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- Actress
- Soundtrack
One is certainly hard-pressed to think of another true "bad girl" representative so closely identifiable with film noir than hard-looking blonde actress Audrey Totter. While she remained a "B"-tier actress for most her career, she was an "A" quality actress and one of filmdom's most intriguing ladies. She always managed to set herself apart even in the most standard of programming.
Born to an Austrian father and Swedish mother on December 20, 1917, in Joliet, Illinois, she treaded lightly on stage ("The Copperhead," "My Sister Eileen") and initially earned notice on the Chicago and New York radio airwaves in the late 1930s before "going Hollywood." MGM developed an interest in her and put her on its payroll in 1944. Still appearing on radio (including the sitcom "Meet Millie"), she made her film bow as, of course, a "bad girl" in Main Street After Dark (1945). That same year the studio usurped her vocal talents to torment poor Phyllis Thaxter in Bewitched (1945). Her voice was prominent again as an unseen phone operator in Ziegfeld Follies (1945). Audrey played one of her rare pure-heart roles in The Cockeyed Miracle (1946). At this point she began to establish herself in the exciting "film noir" market.
Among the certified classics she participated in were The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) in which she had a small role as John Garfield's blonde floozie pick-up. Things brightened up considerably with Lady in the Lake (1946) co-starring Robert Montgomery as detective Philip Marlowe. The film was not well received and is now better remembered for its interesting subjective camera technique. Audrey's first hit as a femme fatale co-star came on loanout to Warner Bros. In The Unsuspected (1947), she cemented her dubious reputation in "B" noir as a trampy, gold-digging niece married to alcoholic Hurd Hatfield. She then went on a truly enviable roll with High Wall (1947), as a psychiatrist to patient Robert Taylor, The Saxon Charm (1948) with Montgomery (again) and Susan Hayward, Alias Nick Beal (1949) as a loosely-moraled "Girl Friday" to Ray Milland, the boxing film The Set-Up (1949) as the beleaguered wife of washed-up boxer Robert Ryan, Any Number Can Play (1949) with Clark Gable and as a two-timing spouse in Tension (1949) with Richard Basehart.
Although the studio groomed Audrey to become a top star, it was not to be. Perhaps because she was too good at being bad. The 1950s film scene softened considerably and MGM began focusing on family-styled comedy and drama. Audrey's tough-talking dames were no longer a commodity and MGM soon dropped her in 1951. She signed for a time with Columbia Pictures and 20th Century Fox as well but her era had come and gone. Film offers began to evaporate. At around this time she married Leo Fred, a doctor, and instead began focusing on marriage and family.
TV gave her career a slight boost in the 1960s and 1970s, including regular roles in Cimarron City (1958) and Our Man Higgins (1962) as a suburban mom opposite Stanley Holloway's British butler. After a period of semi-retirement, she came back to TV to replace Jayne Meadows in the popular television series Medical Center (1969) starring Chad Everett and James Daly. She played Nurse Wilcox, a recurring role, for four seasons (1972-1976). The 70-year-old Totter retired after a 1987 guest role on "Murder, She Wrote." Her husband died in 1996. On December 12, 2013, Audrey Totter died at age 95 in West Hills, California.- Music Artist
- Actress
- Composer
Lisa Marie Presley was born on 1 February 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee, USA. She was a music artist and actress, known for Lisa Marie Presley: Idiot (2005), Michael Jackson: You Are Not Alone (1995) and Lisa Marie Presley: Dirty Laundry (2005). She was married to Michael Lockwood, Nicolas Cage, Michael Jackson and Danny Keough. She died on 12 January 2023 in West Hills, California, USA.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Clayton Moore grew up in Chicago, Illinois and although his father wanted him to become a doctor, he had visions of something a little more glamorous. Naturally athletic, he practiced gymnastics during family summer vacations in Canada, eventually joining the trapeze act The Flying Behrs at 19. During the 1934 Chicago World's Fair, Clayton performed in the position of catcher. Playing off his good looks, he was signed by the John Robert Powers modeling agency and enjoyed a print career in NY for several years. But a friend urged him to make the move to Hollywood in 1938 where he entered films as a bit player and stuntman. In 1940, at the suggestion of his agent Edward Small, he changed his first name from Jack to Clayton. Beginning with Perils of Nyoka (1942), he eventually became King of the Serials at Republic Studios appearing in more than cliffhanger star Buster Crabbe. During this period, he also worked in many B westerns earning his acting chops alongside Roy Rogers, Gene Autry and interestingly Jay Silverheels. Later in 1942 he entered the military, was stationed in Kingman, Arizona and assigned entertainment duties including the production of training films. While in Arizona, he asked his future wife Sally Allen to marry him; she said "yes" and joined him in Kingman for the balance of his enlistment. After the war, he returned to these supporting roles while concentrating on westerns. His turn as Ghost of Zorro (1949) came to the attention of the radio's hugely successful Lone Ranger producer George W. Trendle who was casting the lead role for the new television series. After