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One of the most influential personalities in the history of cinema, Steven Spielberg is Hollywood's best known director and one of the wealthiest filmmakers in the world. He has an extraordinary number of commercially successful and critically acclaimed credits to his name, either as a director, producer or writer since launching the summer blockbuster with Jaws (1975), and he has done more to define popular film-making since the mid-1970s than anyone else.

Steven Allan Spielberg was born in 1946 in Cincinnati, Ohio, to Leah Frances (Posner), a concert pianist and restaurateur, and Arnold Spielberg, an electrical engineer who worked in computer development. His parents were both born to Russian Jewish immigrant families. Steven spent his younger years in Haddon Township, New Jersey, Phoenix, Arizona, and later Saratoga, California. He went to California State University Long Beach, but dropped out to pursue his entertainment career. Among his early directing efforts were Battle Squad (1961), which combined World War II footage with footage of an airplane on the ground that he makes you believe is moving. He also directed Escape to Nowhere (1961), which featured children as World War Two soldiers, including his sister Anne Spielberg, and The Last Gun (1959), a western. All of these were short films. The next couple of years, Spielberg directed a couple of movies that would portend his future career in movies. In 1964, he directed Firelight (1964), a movie about aliens invading a small town. In 1967, he directed Slipstream (1967), which was unfinished. However, in 1968, he directed Amblin' (1968), which featured the desert prominently, and not the first of his movies in which the desert would feature. Amblin' also became the name of his production company, which turned out such classics as E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982). Spielberg had a unique and classic early directing project, Duel (1971), with Dennis Weaver. In the early 1970s, Spielberg was working on TV, directing among others such series as Rod Serling's Night Gallery (1969), Marcus Welby, M.D. (1969) and Murder by the Book (1971). All of his work in television and short films, as well as his directing projects, were just a hint of the wellspring of talent that would dazzle audiences all over the world.

Spielberg's first major directorial effort was The Sugarland Express (1974), with Goldie Hawn, a film that marked him as a rising star. It was his next effort, however, that made him an international superstar among directors: Jaws (1975). This classic shark attack tale started the tradition of the summer blockbuster or, at least, he was credited with starting the tradition. His next film was the classic Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), a unique and original UFO story that remains a classic. In 1978, Spielberg produced his first film, the forgettable I Wanna Hold Your Hand (1978), and followed that effort with Used Cars (1980), a critically acclaimed, but mostly forgotten, Kurt Russell/Jack Warden comedy about devious used-car dealers. Spielberg hit gold yet one more time with Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), with Harrison Ford taking the part of Indiana Jones. Spielberg produced and directed two films in 1982. The first was Poltergeist (1982), but the highest-grossing movie of all time up to that point was the alien story E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982). Spielberg also helped pioneer the practice of product placement. The concept, while not uncommon, was still relatively low-key when Spielberg raised the practice to almost an art form with his famous (or infamous) placement of Reese's Pieces in "E.T." Spielberg was also one of the pioneers of the big-grossing special-effects movies, like "E.T." and "Close Encounters", where a very strong emphasis on special effects was placed for the first time on such a huge scale. In 1984, Spielberg followed up "Raiders" with Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), which was a commercial success but did not receive the critical acclaim of its predecessor. As a producer, Spielberg took on many projects in the 1980s, such as The Goonies (1985), and was the brains behind the little monsters in Gremlins (1984). He also produced the cartoon An American Tail (1986), a quaint little animated classic. His biggest effort as producer in 1985, however, was the blockbuster Back to the Future (1985), which made Michael J. Fox an instant superstar. As director, Spielberg took on the book The Color Purple (1985), with Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey, with great success. In the latter half of the 1980s, he also directed Empire of the Sun (1987), a mixed success for the occasionally erratic Spielberg. Success would not escape him for long, though.

The late 1980s found Spielberg's projects at the center of pop-culture yet again. In 1988, he produced the landmark animation/live-action film Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988). The next year proved to be another big one for Spielberg, as he produced and directed Always (1989) as well as Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), and Back to the Future Part II (1989). All three of the films were box-office and critical successes. Also, in 1989, he produced the little known comedy-drama Dad (1989), with Jack Lemmon and Ted Danson, which got mostly mixed results. Spielberg has also had an affinity for animation and has been a strong voice in animation in the 1990s. Aside from producing the landmark "Who Framed Roger Rabbit", he produced the animated series Tiny Toon Adventures (1990), Animaniacs (1993), Pinky and the Brain (1995), Freakazoid! (1995), Pinky, Elmyra & the Brain (1998), Family Dog (1993) and Toonsylvania (1998). Spielberg also produced other cartoons such as The Land Before Time (1988), We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story (1993), Casper (1995) (the live action version) as well as the live-action version of The Flintstones (1994), where he was credited as "Steven Spielrock". Spielberg also produced many Roger Rabbit short cartoons, and many Pinky and the Brain, Animaniacs and Tiny Toons specials. Spielberg was very active in the early 1990s, as he directed Hook (1991) and produced such films as the cute fantasy Joe Versus the Volcano (1990) and An American Tail: Fievel Goes West (1991). He also produced the unusual comedy thriller Arachnophobia (1990), Back to the Future Part III (1990) and Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990). While these movies were big successes in their own right, they did not quite bring in the kind of box office or critical acclaim as previous efforts. In 1993, Spielberg directed Jurassic Park (1993), which for a short time held the record as the highest grossing movie of all time, but did not have the universal appeal of his previous efforts. Big box-office spectacles were not his only concern, though. He produced and directed Schindler's List (1993), a stirring film about the Holocaust. He won best director at the Oscars, and also got Best Picture. In the mid-90s, he helped found the production company DreamWorks, which was responsible for many box-office successes.

As a producer, he was very active in the late 90s, responsible for such films as The Mask of Zorro (1998), Men in Black (1997) and Deep Impact (1998). However, it was on the directing front that Spielberg was in top form. He directed and produced the epic Amistad (1997), a spectacular film that was shorted at the Oscars and in release due to the fact that its release date was moved around so much in late 1997. The next year, however, produced what many believe was one of the best films of his career: Saving Private Ryan (1998), a film about World War Two that is spectacular in almost every respect. It was stiffed at the Oscars, losing best picture to Shakespeare in Love (1998).

Spielberg produced a series of films, including Evolution (2001), The Haunting (1999) and Shrek (2001). he also produced two sequels to Jurassic Park (1993), which were financially but not particularly critical successes. In 2001, he produced a mini-series about World War Two that definitely *was* a financial and critical success: Band of Brothers (2001), a tale of an infantry company from its parachuting into France during the invasion to the Battle of the Bulge. Also in that year, Spielberg was back in the director's chair for A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), a movie with a message and a huge budget. It did reasonably at the box office and garnered varied reviews from critics.

Spielberg has been extremely active in films there are many other things he has done as well. He produced the short-lived TV series SeaQuest 2032 (1993), an anthology series entitled Amazing Stories (1985), created the video-game series "Medal of Honor" set during World War Two, and was a starting producer of ER (1994). Spielberg, if you haven't noticed, has a great interest in World War Two. He and Tom Hanks collaborated on Shooting War: World War II Combat Cameramen (2000), a documentary about World War II combat photographers, and he produced a documentary about the Holocaust called Eyes of the Holocaust (2000). With all of this to Spielberg's credit, it's no wonder that he's looked at as one of the greatest ever figures in entertainment.

Amy Yasbeck was born on 12 September 1962 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. She is an actress, known for The Mask (1994), Pretty Woman (1990) and Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993). She was previously married to John Ritter.

Kathryn Morris is an American actress from Ohio. Her better known roles include her portrayals of the helicopter pilot Lieutenant Annalisa "Stinger" Lindstrom in the action-adventure series "Pensacola: Wings of Gold" (1997-2000), the cult leader Najara in the fantasy series "Xena: Warrior Princess" (from 1998 to 1999), the estranged wife Lara Anderton in the science fiction film "Minority Report" (2002), and the homicide detective Lillian "Lilly" Rush in the police procedural "Cold Case" (2003-2010). In "Cold Case", her character was the protagonist.

Morris was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, but raised in Windsor Locks, Connecticut. Her parents were the Bible scholar Stanley Morris and the insurance agent Joyce Morris. From c. 1975 to c. 1986, Kathryn performed with members of her family as a singer in the gospel-singing group "The Morris Code". The group regularly performed in the so-called Bible Belt of the Southern United States.

