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Brain Donors
''Brain Donors'' is a 1992 American comedy film directed by Dennis Dugan and released by Paramount Pictures, loosely based on the Marx Brothers comedies ''A Night at the Opera (film), A Night at the Opera'' and ''A Day at the Races (film), A Day at the Races'' (the first two films the Marx Brothers made for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer after leaving Paramount). The film co-stars John Turturro, Mel Smith, and Bob Nelson (comedian), Bob Nelson in the approximations of the Groucho, Chico, and Harpo roles, with Nancy Marchand in the Margaret Dumont dowager role. It was executive produced by David Zucker, David and Jerry Zucker, through their Zucker Brothers Productions. Plot After the death of tycoon and philanthropist Oscar Winterhaven Oglethorpe, a ballet company is founded in his name by his widow, Lillian. Ambulance-chasing attorney Roland T. Flakfizer competes against Oglethorpe's former attorney, Edmund Lazlo, to be director of the company. Lazlo is chosen for the position after sign ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dennis Dugan
Dennis Barton Dugan (born September 5, 1946) is an American director, actor, writer, artist and comedian. He is known for his partnership with comedic actor Adam Sandler, for whom he directed the films ''Happy Gilmore'', '' Big Daddy'', ''The Benchwarmers'', ''I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry'', ''You Don't Mess with the Zohan'', '' Grown Ups'', ''Just Go with It'', ''Jack and Jill'' and '' Grown Ups 2''. Dugan is a four-time Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Director nominee, winning once. Life and career Dugan was born in Wheaton, Illinois, the second of four sons of Marion, a housewife, and Charles Dugan, an insurance salesman. He graduated from Goodman School of Drama at the Art Institute of Chicago (now at DePaul University) and started his acting career in 1969 in New York City. He moved to Hollywood in 1972 and appeared in his first TV show, ''The Sixth Sense''. Later, he played in the 1973 TV movie '' The Girl Most Likely to...''. Other early film appearances include ''Ni ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Film
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere through the use of moving images. These images are generally accompanied by sound and, more rarely, other sensory stimulations. The word "cinema", short for cinematography, is often used to refer to filmmaking and the film industry, and to the art form that is the result of it. Recording and transmission of film The moving images of a film are created by photography, photographing actual scenes with a movie camera, motion-picture camera, by photographing drawings or miniature models using traditional animation techniques, by means of computer-generated imagery, CGI and computer animation, or by a combination of some or all of these techniques, and other visual effects. Before the introduction of digital production, series of still imag ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Badger Game
The badger game is an extortion scheme or confidence trick in which the victims are tricked into compromising positions in order to make them vulnerable to blackmail. Its name is derived from the practice of badger baiting. The trick was particularly effective in the 19th and earlier 20th century when social attitudes toward adultery were much harsher. A famous person known to have fallen victim of the scheme was the first United States Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, whose adulterous affair with Maria Reynolds was used by her husband to extort money and information from him. The badger game has been featured as a plot device in numerous books, movies and television shows. Description In its simplest form, the badger game proceeds thus: A married man begins an extramarital affair. Another man, posing as the other woman's husband or brother, then "discovers" the affair; he then demands money from the man to keep the affair secret. Unknown to the man having the af ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Widow
A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died. Terminology The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed ''widowhood''. An archaic term for a widow is "relict," literally "someone left over". This word can sometimes be found on older gravestones. The word "widow" comes from an Indo-European languages, Indo-European root meaning "widow" and has cognates across Indo-European languages. The male form, "widower", is first attested in the 14th century, by the 19th century supplanting "widow" with reference to men. The term ''widowhood'' can be used for either sex, at least according to some dictionaries, but the word ''widowerhood'' is also listed in some dictionaries. Occasionally, the word ''viduity'' is used. The adjective for either sex is ''widowed''. These terms are not applied to a Divorce, divorcé(e) following the death of an ex-spouse. Effects on health The phenomenon that refers to the increased mortality rate after the death ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ballet
Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of dance with its own vocabulary. Ballet has been influential globally and has defined the foundational techniques which are used in many other dance genres and cultures. Various schools around the world have incorporated their own cultures. As a result, ballet has evolved in distinct ways. A ''ballet'' as a unified work comprises the choreography and music for a ballet production. Ballets are choreographed and performed by trained ballet dancers. Traditional classical ballets are usually performed with classical music accompaniment and use elaborate costumes and staging, whereas modern ballets are often performed in simple costumes and without elaborate sets or scenery. Etymology Ballet is a French word which had its origin in Italian ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Philanthropist
Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material gain; and with government endeavors, which are public initiatives for public good, notably focusing on provision of public services. A person who practices philanthropy is a List of philanthropists, philanthropist. Etymology The word ''philanthropy'' comes , from ''phil''- "love, fond of" and ''anthrōpos'' "humankind, mankind". In the second century AD, Plutarch used the Greek concept of ''philanthrôpía'' to describe superior human beings. During the Middle Ages, ''philanthrôpía'' was superseded in Europe by the Christian theology, Christian cardinal virtue, virtue of ''charity'' (Latin: ''caritas''); selfless love, valued for salvation and escape from purgatory. Thomas Aquinas held that "the habit of charity ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jerry Zucker
Jerry Gordon Zucker (born March 11, 1950) is an American film producer, director, and writer known for his role in directing comedy spoof films such as ''Airplane!'' and ''Top Secret!'', and the Best Picture-nominated supernatural drama film ''Ghost''. He and his older brother, David Zucker, collaborated on several films. Life and career Zucker was born to a Jewish family in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the son of Charlotte A. (Lefstein) (d. 2007) and Burton C. Zucker, who was a real estate developer. He graduated from Shorewood High School. His paternal grandfather was Leonard Zucker who emigrated from Russia to the United States and became a naturalized citizen. Zucker's early career work started with Jim Abrahams and brother David Zucker. The trio performed in Madison, Wisconsin as a sketch and comedy troupe called "Kentucky Fried Theater". From there the three went on and together co-directed ''Airplane!'' in 1980 and then went on to do ''Top Secret!'' in 1984, and ''Ruthless Peop ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
David Zucker
David Samuel Zucker (born October 16, 1947) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Associated mostly with parody comedies, Zucker is recognized as the director and writer of the critically successful 1980 film ''Airplane!'' as well as being the creator of ''The Naked Gun'' franchise and for directing '' Scary Movie 3'' and ''Scary Movie 4''. Career Zucker's movies include ''The Kentucky Fried Movie'' in 1977, '' Ruthless People'' in 1986, ''The Naked Gun'' in 1988, '' The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear'' in 1991, ''BASEketball'' in 1998, '' Scary Movie 3'' in 2003, and its sequel ''Scary Movie 4'' in 2006. Out of 18 works he is associated with,'' Phone Booth'', which he produced in 2002, is the only non-comedic film. He co-directed several films including ''Airplane!'' in 1980 and '' Top Secret!'' in 1984; along with his brother, Jerry, and Jim Abrahams, the trio make up the ''ZAZ'' team of directors. He has also worked with Pat Proft (with whom he first ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Allmovie
AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne. History AllMovie was founded by popular-culture archivist Michael Erlewine, who also founded AllMusic and AllGame. The AllMovie database was licensed to tens of thousands of distributors and retailers for point-of-sale systems, websites and kiosks. The AllMovie database is comprehensive, including basic product information, cast and production credits, plot synopsis, professional reviews, biographies, relational links and more. AllMovie data was accessed on the web at the AllMovie website. It was also available via the AMG LASSO media recognition service, which can automatically recognize DVDs. In late 2007, TiVo Corporation acquired AMG for a reported $72 million. The AMG consumer facing web properties AllMusic.com, AllMovie.com and AllGame.com were sold by Rovi in August 2013 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dowager
A dowager is a widow or widower who holds a title or property—a "dower"—derived from her or his deceased spouse. As an adjective, ''dowager'' usually appears in association with monarchy, monarchical and aristocracy, aristocratic Title#Aristocratic_titles, titles. In popular usage, the noun ''dowager'' may refer to any elderly widow, especially one of wealth and dignity or autocratic manner. Some dowagers move to a separate residence known as a dower house. Use In the United Kingdom In the United Kingdom the widow of a peerage, peer or baronet may continue to use the style she had during her husband's lifetime, e.g. "Count, Countess of placeholder name, Loamshire", provided that his successor, if any, has no wife to bear the plain title. Otherwise she more properly prefixes either her given name, forename or the word ''Dowager'', e.g. "Jane, Countess of Loamshire" or "Dowager Countess of Loamshire". (In any case, she would continue to be called "Lady Loamshire".) The t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Margaret Dumont
Margaret Dumont (born Daisy Juliette Baker; October 20, 1882 – March 6, 1965) was an American stage and film actress. She is best remembered as the comic foil to the Marx Brothers in seven of their films; Groucho Marx called her "practically the fifth Marx brother." Early life Dumont was born Daisy Juliette Baker in Brooklyn, New York, the daughter of William and Harriet Anna (née Harvey) Baker. Her mother was a music teacher and encouraged Daisy's singing career from an early age. Career Dumont trained as an operatic singer and actress in her teens and began performing on stage in the US and Europe, at first under the name Daisy Dumont and later as Margaret (or Marguerite - French for Daisy) Dumont. Her theatrical debut was in ''Sleeping Beauty and the Beast'' at the Chestnut Theater in Philadelphia; in August 1902, two months before her 20th birthday, she appeared as a singer/comedian in a vaudeville act in Atlantic City. The dark-haired soubrette, described by a theater ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nancy Marchand
Nancy Lou Marchand (June 19, 1928 – June 18, 2000) was an American actress. She began her career in theatre in 1951. She was most famous for her television portrayals of Margaret Pynchon on ''Lou Grant'' and Livia Soprano on ''The Sopranos''. Early life Marchand was born in Buffalo, New York, to Raymond L. Marchand, a dentist, and his wife, Marjorie Freeman Marchand, a pianist. She was raised Methodist. She graduated from the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University) in 1949. She studied theatre at the Herbert Berghof Studio in New York City. Career An accomplished member of the Actors Studio, Marchand made her Broadway debut in ''The Taming of the Shrew'' in 1951. Additional theatre credits include ''The Merchant of Venice'', '' Love's Labour's Lost'', ''Much Ado About Nothing'', ''Forty Carats'', '' And Miss Reardon Drinks A Little'', ''The Plough and the Stars'', ''The Glass Menagerie'', ''Morning's at Seven'', ''Awake and Sing!'', ''The Octette Bri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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