the interview, Trendle said, "Mr. Moore would you like the role of the Lone Ranger?" Moore replied, "Mr. Trendle, I AM The Lone Ranger." The premiere episode appeared on ABC on September 15, 1949, and was the first western specifically written for the new medium. Although Moore's voice was a natural baritone, Trendle insisted he sound more like the radio actor Brace Beemer, so Moore worked with a voice coach to mimic both the speech pattern and tone. He starred in television's The Lone Ranger from 1949-1952 and 1953-1957. Along with William Boyd ("Hopalong Cassidy"), Moore was one of the most popular TV western stars of the era. Because of a salary dispute, he was replaced by John Hart, for one season. It was during his time away from the TV show that Moore returned to the big screen (as Clay Moore) to continue his movie career with such memorable movies as Radar Men from the Moon (1952) and Jungle Drums of Africa (1953). where he co-starred with Phyllis Coates, TVs first "Lois Lane". Hired back to the series, at a higher salary, Moore remained as The Lone Ranger until the series ended in 1957, after 169 episodes. He appeared in two color big-screen movie continuations of that character, in The Lone Ranger (1956) and The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958). After a lifetime of "B" movie parts, Clayton Moore finally found success in a TV series and continued to make commercials and personal appearances as "The Lone Ranger" for the next three decades. The commercials for Jeno's Pizza Rolls and Aqua Velva have become legendary in their own right. At his appearances, he recited The Lone Ranger Creed, which he deeply believed in, and that image was never tarnished by the types of personal scandals that often affected other stars. In 1978 Jack Wrather (the Wrather Corp}, which owned the series and the rights to the title character, obtained a court order to stop Moore from appearing in public as "The Lone Ranger". The company planned to film a new big-screen movie of the popular hero and did not want the public to confuse its new star with the old one. It would be the only screen appearance for Klinton Spilsbury, this "new Lone Ranger". Although the former "Arrow" shirt model appeared rugged and handsome in the "unmasked" sequence, his voice projected so poorly it was overdubbed by the more melodious voice of James Keach. The film was one of the biggest flops of the 1980s and The Lone Ranger story wasn't attempted again until 30 years later with Armie Hammer and Johnny Depp as Tonto. Again, however, the film flopped without a nod to the original tenets of the integrity of the character. After Jack Wrather died in 1984, his widow actress Bonita Granville dismissed the lawsuit allowing Moore to continue to appear as the masked man. Moore's legacy to the entertainment industry and western film genre has been cemented with the installation of his legendary mask in the Smithsonian, his star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame, and a United States Postage Stamp bearing his image alongside Silver.- Angela Aames grew up in Pierre, South Dakota. She acted in high school and attended the University of South Dakota before coming to Hollywood in 1978 to begin her acting career. Her first film role was as Little Bo Peep in the film Fairy Tales (1978). She followed that up by playing Linda "Boom-Boom" Bang in H.O.T.S. (1979). Other film roles included ...All the Marbles (1981), Scarface (1983), Bachelor Party (1984), The Lost Empire (1984), Basic Training (1985), and Chopping Mall (1986). She did guest appearances on several television shows, including Cheers (1982) and Night Court (1984). Her last role was as Penny, a fitness instructor, on The Dom DeLuise Show (1987). Angela was found dead at a friend's home in West Hills in the San Fernando Valley on November 27, 1988. The coroner later ruled that her death was a result of a deterioration of the heart muscle, probably caused by a virus. She was 32 at the time.
- Actor
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Soundtrack
Ken Weatherwax was born on 29 September 1955 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an actor, known for The Addams Family (1964), Unlawful Entry (1992) and Wagon Train (1957). He died on 7 December 2014 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Born in Turtle Creek, Pennsylvania--a small town just east of Pittsburgh--Ron Harper became valedictorian of his senior class and won an academic scholarship to Princeton University, where he supplemented his academic studies by appearing in a number of plays and musical comedies. He earned a fellowship to study law at Harvard, but the "acting bug" lured him instead to New York, where he studied with 'Lee Strasberg'. Next came a stint in the US Navy (mostly spent in Panama), followed by a return to New York. After several disappointments. he earned a job as Paul Newman's understudy in "Sweet Bird of Youth". Hollywood soon beckoned, and Harper appeared in a succession of TV series: 87th Precinct (1961), The Jean Arthur Show (1966), Wendy and Me (1964), Garrison's Gorillas (1967) and Planet of the Apes (1974).
Following "Apes", he had roles in several soap-operas and guest-starred on various TV shows. He now lives in California. - Primarily known as a "B" movie bad guy of hundreds of films, husky actor Steve Brodie was born John Daugherty Stephens on November 25, 1919, in El Dorado, Kansas. Raised in Wichita, he dropped out of school and raced cars, boxed and worked on oil rigs to get by. He initially entertained a criminal law career but that interest quickly wore off after having to toil as a property boy.