Morris studied theatre in high school. She received her tertiary education at the Northeastern Christian Junior College and the Temple University, both located in Philadelphia. Her first acting gig was reportedly a role in a Japanese music video. Morris made her film debut in the television film "Long Road Home" (1991). During the early 1990s, she frequently appeared in various television films. Among them was the crime drama "A Friend to Die For" (1994), based on the real-life murder of high school girl Kirsten Costas by a female classmate who was obsessed with Costas.

In the second half of the 1990s, Morris had guest star roles in several then-popular television series, such as "Murder, She Wrote", "Silk Stalkings" , and "Poltergeist: The Legacy"". Her first role as a main cast member in a television series was in "Pensacola: Wings of Gold" . Among her earliest prominent film roles was that of FBI agent Paige Willomina in the political drama "The Contender" (2000). The director Steven Spielberg cast Morris in two of his films, after first noticing her in "The Contender" .

In 2013, Morris gave birth to twin sons at the age of 44. In 2016, both of her sons were diagnosed with autism. In subsequent years, Morris became involved with autism-related advocacy organizations. In 2021, Morris founded the initiative "The Savants" in an attempt (in her words) "to mainstream autism". She had devoted much of her personal life to parenting and activism, though she never retired from acting.

Nikki Glaser was born on 1 June 1984 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. She is a writer and producer, known for Trainwreck (2015), I Feel Pretty (2018) and Punching the Clown (2009).

Hagerty made her off-Broadway debut in 1979, starring in Mutual Benefit Life at her brother's theater, The Production Company. She continued appearing on stage, including starring in a Broadway version of The House of Blue Leaves. She was subsequently cast opposite Robert Hays in the parody film, Airplane! It was released in June 1980 and became the third-highest grossing comedy in box office history at that time, behind Smokey and the Bandit (1977) and National Lampoon's Animal House (1978). Airplane! was considered the first of the modern parody genre and established Hagerty as a noted comedic actress.

Hagerty spent the 1980s starring in a number of theatrical films, including the well-reviewed Albert Brooks film Lost In America and Woody Allen's A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy. Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, Hagerty had supporting roles in Hollywood films, including the '90s comedies What About Bob? and Noises Off, as well as a part in the 2005 film Just Friends and 2006's She's the Man.

In 2000, she narrated the audio book version of The Trolls, a children's novel by Polly Horvath. In 2002, she appeared in the Broadway revival of Mornings at Seven. Starting in 2011, she took over as the voice of Carol, Lois's sister, on Family Guy. On Television, Hagerty was last seen recurring on NBC's "Trial & Error." Other selected credits include, "Family Guy," "New Girl," Happy Endings" and "Grace & Frankie." In 2013, she starred in Jonathan Demme's final film, "A Master Builder," where her work was hauntingly brilliant.

Most recently, Julie Hagerty can be seen starring opposite Mark Wahlberg and Rose Byrne in Paramount Pictures' Instant Family (2018), Additionally, Julie stars opposite Scarlett Johansson, Adam Driver, and Merritt Wever in Netflix's Marriage Story (2019), and then in Disney's Christmas movie Noelle (2019), where she plays 'Mrs. Claus' opposite Anna Kendrick, Shirley MacLaine, Bill Hader, and Billy Eichner.

Gabrielle Dennis is a multi-hyphenated artist with a background as a trained dancer, actress, and singer stretching all the way back to age 4. Gabrielle always knew she would have a career in the arts and although she has appeared on stage and film she is best known for her work in television. Her first major recurring role was as Janay Brice on the hit series "The Game" (CW & BET) that was canceled after 3 seasons on the CW but later picked up by BET thanks to a campaign started by fans for the beloved show's return. Gabrielle left the show in 2012 and went on to star in 1 season of "Blue Mountain State" (Spike TV) and guest star on several series like Justified (FX), Bones (Fox), and Baby Daddy (ABC Family) to name a few before landing her first network series regular role on "Rosewood" (Fox) where she played the titular characters sister, Pippy Rosewood. Producers, aware of her abilities, introduced her singing as part of her character's storyline allowing Gabrielle to record several songs for the series and it's subsequent soundtrack. Rosewood was canceled after only 2 seasons but Gabrielle immediately landed her next series as Tilda Johnson aka Nightshade on the junior season of Marvel's Luke Cage where was once again able to showcase her singing talent with a song she performed and wrote entitled "Family First" for the series very climatic reveal. Unfortunately fans never got a chance to see her character fully develop as the show was canceled when Disney pulled all of its series from Netflix. Luckily though this made her available to portray Whitney Houston in "The Bobby Brown Story" a two part mini-series for BET that earned Gabrielle an NAACP Image Award nomination for her performance and an actual win for the series. Since that nomination Gabrielle has gone on to portray another icon, Tina Turner, for an episode of "American Soul" (BET) about the famed Soul Train series and recurred on two more shows: Insecure (HBO) and S.W.A.T (CBS).

In 2019 Gabrielle had the opportunity to go back to her comedy routes when Robin Thede, whom Gabrielle first met back in her stand-up comedy days, approached her to co-star in a series she created for HBO called "A Black Lady Sketch Show" that went on to earn three Emmy Nominations in its 1st season. Although Gabrielle has performed stand-up, toured with a sketch troop and was a series regular an another sketch comedy series, "The Underground" (Showtime), most fans were shocked to see Gabrielle portray over 2 dozen characters in the first 2 seasons of "A Black Lady Sketch Show" and look forward to seeing her do more on the heels of a season 3 pickup. In 2020 Gabrielle returned to Netflix as a recurring character on the new hit series "The Upshaws" as Tasha where fans have been able to experience even more of her comedic talents. In 2021 Gabrielle landed her first leading lady role for a network television pilot entitled "Someone Out There" (CBS) which is scheduled to film summer 2021.

American character actor born in Cincinnati and raised in Louisville, Mitchell Ryan was a well known supporting actor in films and television. Joined the Navy in 1951 at age 17 and was later assigned to the Special Services Entertainment and became hooked on acting. After his term in the Navy, he appeared in dozens of plays until he received notice as playing a regular in TV's Dark Shadows (1966).

Beginning in the 1970s, he received work in motion pictures including Monte Walsh (1970), Magnum Force (1973) and in Clint Eastwood's High Plains Drifter (1973). He had a small part in Universal's Midway (1976) and returned to act in numerous soaps and television series, among them included a recurring guest role in Having Babies (1978), Executive Suite (1976), The Chisholms (1979) and All My Children (1970) and a growing list of television films and TV guest appearances.

He may have been best-known for portraying the villain that Mel Gibson and Danny Glover are after in Lethal Weapon (1987), but his career included several supporting roles in the past ten years including Judge Dredd (1995), Michael Myers' nemesis in Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995), Liar Liar (1997) (with Jim Carrey), and as Harrison Ford's chief out to get Brad Pitt in the film The Devil's Own (1997).

Floriana Lima was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio. She studied Communication at Ohio State University and thought she would go into investigative journalism. Post- graduation, she worked as a production assistant at NBC4 in Columbus, Ohio. It was there that she realized she wanted to switch gears to on-camera work. She moved to LA shortly after and started booking acting jobs.

Lima quickly established herself as one of the fresh-new faces on television. She played Maggie Sawyer, a detective for the National City Police Department who takes a special interest in the cases involving aliens, in the second season of the CW series Supergirl. She played Miranda Riggs in multiple episodes of the Fox series Lethal Weapon. And, she was in the ABC political drama, The Family. Lima wrote, produced, and starred in the web comedy series Girls Guide to LA.

Lewis was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, the daughter of Marlene, a nursing administrator, and Jim Lewis, an air traffic supervisor. She has a sister, Denise. She most recently starred as Countess Lili in Darko Tresnik's production of 'Anastasia' on Broadway. She starred as Velma Kelly in the Broadway revival of 'Chicago' opposite Charlotte d'Amboise, and played Gloria Thorpe in the Broadway revival of 'Damn Yankees', directed by Jack O'Brien. She portrayed Mary Warren in the Roundabout's production of 'The Crucible', directed by Gerald Freedman. She appeared in 'Pal Joey' with Bebe Neuwirth and Patti LuPone for Encores at the NY City Center. Off-Broadway productions in which Lewis has appeared include: Nassim, Snoopy, and Angry Housewives.

