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Magic Town
''Magic Town'' is a 1947 comedy film directed by William A. Wellman and starring James Stewart and Jane Wyman. The picture is one of the first films about the then-new practice of public opinion polling. The film was inspired by the Middletown studies. It is also known as ''The Magic City''. The "magic" of the title is the mathematical miracle (as it is called in the film) that certain towns can be used to fairly accurately predict the actions of the whole country. Plot Lawrence "Rip" Smith (James Stewart) is a former basketball player and ex-military who now runs a company that performs polls and consumer surveys. Lately he has started obsessing about being able to find a perfect mathematical "miracle formula" to perform the perfect survey, and compete for real with his rival companies. Because he lacks funds, he is far behind his number one rival, George Stringer. One day Rip discovers that a survey made by a friend and ex-Army colleague of his, Hoopendecker (Kent Smith), i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William A
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of England in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era. It is sometimes abbreviated "Wm." Shortened familiar versions in English include Will, Wills, Willy, Willie, Bill, and Billy. A common Irish form is Liam. Scottish diminutives include Wull, Willie or Wullie (as in Oor Wullie or the play ''Douglas''). Female forms are Willa, Willemina, Wilma and Wilhelmina. Etymology William is related to the given name ''Wilhelm'' (cf. Proto-Germanic ᚹᛁᛚᛃᚨᚺᛖᛚᛗᚨᛉ, ''*Wiljahelmaz'' > German ''Wilhelm'' and Old Norse ᚢᛁᛚᛋᛅᚼᛅᛚᛘᛅᛋ, ''Vilhjálmr''). By regular sound changes, the native, inherited English form of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wallace Ford
Wallace Ford (born Samuel Grundy Jones; 12 February 1898 – 11 June 1966) was an English-born naturalized American vaudevillian, stage performer and screen actor. Usually playing wise-cracking characters, he combined a tough but friendly-faced demeanor with a small but powerful, stocky physique. Early life He was born Samuel Grundy Jones in Bolton, Lancashire, England, into a working-class family of limited means. At the age of three, he was placed by his uncle and aunt, in whose care he had been, into a Barnardo's orphanage home, since they were unable to maintain his upkeep along with their own several children. When he was seven, he and other children from similar backgrounds were shipped to Canada to be found new homes with farming foster families as a part of the British Empire's ongoing programme to populate the territory. Samuel was adopted by a family in Manitoba. He was ill-treated and became a serial runaway, being resettled several times with different families b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bess Flowers
Bess Flowers (November 23, 1898 – July 28, 1984) was an American actress best known for her work as an extra in hundreds of films. She was known as "The Queen of the Hollywood Extras," appearing in more than 350 feature films and numerous comedy shorts in her 41-year career. She holds the record for appearances in films nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture (23).Slide, Anthony. 201Silent Players: a Biographical and Autobiographical Study of 100 Silent Film Actors and Actresses Lexington: University Press of Kentucky. p. 103. . Career Born in Sherman, Texas, Flowers' film debut came in 1923, when she appeared in ''Hollywood''. She made three films that year, and then began working extensively. Many of her appearances are uncredited, as she generally played non-speaking roles. By the 1930s, Flowers was in constant demand. Her appearances ranged from Alfred Hitchcock and John Ford thrillers to comedic roles alongside of Charley Chase, the Three Stooges, Leon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Franklyn Farnum