A passion for acting then was instigated and Brodie found early work in summer stock. Changing his stage name to "Steve Brodie", a move to New York did not pay off but a subsequent move to Los Angeles did. He broke into films after being spotted by an MGM talent scout in a Hollywood theatre production entitled "Money Girls". Loaned out for his first film, Universal's Ladies Courageous (1944), Brodie appeared in a few tough-guy bit parts in such MGM films as Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944), The Clock (1945) and Anchors Aweigh (1945) before he was dropped. It wasn't long before he was signed by RKO and it was with studio that his reputation as a heavy in westerns grew, with such roles as notorious outlaws Bob Dalton in Badman's Territory (1946) and Cole Younger in Return of the Bad Men (1948). In between those two pictures were strong roles in three film noir classics: Desperate (1947) (leading good guy), Crossfire (1947) and Out of the Past (1947) (both supporting baddies).
A hard-living, hard-drinking actor, Brodie married "B" actress Lois Andrews in 1946 but the couple divorced four years later, not long after appearing together in the western programmer Rustlers (1949). He married Barbara Savitt--the widow of bandleader Jan Savitt--in September of 1950 and the union produced son Kevin Brodie two years later (Kevin later became a producer/director). Steve's second marriage lasted until 1966.
Interest in Brodie eventually waned at the studio and his contract was not renewed. Freelancing elsewhere, he appeared as a lead in Rose of the Yukon (1949) and another classic film noir, Armored Car Robbery (1950), and also earned good parts in Home of the Brave (1949), The Steel Helmet (1951) and Lady in the Iron Mask (1952) (as the Musketeer Athos). Most of his post-RKO film work, however, would be in low-budgeters: I Cheated the Law (1949), The Great Plane Robbery (1950), Army Bound (1952), The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953), Donovan's Brain (1953) and Under Fire (1957). He also appeared as the hero's nemesis in several Tim Holt / Richard Martin westerns, including The Arizona Ranger (1948), Guns of Hate (1948) and Brothers in the Saddle (1949). In the late 1950s he had leads in the "C"-level films Spy in the Sky! (1958), Arson for Hire (1959) and Here Come the Jets (1959).
A familiar presence on 1950s and 1960s TV, he worked on such crime series as Public Defender (1954), Hawaiian Eye (1959), Surfside 6 (1960), Perry Mason (1957), Burke's Law (1963) and such western series as The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp (1955) (recurring part), The Lone Ranger (1949), Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok (1951), Laramie (1959), Sugarfoot (1957), Maverick (1957), Rawhide (1959), Gunsmoke (1955) and comedies including The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (1952), _"The Beverly Hillbillies" (1962)_ (qav). He also appeared in a touring production of "The Caine Mutiny Court Martial" starring Paul Douglas and Wendell Corey. The company ended abruptly when the liberal-minded Douglas, in a North Carolina interview, strongly criticized the conservative state and the resulting backlash forced the production's closure.
Brodie's later years were marred by drinking arrests. In the 1970s he made sporadic appearances, including a lead in the campy low-budget horror film The Giant Spider Invasion (1975) opposite Barbara Hale and a part in Delta Pi (1984) [aka "Mugsy's Girls"], which was written, produced and directed by son Kevin and was also his last film. He also provided voice work in commercials and showed up at nostalgia conventions, including The Knoxville Western Film Fair in 1991, less than a year before his death.
In 1973 Brodie married a third time, to Virginia Hefner, and they had a son Sean. Suffering from esophageal cancer and heart problems, Brodie died at age 72 on January 9, 1992, at a West Hills, California, hospital. - Mario Machado has been a fixture of television, film, and radio for over thirty years, and as a news anchor, reporter, narrator, actor, commentator, and producer, he has worked in virtually all aspects of broadcasting. Born in Shanghai, China of both Chinese and Portuguese ancestry, Mario made television history when, in 1967, he became the first Chinese-American on-air television news reporter and anchor in Los Angeles and perhaps in the nation. In 1968 he signed on as a color commentator for CBS Sports and, as a soccer player himself, he revolutionized the world of sports commentating with his personal insight and his dramatic flair. One year later he made television history again when he became the first Consumer Affairs reporter in the nation for KNXT Los Angeles. His work as a producer and a reporter has earned him ten Emmy Award nominations and eight wins, most recently for his work on the television special "U.S. Citizenship: A Dream Come True", which was broadcast in over 120 countries.
Not content to be limited to the newsroom, Mario has hosted daily talk radio shows on several Los Angeles stations, lent his voice as narrator to numerous documentaries, and hosted several television shows, including the award-winning medical investigation show Medix (1967) and the variety show Saturday Showcase (1998) Ever an avid soccer fan, he has been a commentator for the 1984 Olympics and several World Cups.
As an actor, he has appeared in films directed by Carl Reiner, Joel Schumacher, Brian De Palma, and Sylvester Stallone, but he may be best known for his role as newsman Casey Wong in all three RoboCop films. In addition, he has been featured on a diverse number of top-rated television shows, including Mission: Impossible (1966), The Brady Bunch (1969), Murder, She Wrote (1984), and Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990)_.