She starred as Beth on the critically acclaimed NBC series NewsRadio (1995) for its full run of 4.5 seasons. She also appeared on Three Sisters (2001) and Betsy's Kindergarten Adventures (2006) for their full runs. She had recurring roles on How I Met Your Mother (2005) on Sonny with a Chance (2009). Guest roles include such series as Modern Family (2009), The Blacklist (2013), Angie Tribeca (2016), Doll & Em (2013), Melissa & Joey (2010), Bones (2005), Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000),Murphy Brown (1988), Seinfeld (1989), Grey's Anatomy (2005), The Middle (2009), Pushing Tin (1999), Grace Under Fire (1993), Norm (1999), and Caroline in the City (1995). She has appeared in such films as The Ugly Truth (2009), Breakfast of Champions (1999), Mousehunt (1997), California Dreaming (2007), and Godzilla (1998). She has voiced hundreds of animation characters, most notably Deb/Flo in Pixar's blockbuster films, Finding Nemo (2003) and Finding Dory (2016), and such animated TV series as The Wild Thornberrys (1998), Rugrats Pre-School Daze (2005), Mission Hill (1999), and Rugrats (1991).

Matt McCoy was born on 20 May 1956 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (1992), Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan (2018) and Silicon Valley (2014). He has been married to Mary McCoy since 1985. They have three children.

Mark Boone Junior was born on 17 March 1955 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Memento (2000), Batman Begins (2005) and 30 Days of Night (2007).

One of America's most loved actresses was born Doris Mary Kappelhoff on April 3, 1922, in Cincinnati, Ohio, to Alma Sophia (Welz), a housewife, and William Joseph Kappelhoff, a music teacher and choir master. Her grandparents were all German immigrants. She had two brothers, Richard, who died before she was born and Paul, a few years older.

Her parents divorced while she was still a child, and she lived with her mother. Like most little girls, Doris liked to dance. At fourteen, she formed a dance act with a boy, Jerry Doherty, and they won $500 in a local talent contest. She and Jerry took a brief trip to Hollywood to test the waters. They felt they could succeed, so she and Jerry returned to Cincinnati with the intention of packing and making a permanent move to Hollywood. Tragically, the night before she was to move to Hollywood, she was injured riding in a car hit by a train, ending the possibility of a dancing career.

It was a terrible setback, but after taking singing lessons she found a new vocation, and at age 17, she began touring with the Les Brown Band. She met trombonist Al Jorden, whom she married in 1941. Jorden was prone to violence and they divorced after two years, not long after the birth of their son Terry. In 1946, Doris married George Weidler, but this union lasted less than a year. Day's agent talked her into taking a screen test at Warner Bros. The executives there liked what they saw and signed her to a contract (her early credits are often confused with those of another actress named Doris Day, who appeared mainly in B westerns in the 1930s and 1940s).

Her first starring movie role was in Romance on the High Seas (1948). The next year, she made two more films, My Dream Is Yours (1949) and It's a Great Feeling (1949). Audiences took to her beauty, terrific singing voice and bubbly personality, and she turned in fine performances in the movies she made (in addition to several hit records). She made three films for Warner Bros. in 1950 and five more in 1951. In that year, she met and married Martin Melcher, who adopted her young son Terry, who later grew up to become Terry Melcher, a successful record producer.

In 1953, Doris starred in Calamity Jane (1953), which was a major hit, and several more followed: Lucky Me (1954), Love Me or Leave Me (1955), The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) and what is probably her best-known film, Pillow Talk (1959). She began to slow down her filmmaking pace in the 1960s, even though she started out the decade with a hit, Please Don't Eat the Daisies (1960).

In 1958, her brother Paul died. Around this time, her husband, who had also taken charge of her career, had made deals for her to star in films she didn't really care about, which led to a bout with exhaustion. The 1960s weren't to be a repeat of the previous busy decade. She didn't make as many films as she had in that decade, but the ones she did make were successful: Do Not Disturb (1965), The Glass Bottom Boat (1966), Where Were You When the Lights Went Out? (1968) and With Six You Get Eggroll (1968). Martin Melcher died in 1968, and Doris never made another film, but she had been signed by Melcher to do her own TV series, The Doris Day Show (1968). That show, like her movies, was successful, lasting until 1973. After her series went off the air, she made only occasional TV appearances.

By the time Martin Melcher died, Doris discovered she was millions of dollars in debt. She learned that Melcher had squandered virtually all of her considerable earnings, but she was eventually awarded $22 million by the courts in a case against a man that Melcher had unwisely let invest her money. She married for the fourth time in 1976 and since her divorce in 1980 has devoted her life to animals.

Doris was a passionate animal rights activist. She ran Doris Day Animal League in Carmel, California, which advocates homes and proper care of household pets.

Doris died on May 13, 2019, in Carmel Valley Village, California. She was 97.

