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1-19 of 19
- Actor
- Writer
- Director
Balding, quietly spoken, of slight build and possessed of piercing blue eyes -- often peering out from behind round, steel-rimmed glasses -- Donald Pleasence had the essential physical attributes which make a great screen villain. In the course of his lengthy career, he relished playing the obsessed, the paranoid and the purely evil. Even the Van Helsing-like psychiatrist Sam Loomis in the Halloween (1978) franchise seems only marginally more balanced than his prey. An actor of great intensity, Pleasence excelled on stage as Shakespearean villains. He was an unrelenting prosecutor in Jean Anouilh's "Poor Bitos" and made his theatrical reputation in the title role of the seedy, scheming tramp in Harold Pinter's "The Caretaker" (1960). On screen, he gave a perfectly plausible interpretation of the head of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, in The Eagle Has Landed (1976). He was a convincingly devious Thomas Cromwell in Henry VIII and His Six Wives (1972), disturbing in his portrayal of the crazed, bloodthirsty preacher Quint in Will Penny (1967); and as sexually depraved, alcohol-sodden 'Doc' Tydon in the brilliant Aussie outback drama Wake in Fright (1971). And, of course, he was Ernst Stavro Blofeld in You Only Live Twice (1967). These are some of the films, for which we may remember Pleasence, but there was a great deal more to this fabulous, multi-faceted actor.
Donald Henry Pleasence was born on October 5, 1919 in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, England, to Alice (Armitage) and Thomas Stanley Pleasence. His family worked on the railway. His grandfather had been a signal man and both his brother and father were station masters. When Donald failed to get a scholarship at RADA, he joined the family occupation working as a clerk at his father's station before becoming station master at Swinton, Yorkshire. While there, he wrote letters to theatre companies, eventually being accepted by one on the island of Jersey in Spring 1939 as an assistant stage manager. On the eve of World War II, he made his theatrical debut in "Wuthering Heights". In 1942, he played Curio in "Twelfth Night", but his career was then interrupted by military service in the RAF. He was shot down over France, incarcerated and tortured in a German POW camp. Once repatriated, Donald returned to the stage in Peter Brook's 1946 London production of "The Brothers Karamazov" with Alec Guinness although he missed the opening due to measles, followed by a stint on Broadway with Laurence Olivier's touring company in "Caesar and Cleopatra" and "Anthony and Cleopatra". Upon his return to England, he won critical plaudits for his performance in "Hobson's Choice". In 1952, Donald began his screen career, rather unobtrusively, in small parts. He was only really noticed once having found his métier as dastardly, sneaky Prince John in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1955). It took several more years, until international recognition came his way: first, through the filmed adaptation of The Guest (1963), and, secondly, with his blind forger in The Great Escape (1963), a role he imbued with added conviction due to his own wartime experience.
Some of his best acting Donald reserved for the small screen. In 1962, the producer of The Twilight Zone (1959), Buck Houghton, brought Donald to the United States ("damn the expense"!) to guest star in the third-season episode "The Changing of the Guard". He was given a mere five days to immerse himself in the part of a gentle school teacher, Professor Ellis Fowler, who, on the eve of Christmas is forcibly retired after fifty-one years of teaching. Devastated, and believing himself a failure who has made no mark on the world, he is about to commit suicide when the school's bell summons him to his classroom. There, he is confronted by the spirits of deceased students who beg him to consider that his lessons have indeed had fundamental effects on their lives, even leading to acts of great heroism. Upon hearing this, Fowler is now content to graciously accept his retirement. Managing to avoid maudlin sentimentality, Donald's performance was intuitive and, arguably, one of the most poignant ever accomplished in a thirty-minute television episode. Once again, against type, he was equally delightful as the mild-mannered Reverend Septimus Harding in Anthony Trollope's The Barchester Chronicles (1982).
Whether eccentric, sinister or given to pathos, Donald Pleasence was always great value for money and his performances have rarely failed to engage.- Actor
- Additional Crew
Michel Auclair was born on 14 September 1922 in Koblenz, Germany. He was an actor, known for Beauty and the Beast (1946), The Day of the Jackal (1973) and Funny Face (1957). He was married to Frédérique Homo. He died on 7 January 1988 in Saint-Paul-en-Forêt, Var, France.- Writer
- Additional Crew
- Actor
James Baldwin was born on 2 August 1924 in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA. He was a writer and actor, known for I Am Not Your Negro (2016), If Beale Street Could Talk (2018) and American Playhouse (1980). He died on 1 December 1987 in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, Alpes-Maritimes, France.- Music Department
- Writer
- Composer
Leslie Bricusse was born on 29 January 1931 in Southfields, London, England, UK. He was a writer and composer, known for Doctor Dolittle (1967), Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971) and Scrooge (1970). He was married to Yvonne Romain. He died on 19 October 2021 in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, Alpes-Maritime, France.- Born on 2 October 1991, in Brittany, France, and raised in Charleston, South Carolina, in the United States, Marion Campan obtained a business degree from the ENACOM school in Nantes in 2013.
Passionate about languages and animals, she was trilingual in French, English and Spanish and was a host family for rescue animals, including the dog she eventually adopted. She was able to satisfy her third passion, traveling, through professional experiences, internships and volunteer work in India, Panama, South Africa and the French island of La Réunion in the Indian Ocean, where she moved to in 2017 to work for wholesaler JD Distribution. It was there, in parallel to her regular work, that she indulged in her fourth passion, acting, by taking on the role of coroner Joséphine Fleury in the locally shot cop show Pacific Criminal (2019) starting with season 2 in 2021.
Sadly, it would remain her only role, as she was found dead in mysterious circumstances in her home on 15 August 2022, hanged by the leash of her dog, with the doors of her house wide open, having come back from a nightclub the night before. With filming for season 4 of the show wrapping four days prior, she planning to head back to mainland France five days later on 20 August, with her plane ticket bought and paid for. The eve of her death, she had updated her Facebook profile with a picture from her TV series, captioning it, in English, "On set". - Marc Chagall was a Russian-Jewish artist and writer in Yiddish who moved to France and developed his highly original style by blending elements of traditional Jewish culture with cutting-edge innovations in modern art.
He was born Moishe Segal (Russified: Marc Zakharovich Shagalov) on July 7, 1887, in Liozno, a suburb of Vitebsk, Russia (now in Belarus). He was the first-born of nine children in the traditional close-knit Russian-Jewish family. Chagall's father and mother were cousins. His father, Khatskel Segal, was a herring merchant. His mother, Feiga-Ita, was a housewife. Chagall studied Torah and Talmud in Hebrew with Rabbi Ochre, and then with Rabbi Jatkin for basic education at home. At that time Jews were not admitted to schools in Russia, but Chagall's parents managed to get him admitted by bribing a school principal. Chagall's favorite classes were drawing and geometry.
Young Chagall made his first artwork for the Haggadah for his family on Passover. Then he did a copy of the portrait of composer Anton Rubinstein from the magazine "Niva". His first job was as a photo-retoucher at the photo studio of Meshchaninov in Vitebsk. Chagall briefly studied in the cheder of the Zarechenskaya synagogue, the biggest temple in Vitebsk. There he also sang as a cantor's assistant and studied violin. He later took painting lessons from Yehuda Pen in Vitebsk for two months. In 1907 Chagall went to St. Petersburg. There he studied art under Nikolai Roerich at the Imperial Society of Art Supporters; then under Leon Bakst and Mstislav Doboujinsky at Zviagintseva School of Art.
From 1910-1914 he lived in Paris on a stipend of 125 francs a month from a notable Russian-Jewish lawyer, Maxim Vinaver. Chagall settled in the Montparnasse community of La Ruche. There he associated with Guillaume Apollinaire, M. Jakob, A. Salmon, Robert Delaunay, Fernand Léger and others. During those four years in Paris he witnessed the emerging new styles of Fauvism, Cubism, Surrealism and various avant-garde currents being created by Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, Amedeo Modigliani and Giorgio De Chirico, as well as other leading artists of the time. In May of 1914 Chagall went to Germany. There he became acquainted with the artistic experiments of Wassily Kandinsky. Chagall had his first solo show at the Sturm gallery in Berlin. Then, after the onset of World War I, he went back to Russia.
In May of 1915 Chagall married his first love, Bella Rosenfeld, the daughter of a wealthy jeweler in Vitebsk. She was the inspirational model for his famous series of paintings with passionate flying figures. In 1916 the Chagalls had a daughter, Ida. At that time he created his most vibrant and youthful paintings depicting his wife Bella flying with him in the skies above their hometown of Vitebsk.
Chagall was appointed the Commissar of Arts in Vitebsk Province after the Russian Revolution of 1917. He organized the new Vitebsk Art School and also taught there. He moved to Moscow in 1920. There he took an active part in the stage productions of the newly formed Moscow Jewish Theatre, of which he was the Art Director from 1920-1922. Chagall designed the stage decoration for the production of "Fiddler on the Roof", based on the story by Sholom Aleichem. Chagall's work was marked by surrealistic inventiveness and continued his emergence as a cross-cultural artist.
In 1922 the Chagalls fled the troubled Russia and moved to Berlin, then to Paris in 1923, as did many Russian intellectuals. He published his book of memoirs with illustrations in 1923. Then he made illustrations for "Dead Souls" by Nikolay Gogol, and began illustrating the Bible in 1930. In 1937 Chagall became a naturalized French citizen. In 1941, however, the Chagalls fled the German occupation of Paris and lived in New York until 1947. There Chagall designed decorations for the production of "Firebird" with the music of Igor Stravinsky and choreography by George Balanchine. Chagall also made a stage set for "Aleko" with the music of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. In September of 1944 his beloved wife and inspirational muse Bella died.
Back in Europe, Chagall settled in Provence, France. His creativity was now inspired by his new love, Valentina (Vava) Brodsky, whom he married in 1952. His works during this period are marked with energetic and joyful feelings, expressed by vibrant lines and vivid colors. He expanded his creativity into sculpture, ceramics and stained glass, making stained glass windows for several Catholic and Protestant cathedrals in France, Switzerland and Germany. In 1960 Chagall created remarkable stained glass windows for the Synagogue of the Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital in Jerusalem. In the 1960s and 1970s he decorated the new Parliament in Jerusalem, the ceiling of the Grand Opera in Paris, the lobby of the Metropolitan Opera House in New York and the National Bank Building in Chicago with a series of large-scale mosaic murals that define the language of 20th-century monumental art.
Mark Chagall died at the age of 97, on March 28, 1985, in Saint-Paul de Vence, France, and was laid to rest in Saint-Paul Town Cemetery, Provence, France.
Chagall's art is the pride of museum collections across the world. In 1973, the Musee National Message Biblique Marc Chagall (The Chagall Museum) opened in Nice, France. The Chagall family home on Pokrovskaia street in Vitebsk was turned into a memorial museum in 1992 and decorated with copies of his works in 1997. - Annie Glenn was born on 17 February 1920 in Columbus, Ohio, USA. She was married to John Glenn. She died on 19 May 2020 in Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA.
- Make-Up Department
Lela Marie Wright-Landsverk was born in Madison, Wisconsin, USA and lived who lived in Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA. She attended St. Catherine University for Sociology and Madison Area Technical College for Art History. She was a Yoga Instructor at the YMCA of the North, and was the founder and owner of Yoga. Lela was also the owner and creator of Lela Bells: The Pin-Up Vigilante and was owner/stylist at Lela Wright: Makeup and Hair Artistry. On 18 September 2021 she married Erik Landsverk. She had 6 children, Caleb, Sydney, Josh, Etta, Oliver, and Atticus, as well as granddaughter Roma. Sadly, Lela passed away on 4 February 2022 - due to a freak accident.- André Surmain was born on 5 December 1920 in Paris, France. He was married to Nancy Wormser, ?? and Patricia Terno. He died on 31 January 2018 in Saint-Paul-en-Forêt, Var, France.
- Yves Jamiaque was born on 30 January 1918 in Paris, France. Yves was a writer, known for Codine (1963), Les dossiers de Me Robineau (1972) and The Hideout (1962). Yves was married to Jeanne Mayer and Marguerite Magnin-Mingand . Yves died on 10 June 1987 in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, Alpes-Maritimes, France.
- Jacques Poustis was born on 22 April 1949 in Clichy, France. He was an actor, known for The Brides of Bourbon Island (2007). He was married to Patricia Tatel and ???. He died on 24 April 2022 in Fleurimont, Saint-Paul, Reunion, France.
- Aimé Maeght was born on 27 April 1906 in Hazebrouck, Nord, France. He was a producer and writer, known for André Malraux: Les métamorphoses du regard (1974), Quelques espaces (1973) and Tàpies (1969). He was married to Marguerite Devaye. He died on 5 September 1981 in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, Alpes-Maritimes, France.
- René Richard was born on 1 December 1895 in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland. He was married to N. Cimon. He died on 31 March 1982 in Baie-Saint-Paul, Québec, Canada.
- Donald Wandrei was born on 20 April 1908 in Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA. He was a writer, known for Night Gallery (1969) and Les Chroniques du Bazar (2018). He died on 15 October 1987 in Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA.
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Cinematographer
Léo Mirkine was born on 9 July 1910 in Kiev, Russian Empire [now Ukraine]. He was a cinematographer, known for Ça va barder (1955), S.O.S. Mediterranean (1938) and Cet homme est dangereux (1953). He died on 7 November 1982 in Saint Paul de Vence, France.- Arthur Legat was born on 1 November 1898 in Haine-Saint-Paul, Wallonia, Belgium. He died on 23 February 1960 in Haine-Saint-Paul, Wallonia, Belgium.
- Actor
- Transportation Department
Born in Belgium, Frere was one of the first racing journalists in that he did double duty as a motorsports writer and he competed as a driver for several years in Sportscars and Formula 1. Frere's career took place mostly during the 1950s, but it extended for a few years in the 60s. He then retired and returned to work behind the pen and occasionally lended his talents out most notably on the film _Grand Prix (1967)_.- Irv Williams was born on 17 August 1919 in Arkansas, USA. He was married to ??? and Mary. He died on 14 December 2019 in Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA.
- Rickey grew up in Helensburgh, Scotland, and attended Glenalmond College there. He studied at Oxford from 1926 to 1929. He then moved to Paris, where he continued his studies in 1929 and 1930. The first mobiles were created in 1945. He found inspiration for this in the works of the American engineer and sculptor Alexander Calder. In 1968 and 1969, Rickey was a scholarship holder of the German Academic Exchange Service West Berlin. In 1972 he received the Fine Arts Award from the American Institute of Architects. In 1974 he joined the American Institute of Arts and Letters. In 1986 he received the New York State Governor's Award in Albany. The following year he was accepted into the Academy of Arts in Berlin. For his art he used the laws of nature or gravity and integrated them into his work of art as an elementary part. With his mobiles, Rickey revealed nature time. He copied the movement from nature.
In this sense, the artist has perfected the kinetic works of art. Later, George Rickey created his kinetic works of art in stainless steel elements. He realized the mobiles as hanging and standing works. The principle of pendulum movement, which occurs without a motor, was transferred to the surrounding space. George Rickey gave his mobiles names like "Two Lines In," "Two Lines Out," or "Six Horizontal Lines." In doing so, they refer to the simple construction, which was implemented with scientific precision. The movable sculpture entitled "One up, one down oblique" was created in 1975. The kinetic mobile, which is only 60 centimeters high, also works without motor power. With this concept, George Rickey differs considerably from the movement games of the French artist Marcel Duchamp or the Swiss kinetic sculptor Jean Tinguely. They built auxiliary motors into their fragile mobiles, which helped the works of art move.
George Rickey took part in the documenta exhibition in Kassel several times. Many of his free sculptures are distributed worldwide. They are often located very close to buildings or are attached to buildings themselves. In doing so, you make a significant contribution to the idea of "art in architecture". Rickey's mobiles in urban spaces shape the image of a city. A free sculpture has been standing on the grounds of the Fulda University of Applied Sciences for 20 years. Previously it was part of the exhibition "Spielraum - Raumspiele" in front of the Alte Oper in Frankfurt/M. The five-meter-high monumental work in the entrance area of the campus consists of asymmetrically attached, needle-like metal arms. They are powered solely by the power of the wind without any motor assistance. Depending on the wind direction, the arms of the free plastic also rotate in different directions. The movement expresses the theme of the artistic work.
A kinetic sculpture by George Rickes also adorns the Hessischer Rundfunk broadcasting building in Frankfurt am Main. It consists of three stainless steel rods. You seem to be in a weightless state of suspension. The wind causes them to move and create ever new constellations. In 2001 there was a group exhibition entitled "Summer Rooms" in the Pels-Leusden gallery in Berlin, which also included works by Rickey. He spent his last years in California near Santa Barbara and in Saint Paul.