A tireless advocate of multiculturalism in both his professional and personal life, Mario's efforts have won him the John Anson Ford Humanitarian Award in 1994 and he was named Los Angeles County's Humanitarian of the Year in 1995. One of the recognitions that he is proudest of is being named a member of President Reagan's Child Safety Commission in 1986. - Don Perry was born on 13 March 1931 in Binghamton, New York. He was an actor, known for Ricochet (1991), Miss Congeniality 2: Armed & Fabulous (2005) and Bank Robber (1993). He died on 18 November 2012 in West Hills, California, USA.
- Music Artist
- Music Department
- Composer
Hank Williams was born in September 1923 in a small Alabama farming community about 70 miles south of Montgomery. His father was a railroad engineer who was also a victim of shell shock after a year of fighting in France in 1918 during World War I and spent many years in veterans hospitals. Hank's mother, Lillian Skipper Williams, played the organ in their local church and taught him gospel songs when he was six. When Hank turned 10 he taught himself to play the guitar, mostly by watching other guitarists.
In his teens Hank learned to play and sing country songs that he heard on the family radio, and picked up some blues chords from a black friend who was a street musician named Tee-Tot (Rufe Payne). At the age of 14 Hank put together his own band, playing at hoedowns and other get-together, where he won a local talent contest competition with his composition "WPA Blues." At 17, Hank put together a group called 'Hank Williams' Original Drifting Cowboys' and they successfully auditioned for the manager of WSFS Radio in Montgomery, where they played regularly on the air. Hank met his first wife Audrey Williams during a traveling medicine show and they were married in December 1944 at an Alabama gas station. Audrey was a strong-willed woman who became Hank's booking agent, road manager and promoter. It was she who encouraged the stage-frightened Hank to perform on stage and helped book gigs outside of Alabama.
In 1946 Hank and Audrey traveled to Nashville to secure a music publishing contract with producer Fred Rose, head of the Acuff-Rose publishing firm, who asked Hank to write a song on the spot. The song, "Mansion on the Hill", landed Hank a publishing contract with Acuff-Rose. During the late 1940s Hank--a tall, thin man who alway wore a short-brimmed, white cowboy hat--had his peak years when MGM Records signed him for a recording contract and he became a regular on "Louisiana Hayride", a KWKH radio show in Shreveport, Louisiana. In 1949, after the birth of Hank and Audrey's son Hank Williams Jr., Hank was asked to join the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, where he made his stage debut on June 11, 1949.
From 1949 to 1950, Hank became country music's top artist, with hits like "Lovesick Blues," "My Bucket's Got a Hole in It," "Moanin' the Blues" and "Why Don't You Love Me." His 1951 hits included "Hey, Good Lookin'" "Cold, Cold Heart" and "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still in Love with You)." Hits of 1952 were "Honky Tonk Blues," "Jambalaya," and "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive."
However, Hank's unprecedented success came with a price. A heavy drinker since his late teens, Hank proved to be an undependable performer when be began showing up for concerts drunk, and sometimes didn't show up at all. When Audrey divorced him in 1951 due to their constant fights over his drinking, his band began to become disillusioned with him, too, and the Grand Ole Opry suspended him from appearing at live shows. In October 1952 Hank married his second wife, 19-year-old Billie Jean Jones, who was no more successful than Audrey in protecting Hank from himself. Also, the Drifting Cowboys departed that same month due to Hank's violent mood swings and unpredictability. He was still in demand for live performances, though.
On the early morning hours on New Year's Day 1953, while traveling through West Virginia on the way to a show in Canton, Ohio, Hank Williams died in his sleep in the back seat of his Cadillac limousine at the age of 29.- Actor
- Sound Department
- Additional Crew
David Bond was born on 13 November 1914 in New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for The Return of the Living Dead (1985), The Silencers (1966) and The Twilight Zone (1959). He died on 16 April 1989 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Writer
- Producer
- Director
Charles Marquis Warren was born on 16 December 1912 in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. Charles Marquis was a writer and producer, known for Rawhide (1959), Gunsmoke (1955) and Little Big Horn (1951). Charles Marquis was married to MIldred Lindeberg. Charles Marquis died on 11 August 1990 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Actor
- Composer
- Director
This velvet-toned jazz baritone and sometime actor was (and perhaps still is) virtually unknown to white audiences. Yet, back in the late 1930s and early 1940s, Herb Jeffries was very big...in black-cast films. Today he is respected and remembered as a pioneer who broke down rusted-shut racial doors in Hollywood and ultimately displayed a positive image as a black actor on celluloid.
The Detroit native was born Umberto Alejandro Ballentino on September 24, 1911 (some sources list 1914). His white Irish mother ran a rooming house, and his father, whom he never knew, was of mixed ancestry and bore Sicilian, Ethiopean, French, Italian and Moorish roots. Young Herb grew up in a mixed neighborhood without experiencing severe racism as a child. He showed definitive interest in singing during his formative teenage years and was often found hanging out with the Howard Buntz Orchestra at various Detroit ballrooms.
After moving to Chicago, he performed in various clubs. One of his first gigs was in a club allegedly owned by Al Capone. Erskine Tate signed the 19-year-old Herb to a contract with his Orchestra at the Savoy Dance Hall in Chicago. While there Herb was spotted by Earl 'Fatha' Hines, who hired him in 1931 for a number of appearances and recordings. It was during the band's excursions to the South that Jeffries first encountered blatant segregation. He left the Hines band in 1934 and eventually planted roots in Los Angeles after touring with Blanche Calloway's band. There he found employment as a vocalist and emcee at the popular Club Alabam. And then came Duke Ellington, staying with his outfit for ten years. Herb started his singing career out as a lyrical tenor, but, on the advice of Duke Ellington's longtime music arranger, Billy Strayhorn, he lowered his range.
The tall, debonair, mustachioed, blue-eyed, light-complexioned man who had a handsome, matinée-styled Latin look, was a suitable specimen for what was called "sepia movies" -- pictures that played only in ghetto and/or segregated theaters and were advertised with an all-black cast. Inspired by the success of Gene Autry, Herb made his debut as a crooning cowboy with Harlem on the Prairie (1937), which was considered the first black western following the inauguration of the talkies. Dark makeup was applied to his light skin and he almost never took off his white stetson which would have revealed naturally brown hair. A popular movie, Herb went on to sing his own songs (to either his prairie flower and/or horse) in both The Bronze Buckaroo (1939) and Harlem Rides the Range (1939). Outside the western venue, he starred in the crimer Two-Gun Man from Harlem (1938). As the whip-snapping, pistol-toting, melody-gushing Bronze Buckaroo, Jeffries finally offered a positive alternative to the demeaning stereotypes laid on black actors. Moreover, he refused to appear in "white" films in which he would have been forced to play in servile support.
In the midst of all this, Herb continued to impress as a singer and made hit records of the singles "In My Solitude", "I Got It Bad and That Ain't Good", "When I Write My Song", Duke Ellington's "Jump for Joy" and his signature song "Flamingo", which became a huge hit in 1941. Some of the songs he did miss out on which could have furthered his name, were "Love Letters" and "Native Boy". During the 1950s Herb worked constantly in Europe, especially in France, where he owned his own Parisian nightclub for a time. He also starred in the title film role of Calypso Joe (1957) co-starring Angie Dickinson and later appeared on episodes of "I Dream of Jeannie", "The Virginian" and "Hawaii Five-0".
Although he very well could have with his light skin tones, the man dubbed "Mr. Flamingo" never tried to pass himself off as white. He was proud of his heritage and always identified himself as black. In the mid-1990s, westerns returned in vogue and Herb recorded a "comeback album" ("The Bronze Buckaroo Rides Again") for Warner Western. During this pleasant career renaissance he has also been asked to lecture at colleges, headline concerts and record CDs. In 1999-2000, at age 88, he recorded the CD "The Duke and I", recreating songs he did with Duke. It also was a tribute honoring the great musician's 100th birthday.
His five marriages, including one to notorious exotic dancer Tempest Storm, produced five children. At age 90-plus, Herb "Flamingo" Jeffries, lived in the Palm Springs area with significant other (and later his fifth wife) Savannah Shippen, who is 45 years his junior, remaining one of the last of the original singing cowboys still alive (along with Monte Hale) until he finally passed away on May 25, 2014, having hit the century mark.
In 2003 he was inducted into the Cowboy Hall of Fame and was invited to sing for President Bush at the White House. He is also the last surviving member of The Great Duke Ellington Orchestra, and certainly deserves proper credit for his historic efforts in films and music.- Stunts
- Director
- Actor
Byron Quisenberry was born on 26 March 1942 in Owensboro, Kentucky, USA. He was a director and actor, known for The Return of the Living Dead (1985), Scream (1981) and Hollywood, It's a Dog's Life (2004). He was married to C.L. Huff. He died on 4 August 2017 in West Hills, California, USA.- She traced her lineage back to the first Spanish governor of California. Her great-grandfather on her mother's side was Hungarian-born Agoston Haraszthy, dubbed the father of Californian viticulture. Leggy, olive-complexioned Natalia Ringstrom grew up and was educated in the San Francisco Bay area. Little is known of her early years, except that she was trained in traditional Spanish dance (including La Jota, the folk dance of Aragon), and, while still in her early teens, travelled the short distance to San Francisco to perform in cabaret. She was spotted there as a blossoming talent by the renowned ballroom dancers Fanchon and Marco, eventually joining their revue on tour. Next stop: Broadway. Now billed as Natalie Kingston, she was featured as one of the chorines of the 1920 "Brevities" at the Winter Garden Theatre. There was to be no career on the stage, however, since Natalie returned to California, soon to becoming a Mack Sennett Bathing Beauty.