Multi-talented actor/comedian Katt Williams was born in Cincinnati and raised in Dayton, Ohio. He currently resides in Los Angeles, California, where he is simultaneously working on several projects on camera and behind the scenes for your viewing pleasure in the near future. Throughout his journey he has used his comedy as a tool to travel the country and has accumulated a massive fan base in the process. You may find him coming to your area soon, as he is currently on a multi-city comedy tour, touring with some of the hottest comedians to date.

Tyrone Power was one of the great romantic swashbuckling stars of the mid-twentieth century, and the third Tyrone Power of four in a famed acting dynasty reaching back to the eighteenth century. His great-grandfather was the first Tyrone Power (1795-1841), a famed Irish comedian. His father, known to historians as Tyrone Power Sr., but to his contemporaries as either Tyrone Power or Tyrone Power the Younger, was a huge star in the theater (and later in films) in both classical and modern roles. His mother, Helen Emma "Patia" (née Reaume), (Mrs. Tyrone Power), was also a Shakespearean actress as well as a respected dramatic coach.

Tyrone Edmund Power, Jr., (also called Tyrone Power III) was born at his mother's home of Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1914. His ancestry included English, Irish, German, French Huguenot, and French-Canadian. A frail, sickly child, he was taken by his parents to the warmer climate of southern California. After his parents' divorce, he and his sister Anne Power returned to Cincinnati with their mother. There he attended school while developing an obsession with acting. Although raised by his mother, he corresponded with his father, who encouraged his acting dreams. He was a supernumerary in his father's stage production of 'The Merchant of Venice' in Chicago and held him as he died suddenly of a heart attack later that year.

Startlingly handsome, young Tyrone nevertheless struggled to find work in Hollywood. He appeared in a few small roles, then went east to do stage work. A screen test led to a contract at 20th Century Fox in 1936, and he quickly progressed to leading roles. Within a year or so, he was one of Fox's leading stars, playing in contemporary and period pieces with ease. Most of his roles were colorful without being deep, and his swordplay was more praised than his wordplay. He served in the Marine Corps in World War II as a transport pilot, and he saw action in the Pacific Theater of operations.

After the war, he got his best reviews for an atypical part as a downward-spiraling con-man in Nightmare Alley (1947). Although he remained a huge star, much of his postwar work was unremarkable. He continued to do notable stage work and also began producing films. Following a fine performance in Billy Wilder's Witness for the Prosecution (1957), Power began production on Solomon and Sheba (1959). Halfway through shooting, he suffered a heart attack during a dueling scene with George Sanders and died before reaching a hospital.

His three children, including his namesake, Tyrone William Power IV (known professionally as Tyrone Power Jr.), have all followed him in the family acting tradition.

John Henry Diehl has appeared more than 150 times in films and TV including Armageddon Time (2022), Five Days at Memorial (2022), Nixon, Stripes, and TV series Dark Winds (2022), Snowfall (2017), Castle Rock (2018), The Shield, and Miami Vice. Described by the Los Angeles Times as a "versatile and immediately recognizable" character actor, Diehl has has "...avoided the typecasting that is an accepted part of most character actors' careers." NY Times' A.O Scott hailed his "wry, cunning performance" in Wim Wenders' post 9/11 film Land of Plenty (2004). A member of The Actors Studio since 2004, Diehl's career has spanned over 40 years. Playing a colorful array of wackos in his earlier years, he has since become a fine character actor. In the early 80s Diehl played bit parts in movies such as Escape from New York (1981) with Kurt Russell and Stripes (1981) with Bill Murray and then landed a co-starring role in the pilot for Miami Vice (1984) playing Detective Larry Zito in a Hawaiian shirt. He continued that role in Miami Vice (1984) for three seasons before leaving to pursue other roles. Film credits include The Client (1994), A Time to Kill (1996), Stargate (1994), Nixon (1995) and Pearl Harbor (2001) and the first one to get eaten in Jurassic Park III (2001). He lives in New Mexico with his wife, singer Julie Christensen. They have one son, Los Angeles actor and filmmaker Magnus Diehl b. 1993.

A character actor who seems to pop up everywhere as the stereotypical cop, military officer and/or tough guy, von Bargen could turn in performances of stunning complexity when given the chance.

