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Down Memory Lane
''Down Memory Lane'' is a 1949 Hollywood compilation film of silent and sound comedies from the library of pioneer producer Mack Sennett. Phil Karlson directed the film, with Steve Allen writing the screenplay and appearing on screen as himself. Production Phil Karlson had just made a film for Eagle-Lion, ''The Big Cat'', when asked to direct ''Down Memory Lane''. He said someone from Eagle-Lion had the idea to make a film using all of Mack Sennett's old material including Bing Crosby and W.C. Fields. Karlson, who enjoyed the late-night disc jockey Steve Allen, approached him to work on the project. Steve Allen remembered the film in his first memoir: “ 'Down Memory Lane''afforded me the unusual opportunity of working with Mack Sennett and Franklin Pangborn, two real experts in the field of comedy. t was aninteresting assignment because I was given the opportunity to write the screenplay. This was not as weighty a matter as it sounds, however, since most of the picture con ...
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Cinema Of The United States
The cinema of the United States, consisting mainly of major film studios (also known as Hollywood) along with some independent film, has had a large effect on the global film industry since the early 20th century. The dominant style of American cinema is classical Hollywood cinema, which developed from 1913 to 1969 and is still typical of most films made there to this day. While Frenchmen Auguste and Louis Lumière are generally credited with the birth of modern cinema, American cinema soon came to be a dominant force in the emerging industry. , it produced the third-largest number of films of any national cinema, after India and China, with more than 600 English-language films released on average every year. While the national cinemas of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand also produce films in the same language, they are not part of the Hollywood system. That said, Hollywood has also been considered a transnational cinema, and has produced multiple lan ...
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Marjorie Kane
Marjorie Kane (April 28, 1909 – January 8, 1992) was an American film and stage actress born in Chicago. She appeared in more than 60 films between 1929 and 1951, occasionally under the name Babe Kane. Career Kane appeared on stage for 11 years before she was signed to a five-year contract with Mack Sennett in 1929. Her contract was validated by Los Angeles superior Judge Keech, as she was under legal signing age (she was 20). Her long run in the play '' Good News'' garnered her favorable reviews and interested two studios in giving her screen tests in 1928. "When I took my screen tests," she said, "I was continually conscious of the fact that I was in front of a movie camera and had to act. I was scared to death and couldn't do a thing. I tried my best to be natural but failed terribly."Thomas, Dan. ''The Evening Independence''. April 26, 1929. p. 17 Partial filmography *''Border Romance'' (1929) – Nina *''The Dance of Life'' (1929) – Performer: 'The Flippity ...
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Harry Bowen (actor)
Harry Bowen (October 4, 1888 – December 5, 1941) was an American character actor of the silent and sound film eras. Born on October 4, 1888, in Brooklyn, New York, he broke into the film industry doing film shorts during the silent era. His work on shorts continued into talking pictures, and it was in 1929 that he made his first appearance in a full-length feature, with a small role in ''Red Hot Rhythm'', directed by Leo McCarey. During his 20-year career, Bowen appeared in over 150 films, most of them film shorts, supporting comedians like Charley Chase, Edgar Kennedy and Laurel and Hardy. Other notable films in which he appeared include: the 1933 classic ''King Kong''; ''Flying Down to Rio'' (1933), which was the first on-screen pairing of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers; John Ford's 1935 comedy, ''The Whole Town's Talking'', starring Edward G. Robinson; and ''Next Time We Love'' (1936), starring Margaret Sullavan, James Stewart, and Ray Milland. His final screen performanc ...
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Phyllis Haver
Phyllis Maude Haver (January 6, 1899 – November 19, 1960) was an American actress of the silent film era. Early life Haver was born in Douglass, Kansas to James Hiram Haver (1872–1936) and Minnie Shanks Malone (1879–1949). When she was young, her family moved to Los Angeles, California. Haver attended Los Angeles Polytechnic High. After graduating, she played piano to accompany the new silent films in local theaters. Career Haver auditioned for comedy producer Mack Sennett on a whim. Sennett hired her as one of his original Sennett Bathing Beauties. Within a few years, she appeared as a leading lady in two-reelers for Sennett Studios. In 1923, Buster Keaton cast her as the female lead in his short ''The Balloonatic''. Later, while signed with DeMille-Pathé, Haver played the part of murderess Roxie Hart in the first film adaptation of ''Chicago'' in 1927, opposite Hungarian film actor Victor Varconi. One reviewer called her performance "astoundingly fine," and ad ...
