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- Producer
- Actress
- Costume Designer
Charlize Theron was born in Benoni, a city in the greater Johannesburg area, in South Africa, the only child of Gerda Theron (née Maritz) and Charles Theron. She was raised on a farm outside the city. Theron is of Afrikaner (Dutch, with some French Huguenot and German) descent, and Afrikaner military figure Danie Theron was her great-great-uncle.
Theron received an education as a ballet dancer and has danced both the "Swan Lake" and "The Nutcracker". There was not much work for a young actress or dancer in South Africa, so she soon traveled to Europe and the United States, where she got a job at the Joffrey Ballet in New York. She was also able to work as a photo model. However, an injured knee put a halt to her dancing career.
In 1994, her mother bought her a one-way ticket to Los Angeles, and Charlize started visiting all of the agents on Hollywood Boulevard, but without any luck. She went to a bank to cash a check for $500 she received from her mother, and became furious when she learned that the bank would not cash it because it was an out-of-state check. She made a scene and an agent gave her his card, in exchange for learning American English, which she did by watching soap operas on television.
Her first role was in the B-film Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest (1995), a non-speaking part with three seconds of screen time. Her next role was as Helga Svelgen in 2 Days in the Valley (1996), which landed her the role of Tina Powers in That Thing You Do! (1996). Since then, she has starred in movies like The Devil's Advocate (1997), Mighty Joe Young (1998), The Cider House Rules (1999), The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000) and The Italian Job (2003). On February 29, 2004, she won her first Academy Award, a Best Actress Oscar for her performance in Monster (2003).- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Michael Corbett Shannon was born and raised in Lexington, Kentucky, the son of Geraldine Hine, a lawyer, and Donald Sutherlin Shannon, an accounting professor at DePaul University. His grandfather was entomologist Raymond Corbett Shannon.
Shannon began his professional stage career in Chicago. His first acting role was in "Winterset" at the Illinois Theatre Center. Over the next several years, he continued working on the stage with such companies as Steppenwolf, The Next Lab and the Red Orchid Theatre. He subsequently relocated to London for a year, and performed on stage in London's West End in such productions as "Woyzeck", "Killer Joe" and "Bug".
While in Chicago, Shannon also kept busy in front of movie and television cameras, most notably in the big screen project Chicago Cab (1997), based on the long-running stage play "Hellcab". Kangaroo Jack (2003) marked the third Jerry Bruckheimer production in which Shannon has appeared. He also appeared in Bad Boys II (2003), directed by Michael Bay and starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, and in Grand Theft Parsons (2003), with Johnny Knoxville and Christina Applegate.
In addition, Shannon appeared in Pearl Harbor (2001), also directed by Bay. His other film credits also include Curtis Hanson's 8 Mile (2002); Cameron Crowe's Vanilla Sky (2001) with Tom Cruise; Carl Franklin's High Crimes (2002) with Morgan Freeman; John Waters' Cecil B. Demented (2000), and Joel Schumacher's war drama Tigerland (2000).- Actress
- Producer
Abbie Cornish, also known by her rap name Dusk, is an Australian actress and rapper. Following her lead performance in 2004's Somersault, Cornish is best-known for her film roles as the titular heroin addict in the drama Candy (2006), courtier Bess Throckmorton in the historical drama Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007), Fanny Brawne in the John Keats biopic Bright Star (2009), "Sweet Pea" in the action film Sucker Punch (2011), Lindy in the science fiction thriller Limitless (2011) and for her work with writer/director Martin McDonagh in Seven Psychopaths (2012) and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017).
Cornish was born in Lochinvar, New South Wales, Australia, as the second of five children of Shelley and Barry Cornish. Her sister, Isabelle Cornish, is also an actress. She grew up on a 70-hectare (170-acre) farm before moving to Newcastle, New South Wales. As a teenager, Cornish was fascinated by independent and foreign films. In 2006 she became an ambassador for Australian animal rights group Voiceless, the animal-protection institute, and was part of a national advertising campaign in 2012. Cornish began model-ling at age 13 after reaching the finals of a Dolly Magazine competition. In 1999, Cornish was awarded the Australian Film Institute Young Actor's Award for her role in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's television show Wildside and was offered her first role in a feature film, The Monkey's Mask.
In 2004, Cornish appeared in the award-winning short film Everything Goes with Hugo Weaving. She received the Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, Best Actress at the FCCA and IF Awards and Best Breakthrough Performance at the 2005 Miami International Film Festival for her role in Somersault. Cornish received critical acclaim for her role in Candy, opposite Heath Ledger. She has also starred in A Good Year, Elizabeth: The Golden Age and Kimberly Peirce's Stop-Loss. In April 2010, Cornish was cast in Limitless, the film adaptation of the novel The Dark Fields, directed by Neil Burger and also starring Bradley Cooper and Robert De Niro.
Cornish narrated Zack Snyder's film Sucker Punch, in which she played one of the protagonists, at the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con International. Cornish played the role of Wally in Madonna's film W.E., about Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson. She replaced Emily Blunt in the independent film The Girl. It premiered at Tribeca Film Festival in 2012. She starred alongside Woody Harrelson and Colin Farrell in Seven Psychopaths, released in 2012. Cornish co-starred in the 2014 RoboCop reboot. She played Clara Murphy, the wife of protagonist Alex Murphy (Joel Kinnaman). In 2015, she played Agent Katherine Cowles in Solace, a mystery thriller film directed by Afonso Poyart with central performances by Anthony Hopkins, Colin Farrell, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan. In 2016, she filmed The Girl Who Invented Kissing with Luke Wilson.
Cornish is a rapper, singer and songwriter. She has been rapping under the name Dusk since 2000 and was part of an Australian hip hop group from the age of 18 to 22. In 2015, Cornish supported American rapper Nas on his Australian tour. The same year she released two new tracks on SoundCloud: "Evolve" featuring Jane Tyrrell and "Way Back Home" which was produced by Suffa from Hilltop Hoods.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Harold Perrineau is an American actor best known for his roles as Michael Dawson on the television series Lost (2004-2008; 2010), Augustus Hill in the television series Oz (1997-2003), Link in The Matrix franchise (2003), and Mercutio in Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet (1996). He has also starred in the films Woman on Top (2000), Smoke (1995), The Edge (1997), The Best Man (1999), 28 Weeks Later (2007), and Zero Dark Thirty (2012). His other television credits include Sons of Anarchy (2012), Constantine (2014-2015), Claws (2017-2022), and The Rookie (2019-2021). He was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male for his performance in the hit indie film Smoke.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
David William Duchovny was born on August 7, 1960, in New York City, New York, USA. His father, Amram Ducovny, was a writer and publicist who was from a family of Jewish immigrants (from Ukraine and Poland), and worked for the American Jewish Committee. His mother, Margaret (Miller), was a Scottish-born school teacher. David has a sister, Laurie, and an older brother, Daniel Ducovny, an award-winning director of commercials, as well as a director of photography.
David earned an undergraduate degree from Princeton University, and also attended Yale University, where he undertook a Master's Degree in English Literature. A keen poet and writer, David's work was well recognized by his peers and teachers while he was in attendance at Yale. He was even nominated for a college prize by the Academy of American Poets for his outstanding work within the literary field. While at Yale, he began commuting to New York to study acting and was soon appearing in off-Broadway plays. In 1987, he abandoned his doctoral studies at Yale to pursue acting full time.
Like any actor or celebrity, David began his career on the bottom, by acting in numerous commercials in the late-eighties. He crossed over into films with bit parts in low key films such as New Year's Day (1989) and Bad Influence (1990). Although these parts were small and somewhat insignificant, it was a start and David was able to get his foot in the door.
In 1991, David got offered the role of DEA Dennis Bryson on the acclaimed TV series, Twin Peaks (1990). He only appeared in three episodes, but at that early stage, it was his biggest claim to fame yet, as Twin Peaks (1990) was watched by millions of people worldwide. Needless to say, David's talents as an actor would finally be recognized and he would get the acknowledgment that he so richly deserved.
In the early 1990s, he got more bit parts in films, this time, however, the films weren't "low key", but hits, such as Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead (1991) and the family favorite comedy, Beethoven (1992). David's role in Beethoven (1992) was small, but it was hard to forget the poor guy who was dragged across the lawn by the giant St. Bernard!
