actress
- Additional Crew
- Producer
Lupe Ontiveros was born on 17 September 1942 in El Paso, Texas, USA. She was an actress and producer, known for As Good as It Gets (1997), Selena (1997) and Chuck & Buck (2000). She was married to Elias P. Ontiveros. She died on 26 July 2012 in Whittier, California, USA.- Director
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Russ Mayberry was born on 22 December 1925 in Duluth, Minnesota, USA. He was a director and producer, known for Black Sheep Squadron (1976), Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) and McCloud (1970). He was married to Mary Ellen "Sandy" Minor and Darleen Engle. He died on 27 July 2012 in Fort Collins, Colorado, USA.- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
John Finnegan, or sometimes known as J.P. Finnegan, is an American film actor, mostly known for his roles on the American crime fiction series, Columbo (1971), which aired regularly from 1971 to 1978. Another role included voicing the character, "Warren T. Rat", who was the main villain in the 1986 Don Bluth film, An American Tail (1986). Finnegan was a friend of director/actor John Cassavetes and appeared in 6 of his movies. He also appeared in The Natural (1984), with Robert Redford, as "Sam Simpson", the manager of "Roy Hobbs".- Silvia Seidel was born on 23 September 1969 in Munich, Bavaria, West Germany. She was an actress, known for Anna (1987), Halfway Across the Galaxy and Turn Left (1993) and Storm of Love (2005). She died on 31 July 2012 in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
- Wilfried Blasberg was born in 1938. He was an actor, known for Tatort (1970), The Fan (1982) and Kreisbrandmeister Felix Martin (1982). He died in February 2012 in Germany.
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'Eric Sykes' started as a radio scriptwriter but he soon found he could perform as well as write. The slight handicap of being very hard of hearing doesn't interfere with his wonderful comic timing. The spectacles he wears have no lenses but contain a bone conducting hearing aid.- Rolf Castell was born on 28 May 1921 in Munich, Germany. He was an actor, known for Tatort (1970), La Gondola (1955) and Alle meine Töchter (1995). He was married to Ingeborg. He died on 3 August 2012 in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
- Composer
- Music Department
- Actor
Musical talent ran in Marvin Hamlisch's family - his father was an accordionist, and at seven Hamlisch was the youngest student ever accepted by Manhattan's Julliard School of Music. Hamlich furthered his education by taking night classes at Queens College and working during the day as a rehearsal pianist for Broadway shows. He eventually began composing songs for stage productions. In 1968 he met film producer Sam Spiegel, resulting in his first film score for The Swimmer (1968) (he had previously written some songs for a low-budget teen epic, Ski Party (1965), but did not do the score for it). Hamlisch became well versed in the very specialized field of film scoring. In addition to scoring films, he ventured into film production as co-producer of The Entertainer (1975). In 1976 he won a Tony award for his scoring of the Broadway show, A Chorus Line (1985).- Actor
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Al Freeman, Jr. was an actor and director who was the first African American to win a Daytime Emmy Award for acting. His most famous role was that of Police Captain Ed Hall in the soap opera One Life to Live (1968), which brought him the Emmy in 1979. He was a regular on the soap from 1972 through 1987, and appeared off and on as Captain Hall from 1988 through 2000. He received three additional Emmy nominations playing the role in 1983, '86 and '87. Freeman also was the first African American to direct a TV soap opera, helming "One Life to Live" episodes.
Born on March 21, 1934 in San Antonio, Texas, he was raised primarily by his father, an actor and jazz musician, after his parents divorced. Al Freeman father and son left Texas, moving to Cleveland, Ohio. After studying drama at Los Angeles City College, Freeman fils moved to New York City to act in the theater, making his Broadway debut in Ketti Frings's "The Long Dream" in 1960, a flop that closed after five performances. He had a major success playing the lead in James Baldwin's play "Blues for Mister Charlie" in 1964. In 1970, he appeared in "Look to the Lilies" on Broadway, a musical version of the 1963 movie Lilies of the Field (1963), playing the part of Homer Smith, the role that brought Sidney Poitier an Oscar. Despite a prestigious production team that included director Joshua Logan, composer Jule Styne and lyricist Sammy Cahn, the show was a flop.
