Bruce Villanch
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Bruce Villanch
Bruce Gerald Vilanch (born November 23, 1948) is an American comedy writer, songwriter and actor. He is a two-time Emmy Award-winner. Vilanch is best known to the public for his four-year stint on ''Hollywood Squares'', as a celebrity participant; behind the scenes he was head writer for the show. In 2000, he performed off-Broadway in his self-penned one-man show, ''Bruce Vilanch: Almost Famous''. From 2000 to 2014, Vilanch was the head writer for the Oscars, after being an Oscar program co-writer for the previous ten years. He is a featured writer for the Tonys, Grammys, and Emmys. Early life and education Vilanch was born in New York City and raised in Paterson, New Jersey. When he was four days old, he was adopted by Jonas Vilanch, an optometrist, and his wife Henne, a housewife. Having her own theatrical aspirations, Vilanch's mother helped launch her son's show business career by getting him signed on with Lane Bryant's Charming Chub division as a chubby child model. Upon g ...
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New York City, New York
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the List of United States cities by population density, most densely populated major city in the United States, and is more than twice as populous as second-place Los Angeles. New York City lies at the southern tip of New York (state), New York State, and constitutes the geographical and demographic center of both the Northeast megalopolis and the New York metropolitan area, the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban area, urban landmass. With over 20.1 million people in its metropolitan statistical area and 23.5 million in its combined statistical area as of 2020, New York is one of the world's most populous Megacity, megacities, and over 58 million people live within of the city. New York City is a global city, global Culture of New ...
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Divine Madness (film)
''Divine Madness'' is a 1980 American concert film directed by Michael Ritchie, and featuring Bette Midler and the Harlettes during her 1979 concerts at Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena, California. The 94-minute film features Midler's stand-up comedy routines, as well as 16 songs, including "Big Noise from Winnetka", "Paradise", "Shiver Me Timbers", " Fire Down Below", " Stay With Me", "My Mother's Eyes", "Chapel of Love" / "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy", "Do You Want to Dance", "You Can't Always Get What You Want" / "I Shall Be Released", " E Street Shuffle" / "Summer (The First Time)" / "Leader of the Pack", and " The Rose". Richie filmed four of Midler's concerts on the tour, and cut them together to look like one. ''Divine Madness'' was released in 1980 to relative critical success. The tracks "Shiver Me Timbers" and "Rainbow Sleeve" were edited out of the home video version. ''Divine Madness'' has been re-released on DVD, but, as yet, only in the US. Music ''For further i ...
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Robin Williams
Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian. Known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and comedies alike, he is regarded as one of the greatest comedians of all time. Williams began performing stand-up comedy in San Francisco and Los Angeles during the mid-1970s, and rose to fame playing the alien Mork in the ABC sitcom ''Mork & Mindy'' (1978–1982). After his first leading film role in ''Popeye'' (1980), he starred in several critically and commercially successful films, including '' The World According to Garp'' (1982), ''Moscow on the Hudson'' (1984), ''Good Morning, Vietnam'' (1987), ''Dead Poets Society'' (1989), ''Awakenings'' (1990), ''The Fisher King'' (1991), '' Patch Adams'' (1998), '' One Hour Photo'' (2002), and ''World's Greatest Dad'' (2009). He also starred in box office successes such as ''Hook'' (1991), '' Aladd ...
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Aerosmith
Aerosmith is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of Steven Tyler (lead vocals), Joe Perry (musician), Joe Perry (guitar), Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton (bass), Joey Kramer (drums) and Brad Whitford (guitar). Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has also incorporated elements of pop rock, heavy metal music, heavy metal, glam metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many subsequent rock artists. They are sometimes referred to as "the Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band".Whatever there is to say now about Aerosmith, the long-lasting, hard-rocking quintet that has often been billed or hyped as America's greatest rock and roll band, it could have been said two decades ago. The primary songwriting team of Tyler and Perry is often known as the "Toxic Twins". Perry and Hamilton, originally in a band together called the Jam Band, met up with Tyler, Kramer, and guitarist Ray Tabano, an ...
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Steven Tyler
Steven Victor Tallarico (born March 26, 1948), known professionally as Steven Tyler, is an American singer, best known as the lead singer of the Boston-based rock band Aerosmith, in which he also plays the harmonica, piano, and percussion. He is known as the "Demon of Screamin'" due to his high screams and his powerful wide vocal range. He is also known for his on-stage acrobatics. During his performances, Tyler usually dresses in colorful (and sometimes androgynous) outfits and makeup with his trademark scarves hanging from his microphone stand. In the 1970s, Tyler rose to prominence as the lead singer of Aerosmith, which released such hard rock albums as '' Toys in the Attic'' and ''Rocks'', along with a string of hit singles, including " Dream On", "Sweet Emotion" and "Walk This Way". By the late 1970s and early 1980s, Tyler had a heavy drug and alcohol addiction and the band's popularity waned. In 1986, Tyler completed drug rehabilitation and Aerosmith rose to prominence ...
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Elizabeth Taylor
Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 1950s. She then became the world's highest paid movie star in the 1960s, remaining a well-known public figure for the rest of her life. In 1999, the American Film Institute named her the seventh- greatest female screen legend of Classic Hollywood cinema. Born in London to socially prominent American parents, Taylor moved with her family to Los Angeles in 1939. She made her acting debut with a minor role in the Universal Pictures film ''There's One Born Every Minute'' (1942), but the studio ended her contract after a year. She was then signed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and became a popular teen star after appearing in ''National Velvet'' (1944). She transitioned to mature roles in the 1950s, when she starred in the comedy ''Father of the Bride'' (195 ...