A year later, in 1993, David got the lead role in the independent film Kalifornia (1993). The film also starred another up-and-coming young actor, Brad Pitt. In Kalifornia (1993), David played a journalist who goes on a cross-country tour of famous murder sites with his girlfriend as research for a book he is writing about serial killers. He takes Pitt's character along to help pay the bills, unaware that Pitt's character is in fact a serial killer himself. Although it did not do much business at the box office, it is still a great film and has become somewhat of a cult favorite among fans.
That same year, David was offered the role of FBI Agent Fox "Spooky" Mulder on the long-running TV series The X-Files (1993). The show was a tremendous international success and propelled David (and his co-star Gillian Anderson) into super-stardom. His character of Mulder has become somewhat of a pop culture legend and is renowned the world over for his satirical wit and dry sense of humor. Fans loved the fact that he could keep a straight face and still crack and joke in the face of extreme danger. David improvised a lot of his own lines of dialogue while on the show and even penned and directed a few episodes. The series ended in 2002 and still has a strong, dedicated following. To date, David has reprised his role of Fox Mulder in two "X Files" feature films: The X Files (1998) and The X Files: I Want to Believe (2008).
During the initial run of The X-Files (1993), David kept busy and made several films, such as: Return to Me (2000), alongside actress Minnie Driver and the comedy favorite Evolution (2001), with Julianne Moore, Seann William Scott and Orlando Jones. He even had a hysterical cameo as a self-obsessed, simple-minded hand model in the comedy-smash Zoolander (2001).
In 2007, after a few years out of the limelight, David struck gold again after landing the plum role of Hank Moody in Californication (2007). The raunchy series follows the life of womanizing writer Hank Moody (Duchovny) as he tries to juggle his career and his relationship with his daughter and his ex-girlfriend. The show has become a hit for its off-the-wall humor and Duchovny's ability to always turn in a brilliant performance.
It may have taken a while, but David has worked his way to the top and notched up an impressive resume along the way. We can expect to see a lot more of him in the future.- Actress
- Music Department
Sasha Calle was born on 7 August 1995 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. She is an actress, known for The Flash (2023), In the Summers (2024) and On Swift Horses.- Charlotte Lewis was born on 7 August 1967 in Kensington, London, England, UK. She is an actress, known for The Golden Child (1986), Men of War (1994) and Broken Badges (1990).
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Actor Wayne Knight achieved television immortality assaying the role of the frenetic mailman, "Newman", nemesis of the eponymous lead character in the classic TV series Seinfeld (1989). He also appeared in Jurassic Park (1993) as "Dennis Nedry" and in one of the most notorious scenes in American cinema as one of the detectives interrogating Sharon Stone during her leg crossing in Basic Instinct (1992).
Wayne Eliot Knight was born to Grace (Monti) and William Edward Knight. He is of Italian and English descent. Knight was raised and lived in Cartersville, Georgia, until attending the University of Georgia in 1972. Despite being an honor student, Knight left school to join the Barter Theatre company in Abingdon, Virginia, before graduating. (He finally secured a BFA degree in 2008.) Following an internship of two years, Wayne was hired for the professional company and earned his Equity card. Now a professional actor, Knight moved back to New York, where he made his Broadway debut, at the age of 23, in the long-running comedy "Gemini" in 1979. Through the years, he has established himself as a leading character actor in television as a regular or recurring character in seven series, in film (ranging from Dirty Dancing (1987) to JFK (1991)), on the stage, and as a voice artist in animation.
In TV Land's original sitcom The Exes (2011), Knight plays homebody "Haskell Lutz", who lives in an apartment with "Phil" (Donald Faison) and "Stuart" (David Alan Basche), right across the hall from his divorce attorney, "Holly" (Kristen Johnston).- Writer
- Producer
- Actress
Brit Heyworth Marling was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Heidi (Johnson) and John Marling, both of whom work in real estate. She graduated from Georgetown University, with a bachelor's in economics, and was offered a job with Goldman Sachs, which she turned down in favour of a career as an artist.
She moved to Los Angeles to act and, after spending a couple of years exploring the movie industry and being offered roles as "the cute blonde in horror movies", she taught herself to write, reasoning that the best way to get decent parts was to write them, herself. She worked on two movies, simultaneously - one in the mornings, one in the afternoons - and eventually both Another Earth (2011) and Sound of My Voice (2011) premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2011.- Actor
- Director
- Producer
Eric Johnson was born on 7 August 1979 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. He is an actor and director, known for Fifty Shades Darker (2017), The Knick (2014) and Vikings (2013). He has been married to Adria Budd Johnson since 7 August 2004. They have one child.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Tobin Bell is an American actor with a career in film, television and theater spanning three decades. He was born in Queens, New York and raised in Weymouth, Mass. His mother is the British actress Eileen Bell. He is perhaps best known for his role as the iconic villain "Jigsaw" in the Saw film series...for which he received MTV Award nominations in 2007 & 2009. He's a graduate of Boston University and has a Masters Degree in Education from Montclair State University. He studied acting with Sanford Meisner at the Neighborhood Playhouse and Lee Strasberg at the Actors Studio in New York. He is a lifetime member of The Actors Studio and a member of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.- Francesca Eastwood was born on 7 August 1993 in Redding, California, USA. She is an actress, known for Queen of the Ring, Old (2021) and M.F.A. (2017).
- Producer
- Actress
Megan Kate Gale is an Australian model, brand ambassador, fashion designer and actress. Born in Perth, Western Australia, Gale won a modeling competition at 18 in her home town. In 1999, she was cast in a series of advertisements for Italian telecommunications company Omnitel. This led to wide exposure in both Italy and Gale's native Australia and Gale would appear in their advertising until 2006. Gale has also appeared in Italian movies and television shows. As an actress, Gale played Fatma in The Water Diviner (2014) and Valkyrie in George Miller's Mad Max: Fury Road (2015). In 2005, Gale became the National Ambassador for Kids Help Line and in 2009, she was appointed the first official National Ambassador for The Red Cross.
Gale won a modeling competition in Perth at 18, After several years of modeling, Gale rose to fame when in 1999 was cast to appear in a series of advertisements for an Italian telecommunication company, Omnitel (now Vodafone Italy); she appeared in the company's advertising until 2006. She was also retained by the Australian Tourist Commission in 2003 as 'their face of Australia in Italy'. Gale has graced the covers of Australian Marie Claire, Grazia, Gioia, Italian and Australian GQ, Italian Maxim, Australian InStyle and featured in editorials for Australian Cosmopolitan and Vogue Italia. Gale has modeled for Italian fashion houses including Gianfranco Ferré, Genny, Gai Mattiolo and runway work for Mariella Burani and Angelo Marani at Milan Fashion Week. Gale also favours many Australian designers, such as Colette Dinnigan, Kirrily Johnston, Lisa Ho, Willow and Alex Perry. In 2006, she was the fashion commentator for the Australian television awards, the Logies.
In January 2008, Gale announced her retirement from runway modelling after 15 years and walked the catwalk for the last time just weeks later at a David Jones winter collection launch in Sydney. Her final outfit was the Wonder Woman outfit she was to wear in the still-shelved film Justice League of America. In March 2011, Gale returned to the runway and closed Alex Perry's 2011 Melbourne Fashion Festival show. August 2011 marked Gale's 10th anniversary with department store David Jones, the longest held fashion contract in Australia. That same month, Gale became an ambassador for L'Oréal Paris, joining Beyoncé, Jennifer Lopez and Gwen Stefani. Gale appeared in a L'Oréal shampoo commercial in Australia, New Zealand and Italy.
In 2005, Gale became a guest reporter for Nine Network travel show Getaway from October 2005 to June 2006. She also worked with Mike Munro as co-host of the nine-episode Australian documentary TV show What a Year, which first aired on the Nine Network on 2 October 2006. Gale also appeared briefly on Australia's Next Top Model, Cycle 4 in episode 4. She also appeared in cycle 6 (2010), in which the girls of that cycle were featured in Isola's first fashion show.
Gale also became the National Ambassador for Kids Help Line in February 2005. In 2009, she was appointed the first official National Ambassador for The Red Cross. In early 2011 Gale became the new host of Project Runway Australia where she would also serve as judge and executive producer of the design-based reality show. The new season premiered on 4 July 2011 on Arena TV. In 2016, Gale became a permanent judge on Australia's Next Top Model.
