11,442 stories by "Trav S.D."
What does it say about America in the late 20th century that classy, dignified, well-spoken actor John Hillerman (1932-2017) seemed to be from ANOTHER TIME? America had become slovenly and l…
Today's new Travalanche post for December 20, 2025 is about the late actor John Hillerman. Other earlier Travalanche posts for December 20 (in no particular order) include ones on: Charlie C…
Today's new Travalanche posts for December 19, 2025 are about Elaine Joyce, and one of the last Munchkins, Elaine Merk. Other earlier Travalanche posts for December 19 (in no particular orde…
I don't usually lash together biographies of two different people into the same blogpost unless they are related somehow. But, dash it all, these two women with December 19 birthdays are bot…
Today's new Travalanche post for December 18, 2025 is about pioneering trans icons Boulton and Park. Other earlier Travalanche posts for December 18 (in no particular order) include ones on:…
Notorious criminals and music hall teams both often come in named pairs: Burke and Hare, Leopold and Loeb, and Dick and Perry on the one hand…Harrigan and Hart, Foottit and Chocolat, and W…
Today's new Travalanche post for December 17, 2025 is about accordion giant Tony Lovello. Other earlier Travalanche posts for December 17 (in no particular order) include ones on: An America…
Born in a December 17, Tony Lovello (Tony Lovullo, 1932-2017), widely billed as "The Liberace of the Accordion". Lovello was born and spent his early years in Buffalo. His father made him ta…
The title of this post is not intended satirically, though I suppose some may initially hear it that way. I'm no certified Janeite, but I have certainly enjoyed getting to know the writing o…
Today's new Travalanche post for December 16, 2025 honors the 250th anniversary of the birth of Jane Austen. Other earlier Travalanche posts for December 16 (in no particular order) include …
Today's new Travalanche posts for December 15, 2025 include ones on: The Emperor Nero, and actress Kasey Rogers (born 100 years ago today). We also want to suggest four earlier posts in part…
December 15, 37 A.D. is the date traditionally given for the birthdate of the Roman Emperor Nero (37-68). The example of Nero is a timely reminder, if one were needed, of what perils await a…
This is a rather atypical photo of Kasey Rogers (Josie Imogene Rogers, 1925-2006), but the rub is that it depicts her in her most widely known role, that of Farley Granger's troublesome, and…
My son, who takes great pictures, snapped the one above about a month ago during our trip to visit to family homelands in Alabama. Today is Alabama Statehood Day, so I thought I would do a p…
Today's new Travalanche posts for December 14, 2025 include ones on DeFord Bailey, the Addrisi Brothers, and National Alabama Day. Earlier Travalanche posts for December 14 (in no particu…
I first became aware of DeFord Bailey (1899-1982) just a few weeks ago, when researching my post on The Grand Ole Opry, which just turned 100, and which I just visited. Bailey was one of the…
The Addrisi Brothers are not exactly household words. Songwriters, even successful ones, seldom are. As it happens, they wrote one of my favorite songs in the world, though you may wretch wh…
Today's new Travalanche posts for December 13, 2025 include ones on Dick Van Dyke (for his 100th birthday), husband-wife silent screen comedians Harry Todd and Margaret Joslin, nightclub com…
The screen career of Florine McKinney (1909-1975) started on a very promising note. When still a high school student, the Texas beauty went to Hollywood and made the rounds of casting direct…
December 13th was the birthday of screen comedian Harry Todd (John Nelson Todd, 1863-1935). Let the buyer beware! I just came across an online article about the comedian which I found both t…
Happy 100th birthday to Dick Van Dyke (b. 1925)! I've already long since done a post on Van Dyke and his classic sit-com and on the films Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) and The Comic (1969).…
I first heard about Frankie Hyers (1905-1973) because he was teamed for a time with Fatso Marco Marcella, later of The Milton Berle Show. This is, I believe, the only complete article you wi…
Today's new Travalanche posts for December 12, 2025 on playwright John Osborne and a couple of supporting players named George Cooper. Earlier Travalanche posts for December 12 (in no partic…
A few words on the mixed legacy of English playwright John Osborne (1929-1994). To begin on a positive note, and completely out of order, Osborne wrote the screenplay to one of my favorite f…
There is little to tell of a biographical nature about supporting player George Cooper (1892-1943), but he did appear in well over 200 films, including decent parts in several silent comedie…
