|
2 Days In The Valley
''2 Days in the Valley'' is a 1996 American neo noir crime comedy film written and directed by John Herzfeld. The film stars Danny Aiello, Greg Cruttwell, Jeff Daniels, Teri Hatcher, Glenne Headly, Peter Horton, Marsha Mason, Paul Mazursky, James Spader, Eric Stoltz, and Charlize Theron. Plot Two hitmen, Lee Woods and mafioso Dosmo Pizzo, walk into a bedroom where a sleeping couple, Olympic athlete Becky Foxx and her ex-husband Roy Foxx, are in bed. Lee injects Becky with a tranquilizer, then shoots Roy in the head. Lee and Dosmo then drive to an abandoned area off Mulholland Drive, where Lee shoots Dosmo and blows up the car in order to set Dosmo up as the fall guy for the murder. Lee flees the scene with his girlfriend, Helga Svelgen. Dosmo was wearing a bulletproof vest and survived the shooting and car explosion. He takes shelter at the mansion of wealthy art dealer Allan Hopper, where he takes Hopper and his assistant Susan Parish hostage. Dosmo is unaware that Hopper has ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Herzfeld
John Herzfeld (born April 15, 1947) is an American film and television director, screenwriter, actor and producer. His feature film directing credits include '' Two of a Kind'' (1983), ''2 Days in the Valley'' (1996), ''15 Minutes'' (2001) and ''The Death and Life of Bobby Z'' (2007). He has also directed numerous made-for-television movies, including '' The Ryan White Story'' (1989), ''The Preppie Murder'' (1989), '' Casualties of Love: The "Long Island Lolita" Story'' (1993), and '' Don King: Only in America'' (1997) for which he was nominated for an Emmy and won the DGA award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Specials. He won a Daytime Emmy Award for directing the 1980 '' ABC Afterschool Special'' titled " Stoned". Early life Herzfeld was born on April 15, 1947, in Newark, New Jersey and grew up in West Orange, New Jersey. His father, who ran a small maintenance company, had a great love of movies, theater and ballet, and exposed his children to the arts as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Neo Noir
Neo-noir is a revival of film noir, a genre that had originally flourished during the post-World War II era in the United Statesroughly from 1940 to 1960. The French term, ''film noir'', translates literally to English as "black film", indicating sinister stories often presented in a shadowy cinematographic style. Neo-noir has a similar style but with updated themes, content, style, and visual elements. Definition The neologism neo-noir, using the Greek prefix for the word ''new'', is defined by Mark Conard as "any film coming after the classic noir period that contains noir themes and noir sensibility". Another definition describes it as later noir that often synthesizes diverse genres while foregrounding the scaffolding of ''film noir''. History "Film noir" was coined by critic Nino Frank in 1946 and popularized by French critics Raymond Borde and Etienne Chaumeton in 1955. The term revived in general use beginning in the 1980s, with a revival of the style. The classic ''film ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ada Maris
Ada Maris (born June 13, 1957) is an American actress known for her starring roles in the sitcoms ''Nurses'' and ''The Brothers Garcia''. Maris was born in East Los Angeles and grew up there. Her college education came at Boston University and UCLA. Maris has also been in the NBC series, ''Deception''. Maris was proud of the development of her character, Gina, on ''Nurses'', because she said that Gina "evolved into a real person." Maris has also acted on stage. In 1986–1987, Maris portrayed Maria Conchita Lopez in the syndicated television comedy ''What a Country!''. In 2004–2005, she appeared as Starfleet Captain Erika Hernandez on several episodes of ''Star Trek: Enterprise''. Since 1988, Maris has been married to fellow actor Tony Plana José Antonio Plana (born April 19, 1952) is a Cuban actor and director. He is known for playing Betty Suarez's father, Ignacio Suarez, on the ABC television show ''Ugly Betty'' and for voicing Manuel "Manny" Calavera in the video ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Micole Mercurio