In January 2011, Gale began a relationship with Richmond AFL footballer Shaun Hampson. On 13 May 2014, Gale gave birth to their son, River Alan Thomas Hampson. Rivers is Megan's mothers maiden name. Alan named after Megan's father and Thomas named after Shaun's father. They are expecting a second child in September 2017. On the 20 July, 2017, the couple announced their engagement. On September 29, 2017, Gale announced the birth of hers and Hampson's daughter via Instagram. The couple named her Rosie May Dee Hampson, after her father's mother, Gale's grandmother, and her and Hampson's mother's first names.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Maggie Wheeler was born on 7 August 1961 in New York City, New York, USA. She is an actress, known for The Parent Trap (1998), Friends (1994) and The Addams Family (2019). She has been married to Daniel Borden Wheeler since 20 October 1990. They have two children.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Liam James is a Canadian actor, known for his role as Noah Curtis in the 2009 film 2012, young Shawn Spencer on the USA Network television series Psych, and the lead character, Duncan, in 2013's The Way, Way Back.He also starred as Jack Linden in AMC's The Killing and Adam Warren in ABC's The Family, playing the son of main characters. James is from Vancouver, British Columbia.- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
John Soursby Glover, Jr., is an American actor, known for a range of villainous roles in films and television, including Lionel Luthor on the Superman-inspired television series Smallville. In 1993 he co-starred in the dark comedy Ed and His Dead Mother with Steve Buscemi and Ned Beatty.Glover was born in Salisbury, Maryland, the son of Cade (née Mullins) and John Soursby Glover, Sr., a television salesman. Glover attended Wicomico High School and acted at Towson University. Glover began his career at the Barter Theatre in Abingdon, Virginia, and later studied acting at the Beverly Hills Playhouse under Milton Katselas. Aside from his theatrical endeavors, Glover is also actively involved with the Alzheimer's Association. His inspiration for joining this cause was his own father's experience with Alzheimer's disease.- Actress
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Secondary to studying performing arts as American University in Washington, D.C., Aaron made her debut in motion pictures with a small part in Robert Altman's Come Back to the 5 & Dime Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (1982). Since, she has built her acting career as a character actress, and continues to work with some of cinema's most significant directors; particularly, Woody Allen and Mike Nichols.- Actor
- Soundtrack
David Rasche was born on 7 August 1944 in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. He is an actor, known for In the Loop (2009), United 93 (2006) and Men in Black³ (2012). He has been married to Heather Rasche since 1979. They have three children.- Verna Bloom was born on 7 August 1938 in Lynn, Massachusetts, USA. She was an actress, known for High Plains Drifter (1973), National Lampoon's Animal House (1978) and After Hours (1985). She was married to Jay Cocks and Richard Collier. She died on 9 January 2019 in Bar Harbor, Maine, USA.
- Producer
- Director
- Writer
Alexandre Aja was born on 7 August 1978 in Paris, France. He is a producer and director, known for High Tension (2003), The Hills Have Eyes (2006) and Piranha 3D (2010). He is married to Laïla Marrakchi.- Actress
- Producer
- Writer
Widely recognized for her performances in film sensations such as "Pale Rider" opposite Clint Eastwood and "Two Women" ("La Ciociara") opposite Sophia Loren, Sydney Penny has also achieved international fame for her leading performances in both English and French in the film "Bernadette". Ms. Penny garnered a Letter of Commendation from Pope John Paul II for her performance in "Bernadette" and has also been nominated for two Emmy awards in network television for her long running roles on "All My Children" and "Santa Barbara". In addition, she was on the popular hit series "Pretty Little Liars" and portrayed an ex-CIA officer in the worldwide sensation "Largo Winch".
In a successful career spanning more than 40 years, Ms. Penny has worked extensively on three different continents and has also co-produced local film projects in Wilmington NC, such as "Heart of the Country" and "The Dishwasher", a short film which she also wrote and directed.
As an active member of the Advisory Film Board for Cape Fear Community College, she has also been instrumental in introducing many aspiring filmmakers to film and television.- Jang Ki-yong was born on 7 August 1992 in Ulsan, South Korea. He is an actor, known for Come and Hug Me (2018), Go Back Couple (2017) and Sweet & Sour (2021).
- Kim Rowoon was born in Seoul, Korea on August 7, 1996. He began his career as a member of the K Pop band SF9 as a lead vocalist, under FNC Entertainment. At 6'3" he has stood out among his peers as an artist, model, brand spokesperson, and actor. He studied at the Kyung Hee Cyber University. He was once ranked third at the National Soccer Competition at Chuncheon. With his members of SF9, Rowoon has had success with many popular K-pop songs and successful albums. His acting career began in 2018 in the TV series Where Stars Land and he was nominated as Best New Actor at the SBS awards. His big break came in 2019 when he starred in the series Extraordinary You. He won 32nd Grimae Award in 2019 and the 2019 MBC drama award for Best New Actor. In 2020 he won the Male Actor Idol of year award and nominated for Entertainer of the Year -Male award, and 2021 he won three awards at the KBS drama awards: Best New Actor, Popularity award Male,, and Best Couple Award for The King's Affection drama series.
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Billie Burke was born Mary William Ethelbert Appleton Burke on August 7, 1885 in Washington, D.C. Her father was a circus clown, and as a child she toured the United States and Europe with the circus (before motion pictures and after the stage, circuses were the biggest form of entertainment in the world). One could say that Billie was bred for show business. Her family ultimately settled in London, where she was fortunate to see plays in the city's historic West End, and decided she wanted to be a stage actress. At age 18, she made her stage debut and her career was off and running. Her performances were very well received and she became one of the most popular actresses to grace the stage. Broadway beckoned, and since New York City was now recognized as the stage capital of the world, it was there she would try her luck. Billie came to New York when she was 22 and her momentum did not stop. She appeared in numerous plays and it was only a matter of time before Hollywood came calling, which is exactly what happened. She made her film debut in the lead role in Peggy (1916). The film was a hit, but then again most films were, as the novelty of motion pictures had not worn off since The Great Train Robbery (1903) at the turn of the century. Later that year, she appeared in Gloria's Romance (1916). In between cinema work, she would take her place on the stage because not only was it her first love, but she had speaking parts. Billie considered herself more than an actress--she felt she was an artist, too. She believed that the stage was a way to personally reach out to an audience, something that could not be done in pictures. In 1921, she appeared as Elizabeth Banks in The Education of Elizabeth (1921), then she retired. She had wed impresario Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. of the famed Ziegfeld Follies and, with investments in the stock market, there was no need to work.
