Finian’s Rainbow 1968 premiere
by nightopeningfan | created - 09 Apr 2020 | updated - 09 Apr 2020 | PublicWednesday October 16th, Hollywood Pantages Theatre 6233 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028
1. Fred Astaire
Actor | The Towering Inferno
Fred Astaire was born in Omaha, Nebraska, to Johanna (Geilus) and Fritz Austerlitz, a brewer. Fred entered show business at age 5. He was successful both in vaudeville and on Broadway in partnership with his sister, Adele Astaire. After Adele retired to marry in 1932, Astaire headed to Hollywood. ...
2. Don Adams
Actor | Get Smart
Don Adams was born in New York, to a father of Hungarian Jewish descent, and a mother of German and Irish ancestry. He had a sister, Gloria, and a brother, Dick Yarmy. He served in the U.S. Marines in World War II and contracted malaria during the fighting on Guadalcanal island. After the war he ...
3. Michael Ansara
Actor | The Message
Born in a small village in Syria, Michael Ansara came to the United States with his American parents at the age of two, living in New England, until the family's relocation to California ten years later. He entered Los Angeles City College with the intention of becoming a doctor, but got ...
4. Edie Adams
Actress | It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
The scintillating, sultry-eyed blonde (formerly a redhead) star of screen, TV and award-winning stage went on to become best known, however, for her sensual delivery pitching cigars in taunting '60s ads and commercials with her Mae Westian come-on line "Why don't you pick one up and smoke it ...
5. Bettye Ackerman
Actress | Ben Casey
Bettye Ackerman was born on February 28, 1924 in Cottageville, South Carolina, USA. She was an actress, known for Ben Casey (1961), Return to Peyton Place (1972) and Studio One (1948). She was married to Sam Jaffe. She died on November 1, 2006 in Columbia, South Carolina, USA.
6. Ed Begley
Actor | 12 Angry Men
Charismatic character star Edward James Begley was born in Hartford, Connecticut of Irish parents and educated at St.Patrick's school. His interest in acting first surfaced at the age of nine, when he performed amateur theatricals at the Hartford Globe Theatre. Determined to make his own way, he ...
7. Polly Bergen
Actress | Cry-Baby
In a six-decade-plus career (she started out as a radio performer at age 14), there are very few facets of entertainment that lovely singer/actress Polly Bergen has not conquered or, at the very least, touched upon. A nightclub and Columbia recording artist of the 50s and 60s, she is just as well ...
8. Raymond Burr
Actor | Rear Window
Born Raymond William Stacy Burr on 21 May 1917 in New Westminster, British Columbia, he spent most of his early life traveling. As a youngster, his father moved his family to China, where the elder Burr worked as a trade agent. When the family returned to Canada, Raymond's parents separated. He and...
9. Sonny Bono
Soundtrack | The Sonny and Cher Show
Sonny Bono was born on February 16, 1935 in Detroit, Michigan, USA. He was an actor and composer, known for The Sonny and Cher Show (1976), Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003) and Hairspray (1988). He was married to Mary Bono, Susie Coelho, Cher and Donna Rankin. He died on January 5, 1998 in South Lake Tahoe...
10. Cher
Actress | Moonstruck
The beat goes on ... and on ... and as strong as ever for this superstar entertainer who has well surpassed the half-century mark while improbably transforming herself from an artificial, glossy "flashionplate" singer into a serious, Oscar-worthy, dramatic actress ... and back again! With more ups ...
11. James Caan
Actor | Thief
A masculine and enigmatic actor whose life and movie career have had more ups and downs than the average rollercoaster and whose selection of roles has arguably derailed him from achieving true superstar status, James Caan is New York-born and bred.
He was born in the Bronx, to Sophie (Falkenstein) ...
12. Bill Cosby
Actor | The Cosby Show
Bill Cosby is one of the world's most well-known entertainers and comedians. William Henry Cosby, Jr. was born on July 12, 1937, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Anna Pearl (Hite), a maid and William Henry Cosby, Sr., a U.S. Navy sailor. After 10th grade, Cosby joined the Navy and completed high ...
13. James Coburn
Actor | The Great Escape
Lanky, charismatic and versatile actor with an amazing grin that put everyone at ease, James Coburn studied acting at UCLA, and then moved to New York to study under noted acting coach Stella Adler. After being noticed in several stage productions, Coburn appeared in a handful of minor westerns ...
14. Richard Chamberlain
Actor | The Towering Inferno
Richard Chamberlain became the leading heartthrob of early 1960s television. As the impeccably handsome Dr. James Kildare, the slim, butter-haired hunk with the near-perfect Ivy-League charm and smooth, intelligent demeanor, had the distaff fans fawning unwavering over him through the series' run. ...
15. Linda Cristal
Actress | The High Chaparral
Argentinian leading lady Marta Victoria Moya Peggo Burges was one of three siblings, born in Buenos Aires to a French father and Italian mother. When she was five years of age, her father, a publisher, fled with his family to Montevideo, Uruguay, where they went on to live for several years in ...
16. Patty Duke
Actress | Valley of the Dolls
Patty Duke was born Anna Marie Duke on December 14, 1946 in Elmhurst, Queens County, New York, to Frances Margaret (McMahon), a cashier, and John Patrick Duke, a cab driver and handyman. She was seven eighths Irish and one eighth German. Her acting career began when she was introduced to her ...
17. Barbara Eden
Actress | I Dream of Jeannie
Barbara Eden, born Barbara Jean Morehead in Tucson, Arizona, became one of America's most endearing and enduring actresses. A graduate of Abraham Lincoln High School in San Francisco, California, Eden would go on to study at San Francisco's City College as well as the San Francisco Conservatory of ...
18. James Franciscus
Actor | Beneath the Planet of the Apes
James Grover Franciscus graduated magna cum laude from Yale University in 1957 with a B.A. in English and theater. His father, John Allen Franciscus, was a pilot killed in action during WWII. His mother was named Loraine (nee Grover) and he had one sibling, a brother named John. Mr. Franciscus is ...
19. Zsa Zsa Gabor
Actress | A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors
Undoubtedly the woman who had come to epitomize what we recognize today as "celebrity," Zsa Zsa Gabor, is better known for her many marriages, personal appearances, her "dahlink" catchphrase, her actions, gossip, and quotations on men, rather than her film career.
Zsa Zsa was born as Sári Gabor on ...
20. Paul Henreid
Actor | Casablanca
Paul Henreid was born Paul Georg Julius Freiherr von Hernreid Ritter von Wasel-Waldingau in Trieste, in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. He was the son of Marie Luise Heilig (Lendecke) and Baron Karl Alphons Hernreid. His father was an aristocratic banker, who was born to a Jewish family whose surname ...
21. Barbara Hancock
Barbara was awarded a scholarship by the Fine Arts Foundation which launched her career in New York City. As a soloist for the Harkness Ballet, she danced at the White House and as a guest with the Washington Ballet. Later she expanded her performing skills to Broadway productions. While in New ...
22. Tippi Hedren
Actress | The Birds
From working for the exacting Alfred Hitchcock to a film written by Edward D. Wood Jr., Tippi Hedren, the Minnesota blonde, has had a distinctive career. She was born Nathalie Kay Hedren in New Ulm, MN, to Dorothea (née Eckhardt) and Bernard Hedren, who ran a general store, and is of Swedish, ...
23. Dean Jones
Actor | The Love Bug
Born in Decatur, Alabama and christened Dean Carroll Jones, the actor's father worked for a railroad company and the family moved often, living in Washington, DC, Nashville, and New Orleans. "It was in New Orleans I really learned how to sing", Jones told the Pittsburgh Press in 1969. Dropping out ...
24. Sam Jaffe
Actor | The Asphalt Jungle
Originally named Shalom Jaffe, he became known to the world as Sam Jaffe. He was born in New York City, to Heida (Ada) and Barnett Jaffe, who were Russian Jewish immigrants. As a child, he appeared in Yiddish theatre productions with his mother, a prominent regional stage actress. He graduated from...
25. Jean-Claude Killy
Actor | Snow Job
Jean-Claude Killy was born on August 30, 1943 in Saint-Cloud, Seine-et-Oise [now Hauts-de-Seine], France. He is an actor, known for Snow Job (1972), The White Search (1970) and ABC's Wide World of Sports (1961). He was previously married to Danièle Gaubert.
26. Peter Lawford
Actor | The Longest Day
Born in London, England and son of a British World War I hero, Lawford had spent most of his childhood in Paris, France and began his acting career at a very young age. His parents were not married when their son was born. As a result of the scandal, The Lawfords fled to America.
As a young child, ...
27. Carol Lynley
Actress | The Poseidon Adventure
Blonde and blue-eyed with an attractively feline appeal, Carol Lynley began her professional career as Carolyn Lee. She learned ballet at age seven, became a successful child model at age 10 (eventually working for the Sears & Roebuck department store in New York), and got her face nationally ...
28. Karl Malden
Actor | A Streetcar Named Desire
Born to a Czech mother and a Serbian father in Chicago as Mladen Sekulovich, on March 22, 1912, Karl Malden did not speak English until he was in kindergarten. After graduating from high school in the nearby steel town of Gary, Indiana, Malden worked in the industry for three years until 1934, when...
29. Zero Mostel
Actor | The Producers
Zero Mostel was born Samuel Joel Mostel on February 28, 1915 in Brooklyn, New York, one of eight children of an Orthodox Jewish family. Raised in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, the young Zero, known as Sammy, developed his talent for painting and drawing at art classes provided by the ...
30. Kim Novak
Actress | Vertigo
Kim Novak was born in Chicago, Illinois on February 13, 1933 with the birth name of Marilyn Pauline Novak. She was the daughter of a former teacher turned transit clerk and his wife, also a former teacher. Throughout elementary and high school, Kim did not get along well with teachers. She even ...
31. Lloyd Nolan
Actor | Hannah and Her Sisters
It would no doubt be a real shock to most people to discover that the rich baritone Bronx-like accent of great veteran character actor Lloyd Nolan was a product of the San Francisco streets--not the urban jungle of New York City. Nolan was born in the City by the Bay, and his father, James Nolan, ...
32. Nichelle Nichols
Actress | Star Trek
Nichelle Nichols was one of 10 children born to parents Lishia and Samuel Nichols in Robbins, Illinois, a Chicago suburb. She was a singer and dancer before turning to acting and finding fame in her groundbreaking role of Lt. Nyota Uhura in the Star Trek (1966) series.
As long as she could remember,...
33. Ryan O'Neal
Actor | Love Story
Charles Patrick Ryan O'Neal was an American actor and former boxer. He trained as an amateur boxer before beginning his career in acting in 1960. In 1964, he landed the role of Rodney Harrington on the ABC nighttime soap opera Peyton Place. It was an instant hit and boosted O'Neal's career. He ...
34. Barbara Rush
Actress | It Came from Outer Space
The epitome of poise, charm, style and grace, beautiful brunette Barbara Rush was born in Denver, Colorado in 1927 and enrolled at the University of California before working with the University Players and taking acting classes at the Pasadena Playhouse. It didn't take long for talent scouts to ...
35. Edward G. Robinson
Actor | Double Indemnity
Emanuel Goldenberg arrived in the United States from Romania at age ten, and his family moved into New York's Lower East Side. He took up acting while attending City College, abandoning plans to become a rabbi or lawyer. The American Academy of Dramatic Arts awarded him a scholarship, and he began ...
36. Nancy Sinatra
Soundtrack | Kill Bill: Vol. 1
Nancy Sandra Sinatra was born the first child of Frank Sinatra and Nancy Barbato Sinatra on June 8, 1940 in Jersey City, New Jersey. Her first television appearance was with her father and Elvis Presley in 1959. She first appeared as a film actress in For Those Who Think Young (1964) and Get ...
37. Omar Sharif
Actor | Lawrence of Arabia
Omar Sharif, the Egyptian actor best known for playing Sherif Ali in Lawrence of Arabia (1962) and the title role in Doctor Zhivago (1965), was born Michel Demitri Shalhoub on April 10, 1932 in Alexandria, Egypt to Joseph Shalhoub, a lumber merchant, and his wife, Claire (Saada). Of Lebanese and ...
38. Tommy Steele
Soundtrack | Half a Sixpence
Tommy Steele had tried many odd jobs before he turned up at the famous "2 I's" coffee bar in London. There he was "discovered" by Larry Parnes and became one of Britain's first manufactured pop stars. With his cheeky grin and gently rocking songs he wasn't the threat to Elvis Presley that Parnes ...
39. Eva Marie Saint
Actress | On the Waterfront
Actress and producer Eva Marie Saint was born on July 4, 1924 on Newark, New Jersey. She is known for starring in Elia Kazan's On the Waterfront (1954), for which she won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, and Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest (1959). Her film career also includes ...
40. William Shatner
Actor | Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
William Shatner has notched up an impressive 70-plus years in front of the camera, displaying heady comedic talent and being instantly recognizable to several generations of cult television fans as the square-jawed Captain James T. Kirk, commander of the starship U.S.S. Enterprise.
Shatner was born ...
41. Leigh Taylor-Young
Actress | Soylent Green
Entrancing Leigh Taylor-Young was born on January 25, 1945, in Washington, D,C,. to a diplomat father and raised in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, the older sister of future actress Dey Young and writer/director Lance Young. She studied classical ballet and, following high school, attended ...
42. Keenan Wynn
Actor | Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
The talented scion of a show-business family, Keenan Wynn's father was the great burlesque and television buffoon Ed Wynn while his maternal grandfather, Frank Keenan, earned distinction on the other side of the entertainment ladder as a Shakespearean tragedian. Mother Hilda Keenan was also a minor...
43. Efrem Zimbalist Jr.
Actor | Wait Until Dark
It's hardly surprising that the son of renowned Russian-born concert violinist Efrem Zimbalist Sr. (1889-1985) and Romanian-born opera singer Alma Gluck (1884-1938) would desire a performing career of some kind. Born in New York City on November 30, 1918, surrounded by people of wealth and privilege...
44. Don Francks
Actor | Heavy Metal
A man who has many irons in the entertainment fire, hirsutely handsome Canadian actor, vocalist and jazz musician Don Francks (also known as "Iron Buffalo") was born Donald Harvey Francks on February 28, 1932, in Vancouver, British Columbia. One can, with confidence, add drummer, poet, motorcyclist...
45. Al Freeman Jr.
Actor | Malcolm X
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 ...
46. Joseph Landon
Writer | Wall of Noise
Joseph Landon was born on February 14, 1923 in Queens, New York, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for Wall of Noise (1963), Von Ryan's Express (1965) and The Explosive Generation (1961). He died on August 7, 1987 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
47. Francis Ford Coppola
Producer | Apocalypse Now
Francis Ford Coppola was born in 1939 in Detroit, Michigan, but grew up in a New York suburb in a creative, supportive Italian-American family. His father, Carmine Coppola, was a composer and musician. His mother, Italia Coppola (née Pennino), had been an actress. Francis Ford Coppola graduated ...
48. Hermes Pan
Academy Award-winning dance director responsible for choreographing several dozen of Hollywood's most truly memorable musicals, including every one of the nine Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers 1930s gems - not to mention Fred and Ginger's screen swan song, The Barkleys of Broadway (1949). He also ...
49. James Doolittle
Self | This Is Your Life
James Doolittle was born on December 14, 1896 in Alameda, California, USA. He was married to Josephine E. Daniels. He died on September 27, 1993 in Pebble Beach, California, USA.
50. Edmund G. Brown
Actor | The Bold Ones: The Lawyers
Edmund G. Brown was born on April 21, 1905 in San Francisco, California, USA. He was an actor, known for The Bold Ones: The Lawyers (1969), NBC Presents (1964) and Our World (1986). He was married to Bernice Layne. He died on February 16, 1996 in Beverly Hills, California, USA.
51. Roy Edward Disney
Producer | Fantasia 2000
Roy Edward Disney began working for the Walt Disney Company as an assistant film editor on the True-Life Adventure film in 1954. In 1967, he was elected to the Board of Directors of the company. In 1984, he returned to the company as vice chairman of the board, and head of the animation department....
52. Noel Marshall
Producer | Roar
Noel Marshall was born on April 18, 1931 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He was a producer and director, known for Roar (1981), The Exorcist (1973) and Mister Kingstreet's War (1971). He was married to Paula Marshall Doss, Tippi Hedren and Jaye Joseph. He died on June 27, 2010 in Santa Monica, ...
53. Jack Linkletter
Actor | Zane Grey Theatre
Jack Linkletter was born on November 20, 1937 in San Francisco, California, USA. He was an actor, known for Zane Grey Theatre (1956), Hootenanny (1963) and Life with Linkletter (1950). He was married to Charlene Just Croul and Barbara Mae Hughes. He died on December 18, 2007 in Cloverdale, ...
54. Maria Cole
Maria Cole was born on August 1, 1922 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. She is known for American Experience (1987), The Nat King Cole Show (1956) and Nat King Cole: Afraid of the Dark (2014). She was married to Gary DeVore, Nat 'King' Cole and Spurgeon Neal Ellington. She died on July 10, 2012 in ...
55. Jane Robinson
Actress | The Dream
Jane Robinson was born on June 30, 1919 in New York City, New York, USA. She was an actress, known for The Dream (1967), Pepe (1960) and The Lucy Show (1962). She was married to George Sidney, Edward G. Robinson and David Felix Adler. She died on July 22, 1991 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
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