It's National Mule Day (which falls annually on Tennessee Day " coincidence? I think not). My dad grew up on a Tennessee farm surrounded by mules, so I get to make that joke. At any rate, ha…
The earlier phase of the career of actor H.B. Warner (Henry Byron Lickfold, 1876-1958) is the more significant but it makes more sense for us to begin near the end, for his later parts are b…
We just learned of the passing of Jerry Jeff Walker (1942-2020) today. My tribute to him will be the opposite of the usual. Normally I like to provide broader perspective than other eulogist…
We are delighted to see that TCM is showing the original 1956 version of Around the World in 80 Days today at 2:15pm EST, so we thought we would use it as an occasion to provide some backgro…
I've always felt that one of the most curious things about the 1933 horror classic King Kong (besides an island populated with prehistoric creatures and a giant ape attacking New York) is th…
Having written about the Batman tv show from the 60s, and the old Hollywood serials it was based on, as well as the animated show The Super Friends, we thought it would be a good idea to do …
Moses Kimball (1809-1895) should be lauded as a founder of American show business. He is a definite link in the chain that leads to American vaudeville. Simply put (too simply put) Kimball w…
Hear ye! Hear ye! I write you now in invisible ink, wearing a blindfold, to let you know that next Saturday (Halloween night) at 8pm, I will be giving a talk on Macabre and Mysterious Magici…
I can't remember when I've enjoyed anything as much as working on this piece for Chelsea Community News, about the ghosts who inhabit the Chelsea Hotel. I'd like to do a lot more on paranorm…
A spotlight this morning on stage and screen actress Jean Acker (Harriet Ackers, 1893-1978), better remembered today for her private life. Originally from New Jersey, Acker performer in vaud…
Jeff Goldblum's birthday falls within the Halloween season, and noticing that, we can't help but observe that (though we think of him primarily as a humorous guy) there is a strong subcurren…
In the interest of equal time, and having given considerable attention to Olivia de Havilland, we balance the record with some brief attention to her rival, sister, and pesky shadow Joan Fon…
Just got the memo that off-off-Broadway lioness Edith O'Hara has passed at age 103! I may do a longer encomium but have my hands full today. til then there's this piece I wrote about her and…
Will Rogers fans may know the name of influential Wild West showman Colonel Zack Mulhall (Zachariah P. Vanderveer, 1847-1923) " he's the gent who gave Rogers his start in show business. He's…
Some obligatory props today for classic comedy co-writer and Colum alum Morris "Morry" Ryskind (1895-1985). Ryskind has the same birthday as Margaret Dumont, who spoke many of his words on s…
Today, an overdue look at African American stage and screen star Rex Ingram (1895-1969). Ingram grew up in Cairo, Illinois, the son of a worker on the riverboat Robert E. Lee. He was the fir…
Today we exhume Boston Blackie " "an enemy to those who make him an enemy, friend to those who have no friend." I first became aware of this enigmatic fictional character in 2006 when we pre…
We've mentioned the Big Apple Circus nearly 50 times on this blog, and have reviewed several editions of the show but have not had as yet given its story a dedicated post. I owe much to the …
As a native Rhode Islander it gives me special pride today to give attention to "Colonel" Reuben Allen Steere (1838-1915). Born in Glocester, RI, Steere stood 44 inches in adulthood, and wei…
Tribute today to the late Gary Austin (1941-2017), founder of the L.A. improv and sketch comedy company and school known as The Groundlings. Oklahoma-born Austin was a member of the San Fran…
Released October 18, 1920: The Saphead. The Saphead is a bit of an anomaly in the career of Buster Keaton " though a major release and a big step in his career, most of his fans don't consid…
From 2006 notebook entries. I've evolved somewhat in the decade and a half since then in some areas, but I publish this mostly unedited, as I think there's more to be gleaned from full-throa…
A brief shout-out for B movie actor Robert Lowery (Robert Lowery Hanks, 1913-1971). Missouri-born Hanks was reportedly related to Nancy Hanks, Abraham Lincoln's mother. His father was a Kans…
My previous apartment was about a ten minute walk from the Quaker Cemetery in Prospect Park which contains the last remains of Montgomery Clift (1920-1966). Double damn the exile that preven…
A wink and a nod to stage and screen character actress Sarah Padden (1881-1967). Half English/ half Irish, Padden immigrated to the U.S. as a child. During her stage career she supported Oti…