What the Ziegfelds did not plan on was "Black October" in 1929. Their stock investments were wiped out in the crash, which precipitated the Great Depression, and Billie had no choice but to return to the screen. Movies had become even bigger than ten years earlier, especially since the introduction of sound. Her first role of substance was as Margaret Fairlfield in A Bill of Divorcement (1932). As an artist, she loved the fact that she had dialog, but she had to work even harder because her husband had died the same year as her speaking debut - and work she did. One of her career highlights came as Mrs. Millicent Jordan in David O. Selznick's Dinner at Eight (1933), co-starring Lionel Barrymore, Wallace Beery, John Barrymore and Jean Harlow - heady company to be sure, but Billie turned in an outstanding performance as Mrs. Jordan, the scatterbrained wife of a man whose shipping company is in financial trouble and who was trying to get someone to loan his company money to help stave off disaster. Her character loved to give dinner parties because a dinner affair at the Jordans had a reputation among New York blue-blood society as the highlight of the season. With all the drama and intrigue going on around her, her main concern is that she is one man short of having a full seating arrangement. The film was a hit and once again Billie was back on top. In 1937, she had one of her most fondly remembered roles in Topper (1937), a film that would ultimately spin off two sequels, and all three were box-office hits. In 1938, Billie received her first and only Academy Award nomination for her portrayal of Emily Kilbourne in Merrily We Live (1938). This was probably the best performance of her screen career, but she was destined to be immortalized forever in the classic The Wizard of Oz (1939). At 54 years of age - and not looking anywhere near it - she played Glinda, the Good Witch of the North. The 1940s saw Billie busier than ever--she made 25 films between 1940 and 1949. She made only six in the 1950s, as her aging became noticeable. She was 75 when she made her final screen appearance as Cordelia Fosgate in John Ford's Western Sergeant Rutledge (1960). Billie retired for good and lived in Los Angeles, California, where she died at age 85 of natural causes on May 14, 1970.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Born in 1953, to a mother who had worked in television, Lesley Nicol was a shy 16-year-old at St. Elphin's Boarding School in Derbyshire when she expressed a desire to go out and see the world - not, she recalls, to be an actress but to kiss boys. She went to a technical college in Manchester to study for her 'A'-level examinations and, whilst there, she got involved with the Manchester Library Theatre. She was paid a pound a week to play a tiny role as a 12-year-old boy in Shaw's 'Androcles and the Lion'. It was her first and last role there but she was encouraged to apply for entry to London's Guildhall School of drama, from where she graduated in the early 1970s. For several years she was best known as a stage actress, particularly in musicals, appearing in 'Mama Mia', 'Our House', the show based on the hit songs of Madness, and as Little Buttercup in a revival, with Gary Wilmot ,of 'HMS Pinafore'. She was also the original stage neighbor, nosy Auntie Annie, in the play 'East Is East' at the Royal Court, reprising the role in the 1999 film version that was also her movie debut, surprising given her length of acting experience. She has appeared in guest roles in numerous television series and in the mid-2000s played a character called Aunt-Tea in a short series of commercials for Tetley tea. Since 2010 she has played no-nonsense cook Mrs Patmore in the successful period drama 'Downton Abbey'.- Actress
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Doon Mackichan is an actress and writer known for the double Emmy Award-winning Smack the Pony (1999), Two Doors Down (2016), Plebs (2013), Toast of London (2012) and The Day Today (1994), among others. She has frequently collaborated with Steve Coogan, Armando Iannucci and Christopher Morris. She most recently featured on stage alongside John Malkovich in David Mamet's Bitter Wheat, and was praised by UK theatre critic Michael Billington as giving the show's best performance.- Derya Pinar Ak was born on 7 August 2003 in Istanbul, Turkey. She is an actress, known for Hükümsüz (2021), My Name Is Farah (2023) and 3391 Kilometres (2024).
- Actor
- Writer
- Director
Steve Ihnat was born on 7 August 1934 in Jastrabie, Czechoslovakia [now Jastrabie pri Michalovciach, Slovak Republic]. He was an actor and writer, known for Countdown (1967), The Honkers (1972) and Do Not Throw Cushions Into the Ring (1970). He was married to Sally Carter-Ihnat. He died on 12 May 1972 in Cannes, Alpes-Maritimes, France.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Carl Switzer was an American child actor, singer, dog breeder, and hunting guide from Paris, Illinois. He became famous for portraying Alfalfa in the film series "Our Gang" during the 1930s. His character was one of the most memorable characters ever portrayed in the series. Later in his career, Switzer's acting roles were limited to bit parts and appearances in B-movies. He supported himself through other lines of work. Switzer was fatally shot by an acquaintance over a money dispute. The circumstances of his death are disputed, due to contradictory accounts by the shooter and by an eyewitness.
In 1927, Switzer was born in Paris, Illinois. A small city located about 165 miles (266 kilometers) south of Chicago and 90 miles (140 kilometers) west of Indianapolis. Switzer was the youngest of four children born to George Frederick "Fred" Switzer (1905-1960) and his wife Gladys Carrie Shanks (1904-1997). Switzer's older brother was the child actor Harold Switzer (1925-1967).
In the early 1930s, the Switzer brothers were locally famous in their hometown for their music performances. In 1934, the Switzer family traveled to California. They visited the Hal Roach Studios (1914-1961) while sightseeing. The Switzer brothers gave an impromptu performance in the the Our Gang Café, the studio's open-to-the-public cafeteria. They were both offered contracts by producer Hal Roach (1892 -1992), who wanted them to appear in the film series "Our Gang" (1922-1944). The long-running series featured a large group of child actors.
Switzer made his film debut in the "Our Gang" short film "Beginner's Luck" (1935), where his character performs as the "Arizona Nightingale". By the end of the year, Alfalfa (Switzer) had become one of the series' main characters. His brother Harold was relegated to performing background characters in the series. In 1937, Switzer surpassed George McFarland in popularity. At the time, McFarland was the nominal star of the "Our Gang" series. Switzer had a difficult relationship with his co-stars, as he enjoyed playing cruel jokes on them.
Switzer's performances in "Our Gang" ended in 1940. His last appearance as Alfalfa was in the short film "Kiddie Kure" (1940), where the gang members attempted to convince a hypochondriac that his pills were unnecessary. Switzer was 12-years-old at the time of the film's production, making him the oldest member of the main cast. The production team considered him too old to keep playing a child.
Switzer initially found more work in films of the time. He played a young boy scout in the comedy film "I Love You Again" (1940). He next appeared in "Barnyard Follies" (1940), a B-Movie depicting efforts to raise funds for a rural orphanage. Switzer had a leading role in the comedy film "Reg'lar Fellers" (1941), a feature-film adaptation of the long-running comic strip "Reg'lar Fellers" (1917-1949) by Gene Byrnes.
Switzer was reduced to a supporting role in "Henry and Dizzy" (1942), his first appearance in the-then popular film series about the Aldrich Family (1939-1944). The films were adaptations of a long-running radio sitcom of the same name, which lasted from 1939 to 1953. Switzer played a younger member of the Twine family in "There's One Born Every Minute" (1942), a comedy about false advertising. The Twine family profits from marketing their puddings as containing the fantastic Vitamin Z, with the press failing to realize that this vitamin does not exist. A local scientist is persuaded to act as a shill for their product.
Switzer had a minor role in the musical comedy "Johnny Doughboy" (1942), which featured a plot about fictionalized versions of "has-been" child stars. Several other real-life former child stars had roles in this film, including Baby Sandy, Bobby Breen, and George McFarland. The film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Musical Score.
Switzer had the uncredited role of Auggie in "The Human Comedy" (1943), a comedy-drama film about life in the home front of World War II. His character was a friend of Ulysses Macauley (played by Jackie Jenkins). Over the following few years, Switzer would frequently appear in uncredited roles, in films such as "Going My Way" (1944) and "Courage of Lassie" (1946).
Switzer had his first leading role in years when cast as Sammy Levine in "Gas House Kids" (1946). The film depicted the life of unruly youths from the Gas House District of New York City. It was partly inspired by the forced relocation of the District's residents in the 1940s, to make way for an urban renewal project. About 600 buildings were razed, and 3,100 families were forced to relocate. The real-life tragic conditions had inspired the popular culture of the time. The film was successful enough to have its own sequels, "Gas House Kids Go West" (1947) and The "Gas House Kids in Hollywood" (1947). Switzer had leading roles in both sequels, his last leading roles in any film.
During the 1950s, Switzer had a few significant supporting roles in films. He played a co-pilot in the aviation adventure "Island in the Sky" (1953), a pilot in the disaster film "The High and the Mighty" (1954), and a Native American ranch hand in the Western film "Track of the Cat" (1954). He had a minor part in the comedy film "Dig That Uranium" (1956), where the Bowery Boys seek an uranium mine in the Wild West. Switzer also had several appearances in television, serving as a recurring guest star in "The Roy Rogers Show".
Switzer's film career was not particularly lucrative during his adult years. He supplemented his income by breeding and training hunting dogs, and by serving as a guide to hunting expeditions. His most notable clients were Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, James Stewart, and Henry Fonda. In 1954, Switzer married his girlfriend Diantha "Dian" Collingwood (1930-2004). She was the heiress of the company Collingwood Grain, which specialized in the construction of grain elevators. The marriage was a rather hasty decision, as the couple had only met 3 months prior to the wedding.
In 1956, Switzer was broke and his wife Dian was pregnant. Switzer's mother-in-law offered them the administration of a farm near Pretty Prairie, Kansas, and Switzer took the offer. His only, son Justin Lance Collingwood Switzer, was born later that year. Switzer had a reunion with his former co-star George McFarland in 1957. McFarland recalled that Switzer seemed restless, and he got the impression that Switzer was bored with his life as a farmer. He figured that this life "wasn't going to last" for Switzer.
Switzer received a divorce in 1957, and lost custody of his son. In January 1958, Switzer was mysteriously shot in the upper right arm while sitting in his parked car, in front of a bar in Studio City, Los Angeles. The bullet smashed through the car's window. The shooter was never found, and no motive was ever established.
In December 1958, Switzer was arrested by the authorities. He had been cutting trees in the Sequoia National Forest, with the intention to sell them as Christmas trees. This practice was illegal. He was sentenced to pay a fine of 225 dollars, and was also sentenced to one year's probation. This left him in financial trouble for the last month of his life.
In 1959, Switzer was hired to train a hunting dog by Moses Samuel "Bud" Stiltz. Switzer and Stiltz had been business associates for years, having met each other at the Corriganville Movie Ranch. During the dog's training, the dog ran off to chase after a bear. Stiltz demanded that Switzer had to either relocate his dog or pay him the equivalent of the dog's value. Switzer placed a reward for the relocation of the dog and the safe return of the animal. When the dog was found, Switzer rewarded the rescuer with 35 dollars in cash, and the worth of 15 dollars in alcoholic beverages. The reward money pushed Switzer further into poverty.
In late January, 1959, Switzer had an emotional conversation about his financial troubles with photographer Jack Piott. The two figured that Stiltz had to reimburse Switzer for the finder's fee. The two of them headed together to Stiltz's home in Mission Hills, where they got into an argument with him. After being struck on the left side of his head, Stiltz proceeded to threaten the two men with a loaded a .38-caliber revolver.
What happened next is uncertain. Stiltz testified that Switzer pulled a knife on him, and that he had shot him in self-defense. Tom Corrigan (Stiltz's adolescent stepson) later testified that Switzer had decided to end the fight and to leave empty-handed, but Stiltz shot him anyway. In any case, the bullet damaged one of Switzer's arteries and caused massive internal bleeding. Switzer had already died by the time his body was transferred to a hospital. He was 31-years-old at the time of his death.
Switzer was buried in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, located in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles. His gravestone depicts the image of a hunting dog, to commemorate that he trained hunting dogs for a living. His death initially attracted little attention from the press, but the controversial circumstances of his death have become the subject of true-crime articles and documentaries. Switzer is still remembered as one of the better child actors of his era, and as a reliable actor in supporting roles.- Actress
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Anjanette Comer was born on 7 August 1939 in Dawson, Texas, USA. She is an actress, known for The Baby (1973), Guns for San Sebastian (1968) and The Loved One (1965).- Actor
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William Stanford Davis is an award-winning, classically trained actor and veteran of both stage and screen with close to 100 credits. The St. Louis, Missouri native has received rave reviews for his performance as the cantankerous yet lovable janitor Mr. Johnson on the hit ABC series "Abbott Elementary", and also recurs as Coach Max on the sports series "Swagger", based on Kevin Durant's youth basketball playing experience with the AAU circuit for AppleTV+. Davis has appeared in some of the most popular and award-winning TV shows, from his role on Showtime's long running, Golden Globe-winning series "Ray Donovan", as the popular Potato Pie from Donovan's Gym, and on OWN's flagship successful series, "If Loving You Is Wrong", from Tyler Perry. Davis has also been cast in critical recurring roles on TNT's "Snowpiercer", "Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip", from Aaron Sorkin, and "Lincoln Heights", and has guest starred on such long running programs as "Perry Mason", "Curb Your Enthusiasm", "Chicago Med", "Criminal Minds", "The Big Bang Theory", "Ally Mc Beal", "Touched By An Angel", and many more. In a career filled with numerous outstanding highlights, Davis also earned an Emmy Award in 2002 as part of the cast of Rasheen Crawley's "The Movement". In film, Davis recently starred alongside Nafessa Williams and Sharon Neal in "A Holiday Chance", which premiered in November 2021 on AppleTV+ and Hulu, as well as "Please Stand By", starring Dakota Fanning and Toni Collette, and "So B It", starring Cloris Leachman and Alfre Woodard. On stage, Davis was honored with an Ovation Nomination for Best Supporting Actor in the 2006 Actors Studio Production of August Wilson's "Fences", and he performed in the musical production "North on South Central", which won five NAACP Theatre Awards in 2004. He also counts "Cages" written by Leonard Manzella and directed by Jon Rivera at the Matrix Theatre in Los Angeles, CA, "The Anteroom", also for the Actors Studio, The Circle West Production of "Legacies" at The Matrix Theatre, written and directed by the late John Bishop, and the world premiere of "Two Ships Passing", at the Pan Andreas Theater in Hollywood. In addition to acting, Davis has directed a number of productions including Lawrence Fishburne's play "Riff Raff", a production of "Shame", at the Elephant Asylum Theatre, and "The Old Settler", at the Pico Playhouse. Davis has spent more than 15 years mentoring the next generation of talent at both his own company, the William Stanford Davis Acting Class masterclass, and at the Actors Studio, where he is a lifetime member. He has coached several emerging stars, including Alisha Boe, Dylan Sprayberry, Laila Ali, Mc Lyte, and many more. Davis resides in Los Angeles.- Actor
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Randy Wayne was born on 7 August 1981 in Moore, Oklahoma, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Reagan (2024), Hellraiser: Judgment (2018) and To Save a Life (2009).- Actress
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Bright, vivacious leading lady Marlyn Mason was born on August 7, 1940, in San Fernando, California, and began performing at the age of 5. Encouraged and inspired by her parents, she was given singing and piano lessons while young and appeared on the local "Doye O'Dell Show" at age 9. As a young teenager, she was cast in several stage shows with the Players' Ring Theatre troupe in Hollywood, including musical versions of "Tom Sawyer" and "Heidi," as well as the legit plays as "Pick Up Girl" and "The Crucible".
In 1956, the 16-year-old Marlyn moved into TV work with multiple episodes of "Matinee Theatre". Throughout the 1960s, she would establish herself firmly into in the medium with guest parts on all the popular shows at the time. Blessed with an inviting, effervescent smile, she added spark and sparkle to such lightweight sitcoms as "My Three Sons," "Father Knows Best," "Gomer Pyle," "Hey Landlord" and "Occasional Wife," while showing off her dramatic mettle on "Burke's Law," "Ben Casey" (a seven part story), "Dr. Kildare," "Laredo," "Bonanza," "Run for Your Life," "The Invaders" and "Perry Mason" (the original series' final episode). Seldom pigeon-holed, Marlyn offered a palatable range of "good girl" and "bad girl" interpretations during this productive time -- from the sensual and alluring to the offbeat and freewheeling. One of her more notable "bad girl" roles came in the form of a faithless wife who schemes to murder her lover's wife and set up David Janssen's Richard Kimble character in the process.
Marlyn's early singing lessons paid off later when she was signed to co-star with Robert Goulet, Sally Ann Howes and Peter Falk in a special TV-musical version of Brigadoon (1966), following that with the role of Carrie in Carousel (1967) again with Goulet. This, in turn, led to her casting in the George Abbott Broadway musical production of "How Now, Dow Jones," which starred Tony Roberts and Brenda Vaccaro. Though it was only moderately received when it opened in December of 1967 (it lasted 220 performances), Marlyn herself walked away with enthusiastic reviews.
Although the actress made her film debut at the beginning of the 1960s with an uncredited role in Because They're Young (1960) starring Dick Clark and Victoria Shaw, Marlyn would not perk up the large screen again until the very end of the decade when she nabbed her best known cinematic part as Elvis Presley's girl in one of his final films. While shooting The Trouble with Girls (1969), she was given the opportunity to share a duet with the legend on the novelty song "Sign of the Zodiac".
The early 1970s brought Marlyn a regular role in the short-lived (one season) but critically acclaimed series _"Longstreet" (1972), as a love interest to James Franciscus. It also presented her with a highly revealing change-of-pace movie role in Making It (1971) as a cougar-type housewife who seduces one of her teacher/husband's students (Kristoffer Tabori), and the second female lead in the Barbara Parkins mystery Christina (1974). An abundance of guest star parts continued pouring in with roles on "Love, American Style," "The Odd Couple," "Vegas" and "Wonder Woman" and others. TV mini-movies became quite the rage as well and Marlyn graced a number of them -- A Storm in Summer (1970), Harpy (1971), Escape (1971), the Emmy Award-winning That Certain Summer (1972), Outrage (1973), Attack on Terror: The FBI vs. the Ku Klux Klan (1975), Last of the Good Guys (1978), and The New Adventures of Heidi (1978).