Daniel von Bargen was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on June 5, 1950 to Juanita (Bustle) and Donald L. von Bargen. Of German and English descent, he grew up in Cincinnati for most of his childhood before moving with his family to Southern California. He attended Purdue University, majoring in drama. He joined the Trinity Repertory Theatre in Providence, Rhode Island, after graduation and worked with them for many years. A breakthrough role in Mastergate (1992) by Larry Gelbart launched him onto Broadway. He starred in off-Broadway productions of "Beggars in the House of Plenty", "Macbeth", "The Cherry Orchard", "Hurlyburly", and "Uncle Vanya." On TV, he was best-known for his roles in Malcolm in the Middle (2000) and The West Wing (1999).

His role in The Postman (1997) as the Pineview sheriff who suspects Kevin Costner's character of being a fraud, was a stand-out as von Bargen infused the role with the pathos of a man caught between just trying to survive and wanting to believe in the hope the Postman represents. In an otherwise mediocre film, audiences were moved to tear up as his character shouts, "Ride Postman! Ride!", just before being put to death for assisting in the rebellion. His more evil side was brought out in Clive Barker's Lord of Illusions (1995) as he played Nix, an older, wiser, more magical and supernaturally gifted type of Charles Manson character rising from the dead to "murder the world".

Stephen Geoffreys made a strong and distinct impression with his winning blend of wild energy and manic intensity that he brought to a handful of hugely enjoyable comedies and horror films made throughout the 1980s. He was born Stephen Geoffrey Miller on November 22, 1964, in Cincinnati, Ohio. Geoffreys first began acting at a performing arts high school in Cincinnati and attended acting classes at New York University. Geoffreys gave an excellent and inspired performance as obnoxious horror movie geek "Evil" Ed Thompson in the terrific Fright Night (1985). Stephen displayed a real flair for comedy with his amusing turns as the antsy Williams in Heaven Help Us (1985) and the nerdy Wendell in Fraternity Vacation (1985). Other memorable roles include persecuted wimp Hoax in 976-EVIL (1988), hardened inmate Roach in the dreary haunted prison dud The Chair (1988), and slimy drug dealer Cookie in Moon 44 (1990). Geoffreys did guest appearances on the TV anthology shows Amazing Stories (1985) and The Twilight Zone (1985). Stephen has also had a very respectable stage career: he's acted in the Off-Broadway productions "The Human Comedy" (Geoffreys was nominated for a Broadway Tony Award for Best Actor for the subsequent Broadway production of this play), "Maggie/Magalita," and "Songs on the Shipwrecked Sofa." In a startling and unexpected career move, Geoffreys wound up acting in numerous gay hardcore porno pictures under the pseudonyms Sam Ritter and Stephan Bordeaux. Outside of acting, Geoffreys writes short stories and is an avid bodybuilder. After a regrettably lengthy absence from the big screen, Stephen Geoffreys made a welcome comeback with a co-starring role in the indie fright feature Sick Girl (2007).

Three-time Emmy Award winner Patricia Wettig made a noticeable dramatic impact on late 1980s TV as wife and mom Nancy Weston on the award-winning series Thirtysomething (1987). Although her husband, actor Ken Olin, also co-starred on the series, they had different spouses on the show. Known for her searching blue eyes, touching sensitivity, obvious intelligence and controlled intensity, her post series' career didn't live up to what many expected for her; however, lately her fans have enjoyed her major resurgence again on TV as part of the talented ensemble of Brothers & Sisters (2006), with her husband serving as one of the producers.

Patricia was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on December 4, 1951, one of four daughters born to Tennessee college basketball coach Clifford Neal and his wife Florence. Raised in Grove City, Pennsylvania, she studied drama at Temple University in Philadelphia, then graduated from Ohio Wesleyan in 1974. She trained with the Neighborhood Playhouse in the early years and made ends meet at one time as a personal dresser to singer/dancer/actress Shirley MacLaine. She also performed with New York's Circle Repertory Company during the years 1980 and 1981, appearing in such off-Broadway productions as "Innocents, Thoughts, Harmless Intentions," "The Woolgatherer," "Childe Byron," "The Diviners" and "Threads". She met Olin when both were cast in a 1982 production of "A Streetcar Named Desire" wherein they DID play a married couple (she portrayed Stella, he played Stanley). They wed later that year and had two children together -- Clifford (born 1983) and Roxanne (born 1986).

The comely, wide-smiling, sharp-featured blonde soon began to appear on some of the higher-rated dramatic shows of the day including Hill Street Blues (1981) and L.A. Law (1986), and a recurring part on St. Elsewhere (1982). Her success on Thirtysomething (1987), for which she also won a Golden Globe Award, led to her title role as a victim of rape in Taking Back My Life: The Nancy Ziegenmeyer Story (1992) and as a school teacher passenger in Stephen King's The Langoliers (1995), not to mention a choice part in her debut movie Guilty by Suspicion (1991) starring Robert De Niro. She also bookended the hugely popular movie City Slickers (1991) series (as Billy Crystal's wife) with her appearance in the sequel.

Since then Patricia has been spotted in recurring roles on the series Breaking News (2002), Prison Break (2005) (as a female Vice President) and Alias (2001), the last-mentioned being executive produced by husband Ken. She also played the "other woman" in the Sally Field family drama series Brothers & Sisters (2006), also directed by and featuring Ken.

Perhaps inspired by her husband, who successfully rechanneled his energies and talents as a TV producer and director, Patricia has more or less downplayed her acting career in recent years while earning an M.F.A. in playwriting from Smith College in 2001. Since that time she has focused diligently on the pen, but was more recently seen as her character Nancy on a "thirtysomething revisited" TV movie "Thirtysomething Sequel" (????).

Andre Hyland is a director, actor, writer, comedian, producer, and visual artist.

Hyland is a four-time Sundance Film Festival writer/director, including the 2014 critically-acclaimed short film Funnel. His TV work includes directing Tru TV's "Jon Glaser Loves Gear" and co-head writing Adult Swim's "M4M".

As an actor, Hyland was recently nominated for SAG's "Best Comedic Ensemble" for his work on HBO's Barry. He can also be seen along side Kate Beckinsale on Paramount+'s Guilty Party. In 2019, he starred in Daniel Scheinert's A24 feature film, The Death of Dick Long.

His fine art work was mainly seen on the streets via graffiti and street art during the 00's under the name Buddy L. His work has been included in exhibitions at London's Institute of Contemporary Art, MASS MoCA, and Publico's "Good World" in association with Cincinnati's CAC Beautiful Losers. His artwork has been featured in publications such as The Art of Rebellion 2, and Scribble Magazine.

March 25, 2024

Heidi Hudson Leick, upon graduating high school, got a modeling gig in Japan; this was perfect because she loves traveling and modeling. When she returned to New York, her dream was to be an international model and then go into acting. One day, she quit modeling while in France, and pursued a TV career. After several episodes of Melrose Place (1992) and several TV movies, Hudson's big break in television came auditioning for her signature role of "Callisto" on Xena: Warrior Princess (1995). The casting people told her the part was that of a warrior queen, which she thought was great. Her audition consisted of doing a kick and throwing a chakram; having intimidated the crew, she got the part. Hudson attends Xena conventions as a guest of honor. She said her celebrity status surprises even her: when she had a birthday, several hundred fans sent her email messages. Her presence touches so many other people. She loves traveling, going on yoga retreats and climbing mountains. Hudson said at a convention, "I really want to thank all the people who have been supportive of me. It is so appreciated."

E.R. Fightmaster's home town is Cincinnati, Ohio.They are a graduate of DePaul University, with a degree in Women and Gender studies. A well trained improv performer, they are an alumni of The Second City Chicago and the Second City Touring company. They are also ashamed by "hiding in the closet" not "out and proud." Their previous work includes performing at the Boom Chicago, the renowned English-language comedy troupe in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

KiKi Layne was born on 10 December 1991 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for If Beale Street Could Talk (2018), Native Son (2019) and The Old Guard (2020).

Tim DeZarn was born on 11 July 1952 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for The Cabin in the Woods (2011), Fight Club (1999) and Spider-Man (2002). He has been married to Janine Venable since 1996. They have one child. He was previously married to Gail Marie Lucas.

Rebecca Budig was born on 26 June 1973 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for General Hospital (1963), All My Children (1970) and Getaway (2013). She has been married to Mike Benson since 2012. They have one child. She was previously married to Bob Guiney and Daniel Geller.

Raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, Jenny is a 1982 graduate of Oak Hills High School were she got her first taste of acting in Noël Coward's Blithe Spirit. After college at Northern Kentucky University, she joined the Actors Theatre of Louisville. Following a year's apprenticeship there, she moved to New York where she made her film debut in Bull Durham (1988).