Birthdays: December 30
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- Actress
- Producer
- Writer
Sheryl Lee Ralph was born December 30, 1956 in Waterbury, Connecticut, USA. She is known for her roles in Moesha (1996), Its A Living (1980), and Instant Mom (2013). Her Career Began in the late 1970s. She has been Married to Vincent Hughes since July 30, 2005 a Pennsylvania state senator. She was previously married to Eric Maurice.- Actress
- Director
- Writer
Akosua Busia was born on 30 December 1966 in Accra, Ghana. She is an actress and director, known for The Color Purple (1985), Tears of the Sun (2003) and Low Blow (1986). She was previously married to John Singleton.- Director
- Producer
- Writer
Andrew Fleming is a highly accomplished director and screenwriter, most recently known for executive producing and directing the pilot of the hit Emmy-nominated Netflix series, Emily in Paris. A frequent collaborator of Darren Star, Fleming recently directed the pilot for Star's new series Uncoupled, starring Neil Patrick Harris. Fleming also directed the pilot and served as Executive Producer for Netflix's recent hit series Insatiable. In addition, he wrote and directed the 2018 feature Ideal Home starring Paul Rudd and Steve Coogan. Previously, he directed and co-wrote three films: Hamlet 2 (which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival), the political comedy Dick, (a satire about the Nixon Watergate scandal, starring Kirsten Dunst, Michelle Williams, and Will Ferrell) as well as The Craft, starring Fairuza Balk, Robin Tunney, Neve Campbell and Rachel True. For the independent feature Threesome (which also premiered at Sundance), Fleming served as both director and sole screenwriter. He directed the feature film Nancy Drew starring Emma Roberts, and before that the comedy The In-Laws, teaming Michael Douglas with Albert Brooks. Fleming studied filmmaking at New York University's film school, where P.P.T, one of his three award-winning student films, earned him a fellowship at Warner Brothers upon graduation. His filmmaking debut, the psychological thriller Bad Dreams, which he co-wrote and directed, teamed him with producer Gale Ann Hurd of Terminator, Aliens, and Walking Dead fame. He has directed the television pilots for such shows as Grosse Pointe, Difficult People, Odd Mom Out, Bad Judge, as well as Uncoupled. He has also directed episodes for Arrested Development, New Girl, Red Oaks, Lady Dynamite, Younger, and Dolly Parton's Heartstrings -among others.- Director
- Writer
- Cinematographer
Andrew Shapter (born William Andrew Shapter - Fort Worth, Texas) is an American writer, filmmaker and photographer.
As a boy, Andrew "Andy" Shapter dreamed that he would one day grow up to be a filmmaker: a dream that would take time to reach. At 12 years old, his father invited him on a business trip to London and encouraged Andrew to learn how to use a still camera. From that day on, Shapter worked hard to become an accomplished self-taught photographer.
After moving to Austin Texas in 1986 and enrolling in college at Texas State University in San Marcos, he studied Political Science. He eventually found work in the U.S. Senate and National Wildlife Federation in Washington, D.C. Despite the excitement of working in the nation's capitol, Shapter was still drawn to the arts. After realizing that his true talents had nothing to do with what he learned in college, Shapter began to collect cameras and experiment with lighting. After graduating from college in 1992, Shapter quickly began career as a professional photographer specializing in music and fashion photography.
As Shapter began to garner recognition from magazine editors and ad agencies in New York and abroad, his career gained momentum that lead to work in other markets including Barcelona, London and Los Angeles. After working non-stop for nearly 15 years in the photography market, Shapter felt it was time to turn his attention to his very first passion, filmmaking. His first effort, the critically acclaimed 2006 documentary "Before the Music Dies" (featuring Dave Matthews, Eric Clapton, Erykah Badu, Elvis Costello, Bonnie Raitt, Questlove and many other prominent musicians) was a hit with music fans worldwide. His follow-up film "Happiness Is" is an exploration of the truths and myths of "the pursuit of happiness" in America, opening across the U.S. in 2009.- Actress
Anna Wood was born on 30 December 1985 in Mt. Airy, North Carolina, USA. She is an actress, known for Chronicle (2012), The Following (2013) and Brothers & Sisters (2006). She has been married to Dane DeHaan since 30 June 2012. They have two children.- Arlene Warren was born on 30 December 1966. She is an actress, known for The X-Files (1993), The X Files: Resist or Serve (2004) and Profile for Murder (1996). She has been married to Mitch Pileggi since 1 January 1997. They have one child. She was previously married to Dean Warren.
- Ashley Bashioum started her acting career at age 15. Her first role was "Mackenzie Browning" on daytime's #1 soap, The Young and the Restless (1973). She finished her high-schooling while continuing to act. Her hopes and dreams were to go to college. Due to not being able to come to contract agreements, she has not renewed her contract. Her final episode aired February 14th 2002, after which her character was recast. However, she returned to "The Young and the Restless" and played Mackenzie again in 2004. A year later, she left to act in other roles for a few more years. However, she retired from acting permanently in 2013 when she married Trevor Conner. She has two sons (Brooklyn and Cade) and a daughter (Lennox) with her husband.
- Ashley Zukerman was born on 30 December 1983 in Santa Monica, California, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Fear Street: Part One - 1994 (2021), Manhattan (2014) and Succession (2018).
- Actor
- Casting Department
- Writer
Out from the heart of Harlem, New York, is up and coming actor and screenwriter, Azania Vernon. As a youth, Azania dreamed of excelling on the basketball court. Playing for the prestigious Rice High School, a catholic school in Harlem, New York, his dreams of playing in college and potentially overseas seemed closer than he thought. Azania was invited to play in the Big Apple City All-Star Classic, which featured some of the top players in New York City. Azania attended Miami University of Ohio on a full academic scholarship. Azania was not able to play for Miami University of Ohio basketball team due to title IX. So, he decided to take some classes at Miami University Hamilton, a branch college from main campus, so he can play basketball while going to school. To fulfill his dream in playing in college, he would sacrifice driving thirty miles each day from the main campus to Hamilton campus for classes, practice, and games.
While taking a few acting classes at Miami University, his professor told him he was a phenomenal actor. But Azania was only focused on playing basketball and trying to make the team at Miami University. Instead of coming back home for the summer, Azania opted to stay in school and work out with the basketball and football team lead by at the time, Pittsburg Steeler quarterback, Ben Rothlisberger, former New York Jets safety, Alphonso Hodge and former Cleveland Cavaliers NBA player Chet Mason. Azania took another acting class his senior year where the professor told him he should really think about pursuing acting. As always, Azania was focused on basketball and on graduating on time. After graduation Azania could not land a spot on a basketball roster. Thankfully, he was recruited and got a job with Shaw Industries, which sent him out to Los Angeles.
One of his friends from New York, opened up his arms when Azania came to Los Angeles and the two soon became roommates. Azania was immediately bitten by the acting bug when he would watch his actor friends work and while he would help them out with their scenes before auditions. Azania then lost his job with Shaw Industries but did not want to move back to New York City. This was the catalyst for him to begin his process in becoming an actor. It was difficult for him to find an agent so he started "crashing" auditions. Everyone in Hollywood told him that was a no-no, but his determination kicked in. In 2008, Azania was able to do a short film directed by Spencer Longmore. Azania thought he would able to get a representation but unfortunately he was not able too. Due to not finding any work and unable to bring in any income, Azania had to move out of his apartment. Azania was homeless, sleeping in his car, sleeping on friends couches and taking showers at the local fitness center before going on auditions.
Azania slowly booked commercials and started to get more background work. But it wasn't enough for him and Azania began to doubt himself. He made the decision to move back to New York and wanted to quit the industry all together. Luckily, his close friend convinced him to push through. Azania began reading screen writing and acting books during his time back in New York. His creative spirit was revived and he started to develop his own scripts. Azania fell in love with film and acting all over again. During this process Azania realized if he wants to be in film, he must create his own lane and platform.- Director
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Bennett Miller is an American film director, best known for Capote (2005), Moneyball (2011), and Foxcatcher (2014). He began his film career directing the 1998 documentary The Cruise.
In 2006 Miller directed the Bob Dylan music video "When the Deal Goes Down" starring Scarlett Johansson.
Miller has directed 6 actors to Oscar nominations: Philip Seymour Hoffman and Catherine Keener for Capote, Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill for Moneyball, and Steve Carell and Mark Ruffalo for Foxcatcher. Hoffman won the Oscar for his work in Capote.- Bernard Barrow was born on 30 December 1927 in New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for Ryan's Hope (1975), Serpico (1973) and Loving (1983). He was married to Joan Kaye, Joyce Shrya Gitelman and Jane Adele Mabbott. He died on 4 August 1993 in New York City, New York, USA.
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Bert Parks was born on 30 December 1914 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. He was an actor, known for The Freshman (1990), The Bionic Woman (1976) and Burke's Law (1963). He was married to Annette Liebman. He died on 2 February 1992 in La Jolla, California, USA.- Actress
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Betty Aberlin was born on 30 December 1942 in New York City, New York, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for Mister Rogers' Neighborhood (1968), Jersey Girl (2004) and Dogma (1999).- Actor
- Composer
- Music Department
Ever heard "I Want Candy" or "Not Fade Away" or "Willie & The Hand Jive", Shirley & Company's "Shame, Shame, Shame" or U2's "Desire" or George Michael's "Faith"? If you have, then you've heard the "Bo Diddley beat", the most famous beat in the world! One of the founding fathers of rock 'n' roll, Bo Diddley's innovative pounding and hypnotic, Latin-tinged beat, his vast array of electric custom-built guitars, his use of reverb, tremelo and distortion to make his guitars talk, mumble and roar, his use of female musicians, his wild stage shows, and his on-record and on-stage rapping, pre-date all others. Bo Diddley was born Ellas Bates on Sunday December 30, 1928, on a small farm near the town of McComb, Mississippi, in rural Pike County, close to the Louisiana border, the only child of Ethel Wilson and Eugene Bates, he had three half-brothers and a half-sister. He was adopted by his mother's cousin, Mrs. Gussie McDaniel, along with his cousins Willis, Lucille and Freddie, and adopted the name Ellas McDaniel. In the mid-1'30s the family moved to the south side of Chicago. Soon after, he began to take violin lessons from Professor O.W. Frederick at the Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church. He studied the violin for 12 years, composing two concertos for the instrument. For Christmas in 1940, his sister Lucille bought him his first guitar, a cheap Harmony acoustic. It was at this time that he acquired the nickname "Bo Diddley" (" . . . Bo Diddley is me; to tell ya the truth, I don't know what it [the name] really is . . . ") from his fellow pupils at the Foster Vocational High School in Chicago. The newly named Bo Diddley had long been fascinated by the rhythms that he heard coming from the sanctified churches. A frustrated drummer, he tried to translate the sounds that he heard into his own style. Gradually he began to duplicate what he did with his violin bow by rapidly flicking his pick across his guitar strings: "I play the guitar as if I'm playing the drums . . . I play drum licks on the guitar." He continued to practice the guitar through his early teens. Shortly before leaving school he formed his first group, a trio named The Hipsters, later known as The Langley Avenue Jive Cats, after the Chicago street where he lived. Upon graduation he pursued a variety of low-paid occupations including truck driving, building site work and boxing, playing locally with his group to supplement his income. Around this time he married his first wife, Louise Woolingham, but the marriage did not survive. A year later he married Ethel "Tootsie" Smith, a marriage that lasted just over a decade. In 1950 maracas player Jerome Green joined the group, followed a year later by harmonica player Billy Boy Arnold. After more than a decade of playing on street corners and in clubs around Chicago, Bo Diddley finally got the chance to cut a demo of 2 songs that he had written; "Uncle John" and "I'm A Man". After various rejections from local record labels (most notably VeeJay), in the spring of 1955 he took the recordings to brothers Leonard and Phil Chess, owners of Chess Records, with studios located at 4750-2 South Cottage Grove Ave. in Chicago. They suggested that he changed the title and the lyrics of "Uncle John" to more reflect his own unique personality. The twp songs were re-recorded at Bill Putnam's Universal Recording Studio at 111 E. Ontario in Chicago on Wednesday, March 2, 1955, and released as a double A-side disc "Bo Diddley"/"I'm A Man" on the Chess Records subsidiary label Checker Records. It went straight to the top of the R&B charts, establishing him as one of the most exciting and original new talents in American music. With musical influences of his own ranging from Louis Jordan to John Lee Hooker, and from 'Nat 'King' Cole' to Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley was now set to help shape and define the sound and presentation of rock music for all time. From Elvis Presley to George Thorogood, from The Rolling Stones to ZZ Top, from The Doors to The Clash, from Buddy Holly to Prince, and from The Everly Brothers to Run DMC, all acknowledged the unique influences of Bo Diddley upon their styles of music. Now in his early 70s, he is still very much active in the recording studio and in the clubs and the concert halls around the world. He performed a rousing version of his classic song "Who Do You Love" with George Thorogood & The Destroyers in front of a TV audience of millions at the Live Aid Concert in Philadelphia in 1985. A couple of years later he was deservedly an early inductee into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame. In 1996 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Rhythm 'n' Blues Foundation and in 1998 received another Lifetime Achievement Award, this time from The Recording Academy at that year's annual Grammy Awards Ceremony. In 2000 yet another honor was justifiably awarded to him when he was inducted into The Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame. In the words of one of his many famous eponymous songs, "Bo Diddley Put The Rock in Rock 'n' Roll", and remember . . . Bo Knows!- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Brandon Killham was born on 30 December 1997 in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Dexter (2006), Things You Don't Tell... (2006) and Mad Men (2007).- Producer
- Writer
Bryan Burk was born on 30 December 1968. He is a producer and writer, known for Lost (2004), Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015) and Star Trek (2009).- Actor
- Director
- Producer
C.S. Lee has been creating memorable characters for the screen for the past 20 years. Known mainly as a character actor for his in depth roles and commitment to story he has continued to create characters that have long lasting impressions. He's been on many hit shows including Chuck, Fresh Off The Boat, and Nora From Queens. He is best known for playing the weird and charming Masuka on Showtime's hit series Dexter which lasted eight seasons and was nominated numerous times for the Sag, Emmy, and Golden Globe Awards. He is classically trained at the Yale School of Drama where he received the Carol Dye Acting Award.- Actress
- Director
- Writer
Caitlin Marie Lotz (born December 30, 1986) is an American actress, dancer, and singer. She is known for her roles as Stephanie Horton in Mad Men (2007), Officer Kirsten Landry in the MTV mockumentary series Death Valley (2011), as Annie in The Pact (2012), and as Sara Lance/White Canary in The CW's Arrowverse television series, where she has appeared in Arrow (2012), DC's Legends of Tomorrow (2016), The Flash (2014), and Supergirl (2015). She is also a co-founder of SheThority, a women empowerment organization.
Lotz started her career as a dancer, touring with Avril Lavigne and Lady Gaga, and starring in music videos including Lady Gaga: Paparazzi (2009) and Lady Gaga: LoveGame (2009), David Guetta Feat. Estelle: One Love (2009), Selena Gomez: Tell Me Something I Don't Know (2008), Faith Evans' "Mesmerized", T-Pain's "Freeze", JoJo: Baby It's You (2004), Cascada: Evacuate the Dancefloor (2009), Kaci Brown's "Instigator (album)", and Leehom Wang's "Gai Shi Ying Xiong". Lotz appeared on Dancing with the Stars (2005) season 8, as Lady Gaga's back-up dancer for the song "LoveGame". Her Avril Lavigne tour performance was released on the video Avril Lavigne: The Best Damn Tour - Live in Toronto (2008).
Lotz appeared in adverts for Jack in the Box, Reebok, and T-Mobile, danced in the web series The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers, toured with the hip hop theatre production Groovaloo, and stunt-doubled in films including Step Up 3D.
In 2005, Lotz joined the girl group Soccx. In 2006, the group released their debut single "From Dusk Till Dawn (Get the Party Started)", which they followed up in 2007 with the single "Scream Out Loud", both of which reached the top 10 in Germany. Their debut album, Hold On, was also released in 2007, and their third single, "Can't Take My Eyes Off You", was released in 2008.
Lotz has model-led for Men's Health and Esquire, the latter in conjunction with the website Me in My Place.
Lotz did her acting training at Sanford Meisner for two years. Lotz began her acting career in 2006 with a small role in the cheer-leading film Bring It on: All or Nothing (2006). She followed that up in 2010 with a part in the third episode of Law & Order: LA (2010) and a recurring role in the fourth season of the AMC drama Mad Men (2007) as Stephanie, Anna Draper's niece. In 2011, Lotz starred as Officer Kirsten Landry, one of the main characters in the MTV horror, black comedy mockumentary series Death Valley (2011). Lotz performs all her own stunts on the show.
In 2012, Lotz had roles in Live at the Foxes Den (2013), Battle of the Year (2013) alongside Josh Holloway and alongside Casper Van Dien and Agnes Bruckner in the supernatural thriller The Pact (2012), which debuted at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival and has been picked up for distribution. Lotz also appears starting in season 2 of Arrow (2012) as Sara Lance, a character believed dead who returns as a costumed vigilante known as The Canary.
She stars as Sara Lance/White Canary in DC's Legends of Tomorrow (2016), an Arrow spin-off. She had the lead role in the science fiction film The Machine (2013), which had its UK release on March 21, 2014 and had its US release on April 25, 2014. In May 2014, she reprized her role as Stephanie in the seventh season of Mad Men. She also played Dr. Emily McTier in the TV film 400 Days (2015), along with co-star on Legends, Brandon Routh in 2016.
Lotz is a martial artist, with some training in taekwondo, wushu, Krav Maga, kali martial arts and muay Thai. She is also a practitioner of parkour and tricking. Lotz has trained with Steve Terada and Wayne Dalglish.- Director
- Producer
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Carol Reed was the second son of stage actor, dramatics teacher and impresario founder of the Royal School of Dramatic Art Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree. Reed was one of Tree's six illegitimate children with Beatrice Mae Pinney, who Tree established in a second household apart from his married life. There were no social scars here; Reed grew up in a well-mannered, middle-class atmosphere. His public school days were at King's School, Canterbury, and he was only too glad to push on with the idea of following his father and becoming an actor. His mother wanted no such thing and shipped him off to Massachusetts in 1922, where his older brother resided on--of all things--a chicken ranch.
It was a wasted six months before Reed was back in England and joined a stage company of Dame Sybil Thorndike, making his stage debut in 1924. He forthwith met British writer Edgar Wallace, who cashed in on his constant output of thrillers by establishing a road troupe to do stage adaptations of them. Reed was in three of these, also working as an assistant stage manager. Wallace became chairman of the newly formed British Lion Film Corp. in 1927, and Reed followed to become his personal assistant. As such he began learning the film trade by assisting in supervising the filmed adaptations of Wallace's works. This was essentially his day job. At night he continued stage acting and managing. It was something of a relief when Wallace passed on in 1932; Reed decided to drop the stage for film and joined historic Ealing Studios as dialog director for Associated Talking Pictures under Basil Dean.
Reed rose from dialog director to second-unit director and assistant director in record time, his first solo directorship being the adventure Midshipman Easy (1935). This and his subsequent effort, Laburnum Grove (1936), attracted high praise from a future collaborator, novelist/critic Graham Greene, who said that once Reed "gets the right script, [he] will prove far more than efficient." However, Reed would endure the sort of staid, boilerplate filmmaking that characterized British "B" movies until he left this behind with The Stars Look Down (1940), his second film with Michael Redgrave, and his openly Hitchcockian Night Train to Munich (1940), a comedy-thriller with Rex Harrison. It has often been seen as a sequel to Alfred Hitchcock's The Lady Vanishes (1938) with the same screenwriters and comedy relief--Basil Radford and Naunton Wayne, who would just about make careers as the cricket zealots Charters and Caldicott, from "Vanishes".
The British liked these films and, significantly, so did America, where Hollywood still wondered whether their patronage of the British film industry was worth the gamble of a payoff via the US public. Dean was just one of several powerhouse producers rising in Britain in the 1930s. Other names are more familiar: Alexander Korda and J. Arthur Rank stand out. For Reed, who would wisely decide to start producing his own films in order to have more control over them, finding his niche was still a challenge into the 1940s. He was only too well aware that the film director led a team effort--his was partly a coordinator's task, harmonizing the talents of the creative team. The modest Reed would admit to his success being this partnership time and again. So he gravitated toward the same scriptwriters, art directors and cinematographers as his movie list spread out.
There were more thrillers and some historical bios: The Remarkable Mr. Kipps (1941) with Redgrave and The Young Mr. Pitt (1942) with Robert Donat. He did service and war effort fare through World War II, but these were more than flag wavers, for Reed dealt with the psychology of transitioning to military life. His Anglo-American documentary of combat (co-directed by Garson Kanin), The True Glory (1945), won the 1946 Oscar for Best Documentary. With that under his belt, Reed was now recognized as Britain's ablest director and could pick and choose his projects. He also had the clout--and the all-important funds--to do what he thought was essential to ensure realism on a location shoot, something missing in British film work prior to Reed.
Odd Man Out (1947) with James Mason as an IRA hit man on the run did just that and was Reed's first real independent effort, and he had gone to Rank to do it. All too soon, however, that organization began subjugating directors' wishes to studio needs, and Reed made perhaps his most important associative decision and joined Korda's London Films. Here was one very important harmony--he and Korda thought along the same lines. Though Anthony Kimmins had scripted four films for Reed, it was time for Korda to introduce the director to Graham Greene. Their association would bring Reed his greatest successes. The Fallen Idol (1948) was based on a Greene short story, with Ralph Richardson as a do-everything head butler in a diplomatic household. Idolized by the lonely, small son of his employer, he becomes caught up in a liaison with a woman on the work staff, who was much younger than his shrewish wife. It may seem slow to an American audience, but with the focus on the boy's wide-eyed view of rather gloomy surroundings, as well as the adult drama around him, it was innovative and a solid success.
What came next was a landmark--the best known of Reed's films. The Third Man (1949) was yet another Greene story, molded into a gem of a screenplay by him, though Reed added some significant elements of his own. The film has been endlessly summarized and analyzed and, whether defined as an international noir or post-war noir or just noir, it was cutting-edge noir and unforgettable. This was Reed in full control--well, almost-- and the money was coming from yet another wide-vision producer, David O. Selznick, along with Korda. Tension did develop in this effort keep a predominantly Anglo effort in this Anglo-American collaboration.
There were complications, though. For one thing, Korda--old friend and somewhat kindred spirit of wunderkind director Orson Welles--had a gentlemen's agreement with the latter for three pictures, but these were not forthcoming. Korda could be as evasive as Welles was known to be, and Welles had come to Europe to further his inevitable film projects after troubles in Hollywood. Always desperate for seed money, Welles was forced to take acting parts in Europe to build up his bank account in order to finance his more personal projects. He thus accepted the role of the larger-than-life American flim-flam man turned criminal, Harry Lime. The extended time spent filming the Vienna sewer scenes on location and at the elaborate set for them at Shepperton Studios in London, entailed the longest of the ten minutes or so of Welles' screen time. Here was a potential source of directorial intimidation if ever there was one. Welles took it upon himself to direct Reed's veteran cinematographer Robert Krasker with his own vision of some sewer sequences in London (after leaving the location shoot in Vienna), using many takes. Supposedly, Reed did not use any of Welles' footage, and in fact whatever there was got conveniently lost. Yet Citizen Kane (1941)'s shadow was so looming that Welles was given credit for a lot of camera work, atmospherics and the chase scenes. He had referred to the movie as "my film" later on and had said he wrote all his dialog. Some of the ferris wheel dialog with its famous famous "cuckoo clock" speech (which Reed and Greene both attributed to him) was probably the essence of Welles' contributions.
Krasker's quirky angles under Reed's direction perfectly framed the ready-made-for-an-art designer bombed-out shadows and stark, isolated street lights of postwar Vienna and its underworld. Unique to cinema history, the whole score (except for some canned incidental café music) was just the brilliant zither playing of Anton Karas, adding his nuances to every dramatic transition. Krasker won an Oscar, and Karas was nominated for one.
Reed's attention to detailed casting also paid off, particularly in casting German-speaking actors and background players. Selznick insisted on Joseph Cotten as Holly Martins, the benighted protagonist, and his clipped and sharp voice and subterranean drawl were perfect for the part. Reed had wanted James Stewart--definitely a different perception than Americans of its leading men. Selznick parted ways with Reed on other issues, however; there was a laundry list of reasons for his re-editing and changing some incidentals for the shorter American version, partly based on negative comments from sneak preview responses. Perhaps it was the constant interruptions from the other side of the Atlantic that drove Reed to personally narrate the introduction describing Martins in the British version of the film (given the basic tenets of noir films, the star always played narrator to introduce the story and voice over where appropriate). Selznick showed himself--in this instance, anyway--to have a better directorial sense by substituting Cotten introducing himself in the American cut. It made far more sense and was much more effective. On the other hand, Selznick's editing of the pivotal railway café scenes with Cotten and Alida Valli had continuity problems.
Nonetheless, the film was an international smash, and all the principal players reaped the rewards. Reed did not get an Oscar, but he did win the Cannes Film Grand Prix. Greene was motivated enough to take the story and expand it into a best-selling novel. Even Welles, with his minimum screen time--he was spending most of his time in Europe trying to obtain financing for his newest project, Othello (1956)--milked the movie for all it was worth. He did not deny directorial influences (though in a 1984 interview he did), and even developed a Harry Lime radio show back home.
However, the movie had its detractors. It was called too melodramatic and too cynical. The short scenes of untranslated German dialog were also criticized, yet that lent to the atmosphere of confusion and helplessness of Martins caught in a wary, potentially dangerous environment--something the audience inevitably was able to share. It was all too ironic that Reed, now declared by some as the greatest living director of the time, found his career in decline thereafter. Of his total output, four were based on plays, three on stories and 15 on novels. With less than half of them to go, he was to be disappointed for the most part. His The Man Between (1953) with James Mason was too much of a "Third Man" reprise, and A Kid for Two Farthings (1955) was too sentimental.
By now Reed was being sought by enterprising Hollywood producers. He had--as he usually did--the material for a first-rate movie with two popular American actors, Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis for Trapeze (1956). However, it suffered from a slow script, as would the British-produced The Key (1958), despite another international cast. Things finally picked up with his venture into another Greene-scripted film from his novel, with Alec Guinness in the lead in the UK spy spoof Our Man in Havana (1959) with yet another winning international cast.
When Hollywood called again, the chance at such a British piece of history as Mutiny on the Bounty (1962) with a mostly British cast and Marlon Brando seemed bound for success. It was the second version of the movie produced by MGM (the first being the Clark Gable starrer Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)). However, Brando's history of being temperamental was much in evidence on location in Tahiti. Reed shot a small part of the picture but finally left, having more than his fill of the star's ego (and, evidently, being allowed too much artistic control by the studio) and the film was finished by Lewis Milestone. Reed would ultimately be branded as a failure in directing historical movies, but it was an unfair appraisal based on the random aspect of film success and such forces of nature as Brando, not artistic and technical expertise.
The opportunity to make another film came knocking again with Reed and American money forming the production company International Classics to produce Irving Stone's best-selling story of Michelangelo and the painting of the Sistine Chapel, The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965). Here is perhaps the prime example of Reed being given short shrift for a really valiant effort at an historical, artistically significant and cultural epic because it was a "flop" at the box office. Shot on location in Rome and its environs, the film had a first-rate cast headed by Charlton Heston doing his method best as the temperamental artist with Rex Harrison, an effortless standout as the equally volatile Pope Julius II. Diane Cilento did fine work as the Contessina de Medici, with the always stalwart Harry Andrews as architect rival Donato Bramante. Most of the other roles were filled by Italians dubbed in English, but they all look good.
Reed's attention to historical detail provided perhaps the most accurate depiction of early 16th-century Italy--from costumes and manners to military action and weapons (especially firearms)--ever brought to the screen. The script by Philip Dunne was brisk and always entertaining in the verbal battle between the artist and his pontiff. Yet by the 1960s costume epics were going out of style and bigger flops, such as Cleopatra (1963) (talk about agony) despite the wealth of stars which included Harrison, tended to spread like a disease to those few that came later. Despite a high-powered distribution campaign by Twentieth Century-Fox, Reed's exemplary effort would ultimately be appreciated by art scholars and historians--not the stuff of Hollywood's money mentality.
For Reed the only remaining triumph was, of all things, a musical--his first and only--yet again he was working with children. However, the adaptation of the great Charles Dickens novel "Oliver Twistt" top the screen (as Oliver! (1968)) was a sensation with a lively script and music amid a realistic 19th-century London that was up to Reed's usual standards. The film was nominated for no less than 11 Oscars, wining five and two of the big ones--Best Picture and Best Director. Reed had finally achieved that bit of elusiveness. He could never be so simplistically stamped with an uneven career; Reed had always kept to a precise craftsman's movie-making formula.
Fellow British director Michael Powell had said that Reed "could put a film together like a watchmaker puts together a watch". It was Graham Greene, however, who gave Reed perhaps the more important personal accolade: "The only director I know with that particular warmth of human sympathy, the extraordinary feeling for the right face in the right part, the exactitude of cutting, and not least important the power of sympathizing with an author's worries and an ability to guide him."- Actress
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Georgia native Catherine Taber made her feature film debut starring in the coming of age drama "The Girls' Room". Taber's performance in the film garnered critical praise from industry publications. Daily Variety hailed her performance as "winning, empathetic and intimate." Catherine can also be seen alongside Reese Witherspoon in the romantic comedy, Just like Heaven, as well as 2009's Curious George 2, 2008's Star Wars: The Clone Wars, the film that kicked off the series, and in numerous comedic and dramatic television appearances.
Catherine made her voice-acting debut playing Mission Vao in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. She has since appeared in some of the most popular science fiction and fantasy titles on the market including The Secret World, Guild Wars 2, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker and X Men. Cat also plays the young Princess Leia in the award winning Star Wars: The Force Unleashed and its sequel, The Force Unleashed II. In 2012, Taber has returned to the Star Wars Universe to play Vette in the Star Wars: The Old Republic. Catherine was nominated for a NAViGaTR Award (National Academy of Video Game Testers and Reviewers) for her portrayal of Penelo in "Final Fantasy 12"
Hailed as a Geek Goddess amongst the sci fi, fantasy, and gaming communities, Catherine feels right at home in her current role of Padme Amidala in the critically acclaimed Cartoon Network television series Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
When this self-proclaimed sci-fi geek isn't living out her childhood dreams on set, she is giving back to her community. Catherine started the organization Games For Soldiers which accepts donations of video games and comic books that she sends to troops deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq.- Cesáreo Estébanez was born in 1941 in Palazuelo de Vedija, Valladolid, Castilla y León, Spain. He was an actor, known for Farmacia de guardia (1991), Periodistas (1998) and The Night of the Sunflowers (2006). He died on 30 December 2018 in Alcalá de Guadaíra, Sevilla, Spain.
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Vance is best known for his lead role as Frank Martin in Transporter: The Series. Vance is also remembered for his role as Whistler in the FOX series Prison Break and Jack Gallagher in the FOX series Mental as well as others.
Bit of background... Vance was born unto a very loving Irish family and raised in the UK. He signed youth football contracts with West Bromwich Albion and Bristol Rovers, donned his skimpy shorts and tromped his way around more muddy pitches in mid-winter than he should have, given his present state of enlightenment.
Vance graduated from the University of Newcastle-Upon-Tyne with an honors degree in Civil Engineering, passing tests that he probably couldn't pass anymore, and yet he is generally more proud of a blurry recollection that he played for an England Students football team somewhere along the way.
Vance embarked on his acting career at age 25, and was breathtakingly awful in his first role, that of Paris in a production of Romeo & Juliet in Oxford. When he wasn't engaged in delivering lines that one can count on one hand, he was firmly committed to moving furniture around the stage for other actors to sit on. If he knew then what he does now, he might surely have questioned his efforts, but the draw of storytelling in all its forms draws a deep cut in Vance, thus to this day he still persists...
Next up Vance firmly, wholeheartedly, and most passionately butchered numerous roles on the London Fringe and in small Reparatory Theatres, grasping experience where it was badly needed. During this time he also launched his own theatre company, writing, directing and producing plays. Fond note: The company was funded, for the most part; by him selling anything and everything that could be considered personal possessions, in compensation for the dire lack of bums on theatre seats.
Vance's efforts, or solid determination, were rewarded with him landing his first real gig at the Royal National Theatre in a touring version of the play "Closer." After treading the back-stages of Europe and Russia for several months, Vance returned to London for a role in the play "Speer," by David Edgar, once again at the National Theatre, under the ever-treasured guidance of Sir Trevor Nunn.
Good times... but not enough for Vance, who ventured further thus...
He made his British television debut in a show called Kavanagh QC. Such was his bearing on the industry at the time, that Vance was more than enthusiastic when called upon to appear stark-naked for a less than critical one-liner in the story. To clear up any misunderstanding, Vance was keen to work, but not keen to liberate his tackle on a cold London set, that should have been a 'closed' London set. But no harm done... the leading actress, the grips, the gaffers, camera, lighting, make-up ladies, and caterers all got more than they bargained for in his humble opinion.
Vance also made guest appearances in the British television shows Peak Practice, The Bill, Doctors and Family Affairs.
At about age 30 Vance moved to Australia and performed in several television series there, including Stingers, Blue Heelers and The Secret Life of Us. His first series-regular role in TV was Dr. Sean Everleigh in the medical drama/soap All Saints, in which Vance performed from 2005 to 2007.
Somewhere around then Vance also relished a small role in the feature Macbeth, directed by the very talented Jeffery Wright.
In 2007 Vance moved to the U.S. when he booked a regular role in the third and forth seasons of the (afore mentioned) hit TV series Prison Break, for 20th Century Fox in which he played James Whistler within a cast of peers who outdid him entirely.
The following year, Vance landed his first leading role in TV, playing Dr. Jack Gallagher in Mental, for Fox, which was filmed in Bogota Columbia.
In 2011 Vance was approached to play Frank Martin in the television series based on the Transporter films created by Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen. Not one to turn down a challenge, especially one filled with fast cars, pretty women and snappy one-liners, Vance embarked on the adventure and brought his own take on the character of Frank to the fast-paced action series.
In between leading roles, Vance has also guest-starred on Fairly Legal, Burn Notice, Dexter, Rizzoli and Isles, Supergirl, Hawaii 5-O, and Bosch, most often because he loves what he does and cherishes the people he meets along the journey...
Due to the COVID pandemic and the years 2020/21, Vance was Vaccinated, locked himself in his home outside LA and got stuck into writing a passion project that has been on and off for many a year; a series of novels bound firmly in historical fiction and fairy-tale.- Christian Millau was born on 30 December 1928 in Paris, France. He was an actor and writer, known for Dining in France (1986), La gueule de l'emploi (1974) and Droit de réponse: l'esprit de contradiction (1981). He was married to Arlette Conrad. He died on 5 August 2017 in Paris, Ile-de-France, France.
- Character actress Concetta Tomei was born on December 30, 1945, and raised in her hometown of Kenosha, Wisconsin, the only child of a policeman who was a talented artist on the sly. She came from a long line of educators and was likely drawn to that career at an influential age. She attended the University of Wisconsin at Madison, where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in education. After teaching school in a Milwaukee suburb for four years, however, she abruptly quit to pursue her acting dream. She became a student of the famed Goodman School of Drama in Chicago where she received a another degree, a Bachelor of Fine Arts, in theater arts. She also trained at the Alley Theatre in Houston.
Concetta (unrelated to actress Marisa Tomei) eventually moved to New York and began on the stock and repertory stages where she gathered a formidable list of early credits, appearing in such plays as "A Streetcar Named Desire, "Candida," "Blithe Spirit" and "The Corn Is Green." Appearing off-Broadway in such plays as "Cloud Nine" and "The Normal Heart," she made her debut on Broadway replacing Carole Shelley in "The Elephant Man" playing the actress/grande dame Mrs. Kendal. She continued in her role when a subsequent tour went out starring David Bowie.
Seeking on-camera experience, she moved out West in the 1980s and found substantial work on TV with her all-controlling, severe-looking femmes, which culminated in the critically acclaimed Vietnam War drama China Beach (1988) in which she played a hard-as-nails major. She continued with a host of guest parts on "L.A. Law," "Murphy Brown," "Picket Fences" and "Wings," among many others. Not readily known for her film work, she has nevertheless offered occasional arch support (since 1991) in such pictures as Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead (1991), Twenty Bucks (1993), Out to Sea (1997) Deep Impact (1998), The Muse (1999) and View from the Top (2003). Another hard-edged series TV role came with Providence (1999), in which she played a chain-smoking mom.
Plentifully seen on film and TV into the millennium, Concetta has been spotted in Purpose (2002), View from the Top (2003), The List (2007) and Reach (2018), while her offbeat TV guest credits include "Judging Amy," 7th Heaven," "The King of Queens," "Numb3rs," "Cold Case," "Nip/Tuck" and "Arrested Development." - Dan Fitzgerald was born on 30 December 1928 in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, USA. He was an actor, known for The Final Countdown (1980), In Her Shoes (2005) and Police Academy 5: Assignment: Miami Beach (1988). He was married to Dolores Stever. He died on 21 November 2017 in Miami, Florida, USA.
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Daniel Sunjata (born Daniel Sunjata Condon on December 30, 1971) is an American actor who performs in film, television and theater. He is best known for his role as "Franco Rivera" in the FX television series, Rescue Me (2004). Sunjata also starred as "Paul Briggs" in USA Network's series, Graceland (2013). Sunjata was born and grew up in Chicago, Illinois. He is the adopted son of Bill and Catherine Condon, a police dispatcher and a civil rights worker. He is of mixed African American, Irish, and German ancestry.- Dropped out of University of California, where she studied Anthropology, to make her acting debut in Zabriskie Point (1970). Following filming, she lived in the Mel Lyman-led Boston commune with her Zabriskie Point (1970) co-star Mark Frechette who, after robbing a bank, died in prison. In May 1972, she married Dennis Hopper.
Halprin studied with Fritz Perls, the creator of Gestalt Therapy, and she has a Master's in Psychology. She is co-founder (with her mother, Anna Halprin, a pioneering dance therapist/choreographer) and director of The Tamalpa Institute. Her mother was referred to as "the Martha Graham of the West". Her father, Lawrence Halprin, was a prominent landscape architect who hired former Department of the Interior Secretary Stewart L. Udall into his firm. - Writer
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Dave England was born on 30 December 1969 in Ojai, California, USA. He is a writer and actor, known for Jackass Forever (2022), Jackass Number Two (2006) and Jackass 3D (2010).- Actor
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Davy Jones left home to become a jockey. While he was an apprentice, he was encouraged to go into acting and got a role in a production of "Peter Pan". From there, he played on Coronation Street (1960) and The Pickwick Papers (1952) before landing the role of "The Artful Dodger" in "Oliver!". This job took him to America's Broadway, where he was discovered by Ward Sylvester and brought to Los Angeles. From there, he was given a role in The Monkees (1965). With this sitcom, he made 58 television episodes, 9 albums, a television special, and a movie before calling it quits in the early 1970s. In the mid-1970s, Davy rejoined fellow Monkee Micky Dolenz and songwriters Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart to make an album and do some touring. Davy had gone on to perform in more plays, including "The Real Live Brady Bunch" and "Oliver!" (again), and had also fulfilled his dream of becoming a jockey. He rejoined The Monkees for touring from 1986-89 and 1996-97. Davy Jones died at age 66 of a heart attack on February 29, 2012.- Débora Pérez Volpin was born on 30 December 1967 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She was an actress, known for Delirium (2014), Arriba Argentinos (2005) and Telenoche (1966). She was married to Enrique Sacco. She died on 6 February 2018 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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Born Charles Westover in Coopersville, Michigan, on December 30, 1934, rocker Del Shannon claimed legendary country-western singer Hank Williams as an early influence, but his first record was unadulterated rock: the classic "Runaway" in 1961, highlighted by Shannon's falsetto and keyboardist Max Crook's wailing Musitron (an invention of his). It shot to #1 in both the US and the UK. He had several follow-up hits, including "Hats Off to Larry" and "Little Town Flirt", but his last big hit came in 1965, with "Keep Searchin' ". His career decline didn't keep him from working, however, and he had a few modest hits, notably a cover of Bobby Freeman's "Do You Wanna Dance?". Shannon spent much of the late 1960s and early 1970s touring Great Britain, where he found a more receptive and admiring audience than he did in the US. In 1985 he had a minor hit on the US country music charts with "In My Arms Again". Shortly afterwards he began touring in rock-n-roll revival shows. On February 8, 1990, after battling a combination of drugs, alcohol and depression for years, he shot himself to death.- Actress
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Dennie Moore was born on 30 December 1902 in New York City, New York, USA. She was an actress, known for The Women (1939), The Model and the Marriage Broker (1951) and The Adventures of Jane Arden (1939). She died on 22 February 1978 in New York City, New York, USA.- Actor
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Eddie Mills is an American actor who was born in Concord, North Carolina in the early 1970's. Raised in the country, around lots of grass, trees and animals, Mills fantasized about Hollywood. The actors. The films. The lights. The excitement. After attending UNC Charlotte with a concentration in theater arts, Mills was approached by a talent agent and was taken off the farm and into the city. Now a veteran to the entertainment industry for 25 years, Eddie Mills has made his mark in Hollywood as an accomplished actor and producer. Fresh off the boat from North Carolina, Mills found his home very quickly in Los Angeles and soon found him self sharing the big screen with Oscar winners Jason Robards and Hillary Swank in a film called HEARTWOOD. From there, his career would include such films as DANCER TEXAS, Pop. 81'.... 'THE TRADE' with Elizabeth Banks, and for TV....'THE TEMPEST' with Peter Fonda and 'SABRINA GOES TO ROME" for the WONDERFUL WORLD OF DISNEY. Mills can also be seen recurring on the WB's DAWSON'S CREEK, and most recently DEVIOUS MAIDS for TNT. Many guest appearances on shows such as NASHVILLE, CSI-NY, HOUSE, CROSSING JORDAN, and WITHOUT A TRACE to name a few. He is soon to be seen in the upcoming family feature PAWS P.I. Mills currently resides in Los Angeles. Still pursuing his dreams.- Actress
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Eliza Dushku was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Judith (Rasmussen), a political science professor, and Philip R. Dushku, a teacher and administrator. Her father is Albanian and her mother is American (of Danish, Irish, English, and German descent). She was discovered at the end of a five-month search throughout the United States for the perfect girl to play the lead role of Alice opposite Juliette Lewis in the film That Night (1992). Since then, she has been in several films and has worked with actors such as Robert De Niro, Ellen Barkin, Leonardo DiCaprio, Paul Reiser, and Jim Belushi. Born in Boston on December 30, 1980, she has studied the piano, drums, and several types of dance (jazz, tap, and ballet). Her previous acting experience includes numerous amateur presentations at the Watertown Children's Theater where she was part of the company since she was in the first grade. In addition to acting, she is sometimes seen on stage at the Children's Theater signing for the deaf.- Actress
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Michigan native Ellen Sandweiss gained fame as one of the young cast members of The Evil Dead (1981). She first began her association with The Evil Dead (1981)'s director Sam Raimi and its star Bruce Campbell when she attended high school with them. Sandweiss appeared in some of Raimi's early Super 8 films, including Within the Woods (1978), the short film that Raimi and company used to interest investors in the feature-length version of The Evil Dead (1981). Sandweiss went on to play Cheryl, the sister of Bruce Campbell's Ash character, in the legendary horror flick. The Evil Dead (1981) was shot on a shoestring budget in Morristown, Tennessee, and it was a grueling production for all involved. When it was over, Sandweiss finished college and left her movie days behind her while The Evil Dead (1981) amassed a tremendous cult following. On the twentieth anniversary of the film's release, Sandweiss and her fellow The Evil Dead (1981) cast members Betsy Baker and Theresa Tilly began making public appearances under the name "Ladies of the Evil Dead". Soon after, Sandweiss made a return to horror films with a role in Satan's Playground (2006) which also starred another horror icon, Sleepaway Camp (1983)'s Felissa Rose.- Music Artist
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Elena Jane "Ellie" Goulding is an English singer-songwriter and record producer who conquered the UK music field at the age of 23 and went on to win over fans all over the world within a year. A determined child, at the age of eight, she told her mother that she would become famous one day. She learned to play musical instruments and began writing songs when she was still a teenager. She won a singing competition while in college, and went on to win the 'Brit Awards' with her signature brand of "folktronica" music following the release of her debut EP 'An Introduction to Ellie Goulding'. She immediately made an impact with her unique soprano voice. She has so far released three studio albums, 'Lights', 'Halcyon' and 'Delirium'. As a music and fashion icon, she has been featured on magazines, such as 'Elle' and 'Glamour' among others, and as a fitness enthusiast, she has appeared on the covers of magazines like 'Shape' and 'Women's Health'. A social activist and philanthropist, she has participated in many charity events, especially to support underprivileged children and homeless people.
Her father, Arthur Goulding, belonged to a family of undertakers while her mother, Tracey Goulding-Summers, worked at a supermarket.She is the second child of her parents and has an elder sister named Isabel, a brother named Alex and another sister named Jordan. Her brother, Alex, is a bass player and is part of a band in Hereford. Her father left the family when she was only five years old. Her mother later married a lorry driver, but they eventually separated. Ellie is so furious with her stepfather that she mentioned in an interview that she would punch him in the face if she meets him again. Her mother encouraged her to pursue music as a child. She learned to play the clarinet at the age of nine and started writing her own songs when she was 14. However, she took songwriting seriously only during her college days. While studying at the Lady Hawkins' High School in Kington, she played the role of the Scarecrow in a school production of 'The Wizard of Oz'. She would later pursue courses in drama, politics, and English at the University of Kent.
While studying at the University of Kent, Ellie Goulding became interested in electronic music. She contacted record producer Frankmusik via MySpace and with his help developed her own brand of "folktronica" music through the track 'Wish I Stayed'. During this time, she was discovered at a university talent contest by scout Jamie Lillywhite who started as her manager and later became the A&R. He introduced her to his superior, Sarah Stennett, who advised her to leave university and offered her a house in West London. Jamie soon introduced her to Starsmith, a record producer, who helped release her debut single 'Under the Sheets' on November 15, 2009 and later produced her album 'Lights'. She was already signed to Polydor Records in July, but they decided to release the song from independent label Neon Gold Records to reduce pressure on her. Soon after the release of her debut EP 'An Introduction to Ellie Goulding' on December 20, 2009, she was nominated for the 'Critics' Choice Award' at the 2010 'Brit Awards'. She won the award, as well as the 'BBC Sound of 2010' poll. During this time, she co-wrote three songs for Diana Vickers and one song for Gabriella Cilmi. On February 26, 2010, she released her first full-length album 'Lights', which debuted at number one on the 'UK Albums Chart'. It was followed by her second EP, 'Run into the Light', which contained remix of songs from 'Lights' and was released in August that year. She re-released her album 'Lights' in November 2010 as 'Bright Lights', which contained six new tracks. The album featured a cover version of Elton John: Your Song (1970) which reached number two on the 'UK Singles Chart'.On April 7, 2011, she appeared on American television for the first time on Jimmy Kimmel Live! (2003)' and performed Ellie Goulding: Starry Eyed, UK Version (2010). One month later, she appeared on Tina Fey/Ellie Goulding (2011) hosted by Tina Fey.On April 29, 2011, she performed at the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton, both of whom were her fans. On December 1, 2011, she performed at the White House during the National Christmas Tree lighting.October 5, 2012, Ellie Goulding released her second studio album 'Halcyon', which debuted at No.2 on the 'UK Albums Chart' and topped the chart in January 2014. She released an expanded version of the album, titled 'Halcyon Days', containing ten new tracks.- Erica Garner died on 30 December 2017 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA.
- Faye Marsay was born on 30 December 1986 in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Game of Thrones (2011), Pride (2014) and Andor (2022).
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A marvelous character actor with intense eyes, a sly grin and somewhat grizzled appearance, Golden Globe-winner Fred Ward had nearly 90 appearances under his belt in many tremendous films and television programs. He first became interested in acting after serving three years in the US Air Force and studied at New York's Herbert Berghof Studio. Ward then went to Europe, where he dubbed many Italian movies, and first appeared on-screen in two films by Roberto Rossellini. He then returned to the United States, and got his first decent role alongside Clint Eastwood in the nail-biting prison film Escape from Alcatraz (1979). Ward's looks often saw him cast as law enforcement or military characters, and he put in noteworthy performances in Southern Comfort (1981), Uncommon Valor (1983), as astronaut Gus Grissom in The Right Stuff (1983) and scored the lead in the interesting spy/martial arts movie Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985), which unfortunately was not as successful as had been the mega-selling series of Remo Williams books.
However, during "Remo", Ward demonstrated a great knack for comedic timing and satirical performance, and this ability was used to great effect in several films, including playing Kevin Bacon's fellow giant-worm-fighting handyman in the light-hearted sci-fi hit Tremors (1990), as "Walter Stuckel" in Robert Altman's The Player (1992), as TV anchorman "Chip Daley" in Tim Robbins' razor-sharp political satire Bob Roberts (1992) and as a vicious, but incompetent, gangster menacing Leslie Nielsen in Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994).
Ward's abilities as both a supporting player and truly versatile character actor ensured that he would be in steady demand, and he continued to turn up in a wide variety of roles utilizing his skills. Keep an eye out for Fred Ward in the action-filled The Chaos Factor (2000), as David Spade's dad in Joe Dirt (2001), in the tongue-in-cheek Corky Romano (2001) and in the Reese Witherspoon romantic tale Sweet Home Alabama (2002). His last three films were more action-oriented, Armored (2009), [link=tt1622547, and 2 Guns (2013), and he subsequently mostly retired from acting until his death in 2022.- Actor
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George Newbern is an American actor from Little Rock, Arkansas known for voicing Superman in various DC cartoons and video games starting with 2001's Justice League and playing Charlie from Scandal. He also acted in Father of the Bride and provided the voice of Sephiroth from Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children and Kingdom Hearts II.- Actor
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Glyn Dearman was born on 30 December 1939 in Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England, UK. He was an actor and director, known for A Christmas Carol (1951), Billy Bunter of Greyfriars School (1952) and Four Sided Triangle (1953). He was married to Susan MacDonald. He died on 30 November 1997 in Westminster, London, England, UK.- Gordon Banks OBE (30 December 1937 - 12 February 2019) was an English professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Widely regarded as one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time, he made 679 appearances during a 20-year professional career, and won 73 caps for England, highlighted by starting every game of the nation's 1966 World Cup victory.
Banks joined Chesterfield in March 1953, and played for their youth team in the 1956 FA Youth Cup final. He made his first team debut in November 1958, and was sold to Leicester City for £7,000 in July 1959. He played in four cup finals for the club, as they were beaten in the 1961 and 1963 FA Cup finals, before winning the League Cup in 1964 and finishing as finalists in 1965. Despite this success, and his World Cup win in 1966, Banks was dropped by Leicester and sold on to Stoke City for £50,000 in April 1967. In the 1970 World Cup, he made one of the game's great saves to prevent a Pelé goal, but was absent due to illness as England were beaten by West Germany at the quarter-final stage.
Banks was Stoke City's goalkeeper in the 1972 League Cup win, the club's only major honor. He was still Stoke's and England's number one when a car crash in October 1972 cost him both the sight in his right eye and, eventually, his professional career. He played two last seasons in the United States for the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in 1977 and 1978, and despite only having vision in one eye, was NASL Goalkeeper of the Year in 1977 after posting the best defensive record in the league. He briefly entered management with Telford United, but left the game in December 1980.
Banks was named FWA Footballer of the Year in 1972, and was named FIFA Goalkeeper of the Year on six occasions. The IFFHS named Banks the second-best goalkeeper of the 20th century, after Lev Yashin (1st) and ahead of Dino Zoff (3rd) - Actress
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Heidi Fleiss was born on 30 December 1965 in Los Feliz, California, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for Pauly Shore Is Dead (2003), The Doom Generation (1995) and Alien 51 (2004).- Actor
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Hubert Koundé was born on 30 December 1970. He is an actor and director, known for La haine (1995), The Constant Gardener (2005) and Menhir - C'est citer (1998).- Actor
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Jack Lord will probably be best remembered as Steve McGarrett in the long running television series Hawaii Five-O (1968), but he was much more than that however. He starred in several movies, directed several episodes of his show, was in several Broadway productions, and was an accomplished artist. Two of his paintings were acquired by New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art and the British Museum of Modern Art by the time he was twenty. Lord was also known for being a very cultured man who loved reading poetry out loud on the set of his TV show and as being somewhat reclusive at his Honolulu home. He met his son from his first marriage, who was killed in an accident when he was thirteen, only once as a baby.- Actor
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Cleveland-born comedy actor Jack Riley (on December 30, 1935) switched his career interest from baseball to acting after obtaining a radio job, writing and performing skits while attending John Carroll University. He toured military bases throughout the world in comedy shows after being drafted in the Army in 1958.
Following his discharge, he returned to radio and became one of Cleveland's top personalities before setting his sights on film and TV. Receiving a break from old radio pal Tim Conway, Jack headed west and began writing material especially for Tim for assorted TV guest appearances. He also performed in radio commercials.
Soon Riley was working in front of the camera, his first role being a regular part on the sitcom Occasional Wife (1966). Other parts soon came his way on various '60s laughfests, including Hogan's Heroes (1965), I Dream of Jeannie (1965) and especially Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (1967) where both his writing and performing skills were utilized. It was also on "Laugh-In" that he met future wife Ginger Lawrence, the producer's assistant at the time. The slim actor sought out films in the '70s with roles in Catch-22 (1970), McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971), The Long Goodbye (1973), and Attack of the Killer Tomatoes! (1978). He also became a minor staple in Mel Brooks's spoofs, with Silent Movie (1976), High Anxiety (1977) and History of the World: Part I (1981) to his credit.
TV gave Jack his best shot, especially as the dry, terminally-depressed Elliot Carlin on The Bob Newhart Show (1972), where his hilariously morose character proved a constant scene-stealer. Along with continued guest roles in Night Court (1984), Seinfeld (1989), and others, he appeared on stage occasionally; of note he played comedian Fred Allen in "Mr. Allen, Mr. Allen".
Into the millennium, Jack focused mostly on TV and voiceover work on cartoons and Rugrats video games. On-camera appearances included voicing the Stu Pickles character in two animated series: Rugrats (1991) and All Grown Up! (2003). He also had a recurring role on the sitcom Son of the Beach (2000) and made guest appearances on "Lucky," "That 70's Show," "Avenging Angel" and "Easy to Assemble." He last appeared on feature film in the horror thriller Room 6 (2006).
Jack passed away in Los Angeles from pneumonia at the age of 80. He was survived by his wife and two children.- Jacky Imbert was born on 30 December 1929 in Toulouse, France. He was married to Christine. He died on 11 November 2019 in Aix-en-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône, France.
- Ravishing redhead knockout Jaime Faith Edmondson was born on December 30, 1978 in Bartow, Florida. She stems from a family of police officers. Edmondson grew up in Georgia until she was five years old. Jaime moved to South Florida with her mother and stepfather. She attended North East High School in Oakland Park, Florida. Jaime graduated from Florida Atlantic University with a degree in Criminal Justice in 2002. Edmondson worked the night shift as a police officer in Baco Raton, Florida for two years. She eventually quit the police force so she could become a cheerleader for the Miami Dolphins. Edmondson and fellow Miami Dolphins cheerleader Cara Rosenthal were participants in the competitive reality TV series "The Amazing Race 14." Jaime was the Playmate of the Month in the January, 2010 issue of "Playboy." An avid animal lover, Edmondson does volunteer work at a non-profit shelter for dogs.
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James Burrows was born on 30 December 1940 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is a director and producer, known for Cheers (1982), Will & Grace (1998) and Taxi (1978). He has been married to Debbie Easton since 1997. He was previously married to Linda Solomon.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Jason Nathaniel Behr was born on December 30, 1973 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Patricia Ann (Steiner) and David Paul Behr. His ancestry includes Swiss-German, German, Austrian, Irish, English, and Danish. Jason began acting at the age of five, appearing in a number of theatrical productions, commercials, voice overs and modeling. Jason continued to perform throughout his school years. At the age of nineteen, following his graduation from Richfield Senior High School, Jason moved out to Los Angeles. Shortly after his arrival, Jason began a series of guest roles on popular television shows such as Step by Step (1991), JAG (1995), Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997), 7th Heaven (1996) and Dawson's Creek (1998). In 1998, Jason made his film debut in the film Pleasantville (1998), starring Reese Witherspoon, Tobey Maguire and William H. Macy. This role was followed up by another role in the indie film Rites of Passage (1999), opposite James Remar and Dean Stockwell, where Jason garnered praised for his portrayal of a young homosexual male. Jason was cast in his first leading role on the television series Roswell (1999) playing "Max Evans". The show ran from 1999 to 2002. In 2001, Jason appeared alongside Kevin Spacey, Cate Blanchett and Judi Dench in The Shipping News (2001). The role earned him a Movieline Award for Standout performance. Jason continued to appear in indie films such as Happily Even After (2004), an independent film which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City. More indie films followed, including Happily Even After (2004), Shooting Livien (2005), Man of God (2005), Senseless (2008) and The Tattooist (2007). In 2005, Jason starred opposite former "Buffy" star Sarah Michelle Gellar in the supernatural thriller The Grudge (2004). Most recently, Jason finished two unaired pilots for the Fox and NBC networks, respectively. He completed another indie film, 'The Last International Playboy", which played at both the Slamdance and Gen Art film festivals and was released in select theaters on July 12, 2009.
Jason married actress KaDee Strickland in 2006. The couple have a son, Atticus.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
The world met Jason Dottley in 2008 when he starred as "Ty WIlliamson" in Sordid Lives: The Series in 16 countries around the world with Rue McClanahan, Caroline Rhea and Olivia Newton-John.
After starring on TV, there was another dream Dottley had, to have a hit record. Over the past 4 years, Dottley has had 3 Top 25 Billboard records, 1 UK Top 10 Dance hit and as of the summer of 2013, Dottley just finished an 11-week run on Billboard with "It's Our Night" which became his first UK Top 20 Pop hit single. All records combined, Dottley has spent 44 weeks on Billboard's Charts.
Dottley is also an award-winning theatre producer. He won the most prestigious Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle "Best World Premiere Play" Award for producing Del Shores' "Yellow." He has produced and starred in major national tours with icons Rue McClanahan, Delta Burke, Caroline Rhea and Georgette Jones.
His stage work began professionally in Terrence McNally's "Lisbon Traviata" in Los Angeles. His performance was tagged "Letter-perfect" by the LA Times. He starred in a nine month run of "Sordid Lives" in Los Angeles, later starring in its national tour, all to incredible critical review.
In 2015, Dottley is busier than ever preparing to film a feature titled "Husband-In-Law" in late summer, touring a 40+ city tour with his first full length one-man show "Life on the Gay-List", and releasing his fifth official single, a cover of Madonna's iconic love ballad from the 80's "Crazy For You."- Actor
- Composer
- Director
Jason Kay was born in Stretford, England, on December 30, 1969. After moving to East London with his mother Karen Kay, a jazz singer, in his teens, Jay found himself homeless after a fight with his mum. Jay became involved in the street culture and took on many jobs in order to get by.
After an unsuccessful audition to become the new lead singer for The Brand New Heavies, Jay formed his own band with Stuart Zender, Toby Smith, Nick Van Gelder and Wallis Buchanan (although the line up has now changed significantly). Their first album as Jamiroquai, 1993's Emergency on Planet Earth, was a hit, and the band's latest - and fifth- album, A Funk Odyssey (2001) was a huge success.- Jazmyn Simon was born in San Francisco, California, USA. Jazmyn is an actor, known for Ballers (2015), Ed (2017) and Acrimony (2018). Jazmyn has been married to Dulé Hill since 21 April 2018. They have one child.
- Jean Fergusson was born on 30 December 1944 in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Last of the Summer Wine (1973), Run for Your Wife (2012) and Coronation Street (1960). She died on 14 November 2019.
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Born in 1911, Jeanette Nolan began her acting career in the Pasadena Community Playhouse. While still a student at Los Angeles City College, she made her radio debut in 1932, aged 20, in "Omar Khayyam", the first transcontinental broadcast from station KHJ. Her film debut was probably also her best part: Lady Macbeth opposite director/actor Orson Welles's Macbeth (1948). Her final film role was as Tom Booker (Robert Redford)'s mother, Ellen Booker, in The Horse Whisperer (1998).
She appeared in more than 300 television shows, including episode roles in Perry Mason (1957), I Spy (1965), MacGyver (1985), Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955), and as a regular on The Richard Boone Show (1963) and The Virginian (1962). She received four Emmy nominations.
Nolan died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, in 1998, aged 86, following a stroke.- Actor
- Composer
- Music Department
Jeff Lynne was born on 30 December 1947 in Birmingham, England, UK. He is an actor and composer, known for Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991), Super 8 (2011) and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017). He has been married to Camelia Lynne since 19 September 2017. He was previously married to Sandi Kapelson and Rosemary Adams.- Actress
- Producer
Actress and philanthropist Jena Michelle Sims was born on December 30th, 1988 in Winder, Georgia USA. This small town beauty queen has shared the screen with Morgan Freeman, Robert De Niro and Jeremy Renner, to name a few. Her internationally award-winning non-profit organization holds events, called "Pageants of Hope", giving children facing challenges the chance to escape the hospital life and celebrate inner-beauty, crowning everyone Prince or Princesses. She is best- known for Last Vegas (2013), Attack of the 50 Foot Cheerleader (2012) and Dead Reckoning (2013).- Jillian Harris was born on 30 December 1979 in Peace River, Alberta, Canada.
- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Casting Director
Joel Swetow was born on 30 December 1951 in New York City, New York, USA. He is an actor and casting director, known for Alice in Wonderland (2010), Charmed (1998) and Lord of Illusions (1995).- Johanna Sällström was born on December 30, 1974 in Stockholm, Sweden. In 1997 she won the award Guldbaggen for best female leading role in the movie Under ytan (1997), which became her big breakthrough. Getting tired off all the interest around herself she moved to Denmark where she worked at a café shop, but in year 2000 she went back to Sweden and continued her acting career. She was best known for playing the police agent Linda Wallander in Wallander (2005). Even though Johanna Sällström often played tough on the screen, it is said she was much more shy and quiet in her private life.
Sällström was found dead by the police at her home in Malmö, Sweden on 13th of February 2007. - Writer
- Producer
- Director
John D.F. Black was born on 30 December 1932 in the USA. He was a writer and producer, known for Star Trek (1966), Mr. Novak (1963) and Shaft (1971). He was married to Mary Black. He died on 29 November 2018.- Actor
- Soundtrack
John Litel's tough, no-nonsense demeanor on screen was not entirely due to his skill as an actor--when World War I broke out he enlisted in the French army, not wanting to wait until the US entered, and was twice decorated for bravery. Returning to the US after the war, he enrolled in the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and toured with various stage companies, making his film debut in 1929. He was one of what was called the "Warner Bros. Stock Company" in the 1930s--with such character actors as Ward Bond, Frank McHugh, Joan Blondell, George Tobias, Henry O'Neill and Alan Hale, among others--and he appeared in dozens of films there, often as a tough police captain, hard-nosed district attorney, no-nonsense business executive and other such authority figures. He could also convincingly play villains, as when he played the evil "Scorpion" in the classic serial Don Winslow of the Navy (1942). Always a solid, dependable character actor, Litel appeared in more than 200 films, sometimes playing leads but mainly as a supporting actor. From 1952-53 he played Robert Cummings' brooding boss Mr. Thackery in the NBC-TV sitcom My Hero (1952).- Actor
- Producer
José Slavin was born in 1930 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He was an actor and producer, known for La guerra del cerdo (1975), Los siete locos (1973) and La madre María (1974). He died on 22 December 1977 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.- Actor
- Writer
- Director
Before signing with director Stanley Donen to play Michael Caine's libidinous best friend in Blame It on Rio (1984), Joe Bologna netted rave reviews for his Sid Caesar send-up in the well-received comedy My Favorite Year (1982) with Peter O'Toole. Well known as both a writer and an actor, Bologna dates his interest in the theater from his student days at Brown University, when a casting notice called for "non-actor" types to fill roles in a stage production of "Stalag 17." He landed the leading part but did not act again for ten years. Bologna graduated from Brown with a degree in art history, and a tour with the Marines followed. When he was discharged from the service, he started directing short films and writing special comedy material. "A monologue is the hardest thing in the world to write, because you're only as good as your last joke," explains Bologna. "That's why comedians are so neurotic." Bologna made his Broadway debut as the star and co-author of the comedy smash "Lovers and Other Strangers." Together with his wife Renée Taylor, he wrote and starred in Made for Each Other (1971). His other film credits include roles in Cops and Robbers (1973), Honor Thy Father (1973), The Big Bus (1976) and Chapter Two (1979). He also co-starred with Taylor in the Emmy-winning television special Acts of Love and Other Comedies (1973), which they wrote together, and then starred in the made-for-television movie Torn Between Two Lovers (1979) with Lee Remick, before reuniting with Taylor in the critically acclaimed Broadway hit "It Had To Be You." From there it was back to television for the CBS TV movie One Cooks, the Other Doesn't (1983) with Suzanne Pleshette. In 1991 he starred with Matt LeBlanc in Top of the Heap (1991), a spin-off from the hit series Married... with Children (1987), but it didn't click with audiences the way "MWC" did and was canceled rather quickly.- Actor
- Producer
Josh Sussman was born in Teaneck, New Jersey, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Glee (2009), Wizards of Waverly Place (2007) and Tangerine (2015).- Juanito Montalvo was born in 1945 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He died on 30 December 2015 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
- Actress
- Producer
Kelli Maroney is an American actress whose career spans several decades, with 72 production credits, including 31+ films and over 540 hours of television. She first came to recognition as the bad seed Lolita "Kimberly Harris" in the ABC Daytime drama Ryan's Hope, winning the plum role only two weeks after arriving in NYC to attend classes at The National Shakespeare Company Conservatory. She soon found herself acting opposite the likes of Joan Fontaine and Christopher Reeve as they made guest appearances on the show. She went on to take over the role of sex-kitten manipulator "Tina Lord" on ABC's One Life to Live. Kelli also gained notice for her portrayal of the exasperated cheerleader "Cindy Carr/Spirit Bunny" in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, a film that for many epitomized the 80s. Today Kelli's cheerleader costume is on display in the Universal Studios Museum. Strong female leading roles, notably MAC-10-toting cheerleader "Samantha Belmont" in the zombie apocalypse classic Night of The Comet, the sweet Killbot-slaying "Alison Parks" in Choppin Mall, "Jamie" in the underground slasher The Zero Boys, teen psychotic-killer "Jolene" in Slayground, and several other well-received films quickly earned Kelli her seat at the table as a Final Girl in the horror genre. She also guest-starred in a variety of prime-time ABC, NBC, and CBS shows, including the ever-popular Murder, She Wrote. Kelli has said that her most fulfilling role to date is the schizophrenic femme fatale "Merrie/Meredith" in Showtime's noir thriller Face Down (written and directed by Night of the Comet's Thom Eberhardt), playing opposite Joe Mantegna, J.K. Simmons, and Adam Ant. Other streaming highlights include Kelli's channeling Tammy Faye Baker on HBO's True Blood and playing herself in Adult Swim's Tim and Eric's Awesome Show-Great Job! alongside Patrick Duffy. Current on-demand films include Scare Package II on Shudder, The Wild Man, and Exorcism at 60,000 Feet (with horror icons Lance Henriksen, Adrienne Barbeau, and Bill Moseley), The Deep Ones (a modernized film adaptation of an H.P. Lovecraft story) Night Caller, (the 70s-inspired shocker with Steve Railsback and Lew Temple), and Sorority Babes in the Slimeball Bowl-o-Rama II. Slated for release in 2023 include The Wild Man, Scalper, The Old Ones, and Staycation, a film in which she both appears and has a co-producer credit. Kelli's first job as executive co-producer was the 1999 festival award-winning short film Sam and Mike (in which she also co-starred). The experience ignited her love of film festivals, and she remains deeply committed to championing independent filmmakers. Her work from 2019 to the present has garnered festival awards in and for short films and full-length features which include Best Actress (Kelli Maroney) Best Ensemble Cast, Best Film, and other department-specific awards for creative teams. Kelli is featured in CNN's The Movies: The 80s! She is also interviewed in six documentaries: In Search of Darkness: I, II, and III; Time Warp: The Greatest Cult Films of All Time; Direct to Video: A Study of the Independent Film Scene of the 1990s; and Mental Health and Horror: A Documentary, debuting in 2023. Kelli is a strong advocate for mental health awareness and animal welfare. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, Dan Ulin, and two rescue cats.- Actor
- Producer
- Script and Continuity Department
Khalid Abdalla was born on 30 December 1980 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He is an actor and producer, known for The Kite Runner (2007), United 93 (2006) and The Square (2013). He is married to Cressida Trew.- Kim Hae-sook was born on 30 December 1955 in Busan, South Korea. She is an actress, known for Thirst (2009), The Handmaiden (2016) and The Thieves (2012). She is married to Kim Gab Soo. They have two children.
- Actress
- Stunts
Kristen Nikole Deluca is the oldest of her two siblings, Erika and Joey, and the daughter of Sherri and Joe DeLuca. She was raised in the small town of Brunswick, Ohio where she was in front of audiences and cameras at the early age of three, being a competitive gymnast, cheerleader and dancer. She competed in Beauty Pageants, Miss Teen Ohio being one, and also won over the hearts of her classmates in High School by Winning the title of Homecoming Queen of the Junior Class. She moved to Tampa, Florida at age eighteen, where she graduated "Cum Laude" in the top 10% of her class with a B.S. in Criminology from the University of South Florida in 2005, and was a member of several prestigious National and International Honor Societies. She relocated to Los Angeles to fulfill her dream of succeeding in ShowBiz, where she now lives and works as a television and film actress, model, and professional host for educational programming. Kristen has made quite a name for herself over the years and is also recognized by many fans worldwide from her social networking websites. When she has a goal in mind for herself, there is no stopping her!- Actress
- Producer
Kristin Kreuk was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, to Deanna Che, who is of Chinese ancestry, and Peter Kreuk, who is of Dutch descent. Her parents are landscape architects. She attended and graduated from Eric Hamber Secondary School. Although she did some stage work in school, she focused more on her studies. She described herself as shy and boring.
For her first professional work, she went to an open casting audition for Edgemont (2000), a teen drama series aired on CBC Television in Canada. She plays the role as "Laurel Yeung". Laurel was the last main character to be cast because the casting director was having a problem finding an actress. Fortunately, for them (and us), they found Kristin just in time.
Her career was set to take off when she landed on the highly acclaimed serial drama series for The WB, Smallville (2001). It follows the story of "Clark Kent" in his pre-Superman days in a small town of Smallville, Kansas. Kreuk played the role as "Lana Lang", Clark Kent's object of desire before he meets "Lois Lane".
Smallville (2001) proved to be a giant step for Kristin's acting career, as she landed several interviews with several magazines, including YM (Young and Modern) and Rolling Stone. She also did a commercial for Neutrogena, popular for its skin care products.- LAILA ALI TV Personality, Wellness & Fitness Expert, Cooking Enthusiast Four-Time Undefeated Boxing Champion, Beauty & Lifestyle Brand CEO, Best-Selling Author, Inspirational Speaker, Podcast Host, Actress, Mom & Wife
Laila Ali is a world-class athlete, fitness & wellness expert, TV host, cooking enthusiast, founder of the Laila Ali Lifestyle Brand, and mother of two. The youngest daughter of late beloved global icon and humanitarian, Muhammad Ali, she is a two-time hall of famer and four-time undefeated boxing world champion, whose stellar record includes 24 wins (21 of which were "knockouts") and zero losses. Laila is heralded as the most successful female in the history of women's boxing. In 2012 when women's boxing was included in the Olympics for the first time in history, Laila was the first woman in history to provide expert commentary for NBC Sports.
A cooking enthusiast, Laila previously appeared twice on Food Network's celebrity edition of "Chopped" and emerged victorious as the champion. Continuing her passion in the cooking space, Laila hosted the FYI Network food truck competition series "Late Night Chef Fight." Laila is a favorite guest on daytime shows such as Rachael Ray, The Chew, and she's prepared her famous "oven baked fried chicken" on Steve Harvey's hit daytime talk show.
She is the host of OWN Emmy award-winning series, "Home Made Simple with Laila Ali" and the author of the best-selling cookbook, "Food For Life: Delicious & Healthy Comfort Food From My Table To Yours!" A major source of the inspiration for Laila writing this particular cookbook was her desire to show people how they could enjoy healthier and more nutritious versions of their favorite foods without having to compromise taste.
Ignited by her passion for an active lifestyle and wanting to share this with her millions of supporters, Laila created her own lifestyle blog LailaAliLifestyle where she regularly shares her personal workout regimens, recipes, DIY ideas, family tips, and so much more! One of her favorite passion projects is the massively downloaded weekly "healthy lifestyle" podcast series she launched on the PodcastOne Network in 2017. Laila is also the three-time host of the televised ESPN Sports Humanitarian Awards.
Laila has been an outspoken voice and regular contributor for the CBS Sports Network's new all- female sports commentary program, "We Need to Talk," the first of its kind in the history of sports broadcasting. For multiple seasons she hosted "Everyday Health" airing in national syndication on ABC, in addition to being the previous co-host of "American Gladiators" and former host of "All-In With Laila Ali," which aired in weekend syndication on CBS.
Laila is a past President of the Women's Sports Foundation, a non-profit organization that is supported by many of the biggest athletes in the world. Through the WSF Laila promotes equality for women in the world of professional sports, and is an advocate for programs that encourage young women to be confident, healthy and strong through sports. Laila was a major voice for the 40th anniversary of Title IX, which protects women's rights to be included and treated equally in collegiate sports. Always eager to encourage others to live an active lifestyle, Laila Ali was the 2012 "Mombassador" for the Aquaphor New York City Triathlon, a competition she actually participated in and completed impressively in a little more than 3 hours. Laila has also appeared as a guest-star on popular fitness shows, "Biggest Loser" and "The Revolution."
Laila tickled America's funny bone with multiple hilarious roles as Kevin Hart's boxing nemesis on the hit comedic series, "Real Husbands of Hollywood." In 2014 she made her feature film-acting debut as the co-star of the action movie, "Falcon Rising," opposite martial arts star, Michael Jai White.
Never one to turn down a good challenge, she captured the hearts of millions and made it to the final round of the fourth season of ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" in 2007.
A recognizable and trusted figure whose name and likeness packs a powerful punch, Laila has been an endorser for major brands such Subway, Kohl's, Dannon's Activia and most recently, TJMAXX. Carefully building a successful branding and licensing empire, (a former owner and operator of a successful nail salon in southern California) Laila successfully launched a signature line of hair styling tools with Hot Tools, a brand subsidiary of hair care powerhouse, Helen of Troy.
With philanthropy at her core, Laila is a major supporter of charitable organizations such as Feeding America, Children's Hospital and Peace 4 Kids. Laila is extremely proud of the work she has done on behalf of the American Dental Association to create oral health awareness for children and she is equally proud to be an ongoing supporter and partner with the American Heart Association. This partnership supports Laila's belief in being heart healthy and assists in the facilitation of much needed awareness about heart disease and strokes in communities most affected by these illnesses.
Laila is a sought after inspirational speaker and author. She has keynoted speaking events at Harvard University, North Carolina A&T and has spoken to thousands of executives at leadership conferences for multi-billion dollar corporate brands around the world. Her life's story is chronicled in a dynamic book for young women entitled "Reach!" which has just been re-released to the public.
Laila studied business management at Santa Monica College. She enjoys life in the Los Angeles area with her husband, former NFL star and current sports TV analyst, Curtis Conway, and their two young children, Curtis Jr. (son) and Sydney (daughter). - Producer
- Writer
- Actor
LeBron James is an American basketball player and film producer who played for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers. He is one of the most accomplished basketball players of the 21st century. He played himself in Space Jam: A New Legacy and Trainwreck. He is the owner of a film production company called SpringHill Company.- Manager
- Casting Director
- Producer
Manager/Producer at Citizen Skull, I now represent actors, and produce films. Co-Director/Producer at Miss World America. Entrepreneur: Owned/ Sold Miss Great Britain twice 2005-2006, 2009-2011. BBC 3 Nations Nominated Creative Producer. 2004 Creator/ Producer Numberplate Heaven TV show for Sky Men & Motors. Own newspaper column Wales on Sunday. Produced in excess of 30 Tv shows for SKY TV Dating Channel. Had own Jewelry line 'Inspire' on Shopping TV. Partner/ Sold shares in Electra Star Model agency. Former Miss Great Britain 1997. 22 years TV Host Liz was represented by IMG.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Stanley Lloyd Kaufman never really wanted to make movies, he wanted to work in Broadway musicals. During his years in Yale he was introduced to "B" pictures and the works of Roger Corman. Lloyd later got the opportunity to executive-produce a short movie made by a fellow student. The film, called "Rappacini", got him even more interested in movies. He bought his own camera and took it with him to Chad, Africa, were he spent his summer. There, he shot a 15-minute film of a pig being slaughtered. That was his first movie, and was the birth of what was later to become known as Troma Films. He showed the footage of the squealing pig being killed to his family, and their reaction to it made him wonder if making movies that shocked audiences would keep them in their seats to see what would happen next.
He wanted to be a director right then and there, so he got a couple of friends at Yale and made his second movie, The Girl Who Returned (1969). People loved it, and he went straight to work on other films, helping out on projects like Joe (1970), Rocky (1976) and Saturday Night Fever (1977).
Lloyd put in a lot of long, hard hours in the film business, just to be in the credits and to get money for his next project, a full-length feature. It was a tribute to Charles Chaplin, Harold Lloyd and the classic era of silent-film comedy. Even though Lloyd hated the movie when it was completed, people seemed to love it. He formed a studio called 15th Street Films with friends and producers Frank Vitale and Oliver Stone. Together, they made Sugar Cookies (1973) and Cry Uncle (1971), directed by John G. Avildsen. A friend from Yale, Michael Herz, saw Lloyd in a small scene in "Cry Uncle" and contacted him to try to get into the film business. Kaufman took Herz in, as the company needed some help after Oliver Stone quit to make his own movies. Michael invested in a film they thought would be their biggest hit yet, Schwartz: The Brave Detective (1973) (aka "Big Gus, What's the Fuss?"). It turned out to be a huge flop and 15th Street Films was ruined. Lloyd and Michael owed thousands of dollars to producers and friends and family members who had invested in the picture.
Lloyd, trying to find a quick way to pay off the bills, made The Divine Obsession (1976), and with Michael formed Troma Studios, hoping to make some decent movies, since they only owned the rights to films they thought were poor. They were introduced to Joel M. Reed, who had an unfinished movie called "Master Sardu and the Horror Trio". The film was re-edited and completed at Troma Studios (which consisted of just one room) during 1975, re-titled and released in 1976 as Blood Sucking Freaks (1976) (aka "Bloodsucking Freaks"). It was enough of a success to enable them to pay the rent so they wouldn't lose the company.
Lloyd later got a call from a theater that wanted a "sexy movie" like The Divine Obsession (1976), but about softball (!). The resulting film, Squeeze Play (1979), used up all the money Troma had earned from "Bloodsucking Freaks" and, as it turned out, no one wanted to see it--not even the theater owner who wanted it made in the first place (he actually wanted a porno movie). Just when things looked their darkest, they got a call from another theater which was scheduled to show a film, but the distributor pulled it at the last minute. Troma rushed "Squeeze Play" right over, and it turned out to be a huge hit. Lloyd, Michael and Troma eventually made millions from it, and had enough money to buy their own building (which remains as Troma Headquarters). Troma then turned out a stream of "sexy" comedies-- Waitress! (1982), The First Turn-On!! (1983), Stuck on You! (1983)--but there was a glut of "T&A" films on the market. Lloyd noticed that a lot of comedies were being made and decided to make one, but much different than the rest. After reading an article that claimed horror movies were dead, Lloyd got the idea to combine both horror and comedy, and Troma came up with "Health Club Horror"--later re-titled and released as The Toxic Avenger (1984), a monster hit that finally put Troma on the map.
Lloyd Kaufman and Troma have become icons in the cult-movie world, and Troma has distributed over 1000 films. Lloyd has continued his career as a director in addition to producing, and Troma has turned out such films as Monster in the Closet (1986), Class of Nuke 'Em High (1986), Combat Shock (1984), Troma's War (1988), and Fortress of Amerikkka (1989), and Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead (2006), which follows an army of undead chickens as they seek revenge on a fast food palace.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Louis Greatorex was born on 30 December 1996 in Derby, England, UK. He is an actor and director, known for Masters of the Air (2024), Last Tango in Halifax (2012) and Layla (2024).- Louise Monot was born on 30 December 1981 in Paris, France. She is an actress, known for OSS 117: Lost in Rio (2009), Little White Lies (2010) and Un amour à taire (2005).
- Actress
- Writer
- Producer
Lucy Punch grew up in London and was a member of the National Youth Theatre in her late teens before going to University College London to read History. While she was there she auditioned for TV roles and eventually dropped out to concentrate on acting.
She learned a lot, she says, from working on the short-lived TV series Let Them Eat Cake (1999) with Jennifer Saunders and Dawn French and although she has played many serious roles on TV and in film since, it's her comic skills that have shone.
After several years of steady TV and film work at home, she moved to Los Angeles in the mid-2000s and soon found work there on another short-lived comedy show, The Class (2006) and has stayed in the US ever since, appearing on TV and in movies to increasing acclaim.- Macon McCalman was born on 30 December 1932 in Memphis, Tennessee, USA. He was an actor, known for Smokey and the Bandit (1977), Fried Green Tomatoes (1991) and Deliverance (1972). He died on 29 November 2005 in Memphis, Tennessee, USA.
- Actor
- Composer
Magín Díaz was born on 30 December 1922 in Gamero, Mahates, Colombia. He was an actor and composer, known for Déjala Morir 'La Niña Emilia' (2017) and Magín Díaz, el Orisha de la Rosa (2018). He died on 28 November 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.- Camera and Electrical Department
- Additional Crew
Marc Hauser was born in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He is known for Mad Dog and Glory (1993) and Falling from Grace (1992). He died on 30 December 2018 in Chicago, Illinois, USA.- Matt was educated at Ohio University, Athens, Ohio where he majored in communications. He was hired for internship and quit school in 1979 - four credits shy of graduation. Matt later obtained the degree in 1997 by writing a paper on work experience and delivering the commencement address. Matt's first wife was Nancy Alspaugh, born in 1955, a TV producer. Matt was briefly engaged to Kristen Gesswein, a newscaster. They were together from 1989-96. Matt's current wife is Dutch born model Annette Roque (aka Jade Roque). They have been together since the summer of 1997. They were married October 3, 1998. Matt's father's name is Robert Lauer. He was a retired bicycle-company executive who divorced from Lauer's mother. He died of cancer in 1997 at age 74. Matt's mother's name is Marilyn Kolmer, who is a boutique owner and a former model. She remarried to Richard Kolmer who is Matt's stepfather. Marilyn's father, Matt's grandfather, is Art Gentry, a singer. Matt has a sister whose name is April Lauer Stone. April was born in 1953 and is married with two children. In 1999 Matt won a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Class Program, 1998 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
- Actress
- Producer
- Director
Maureen Flannigan was born on 30 December 1973 in Inglewood, California, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for Out of This World (1987), Northern Exposure (1990) and Starved (2005).- Camera and Electrical Department
Maurice Oldham was born on 30 December 1958 in Princeton, New Jersey, USA. He is known for Woman Thou Art Loosed (2004) and A Guy Walks Into a Bar (1997). He was married to Kimberly Elise. He died on 21 May 2007 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Meredith Leigh Monroe was born in Houston, Texas, and was raised in Hinsdale, Illinois. Before acting, Meredith appeared on packaging for such products like a Conair hair crimper and was on five book covers in the Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys series. She made her TV debut in 1996 with a commercial for Tylenol Sinus. Her appearance as Tracey Daiken on ABC's Dangerous Minds (1996) secured her first role in a television series. Her exposure resulted in her landing the part of Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder in Beyond the Prairie, Part 2: The True Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder (2002). Although the completed project was not released until 2002, Meredith was not absent from television screens for long, playing the part of troubled teenager Andie McPhee in 1998 on the WB's Dawson's Creek (1998) for three seasons (Episodes 201 to 407). Although Meredith left the show in 2000, when her character left to spend a year in Italy before attending Harvard University on early acceptance; her character was so well-received that she returned later in the season to film the graduation episode (Episode 422). Since her departure, Meredith has enjoyed success in film (ABC'S The One (2003) and a small appearance in Minority Report (2002)), and has now landed a major part in ABC's TV series, Married to the Kellys (2003), where she co-stars with Road Trip (2000) star, Breckin Meyer.
- Producer
- Actress
- Executive
Meredith Vieira was born on 30 December 1953 in Providence, Rhode Island, USA. She is a producer and actress, known for Get Him to the Greek (2010), The Stepford Wives (2004) and Shrek Forever After (2010). She has been married to Richard M. Cohen since 14 June 1986. They have three children.- Producer
- Director
- Additional Crew
Michael Appleton was born on 30 December 1936 in Cliftonville, Kent, England, UK. He was a producer and director, known for Sight & Sound in Concert (1977), The Old Grey Whistle Test (1971) and One in Ten a Singer and His Songs (1971). He died on 2 April 2020.- Michael Burns is a former child actor who went on to a distinguished career as a historian, writer, and college professor. He is now retired and raising thoroughbred horses in Kentucky. He was familiar to television audiences of the early 1960s as the teenage character, "Barnaby West", on the popular Wagon Train (1957) series. After other TV and film credits in his late teens and early 20s, Burns left acting to pursue his interest in history, graduating from the University of California. He earned a Ph. D. from Yale University in 1977 and wrote an acclaimed history book, "Dreyfus", about the Dreyfus Affair. Between 1980-2002, Burns was a professor of history at Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts.
- Actor
- Music Department
- Producer
Singer, composer, heartthrob, pioneer--all are accurate descriptions of Robert Michael Nesmith. Most easily identified by his trademark blue wool hat with pompom, Nesmith fashioned a diversified career within music and also in film. Born in Saint Joseph's Hospital in downtown Houston, Texas, Nesmith was a self-described "failure" growing up. "I just didn't do anything," he said in his famous 1965 screen test for _The Monkees (1966)_ ; he expanded on this in a 1968 Australian radio interview by noting, "I was just starving and writing music." He got work as a session guitarist up and down the East Coast before moving to Los Angeles with his wife Phyllis Barbour in 1965. He managed to get a record contract with Colpix Records and released several 45s as well as appearing on 'Lloyd Thaxton's' syndicated teen-dance show. When Nesmith won the role for The Monkees (1966) he was the first of all involved to see where the show and the music would go. Nesmith produced tracks for The Monkees even before TV series filming began; he has said "about a hundred" tracks were made by himself, Micky, Peter, and Davy in the first half of 1966, and among the songs recorded was his composition "The Girl I Knew Somewhere." The hiring of Don Kirshner quashed this group gestation, but Nesmith continued to produce tracks for the group, usually with Micky Dolenz providing co-lead or harmony vocals; the trademark of Nesmith's 1966-produced tracks was the stellar deep bass work of Robert West. The leader of the group by having the strongest musical vision and polish, Nesmith challenged the controlling powers, culminating in the famous "That could have been your head!" near-brawl with Columbia executives in late 1966-early 1967 that left a wall torn open and ultimately 86ed Don Kirshner from the project. Nesmith took a controlling involvement in the group's albums, but given the strong egos of each member, breakage was inevitable. Nesmith finally left after 1969. He joined longtime bassist friend John London and pedal-steel ace 'Orville "Red" Rhodes' for The First National Band, a group that pioneered the mixture of country music with rock'n'roll. The song "Joanne" off their first album, "Magnetic South", became a big hit. Though the FNB broke up after three albums, Nesmith and Rhodes kept going with the Second National Band. Their records were critical successes, but unfortunately were not big hits. Nesmith then invented and sold the concept of 24-hour-music-television to Time-Warner. He produced a proof of concept called "Pop Clips," which Time-Warner aired on the Nickelodeon Channel as a test. It was an instant success, and the MTV Network was developed from it. He also branched into TV and film production, with such works as 'Elephant Parts' (1981), 'Timerider' (1983), 'Repo Man' (1984), 'Square Dance,' and 'Tapeheads,' as well as several TV specials. Nesmith also continued to make records on a sporadic basis--13 solo albums in total. He reunited with Red Rhodes in 1992 and a Latin-flavored masterpiece called "Tropical Campfires". He was nominated for a Grammy for his 1994 album "The Garden". He reunited with the Monkees in 1996 for the "Justus" album. In 1997 he wrote and directed an ABC television Monkees special. In 1998 St. Martins Press published his first novel, "The Long Sandy Hair of Neftoon Zamora". In 2005 he finished his second novel, "The America Gene". He also started a small video game development company called Zoomo Productions, based in Monterey, California.- Actor
- Director
- Producer
Already one of the most popular and hard-working men on the hardcore scene, Nacho Vidal has only been in the business since 1998. He's a Spanish-born super-stud whose swarthy good looks and wild-eyed approach to his work have kept him very busy over the past few years. Nacho has built a reputation as a Spanish Rocco Siffredi, a guy who is at his best when the sex is at its roughest and dirtiest. His orgasmic screams have become legendary, and he's well on his way to becoming the biggest male name in porn.
Nacho first got into hardcore in 1998 as the beau of luscious little Jazmine. During late '98 and early '99, Nacho and Jazmine turned in a whole host of blistering performances, including a wild turn in Buttman & Rocco's Brazilian Butt Fest (1999). The couple heated up the opener, not even waiting to leave the hotel room before losing themselves in lascivious lust. Another great segment is in Please (1998), Nacho and Jazmine delve into some heated fun in one of their very first on-screen dust-ups.
By mid-1999, Nacho and Jazmine has split up, and he was free to pursue his carnal career with all newcomers. His reliable performance skills and rough-edged approach instantly landed him lots of roles. Among his very best is a scene in Tara Patrick AKA Filthy Whore (2000), where Nacho took on the gorgeous superstarlet in a hot and hard closing blast.
Recently Nacho has moved into the director's chair, helming his own shot-in-Europe line called "Killer Pussy". He directs and stars in the flicks, bringing audiences the cream of the crop of current European sex stars. The series has already won accolades, as Nacho's ravenous romp with Czech beauty Helen in Killer Pussy (2000), which garnered an AVN nomination for Best Sex Scene in a Foreign Release.
A true wildman whether in front of or behind the camera, Nacho Vidal seems destined to become one of the real legends of modern-day hardcore. He's certainly gotten off to a great start, and already ranks among the handful of most talented male stars around.- Actor
- Stunts
- Art Department
Nick Principe was born on 30 December 1978 in Providence Rhode Island, USA. He is an actor, known for The Purge: Election Year (2016), Waitress (2007) and Grindsploitation (2016).- Actress
- Soundtrack
Nicolette Pierini is an American child actress and performer. She was first noticed for her role in The Magic of Belle Isle (2012), opposite Morgan Freeman, and is known for the 2014 film adaptation of the musical Annie, where she played Mia Putnam.
Pierini got her big break when she was cast opposite Morgan Freeman and Virginia Madsen in The Magic of Belle Isle, directed by Rob Reiner. Since then, she has been featured in many films and TV productions.- Actress
- Location Management
- Director
Noley Thornton was born on 30 December 1983. She is an actress and director, known for Heidi (1993), Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993) and Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990).- Pablo Brichta was born on 30 December 1949 in Argentina. He was an actor, known for El puntero (2011), Last Images of the Shipwreck (1989) and La viuda blanca (1986). He died on 8 June 2016 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
- Actor
- Writer
- Director
Very popular actor and writer in Italy. He worked in over 80 movies and TV series. Known especially for portraing the character of "Fantozzi" on several movies. Paolo Villaggio was born on December 30, 1932 in Genoa, Liguria, Italy. He was known for Fantozzi (1975) (aka Fantozzi), Fantozzi 2 (1976), Fantozzi in Heaven (1993) and the TV Series Carabinieri (2002). He was married to Maura Albites. He died on July 3, 2017 in Rome, Lazio, Italy, just 7 months after completing his last movie W gli Sposi (2019).- Patricia was raised in Westport, Connecticut and Louisville, Kentucky. Studied acting at Indiana and Temple Universities after being encouraged by her high-school drama teacher. She finished College with a B.A. degree in theater and immediately started acting in major regional and off-Broadway productions. Back in New York, where she was born, she worked in numerous daytime soaps, commercials and theatrical events. She received a nomination for the Outer Critics Circle Award for her part in the long-running play "The Foreigner". She starred on Broadway in Larry Shue's "The Nerd" and together with her husband, Daniel Gerroll, in "Betrayal" at the Berkshire Theater.
- Actress
- Composer
- Writer
Patti Smith was born on 30 December 1946 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. She is an actress and composer, known for Noah (2014), Song to Song (2017) and Barb Wire (1996). She was previously married to Fred 'Sonic' Smith.- Actor
- Composer
- Writer
N. Paul Stookey was born on 30 December 1937 in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. He is an actor and composer, known for About Schmidt (2002), Norman Normal (1968) and Love the Coopers (2015). He has been married to Mary Elizabeth "Betty" Bannard since 4 September 1963. They have three children.Paul Stookey