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Breckin Meyer was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Dorothy, a travel agent, and Christopher Meyer, a management consultant. He was raised in Los Angeles, went to grade school with Drew Barrymore, and attended Beverly Hills High School with Joshua John Miller and Branden Williams. It was Barrymore who introduced Breckin to her agent, after which he started doing commercials and the game show Child's Play (1982).

After being accepted to California State University at Northridge, Breckin decided to put school on hold and pursue acting. He has always wanted to be a kindergarten teacher and may still do that in the future. Breckin was the drummer in the Streetwalking Cheetahs with his brother, Frank, which recorded a demo in 1995. He was the lead vocal on two songs, "Carnival" and "Dave". During 1995-1996, the band played about 10 gigs around Los Angeles. The Streetwalking Cheetahs' second album, "Overdrive" and their new album, "Live on KXLU", feature songs written when Breckin was still in the band. These songs include "None of Your Business", "All I Want", "Peppermint", "Thought that Crosses My Mind" and "Turn Me Down". After the Streetwalking Cheetahs, he started his own band, Bellyroom, with Seth Green and Alexander Martin, Dean Martin's grandson. They played a few gigs around Los Angeles in 1996.

Breckin's friends include Ryan Phillippe, Josh Holland (USA High (1997)) and Seth Green. His best friend is Ryan Phillippe, with whom he starred in 54 (1998). Breckin was married to Deborah Kaplan, who wrote and directed Can't Hardly Wait (1998), in which Breckin had a cameo.

Breckin's hobbies include playing drums, video games and sometimes sports. He's a big fan of Sean Penn, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Richard Dreyfuss.

With his dark features and having spent much of his early years in Naples, Italy, Vito Scotti was understandably typecast as Italian waiters, government functionaries, policemen, maitre d's and barbers. When Vito was seven, the Scottis moved back to the U.S. where his mother became a diva in the Italian theatre in New York. It was in that theatre that Scotti developed his gift for farce, which he modeled on the style found in the Commedia dell'Arte. He worked the night club circuit doing pantomime and broke into movies and television during the early 1950s. Vito loved cooking, especially the recipes of his beloved mother and grandmother.

George Chakiris made his film debut at the age of 12 singing in the chorus of Song of Love (1947). Following his graduation from high school, he supported his night-time dancing, singing and dramatic lessons with a daytime job clerking in a Los Angeles department store. Later he started his acting/dancing career appearing in musicals such as Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)--he is one of the ballet dancers escorting Marilyn Monroe in "Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend"--White Christmas (1954), The Girl Rush (1955), There's No Business Like Show Business (1954), Brigadoon (1954), and Meet Me in Las Vegas (1956). In 1957, he made his debut as a dramatic actor in Under Fire (1957). In 1958 he traveled to New York hoping for a Broadway "break." Hearing that Jerome Robbins was casting the London company of "West Side Story", he auditioned and was awarded the co-starring role of Riff. He played the part for almost two years on the West End stage before acting, singing and dancing as Bernardo in the Robert Wise film version (West Side Story (1961)), a performance that earned him a Golden Globe and the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Since then, he starred in a succession of films, including Diamond Head (1962) with Charlton Heston, Bebo's Girl (1964) with Claudia Cardinale, The Young Girls of Rochefort (1967) with Catherine Deneuve, Françoise Dorléac and Gene Kelly, The Big Cube (1968) with Lana Turner, Why Not Stay for Breakfast? (1979), Jekyll and Hyde... Together Again (1982), and Pale Blood (1990). He is one of the most traveled stars in motion pictures, having been to such locations as Hawaii, Japan, Mexico, Italy, England, Spain, and France. His nightclub career was launched to rave reviews at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas and Harrah's Club in Lake Tahoe. In the 1970s and 1980s, his career focused on television and music. He appeared as guest star in several TV series such as Hawaii Five-O (1968) (Death is a Company Policy - 1972), Wonder Woman (1975) (Death in Disguise - 1978), CHiPs (1977) (Fox Trap - 1983), Scarecrow and Mrs. King (1983) (Lost and Found - 1984), Murder, She Wrote (1984) (Weave a Tangled Web - 1989), and he joined the cast of Dallas (1978) from 1985 to 1986. He has released several records: "George Chakiris," "Memories Are Made of These," "The Gershwin Song Book," "West Side Story's Dynamic...". Recently, he has appeared in several plays and stage musicals: after "The King and I" in the US in 1995, he performed in Britain the role of Rochester in "Jane Eyre".

