Slovak-American celebrities
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- Britt is an American female professional wrestler whose real name is Brittany Baker. She is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling. Before signing with All Elite Wrestling, Baker spent most of her career on the independent circuit, where she is known for her continued work in numerous promotions across the northeastern United States. She also made appearances in larger promotions, including Ring Of Honor, Impact Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). Baker is a former two-time IWC Women's Champion in International Wrestling Cartel, a former one-time WC Big Top Tag Team Champion in WrestleCircus and a former one-time Remix Pro Fury Champion in Remix Pro Wrestling. She is the current MFPW Girls Champion in Monster Factory Pro Wrestling in her first reign. Professional wrestling career Independent circuit (2015-present) Baker's early career started in 2015 with matches for promotions including Absolute Intense Wrestling, Empire State Wrestling, Vicious Outcast Wrestling, Monster Factory Pro Wrestling, International Wrestling Cartel and Girl Fight. RISE Wrestling (2016-2018) On November 10, 2016, Baker debuted at RISE 1: Ignite. There she won the Phoenix Of RISE Championship Tournament Qualifying Battle Royal. She advanced in the tournament's first round after eliminating Nicole Matthews. Later during the event, Baker competed in the four-way tournament match against Angel Dust, Delilah Doom and Kate Carney. During her return the following year, Baker's next title opportunity was held on November 10, 2017, at RISE 5: Rising Sun in a six-way elimination match for the Phoenix of Rise Championship. On May 12, 2018, Baker defended the RISE 7.5: Steel, defeating Mercedes Martinez. On July 7, Baker wrestled at the joint-promotional event RISE 9: RISE Of The Knockouts, teaming with Impact Wrestling's Chelsea Green as team Fire And Nice. They challenged for the vacant Guardians Of RISE Championship in a four-way elimination match. By September 6 during Episode 15 of RISE Ascent, she debuted her new ring name Dr Britt Baker DMD. She defeated local competitor Sofia Castillo. During Episode 17, Dr. Baker defeated Impact Wrestling Knockout Kiera Hogan. World Wrestling Entertainment / WWE (2016, 2018) On the July 25, 2016 episode of Monday Night RAW, Baker made her WWE debut in a singles match won by Nia Jax. In 2018, Baker returned during the second annual Mae Young Classic, winning a dark match over Tesha Price. During the August 20 taping of NXT, Baker suffered a shoulder injury in a match with Shayna Bazsler. Ring Of Honor (2016-present) Baker first wrestled on September 16 in a dark match during the 2016 Reloaded Tour event. There she teamed with Kelly Klein & Veda Scott in defeating Faye Jackson, Mandy Leon & Mary Dobson. The following year, Baker returned on October 13, 2017 during the second show of 2017 ROH Global Wars event. There she teamed with Faye Jackson & Sumie Sakai in a dark tag match lost to Deonna Purrazzo, Jenny Rose & Mandy Leon. The following month on November 17 during the first show of the 2017 ROH Survival Of The Fittest event. There Baker once more wrestled a dark match, against Deonna Purrazzo. By the following year on October 12, 2018, Baker wrestled her first televised match at Glory By Honor XVI, teaming with Sumie Sakai in defeating Jenny Rose & Stella Grey. She returned to television during the November 3 episode of ROH, teaming with Karen Q & Kelly Klein in a tag match against Jenny Rose, Madison Rayne & Sumie Sakai. The following night, Baker returned to television during the 2018 Survival Of The Fittest event. There she competed in a No. 1 Contendership match for the Women of Honor Championship. She lost to fellow contender Madison Rayne. She returned to television the following month during the December 15 episode of ROH teaming with Madison Rane in a tag match against the Twisted Sisterz (Holidead & Thunder Rosa). Baker returned during the January 12, 2019 episode of ROH the following year. There Baker and Madison Rayne won a rematch defeating The Twisted Sisterz. During the second night of the 2019 ROH Road To G1 Supercard Tour, Baker challenged reigning champion Kelly Klein, for the ROH Women Of Honor World Championship but did not succeed in winning the title. All Elite Wrestling (2019-present) On January 2, 2019 it was reported Baker had been signed to All Elite Wrestling. She made her in-ring debut during AEW's Double Or Nothing event, winning in a four-way match against opponents Awesome Kong, Kylie Rae and Nyla Rose. Personal life Attended Penn State University and worked as fitness instructor. Baker was a dental student at the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine. She graduated with a Doctorate in Medical Dentistry in May 2018. Baker is currently in a relationship with a fellow professional wrestler Austin Jenkins, better known under the ring name Adam Cole.
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Matt T. Baker was born in June 1985 in Nashville, Tennessee, USA. He is an actor, known for American Pie Presents: Band Camp (2005), Criminal Minds (2005) and Desperate Housewives (2004).- Actor
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- Actor
Rick Baker was born on 8 December 1950 in Binghamton, New York, USA. He is an actor, known for Planet of the Apes (2001), Men in Black (1997) and The Wolfman (2010). He has been married to Silvia Abascal since 8 November 1987. They have two children. He was previously married to Elaine Alexander.- Actress
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Majel Barrett (born Majel Leigh Hudec) was an American actress, known for her long association with Star Trek. She had multiple Star Trek-related roles, though she is mostly remembered for her roles as Nurse Christine Chapel in Star Trek, The Original Series (1966-1969) and as Lwaxana Troi in Star Trek, The Next Generation (1987-1994) and Deep Space Nine (1993-1999). Due to her status as the second wife of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry (1921-1991), Barrett was nicknamed "the First Lady of Star Trek".
In 1932, Barrett was born in Cleveland, Ohio. Her father was police officer William Hudec (d. 1955), who was eventually killed while on duty. Barrett had aspirations of becoming an actress since childhood, and took acting classes as a child. She received her secondary education at the Shaker Heights High School, a public high school located in a suburb of Cleveland, and graduated in 1950 at the age of 18. She then enrolled at the University of Miami, a public research university located in Coral Gables, Florida.
Following her graduation from university, started a career as a theatrical actress. In 1955, she was on tour with an off-Broadway road company. She had her first film role in the satirical film "Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?" (1957), which parodied the advertising industry, among other targets of satire. Barrett appeared in an uncredited bit part in a satirical advertisement within the film. Barrett's first credited film role was that Joyce Goodwin, a novice teacher depicted in the high school drama film "As Young as We Are" (1958). The film focuses on a male student who falls in love with his young, female teacher, and resorts to kidnapping her.
In the early 1960s, Barrett had small roles in the romantic comedy "Love in a Goldfish Bowl" (1961) and the World War II-themed war film "The Quick and the Dead" (1963), and appeared in guest star roles in then-popular television series, such as "Leave It to Beaver", "The Lucy Show", and "Bonanza". She was often employed by the television production company Desilu Productions, which at the time was owned by veteran actress Lucille Ball (1911-1989).
One of the television shows she appeared in was an episode of "The Lieutenant" (1964). This short-lived series created and written by Gene Roddenberry provided his first meetings and workings with many of the actors who would later become regulars and guest stars of Star Trek, including its two pilots. Barrett and Roddenberry befriended each other, and eventually started a romantic relationship. Roddenberry was still married to Eileen-Anita Rexroat, but often pursued relationships with other women.
In 1964, Roddenberry was working on the original pilot for Star Trek. He cast Barrett in the role of "Number One", the unnamed first officer of the star-ship USS Enterprise. Number One was depicted as exceptionally intelligent and strictly rational, but seemingly unemotional. The episode hinted at a mutual attraction between Number One and her captain, Christopher Pike (played by Jeffrey Hunter). The alien Talosians try to force them to mate with each other, as part of a breeding project.
This pilot was rejected by NBC executives, who complained about several aspects of the episode. One of them was the characterization of Number One, who was disliked for being overly assertive. In the subsequent retooling of the series, Number One was written out. Her character traits were added to that of a male character, Spock (played by Leonard Nimoy). Spock went on to become one of the franchise's most popular characters, due in large part to his coldly rational behavior.
Still determined to cast Barrett in the series, Roddenberry later created a more traditionally feminine role for her. The role was that of Nurse Christine Chapel, depicted as the main assistant of Dr. Leonard McCoy (played by DeForest Kelley). Chapel was one of the main recurring characters in the series for three years. She was one of the earliest prominent female characters in Star Trek.
In 1969, "Star Trek" was canceled. Barrett and Rodenberry briefly parted ways. Later that year, Rodenberry was in Japan on business. He realized that he missed Barrett and invited her to join him in Japan. On August 6, 1969, the two had a traditional Shinto wedding ceremony. This wedding was unofficial, as Roddenberry's divorce had not been finalized yet. Following the end of the divorce process, the two were officially married on December 29, 1969. Barrett served as a stepmother to Dawn Roddenberry (b.1953), Gene's teenage daughter. Dawn moved into the new couple's residence, and Barrett helped in her upbringing.
Already known for her science fiction roles, Barrett was cast as female android Miss Carrie in the science fiction-Western "Westworld". Her character was the madame of the Westworld bordello. Barrett also had roles in the post-apocalyptic television film "Genesis II" (1973) and the science fiction television film "The Questor Tapes" (1974), both created and scripted by her husband.
Star Trek was revived with the sequel series "Star Trek: The Animated Series" (1973-1974), which used much of the main cast from the original series. Barrett voiced two of the series' main female characters, Christine Chapel and M'Ress. The new character M'Ress was depicted as a female alien in feline form, who served as an officer on the Enterprise. Barrett also voiced many of this series' female guest characters.
Barrett had a small role in the neo-noir film "The Domino Principle" (1977). The film depicted a secretive organization first helping a prisoner escape, and then trying to force him to serve as their newest assassin. When the escaped man refuses, a lethal struggle begins. This film was poorly received due to its convoluted plot.
Barrett's next notable role was the housekeeper Lilith in the horror film "Spectre" (1977). Her character is depicted as a practicing witch, who manages to cure the alcoholic tendencies of one of the main characters. The plot of film depicts the demon Asmodeus assuming a human form and identity, while two occult detectives attempt to stop the demon's scheme. The film was intended as the pilot of a television series, but was rejected.
Barrett played Christine Chapel again in the film "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" (1979), depicting older versions of the characters from the original series. While Chapel was not one of the film's main characters, she was now depicted as a doctor instead of a nurse.
Barrett's last appearance in the 1970s was a minor role in the Christmas television film "The Man in the Santa Claus Suit" (1979). The film depicted Santa Claus (played by Fred Astaire) subtly helping a number of adult characters in resolving their personal problems. The film is mainly remembered as Astaire's last television role.
Barrett played Christine Chapel for the last time in the film "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home" (1986). She had a supporting role in the film, which depicted the former nurse as having achieved the rank of Commander. A year later, a third Star Trek television series was launched: "Star Trek: The Next Generation", which featured entirely new characters. Barrett guested in a few episodes as alien ambassador Lwaxana Troi, the eccentric mother of counselor Deanna Troi (played by Marina Sirtis). Barrett would play this role several times in this and the next Star Trek series, "Deep Space Nine", from 1987 to 1996. A subplot involving the character was that Lwaxana's other daughter had died young in an accident, causing Lwaxana to be overly protective of Deanna. Another subplot centered on her love relationship with Deep Space 9's shape-shifting security chief Odo.
In 1991, Gene Roddenberry died from natural causes. Barrett never remarried. In the 90s, she lent her voice talents to several Star Trek video games and the animated Spider Man TV series, and had roles in two theatrical movies. As Roddenberry had left behind archives with unfinished projects, Barrett further developed one of these projects into the science fiction television series "Earth: Final Conflict" (1997-2002). She served as the series' executive producer and acted as one of the main characters, Dr. Julianne Belman, in 11 episodes in the first three seasons. The premise of the series was that a group of seemingly benevolent aliens share their advanced technology with the people of Earth. Many humans suspect that the aliens have ulterior motives, and consequently form a militant resistance organization which opposes the aliens. The series lasted 5 seasons and 110 episodes.
Barrett fleshed out another of Roddenberry's unfinished projects into the space opera television series "Andromeda" (2000-2005). The series started in a distant future, where three galaxies are unified under the control of the Systems Commonwealth. When the Commonwealth attempts to resolve a war with another space-faring civilization by ceding territory to them, an uprising against the Commonwealth begins. In an early part of the conflict the spaceship "Andromeda Ascendant" is frozen in time. It emerges from stasis 303 years later, to find that the Commonwealth has collapsed and civilization has considerably declined. Main character Dylan Hunt (played by Kevin Sorbo) has the mission of restoring the Commonwealth. Like the previous Roddenberry series, "Andromeda" also lasted 5 seasons and 110 episodes. It was canceled largely due to a change of ownership of the production company Fireworks Entertainment. It was Barrett's last effort as an executive producer.