Natalie joined Sennett's Keystone 'Fun Factory' sometime in 1923. Over the next three years, the soulful-eyed brunette worked her way steadily up the cast list, from ornamental bit parts and walk-ons to fifth billing(Romeo and Juliet (1924)); fourth (Wall Street Blues (1924)); third (Galloping Bungalows (1924)); to finally co-starring with comic greats Harry Langdon, Billy Bevan and Ben Turpin in a series of classic two-reel farces, including Remember When? (1925) and His First Flame (1927) (as a gold digger). When Natalie eventually left Sennett for Paramount, she had every intention of finding 'serious' dramatic work. Instead, the studio continued to use her as a bankable comedy asset in three back-to-back six-reel features: Wet Paint (1926), Miss Brewster's Millions (1926) and The Cat's Pajamas (1926), all palpable box-office hits. In between flappers and 'nice girls', Natalie also had a turn as a vamp in Eddie Cantor's Kid Boots (1926). Her first dramatic role finally arrived as second lead in Ronald Colman's The Night of Love (1927). By this time, her status had grown by virtue of being selected a WAMPAS Baby Star by the Western Association of Motion Picture Advertisers (an event for actresses deemed to have potential, usually accompanied by substantial media coverage). Now under contract at First National, Natalie was given full star billing for her role as a Russian sculptress in the military burlesque Lost at the Front (1927).
The following year, she came to the fore as girl castaway Mary Trevor in Tarzan the Mighty (1928). The film generated sufficient revenue for Universal to warrant an immediate sequel, Tarzan the Tiger (1929), in which Natalie continued on as the heroine (albeit now as the screen's fifth 'Jane'). From then, it was pretty much all downhill. With the advent of talking pictures, Natalie became one of many silent stars and starlets who, for one reason or another, failed to make the transition. There were a few supporting roles in B-graders with prophetic titles like Forgotten (1933). Her final credited effort was an incongruously cast romantic comedy, His Private Secretary (1933), starring a very young John Wayne. After that, Miss Kingston faded from the scene and back into obscurity. - Script and Continuity Department
- Animation Department
- Actress
Born Katena Ktenavea in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of midtown Manhattan, the future TV and film actress grew up in Los Angeles and began her acting career on the stage and radio in the late '40s. She made her film debut in the campy sci-fi adventure Mesa of Lost Women (1953). Five years later she starred as the imperious Dr. Myra in director Jerry Warren's Teenage Zombies (1959), which led to a series of roles in Warren's impoverished productions. Always busy outside of acting (in modelling, real estate and in various jobs in the animated cartoon business), Victor felt that the stigma of being a regular in Warren's movies stymied her mainstream acting career.- Director
- Producer
- Writer
Don Medford was born on 26 November 1917 in Detroit, Michigan, USA. He was a director and producer, known for The Twilight Zone (1959), Baretta (1975) and To Trap a Spy (1964). He was married to Patti Crowe and Lynn Parker. He died on 12 December 2012 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Actor
- Sound Department
Ray Erlenborn was born on 21 January 1915 in Denver, Colorado, USA. He was an actor, known for The Affairs of Jimmy Valentine (1942), Winnie the Pooh Discovers the Seasons (1981) and The Red Skelton Hour (1951). He was married to Meredith Phelps Bonham and Margaret M. Lenhart. He died on 4 June 2007 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Casting Director
- Producer
- Casting Department
Ethel Winant was born on 5 August 1922 in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. She was a casting director and producer, known for Ronin (1998), George Wallace (1997) and World War II: When Lions Roared (1994). She was married to H.M. Wynant. She died on 29 November 2003 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Writer
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Richard Rothstein was born in 1943 in Torrington, Connecticut, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for The Hitchhiker (1983), Universal Soldier (1992) and Universal Soldier: Regeneration (2009). He died on 16 April 2018 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Stunts
- Actor
- Transportation Department
Bill Ryusaki was born in Kamuela on the big island of Hawaii. He had total of ten siblings, many of whom, as well as his father are martial arts masters. Bill started training in two types of karate at the tender age of 8, and later added Kenpo Karate to his arsenal. His teachers would later include William Chow, Bill Chun Sr., and Marino Tiwanak.
Bill Ryusaki moved to mainland US in late 1950's, after college, and trained with Ed Parker, Ed Tabian, and John Leoning, the first Kajukenbo instructor on the mainland, in 1957. (Kajukenbo is a mixed martial arts from Hawaii, combining Karate, Judo, Jujitsu, kenpo karate, and Chinese Boxing). In 1961, Bill Ryusaki received his black belt in Kajukenbo/Kenpo. Bill Ryusaki incorporated many moves from Kenpo and Judo into his unique Karate system known as Hawaiian Kenpo Karate.
In the 1970's and 1980's, fighters trained by Bill Ryusaki took many top prizes, among them Sensei Dan Guzman, Sensei Otto Schumann, Benny "The Jet" Urquidez, and Cecil Peoples.
In August, 1998, Wesley Snipes hosted a major awards ceremony in New York City called "Masters of the Martial Arts". This special was televised, and included the best-known and highest-ranked Martial Artists from around the world. Bill M. Ryusaki received recognition for Karate at this event.
Bill has appeared in numerous films and TV series as an actor and stuntman.