Robert Donner was born in New York City and grew up in New Jersey, Michigan and Texas. Robert joined the Navy after he graduated from high school and served almost 4 years. After he left the Navy he stayed on the West Coast and worked as a shipping clerk, salesman, bartender, commercial artist, gardener, and insurance investigator. Robert attended San Fernando Valley State College (now California State University, Northridge), at nights taking courses in Art History, Psychology and speech. During this time, Robert Donner lived in Studio City and became friends with actor Clint Eastwood who lived in his apartment building. Clint urged Robert to study drama, telling him he was humorous and had a good face. When Robert was not acting he was active in athletics, and was known as one of Hollywood's most enthusiastic golfers. He was a member of the former "Hollywood Hackers" and carried a seven handicap and was the leader of a group of entertainment industry professionals known as Don Porter's Thursday Golf Group as well as joining others at many of the Celebrity Golf Tournaments who raise money for various charities around the world. Robert also played in many tennis tournaments and was frequently called upon during "Celebrity Nights" in which he performed stand-up comedy and promised not to sing. His reputation in this area also led him to become known as one of Hollywood's "in demand" Corporate Speakers.

Madge Sinclair was born Madge Dorita Walters on April 28, 1938 in Kingston, Jamaica, married young and had two sons. Madge worked as a teacher in Jamaica until she was 30. She left her two boys with their father and moved in 1968 to New York City to be an actress.

She began modeling and later acted with the New York Shakespearean Festival and at Joseph Papp's Public Theatre. In 1974, Madge made her film debut, playing Mrs. Scott in Conrack (1974). She was nominated for an Emmy Award for her performance as Bell Reynolds in the miniseries Roots (1977).

In 1982, shortly after joining the cast of Trapper John, M.D. (1979), Sinclair was diagnosed with leukemia. She continued to work, outliving the doctors' predictions by several years. On December 20, 1995, Madge Sinclair died at age 57 in Los Angeles, California, after a 13 year battle with leukemia.

Ms. Burke was born in Camden, London in 1964 at the Royal Free Hospital. Kathy's mother died when she was a baby and she was in foster homes for a short time until her father, who was a heavy drinker, could regain custody of Kathy and live with her two brothers. Kathy attended the Maria Fidelis Secondary School in Euston. She was encouraged to act at school and enrolled at the famous Anna Scher Theatre School in Islington. When Kathy was 17 years old, she was spotted by film director Mai Zetterling who was looking for young actresses to appear in the film Scrubbers (1982). At 22, Kathy wrote her first play "Mr Thomas". She directed it at the "Old Red Lion" and Ray Winstone appeared in the title role. Kathy is keenly interested in art and books and she collects first editions. She now lives in Highbury, London near Arsenal football ground.

Born in Charlestown, Rhode Island, Eric Lutes began acting the summer before he started college when friends encouraged him to audition for a community production of "Pajama Game". He landed the role and was hooked. He went on to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts in acting from the University of Rhode Island. After several commercial spots, Eric moved to New York and appeared in many off-Broadway productions before finally making the move to Los Angeles, where he landed a co-starring role on Caroline in the City (1995). He met his ex-wife, Christine Romeo, when they were cast as husband and wife in a bank commercial. Before their divorce in 2006, they resided in Los Angeles. They are the parents of Abigail Grace, who was born in May 1998.

