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Frances Bergen
Frances Bergen (née Westerman; September 14, 1922 – October 2, 2006) was an American actress and fashion model. She was the wife of ventriloquist Edgar Bergen and the mother of actress Candice Bergen and film and television editor Kris Bergen. Early life Bergen was born in Birmingham, Alabama, the daughter of Lille Mabel (née Howell) and William Westerman. Her paternal grandparents were both from German families. In 1933, her father died of tuberculosis, when Frances was ten years old. Shortly after, her mother moved the family to Los Angeles. She graduated from Los Angeles High School. Career As an actress, Bergen had supporting or minor roles in a number of films. She made her debut in ''Titanic'' (1953), after which she appeared in Robert Z. Leonard's ''Her Twelve Men'' (1954), and Douglas Sirk's ''Interlude'' (1957). During the 1958-1959 television season, Frances became the recurring love interest on the western show ''Yancy Derringer'' as Madame Francine, the str ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yancy Derringer
''Yancy Derringer'' is an American action/adventure series that was broadcast on CBS from 1958 to 1959, with Jock Mahoney (1919–1989) in the title role. The show was produced by Derringer Productions and filmed in Hollywood by Desilu Productions. Derringer Productions consisted of half interest for Warren Lewis and Don Sharpe as executive producers, a quarter interest to Jock Mahoney for starring in the series, and a quarter interest to Richard Sale and Mary Loos, husband and wife, as creators.TV GUIDE Vol. 7, No. 11; March 14, 1959; whole number 311; "Jocko the Gymnast" by Bob Johnson Desilu had just completed the 1956 series ''The Adventures of Jim Bowie'', which was also set principally in New Orleans. The show's sponsor was Johnson Wax (now S. C. Johnson), and Klear floor wax was a regular sponsor. The Sales based the series on a 1938 short story written by Richard Sale. In the 1930s, Sale was one of the highest-paid pulp writers. The story was never mentioned, but it was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Douglas Sirk
Douglas Sirk (born Hans Detlef Sierck; 26 April 1897 – 14 January 1987) was a German film director best known for his work in Hollywood melodramas of the 1950s. Sirk started his career in Germany as a stage and screen director, but he left for Hollywood in 1937 after his Jewish wife was persecuted by the Nazis. In the 1950s, he achieved his greatest commercial success with film melodramas ''Magnificent Obsession'', ''All That Heaven Allows'', ''Written on the Wind'', ''A Time to Love and a Time to Die'', and '' Imitation of Life''. While those films were initially panned by critics as sentimental women's pictures, they are today widely regarded by film directors, critics, and scholars as masterpieces. His work is seen as "critique of the bourgeoisie in general and of 1950s America in particular", while painting a "compassionate portrait of characters trapped by social conditions". Beyond the surface of the film, Sirk worked with complex mises-en-scène and lush Technicolor to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Made In America (1993 Film)
''Made in America'' is a 1993 American comedy film starring Whoopi Goldberg and Ted Danson, and featuring Nia Long, Jennifer Tilly and Will Smith. The film was directed by Richard Benjamin. It was shot in various locations in Oakland, California, and at Oakland Technical High School. "Colors of Love," written by Carole Bayer Sager, James Ingram and Bruce Roberts, and produced by David Foster is a notable song on the soundtrack which alludes to the story line. Plot Zora Matthews takes a blood test and discovers she has a blood group which is not a possible combination of the groups of her deceased father and her mother Sarah (Whoopi Goldberg). She confronts her mother and is told she used a sperm bank after her husband's death, but asked for a smart black guy. Zora's curiosity gets the better of her and she gets her best friend Tea Cake (Will Smith) to go to the sperm bank and pretend to be a donor while she sneaks in to look at the records. Zora gets into the computer and the r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Morning After (1986 Film)
''The Morning After'' is a 1986 American neo noir mystery thriller film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Jane Fonda, Jeff Bridges and Raul Julia. The film received generally favorable reviews and was a moderate commercial success, grossing $25.1 million against its $15 million budget. Fonda received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress. Plot A washed-up, alcoholic actress, Alex Sternbergen (played by Fonda), wakes up on Thanksgiving 1986 next to a murdered man, a sleazy photographer. She feels sick and remembers nothing from the night before. She calls her friend Jackie about what happened the night before. (We find out later that he is her husband, they are separated.) He informs her that she missed out on getting what could have been her best gig in a while the night before because she was drunk and rude. She tells him about the body. He tells her to call the cops and she says that she is scared but he insists, telling her it will be all right. She retorts ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hollywood Wives (miniseries)
''Jackie Collins' Hollywood Wives'' is an American television miniseries based on the 1983 novel of the same name by Jackie Collins. Airing on ABC in February 1985, it follows several women connected to the entertainment industry in Hollywood and capitalized on the public's taste for opulent melodramas that dominated television ratings in the 1980s. The three-part, four-and-a-half-hour production was produced by Aaron Spelling, whose series ''Dynasty'' was number one in the ratings at the time. Like ''Dynasty'', costume design was by Nolan Miller. Collins herself was credited as "Creative Consultant" for the miniseries, though she later made it clear that she was not actually consulted at all during production and was less than enthusiastic about some of the casting choices. ''Hollywood Wives'' was nominated for an Emmy Award for " Outstanding Film Editing in a Limited Series or a Special" in 1985. Plot Part 1 Successful Hollywood starlet Gina Germaine (Suzanne Somers) has gro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Muppets Take Manhattan
''The Muppets Take Manhattan'' is a 1984 American musical comedy drama film directed by Frank Oz. It is the third theatrical film in ''The Muppets'' franchise. In addition to the Muppet performance, the film features special appearances by Art Carney, James Coco, Dabney Coleman, Gregory Hines, Linda Lavin, and Joan Rivers. Filmed in New York City during the prior summer, it was released theatrically on July 13, 1984, by TriStar Pictures. A fantasy sequence in the film introduced the Muppet Babies, toddler versions of the lead Muppet characters. ''Muppets Take Manhattan'' was the first film to be directed solely by Oz, who previously co-directed ''The Dark Crystal'' with Jim Henson. Not counting the ''Sesame Street'' film ''Follow That Bird'', it is the final Muppet film produced before the deaths of Henson and Richard Hunt. Plot Following graduating from Danhurst College, The Muppets perform their theatrical production of ''Manhattan Melodies'' for their class. Upon the sugge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Star Chamber
''The Star Chamber'' is a 1983 American crime thriller film starring Michael Douglas, Hal Holbrook, Yaphet Kotto, Sharon Gless, James B. Sikking, and Joe Regalbuto. The film was written by Roderick Taylor and Peter Hyams and directed by Hyams. Its title is taken from the name of the Star Chamber, the notorious 15th−17th-century English court. Plot Judge Steven Hardin (Michael Douglas) is an idealistic Los Angeles judge who becomes frustrated when the technicalities of the law prevent the prosecution of three criminals. The first is a man who was charged with murdering several elderly women for their welfare money. The second and third are two men who were accused of raping and killing a young boy named Daniel Lewin as part of a suspected child pornography ring. The suspected child murderers, Lawrence Monk and Arthur Cooms, attracted the attention of two police officers when they were driving slowly late at night. The police officers suspected that the van's occupants might be b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Sting II
''The Sting II'' is a 1983 American comedy film and a sequel to ''The Sting'', again written by David S. Ward. It was directed by Jeremy Paul Kagan and stars an entirely original cast including Jackie Gleason, Mac Davis, Teri Garr, Karl Malden and Oliver Reed. Plot 1940 The Great Depression is over. King of the con men Fargo Gondorff is released from prison and reassembles his cronies for another con, out to avenge the murder of his lifelong pal and fellow con artist Kid Colors who was kidnapped, beaten, and then shot. Gondorff's young protege Jake Hooker attempts to pull a scam on wealthy "Countess Veronique," who instead pulls one on him and turns out to be a grifter herself named Veronica. Coming up with a boxing con, Gondorff's goal is to sting both Lonnegan, the notorious banker and gangster who wants revenge from a previous con, and Gus Macalinski, a wealthy local racketeer. One or both of them is behind Kid Colors' death. Hooker pretends to be a boxer who is about to th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Gigolo
''American Gigolo'' is a 1980 American neo-noir crime drama film written and directed by Paul Schrader, and starring Richard Gere and Lauren Hutton. It tells the story about a high-priced escort in Los Angeles (Gere) who becomes romantically involved with a prominent politician's wife (Hutton), while simultaneously becoming the prime suspect in a murder case. The film established Gere as a leading man, and was one of the first mainstream Hollywood films to include frontal male nudity from its main star. It is also notable for its Golden Globe Award–nominated musical score, composed by Giorgio Moroder, and number-one single " Call Me" by Blondie. Schrader considers it one of four similar films, which he calls "double bookends": ''Taxi Driver'', bookended by ''Light Sleeper'', and ''American Gigolo'' bookended by '' The Walker''. Plot Julian Kay is a male escort in Los Angeles whose clientele is upper-class women. His job supports and requires an expensive taste in cars and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Murder, She Wrote
''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series focuses on the life of Jessica Fletcher, a mystery writer and amateur detective, who finds herself becoming involved in solving a series of murders that take place in the fictional town of Cabot Cove, Maine, as well as across the United States and abroad. The program ran for 12 seasons from September 30, 1984, to May 19, 1996, for a total of 264 episodes, and included amongst its recurring cast Tom Bosley, William Windom and Ron Masak, as well as a vast array of guest cast members including Michael Horton, Keith Michell and Julie Adams. The series proved a ratings hit during its broadcast, becoming a staple of CBS Sunday night TV schedule for around a decade, while achieving distinction as one of the most successful and longest-running te ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
MacGyver (1985 TV Series)
''MacGyver'' is an American action-adventure television series created by Lee David Zlotoff and starring Richard Dean Anderson as the title character. Henry Winkler and John Rich were the executive producers. The series follows the adventures of Angus MacGyver, a secret agent armed with remarkable scientific resourcefulness to solve any problem out in the field using any materials at hand. The show ran for seven seasons on ABC in the United States and various other networks abroad from 1985 to 1992. The series was filmed in Los Angeles during seasons one, two and seven, and in Vancouver during seasons three through six. The show's final episode aired on April 25, 1992, on ABC (the network aired a previously unseen episode for the first time on May 21, 1992, but it was originally intended to air before the series finale). The series was a moderate ratings success and gained a loyal following. It was popular in the United States and around the world. Two television films, ''Lo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barnaby Jones
''Barnaby Jones'' is an American detective television series starring Buddy Ebsen as a formerly retired investigator and Lee Meriwether as his widowed daughter-in-law, who run a private detective firm in Los Angeles, California. The show was originally introduced as a midseason replacement on the CBS network and ran from 1973 to 1980. Halfway through the series' run, Mark Shera was added to the cast as a much younger cousin of Ebsen's character, who eventually joined the firm. ''Barnaby Jones'' was produced by QM Productions (with Woodruff Productions in the final two seasons). It had the second-longest QM series run (seven and a half seasons), following the nine years of ''The FBI''. The series followed the characteristic Quinn Martin episode format with commercial breaks dividing each episode into four "acts," concluding with an epilogue. The opening credits were narrated by Hank Simms. The first episode of the show, "Requiem for a Son", featured a crossover with another QM ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
