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1-16 of 16
- Actor
- Director
- Producer
Richard Donald Crenna was born in Los Angeles, California, into a modest-income family, the only child of Edith J. (Pollette) and Domenick Anthony Crenna, a pharmacist. His parents were both of Italian descent. His mother managed a small hotel in downtown Los Angeles, where Richard and his family resided.
He began his career when he was eleven years old, playing the dimmer half of two youngsters called Herman and Sam in the Los Angeles radio show "Boy Scout Jamboree". He stayed with the series on and off for seventeen years, doing hundreds of other radio shows in between, including voicing Ougy Pringle in "A Date with Judy" (1946). During this time, he graduated from high school with letters in track and basketball, and later enrolled at the University of Southern California, where he majored in Theater Arts.
He was cast as Walter Denton in the radio show "Our Miss Brooks" and stayed in the part when the show moved from radio to television (Our Miss Brooks (1952)). The role called for a gangly, awkward, cracked-voice adolescent. Crenna was a tall, graceful man with a rich voice, yet his acting skills were such that he was easily able to fulfill the character's requirements, leading many viewers to believe that he actually was of high school age, when in fact he was 26 years old at the time. Crenna went on to star in another early television series, The Real McCoys (1957), but it was his role as the dedicated state legislator in the short-lived Slattery's People (1964) that finally established him both as a dramatic actor and a leading man. From that moment on, he was rarely absent from either television or motion pictures. In 1985, Crenna was awarded an Emmy for Best Performance by an Actor for The Rape of Richard Beck (1985). During the 1980s, he also became known for playing Colonel Trautman in the Rambo films (First Blood (1982), Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985), and Rambo III (1988)). His star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is in a prime position, opposite Mann's Chinese Theatre, two stars down from his Rambo co-star Sylvester Stallone.
Crenna married shortly after his graduation from USC, but the marriage was short-lived. He met and married his last wife in the late 1950s. Richard Crenna died at age 76 of heart failure on January 17, 2003 in Los Angeles, with more than 70 major motion pictures to his credit.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Fritzi Burr was born on 31 May 1924 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. She was an actress, known for Chinatown (1974), 3 Ninjas (1992) and Driving Me Crazy (1991). She was married to Aaron Heyman. She died on 17 January 2003 in Fort Myers, Florida, USA.- Mary Todd was born on 8 June 1916 in Santa Monica, California, USA. She was married to Dana Andrews. She died on 17 January 2003 in California, USA.
- Milton Williams was born on 10 October 1935 in Oyster Bay, New York, USA. He was married to Helen Williams. He died on 17 January 2003 in Valhalla, New York, USA.
- Actor
George Morgan was born on 16 March 1916 in New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor. He died on 17 January 2003 in Santa Monica, California, USA.- Actress
- Soundtrack
As a singer of light opera, Bernice Claire could be called the trailblazer for Jeanette MacDonald. In the year 1930, Claire and Alexander Gray were "the" operetta duo of talking pictures.
Bernice Claire Jahnigen was born March 22, 1909 in Oakland, California, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Adolph Jahnigen (later mistranscribed as Jahnigan). Her distinguished Castlemont High Schoolteacher, Alice Eggers, favorably influenced Bernice. It was Eggers who persuaded Bernice to audition for orchestra leader Emil Polak, who led theatre and radio orchestras in San Francisco at that time. Claire's publicist would later fabricate a teacher-student relationship between Claire and opera great Maria Jeritza. She possessed a remarkably clear and pure coloratura voice and had no difficulty singing demanding roles such as Victor Herbert's "Mlle Modiste," in which she starred in a school production.
She moved to New York in the 1920s, where she met singer Alexander Gray, a veteran of the Ziegfeld Follies. Together they co-starred in operettas such as "The Desert Song." Around 1929 Mr. Gray asked her to accompany him to a screen test for First National-Vitaphone at the time the studios were hastily converting to sound, and bolstering their music departments. The producers liked the team so much, they were both signed. Gray was signed to co-star with Marilyn Miller in "Sunny," and Claire was assigned the starring role in the first screen version of No, No, Nanette (1930). They both moved to Hollywood. Within little more than one year, Bernice Claire made the first screen versions of such hits as "Mlle Modiste" (released as Kiss Me Again (1931)), Spring Is Here (1930) (in which she sings "With a Song in My Heart"), The Song of the Flame (1930) and an original film musical Top Speed (1930) starring Joe E. Brown. When the studios determined that musicals had lost their drawing power, Claire was given a very different role in the prison drama Numbered Men (1930), directed by Mervyn LeRoy. Her co-star was Conrad Nagel. By 1932 Claire returned to New York radio and appeared with many prestigious orchestras, including Rudy Vallee, Erno Rapee and others. Her apartment was located at number 2 West 67th Street, just off Central Park West. The Vitaphone Company continued to use Claire's talent in film shorts, such as The Red Shadow (1932), based on "The Desert Song," with Alexander Gray. In 1934 she co-starred in The Flame Song (1934) with J. Harold Murray in an abbreviated version of The Song of the Flame (1930) (which she had made as a feature in 1930). She also toured in vaudeville and played roles in comedies and operettas, such as "Her Master's Voice." In 1933 she and Alexander Gray sang a duet in Universal's Moonlight and Pretzels (1933). In 1935 Claire co-starred in a British musical film Two Hearts in Harmony (1935), co-starring George Curzon. In the 1930s, her days and nights were occupied with radio and special appearances, including the 1935 San Diego Exposition. In 1937 she was elected "Miss Perfume for 1937" by delegates to the Perfume and Cosmetics Buyers Conference at the Hotel Roosevelt.
With her new dog, named "Jimmy Walker," she moved to a new apartment at 162 East 86th Street in the Upper East Side. On WABC she appeared with Frank Munn in 1935, accompanied by Gustave Haenschen's Orchestra. The following year she was on "Melodiana" for station WJZ. Instead of her being cover girl for the movie magazines, now she appeared on the covers of radio magazines, such as "Tower Radio." Throughout the country, Claire starred in numerous revivals, such as "The Chocolate Soldier," "Naughty Marietta" (Grand Rapids Municipal Opera), "The Fortune Teller," "Robin Hood," "The Firefly," "The Pink Lady," and "Salute to Spring" by Richard Berger (St. Louis Municipal Stadium).
In October 1938, when Rodgers and Hart's "I Married an Angel" was produced in Sydney, Australia, Bernice Claire played the role of Countess Peggy, which was originated by Vivienne Segal on Broadway. She returned to Australia the next year to perform "The Waltz Dream." Back in the U.S.A. she played Lorna Moon, opposite Eric Linden, in "Golden Boy." Into the 1940s Bernice continued to play leading ladies in such crowd-pleasing shows as "Irene" and "The Firefly."
When her first husband died, she felt unable to continue her performing. She and her second husband, Douglas Morris, owned property in southern California, including convalescent homes. During the 1970s and '80s Bernice was honored by local film societies in the San Francisco Bay Area. When her health deteriorated she quietly left her social and professional circles for retirement.- Eduardo Conde (April 9, 1946 - January 16, 2003) was a Brazilian actor, singer and model. In the 1970s, he starred in the Brazilian production of Jesus Cristo Superstar, in the role of Jesus Christ. For many years, he presented the awards at the Brasília Film Festival. As an actor, he participated in national productions - such as O Incrível Monstro Trapalhão and Os Saltimbancos Trapalhões (both 1981) - and international productions - for example, The Emerald Forest, by John Boorman and Blame It on Rio, by Stanley Donen, acting alongside Michael Caine and Demi Moore. On television, he acted in Plumas e Paetês (1980), O Beijo do Vampiro (2002) and in the miniseries O Quinto dos Infernos (2002). Eduardo Conde died of lung cancer caused by smoking and was buried at Jardim da Saudade cemetery in Rio de Janeiro. He left two children, fruits of his marriage with actress Betty Lago.
- Actress
Mary Anne Todd was born on 8 June 1916 in Santa Monica, California, USA. She was an actress. She was married to Dana Andrews. She died on 17 January 2003 in Palm Springs, California, USA.- Jean-Yves Dubois was born on 27 February 1958 in Chartres, Eure-et-Loir, France. He was an actor, known for La serva amorosa (1996), Ballade à blanc (1983) and Richelieu ou La journée des dupes (1983). He died on 17 January 2003 in Paris, France.
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
- Director
Jim Handley was born on 16 May 1914 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an assistant director and director, known for DTV: Rock, Rhythm & Blues (1984), The Reluctant Dragon (1941) and DTV Valentine (1986). He died on 17 January 2003 in Charleston, South Carolina, USA.- Balint Vazsonyi was born on 7 March 1936 in Budapest, Hungary. He was married to Barbara Whittington. He died on 17 January 2003 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA.
- Animation Department
- Director
- Writer
Leopold Fabiani was born in 1928 in Sevnica kraj Zagreba, Croatia, Yugoslavia [now Croatia]. He was a director and writer, known for Skrbnik (1974), Octave of Fear (1977) and Zimska zelja (1982). He died on 17 January 2003 in Zagreb, Croatia.- Gennadiy Zinovyev was born on 4 May 1936. He was an actor, known for Sevastopol (1970), Nasledniki (1976) and Dolgiy put v labirinte (1981). He died on 17 January 2003.
- Music Department
- Actress
- Producer
Elvi Henriksen was born on 6 June 1916 in Berlin, Germany. She was an actress and producer, known for Matador (1978), Klingende toner (1945) and Kongelig underholdning med danske digtere (1968). She was married to Niels Bjørn Larsen. She died on 17 January 2003 in Copenhagen, Denmark.- Eithne Flynn was born on 7 August 1921 in Dublin, Ireland. Eithne was married to Desmond Flynn. Eithne died on 17 January 2003 in West Milford, New Jersey, USA.
- Writer
- Soundtrack
George Haimsohn was born on 12 June 1925 in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. George was a writer, known for Theatre Date (1969) and Dames at Sea (1971). George died on 17 January 2003 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA.