Rooftops (film)
''Rooftops'' is a 1989 American crime and dance musical drama film directed by Robert Wise, which follows the misadventures of two homeless teenagers in Manhattan. ''Rooftops'' was the last theatrical motion picture directed by Wise and the second of his films about poor young New Yorkers, the first being the famous ''West Side Story''. Plot summary Squeak, the main character's best friend has tagged the wrong place and a local crew of misfits seeks to teach him a lesson. A chase ensues through the streets of New York City, through abandoned buildings and on rooftops. Squeak is finally cornered before his best friend and the film's main hero, T, comes to his rescue. The rest of the film focuses on T and his group of friends, among them a reformed prostitute, a young woman, and a deaf basketball player. T is famous among the neighbourhood for taking place in a dance called "combat" in which "combatants" attempt to force each other off of a square fighting surface through only inti ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Robert Wise
Robert Earl Wise (September 10, 1914 – September 14, 2005) was an American film director, producer, and editor. He won the Academy Awards for Best Director and Best Picture for his musical films ''West Side Story'' (1961) and ''The Sound of Music'' (1965). He was also nominated for Best Film Editing for ''Citizen Kane'' (1941) and directed and produced '' The Sand Pebbles'' (1966), which was nominated for Best Picture. Among his other films are ''The Body Snatcher'' (1945), ''Born to Kill'' (1947), '' The Set-Up'' (1949), ''The Day the Earth Stood Still'' (1951), '' Destination Gobi'' (1953), '' This Could Be The Night'' (1957), ''Run Silent, Run Deep'' (1958), '' I Want to Live!'' (1958), '' The Haunting'' (1963), '' The Andromeda Strain'' (1971), '' The Hindenburg'' (1975) and '' Star Trek: The Motion Picture'' (1979). He was the president of the Directors Guild of America from 1971 to 1975 and the president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences from 1985 thr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Graffiti
Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from simple written words to elaborate wall paintings, and has existed Graffito (archaeology), since ancient times, with examples dating back to ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, and the Roman Empire. Graffiti is a controversial subject. In most countries, marking or painting property without permission is considered by property owners and civic authorities as defacement and vandalism, which is a punishable crime, citing the use of graffiti by street gangs to mark territory or to serve as an indicator of gang-related activities. Graffiti has become visualized as a growing urban "problem" for many cities in industrialized nations, spreading from the New York City Subway nomenclature, New York City subway system and Philadelphia in the early 1970s to ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Coley Wallace
Coley Wallace (April 5, 1927 – January 30, 2005) was an American actor and heavyweight boxer who once outpointed Rocky Marciano in a very close split decision three-round amateur fight. Although Wallace, a Jacksonville, FL native, had a respectable record as a professional (20-7-0), his claim to fame came in 1948 when, as an amateur, he once defeated in a very close split decision future heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano in the finals of the New York Golden Gloves Tournament. The decision was not welcomed by crowd and many considered it drawn. Wallace fought Ezzard Charles in his professional career, among others. Wallace's contract was "owned" under the table by the notorious Frank "Blinky" Palermo, a member of the Philadelphia crime family. Palermo was imprisoned in 1961 for conspiracy and extortion for the covert ownership of prizefighters. After boxing career, Wallace acted in four movies, twice portraying the boxer Joe Louis. Wallace died on January 30, 2005, of heart ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lauren Tom
