Topaze (Playhouse 90)
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Topaze (Playhouse 90)
"Topaze" was an American television play broadcast on September 26, 1957, as part of the second season of the CBS television series ''Playhouse 90''. Ellis St. Joseph wrote the teleplay based on Marcel Pagnol's 1928 play, '' Topaze''. Vincent J. Donehue directed, Martin Manulis was the producer, and Robert Drasnin composed the music. Sterling Hayden was the host, and Ernie Kovacs and Carl Reiner starred. The program's commercial sponsors were the American Gas Association, Theradan anti-dandruff shampoo, Marlboro cigarettes, and Ipana toothpaste. Plot Topaze, an idealistic teacher in a small French school, is fired for refusing to adjust the grades of the son of an influential and corrupt politician. The politician then hires Topaze as the head of a dummy corporation, serving as bagman and money launderer. After realizing that he has been taken advantage of, Topaze embraces the corruption to achieve his own fortune. Cast The following performers received screen credit for th ...
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Sheree North
Sheree North (born Dawn Shirley Crang; January 17, 1932 – November 5, 2005) was an American actress, dancer, and singer, known for being one of 20th Century-Fox's intended successors to Marilyn Monroe. Early life North was born Dawn Shirley Crang in Los Angeles, California, on January 17, 1932, the daughter of June (née Shoard) and Richard Crang. Following her mother's remarriage to Edward Bethel, she was known as Dawn Shirley Bethel. She began dancing in USO shows during World War II at age 10. In 1948, she married Fred Bessire. She had her first child at age 17 in 1949, and continued dancing in clubs under the stage name Shirley Mae Bessire. (Already married at this age, her legal name at this time was Dawn Shirley Bessire.) Career Beginnings North made her film début as an uncredited extra in '' Excuse My Dust'' (1951). She was then spotted by a choreographer performing at the Macayo Club in Santa Monica, and was cast as a chorus girl in the film '' Here Come the Girls ...
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Martin Manulis
Martin Ellyot Manulis (May 30, 1915 – September 28, 2007) was an American television, film, and theatre producer. Manulis was best known for his work in the 1950s producing the CBS Television programs ''Suspense'', '' Studio One Summer Theatre'', ''Climax!'', ''The Best of Broadway'' and ''Playhouse 90''. He was the sole producer of the award-winning drama series, ''Playhouse 90'', during its first two seasons from 1956 to 1958. After leaving ''Playhouse 90'', Manulis was the "head of television" for 20th Century Fox Television where he was responsible for creating and producing the series, ''The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis'', '' Adventures in Paradise'', and '' Five Fingers''. In 1962, he produced the film '' Days of Wine and Roses'' starring Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick. Early years Manulis was born and raised in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. His father, Abraham "Gus" Manulis, immigrated to the United States from Russia in 1897, became a naturalized U.S. c ...
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1957 American Television Episodes
1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th year of the 1950s decade. Events January * January 1 – The Saarland joins West Germany. * January 3 – Hamilton Watch Company introduces the first electric watch. * January 5 – South African player Russell Endean becomes the first batsman to be dismissed for having ''handled the ball'', in Test cricket. * January 9 – British Prime Minister Anthony Eden resigns. * January 10 – Harold Macmillan becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. * January 11 – The African Convention is founded in Dakar. * January 14 – Kripalu Maharaj is named fifth Jagadguru (world teacher), after giving seven days of speeches before 500 Hindu scholars. * January 15 – The film ''Throne of Blood'', Akira Kurosawa's reworking of '' Mac ...
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1957 Television Plays
1957 (Roman numerals, MCMLVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday, common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th year of the 1950s decade. Events January * January 1 – The Saarland joins West Germany. * January 3 – Hamilton Watch Company introduces the first electric watch. * January 5 – South African player Russell Endean becomes the first batsman to be Dismissal (cricket), dismissed for having ''handled the ball'', in Test cricket. * January 9 – British Prime Minister Anthony Eden resigns. * January 10 – Harold Macmillan becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. * January 11 – The African Convention is founded in Dakar. * January 14 – Kripalu Maharaj is named fifth Jagadguru (world teacher), after giving seven days of speeches before 500 Hindu scholars. * January 15 – The film ' ...
