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Hazel-eyed Glaswegian Elizabeth Sellars enrolled at Lincoln's Inn (in central London) to study law with the intention of becoming a barrister. Somehow, this fell through, though she continued to nurture a lifelong interest in the legal profession which kept her reading law books well into her acting career. Perhaps on the advice of her flatmate Jean Hardwicke (niece of the famous thespian Cedric), Elizabeth attended a theatrical audition and thereafter went on to study acting at RADA and at the Bristol Old Vic. Beginning in 1941, she spent several years on the repertory stage in her native Scotland before making her London debut five years later opposite Alec Guinness in "The Brothers Karamazov". Her first major hit was at the West End in "Tea and Sympathy" in the role of the housemaster's wife. Elizabeth's career in British films spanned the years from 1948 to 1960. Following her marriage to Francis Austin Henley, a consultant gastrointestinal surgeon at the Central Middlesex Hospital, her appearances became rather less frequent though she continued to pop up from time to time on the small screen.

Elizabeth was a reluctant star. Often dissatisfied with the material on offer, she once lamented "we're expected to sink back into the background and look nice". Between 1951 and 1952, she took a sabbatical for nearly a year to travel through Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka) where she developed a great fondness for Oriental philosophy, art and spicy curries (to add to her other pastimes of studying Roman law, horse riding and swimming). She did manage to fit a film career into her busy schedule and this encompassed a number of noteworthy performances, often as wily, faithless or jilted wives or 'the other woman'. A fruitful sojourn in Hollywood led to back-to-back appearances in The Barefoot Contessa (1954) (as Humphrey Bogart's wife), Désirée (1954) (as Julie Clary, Bonaparte's sister-in-law) and Prince of Players (1955) (as Asia Booth, sister of Edwin Thomas and John Wilkes). Her best acting was reserved for the British cinema with gritty roles in The Shiralee (1957) and (as an alcoholic mother) in The Hireling (1973). Of her role in The Stranger in Between (1952), a London journalist described her as having "lashings of glamour of a breathless, brooding type usually reserved for sultry Hollywood." While perhaps not a beauty in the conventional sense, she projected intelligence, wit and often humour which made her a favourite with British movie audiences in the 50s. The director Charles Crichton thought her personality resembled the "early allure of Ingrid Bergman and the power of Bette Davis."

During the 60s, Elizabeth alternated between TV work and the stage. As a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon she proved her mettle as a serious actress in the classics, notably "Troilus and Cressida" (as Helen), "Hamlet" (as Gertrude) and "Richard III" (as Queen Elizabeth). She retired in 1990 and passed away in France at the venerable age of 98 on December 30 2019.

Czechoslovakian-born Jack Garfein survived imprisonment in the Auschwitz concentration camp during WW2 and came to the US at age 15. After a few years of college, he became a stage actor, then a director. After his Broadway directorial debut in 1953, he joined the Actors Studio, and married one of his fellow students, Carroll Baker. Although Garfein directed a number of TV shows and numerous Broadway plays, his film output has been minimal, with only three films since 1957. One of them was Something Wild (1961) starring his wife, an offbeat little film about a rape victim's growing relationship with a man who rescues her from a suicide attempt, then imprisons her in his basement apartment, hoping that she will fall in love with him.

Jan Fedder was born on 14 January 1955 in Hamburg, West Germany. He was an actor, known for Das Boot (1981), Der Mann im Strom (2006) and Soul Kitchen (2009). He was married to Marion Fedder. He died on 30 December 2019 in Hamburg, Germany.

Beautiful Marie Devereux was photographed partially nude when she was still a teenager. During the 1950s she became a regular nude model in magazines, but she also had a brief career in films, usually playing sexy girls in comedies, dramas and horror films, a few of which were directed by distinguished filmmakers. After appearing in Terence Young's "Serious Charge", she was seen to good advantage in three Hammer Film productions: first, under the direction of genre master Terence Fisher, she played a follower of goddess Kali in "The Stranglers of Bombay" (1959), and she was one of the "Brides of Dracula" (1960); these were followed in 1962 by John Gilling's "The Pirates of Blood River", in which she played a village girl. She was also in Guy Green's highly praised drama "The Mark (1961), and then traveled to Italy to work as Elizabeth Taylor's stand-in in "Cleopatra" (1963), directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. Devereux went to Hollywood after the production closed in Rome, and appeared in television and two cult movies directed by Samuel Fuller, "Shock Corridor" (1963) and "The Naked Kiss" (1964). After these roles she decided to marry and have children in the United States, and retired from films.

Syd Mead was a designer for Ford Motor Company, U.S. Steel, and Philips Electronics. After establishing himself as a "Futurist" consultant, he visualized technology and products for companies like Sony, Chrysler, Mechanix Illustrated, and Playboy. Syd's movie designs appeared in 'Star Trek - The Motion Picture" (V'ger), "2010" (the spaceship 'Leonov' and all of its interiors and attendant craft), "Short Circuit" (the robot 'Johnny 5'), "Blade Runner" (the 'Spinner' police car, the dingy cityscapes, and Decker's apartment), and "Timecop" (the headquarters of the Temporal Police, and Van Damme's car).

M.C. Beaton was born on 10 June 1936 in Balornock, Glasgow, Scotland, UK. She was a writer, known for Agatha Raisin (2014), Hamish Macbeth (1995) and The Criminal Calendar (1997). She was married to Harry Scott Gibbons. She died on 30 December 2019 in Gloucester, England, UK.

Kathleen Helme was an actress, known for Madame Bovary (1975), BBC Sunday-Night Theatre (1950) and Mystery and Imagination (1966). She died on 30 December 2019 in the United Kingdom.

Malcolm Farquhar was born on 26 October 1924 in Swansea, Wales, UK. He was an actor, known for Starr and Company (1958), The Farmer's Wife (1955) and Island Rescue (1951). He died on 30 December 2019 in the UK.

David Osper was a producer and director, known for Home James (2005), Homewrecker (2005) and Buzzin' (2008). David died on 30 December 2019 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

Harry Kupfer was born on 12 August 1935 in Berlin, Germany. He is known for Coming Out (1989), Richard Strauss: Der Risenkavalier (2014) and Der fliegende Holländer (1986). He was married to Marianne Fischer-Kupfer. He died on 30 December 2019 in Berlin, Germany.

Krzysztof Kolba was born on 28 August 1952 in Gdansk, Pomorskie, Poland. He was an actor, known for Niech zyje milosc (1991), Television Theater (1953) and Smazalnia story (1985). He died on 30 December 2019.

Cam Kjellbottn was born on 13 April 1950 in New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada. Cam was an assistant director, known for SCTV (1976), SCTV Network (1981) and The Little Vampire (1986). Cam died on 30 December 2019.

Sonny Mehta was born on 9 November 1942 in New Delhi, India. He was a writer, known for Dateline Bangladesh (1972), Book TV (1998) and Charlie Rose (1991). He was married to Gita Mehta. He died on 30 December 2019 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA.

Nils-Petter Sundgren was born on 24 February 1929 in Stockholm, Stockholms län, Sweden. He was an actor and director, known for The New Swedish Cinema (1971), Nils Petters veranda (1999) and Nils Petter Sundgren möter Jerry Lewis (1980). He was married to Susanne Ulfsäter. He died on 30 December 2019 in Stockholm, Sweden.

Carl-Heinz Rühl was born on 14 November 1939 in Berlin, Germany. He died on 30 December 2019 in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

Gertrude Himmelfarb was born on 8 August 1922 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. She was married to Irving Kristol. She died on 30 December 2019 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA.