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- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
John Cusack is, like most of his characters, an unconventional hero. Wary of fame and repelled by formulaic Hollywood fare, he has built a successful career playing underdogs and odd men out--all the while avoiding the media spotlight. John was born in Evanston, Illinois, to an Irish-American family. With the exception of mom Nancy (née Carolan), a former math teacher, the Cusack clan is all show business: father Dick Cusack was an actor and filmmaker, and John's siblings Joan Cusack, Ann Cusack, Bill Cusack and Susie Cusack are all thespians by trade. Like his brother and sisters, John became a member of Chicago's Piven Theatre Workshop while he was still in elementary school. By age 12, he already had several stage productions, commercial voice overs and industrial films under his belt. He made his feature film debut at 17, acting alongside Rob Lowe and Andrew McCarthy in the romantic comedy Class (1983). His next role, as a member of Anthony Michael Hall's geek brigade in Sixteen Candles (1984), put him on track to becoming a teen-flick fixture. Cusack remained on the periphery of the Brat Pack, sidestepping the meteoric rise and fall of most of his contemporaries, but he stayed busy with leads in films like The Sure Thing (1985) and Better Off Dead (1985). Young Cusack is probably best remembered for what could be considered his last adolescent role: the stereo-blaring romantic Lloyd Dobler in Say Anything (1989). A year later, he hit theaters as a grown-up, playing a bush-league con man caught between his manipulative mother and headstrong girlfriend in The Grifters (1990).
The next few years were relatively quiet for the actor, but he filled in the gaps with off-screen projects. He directed and produced several shows for the Chicago-based theater group The New Criminals, which he founded in 1988 (modeling it after Tim Robbins' Actors' Gang in Los Angeles) to promote political and avant-garde stage work. Four years later, Cusack's high school friends Steve Pink and D.V. DeVincentis joined him in starting a sister company for film, New Crime Productions. New Crime's first feature was the sharply written comedy Grosse Pointe Blank (1997), which touched off a career renaissance for Cusack. In addition to co-scripting, he starred as a world-weary hit man who goes home for his ten-year high school reunion and tries to rekindle a romance with the girl he stood up on prom night (Minnie Driver). In an instance of life imitating art, Cusack actually did go home for his ten-year reunion (to honor a bet about the film's financing) and ended up in a real-life romance with Driver. Cusack's next appearance was as a federal agent (or, as he described it, "the first post-Heston, non-biblical action star in sandals") in Con Air (1997), a movie he chose because he felt it was time to make smart business decisions. He followed that with Clint Eastwood's Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997), in which he played a Yankee reporter entangled in a Savannah murder case.
Cusack has always favored offbeat material, so it was no surprise when he turned up in the fiercely original Being John Malkovich (1999). Long-haired, bearded and bespectacled, he was almost unrecognizable in the role of a frustrated puppeteer who stumbles across a portal into the brain of actor John Malkovich. The convincing performance won him a Best Actor nomination at the Independent Spirit Awards. In 2000, Cusack was back to his clean-shaven self in High Fidelity (2000), another New Crime production. He worked with Steve Pink and D.V. DeVincentis to adapt Nick Hornby's popular novel (relocating the story to their native Chicago), then starred as the sarcastic record store owner who revisits his "Top 5" breakups to find out why he's so unlucky in love. The real Cusack has been romantically linked with several celebs, including Driver, Alison Eastwood, Claire Forlani and Neve Campbell. He's also something of a family man, acting frequently opposite sister Joan Cusack and pulling other Cusacks into his films on a regular basis. He seems pleased with the spate of projects on his horizon, but admits that he still hasn't reached his ultimate goal: to be involved in a "great piece of art".- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Zachary Michael Gilford is an American actor, known for his role as Matt Saracen on the NBC sports drama series Friday Night Lights. In 2021, he starred in the Netflix horror limited series Midnight Mass. He is also set to appear in the horror series The Midnight Club in 2022. Gilford was born in Evanston, Illinois, the son of Anne and Steve Gilford. His mother is Lutheran, and his father is Jewish. He graduated from Evanston Township High School and Northwestern University. He worked as a trip leader for Adventures Cross-Country and has led wilderness and adventure trips for teenagers to Alaska, British Columbia, California, Hawaii, and the South Pacific. Gilford also worked as a staff member for YMCA Camp Echo in Fremont, Michigan.- Actress
- Producer
- Writer
