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The Spiral Staircase (1946 Film)
''The Spiral Staircase'' is a 1946 American psychological horror film directed by Robert Siodmak and starring Dorothy McGuire, George Brent, and Ethel Barrymore. Adapted from Ethel Lina White's British novel ''Some Must Watch'' (1933) by screenwriter Mel Dinelli, the film follows a mute young woman in an early-20th century Vermont town being terrorized by a serial killer who targets disabled women. The film premiered in New York City on February 6, 1946. For her performance in the film, Barrymore received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Plot In a small village in 1906 Vermont, the mute Helen attends a silent film screening in the parlor of a local inn. During the screening, a crippled woman staying at the inn is murdered in her room by a man hiding in the closet; her murder is the third in a string of serial killings in the community. Dr. Parry, a friend of Helen's, drives her to the Warren home, a large estate outside town where Helen is employed as a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Siodmak
Robert Siodmak (; 8 August 1900 – 10 March 1973) was a German film director who also worked in the United States. He is best remembered as a thriller specialist and for a series of films noirs he made in the 1940s, such as ''The Killers'' (1946). Early life Siodmak was born in Dresden, Germany, the son of Rosa Philippine (née Blum) and Ignatz Siodmak and the brother of Curt, Werner and Roland. His parents were both from Jewish families in Leipzig (the myth of his American birth in Memphis, Tennessee was necessary for him to obtain a visa in Paris during World War II). He worked as a stage director and a banker before becoming editor and scenarist for Curtis Bernhardt in 1925 (Bernhardt directed a film of Siodmak's story ''Conflict'' in 1945). At twenty-six he was hired by his cousin, producer Seymour Nebenzal, to assemble original silent movies from stock footage of old films. Siodmak worked at this for two years before he persuaded Nebenzal to finance his first feature, the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
James Bell (actor)
James Harlee Bell (December 1, 1891 – October 26, 1973) was an American film and stage actor who appeared in about 150 films and television shows through 1964. Bell was born in Suffolk, Virginia, and graduated from Virginia Polytechnic Institute in 1911 with a degree in electrical engineering. In 1920, he made his theatrical debut as Venustiano in ''The Bad Man''. He worked steadily on Broadway through 1941. Bell's first film role was in ''I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang'' in 1932. He appeared in the films ''I Walked with a Zombie'' and ''The Leopard Man'', both of which were directed by Jacques Tourneur, produced by Val Lewton, and released in 1943. Among his television appearances were four guest roles on the legal drama series ''Perry Mason''. In 1958, he played murder victim J.J. Stanley in the episode " The Case of the Green-Eyed Sister", and murderer P.E. Overbrook in " The Case of the Lazy Lover." In 1960, he played murderer Zack Davis in " The Case of the Frantic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhys Williams (Welsh-American Actor)
Rhys Williams (31 December 1897 – 28 May 1969) was a Welsh character actor. He appeared in 78 films over a span of 30 years and later appeared on American television series. Career He made his 1941 film debut in the role of Dai Bando in ''How Green Was My Valley'', a drama about a working-class Welsh family that won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Williams was the only Welsh actor in the cast. He is believed to have been the original narrator of the film, and was originally hired by director John Ford as a dialogue coach. During television's early years in America, Williams was in scores of series episodes, including the '' Adventures of Superman'' as a sadistic character in the 1952 episode "The Evil Three". Williams played art collector Rufus Varner in the 1958 ''Perry Mason'' episode, "The Case of the Purple Woman", and appeared on the religion anthology series, ''Crossroads''. His other television work was on such programmes as ''The Rifleman'', ''The DuPont Show ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sara Allgood
Sarah Ellen Allgood (30 October 1880 – 13 September 1950), known as Sara Allgood, was an Irish-American actress. She first studied drama with the Irish nationalist Daughters of Ireland and was at the opening of the Irish National Theatre Society. In 1904, she had her first big role in ''Spreading the News'' and was a full-time actress the following year. In 1915, she toured Australia and New Zealand as the lead in ''Peg o' My Heart''. Her acting career continued in Dublin, London, and the U.S. She appeared in a number of films, most notably being nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Beth Morgan in the 1941 film ''How Green Was My Valley''. She became an American citizen in 1945 and died of a heart attack in 1950. Early life Allgood was born on 30 October 1880 at 45 Middle Abbey Street in Dublin, then still part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland at the time, a daughter of Margaret ( Harold) and compositor George Allgo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elsa Lanchester