Franklyn Farnum (born William Smith; June 5, 1878 – July 4, 1961) was an American character actor and Hollywood extra who appeared in at least 1,100 films. He was also cast in more films that won the Academy Award for Best Picture than any other performer in American film industry. He was also credited as Frank Farnum. Life and career Farnum was born in 1878 in Boston, Massachusetts, and became a vaudeville actor at the age of twelve. He was featured in a number of theatrical and musical productions by the time he entered silent films near the age of 40. His Broadway credits include ''Keep It Clean'' (1929), ''Ziegfeld 9 O'clock Frolic'' (1921), ''Ziegfeld Midnight Frolic'' (1921), and ''Somewhere Else'' (1913). Farnum's career was dominated mostly by westerns. Some of his more famous films include the serial '' Vanishing Trails'' (1920) and the features '' The Clock'' (1917), '' The Firebrand'' (1922), '' The Drug Store Cowboy'' (1925), and '' The Gambling Fool'' (1925). H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dick Elliott
Richard Damon Elliott (April 30, 1886 – December 22, 1961) was an American character actor who played in over 240 films from the 1930s until the time of his death. Early years Elliott was born in Boston, Massachusetts. Career Elliott played many different roles, typically as a somewhat blustery sort, such as a politician. A short, fat man, Elliott played Santa Claus on the Jimmy Durante, Red Skelton, and Jack Benny programs. Elliott had a couple of memorable lines in ''It's a Wonderful Life'' (1946), in which he scolded James Stewart, who was trying to say goodnight to Donna Reed, advising him: "Why don't you kiss her instead of talking her to death?" He also had a few memorable appearances in episodes of the '' Adventures of Superman'' television series. He appeared three times as Stanley on the CBS sitcom '' December Bride'', as well as on two of ABC/Warner Brothers' western series, ''Sugarfoot'' and ''Maverick''. He was cast as the prospector Peter Cooper and the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edgar Dearing
Edgar Dearing (May 4, 1893 – August 17, 1974) was an American actor who became heavily type cast as a motorcycle cop in Hollywood films. Biography Born in 1893, Dearing started in silent comedy shorts for Hal Roach, including several with Laurel and Hardy, notably in their classic ''Two Tars'', probably his best ever screen role. He later had supporting roles in several of their features for 20th Century Fox in the 1940s. Dearing continued in his familiar persona until the early 1950s, when he appeared in many film and television westerns, usually as a sheriff. One of his guest roles was on the syndicated television series, '' The Range Rider'', starring Jock Mahoney and Dick Jones. He was still active in films and television until he retired in the early 1960s. Death He died from lung cancer. Selected filmography * '' Hot Water'' (1924) * '' The Second Hundred Years'' (1927) * '' Should Men Walk Home?'' (1927) * ''Why Girls Love Sailors'' (1927) * '' Playin' Hookey' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George Chandler
George Chandler (June 30, 1898 – June 10, 1985) was an American actor who starred in over 140 feature films, usually in smaller supporting roles, and he is perhaps best known for playing the character of Uncle Petrie Martin on the television series '' Lassie'', and as the unfortunate young man who drank '' The Fatal Glass of Beer''. Early years He was born in Waukegan, Illinois, on June 30, 1898. During his infancy, his family moved to Hinsdale, Illinois. Early in his career, he had a vaudeville act, billed as "George Chandler, the Musical Nut," which featured comedy and his violin. He made his debut in film in 1929. Career George Chandler had a plain, unassuming face, allowing him to play incidental and background roles in dozens of movies. His outstanding facial feature was a wide, toothy smile. Today's audiences may know him from the Mack Sennett comedy '' The Fatal Glass of Beer'' (1933) starring W. C. Fields. In this absurd satire of antique Yukon melodrama ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Dudley (actor)
Robert Dudley (September 13, 1869 – September 15, 1955) was a dentist turned film character actor who, in his 35-year career, appeared in more than 115 films. Career Dudley was born in Cincinnati, Ohio and was educated at Lake Forest College in Evanston, Illinois and Chicago, where he majored in oral surgery. In 1917 he appeared in his first film, ''Seven Keys to Baldpate'', and then made three other silent films through 1921. After 1922 he worked consistently, appearing in three or four films a year, and making the transition to sound films in 1929 with ''The Bellamy Trial''. Dudley often played characters with a quick temper, including jurors, shopkeepers, ticket agents, court clerks and justices of the peace, as well as an occasional farmer, hobo, or laborer. His performances in these small parts were frequently uncredited. In the 1940s, Dudley was part of Preston Sturges' unofficial "stock company" of character actors, appearing in six films written and directed by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ray Walker (actor)
