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Ada May Weeks
Ada May Weeks Potter Castegnaro (March 8, 1896 – April 25, 1978), sometimes billed as Ada May or Ada Mae Weeks, or referred to as the Countess Castegnaro, was an American actress and dancer, on stage, film, and radio. Early life Weeks was born in Oyster Bay, New York, the daughter of Charles Meeks and Ada M. Thomson Weeks. She started dancing as a very young child. Her sisters Marion, Grace, and Ruth also became actresses. Career Weeks was a dancer, actress, and musical comedy performer. She used the name "Ada May" on advice from Zelda Sears. Her stage credits included roles in ''Around the Map'' (1915 –1916, as understudy for Marilyn Miller), ''Come to Bohemia'' (1916), ''Miss Springtime'' (1916 –1917), ''Miss 1917'' (1917), ''Listen, Lester'' (1918–1919, dancing with Clifton Webb), ''Jim Jam Jems'' (1920–1921), ''The O'Brien Girl'' (1921 –1922), ''Lollipop'' (1924), '' Rio Rita'' (1927–1928), and '' The Good Fairy'' (1932–1933). She appeared in the films ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oyster Bay (town), New York
The Town of Oyster Bay is the easternmost of the three towns which make up Nassau County, New York, United States. Part of the New York metropolitan area, it is the only town in Nassau County to extend from the North Shore to the South Shore of Long Island. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 301,332. There are 18 villages and 18 hamlets within the town of Oyster Bay. The U.S. Postal Service has organized these 36 places into 30 five-digit ZIP Codes, served by 20 post offices. Each post office shares the name of one of the hamlets or villages, but their boundaries are usually not coterminous. Oyster Bay is also the name of a hamlet on the North Shore, within the town of Oyster Bay. Near this hamlet, in the village of Cove Neck, is Sagamore Hill, the former residence and summer White House of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt and now a museum. At least six of the 36 villages and hamlets of the town have shores on Oyster Bay Harbor, an inlet of Long Island Sound, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zelda Sears
Zelda Sears (née Paldi; January 21, 1873 – February 19, 1935) was an American actress, screenwriter, novelist and businesswoman. Early life and background She was born as Zelda Paldi near Brockway Township, St. Clair County, Michigan, into a multi-lingual family that spoke French, Italian and English. Her father, Justin Lewis Paldi, was a first-generation Italian immigrant engineer and horse breeder, and her mother Roxa Tyler was of English heritage. Her entry into the job market at age 12 was borne out of a family financial crisis. Merchant L.A. Sherman conducted an essay contest for his store's opening day, with Sears submitting the winning entry and being rewarded with a position as cash runner for the sales staff. In the evening hours, she educated herself on secretarial skills. She was eventually promoted to the position of sales clerk. When she expressed an interest in writing, Sherman transferred her as a reporter on his newspaper the ''Port Huron Daily Times''. I ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marilyn Miller
Marilyn Miller (born Mary Ellen Reynolds; September 1, 1898 – April 7, 1936) was one of the most popular Broadway musical stars of the 1920s and early 1930s. She was an accomplished tap dancer, singer and actress, and the combination of these talents endeared her to audiences. On stage, she usually played rags-to-riches Cinderella characters who lived happily ever after. Her enormous popularity and famed image were in distinct contrast to her personal life, which was marred by disappointment, tragedy, frequent illness, and ultimately her sudden death due to complications of nasal surgery at age 37. Early life Marilyn Miller was born in 1898 in Evansville, Indiana, the youngest daughter of Edwin D. Reynolds, a telephone lineman, and his first wife, the former Ada Lynn Thompson.Staff (March 20, 1942"Marilyn Miller's Mother Dies"''The New York Times'', p.19 The tiny, delicately featured blonde was only four years old when she debuted in the role of Mademoiselle Sugarlump at Lakes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clifton Webb
Webb Parmelee Hollenbeck (November 19, 1889 – October 13, 1966), known professionally as Clifton Webb, was an American actor, singer, and dancer. He worked extensively and was known for his stage appearances in the plays of Noël Coward, including '' Blithe Spirit'', as well as appearances on Broadway in a number of successful musical revues. As a film actor, he was nominated for three Academy Awards - Best Supporting Actor for '' Laura'' (1944) and ''The Razor's Edge'' (1946), and Best Actor in a Leading Role for '' Sitting Pretty'' (1948). Early life Webb was born Webb Parmelee Hollenbeck in Indianapolis, Indiana. He was the only child of Jacob Grant Hollenbeck (1867 – May 2, 1939), the ticket-clerk son of a grocer from an Indiana farming family, and his wife, the former Mabel A. Parmelee (Parmalee or Parmallee; March 24, 1869 – October 17, 1960), the daughter of David Parmelee, a railroad conductor. The couple married in Kankakee, Illinois, on January 18, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rio Rita (musical)
''Rio Rita'' is a 1927 stage musical with a book by Guy Bolton and Fred Thompson, music by Harry Tierney, lyrics by Joseph McCarthy, and produced by Florenz Ziegfeld. This musical united Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey as a comedy team and made them famous. It premiered on Broadway on February 2, 1927, at the new Ziegfeld Theatre and, after moving to the Lyric Theatre and Majestic Theatre, closed on April 7, 1928 after 494 performances, a very long run for its time. In Sydney, Gladys Moncrieff appeared in a successful production at the St James Theatre. The musical premiered in London's West End on April 3, 1930, at the then newly opened Prince Edward Theatre. The musical was made into a film in 1929, '' Rio Rita'', starring Bebe Daniels and John Boles along with the team of Wheeler & Woolsey. Based on the success of this film, Wheeler & Woolsey were also given contracts to star in a series of comedies. Another film based on the musical was made in 1942. Background ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Good Fairy (play)
Ferenc Molnár wrote ''The Good Fairy'', originally ''A jó tündér'', in 1930. The English translation, by Jane Hinton was presented on Broadway, with another production later that year. In 1935, Preston Sturges adapted the story for the film ''The Good Fairy''. The film's screenplay was used as the basis for the 1951 Broadway musical '' Make A Wish''. ''The Good Fairy'' tells the story of a woman who must face the consequences of pretending to be someone she is not. Production History ''The Good Fairy'' premiered on Broadway on November 30, 1931, at Henry Miller's Theatre. This original production was both produced and staged by Gilbert Miller. It starred Helen Hayes as Lu, Walter Connolly as Dr. Sporum, Salo Douday as Underwaiter, Ruth Hammond as Karoline, Jack Lynds as Law Clerk, Paul McGrath as The Head Waiter, Evelyn Roberts as Konrad, and Douglas Wood as Dr. Metz. The play closed on April 2, 1932, after 151 performances. The show was soon revived on Broadway, this time a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Dancing Town
''The Dancing Town'' is a 1928 two-reeler film, starring Helen Hayes. It was Humphrey Bogart's film debut. Cast * Helen Hayes as Olive Pepperall * Clarence Nordstrom as Hopperday, Jr. * Ada May Weeks as Prue Pepperall (credited as Ada May) * Hal Skelly as Tom Kinch * Harry Beresford as Pa Pepperall * Elizabeth Patterson as Ma Pepperall * Jefferson De Angelis as Jake * George Le Guere as Olive's Dance Partner * Dallas Welford as Judge Hopperday * Josephine Drake as Ma Hopperday * Charles Eaton as Horace Pepperall * Harry Short as Honest Deacon Flynn * Humphrey Bogart as Man in Doorway at Dance Film preservation The UCLA Film and Television Archive The UCLA Film & Television Archive is a visual arts organization focused on the preservation, study, and appreciation of film and television, based at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Also a nonprofit exhibition venue, the archiv ... has a complete preservation copy of the film. References External links * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dance Girl Dance
''Dance Girl Dance'' is a 1933 American pre-Code musical film directed by Frank Strayer from an original screenplay by Robert Ellis. The picture stars Alan Dinehart, Evalyn Knapp, and Edward Nugent, and premiered on September 1, 1933. Cast list * Alan Dinehart as "Val" Wade Valentine * Evalyn Knapp as Sally Patter * Edward Nugent as Joe Pitt * Ada May as Claudette * Mae Busch as Lou Kendall * Theodore von Eltz as Phil Norton * Gloria Shea as Cleo Darville * George Grandee as Mozart Plot "Pitter and Pat" are a Vaudeville song and dance team composed of Joe Pitt and Sally Patter, who live together, although they are unmarried. After a show in a small town, Joe blames Sally for their lack of success, and runs off with Cleo Darville, a showgirl in another act. Unbeknownst to Joe is that Sally is pregnant. Sally goes to New York and talks to their agent, Lou Kendall, who gets her a job as a chorus girl in the Carlton Nightclub, owned by "Val" Wade Valentine. Val falls in lo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Monsieur Verdoux