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William Roerick
William George Roerich (December 17, 1912 – November 30, 1995) was an American actor. He is particularly associated with the stage, but also played in many films and TV productions. He was also a stage manager and writer. His name is sometimes given as William Roehrick. Early life Roerick was born December 17, 1912 in Hoboken, New Jersey and was a classically trained actor. He graduated from Hamilton College in 1934 and was a student at the Stockbridge Playhouse drama school in 1935. Career Acting career He made his Broadway debut that same year in ''Romeo and Juliet''. He played on Broadway for 45 years, his last Broadway role being in '' Happy New Year'' in 1980. Roerick's career was largely in theater, but he did make appearances in several films. His television roles include the role of Henry Chamberlain in the television soap opera ''Guiding Light''. Roerick played that role from 1980 to 1995 (his death). He was nominated for an Emmy Award for best supporting actor f ...
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Roxanne Arlen
Roxanne Arlen (January 10, 1931 – February 22, 1989) was an American film and stage actress and model active in the 1950s and 1960s. Filmography Feature films *''The Loved One'' (1965) as Wispering Glades hostess *'' A House Is Not a Home'' (1964) as Hattie's girl *''Gypsy (1962) as Electra *'' Bachelor Flat'' (1962) as Mrs. Roberts *''Slim Carter'' (1957) as Cigarette girl *''The Big Caper'' (1957) as Doll *''The Young Stranger'' (1957) as Carhop *''The Best Things in Life Are Free'' (1956) as Perky Nichols *'' Everything but the Truth'' (1956) as Blonde *''Miracle in the Rain'' (1956) as Red-headed secretary *''Bundle of Joy'' (1956) as Blonde *''Hot Rod Girl'' (1956) as Long Play *''Son of Sinbad'' (1955) as Raider *''Battle Cry'' (1955) as Blonde *''Illegal Illegal, or unlawful, typically describes something that is explicitly prohibited by law, or is otherwise forbidden by a state or other governing body. Illegal may also refer to: Law * Violation of law * Crime, th ...
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Richard Haydn
Richard Haydn (born George Richard Haydon, 10 March 1905 – 25 April 1985) was a British-American comedy actor. Some of his better known performances include his roles as Professor Oddley in ''Ball of Fire'' (1941), Roger in '' No Time for Love'' (1943), Thomas Rogers in ''And Then There Were None'' (1945), Emperor Franz Joseph in ''The Emperor Waltz'' (1948), the Caterpillar in '' Alice in Wonderland'' (1951), Baron Popoff in ''The Merry Widow'' (1952), William Brown in ''Mutiny on the Bounty'' (1962), and Max Detweiler in ''The Sound of Music'' (1965). Life Haydn was born on March 10, 1905, in Camberwell. After working as a music hall entertainer and overseer of a Jamaican banana plantation, he joined a touring British theatre troupe, and then moved into television and film. Haydn never married nor had children, although he was engaged to the actress Maria Riva for several months in 1943. In the DVD commentary of ''Young Frankenstein'', Mel Brooks said that Haydn eschewed t ...
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Marlboro (cigarette)
Marlboro (, ) is an American brand of cigarettes, currently owned and manufactured by Philip Morris USA (a branch of Altria) within the United States and by Philip Morris International (now separate from Altria) outside the US. The largest Marlboro cigarette manufacturing plant is located in Richmond, Virginia, Richmond, Virginia. As of 2017, Marlboro had 40% market share in the US. History In 1846, British tobacconist Philip Morris (tobacconist), Phillip Morris opened a shop on Bond Street, London, United Kingdom, selling tobacco and rolled cigarettes. After his death from cancer in 1873, his brother Leopold and widow Margaret continued the business, growing it and opening a factory on Great Marlborough Street, London, from which the name was taken. Philip Morris opened a New York City, New York subsidiary in 1902 to sell many of its cigarette brands. The mark ''"Marlboro"'' was registered in the US in 1908 although no cigarette was marketed under this name until 1923. In ...
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American Gas Association
The American Gas Association (AGA) is an American trade organization founded in 1918 representing and advocating on behalf of local energy companies that deliver natural gas throughout the United States. History The American Gas Association formed in June 1918 after the merger of the American Gas Institute and the National Commercial Gas Association, organizations that served the interests of companies that dealt in manufactured, as opposed to natural gas. Manufactured gas was the dominant fuel in the early United States, but during the 19th century, natural gas supplanted it. In January 1919, the AGA launched a publication for the natural gas industry providing information on trends, activities, and strategies on how to improve gas companies. In 1925, the association formed laboratories in Cleveland, and five years later expanded to Los Angeles. These labs developed technology to improve gas appliances and equipment, making them more energy-efficient and consumer-friendly. The ...
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Sterling Hayden
Sterling Walter Hayden (born Sterling Relyea Walter; March 26, 1916 – May 23, 1986) was an American actor, author, sailor and decorated Marine Corps officer and an Office of Strategic Services' agent during World War II. A leading man for most of his career, he specialized in westerns and film noir throughout the 1950s, in films such as John Huston's ''The Asphalt Jungle'' (1950), Nicholas Ray's ''Johnny Guitar'' (1954), and Stanley Kubrick's '' The Killing'' (1956). He became noted for supporting roles in the 1960s, perhaps most memorably as General Jack D. Ripper in Kubrick's '' Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb'' (1964). Hayden's success continued into the New Hollywood era, with roles such as Irish-American policeman Captain McCluskey in Francis Ford Coppola's ''The Godfather'' (1972), alcoholic novelist Roger Wade in Robert Altman's '' The Long Goodbye'' (1973), and elderly peasant Leo Dalcò in Bernardo Bertolucci's ''1900'' (1976). Wi ...
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Topaze (play)
''Topaze'' is a 1928 play in four acts by the French writer Marcel Pagnol. It tells the story of a modest school teacher who is fired for being too honest and decides to become a dishonest businessman. The play premiered on 9 October 1928 at the Théâtre des Variétés. It was performed on Broadway in 1930 with Frank Morgan in the title role. Summary Act 1 Topaze is a teacher at a boarding school, deeply in love with his fellow teacher Ernestine. Ernestine, the daughter of the school principal Mr. Muche, takes advantage of him, making him do her paperwork and watch her students, but Topaze naively takes this to be a mark of affection and asks his friend Tamise, another teacher, to quietly see if Mr. Muche would let Ernestine marry. In the meantime, a young woman named Suzy Courtois arrives; she is the aunt of a private student of Topaze and intends to enroll the child at the school, but she changes her mind after visiting. Topaze is asked to change the report card of a weal ...
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Ernie Kovacs
Ernest Edward Kovacs (January 23, 1919 – January 13, 1962) was a Hungarian-American comedian, actor, and writer. Kovacs's visually experimental and often spontaneous comedic style influenced numerous television comedy programs for years after his death. Kovacs has been credited as an influence by many individuals and shows, including Johnny Carson, ''Laugh-In, Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In'', ''Saturday Night Live'', ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'', Jim Henson, ''Max Headroom (character), Max Headroom'', Chevy Chase, Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, ''Captain Kangaroo'', ''Sesame Street'', ''The Electric Company'', ''Pee-wee's Playhouse'', ''The Muppet Show'', Dave Garroway, Andy Kaufman, ''You Can't Do That on Television'', ''Mystery Science Theater 3000, MST3K'', Uncle Floyd, among others. Chase even thanked Kovacs during his acceptance speech for his Emmy award for ''Saturday Night Live''. While Kovacs and his wife Edie Adams received Emmy nominations for best performances in a ...
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