Since the 1980s, Marlyn has continued her career with appearances in film and TV, albeit at a slimmer pace. She earned her first grandmother role on the TV movie Fifteen and Pregnant (1998), and, most recently, has been seen in a few short films in which she worked in front and behind the camera: Model Rules (2008) (also writer/producer), Big (2009) and The Bag (2010) (also writer/producer).
A brief marriage (1960-1962) to composer/conductor musical director J. Raymond Henderson (1929-1988) preceded a 6 year marriage (1972-1978) to Hollywood make-up artist Lee Harman.- Julian Wadham was born on 7 August 1958 in Ware, Hertfordshire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for The English Patient (1996), The Madness of King George (1994) and Goya's Ghosts (2006). He was previously married to Shirley Cassedy.
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Nicholas Ray was born Raymond Nicholas Kienzle in 1911, in small-town Galesville, Wisconsin, to Lena (Toppen) and Raymond Joseph Kienzle, a contractor and builder. He was of German and Norwegian descent. Ray's early experience with film came with some radio broadcasting in high school. He left the University of Chicago after a year, but made such an impression on his professor and writer Thornton Wilder that he was recommended for a scholarship with Frank Lloyd Wright, where he learned the importance of space and geography, not to mention his later love for CinemaScope. When political differences came between the seasoned architect and his young protégé, Ray left for New York and became immersed in the radical theater.
He joined the Theatre of Action , which is where he met his good friend Elia Kazan, and later the Group Theatre. Times were tough and money was tight, but Ray loved the bohemian lifestyle of the close-knit group and enjoyed one of the happiest times of his life. Anybody who met him always noted his intellect and amazing energy. During this period he, along with his fellow Theater Group members, was also active in Socialist/Communist movement (which curiously went unnoticed during the Red Scare). In January 1937, Ray was put in charge of local theater activities by the Department of Agriculture's Resettlement Administration and moved to Washington with his wife Jean Evans, who was pregnant with his first child, Anthony. He also, along with Alan Lomax, traveled around the south and recorded folk musicians for the Library of Congress. The collaboration proved worthy, and in the early 40s Lomax and Ray were hired by CBS to produce a regular evening slot, headed by Woody Guthrie. In between this time Ray divorced his wife. Ray soon met John Houseman, who would become a very close friend. Houseman asked Ray to produce shows for the Overseas Branch of the Office of War Information, which ended quickly due to political pressures. Meanwhile, Ray's good friend of the Group Theatre days Elia Kazan had been called to Hollywood to make his feature film debut A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1945), and hired Ray to be his assistant, where Ray was first introduced to filmmaking. Houseman called Ray back to New York where Ray made his live TV debut with the enormously popular Sorry, Wrong Number (1946), plus some other radio work.
In 1946 Houseman lent Ray the novel "Thieves Like Us" by Edward Anderson, and Ray fell in love with it; he was familiar with the Depression-era south. He worked hard at the adaptation, and though uncredited for the screenplay, Ray actually contributed a large amount to it. There was never any question of Ray directing the film, and under the sympathetic eyes of producers Houseman and Dore Schary, who was well-known for giving first-time writers and directors breaks, Ray enjoyed possibly the only truly happy film making experience of his career. The film stars Farley Granger and Cathy O'Donnell as young, naive lovers trying to let their love blossom while running from the law. The film is remembered today for Ray's unique use of the camera (this was one of the first times a helicopter was used to shoot action), a fast pace, and above all, his extreme empathy for society's outsiders. Sadly, the film was shelved for two years due to Howard Hughes's takeover of RKO, and the film was released to a single theater in England to great reviews before it was finally released in the U.S.
Ray was eager to go back to work and quickly accepted a project without thinking. That film was A Woman's Secret (1949), which Ray probably would've turned down had he though twice about going back to work, as it bears little of his fingerprints. The film is only memorable because it is where Ray met actress Gloria Grahame, who became his second wife. Ray referred to the film as "a disastrous experience, among other things because I met her." When she became pregnant, Grahame divorced her husband and married Ray, because they thought it was the right thing to do. The same day that she became divorced, Ray and Grahame were wed in Las Vegas, but their marriage was over before it even started; Grahame spent their honeymoon alone while Ray gambled away nearly $40,000 in one night. Though RKO's publicity department alleged that Grahame and Ray met after Grahame's separation and that their son Timothy was born nearly 4 months premature, certain obvious truths contradict that statement. The marriage was disastrous; the two separated a year later and their attempt at professional friendship ended when Ray caught Grahame in bed with his son by Jean Evans. They divorced in 1952. Although They Live by Night (1948) was still unreleased in the US at this time, several Hollywood stars had their own private screening rooms and the film was seen by several important people.
One such person was Humphrey Bogart, who was so impressed with the debut that he invited Ray to direct his first independent production, Knock on Any Door (1949), for a loan-out at Columbia. Though Bogart was initially puzzled by Ray's intensely emotional style of directing, the two had a lot in common and became good friends. The film became a modest success, but Ray had misgivings and later said, "I wish Luis Buñuel had made The Young and the Damned (1950) before I made Knock on Any Door (1949), because I would have made a hell of a lot better film." Indeed, though the subject (juvenile delinquents) is close to Ray's heart, the film is too perhaps too polemic for its own good. Back at RKO, Ray was obliged to make films close to Howard Hughes's heart but not to his own. Despite Ray's leftist views and previous association with the Communist Party, his friendship with Hughes benefited Ray for the better during the Red Scare, and Ray remained untouched, but was morally and contractually obligated to make films he had no care for, such as Born to Be Bad (1950), which starred Hughes' one-time lover, Joan Fontaine, and Flying Leathernecks (1951), a blatant pro-war film that went against Ray's politics. Ray also did uncredited touch-up work to film such as Roseanna McCoy (1949), The Racket (1951), Androcles and the Lion (1952), and Macao (1952) during his years at RKO. Though Ray had his misgivings on their last collaboration, Bogart must have been impressed with Ray because he was optioned for a second loan-out at Columbia. Based loosely on a novel by Dorothy B. Hughes, In a Lonely Place (1950) tells the story of a violent screenwriter who falls in love with a fellow Hollywood burnout while he is under investigation for a murder of a girl he barely knew. The story was changed drastically from the source novel and shaped to better suit Bogart, and the result is considered one of Bogart's best and most complex performances. Despite their marital problems, Ray insisted on casting Gloria Grahame for the role of Bogart's lover because he knew she was right for the role, and Grahame was praised for her work as well.
A critically acclaimed film at the time of its release but something of a box-office disappointment, In a Lonely Place (1950) has gained a reputation over the decades as a classic example of both film noir and existential, heartbreaking romance. Before his contract was finished at RKO, Ray was at least able to make two memorable films: On Dangerous Ground (1951) was a complex cop drama that again featured expressionistic camera moves (hand-held cameras were used, a rarity for the 1950s) and a look into a violent protagonist, and The Lusty Men (1952), a film about the complexity of coming home was disguised as a rodeo movie. It is considered an underrated work of both Robert Mitchum and Ray. After he left RKO, his first project was the pseudo Western Johnny Guitar (1954), which he never liked and hated making (mostly because of Joan Crawford) despite its box-office success. Today the film has gathered a cult status (Martin Scorsese is a big fan), and during this period the French New Wave directors began to take note of this American auteur; Jean-Luc Godard in particular idolized Ray and once stated that "the cinema is Nicholas Ray." In September of 1954, Ray wrote a treatment to "The Blind Run," about three troubled teenagers who create a new family in each other. This would form the basis for his most popular and influential film, Rebel Without a Cause (1955). After some re-writes, Ray started shopping for a lead actor. After a trip to the Strasberg Institute in New York proved fruitless, he learned that Elia Kazan had recently discovered a New York stage actor for his latest film, but he wasn't recommending him; even after Ray saw a rough cut of this actor's latest film he still wasn't sure.
It was only when Ray met 24-year-old James Dean at a party did he realize that this hot new talent would be perfect for the role of Jim Stark, a troubled youth whose world is unraveled in a 24-hour period. Ray and Dean formed a very close bond during filming, with Ray allowing Dean to improvise and even direct to his liking. The rest of the cast came together with the talents of two fifteen-year-olds: Natalie Wood (to whom Ray was rumored to have made advances) and Sal Mineo; as well as smaller roles, which Ray cast based on weeks of bizarre, improvised auditions as well as interviews with the actors. Filming was a wild ride, but it paid off; Mineo and Wood were both Oscar-nominated in the supporting acting categories, and Ray received his only Oscar nomination, for the screenplay.
Ray and Dean planned to make more movies after this, but Dean's death would never make that possible, and at least they left movie audiences with one great film. Ray loved working with younger actors and wanted to only make movies about them, but first he made Hot Blood (1956), based on research that his ex-wife had compiled about gypsies. During a stay in Paris Ray read an article called "Ten Feet Tall," about a teacher whose life fell apart because of a Cortisone addiction. Ray was fascinated by this and empathized with teachers' low pay at the time. Star and producer James Mason played Ed Avery, a family man whose life takes a nightmarish turn when he becomes addicted to Cortisone. Though a critical and financial disaster, today Bigger Than Life is considered Nicholas Ray's masterpiece and very ahead of its time. The French magazine Cahiers du Cinema named it one of the 10 best films of the 50s. In fact, the magazine was a huge admirer of Ray, and frequently would acclaim Ray's films for their style and substance while American critics dismissed them, adding to Ray's cult status as a director. Ray continued to make films, but his health started to become a problem on the set of Wind Across the Everglades (1958), and Ray was fired, with most of his footage discarded.
In the 1960s, he was invited to make two big-budget films in Spain, the Biblical epic King of Kings (1961) and 55 Days at Peking (1963), where he suffered a heart attack brought on by years of heavy drinking and smoking, not to mention stress. This sadly brought his Hollywood career to a premature finish. After his heart attack, he tried many times to direct again, but no projects made it off the ground. In addition, Ray was frequently using drugs and immersing himself in the chaos of the 1960s and the hippie generation. He did not direct again until the satirical porn short Wet Dreams (1974). Also in the 1970s, he became a teacher at New York University (one of his students was Jim Jarmusch), and despite his eccentricity, he connected with his students and together they made We Can't Go Home Again (1973), half documentary and half fiction. With the help of his friend Wim Wenders, he completed his last film, Lightning Over Water (1980), which was supposed to be about a painter dying of cancer and trying to sail to China to find a cure, but instead it became a sad documentary about Ray's last days.
Nicholas Ray died on June 6th, 1979 of lung cancer, but before his death he left the world some of the most painfully realized and contemporary motion pictures ever put on celluloid, and shared a fully realized vulnerability that will never be duplicated. Thirty years after his death, the cinema still is Nicholas Ray.- Actor
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Francesco Columbu was an Italian actor, author, chiropractor, and former Amateur Boxer, Professional Bodybuilder and World's Strongest Man competitor. Franco was a longtime friend of Arnold Schwarzenegger, whom he met in 1965. He often appeared in small cinematic roles alongside Schwarzenegger at the height of his fame. He made his Pro Bodybuilding Debut in 1968, and was regularly competing at he top end of the under 200lbs category. This was documented in the 1977 Documentary Pumping Iron (1977). He went on to win the 1981 IFBB Mr. Olympia competition, becoming the first under 200lbs winner, retiring shortly after. Franco was considered one of the world's strongest men. He held a number of power lifting world records. He performed a strongman act of breaking a hot water bottle by inflating it orally, lifting vehicles onstage while another performer changed a tire, and dead lifted over 320 kg (700 lbs). These were documented in the 2002 Documentary 'Raw Iron: The Making of Pumping Iron', celebrating the 25th anniversary of 'Pumping Iron'.- Jon Jon Briones was born in Quezon City, Philippines as Ernesto Briones. He is an actor and singer who first left the Philippines at the age of 23 to venture to London and join the original cast of Miss Saigon. Since then he has traveled all over the world appearing on stage, television and in film. He has been married to actress/singer Megan Johnson Briones since 1996. They have two children who are also in the business, Isa and Teo, and they now reside in Los Angeles.
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David Hollander was born on 7 August 1969 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Airplane! (1980), The Relic (1997) and Collateral (2004).- David Caves is an actor, known for playing Jack Hodgson in Silent Witness, BBC's prime-time hit show. David is also known for playing the role of Clint Hill in Jackie (2016) alongside actress Natalie Portman, and most recently starred in murder mystery drama 15 Days (2019), which aired on Channel 5.
David Caves was born on 7th August 1978 in Belfast and attended Campbell College, where both his parents were teachers. He subsequently went on to St Andrews University in Scotland where he read French and German, graduating with a BA (Hons). Having spent a year in France as an English teacher, David was then offered a place at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. After graduating, his first professional stage role was the brooding anti-hero Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights (2005).
Prior to Silent Witness, David played numerous roles onstage. Notable works in theatre include The Duchess of Malfi, West Yorkshire Playhouse directed by Philip Franks (2006), Cymbeline, Cheek by Jowl directed by Declan Donnellan (2007), Troilus and Cressida, Cheek by Jowl directed by Declan Donnellan (2008), 'Charlie' in Stones in his Pockets, Mark Goucher Productions (2009), 'MacDuff' in Macbeth, Cheek by Jowl directed by Declan Donnellan (2010), 'Bosola' in The Duchess of Malfi, Northampton Royal and Derngate theatre, directed by Laurie Sansom (2010), 'Macheath' in The Beggars Opera, Regents Park Open Air Theatre directed by Lucy Bailey (2011), 'Deflores' in The Changeling, Southwark Playhouse (2011) and 'Petruchio' in The Taming of the Shrew, Royal Shakespeare Company directed by Lucy Bailey (2011).
David has played the role of cage-fighting forensic scientist Jack Hodgson in Silent Witness since 2012 and has been repeatedly nominated for Best Actor for the TV Choice Awards. David has also appeared in films Ironclad: Battle for Blood (2014) and Widow's Walk (2017). He has voiced broadcast commercials for World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and has also taken part in 'Pages of the Sea', a nationwide Armistice event commissioned by director Danny Boyle.
In 2013, he won the Spirit of Tomorrow award at the Belfast Top 40 Under 40 Awards. - Director
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Academy Award nominee Tom McGrath has been working in the entertainment industry for more than 30 years. McGrath directed the Academy Award and Golden Globe nominated film The Boss Baby, and its sequel, The Boss Baby: Family Business, his sixth film as director for a DreamWorks Animation title, the most of any director at the studio. His films have grossed over $2.7 billion dollars at the worldwide box office.
Following the runaway success of 2005's box-office hit Madagascar, for which he directed, co-wrote and voiced the lead penguin Skipper, McGrath reprised the same roles in Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa and Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted. In addition, McGrath voiced Skipper for the Penguins of Madagascar TV show on Nickelodeon, and the short films The Madagascar Penguins in a Christmas Caper, Merry Madagascar and Madagascar. McGrath also starred in and executive produced DreamWorks Animation's Penguins of Madagascar and directed 2010's Megamind.
Prior to joining DreamWorks Animation in 2000, McGrath worked as a story artist and concept design artist for such feature films as Cats & Dogs and How the Grinch Stole Christmas. He also worked as an animator and story artist on such animated films as Space Jam and Cool World. His television work includes directing on The Ren & Stimpy Show as well as other projects for Nickelodeon. He is a graduate from the character animation program at Cal Arts and also studied industrial design at the University of Washington.- Born Susan Margery Jeaffreson Lloyd in Suffolk, England, on August 7, 1939, lovely model-turned-actress Sue Lloyd was the daughter of a medical doctor. Raised in Birmingham and trained in ballet, she began studying at the Sadler's Wells School at age 11. Since her height (5'8") decreased her chances of a ballet career, the statuesque Sue instead took her dancing prowess to the stage as a chorus girl and showgirl. At one point, she belonged to Lionel Blair's dance company.
After a few modeling assignments (she made the cover of Vogue magazine), the leggy, dark-haired (later blonde) actress earned ornamental bit parts in the raucous 1960's comedy films Go to Blazes (1962) and Nothing But the Best (1964) and broke into television as a sexy foil or tough-looking temptress in such early Brit TV series as "The Sentimental Agent," "Gideon C.I.D.," "The Saint" and "The Avengers." These spy programs propelled her into her own brief British secret agent series providing luscious eye-candy diversion as co-agent "Cordelia Winfield" opposite American star Steve Forrest in the one-seasoner The Baron (1966).
Sue was also involved in espionage tales on film, notably The Ipcress File (1965) starring Michael Caine as a stylish love interest to agent Harry Palmer. Later she proved fetching making fun of the genre in the "007" parody No. 1 of the Secret Service (1977) starring Nicky Henson and the slapstick spy comedy Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978) with Peter Sellers as the ever-inept Inspector Clouseau. On stage, Sue made her West End debut in 1971 with a short-lived stage version of "The Avengers," playing the role of Hannah Wild, the partner of John Steed (played by Simon Oates.
The actress alternated between glamorous film and TV assignments for most her career, finding only a few worthy roles among the tantalizing ones usually given. Appearing in such movies as Attack on the Iron Coast (1968), Corruption (1968), Where's Jack? (1969), Percy (1971), That's Your Funeral (1972), Spanish Fly (1976), The Ups and Downs of a Handyman (1975), and Lady Oscar (1979) and finding recurring roles on the TV comedy series His and Hers (1970) and The Two Ronnies (1971), Sue's career began to decline after a couple of Joan Collins' cult vehicles The Stud (1978) and The Bitch (1979).
Lesser seen in later years, Sue did have a recurring role in the popular 1980's TV series Crossroads (1964) playing the wife of Ronald Allen. Their story line was dropped from the series in 1985. They were both spotted later on film in the comedy caper Eat the Rich (1987). Sue married Mr. Allen in March of 1991, after he was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. He died a few months later. This made tabloid news as Allen had been long involved with actor Brian Hankins, also of Crossroads (1964) fame.
In later years, Sue focused on painting, which she began in the mid-1970s. She made a nostalgic appearance in the TV movie Bullet to Beijing (1995), which again starred Caine as (retired) private eye Harry Palmer, and wrote her own biography "It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time" in 1998. Last glimpsed in the film Beginner's Luck (2001), Sue herself was diagnosed with cancer and died after a lengthy illness on October 20, 2011, in London, at age 72. - Actor
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Ioachim Ciobanu, a dynamic Romanian actor and film director, hails from a distinguished artistic lineage. Son of silver screen legend Ilarion Ciobanu and Marion Ciobanu, a respected screenwriter with over 100 documentary scripts to her credit, Ioachim brings a rich heritage to his craft.
After graduating high-school, he studied computer arts at the Academy of Art College in San Francisco, followed by a degree in film editing from UNATC, going on to direct a dozen short films and several commercials. Since shifting his focus exclusively to acting in 2013, Ioachim has studied under the tutelage of renowned American acting coach Ivana Chubbuck, making a noteworthy professional debut in 2014.
His career has rapidly expanded to include over 20 roles in feature films and television series, collaborating with award-winning directors such as Cristian Mungiu, Jasmin Dizdar, and Terrence Malick. His fluency in English, coupled with a natural American accent, makes him a sought-after talent in international productions.
Recently, Ioachim has made his mark in Hollywood, appearing alongside notable celebrities. His roles include Epsilon in the critically acclaimed "Black Mirror" series opposite Josh Hartnett and Rory Culkin, and can be seen as Misha Varga in "Eric," the Netflix miniseries featuring Benedict Cumberbatch, premiering May 30th.
Ioachim Ciobanu continues to rise as a prominent figure in film, garnering international appeal and captivating audiences with his capacity to credibly portray both terrifying and endearing people on film.- Cirroc Lofton was born on 7 August 1978 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993), Beethoven (1992) and Invasion (2005).
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Hans Matheson was born in a caravan on August 7, 1975 at Stornoway, Isle of Lewis, located in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. Shortly after, his family moved to Canterbury, Kent in England but Hans often spent his summer holidays on Stornoway with his grandparents. As a child, his parents Iain (Ado) and Sheena often took him and his younger brother to folk festivals and Bob Dylan concerts. His father Ado is a musician and his grandfather was a Gaelic singer and songwriter before him performing at concerts and ceilidhs throughout Scotland. His great-grandfather was crowned the Celtic Bard in recognition of his writing in the '50s.
Hans claims to have been a shy and introverted child who was not happy at school. He left school and, at the suggestion of his mother, auditioned for drama school: Avondale Hall in Clapham. At the suggestion of his teacher and mentor, he auditioned for a Jez Butterworth TV show called Christmas and this led to a role in Mojo on stage at the Royal Court Theatre and later in the film version of the same name. Roles in TV shows Bramwell (1995), Wycliffe (1993), and Family Money (1996) followed and films Stella Does Tricks (1996), Still Crazy (1998), and Bodywork (2001).
His first break on the international arena came with his casting as Marius in Bille August's production of the Victor Hugo classic Les Misérables (1998). He then starred in the European films Canone Inverso (2000) and I Am Dina (2002), and the television mini-series The Mists of Avalon (2001).
His major role to date has undoubtedly been the lead role as Yury Zhivago in the 2002 Granada Television adaptation of Doctor Zhivago (2002) the famous Russian novel by Boris Pasternak, where he co-starred with Keira Knightley and Sam Neill.
Hans is not only a talented actor but plays guitar, violin and harmonica and writes his own songs. He prefers the simple things in life to pursuing fame and fortune. He takes his guitar with him everywhere and prefers to travel by train rather than by air, even if the trip takes days.- Actress
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Rachel York was born on 7 August 1971 in Orlando, Florida, USA. She is an actress, known for Lucy (2003), Power (2014) and The Mick (2017). She has been married to Ayal Miodovnik since 10 July 2010. They have one child.- Producer
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Being the son of Martin Sheen and brother of Charlie Sheen and Emilio Estevez, it is no small wonder that Ramon Estevez has also ventured into the world of acting, both in front of and behind the camera. His first acting job was a small role in In the Custody of Strangers (1982) starring his father, brother Emilio, Ed Lauter and Jane Alexander. Since Cadence (1990), however, Ramon has only taken a handful of roles, such as Shadow Conspiracy (1997) with brother Charlie and Donald Sutherland, and a guest appearance with Martin and Rob Lowe on The West Wing (1999).
Ramon runs the production company Estevez Sheen Productions for his father Martin. He has also written songs for Diamond Rio and appeared in the latter's music video "It's All in Your Head" (1996). He is sometime billed as 'Ramon Sheen'.- Actress
- Writer
DeLane Matthews was born on 7 August 1961 in Rockledge, Florida, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for A Way Back In (2010), Evasive Action (1998) and General Hospital (1963). She has been married to Lennie Loftin since 27 October 2009. She was previously married to Tyrone Power Jr..- Actor
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Simon Kassianides was born on 7 August 1979 in London, England, UK. He is an actor and director, known for The Mandalorian (2019), Unforgettable (2017) and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013).- Tiffany Ann Hsu (her birth name in Mandarin is Wei-Ning Hsu, but she loves people call her Ann because that's what her beloved grandfather calls her) was born on 7th August 1984 in Taipei City, Taiwan. She is an Italian-Taiwanese model and actress.
Hsu's father is an Italian-American and her mother is Taiwanese. When she was 2 years old, Hsu's father left her mother, and Hsu was raised by her mother along with her grandfather, grandmother, and her mother's other family members. Hsu graduated from Taipei Hwa Kang Arts School and Chinese Cultural University with a major in Drama Acting. She was first noticed by Catwalk Agency when she participated in a talent casting for MTV Taiwan and was then signed up to be a model in 2003.
In 2004, Hsu appeared as the lead actress in her first TV series, Jia You Fei Fei. She also sang the theme song, "Sweet and Hot Sister." In 2005, she starred in the series Mischievous Kiss (2005) as the second female lead. Hsu appeared in her first movie, Song shu zi sha shi jian (2006), in 2006, and she starred in the idol drama Ai jiu zhai yi qi (2009) as well as Xia Yi Zhan, Xing Fu (2009) three years later. In 2013, she had another lead actress role in the TV romance-drama series Love Me or Leave Me (2012) as a marriage-phobic woman who tests her boyfriend with a femme fatale. The following year, in her first movie lead actress role, she starred in Design 7 Love (2014). Hsu's depiction of a woman caught in a complicated situation who must find a way out earned her a Golden Horse Award nomination as Best New Performer. - Producer
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Lisa Roberts Gillan was born on 7 August 1965 in Decatur, Georgia, USA. She is a producer and actress, known for Leave the World Behind (2023), Maid in Manhattan (2002) and Eat Pray Love (2010).