Lauren Tom (born August 4, 1961) is an American actress. Her roles include Lena St. Clair in '' The Joy Luck Club'', Julie in the NBC sitcom ''Friends'', Dot in the final season of ''Grace Under Fire'', and the voices for Amy Wong in ''Futurama'', Dana Tan in ''Batman Beyond'', Jinx and Gizmo in ''Teen Titans'' and ''Teen Titans Go!'', Minh and Connie Souphanousinphone in ''King of the Hill'', and Numbuh 3 in '' Codename: Kids Next Door''. She portrayed Celia Mack in the Disney Channel series ''Andi Mack'' and also played Mrs. Tran in the CW series ''Supernatural''. Early life Tom was born in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park, Illinois,Tom in the daughter of Nancy (née Dare) and Chan Tom, Jr. She has a brother named Chip. Their parents were born in Chicago, and their grandparents came from Kaiping, Guangdong, China. Raised in Highland Park, she grew up as a Catholic in a largely Jewish neighborhood. Career Theatre At the age of 17, Tom landed a spot with a touring company of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Paul Herman
Paul Herman (March 29, 1946 – March 29, 2022) was an American actor. He was best known for playing Randy in David O. Russell's dramedy ''Silver Linings Playbook'' (2012) and Whispers DiTullio in Martin Scorsese's crime epic ''The Irishman'' (2019). Career His other appearances in movies include ''Once Upon a Time in America'', ''At Close Range'', ''We Own the Night (film), We Own the Night'', ''Heat (1995 film), Heat'', ''Crazy Heart'', ''Quick Change'', ''Sleepers (film), Sleepers'', ''Cop Land'', ''The Fan (1996 film), The Fan'', ''Analyze That'', ''The Day Trippers'', and ''American Hustle (2013 film), American Hustle''. He had a recurring role on ''The Sopranos'' as List of characters from The Sopranos in the DiMeo Crime Family# Peter "Beansie" Gaeta, Peter "Beansie" Gaeta, as well as another HBO series, ''Entourage (U.S. TV series), Entourage'', as Vincent Chase's accountant, List of recurring characters in Entourage#Marvin, Marvin. Herman also played minor background ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rockets Redglare
Rockets Redglare (born Michael Morra; May 8, 1949 – May 28, 2001) was an American character actor and stand-up comedian. He appeared in over 30 films in the 1980s and 1990s, including a number of independent films and mainstream films, such as ''After Hours (film), After Hours'' (1985) and ''Desperately Seeking Susan'' (1985). Early life He was born Michael Morra in New York City to a heroin-addicted 15-year-old mother named Agnes Tarulli Morra. While still in utero, he became addicted to heroin, so doctors added an opiate derivative into his baby formula so that he could withdraw from the drug. Morra's father and uncle were career criminals in the Italian-American underworld in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. After his father was deported to his native Italy, Agnes began a relationship with a drug-addicted former boxer who assaulted both young Morra and the mother. Morra also spent time being raised by his aunt in Lindenhurst, New York. After his mother was killed by her boyfriend, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Robert LaSardo
Robert LaSardo is an American character actor. Early life LaSardo was born in Brooklyn, New York. He began his career studying at the High School of Performing Arts in New York City where he became an honors student, before attending the Stella Adler Studio of Acting. He spent four years in the U.S. Navy. For two of those years, he handled Navy attack dogs in the Aleutian Islands. Career LaSardo started his acting career in 1987 with the independent film ''China Girl'' by Abel Ferrara. After several smaller roles he appeared in such TV series as ''The X-Files'', ''CSI: Miami'', ''Nip/Tuck'' and '' Femme Fatales'', most often playing bad guys, in particular drug dealers or gang leaders. He also appeared in feature films as bad guys in several movies, including ''Waterworld'' and '' The Mule''. He has appeared often in independent horror movies, such as in ''The Human Centipede 3 (Final Sequence)'', ''Autopsy'', and ''Parlor''. In 2020, he appeared in '' Hope for the Holidays'' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Luis Guzmán
Luis Guzmán (born August 28, 1956) is a Puerto Rican actor. His career spans over 40 years and includes a number of films and television series. He has appeared in the Paul Thomas Anderson films ''Boogie Nights'' (1997), ''Magnolia'' (1999) and ''Punch-Drunk Love'' (2002) and the Steven Soderbergh films ''Out of Sight'' (1998), ''The Limey'' (1999) and ''Traffic'' (2000). His other film credits include '' Q & A'' (1990), '' The Hard Way'' (1991), ''Carlito's Way'' (1993) and '' Keanu'' (2016). For his role in ''The Limey'', he received a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male. On television, he starred as Raoul "El Cid" Hernandez on the HBO prison drama '' Oz'' (1998–2000), José Gonzalo Rodríguez Gacha on the Netflix series ''Narcos'' (2015), Jesse "Mama" Salander on the CBS medical drama '' Code Black'' (2015–18), Hector Contreras on ''Perpetual Grace, LTD'' (2019) and as Gomez Addams on ''Wednesday''. Early life Guzmán was born in Cayey, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Allen Payne
Allen Payne (born Allen Roberts on July 7, 1968) is an American actor best known for his role as Jason Alexander in the 1994 drama film ''Jason's Lyric'', as well as his portrayal of C.J. Payne on the family sitcom ''Tyler Perry's House of Payne'' (2006–present). Payne is also known for his portrayal of Lance Rodman on NBC's ''The Cosby Show'' during its final two seasons. On film, Payne also played Gerald "Gee Money" Wells in the 1991 film ''New Jack City'', and Detective Justice in the 1995 film ''Vampire in Brooklyn''. Life and career Payne was born Allen Roberts in the Harlem area of New York City, the eldest son of Allen Roberts and Barbara Reeves. He attended Pennsauken High School in Pennsauken Township, New Jersey. Payne's first television role was in a 1990 episode of ''The Cosby Show''. Over the span of two seasons, he portrayed Charmaine's boyfriend, Lance Rodman. Payne subsequently appeared in episodes of ''The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air'' and ''Malcolm & Eddie''. Pa ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Alexis Cruz
Alexis Cruz (born September 29, 1974) is an American actor, known for his performances as Rafael in ''Touched by an Angel'' and as Skaara in ''Stargate'' and ''Stargate SG-1''. Biography Cruz was born in The Bronx of Puerto Rican descent. His mother, Julia, was a songwriter. He currently resides in Los Angeles. He started his acting career when he was 9. However, when he was 13, and was auditioning for a role, the director explained to him that he was a bad actor, so Cruz decided to enter The School of Performing Arts that same year.http://tvdramas.about.com/od/shark/a/alexiscruzinter.htm An Interview with Alexis Cruz (Martin, Shark) By Rachel Thomas, About.com Guide. Cruz appeared as assistant D.A. Martin Allende in the legal drama ''Shark'', with co-stars James Woods and Jeri Ryan. In the 1998 film '' Why Do Fools Fall In Love'', Cruz played the role of Herman Santiago, one of the original members of the rock and roll group The Teenagers. Along with Erick Avari, he is one of o ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tisha Campbell-Martin
Tisha Michelle Campbell (born October 13, 1968) is an American actress and singer. She made her screen debut appearing in the 1986 rock musical comedy film '' Little Shop of Horrors'', and later starred on the short-lived NBC musical comedy drama ''Rags to Riches'' (1987–1988). Campbell has appeared in films including ''School Daze'' (1988), '' Rooftops'' (1989), ''Another 48 Hrs.'' (1990), ''Boomerang'' (1992), and '' Sprung'' (1997). She received Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female nomination for her performance in the 1990 comedy film ''House Party'', and later starred in its two sequels ''House Party 2'' (1991) and ''House Party 3'' (1994). On television, Campbell starred as Gina Waters-Payne in the Fox comedy series ''Martin'' from 1992 to 1997, and as Janet "Jay" Marie Johnson-Kyle in the ABC comedy series ''My Wife and Kids'' (2001–2005), for which she received NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series. She later had regular roles o ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Substance Dependence
Substance dependence, also known as drug dependence, is a biopsychological situation whereby an individual's functionality is dependent on the necessitated re-consumption of a psychoactive substance because of an adaptive state that has developed within the individual from psychoactive substance consumption that results in the experience of withdrawal and that necessitates the re-consumption of the drug. A ''drug addiction'', a distinct concept from substance dependence, is defined as compulsive, out-of-control drug use, despite negative consequences. An ''addictive drug'' is a drug which is both rewarding and reinforcing. ΔFosB, a gene transcription factor, is now known to be a critical component and common factor in the development of virtually all forms of behavioral and drug addictions, but not dependence. The International Classification of Diseases classifies substance dependence as a mental and behavioural disorder. Within the framework of the 4th edition of the ''Diagn ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |