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Barrie Chase
Barrie Chase (born October 20, 1933) is an American actress and dancer. Early life Born in Kings Point, New York, Chase began formal dance lessons at age three, studying with the New York City Opera's ballet mistress. She studied ballet, first with Adolph Bolm and later with Maria Bekefi. She abandoned her intention to become a ballerina in New York to stay in Los Angeles and help support her mother, pianist Lee Keith, after her parents' divorce. She is the daughter of writer Borden Chase ('' Red River'') and sister of screenwriter/actor Frank Chase. Performing career During the early 1950s, Chase danced on live television programs such as ''The Colgate Comedy Hour'' and ''The Chrysler Shower of Stars''. While working as Jack Cole's assistant choreographer at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, she was asked by Fred Astaire to be his dancing partner on '' An Evening with Fred Astaire''. She made four appearances as Astaire's partner in his television specials between 1958 and 1968. The two d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz; May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, choreographer, actor, and singer. He is often called the greatest dancer in Hollywood film history. Astaire's career in stage, film, and television spanned 76 years. He starred in more than 10 Broadway and West End musicals, made 31 musical films, four television specials, and numerous recordings. As a dancer, he was known for his uncanny sense of rhythm, creativity, and tireless perfectionism. Astaire's most memorable dancing partnership was with Ginger Rogers, whom he co-starred with in 10 Hollywood musicals during the classic age of Hollywood cinema. Astaire and Rogers starred together in ''Top Hat'' (1935), '' Swing Time'' (1936), and ''Shall We Dance'' (1937). Astaire's fame grew in films like ''Holiday Inn'' (1942), '' Easter Parade'' (1948), '' The Band Wagon'' (1953), '' Funny Face'' (1957), and ''Silk Stockings'' (1957). The American Film Institute named Astaire the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brigadoon (film)
''Brigadoon'' is a 1954 American Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musical film made in CinemaScope and Metrocolor based on the 1947 Broadway musical of the same name by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe. The film was directed by Vincente Minnelli and stars Gene Kelly, Van Johnson, and Cyd Charisse. ''Brigadoon'' has been broadcast on American television and is available in VHS, DVD and Blu-ray formats. Plot Americans Tommy Albright (Gene Kelly) and Jeff Douglas (Van Johnson) are on a hunting trip in Scotland and become lost in the woodlands. They happen upon Brigadoon, a miraculously blessed village that rises out of the mists every hundred years for only a day. (This was done so that the village would never be changed or destroyed by the outside world.) Tommy falls in love with village lass Fiona Campbell (Cyd Charisse), whose younger sister Jean (Virginia Bosler), is about to be married to Charlie Dalrymple (Jimmy Thompson). When Tommy and Jeff happen upon clues about the village and its ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
James Stewart
James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military pilot. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morality he portrayed both on and off the screen, he epitomized the "American ideal" in the mid-twentieth century. In 1999, the American Film Institute (AFI) ranked him third on its list of the greatest American male actors. Born and raised in Indiana, Pennsylvania, Stewart started acting while at Princeton University. After graduating in 1932, he began a career as a stage actor, appearing on Broadway and in summer stock productions. In 1935, he landed his first supporting role in a movie and in 1938 he had his breakthrough in Frank Capra's ensemble comedy '' You Can't Take It with You''. The following year, Stewart garnered his first of five Academy Award nominations for his portrayal of an idealized and virtuous man who becomes a senator in Cap ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Flight Of The Phoenix (1965 Film)