Daughter of a law professor at Northwestern University, she moved with her family to Los Angeles when he transferred to the University of California at Los Angeles (U.C.L.A.). She began acting in school plays at North Hollywood High, graduated from The Oakwood School and then continued her stage training at the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco and the drama division of The Juilliard School in New York. Following a pleasant screen debut in Robert Redford's Oscar-winning Ordinary People (1980), McGovern gave a great performance as Evelyn Nesbit in Ragtime (1981) for which she earned an Academy Award nomination as Best Supporting Actress. She has continued performing on stage between screen assignments rather than concentrate on being a film star, where her notable work in prolific plays, among others, also includes an acclaimed production of Alexi Kaye Campbell's "Sunset at the Villa Thalia" premiered in London at the National Theatre of Great Britain in May 2016, directed by Simon Godwin together with Ben Miles, Sam Crane, Pippa Nixon, Christos Callow, Glykeria Dimou and Eve Polycarpou in the brilliant cast..- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Jake Johnson (born Mark Jake Johnson Weinberger; May 28, 1978) is an American actor, comedian and director, most commonly known for playing Nick Miller in the Fox comedy series New Girl opposite Zooey Deschanel, for which he has received a Teen Choice Award nomination among others. Johnson also co-starred in the 2009 film Paper Heart and the 2012 film Safety Not Guaranteed, as well as appearing in Get Him to the Greek, 21 Jump Street. His first starring role in a feature film was Drinking Buddies, and he also starred in the 2014 comedy Let's Be Cops, alongside fellow New Girl star Damon Wayans, Jr. Appeared alongside Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard in Jurassic World (2015). Co-starred with Tom Cruise and Russell Crowe, in the Dark Universe thriller, The Mummy (2017). Starred as gambler Eddie Garrett in Netflix feature film Win It All (2017), alongside Keegan Michael Key and Joe Lo Truglio, directed by friend Joe Swanberg.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Daniel Sunjata (born Daniel Sunjata Condon on December 30, 1971) is an American actor who performs in film, television and theater. He is best known for his role as "Franco Rivera" in the FX television series, Rescue Me (2004). Sunjata also starred as "Paul Briggs" in USA Network's series, Graceland (2013). Sunjata was born and grew up in Chicago, Illinois. He is the adopted son of Bill and Catherine Condon, a police dispatcher and a civil rights worker. He is of mixed African American, Irish, and German ancestry.- Producer
- Actor
- Sound Department
William Petersen was born on 21 February 1953 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is a producer and actor, known for CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2000), Manhunter (1986) and To Live and Die in L.A. (1985). He has been married to Gina Cirone since 14 June 2003. They have two children. He was previously married to Joanne Brady.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Anders Holm was born on 29 May 1981 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for Workaholics (2011), Game Over, Man! (2018) and The Intern (2015). He has been married to Emma Nesper Holm since September 2011. They have one child.- Actress
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Alicia Goranson was born on 22 June 1974 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for Boys Don't Cry (1999), The Conners (2018) and Roseanne (1988).- Actress
- Writer
- Producer
Debra Stipe was born on 29 May 1962 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for Father Figures (2017), Bob Trevino Likes It (2024) and Full House (1987). She has been married to Greg Stipe since 28 September 1991. They have two children.- Actor
- Soundtrack
James Olson was born on October 8, 1930 in Evanston, Illinois, the son of LeRoy Olson, an engineer. He made his stage debut at age 12 as "Hans Brinker" in the Evanston Children's Theatre production of 'Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates'. He received a BS degree in Speech from Northwestern University before serving in the U.S. Army as a military policeman (M.P.) in 1952 for a two-year stint.
A Chicago-based stage actor before moving to New York, the 6'3" Olson studied with Lee Strasberg and made his Broadway debut in 'The Young and Beautiful'. Throughout the late 1950s and 1960s he continued to find poignant Broadway roles in 'J.B.' (1958), 'Romulus' (1962), 'The Chinese Prime Minister' (1964), 'The Three Sisters' (1964) and 'Of Love Remembered' (1967). Olson was featured in the 1966 Mary Tyler Moore-Richard Chamberlain musical misfire 'Holly Golightly' (based on the film Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)); the ill-fated musical closed before it reached Broadway.
Olson debuted on television as the title character in The Life of Mickey Mantle (1956). His film career began with the forgettable action drama The Sharkfighters (1956) but he later appeared in better roles in the film noir drama The Strange One (1957) and the Chekhov classic The Three Sisters (1966) (as Baron Tuzenbach, his Broadway stage role). He displayed an understated power in his performance as Joanne Woodward's suitor in the Oscar-nominated picture Rachel, Rachel (1968), which garnered him the best reviews of his film career. This was followed by a prime scientist role in the classic sci-fi thriller The Andromeda Strain (1971). He continued onstage in roles in 'The Glass Menagerie', 'The Crucible', 'A Safe Place', 'Twelve Dreams', and 'Winterplay'.
He had numerous TV-movie roles in Paper Man (1971), Incident on a Dark Street (1973), A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1974), The Sex Symbol (1974), The Missiles of October (1974), The Family Nobody Wanted (1975), Someone I Touched (1975), Strange New World (1975), Law and Order (1976), and The Spell (1977), and guest and/or recurring roles on such TV series as Bonanza (1959), Marcus Welby, M.D. (1969), Medical Center (1969), Police Story (1973), Police Woman (1974), The F.B.I. (1965), Gunsmoke (1955), Mannix (1967), Harry O (1973), Hawaii Five-O (1968), Maude (1972), Barnaby Jones (1973), The Bionic Woman (1976), and Battlestar Galactica (1978).