His daughter, Kimberly L. Ryusaki, is also an actress and stuntwoman, and has appeared in various films, including two of the Star Trek movies.- Actor
- Writer
Robert Boon was born on 26 October 1916 in Haarlem, Noord-Holland, Netherlands. He was an actor and writer, known for Queen of Blood (1966), Producers' Showcase (1954) and The Flying Saucer (1950). He died on 13 January 2015 in West Hills, California, USA.- Producer
- Writer
- Costume and Wardrobe Department
Gordon T. Dawson was born in 1938 in Pasadena, California. He was a producer and writer, known for The Getaway (1972), Purgatory (1999) and Walker, Texas Ranger (1993). He was married to Jane Chabra. He died on 6 March 2023 in West Hills, California, USA.- Music Department
- Composer
- Soundtrack
Greeley was born Georgio Guariglia in Westerly, Rhode Island on 23 July 1917. His father, James, had three music schools, and a traveling orchestra. Georgio was taught to read music at an early age and was playing piano and mandolin when he was five years old. He studied music at Columbia University, where he met and formed a long-time friendship with Paul Weston. George Greeley won a scholarship to the Juilliard School in New York, where he studied piano and composition, graduating in 1939.
George Greeley began his professional career arranging music for several popular figures such as Tommy Dorsey, Glen Gray, Abe Lyman, Leo Reisman, and Kay Kyser. After about a year with Dorsey, Greeley defected to Abe Lyman because "the money was better, and Abe had me writing three arrangements a week. I'd studied composition and orchestration at Juilliard, and wanted to practice what I'd learned." During World War II, he conducted an U.S. Air Force band. He also became involved in the Hollywood radio scene, working as arranger top shows for NBC and CBS.
Greeley went to work at Columbia Pictures as staff pianist and orchestrator. As orchestrator, Greeley would fill out the sketches supplied by composers that included Max Steiner, Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Leonard Bernstein, and Dmitri Tiomkin. As pianist, he performed on hundreds of motion pictures, including Picnic and The Eddy Duchin Story. He also worked as a composer. Concurrent with his work at Columbia Pictures, Greeley worked for Capitol Records, where he was a music director, arranger, and conductor for various artists including Gordon MacRae, Dean Martin, Ella Logan, Jane Powell, Jane Froman, and Keely Smith. At the behest of his friend Paul Weston, Greeley also played piano (and harpsichord) on recording sessions for acts including Frankie Laine, Jo Stafford, Hoagy Carmichael, Sarah Vaughn, Eartha Kitt, and Doris Day.
George Greeley was among the earliest artists signed to the Warner Bros. Records label when it was founded in the late 50s. Greeley produced and performed as pianist (and occasionally as conductor) on fourteen popular albums between 1957-1967. Greeley's subsequent recordings were all hits for the label. Greeley's 1961 album for Warner Bros. Records, "The Best of the Popular Piano Concertos," peaked at number 29 on the Billboard 200. On loan to Dot Records, he also ghost-conducted albums by Billy Vaughan and Lawrence Welk. Greeley's stint at Warner Brothers ended as times and popular tastes changed. By that time Greeley had begun working working in television and more success were to come...in television and concerts across the country.
George Greeley performed as featured artist in Australia, Canada, Korea, Brazil, and Argentina. Closer to home, he performed concerts with the Boston Pops, the Atlanta Symphony, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Greeley died of emphysema in Los Angeles, California on May 26, 2007 at age 89.- Music Department
- Composer
- Soundtrack
Richard Stone was born on 27 November 1953 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. He was a composer, known for Witness (1985), Animaniacs (1993) and Platoon (1986). He died on 9 March 2001 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Music Department
- Composer
- Soundtrack
Ken Thorne was born on 26 January 1924 in East Dereham, Norfolk, England, UK. He was a composer, known for Superman II (1980), Superman III (1983) and U-571 (2000). He was married to Linda Hays. He died on 9 July 2014 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Writer
- Additional Crew
- Producer
Mann Rubin served in the U.S. Army Forces, 1945-47, stationed in Paris, France.
He attended New York University and earned his B.A. in 1952.
His first job as a writer was science fiction [at least 19 stories] for the DC Comics' books Strange Adventures and Mystery In Space, edited by Julius Schwartz.
