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- Gaunt character actor Brad Dourif was born Bradford Claude Dourif on March 18, 1950 in Huntington, West Virginia. He is the son of Joan Mavis Felton (Bradford) and Jean Henri Dourif, a French-born art collector who owned and operated a dye factory. His father died when Dourif was three years old, after which his mother married Bill Campbell, a champion golfer, who helped raise Brad, his brother, and his four sisters. From 1963 to 1965, Dourif attended Aiken Preparatory School in Aiken, South Carolina, where he pursued his interests in art and acting. Although he briefly considered becoming a professional artist, he finally settled on acting as a profession, inspired by his mother's participation as an actress in community theater.
Beginning in school productions, he progressed to community theater, joining up with the Huntington Community Players, while attending Marshall University of Huntington. At age 19, he quit his hometown college and headed to New York City, where he worked with the Circle Repertory Company. During the early 1970s, Dourif appeared in a number of plays, off-Broadway and at Woodstock, New York, including Milos Forman who cast him in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975). Although this film is frequently cited as his film debut, in fact, Dourif made his first big-screen appearance with a bit part in W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings (1975). Nevertheless, his portrayal of the vulnerable Billy Bibbit in Forman's film was undoubtedly his big break, earning him a Golden Globe Award for Best Acting Debut, a British Academy Film Award for Best Supporting Actor, and an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
Skeptical of his instant stardom, Dourif returned to New York, where he continued in theater and taught acting and directing classes at Columbia University until 1988 when he moved to Hollywood. Despite his attempts to avoid typecasting, his intensity destined him to play eccentric or deranged characters, starting in Eyes of Laura Mars (1978), John Huston's Wise Blood (1979) (arguably his best performance to date), and Milos Forman's Ragtime (1981). Dourif then teamed up with director David Lynch for Dune (1984) and Blue Velvet (1986). His high-strung style also served him well in a number of horror films, notably as the voice of the evil doll Chucky in Child's Play (1988) and its sequels.
Dourif broke from the horror genre with roles in Fatal Beauty (1987), Mississippi Burning (1988), Hidden Agenda (1990) and London Kills Me (1991). Recent film work includes the role of Grima Wormtongue in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy. Since his television debut in the PBS film The Mound Builders (1976), Dourif has made sporadic appearances on a number of television series, such as The X-Files (1993), Babylon 5 (1993), Star Trek: Voyager (1995), Millennium (1996) and Ponderosa (2001). He also appeared in the music video "Stranger in Town" (1984) by the rock band TOTO. - Actress
- Producer
- Executive
Lily Jane Collins was born in Guildford, Surrey, England. Her father is English musician Phil Collins, while her mother, Jill Tavelman, who is from Los Angeles, California, was president of the Beverly Hills Women's Club for three terms. Lily moved with her mother to LA at the age of five, after her parents split up. She is of Russian Jewish (from her maternal grandfather), English, and German descent.
Her first screen role was at the age of two in the BBC series Growing Pains, in 1992. Collins performed at the Youth Academy for Dramatic Arts as a child, but her main interest was journalism. She graduated from the Harvard-Westlake School, and attended the USC, where she majored in broadcast journalism. She began writing a column ("NY Confidential") for the British magazine Elle Girl in her teens as well as contributing to Seventeen, Teen Vogue, and the Los Angeles Times magazines.
After some early television appearances as a presenter/reporter (for instance, covering the 2008 US Presidential campaign as a host on the Nickelodeon show, Kids Pick the President (2000)), she made a couple of appearances on 90210 (2008) in 2009. She co-starred as the daughter of Tim McGraw and Sandra Bullock's characters in the massive box office hit The Blind Side (2009). More dramatic roles followed, and she came to worldwide attention when she played the starring role in Mirror Mirror (2012), following it up by headlining The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (2013) and Love, Rosie (2014).- Writer
- Producer
- Director
Luc Besson spent the first years of his life following his parents, scuba diving instructors, around the world. His early life was entirely aquatic. He already showed amazing creativity as a youth, writing early drafts of The Big Blue (1988) and The Fifth Element (1997), as an adolescent bored in school. He planned on becoming a marine biologist specializing in dolphins until a diving accident at age 17 which rendered him unable to dive any longer. He moved back to Paris, where he was born, and only at age 18 did he first have an urban life or television. He realized that film was a medium which he could combine all his interests in various arts together, so he began taking odd jobs on various films. He moved to America for three years, then returned to France and formed Les Films de Loups - his own production company, which later changed its name to Les Films de Dauphins. He is now able to dive again.- Actor
- Director
Geoffrey Owens was born on 18 March 1961 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He is an actor and director, known for The Cosby Show (1984), The Paper (1994) and Fizzle (2020). He has been married to Josette Huber since 1995. They have one child.- Sophia Jane Myles was born on March 18, 1980 in Hammersmith, London, England. She has a younger brother, Oliver. Her parents are Jane and Peter Myles, who is a vicar, a priest in the Anglican Church who is in charge of a parish and receives a salary, but not the tithes of the church. Her mother works in publishing. Sophia lived in Notting Hill until she was 11 and attended Fox Primary School. Her father was later relocated to Isleworth, a suburb west of London.
At 16, Sophia starred in a school production of "Teachers" written by Kevin Godber. Among those in attendance, Julian Fellowes, the Oscar winning writer of Gosford Park (2001). Sophia was subsequently cast in the BBC production of The Prince and the Pauper (1996). Julian Fellowes worked on the script. Two years after her role in The Prince and the Pauper (1996), Sophia was cast as young "Saffron" in the TV mini-series Big Women (1998). In 1999, after recently enrolling in Cambridge University to study philosophy, she got a small part in Mansfield Park (1999) playing "Susan Price". Before heading to school, Sophia was cast as "Agnes Fleming" in the TV series, Oliver Twist (1999). (The series also starred Keira Knightley). After which, she dropped out to pursue acting.
After that, Sophia got a number of small parts in movies and television shows. Most notably, she was cast as Johnny Depp's wife in From Hell (2001). She also starred in The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby (2001), The Abduction Club (2002), Heartbeat (1992) and Foyle's War (2002); the latter 2 of which are TV series.
In 2003, Sophia got a supporting role in Underworld (2003) opposite fellow British beauty, Kate Beckinsale (Pearl Harbor (2001)). Up next, Sophia was cast in the thriller Out of Bounds (2003)) as "Louise Thompson", about an awkward young girl in an English boarding school who falls in love with her American art teacher, who is married to the headmistress.
Later that same year, Sophia was cast in the big screen version of the English cult hit, Thunderbirds (2004). Though the movie didn't perform as expected, she earned praise for her role as the iconic "Lady Penelope". Soon, Sophia began working on Art School Confidential (2006), directed by Terry Zwigoff (Ghost World (2001)) playing an American who is the muse of a student in art school. Afterwards, she returned to her television roots, starring in Colditz (2005) as "Lizzie Carter", who is the object of affection and desire for 2 brothers. She then appeared in Sleeping Murder (2006) as a young woman who discovers that, as a child, she witnessed a murder.
Sophia was cast in Tristan + Isolde (2006). She played "Isolde", the fiery young Irish princess who is promised to an evil man, that she does not love. In 2006, she returned to television starring "Madame de Pompadour" in Doctor Who (2005) as the Doctor's love interest. - Actress
- Producer
- Executive
Danneel Ackles (born Elta Danneel Graul, she went by Danneel Harris professionally until after her marriage to Jensen Ackles) was born on March 18, 1979, in Lafayette, Louisiana is an American actress and model. The name "Danneel" was inspired by Danneel Street in New Orleans. She is known for her roles as Shannon McBain on the American daytime soap opera One Life to Live (1968) and as Rachel Gatina on the WB/CW television drama series One Tree Hill (2003).
Graul/Ackles was born and raised in Louisiana before moving to Los Angeles to study acting. She did some modeling work and in 2004 landed a role in the small independent film The Plight of Clownana (2004), a film was co-produced by her husband. She also had guest roles in a number of TV series, and a recurring role as Rachel on the CW's One Tree Hill (2003).
She has appeared in episodes of a number of TV Shows including, NCIS, CSI and How I Met Your Mother. Her other films include Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008), A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas (2011), and Fired Up! (2009). Danneel co-starred with Jensen in Ten Inch Hero (2007) which they filmed in 2006. n May 2009, Harris was announced to have been cast in the Screen Gems Thriller film, The Roommate (2011).- Actress
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Vanessa Lynne Williams was born on March 18, 1963 in Tarrytown, Greenburgh, New York and raised in Millwood, New Castle, New York to Helen Williams & Milton Williams, both music teachers. Vanessa and her brother grew up in suburban New York in comfortable surroundings. Vanessa sang and danced in school productions and signed her high school yearbook with a promise to "see you on Broadway". After winning a performing scholarship to Syracuse University, she left school and tried to make it in New York show business. She began entering beauty contests in 1984, eventually winning Miss New York and then becoming the first African-American Miss America. During her reign, some nude girl-girl photos, taken while she was in New York, surfaced in Penthouse magazine. Although the photos were taken before her beauty contest victories, she was forced to resign her crown. Many predicted that her future in show business was over. She went on to land a recording contract and released several albums, including "The Comfort Zone" and "The Sweetest Days".
Vanessa made her film debut in 1986 in Under the Gun (1987) and appeared in the films The Pick-up Artist (1987), Another You (1991) and Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (1991). She starred opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger in Eraser (1996), opposite Laurence Fishburne and Andy Garcia in Hoodlum (1997) and the box office hit, Soul Food (1997). She also starred in Dance with Me (1998), Light It Up (1999), Shaft (2000), opposite Samuel L. Jackson and Johnson Family Vacation (2004). She starred recently in the independent features, My Brother (2006) and And Then Came Love (2007) (aka "Somebody Like You"). On television, Vanessa starred in such movies and mini-series as Stompin' at the Savoy (1992), The Kid Who Loved Christmas (1990), The Jacksons: An American Dream (1992), ABC's revival of Bye Bye Birdie (1995), Nothing Lasts Forever (1995), The Odyssey (1997), Don Quixote (2000) and Keep the Faith, Baby (2002), and she executive-produced and starred in Lifetime's The Courage to Love (2000) for Lifetime and the VH1 Original Movie, A Diva's Christmas Carol (2000).
Her albums "The Right Stuff", "The Comfort Zone and "The Sweetest Days" earned multiple Grammy nominations and have yielded the Academy Award-winning single "Colors of the Wind", from Disney's Pocahontas: The Musical Tradition Continues (1995). Her recordings also include two holiday albums, "Star Bright" and "Silver & Gold", "Vanessa Williams Greatest Hits: The First Ten Years" and "Everlasting Love", a romantic collection of love songs from the 1970's. In 1994, Vanessa took Broadway by storm when she replaced Chita Rivera in "Kiss of the Spider Woman", winning the hearts of critics and becoming a box-office sensation. She garnered rave reviews and was nominated for a Tony Award for the 2002 revival of "Into the Woods". She also headlined a limited special engagement of the classic, "Carmen Jones", at the Kennedy Center and starred in the Encore! Series staged concert production of "St. Louis Woman".
She stars in ABC's critically-acclaimed hit series, Ugly Betty (2006), for which she has won or been nominated for numerous individual and ensemble awards, including the Emmy, SAG Award, Golden Globe and NAACP Image Awards. Vanessa achieved a career pinnacle, with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her accomplishments as a performer. Her charitable endeavors are many and varied, embracing and supporting such organizations as Special Olympics and many others.- Actress
- Soundtrack
A natural talent with a striking presence, emerging actress Abigail Cowen is making an undeniable mark with her enchanting performances across film and television.
Cowen leads the cast of the Netflix young adult series, Fate: The Winx Saga (2021), a live-action re-imagining of the Nickelodeon animated series Winx Club (2004). She brings life to fairy warrior 'Bloom', whom the series follows as she adjusts to life in the Otherworld, learning to control her dangerous magical powers while a looming peril threatens their very existence. The show rose to #1 on Netflix's top 10 movie and TV series feature upon launch and held the spot its entire first week run.
In film, she stars as the lead of Redeeming Love (2022) from director DJ Caruso, the film adaptation of the historical romance and international best-selling novel of the same name, which is set to release in Fall 2021. Set in the 1850s Gold Rush in California, the period drama is a complicated love story and retelling of the book of Hosea. Cowen also stars in a leading role in the supernatural thriller Witch Hunt (2021), from emerging writer-director Elle Callahan, which premiered at SXSW in 2021. This follows her memorable performance opposite K.J. Apa in the beloved biopic from Lionsgate, I Still Believe (2020).
No stranger to audiences, Cowen first gained recognition for her breakout role as 'Dorcas' in the Netflix phenomenon, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (2018). Other notable television credits include: the critically acclaimed and groundbreaking hit Netflix series Stranger Things (2016) opposite Millie Bobby Brown; ABC's unconventional family drama The Fosters (2013); the CBS crime thriller Wisdom of the Crowd (2017); and the medical dramedy Red Band Society (2014) with Octavia Spencer.
In addition to her thriving acting career, she has also found success with the renowned international modeling agency, IMG. Cowen is also passionate about raising awareness and normalizing honest conversations surrounding mental health, working to use her platform to align with nonprofits to further this narrative.
The Florida native currently resides in Los Angeles.- Actress
- Producer
Madeline was born March 18, 1996 and raised in Los Angeles, California. She began modeling when she was 3 years old, soon after she was discovered by her Theatrical agent "Wendy" in a nail shop in Sherman Oaks and began her theatrical acting career. She has performed in around 60 principal role/national commercials. you may have seen Madeline in guest-starring performances on several TV shows and series. Madeline absolutely enjoys scary movies, and her favorite roles so far, White Queen, in Resident Evil 3: Extinction, and Molly from Swing Vote. Madeline also enjoys playing with her 3 brothers and has a dog named Spot. She is very active in giving to foundation "Zoe International" a non-profit Christian organization which rescues children from child prostitution.- Actress
- Producer
- Music Department
Often considered hip-hop's first lady, the woman behind the moniker Queen Latifah was born Dana Elaine Owens on March 18, 1970, in East Orange, New Jersey. She is the daughter of Rita (Bray), a teacher, and Lancelot Owens Sr. She came from a police family-both her father and her older brother were cops-which would later influence her rhyming style and life philosophy. Her brother died in a motorcycle accident in 1992. Owens witnessed both sides of black urban life in the USA while growing up. After a brief stint as a Burger King employee, she soon found herself making waves in the hip-hop music scene.
After working as the human beatbox alongside Ladies Fresh, she was just 18 years old when she broke through in the late 1980s with a style that picked selectively from jazz, reggae, and soul traditions, from beats produced by D.J. Mark the 45 King. Her debut single, "Wrath of My Madness," was released in 1988. A year later, her debut long-player, "All Hail the Queen," enjoyed favored reviews: an old, wise head was evident on the top of her young shoulders. The former Burger King employee maintained her early commitment to answering the misogynist armory of some of her male counterparts and, at the same time, imparted musical good times to all genders. Her name means "delicate and sensitive" in Arabic, but she has often been anything but in her rhymes and the messages she sends out through them. One of the most prominent female hip-hop artists on the scene for over a decade, Queen Latifah has also made tremendous inroads in movies, television, and artist management, with her management company, Flavor Unit, alongside her business partner Shakim Compere. A role model who takes the responsibility to heart, Latifah has carefully constructed a fine career for herself-one that is constantly moving upward.- Actor
- Director
- Soundtrack
Kevin McGarry was born in Kincardine, Ontario, Canada. His career in acting started with a happy accident beginning as early as his freshman year in high school. Mistakenly entering a 12th grade theater class, McGarry suddenly discovered a love for acting. Kevin went on to attend George Brown College where he graduated in 2007 with a degree in Creative Writing. He also studied Theatre Arts at Fanshawe College in London, Ontario and later studied at the Pro Actors Lab in Toronto.
Kevin began his career in 2006. He went on to land his first major television role as Dr. Timothy Hudson in Open Heart (2015). During the 2010s, Kevin also appeared in Saw 3D (2010) and landed numerous television roles including his role as Mitch Cutty in Heartland (2007) and as Nathan Grant in When Hope Calls (2019) and When Calls the Heart (2014).- Actress
- Soundtrack
Ciara Bravo has become one of the few actresses working today to move easily between television and film. Ciara's acting career has brought her roles that range from the girl next door brainiac to the deeply troubled adolescent. Her finesse with subtle off-beat humor and a touch of warmth adds to Ciara's allurement as an actress.
Next up, Ciara is co-starring in the YouTube RED series, Wayne as troubled and defiant Del. Ciara's two breakout television roles were as a series-regular in FOX's Second Chance and as a co-star in FOX's Red Band Society. She has landed the recent guest starring characters in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and NCIS.
Ciara will soon be seen in the Sundance-nominated film The Long Dumb Road as Ashly, the rebellious daughter of Casey Wilson. In Marti Noxon's film To the Bone, she plays Tracey a teen battling Bulimia. Her cameo appearance of Neighbor's 2 - Sorority Rising Ciara brought her All-American charm.
Ciara began her acting career at the young age of nine in local television commercials in her small hometown in Northern Kentucky, just ten miles south of Cincinnati, Ohio. Voice-over and commercial acting became her staple until, at only 11- years -old, she was discovered from an audition tape to play Katie Knight on Nickelodeon's hit show Big Time Rush. As Ciara's fan base grew, Nickelodeon cast her in several television movies including the lead in Jinxed. Ciara's audience appeal helped Nickelodeon's Jinxed to achieve record-breaking network viewership ratings.
Ciara studied acting with Larry Moss during his Master Class Workshop and continues to study with Aaron McPhearson. She strives to maintain her small town charm and works not to make acting the "be-all and end-all." To further her acting career, Ciara has chosen to put her dream of being a documentary filmmaker and director on hold and deferred her admission to film school. In the meantime, she plans to gain as much knowledge for the craft by watching and learning from those in the business that she has the privilege to work alongside. In her past-time, Ciara enjoys studying art history and has enrolled in art history classes through UCLA.- Actress
- Writer
- Additional Crew
She started as a model, and in 1955 became an actress. She acted under her birth name, Marjorie Hellen, until 1959. Afterwards she was known as Leslie Parrish. She appeared in more than 100 TV shows. She is known as one of the first women producers. She's always had a passion for music. She was involved in social causes such as the Vietnam war. She met the airplane pilot/writer Richard D. Bach during the making of Jonathan Livingston Seagull (1973), and they married in 1981. They divorced in 1999.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Adam Saul Pally is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He is best known for starring as Max Blum in the ABC comedy series Happy Endings and as Dr. Peter Prentice in The Mindy Project. He also starred in the FOX comedy Making History and was the executive producer of The President Show.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Sutton Lenore Foster (born March 18, 1975) is an American actress, singer and dancer. She is known for her work on the Broadway stage, for which she has received two Tony Awards for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical, in 2002 for her role as Millie Dillmount in Thoroughly Modern Millie, and in 2011 for her performance as Reno Sweeney in Anything Goes. Her other Broadway credits include Little Women, The Drowsy Chaperone, Young Frankenstein, Shrek the Musical, and Violet. On television, Foster played the lead role in the short-lived ABC Family comedy-drama Bunheads from 2012 to 2013. Since March 2015, she has starred in the TV Land comedy-drama Younger.
Foster was born in Statesboro, Georgia, and raised in Troy, Michigan. At the age of 15, she was a contestant on the reality competition show Star Search and also auditioned for the cast of The Mickey Mouse Club. She left Troy High School before graduating (she received her diploma via correspondence courses) to join the national tour of The Will Rogers Follies directed by Tommy Tune. She then attended Carnegie Mellon University for one year, but left to pursue a theatrical career full-time. In May 2012, she received an honorary doctorate from Ball State University, "in recognition of her outstanding career in theater, television and music and for her contributions to the educational experience and professional growth of Ball State students."
Her older brother is actor Hunter Foster.
Foster met actor Christian Borle in college, and married him on September 18, 2006. During a radio interview in 2010, it was confirmed that Foster and Borle divorced. Foster and Borle still remain friends and continue to support each other's work. On September 19, 2013, Foster confirmed that she became engaged to screenwriter Ted Griffin. She and Griffin married on October 25, 2014. In April 2017, Foster announced that she and her husband adopted a baby girl, Emily Dale Griffin, born March 5, 2017.
Foster is a self-proclaimed dog lover, and has had three dogs since her Broadway debut, Linus, Mabel, and Brody.
She makes artwork which she sells online and occasionally at art exhibits. She has collaborated with visual artist Julien Havard, who previously worked as her dresser for nine years, beginning with Thoroughly Modern Millie.- Actor
- Director
- Soundtrack
Peter Graves was born Peter Duesler Aurness on March 18, 1926 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. While growing up in Minnesota, he excelled at sports and music (as a saxophonist), and by age 16, he was a radio announcer at WMIN in Minneapolis. After two years in the United States Army Air Force, he studied drama at the University of Minnesota and then headed to Hollywood, where he first appeared on television and later made his film debut in Rogue River (1951). Numerous film appearances followed, especially in Westerns. However, Graves is primarily recognized for his television work, particularly as Jim Phelps in Mission: Impossible (1966). Peter Graves died of a heart attack on March 14, 2010, just four days before his 84th birthday.- Cindy Busby was born on 18 March 1983 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. She is an actress, known for The Big Year (2011), Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010) and Supernatural (2005). She has been married to Christopher Boyd since 12 December 2020.
- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Dane Cook was born on 18 March 1972 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for Good Luck Chuck (2007), My Best Friend's Girl (2008) and Mr. Brooks (2007). He has been married to Kelsi Taylor since 23 September 2023.- Actress
Lilli Kay was born on 18 March 1996. She is an actress, known for Rustin (2023), For Worse and Yellowstone (2018).- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Yul Vazquez was born in Havana, Cuba. He is an actor and producer, known for Severance (2022), The Outsider (2020) and Russian Doll (2019). He has been married to Linda Larkin since 18 May 2002.- Actor
- Producer
Born in England to a Dutch mother and British father, Cubitt was six months old when his family moved to Vancouver. While attending university, he worked on a cable music video show called Night Vision, performing in comedic sketch segments. Cubitt describes this experience as "the beginning of his love affair with acting." David studied acting full time until he was kicked out of theatre school having been told he "couldn't act and would never work." Soon afterward, Cubitt landed a leading role in the feature Alive directed by Frank Marshall, starring Ethan Hawke. Pa
Alive helped spark Cubitt's career and it wasn't long before he landed a series lead role on the hit Canadian show E.N.G. Following, David starred with Eric McCormack on Lonesome Dove for one season before he was offered the hit TV series Traders, during which time he won numerous Gemini Awards and Nominations for best actor.
After landing a development deal with CBS, Cubitt moved to Los Angeles where he booked the leading role of David Caruso's brother in the series Michael Hayes. Since then David has had an extensive career in television most notably as a series regular on CBS' Medium, opposite Patricia Arquette, for 7 seasons. Other television credits include roles on A&E's Bates Motel, Showtime's Ray Donovan, CTV's The Detail, Netflix's Travelers and most recently Netflix's Virgin River.
Feature film credits include, Black Chicks a short written and directed by Neil Labute, for which David won a 2017 Leo Award for Best Actor. Stonewall, directed by Roland Emmerich, Shut In, opposite Naomi Watts, The Seventh Son alongside Jeff Bridges & Julianne Moore. David can next be seen in Semi Chellas' feature American Woman, which will had its world premier at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Thomas Ian Griffith was born on March 18, 1962 in Hartford, Connecticut. His father was a college professor, his mother a dance teacher. Griffith trained as an opera singer in New York City with Metropolitan Opera star Delia Rigal. He attended the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, majoring in English literature and music. While still in school, he was cast in the Broadway show The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. He continued to work on Broadway and in regional theater until moving to Los Angeles to star in his first feature film, The Karate Kid Part III. After a successful acting career, Griffith segued into writing full time, including developing multiple pilots for NBC, Universal and Warner Brothers TV. He is married to actress/screenwriter Mary Page Keller. They have two sons, Conner and Eamon.- Julia Goldani Telles is an actress and ballet dancer. She was born in 1995 to a Brazilian mother and Mexican-American father. Julia began acting at age 16, after a sudden injury forced her to take a break from dancing. She booked her first role (in Bunheads, 2012) on her first audition. In addition to acting, Julia studies at Columbia University.
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Chris Geere is a British actor born in Cambridge in 1981, and brought up in the Winchester area of Hampshire, where his family still lives. He was initially interested in pursuing a career as an artist until a drama teacher encouraged him to play in his school's production of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream', whereupon he admits that he was truly bitten by the acting bug. He gained a place at the Guildford School of Acting, winning out over nearly three thousand other applicants. Some time after graduation he had a spell as a bit part player with the Royal Shakespeare Company and since then has become familiar on British television, notably in the school series 'Waterloo Road.' In 2017 he moved to the States, taking the lead in the eccentric comedy drama 'You're the Worst' as well as appearing in 'Modern Family.'- Actress
- Writer
- Composer
A bizarre, gloriously one-of-a-kind Hollywood gypsy and self-affirmed outcast, San Francisco-born actress Susan Tyrrell (born Susan Jillian Creamer) was a teenager when she made her stage debut in "Time Out for Ginger" in 1962. A product of the entertainment industry, her father was a top agent at one time with the William Morris firm. She built up her resumé in summer stock and regional plays usually cast in standard ingénue roles. Her nascent career took an abrupt shift in direction, however, when, as a member of New York's Lincoln Repertory Company, she was cast in an array of seamy, salty-tongued, highly dysfunctional character parts. After striking performances on and off Broadway in such fare as "The Rimers of Eldritch" (1967), "A Cry of Players" (1968), "The Time of Your Life" (1969) and "Camino Real" (1970) Hollywood took keen notice of this special talent and, in the early 1970s, began to cast her in their more offbeat projects.
In only her fourth film, Susan earned an Academy Award nomination for her powerhouse portrayal of a cynical, low-life boozer girlfriend opposite Stacy Keach's has-been boxer in John Huston's potent but highly depressing Fat City (1972). Pulling out all the stops after this, she continued to show her fearless attraction toward the dark side throughout the late 1970s with flashy roles in lesser quality material such as The Killer Inside Me (1976), Andy Warhol's Bad (1977), Islands in the Stream (1977), I Never Promised You a Rose Garden (1977), and September 30, 1955 (1977) as various harridans and grotesques. The 1980s proved no different with manic behavior on full display in Tales of Ordinary Madness (1981), Forbidden Zone (1980), Liar's Moon (1981), Fast-Walking (1982), Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker (1981), Big Top Pee-wee (1988) and underground director John Waters' more mainstream film Cry-Baby (1990), many of which have now achieved cult status.
Toned down a bit for TV, she nevertheless demonstrated in both the one-season series Open All Night (1981) and on MacGruder and Loud (1985) that she wasn't about to change. When her TV and movie career started to simmer down, the Los Angeles-based actress opted for the avant-garde stage with such productions as "Why Hannah's Skirt Won't Stay Down" (1986), "Landscape of the Body" (1987), "The Geography of Luck" (1989) and her trenchant one-woman piece "My Rotten Life: A Bitter Operetta" (1989), which she performed over a long period of time.
Real-life tragedy struck in late April of 2000 when Susan contracted a near-fatal illness. Both of her legs had to be amputated below the knee as a result of multiple blood clots due to a rare blood disease -- thrombocythemia. Never say die, she valiantly tried to maintain a positive outlook, and continued to perform on occasion while going through rehabilitation. She also spent time writing and painting before passing away on June 16, 2012. A wild, boisterous trooper, she was the definitive underground raconteur for those who desired the more sordid side of Hollywood.- Actor
- Music Department
Lenny Rush is an actor from Essex, United Kingdom; most known for his role in CBeebies' Apple Tree House (2017, 2018) playing the role of Eli. Lenny also stars in Cbeebies observational documentary Our Family (2017).
Furthermore, Lenny has appeared at London's Old Vic Theatre in the stage production of Jack Thorne's adaptation of A Christmas Carol (2017, 2018) directed by Matthew Warchurs.
Lenny's most recent role is that of Tiny Tim in the forthcoming FX/BBC production of Steven Knight's A Christmas Carol (2019).- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
J.G. Hertzler was born on 18 March 1950 in Savannah, Georgia, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993), Zorro (1990) and BioShock (2007).- Actor
- Director
At his best playing blue-collared tough guys, curly dark-haired Irish-American actor Kevin Patrick Dobson was born in Queens, New York, on March 18, 1943, and raised in the Jackson Heights area of that borough. One of seven children born to a school janitor father and a homemaker mother, the future actor worked as a trainman, brakeman and conductor for the LIRR (Long Island Rail Road) before deciding to pursue his acting interests.
Toiling as a waiter/bartender at a restaurant owned by relatives, Dobson's first on-camera viewings began in 1969 on a daytime soap opera, playing various bit parts as cops, orderlies and intern types on The Doctors (1963). Following an unbilled bit in the detective film Klute (1971), he gravitated more and more towards TV. In the early 1970's he was spotted here and there on such popular crime shows as "The Mod Squad", "The Rookies", "Ironside", "Cannon", and "Police Story". This led to his pivotal role as young, eager Det. Bobby Crocker on Kojak (1973). He remained with the series throughout its five seasons. In between, he landed a featured role in the film Midway (1976), and earned a top-billed role in the TV movie Stranded (1976) as one of a group of airplane passengers marooned on a deserted island following a crash.
A revolving series of starring roles in TV movies came Dobson's way following Kojak (1973), including Transplant (1979) (starring as a workaholic exec risking a major heart operation); Orphan Train (1979) (with Jill Eikenberry, as a couple involved in the titled NYC movement and welfare program in the 1850s); Hardhat and Legs (1980) (a Gordon/Kanin romantic comedy co-starring Sharon Gless); Reunion (1980) (as a married man tempted at a high school reunion); Mark, I Love You (1980) (as a widower having to fight his late wife's parents for child custody); and Margin for Murder (1981) (a Mike Hammer noirish mystery). He was also unsympathetically featured as Barbra Streisand's abusive husband in All Night Long (1981).
Kevin found another crimes series in the early 1980s to star in as the title San Francisco police officer in the short-lived Shannon (1981), which was immediately followed by a second best-remembered series, as federal prosecutor Mack McKenzie, who marries Michele Lee's Karen Fairgate, on the popular night-time soap opera Knots Landing (1979). Dobson copped five Soap Opera Digest Awards for his work on this series. In between the eleven seasons was a reunion Kojak TV movie as (now) Asst. D.A. Bobby Crocker in Kojak: It's Always Something (1990); plus other mini-movie leads in Money, Power, Murder. (1989), A House of Secrets and Lies (1992) and The Conviction of Kitty Dodds (1993), as well as another detective role in the first season of F/X: The Series (1996)
Dobson began his career on stage, first with the 1968 national tour of "The Impossible Years". He later served on the board of Lonny Chapman's Group Repertory Theatre company in North Hollywood, where he often directed and acted. Live theatre highlights include Chicago's Royal George Theatre production of the Tony Award-winning play "Art," as well as originating the role of Steve Gallop in the world premiere mounting of the 2000 play, "If It was Easy" in Atlanta. He co-starred with Richard Thomas in Roundabout Theatre Company's 2009 national tour of "12 Angry Men".
Into the millennium, Dobson returned full circle to his daytime soap opera roots with roles as Governor Harrison Brooks on One Life to Live (1968) and Judge Devin Owens on The Bold and the Beautiful (1987). He would also be the fourth actor taking over the role of Mickey Horton on Days of Our Lives (1965). Parts in independent films also came to be with leads in the thriller She's No Angel (2002) opposite Tracey Gold and the mystery drama The Representative (2011), plus featured roles in Crash Landing (2005), 1408 (2007), April Moon (2007) and Dark Power (2013). He later guested on such Tv series as "Nash Bridges", "Cold Case", "CSI", "Hawaii Five-0", and "Anger Management".
A U.S. Army military policeman and proud veteran, Dobson served twice as chairman of the National Salute To Hospitalized Veterans. Married to wife Susan since 1968 and the father of three children (Sean, Patrick and Mariah), Dobson died on September 6, 2020, aged 77, after suffering a heart attack.- Clayton James was born in North Vancouver, British Columbia. Raised by a single mother. Clayton grew up playing many sports. He fell in love with hockey and from age 6 was playing as a goalie. He also fell in love with the North Shore mountains where he found a passion for free ride mountain biking. He worked at the famous Deep Cove Bike Shop which housed some of the pioneers for making mountain biking famous to North Van. He would continue to race downhill excelling in his category. In his teenage years he started making his first films which started with free ride mountain bike videos in which he edited, and starred in with his childhood friends.
Clayton began commercial auditions at age 21 when a family friend recommended a meet with a local talent agent John Davies. In his first commercial workshop a vibrant acting coach by the name of Andrew Mcilroy burst into the class. Clayton heard Andrews passion and decided to join one of his classes. It was there Andrew inspired Clayton to pursue a career in acting. Since then he continues to train in both LA and Vancouver.
He has worked on TV Shows such as Arrow, Supernatural (U.S. TV series), The Killing, Fringe, and King & Maxwell. A break came starring opposite Rachel Hunter in Her Infidelity in 2015. As well as the fun role of portraying Kevin Federline, Britney Spears ex, in the Britney Tv movie for Lifetime. Not to mention his work on the award winning short film I Love You So Much Its Killing Them.
Clayton is working on Hallmark's When Calls the Heart. As well as supporting roles in TV Movies, independent shorts, and feature films. - Actress
- Sound Department
Maia Jae Bastidas was born in Toronto, Canada.
Maia Jae recurs as Eliza Wells on "Rabbit Hole" starring Keifer Sutherland for Paramount+ and will recur as Justine Garcia on the Emmy nominated "The Boys" spin-off series, "Gen-V" for Amazon Prime. In 2023, Maia will be on-screen with Golden Globe winner Amanda Seyfried in the new film, "Seven Veils" written and directed by Academy Award nominee Atom Egoyan. Both filmed in Toronto. Maia also played opposite Academy Award nominee Jeremy Renner in Taylor Sheridan's "Mayor of Kingstown" during Season 1 for Paramount+. Later in 2023, Maia will Guest Star as Letty Acosta on "High Potential" starring Kaitlin Olson and written by Academy Award nominee Drew Goddard. She will also Guest Star on "Witch Mountain" for Disney+ starring Bryce Dallas-Howard.
Additional credits include Guest Star role of Luciana Rodriquez, a Colombian ex-FARC soldier for CBS's "Ransom" which filmed in Budapest, Hungary. Maia also played "Amber" on the CW/Netflix's hit series "In The Dark".
Maia Jae studied Theatre Arts and Media Production with a Spanish language minor from university in Toronto. Her 2016 short film titled "Thumbs" was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival's NextWave Showcase. Maia has been recognized for her work at the Banff World Media Festival's "Women in Media" and "Diversity of Voices" initiatives.- Actor
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Danny Deferrari is an Argentine-American actor and filmmaker. He is best known for portraying the roles of Enrico Fermi in Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer", Max in Emma Seligman's "Shiva Baby" and Andrew Madoff in the ABC mini-series "Madoff". He will next be seen in "Goodrich" opposite Michael Keaton and Mila Kunis.
His father David José Deferrari was a translator at The United Nations.- Olek Krupa was born on 18 March 1947 in Rybnik, Slaskie, Poland. He is an actor, known for Home Alone 3 (1997), Hidden Figures (2016) and Burn After Reading (2008).
- African-American former NFL player, with plenty of height and built like an ox, Frank McRae scored over 40 film appearances predominantly as physically imposing men and authority figures, sometimes in quite comedic roles. McRae first came to attention playing a grinning jail inmate, "Reed Youngblood," helping Warren Oates escape in Dillinger (1973), and then quickly notched up minor tough guy parts in several films including Hard Times (1975), F.I.S.T. (1978) and Big Wednesday (1978). However, not to be typecast, McRae played some light-hearted & comedic performances in Vacation (1983), *batteries not included (1987) and as a foul-mouthed mechanic in the hilarious Used Cars (1980). He also turned in a quite funny role in Loaded Weapon 1 (1993), and as Arnold Schwarzenegger's long-suffering police captain in Last Action Hero (1993).
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Shay Hatten was born on 18 March 1994 in Oakland, California, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire (2023), Army of the Dead (2021) and John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023).- Yoriko Dôguchi was born on 18 March 1965 in Tokyo, Japan. She is an actress, known for Silence (2016), Love Exposure (2008) and Tampopo (1985).
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Actress, singer, songwriter, and producer Irene Cara was destined for a life of accomplishments that millions strive for but very few actually attain. From being able to play the piano by ear at age five to earning an Oscar, multiple Grammys, a Golden Globe, and a People's Choice Award, Irene's rise to stardom was paved with experiences of a lifetime.
Beginning shortly after realizing their daughter's natural talent, Irene was quickly enrolled in music, acting, and dance classes. Shortly before that, her mother entered her into multiple competitions and at the age of three, Irene was a finalist in the "Little Miss America" pageant.
Her professional career began on Spanish-language television singing and dancing before performing on shows including 'The Original Amateur Hour', 'The Ed Sullivan Show', and 'The Tonight Show' with Johnny Carson. Her talent was also showcased On and Off Broadway in various productions including 'Ain't Misbehavin'', the Obie Award-winning musical 'The Me Nobody Knows', 'Maggie Flynn' starring Shirley Jones and Tony Award-nominated actor Jack Cassidy, and 'Via Galactica' opposite Raul Julia.
Having performed on the stage, the next natural progression seemed to be series television. She would find a home on the daytime drama 'Love of Life' and the educational series 'The Electric Company' where she participated as a member of the group 'The Short Circus', teaching children about grammar through music. 'The Electric Company's' cast was made up of veteran actors Bill Cosby, Rita Moreno, and Morgan Freeman.
Continuing the pursuit of excellence, Irene recorded her first Spanish-language album at the age of eight and released an English-speaking holiday album shortly thereafter. Her career already blossoming, she would receive the honor of becoming the youngest member to perform in an all-star concert tribute for the legendary Duke Ellington. Held at Madison Square Garden, Irene performed along with music greats Stevie Wonder, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Roberta Flack.
With Broadway, television, and recording firmly tucked under her belt, Irene's next stop was the big screen. Before she entered her teenage years, she had won the title role in the film Aaron Loves Angela. Her performance in the movie was so outstanding that she was cast as the lead in the now cult classic musical drama 'Sparkle'. Proving that she was a tremendously versatile actress, Irene received international acclaim for her roles in 'Roots: The Next Generation' starring alongside James Earl Jones and Diahann Carroll among others, and 'The Guyanna Tragedy: The Jim Jones Story' where she would again work with James Earl Jones as well as LeVar Burton. As much as she had already accomplished, nothing could have prepared her for the super-stardom that would come with her next role.
In 1980, Irene would portray the character Coco Hernandez in a movie-musical titled 'Fame', a story about a group of students auditioning for acceptance into New York's High School for the Performing Arts. The film follows the students from their first to final days at the school and served to shine a light on the film's inspiration, LaGuardia High, and its counterpart Julliard. Irene's massive solo vocal talent was showcased through the title song 'Fame' as well as 'Out Here on My Own'. They and Irene would make Academy Awards history as it marked the first time two songs from the same film were nominated in the same category, and both performed by Irene. The title track won the Academy Award for Best Original Song.
The impact of 'Fame' would catapult Irene Cara into a household name and earn her two Grammy nominations for Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Artist, as well as a Golden Globe nomination for Best Motion Picture Actress in a Musical. Billboard Magazine named her the Top New Single Artist and Cashbox Magazine awarded her with the Most Promising Female Vocalist and Top Female Vocalist honors.
In 1982, Irene was awarded the NAACP Image Award for Best Actress for the NBC movie-of-the-week Maya Angelou's 'Sister, Sister' also starring Diahann Carroll and Rosalind Cash. She would garner another NAACP Image Award nomination for the title role in the PBS film 'For Us the Living: The Medgar Evers Story'. When it seemed her professional life couldn't get any better, Irene set the world on fire again.
Composer Giorgio Moroder approached Irene in 1983 to collaborate on the theme to a film he was attached to titled 'Flashdance'. Irene agreed and actually wrote the lyrics to the title song 'Flashdance...What a Feeling' in a car with producer Keith Forsey while on the way to the studio to record it. Those lyrics would reinforce Irene's already solid place in Hollywood history. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards with Irene taking home the coveted Oscar for Best Original Song. She would also add a Golden Globe to her already impressive collection of honors for Best Original Song in a Motion Picture in addition to two Grammys, a People's Choice Award, and an American Music Award. On a personal level, as a woman of Puerto Rican and Cuban descent, her Academy Award win is even more special as she was the first bi-racial woman to ever win in any category other than acting and only the second to be nominated outside of an acting category.
In 1984/85, Irene was back on the big screen in the film 'City Heat' opposite Clint Eastwood and Burt Reynolds. She co-wrote the theme as well as performed the classic standards 'Embraceable You' and 'Get Happy'. Irene also starred opposite Tatum O'Neal in the film 'Certain Fury', voiced "Snow White" in the animated film 'Happily Ever After', and toured as "Mary Magdalene" in the Andrew Lloyd Webber production 'Jesus Christ Superstar'.
Not having sat on her laurels, in between winning Oscars, Grammys, and touring, she released the albums 'Anyone Can See' and 'What a Feeling' in 1982 and 1983 respectively which spawned the additional hits 'Breakdance', 'The Dream', 'You Were Made for Me', and 'Why Me', and in 1985 collaborated and sang with Placido Domingo. 'Breakdance' and 'Why Me' would both become Top 10 hits. In 1987, the release of the album 'Carasmatic' was shelved in the United States because of legal issues with the label, but it was issued in limited quantities in the United Kingdom, immediately making the album a collector's piece for anyone lucky enough to have gotten a copy.
Still feeling the love of audiences everywhere, the 90s were spent living out of a suitcase on multiple European concert tours. After finally getting a little breathing space, Irene formed the group Hot Caramel in 1999 and returned to performing to the delight of eager audiences clamoring to hear her unmistakable voice.
In 2004, Irene was awarded the Prestige Award for Lifetime Achievement. She was given the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Fort Lauderdale Film Institute in 2005, and in 2006, was awarded the Honorary Lifetime Achievement for outstanding contribution in the African-American community by the Columbus Times of Georgia, the country's oldest black newspaper. In 2007, the Reel Sisters of the Disapora Film Festival presented her with the Trailblazer Award, and the Council of the City of New York honored her for her outstanding contributions as a performer. Perhaps one her most pleasurable moments was the 2011 unveiling of her name on a street sign in the Grand Concourse of the Bronx Walk of Fame. That same year, she released a new album titled Irene Cara Presents Hot Caramel. Now semi-retired from the industry that filled every corner of her life for decades, Irene is now enjoying entertaining audiences via her YouTube podcast 'The Irene Cara Show' where she shares videos and talks about the acting and music industry's backstory.
While the outpouring of love from fans still makes her happy, Irene continues to be touched by the knowledge that she and her roles have inspired others within the acting/music industry as well.
Mariah Carey: "Around the same time, my mother entered me in a talent competition in the city, and I sang one of my favorite songs, 'Out Here on My Own', by Irene Cara. I felt 'Out Here on My Own' described my entire life, and I loved singing that way - singing to reveal a piece of my soul. And I won doing it. At that age. I lived for the movie 'Fame', and Irene Cara was everything to me."
Celine Dion: "Whether it's 'Titanic' and the unsinkable 'My Heart Will Go On', 'Michael's Song' and 'Listen to the Magic Man' (in English and French) for 'The Peanut Butter Solution', or 'Deadpool 2's' unexpected 'Ashes', she presides over movie theme songs as if taking up the baton from Irene Cara herself."
Whitney Houston: "'Sparkle' was especially important to because she'd been trying to get the film made for 15 years, having fallen in love with the 1976 original (starring Irene Cara, who went on to appear in Fame) as a teenager, seeing it every Saturday for three months straight."
The two most memorable lines from the title song 'Fame' are "I'm gonna live forever," and "Baby, remember my name". From "Little Miss America" to Carson, 'The Electric Company', 'Flashdance' and beyond, Irene Cara's legacy is guaranteed. Everyone will remember her name.- Music Artist
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Grammy-winning band Maroon 5's frontman Adam Noah Levine was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. He is the son of Patsy (Noah), an admissions counselor, and Fredric Levine, who founded the retail chain M. Fredric. Adam's father's family is Jewish, while Adam's mother is of half Jewish (her own father) and half German and Scottish (her own mother) ancestry. His uncle, Timothy Noah, is a journalist. Adam began playing music with his junior-high friends guitarist, rather than the keyboardist (for which he is known in the band Maroon 5) Jesse Carmichael and bassist Mickey Madden. Their first gig was at a school dance and Levine was terribly shy so he played with his back to the audience. Ryan Dusick joined the band as drummer and the alternative rock band Kara's Flowers were born (1994). They released an album called "The Fourth World" (1997). Then, he headed to New York City with Carmichael to study music at Five Towns College on Long Island. While they were there, he was surrounded by new music scenes and influences which give him whole new perspective on songwriting and singing. He dropped out of school after a semester and headed back to California with Carmichael to reunite with their pals and develop their band. He began writing a bunch of songs that were inspired by his recently failed relationship. After adding in new guitarist James Valentine (moving Carmichael over to keyboards) Maroon 5 was officially born. The band released their debut album "Songs About Jane", which included international hits "This Love", "Sunday Morning" and "She Will Be Loved" (2002).- Jacob Collins-Levy was born on 18 March 1992 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. He is an actor, known for The White Princess (2017), Doctor Who (2005) and True History of the Kelly Gang (2019).
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Bonnie Mbuli was born on 18 March 1979 in Soweto, Transvaal, South Africa. She is an actress and producer, known for Invictus (2009), Catch a Fire (2006) and The Philanthropist (2009).- Actor
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Having grown up in the South East of London, practicing his street-wise skills in boxing and football, Tamer showed his versatility from a very young age as an aspiring entrepreneur, turning his hand to sports clubs, restaurants and nightclubs. A chance encounter with his now Agent, lead Tamer to early television appearances, including; Eastenders, Casualty, The Bill and John Judge Deed.
Tamer has starred in modern British classics, Calcium Kid with Orlando Bloom, The Football Factory alongside fellow Brit Actor and friend Danny Dyer, Layer Cake with Daniel Craig and his eye-opening and laugh-out-loud lead as, want-to-do-good gangster, Charlie, in Nick Love's now cult movie, The Business. Hassan has skillfully moved in and out of a plethora of feature and ensemble roles, including Kick Ass with Nicholas Cage, Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins, 50 Cent's Dead Man Running, Clash of The Titans alongside Ralph Fiennes and Liam Neeson and 2011's The Double with Richard Gere.
Throughout 2012, Tamer has continued his relentless work-rate with several new humanitarian and film projects, both in Europe and across the pond. Most recently completing on Director Drew Hall's latest contribution to screen, Son's Of Liberty, due for release in early 2013.- Actor
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Robert Donat's pleasant voice and somewhat neutral English accent were carefully honed as a boy because he had a stammer and took elocution lessons starting at age 11 to overcome the impediment. It was not too surprising that freedom from such a vocal embarrassment was encouragement to act. His other handicap, acute asthma, did not deter him. At the age of 16 he began performing Shakespeare and other classic roles in a number of repertory and touring companies throughout Britain. In 1924 he joined Sir Frank Benson's repertory company, and later he was with the Liverpool Repertory Theater.
His work was finally noticed by Alexander Korda, who gave him a three-year film contract. Three minor films were followed by his role as Katherine Howard's lover, Thomas Culpepper, in the hit The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933). Donat's style of acting, whether comic or dramatic, was usually reserved, with the subtleties of face and voice being his talents to complement the role. A top draw in Britain, he went to Hollywood for The Count of Monte Cristo (1934), but he did not care for the Hollywood scene--the fishbowl lifestyle of the movie star. "Cristo" gave him the opportunity for Captain Blood (1935), but he eventually declined. (With a nod to hindsight, it is hard to think of anyone but a fresh-faced Flynn doing the role.) Although he would have contracts with MGM, Warner Bros. and RKO through the remainder of the 1930s, he begged off many a film role or broke commitments, ostensibly because of health problems, though, along with being finicky about roles, he was also such a conscientious actor that lack of confidence sometimes stymied his forward progress.
Hollywood usually had to shoot in England if it wanted him badly enough. And that was not a problem after the box office reception given The 39 Steps (1935), the big hit for Alfred Hitchcock. There was a hint of whimsy in Donat's face that worked especially well with the sophisticated comedic elements that crept into several of his dramatic roles. His portrayal of individualist Canadian Richard Hannay--which registered with North Americans both above and below the 49th parallel--in "Steps" was the first of such popular characters. Some of Hitch's famous on-the-set practical jokes ensued on the first day of shooting "Steps." The first scene was the escape on the moors from the master spy's henchmen by Donat and Madeleine Carroll handcuffed together. Donat and Carroll had not met before this, and Hitchcock handcuffed them together hours before filming so that they could get very well acquainted. He insisted he had misplaced the key when in fact he had slipped it to a studio security officer for safekeeping.
Hitchcock attempted to land Donat for three other roles, Sabotage (1936) and Secret Agent (1936) and Rebecca (1940), but illness, commitments, and more illness, respectively, supposedly kept Donat from accepting each. Hollywood would be treated in kind, for Donat was more dedicated to stage work. Hollywood did get him for The Citadel (1938), for which he was nominated for a Best Actor Oscar. He won the Oscar the next year for perhaps his best known role in Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939) (MGM's with Greer Garson). Since 1939 was one of the most competitive film years in Hollywood history, Donat's reward for his mild Mr. Chipping was something of a stunner. This was the year of Gone with the Wind (1939), and Clark Gable as Rhett Butler seemed a shoo-in for best actor. But there is something of a myth that since both pictures were from MGM and "Wind" had so many nominations (including best actor, actress, and picture), MGM head and strongman Louis B. Mayer used his weight to spread the wealth toward "Chips".
Unlike other British actors who came to work in America during World War II, Donat stayed in Britain. He did mostly theater but also some British films--only four--with one for Korda and one for Carol Reed. Only six more films were allotted Donat after the war and into the 1950s, all but one British productions. He starred, directed and co-wrote The Cure for Love (1949) and starred in The Magic Box (1951), a well-crafted and delightful (if a bit fictionalized) salute to the history of the British film industry. By 1955, all of Donat's acting efforts required a bottle of oxygen kept off stage and at the ready as his health continued to turn toward the worse. The Inn of the Sixth Happiness (1958), a Twentieth Century Fox production shot in the UK, was Donat's final film. His fragility was poignantly obvious on screen, and he died shortly after the film was finished. He received a posthumous Special Citation from the USA National Board of Review and was nominated for a Best Actor Golden Globe. It was a career for Robert Donat that should have gone on, yet it was filled with many notable screen memories just the same.- Blake Garrett Rosenthal received his calling to be an actor at a very young age. He first got into acting when his Aunt Wendi, a youth agent, thought it would be fun if Blake auditioned for the pilot Married Not Dead. With no prior acting experience, he landed the role with his natural talents and his journey into the entertainment industry began. Blake's big break came when he was cast in MOM, an edgy Emmy Award winning comedy from Executive Producer Chuck Lorre. MOM chronicles three generations of women who deal with real-life issues, such as substance abuse, in a comedic way. In this hilarious series, Blake plays Roscoe, the son of the main character Christy (Anna Faris), a genuinely sweet kid with a quick wit and good intentions. The star-studded cast also includes Emmy Award winner Allison Janney in the role of Roscoe's sharp-tongued grandmother. Fans everywhere are looking forward to seeing what is to come for Roscoe and his dysfunctional family during the show's second season, which is currently airing. Other credits include: New Girl and The Office, as well as memorable film roles in Bridesmaids and Crazy Eyes as Lukas Haas's on-screen son. In his spare time, Blake loves playing sports with his family and friends. His favorite sport is basketball, but he also enjoys baseball and football. He is a die-hard fan of the Clippers, Packers, Dodgers, and the Yankees.
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Raquel Gardner was born on 18 March 1970 in North Hollywood, California, USA. She is an actress and director, known for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013), A Night at the Roxbury (1998) and Grey's Anatomy (2005).- Gretchen German was born on 18 March 1961 in Canada. She is an actress, known for Will & Grace (1998), Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993) and Family Tree (2003). She has been married to James DiStefano since 30 September 1995.
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It seemed like Edward Everett Horton appeared in just about every Hollywood comedy made in the 1930s. He was always the perfect counterpart to the great gentlemen and protagonists of the films. Horton was born in Brooklyn, New York City, to Isabella S. (Diack) and Edward Everett Horton, a compositor for the NY Times. His maternal grandparents were Scottish and his father was of English and German ancestry. Like many of his contemporaries, Horton came to the movies from the theatre, where he debuted in 1906. He made his film debut in 1922. Unlike many of his silent-film colleagues, however, Horton had no problems in adapting to the sound, despite--or perhaps because of--his crackling voice. From 1932 to 1938 he worked often with Ernst Lubitsch, and later with Frank Capra. He has appeared in more than 120 films, in addition to a large body of work on TV, among which was the befuddled Hekawi medicine man Roaring Chicken on the western comedy F Troop (1965).- Actress
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Eva Noblezada was born on 18 March 1996 in San Diego, California, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for Yellow Rose (2019), Luck (2022) and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999). She has been married to Leo Roberts since 4 November 2017.- Actress
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Luci Christian was born on 18 March 1973 in Hico, Texas, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for Vampire Hunter D (1985), The Boy and the Beast (2015) and My Hero Academia (2016). She has been married to Michael Bell since 19 April 2008. They have two children. She was previously married to Christopher Berry.- Actress
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Keana Lyn Bastidas was born on 18 March 1998 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She is an actress, known for The Hardy Boys (2020) and Every Day (2018).- Jim Knobeloch was born on 18 March 1950 in Belleville, Illinois, USA. He is an actor, known for Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman (1993), Knowing (2009) and Predestination (2014).
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Born and raised in Tampa, Florida (and of Spanish, Cuban and Argentinian descent), Alexis Carra displayed an early passion to perform which started with dance classes at the tender age of two. By her teenage years she started to dance with Tampa's Bay Ballet Theater and also studied with Alvin Ailey and the Princeton Ballet while she pursued her interest in musical theater. The daughter of a psychiatrist and psychologist, education was important to her and she attended Yale University where she graduated with a B.A. in Theatre Studies, Cum Laude.
During her years at Yale she took a break and toured the country with Ann Reinking's production of the legendary Tony Award winning musical, "Fosse" which cemented her love for musical theater. Upon graduation she headed to New York and quickly procured roles in some of the top Broadway shows including "Wicked," "Sweet Charity," and "Fame on 42nd St." After closing the Broadway show, "The Pirate Queen" she decided to move to Los Angeles and since then, she has worked continuously. She has guest starred on TV series such as "Grey's Anatomy," "Castle," "The Mentalist," and "Bones." The talented actress was a series regular on ABC's comedy, "Mixology" (a mid-season replacement, also on Netflix). She portrays 'Jessica,' a hot young mom looking to find love and fun while getting her confidence back following her divorce.
Carra is a passionate fitness enthusiast and loves to take yoga and Pilates classes and run. She continues to take and teach ballet, modern and jazz dance classes to keep up her technique - and her passion for dance has extended to choreography. She assisted on Fox's hit series "So You Think You Can Dance" and choreographed for The Discovery Channel's hit show, "The Beekman Boys." The busy actress also teaches a musical theater jazz class at Los Angeles's popular dance studio, The Edge.
For philanthropic interests her heart rests with women's causes. She is the Head of Content Creation of the New Hollywood Women's Goal Group, Inc. which helps to support women in the entertainment industry and empower them to authentically pursue their career, personal and philanthropic goals. Alexis has produced directed, and choreographed for benefits raising money for causes such as Free The Slaves, American Cancer Society, and St. Jude's Children's Hospital.