Thomson was born 1947 in Richmond Hill, Ontario. He studied at the University of Toronto, Ontario, the National Theatre School and in England. He is now one of the Canada's leading film, television and stage actors. R.H. Thomson has played lead roles in many of the country's major venues including Manitoba Theatre Centre (Death and the Maiden), Canadian Stage (Oleanna, Inexpressible Island), Theatre Passe Muraille (The Little Years), Tarragon Theatre (Daylight Saving), Toronto Free Theatre (Hamlet), Toronto Workshop Productions (The Jail Diary of Albie Sachs), Stratford Festival (Julius Caesar, Merry Wives of Windsor, Mary Stuart), Theatre New Brunswick (Waiting for Godot) and Bastion Theatre (Comedians). More recently he appeared in David Young's Clout at the National Arts Centre (January, 2001).

Mr. Thomson has also directed at Neptune Theatre, Theatre Plus, for Bard on the Beach, Ship's Company (recently, autumn/summer 1999, David French's Salt-Water Moon) and Theatre in the Park. Also, his own play, The Lost Boys, (a solo in which he performs) was presented at Great Canadian Theatre Company in March, 2000 and at Canadian Stage in February, 2002.

The son of television producer Don Fedderson, Mike Minor was raised in San Francisco and educated at the University High School in Los Angeles and Brown Military Academy in San Diego. At 14, Mike was taking voice lessons when he got his first professional singing gig at the "Ye Little Club in Beverly Hills". Mike's early TV work began with guest appearances on such shows as The Donald O'Connor Show (1954) and The Joey Bishop Show (1961). Mike Minor is best recognized as "Steve Elliott" on Petticoat Junction (1963). Mike married actress Linda Henning in 1968, who co-starred on Petticoat Junction (1963) as "Betty Jo". The marriage lasted for five years. Mike has been on a number of TV soaps including As the World Turns (1956) and All My Children (1970), and Another World (1964) as "Dr. Royal Dunning". In 1999, Mike began performing on Broadway at the Duffy Theatre, starring as Inspector James Ascher in "A Perfect Crime".

Peggy Lee was Born Norma Dolores Egstrom in Jamestown, North Dakota, on May 26, 1920. At age four her mother died. Peggy's father, a railroad station agent, remarried but later left home, leaving Peggy's care entrusted to a stepmother who physically abused her. Peggy later memorialized this in the calypso number "One Beating a Day", one of 22 songs she co-wrote for the autobiographical musical "Peg", in which she made her Broadway debut in 1983 at the age of 62. As a youngster Peggy worked as a milkmaid, later turning to singing for money in her teens. While singing on a local radio station in Fargo, the program director there suggested she change her name to Peggy Lee. Peggy's big break came when Benny Goodman hired her to sing with his band after hearing her perform. Peggy shot to stardom when she and Goodman cut the hit record "Why Don't You Do Right?" and went out on her own to record such classics as "Fever", "Lover", "Golden Earrings", "Big Spender" and "Is That All There Is?" - the latter winning her a Grammy Award in 1969. Peggy's vocal style provided a distinctive imprint to countless swing tunes, ballads and big band numbers. She was considered the type of performer equally capable of interpreting a song as uniquely as Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald and Bessie Smith. Her 1989 album, "Peggy Sings the Blues", was a Grammy Award nominee. Peggy was a prolific songwriter and arranger and her 1990 "The Peggy Lee Songbook" contained four songs she wrote with guitarist John Chiodini. Peggy also wrote for jazz greats Duke Ellington, who called her "The Queen", and Johnny Mercer, and composer Quincy Jones. Also in 1990 Peggy was awarded the coveted Pied Piper Award presented by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). She made her mark in Hollywood as an actress, winning an Academy Award nomination for her role as the hard-drinking singer in the jazz saga, Pete Kelly's Blues (1955) and composed songs for the 1955 Walt Disney animated classic Lady and the Tramp (1955). The animated film featured a character named Peg, a broken-down old showgirl of a dog, whose provocative walk was based on the stage-prowl of Peggy Lee. Later she sued Disney and won a landmark legal judgment for a portion of the profits from the videocassette sale of the film. Peggy's private life was racked by physical ailments, a near-fatal fall in 1976, diabetes and a stroke in 1998. She was married four times, all ending in divorce. She and first husband, guitarist Dave Barbour, had a daughter, Nicki, her only child. Peggy and Dave were on the verge of a reconciliation in 1965, but he died of a heart attack before the couple got back together. Peggy has left a vast legend of music that is constantly finding new generations of fans.