Freeman made his reputation primarily in television. He debuted as a television actor in the series Suspicion (1957) in 1958, and his soap opera debut came in 1967 in The Edge of Night (1956). He was nominated for Primetime Emmy Awards for My Sweet Charlie (1970) and for Roots: The Next Generations (1979), in which he played Malcolm X.
In 1958, Freeman made his movie debut in an uncredited role in the Glenn Ford WWII picture _Torpedo Run (1958)_ and first received billing in the 1960 gang war B-movie potboiler This Rebel Breed (1960). His most memorable role was the lead in Amiri Baraka's Dutchman (1966) opposite Shirley Knight, who was named Best Actress at the 1967 Venice Film Festival. Freeman won the N.A.A.C.P. Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture for playing Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad in Spike Lee's Malcolm X (1992).
Freeman was a professor in the drama department of Howard University. When he died on August 9, 2012, in Washington, D.C. at the age of 78, he had established himself as a legend in the African American arts community.- Actor
- Director
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David Cameron was born on 21 January 1933 in Camberwell, Surrey, England, UK. He was an actor and director, known for Robot Jox (1989), Mrs. Dally (1966) and Suddenly, Last Summer (1959). He was married to Gerlinde Bernhard, Dorothea 'Pumpi' Gräfin v. Lamberg, Hildegard Knef and Shirley Cameron. He died on 7 August 2012 in Vienna, Austria.- Producer
- Director
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Mel Stuart was born on 2 September 1928 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a producer and director, known for Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971), Running on the Sun: The Badwater 135 (2000) and The Making of the President 1960 (1963). He was married to Roberta Frances Silberman and Harriet Rosalind Dolin. He died on 9 August 2012 in Beverly Hills, California, USA.- Actor
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At 14, Ron Palillo (born Ronald Gabriel Paolillo) started his own summer theater in Cheshire, Connecticut. His parents, Gabriel and Carmel Paolillo, were surprised when the summer theater actually made money. After graduating from high school, Ron went to the University of Connecticut at Storrs, where he majored in drama. He appeared in many school plays in college. After graduation, Ron got a job with a touring company which performed in Shakespearean plays. He claimed to have received invaluable drama training during that tour, acting in Shakespearean masterpieces like "Macbeth", "The Taming of the Shrew" and "A Midsummer Night's Dream".
After his Shakespearean tour, Ron became a member of a repertory company in Miami, Florida. Shortly after arriving in New York, Ron got a role in the off-Broadway success "Hot l Baltimore." He stayed with the show for over a year. Because of his work in "Hot L Baltimore". Ron was given a lead role in a musical special, "The Last Sweet Days of Isaac", on television. After Isaac, he once again went on tour and appeared with Mickey Rooney in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and with Jan Sterling in a serious play, "Summer Brave". He has two brothers and a sister. His elder brother, Richard Paolillo, is an eye surgeon, his brother Robert Paolillo, is a salesman and his sister Ann, became a teacher.- Producer
- Director
- Actor
Tony Scott was a British-born film director and producer. He was the youngest of three brothers, one of whom is fellow film director Ridley Scott. He was born in North Shields, Northumberland, England to parents Jean and Colonel Francis Percy Scott. As a result of his father's career in the British military, his family moved around a lot. Their mother loved the going to the movies and instilled a love of cinema in her children. At age 16, Tony made his first appearance on screen as 'the boy' in his brother's directorial debut, the short film Boy and Bicycle (1965). In 1969, Tony directed his own short film One of the Missing (1969) about a soldier in the American civil war.
Tony had a talent for art and painting. He spent a year in Leeds College of Art and Design and went on to study for a fine arts degree at the School of Art at the University of Sunderland. He won a scholarship to study for his Masters of fine arts at the Royal College of Art. Following university, he spent several years as a painter. But life as a painter proved a struggle, so he decided to forge a different career path and partnered with Ridley in advertising at Ridley Scott Associates. It was there that he began shooting commercials. In 1971 he wrote, produced and directed Loving Memory however his vampire movie The Hunger (1983) starring Susan Sarandon, David Bowie and Catherine Deneuve wasn't a critical success but it attracted attention from Hollywood. He was asked by producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer to direct Top Gun (1986) starring Tom Cruise. He would work again with Cruise on another high adrenaline film Days of Thunder (1990), which proved less successful. He followed the success of Top Gun with the sequel Beverly Hills Cop II (1987) with Eddie Murphy, which was well received.
In 1993, he directed True Romance (1993), which was written by emerging director Quentin Tarantino. Scott had a lot of control over the film and received some great reviews.
Tony has worked five times with actor Denzel Washington with Crimson Tide (1995), The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009), Deja Vu (2006), Man on Fire (2004) and Scott's final film in the director's chair Unstoppable (2010).
Tony Scott passed away at age 68 on August 19, 2012 in California, USA.- Actress
- Make-Up Department
- Soundtrack
Diller put out an autobiography in 2005 in her late 80s, and entitled it "Like a Lampshade in a Whorehouse", which pretty much says it all when recalling the misfit life and career of the fabulous, one-of-a-kind Phyllis Diller. It may inspire all those bored, discouraged and/or directionless housewives out there to know that the one-time 37-year-old chief bottle washer and diaper disposer of five started out writing comedy routines for her fellow female laundry mates as a sort of reprieve from what she considered her everyday household doldrums. Little did she know she would wind up an entertainment legend who would share the biggest comedy stages with the likes of Bob Hope, George Burns and Jack Benny.
They said it couldn't be done back then (to be a successful lady comic, that is) but the doyenne of female stand-up did just that -- opened the doors for other odd-duck funny girls who dared to intrude on what was considered a man's profession. Initially, the comedienne whipped up an alter-ego that could have only been created with the aid of hallucinogens. Boldly facing the world as a scrawny, witchy-faced, flyaway haired, outlandishly costumed, cigarette-holding, magpie-cackling version of "Auntie Mame", Diller made a virtue out of her weird looks and cashed in on her wifely horror tales and her own idiosyncratic tendencies. Her solid fan base has been thriving now for over five decades.
She was born Phyllis Ada Driver on July 17, 1917 in Lima, Ohio to Perry Marcus and Frances Ada (Romshe) Driver. A student at Lima's Central High School, she went on to study for three years at the Sherwood Music Conservatory in Chicago, before transferring to Bluffton (Ohio) College where she served as the editor of the school's more humorous newspaper articles. She was a serious student of the piano but was never completely confident enough in her performance level to try and act on it as a possible career.
She wed Sherwood Anderson Diller at age 22 in November 1939 and had six children (one of whom died in infancy). On the sly, she was an advertising copywriter. During World War II, the family moved to Michigan where her husband had found work at the Willow Run Bomber Plant. A natural laugh-getter, she began writing household-related one-liners and the feedback from the fellow wives greatly encouraged her. When the family moved to California for job-related reasons, Diller became a secretary at a San Francisco television station. By this time, she had built up the courage to put together a nightclub act.
The local television hosts at the station (Willard Anderson and Don Sherwood) thought her act was hilarious and invited her on their show in 1955. Not long after, at age 38, Diller made her debut at San Francisco's Purple Onion nightclub. What was to be a two-week engagement was stretched out to more than a year and a half. The widespread publicity she received took her straight to the television talk and variety circuits where she was soon trading banter with Jack Paar, Jack Benny and Red Skelton, among others, on their popular television series. She was a contestant on Groucho Marx's popular quiz show You Bet Your Life (1950).
Throughout the 1960s, audiences embraced her bold and brazen quirkiness. Diller formed a tight and lasting relationship with Bob Hope, appearing in scores of his television specials and co-starring in three of his broad 1960s comedy films (Boy, Did I Get a Wrong Number! (1966), Eight on the Lam (1967) and The Private Navy of Sgt. O'Farrell (1968). Diller joined Hope in Vietnam in 1966 with his USO troupe.
Her celebrity eventually took its toll on her marriage. She separated from and eventually divorced Sherwood in 1965, who had, by this time, become a favorite topic and target of her act in the form of husband "Fang". That same year, she married singer, film actor and television host Warde Donovan who appeared with her in the slapstick movie Did You Hear the One About the Traveling Saleslady? (1968). They divorced in 1975.
By this time, Diller was everywhere on the small screen. A special guest on hordes of television series and comedy specials and, especially on such riotfests as Laugh-In (1977) and the Dean Martin celebrity series of roasts, she became a celebrity on the game show circuit as well, milking laughs on such established shows as The Hollywood Squares (Daytime) (1965) and The Gong Show (1976). She published best-selling comedy records to her credit and humorous anecdotes to pitch that made it to the bookstore shelves, such as "Phyllis Diller Tells All About Fang". However, stand-up remained her first love.
Her forays on television in her own series were, regretfully, unsuccessful. Her first television series, The Phyllis Diller Show (1966), had her pretty much pulling out all the stops as a wacky widow invariably scheming to keep up a wealthy front despite being heavily in debt. She had the reliably droll Reginald Gardiner and cranky Charles Lane as foils and even Gypsy Rose Lee, but to little avail. Revamped as "The Phyllis Diller Show", several of comedy's best second bananas (John Astin, Paul Lynde, Richard Deacon, Billy De Wolfe, Marty Ingels) were added to the mix, but the show was canceled after a single season. A second try with The Beautiful Phyllis Diller Show (1968), a comedy/variety show that had the zany star backed by none other than Rip Taylor and Norm Crosby, lasted only three months.
Seldom did she manage or receive offers to take her funny face off long enough to appear for dramatic effect. Somewhat more straightforward roles came later on episodes of Boston Legal (2004) and 7th Heaven (1996). Back in 1961, interestingly enough, she made both her stage and film debuts in the dramas of William Inge. Her theatrical debut came with a production of "The Dark at the Top of the Stairs" and she appeared first on film in the highly dramatic Splendor in the Grass (1961), lightening things up a bit with a cameo appearance as larger-than-life nightclub hostess Texas Guinan. Diller later impressed with her harridan role in the film The Adding Machine (1969) opposite Milo O'Shea.
Diller enjoyed a three-month run on Broadway in "Hello, Dolly!", co-starring Richard Deacon and appeared in other shows and musicals over time: "Wonderful Town" (she met her second husband Warde Donovan in this production), "Happy Birthday", "Everybody Loves Opal" and "Nunsense". In 1993, Diller was inducted into the St. Louis Walk of Fame. Her cackling vocals have enhanced animated features, too, what with Mad Monster Party? (1967) and A Bug's Life (1998). It took a heart attack in 1999 to finally slow down the comedienne and she eventually announced her retirement in 2002.
Aside from the baby who died in infancy, Diller was also predeceased by her eldest son, Peter (who died of cancer in 1998) and her daughter, Stephanie Diller (who died of a stroke in 2002). Her surviving children are Sally Diller, Suzanne Sue Diller and Perry Diller. As late as January 2007, she made an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1992). She was set to return on her 90th birthday in July but a back injury forced her to cancel. She died at age 95 of heart failure on August 20, 2012 in her home in Brentwood, California.- Actor
- Soundtrack
A man of all mediums, this veteran, Manhattan-born character actor was named after his great-grandfather, Lincolnesque Congressman William Windom. Born in 1923, the son of Paul Windom, an architect, and the former Isobel Wells Peckham, Bill attended Williams College and the University of Kentucky, among others, before serving in the Army during WWII. After the war, he studied at both Fordham and Columbia universities in New York City before settling on an acting career. Trained at the American Repertory Theatre (1946-1961), he made his minor Broadway debut with the company in November of 1946 with revolving productions of "Henry VIII", "What Every Woman Knows", "John Gabriel Borkman" and "Androcles and the Lion". The following year, he continued building up his Broadway resume with roles in "Yellow Jack" and as the "White Rabbit" in a production of "Alice in Wonderland".
In the early 1950s, a new avenue opened up to Bill: television. For the duration of the decade, he shifted between stage, which included Broadway roles in "A Girl Can Tell" (1953), "Mademoiselle Colombe" (1954), "Fallen Angels" (1956), "The Greatest Man Alive" (1957) and "Viva Madison Avenue!" (1960), and TV drama, with stalwart work in such programs as Robert Montgomery Presents (1950) and Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951).
Major attention came Windom's way on TV moving into the following decade. In addition to hundreds of guest appearances on the most popular shows of the day (Combat! (1962), The Fugitive (1963), All in the Family (1971), Dallas (1978), Highway to Heaven (1984)), his standout work included a co-starring role opposite the luminous Inger Stevens in the popular light comedy series The Farmer's Daughter (1963). On the show, Windom portrayed widower "Glen Morley", a decent congressman who eventually falls in love with his pert and pretty Swedish governess "Katy Holstrum" (played by Stevens). Prior to this success, both he and Ms. Stevens had been singularly recognized for their sterling performances on various episodes of The Twilight Zone (1959). Following this success, Windom enjoyed critical notice as the cartoonist/protagonist whose vivid imagination causes problems on the homefront on the Thurberesque weekly series My World and Welcome to It (1969). Despite the show's critical merit and Windom's "Best Actor" Emmy win, the show, years ahead of its time, lasted only one season. Decades later, Windom would play James Thurber on stage in one-man shows.
The native New Yorker went on to essay a number of loungy Southerners and down-home types with incredible ease--both heroes and villains. He offered strong support in his film debut as Gregory Peck's opposing counsel in the Alabama-based To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), and went on to play prelate Norman Vincent Peale's father in One Man's Way (1964) starring Don Murray. Windom demonstrated the maturity to carry off the character even though he was only 5 years older than Murray. He also delivered a variety of pungent roles in such films as The Detective (1968) (as a closeted gay married man), Robert Altman's Brewster McCloud (1970) (as a political blowhard facing a series of murders) and The Man (1972) (as a racist politician).
Growing slier and stockier over the years, Windom provided TV audiences with a colorful gallery of characters, ranging from avuncular and ingratiating, to cantankerous and unscrupulous. He became a regular for over a decade on the Angela Lansbury whodunit series Murder, She Wrote (1984), joining the show in its second season as "Dr. Seth Hazlitt". He briefly left "Murder" to work on another series, Parenthood (1990), which was based on the highly popular 1989 movie starring Steve Martin. Here, Ed Begley Jr. took over the Martin part and Windom assumed Jason Robards's patriarchal role as Begley's father. The show was off the air within a few months, however, and Windom was invited back to the mystery series -- a semi-regular until the show folded in 1997.
In addition, Windom reprised a Star Trek (1966) portrayal as "Commodore Matt Decker," appeared in scores of mini-movies, has given voice to various book readings, presented a second one-man show (this time that of combat reporter Ernie Pyle), and continued to film at age 80+, his latest being Yesterday's Dreams (2005).
The five-times-married Windom was wed (for 36 years) to writer Patricia Veronica Tunder at the time of his death of congestive heart failure at age 88. A chess, tennis and sailing enthusiast, he is survived by four children: Rachel, Heather Juliet, Hope and Rebel Russell.Two step-daughters, Debora and Maggie as well as four grandchildren. He died at his home in Woodacre, California, on August 16, 2012.- Actress
- Soundtrack
This warm and winning, very non-theatrical brunette was born Phyllis St. Felix Thaxter in Portland, Maine, on November 20, 1919. The daughter of Maine Supreme Court Justice Sidney Thaxter, her acting talent came from her mother's side, who was a one-time Shakespearean actress. Phyllis was educated for a time at St. Genevieve School in Montreal and back at Portland's Deering High School.
She apprenticed in summer stock and had joined the Montreal Reperatory Theatre company by the time she made her Broadway debut at age 17 in "What a Life!" in 1939, the "Henry Aldrich" play. She went on to play a maid and to understudy the leading ingénue in "There Shall Be No Night" (1940), which starred America's premiere theatrical couple, Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne, then understudied Dorothy McGuire in the hit dramatic play, "Claudia", later that year. She eventually played the title role both on Broadway and on the road, but lost out on the film role to McGuire.
Hollywood films reached her sights a few years later with the MGM war film, Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944), proving quite convincing as Van Johnson's noble wife. Similar to Margaret Sullavan, June Allyson, Dorothy McGuire and Teresa Wright, Phyllis was depended on as a stabilizing factor in melodramas and war pictures, often the dewy-eyed, altruistic wife, girlfriend or daughter waiting on the home-front.