Micole Diana Mercurio (March 10, 1938 – January 19, 2016) was an American film and television actress and artist. Her film credits included the roles of Rosemary Szabo in ''Flashdance'' in 1983, Mrs. Kelly in ''Gleaming the Cube'' in 1989, Momma Love in ''The Client'' in 1994, Midge Callaghan in '' While You Were Sleeping'' in 1995, as well as ''What Lies Beneath'' in 2000. Mercurio's television work included guest appearances and recurring roles on ''Night Court'', ''Hill Street Blues'', ''L.A. Law'', '' Chicago Hope'' and '' FlashForward.'' Mercurio was born in Chicago, Illinois, on March 10, 1938, to Michael Mercurio and Nancy Mercurio (born De Angelo). She was married to Albert James Armonda with whom she had four children. The marriage ended in divorce. She died at her home in Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on Calif ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lawrence Tierney
Lawrence James Tierney (March 15, 1919 – February 26, 2002) was an American film and television actor who is best known for his many screen portrayals of mobsters and tough guys in a career that spanned over 50 years. His roles mirrored his own frequent brushes with the law. In 2005, film critic David Kehr of ''The New York Times'' described "the hulking Tierney" as "not so much an actor as a frightening force of nature". Early life Lawrence James Tierney was born in Brooklyn, New York on March 15, 1919, the son of Mary Alice (née Crowley) (1895–1960) and Lawrence Hugh Tierney (1891–1964). His father was an Irish-American policeman with the New York aqueduct police force. Tierney was a star athlete at Boys' High School, winning awards for track and field and joining Omega Gamma Delta fraternity. After graduating from high school, he earned an athletic scholarship to Manhattan College but quit after two years to work temporarily as a laborer constructing a section of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cress Williams
Cress Williams (born July 26, 1970) is an American actor, known for his roles in ''Prison Break'' and '' Close to Home''. His most recent roles include Mayor Lavon Hayes on The CW series ''Hart of Dixie'' and the title character on The CW's ''Black Lightning''. Williams is also best known for his recurring role as Terrence "Scooter" Williams on Fox's ''Living Single'' and as Inspector Atwon Babcock on ''Nash Bridges''. Early life and education Williams was born in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, West Germany, to American parents. He took courses at Fullerton College and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in theatre from University of California, Los Angeles. Career Williams acted in a 1990 Fullerton College production of William Shakespeare's tragedy, ''Othello'', which was directed by Tom Blank. He also acted in another production in the same year at Fullerton College called ''Red Noses'', a black comedy produced by Peter Barnes and directed by Michael Fields. Williams has appe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Michael Jai White
Michael Jai White (born November 10, 1967) is an American actor, director and martial artist. He was the first African American to portray a major comic book superhero in a major motion picture, starring as Al Simmons, the protagonist in the 1997 film ''Spawn''.''Spawn'' was released on August 1, 1997, two weeks before the release of ''Steel'', which starred NBA basketball player Shaquille O'Neal. Robert Townsend and Damon Wayans also starred in the superhero films '' The Meteor Man'' (1993) and ''Blankman'' (1994), respectively, both parodies. White appeared as Marcus Williams in the Tyler Perry films ''Why Did I Get Married?'' and ''Why Did I Get Married Too?'', and starred as the character on the TBS/OWN comedy-drama television series ''Tyler Perry's For Better or Worse''. White portrayed Jax Briggs in '' Mortal Kombat: Legacy'' and the Cyborg Seth in '' Universal Soldier: The Return''. He portrayed boxer Mike Tyson in the 1995 HBO television film ''Tyson''. He also played the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kathleen Luong
Kathleen Luong (November 13, 1974 – October 28, 2020) was a Vietnamese American actress and model. She is usually credited as Katie Luong. Luong was born in Saigon, South Vietnam. In 1979 her family left Vietnam, and sailed to Malaysia. They immigrated to the United States and eventually settled in Orange County, CA where Katie was raised. Luong's first work in television was during her high school years when she was offered a job to appear in a Vietnamese karaoke video. After starring in a few music videos, she fell in love with acting and being in front of the camera. Her first of 15 television and film credits was a 1996 appearance in an episode of the television series ''Baywatch'', followed by one-off appearances in '' 2 Days in the Valley', '' JAG'', ''The Magnificent Seven'' and ''Threat Matrix'', along with film roles in '' Green Dragon'', ''Hunger'', ''Missing Brendan'' and '' In Search of a Midnight Kiss'' (2007), her last credited role. In her later years, Katie op ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Austin Pendleton