He has also published fifteen short stories in the Alfred Hitchcock Magazine and other mystery anthologies. One of his stories, A Nice Touch, has been included in a British collection along with the works of H.G. Wells, Rudyard Kipling, and Robert Louis Stevenson.- Actor
- Producer
Steve Restivo was born on 7 February 1940 in Cefalu, Sicily, Italy. He was an actor and producer, known for Raising Helen (2004), Pretty Woman (1990) and Frankie and Johnny (1991). He was married to Sara. He died on 5 November 2021 in West Hills, California, USA.- Producer
- Additional Crew
- Production Manager
Robert F. O'Neill was born on 21 May 1921 in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA. Robert F. was a producer and production manager, known for Columbo (1971), Murder, She Wrote (1984) and Quincy M.E. (1976). Robert F. died on 23 October 2007 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Talent Agent
- Actor
- Producer
Raymond Cavaleri was born on 17 January 1947 in Syracuse, New York, USA. He was a talent agent and actor. He died on 19 July 2021 in West Hills, California, USA.- Production Manager
- Producer
- Writer
Paul Mason was a production manager and producer, known for Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988), Hachi: A Dog's Tale (2009) and King Kong vs. Godzilla (1963). He died on 26 December 2022 in West Hills, California, USA.- Norma Drew was born on 8 December 1903 in San Bernardino, California, USA. She was an actress, known for Forbidden Company (1932), What a Man (1930) and Our Blushing Brides (1930). She was married to Owen Churchill and Ernest Pagano. She died on 23 August 1998 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Additional Crew
- Director
- Actor
Dan McLaughlin was born on 28 August 1932 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was a director and actor, known for Claude (1963), Living the Blues (1986) and God is Dog Spelled Backwards (1967). He died on 15 March 2016 in West Hills, California, USA.- Production Designer
- Art Director
- Art Department
William "Ward" Preston started his career in architecture, opening his own firm in Tarzana, CA after graduating from USC. His good friend Norm Baron invited him to come work at Warner Bros. studios as a set designer in 1965 and his career in show business began. He is known for his work on The Poseidon Adventure (1972), Airplane! (1980), and Purple Rain (1984). He was nominated for an Oscar for Best Art Direction for his work on The Towering Inferno (1974).- Actor
- Additional Crew
Marty Nedboy was born on 15 August 1930 in the USA. He was an actor, known for Suddenly Susan (1996), Head of the Class (1986) and Love & War (1992). He died on 21 October 2007 in West Hills, California, USA.- William T. Lane was born on 17 February 1931. He was an actor, known for Escape from New York (1981), Near Dark (1987) and Commando (1985). He was married to Terry V. Lane. He died on 29 June 2004 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Douglas Haig was born on 9 March 1920 in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. He was an actor, known for High Gear (1933), That's My Boy (1932) and Sins of the Fathers (1928). He died on 1 February 2011 in West Hills, California, USA.
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Cinematographer
- Actor
Harvey Genkins was born on 6 May 1923 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a cinematographer and actor, known for N.Y.P.D. (1967), Thunder Run (1985) and Five Days from Home (1978). He died on 17 June 2004 in West Hills, California, USA.- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Additional Crew
Ray Daniels was born on 27 September 1933 in New London, Connecticut, USA. He was an editor, known for Hill Street Blues (1981), The Streets of San Francisco (1972) and Tales of the Unexpected (1977). He died on 5 July 2017 in West Hills, California, USA.- Editorial Department
- Editor
- Sound Department
Tom Kennedy was an editor, known for Time Walker (1982), Silent Night, Bloody Night (1972) and Joe (1970). He died on 7 December 2011 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Paddy Feeny was born on 25 April 1931 in Liverpool, England, UK. He was married to Patricia Brewer and Dee Feeny. He died on 10 June 2018 in Burgess Hill, West Sussex, England, UK.
- Writer
- Producer
- Music Department
James Prideaux was born on 29 August 1927 in South Bend, Indiana, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for Mrs. Delafield Wants to Marry (1986), The Secret Storm (1954) and The Man Upstairs (1992). He died on 18 November 2015 in West Hills, California, USA.- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Trustin Howard was born on 18 December 1923 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for Invasion of the Star Creatures (1962), The Bride and the Beast (1958) and Speed Crazy (1959). He died on 20 April 2017 in West Hills, California, USA.- Rocci Chatfield was born on 30 April 1926 in Boulder, Colorado, USA. Rocci was a writer, known for Days of Our Lives (1965), Dangerous Women (1991) and Knots Landing (1979). Rocci died on 24 August 2019 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Writer
- Art Department
- Animation Department
Chris Jenkyns was born on 3 July 1924 in North Hollywood, California, USA. Chris was a writer, known for Super Chicken (1967), The Bullwinkle Show (1959) and Fractured Fairy Tales (1959). Chris died on 4 January 2011 in West Hills, California, USA.- Music Department
- Actor
- Composer
Richard Delvy was born on 20 April 1942 in Bridgeport, Connecticut, USA. He was an actor and composer, known for Groovie Goolies (1970), Plump Fiction (1997) and Oliver Twist (1974). He was married to Bonnie. He died on 6 February 2010 in West Hills, California, USA.- Roy M. Brewer Sr. was born on 9 August 1909 in Cairo, Nebraska, USA. He was an editor, known for The Magical World of Disney (1954). He was married to Alyce Julia Auhl. He died on 16 September 2006 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Actor
- Editorial Department
- Script and Continuity Department
Anthony Georgilas was born on 7 December 1927 in the USA. He was an actor, known for The Color of Evening (1990), Bloodsucking Pharaohs in Pittsburgh (1991) and Hamburger: The Motion Picture (1986). He died on 3 December 2005 in West Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Art Department
- Animation Department
- Art Director
Robert Dranko was born on 22 August 1924 in Glendale, California, USA. He was an art director, known for Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog (1993), Galtar and the Golden Lance (1985) and The War Between Men and Women (1972). He died on 2 February 2009 in West Hills, California, USA.- Norman Leist was born on 25 July 1920 in Michigan City, Indiana, USA. He was a composer, known for The Cry of Jazz (1959). He died on 3 January 2007 in West Hills, California, USA.