In her last years, Barrett was suffering from leukemia. She died in December 2008, at her home in Bel Air, Los Angeles. She was 76-years-old. Her funeral was held in early January 2009, with about 250 people in attendance. Several of her former co-stars from Star Trek attended the funeral. Prior to her death, Barrett had recorded a number of voice roles in several Star Trek fan films and series, resulting in some posthumous releases of her last roles. She is still remembered as a major figure of Star Trek.- Actress
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Lithe and lovely brunette dancer and choreographer Leslie Cook studied a mostly classical ballet dance curriculum at the North Carolina School of the Arts. She has an older sister who is also a dancer. Cook pops up in small parts in the films "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas," "Breakin'," and "A Chorus Line." Leslie joined the cast of the hugely successful music variety TV series "Solid Gold" as a regular featured dancer in August, 1986 and remained on the show until the end of its final season in 1988. In the wake of her "Solid Gold" stint Cook went on to appear as a dancer in the movies "Scrooged," "The Beverly Hillbillies," "The Mask," and "Out to Sea." Moreover, Cook has made guest appearances on episodes of the TV shows "Mr. Belvedere," "Wings," "Earth 2," and "Nikki." Leslie has worked as a choreographer on the films "Back to the Future Part III," "Death Becomes Her," "Forrest Gump," "Attack of the 5 Ft. 2 Women," and "The Hi-Lo Country." She's also worked on numerous awards shows which include the Emmy Awards, the Academy Awards, and the American Music Awards. Leslie has minor acting roles in the comedy "My Blue Heaven," the short movie "Lap Dancing," and the made-for-TV picture "Mystery Woman: Vision of a Murder." She enjoys bike riding, going to the mountains in her jeep, and running with her dogs.- Actress
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Penny Cook was born on 13 July 1957. She was an actress, known for Candy (2006), A Country Practice (1981) and E Street (1989). She was married to Clive Robertson and David Lynch. She died on 26 December 2018 in Australia.- Actress
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Sandy Dell is known for Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999), Billions (2016) and Baywatch (1989).- Writer
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Steve Ditko was an American comics writer and artist of Rusyn descent. He is better known for co-creating the superheroes Spider-Man/Peter Parker and Doctor Strange/Stephen Strange for Marvel Comics. He created many other characters for various publishing companies. Among his better known creations are Blue Beetle/Ted Kord, Captain Atom/Allen Adam, the Creeper/Jack Ryder, Hawk and Dove/Hank Hall and Don Hall, Mr. A/Rex Graine, the Question/Charles Victor Szasz, Shade the Changing Man/Rac Shade, Ditko was an adherent of Objectivism, the philosophy of Ayn Rand (1905-1982). Her work had a significant influence on his own work, which often reflected Objectivism's belief in moral absolutism.
In 1927, Ditko was born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, a city located 56 miles (90 kilometers) to the east of Pittsburgh. His parents were master carpenter Stephen Ditko and his homemaker wife Anna. Both parents were first-generation American Rusyn immigrants from Czechoslovakia. Steve was the second of four children born to the Ditko family, and he was raised as a typical member of a working class family.
Stephen Ditko, Steve's father, loved newspaper comic strips. He introduced his son to the work of comic strip artists of the 1930s and 1940s. The Ditko family's favorite comic strip was the adventure series "Prince Valiant" by Hal Foster (1892-1982). As Steve grew up, so did his interest in both comic strips and comic books. His favorite characters during his adolescence were Batman/Bruce Wayne and the Spirit/Denny Colt.
Ditko received his secondary education at the Greater Johnstown High School, and graduated in 1945. In October 1945, Ditko enlisted in the United States Army. He spend his military service in Allied-occupied Germany. While there, Ditko drew comic strips for a military newspaper. It was his first comics-related work, though he lacked formal training at the time.
Following his discharge, Ditko had the option to receive a college education, thanks to the G.I. Bill. The G. I. Bill was a law that provided a range of benefits to returning veterans, including the payments of tuition and living expenses needed for them to attend high school, college, or vocational school. In 1950, Ditko chose to enroll at the art school "Cartoonists and Illustrators School" (later known as the School of Visual Arts) , located in New York City.
While studying at art school, Ditko found a mentor in veteran comic book artist Jerry Robinson (1922-2011). Robinson had been one of the main artists of the "Batman" series, and was credited as the co-creator of Robin/Dick Grayson and the Joker. Robinson found Ditko to be a dedicated student, and a very hard worker. He encouraged Ditko to write his own stories and to create his own characters,
By 1953, Ditko had graduated and began work as a professional comic book artist. His first work was illustrating the science fiction story "Stretching Things" for Stanmor Publications. Stanmor sold this story to the comic book publisher Farrell Publications, which first published it in 1954.
Ditko's second professional story, but first published work, was the romance story "Paper Romance" . It was published by Gillmor Magazines in October, 1953.
Ditko was soon after hired by the studio operated by veteran comic book writers and artists Jack Kirby (1917-1994) and Joe Simon (1913-2011). While working for them, Ditko received additional training by his co-worker Mort Meskin (1916-1995). According to an interview, Ditko admired Meskin's ability to create detailed drawing compositions without cluttering the image.
Some of Ditko's earliest known work was published by Prize Comics, an imprint of Crestwood Publications which was co-headed by Kirby and Simon. In 1954, Ditko was first hired by the publisher Charlton Comics, a low-budget company located in Derby, Connecticut. His first story for them was a vampire story, titled "Cinderella". He continued working for Charlton on-and-off until 1986, when the company shut down.
In 1954, Ditko contracted tuberculosis and had to take a hiatus from his comic book work. He recuperated at his family's house in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. By 1955, Ditko had recovered and he moved back to New York City. In 1956, Ditko was hired by Atlas Comics, Marvel Comics' predecessor. He mostly illustrated surreal stories, written by Atlas' writer-editor Stan Lee (1922-2018).
Ditko's work for Atlas Comics was published in its anthology titles, including "Amazing Adventures", "Journey into Mystery", "Strange Tales", "Strange Worlds", "Tales of Suspense" and "Tales to Astonish". Ditko's stories were sufficiently were sufficiently popular for him to be assigned as the main artist of "Amazing Adventures" in December, 1961. The anthology was renamed to "Amazing Adult Fantasy", to reflect its publication of stories that were more sophisticated that Atlas/Marvel's typical output.
Ditko's stories for Atlas and Marvel Comics were composed according to the company's "Marvel Method" of writer-artist collaboration. The writer provided a brief outline of the plot, while the artist fleshed out the story and illustrated it. This gave Ditko significant creative influence on any story, though he did not receive a credit as a co-writer or co-plotter.
In the early 1960s, Stan Lee wanted to create a new teenage hero, called Spider-Man. He first gained permission to create such a story by his publisher Martin Goodman (1908-1992). He then had to design the new character, and then gave the assignment to his main artist at the time: Jack Kirby. Kirby created a 6-page-long draft for the character's first story, but Lee rejected his designs. He then gave the assignment of designing Spider-Man to Ditko, who was the company's second most prominent artist at the time. Ditko's version of the character was accepted by Lee.
Ditko created Spider-Man's original costume. He incorporated a face mask which hid the character's facial features, a costume with no shoes that would allow the character to cling on walls, and a hidden wrist-shooter. Ditko also created the character's "web gimmick" and his spider signal. The idea of webs coming out of the character's hands was credited to Ditko's roommate at the time, the fetish artist Eric Stanton (1926-1999).
Spider-Man's origin story was published in "Amazing Fantasy" #15 (August 1962), the final issue of the anthology series. It became a top-seller, so Marvel Comics decided to give Spidey (as the character was nicknamed) his own series: "The Amazing Spider-Man" vol. 1 (March, 1963-November, 1998). Ditko was the new magazine's main artist for its first 38 issues (March, 1963-July, 1966).
Besides Spidey himself, Ditko co-created most of his early supporting cast and early foes. His creations included (in order) Aunt May/May Reilly Parker, Uncle Ben/Ben Parker, the Burglar, Crusher Hogan/Joseph Hogan, Flash Thompson/Eugene Thompson, Elizabeth Allan, Maxie Shiffman, Raymond Warren, Bluebird/Sally Avril, and Seymour O'Reilly (all introduced in Amazing Fantasy #15),J. Jonah Jameson (issue #1), Man-Wolf/John Jameson (issue #1), Chameleon/Dmitri Smerdyakov (issue #1),Vulture/Adrian Toomes (issue #2), Tinkerer/Phineas Mason (issue #2), Doctor Octopus/Otto Octavius (issue #3), Betty Brant (issue #4), Sandman/Flint Marko (issue #4), Principal Davis/Andrew Davis (issue #4), Lizard/Dr. Curtis Connors (issue #6), the Living Brain (issue #8), Charlie Murphy/Charles Murphy (issue #8), Electro/Maxwell "Max" Dillon (issue #9), Dr. Nicholas Bromwell (issue #9), Montana/Jackson Brice (issue #10), Fancy Dan/Daniel Brito (issue #10), the Ox/Raymond Bloch (#issue #10), the Big Man/Frederick Foswell (issue #10), Crime-Master/Bennett Brant (issue #11), Mysterio/Quentin Beck (issue #13), Green Goblin/Norman Osborn (issue #14), Kraven the Hunter/Sergei Kravinoff (issue #15), Anna Watson (issue #15), the Great Gambonnos/Ernest Gambonno and Luigi Gambonno (issue #16), Wilson Allan (issue #17), Hobgoblin/Ned Leeds (issue #18), the Scorpion/Mac Gargan (issue #20), Princess Python/Zelda DuBois (issue #22), Lucky Lobo/Francisco Lobo (issue #23), Mary Jane Watson (issue #25), Professor Spencer Smythe (issue #25), Spider-Slayer (issue #25), Crime-Master/Nicholas "Nick"/ "Lucky" Lewis (issue #26), Barney Bushkin (issue #27), the Molten Man/Mark Raxton (issue #28), Doris Raxton Allan (issue #28), Prowler/Cat Burglar/ the Cat (issue #30), Green Goblin/Harry Osborn (issue #31), Gwen Stacy (issue #31), the Jackal/Professor Miles Warren (issue #31), Dean Corliss (issue #31), the Looter/Meteor Man/Norton Fester (issue #36), Sally Green (issue #36), Robot Master/Gaunt/Professor Mendel Stromm (issue #37), Max Young (issue #37), and Guy Named Joe/Joe Smith (issue #38).
Ditko eventually demanded credit for his plot contributions, and Stan Lee complied. Fros issue #25 onward, Ditko started receiving plot credits. One of the most celebrated issues plotted by Ditko was issue #33, titled "If This Be My Destiny...!", In it Spider-Man is pinned down by heavy machinery, and is plagued by visions of having failed to rescue his uncle and being then unable to rescue his aunt. He eventually escapes through sheer force of will. The story has been repeatedly cited as one of Marvel Comics' best stories.
While continuing his work on Spider-Man, Ditko co-created Dr. Strange. The character was introduced in "Strange Tales" #110 (July 1963), and continued to appear regularly in the magazine. Ditko's Doctor Strange artwork was acclaimed "for its surrealistic mystical landscapes and increasingly psychedelic visuals". It became a favorite series for college students of the 1960s. Dr. Strange was a magic user whose adventures took place in "bizarre worlds and twisting dimensions".
In the Dr. Strange series, Ditko introduced some of the earlier cosmic characters used by Marvel. A multi-part story in "Strange Tales" #130-146 (March 1965 - July 1966) introduced Eternity, a living personification of the universe,
Besides Spider-Man and Dr. Strange, Ditko contributed stories for other Marvel characters of the era. He drew stories of the Hulk/Bruce Banner and Iron Man/Tony Stark. Ditko is credited for designing the Leader/Samuel Sterns in 1964, who has since served as the Hulk's primary adversary.
In 1966, Ditko decided to quit working for Marvel Comics, though he never explained the reasons for his decision. His relationship with Stan Lee had deteriorated sometime earlier, and they were no longer on speaking terms. Art and editorial changes in their stories were handled through intermediaries. According to John Romita Sr. (1930-), Ditko's replacement in the Spider-Man series, Ditko and Lee had disagreed on how to handle their characters.
After leaving Marvel Comics, Ditko returned to Charlton Comics. The pay rates at Charlton were considerably lower than Marvel's, but its creators enjoyed more creative freedom over their stories. Between 1965 and 1968, Ditko was the main creative force behind the stories of Captain Atom, Blue Beetle, and the Question.
From 1966 to 1967, Ditko also worked for Warren Publishing. The publisher specialized in comic magazines, and Ditko contributed 16 stories for the anthology series "Creepy" and "Eerie".
In 1967, Ditko created the creator-owned character Mister A. The character was inspired by Objectivism philosophy, and often delivered lethal justice to criminals. The first Mister A story was published in "witzend", an an underground comic which handled creator-owned stories by comic book professionals. Its original publisher was veteran comic book artist Wally Wood (1927-1981). Ditko regularly worked on Mister A stories for various publishers between 1967 and 1978. He eventually published the penultimate Mister A story in 2000, and the ultimate story in the series in 2009.
In 1968, Ditko was hired by DC Comics. His first major creation for the company was the Creeper, with the character introduced in "Showcase" #73 (April 1968). The sibling duo Hawk and Dove were then introduced in Showcase #75 (June 1968). The Creeper graduated to his own comic book series called "Beware the Creeper: (June 1968 - April 1969), and Ditko handled all 6 of its issues.
In 1969, Ditko resigned from DC Comics. He contributed a story to the first issue of Wally Wood's series "Heroes, Inc. Presents Cannon" (1969), but otherwise worked near-exclusively for Charlton Comics in the early from 1969 to the mid-1970s. In 1974, Ditko became the main artist for the stories featuring Liberty Belle/Caroline Dean.
In 1975, Ditko was hired by the short-lived publisher Atlas/Seaboard Comics (1974-1975). The company was owned by Martin Goodman, Marvel Comics' former owner. Ditko co-created a character called Destructor, which was given his own series. Ditko handled the art for all 4 of its issues (February-August, 1975). He also worked on 2 issues for the series Tiger-Man, and a single issue for Morlock 2001. Atlas/Seabord shut down in 1975.
In 1975, Ditko returned to DC Comics. His first major work there was creating the antihero Stalker/Elpis, who briefly received his own sword-and-sorcery themed series. Ditko handled all 4 of its issues. He also created the character Shade, the Changing Man, and handled all issues of his short-lived series (1977-1978).
Besides working on his own characters for DC Comics, Ditko contributed stories for its other characters. He worked on stories for Etrigan the Demon, the Legion of Super-Heroes, and Man-Bat/Robert Kirkland "Kirk" Langstrom. Several of his stories were published in anthology titles. In 1980, Ditko became the main artist for the stories featuring Starman/Prince Gavyn, a new extraterrestrial superhero. His stories only covered the first year of Starman's series.
In 1979, Ditko was hired by Marvel Comics again. He took over the series "Machine Man", featuring Jack Kirby's character Machine Man/Aaron Stack. The character was a sentient robot. Ditko also wrote stories for Captain Universe and the Micronauts, space-faring heroes. In 1980, Ditko co-created a new hero: Dragon Lord/Tako Shamara. The character failed to caught on with readers.
From 1984 to 1986, Ditko drew a series featuring the character of Rom the Space Knight/Rom of Galador, another extraterrestrial superhero. The long-running series ended in 1986. In 1988, Ditko co-created a new teenage superhero for Marvel, called Speedball/Robbie Baldwin. Speedball graduated to his own series, which lasted for 10 issues. Ditko was the series main artist, and contributed most of its plots. Following the series' cancellation, Speedball became a featured character in the team book "New Warriors".
While Ditko mostly worked for Marvel Comics during the 1980s, he also contributed for Pacific Comics, Eclipse Comics, First Comics, and Archie Comics. He contributed stories for Archie's resident superheroes, including the Fly/Thomas "Tommy" Troy, Flygirl/Kim Brand, and Jaguar/Ralph Hardy.
In 1982, Ditko was on contract with Western Publishing to serve as the main artist for a new science-fiction series called "Astral Frontiers". The series ended in development hell, and Western stopped publishing comics in 1984.
In the early 1990s, Ditko was hired by Valiant Comics to contribute stories for its stable of characters. Ditko worked on stories for "Magnus, Robot Fighter", Solar/Phil Seleski, and X-O Manowar/Aric of Dacia.
Ditko contributed an Iron Man and Dr. Doom crossover story in the anthology Marvel Super-Heroes vol. 2, #8 (January, 1992). This story introduced new super-heroine Squirrel Girl/Doreen Allene Green. The character eventually gained a cult following, joined the Great Lakes Avengers (an Avengers' spin-off team), and graduated to her own series. She was among the last original characters Ditko created for Marvel Comics, and the last one to become popular.
In 1995, Ditko served as the main artist for a comic-book miniseries featuring Phantom 2040/Kit Walker, the 24th incarnation of the Phantom. The series was an adaptation of a then-popular French-American animated series. It was among Ditko's large mainstream works. His other commercial works of the 1990s included one-shot publications for Dark Horse Comics, Defiant Comics, and Fantagraphics Books.
In 1998, Ditko wrote a few stories featuring Iron Man, Namor, the Sub-Mariner, and the Power Rangers. Then he mostly retired from mainstream comics. His final mainstream work was a 5-page-long story featuring the New Gods. It was intended for publication c. 2000, but was not published by DC Comics until 2008.
During the last decades of his life, Ditko mostly worked on creator-owned stories. Most of them were published by his long-time associate Robin Snyder, a former editor of Charlton Comics. Most of these works did not receive a wide circulation. In 2008, Ditko published the essay book "The Avenging Mind", and a collection of editorial cartoons under the title "Ditko, Etc...,".
In 2010, Ditko helped in the publication of reprint collections featuring his work from the 1970s. At about the same time, DC and Marvel published a number of previously unpublished stories by Ditko. Ditko had sold the stories to the two publishers in earlier decades, but they were kept in their respective inventories.
In the 2010s, Ditko continued to work in his apartment within Manhattan's Midtown West neighborhood. He lived alone, having never married and having no known children. In June 2018, Ditko was found dead within his apartment. The cause of death was a myocardial infarction (heart attack),itself caused by arteriosclerotic and hypertensive cardiovascular disease. Ditko was 90 years old at the time of death.
In 2019, Ditko's last essay was published posthumously. His last printed words concerned his thoughts about his friends and foes: "Here's to those who wish me well, and those that don't can go to hell."- Actor
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Dave Grohl, Foo Fighters front-man, will always be remembered as the drummer for Nirvana. But, drumming for a great band such as Nirvana is not Dave's only claim in the world of music. Dave's musical career began at age 15 as the guitarist and later as the drummer for a punk band called "Freak Baby". A year later, he was behind the drums for "Mission Impossible" and later that summer drumming for "Dain Bramage". Another year down the road, an opportunity to drum with one of his favorite punk bands, "Scream", was just too great to pass up. This leads us to 1990 when "Scream" seemed to be coming to an end and "Nirvana" was in need of a drummer. While recording and touring with "Nirvana", Dave continued to write lyrics and music that he would record during breaks with "Nirvana". After the tragic end of "Nirvana", Dave eventually turned to his music to create Foo Fighters. While playing guitar and singing with Foo Fighters is his main job, you can also find Dave channeling his musical genius throughout the world of rock. Dave has drummed for Queens of the Stone Age and Killing Joke. He has also recorded and guest performed with his buddies Tenacious D. All the while recording for his own hardcore project, "Probot".- Actress
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An actress on both stage and screen, Anna Gunn has portrayed a vast array of complex and powerful characters throughout her career.
Anna grew up in Santa Fe, New Mexico after her parents, Sharon (Peters) and Clemens Gunn, Jr., transplanted the family from Cleveland, Ohio to the Southwest in the late seventies. She discovered acting in a drama class at the Santa Fe Preparatory School and was fortunate to study with two formidable teachers from the Actor's Studio as a teenager. She continued her education and training at Northwestern University's renowned theatre department, winning a coveted scholarship award in her junior year. During her time at Northwestern, Anna went abroad for a semester to study with the British American Drama Academy and had the marvelous opportunity to perform in the school's final project at the famed Royal Court Theatre in London.
Anna has moved between television, film, and theatre with much ease. In 2004, Anna landed her breakout television role, playing Martha Bullock on HBO's seminal show, Deadwood (2004) and later received a SAG nomination for Best Ensemble Cast in 2006. Anna's association with Deadwood (2004) creator David Milch began early on when she first worked with him on his hit drama NYPD Blue (1993), giving a memorable performance as Kimmy, a junkie longing to escape New York to swim with the dolphins. Anna made such an indelible impression on Milch, that almost nine years later she became the template for the pivotal and complex character of Martha. Another major recurring role for Anna was on David E. Kelley's The Practice (1997), delivering a notable turn as ADA Jean Ward opposite Dylan McDermott and Lara Flynn Boyle. Her extensive television credits also include starring roles in several made for TV movies and major guest starring appearances on such shows as Six Feet Under (2001), ER (1994), Boston Legal (2004), Law & Order (1990) and Seinfeld (1989).
Highlights of Anna's feature film work include the dark comedy, Nobody's Baby (2001), in which she starred with Gary Oldman and Mary Steenburgen; the film premiered at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival. In 1998, she played opposite Jon Voight in Tony Scott's summer blockbuster, Enemy of the State (1998). Her first starring role was in 1995's independent thriller, Without Evidence (1995), along side Angelina Jolie. Anna was recently in Kevin Smith's Red State (2011). Her upcoming films include Little Red Wagon (2012) and Sassy Pants (2012), for which she received a nomination at the 2012 Milan Film Festival for Best Supporting Actress.
Anna is also a highly regarded and much sought after actress of the stage. In early 2009 she created the leading role of photojournalist Sarah Goodwin in Donald Margulies' world premiere production of Time Stands Still, directed by Daniel Sullivan at the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles. In 1999 she starred as Isabella in Measure for Measure at the Ahmanson Theatre helmed by the famed director Sir Peter Hall. In 1997, Anna was brought east to make her Broadway debut alongside Roger Rees in The Rehearsal at the Roundabout Theater. Before that she played on the LA circuit, including the 1995 American premiere of Hysteria directed by Phyllida Lloyd at the Mark Taper Forum. Before settling in Los Angeles, Anna built an impressive background performing on stage in Chicago. She received exceptional reviews in Uncommon Ground at the Northlight Theatre, and playing opposite Jeremy Piven in Keith Reddin's Peacekeeper at the American Blues Theatre. She even landed her first professional acting role, playing Lucy Lockit in the critically acclaimed production of The Beggar's Opera at the Court Theatre while still an undergraduate at Northwestern University. In late 2011, Anna immersed herself in the role of Marie Curie for Alan Alda's world premiere of Radiance: The Passion of Marie Curie, directed by Daniel Sullivan at the Geffen Playhouse and received rave reviews.
She starring as Skyler White on AMC's Emmy award-winning series Breaking Bad (2008); a role that garnered Anna a 2012 Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series Emmy Nomination until she won in 2013-2014, a 2012 Best Supporting Actress nomination by the Broadcast Television Journalist Association for a Critics' Choice Television Award, and a 2012 & 2013 Screen Actor's Guild Award for Best Ensemble Cast. The cast was also the recipient of the 2008 Peabody Award and won an AFI Award both in 2008 and 2011. The show was also nominated in 2013 by the Hollywood Foreign Press Golden Globe's as Best Television Drama until it won in 2014.- Actress
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Angelina Jolie is an Academy Award-winning actress who rose to fame after her role in Girl, Interrupted (1999), playing the title role in the "Lara Croft" blockbuster movies, as well as Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005), Wanted (2008), Salt (2010) and Maleficent (2014). Off-screen, Jolie has become prominently involved in international charity projects, especially those involving refugees. She often appears on many "most beautiful women" lists, and she has a personal life that is avidly covered by the tabloid press.
Jolie was born Angelina Jolie Voight in Los Angeles, California. In her earliest years, Angelina began absorbing the acting craft from her actor parents, Jon Voight, an Oscar-winner, and Marcheline Bertrand, who had studied with Lee Strasberg. Her good looks may derive from her ancestry, which is German and Slovak on her father's side, and French-Canadian, Dutch, Polish, and remote Huron, on her mother's side. At age eleven, Angelina began studying at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute, where she was seen in several stage productions. She undertook some film studies at New York University and later joined the renowned Met Theatre Group in Los Angeles. At age 16, she took up a career in modeling and appeared in some music videos.
In the mid-1990s, Jolie appeared in various small films where she got good notices, including Hackers (1995) and Foxfire (1996). Her critical acclaim increased when she played strong roles in the made-for-TV movies True Women (1997), and in George Wallace (1997) which won her a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy nomination. Jolie's acclaim increased even further when she played the lead role in the HBO production Gia (1998). This was the true life story of supermodel Gia Carangi, a sensitive wild child who was both brazen and needy and who had a difficult time handling professional success and the deaths of people who were close to her. Carangi became involved with drugs and because of her needle-using habits she became, at the tender age of 26, one of the first celebrities to die of AIDS. Jolie's performance in Gia (1998) again garnered a Golden Globe Award and another Emmy nomination, and she additionally earned a SAG Award.
Angelina got a major break in 1999 when she won a leading role in the successful feature The Bone Collector (1999), starring alongside Denzel Washington. In that same year, Jolie gave a tour de force performance in Girl, Interrupted (1999) playing opposite Winona Ryder. The movie was a true story of women who spent time in a psychiatric hospital. Jolie's role was reminiscent of Jack Nicholson's character in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), the role which won Nicholson his first Oscar. Unlike "Cuckoo", "Girl" was a small film that received mixed reviews and barely made money at the box office. But when it came time to give out awards, Jolie won the triple crown -- "Girl" propelled her to win the Golden Globe Award, the SAG Award and the Academy Award for best leading actress in a supporting role.
With her newfound prominence, Jolie began to get in-depth attention from the press. Numerous aspects of her controversial personal life became news. At her wedding to her Hackers (1995) co-star Jonny Lee Miller, she had displayed her husband's name on the back of her shirt painted in her own blood. Jolie and Miller divorced, and in 2000, she married her Pushing Tin (1999) co-star Billy Bob Thornton. Jolie had become the fifth wife of a man twenty years her senior. During her marriage to Thornton, the spouses each wore a vial of the other's blood around their necks. That marriage came apart in 2002 and ended in divorce. In addition, Jolie was estranged from her famous father, Jon Voight.
In 2000, Jolie was asked to star in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001). At first, she expressed disinterest, but then decided that the required training for the athletic role was intriguing. The eponymous character was drawn from a popular video game. Lara Croft was a female cross between Indiana Jones and James Bond. When the movie was released, critics were unimpressed with the final product, but critical acclaim wasn't the point of the movie. The public paid $275 million for theater tickets to see a buffed up Jolie portray the adventuresome Lara Croft. Jolie's father Jon Voight appeared in the movie, and during filming there was a brief rapprochement between father and daughter.
One of the Lara Croft movie's filming locations was Cambodia. While there, Jolie witnessed the natural beauty, culture and poverty of that country. She considered this an eye opening experience, and so began the humanitarian chapter of her life. Jolie began visiting refugee camps around the world and came to be formally appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Some of her experiences were written and published in her popular book "Notes from My Travels" whose profits go to UNHCR.
Jolie has stated that she now plans to spend most of her time in humanitarian efforts, to be financed by her actress salary. She devotes one third of her income to savings, one third to living expenses and one third to charity. In 2002, Angelina adopted a Cambodian refugee boy named Maddox, and in 2005, adopted an Ethiopian refugee girl named Zahara. Jolie's dramatic feature film Beyond Borders (2003) parallels some of her real life humanitarian experiences although, despite the inclusion of a romance between two westerners, many of the movie's images were too depressingly realistic -- the movie was not popular among critics or at the box office.
In 2004, Jolie began filming Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005) with co-star Brad Pitt. The movie became a major box office success. There were rumors that Pitt and Jolie had an affair while filming Mr. and Mrs. Smith. Jolie insisted that because her mother had been hurt by adultery, she herself could never participate in an affair with a married man, therefore there had been no affair with Pitt at that time. Nonetheless, Pitt separated from his wife Jennifer Aniston in January 2005 and, in the months that followed, he was frequently seen in public with Jolie, apparently as a couple. Pitt's divorce was finalized later in 2005.
Jolie and Pitt announced in early 2006 that they would have a child together, and Jolie gave birth to daughter Shiloh that May. They also adopted a three-year-old Vietnamese boy named Pax. The couple, who married in 2014 and divorced in 2019, continue to pursue movie and humanitarian projects, and now have a total of six children. She was appointed Honorary Dame Commander of the Order of St. Michael and St. George at the 2014 Queen's Birthday Honours for her services to United Kingdom foreign policy and the campaign to end warzone sexual violence.- Actress
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Bianca Kajlich was born on 26 March 1977 in Seattle, Washington, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for Halloween: Resurrection (2002), Bring It On (2000) and Dark Was the Night (2014). She has been married to Mike Catherwood since 16 December 2012. They have one child. She was previously married to Landon Donovan.- Actress
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Rebekah Kochan is the CEO of Golden Artists Entertainment in Los Angeles, CA, as well as a Director/Writer/Producer. Rebekah started her career as "Tiffani" in the LGBTQ comedy classics Eating Out, as well as starring in several horror films. She's ranked as "one of the top 'Scream Queens' of all time. She stared her writing career as a writer for Joan Rivers on the hit show "Fashion Police" and went on to host the AVN Awards on Showtime live to 40 million people. Her directorial debut, House of Karma, premieres fall of 2023. Rebekah lives in Los Angeles with her husband Dante Rusciolelli.- Actor
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Joseph Kovac is known for Dream Job (2024), Shrink Wrapped (2022) and A Shared Secret. He has been married to Patricia since 1980. They have two children.- Actress
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Harley Jane Kozak was born on 28 January 1957 in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, USA. She is an actress, known for Arachnophobia (1990), Parenthood (1989) and When Harry Met Sally... (1989). She was previously married to Greg Aldisert and Van Saantvord.- Actress
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Kim Krizan is a writer and actor who was raised in the Los Angeles area. For a time, Krizan lived in Austin, Texas, where she was active in theater and film; she also taught literature and writing at the college level. Krizan and Richard Linklater wrote Before Sunrise (1995) (Castle Rock), featuring Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy. Krizan also performed in Linklater's Dazed and Confused (1993) (Universal) as hip high school teacher Ginny Stroud, in Slacker (1990) (Detour/Orion) as Questions Happiness, and in Waking Life (2001) as herself. She co-wrote the story for Before Sunset (2004), the sequel to Before Sunrise (1995).- Phyllis Anne Love was born in Des Moines, Iowa on December 21, 1925. She attended Roosevelt High School in Des Moines along with her close friend, Cloris Leachman. After performing in various local and regional drama productions, Love enrolled in the Actors Studio in New York in 1948. Her movie debut was a bit as a juvenile delinquent in the 1950 movie So Young, So Bad (1950), which starred Paul Henreid and Rita Moreno. Love's best-known film role was as "Mattie Birdwell" in William Wyler's Friendly Persuasion (1956). Love guested in numerous TV programs in the 50s, 60s, and 70s but enjoyed her greatest success on the Broadway stage. She appeared in eight shows and, in 1951, won the New York Charles Derwent Award for Best Featured Actress for her portrayal of "Rosa Delle Rosa" in the original production of "The Rose Tattoo". After retiring from acting in the early 70s, she changed her first name to "Osanna".
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Luba Mason was born on 26 July 1961 in New York City, New York, USA. She is an actress, known for The Ten Commandments: The Musical (2006), Red Pill (2021) and Person of Interest (2011). She has been married to Rubén Blades since 4 August 2006. She was previously married to Kenneth Elwood Mason.- Director
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Bradford May was born on 3 August 1951 in Los Angeles County, California, USA. He is a director and cinematographer, known for The Monster Squad (1987), Lady Against the Odds (1992) and Favorite Son (1988). He has been married to Lisa Eilbacher since 27 August 1988.- Actress
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Amy Newman was born in Burbank, California, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for Adam's Package (2019), The John Campea Show (2016) and Mini-Mocks (2018).- Transportation Department
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John Oravec was born in Cleveland, Ohio, USA. He is a producer and actor, known for Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F (2024), Us (2019) and Bombshell (2019).- Actor
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Marek Oravec was born on 27 December 1983. He is an actor, known for Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), Fury (2014) and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (2018).- Angelina Pivarnick was born on 26 June 1986 in Staten Island, New York City, New York, USA. She is an actress, known for TNA iMPACT! Wrestling (2004), XXistence and Customer Appreciation (2013). She has been married to Chris Larangeira since 20 November 2019.
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Canadian producer and director Ivan Reitman created many of American cinema's most successful and best loved feature film comedies and worked with Hollywood's acting elite. Reitman produced such hits as the ground-breaking sensation National Lampoon's National Lampoon's Animal House (1978), which introduced John Belushi to American filmgoers, and the family features Beethoven (1992) and Beethoven's 2nd (1993). His directing credits include Meatballs (1979), Stripes (1981) and Ghostbusters (1984), films starring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis; Dave (1993), which starred Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver, Junior (1994) which starred Arnold Schwarzenegger, Danny DeVito and Emma Thompson. Reitman also produced the HBO telefilm The Late Shift (1996), based on Bill Carter's non-fiction book about the late-night television wars which received seven Emmy nominations. Other producing endeavors include Commandments (1997), starring Aidan Quinn and Courteney Cox, Private Parts (1997), starring Howard Stern, as well as the animation/live action film Space Jam (1996), starring Michael Jordan and the Looney Tunes characters. With Twins (1988), Reitman created an entirely new comedic persona for action hero Arnold Schwarzenegger -- and forged a personal and professional relationship that continued with Kindergarten Cop (1990) and Junior (1994). Acclaimed dramatic actors such as Robert Redford, Debra Winger, Sigourney Weaver, and Emma Thompson also revealed untapped comic talents under Reitman's direction. In 1984, Reitman was honored as Director of the Year by the National Association of Theater Owners and the next year received a Special Achievement Award at the Canadian Genie awards. In 1979 and again in 1989, for the films National Lampoon's Animal House (1978) and Twins (1988), Reitman was honored with the People's Choice Award. In November of 1994, Reitman became the third director honored by Variety magazine in a special Billion Dollar Director issue.
Reitman was born in Czechoslovakia, to Jewish Holocaust survivors, and left with his family for Canada at the age of four. He attended Canada's McMaster University, where he produced and directed several television shorts. He followed with a live television show, Greed: The Series (1999), with Dan Aykroyd as its announcer. "Spellbound," which Reitman produced for the live stage, evolved into the Broadway hit "The Magic Show," starring Doug Henning. He continued producing for the stage with the Off-Broadway hit "The National Lampoon Show," and returned to Broadway to produce and direct the musical "Merlin," earning a Tony nomination for directing. Reitman headed The Montecito Picture Company, a film and television production company, with partner Tom Pollock. His television credits included the Emmy-nominated children's show The Real Ghostbusters (1986) and the Saturday morning animated series Beethoven (1994) for CBS. His last directing credited was Draft Day (2014), before his death in February 2022 in Montecito, California.Director of “Ghostbusters”- Mark E. Safarik was born on 26 September 1954 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is an actor, known for The Greatest Crimes Of All Time (2017), Snapped (1998) and Killer Instinct (2011). He has been married to Lisa Marie Safarik since 4 August 1990. They have two children. He was previously married to Carol Joan Butterfield.
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Thomas William Selleck is an American actor and film producer, best known for his starring role as Hawaii-based private investigator "Thomas Magnum" on the 1980s television series, Magnum, P.I. (1980).
Selleck was born in Detroit, Michigan, to Martha (Jagger), a homemaker, and Robert Dean Selleck, a real estate investor and executive. He is of mostly English descent, including recent immigrant ancestors. Selleck has appeared extensively on television in roles such as "Dr. Richard Burke" on Friends (1994) and "A.J. Cooper" on Las Vegas (2003). In addition to his series work, Selleck has appeared in more than fifty made-for-TV and general release movies, including Mr. Baseball (1992), Quigley Down Under (1990), Lassiter (1984) and, his most successful movie release, Three Men and a Baby (1987), which was the highest grossing movie in 1987.
Selleck also plays "Jesse Stone" in a series of made-for-TV movies, based on the Robert B. Parker novels. In 2010, he appears as "Commissioner Frank Reagan" in the drama series, Blue Bloods (2010) on CBS.Magnum, P.I.- Julie Sommars was born in Fremont, Nebraska to a government grain inspector and schoolteacher. She attended schools in Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota. While a student in Onawa, Iowa, her father, without her knowledge, entered her name in a worldwide talent hunt. Fifteen-year-old Julie found herself in Chicago auditioning for Otto Preminger for the lead role in his film "Saint Joan." She didn't get that part, but as a high school senior she did win the American Legion State Oratory Contest in Aberdeen, South Dakota. She was the only female winner in all of, what was then, the 48 states.
After graduation from high school, Julie took the Greyhound bus to California for a summer job teaching horseback riding and swimming, and attended San Bernardino Valley College. Her appearance in the play, "Our Town" led to her playing Loretta Young's daughter in an episode of the "Loretta Young Show." She was 19.
Her big break came in another talent hunt. She competed for and won the female lead in Ross Hunter's talent hunt for unknowns to play in his 1966 black comedy, "The Pad and How to Use It," based on the Peter Shaffer play, "The Private Ear."
In 1969 she starred in the comedy series, "The Governor and J.J." playing Dan Dailey's daughter, J. J. In 1970 she won a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy, tying with Carol Burnett, as well as the Best New Star Award from the Television Critics Association for her role as J. J.
Julie also starred with Dean Jones and Don Knotts in the Disney movie "Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo." Episodic television work includes roles in "Get Smart," "Barnaby Jones," "Harry O," "The Rockford Files," "McMillan and Wife," "McCloud," and "Magnum P.I." In the 1970s Julie starred in many movies for television, including "The Harness," "Five Desperate Women," "Cave-In," and "Centennial."
From 1987-1994 Julie joined Andy Griffith in "Matlock," playing his love interest Assistant District Attorney, Julie March. In 1990 she received her second Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama for the role.
Upon retiring, from March 1999 to March 2000, she served as a public member on the California Judicial Performance Commission. From 2000 to 2003, she served as a public member on The Board of Governors for the State of California.
In 2021 Julie lives in California with John Karns, her husband of 38 years. Between them they have three children, Jacey Erwin, Mike Karns, and Bill Karns. - Actress
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While in high school in Plano, Texas, Melissa was cast in the national tour of Music Man making her professional stage debut. Strom attended the prestigious BFA acting program at University of Southern California's School of Theatre. Upon graduating cum laude, Melissa, received the Danielewski Best Actor Award, Kathy Wade Dance Award, and was named to USC's Order of Troy and Mortar Board.
At the Kodak Theatre Melissa shared the stage with Christopher Lloyd and John Goodman playing Fan and the Laundress in A Christmas Carol. She originated and reprised her role as Eleanor in the sold out and extended run of Cindy And The Disco Ball at Gary Marshall's Falcon Theatre. Strom also originated Frankie Valli's daughter 'Francine' in the Tony Award musical Jersey Boys First National Tour.
She credits her parents for being instrumental in her success.- Actor
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Robert Urich grew up in Toronto, Ohio, one of four siblings of Slovak and Rusyn descent, raised Catholic by their parents, John P. Urich (died 1977) and Cecelia (née Halpate) Urich (died 2002). His athletic ability led to a four-year football scholarship at Florida State University (FSU). He earned his Bachelor's degree in Radio and Television Communications from Florida State University in 1968 and his Master's degree in Broadcast Research and Management from Michigan State University in 1971. He joined WGN radio in Chicago as a sales account representative. He then briefly appeared as a TV weatherman, and soon realized he wanted to become an actor.
Urich's big break came in 1972 when he played Burt Reynolds's younger brother in a stage production of "The Rainmaker". Reynolds and Urich were both alumni of FSU. Reynolds brought him to California and let him stay in his home until he got his acting break. He also recommended Urich to producer Aaron Spelling for the TV series S.W.A.T. (1975). Although that series lasted only one season, Spelling remembered Urich and later cast him in Vega$ (1978), which had a longer run.
He was starring in the TV series The Lazarus Man (1996) when he was diagnosed with cancer, which caused the cancellation of the series. The cancer went into remission after treatment and he resumed acting again with his role as Captain Jim Kennedy III on Love Boat: The Next Wave (1998). The cancer would claim Urich's life on April 16, 2002 at the age of 55, survived by his wife, children, siblings, mother (who died later that same year, on October 5, 2002, aged 90) and large extended family.- Actor
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Jesse Ventura was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Bernice Martha (Lenz), a nurse who was of German descent, and George William Janos, a steam fitter of Slovak ancestry. In November 1990, professional wrestler turned actor Jesse Ventura was elected to a four-year term as mayor of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis with a population of around 56,000. After his mayoral term, he purchased a small hobby farm in nearby Maple Grove, Minnesota and moved from Brooklyn Park. In November 1998, Ventura, as a member of the Reform Party, was elected Governor of Minnesota. Jesse served as governor from 1999 to 2003 and did not run for a second term.- Actor
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Jon Voight is an American actor of German and Slovak descent. He has won the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his role as paraplegic Vietnam War veteran Luke Martin in the war film "Coming Home" (1978). He has also been nominated for the same award other two times. He was first nominated for his role as aspiring gigolo Joe Buck in "Midnight Cowboy" (1969), He was last nominated for the award for his role as escaped convict Oscar "Manny" Manheim in "Runaway Train" (1985). He was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, for his role as sports journalist Howard Cosell (1918-1995) in "Ali" (2001).
In 1938, Voight was born in Yonkers, New York. His parents were professional golfer Elmer Samuel Voight (original name Elemír Vojtka) and his wife Barbara Agnes (Kamp). His paternal grandfather was a Slovak immigrant, as were the parents of his paternal grandmother. His maternal grandfather was a German immigrant, as were the parents of his maternal grandmother. His maternal great-uncle was political activist Joseph P. Kamp (1900-1993), a leader of the anti-communist organization "Constitutional Educational League".
Voight has two siblings: volcanologist Barry Voight (1937-) and singer-songwriter James Wesley Voight (pseudonym Chip Taylor, 1940-). Barry is most famous for first predicting and then investigating the eruption of Mount St. Helens (1980). James is most famous for writing the hit songs "Wild Thing" (1965) and "Angel of the Morning" (1967).
Voight was educated at Archbishop Stepinac High School, an all-boys Roman Catholic high school located at White Plains, New York. At the time, the school was operated by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York. He took an interest in acting in his high school years, performing a comedic role in the school's annual musical, "The Song of Norway". He graduated in 1956, at the age of 18.
Voight continued his education at The Catholic University of America, located in Washington, D.C.. He majored in art, and graduated in 1960. He was 22-years-old at the time of graduation. He then moved to New York City, having decided to pursue an acting career.
In the early 1960s, Voight primarily worked as a television actor. He guest starred in episodes of then-popular television series, such as "Naked City", "The Defenders", "NET Playhouse", "12 O'Clock High", and "Gunsmoke". His first notable theatrical role was playing the illegal immigrant Rodolfo in a 1965 Off-Broadway production of the play "A View from the Bridge" (1955) by Arthur Miller (1915-2005). In the play, Rodolfo is the love interest of the American girl Catherine, and disliked by her uncle and guardian Eddie Carbone (who is in love with his niece).
Voight made his film debut in the superhero comedy "Fearless Frank" (1967), playing the role of the eponymous superhero. Frank was depicted as a murder victim who gets resurrected and granted superpowers by a scientist. Voiight's second film role was playing historical gunman and outlaw Curly Bill Brocius (1845-1882) in the Western film "Hour of the Gun" (1967). The historical Brocius was an an enemy of the Esrp family, and was killed by Wyatt Earp (1848-1929).
Voigh't third film appearance was "Midnight Cowboy" (1969), his first great success. He played the role of a naive hustler from Texas who tries to become a gigolo in New York City. The film was critically acclaimed, and became the only X-rated feature to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Voight was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, but the award was instead won by rival actor John Wayne (1907-1979).
Voight's first role in the 1970s was playing lieutenant Milo Minderbinder in the black comedy "Catch-22" (1970). The film was based on a 1961 satirical novel by Joseph Heller (1923-1999), and offered a satirical view on war and bureaucracy. Voight's next role was playing the left-wing student A in the political drama "The Revolutionary" (1970).
Voight found further critical acclaim with the thriller film "Deliverance" (1972), playing Atlanta businessman Ed Gentry. In the film, Gentry and his first are targeted by villainous mountain men in the northern Georgia wilderness. The film earned about 46 million dollars at the domestic box office, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.
His subsequent roles included idealistic schoolteacher Pat Conroy in "Conrack" (1974), journalist Peter Miller in "The Odessa File" (1974). His next great success was playing paraplegic war veteran Luke Martin in "Coming Home" (1978), in a role inspired by the life of war veteran and anti-war activist Ron Kovic (1976-). He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for this film. His co-star Jane Fonda (1937-) won her second Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in this film.
Voight's early 1980s roles included conman Alex Kovac in "Lookin' to Get Out" (1982) and widowed father J. P. Tannen in "Table for Five" (1983). His next big success was the role of escaped convict Oscar "Manny" Manheim in "Runaway Train" (1985). He was again nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, but the Award was instead won by rival actor William Hurt (1950-).
Voight's next role was that of Jack Chismore in the drama film "Desert Bloom" (1986). Chismore is depicted as a war veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), who is trying to raise three stepdaughters. He frequently abuses his stepdaughter Rose Chismore (played by Annabeth Gish), but is genuinely concerned for her safety when Rose runs away from home. This film was Voigh's last film role for several years, as he took a hiatus from acting.
Voight returned to acting with the drama film "Eternity" (1990), where he was also the screenwriter. The film deals with reincarnation, as a medieval war within brothers continues in modern American politics. Following his return to acting, Voight started appearing frequently in television films and miniseries. He also guest-starred in a 1994 episode of "Seinfeld", playing himself.
Voight returned to film acting with the crime drama "Heat" (1995), where he had a minor role as a fence. He had a more substantial role in the spy film "Mission: Impossible" (1996), where he played spymaster James Phelps. The film was an adaptation of the popular television series "Mission: Impossible" (1966-1973), about the adventures of a group of secret agents. The role of James Phelps was previously played by actor Peter Graves (1926-2010). The film was a great commercial success, earning about 458 million dollars at the worldwide box office.
Voight appeared in six different films in 1997, one of the busiest years of his career. The most notable among them was the horror film "Anaconda" (1997), where he played obsessive hunter Paul Serone, the film's main antagonist. The film won about 137 million dollars at the box office, despite a mostly negative critical reception. For this role, Voight was nominated for the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor. He lost the award to rival actor Kevin Costner (1955-).
His next notable role was that Thomas Brian Reynolds, agent of the National Security Agency (NSA) in the action thriller "Enemy of the State" (1998). In the film, the NSA conspires to expand the surveillance powers of intelligence agencies over individuals and groups, at the cost of American citizens' right to privacy. The film was another box office success in Voight's career, earning about 251 million dollars at the box office.
In the same year, Voight played inspector Ned Kenny in the crime film "The General" (1998). The film was loosely based on the career of Irish crime boss Martin Cahill (1949-1994), who was nicknamed "the General". The film was critically acclaimed and director John Boorman won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Director.
Voight's next notable role was that of domineering coach Bud Kilmer in the sports film "Varsity Blues" (1999). The film dealt with the difficulties in the life of the players of a Texas-based high school football team, and was not expected to attract much attention by audiences. It earned about 54 million dollars at the box office, making it a modest box office hit. It is credited with introducing Voight to a next generation of fans.
Voight's final film in the 1990s was "A Dog of Flanders" (1999), based on a 1872 novel by Ouida (1839-1908). He played the role of artist Michel La Grande, the mentor of Nello (played by Jeremy James Kissner), who is eventually revealed to be Nello's biological father. The film failed at the box office, failing to earn as much as its modest budget.
Voight appeared in no film released in 2000, but had a busy year in 2001. He appeared in several box office hits of the year. He played President of the United States Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945, term 1933-1945) in the war drama "Pearl Harbor", Lara Croft's father Lord Richard Croft in the action film "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider", coal-miner and working class father Larry Zoolander in action comedy "Zoolander", and sports journalist Howard Cosell in the biographical film "Ali". For his role in "Ali", Voight was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. The award was instead won by rival actor Jim Broadbent (1949-). It was Voight's fourth and (so far) last nomination for an Academy Award.
Voight had a notable role playing Pope John Paul II (1920-2005, term 1978-2005) in the miniseries "Pope John Paul II" (2005). He was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie, but the award was instead won by rival actor Andre Braugher (1962-).
Voight had a supporting role as John Keller, United States Secretary of Defense in the science fiction film "Transformers" (2007). The film was based on the Transformers toy line by Hasbro.It earned about 710 million dollars at the box office, one of the most commercially successful films in Voight's career.
In 2009, Voight had a notable television role, playing Jonas Hodges, the CEO of a Virginia-based private military company in the then-popular television series "24" (2001-2010, 2014). He was a main antagonist in the seventh season of the series. His role was inspired by the careers of Hessian colonel Johann Rall (c. 1726-1776), German industrialist Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach (1907-1967), and private military company CEO Erik Prince (1969-).
His 2010s notable film roles include the role of Dracula's enemy Loonardo Van Helsing in the horror film "Dracula: The Dark Prince" (2013), football coach Paul William "Bear" Bryant (1913-1983) in the sports drama "Woodlawn" (2015), and newspaper owner Henry Shaw Sr. in "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" (2016). "Fantastic Beasts" earned about 814 million dollars at the worldwide box office, being one of the most commercially successful films that Voight ever appeared in.
In 2020, was 82-years-old, and he is still working as an actor.- Director
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Andrew Warhol's father, Ondrej, came from the Austria-Hungary Empire (now Slovakia) in 1912, and sent for his mother, Julia Zavackyová Warholová, in 1921. His father worked as a construction worker and later as a coal miner. Around some time, the family moved to Pittsburgh. During his teenage years, Andy suffered from several nervous breakdowns. Overcoming this, he graduated from Schenley High School in Pittsburgh in 1945, and enrolled in the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie-Mellon University), graduating in June 1949. During college, he met Philip Pearlstein, a fellow student.
After graduation, Andy Warhol (having dropped the letter 'a' from his last name) moved to New York City, and shared an apartment with Pearlstein at St. Mark's Place off of Avenue A for a couple months. During this time, he moved in and out of several Manhattan apartments. In New York, he met Tina Fredericks, art editor of Glamour Magazine. Warhol's early jobs were doing drawings for Glamour, such as the Success is a Job in New York, and women's shoes. He also drew advertising for various magazines, including Vogue, Harper's Bazzar, book jackets, and holiday greeting cards.
During the 1950s, he moved to an apartment on East 75th Street. His mother moved in with him, and Fritizie Miller become his agent. In 1952, his first solo exhibition was held at Hugo Gallery, New York, of drawings to illustrate stories by Truman Capote. He started illustrating books, beginning with Amy Vanderbilt's Complete Book of Etiquette. Around 1953-1955, he worked for a theater group on the Lower East Side, and designs sets. It is around that time that he dyed his hair silver. Warhol published several books, including Twenty Five Cats Named Sam, and One Blue Pussy. In 1956, he traveled around the world with Charles Lisanby, a television-set designer. In April of this year, he was included in his first group exhibition, Recent Drawings USA, held at the Museum of Modern Art, New York. He began receiving accolades for his work, with the 35th Annual Art Directors Club Award for Distinctive Merit, for an I.Miller shoe advertisement. He published In The Bottom Of My Garden later that year. In 1957, received 36th Annual Art Directors Club Medal and Award of Distinctive Merit, for the I.Miller show advertisements, and Life Magazine published his illustrations for an article, "Crazy Golden Slippers".
In 1960, Warhol began to make his first paintings. They were based on comic strips in the likes of Dick Tracy, Popeye, Superman, and two of Coca-Cola bottles. In 1961, using the Dick Tracy comic strip, he designed a window display for Lord & Taylor, at this time, major art galleries around the nation begin noticing his work. In 1962, Warhol made paintings of dollar bills and Campbell soup cans, and his work was included in an important exhibition of pop art, The New Realists, held at Sidney Janis Gallery, New York. In November of this year, Elanor Ward showed his paintings at Stable Gallery, and the exhibition began a sensation. In 1963, he rented a studio in a firehouse on East 87th Street. He met his assistant, Gerard Malanga, and started making his first film, Tarzan and Jane Regained... Sort of (1964). Later, he drove to Los Angeles for his second exhibition at the Ferus Gallery. In November of that year, he found a loft at 231 East 47th Street, which became his main studio, The Factory. In December, he began production of Red Jackie, the first of the Jackie series. In 1964, his first solo exhibition in Europe, held at the Galerie Ileana Sonnebend in Paris, featured the Flower series. He received a commission from architect Philip Johnson to make a mural, entitled Thirteen Most Wanted Men for the New York State Pavilion in the New York World's Fair. In April, he received an Independent Film Award from Film Culture magazine. In November, his first solo exhibition in the US was held at Leo Castelli Gallery. And at this time, he began his self portrait series.
In the summer of 1965, Andy Warhol met Paul Morrissey, who became his advisor and collaborator. His first solo museum exhibition was held at the Institute of Contempary Art, at the University of Pennsylvania. During this year, he made a surprise announcement of his retirement from painting, but it was to be short lived. He would resume painting again in 1972. It was around this time that he met Lou Reed, John Cale, Sterling Morrison, and Maureen Tucker (collectively known as The Velvet Underground), and a German-born model turned chanteuse called Nico. He paired Nico with the Velvets, and they developed a close bond with Warhol. This was an alliance that forever changed the face of world culture. Warhol produced the group's first album, The Velvet Underground and Nico, which has been called "the most influential record ever" by many critics. Later, a multimedia show developed (called The Exploding Plastic Inevitable), managed, and produced by Warhol, featuring the Velvet Underground.
In the summer of 1966, Warhol's film Chelsea Girls (1966) became the first underground film to be shown at a commercial theater. In 1967, Chelsea Girls opened in Los Angeles and San Francisco, and six of his Self Portraits were shown at Expo 67 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. In August of this year, he gave a lecture at various colleges in the Los Angeles area, his persona is so popular that some colleges hire Allen Midgette to impersonate him for lectures. Later, Warhol moved The Factory to 33 Union Square West, and met Fred Hughes, who later became President of Enterprises, and Interview Magazine. In 1968, Warhol's first solo European museum exhibition was held at Moderna Museet, Stockholm. But later that year on June 3, 1968, Warhol was shot by Valerie Solanas, an ultra-radical and member of the entourage surrounding Warhol. Solanis was the founder of SCUM (Society for Cutting Up Men) Fortunately, Warhol survived the assassination attempt after spending two months in a hospital. This incident is the subject of the film, I Shot Andy Warhol (1996). Afterwards, Andy Warhol dropped out of the filmmaking business, but now and then continued his contribution to film and art. He never emotionally recovered from his brush with death.
During the 1970s and 80s, Andy Warhol's status as a media icon skyrocketed, and he used his influence to back many younger artists. He began publishing of Interview magazine, with the first issue being released in fall of 1969. In 1971, his play, entitled Pork, opened at London at the Round House Theatre. He resumed painting in 1972, although it was primarily celebrity portraits. The Factory was moved to 860 Broadway, and in 1975, he bought a house on Lexington Street. A major retrospective of his work is held in Zurich. In 1976, he did the Skulls, and Hammer and Sickle series. Throughout the late 70s and 80s, a retrospective exhibition was held, as Warhol began work on the Reversals, Retrospectives, and Shadows series. The Myths series, Endangered Species series, and Ads series followed through the early and mid 1980s. On 22 February 1987, a "day of medical infamy", as quoted by one biographer, Andy Warhol died following complications from gall bladder surgery. He was 58 years old.- Costume and Wardrobe Department
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Stacy has been working in fashion for 14 years, beginning her career at Vogue magazine as a fashion assistant and later returning to Conde Nast as the senior fashion editor at Mademoiselle. She has styled fashion photos for such editorial publications as Italian D, Nylon and Contents.
Stacy has worked with a number of celebrities including Kate Winslet and Liv Tyler, as well as on fashion shows for designers such as "Rebecca Taylor" and Vivienne Tam.
Over the last two years, Stacy has worked with numerous advertising clients such as Wonderbra, Covergirl, Target and Levi's.- Actor
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One of those actors whom everyone has seen but no one knows his name, Bill Saluga, of the Ace Trucking Company comedy troupe, was seen all over television in the seventies and early eighties as an obnoxious little fellow named "Raymond J. Johnson, Jr." When addressed as "Johnson" though, he would launch into a tirade starting, "You doesn't has ta call me Johnson--you can call me RAY or you can call me JAY...." See, I told you you've seen him.- Actor
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Eric Scott was born on 20 October 1958 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is an actor, known for The Waltons (1972), The Fall Guy (1981) and Medical Center (1969). He has been married to Cynthia Ullman Wolfen since 12 March 2000. They have two children. He was previously married to Theresa Fargo and Karey-Louis Scott.- Producer
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Steve Skrovan was born on 4 March 1957. He is a producer and writer, known for Everybody Loves Raymond (1996), An Unreasonable Man (2006) and Fred & Vinnie (2011).- Actress
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Florence Stanley was born Florence Schwartz on July 1, 1924 in Chicago. She enjoyed a prolific career in the theatre before achieving fame on television as Abe Vigoda's long-suffering, neglected wife, Bernice, on Barney Miller (1975), and later, as Bernice Fish in the short-lived spinoff Fish (1977). Other notable performances include small roles in, Robert Mulligan's Up the Down Staircase (1967), Mike Nichols's The Day of the Dolphin (1973), and The Fortune (1975).- Director
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Henry Selick is a film director, specializing in films with stop-motion animation. He has formal training as an animator.
Selick was born in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, son of Charles H. Selick and Melanie Molan. He was mostly raised in Rumson, New Jersey. As a child, Selick took up drawing as a hobby. He became fascinated with animation at a young age, after viewing two specific films. One was the silhouette animation feature film "The Adventures of Prince Achmed" (1926) by Lotte Reiniger. It was one of the earliest animated feature films (the first had been released in 1917), the first produced in Europe, and the earliest one that has been preserved. The other film was the live-action film "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad" (1958), which featured stop-motion animation by Ray Harryhausen.
Selick started his college studies at Rutgers University in New Jersey, where he studied science. He next studied art in Syracuse University, arts and design in the Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design, and animation at the California Institute of the Arts. Two of his student films won so-called "Student Academy Awards", awards by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for promising student films.
In the 1970s, after completing his college studies, Selick was hired by Walt Disney Productions, (the animation studio of the Disney corporation). He started his career there as an in-betweener, generating intermediate images for key frames in animated works. This is typically a low-level position at the animation department and the work goes uncredited.
At Disney, he started working as an animator trainee, one of several trainees under an aging crew of directors and supervisors. His first (uncredited) high-profile works was as part of the animation crew in the feature film "Pete's Dragon" (1977) and the featurette "The Small One" (1978). Among his associates at the time were other animator trainees, such as Don Bluth and Gary Goldman. The man mainly responsible for their training was veteran animator Eric Larson (1905-1988), one of "Disney's Nine Old Men" (an old guard of senior animators and directors that had long careers with the studio).
The young animators of the studio, Selick among them, completed a single film, the drama film "The Fox and the Hound" (1981). Then many of them left the studio to pursue careers elsewhere. Selick spend most of the 1980s as a freelancer. He directed animation for television commercials, for products such as the Pillsbury Doughboy, and Ritz Crackers. He also worked as a sequence director or storyboard artist for a number of films, such as "Twice Upon a Time" (1983), "Return to Oz" (1985), "Nutcracker: The Motion Picture" (1986). His television work also included some animation work for a television channel called "MTV".
Selick's big break in the animation world came when he was approached by an old acquaintance, director Tim Burton. Burton was producing a stop-motion animation feature film for Disney, but did not have the time to direct it himself, and needed someone to direct and to supervise the developing process. Selick was hired as the director for "The Nightmare Before Christmas" (1993), the first full-length, stop-motion feature from a major American studio.
"Nightmare" was a relatively low-budget film, but became a minor box office hit, earning about 76 million dollars at the worldwide box office. It also earned critical acclaim, particularly praise for then-revolutionary visual effects. It earned a number of awards and nominations, including a Saturn Award for Best Fantasy Film and an Annie Award. It was no surprise that Selick would be asked to direct again.
His next film was the novel adaptation "James and the Giant Peach" (1996), based on a work by Roald Dahl. The film combined live-action with stop-motion animation. It was another critical success, but a box office flop. It was overshadowed in the Annie Awards (for animation) by two competitors: "Toy Story" (1995) and "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" (1996).
Selick attempted a comeback with a comic book adaptation. He secured the rights to the graphic novel "Dark Town" (1995) by Kaja Blackley. The story was about a comatose cartoonist whose soul ends up in a limbo-like realm called "Dark Town". The original story ended in a cliff-hanger and never received a sequel. Selick and his crew further fleshed out the limbo realm, added new characters, and developed an original ending. The result was the dark fantasy film "Monkeybone" (2001). An ambitious, big-budget film, it turned out to be a box office bomb. It earned about 7.5 million dollars at the worldwide box office, much less than the film's budget.
Selick's next project was developing stop-motion visual effects the live-action film "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" (2004), directed by Wes Anderson. The film was an ambitious comedy-drama film, loosely inspired by the life of oceanographer Jacques Cousteau (1910-1997). It under-performed at the box office, and received moderate critical acclaim. The film and its cast were nominated for a number of awards, but failed to win any major awards.
In 2004, Selick was hired as a supervising director by Will Vinton Studios, a minor animation studio that focused on stop-motion animation. In 2005, Will Vinton Studios was replaced by a new studio called "Laika". Selick retained his position. For Laika, Selick developed and directed his first computer-animated short film: "Moongirl" (2005). The premise is that a young boy is transported to the Moon, where he helps a Moongirl repair the Moon.
"Moongirl" turned out to be a critically acclaimed short film and won a number of awards, including an award by the Ottawa International Film Festival. Selick was next hired to write a children's book based on the film, which was released in 2006.
Laika next started work on its first feature film, an adaptation of a novel by Neil Gaiman. Selick was assigned as the director of the film. Selick was reportedly necessary for the company to secure the rights to the novel, because Gaiman happened to be a fan of "The Nightmare Before Christmas" and trusted him to adapt his work for film. The film was dark fantasy "Coraline" (2009). It earned about 125 million dollars at the worldwide box office, becoming the most commercially successful film in Selick's career.
"Coraline" was critically acclaimed winning or receiving nominations for several major awards. It even received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, though it lost to "Up" (2009) by Pete Docter. It served as a comeback for Selick. Selick left Laika shortly after the release of the film.
In 2010, Selick signed a long-term contract with Disney, where he was supposed to create new stop-motion animation films to be released by the company. He formed a new studio called "Cinderbiter Productions" to produce the films. He worked for a number of years on a project called called "ShadeMaker", but this has been in development hell since 2013. Selick is reportedly working on several other projects, but has not released a new feature film following "Coraline".- Producer
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Glenn Gordon Caron was born in 1954. He is known for Moonlighting (1985), Medium (2005) and Now and Again (1999). He has been married to Tina DiJoseph since 24 November 2006. They have one child. He was previously married to Mary Martin.Creator of “Moonlighting” and “Medium”- Writer
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David Berenbaum is a native of Philadelphia and a graduate of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. He is best known for writing the 2003 Will Ferrell Christmas comedy classic, "Elf". He also wrote "The Haunted Mansion" for Disney, based off the famous theme park ride; the film starred Eddie Murphy. In 2014, it was announced Berenbaum was penning the sequel to Mrs. Doubtfire.- George Janek was born on 7 September 1962 in the USA. He was an actor, known for Starsky and Hutch (1975), Medical Center (1969) and Marcus Welby, M.D. (1969). He died on 27 August 2021 in Napa, California, USA.
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Jason Woliner was born on 1 June 1980 in The Bronx, New York City, New York, USA. He is a director and producer, known for Paul T. Goldman (2023), Borat Subsequent Moviefilm (2020) and What We Do in the Shadows (2019).- Actor
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Steve Mikula was born on 24 June 1969 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He is an actor, known for The Express (2008), The Beast (2009) and The Mob Doctor (2012).- Producer
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Steve Sabol was born on 2 October 1942 in Moorestown, New Jersey, USA. He was a producer and writer, known for Sports Illustrated: The First 25 Years (1981), NFL Monday Night Matchup (1985) and They Call It Pro Football (1966). He was married to Penelope (Penny) Ashman and Lisa Denesium Kapp. He died on 18 September 2012 in Moorestown, New Jersey, USA.- Actor
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Wolfman Jack was born on 21 January 1938 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for American Graffiti (1973), Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978) and Motel Hell (1980). He was married to Lucy Lamb. He died on 1 July 1995 in Belvidere, North Carolina, USA.- Producer
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Robert Greenwald is president of Brave New Films, a nonprofit film company that he founded after a career in commercial television and film to motivate and educate viewers on the most pressing issues of the day.
Brave New Films distributes its work for free through social media and in concert with nonprofit partners and movements. The group's movies and videos have been screened around the world and viewed over tens of millions of times and counting.
At Brave New Films, Greenwald has directed and produced gripping full-length documentaries and exposés, as well as shorter documentary films and videos. His latest documentary, Suppressed: The Fight to Vote, tells the story of rampant voter suppression in Georgia's 2018 midterm elections.
Greenwald's investigative documentary shorts include Healing Trauma: Beyond Gangs and Prisons on Los Angeles' Homeboy Industries, 16 Women and Donald Trump on President Trump's serial abuse of women, and Immigrant Prisons on America's system of privately-run immigrant detention centers.
Previous feature-length investigative documentaries include Making a Killing: Guns, Greed, and the NRA, Unmanned: America's Drone Wars, War on Whistleblowers, Koch Brothers Exposed, Rethink Afghanistan, Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers, Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price, Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism and Uncovered: The War on Iraq.
Greenwald and Brave New Films' work has been featured widely in the media, including the New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Variety, Hollywood Reporter and many more.
Before launching Brave Films in 2005, Greenwald produced and/or directed more than 65 TV movies, miniseries and films as well as major theatrical releases. His early body of work includes Steal This Movie!, Breaking Up, A Woman of Independent Means and The Burning Bed.
Greenwald has earned 25 Emmy Award nominations, two Golden Globe nominations, the Peabody Award and the Robert Wood Johnson Award. He was awarded the 2002 Producer of the Year Award by the American Film Institute.- Writer
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Michael Varhol is known for Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985), The Big Picture (1989) and The Last Word (1979).- David Groh's highly anticipated "marriage" to Valerie Harper on the eighth episode of the sitcom Rhoda (1974) was the highest rated episode of that decade, and the second most-watched program of all-time, surpassed only by the birth of 'little Ricky' on I Love Lucy (1951), with more than 50 million viewers watching. It was this co-starring role which situated him squarely on the Hollywood TV map. Rhoda Morgenstern, the single and cynical, highly beloved Bronx-born jokester and best friend of Mary Richards on the The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970), was given her own spin-off series and landed back in New York City, where she found her dream man. Audiences took to the prospects of having tall, dark, virile, curly-haired blue-collar man Joe Gerard sweep their single heroine off her feet. Cast over 150 other actors despite his lack of comedy experience, David's presence added greatly as Rhoda's husband.
The writers soon felt the CBS's pressure to get Rhoda married. When they finally did, as has happened in other series where marriages occurred, the show had no place to go. After only two seasons, fickle producers decided to break up the happy couple so Rhoda could be single again. Groh was written out of the show. Divorce was a serious issue back then and audiences were perturbed that their beloved Rhoda would end up a divorcée, but all was forgiven and the series ran four more years. Although David never found equal stardom again, he continued to impress on the stage, in guest TV parts and in independent films.
Born David Lawrence Groh in Brooklyn on May 21, 1939, the son of Jewish-Americans Benjamin (an architect) and Mildred Groh, he received his diploma from Brooklyn Technical High School, where he was elected student body president. He subsequently attended Brown University with an early interest in engineering but graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a degree in English literature. He apprenticed for a couple seasons at the American Shakespeare Festival in Stratford, Connecticut, and was a spear carrier in the Katharine Hepburn/Robert Ryan production of "Antony and Cleopatra" in 1960. This early encouragement led to further studies in London -- courtesy of a Fulbright scholarship. David served in the Army for six months in 1963, and a year of reserve duty. Returning to his native New York, he sharpened his technique at the Actors Studio. Appearing around and about in such plays as "The Importance of Being Earnest," he finally marked his TV debut on a 1968 episode of the cult Gothic daytime drama Dark Shadows (1966) and made his film entrance in a prime role in the Italian-made feature Colpo rovente (1970).
While continuing to add on-camera credits to his resume, notably a regular 1972-1973 role in the daytime drama Love Is a Many Splendored Thing (1967), it wasn't until he made the move to Los Angeles in 1974 when his career suddenly accelerated. Within months he was cast as Valerie Harper love interest in Rhoda (1974) and enjoyed two solid seasons as her handsome construction worker hubby who wins then loses her. After he was phased out of the show, David found a sitcom of his own to star in with Another Day (1978) opposite Joan Hackett, but the family-oriented program lasted only a month in April. From then on he focused more and more on heavier dramatics. He portrayed the evil-minded D.L. Brock on the daytime soap opera General Hospital (1963) from 1983 to 1985, and later co-starred in the Roger Corman crime action series Black Scorpion (2001), while finding recurring roles on such programs as Melrose Place (1992), Baywatch (1989), and Law & Order (1990). Although he never made a strong showing on the large screen, David did appear in the films Irish Whiskey Rebellion (1972), Two-Minute Warning (1976) and A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich (1977) in between assorted stage and TV assignments.
Groh returned strongly to his theater roots after leaving Rhoda (1974) and played both appealingly charismatic and slick, unsavory types. He made his Broadway debut replacing Judd Hirsch in the winning Neil Simon comedy "Chapter Two" in 1978. Down the road he appeared in an assortment of plays: "King Lear" (1982), "Be Happy for Me" (1986), "Road Show" (1987), "Beyond a Reasonable Doubt" (1989), "The Twilight of the Golds" (1993), "Mizlansky/Zilinsky" (2000), "The Waverly Gallery," "Gangster Planet" (2002) and "Blackout" (2003), to name a few. He was an admired fixture both in New York and on the smaller Los Angeles stages and tried his hand at stage directing with a production of "Mango Mango" at the Lee Strasberg Creative Center Theatre in Los Angeles in 2000.
Later post-"Rhoda" guest appearances on TV included "Trapper John," "Matt Houston," "General Hospital," "Hotel," "Hunter," "Spenser: For Hire," "Equal Justice," "L.A. Law," "Dark Justice," The Equalizer," "Jake and the Fatman," "Murder, She Wrote," "Melrose Place," "JAG," The X Files," "Melrose Place," "Walker, Texas Ranger and "Law and Order," plus recurring roles on V.I.P. (1998) and Black Scorpion (2001). He also added in a few "tough guy" film supports including Hotshot (1986), The Stöned Age (1994), White Cargo (1996), Acts of Betrayal (1997), Swimsuit: The Movie (1997), Spoiler (1998), Blowback (2000), The Confidence Man (2001), Crazylove (2005) and Evilution (2008).
David developed a lifelong passion for early American furniture and folk art (which first blossomed as a youth visiting the Brooklyn and Metropolitan Museums and fully bloomed from his association with an acting teacher who was also a collector). He lived in Los Angeles at the time of his death from kidney cancer at age 68. His last film, a featured role in Jelly (2010), was released posthumously. He was survived by third wife, actress Kristin Andersen, and one son, Spencer from a prior marriage. - Actor
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Gregory Phillip "Greg" Grunberg is an American television and film actor. He is best known for starring as Matt Parkman in the NBC television series Heroes and "Snap" Wexley in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. He has often appeared in works produced and directed by childhood friend J. J. Abrams. He is a recurring cast member in the first two seasons of the Showtime American television drama series Masters of Sex.- Actor
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George Jessel gained fame in vaudeville, where it was not uncommon for him--and other performers, such as Al Jolson, Eddie Cantor--to perform in blackface, and in fact at age 11 Jessel was Cantor's vaudeville partner. Jessel acted in several movies in the '30s and became a respected film producer. He was also a prolific songwriter, and was noted for his renditions of "Sonny Boy" and "My Yiddishe Mama". In his later years he made many guest appearances (always as himself) on radio, in occasional movies and on TV. He was nicknamed "The Toastmaster General" due to his appearances at many testimonial functions and dinners for various celebrities.- Alan Landers was born on 30 November 1940 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for Annie Hall (1977), Deadly Rivals (1993) and South Beach (1993). He died on 27 February 2009 in Fort Lauderhill, Florida, USA.
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Most familiar to TV audiences as the diminutive but feisty court bailiff on Night Court (1984), Selma Diamond's entrance into acting was not through the usual venue of vaudeville, stage work or modeling - she was a writer for TV shows, once having been nominated for an Emmy for Caesar's Hour (1954). Although she had that tough New York accent and street demeanor, she was actually born in London, Ontario, Canada, then raised in Brooklyn. A graduate of New York University, she at first made a living by selling cartoons and fiction to the "New Yorker" magazine. NBC hired her as a writer for one of its radio shows, "The Big Show," and she later made the transition into writing for television. Her film debut was as the voice on the telephone of Spencer Tracy's wife in It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963), where the world got a sample of the distinctive Diamond voice: nasal, high-pitched and one that could never be mistaken for anyone else's. She did a lot of TV work and was a regular on another series, Too Close for Comfort (1980) before Night Court (1984). She died due to lung cancer in 1985.- Actor
- Additional Crew
Sal used to live with his friend Johnny in a '67 Impala, filled with empty beer cans, somewhere in Florida. His acting career started towards the end of 1987, when he went to Vancouver to see his old 'room mate' Johnny, who was now an actor, playing Tom Hanson in teeny-bopper sitcom, 21 Jump Street. (Yes, his old pal was Johnny Depp) Sal got the role of 'Blowfish', after he impressed the Jump Street producers with some kind of party trick, involving the expansion of his cheeks, and err... blowing...
A love of music made Sal form a band called "P", with his mate Johnny and some guy from the Butthole Surfers. As an extra bonus point he also co-owns a Hollywood bar with Johnny Depp, called the Viper Room. (- Animation Department
- Director
- Art Department
John Sparey was born on 17 January 1927 in the USA. He was a director, known for The Swan Princess (1994), Garfield's Babes and Bullets (1989) and The Lord of the Rings (1978). He died on 15 December 2010 in the USA.- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Producer
Richard Horvitz began acting professionally at the age of 10. As a child, he appeared in numerous stage productions. Among the most notable, the musical "Oliver!", starring Dick Shawn and Stubby Kaye. Also as a child, Richard starred in numerous commercials and made many television guest appearances on such shows as Diff'rent Strokes (1978), Head of the Class (1986), You Can't take it with you, Rags to Riches and many more. As an adult, Richard attended UCLA before leaving to star in the TBS original TV series Safe at Home (1985). In 1987, Richard starred along with Mark Harmon and Kirstie Alley in the Carl Reiner-directed film, Summer School (1987), for Paramount Studios. Most recently, Richard co-starred in the Warner Bros. film, The Informant! (2009) as Matt Damon's attorney, "Bob Zaideman". In 2011, Richard can be seen, alongside Steve Carell, in Crazy, Stupid, Love. (2011). Other notable films include Race to Space (2001), The Legend of Galgameth (1996) for the Disney Channel and also the film Storm (1999), starring Martin Sheen. Richard also continues to make guest appearances on television, including numerous appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1992) and Jimmy Kimmel Live! (2003). Fans of animation will recognize many of Richard's iconic characters, including "Zim" on Nickelodeon's Invader ZIM (2001), "Billy" on Cartoon Networks' The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy (2003) ("The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy"), "Dagget" on Nickelodeon's The Angry Beavers (1997) and many more. Video game titles include, "Psychonauts", "Destroy All Humans", "Kinectimals", "Metal Gear Solid 4" "Ratchet and Clank: Crack in Time" and many other games. Savvy viewers will also recognize Richard as the "Green Grapes" in the Fruit of the Loom commercials.- Director
- Producer
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Louis J. Horvitz was born on 1 December 1946 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is a director and producer, known for An Evening of Stars: Tribute to Lionel Richie (2010), An Evening of Stars: Tribute to Smokey Robinson (2008) and An Evening of Stars: Tribute to Stevie Wonder (2006). He has been married to Steffanee J Leaming since 6 April 1996.- Actress
- Cinematographer
- Director
Shayna Fox was born on 21 April 1984 in Los Angeles, California, USA. She is an actress and cinematographer, known for Congo (1995), Rocket Power (1998) and All Grown Up! (2003).- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Jason Hervey was born April 6th, 1972 in Los Angeles, California. He is the son of Alan & Marsha Hervey, brother of Scott. At the age 4, Jason began his career appearing in over 250 commercials for some of Americas favorite brands. Before long, his visibility from the various commercials lead him to several appearances in some of televisions most notable shows. He also appeared in cameo roles in such feature films as Back to The Future, Pee Wee's Big Adventure, Back To School, Monster Squad, Police Academy 2, Meatballs 2, Tim Burtons Franken-weenie and more. After appearing for two seasons in Different Strokes, Jason landed the role of Wayne Arnold in the Emmy Award-winning hit series "The Wonder Years". From this platform and experience Jason was able to leverage opportunities behind the camera as he began a career in producing. His first project was at the age of 17 whereby Jason created, starred in and produced 26 episodes of the Saturday morning series "Wide World of Kids". After 6 seasons and 29 Emmy Nominations for "The Wonder Years", Jason partnered with former Sony of America CEO Peter Guber in Mandalay Sports Action Entertainment,(MSAE). While at Mandalay Jason spearheaded a partnership with Time Warner's "World Championship Wrestling" (WCW) which yielded 17 original productions in television, home video and Pay Per View, an original soundtrack with Tommy Boy records and 4 television movies for TBS and TNT including one of the highest rated TV movies in the history of basic cable in which Jason was the original creator. After more than 5 years at Mandalay and growing that division, Jason had a short lived stint as a Chief Marketing Officer at a Fortune 500 company. Jason then returned to his roots in the entertainment business by partnering with long time friend, colleague and former President of Time Warners "World Championship Wrestling" (WCW) Eric Bischoff to form Bischoff Hervey Entertainment (BHE TV, LLC) Bischoff Hervey Entertainment specializes in content creation and production for various broadcast outlets, licensing and merchandising and innovative brand integration solutions. Jason and his family currently reside in Scottsdale, Arizona and Los Angeles, California.- Director
- Actor
- Additional Crew
Bonerz was born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to Elfrieda (née Kern) and Christopher Bonerz. He grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he attended Marquette University High School. Here, performing with the Prep Players, he gained his first theatrical experience. At Marquette University, he participated in the Marquette University Players. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1960, he decided to seek a career in theater, starting in New York City in improve with a troupe called The Premise. After compulsory service as a draftee in the United States Army, he worked with an improve troupe in San Francisco known as The Committee, whose members included Rob Reiner, David Ogden Stiers, Howard Hesseman and Hamilton Camp.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Zeke Smith was born on 25 January 1988 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA. He is an actor and director, known for Dealing (2014), Dinner for Two (2014) and Wasps!. He has been married to Nico Santos since 4 November 2023.- Producer
- Writer
- Actor
James Komack was born on 3 August 1924 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a producer and writer, known for The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1969), Chico and the Man (1974) and Welcome Back, Kotter (1975). He was married to Marilyn Cluny Cohen. He died on 24 December 1997 in Los Angeles, California, USA.Creator of “The Courtship of Eddie’s Father” and “Chico and the Man”- Actor
- Director
- Producer
Paul L. Smith was born on 24 June 1936 in Everett, Massachusetts, USA. He was an actor and director, known for Maverick (1994), Popeye (1980) and Dune (1984). He was married to Eve Smith. He died on 25 April 2012 in Ra'anana, Israel.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Noah Segan was born on 5 October 1983 in New York City, New York, USA. He is an actor and director, known for Knives Out (2019), Blood Relatives (2022) and Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017).- Writer
- Producer
- Additional Crew
- Writer
- Actor
- Director
Donald F. Glut has been active in both the entertainment and publishing industries since 1966. Don has had a long and varied career. He has been a professional musician, actor, film director, executive producer, photographer, magazine editor, proofreader and (very briefly, for an advertising agency) copywriter, but is mostly known for his long career as a freelance writer. He has written and directed feature-length motion pictures, documentaries and music videos, authored approximately 80 fiction and non-fiction published books, myriad TV scripts (live action and animation shows, network and syndicated), comic-book scripts, short stories, magazine articles, even music and theatre. He has been involved with numerous popular franchises such as Star Wars, The Monkees, Tarzan, Spider-Man, Transformers, G.I. Joe, Vampirella, Masters of the Universe, The Flintstones, Jonny Quest and many others, and created original comic-book characters for Gold Key, Marvel and DC. Arguably Don is best known for his novelization of the second "Star Wars" movie The Empire Strikes Back (#1 Best Seller). Don currently executive-produces, writes and directs "traditional-style" horror for his company Pecosborn Productions, and writes scripts for The Creeps horror comics magazine. Also, he is a Southern California representative of Las Vegas Talent Agency. Note: Any motion picture titles that may be listed prior to Dinosaur Valley Girls (1997) are of amateur movies, the first of 41 of which Don Glut made when he was nine years old.- Actor
- Producer
Tim Rozon's first major role was playing heartthrob, Tommy Quincy, opposite Alexz Johnson and Laura Vandevoort for four seasons on the teen drama series Instant Star for TeenNick (USA) and CTV (CANADA). In Befriend and Betray for Shaw TV (CANADA), Tim played series lead Alex Caine, a gang infiltrator. Other major roles include two seasons playing Mutt Schitt on CBC's runaway comedy Schitt's Creek opposite comedy icons Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara and Chris Elliott and the role of the iconic gunslinger and gambler Doc Holliday on Syfy's Wynonna Earp.
Tim has made guest appearances on many hit shows made in Canada over the last decade. including Rookie Blue, Flashpoint, The Listener, Heartland, Lost Girl, Being Human, Saving Hope and 19-2. Tim won a prestigious Gemini Award for his performance in Flashpoint and was nominated for Canadian Screen Award for his role in Befriend and Betray. He is also a voiceover actor, playing a leading role in the animated feature film The Legend Of Sarila, opposite Christopher Plummer and Genevieve Bujold.
In addition to acting, Tim produced the documentary feature Shuckers, about the world of oysters and those who shuck them. When not acting, Tim can be found in Montreal at his restaurants Le Garde Manger and Le Bremner opposite star chef Chuck Hughes.- Writer
- Additional Crew
Elena Kucharik is known for Care Bears: Care Along (2020), Care Bears: The Mysteries of Christmas (2021) and Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation (1986).- Actress
- Additional Crew
- Director
Susan Misner was born in Paterson, New Jersey in 1971. She grew up in Pompton Plains where she fell in love with dancing. Her love of the dance led her to New York City where she landed roles in Broadway plays such as Guys and Dolls, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To A Forum, How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, and Dream.
After turning her focus toward acting, Susan appeared on, One Life to Live (1968), as Grace Davidson. She appeared in such films as Woody Allen's Everyone Says I Love You (1996), Chicago (2002), Stick It in Detroit (2008), Two Weeks (2006), Somebody's Hero (2012), Cayman Went (2009), and Hope Springs (2012). She can also be seen in music videos by C&C Music Factory and Taylor Dayne.
You can see Susan in CBS's Person of Interest (2011) as Jessica Arndt and in the 2013 Mid-season Thriller The Following (2013) as Jenny Mitchell, who has ties to Kevin Bacon's character.
Susan was just cast in The Americans (2013) as Sandra Beeman and will also play a handful of episodes in ABC's Nashville (2012) as Dr. Stacey Douglas.- Music Department
- Composer
- Soundtrack
Irwin Kostal was born on 1 October 1911 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He was a composer, known for West Side Story (1961), Mary Poppins (1964) and The Sound of Music (1965). He died on 23 November 1994 in Studio City, California, USA.- Director
- Producer
- Additional Crew
In addition to writing and directing, Danny has recently formed the production company, SLY DOG FILMS, with writer-producer Matt Tauber. Danny was also the lead guitarist in the seminal Brooklyn garage band, The Flying Guacamoles.- Producer
- Production Manager
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
- Producer
- Writer
- Additional Crew
Bernie Orenstein was born on 5 February 1931 in Toronto, Canada. He is a producer and writer, known for That Girl (1966), One of the Boys (1982) and Grady (1975). He has been married to Barbara Rhoades since 18 February 1979. They have one child. He was previously married to Marion F Freeman.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Director
Cinematographer Daniel Pearl was born in the Bronx, New York City and grew up in New Jersey. His father was a mechanical engineer as well as an alumnus from the University of Texas in Austin. The first film Pearl made was an 8mm movie about skateboarding that he shot and edited at the age of 13. Daniel has both a Bachelor of Science in Radio, Film, & TV and a Master of Arts in Communication (Film) from the University of Texas in Austin. Pearl shot his first feature The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) in Texas for Tobe Hooper. Daniel eventually moved to Los Angles, California in 1976. Outside of his film work, Pearl has also shot numerous music videos and TV commercials.- Editorial Department
- Editor
Ryan Kovack was born on 3 November 1976 in St. Clair Beach, Ontario, Canada. Ryan is an editor, known for Degrassi: The Next Generation (2001), Instant Star (2004) and High-Rise Rescue (2017).- Michael Soltis was born on 25 October 1971 in Minot, North Dakota, USA. He is an actor, known for X2 (2003), Walking Tall (2004) and Battlestar Galactica (2003).
- Meghan Leathers was born on 23 September 1990 in Providence, Rhode Island, USA. She is an actress, known for Don't Look Up (2021), For All Mankind (2019) and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999).
- John Misko was born on 1 October 1954 in Highland Park, Michigan, USA.
- Actor
- Music Department
- Producer
Don Messick is a legendary voice actor who spent his entire adult-hood in entertainment. He started out wanting to be a ventriloquist. Thankfully for cartoon lovers that career didn't pan out. How do you think his potential career would've stacked up against Edgar Bergen and later, Paul Winchell? No matter, Messick made his way to the hallowed halls of MGM in the early '50s on the recommendation of another voice actor, Daws Butler. At the time, MGM/Tex Avery were doing the theatrical "Droopy" cartoons. Bill Thompson, known for his hilarious voices on the radio show 'Fibber McGee and Molly', borrowed his Wallace Wimple voice and applied it to Droopy. Whenever Thompson couldn't make it to a session, MGM would ask Daws Butler to fill-in. Daws had been working for MGM since the mid '40s. Later, Daws apparently grew tired of the role and suggested Don Messick be Bill Thompson's fill-in. Butler, it's been said, literally squeezed his cheeks together to try and get that sound for Droopy while Messick simply thickened his tongue and loosened his jaws. Messick made the rounds and did every voice-over role large and small in this era. In 1957 Hanna-Barbera started their own company after departing from MGM...Daws Butler and Don Messick were the two voice actors the animation titans employed during the early days. Don was always heard as the "second banana" character or a walk-on. At various times he was the villain. His voice was heard as the 'narrator' on all of the early Hanna-Barbera cartoons. On "Ruff and Reddy", the duo's first made-for-TV cartoon series, Don was heard as "Ruff" the cat and as the Droopy-sounding "Professor Gizmo". Messick was also the narrator who interracted with the duo and got caught up in the action much like a soap opera announcer on radio. Daws was "Reddy", the dog, among other nameless characters in the show. In this 1957-1966 time span, Don Messick was cast as Daws Butler's voice partner and as the cartoon narrator. "Boo-Boo" was the little friend of "Yogi Bear" who lived in Jellystone Park. Yogi stole "pic-a-nic" baskets while Boo-Boo always tried, unsuccessfully, to steer Yogi to a more safer life always reminding him "the Ranger isn't going to like it, Yogi". The Ranger in question was "Ranger Smith", the park ranger who always chased and stopped Yogi's latest schemes. Messick gave voice to the Ranger. Daws was Yogi. In other programs, Messick was heard as "Pixie Mouse" to Daws Butler's "Dixie Mouse" and "Mr. Jinx". On "Snagglepuss", Messick was always heard as the villain, mostly the befuddled "Major Minor". Daws was Snagglepuss. In Huckleberry Hound, Daws was the star character while Messick usually did the narration as well as played a villain. Messick would later provide the voices of "Astro" and "RUDI" on the Jetsons. As a versatile voice actor, Messick performed a dozen wacky space aliens on the space cartoons of the mid '60s. The gibberish of "Gloop" and "Gleep" on the Herculoids cartoon was Messick. "Blip", "Igoo", "Zorak", "Tundra", and "Zoc" are just a few of the characters that Messick groaned or grunted for in the outer space cartoons...his most famous non-verbal voice is the snickering dog, "Muttley"...later called "Mumbley". "Richochet Rabbit", "Vapor Man", "Falcon 7", "Dr. Benton Quest", and "Multi-Man" are other voices from Messick in that era. In 1969 he provided the voice for his most famous role, "Scooby-Doo". Throughout the '70s and beyond, Messick gave voice to this cowardly great dane. In 1980 he became the voice of nephew, "Scrappy-Doo", while in later versions Daws Butler was on hand as "Scooby-Dum". On the 1977 Laff-a-Lympics cartoon, Messick not only announced the show but he performed some of the characters too. "Papa Smurf" became Messick's biggest original character in the '80s but he remained busy providing voices for his older characters in new Hanna-Barbera productions. Daws Butler and Mel Blanc were also living off their famed characters by reprising the voices in numerous made-for-TV cartoon movies and Saturday morning TV in the late '70s on into the next decade. Messick remained a much-used voice actor and in 1988 ABC announced "A Pup Named Scooby-Doo". Messick was back in the role and voiced the character until it's demise in 1990. His friend and voice partner, Daws Butler, passed away in 1988. In 1989 Mel Blanc passed away leaving Don Messick, June Foray, Stan Freberg, and Paul Winchell as the remaining link to the classic era. In 1989 The Smurfs went out of production. On the new Tiny Toon Adventures, Messick was heard as "Hamton Pig", a role he remained with until his mysterious retirement in 1996 at the age of 69 which was later revealed to be a result of a stroke. Don Messick died in 1997, closing a chapter in animation history in the process.- Born in Nashville, Tennessee in 1886 (some sources say 1887 or 1888, but U.S. Census records confirm 1886), he taught school. He became active in the theatre and was eventually signed by William Fox. Appearing in films for Fox as well as Samuel Goldwyn, Roscoe became best known as leading man opposite Theda Bara, with whom he starred in at least seven films. Initially known as Albert Roscoe, in the latter part of his career he appeared more frequently as Alan Roscoe.
- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Stephen Hornyak is a film industry veteran who has been working in Hollywood for over 25 years. He's been an actor on such shows as The X Files, Scandal, and The Shield. Steve is also an award-winning playwright and a screenwriter. He has four films to his credit as producer, the Lifetime thrillers Twisted Twin, and Deadly Reunion, as well as the Hallmark Lion Award nominated film 5 Star Christmas. He's also the producer of the horror/thriller They Crawl Beneath, streaming now. For the past 12 years he has worked in movie market research doing focus groups on such films as Deadpool 1& 2, Red Sparrow, Assassination Nation, Sicarrio, Saldado, Underwater, Spiderman, Into the Spider Verse, and All the Money in the World to name a few. He's worked with directors and producers such as Ridley Scott, Denis Villeneuve, Irwin Winkler, Sylvester Stalone, and Gerard Butler.
In 2023 Steve is working on a narrative mystery podcast taking place in New York City in 1845. The podcast will be produced with an eye toward the material becoming a streaming TV show.- Actress
- Casting Department
Susyn Elise Duris was born on 7 January 1962 in Williamsburg, Virginia, USA. She is an actress, known for Life Tracker (2013), Hollywood Wasteland (2010) and Coming Up for Air (2005).- Make-Up Department
- Actor
- Special Effects
Joe Blasco was born on 30 April 1947 in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, USA. He is an actor, known for Shivers (1975), Darkroom (1981) and Rabid (1977).- Chris Jansing was born on 30 January 1957 in Fairport Harbor, Ohio, USA. She is an actress, known for MSNBC Reports Craig Melvin Reports (2021), Judge Katanji Brown Jackson Confirmation Hearing (2022) and Access Hollywood (1996).
- Scarlett Chorvat was born on 25 August 1972 in Bratislava, Czechoslovakia [now Slovak Republic]. She is an actress, known for Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004), Buying the Cow (2002) and Frank McKlusky, C.I. (2002).
- Andy Kosco was born on 5 October 1941 in Youngstown, Ohio, USA.
- Composer
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Josh Krajcik is known for R.A.I.D. Special Unit (2016), Avicii: Addicted to You (2014) and Idols (2002).- Producer
- Director
- Writer
Richard Kotuk was a producer and director, known for Travis (1997), Children of Darkness (1983) and The 51st State (1972). He died on 10 February 1998.- Producer
- Director
- Writer
Bill Pohlad is known for 12 Years a Slave (2013), Brokeback Mountain (2005) and Love & Mercy (2014).- Candace Kroslak was born on 22 July 1978 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. She is an actress, known for Take Me Home Tonight (2011), Planet of the Apes (2001) and American Pie Presents: The Naked Mile (2006). She has been married to Thomas E. van Dell since 23 June 2013.
- Visual Effects
- Special Effects
Dwight Shook was born on 27 October 1921 in Yorba Linda, California, USA. He is known for Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996) and Daylight (1996). He died on 16 November 2011 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Location Management
- Stunts
- Actress
Hannah Kozak was born on 26 July 1960 in Chatsworth, California, USA. She is an actress, known for Iron Man (2008), Blast from the Past (1999) and Transformers (2007).- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Seth is a formally-educated filmmaker with wide-ranging production experience. He is the recipient of several renowned industry awards, including two American Movie Awards for screenwriting. He is best known for his film and television roles in Dying of the Light (2014) Evil Stepmothers (2016) and Who Killed Jane Doe? (2016)
Seth is the oldest of four, reared in an Air Force family that lived in Europe throughout the last decade of the Cold War. He attended two years of High School at Lakenheath, England and two years at Wiesbaden, West Germany, where he graduated in 1990. After High School, he ventured into the US Navy and amassed over 1,700 hours as an Air Crewman on Lockheed P-3 Orion "Sub Hunters."
Following five years of the Navy, he enrolled in business studies at Southern Illinois University, to pursue a dream in entrepreneurship that was directly inspired by watching Newhart (1982) in his youth. After a year of business studies, he saw an interview with filmmaker Edward Burns on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1992) that sparked his enthusiasm for filmmaking and led him to change his major to Film within 12 hours.
In his film studies, Seth concentrated on production and screenwriting. He became an advanced protégé of screenwriter Jean Stawarz and produced the biographical (16mm) film "Positive Altitude," which was released as an episode segment on PBS's Rough Cuts (1997), and aired twice in 1999.
Following graduation, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the US Army and went on to serve numerous worldwide assignments as both an Armor Officer and as one of the US Army's elite Foreign Area Officers (FAO). His assignments include multiple combat tours, command tours, operational deployments, US embassies, and the Pentagon.- Robb Zbacnik was born in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA. Robb is an actor, known for The Mercenary (2019), Monkey Grip and Two Roads.
- Visual Effects
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Producer
Adam Hlavac is a Digital Creator and Producer based in Los Angeles, CA.
His earliest influences came from films like Star Wars, which inspired him to become a visual effects artist. This led to him working on over two dozen blockbuster titles from Warner Bros. Pictures, Walt Disney Studios, Marvel Studios, 20th Century Studios, Paramount Pictures, Dreamworks and Sony Pictures on The Avengers, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Mad Max: Fury Road, X-Men: Days of Future Past and Transformers: Dark of the Moon.
After leaving the visual effects industry, Adam worked with the Emmy-nominated team at Screen Junkies as a graphic designer for Honest Trailers, Screen Junkies Plus and Screen Junkies News.
In 2021, he is amassing millions of views on YouTube with content dedicated to the discussion of various film genres, partnering with brands like Walt Disney Studios, DC Entertainment, Lucasfilm, Warner Bros. Pictures, Marvel Studios and Universal Pictures.- Actress
- Producer
Lisa Jakub was born on 27 December 1978 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She is an actress and producer, known for Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Independence Day (1996) and George Lucas in Love (1999). She has been married to Jeremy since June 2005.