Austin Campbell Pendleton (born March 27, 1940) is an American actor, playwright, theatre director, and instructor. He is known as a prolific character actor on the stage and screen who has appeared in films including ''Catch-22'' (1970); '' What's Up, Doc?'' (1972); ''The Front Page'' (1974); ''The Muppet Movie'' (1979), ''Short Circuit'' (1986); ''Mr. and Mrs. Bridge'' (1990); ''My Cousin Vinny'' (1992); '' Amistad'' (1997); '' A Beautiful Mind'' (2001), which earned him a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture nomination; and '' Finding Nemo'' (2003). Pendleton received a Tony Award nomination for Best Direction of a Play for the Broadway revival of ''The Little Foxes'' in 1981. He has received two Drama Desk Award nominations and the recipient of a Special Drama Desk Award in 2007. He also received a Obie Award for Best Director for the 2011 off-Broadway revival of '' Three Sisters''. Recent Broadway credits include ''Choir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Louise Fletcher
Estelle Louise Fletcher (July 22, 1934 – September 23, 2022) was an American actress who portrayed the antagonist Nurse Ratched in '' One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' (1975), which earned her an Academy Award for Best Actress, a BAFTA Award, and a Golden Globe Award. She also had a recurring role as the Bajoran religious leader Kai Winn Adami in the television series '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' (1993–99), as well as the role of Sebastian's aunt Helen Rosemond in the movie ''Cruel Intentions'' (1999). She was nominated for two Emmy Awards for her roles in the television series ''Picket Fences'' (1996) and '' Joan of Arcadia'' (2004). Her final role was as Rosie in the Netflix series ''Girlboss'' (2017). Early life Estelle Louise Fletcher was born on July 22, 1934, in Birmingham, Alabama, the second of four children of Estelle (' Caldwell) and the Reverend Robert Capers Fletcher, an Episcopalian missionary from Arab, Alabama. Both her parents were deaf and worked with the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Keith Carradine
Keith Ian Carradine ( ; born August 8, 1949) is an American actor who has had success on stage, film, and television. He is known for his roles as Tom Frank in Robert Altman's film ''Nashville'', Wild Bill Hickok in the HBO series '' Deadwood'', FBI agent Frank Lundy in '' Dexter'', Lou Solverson in the first season of '' Fargo'', and US president Conrad Dalton in '' Madam Secretary''. As a member of the Carradine family, he is part of an acting dynasty that began with his father, John Carradine. Early life Carradine was born in San Mateo, California. He is the son of actress and artist Sonia Sorel (née Henius), and actor John Carradine. His full brothers are Christopher and Robert Carradine, both of whom are actors. His paternal half-brothers are Bruce and David Carradine. His maternal half-brother is Michael Bowen. His maternal great-grandfather was biochemist Max Henius, and his maternal great-grandmother was the sister of historian Johan Ludvig Heiberg. Carradine's ch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fall Guy
Fall guy is a colloquial phrase that refers to a person to whom blame is deliberately and falsely attributed in order to deflect blame from another party. Origin The origin of the term "fall guy" is unknown and contentious. Many sources place it in the early 20th century, while some claim an earlier origin. In April 2007, William Safire promoted a search to unearth its origins. The term "fall guy" for one whom blame was directed upon in order to shield others had appeared in mass public culture in the U.S. at least by the 1920s. In 1925 it was the title of a Broadway play, ''The Fall Guy'', by James Gleason and George Abbott, starring future Hollywood character actors Ernest Truex anDorothy Patterson This was turned into a crime film by Hollywood in 1930''The Fall Guy'' with the "fall guy" again used by a gangster as an unwitting narcotics courier. It saw widespread use in the crime-dominated film noir era of the mid-to-late 1940s into the early 1950s. A related use of "fal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
