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Stuart Shostak began his career in television in 1974 as a studio audience procurer and became a warm-up comedian in 1982 when the regular comic for the sitcom "Diff'rent Strokes" was late in arriving to the studio. Shostak did fill-in work for a while on other Embassy Television shows ("The Jeffersons", "Gloria"), and was then made permanent warm-up on "Silver Spoons" from 1983 until 1985. He then did warm-up on other series outside of the Norman Lear company - "Mama's Family", "Amen", "The Pat Sajak Show", "Goode Behavior", "Fired Up", and "The Trouble With Normal".
Shostak has been a respected TV historian since the late 1970s, and in 1981, he went to work for Lucille Ball as her personal film archivist, a position he held until her death in 1989. He made his on-camera acting debut in an episode of Ball's short-lived "Life With Lucy" series, and also sold a story concept to the producers.
In 2006, Shostak began hosting a live Internet talk program, "Stu's Show", in which he interviews classic TV stars as well as writers, producers, directors, and authors from the "baby boomer" generation. Previous guests have included Dick Van Dyke, Ed Asner, Rose Marie, Jonathan Winters, Shirley Jones, Bob Barker, Carl Reiner, Alan Young, and Shelley Berman, plus full cast reunions of "Leave it to Beaver", "My Three Sons", and "Dennis the Menace".
In 2009, Shostak began working as a co-producer with Shout! Factory. He licensed two of his "Stu's Show" audio broadcasts with Alan Young and Connie Hines for the "Mister Ed-Season Two" and "Mister Ed-Season Three" DVD sets. In 2010, he wrote, produced, and directed "Ken Osmond and Frank Bank Remember", a 30-minute documentary for the "Leave it to Beaver - The Complete Series" DVD set. Later that year, Shostak co-produced the "Dennis the Menace" TV series on DVD, appearing on camera hosting an interview with former series stars Gloria Henry (Alice Mitchell) and Jeannie Russell (Margaret). He supervised the releases of the subsequent three seasons of the series on DVD, as well as the "Dobie Gillis" series box set in 2013.- Christopher Bay is known for Dead Rising 4 (2016), Love Is All You Need? (2016) and Dead to Rights (2002).
- Randy West is an American radio and television personality, as well as an author and lecturer on broadcast history, best known for his association with television game shows. In addition to his on-air credits, he established the role of announcer and warm-up for FremantleMedia's The Price is Right-Live stage production for Bally's Las Vegas and Harrah's Atlantic City Showboat resort showrooms, as well as traveled with the national tour (2004-2016). He performed a similar role for Sony's Wheel of Fortune-Live which began touring in 2022.
Randy began his broadcast career with the encouragement and mentoring by first-generation television announcer Johnny Olson. The two first met in NBC's New York Studio 8H on the set of Mark Goodson-Bill Todman game show Snap Judgment in 1967, when Randy was 14. Over the subsequent years he continued to visit Johnny at the various studios where he worked, most frequently at the syndicated What's My Line? which taped at NBC's Studios 6A and 8H. Johnny shared his scripts and advice, also arranging with producer Dick DeBartolo for Randy to appear as a contestant on the show in 1970 when he was a college radio disc jockey.
Randy followed his mentor's encouragement to pursue his desire for a similar career announcing for television. He was directed to continue with his work in radio, which had progressed in 1972 to afternoons at WRNW, Mt Kisco, New York, He remained with the station through a format switch from top-40 to album oriented rock, and a move to nearby Briarcliff Manor. In 1974, Randy was fired and ultimately replaced by future shock jock Howard Stern. That year Randy advanced to WALL, Middletown, New York, then WHVW, Poughkeepsie in 1975, followed by WFIF, Milford, Connecticut in 1976 where he served as program director through 1979.
Randy later continued his radio career, advancing to production director at KMGG "Magic 106" in Los Angeles in 1984, after a brief detour into the record industry. In that pursuit, he was national promotion director for Wayne Newton's Aries II Records working under label president, well known 1960s-1970s radio personality Joey Reynolds. Additional record promotion work for artist manager Don Kelley's RPM was followed by a radio syndication sales position in 1981. Randy was named director of affiliate relations for Jim Hampton and Ken Draper's radio production company, Creative Factor. There, among the programs he sold was a weekly countdown show, 20:20 Musicworld, which was hosted by future employer, TV game show personality Wink Martindale.
Randy again established contact with Johnny Olson soon after his 1979 arrival in Los Angeles. Olson had moved west in 1972 to announce CBS' The New Price is Right. Further encouraged to pursue television announcing, Randy sought opportunities to be in that milieu by again appearing as a contestant. He competed on Face The Music, Hit Man (final champion) and All Star Blitz. After a three-day run as champion on episodes 9, 10 and 11 of Press Your Luck, Randy was retired from the show after exceeding CBS' maximum winnings threshold of $25,000.
Later competitions included Sweethearts in 1989, and a 1990 role as an imposter on episode five of the revived To Tell The Truth, on which his team stumped the panel. He was in the contestant pool backstage for appearances on both Card Sharks and Concentration, but never called to play on either. The experiences created opportunities for employment with some of the shows' producers that led to work on pilots, as both a contestant and announcer.
Randy's first ongoing work as a television announcer and audience warm-up personality came in 1988 for Group W, Westinghouse Broadcasting's daily syndicated Hour Magazine starring Gary Collins, which taped at KTLA/Sunset Bronson Studios' Stage 1. Subsequent programs included Group W's "The Chuck Woolery Show" on that lot's Stage 9 in 1991, then Wink Martindale and Bill Hillier's syndicated Why Didn't I Think of That which taped in 1992 at CBS' recently constructed Television City Studio 42 (later 56) which had been built specifically for Pat Sajak's short-lived late night talk show.
Wink and Bill brought Randy aboard for their innovative "interactive" game shows that featured play-along via telephone by home viewers. Trivia Pursuit Interactive and Trivial Pursuit Classic debuted on The Family Channel on June 7, 1993. Boggle, Jumble and Shuffle followed, the last of which ran until July of 1995. All were produced at Glendale Studios. Next, producer Woody Fraser teamed Randy with newcomer Ryan Seacrest to serve as announcer and host, respectively, for his 1995 Wild Animal Games for the Family Channel, which taped at that same lot. Randy also substituted for Gene Wood as announcer and warm-up for the company's companion show Family Challenge. Randy was featured on the last episode of that season, which turned out to be the final hour of television ever hosted by former Family Feud emcee Ray Combs before his death.
In 1999 and 2000, Randy served as announcer and warm-up for producer Phil Gurin's remake of an earlier Chuck Barris original, All New 3's a Crowd hosted by Alan Thicke, which taped at Raleigh Studios for Game Show Network. Randy followed Gurin and producing partner Fred Silverman to NBC where he performed warm-up in Bob Hope and Johnny Carson's former home, Studio 1, for two of the network's prime-time game shows. Twenty One was revived with great fanfare for 19 episodes in 2000 with host Maury Povich. The following April, taping began with Anne Robinson for the prime time network Weakest Link. With the show's success, several pilots were taped that August and September with different emcees for a syndicated run of the series. George Gray won the hosting duties for that half-hour version which started taping in November. Randy performed warm-up for the total of 258 episodes that were produced during 2001 and 2002 for the two runs.
Also in 1999, Randy was teamed with host Todd Newton for announcing and warm-up on Sony's Wheel of Fortune stage for 165 episodes of Hollywood Showdown for Game Show Network and PAX-TV. The series was created and produced by Sande Stewart, son of legendary game show pioneer Bob Stewart. Among Randy's other notable series was the California lottery show Big Spin for another second-generation producer, Mark Goodson's son Jonathan Goodson. Randy was occasionally featured on-camera between 2004 and 2008 during his announce and warm-up work on the weekly big money giveaway hosted by Pat Finn and Maiquel Alejo which taped at KCET.
In 2009 and 2010 Randy worked alongside Carnie Wilson for Game Show Network and Embassy Row's Newlywed Game. Notable during both of those seasons were returns by the series' original emcee, Bob Eubanks, to host special episodes. The latter one featured a competition between three "oldie-wed" couples beloved by television audiences - Monty and Marilyn Hall, Wink and Sandy Martindale along with Laurie Stewart and Peter Marshall. Wink and Sandy won the game.
It was during the 2003-2004 season of The Price is Right that Randy performed as the announcer and warm-up, subbing for his friend from their radio days, Rod Roddy. In 2001, during an emergency room visit for tests following a fall, Rod was diagnosed with an advanced case of colon cancer that had begun to metastasize. Randy was tapped by producer Roger Dobkowitz in early 2003 to be among the announcers covering as Rod's health declined. As production for the season was wrapping in 2004, there were several in competition to succeed Rod permanently. FremantleMedia presented Randy the opportunity to continue his association with the show by performing the same role in The Price is Right-Live stage show that was about to launch.
Randy was back at Television City again in March, 2005, in Studio 36, to provide the voice of Mr. Game Show on five Game Show Moments Gone Bananas specials starring Ben Stein produced by FremantleMedia for VH1. That November, in the adjacent Studio 46, he lent his talents to the first two premiere episodes of NBC's Deal or No Deal starring Howie Mandel. The following April he returned to Studio 46 to work FremantleMedia's Game Show Marathon for CBS. Starting in 2016 and continuing through 2022, Randy voiced numerous challenges for head of household and veto competitions on CBS' Big Brother that were played at CBS' Radford facility. One, the "Weather Challenge" that was re-staged for a subsequent Celebrity Big Brother episode won an American Reality TV Award.
Game show pilots on which Randy appeared as a contestant include Hot Numbers and On a Roll. He later announced pilots that included Card Sharks (2000), Divorce Court (1998), Now or Never (original pilot for Fear Factor), Sweethearts, Ransacked, That's The Spirit, Hit The Deck, The Lovely Carol, Perfect Match, Call-in Café. Shoot for Love, Slingo, What The Blank, Starface and American Bible Challenge.
Throughout his career Randy has lent his voice to countless commercials, infomercials and awards shows. The latter includes 10 consecutive annual Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards and the network's annual Big Help marathons, as well as numerous annual Daytime Emmy Awards programs for the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Randy narrated the Court TV series Hollywood and Crime, and contributed comedy bits to both ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live and MTV's The Andy Dick Show.
During the 1990s, Randy was featured in small roles on sitcoms including Universal's The Munsters Today and What a Dummy, as well as Disney's Smart Guy, NBC's Hang Time and Showtime's It's Garry Shandling's Show. He substituted as announcer and/or warm-up on Game Show Network's Russian Roulette, Group W's Couch Potatoes and Richard Kline/Worldvision's Pictionary.
Randy voiced numerous NATPE presentations, sales demos and "sizzle" reels for programs including Hollywood Squares. $100,000 Pyramid, Family Feud, VIP and other series, most produced by Hollywood promotion firm Another Large Production. Among other projects, in the realm of gaming, Randy has voiced several video games for FremantleMedia's The Price is Right and Hole in the Wall.
Randy was on stage in thousands of performances of The Price is Right-Live over the course of his dozen years in the long-running traveling stage presentation. He also helped inaugurate Sony's touring Wheel of Fortune-Live in 2022. Additionally, Randy co-hosts casino showroom game events for Game Show America. During 2022 the company's Game Show Extravaganza was performed in Milwaukee and Atlanta.
After his mentor, Johnny Olson's death in 1985, and his widow Penny's retirement to a nursing home in 1999, the surviving family sought out Randy based on the letters Johnny had kept from their correspondence over the years. Upon closing the Olson house in West Virginia, they were looking for a respectful home for the keepsakes, memorabilia and ephemera that the broadcaster had saved from his 58 year career.
Among those items Randy found an outline and two sample chapters from a long-planned but unwritten autobiography. In the years that followed, Randy completed the book Johnny had intended to write about the history of broadcasting as he had lived it. Johnny Olson: A Voice in Time was published in 2009 by BearManor Media. In 2022 the publisher released Randy's latest work, a 500 page compendium of little-known outrageous stories from behind the scenes titled TV Inside-Out: Flukes, Flakes, Feuds and Felonies. He describes it as a collection of "the backstage blunders, bloopers and blasphemy of celebrities in search of success."
With a move to Burbank, California in 2018, Randy re-dedicated himself to service to his industry, joining the Television Academy's Performers peer group and taking a position on the Board of Directors of Pacific Pioneer Broadcasters and Hollywood Media Professionals. He earned the credentials for teaching at California post-secondary schools, and has taught various broadcasting classes at The LAB - Los Angeles Broadcasting. He periodically speaks to college and high school classes as well as at community groups.
As The National Archives of Game Show History was being established in 2022 at The Strong Museum in Rochester, New York, Randy took an early role in supporting the effort. He donated props and set pieces, including the electronic flip-disc "Fast Money" display from the original ABC series Family Feud, as well as shared his experiences in an extensive multi-hour interview for the archives' oral history.
Randy West's father, Harold, was an inspector for the New York Fire Department with responsibility for public assembly venues in Manhattan's theater district, which included midtown's Broadway theaters and television facilities. He regularly inspected the various studios in NBC's Rockefeller Plaza facility as well as CBS' converted theaters which included Studio 50 (later The Ed Sullivan Theater) and Studio 52 (later the Studio 54 disco) for compliance with fire codes. He was responsible for attending rehearsals of the Sullivan show to approve the safety measures and to issue permits during the weeks that the program included variety acts and jugglers that featured open flames or operated gas-powered motor vehicles. In later life, Harold turned pro with his avocation, golf, and taught the game at Manhattan's Galvano Golf Academy. He also served as the golf pro aboard the various cruise ships operated by the Italian Line.
Randy's mother, Roselyn, was a high school math teacher for the New York Board of Education. While in her 20s during World War II, she served as a physicist for the U.S. Army at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey working on classified projects for the war effort. They included developing the technology for field artillery locators that used sound waves to locate the precise direction from which enemy firing was detected. - Art Department
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Steve Beverly is known for Live and Let Die: The Computer Game (1988), RoboCop versus The Terminator (1993) and Hospital Tycoon (2007).- Producer
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Jerry Beck was born on 9 February 1955. He is a producer and actor, known for The Baby Huey Show (1994), Robot Carnival (1987) and Irreverent Imagination: The Golden Age of the Looney Tunes (2003). He has been married to Cheryl Chase since 25 June 2021. He was previously married to Marea Boylan.- Megan Monroe is known for Lamp Post Lane (2010).
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Mark Evanier was born on 2 March 1952 in Santa Monica, California, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Garfield and Friends (1988), Dungeons & Dragons (1983) and Pryor's Place (1984).- Writer
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Earl Kress was born on 22 August 1951. He was a writer, known for Pinky and the Brain (1995), The Fox and the Hound (1981) and Animaniacs (1993). He was married to Denise. He died on 19 September 2011 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Writer
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He's been through practically the worst that can happen to a former child star when the Hollywood tide suddenly turns and one is no longer a part of the neat elite. Unlike others, however, such as Anissa Jones, Rusty Hamer and Dana Plato, he survived. As a result, actor Paul Petersen, today, is THE most dedicated advocate in protecting both present-day child stars and shunned one-time celebrity tykes, alike. Paul formed "A Minor Consideration", a child-actor support group back in 1990, and it has had a tremendously positive and profound effect in Hollywood.
It started out much differently for Paul back in the 50s. Born in 1945 in Glendale, California, he had an enthusiastic stage mother who pushed him into the business. He began performing, as an eight-year-old, as one of the original "Mousketeers" on The Mickey Mouse Club (1955) in 1955. He also appeared in such movies as The Monolith Monsters (1957) and Houseboat (1958), opposite the likes of Cary Grant and Sophia Loren, before scoring big, at age 12, as Donna Reed's son on her popular sitcom, The Donna Reed Show (1958). With Carl Betz as his highly practical doctor dad and Shelley Fabares as his older pretty sister, the foursome became the ideal nuclear family for late 50s/early 60s viewers. Paul and his alter-ego, "Jeff Stone", literally grew up on the show. By his teens, the good-looking, dark-haired lad had become a formidable heartthrob. Fan clubs sprouted up everywhere. So popular were both Paul and Shelley that they spun off into recording careers, groomed to become singing idols despite their modest voices. She scored with the #1 hit, "Johnny Angel", and he had a few minor hits with "She Can't Find Her Keys", "Keep Your Love Locked", "Lollipops and Roses" and "My Dad".
The fun ended, however, after the show's demise in 1966. His All-American teen typecast didn't fit the bill as the dissonant Vietnam counterculture took hold. His acting attempts as a serious young adult also went nowhere. Audiences still saw Paul as "Jeff Stone". Roles in A Time for Killing (1967), Something for a Lonely Man (1968) and Journey to Shiloh (1968) came and went. Guest parts on The Virginian (1962) and The F.B.I. (1965) did nothing to advance him. What he could scrape up were such outdated roles, as "Moondoggie" in a revamped Gidget TV movie, Gidget Grows Up (1969).
Lost and abandoned, Paul eventually was forced to give it all up and went through a period of great personal anguish and turmoil. Wisely, he enrolled at college and started writing adventure novels (penning 16 books in all). For 10 years, he ran his own limousine service. His biggest accomplishment to date, however, has been to give back, selflessly, to an industry that unceremoniously dumped him. In essence, "A Minor Consideration" is an outreach organization that oversees the emotional, financial and legal protection of kids and former kids in show business. Among the issues Paul deals with are better education, and stricter laws regarding a 40-hour work week. For those who have "been there, done that" and are experiencing severe emotional and/or substance abuse problems, he offers a solid hand in helping them find a renewed sense of purpose. Today, Paul is rightfully considered "the patron saint of former child actors".- Jeanine Kasun is married to Internet talk show host Stuart Shostak. They have been together since 2007 and have been married since 2014. Jeanine is the subject of the CJ Wallis documentary, "Stu's Show", which recalls Jeanine's valiant recovery from a massive brain aneurysm she suffered in 2013 with help from her husband, their family and friends, and the many doctors, nurses and therapists who became a part of her life.
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Roger Dobkowitz was born on 30 July 1945 in San Francisco, California, USA. He is a producer, known for The Price is Right (1972), Match Game PM (1975) and The Price Is Right Special (1986). He has been married to Valerie Dobkowitz since 16 July 1976. They have three children.- Actor
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Stan Taffel was born in New York City and began his professional career performing in comedy clubs all over the east coast. He appeared in several films in mostly extra roles. His gift for impersonations of famous and not so famous voices led him to his first television show, an animated series called The Toysters, in which he supplied several vocal characters. His next television work was as one of the performers in The News In Revue, which aired on PBS in 1993 thru 1996. He portrayed famous people from the news. All the presidents from Kennedy to Clinton, Yassir Arafat, Neil Diamond, Bob Dylan, the White House Chef, Stan played them all. For his often unpredictable performances, he won an amazing three Emmy Awards (1994, 1995, 1996). In addition to working on television projects, he devotes much of his time as a film archivist. He serves as an officer for Cinecon, a film festival presented each Labor Day weekend in Los Angeles at the restored Egyptian Theater.- Writer
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Dick DeBartolo was born on 19 October 1945 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He is a writer, known for Match Game (1973), The Match Game (1962) and To Tell the Truth (1969).- Writer
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Ken Levine was born on 14 February 1950 in Santa Monica, California, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Cheers (1982), Frasier (1993) and M*A*S*H (1972).- Producer
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Thomas J. Watson is known for Let's Talk to Lucie (2009), The New I Love Lucy Superstar Special (2016) and Let's Talk to Barry (2010).- Actor
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John Barbour was born on 24 April 1933 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He is an actor and writer, known for The JFK Assassination: The Jim Garrison Tapes (1992), American Media & The Second Assassination of John F. Kennedy (2017) and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2000).- Actor
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Geoff Edwards was born on 13 February 1931 in Westfield, New Jersey, USA. He was an actor, known for Drive (1997), WUSA (1970) and Jackpot (1974). He was married to Michael Feffer and Suzanne Weaver Ford. He died on 5 March 2014 in Santa Monica, California, USA.- Actor
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Also a longtime on-air major market oldies radio personality under the name Bob O'Brien, and the author of ten pop culture books about classic TV and oldies music published. Bob is also the former writer and producer of the syndicated radio series called "Solid Gold Scrapbook." Born in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Bob is a Seton Hall University graduate and now resides at the Jersey shore.- Actor
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Greg Ehrbar is known for Mickey's Magic Workshop (1991), The Tom and Jerry Show (2011) and Walt Disney World Happy Easter Parade (1992).- Additional Crew
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Scott Shaw was born on 4 September 1951 in Queens, New York, USA. He is a producer, known for Camp Candy (1989), Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog (1993) and All Grown Up! (2003). He is married to Judith. They have one child.- Actor
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Tony Dow was an American actor, film producer, television director, and sculptor from Los Angeles, California. His most famous role was that of athletic adolescent Wallace "Wally" Cleaver in the popular sitcom "Leave It to Beaver" (1957-1963). Dow played the older brother to the series' protagonist Theodore "The Beaver" Cleaver (played by Jerry Mathers). Bow returned to the role of Wally in the sequel series "The New Leave It to Beaver" (1983-1989), which featured the Cleaver brothers as married adults with children of their own.
In 1945, Dow was born in the Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles. He aspired to an acting career since childhood, but he only had a few theatrical roles until the late 1950s. He went to an open casting call for the upcoming sitcom "Leave It to Beaver., and he was cast in the regular role of Wallace "Wally" Cleaver. He replaced child actor Paul Sullivan, who played Wally in the series' pilot. Wally was depicted as a talented track and field athlete, basketball player and baseball player. He was well-liked by his teachers and popular with his peers, but his friendships with dimwitted bully Clarence "Lumpy" Rutherford and untrustworthy schemer Edward Clark "Eddie" Haskell repeatedly landed him in trouble.
As the television series progressed, Dow received more screen-time for his character. He was often featured in "heartthrob"-type magazines for teen girls, and he was regarded as more popular than his co-star Jerry Mathers. "Leave It to Beaver" ended in 1963, after 6 seasons and 234 episodes. At 18, Dow was a bit too old to keep playing a high school student, while Mathers was considering an early retirement from acting. Dow then started appearing regularly at guest-star roles in television, until cast in a regular role for the short-lived soap opera "Never Too Young" (1965-1966). It was the first soap opera primarily aimed at an adolescent audience.
During the 1970s, Dow was mostly limited to guest star roles in television. To supplement his income, he found work at the construction industry. He also pursued studies in both filmmaking and journalism, thought they did not lead to an immediate change in his career. Dow played a parody of Wally Cleaver in the comedy film "The Kentucky Fried Movie" (1977), where his character caused trouble in a courtroom trial.
In 1983, Dow played Wally Cleaver in the reunion television film "Still the Beaver". He reunited with several of his former co-starts. The film served as a pilot for the sequel television series "The New Leave It to Beaver", which aired from 1984 to 1989. The series lasted for 4 seasons and 101 episodes. Dow played Wally as a skilled lawyer, who represented Beaver in a custody battle for his children. Meanwhile, Wally had to deal with marriage to his former sweetheart Mary Ellen Rogers (played by Janice Kent) and raising his daughter Kelly Cleaver (played by Kaleena Kiff). In 1987, Dow received a "Former Child Star Lifetime Achievement Award" for his role as Wally Cleaver.
In 1989, Dow made his debut as a television director. His first work in the field was an episode of the drama series "The New Lassie" (1989-1992), a sequel series to "Lassie" (1954-1973). He subsequently directed episodes of (among others) "Harry and the Hendersons", "Swamp Thing", "Coach", "Babylon 5", "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show", and "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine". In addition, Dow served as the visual effects supervisor for "Babylon 5". He provided the special effects for the television film "Doctor Who" (1996), a sequel to a long-running British television series.
In 1995, Dow produced the science fiction comedy film "The Adventures of Captain Zoom in Outer Space". In the film, aliens from the planet Pangea attempt to recruit the heroic Captain Zoom to help them in a war. The hero does not actually exist, and they have instead recruited the arrogant actor who was playing him on a television. The actor decides to use old science fiction script as inspiration for his strategies. The film was intended as an affectionate parody to both Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon.
In 1996, Dow produced the television film "It Came from Outer Space II". It was a remake (rather than a sequel) to the classic science fiction horror film "It Came from Outer Space" (1953). Both films feature shape-shifting aliens who have crash-landed on Earth, and who attempt to blend in with the human population. However, they manage to copy human appearance, but not human behavior and personalities. The remake was poorly received, and this was Dow's final effort as a producer.
During the 1990s, Dow admitted to the press that he had been diagnosed with clinical depression. He subsequently appeared in self-help videos concerning ways to struggle with the condition, such as "Beating the Blues" (1998). He also placed more efforts in his side career as a sculptor. He specialized in creating abstract bronze sculptures. In 2008, he was one of the artists representing the United States at the "Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts" exhibition in Paris. He displayed his sculpture of a warrior woman.- Writer
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Mark Maxwell-Smith was born on 3 January 1947 in the USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Bumper Stumpers (1987), Majority Rules (1996) and The All New Truth or Consequences (1950).- Additional Crew
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Tom Williams was born on 15 August 1929 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He was an actor and producer, known for The Great Outdoors (1988), Adam-12 (1968) and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990). He died on 28 December 2018 in Woodland Hills, California, USA.- Eric Grayson is known for Moo: The Moovie (2007) and Stu's Show (2006).
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Keith Scott was born on 28 October 1953 in Sydney, Australia. He is an actor, known for George of the Jungle (1997), The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle (2000) and Daybreakers (2009).- Actress
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Legendary voice actress June Foray was born June Lucille Forer on September 18, 1917 in Springfield, Massachusetts, to Maurice Forer and Ida Edith Robinson, who wed in Hampden, Massachusetts. Her father, who was Jewish, emigrated from Novgorod, Imperial Russia, while her Massachusetts-born mother was of Lithuanian Jewish and French-Canadian descent. Her mother converted to Judaism to marry, and took the name Sarah.
At age 12, young June was already doing "old lady" voices. She had the good fortune of having a speech teacher who also had a radio program in the Springfield area. This teacher became her mentor, and added June to the cast of her show. Eventually her family moved to Los Angeles, where she continued in radio. By age fifteen, she was writing her own show for children, "Lady Makebelieve", in which she also provided voices. June dabbled in both on-camera acting and voice work, but was particularly talented in voice characterizations, dialects and accents. Just like Daws Butler, one of her later co-stars, she was a "voice magician" and worked steadily in radio from the 1930s into the 1950s.
June branched out from radio and began providing voices for cartoon characters. In the 1940s, she provided the voices for a live-action series of shorts, "Speaking of Animals", in which she dubbed in voices for real on-screen animals, a task she was to repeat many years later in an episode of The Magical World of Disney (1954). In the late 1940s June, Stan Freberg, Daws Butler, Pinto Colvig and many others recorded hundreds of children's and adult albums for Capitol Records. Her female characterizations on these records ran the entire gamut from little girls to middle-aged women, old ladies, dowagers and witches. No one seemed to be able to do these same voices with the warmth, energy and sparkle that June did.
In the 1950s June's star in animation not only began to rise but soared when Walt Disney sought her out and hired her to do the voice of Lucifer the cat in Cinderella (1950). The Disney organization continued to use June many times over, well into the 21st century. Warner Brothers also hired her to replace Bea Benaderet and do all of its "Looney Tunes" and "Merrie Melodies" cartoons. June has done many incidental characters for Warners, but her most famous voice has been that of Granny (in the "Tweety and Sylvester" series). Unfortunately, since Mel Blanc's contract called for exclusive voice credit on these cartoons, June never received credit for all the voices she did. During this time she also appeared on [error].
In 1957, Jay Ward met with June to discuss her voicing the characters of "Rocky the Flying Squirrel" and "Natasha Fatale" in a cartoon series. On November 19, 1959, the show debuted as The Bullwinkle Show (1959), later changing its name to The Bullwinkle Show (1959). June provided many other voices for this show, especially its "side shows" such as "Fractured Fairy Tales" and "Aesop and Son". She did fewer voices for the "Peabody's Improbable History" segment, but she did appear in at least three of those episodes. After the show had been successful for a few years, Ward added one of its most popular segments, "Dudley Do-Right of the Mounties". June was a regular in this side show as Dudley's girlfriend Nell Fenwick.
Since Ward used June exclusively for nearly all his female voices, he showcased her talents as no other producer had before. June missed out on doing voices for three of the show's "Fractured Fairy Tales" because she could not reschedule some bookings to do recording work with Stan Freberg, so Julie Bennett filled in for her on those occasions. Dorothy Scott--co-producer Bill Scott's wife--also filled in for June a few times for "Peabody's Improbable History". Her collaboration with Ward made her incredibly famous, and "Rocky the Flying Squirrel" became her signature voice. To this day June regularly wears a necklace with the figure of Rocky sculpted by her niece Lauren Marems.
Ward later produced two other cartoon series, Hoppity Hooper (1964) and George of the Jungle (1967). June's appearances on "Hoppity Hooper" were limited to the segments of "Fractured Fairy Tales", "Dudley Do-Right" and "Peabody" that aired during its run. On "Fractured Fairy Tales" June did a whole montage of voices similar to those from her Capitol Records days. Her witch voices were so incredibly funny and magnificently done that Disney and Warner Brothers tapped her to provide that same voice for the character of Witch Hazel. She was once again the lone female voice artist, this time on "George of the Jungle". Included on that show were the "Super Chicken" and "Tom Slick" side shows.
In the 1960s, June lost out to Bea Benaderet when she auditioned for the voice of "Betty Rubble" on The Flintstones (1960). June appeared numerous times during the decade in holiday specials such as Frosty the Snowman (1969) and The Little Drummer Boy (1968)). In the 1960s and 1970s, June dubbed in voices for full-length live-action feature films many times. Jay Ward and Bill Scott also had her dub in dialogue for silent movies in their non-animated series Fractured Flickers (1963).
In the early 1970s, June tried her hand at puppetry. She became the voice of an elephant, an aardvark and a giraffe on Curiosity Shop (1971). Around this time she also recorded various voices for the road shows of "Disney on Parade", which toured the US and Europe for several years.
She acted on-camera occasionally over the years, primarily on talk shows, game shows and documentaries; in the early years of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962), she performed a 13-week stint as a little Mexican girl. However, June had said that she prefers to record behind the scenes because she jokingly said "She can earn more money in less time."
June Foray died on July 26, 2017, in Los Angeles, California, U.S. She was ninety nine years old.- Producer
- Writer
- Director
Arnold Leibovit is an award-winning writer, director and producer. He wrote, directed and produced the acclaimed film tribute "The Fantasy Film Worlds of George Pal" (1986) profiling the life of the Oscar winning science fiction and fantasy film pioneer, who directed the first screen telling of H.G. Wells' "The Time Machine". "Fantasy Worlds" features a who's who of over 25 stars and industry greats that worked with the late director. The film premiered at the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences and has since aired on The Disney Channel, PBS and won numerous awards. The DVD was released by Image Entertainment (2000).
Following this film, Leibovit obtained the rights to "The Time Machine" book and the motion picture which led to his Executive Producing the (2002) Dreamworks/Warner Bros. remake starring Guy Pearce and Jeremy Irons with special effects by Digital Domain, Industrial Light and Magic and Stan Winston. He is working on producing a sequel to "The Time Machine", a re-imagining of George Pal's "7 Faces of Dr. Lao" and other projects.
In addition, Leibovit directed and produced "The Puppetoon Movie," featuring such classic characters as Gumby, Pokey and Tubby the Tuba and the Oscar®-winning Puppetoons of George Pal. The film premiered at the first American Film Institute Film Festival, distributed theatrically by Expanded Entertainment and has since screened at international film festivals in such cities as London, England; Annecy, France; Sitges, Spain; Tokyo, Japan; and Melbourne, Australia, as well as airing on Showtime. A DVD was released by Image Entertainment (2000), a Blu-Ray (2013) followed by "The Puppetoon Movie Volume 2" Blu-ray (2020) and "The Puppetoon Movie Volume 3" Blu-ray (2023) both containing Puppetoons not seen in generations and newly restored in High Definition from their original Technicolor negatives with the cooperation of Paramount Pictures and is working on a 4K restoration of "The Puppetoon Movie" original. Arnold Leibovit controls the trademark to Puppetoon(TM).
Leibovit also produced the DVD re-release of "The Great Rupert" (2000), George Pal's first feature film, by Image Entertainment and the Blu-ray version (2013) on "The Puppetoon Movie" release. Leibovit served as associate director/editor of King World Productions "Rascal Dazzle," featuring Hal Roach's "Our Gang" comedies, which was narrated by Jerry Lewis and scored by Nelson Riddle; and directed three award winning short subjects: "Penny Lane" (1975) renowned film on toy mechanical banks, "Judgment: An Essay on War" (1974) widely televised and "The Fatherland" (1973) selected by The Whitney Museum of Art as part of The New Ameican Filmmakers Series.
Apart from the big screen, Leibovit produced the CD soundtrack re-scoring of the 1960 "The Time Machine" (1988) with its original composer Russell Garcia followed by a 2022 Expanded Edition Remaster, "The Fantasy Film Music of George Pal" (2004) CD covering the MGM/Warner Bros. years (1958-1975). Mr. Leibovit served as Production Executive for Mavin Productions and the original Broadway Chicago musical comedy "Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up?". Next to "Grease" this was the longest running show in Chicago history. Leibovit also directed Neil Simon's "Star Spangled Girl" at the Neil Simon Comedy Festival in Cedar City, Utah (2005).
Mr. Leibovit received the George Pal Memorial Award 'The Saturn' from the Academy of Science Fiction and Fantasy three CINE Golden Eagles, two International Film & TV Festival Awards, two Awards of Excellence by the Film Advisory Board and many others. Leibovit is a member of the Producers Guild of America.- Actor
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Stanley Livingston was born on 24 November 1950 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for My Three Sons (1960), The Aftermath (1982) and Attack of the 60 Foot Centerfolds (1995). He has been married to Paula Drake since 19 December 2015. He was previously married to Sandra Livingston.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Barry Livingston was born on December 17, 1953 in Los Angeles, California, USA as Barry Gordon Livingston. He is an American television and film actor, known for his role as "Ernie Douglas" on the television series My Three Sons (1963-72). He is the younger brother of actor/director Stanley Livingston, who played Ernie's older brother "Chip" on the show. He is also known for War Dogs (2016), Argo (2012) and Jersey Boys (2014). He has been married to Karen Huntsman since February 26, 1983. They have two children.- Producer
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Herbie J Pilato was born October 9th to Herbie Pompeii and Frances Mary Turri Pilato in Rochester, New York on Erie Street across from where now stands the city's famous Frontier Field, home of the popular Rochester Red Wings baseball team. An entertainment enthusiast his entire life, Herbie J starting dancing to Chubby Checker's The Twist when he was all but three years old and made his theatrical stage debut at 6 playing Judas in an elementary school production of The Last Supper (at Rochester's esteemed Peter and Paul's School).
From there Herbie J appeared in other school productions of You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown (as Snoopy) and The Story of Santa Claus (Rudolph). After graduating from Aquinas Insitute of Rochester, he received a B.A. in Theatre Arts from Nazareth College of Pittsford, New York, and studied in TV and Film at U.C.L.A.
Herbie J later returned to the stage with lead roles in productions such as Leonard Melfi's Birdbath, Christopher Fry's A Phoenix Too Frequent and Pfieffer's People, all of which were performed at the Nazareth Arts Center in Pittsford. From 1984-1985, he served his Internship in Television at NBC-TV in Burbank, California, and soon acted on TV shows like Highway to Heaven, The Golden Girls, General Hospital and The Bold and the Beautiful.
In 1992, Dell Publishing released Herbie J's first publication, The Bewitched Book, which was followed by The Kung Fu Book of Caine and The Kung Fu Book of Wisdom (both published by Tuttle in the mid-90s), Bewitched Forever (Tapestry Press, 2005), and The Bionic Book, Life Story - The Book of Life Goes On, and NBC & ME: My Life As A Page In A Book (all recently released by BearManor Media). Herbie J has also been published in magazines like Sci-Fi Entertainment, Sci-Fi Universe, Starlog, Retro Vision, Remember and Classic TV, while he served as the website editor for PAXTV.com and MoviePlace.com.
Herbie J began serving as an on-screen cultural commentator for TV documentaries such as A&E's Biography of Elizabeth Montgomery and Lee Majors, as well as for Bewitched: The E! True Hollywood Story (which became the 7th highest rated True Hollywood Story in E!'s history). He then started working as a consultant and producer on shows like David Carradine: The E! True Hollywood Story, TLC's Behind the Fame specials (on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Bob Newhart Show, L.A. Law, and Hill Street Blues), Bravo's hit five-part series, The 100 Greatest TV Characters, the TV Guide Network's 100 Greatest Television Moments, and the Syfy Channel's short-lived but highly-regarded Sciography series.
Herbie J has also served as a cultural commentator and consulting producer for the DVD releases of Bewitched, Kung Fu, CHiPs and the heralded five-season box set for The Six Million Dollar Man.
In 2010, he founded The Classic TV Preservation Group, a group that seeks to close the gap between popular culture and education.
He also presides over Television, Ink. (a television and film production company geared toward family-oriented projects), and All-Creative Consultants (an entertainment/publishing consulting firm).
Some of Herbie J's other books include the newly-published Mary: The Mary Tyler Moore Story (Jacobs Brown Press, 2019), Twitch Upon A Star: The Bewitched Life and Career of Elizabeth Montgomery which, based on his exclusive interviews with the iconic actress, became the best-selling new title in Taylor Trade's history, and The Essential Elizabeth Montgomery: A Guide To Her Magical Performances (Taylor Trade, 2013).
Herbie J's upcoming new TV talk show, Then Again with Herbie J Pilato, will focus on and feature classic TV shows and stars.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Janet Waldo provided the quintessential voice of the swooning, overly dramatic teenager for numerous generations -- from the 1940s swinging babysitters to the 1960s groovy chick. A bouncy, perennially-youthful brunette, Janet Marie Waldo was born on February 4, 1919, in Grandview, Washington, and began entertaining in church plays as a youth. Urged on by her singer mother, she studied at the University of Washington and performed in plays. She was discovered by none other than Paramount star Bing Crosby, when he and his talent scouts conducted a contest and invited her to try out for it, which she won. Crosby next invited Janet (accompanied by her mother) to California and the rest is history.
Janet met a Paramount talent scout that signed her up for small roles in movies, including the Crosby films, Sing, You Sinners (1938) and The Star Maker (1939). Unable to completely break out of her bit-part cycle as assorted hat-check girls, receptionists, and telephone operators, she did manage a few co-starring roles in such Tim Holt westerns, such as The Bandit Trail (1941) and Land of the Open Range (1942) before setting her career sights on radio in 1943.
It was Crosby himself who introduced her to radio and she fell in love with the medium and its possibilities. As the eternal teen in "Meet Corliss Archer", her voice became a household sound and it was obvious that. her vocal talents would become her biggest moneymaker. She also performed on radio's "One Man's Family", "The Gallant Heart", and "Star Playhouse". She played the cigarette girl on both Red Skelton and Art Linkletter's programs, and teenager Emmy Lou on Ozzie Nelson on both his radio and TV shows. In 1952, she filmed one classic I Love Lucy (1951) episode, The Young Fans (1952) playing an extremely lovesick teenaged girl, who fell for Ricky Ricardo, although she was past 30 at the time.
In 1948 Janet married writer-director-producer Robert E. Lee of "Inherit the Wind" and "Auntie Mame" fame. She curtailed her career activities sharply for some time in order to raise her two children. She even turned down the opportunity to return to her popular role of Corliss Archer when the radio series was revamped for TV in 1951, and Lugene Sanders from the "Life of Riley" series took on the part instead. After sporadic appearances on stage, Janet established herself as one of the top female voice artists in the early 1960s when she gave vocal life to hip high schooler Judy Jetson in the prime-time Hanna-Barbera cartoon series The Jetsons (1962), a role that she would go on to play well past the age of 70. Her vocal range led her to become a Hanna-Barbera staple for over three decades, providing hundreds and hundreds of voices, old and young, to both Saturday morning and feature film cartoons. Some of her better known characters include Granny Sweet, Penelope Pitstop, Superman's Lana Lang, the Addams Family's Morticia Addams, the title role in Josie and the Pussycats (1970) and Princess on Sandy Frank's Battle of the Planets (1978).
Janet was a member of the California Artists Radio Theatre (CART) and performed frequently on the smaller L.A. stages over the years. The woman with a thousand voices continued doing radio shows and commercial voice-overs (Electrosol), and making personal appearances. Long married to playwright/TV writer Robert E. Lee until his death in 1994, the couple had two children (Jonathan, Lucy). Diagnosed with a benign but inoperable brain tumor in 2011, she died five years later, age 97, on June 12, 2016, in Encino, California. She is interred at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the Hollywood Hills.- Actor
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Wink Martindale was born on 4 December 1933 in Jackson, Tennessee, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Second Honeymoon (1987), Bumper Stumpers (1987) and The Lively Set (1964). He has been married to Sandy Ferra since 2 August 1975. They have four children. He was previously married to Madelyn Leech.- Frank Bank was born on 12 April 1942 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an actor, known for Leave It to Beaver (1957), The New Leave It to Beaver (1983) and Life with Archie (1962). He was married to Rebecca Fink, Jeri Lynn Handelman and Marlene Kay Blau. He died on 13 April 2013 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
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Rose Marie was a legend of show business, with a career stretching 90 years, since her debut as her self in a Vitaphone musical short that appeared on the bill with The Jazz Singer (1927) at its premiere in 1927. According to Rose Marie, when she approached Al Jolson at the Winter Garden Theater in New York on the night of the premiere that made movie history and told him, "You were wonderful, Mr. Jolson!", his reply was, "Get away, you little brat!"
"He didn't like kids," Rose Marie explained. Her first credited appearance was in another musical short, Baby Rose Marie the Child Wonder (1929) in 1929.
The legendary performer was born Rose Marie Mazetta on August 15, 1923 in New York City, the daughter of an Italian-American father, Frank Mazetta (known as Frank Curley), and Polish-American mother, Stella (Gluszcak). Blessed with a remarkable singing voice for a child that allowed her to belt out jazz songs in the "coon shouter" style of the 1920s (as exemplified by Sophie Tucker), she began performing when she was three years old as "Baby Rose Marie." By the time she was five, she had her own radio show on NBC, appearing after 'Amos and Andy' (1949)_, the most popular show in the country. Many people could not believe the voice they were hearing actually belonged to a child.
Baby Rose Marie made many appearances in films in the 1930s, most famously in International House (1933), a movie about television, the medium in which Rose Marie would win her everlasting fame. In addition to her film performances, Baby Rose Marie also appeared on records and performed in vaudeville as a headliner. One of the acts she appeared with was Edgar Bergen before his Charlie McCarthy ventriloquism act, when he was still a small-timer. A half century later, when she appeared on Murphy Brown (1988), she told star Candice Bergen, "I worked with your father in vaudeville when he was doing a doctor sketch."
When Bergen replied that she couldn't have played the nurse in the act as she was too young, Rose Marie told her that she was the headliner and he was her opening act. "She didn't care for that too much," Rose Marie remembered.
She also appeared in vaudeville with Dick Powell, Rudy Vallee and Jimmy Durante, who mentored her. She also entertained at the White House three separate times at the request of three presidents. They were Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover and Franklin D. Roosevelt.
She transitioned to becoming a nightclub chanteuse as a teenager, playing all the big night clubs and hotels in New York, Chicago, Atlantic City, Las Vegas and Miami, Florida, usually in Mob-controlled venues. (Prominent mobsters, who called her "The Kid", liked her and protected her.) A young Milton Berle, whom she had known since she was a child, wrote some of her material, as did Morey Amsterdam, her future "Dick Van Dyke" co-star whom she knew since she was nine years old.
After the war she married trumpeter Bobby Guy of the Kay Kyser Orchestra, in 1946. She made her Broadway debut in 1951, co-starring with Phil Silvers in the hit show Top Banana (1954) (she also appeared in the 1954 film adaptation). Rose Marie also appeared on radio on "The Phil Harris - Alice Faye Show", playing the sister of Sheldon Leonard, who would later hire her for The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961) in his capacity as executive producer.
Rose Marie had a career resurgence as an actress in the 1960s, starring in three sitcoms during the decade: First, My Sister Eileen (1960) in the 1960-1961 season. Second: as comedy writer "Sally Rogers" on The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961) from 1961 to 1966, and on The Doris Day Show (1968) from 1969 to 1971. She also appeared frequently on The Hollywood Squares (Daytime) (1965). She was the center square at least once, and had a recurring role on Murphy Brown (1988) and Wings (1990). She appeared in a Remington Steele episode "Steele in the Spotlight (1986).
She also kept her singing career going, touring as part of the musical revue "4 Girls 4" from 1977 to 1981 with Rosemary Clooney, Helen O'Connell and Margaret Whiting. In her latter years, she continued to make occasional appearances.
She died on December 28, 2017 in Van Nuys, California, at 94 years old.- Animation Department
- Art Department
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Jerry Eisenberg is known for What a Cartoon! (1995), Meatballs and Spaghetti (1982) and Pandamonium (1982).- Producer
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Michael Schlesinger was born on 4 September 1950 in Dayton, Ohio, USA. He is a producer and director, known for Rock and Doris (try to) Write a Movie, The Adventures of Biffle and Shooster (2015) and Bride of Finklestein (2015).- Writer
- Producer
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Bob Illes was born on 17 May 1948 in Downey, California, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for America 2-Night (1978), The Carol Burnett Show (1967) and Lily (1973). He was previously married to Barbara Pariot and Mary Ann.- Actor
- Editorial Department
- Executive
Larry Mathews was born on 15 August 1955 in Burbank, California, USA. He is an actor and executive, known for The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961), Soap (1977) and The Dick Van Dyke Show Revisited (2004). He has been married to Jennifer since 1987.- Actor
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Forever tagged as the unctuous, trouble-making truant Eddie Haskell on the quintessential 50s family show Leave It to Beaver (1957), actor Ken Osmond did not manage much of a career after the stereotype. So inextricably typed was he that he gave up on any semblance of a career within a short time after the series' cancellation. Unlike so many other tragic child stars who did not survive the transition into adulthood, Osmond's life remained quite balanced. It did not careen out of control or disintegrate into alcohol and drugs.
Ken was born on June 3, 1943 in Glendale, California, to Pearl (Hand) and Thurman Osmond, a studio carpenter and propmaker, who were both originally from the American South. He started appearing on film and TV prior to his sitcom success thanks to a typically insistent stage mother. Taking up athletic skills such as fencing and martial arts as well as diction classes, Ken and his brother Dayton Osmond made their film debuts as child extras in the Mayflower pilgrim tale Plymouth Adventure (1952) starring Spencer Tracy. Other minor tyke film roles came for Osmond with So Big (1953), Good Morning, Miss Dove (1955) and Everything But the Truth (1956). He went on to appear in the popular shows of the day including "Circus Boy," "Annie Oakley" and "Lassie." Both public and studio schooled, Ken nabbed the key role of Eddie Haskell at age 14. With his tight, curly blond locks, ugly sneer and intimidating stance, he became an instant sensation on the show, delightfully smudging up the squeaky-clean Cleaver name on occasion with his nasty antics. As the two-faced buddy of teenager Wally Cleaver, Eddie was forever brown-nosing the Cleaver parents ("You look lovely today, Mrs. Cleaver!") while showing his true colors bullying poor Beaver (nicknaming him "squirt") or goading Wally on to break some family rule or curfew. A certifiable radar for trouble, he was the resident scene-stealer for six seasons until the show's demise in 1963, when things went downhill quickly. In retrospect, a spin-off show starring the Eddie Haskell character could have been something to consider; however, Osmond as a 20-year-old juvenile delinquent (his age when the show ended) might have been hard to swallow.
Osmond struggled in its aftermath. After a hitch in the Army, he grabbed a few TV remnants that came his way on such lightweight comedy shows as "The Munsters" and "Petticoat Junction." Following a minor role in the youth-oriented flick C'mon, Let's Live a Little (1967) starring pop singers Bobby Vee and Jackie DeShannon, Osmond pretty much called it quits. He subsequently made a very un-Eddie-like career choice by joining the Los Angeles Police Department. He grew a mustache to help secure his anonymity. A long-time member of its vice squad, he was wounded three times during the line of duty, eventually retired and earned a medical disability pension from the police force.
In the 1980s, Ken came back to TV with a reunion mini-movie and then a cable-revived version of "Leave It to Beaver" entitled The New Leave It to Beaver (1983), which featured Barbara Billingsley, Tony Dow, Frank Bank and Jerry Mathers from the original 1950s cast. The series revolved around the boys all married now, having kids and faced with grown-up problems. Ken's real-life offspring Christian Osmond and Eosmond played his impish sons on the series, Eddie Jr. and Freddie. A full-length film version of Leave It to Beaver (1997) had Osmond turning back once again to the show, this time as the father of his infamous role. Ken still makes personal appearances occasionally at film festivals, collectors' shows and nostalgia conventions. Ken was last seen in an isolated featured part in the family comedy film Characterz (2016).
Married to wife Sandy since 1970, he kept fairly prosperous handling rental properties in the Los Angeles area. His brother Dayton later became a special effects supervisor for the TV show "Babylon 5." Kenneth Charles Osmond died at age 76 of cardiac arrest on May 18, 2020.- Actress
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Kathy Garver was born in Long Beach, California Her break-through performance came as one of the young slaves in The Ten Commandments
She is most well known for starring as the teenage niece of Uncle Bill Davis, Cissy Davis on Family Affair (1966). The show was nominated for Emmys in various categories during its five year run.- Writer
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Tony Benedict is known for Santa and the Three Bears (1970), The Jetsons (1962) and Baggy Pants & the Nitwits (1977).- Wanda Clark was born on 19 March 1938 in Oklahoma, USA. She is an actress, known for Here's Lucy (1968), E! True Hollywood Story (1996) and Stu's Show (2006).
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Ron Greenberg is known for The Challengers (1990), Celebrity Bullseye (1980) and Play the Percentages (1980).- Director
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Lon Davis is known for This Is Francis X. Bushman (2021).- Animation Department
- Art Department
- Director
Ray Pointer was born on 4 July 1952 in Detroit, Michigan, USA. He is a director, known for First Sound of Movies (2003), My Life as a Teenage Robot (2002) and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987).- Director
- Writer
Tim Hollis is known for The Weird World of Tim Hollis (2020), Past and Present: Sevier County's Lost Roadside Attractions (2018) and Torch (2010).- Actor
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Bob Bergen is an American voice actor who is mostly known for being the modern voice of Porky Pig from Looney Tunes. He is also known for voicing Bucky the Squirrel from The Emperor's New Groove, the Frog in the English dub in Spirited Away and Luke Skywalker in several Star Wars video games.- Actor
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Edward Asner was born of Russian Jewish parentage in Kansas City, to Morris David Asner (founder and owner of the Kansas City-based Asner Iron & Metal Company) and his wife Elizabeth "Lizzie" (Seliger). After attending college, Ed worked various jobs, including in a steel mill, as a door-to-door salesman and on an assembly line for General Motors. Between 1947 and 1949, he attended the University of Chicago. The onset of the Korean War saw him drafted into the U.S. Army Signals Corps and posted to France where he was primarily assigned clerical tasks. Upon demobilization, Asner joined the Playwrights Theatre Company in Chicago but soon progressed to New York. In 1955, he appeared off-Broadway in the leading role of the beggar king Jonathan Peachum in Brecht's Threepenny Opera. Five years later, he made his debut on the Great White Way in the courtroom drama Face of a Hero, co-starring alongside Jack Lemmon. He also began regular TV work in anthology drama.
