In the 1949 Looney Tunes short Curtain Razor, cartoon star Porky Pig channels his inner Major Bowes by auditioning acts at a talent agency. One client, a turtle, brags that he is “the man of a th ...
“Get me that man with the flat voice!”(Post)Comedian Fred Allen had worked himself up through the vaudeville ranks (he started out as “The World’s Worst Juggler” before realizing his talents lie in comedy) to Broadway productions like The L ...
Happy Birthday, Cary Grant!(Post)For those of you disappointed in the Academy Award nominations announced this past Thursday, here’s a little something to chew on: one of the most beloved motion picture stars of all time (he was ...
Review: Confessions of Boston Blackie (1941)(Post)Diane Parrish (Harriet Hilliard) has commissioned art dealer Eric Allison (Walter Soderling) to sell a valuable statue at an auction…but has no inkling that Allison and two of his confederates (Ra ...
Happy Birthday, Jack Kruschen!(Post)Character great Jack Joseph Kruschen was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba on this date in 1922. A dues-paying member of the “Hey! It’s That Guy!” show business fraternity, you’ve seen Jack in scores o ...
Happy Birthday, Art Carney!(Post)No one could have possibly seen it coming. On the night of April 8, 1975, as the live telecast of the 47th Academy Awards was calling it a wrap for the evening, the Best Actor Oscar was handed ou ...
“Evening, friends…welcome to Springdale…”(Post)An old-time radio website asks the ($64) question: “What if Old Mr. Potter, the meanest man in town, was actually the Mayor and had a heart of gold?” The query references two acting showcases from ...
Happy Birthday, Maurice Tarplin!(Post)A 1946 issue of Radio Mirror noted that “practically everyone connected with the Boston Blackie show is a former athlete.” Radio Mirror was not publishing “fake news”: the show’s star, Richard Ko ...
Happy Birthday, Sheldon Leonard!(Post)Nowadays, the concept of the “hyphenate” is fairly common in Hollywood—the word is used to describe anyone in show business who wears various hats: actor, writer, producer, director, etc. The most ...
Happy Birthday, Don Ameche!(Post)Dominic Felix Amici was born on this date in Kenosha, WI in 1908. When Dominic changed his name to Don Ameche, however, that’s when any number of doors started opening for one of show business’ fo ...
Happy Birthday, Frank Nelson!(Post)It never fails…every time I tune into an episode of The Jack Benny Program (be it on radio or TV) and Jack needs help from someone in customer service, the clerk is played by the same actor—who g ...
Happy Birthday, Jeff Corey!(Post)In May of 2017, the memoirs of character actor Jeff Corey—born Arthur Zwerling in Brooklyn on this date in 1914—were published to much critical acclaim. Written with his daughter Emily, Improvisi ...