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Paul Reiser
Paul Reiser (; born March 30, 1956) is an American actor, comedian, and television writer. He is known for his roles as Michael Taylor in the 1980s sitcom ''My Two Dads'', Paul Buchman in the NBC sitcom ''Mad About You'', Modell in the 1982 film '' Diner,'' Carter Burke in the 1986 film ''Aliens'', and as Detective Jeffrey Friedman in ''Beverly Hills Cop'' (1984), ''Beverly Hills Cop II'' (1987), and '' Beverly Hills Cop: Axel Foley''. More recently, he has gained recognition for his roles as Jim Neiman in the 2014 film ''Whiplash'' and Dr. Sam Owens in the Netflix series '' Stranger Things''. Reiser is ranked 77th on Comedy Central's 2004 list of the "100 Greatest Stand-ups of All Time". The name of his production company, Nuance Productions, is inspired by one of his lines in the film ''Diner'', where his character explains his discomfort with the word "nuance". Reiser is arguably best known for his role as greedy, slimy company man Carter Burke in James Cameron's ''Aliens' ...
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Rosie O'Donnell
Roseann O'Donnell (born March 21, 1962) is an American comedian, television producer, actress, author, and television personality. She began her comedy career as a teenager and received her breakthrough on the television series ''Star Search'' in 1984. After a series of television and film roles that introduced her to a larger national audience, O'Donnell hosted her own syndicated daytime talk show, ''The Rosie O'Donnell Show'', between 1996 and 2002, which won several Daytime Emmy Awards. During this period, she developed the nickname "Queen of Nice", as well as a reputation for philanthropic efforts. From 2006 to 2007, O'Donnell endured a controversial run as the moderator on the daytime talk show '' The View'', which included a public feud with Donald Trump and on-air disputes regarding the Bush administration's policies with the Iraq War. She hosted ''Rosie Radio'' on Sirius XM Radio between 2009 and 2011, and from 2011 to 2012 hosted a second, short-lived talk show on OWN, ...
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Roseanne Barr
Roseanne Cherrie Barr (born November 3, 1952) is an American actress, comedian, writer, producer, and former presidential candidate. Barr began her career in stand-up comedy before gaining acclaim in the television sitcom '' Roseanne'' (1988–1997; 2018). She won an Emmy and a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress for her work on the show. Barr became a stand-up comedian in 1980. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, she gained fame through her role in ''Roseanne'' and other performances. Barr sparked controversy when performing "The Star-Spangled Banner" at a nationally aired baseball game on July 25, 1990. After singing the anthem in what many perceived to be a deliberately disrespectful manner, Barr grabbed her groin and spat. This performance was met with condemnation from baseball fans and sportswriters, and was called "disgraceful" by then-President George H. W. Bush. Barr has been active and outspoken on political issues. She won nearly 70,000 votes for president in the 2012 ...
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Billy Crystal
William Edward Crystal (born March 14, 1948)On page 17 of his book ''700 Sundays'', Crystal displays his birth announcement, which gives his first two names as "William Edward", not "William Jacob" is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He gained prominence in the 1970s and 1980s for television roles as Jodie Dallas on the ABC sitcom ''Soap'' and as a cast member and frequent host of ''Saturday Night Live''. Crystal then became a Hollywood film star during the late 1980s and 1990s, appearing in '' Running Scared'' (1986), ''The Princess Bride'' (1987), ''Throw Momma from the Train'' (1987), ''Memories of Me'' (1988), '' When Harry Met Sally...'' (1989), ''City Slickers'' (1991), ''Mr. Saturday Night'' (1992), ''Analyze This'' (1999), and '' Parental Guidance'' (2012). He provided the voice of Mike Wazowski in the ''Monsters, Inc.'' franchise. He also starred on the Broadway stage in ''700 Sundays'' in 2004 and again in 2014 and in ''Mr. Saturday Night'' in 2022. Cryst ...
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Lily Tomlin
Mary Jean "Lily" Tomlin (born September 1, 1939) is an American actress, comedian, writer, singer, and producer. She started her career as a stand-up comedian as well as performing off-Broadway during the 1960s. Her breakout role was on the variety show ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' from 1969 until 1973. She starred as Frankie Bergstein on the Netflix series ''Grace and Frankie'', which debuted in 2015 and earned her nominations for four Primetime Emmy Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and a Golden Globe Award. In 1975, Tomlin made her film debut with Robert Altman's ''Nashville'', which earned her a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. In 1977, her performance as Margo Sperling in ''The Late Show'' won her the Silver Bear for Best Actress and nominations for the Golden Globe and BAFTA Award for Best Actress. Her other notable films include '' 9 to 5'' (1980), '' All of Me'' (1984), ''Big Business'' (1988), '' Flirting with Disaster'' (1996), ...
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The Brady Bunch Variety Hour
''The Brady Bunch Hour'' is an American variety show featuring skits and songs produced by Sid & Marty Krofft Productions in association with Paramount Television. It ran on ABC from November 28, 1976, to May 25, 1977. The series starred the original cast members of ''The Brady Bunch'', with the exception of Eve Plumb, who was replaced by Geri Reischl (a.k.a. "Fake Jan"). The show began as a 60-minute special titled ''The Brady Bunch Variety Hour'' on November 28, 1976. The special garnered high ratings and led to eight additional 60-minute episodes which were produced and aired sporadically under the shortened title ''The Brady Bunch Hour'' from January 23 to May 25, 1977. Later ''Brady Bunch'' revival series and TV reunion movies do not include or mention the show's events. Premise When the family is chosen to star in a new variety series for ABC, Mike Brady gives up his architectural career and moves his family into a beach-side home somewhere in Southern California. ...
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