11,832 stories by "Trav S.D."
A few tidbits on Marie Wallace (1895-1961),whom I came across in Marjorie Farnsworth’s Ziegfeld Follies book. She was born in Massachusetts to parents who’d emigrated from Ire…
Today is the birthday of Louise Beavers (1902-1962). Originally from Cincinnati, Beavers moved to the Los Angeles area with her family at age 11. Her mother was a singing instructor. Through…
Someone to celebrate on International Women’s Day, my 6th cousin 3x removed Christine Ladd-Franklin (1847-1930)…not exactly a household name, which is the very point in tellin…
Filed under: CULTURE & POLITICS, Protests, Women Tagged: protest, rally, Washington Square Park, Women's Strike
Today is the anniversary of the attack by police thugs on protesters at the first march in Selma, Alabama in 1965. The town of Selma was founded by my 6th great uncle. I am related by marria…
The three words in the title of this post may SOUND like Speakeasy passwords, but they all came together in a semblance of sense yesterday. The fabled Algonquin Hotel acquired a couple of…
Today is the birthday of Guy Kibbee (1882-1956). Â Character actor Kibbee became a professional performer at age 13 in his native El Paso, wracking up nearly 35 years of stage experience o…
I was so grateful Kelly “Killy” Dwyer flushed me out of my hiding place yesterday to come see the last performance of her work Not Show Business in the Frigid Festival at Under S…
Tonight on TCM at 10:15pm (EST): a wonderful, obscure oddity from 1973:Â The Last of Sheila. This all-star murder mystery was co-written by no less than Stephen Sondheim and Anthony Perkin…
Today is the birthday of stage and screen Sir Rex Harrison (Reginald Harrison, 1908-1990). It’s safe to say that Harrison was the first serious English actor with whom I had any …
Today is the birthday of the influential illustrator Howard Pyle (1853-1911). A mutual love of illustration was one of the first things that brought my wife and I together — our second…
Today is the birthday of George Shelton (1884-1971), best remembered (when at all) as one of the panelists on the popular radio show It Pays to Be Ignorant. Born on New York’s Lo…
This new series of posts came out of the realization that I have relatives and roots in all 50 U.S. states. My ancestors lived in 14 of them (all on the eastern seaboard or adjacent), and I …
Today is the birthday of dashing stage and screen actor Edmund Lowe (1890-1971). The son of a California judge, Lowe considered careers in the ministry and the law before his love of languag…
Filed under: BROOKLYN, Indie Theatre, PLUGS Tagged: Brick Theater, BROOKLYN, Greg Kotis, Lunchtime, Theater of the Apes
Today is the birthday of the pathbreaking Ruby Dandridge (Ruby Jean Butler, 1900-1987). Dandridge was one of the few “pushy stage mothers” of famous performing children to achiev…
This new series of posts came out of the realization that I have relatives and roots in all 50 U.S. states. My ancestors lived in 14 of them (all on the eastern seaboard or adjacent), and I …
March is Women’s History Month. How I wish it could be an opportunity to celebrate America’s first female President this year, instead of bemoaning a President who represents the…
Filed under: Buster Keaton, Comedians, Comedy, Hollywood (History), Movies, PLUGS, Silent Film, Travel/ Tourism Tagged: Buster Keaton, Niles Essanay Film Museum, silent comedy
This new series of posts came out of the realization that I have relatives and roots in all 50 U.S. states. My ancestors lived in 14 of them (all on the eastern seaboard or adjacent), and I …
This new series of posts came out of the realization that I have relatives and roots in all 50 U.S. states. My ancestors lived in 14 of them (all on the eastern seaboard or adjacent), and I …
Today is the birthday of the great Zero Mostel (1915-1977). It would be par for the course that such an eccentric actor and performer as Mostel would also have a highly idiosyncratic career …
On Feb. 26, 1917, exactly 100 years ago, The Original Dixieland Jass Band (ODJB) made the first-ever commercial jazz recording,”Livery Stable Blues,” for the Victor Talkin…
Today is the birthday of the great Romantic novelist, playwright, essayist, and political figure Victor Hugo (1802-1885). I have many future posts within me about this great artist; one unav…
Well, this is more of a headline that a blogpost, I’m afraid. It seemed like a nice heretical stunt until I tried to draw up the list. I started with ten, and then realized I’d b…