''Monsieur Verdoux'' is a 1947 American black comedy film directed by and starring Charlie Chaplin, who plays a bigamist wife killer inspired by serial killer Henri Désiré Landru. The supporting cast includes Martha Raye, William Frawley, and Marilyn Nash. Plot Henri Verdoux had been a bank teller for thirty years before being laid off. To support his wheelchair-using wife and child, he turns to the business of marrying and murdering wealthy widows. The Couvais family becomes suspicious when Thelma Couvais withdraws all her money and disappears two weeks after marrying a man named "Varnay", whom they only know through a photograph. As Verdoux (Chaplin) prepares to sell Thelma Couvais's home, the widowed Marie Grosnay (Isobel Elsom) visits. Verdoux sees her as another "business" opportunity and attempts to charm her, but she refuses. Over the following weeks, Verdoux has a flower girl ( Barbara Slater) repeatedly send Grosnay flowers. In need of money to invest, Verdoux, as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fireside Theatre
''Fireside Theatre'' (also known as ''Jane Wyman Presents'') is an American anthology drama series that ran on NBC from 1949 to 1958, and was the first successful filmed series on American television. Productions were low-budget and often based on public domain stories or written by freelance writers such as Rod Serling. While it was panned by critics, it remained in the top ten most popular shows for most of its run. It predated the other major pioneer of filmed TV in America, ''I Love Lucy'', by two years. Overview ''Fireside Theatre'' was created by Frank Wisbar, who also wrote and directed many episodes. From 1952 to 1958, the program was presented by a host. This role was first filled by Wisbar (1952–1953), then by Gene Raymond (1953–1955), and finally by the person most associated with the series in the public mind, Jane Wyman (1955–1958). When episodes of this program were rerun on ABC during the summer of 1963, it was under the title ''Jane Wyman Presents''; durin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Cort (impresario)
John Cort (ca. 1861 – November 17, 1929) was an American impresario; his Cort Circuit was one of the first national theater circuits. Along with John Considine and Alexander Pantages, Cort was one of the Seattle-based entrepreneurs who parlayed their success in the years following the Klondike Gold Rush into an impact on America's national theater scene. While Considine and Pantages focused mainly on vaudeville, Cort focused on legitimate theater. At one time, he owned more legitimate theaters than anyone else in the United States, and he eventually became part of the New York theatrical establishment. His Cort Theatre (since renamed the James Earl Jones Theatre) remains a fixture of Broadway.Eric L. FlomCort, John (1861–1929) HistoryLink, August 9, 2001. Accessed December 22, 2007. Variety theater years The New York City-born Cort started his career as a stage actor of little distinction and as part of a comedy duo, Cort and Murphy. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1896 Births
Events January–March * January 2 – The Jameson Raid comes to an end, as Jameson surrenders to the Boers. * January 4 – Utah is admitted as the 45th U.S. state. * January 5 – An Austrian newspaper reports that Wilhelm Röntgen has discovered a type of radiation (later known as X-rays). * January 6 – Cecil Rhodes is forced to resign as Prime Minister of the Cape of Good Hope, for his involvement in the Jameson Raid. * January 7 – American culinary expert Fannie Farmer publishes her first cookbook. * January 12 – H. L. Smith takes the first X-ray photograph. * January 17 – Fourth Anglo-Ashanti War: British redcoats enter the Ashanti capital, Kumasi, and Asantehene Agyeman Prempeh I is deposed. * January 18 – The X-ray machine is exhibited for the first time. * January 28 – Walter Arnold, of East Peckham, Kent, England, is fined 1 shilling for speeding at (exceeding the contemporary speed limit of , the first spee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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