From the early '60s, Asner, now based in California, earned his living as a busy supporting actor. His many noted guest appearances included turns in Route 66 (1960), The Untouchables (1959), The Fugitive (1963), Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1964) (sinister dictator-in-exile Brynov), The Invaders (1967) (twice -- as aliens) and How the Ghosts Stole Christmas (1998) (one of a couple of ghostly residents in a haunted mansion). Heavy-set and distinctively gravelly-voiced, Asner established his reputation as tough, robust and uncompromising (though, on occasion, good-hearted) authority figures. Excellent at conveying menace, he was memorably cast as the brutish patriarch Axel Jordache in Rich Man, Poor Man (1976) and as the slave ship's morally conflicted master, Captain Thomas Davies, in Roots (1977), which earned him a Primetime Emmy Award in 1977. The immensely prolific Asner (417 IMDB screen credits!) would receive seven Emmys in total (from 21 nominations), all Primetime, and become the only actor to win in both the comedy and drama category for the same role. That was also the part which made Asner a household name: the gruff, snarky newspaper editor Lou Grant (1977). Grant began as a mainstay on The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970), a 30-minute sitcom.
When the character was promoted to West Coast editor of The Los Angeles Tribune, Asner went on to star in his own much acclaimed drama series. Despite consistently high ratings, the show was axed after five seasons amid rumours of disharmony between the star and producers, possibly due to the former's outspoken political views. Indeed, Asner has been a controversial figure as an activist and campaigner, engaged in a variety of humanitarian and political issues. A self-proclaimed liberal Democrat, he published a book in 2017, amusingly titled "The Grouchy Historian: An Old-Time Lefty Defends Our Constitution Against Right-Wing Hypocrites and Nutjobs."
Between 1981 and 1985, Asner served twice as President of the Screen Actors Guild, during which time he was critical of former SAG President Ronald Reagan -- then the president of a greater concern -- for his Central American policy. In 1996, he was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame and in 2002 received the Screen Actors Guild's Life Achievement Award. In addition to appearing on screen and stage, he performed extensive work for radio, video games and animated TV series. He voiced the lead character Carl Fredricksen in Pixar's Oscar-winning production of Up (2009), starred as Santa in Elf (2003), and played Nicholas Drago in The Games Maker (2014). Ed passed away in Los Angeles at the age of 91 on August 29, 2021.- Additional Crew
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David Isaacs is an American producer and writer for television sitcoms such as The Simpsons, Cheers, Fraiser and Mad Men. Today, he is known as one of the most successful television writers. Isaacs has been nominated for six Emmys and won one. In 2009, he won a Writers Guild of America award for "Mad Men".- Writer
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Ron Friedman was born on 1 August 1932 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for The Transformers: The Movie (1986), Fantastic Four: The Animated Series (1994) and The Danny Kaye Show (1963).- Composer
- Soundtrack
Brian Gari was born on 18 February 1952 in New York City, New York, USA. He is a composer, known for Wilbur Falls (1998), From Buchenwald to Hollywood, The Robert Clary Story (2018) and From the Holocaust to Hollywood: The Robert Clary Story (2020).- Additional Crew
- Producer
- Actor
Mark Arnold (1966- ) was born in San Jose, California. A comic book, animation and pop culture historian, Arnold has had many articles published in various publications and over 10 books published. He has a BA in Broadcast Communication Arts from San Francisco State and has performed many celebrity interviews. He published "The Harveyville Fun Times!" from 1990-2011. His first book "The Best of the Harveyville Fun Times!", was released in 2006. His second book "Created and Produced by Total TeleVision productions: The Story of Underdog, Tennessee Tuxedo and the Rest" was published in 2009. His third and fourth books were called "If You're Cracked, You're Happy: The Story of Cracked Mazagine, Book 1 and Book 2", and a fifth book called "Mark Arnold Picks on The Beatles" were all issued in 2011. His sixth book was "Frozen in Ice: The Story of Walt Disney Productions: 1966-1985" in 2013. His seventh book was "Think Pink! The DePatie-Freleng Story", issued in 2015. Books on Dennis the Menace and on The Monkees, as well as "The Harvey Comics Companion", were all issued in 2017. He is working on books about The Monkees solo, Warren Kremer, Alvin & The Chipmunks and a TTV Scrapbook. He has also produced and recorded DVD commentaries for Shout! Factory and Kino Lorber and has helped the Cartoon Art Museum and the Schnitzer Museum with various art shows. He resides in Springfield, OR, where he hosts his own podcast called the Fun Ideas Podcast.- Actor
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Alan Young was born in Northern England in 1919, but his Scots father moved the family to Edinburgh, Scotland, when Young was a toddler and then to Canada when Young was about 6 years old. As a boy, he suffered from severe asthma, which kept him bedridden for long periods of time but encouraged his love of radio. By age 13, Young had become a radio performer, and by age 17, he was writing and performing in his own radio show for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The show was broadcast in the U.S. and led to an invitation to New York, initiating Young's career as an "All-American boy," despite his non-American origins and a vestigial Scots accent. He became popular on American radio from 1944 to 1949 with his "Alan Young Radio Show," but when radio began to lose its popularity and his show was canceled, Young decided to put together a comedy act and tour the U.S. theater circuit. After this experience, he wrote a television pilot for CBS in 1950, which resulted in The Alan Young Show (1950). The show was a well-received live revue that ran for 3 years, earned a couple of Emmy Awards, and garnered Young a star on the "Walk of Fame." However, the strain of writing and performing a weekly show got to Young, and the quality of the show declined, leading to his departure from the show and its cancellation. In the meantime, based on his popularity on radio and television, Young had established a film career, starting with his debut in Margie (1946) followed by Chicken Every Sunday (1949), Mr. Belvedere Goes to College (1949), Aaron Slick from Punkin Crick (1952), Androcles and the Lion (1952), Gentlemen Marry Brunettes (1955), Tom Thumb (1958), and The Time Machine (1960).
In the early 1960s, Young landed his best-known role, Wilbur Post, in the popular television series Mister Ed (1961), which ran for 5 years. Since then, Young has made a number of television and film appearances but is known primarily for his voice characterizations in cartoons, especially as Scrooge McDuck in DuckTales (1987).- Actor
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A third-generation performer and the son of a singing band leader, Chuck McCann was already a show business veteran by age eleven. Born in Brooklyn, he began his career as a child actor on radio, and by the age of nineteen had appeared on The Steve Allen Show (1952). He performed on several NYC-based radio programs, and went on to create his own stand up act performed at many NYC/NJ/LI nightclubs and on many popular TV variety shows. For a time, he took a hiatus from nightclub and TV performing to study with The Pasadena Playhouse, where he gave a memorable performance in their production of '12th Night' as Sir Toby Belch. McCann would return to NYC to continue to perform in nightclubs and on TV variety shows. Until he was introduced to puppetry, first by Skip Boyland and then by Paul Ashleyon NBC TV's: Rootie Kazootie (1952). For the next 17 years, Ashley and McCann appeared on numerous TV shows: Rootie Kazootie (1952), "Uncle Paul's Lunchtime", The Gumby Show (1956) with Pinkie Lee, "The Puppet Hotel!", "Laurel & Hardy & Chuck!", "Let's Have Fun!", "The Chuck McCann Shows", "The Great Bombo's Magic Cartoon Circus Lunchtime Show" and "Chuck McCann's Laurel & Hardy Show!". After the cancellation of the latter on Friday June 9, 1967, Ashley and McCann went their separate ways.
McCann went onto become a successful comic/character actor and mimic, doing voice over for many television cartoon shows and playing character parts on numerous dramatic and comedic TV series and movies. Paul Ashley used his puppets in industrial films and industrial stage shows. McCann also starred on other TV series: Turn-on (1969), Happy Days (1974), Far Out Space Nuts (1975),All That Glitters (1977), _"New Kind Of Family, A" (1979)_ and "Chuck McCann's Fun Stuff!". Ashley was slated to reunite with McCann for "LBS Children's Theater" and another TV puppet show "Tiny TV". But Ashley was forced to drop out both projects, when it was discovered that he was suffering from Alzheimer's Disease and McCann took over as the show's host and performer. "LBS Children's Theater" made its debut in September of 1983 and was on the air for one season. Paul Ashley never lived long enough to see "LBS Children's Theater" become a success. Later, he played the voice of Jollo in the 1992 classic hit Sierra video game King's Quest VI: Heir Today, Gone Tomorrow.
Chuck McCann died on April 8, 2018 in Los Angeles, California, of heart failure.- Animation Department
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Willie Ito was born on 17 July 1934 in San Francisco, California, USA. He is a writer, known for It's the Wolf (1969), NBC Children's Theatre (1963) and The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie (1972).- Producer
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Born in Boston, Donna was a child performer: she won an amateur talent show, sang a jingle for Meadow Gold Ice Cream, performed on radio shows, appeared as a guest on the The Mickey Mouse Club (1955), and recorded several singles, all before she was 10 years old. In 1963 she was chosen, after a nationwide talent search, to become the spokesperson for Dr. Pepper and subsequently became the one and only "Dr Pepper Girl". For five years, she was on billboards, in magazines, and on television and in movies as the teenage spokesperson for the soft drink. For her personal appearances, she designed and sewed most of her own costumes, a talent which would come in very handy later in her career. The Dr. Pepper gig led to a role in the second Frankie Avalon / Annette Funicello beach movie, Muscle Beach Party (1964). She was originally assigned a non-speaking role holding a soft-drink bottle (guess which soft drink), but the producers decided to let her perform a song instead. She performed the Brian Wilson-penned "Muscle Bustle" with Dick Dale, and the song's success led to her appearing in a featured musical number in later beach movies. Her brunette beauty and strong voice were welcome additions to the films. She could do no more than sing and speak a few lines in those pictures because her contract with Dr. Pepper forbade her to wear any outfit that showed her navel. She became a regular on the ABC shows Shindig! (1964) and The Milton Berle Show (1966). In 1968 she was even offered the lead in a series called "Two for Penny" to be produced by Aaron Spelling and Danny Thomas. Instead she chose marriage and retirement from performing. Her second husband, Jered Cargman was a member of the 1960s studio surf band Fantastic Baggys. From 1998-2008, Donna and her husband created fashion retailer ADASA Hawaii, which sold many of Donna's own '60's-inspired designs. Donna still sings and writes songs.- Beverly Washburn was born on 25 November 1943 in Los Angeles, California, USA. She is an actress, known for Old Yeller (1957), Star Trek (1966) and When the World Came to San Francisco (2015). She is married to Michael Radell.
- Former host of "The Webster Webfoot Show" at KJEO-47 in Fresno, California during the 1960s (KJEO is now KGPE-47). Webster Webfoot was a squat duck (ventriloquist's dummy), who was the eternal Webelo Cub Scout, including hat, scarf and Boy Scout emblem choker. Later produced children's Christian programs using Webster Webfoot. Has full recording studio in his home.
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Joel Tator is known for Tomorrow Coast to Coast (1973), Family Medical Center (1988) and Acapulco Gold (1976).- One of television's legendary and beloved game show announcers, Johnny Gilbert got his start in show business in high school as a singer, comedian and master of ceremonies. He soon toured the nightclub circuit as a featured attraction; he even parlayed his success into an recorded an album of pop standards. Soon, he delved into the world of television, where he worked at stations in Nashville and New Orleans. In 1958, he hosted his first TV game show, Music Bingo (1958). However, he is best known for his announcing duties on game shows. His first successful game show came during the ABC run of The Price Is Right (1956). After a few hosting duties for unsuccessful game shows, and several locally-produced programs in Los Angeles, Gilbert settled into his role as game show announcer.
His best-known announcing duties include The Joker's Wild (1972), The $25,000 Pyramid (1982), Supermarket Sweep (1990) and Jeopardy! (1984). He also served as announcer for many TV awards shows, Dick Clark specials and Circus of the Stars specials. - Actress
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Jeannie Russell was born on 22 October 1950 in Pasco, Washington, USA. She is an actress, known for Emily or Oscar (2022), Dennis the Menace (1959) and The Bilderberg Club: Meet the Shadow One World Government (2009).- Actor
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Pat Harrington Jr. was born on 13 August 1929 in New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for One Day at a Time (1975), The President's Analyst (1967) and Move Over, Darling (1963). He was married to Sally Cleaver and Marjorie Ann Gortner. He died on 6 January 2016 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Director
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Author, journalist and media analyst. His books on television include The Fugitive Recaptured, The Ethics of Star Trek, Maverick: Legend of the West, Thirty Years of The Rockford Files and The Case of the Alliterative Attorney: A Guide to the Perry Mason TV Series and Made-for-TV Movies. Ed's articles on television appear in The New York Times, The Wave Magazine, Media Life Magazine and other media venues, including Columbia House, where he helped develop many titles for the popular subscription-based Columbia House Video Library. Ed has appeared on such programs as Biography, Showbiz Today and Entertainment Tonight. He has also consulted on documentaries produced by NBC, The Biography Channel, E! Entertainment Television and Warner Bros. Home Video, while his comments on television appear in articles for MSNBC, USA Today, Forbes, E! Online, The Los Angeles Times and other publications.- Actor
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Gregg Berger Bio
Gregg Berger Voice / Actor Transformers, The Garfield Show, Spaced Invaders, More! Gregg Berger is an American Voice / Actor, who is Internationally known for his iconic roles as GRIMLOCK in G1Transformers and Transformers Fall of Cybertron, and the eagerly anticipated Power of the Primes, as Odie, Squeak, Harry and others from the Garfield franchise, Spirit from G.I. Joe, Mysterio and Kraven the Hunter from Spider-Man:The Animated Series, Agent Kay from the Men in Black Series, Sir Jecht from Final Fantasy, Eeyore from Kingdom Hearts 2, The Pain from Metal Gear Solid 3, The Gromble from Aaahh!!! Real Monsters, and many more including, Star Wars: The Clone Wars as Droid General Kalani, Resident Evil: Raccoon City as Harley, Guild Wars 2 as Conrad and Duggadoo, Dishonored as Street Speaker and Halo Wars as Cutter. On camera, he had leading roles in the classic comedy Police Academy: Mission To Moscow and the Sci Fi Comedy cult classic Spaced Invaders as well as three pilots for CBS. As an animation voice-over talent, it's been a dog's life for Gregg Berger and that's just the way he likes it. He has been the voice of Odie the dog on Garfield since Odie has had an animated voice. He's also Squeak the Mouse, Harry the AlleyCat, Herman the Mailman and others on The Garfield Show on Cartoon Network. He also doesn't usually think of himself as a pig, but he sure enjoys playing one on TV. He is the voice of Orson Pig on U.S. Acres... as well as the voice of Cornfed Pig on Duckman. Gregg Berger is also the voice of Niles Crane's talking cockatiel 'Baby' on Frasier, and Barry The Parrot on Hot In Cleveland, The Gromble on Nickelodeon's Ahhh!!! Real Monsters! Eeyore in Kingdom Hearts2 and many of Disney Character Voices' Winnie The Pooh projects, Kraven the Hunter and Mysterio on Fox's Spiderman, Agent Kay in Men In Black, and Bill Licking on The Angry Beavers. He has careened through the galaxy as A.B. Sitter on Fantastic Max and has even had a blind date with Judy Jetson as Curly Quasar on The Jetsons, in addition to berating his favorite employee as Mr. Pinkley on Cathy. Of course, he also continues to guest star in various and sundry episodes of a great many other current animated series.
Gregg Berger's Interactive Game credits include, Transformers: Fall of Cybertron and Rise of the Dark Spark as GRIMLOCK (and Lockdown in RotDS)), Resident Evil: Raccoon City as Harley, Guild Wars 2 as Conrad and Duggadoo, Final Fantasy X and X-2 as Sir Jecht, Metal Gear Solid 3 as ThePain, Dishonored as Street Speaker, Halo Wars as Cutter, Spiderman Web of Shadows as Kingpin, X Men Origins:Wolverine as Fred Dukes aka The Blob, Brutal Legend as Ratgut, Star Wars: Episode One Racer and Star Wars: Phantom Menace, as PloKoon, DarthMaul, Wan Sandage, CyYunga, Kingdom Hearts2 as Eeyore, Winnie the Pooh/Eeyore Interactives, Curse of Monkey Island as Cutthroat Bill, Small Soldiers as Archer, Spyro as Hunter, ViewtifulJoe as Capt.Blue, Call of Duty, Legend of Kain as Turel, Gabriel Knight as Abbe Arnaud, WackyRacers.and many more. Search Gregg Berger at www.imdb.com for his complete credits. On stage he has appeared in Repertory Theater, Stock and Touring Productions across the country and has been directed by John Cassavetes, Davey Marlin-Jones, William Woodman, Robert Woodruff, Martin Charnin and more. Gregg Berger is the author of Think Globally... Act VOCALLY! And Voice Virtue and is the reader of the Audiobook. It is available on iTunes and Audible.com. For many years he has been associated with Famous Fone Friends, making calls in requested animated character voices to children in Pediatric Hospitals. Facebook: greggberger- Writer
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Bob Mills was born on 30 June 1957 in Chester, Cheshire, England, UK. He is a writer and actor, known for Christmas Lights (2004), Northern Lights (2006) and Shameless (2004). He is married to Jan. They have two children.- Producer
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Brian Michael Levant is an American filmmaker and producer known for directing many films such as The Flintstones, Jingle All the Way, Snow Dogs, Scooby-Doo: The Mystery Begins, The Flintstones: Viva Rock Vegas, Scooby-Doo: Curse of the Lake Monster, Are We There Yet?, The Spy Next Door and Max 2: White House Hero.- Actor
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Ronnie has gone on to become a familiar face on Stage and Screen. He's co-starred opposite Motion Picture Legends, Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau in Billy Wilder's final film "Buddy, Buddy" or the big screen favorite: "Transformers". On Television, Ronnie was seen in his recurring role of Chauncey on "Nickelodeon's Zoey 101" and starring as The Mad Hatter on "Disney's Alice in Wonderland Masterpiece Edition DVD". He's also played opposite Oscar nominee James Franco in his recurring role on "General Hospital". His mug is often remembered for his many commercials including: Playing the Other PC numerous times in the famous Mac vs. PC spots, Capitol One with David Spade, Crestor, T-Mobile, Sprite, AT&T, Sony PlayStation, Washington Mutual, The Disney Channel, The Discovery Channel, Holiday Inn, Coke, Nintendo, Ball Park Franks, and McDonalds to name but a few.- Actor
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Cleveland-born comedy actor Jack Riley (on December 30, 1935) switched his career interest from baseball to acting after obtaining a radio job, writing and performing skits while attending John Carroll University. He toured military bases throughout the world in comedy shows after being drafted in the Army in 1958.
Following his discharge, he returned to radio and became one of Cleveland's top personalities before setting his sights on film and TV. Receiving a break from old radio pal Tim Conway, Jack headed west and began writing material especially for Tim for assorted TV guest appearances. He also performed in radio commercials.
Soon Riley was working in front of the camera, his first role being a regular part on the sitcom Occasional Wife (1966). Other parts soon came his way on various '60s laughfests, including Hogan's Heroes (1965), I Dream of Jeannie (1965) and especially Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (1967) where both his writing and performing skills were utilized. It was also on "Laugh-In" that he met future wife Ginger Lawrence, the producer's assistant at the time. The slim actor sought out films in the '70s with roles in Catch-22 (1970), McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971), The Long Goodbye (1973), and Attack of the Killer Tomatoes! (1978). He also became a minor staple in Mel Brooks's spoofs, with Silent Movie (1976), High Anxiety (1977) and History of the World: Part I (1981) to his credit.
TV gave Jack his best shot, especially as the dry, terminally-depressed Elliot Carlin on The Bob Newhart Show (1972), where his hilariously morose character proved a constant scene-stealer. Along with continued guest roles in Night Court (1984), Seinfeld (1989), and others, he appeared on stage occasionally; of note he played comedian Fred Allen in "Mr. Allen, Mr. Allen".
Into the millennium, Jack focused mostly on TV and voiceover work on cartoons and Rugrats video games. On-camera appearances included voicing the Stu Pickles character in two animated series: Rugrats (1991) and All Grown Up! (2003). He also had a recurring role on the sitcom Son of the Beach (2000) and made guest appearances on "Lucky," "That 70's Show," "Avenging Angel" and "Easy to Assemble." He last appeared on feature film in the horror thriller Room 6 (2006).
Jack passed away in Los Angeles from pneumonia at the age of 80. He was survived by his wife and two children.- Bill Funt is known for Candid Camera: 5 Decades of Smiles (2005), The Trip (2007) and Candid Camera (1998).
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Hank Garrett was born on 26 October 1931 in Monticello, New York, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Death Wish (1974), The Amityville Horror (1979) and Nothing to Lose (1997). He has been married to Deanna Marie Smith since 23 July 2017.- Production Manager
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Michael Brockman was born on 7 August 1945 in Orlando, Florida, USA. He was a production manager and actor, known for Flight of the Navigator (1986), The Hudsucker Proxy (1994) and Road to Perdition (2002). He died on 14 October 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.- Actor
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A familiar face on both the big and small screen, comic character actor Stuart Pankin is a five-time nominated, CableAce Award winner for HBO's award-winning series "Not Necessarily The News." He is well known for providing the voice of Earl Sinclair, the blustery father, on the Emmy award-winning "Dinosaurs." (He sang on, and composed two songs for, the Disney album "Dinosaurs: The Big Songs", and performed Earl on the "Dinosaurs: Classic Tales" tape release.) Best-known film (member: AMPAS) credits include "Honey We Shrunk Ourselves" (the first live action made-for-video feature), "Fatal Attraction", "The Artist", "The Hollywood Knights," "Mannequin on the Move," "The Dirt Bike Kid," "Second Sight," "Encounter in the Third Dimension" and "Misadventures in 3-D" (IMAX 3-D movies) as the live Professor, and voice of the adorable animated robot. A series regular on nine prime-time television productions and pilots (member: ATAS), he has guest-starred on over 300 television shows. He has also provided many cartoon voices for the popular series "Animaniacs," "Batman," "Superman," "Aladdin," "Lilo and Stitch" and "Darkwing Duck." On stage, Pankin has performed with the New York Shakespeare Festival, the Brooklyn Academy of Music Repertory Company, the American Place Theatre, the Repertory Company of Lincoln Center, and the Folger Shakespeare Theatre, with "The Winter's Tale," "The Inspector General," "Bartholomew Fair" and "The Three Sisters", among his favorites. He created the roles of Reuben and Queen Victoria in the New York premiere of Andrew Lloyd Weber's "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat." He starred in over seventy Off Broadway, summer, and regional theatre productions. Pankin starred in, co-wrote and co-executive produced the Stuart Pankin Cinemax Comedy Experiment ("Hump!" the musical comedy version of "Richard III"), in which he played five roles, and sang his own original music. The Electronic Retail Association nominated him for Best Celebrity Presenter.- Writer
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Steve Stoliar is a writer, actor and producer who has penned episodes of Murder, She Wrote; Simon & Simon; The New WKRP in Cincinnati; and Sliders, among others. His voice work includes Frosty Returns; You're in the Super Bowl, Charlie Brown; and Oz Kids. Additionally, he has written, produced, and narrated a number of pop-culture documentaries. He is the author of the bittersweet memoir Raised Eyebrows: My Years Inside Groucho's House, and has co-written the screen adaptation for Oren Moverman's film version of that book, which was announced in February of 2002. Steve was married to grip/electrician/gaffer Linda Field until her death in 2008.- Actress
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Geri Jewell was born on 13 September 1956 in Buffalo, New York, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for Deadwood (2004), 21 Jump Street (1987) and The Facts of Life (1979). She was previously married to Richard Pimentel.- Editorial Department
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Best know for his work as a child actor on "The Lucy Show". Jimmy Garrett played Lucy Carmichael's son Jerry Carmichael. Along with Ralph Hart (as Vivian Bagley's son Sherman) and Candy Moore (as Lucy's daughter Chris), Jimmy Garrett was used minimally during the show's 3rd season. While Hart and Moore were dropped at the end of the third season, Garrett made two appearances at the beginning of season four, and then was dropped from the series as well.- Julia Benjamin was born on 21 February 1957 in Los Angeles, California, USA. She is an actress, known for The Rockford Files (1974), Riptide (1984) and Hazel (1961).
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Carl Reiner is a legend of American comedy, who achieved great success as a comic actor, a director, producer and recording artist. He won nine Emmy Awards, three as an actor, four as a writer and two as a producer. He also won a Grammy Award for his album "The 2,000 Year Old Man", based on his comedy routine with Mel Brooks.
Reiner was born in The Bronx, to Bessie (Mathias) and Irving Reiner, a watchmaker. His father was an Austrian Jewish immigrant and his mother was a Romanian Jewish immigrant. At the age of sixteen, while working as a sewing machine repairman, he attended a dramatic workshop sponsored by the Works Progress Administration. The direction of his life was set.
In the 1970s, some sources claimed that Reiner made his movie debut in New Faces of 1937 (1937), but that is unlikely as he would have only been fifteen years old at the time. (the movie shares the same plot as his erstwhile partner Mel Brooks' classic The Producers (1967), with a crooked producer planning to fleece his "angels" by producing a flop and absconding with the money). He didn't appear on screen, silver or small, until he made his television debut in 1948 in the short-lived television series, The Fashion Story (1948), then became a regular, the following year, on The Fifty-Fourth Street Revue (1949), another television series with a brief life.
Reiner made his Broadway debut in 1949 in the musical "Inside U.S.A.", a hit that ran for 399 performances. His next Broadway show, the musical revue "Alive and Kicking" (1950) was a flop, lasting just 43 performances. Max Liebman, the producer/director/writer/composer, had been called in to provide additional material after the show's troubled six week out-of-town preview in Boston. It didn't help -- the show closed after six weeks on Broadway -- but an important contact had been made.
Leibman was a producer-director on Your Show of Shows (1950), one of the great television series, and he hired Reiner to appear on the show in the middle of its first season. Reiner's first gig on the revue-like show was interviewing The Professor, a character played by Sid Caesar. He became central to the comedy portions of the show and, in 1953, he racked up the first of six Emmy Award nominations for acting. (In all, he was nominated for an Emmy Award a total of 13 times). When, in 1954, "Your Show of Shows" was split up by the network into its constituent parts, Reiner continued on with Sid in Caesar's Hour (1954). (Imogene Coca was given her own show, which lasted one season, and Leibman was allowed to produce specials).
"Your Show or Shows" had been a Broadway-style revue, featuring skits such as dancing (including a young Bob Fosse) whereas "Caesar's Hour" was pure comedy. "Your Show of Shows" had had a great cast, another other than Coca, most of the cast, including Reiner, Howard Morris, and Nanette Fabray (who went on to win an Emmy Award) moved over to "Caesar's Hour". In his three seasons on the show, he was nominated three more times for an Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actor, winning twice in 1957 and 1958. But it was its stable of comedy writers that was essential to the great success of both "Your Show of Shows" and "Caesar's Hour". In addition to Mel Brooks, the writing staff included Neil Simon, his brother Danny Simon, Larry Gelbart and Mel Tolkin. (There are rumors that the young Woody Allen served as the writing staff's typist).
Reiner had sat in informally with the writers during "Your Show of Shows", but he began writing formally for "Caesar's Hour", having learned his craft from all of the other writers. As a self-described uncredited "writer without portfolio", he was able to leave writers' meetings at 6 P.M., if he wanted to. This gave him the time to work on a semi-autobiographical novel. Published in 1958, Enter Laughing (1967) is about a young man in 1930s New York trying to make it in show business. It was transformed into a play and, eventually, adapted into a movie in 1967, and a musical, many years later.
In 1959, he created the pilot for a television series, "Man of the House", in which he would play a writer, Rob Petrie, who balanced his family life with the demands of working as a writer for a comedy show headlined by an egotistical comedic genius modeled after Sid Caesar (a "benign despot" who lacked social skills, according to Reiner). The series was rooted in his experience on "Your Show of Shows" and "Caesar's Hour". The network didn't pick up the pilot at first, as CBS executives claimed the main character, which was clearly autobiographical on Reiner's part, was too New York, too Jewish and too intellectual. In 1960, Reiner teamed up with Mel Brooks on The Steve Allen Plymouth Show (1956), and their routine "The 2000 Year Old Man" was a huge success. Reiner played the straight man to Brooks in the routine, which was spun-off into five comedy albums, bringing them a Grammy Award. They also made an animated television special based on their shtick in 1975.
Though CBS turned down "Man of the House", with the two-time Emmy Award-winning comedian Reiner as the lead, it was still interested in the series. However, they wanted a different actor in the lead role, and the casting of the protagonist came down to Johnny Carson and Dick Van Dyke. Carson was a game show host of no great note at the time, but Van Dyke was in the smash Broadway musical Bye Bye Birdie (1963), for which he won a Tony Award. He got the role and another chapter of television history was made, when Mary Tyler Moore, Rose Marie and Morey Amsterdam all were cast in leading roles. Reiner, himself, would eventually play the role of Alan Brady, the abrasive Sid Caesar-like comic convinced of his own genius, in the last few seasons of the series' five-year run.
Another milestone in television comedy, The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961), brought Reiner five more Emmy Awards, three for writing and two as the producer of the series. In 1966, Reiner and the other principals, including executive producer Sheldon Leonard and Dick Van Dyke, decided to end the series at the height of its popularity and critical acclaim. (The show won Emmy Awards as best show and best comedy in 1965 and 1966, respectively). Twenty-nine years after the show was ended, Reiner reprised the role of Alan Brady on Mad About You (1992), winning his eighth (and so far, last) Emmy Award, this time as Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series.
It was on "The Dick Van Dyke Show" that Reiner first became a director. His feature film debut, as a director, was with the film adaptation of the play Joseph Stein had adapted from his 1958 novel, Enter Laughing (1967). His work as a writer-director, with Dick Van Dyke, in creating a Stan Laurel-type character in The Comic (1969) was not a success, but Where's Poppa? (1970) became a cult classic and Oh, God! (1977), with George Burns, and The Jerk (1979), with Steve Martin, were smash hits. The last film he directed was the romantic comedy That Old Feeling (1997).
Reiner's career continued into the 21st century, when most of his contemporaries had retired or passed. He was awarded the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2000 and acted in the remake of Ocean's Eleven (2001) and its two sequels. He also appeared as a voice artist in the film Good Boy (2003), and the animated series The Cleveland Show (2009) (he even wrote an episode for the series rooted in his "Your Show of Shows" experience). He was also a regular on the series Hot in Cleveland (2010) (with fellow nonagenarian Betty White), and appeared on an episode of Parks and Recreation (2009) in 2012. His last film role was as the voice of Carl Reineroceros in Toy Story 4 (2019), opposite his old compatriot Mel Brooks.
Carl Reiner died at age 98 of natural causes on June 29, 2020, in Beverly Hills, California.- Director
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Howard Storm was born on 11 December 1931 in New York City, New York, USA. He is a director and actor, known for Bananas (1971), Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex * But Were Afraid to Ask (1972) and Take the Money and Run (1969).- Actor
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Spry, curly-haired, dark-complexioned child actor Tommy Cook's most famous roles happened during his nascent career in serial adventures. He came on the feature film scene auspiciously in the role of young Indian boy Little Beaver alongside western good guy 'Don 'Red' Barry' in the Adventures of Red Ryder (1940), and followed that portraying Kimbu, the young jungle boy, alongside Frances Gifford's heroine Nyoka in Jungle Girl (1941).
Born in Duluth, Minnesota on July 5, 1930, Tommy's father was stricken with Bright's disease, a kidney ailment, which forced the family (which included a sister and grandmother) to seek warmer climate. In California, his mother inspired him toward theatrics and he gained entry at the Pasadena Playhouse where he stayed for seven years. Naturally talented, radio jobs soon cropped up for the youngster.
After appearing in a couple of short films for MGM and RKO, Tommy auditioned for and won the role of Little Beaver in the 12-chapter "Red Ryder" cliffhanger at Republic. He also played the role on radio. On screen Tommy had to learn to ride a horse bareback (star Don Berry also had to learn to ride). While these first two roles were prominent parts that could have insured youthful stardom, it didn't. Tommy continued in films in both highly visible and unbilled parts. The former included active roles in Good Luck, Mr. Yates (1943); Hi, Buddy (1943); as Kimba, the Leopard Boy in Tarzan and the Leopard Woman (1946) with Johnny Weissmuller and Brenda Joyce; a Filipino in American Guerrilla in the Philippines (1950) starring Tyrone Power; and played lead delinquents in the films The Vicious Years (1950), for which he won a Photoplay Award for "Outstanding Performance," and in the sub-par propaganda film Teen-Age Crime Wave (1955).
More or less typed in exotic parts, his characters' names were usually dead giveaways -- Paco, Salim, Ponca, Mario, Chito, Pablo, Little Elk and Keoga among them. His transition from child to adult actor was rocky and eventually his career dissipated. A brawny, good-looking man, his short stature may have figured into the problem.
Tommy's days as a standout junior tennis player on the Southern California circuit eventually led to an entirely new existence in mid-life as a respected organizer (emcee/producer/director) of celebrity gala/charity events. He also created stories that led to the feature films Rollercoaster (1977) and Players (1979), the latter a love story with his beloved tennis serving as a background. Tommy has two children.- Actor
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Bruce Belland was born on 22 October 1936 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Vacation (1983), Bad Times at the El Royale (2018) and Knight Rider (1982).- Writer
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Mark Rothman is a noted and credited writer best known for having been involved with the creation and production of the ABC-TV sitcom series "Laverne and Shirley". He was also the head writer and show runner of numerous other shows including the ABC-TV sitcoms "Happy Days" and "The Odd Couple". He was co-creator, co-executive producer, and a writer for the 1977 situation comedy Busting Loose and the 1978 CBS-TV sitcom "The Ted Knight Show". He also composed the theme song for the CBS-TV sitcom series "Busting Loose".
Mark also has written many screenplays and several plays, two of them, The Wearing of the Greens, and Who Wants Fame?, are very popular and have been well received by audiences and critics from coast-to-coast. He currently lives in Chicago. He enjoys producing and directing his work. In the spring of 2008, he appeared in the title role of a new musical, The Brain From Planet X in Los Angeles, where he and the show received unanimous raves.
He has two books which can be found at Amazon Kindle: "Show Runner", and "Show Runner Two". Both are collections of autobiographical essays.
In 2013, Mark had his first novel, "I'm Not Garbo," published. It is a fable about Hollywood in the 1930s.- Producer
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Lloyd J. Schwartz has been successful TV, motion pictures and theatre. Beginning with his work as a dialogue coach on his father, Sherwood Schwartz's series, "It's About Time," "Gilligan's Island" and "The Brady Bunch," he swiftly rose to producer and with Sherwood became the only father/son producing team in the business. That was after he was part of a black/white comedy team, Carruthers and Blood" in the late 1960s. He has written and/or produced episodes of many series including"The Brady Bunch," "Alice," "Love:American Style," "The Love Boat," The A Team, "The Munsters Today," "Safe at Home, " "Baywatch," etc. He was an executive in current comedy at ABC and oversaw "Happy Days" "Laverne and Shirley," "Three's Company," and "What's Happening" before he became a writer/producer on that series. Two of his TV movies: "Rescue from Gilligan's Island," and "A Very Brady Christmas" were the highest rated TV movies of the year. He has sold feature film scripts to Cheech and Chong and to David Permut. That script, "Independence" is currently in development. He has written and directed "One Dozen" a comedy based on his play of the same name and produced "The Brady Bunch Movie," and "A Very Brady Sequel." Also, Lloyd has had forty-three plays produced beginning with his co-authorship of The Nearlyweds" which is the first play specifically written for dinner theater. Just as in TV where he has been multi-faceted and has written, produced and/or directed in mini-series, half hour one camera shows, three camera shows, hour dramas, in theatre he has been equally versatile and has written produced and/directed comedies, dramas and musicals. Many of his plays are historical, and Lloyd has produced plays about John Wilkes Booth, Mary Walker, Mark Twain and Ulysses S. Grant, Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson, Rasputin, Marshal Petain. Two of his one person plays: "Independence,' and "And Evening with John Wilkes Booth" play colleges around the country. He and his wife Barbara Mallory founded Storybook Theatre of Los Angeles at Theatre West and have plays there for the past 35 years. Lloyd has written the book, music, lyrics and/or directed all 18 of those shows. The latest Brady permutation is "A Very Brady Reconstruction" which will air in 2019 with Lloyd as consulting producer. That means that some variation has been on the air in the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s, 10s, and the teens.- Producer
- Writer
- Director
Burt Dubrow is known for Sally Jessy Raphael (1983), The Jerry Springer Show (1991) and I've Got a Secret (2006).- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
- Director
- Camera and Electrical Department
Lex Passaris was born on 24 November 1957 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is an assistant director and director, known for The Golden Girls (1985), The Suite Life of Zack & Cody (2005) and Los Beltrán (1999).- Director
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
- Producer
Bruce Bilson was born on 19 May 1928 in New York City, New York, USA. He is a director and assistant director, known for Get Smart (1965), The Odd Couple (1970) and The Sentinel (1996). He has been married to Renne Jarrett since 4 May 1981. He was previously married to Mona Weichman.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Larry was just eleven years old when he delved into show business after seeing a magician perform at a Cub Scout function. By the time he was fourteen he was performing magic professionally, and over the next six years developed a reputation as one of the hottest young entertainers in Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Along the way, Larry discovered another art form that would have a marked influence on his career - sales. Fascinated by carnival pitchmen, he developed a sales pitch around a trick deck of cards and began working a circuit of fairs hawking his cards for two bucks a deck. At the Minnesota State Fair he was spotted by a career pitchman who recognized his talents and introduced him to the world of Ginsu knives, Roll-A-Matic kitchen mops, the Miracle Slicer and a host of other products he would sell off and on over the next twenty years.
Before moving to California, Larry attended two years at the University of Minnesota majoring in theatre arts, and then Brown Institute where he studied television production and worked as a cameraman at the ABC and PBS affiliates in the Twin Cities. But, fame and fortune beckoned so Larry headed west.
He quickly landed a job with nationally known magician and president of an emerging entertainment company, Mark Wilson. Among his many assignments was serving as the technical advisor for film and television projects incorporating magic as part of their theme. As consultant and teacher to Bill Bixby on the NBC series The Magician, Larry appeared in many of the episodes, opening his eyes to a whole new career.
With his new goal of becoming an actor, Larry immersed himself in acting classes, movies, and plays to learn everything he could about the craft. He studied dramatic acting from such notable teachers as Stella Adler, Robert Lewis and Jose Quintero. But it was in a comedy improvisation workshop where Larry experienced the most growth as a performer. Out of this workshop grew Tap City, an improv troupe he directed and performed in each week at Hollywood's famous Comedy Store. Years later, Larry would form and teach his own comedy workshop at the Chamber Theatre in Los Angeles.
As a struggling actor, Larry kept the bills paid working the occasional fair or trade show as a pitchman. His big break came when he landed one of the lead roles in his first TV series -- an NBC sitcom called Brothers and Sisters. The show lasted only one season but opened the door to numerous guest-star appearances on shows like, Charlie's Angels, Happy Days, Knight Rider, Mork and Mindy, The A-Team, Matlock, Night Court, Beverly Hills 90210, Boston Public, The O.C., Raising The Bar, Desperate Housewives, Mad Men, Everybody Loves Chris and many more.
Not content working in just one aspect of the industry, Larry began expanding his interests into film production - taking courses in cinematography, screenwriting, lighting, editing and directing. Putting his new skills to work, he directed two critically acclaimed plays in Los Angeles and wrote, produced, and directed numerous film and video shorts. He also wrote several screenplays and served as Associate Producer on one of them, Hot Moves, which was released theatrically in 1985.
After an acting stint on a TV sitcom for Turner Broadcasting, Larry was given the opportunity to direct an episode, which earned him his membership in the Directors Guild of America. His debut effort was so well received he was hired to direct a second episode some weeks later.
Then came another big break. Larry auditioned for and was chosen by Aaron Spelling and Lucille Ball to play her son-in-law on the ABC sitcom Life with Lucy. This too lasted only one season, but afforded Larry a fateful guest appearance on the Tonight Show. Watching at home that night was Ralph Edwards who - based on Larry's "magical" eight minutes with Johnny Carson - hired him as host of the new Truth or Consequences.
Since then, Larry hosted a weekly water-sports series for the Travel Channel called Get Wet and other game shows including the California Lottery's Big Spin, and Trivia Track for the Game Show Network. On the big screen, Larry appeared (though hardly recognizable) as an enemy alien in the Paramount film Star Trek: Insurrection.
In recent years, Larry has hosted or been the "product expert" on numerous successful infomercial campaigns. Among these are George Foreman's Party Grill and Rotisserie Oven shows, Wagner's Wall-Magic Home Decorating System, Time-Life Music's Rock & Roll Era, AM Gold, and Classic Love Songs of The 60's shows, and the I-DAPZ Active Eyewear System. Larry's favorite Infomercial is one he wrote, produced, and stars in entitled JawDroppers - a set of how-to videotapes teaching anyone to perform jaw-dropping magic tricks with everyday items.
With his professional endeavors coming full-circle back to magic, Larry can't wait to see what lies around the next career corner.- Actress
- Soundtrack
New Orleans-born actress Gloria Henry was born Gloria Eileen McEniry on April 2, 1923, and lived on the edge of the Garden District growing up. Educated at the Worcester Art Museum School, she moved to Los Angeles in her very late teens and worked on a number of radio shows and commercials using the stage name of Gloria Henry. She also performed in little theatre groups.
Signed by an agent, the brunette hopeful transitioned into film work via Columbia Studios and made her debut as the femme lead in the minor horse-racing film Sport of Kings (1947), instantly moving into the programmer Keeper of the Bees (1947) as a love interest for Michael Duane and mystery drama Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back (1947) with Ron Randell as the title sleuth. Now a pert and pretty reddish-blonde, she continued providing decorative duties in such "B" fodder as Port Said (1948), in a dual role, Adventures in Silverado (1948),Air Hostess (1949), Rusty Saves a Life (1949), Feudin' Rhythm (1949), a musical western showcasing Eddy Arnold, Al Jennings of Oklahoma (1951), and the Gene Autry westerns The Strawberry Roan (1948) and Riders in the Sky (1949). Some of the better films for her that came out of this period included secondary femme roles in Johnny Allegro (1949) with George Raft and Nina Foch, Miss Grant Takes Richmond (1949) starring Lucille Ball and William Holden, and the classic Fritz Lang western Rancho Notorious (1952) top-lining Marlene Dietrich. She also had top billing in a few of her "B" films but to little notice.
The 1950s were an uneventful mixture of more "B" films and episodic TV guest parts (My Little Margie (1952), Perry Mason (1957)). She also was a regular on the private eye series The Files of Jeffrey Jones (1952) starring Don Haggerty, but was written out of the show due to pregnancy. All this relative anonymity, ended for her, however, when she won the role of radiant and resilient mom "Alice Mitchell" on the comedy series Dennis the Menace (1959) shortly after filming a role in Gang War (1958) starring a young and up-and-coming Charles Bronson. The series co-starred Herbert Anderson as her hapless, bespectacled husband and young Jay North as the pint-sized, trouble-making tornado of the title. Gloria was the picture of sunny innocence and maternal warmth and enjoyed four seasons. Sadly, invaluable actor Joseph Kearns, who played the cranky next-door neighbor "Mr. Wilson", died unexpectedly of a heart attack in 1962 to the detriment of the show. He provided an important chemistry with North and necessary friction that just wasn't mustered up by his eventual replacement Gale Gordon, a terrific character grump in his own right. Dennis the Menace (1959) lasted only one more season before being canceled. Gloria's career slowed down considerably after this TV success. She was spotted occasionally in TV-movies playing assorted bit-part matrons and returned to the big screen in a brief role in Her Minor Thing (2005), a romantic comedy directed by Charles Matthau, Walter Matthau's son. She occasionally attended film festivals and nostalgic conventions. Gloria wed architect Craig Ellwood in 1949; they divorced in 1977. She had three children from that marriage: Jeffrey, Adam and Erin Ellwood.- Actor
- Director
- Producer
Blond, boyishly handsome Dwayne Hickman, the younger brother of Darryl Hickman, followed in his sibling's tiny footsteps as a moppet film actor himself. Born Dwayne Bernard Hickman in Los Angeles on May 18, 1934, the brothers had a younger sister as well, Deidre (born 1940). He had minor roles in such films as Captain Eddie (1945) (Darryl had a major role in this), The Secret Heart (1946), The Boy with Green Hair (1948), Mighty Joe Young (1949), The Happy Years (1950) (again with Darryl in a major role), and topped his youthful film career as "Nip Worden" in the canine movie series "Rusty", which began with The Son of Rusty (1947) and ended with Rusty's Birthday (1949).
Graduating from Cathedral High School in 1952 (Darryl graduated from the same school in 1948), Dwayne enrolled at Loyola Marymount University. He returned to Hollywood following college studies and, unlike his brother, focused strongly on television work, making appearances on such series as Public Defender (1954), The Loretta Young Show (1953), The Lone Ranger (1949), and The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (1952). He also appeared in the Paul Newman/Joanne Woodward comedy film Rally 'Round the Flag, Boys! (1958) playing the secondary teen couple with Tuesday Weld. He grabbed major comedy attention, especially from young female baby-boomers, as Chuck, the girl-crazy nephew, in The Bob Cummings Show (1955). (Cummings became his mentor.)
Hickman then played the titular lovesick title high school teen in The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis (1959), the role for which he is best known, and in which he was reunited with Tuesday Weld as the prime object of his attention, although Weld did not remain with the series for the entirety of its run. Laying low for a few years, Hickman returned to the screen, making a strong impression in the western film Cat Ballou (1965), and then began hanging out with the young beach crowd in several AIP movies including Ski Party (1965), How to Stuff a Wild Bikini (1965), and Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine (1965), and a few slapstick comedies such as Sergeant Dead Head (1965) and Doctor, You've Got to Be Kidding! (1967). He guested on a mix of comedic and dramatic TV shows including Combat! (1962), Mod Squad (1968), Ellery Queen (1975), The Flying Nun (1967), and Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974).
In the 1970s, Hickman began working behind the scenes as a publicist, a Las Vegas entertainment director and, most successfully, as a programming executive for CBS. He would return only occasionally to acting. He revisited his Dobie Gillis character, albeit a fully grown-up version, in such made-for-television movies as Whatever Happened to Dobie Gillis? (1977) and Bring Me the Head of Dobie Gillis (1988). In addition to guest appearances on Murder, She Wrote (1984) and Hi Honey, I'm Home (1991), he appeared in glorified cameos in High School U.S.A. (1983), had a recurring role on Clueless (1996), and was glimpsed in Cops n Roberts (1995), A Night at the Roxbury (1998), and Angels with Angles (2005). He began episodic directing chores in the 1980's, working on such episodes as "Charles in Charge", "Designing Women", "Head of the Class", "Harry and the Hendersons", and "Sister, Sister". In 1994, he published his biography, aptly titled 'Forever Dobie'.
Thrice wed, Hickman has two children -- one by his first wife, actress/model/beauty pageant winner Carol Christensen (1963-1972) who appeared a few times on "Dobie Gillis", and the other by his present wife, actress/voiceover artist Joan Roberts, to whom he has been married since 1983.- Actress
- Additional Crew
Joan Roberts was born in Washington, D.C on February 19th and raised in the suburb of McLean, Virginia. She attended West Virginia University and American University majoring in drama and speech.
After touring with the U.S.O. Ms. Roberts joined WRC/NBC radio in Washington, D.C as a staff announcer and local radio personality. She quickly became one of the areas most sought after voice-over talents. While filming on location in Los Angeles she signed with an agent and relocated to California where she began a busy career guest starring in numerous television shows, Movies of the Week, pilots and series including, "Designing Women" in the highly acclaimed episode, "The AIDS Show"," Three's Company", "Archie Bunker", "Fantasy Island", "Matlock", "The Castaway's Return to Gilligan's Island" and many more.
In 1981 Ms. Roberts was cast as one of the stars of the CBS television series, "Pvt. Benjamin". The CBS network executive assigned to the series was Dwayne Hickman, former star of the classic television series, "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis". After meeting at a studio party the couple began dating and married two years later on April 16th 1983. Ms. Roberts continued guest starring in television shows, working in theatre and began pursuing a writing career. Encouraged by Linda Bloodworth Thomason, creator of "Designing Women", she wrote several scripts for the series as well as columns for various magazines and newspapers. In 1992 the couple's son, Albert Thomas, was born and Ms. Roberts devoted her time to her family and concentrating on her writing and voice-over career. In 1994 she co-authored with Dwayne Hickman his critically acclaimed autobiography, "Forever Dobie...The Many Lives of Dwayne Hickman", Birch Lane Press.
Dwayne Hickman left the CBS and began directing half hour comedies and pursuing his love of oil painting. While continuing her busy voiceover career Ms. Roberts signed on as contributing editor of "ArtAffairs Magazine" writing many of the magazines cover stories. By 1999 Hickman's artwork had moved from hobby to a thriving business. The couple formed, Hickman/Roberts Productions, Inc. and began publishing limited edition canvas prints of his artwork. In addition to her on-going show business career, Ms. Roberts launched Dwayne Hickman's artwork in galleries across the country. She created a marketing and promotional program unique in the art industry producing and promoting celebrity artist events nationwide.
Ms. Roberts is one of a small group of successful voice talent to work in the area of political narration. She was the female voice for McCain's 2008 Presidential Campaign, numerous candidates and issues and multiple races in the 2010 mid-terms. Joan Roberts, Dwayne Hickman and their son Albert reside in Los Angeles, California.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Born in Wellesley, MA, USA, Buxton grew up in Larchmont, NY, USA, graduated from Northwestern University (BS) and Syracuse University (MS). After service in the U.S. Army in the Korean War, he worked in local television as a producer-director in Buffalo, N.Y. and Chicago, IL and then began his performing career as a stand-up comedian, TV host (Discovery '70 (1962), Get the Message (1964)), and stage performer ("Brigadoon", "Bye Bye Birdie", "The Tender Trap", etc.). His television writing, producing and directing work included The Odd Couple (1970), Happy Days (1974), Mork & Mindy (1978), among many others, and he created the Peabody Award-winning series Hot Dog (1970) for NBC which starred Woody Allen and Jonathan Winters. As a film and TV actor, he has appeared in Overboard (1987), Beaches (1988), Frankie and Johnny (1991), Face of a Stranger (1991), With a Vengeance (1992) and Roommates (1994), as well as many series and specials. He wrote and created voices for Woody Allen's What's Up, Tiger Lily? (1966) and has done cartoon and commercial voices for innumerable projects.- Writer
- Composer
Monte Schulz was born on 1 February 1952 in the USA. He is a writer and composer, known for Seraphonium Live! (2017), It's the Girl in the Red Truck, Charlie Brown (1988) and Get Lamp (2010).- Burton Richardson was born on 29 September 1949 in Portland, Oregon, USA. He is an actor, known for Watching Ellie (2002), Russian Roulette (2002) and To Tell the Truth (1990).