Stephen Shortridge was born in Iowa and raised in Southern California. Stephen excelled in art throughout his schooling but had mainly studied commercial art. He took his first painting class while attending Idaho State University on a Water Polo Scholarship - Stephen was an All-American.

Stephen enjoyed acting but finds painting to be much more creatively satisfying - the feeling to be able to have that total freedom to create is exciting to him. His style results from the influence of the French Impressionists, Monet in particular. However, his full colors and bold strokes have established him as a unique America Romantic Impressionist. Stephen's collectors include Patty Duke, Donna Summer & Rick Dees. While living in LA, he exhibited with fellow actor/artist, Peter Falk.

Stephen resumes includes over 50 commercials. Over a fifteen year period he has appeared in commercials such as Mennen, Speedstick, Coke, Certs and Head and Shoulders to name just a few. Stephen currently lives with his family in Idaho.

Malcolm Gets was born in Chicago but lived in New Jersey until he was 5. Both of his parents are of English ancestry. His mother, Lispbeth, was a special educationist and his father, Terence, works as a college textbook representative for a Boston-based publisher and runs in many competitve marathons. Malcolm has one younger and one older sister and one older brother. He attended Fort Clarke Middle School, where he skipped the 8th grade, and Buchholz High where he skipped the 12th grade. At age 16 he attended the University of Florida as a scholarship student, where he earned his BFA in Theatre. Malcolm completed his graduate studies at Yale Drama School, where he received his M.A. He is a singer, dancer, conductor, composer, classically trained pianist, vocal director, choreographer and actor.

Malcom began to practice the piano at age 8 and began singing at age 14. His aspiration was to be a classical pianist. He worked as a stockboy in Barney's, as a puppeteer at Radio City Music Hall, played piano at "Cats" auditions, weddings, bar-mitzvahs and concert halls. He loves all types of music, especially classical. He enjoys cooking, reading and Shakespeare. Malcolm's favorite show as a child was All in the Family (1971). His favorite composer is Stephen Sondheim.

Born Arthur Veary Treacher in Brighton, East Sussex, England, he was the son of a lawyer. He established a stage career after returning from World War I, and by 1928, he had come to America as part of a musical-comedy revue called Great Temptations. When his film career began in the early 1930s, Treacher was Hollywood's idea of the perfect butler, and he headlined as the famous butler Jeeves in Thank You, Jeeves! (1936) and Step Lively, Jeeves! (1937)--based on the P.G. Wodehouse character. He played a butler in numerous other films including: Personal Maid's Secret (1935), Mister Cinderella (1936), Bordertown (1935), and Curly Top (1935). By the mid 1960s, Treacher was a regular guest on The Merv Griffin Show (1962). The image of the proper Englishman served him well, and during his later years, he lent his name to a fast-food chain known as Arthur Treacher's Fish and Chips.

David Angell was a multiple Emmy Award winner as the creator/executive producer, along with Peter Casey and David Lee, of the hit comedy series Frasier. David was born in West Barrington, RI, and he received a bachelor's degree in English Literature from Providence College. He entered the army upon graduation and served at the Pentagon until 1972. David then moved to Boston and worked as a methods analyst at an engineering company and later at an insurance firm in Rhode Island. David moved to Los Angeles in 1977. His first first script was sold to the producers of the "Annie Flynn" series. Five years before he sold his second script to Archie Bunker's Place (1979)." David virtually worked in every temporary job known to mankind. In 1983, he joined Cheers (1982) as a staff writer. In 1985, David Angell joined forces with Peter Casey and David Lee as Cheers (1982) supervising producers/writers. Since then, the trio has received 37 Emmy Award nominations and won 24 Emmy Awards, including the above-mentioned for Frasier (1993), as well as an Outstanding Comedy Series Emmy for Cheers (1982), in 1989, which Angell, Casey, Lee and the series' other producers shared, and Outstanding Writing/Comedy Emmy for Cheers (1982), which Angell received in 1984. After working together as producers on the hit comedy series "Cheers" for NBC-TV, Angell, Casey and Lee formed "Grub Street Productions." In 1990, they created and executive produced the hit comedy series Wings (1990), which received critical and ratings success during its seven season run.

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.

Billy Van was born in Toronto, Canada in 1934. He was a manic comic actor who starred in CBC-TV's Nightcap in the 1960s and the Hilarious House of Frightenstein in the '70s. The Hilarious House of Frightenstein starred Vincent Price, with Van as host and a variety of characters, including The Count, a vampire who preferred pizza to blood, and who wore tennis shoes as well as a cape. The hour-long episodes were taped at Hamilton's CHCH-TV and are still seen in syndication around the world.

While a familiar fixture on Canadian TV for decades, he also worked in the United States on variety shows such as The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour, The Ray Stevens Show and The Bobby Vinton Show. He even gained fame for the Colt .45 beer commercials he made for 15 years and for which he won a Clio Award. Eventually Billy returned to Toronto to work in shows like Party Game, Bizarre with John Byner, the Hudson Brothers Razzle Dazzle Show and Bits and Bytes. Billy Van was in show business from the age of 12, and back in the 1950s he and his four brothers formed a singing group that toured Canada and Europe.

Billy had a triple heart bypass in 1998. After his heart surgery, he was semi-retired but continued to do voice-over work for commercials and animated programs. Van and old-time colleagues Dave Broadfoot and Jack Duffy made appearances in recent years to support the fledgling Canadian Comedy Awards. "I'm all for that enthusiasm," he said about the awards launch in 2000. Van's picture is on the Canadian Comedy Wall of Fame at the CBC broadcast centre in Toronto, along with those of Al Waxman, Wayne & Shuster and Don Harron.

Born Roy Frowick Halston on April 23, 1932 in Des Moines, Iowa, Halston was a product of America's heartland. He led a classic Iowa childhood playing in soap box derby races, fishing, visiting farms, and the like. Halston took an interest in sewing from his mother, and from an early age he showed a special interest in making hats. Halston would make his own for his mother and sister (his first hat appeared on the cover of Harper's Bazaar in 1960). Halston attended Indiana University in 1952 for one semester. The family moved to Chicago in late 1952 where Halston enrolled in a night course at the Chicago Art Institute and took a day job as a window dresser. Halston continued to design hats and finally obtained his break when a small story on his fashionable creations appeared in the Chicago Daily News. It was at this time that his middle name Halston, would become his professional moniker. His hat sales took off and he began designing for a celebrity and show biz clientele. In 1957, Halston opened his first major shop, the Boulevard Salon, on the second floor of 900 Michigan Avenue. In 1959 Halston left Chicago for NYC to work for the famed French milliner Lilly Daché, where he proved to be a hardworking and dedicated employee. He was named co-designer at Daché after only one year. Following that Halston accepted a position at Bergdorf Goodman, a fashionable New York department store, where he charmed his clients and made a grand name for himself. After two-years at Bergdorf he succeeded in becoming the store's first designer to have his name placed in the hats he designed. He became adept at courting and manipulating the press at Bergdorf's. In 1962 he designed the famous pill box hat worn by Jackie Kennedy at the President's Inaugural making the Halston name a household word. Later that year he was bestowed the Coty's Fashion Critics Award. In 1966 Halston designed his first ready to wear collection for Bergdorf Goodman and while there Halston continued creating magic with his hat creations. Women's Wear Daily heralded him as "New York's Top Milliner". He opened his own salon in 1968 and became the toast of New York's fashion society. His close circle of friends and clients would come to include some of the most alluring and fascinating men and women in the world, among them Liza Minnelli, Barbara Walter, Martha Graham, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Andy Warhol and Elizabeth Taylor. Halston's career sky-rocketed during the 1970's and his designs set the standard for American designers. He was the undisputed high priest of fashion. The Halston name became synonymous with classically cut, simple, spare and elegant designs, a phenomenally successful fragrance line Halston by Halston for women X12 and Z14 for men, and the fabric known as "Ultra suede". His designs became ubiquitous as we went on to design and license his name on thirty-one different licensing products including a range of home linen, uniforms for Braniff International Airlines and a line of luggage for Hartmann. Throughout most of the seventies he epitomized the glamour, as well as the decadence of the era, becoming a central figure in the nightlife scene of New York's Studio 54 disco.

Steve Thomas is an American author and television personality. He was born in 1952 in Pomona, California, as the oldest of six children. His interest in construction and renovation came from his father who used to buy and repair old houses. The grandfather of Steve Thomas, Rooney was also a DIY guy and Episcopal missionary in the Alaskan Arctic.

Thomas graduated in philosophy at Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington While at college, he supported himself as a licensed painting contractor and carpenter. Influenced by his father's passion for fixing up old houses, he undertook his first home renovation project in 1974: a 1920s residence. He continued to perform renovations in the Pacific Northwest until he moved to Massachusetts in 1980. Since then, he has renovated a number of old houses, including the 1836 Colonial Revival in which he resides with his wife Evelyn Blum and son Sam.

Thomas has always tried to combine his love of fine woodworking with his passion for the sea and ships. In 1977, he worked as a finish carpenter on a 75-foot ketch in Antibes, France. In the 1970s and the 1980s, he logged more than 30,000 blue-water miles on a variety of sailing ships.

He wrote "The Last Navigator" in 1987. A critically acclaimed book, it served as the basis for a documentary of the same name produced for PBS's Adventure series in 1988. In 1989, he received a call from the "Adventure" series publicist who also worked for This Old House (1979). She suggested he talk to the show's producers who were searching for a new host. Ten days later, Thomas was offered the position.

Since replacing Bob Vila in 1989, Thomas has helped catapult This Old House (1979) to the top of PBS's list of most-watched ongoing series of all time and the highest-rated home improvement series in television history. He has been awarded a 1997-1998 DayTime Emmy Award for "Outstanding Service Show Host". Thomas has become an "expert in demand" at home shows nation-wide, meeting attendees, present an entertaining show, answering questions and signing autographs. He has appeared on television shows such as The Oprah Winfrey Show (1986), Today (1952), Entertainment Tonight (1981) and Good Morning America (1975).

In addition to being a successful television show host, Thomas has written the best-selling books, "This Old House Kitchens" and "This Old House Bathrooms". He serves both on the editorial board of, and as a columnist for, This Old House magazine (published by Time Publishing Ventures, Inc.).

Graham Elwood was born in Stoughton, Wisconsin, USA on 5 August 1969. When he was 12, he and his family moved to Chicago, Illinois. His favorite game show as a kid was Card Sharks (1978).

Graham graduated from University of Arizona - with a Bachelor of Fine Arts - Media Arts. He claims he was not that great a student. Because he didn't like coffee he drank Mountain Dew by the bucket to stay awake. His experience left him with such a caffeine overload it would make him twitch. Graham furthered his dramatic training with Playhouse West and Second City Training Center. He has developed a diverse repertoire of dialects including Scottish, Irish, English, German, Surfer, Southern, Chicago, Minnesota. This skill has provided a great asset for specialty voice-over and character work.

A ten year comedy veteran, Graham has honed his skills in comedy clubs and colleges to become a sarcastic hipster who can make light of anything and anyone including himself. He is part of a comedy group called "Fancy Ketchup", whose show can be seen on a regular basis at The Comedy Store in Hollywood. He also has made frequent appearances at the Improv in Las Vegas and numerous comedy clubs across the country including The Improv - LA and The Laugh Factory - LA. He has been in numerous productions including Hey Anthony (1998) with family member Sim Elwood. Graham's theatre experience includes "Light Sensitive", "Have You Heard about the Party?", "Do you have Any Irish in You?" and "Ministers of Pain Lead".

His interest in sports and athletics include martial arts and weapons, football, lacrosse, and baseball.

Beloved kids performer Ernie Coombs was a fixture on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, "CBC," for three decades. Coombs was lured to Canada in 1963 by the progressive ideas of the public broadcasting system, beginning his career as an assistant puppeteer on a CBC series that featured another soon-to-be-legendary kid's entertainer, Fred Rogers. When Fred Rogers decided to relocate his Neighborhood back to the U.S. after one season, Ernie stayed to join the cast of a new CBC series called Butternut Square where the character of Mr. Dressup was born. In 1967 Ernie Coombs took over the show and introduced puppet pals Casey and Finnegan. Mr. Dressup spent time in front of the camera drawing and creating simple crafts from construction paper, yarn and glue. Mr. Dressup also would find an endless number of costumes for him to dress up in from his "Tickle Trunk." Ernie Cooms retired in 1996 but continued touring.

Despite being an asthmatic, Jesse Nilsson was active in the dramatic arts from a very young age, and amassed an impressive list of both feature film and television credits. Jesse was cast in a six-episode guest star role on the CBC series Our Hero (2000) where he portrayed Rollins, an animal rescue technician and starred as A.J., the series lead, in University (2002).

Jesse received his dramatic education at Ryerson Theatre School in Toronto, Canada. He had guest-starring roles on HBO's Dear America, In a Heartbeat, as well as on Twice in a Lifetime (1999) . Jesse was also cast as the lead in Disney's teen movie Model Behavior (2000) opposite N'Sync's Justin Timberlake.

Jesse's most recent work was as Gabriel Patterson on Adventure Inc. (2002). He had been suffering from pneumonia for the two weeks prior to his death but was on the road to recovery. He is survived by his mother, father, sister, and brother. His funeral service was held May 1, 2003 at the Jerrett Funeral Chapel in Toronto, Canada.

Born in Mankato, Minnesota, and grew up in Edina, near Minneapolis. He attended college at the University of Minnesota, where he earned a bachelor's degree in accounting. Dean worked as a cost accountant, a sales representative, and an independent builder before launching Hometime Video Publishing in 1984. In addition to his role as co-host, Dean is executive producer of Hometime (1992) and president of Hometime Video Publishing. The father of two, Dean is married to his high school sweetheart, Kathi. An active parent, Dean has been known to sneak out of work early to coach his son's and daughter's soccer teams. The Johnsons enjoy downhill and cross-country skiing, and try to get to Colorado every year to ski the Rocky Mountains.

Born Charles Hatcher in Nashville, Tennessee, Starr formed his first group, the Future Tones, in 1957, recording one single before his three-year army service. In 1965, he was offered a solo deal following two years of touring with another band.

Starr's early hits included "Agent Double-O Soul" and "Stop Her on Sight (S.O.S)." But his biggest success came with "War," a No. 1 hit in 1970 during a time of growing anti-Vietnam War protests. Other top 10 hits included "Contact" and "H.A.P.P.Y. Radio." Edwin Starr was a veteran of Vietnam War.

He made a brief comeback during the disco craze, and later spent most of his time touring Europe on the oldies circuit. In England, Starr participated in an award-winning British Broadcasting Corporation radio series on the U.S. civil rights movement. In 1995, he was featured on a Walt Disney children's workout album entitled "Mousercise In 2002, Starr performed at the wedding of Liza Minnelli and David Gest in New York.

His last performances was at two shows in Stuttgart, Germany March 29th and 30th, 2003.

Scott was born in California to German and Irish parents. He grew up on a ranch in Idaho and later moved to Seattle, Washington. He lived there until 1999 when he moved to New York City. Scott wrote and directed his first film at age 6. The short film starred his Star Wars action figures and was shot by his father. Scott went on to work in all facets of the film/television industry, from production to publicity. Over the years he has worked for a range of clients, from Madonna and MTV's Real World to Pfizer and Amnesty International. Scott lives in Manhattan where he makes films with real live human beings. He has a fascination with them and continues to make films and documentaries exploring them. His short films include YNYC, Late For Work, Pinky's Fandance, the award-winning Mr. Christie and Peoplemovin.com. His first feature documentary was Mindflank, the story of an urban faith healer. Scott's latest, Curiosity, is a Hitchcockian short film starring Broadway's Cheyenne Jackson.