Major stardom proved elusive, however. Olson wrapped up his career with the films Ragtime (1981), Amityville II: The Possession (1982), Commando (1985) and Rachel River (1987) and 1990 TV appearances on The Family Man (1990) and Murder, She Wrote (1984), before retiring.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Naidu's first professional acting job, which he won from an open call, was a leading role opposite Michael Keaton in the 1986 film Touch and Go (1986). This was followed by an ABC Afterschool Specials (1972) episode, No Greater Gift (1985), where he played Nick Santana, a 12-year-old boy with a terminal illness. Naidu then appeared in the MacGyver (1985) TV series' first-season episode, To Be a Man (1986) in 1986.
Other early film credits include Where the River Runs Black (1986) opposite Charles Durning and Vice Versa (1988). Between 1988 and 1995 he worked extensively in classical theatre.
Naidu returned to film acting in 1996 with Richard Linklater's SubUrbia (1996), for which he was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male and competed against the likes of Samuel L. Jackson, Roy Scheider and Jason Lee.
On screen, Naidu starred in the cult film Office Space (1999), as well as appearing in such films as K-PAX (2001), SUBWAYStories: Tales from the Underground (1997), Requiem for a Dream (2000), Bad Santa (2003), The War Within (2005), The Guru (2002), Waterborne (2005), and Loins of Punjab Presents (2007). He co-starred as a series regular in the sitcom LateLine (1998) and had guest starring roles on the television dramas The Sopranos (1999), The West Wing (1999), and Bored to Death (2009).
Naidu has been working extensively with musicians from the Asian underground music movement for many years as a breakdancer and an M.C. His vocals have appeared on many records, most notably Talvin Singh's mercury award winner "OK".
In 2006, Naidu directed his first feature film Ashes (2010) which had its release in 2010 and for which he won Best Actor accolades from the MIACC Film Festival in New York and the London Asian Film Festival.
Naidu's most recent theatre credits include The Kid Stays in the Picture at the Royal Court Theatre, The Master and Margarita with Complicite, a world tour of Shakespeare's Measure for Measure with Complicite, The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui alongside Al Pacino, directed by Simon McBurney and The Little Flower of East Orange alongside Ellen Burstyn at New York's Public Theater directed by Philip Seymour Hoffman. In 2001 Naidu's solo theatre piece Darwaza was a sold-out hit at New York's Labyrinth Theatre.- Actor
- Soundtrack
William Christopher was born on 20 October 1932 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He was an actor, known for M*A*S*H (1972), The Fortune Cookie (1966) and Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1993). He was married to Barbara Christopher. He died on 31 December 2016 in Pasadena, California, USA.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Josh Meyers is an actor, writer and stand-up comedian. Josh was born and raised in Bedford, New Hampshire and went to Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. After graduating, Josh moved to Amsterdam to be an actor at the famed "Boom Chicago Theatre," which for twenty years has been a thriving European outpost for American improv comedy. While there, Josh wrote and performed with noted "Boom Chicago" alums, including Jason Sudeikis, Jordan Peele and his brother, Seth Meyers. From Boom Chicago, Josh was hired into the cast of Mad TV (1995), where he became known for his celebrity impressions, such as Owen Wilson and Matthew McConaughey. The sketch, "A Football Thing", which he wrote and performed with frequent partner Ike Barinholtz, is historically one of MADtv's biggest viral hits, with over 5 million views on YouTube. Meyers left MADtv for another Fox show, when he starred in the final season of That '70s Show (1998), replacing Topher Grace. Josh made his Broadway debut in "The Pee-Wee Herman Show on Broadway", where he joined friend Paul Reubens and recreated various iconic roles - most proudly the voice of "Conky". Josh has been a regular contributor to Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (2009), starring in their parody series, "Jersey Floor", and is a frequent guest when he and his brother Seth play the "SiblingWed Game", where they compete to see who better remembers their childhood days. Recent television roles include The Mindy Project (2012) (as a singing male prostitute) and a regular role on The Awesomes (2013), an animated superhero series, where he plays the insufferable "Perfect Man". Film works include Sacha Baron Cohen's Brüno (2009), where he played "Kookus" and the role of Liberace's attorney in the Emmy-winning Behind the Candelabra (2013). Josh is developing the sitcom, "Untitled Meyers Brothers Project", for Lorne Michaels' Broadway Video along with fellow "Boom Chicago" alum, Peter Grosz (The Colbert Report (2005)). Josh performs improv comedy regularly at the Hollywood Improv as well as stand-up comedy throughout Los Angeles and in Pasadena's famous Ice House.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Carlos Bernard spent his formative years in Mexico City and Chicago. He attended New Trier High School and majored in Fine Art at Illinois State University. It was after college that Carlos began his acting career - performing at such Chicago theaters as The Second City, Victory Gardens and Pegasus Players. He later made the move to San Francisco to train at the prestigious American Conservatory Theater masters program. While at A.C.T., he appeared in the classic plays Hamlet, As You Like It, The Cherry Orchard, Heartbreak House and Good.