Other important films included the girl with a split personality in Bewitched (1945), and as a angst-ridden, teary-eyed bride-to-be in Week-End at the Waldorf (1945). She was dutifully wholesome as the daughter who reunites Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn in the movie The Sea of Grass (1947) and evoked tears, yet again, as little Margaret O'Brien's mother in Tenth Avenue Angel (1948). So natural and non-glamorous was she that she tended to blend into the woodwork while the flashier actresses often stole the thunder and the notices.
Audiences did not always fully appreciate Phyllis's understated work. She finished out her MGM contract with Act of Violence (1948), ever-faithful to even the bad guy, this time psychotic gangster Robert Ryan. Phyllis moved to Warner Brothers in the 1950s and played more of the same. The ever-patient wife to a slew of top actors including shady boat skipper John Garfield in The Breaking Point (1950), an alcoholic Gig Young in Come Fill the Cup (1951) and law-abiding Gary Cooper in Springfield Rifle (1952), her nascent career at Warners was suddenly curtailed by illness.
While visiting her family in Portland, she contracted a form of infantile paralysis. Fortunately, she recovered quickly but the ailment triggered the termination of her contract. Film roles were few and far between after this. Still displaying her built-in compassion and concern, her best-known part came with the touching but relatively minor role of farm wife "Martha Kent" in the highly popular Superman (1978) film series with the late Christopher Reeve as her adopted superhero son and Glenn Ford as her husband. She was also a steady guest star on TV with numerous dramatic appearances including The Twilight Zone (1959), The F.B.I. (1965), Cannon (1971), Medical Center (1969), Barnaby Jones (1973) and several TV movies.
Married for nearly two decades to James T. Aubrey (1918-1994), who became president of CBS-TV before taking over MGM, they had three children--including Schuyler, who would become the actress Skye Aubrey. Following the couple's divorce in 1962, Phyllis married Gilbert Lea, who owned Tower Publishing Company in Portland. They eventually retired to Cumberland, Maine, where she involved herself in civic/community activities and dedicated herself to hospital volunteer work.
Phyllis died in Florida on August 14, 2012, at age 92.- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Music Department
Puppeteer, actor, musician, and master of voices, Jerry Nelson originally joined Henson & Company as a temporary replacement for Frank Oz, who had been drafted into the armed services in the 60's. He later re-joined the crew as a full-time performer in the 70's, and has since been heavily involved in almost every major Muppet project, including Sesame Street (1969), The Muppet Show (1976), Fraggle Rock (1983) and feature films. Memorable characters include "The Count", "Herry Monster", "Mumford the Magician", "Robin the Frog", "Crazy Harry" and "Gobo". Come the late 1990s, Nelson has begun to focus more on his musical career but continues his involvement in The Muppets.- Hans Jürgen Diedrich was born on 30 April 1923 in Stralsund, Germany. He was an actor and writer, known for Tausendundeine Nacht (1969), Was wissen Sie von Titipu? (1972) and Das Messer (1971). He died on 29 August 2012 in Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
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- Producer
- Soundtrack
Michael Clarke Duncan was born on December 10, 1957 in Chicago, Illinois. Raised on Chicago's South Side by his single mother, Jean, a house cleaner, Duncan grew up resisting drugs and alcohol, instead concentrating on school. He wanted to play football in high school, but his mother wouldn't let him, afraid that he would get hurt. He then turned to acting and dreamed of becoming a famous actor.
After graduating from high school and attending community college, he worked digging ditches at People's Gas Company in Chicago. When he quit his job and headed to Hollywood, he landed small roles while working as a bodyguard. Duncan's role in the movie Armageddon (1998) led to his breakthrough performance in The Green Mile (1999), when his Armageddon co-star Bruce Willis called director Frank Darabont, suggesting Duncan for the part of convict John Coffey. He landed the role and won critical acclaim as well as many other Awards and Nominations, including an Academy Award Nomination for Best Actor in a Supporting Role.
After suffering a heart attack on July 13, 2012, he was taken to a Los Angeles hospital, in which his girlfriend Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth tried to save his life with CPR. Unfortunately, on September 3, 2012, Michael Clarke Duncan died at age 54 from respiratory failure.