''The Flight of the Phoenix'' is a 1965 American survival drama film produced and directed by Robert Aldrich, based on the 1964 novel of the same name by English author Elleston Trevor. The story follows a small group of men struggling to survive their aircraft's emergency landing in the Sahara. It stars an ensemble cast, with James Stewart, Richard Attenborough, Peter Finch, Hardy Kruger, Ernest Borgnine, Ian Bannen, Ronald Fraser, Christian Marquand, Dan Duryea and George Kennedy. Though the film was not a financial success, it was well-received by critics, who praised Aldrich’s direction and the performances of its cast. It was nominated for two Academy Awards: Best Supporting Actor for Bannen and Best Editing for Michael Luciano. Hardy Krüger was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor, and Aldrich was nominated for Best Motion Picture – Drama. ''The Flight of the Phoenix'' was remade in 2004, titled as ''Flight of the Phoenix''. Plot Frank ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
''It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World'' is a 1963 American comedy film produced and directed by Stanley Kramer with a story and screenplay by William Rose and Tania Rose. The film, starring Spencer Tracy with an all-star cast of comedians, is about the madcap pursuit of $350,000 in stolen cash by a diverse and colorful group of strangers. It premiered on November 7, 1963. The principal cast features Edie Adams, Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, Buddy Hackett, Ethel Merman, Dorothy Provine, Mickey Rooney, Dick Shawn, Phil Silvers, Terry-Thomas, and Jonathan Winters. The film marked the first time Kramer directed a comedy, though he had produced the comedy ''So This Is New York'' in 1948. He is best known for producing and directing, in his own words, "heavy drama" about social problems, such as ''The Defiant Ones'', '' Inherit the Wind'', ''Judgment at Nuremberg'', and ''Guess Who's Coming to Dinner''. His first attempt at directing a comedy film paid off immensely as ''It's a Mad, Mad, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dick Shawn
Dick Shawn (born Richard Schulefand, December 1, 1923 – April 17, 1987) was an American actor and comedian. He played a wide variety of supporting roles and was a prolific character actor. During the 1960s, he played small roles in madcap comedies, usually portraying caricatures of counter culture personalities, such as the hedonistic but mother-obsessed Sylvester Marcus in ''It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World'' (1963), and the hippie actor Lorenzo Saint DuBois ("L.S.D.") in '' The Producers'' (1967). Besides his film work, he appeared in numerous television shows from the 1960s through the 1980s. Career Born in Buffalo, New York and raised in nearby Lackawanna, Shawn performed his stand-up comedy act for over 35 years in nightclubs around the world. His award-winning one-man stage show, ''The Second Greatest Entertainer in the Whole Wide World'', was sometimes performed with a unique opening. When the audience entered the theater, they saw a bare stage with a pile of bricks ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cape Fear (1962 Film)
''Cape Fear'' is a 1962 American noir psychological thriller film starring Gregory Peck, Robert Mitchum, and Polly Bergen. It was adapted by James R. Webb from the 1957 novel '' The Executioners'' by John D. MacDonald. The picture was directed by J. Lee Thompson from storyboards devised by original director Alfred Hitchcock and released on April 12, 1962. The film concerns an attorney whose family is stalked by a criminal he helped to send to jail. The supporting cast features Martin Balsam, Telly Savalas and Barrie Chase. ''Cape Fear'' was remade in 1991 by Martin Scorsese. Peck, Mitchum, and Balsam all appeared as different characters in the remake.Kirsten Thompson, ''Cape Fear'' and Trembling: Familial Dread; In ''Literature and Film: A Guide to the Theory and Practice of Film Adaptation'', Edited by Robert Stam, Alessandra Raengo, Blackwell Publishing, 2005, ISBN 0631230556 (pp.126-147) Plot In Southeast Georgia, Max Cady is released from prison after serving an eight ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Mitchum
Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He rose to prominence with an Academy Award nomination for the Best Supporting Actor for ''The Story of G.I. Joe'' (1945), followed by his starring in several classic film noirs. His acting is generally considered a forerunner of the antiheroes prevalent in film during the 1950s and 1960s. His best-known films include ''Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo'' (1944), ''Out of the Past'' (1947), ''River of No Return'' (1954), '' The Night of the Hunter'' (1955), '' Thunder Road'' (1958), '' Cape Fear'' (1962), '' El Dorado'' (1966), ''Ryan's Daughter'' (1970) and ''The Friends of Eddie Coyle'' (1973). He is also known for his television role as U.S. Navy Captain Victor "Pug" Henry in the epic miniseries ''The Winds of War'' (1983) and sequel ''War and Remembrance'' (1988). Mitchum is rated number 23 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male stars of classic American cinema. Ear ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The George Raft Story (film)
''The George Raft Story'' is a 1961 American biographical film of Hollywood film star George Raft. Ray Danton portrays Raft and the film was directed by Joseph M. Newman. The picture was retitled ''Spin of a Coin'' for release in the United Kingdom, a reference to Raft's character's nickel-flipping trick in '' Scarface'' (1932), the film that launched Raft's career as an actor known for portraying gangsters. The film is a largely fictionalized version of Raft's turbulent life and career. Neville Brand appears briefly as Al Capone, recreating his role from the 1959 television series ''The Untouchables''. Although other characters were fictional, Moxie was based on Raft's long-time friend and associate Mack Gray. Benjamin 'Bugsy' Siegel is a major character. No mention is made in the film of Raft's long-estranged wife Grayce (Mulrooney) or early mob benefactor Owney Madden. George Raft and Mack Gray had played themselves almost two decades earlier in a markedly different but ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
White Christmas (film)
''White Christmas'' is a 1954 American musical film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, and Vera-Ellen. Filmed in Technicolor, it features the songs of Irving Berlin, including a new version of the title song, " White Christmas", introduced by Crosby in the 1942 film ''Holiday Inn''. Produced and distributed by Paramount Pictures, the film is notable for being the first to be released in VistaVision, a widescreen process developed by Paramount that entailed using twice the surface area of standard 35mm film; this large-area negative was also used to yield finer-grained standard-sized 35mm prints. Plot On Christmas Eve in Europe in 1944, at the height of World War II, former Broadway star Captain Bob Wallace and aspiring performer Private Phil Davis entertain the 151st division with a soldier's show. The men have just received word their beloved Major General Thomas F. Waverly has been relieved of his command. Waverly arrives and d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Silk Stockings (1957 Film)
''Silk Stockings'' is a 1957 American musical romantic comedy film directed by Rouben Mamoulian, based on the 1955 stage musical of the same name, which itself was an adaptation of the film ''Ninotchka'' (1939). It stars Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse. The supporting cast includes Janis Paige, Peter Lorre, Jules Munshin, and George Tobias reprising his Broadway role. It was choreographed by Eugene Loring and Hermes Pan. It received Golden Globe Award nominations for Best Film and Best Actress (Charisse) in the Comedy/Musical category. The score was embellished with the new song "The Ritz Roll and Rock", a parody of then-emerging rock and roll. The number ends with Astaire symbolically smashing his top hat, considered one of his trademarks, signaling his retirement from movie musicals, which he announced following the film's release. Plot A brash American film producer, Steve Canfield, wants Russian composer Peter Illyich Boroff to write music for his next picture, which is being ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daddy Long Legs (1955 Film)
''Daddy Long Legs'' (1955) is a Hollywood musical comedy film set in France, New York City, and the fictional college town of Walston, Massachusetts. The film was directed by Jean Negulesco, and stars Fred Astaire, Leslie Caron, Terry Moore, Fred Clark, and Thelma Ritter, with music and lyrics by Johnny Mercer. The screenplay was written by Phoebe Ephron and Henry Ephron, loosely based on the 1912 novel '' Daddy-Long-Legs'' by Jean Webster. This was the first of three consecutive Astaire films set in France or with a French theme (the others being ''Funny Face'' and '' Silk Stockings''), following the fashion for French-themed musicals established by ardent Francophile Gene Kelly with ''An American in Paris'' (1951), which also featured Kelly's protégée Caron. Like ''The Band Wagon'', ''Daddy Long Legs'' did only moderately well at the box office. Plot summary Wealthy American Jervis Pendleton III has a chance encounter at a French orphanage with cheerful 18-year-old resident ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