Warren Reynolds "Ray" Walker (August 10, 1904 – October 6, 1980) was an American actor, born in Newark, New Jersey, who starred in '' Baby Take a Bow'' (1934), ''Hideaway Girl'' (1936), ''The Dark Hour'' (1936), '' The Unknown Guest'' (1943) and '' It's A Wonderful Life'' (1946). Death Ray Walker died in Los Angeles, California, on October 6, 1980, at age 76. Partial filmography * '' Goodbye Love'' (1933) as Brooks * '' Devil's Mate'' (1933) as Natural * '' Skyway'' (1933) as Robert 'Flash' Norris * '' He Couldn't Take It'' (1933) as Jimmy Case * ''Million Dollar Baby'' (1934) as Terry Sweeney * ''One Hour Late'' (1934) as Cliff Miller * ''When Strangers Meet'' (1934) as Steve * '' Happy Landing'' (1934) as Lt. Nick Terris * '' Baby Take a Bow'' (1934) as Larry Scott * ''The Loudspeaker'' (1934) as Joe Miller * ''Thirty Day Princess'' (1934) as Dan Kirk * ''City Limits'' (1934) as Jimmy Dugan * '' The Fighting Coward'' (1935) as Bob Horton * '' Music Is Magic'' (1935) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paul Scardon
Paul Scardon (6 May 1874 – 17 January 1954) was an actor, a producer, and a director on both Australian and New York stages. When he was 15, Scardon debuted on stage as a contortionist in vaudeville. He progressed from that to pantomime and then joined a troupe headed by J. C. Williamson, touring New Zealand and Australia for five years. In 1905, he joined a company headed by Nance O'Neil, and that group's tour brought him to the United States. Scardon's Broadway credits include ''Mrs. Bumpstead-Leigh'' (1911), ''Becky Sharp'' (1911), ''The Green Cockatoo'' (1910), ''Hannele'' (1910), ''The Debtors'' (1909), ''Agnes''(1908), ''Our American Cousin'' (1908), and ''Brigadier Gerard'' (1906). Scardon went to Hollywood in 1910. In motion pictures, he worked for Majestic Pictures, Reliance-Majestic Studios and Vitagraph Studios. He directed Blanche Sweet in ''Unwilling Husband'', Bessie Barriscale in some of her most successful productions, and most of the melodramas which starr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Julia Dean (actress, Born 1878)
Julia Dean (May 13, 1878 – October 17, 1952) was a stage and film actress who began her career in the 1890s. Biography Julia Dean was born to Albert Clay Dean and Susan Jane Morton in St. Paul, Minnesota, in 1878. She had a sister Eloise and a brother. She made her Broadway debut December 1, 1902 in ''The Altars of Friendship''. She toured with Joseph Jefferson and James Neill. In 1907 she appeared with Maclyn Arbuckle in ''The Round-Up''. She worked for producers William A. Brady and David Belasco. She began making silent pictures in 1915 and continued until 1919. She then devoted her career to the stage until 1944 when she returned to films in ''The Curse of the Cat People''. She continued to appear in film noir classics like '' Nightmare Alley'' lending her white-haired support in many uncredited roles. She died in Hollywood in 1952. Family She was married to Frank Slocum (aka Orme Caldara; 1875–1925) from 1906 to 1913. She was the niece of 19th-century actr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ann Shoemaker
Ann Shoemaker (born Anne Dorothea Shoemaker; January 10, 1891 – September 18, 1978) was an American actress who appeared in 70 films and TV movies between 1928 and 1976. She portrayed Sara Roosevelt, mother of Franklin D. Roosevelt, in both the stage and film versions of ''Sunrise at Campobello''. She was married to actor Henry Stephenson; the couple had a daughter. Shoemaker's Broadway credits include ''Half a Sixpence'' (1965), ''Sunrise at Campobello'' (1958), ''The Living Room'' (1954), ''Twilight Walk'' (1951), ''Dream Girl'' (1951), ''Woman Bites Dog'' (1946), ''The Rich Full Life'' (1945), ''Proof Thro' the Night'' (1942), ''Ah, Wilderness!'' (1941), ''Black Sheep'' (1932), ''The Silent Witness'' (1931), ''The Novice and the Duke'' (1929), ''Button, Button'' (1919), ''To-Night at 12'' (1928), ''Speak Easy'' (1927), ''We All Do'' (1927), ''The Noose'' (1926), and ''The Great God Brown'' (1926). Partial filmography * '' Chance at Heaven'' (1933) - Mrs. Harris * '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
