11,840 stories by "Trav S.d."
For the birthday of slapstick screen comedian Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, a little aid to navigating his posts on Travalanche: People Main Biographical Post on Arbuckle Minta Durfee (wife) Al S…
Born 150 years ago today: the great Harry Houdini! Houdini's the only magician to whom I've devoted an entire section on Travalanche. We thought we would observe this benchmark birthday by p…
Thanks, Matthew Coniam, of The Marx Brothers Council Podcast and The Annotated Marx Brothers, who made me aware of Charlotte Mineau (1886-1979). I'd noticed her in Monkey Business (1931) and…
We celebrate World Bear Day by bestowing upon the ursines similar attention to that which we have directed toward dogs, cats, rabbits, horses, mules, birds, ducks, lions, tigers, elephants, …
Paul Valentine (William Daixel, 1919-2006) comes to our attention (just barely) because he plays one of the principals in the late Marx Brothers movie Love Happy (1950). Unfortunately, after…
What with today being Chico Marx's birthday, and Marxfest looming (less than two months away), we thought we would get all our chicks in a row to assist your investigation of this intriguing…
March 22, by some mysterious decree, has been designated International Taxi Drivers Day, the ideal time, it would appear, to introduce Hal Roach's "Taxi Boys" comedies. The Taxi Boys were a …
The word "more" appears in our title on account of the previous post, which promoted an April 13 burlesque tribute to Flo Ziegfeld. Here are four other related events happening prior to that…
Today is the birthday of the great showman Flo Ziegfeld " seemed like the proper time to let you know about The Ziegfeld Girls Revue, playing at the The Green Room 42 (and livestreaming) on …
#botd Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906), who, as depicted above, could easily have been cast as a member of The Three Keatons. Ibsen's name is often paired with Chekhov's but apa…
Only recently did I conclude that I was a fan of director Edmund Goulding (1891-1959), having passed that crucial moment when I was realized that several movies I like had a key artist in co…
March 19, 1974 marked the endpoint of the lifespan of character actor Edward Platt (b. 1916). Readers of a certain age know Platt primarily from one particular role, so much so that they are…
Who are the stars of Marxfest, the Marx Brothers festival taking place in NYC just two months from now? Well, I'll tell yer! And in my patented, condensed, prioritized way, for the convenien…
Concert Lecture: A Salute to the Remarkable Molly Piconat the Museum at Eldridge StreetTuesday, March 19 | 6PM ET In conjunction with the exhibition On the Lower East Side: Twenty-Eight Rema…
Malachy McCourt (1931-2024) passed away just a week ago; it made sense to me save a little send-off to him for today, St. Patrick's Day. Malachy was not as well known internationally as his …
John Sebastian (b.1944) turns 80 years old today. Sebastian grew up in Greenwich Village " what was it like having a birthday there on St. Patrick's Day, I'd like to know? Well, this is my c…
Be prepared, readers! The Jerry Lewis centennial approaches; there will be many more posts about the divisive comedian over the next couple of years. I have even been telling friends that I'…
90 years ago today (March 16, 1934) saw the release of The Gold Ghost, the first of Buster Keaton's sixteen short subject comedies for Educational Pictures. The years of Keaton's talkie shor…
Know thou of the Giant Shoe Museum at Pike Place Market in Seattle? Its mandate is not shoes as big as houses (although that's entirely possible), but shoes worn by pituitary giants, includi…
March 14 was the birthday of Joseph Anthony Spah (1905-86), professionally known as "Ben Dova". Spah was 17 when he immigrated to the U.S. from his native Alsace-Lorraine in 1922. A circus p…
Here's a crazy yarn about a crazier yarn! In 2006, Broadway brilliantine David Yazbek (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Full Monty, Tootsie), having read my book No Applause and learning that I …
Ken Spears and Joe Ruby had a lot in common: both born in March (Spears #otd), both died in 2020, both born in Los Angeles, both served in the Navy. Oh, and both were co-creators of Scooby D…
We begin our look at the life of character Albert Salmi (1928-1990) in the middle rather than the beginning or the shocking end, for it is the part that will orient you. Like 99.99% of you I…
What an amazing life and career was the portion of British-American comedy character actor Richard Haydn (1905-1985), a creature of live theatre, film, radio, television, and the printed pag…
March 9 was the birthday of an important figure in rock and roll history whose name and contributions have never been well-known enough to satisfy justice, Lloyd Price (1933-2021). Price cam…
