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1-44 of 44
- Actress
- Soundtrack
A sparkling, entertaining, highly energetic presence ever since her early days (from age 4) as a singing and tap dancing child vaudevillian, Nanette Fabray was once billed as "Baby Nanette".
She was born in Sherbrooke, Québec, Canada, then moved to the United States, to Louisiana-born parents, Lily Agnes (McGovern) and Raoul Bernard Fabares, a train conductor whose own father was from France. She worked with the top headliners of the era, notably Ben Turpin, in the Los Angeles area. She also sang on radio. It was widely rumored that she appeared in the "Our Gang" ("Little Rascal") film shorts of the late 1920s; however, this was not true. Later the young hopeful received a scholarship to the Max Reinhardt School of the Theatre and appeared in the school's productions of "The Miracle", "Six Characters in Search of an Author" and "A Servant with Two Masters", all in 1939.
The musical comedy stage, however, would be Nanette's forte. Appearing in such hit New York productions as "Meet the People" (1940), "Let's Face It" (1941), "By Jupiter" (1943) and "Bloomer Girl" (1945), she capped this period of great productivity earning awards for her Broadway work in "High Button Shoes" (1947 - Donaldson Award), and "Love Life" (1948 - Tony and Donaldson Awards).
Strangely, Nanette never obtained a strong foothold when it came to film. Aside from secondary roles in The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939) starring Bette Davis and Errol Flynn, and the melodrama A Child Is Born (1939), her one claim to movie fame would be her vital participation in the blockbuster MGM musical The Band Wagon (1953) in which she memorably performed the songs "That's Entertainment" and "Louisiana Hayride," and joined Fred Astaire and Jack Buchanan in the standout "Triplets" number.
Into the 1950s, Nanette started checking out what television could do as a possible medium for her. It did a lot. She managed a fine feat by winning two consecutive Emmy awards as Sid Caesar's partner on the now-called Caesar's Hour (1954) following the departure of the seemingly irreplaceable Imogene Coca earlier. This led to Nanette eventually starring in her own sitcom, the short-lived Westinghouse Playhouse (1961) (aka "Yes, Yes, Nanette"), in the role of a Broadway star who becomes a makeshift mom after marrying a widower (Wendell Corey) with two children.
Broadway musicals continued to flourish with parts in "Arms and the Girl" (1950) and "Make a Wish" (1951). Nanette later copped another Tony nomination starring as a fictional "First Lady" opposition "President" Robert Ryan in the musical "Mr. President" (1962). Other tailor-made stage vehicles for her came in the form of "Plaza Suite", "Wonderful Town", "Never Too Late", "Last of the Red Hot Lovers" and "Cactus Flower", among others.
On the TV front, Nanette adjusted well into a lively and graceful support player. She served up a number of delightfully daffy moms, wisecracking friends and intrusive relatives in guest appearances -- sometimes alongside her own niece, actress Shelley Fabares, as was in the case of their regular roles on One Day at a Time (1975). Nanette was also a popular game show personality during the '60s and '70s, appearing on The Hollywood Squares (Daytime) (1965), The New High Rollers (1974), Password (1961) and The Match Game (1962), among others. The singer-comedienne could be counted on for TV musical variety appearances courtesy of headliners Dinah Shore, Andy Williams, Dean Martin and Carol Burnett.
Most importantly, Nanette's humanitarian efforts over the years were long recognized. A positive force as a hearing-impaired performer, she gave much time and effort in achieving equality for all types of handicapped and disabled people, including actors. Nanette was the widow (since 1973) of writer and sometime director/producer Ranald MacDougall, appearing in a few of his credited works, including the film The Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County (1970), the TV pilot Fame Is the Name of the Game (1966) and the TV-movie Magic Carpet (1972). She and MacDougall have one child. Still as lively as ever, Nanette appeared in a 2007 L.A. musical revue, "The Damsel Dialogues".
Nanette died on February 22, 2018, in Palos Verdes, California. She was 97.- Actor
- Writer
- Composer
Chester Charles Bennington was born in Phoenix, Arizona, to Susan Elaine (Johnson), a nurse, and Lee Russell Bennington, a police detective. His parents divorced when he was 11 years old. He has two half sisters and a half brother. He attended Centennial High School at the beginning of his freshman year. Then he went to Greenway High School where he started his first band, Grey Daze. He graduated from Washington High School in 1994.- Actress
- Soundtrack
She graduated from Marymount High School, Tarrytown, N.Y. and then from Adelphi College, NY. She married another Adelphi graduate, Lee Philips (actor, director) and were later divorced amicably. After studying with Sanford Meisner, she married F.X. Toole (the writer of Million Dollar Baby (2004) under the pseudonym used for Jerry Boyd), in Mexico City where daughter Erin was born. They later divorced amicably.
She did the play, Teach Me How To Cry, written by Patricia Joudry and was spotted by an agent, Doovid Barskin, who signed her. In 1960 she met the perfect man, Phil Toorvald, a Stanford University senior studying electrical engineering. She had two children with Phil in quick succession, Sven and Tina, raised another girl (adopted), and then raised that girl's two daughters.
Jean's first feature part had been in 1952 in the film Edge of Fury (1958) where she had met first-time cameraman Jack Couffer. Fifty years later, after each had survived the loss of long time spouses they now share their lives together in retirement.- Lynn Noe was born on 6 June 1933 in Louisville, Kentucky, USA. She was an actress, known for The Mike Douglas Show (1961) and Biography (1987). She was married to Michael Landon, Mannie Baier and Michael Angelo Pontrelli. She died on 26 November 2015 in Palos Verdes Estates, California, USA.
- Jan Wiley was born on 23 February 1916 in Marion, Indiana, USA. She was an actress, known for A Fig Leaf for Eve (1944), The Master Key (1945) and Adventures of Kitty O'Day (1945). She was married to Mort Greene and Roger Clark. She died on 27 May 1993 in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, USA.
- Eloise Hardt was born on 17 September 1917 in Lawton, Oklahoma, USA. She was an actress, known for The Kentucky Fried Movie (1977), Looker (1981) and Winter Kills (1979). She was married to Paul MacNamara, Hans Habe and Phil Edgar Scott. She died on 25 June 2017 in Palos Verdes, California, USA.
- Mark Allen was born on 16 April 1920 in Lewistown, Montana, USA. He was an actor, known for Dark Shadows (1966), Mannix (1967) and Farewell, My Lovely (1975). He died on 21 May 2003 in Palos Verdes, California, USA.
- Montrose Hagins was an African-American television actress. She starred and been a guest on popular shows such as: Seinfeld, Roc, 227, The Golden Girls, Sister, Sister, The Hughleys, The Jamie Foxx Show, What's Happening Now, The Sinbad Show, The Famous Jett Jackson. She also became the replacement for Rosetta LeNoire as Leola Henderson-Forbes in the final season on Amen. Her television credits also include more guest spots on shows such as: E/R, Hangin' with Mr. Cooper, Hunter, Malcolm & Eddie, and Moesha. She retired from acting in 2005 and spent the last years of her live living in an antique farmhouse in Pennsylvania.
- Director
- Art Director
- Writer
Austrian-born Nathan Juran was a professional architect before entering the film industry as an art director in 1937. He won an Academy Award for art direction on How Green Was My Valley (1941). World War II interrupted his film career, and he spent his war years with the OSS. Returning to Hollywood, he turned to directing films in the 1950s. He handled mostly low-budget westerns and sci-fi opuses, his most famous (or infamous) being Attack of the 50 Foot Woman (1958) (which he filmed under the name "Nathan Hertz"). On the other hand, he was also responsible for the superb fantasy adventure The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958). In the early 1960s, he journeyed to Europe, where he spent several years piloting adventure epics and spaghetti westerns.- Fuji was born on 28 December 1922 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an actor, known for The Wrecking Crew (1968), Mission: Impossible (1966) and The Crimson Kimono (1959). He died on 7 May 2008 in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, USA.
- Patricia Tate was born on 30 October 1957 in Richland, Washington, USA. She was an actress, known for Ally McBeal (1997), 20/20 Wednesday (1993) and The Secret History of Rock 'n' Roll with Gene Simmons (2001). She was married to Don Ford. She died on 3 June 2000 in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, USA.
- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
Donald Peterman was born on 3 January 1932 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was a cinematographer, known for Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), Flashdance (1983) and Men in Black (1997). He was married to Sally. He died on 5 February 2011 in Palos Verdes Estates, California, USA.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Jack Manning was born on 3 June 1916 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for The Owl and the Pussycat (1970), The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970) and The Six Million Dollar Man (1974). He was married to Frances Ann Smith and Virginia Schuchardt. He died on 31 August 2009 in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, USA.- Actress
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
Beautiful dancer Nita Bieber was born in 1926; her father, Wilbert Carl Bieber, was an accomplished piano player, and her mother, Callie Mae (Robbins), was a great dancer. Her younger brother Rodney and her three younger sisters all became good dancers, too, with Linda doing ballet and Wanda playing the harp. Nita started performing in public at age five, when she did a decorous fan dance in a long, pink dress. After her graduation from Hollywood high school, Nita traveled as a dancer with a USO troupe, and then joined the Jack Cole Dancers for a 9-month tour of the U.S., during which she became very prolific in both dancing and cooking.
In 1946, Nita appeared in a couple of films for Columbia, most notably Rhythm and Weep (1946) with the Three Stooges. In 1947, Nita appeared in three more films for Columbia, and also went to Monogram for a couple of flicks, most notably as Mame in the Bowery Boys movie News Hounds (1947). Nita was featured with a full-page photo on the cover of Life magazine, November 28, 1949. The article talked about her 7-year contract with MGM, and Nita's big dance number in the new movie musical in production, "Nancy Goes to Rio"; but it seems her dance number wound up on the cutting room floor, Nita was not in the final print (perhaps the director didn't want it to compete against Carmen Miranda). Nita appeared in movies for MGM and Universal until 1955; it seems "Kismet" (1955) was her last movie for MGM under her 7-year contract.
But Nita was very busy outside of movies. The Nita Bieber Dancers did short performances produced in 1951-1952, for local television stations needing "filler" programming. Their song-and-dance numbers included: "Swing Low, Sweet Clarinet" and "Dance of the Peacock" and "Mondongo." The Nita Bieber Dancers were also headliners in Las Vegas: they performed at the El Rancho Vegas in 1951, along with Benny Goodman; and in 1952, the Frontier showcased the Nita Bieber Dancers (they were in good company, other acts in the Frontier at that time were the Marx Brothers, Benny Goodman, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Josephine Baker and April Stevens). Even after Nita retired from show business, her fans had fond memories of her and great dancing. Nita's longtime hobbies included cats and paintings.- Writer
- Additional Crew
Writer Cyril Hume was born in New Rochelle, NY, in 1900. As a young man he joined the US Army and was assigned to the 219th Engineers, but left the service after only four months. In 1922 he enrolled at Yale University, but did not complete his studies there. He published his first novel, "Wife of the Centaur", in 1923, to generally positive reviews. He published several more novels over the next few years, to mixed reviews, and by 1930 he had basically given up novel writing to concentrate on screenplays (he wrote many entries in the "Tarzan" series for MGM). He is probably best known for writing the screenplay for the sci-fi classic Forbidden Planet (1956). He was the brother of actress Benita Hume and was at one time married to actress Helen Chandler. He died in Palos Verdes, California, in 1966.- Over a five-year-period (1930-1934), John Alexander, a cute little boy, was known as Tad Alexander and acted in a dozen films, alongside big stars (Will Rogers, Lionel Barrymore, John Barrymore and Ethel Barrymore, Clark Gable, Bette Davis and in important roles (the young King of Sylvania in Ambassador Bill (1931), the Czarevitch in Rasputin and the Empress (1932)), at least once under the direction of a great director (King Vidor for The Stranger's Return (1933)). But for all this impressive debut, Tad, for some unknown reason, gave up acting. He then became a concert artist before joining the Army in the Second World War where he served as a radar technician. After the War he worked as an engineer at Lockheed Radioplane, Hughes Aircraft and TWR. A pretty full life in fact, in which movie acting was only a short (but not insignificant) parenthesis but of which John Alexander, then a very old man, was reminded the day his name was added to the Young Hollywood Hall of Fame. Two years after, he died aged ninety.
- Composer
- Actor
- Music Department
Gary Wright was born in Creskill, New Jersey on April 26, 1943. He began his career in show business debuting on the "Captain Video" show in New York at age seven. He also made a living appearing in radio and television commercials before appearing in the play "Fanny." At this time he also started taking piano and organ lessons, which led to him joining several bands while he was in high school. Upon graduation he went to college to study psychology, first in New York, then in Berlin.
While in Europe, he met Englishman Mike Harrison, which led to the formation of the progressive/hard rock band Spooky Tooth. When the band temporarily disbanded in 1970, Wright became a solo artist and formed the band Wonderwheel. During this period he played in sessions for other artists, most notably on the George Harrison classic "All Things Must Pass."
In 1973, Spooky Tooth reunited, but they broke up again in 1974. Wright resumed his solo career, this time with more success. He released the keyboard-dominated Dream Weaver in 1975, which yielded two number-two singles, the title track and "Love is Alive." Today, Wright continues to perform both as a solo artist and as a sometime member of Ringo Starr's All-Stars.- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Charlotte Harris was born on 29 April 1931 in River Forest, Illinois, USA. She is known for The Lawrence Welk Show (1955) and Lawrence Welk: Milestones & Memories - A Musical Family Reunion (2001). She died on 20 December 2019 in Palos Verdes Peninsula, California, USA.- Dylan Lupia was born on 26 March 1998 in California, USA. He was an actor, known for Fat Kid Luv (2009). He died on 17 August 2022 in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, USA.
- Aaron Song was born on 19 November 1959 in Torrance, California, USA. He died on 30 November 2010 in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, USA.
- Sound Department
David J. Hudson was born on 16 December 1943 in the USA. He is known for Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), Aladdin (1992) and Beauty and the Beast (1991). He died on 21 May 2011 in Palo Verde Mountains, California, USA.- Pola Illéry was an exotic silent film star in France and Romania during the 1920s and made a modest transition to sound films in the 1930s. She was known for portraying sexually liberated women and was considered the most glamorous film star in Romania. After she left films feeling she achieved her time in the spotlight she fled to America in 1939 with the rise of Nazism. After moving between New York and Maryland she settled in Pennsylvania and spent her life living modestly with the family she had created and raised until her death from old age.
- Vivian Tobin was born on 12 August 1902 in New York City, New York, USA. She was an actress, known for The Sign of the Cross (1932), This Man Is Mine (1934) and The Jitters (1938). She was married to Karl O. Von Hagen. She died on 6 August 2002 in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, USA.
- George Allen was born on 29 April 1918 in Detroit, Michigan, USA. He was an actor, known for Coach (1989), The NFL on CBS (1956) and NFL Monday Night Football (1970). He was married to Etty Allen. He died on 31 December 1990 in Palos Verdes Estates, California, USA.
- Evan Tanner was born on 11 February 1971 in Amarillo, Texas, USA. He died in September 2008 in Palo Verde Mountains, California, USA.