Carlos has starred in various films and television series, including The Lincoln Lawyer, The Orville, Madame Secretary, Supergirl, Castle, CSI Miami and Dallas; however, he is probably best known for his portrayal of Tony Almeida on Fox's Golden Globe and Emmy Award winning series 24 - for which he received two Screen Actors Guild Award nominations, two Alma Award nominations and three Imagen Award nominations.
Carlos has written and directed for the stage and screen. He received an LA Weekly Theater Award nomination (Best Director) for his staging of Vaclav Havel's play The Memorandum. His first film Your Father's Daughter, which he wrote and directed, premiered at The Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival. He has directed episodes of FBI, Law & Order, FBI Most Wanted, Chicago Fire, BULL, Ciminal Minds, Hawaii Five-0, MacGyver, Magnum P.I. and The Inspectors.
Carlos was selected to participate in the Warner Bros. Directors' Workshop and the Sony Pictures Television Diverse Directors Program. He was one of the founding members of the Ashbury Actors Group theater company in Los Angeles.
Carlos is a life long Cubs fan.- Actress
- Additional Crew
Janet Louise Johnson grew up in North Hollywood, California. After attending UCLA for a year, she moved to New York to become a model. She appeared in television commercials and made a guest appearance on The Mike Douglas Show (1961) modeling clothes. She got her big acting break when she auditioned and won the part of Nancy Drew, replacing Pamela Sue Martin. She has two older sisters and a younger sister.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Barbara Harris began acting while still a teenager in Chicago, playing small parts in the Playwrights Theatre Club (whose other players included such youngsters as Edward Asner, Mike Nichols and Elaine May). She was also in "The Compass Players", the first ongoing improvisational theater troupe in America, directed by her then-husband Paul Sills (who founded the theater based on principles created by his mother, Viola Spolin , the author of "Improvisation for the Theatre"). A more polished version of the Compass, called "The Second City", was an enormous hit in Chicago and was moved to Broadway, where she was nominated for a Tony. She starred in a series of notable stage productions, including "On a Clear Day You Can See Forever"; "Oh Dad Poor Dad"; "The Apple Tree" (Tony Award, 1967) and "Mother Courage". Her film credits include major roles in A Thousand Clowns (1965), Oh Dad, Poor Dad, Mamma's Hung You in the Closet and I'm Feelin' So Sad (1967), Who Is Harry Kellerman and Why Is He Saying Those Terrible Things About Me? (1971), The War Between Men and Women (1972), Nashville (1975), Freaky Friday (1976), Family Plot (1976), Plaza Suite (1971), Movie Movie (1978), The Seduction of Joe Tynan (1979), The North Avenue Irregulars (1979), Second-Hand Hearts (1980), Peggy Sue Got Married (1986), Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988) and Grosse Pointe Blank (1997), and TV appearances included episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955) and Middle Ages (1992).- Actress
- Writer
Nancy Lee Grahn was born on 28 April 1956 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for General Hospital (1963), Santa Barbara (1984) and Babylon 5 (1993).- Actor
- Sound Department
Frank's first "role" was a six month old "theatre mascot" at a tent theatre in Granville, Ohio. His father, John, was an actor and playwright and his mother, Peg, directed him in a number of plays while he was growing up in Virginia and Ohio. As a young boy, Frank assisted his father when he toured with his one man Abraham Lincoln show. His father was selected to play Lincoln for the centennial celebration of Lincoln's first inauguration in Washington, DC ; Frank played young Tad Lincoln.
Frank trained at the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco, earned his BA in theatre at San Francisco State University, helped establish a summer theatre company in the Sierra Nevadas then went on to earn an MFA in acting at UC San Diego. Before Frank began his professional career in acting, he worked as a forest fire fighter, diaper service dispatcher and substitute teacher. Appearing in over 150 productions, Frank has worked off Broadway and in regional theaters in Boston, Denver and California. His theatrical roles have ranged from "Puck" in Midsummer's Nights Dream to "Miss Havisham" in Great Expectations to "Jacob Marley" in Christmas Carol. Frank is a founding member of Pacific Resident Theatre in Venice, California, which has won over 25 Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards.
Frank began his film and television career when he moved to Los Angeles in 1984. He is perhaps best known as "Horace Bing," the hapless telegraph operator on Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman (1993) and "Wash Hogwallop" in "O Brother Where Art Thou?
