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The Ritz Brothers
The Ritz Brothers were an American family comedy act who performed extensively on stage, in nightclubs and in films from 1925 to the late 1960s. A fourth brother, George, acted as their manager. Early life The four brothers were born to Austrian-born Jewish haberdasher Max Joachim and his wife Pauline, only three of them performed together. They also had a sister Gertrude. All three brothers were born in Newark, New Jersey. The family name was Joachim (pronounced "jo-ACK-him", Harry explained on a Joe Franklin TV interview), but the eldest brother Al, a vaudeville dancer, adopted a new professional name after he saw the name "Ritz" on the side of a laundry truck. Jimmy and Harry followed suit when the brothers formed a team. The Ritzes emphasized precision dancing in their act, and added comedy material as they went along. By the early 1930s they were stage headliners. Movie career In 1934 Educational Pictures, producers of short subjects, hired "The Three Ritz Brothers" to ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jimmy Ritz
Jimmy Ritz (born Samuel Joachim; October 4, 1904 – November 17, 1985), was an American comedian and actor. He was also the second Ritz Brother. Early life Ritz was born Samuel Joachim to parents Max (December 1871 – January 4, 1939) and Pauline Joachim (May 1874 – November 26, 1935) on October 4, 1904. His father was a haberdasher from Austria-Hungary and his mother was Russian. Ritz had three brothers, George, Al, and Harry, and a sister, Gertrude Soll. Career The Ritz Brothers began as a dancing act in 1925, and by 1929 they had become vaudeville headliners. When vaudeville faded, they took their act, which combined complicated dance routines, sound-alike singing voices and a distinctively zany, juvenile humor (their theme song was titled ''Collegiate''), to film, full theatrical presentations, and eventually television. They were appearing on the Sunset Strip in Hollywood when movie producer Darryl F. Zanuck spotted them. Their first film, ''Sing, Baby, Sing' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marx Brothers
The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act that was successful in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in motion pictures from 1905 to 1949. Five of the Marx Brothers' thirteen feature films were selected by the American Film Institute (AFI) as among the top 100 comedy films, with two of them, '' Duck Soup'' (1933) and '' A Night at the Opera'' (1935), in the top fifteen. They are widely considered by critics, scholars and fans to be among the greatest and most influential comedians of the 20th century. The brothers were included in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Stars list of the 25 greatest male stars of Classical Hollywood cinema, the only performers to be included collectively. The brothers are almost universally known by their stage names: Chico, Harpo, Groucho, Gummo, and Zeppo. There was a sixth brother, the first born, named Manfred (Mannie), who died in infancy; Zeppo was given the middle name Manfred in his memory. The core of the act was the three elder brothers: C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Three Musketeers (1939 Film)
''The Three Musketeers'' is a 1939 musical comedy film adaptation of Alexandre Dumas's 1844 novel ''The Three Musketeers'' directed by Alan Dwan and starring Don Ameche as d'Artagnan, with the Ritz Brothers as his cowardly helpers. Plot summary Cast * Don Ameche as d'Artagnan * Ritz Brothers as Three Lackeys * Binnie Barnes as Milady de Winter * Gloria Stuart as Queen Anne * Pauline Moore as Lady Constance * Joseph Schildkraut as King Louis XIII * John Carradine as Naveau * Lionel Atwill as De Rochefort * Miles Mander as Cardinal Richelieu * Douglass Dumbrille as Athos (as Douglas Dumbrille) * John 'Dusty' King as Aramis (as John King) * Russell Hicks as Porthos * Gregory Gaye as Vitray * Lester Matthews as Duke of Buckingham * Egon Brecher as Landlord * Moroni Olsen as Bailiff * Georges Renavent as Captain Fageon * C. Montague Shaw as Ship Captain (as Montague Shaw) Songs Music: Samuel Pokrass, lyrics: Walter Bullock. * d'Artagnan song (Vara-vara-vara), Don Ameche. * Chick ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edgar Bergen
Edgar John Bergen (born Edgar John Berggren; February 16, 1903 – September 30, 1978) was an American ventriloquist, actor, comedian, vaudevillian and radio performer, best known for his proficiency in ventriloquism and his characters Charlie McCarthy and Mortimer Snerd. He was the father of actress Candice Bergen. Early life Bergen was born in Chicago, Illinois, one of five children and the younger of two sons of Swedish immigrants Nilla Svensdotter (née Osberg) and Johan Henriksson Berggren. He lived on a farm near Decatur, Michigan until he was four, when his family returned to Sweden, where he learned the language. After his family had returned to Chicago, when he was eleven, he taught himself ventriloquism from a pamphlet called "The Wizard's Manual". He attended Lake View High School. After his father died, when Edgar was 16, he went out to work as an apprentice accountant, a furnace stoker, a player-piano operator, and a projectionist in a silent-movie house. E ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Technicolor
Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films running through a special camera (3-strip Technicolor or Process 4) started in the early 1930s and continued through to the mid-1950s when the 3-strip camera was replaced by a standard camera loaded with single strip 'monopack' color negative film. Technicolor Laboratories were still able to produce Technicolor prints by creating three black and white matrices from the Eastmancolor negative (Process 5). Process 4 was the second major color process, after Britain's Kinemacolor (used between 1908 and 1914), and the most widely used color process in Cinema of the United States, Hollywood during the Golden Age of Hollywood. Technicolor's #Process 4: Development and introduction, three-color process became known and celebrated for its highly s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samuel Goldwyn
Samuel Goldwyn (born Szmuel Gelbfisz; yi, שמואל געלבפֿיש; August 27, 1882 (claimed) January 31, 1974), also known as Samuel Goldfish, was a Polish-born American film producer. He was best known for being the founding contributor and executive of several motion picture studios in Hollywood. He was awarded the 1973 Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award, the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award (1947) and the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award (1958). Early life Goldwyn was likely born in July 1879, although he claimed his birthday to be August 27, 1882. He was born as Szmuel Gelbfisz in Warsaw to Polish Jewish Hasidic parents, Aaron Dawid Gelbfisz (1859–1894), a peddler, and his wife, Hanna Frymet (''née'' Fiszhaut ; 1860–1925). He left Warsaw penniless after his father's death and made his way to Hamburg. There he stayed with acquaintances of his family where he has trained as a glove maker. On November 26, 1898, Gelbfisz left Hamburg for Birmingham, England, whe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Autograph Hound
''The Autograph Hound'' is a 1939 Donald Duck cartoon which features Donald Duck as an autograph hunter in Hollywood. Many celebrities from the 1930s are featured. This is the first cartoon where Donald Duck is featured in his blue sailor hat. Plot Donald Duck tries to enter a Hollywood studio so he can search for celebrities willing to sign their autograph. A security guard with an Irish accent at the gate prevents him from entering the building. Donald manages to sneak inside by climbing on the limousine with Greta Garbo so that it seems he's riding along with her. The security guard discovers he's been fooled and chases Donald, who enters a room with the name "Mickey Rooney" on it. Inside, Mickey Rooney is dressing up in front of the mirror, when Donald asks him for his autograph. Rooney writes his name in Donald's book and makes it disappear and reappear with a magic trick. Donald, who is not amused, tries to impress Rooney by doing a similar trick with an egg. However, the egg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Walt Disney
Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film producer, he holds the record for most Academy Awards earned and nominations by an individual, having won 22 Oscars from 59 nominations. He was presented with two Golden Globe Special Achievement Awards and an Emmy Award, among other honors. Several of his films are included in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress and have also been named as some of the List of films considered the best, greatest films ever by the American Film Institute. Disney was the first person to be nominated for Academy Awards in six different categories. Born in Chicago in 1901, Disney developed an early interest in drawing. He took art classes as a boy and got a job as a commercial illustrator at the age of 18. He moved to California in the early ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
A Sunbonnet Blue
A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient Greek letter alpha, from which it derives. The uppercase version consists of the two slanting sides of a triangle, crossed in the middle by a horizontal bar. The lowercase version can be written in two forms: the double-storey a and single-storey ɑ. The latter is commonly used in handwriting and fonts based on it, especially fonts intended to be read by children, and is also found in italic type. In English grammar, " a", and its variant " an", are indefinite articles. History The earliest certain ancestor of "A" is aleph (also written 'aleph), the first letter of the Phoenician alphabet, which consisted entirely of consonants (for that reason, it is also called an abjad to distinguish it f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Warner Bros
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. Founded in 1923 by four brothers, Harry, Albert, Sam, and Jack Warner, the company established itself as a leader in the American film industry before diversifying into animation, television, and video games and is one of the "Big Five" major American film studios, as well as a member of the Motion Picture Association (MPA). The company is known for its film studio division the Warner Bros. Pictures Group, which includes Warner Bros. Pictures, New Line Cinema, the Warner Animation Group, Castle Rock Entertainment, and DC Studios. Among its other assets, stands the television production company Warner Bros. Television Studios. Bugs Bunny, a cartoon character created by Tex Avery, Ben Hardaway, Chuck Jones, Bob Givens and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited personality, and outspokenness, cultivating a screen persona that matched this public image, and regularly playing strong-willed, sophisticated women. Her work was in a range of genres, from screwball comedy to literary drama, and earned her various accolades, including four Academy Awards for Best Actress—a record for any performer. In 1999, Hepburn was named the greatest female star of classic Hollywood cinema by the American Film Institute. Raised in Connecticut by wealthy, progressive parents, Hepburn began to act while at Bryn Mawr College. Favorable reviews of her work on Broadway brought her to the attention of Hollywood. Her early years in film brought her international fame, including an Academy Award for Best Actress for her thir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alice Faye
Alice Faye (born Alice Jeanne Leppert; May 5, 1915 – May 9, 1998) was an American actress and singer. A musical star of 20th Century-Fox in the 1930s and 1940s, Faye starred in such films as ''On the Avenue'' (1937) and ''Alexander's Ragtime Band'' (1938). She is often associated with the Academy Award–winning standard "You'll Never Know", which she introduced in the 1943 musical film ''Hello, Frisco, Hello''. She left her career as a film actress and became known for her role on the radio show ''The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show''. Life and career 1915–1933: Early life and career beginnings Alice Jeanne Leppert was born on May 5, 1915, in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, the daughter of Alice (''née'' Moffit), who worked for the Mirror Chocolate Company, and Charles Leppert, a police officer. She had an older brother, Charles. Faye was raised an Episcopalian. Faye's entertainment career began in vaudeville as a chorus girl. She failed an audition for the ''Earl Carroll Vanitie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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