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Toby Wing
Toby Wing (born Martha Virginia Wing, July 14, 1915 – March 22, 2001), "Toby" being an old family nickname, was an American actress and showgirl, once called "the most beautiful chorus girl in Hollywood". Early years Wing was born in Amelia Court House, Virginia, to Paul Wing and Martha Thraves. Her father, a career reserve Army officer, was an assistant director for Paramount Pictures. He was reactivated for service prior to World War II and was captured by the Japanese and survived the Bataan Death March. She had a sister, Pat Wing (real name Gertrude), who also worked as an actress (often in the chorus), as well as a younger brother. Her great-uncle was English playwright Sir Arthur Wing Pinero. Career Wing began working on-screen at age 9, having a few bit parts in silent movies through her father's job. In 1931, she became one of the first Goldwyn Girls, and she started her film career in ''Palmy Days'' (1932). In 1932, she was seen in Mack Sennett-produced comedi ...
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Marvin Loback
Marvin Loback (November 21, 1896 – August 18, 1938) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 110 films between 1916 and 1935. He was born in Tacoma, Washington and died in Los Angeles, California. Selected filmography * '' Follow the Crowd'' (1918) * '' Kicked Out'' (1918) * ''A Small Town Idol'' (1921) * ''Hands Off!'' (1921) * ''White Wings'' (1923) * ''The Soilers'' (1923) * ''Off His Trolley'' (1924) (credited as Marvin Lobach) * '' Smithy'' (1924) * ''Sock and Run'' (1927) * ''Mitt the Prince'' (1927) * ''The Big Shot'' (1927) * '' Sing, Bing, Sing'' (1933) * ''Uncivil Warriors'' (1935) * ''Three Little Beers ''Three Little Beers'' is a 1935 short subject directed by Del Lord starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Curly Howard). It is the 11th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring t ...'' (1935) External links * 1896 births 1938 deaths American male film actors American mal ...
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Florine McKinney
Florine McKinney (December 13, 1909 – July 28, 1975) was an American actress. McKinney was the daughter of a druggist in Fort Worth, Texas. She gained early acting experience in Little Theatre productions and plays at Central High School in Fort Worth. A soprano, she also sang in five languages at concerts in Texas. Her musical talents resulted in a scholarship to the American Conservatory of Music. McKinney received a contract from Paramount Pictures in 1931. Later, as a contract actor at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, she had the female romantic lead in ''Dizzy Dames''. She also appeared in the films '' The Miracle Man'', ''The Cabin in the Cotton'', '' Cynara'', ''Beauty for Sale'', ''Dancing Lady'', ''Student Tour'', ''David Copperfield'', ''Night Life of the Gods'', '' Strangers All'', '' Cappy Ricks Returns'', '' Muss 'Em Up'', '' A Star Fell from Heaven'', ''Waterloo Bridge'', ''Oklahoma Renegades'', '' A Night at Earl Carroll's'', '' You're the One'', ''Unholy Partners'', ''Br ...
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Elise Cavanna
Elise Alyse Cavanna (January 30, 1902 – May 12, 1963) was an American film actress, stage comedian, dancer, and fine artist. She went by the following names: Elise Seeds, Alyse Seeds, Elise Armitage, Elise Cavanna, and Elise Welton. Stage and film career She was born Elise Seeds in Germantown, Philadelphia, to Sally D. Burk and Thomas M. Seeds. She attended the Pennsylvania Academy and studied dancing with Isadora Duncan in Berlin, Germany. Cavanna was 6 feet tall and very svelte. She gave dance recitals in New York City, but grew dissatisfied and instead became a dancer in the Ziegfeld Follies. Cavanna was a comedian with Joe Weber and Lew Fields before she entered motion pictures in 1926. Her first film was '' Love 'Em and Leave 'Em'' (1926) with Louise Brooks and Evelyn Brent. Next she performed as an "early morning customer" with Brooks and W.C. Fields in ''It's the Old Army Game'' (1926). She worked with Fields in four other of his films, most notably ''The Dentist'', w ...
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Gloria Swanson
Gloria May Josephine Swanson (March 27, 1899April 4, 1983) was an American actress and producer. She first achieved fame acting in dozens of silent films in the 1920s and was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Actress, most famously for her 1950 return in Billy Wilder's ''Sunset Boulevard'', which also earned her a Golden Globe Award. Swanson was born in Chicago and raised in a military family that moved from base to base. Her infatuation with Essanay Studios actor Francis X. Bushman led to her aunt taking her to tour the actor's Chicago studio. The 15-year-old Swanson was offered a brief walk-on for one film, beginning her life's career in front of the cameras. Swanson was soon hired to work in California for Mack Sennett's Keystone Studios comedy shorts opposite Bobby Vernon. She was eventually recruited by Famous Players-Lasky/Paramount Pictures, where she was put under contract for seven years. With the company she became a global superstar. She starr ...
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Mack Swain
Mack Swain (born Moroni Swain; February 16, 1876 – August 25, 1935) was an early American film actor, who appeared in many of Mack Sennett’s comedies at Keystone Studios, including the Keystone Cops series. He also appeared in major features by Charlie Chaplin. Early years Swain was born on February 16, 1876 to Robert Henry Swain and Mary Ingeborg Jensen in Salt Lake City, Utah and was educated in Salt Lake City's public schools. He ran away from home at age 15, joining a minstrel show. His mother took him home after one performance, but he persuaded her to let him continue in entertainment. Career In the early 1900s, Swain had his own stock theater company, which performed in the western and midwestern United States. Swain worked in vaudeville before starting in silent film at Keystone Studios under Mack Sennett. While with Keystone, he was teamed up with Chester Conklin to make a series of comedy films. With Swain as "Ambrose" and Conklin as the grand mustachi ...
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Billy Bletcher
William Bletcher (September 24, 1894 – January 5, 1979) was an American actor. He was known for voice roles for various classic animated characters, most notably Pete in Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse short films and the Big Bad Wolf in Disney's ''Three Little Pigs''. Early life William Bletcher was born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania on on September 24, 1894, to Huber and Dora Bletcher. Career Bletcher appeared on-screen in films and later television from the 1910s to the 1970s, including appearances in several ''Our Gang'' and ''The Three Stooges'' comedies. He was most active as a voice actor. His voice was a deep, strong and booming baritone. Bletcher provided the voices of various characters for Walt Disney Animation Studios ( Black Pete, Short Ghost and the Big Bad Wolf in ''Three Little Pigs''). He auditioned to play one of the dwarfs in Disney's ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'' (1937). However, Walt Disney disapproved for fear that people would recognize Bletcher from t ...
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Charles Murray (American Actor)
Charles Albert Murray (June 22, 1872 – July 29, 1941), was an American film actor of the silent era. Murray was born in Laurel, Indiana, on June 22, 1872, to Isaac Murray and Martha Ellen "Mollie" Murray (née Sullenburger). Murray was a comedian in vaudeville and on stage for 20 years, forming the Murray and Mack team, before he began acting in films. His first work in films was for Biograph. His work in films included appearing in The Cohens and Kellys series with George Sidney. He appeared in more than 280 films between 1912 and 1938, starting with film shorts. He also directed five films. Murray was married to Nellie Bae Hamilton. He died in Los Angeles, California, from pneumonia. For his contribution to motion pictures, decades after his death, he was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1725 Vine Street. Selected filmography * ''His Auto's Maiden Trip'' (1912, Short) * ''Safe in Jail'' (1913, Short) * ''Murphy's I.O.U.'' (1913, Short) - (uncre ...
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