11,531 stories by "Trav S.D."
What a week for silent comedy birthdays: we got Harry Langdon, Stan Laurel, Lupino Lane, Flora Finch, Louise Fazenda, Mae Busch " and what the hell, though they're not too silent I'll throw …
In the early years of this blog I would often bundle together folks who had the same birthday for shared biographical blogposts, but I soon realized the impracticality of making readers who …
The above was taken at the Stonewall Memorial a few days ago on one of our first post-vax escapades in the city. We're already midway through Pride Month almost, which means that we're also …
The career of Gene Barry (Eugene Klass, 1919-2009) was sporadically amazing. He was at the center of some of my favorite things in the world across the worlds of theatre, film and television…
Thanks be to friend and colleague Jenny Lee Mitchell for calling my attention to stage and screen comedian John Berkes (1895-1951). Berkes' early life in Trenton is an enigma but he made goo…
Like many other pro athletes, Jazz Age football star Red Grange (Harold Grange, 1903-1991), a.k.a. The Galloping Ghost also dabbled in show biz. Grange played for the University of Illinois …
Dolly Kay (Dora Kirschenbaum, 1900-1981) was a vaudeville and nightclub singer whose greatest fame came through recordings. She also performed under the names Margaret White and Sally Freema…
Freddy Fisher (1904-1967) was the leader of one of the most successful of those novelty bands that were so popular during the 1940s and the great age of radio, with an act that mixed swing a…
Today we share a delightful discovery with you: a man who worked the circuits for decades as a muli-skilled variety artist and then shifted gears in middle age to become a modernist painter …
June 10 is Portugal Day, held annually on the birthday of LuÃs de Camões, Portugal's National Poet. Having created entire sections on this blog devoted to various major ethnicities and…
Here's a benchmark calculated to make me feel like Methusaleh. Michael J. Fox turns 60 today. Soon he can start redeeming those senior citizen coupons for half-priced coffee. "Back to the Fu…
Leslie Banks (1890-1952) succeeded in having an interesting stage and screen career despite a setback that might have discouraged hearts less stout: one side of his face had been disfigured …
Fred Kaps (Abraham Pieter Adrianus Bongers, 1926-1980) was the Dutch magician who had the grave misfortune to follow the Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show on their American debut in 1964. As a…
Just a few words today about Fay Adler(1907-1986), best known and remembered today for the minor role she played in the life and career of W.C. Fields. Adler was a native of San Bernadino, C…
Much like Toby Wing or Iris Adrian, Marion Martin (Marion Suplee, 1909-1985) came from the ranks of the chorus girls, and always carried an aura of the kickline about her, no matter the dist…
Fitting it is that the natal day of Maria Montez (MarÃa Ãfrica Gracia Vidal, 1912-1951) falls during Pride Month, for it is the right time to celebrate this gay icon. But there are oth…
I'll lay dollars to donuts I'll hear from friends who personally knew lady sword swallower Estelline Pike (Estelline Lovin, 1908-1990). In fact my time in NYC overlapped with hers by 3 or 4 …
A few words today on actress Peggy Stewart (Peggy O'Rourke, 1923-2019). I always take special note when I see her in anything, for the completely random reason (which you'd have no reason to…
For someone with such a large legend, Rosalind Russell (1907-1976) left a suprisingly small footprint: 55 screen credits (ten or a dozen of them in supporting parts) over four decades, avera…
I'm sure I'm not unique in having been introduced to Carol Ohmart (1927-2002) through her memorable performances in two key horror/exploitation films, William Castle's House on Haunted Hill …
Chester Dolphin (Charles H. Dolphin, 1907-1986) was a minor show biz figure to be sure, but knowing about him adds color and depth to our overall portrait of American variety entertainment. …
A few words today on the topic of Count Alessandro do Cagliostro (Giuseppe Balsamo, 1743-1795), familiarly known as Cagliostro. I had occasion to mention Cagliostro in my book No Applause, a…
I found myself stalled this morning, wondering "What can I write that's worth writing about on the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre?" It's an event most of my friends and colleag…
I have been a fan of Chris Elliott (b. 1960) since the beginning, the early to mid '80s, when he began making frequent appearances on sketches on Late Night with David Letterman. On the show…
I am a huge fan of the antic Welsh character actor Hugh Griffith (1912-1980). My favorite performance of his, and the one that first made me take notice, was his kinetic loose-cannon turn as…