Frank is married to actress, Laura Gardner.- Actress
- Director
Tamara Braun was born on 18 April 1971 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. She is an actress and director, known for General Hospital (1963), Days of Our Lives (1965) and Kombucha Cure (2023).- Writer
- Producer
- Director
Oren Uziel was born on 28 June 1974 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Escape Room: Tournament of Champions (2021), The Cloverfield Paradox (2018) and Mortal Kombat (2021).- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Cathy Podewell was born on 26 January 1964 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for Night of the Demons (1988), Dallas (1978) and Dallas (2012). She has been married to Steven Glueck since 28 May 1989. They have three children.- Actor
- Sound Department
- Composer
Greg is a Los Angeles-based voice actor best known for his video game work. As a music producer, he has created music for numerous national advertising campaigns, hundreds of mobile games, and his long-standing collaboration with The Lonely Island has allowed his music to be featured on Saturday Night Live, the 67th Primetime Emmy Awards, the Michael Bolton Sexy Valentine's Day Special, and the critically-acclaimed comedy series I Think You Should Leave. As a music director, Greg has performed on the stages of Carnegie Hall, the Dolby Theater, and Disney Concert Hall. Greg is a native of Chicago and a graduate of Stanford University.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Jessica Ruth "Jessie" Mueller, born in Evanston, Illinois, is a Tony Award-winning actress known for her work on Broadway portraying Carole King in Beautiful; the Carole King Musical and Jenna Hunterson in Waitress. She was born into a family of actors. Her parents, Jill (Shellabarger) and Roger Mueller, were actors in Chicago, and her three siblings also went on to pursue the performing arts. Jessie attended Evanston Township Highschool where she first developed an interest in theatre, she then went on to major in Musical Theatre at Syracuse University. Following this, Jessie returned to Chicago where she pursued her career in theatre from the years 2005 to 2011 over this time she played an incredible breadth of roles and always secured raving reviews from critics who very much foreshadowed her Broadway career. In 2006 Mueller performed at the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford Upon Avon as Lady Mortimer in Henry IV. In 2009 Jessie received her first Joseph Jefferson Award for her portrayal of Carrie Pipperidge in Carousel, she would go on to receive two more nominations in 2011, she won again, this time as a lead actress - Amelia Balash, She Loves Me. During a production of 'Shout! The Mod Musical' Jessie landed her first Broadway show. A 'revisal' of 'a On A Clear Day You Can See Forever' alongside Harry Connick Jr. On 11th December 2011 Jessie made her Broadway debut as Melinda Wells, the show was short lived and ultimately unsuccessful, however Jessie's performance received radiant reviews and she got her first Tony Nomination. Jessie made her TV debut as Carrie Pipperidge in Live at Lincoln Centre's production of Carousel. Staying in New York, she performed in an Off-Broadway production of Into the Woods, as well as the Broadway productions of The Mystery of Edwin Drood and Nice Work If You Can Get It. In 2014 Jessie originated the role of Carole King in Beautiful; the Carole King Musical - the role which would secure her spot as one of Broadway's finest. For this role she received the Tony Award and Drama Desk Award for Best Actress and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theatre Album. Sara Bareilles, who was writing Waitress the musical at the time, attended opening night of Beautiful and immediately imagined Jessie as her leading lady, a role which Jessie undertook on a Broadway in 2016 earning her a 3rd Tony nomination and a 2nd Grammy nomination. Mueller is scheduled to return to Broadway 28th February 2018 as Julie Jordan in Carousel. Since 2016, Mueller has been seen to be branching out more into television and film making TV guest appearances in 'The Family' and 'Blue Bloods'. Additionally she will make her motion picture debut in the Spielberg film, 'The Post' - staring Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks. Jessie often appears on TV as herself on either talk shows or televised concerts, her performance at Chicago Voices, earned her a Chicago / Mid-Western Emmy Nomination in 2017. Additionally Mueller performed at the 2014 and 2016 Tony's as well as appearing as a presenter in 2015.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Grant Shaud was born on 17 October 1960 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is an actor and director, known for Murphy Brown (1988), Antz (1998) and Wall Street (1987).- Born Mary Eileen "Mimi" Chesterton (nicknamed Mimi by her friends and family) in St. Paul, Minnesota, titian beauty Claudia Jennings was raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In 1966, she moved to Evanston, Illinois, the first suburb north of Chicago just south of the Wisconsin state line, where she graduated high school in 1968.
After joining the Hull House theater company in Chicago, she took a job as a receptionist at the offices of Playboy magazine in September 1968. Photographer Pompeo Posar asked her to test, and with a potential $5,000 check at stake -- enough for a ticket to Hollywood -- she agreed. She eventually appeared as a Playmate in November 1969, and later as 1970 Playmate of the Year. Re-naming herself Claudia Jennings to avoid family embarrassment due to posing in the nude, she became the most perennially popular Playmate of the 1970s, as well as the number one female star of "Drive-In" movies such as The Unholy Rollers (1972) and 'Gator Bait (1973). Her first film role was with the film Jud (1971), a low-budget, socially conscious, independent film about a Vietnam soldier's return home. While the film came and went without much notice, it encouraged Claudia to go into the acting business full time.
From 1970 to 1975, she lived with songwriter/producer Bobby Hart but, after their split, her personal life began to spiral. She began using drugs and soon got a reputation for being unreliable. As her cocaine use began to escalate, her career from this point began to flounder.
One of her last theatrical film roles was a co-starring part in the little-seen Canadian racetrack drama Fast Company (1979). After narrowly missing the role of Kate Jackson's replacement on Charlie's Angels (1976) to Shelley Hack in May 1979, she began a tumultuous relationship with Beverly Hills realtor Stan Herman. Following their split later that summer, Jennings turned her life around and tried to quit drugs and drinking, but sadly died before she could continue performing in better films. On the morning of October 3, 1979, she was at the wheel of her VW convertible in Malibu on the Pacific Coast Highway, and drifted across the center divider, colliding head-on with a pickup truck near the intersection of Topanga Canyon Boulevard. She died a few minutes later before paramedics could arrive and get her to a nearby hospital. She was 29. - Richard Fancy (August 2, 1943 - Evanston, Illinois, USA) is an actor. He is especially known from recurring roles like Bernie on the daily ABC soap opera General Hospital and doctor Moss on the weekly NBC comedy series Nurses. He has been married to Joanna Fass since December 31, 1965. They have two children.
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Tom Neal is best remembered for his off-screen exploits, which involved scandal, mayhem and a charge of murder. Before his 1938 screen debut in MGM's Out West with the Hardys (1938), Neal had been a member of the boxing team at Northwestern University, had debuted on the Broadway stage in 1935 and had received a law degree from Harvard, also in 1938. Throughout the 1940s and into the 1950s, he appeared mostly as tough guys in Hollywood low-budgeters. In 1951, in a dispute over the on-again / off-again affections and the wavering allegiance of notorious actress / "party girl" Barbara Payton, he mixed it up with Payton's paramour, the aristocratic actor Franchot Tone. The former college boxer Neal inflicted upon Tone a smashed cheekbone, a broken nose and a brain concussion. Hollywood essentially blackballed Neal thereafter, but he would come to find a livelihood in gardening and landscaping. He was brought to trial in 1965 for the murder of his wife Gale, who had been shot to death with a .45-caliber bullet to the back of her head. Prosecutors sought the death penalty for Neal, which at the time meant a trip to the cyanide-gas chamber. The trial jury, however, convicted him only of "involuntary manslaughter", for which he was sentenced to 10 years in jail.
On 7 December 1971 he was released on parole, having served exactly six years to the day. Eight months later, Tom Neal was dead of heart failure.- Actor
- Composer
- Music Department
Eddie Vedder was known in San Diego for being a surfer and a singer in the progressive rock band Bad Radio, where he sang in the 80's until he departed to join Pearl Jam in 1990. Right before Eddie left Bad Radio, they opened for Andy Summers at the Bucchanal in San Diego. After the show, Eddie jumped off stage to talk to a pal of his, who had predicted Bad Radio winning at a competition in the late 80's. Eddie was poor and desperate, and found strong encouragement in the words of his friend Boris, who predicted once again his huge success. Boris Acosta is now a film producer and director.- Director
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
- Additional Crew
Emmy-nominated, Sundance filmmaker Geeta Vasant Patel is known for her emotional, form-pushing, and nontraditional style in both comedy and drama.
Geeta and her brother, Ravi Vasant Patel, were nominated for an Emmy for their film Meet The Patels. The film premiered theatrically in 2015 and was Executive Produced by Academy Award Winner Geralyn Dreyfous. Geeta served as cinematographer, writer, producer, editor, and director of the film, alongside her brother.
Geeta made her directorial debut with the Sundance/ITVS film, Project Kashmir, a war thriller which led to directing fellowships at both the Sundance and Tribeca Institutes.
In television, Geeta started as second-unit director on the Wachowski's Netflix series Sense 8, and then went on to direct on both comedic and dramatic shows that include, Superstore, The Great, and House of the Dragon.
Geeta began her career as an Associate Screenwriter on big-budget studio films in all stages, ranging from original work to production re-writes. She has worked with Disney, Universal Pictures, ABC, NBC, and Twentieth Century Fox on a range of films including The Fast and the Furious and Blue Crush.
A graduate in Comparative Area Studies at Duke University, Geeta's background in languages and global human geography, along with her interest in action/dance choreography, inform her work. While studying in Berlin, filmmaker Anthony Minghella inspired her to pursue a career in storytelling.
Geeta has been a Visiting Artist in Belarus, Turkey, Egypt, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Japan as part of the U.S. State Department's film diplomacy program.- Producer
- Writer
- Additional Crew
Alan Freedland was born in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is a producer and writer, known for King of the Hill (1997), Due Date (2010) and Impastor (2015).- Actress
- Writer
Teddi Siddall was born on 12 August 1953 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. She was an actress and writer, known for Prizzi's Honor (1985), Forever Strong (2008) and Fade to Black (1980). She was married to Gary Cole and Ron Castro. She died on 4 February 2018 in Studio City, California, USA.- Writer
- Producer
- Actress
Perino was born in Evanston, Wyoming, and grew up in Denver, Colorado. She attended Ponderosa High School in Parker, Colorado, a suburb of Denver. Perino graduated from the University of Southern Colorado (now known as Colorado State University-Pueblo) in 1994 with a bachelor's degree in mass communications and minors in both political science and Spanish. While attending the university, Perino was active on the debate team and with KTSC-TV, the campus-based PBS affiliate where she served as host of Capitol Journal, a weekly summary of Colorado politics, and producer of Standoff, a weekly public affairs program. From there, Perino attended graduate school at the University of Illinois at Springfield (UIS). Perino obtained her masters at UIS in Public Affairs Reporting while also working as a daily reporter covering the Illinois Capitol for WCIA-TV, a CBS affiliate.
Perino then went on to work in Washington, D.C., for Representative Scott McInnis (R, retired) of Colorado as a staff assistant before serving nearly four years as the press secretary for Rep. Dan Schaefer (R-CO-Retired), who then chaired a House Commerce subcommittee on Energy and Power.
After Representative Schaefer announced his retirement, Perino moved to England to marry businessman Peter McMahon. After a year in England, Perino and McMahon moved back to the United States and resided in San Diego, California, for three years. During that time, Perino worked in the field of high-tech public affairs.
In November 2001, Perino returned to Washington, D.C. to serve as a spokesperson for the Department of Justice. Several months later, she was asked to join the White House where she served as the Director of Communications for the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). By statute, the CEQ oversees the implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act, where all federal agencies must complete environmental assessments on their activities before they take action.
On March 31, 2006, President George W. Bush named Perino as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Press Secretary. In the role, Perino communicated many times a day with the President's director of communications, his press secretary and his director of media affairs, handling all environment-related media calls for the White House, as well as serving as the spokesperson for the White House on environmental issues. In addition, she served as the coordinator for all agencies on environment, energy and natural resource issues, as well as reviewing and approving the agencies' major announcements, while keeping the other White House offices apprised of CEQ actions.- Actor
- Writer
Pat Finn was born on 31 July 1965 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for The Middle (2009), It's Complicated (2009) and I Am Chris Farley (2015). He has been married to Donna Crowley since 29 September 1990. They have three children.- William Bassett was born on 28 December 1935 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is an actor, known for Black Dynamite (2009), The Karate Kid (1984) and House of 1000 Corpses (2003).
- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Graham Sibley, born in Evanston, Illinois, is the oldest of four children and grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan before finishing high school in Portland, Oregon. Sibley went on to play basketball and water polo at the collegiate level graduating from Chapman University.
Sibley's professional acting career began in New York when he landed the lead role in the cult classic, "Zombie Honeymoon". Produced by John Landis, "Zombie Honeymoon" was a critical success as well as a fan favorite winning The Fuse TV / Fangoria Chainsaw Award for Best With Less and went on to be distributed by Showtime Networks.
Throughout his career, Sibley has worked with Oscar winning filmmakers, Clint Eastwood and Bill Guttentag as well as premiering multiple films at The Sundance Film Festival as an actor and writer. He has also appeared in many groundbreaking television series earning an Emmy nomination for his work on the Amazon Prime Series, "DARK/WEB". On stage, he has originated roles for Tony-nominated playwright, Neil LaBute, Emmy-nominees Leslye Headland and Micah Schraft as well as others.
Sibley is a founding member of Los Angeles based IAMA Theatre Company. In addition, he co-founded The YOUnited Foundation, an organization dedicated to erasing apathy with film in which he was recognized by the State of California. Sibley lives in Los Angeles with his wife and their twin sons.- Actress
- Producer
Skye Aubrey was born on 21 December 1945 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. She was an actress and producer, known for Toma (1973), The Phantom of Hollywood (1974) and Fantasy Island (1977). She was married to Ilya Salkind. She died on 27 November 2020 in DeBary, Florida, USA.- Producer
- Writer
- Actor
Sean Evans was born on 26 April 1986 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is a producer and writer, known for Hot Ones (2015), Beyond the Loop (2014) and Hot Ones: The Game Show (2020).- Actress
- Composer
- Music Department
Nagarajan's parents are immigrants from India. Her mother, Geetha Nagarajan, is a former developmental specialist at Western Psychiatric Institute & Clinic. Her father, Nandu Nagarajan, is a professor and academic at the Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business at the University of Pittsburgh. She has one brother, Arjun.
Anisha Nagarajan was raised in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, before moving with her family to the suburb of Fox Chapel.She spent a year at a boarding school in India when she was 15 years old before graduating from Fox Chapel Area High School in 2002. She enrolled at New York University (NYU) after high school. She was cast in the Broadway musical Bombay Dreams as Priya during her sophomore year at NYU. She married her husband, actor Aalok Mehta, who co-starred in the musical.
Nagarajan appeared in a number of regional theater productions following Bombay Dreams, including the Hangar Theater production of Rent in Ithaca, New York and the The Wiz at the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, California. She is currently finishing her bachelor's degree at New York University.
In 2010, Nagarajan was cast as Madhuri, a shy call center employee in the NBC series, Outsourced. The role is her largest television credit to date. She had previously appeared in a guest role on the ABC television series, Ugly Betty.- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Veteran character actor Richard B. Shull was born on February 24, 1929 in Evanston, Illinois and raised in the Midwest. He attended the University of Iowa, then served with the U.S. Army in 1953. Finding work as a stage manager following his release, he finally made his Broadway debut in the Marx Brothers musical bio "Minnie's Boys" starring Shelley Winters on Broadway in 1970. His hangdog demeanor, puffy features and bemused manner proved an excellent scene stealer in comedy roles and he moved easily into film and TV in mid-career. Following his film debut in the very obscure Watch the Birdie (1965), Richard came into his own starting in 1971 with regular roles in such movies as The Anderson Tapes (1971), Klute (1971), Made for Each Other (1971), Slither (1973), Hail (1972), Hearts of the West (1975), The Big Bus (1976), Splash (1983), Garbo Talks (1984), HouseSitter (1992), Trapped in Paradise (1994) and, his last, Private Parts (1997) with Howard Stern. On TV, he was probably best known for his title role on the silly, short-lived series Holmes and Yoyo (1976) as Det. Alexander Holmes, opposite John Schuck who played Yoyo, a robotic cop. The recipient of a Tony nomination for his Broadway work on "Goodtime Charlie" in 1975, Richard's later career included such theater notables as "The Marriage of Bette and Boo" (1985), for which he won an off-Broadway Obie award, and the ever-popular "Victor/Victoria" starring a resurgent Julie Andrews, in 1995. Married four times, Richard was appearing in the stage production of "Epic Proportions" in New York when he suffered a fatal heart attack on October 14, 1999 at age 70.- Actor
- Additional Crew
Jon Wellner was born on 11 July 1975 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is an actor, known for Ocean's Thirteen (2007), CSI: Immortality (2015) and Evan Almighty (2007).- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Kirby Heyborne was born on 8 October 1977 in Evanston, Wyoming, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for The Three Stooges (2012), Saints and Soldiers (2003) and Pirates of the Great Salt Lake (2006).- Actor
- Producer
Kris Kamm was born on 29 November 1964 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Wyatt Earp (1994), Elvira: Mistress of the Dark (1988) and Coach (1989).- Actress
- Script and Continuity Department
- Writer
Ruby Wax was born on 19 April 1953 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for Girls on Top (1985), Shock Treatment (1981) and Chariots of Fire (1981). She has been married to Ed Bye since 16 May 1988. They have three children. She was previously married to Andrew Porter and Trevor Walton.- Susie Cusack was born in 1971 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. She is an actress, known for Short Cuts (1993), High Fidelity (2000) and Not Again! (1996).
- Bruce Jarchow was born on 19 May 1948 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is an actor, known for Ghost (1990), Outbreak (1995) and Big (1988).
- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Producer
Jeffrey Nicholas Brown is most known for his roles as "Jake Hart" on Nickelodeon's Henry Danger, "Corbett Stackhouse" on True Blood, and the voice of "Bronty" on Disney's Doc McStuffins. Jeffrey is also a Blue Man in the world famous Blue Man Group. He grew up in Evanston Il and started acting at a young age. His first professional job was in Steppenwolf's 1989 production of "The Grapes of Wrath". He went on to study at the Piven Theatre Workshop as well as The Second City, and then later joined their High School Touring Co. He went to The Theatre School at DePaul University to study acting after that. He lives in Los Angeles.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
This Ohio native graduated from UCLA's School of Theater, Film, and Television where he appeared in numerous stage productions including an adaptation of Anton Chekov's short story "A Poor, Defenseless Creature" and a main stage production of William Shakespeare's "All's Well That Ends Well." Since graduating, he has kept busy shooting a pilot for NBC, shooting multiple episodes of "MTV's Undressed", making guest appearances on such shows as "C.S.I." and "The Shield", as well as starring in the independent films "One on One", "Side Show" and "Lily". He has written his own short film titled "The Boyfriend - A Valentines Day Comedy."- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Willie Geist was born on 3 May 1975 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for Kung Fu Panda 3 (2016), The Campaign (2012) and Morning Joe (2007). He has been married to Christina Elena Sharkey since 24 May 2003. They have two children.- Deborah Lynn Tucker was born in Evanston, IL and grew up in the Chicago area. She competed nationally and internationally as a figure skater and was the 1985 World University Games Ladies' Bronze Medalist, before graduating from Boston University with a bachelor degree in Broadcasting and Film.
Deciding to transfer her love of performing from ice to stage and screen, she studied at the Actor's Institute in London and Oxford School of Drama, followed by a performance at the Edinburgh Festival. Six months after arriving in Hollywood she landed a series regular role on sitcom "Living Dolls" followed by a recurring role on "Dallas", enjoying back-to-back employment between comedy and drama genres.
After a few more years of working in Teen and early 20's roles, it was time to grow up off screen. She married Ron Markezich in 1996 and they relocated to Seattle to begin a family. They have four children born in less than 3 1/2 years, including twins. As the children were in school, the "acting bug" bit again and Deborah returned to work in a leading role on a corporate film series (2008-2013) as well as some short films in the area. She continues to work on films, traveling between the Pacific Northwest, Los Angeles, Vancouver B.C., Texas, and hopefully soon to the Southeastern U.S. market as her oldest heads to college across the country and she'd like to combine work with Mom visits! - Luka Jones was born on 18 August 1975 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He is an actor, known for Her (2013), The Campaign (2012) and The Pretty One (2013).