Elsa Sullivan Lanchester (28 October 1902 – 26 December 1986) was a British-American actress with a long career in theatre, film and television.Obituary ''Variety'', 31 December 1986. Lanchester studied dance as a child and after the First World War began performing in theatre and cabaret, where she established her career over the following decade. She met the actor Charles Laughton in 1927, and they were married two years later. She began playing small roles in British films, including the role of Anne of Cleves with Laughton in ''The Private Life of Henry VIII'' (1933). Her success in American films resulted in the couple moving to Hollywood, where Lanchester played small film roles. Her role as the title character in ''Bride of Frankenstein'' (1935) brought her recognition. She played supporting roles through the 1940s and 1950s. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for ''Come to the Stable'' (1949) and ''Witness for the Prosecution'' ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhonda Fleming
Rhonda Fleming (born Marilyn Louis; August 10, 1923 – October 14, 2020) was an American film and television actress and singer. She acted in more than 40 films, mostly in the 1940s and 1950s, and became renowned as one of the most glamorous actresses of her day, nicknamed the "Queen of Technicolor" because she photographed so well in that medium. Career Early life Fleming was born Marilyn Louis in Hollywood, California, to Harold Cheverton Louis, an insurance salesman, and Effie Graham, a stage actress who had appeared opposite Al Jolson in the musical ''Dancing Around'' at New York's Winter Garden Theatre from 1914 to 1915. Fleming's maternal grandfather was John C. Graham, an actor, theater owner, and newspaper editor in Utah. She began working as a film actress while attending Beverly Hills High School, from which she graduated in 1941. She was discovered by the well-known Hollywood agent Henry Willson, who changed her name to "Rhonda Fleming". "It's so weird", Flemin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gordon Oliver
Gordon Oliver (April 27, 1910 – January 26, 1995) was an American actor and film producer. He appeared in more than 40 films and television shows between 1933 and 1972. Biography Oliver began working in films in 1936, eventually working for Warner Bros., Columbia and RKO. He went on to appear in approximately 25 films. Oliver was executive producer of '' It Takes a Thief'', ''Peter Gunn'', '' Mr. Lucky'', and '' Mr. Adams and Eve''. On-screen, he was co-host of ''Mobil Theatre'' and '' Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Presents''. Oliver was married to model Elsa Oliver for 46 years. They had a son, Angus Duncan, and a daughter, Elsa Lambert. He died of emphysema January 26, 1995, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California. He was interred at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.Wilson, Scott. ''Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons'', 3d ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 25047-25048). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle Edition. Oliver was su ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kent Smith
Frank Kent Smith (March 19, 1907 – April 23, 1985) was an American actor who had a lengthy career in film, theatre and television. Early years Smith was the son of Mr. and Mrs. James E. Smith. He was born in New York City and was educated at Lincoln School, Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, New Hampshire, and at Harvard University. Stage Smith's early acting experience started in 1925 when he was one of the founders of the Harvard University Players, which later included Henry Fonda, James Stewart, Joshua Logan and Margaret Sullavan in Falmouth, Massachusetts. Smith's stock experience included productions with the Maryland Theatre in Baltimore. His professional acting debut was in 1929 in ''Blind Window'' in Baltimore. He made his Broadway acting debut in 1932 in ''Men Must Fight''. He appeared on Broadway in ''Measure for Measure,'' ''Sweet Love Remembered,'' '' The Best Man'', ''Ah, Wilderness!'', '' Dodsworth'' (1934), '' Saint Joan'' (1936), ''Old Acquaintance'' (1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brandy
Brandy is a liquor produced by distilling wine. Brandy generally contains 35–60% alcohol by volume (70–120 US proof) and is typically consumed as an after-dinner digestif. Some brandies are aged in wooden casks. Others are coloured with caramel colouring to imitate the effect of aging, and some are produced using a combination of both aging and colouring. Varieties of wine brandy can be found across the winemaking world. Among the most renowned are Cognac and Armagnac from southwestern France. In a broader sense, the term ''brandy'' also denotes liquors obtained from the distillation of pomace (yielding pomace brandy), or mash or wine of any other fruit (fruit brandy). These products are also called ''eau de vie'' (which translates to "water of life"). History The origins of brandy are tied to the development of distillation. While the process was known in classical times, it was not used for significant beverage production until the 15th century. In the early 16th cen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- most populous city in the country. The city boundaries encompass an area of about and a population of 675,647 as of 2020. It is the seat of Suffolk County (although the county government was disbanded on July 1, 1999). The city is the economic and cultural anchor of a substantially larger metropolitan area known as Greater Boston, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) home to a census-estimated 4.8 million people in 2016 and ranking as the tenth-largest MSA in the country. A broader combined statistical area (CSA), generally corresponding to the commuting area and including Providence, Rhode Island, is home to approximately 8.2 million people, making it the sixth most populous in the United States. Boston is one of the oldest ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diethyl Ether
Diethyl ether, or simply ether, is an organic compound in the ether class with the formula , sometimes abbreviated as (see Pseudoelement symbols). It is a colourless, highly volatile, sweet-smelling ("ethereal odour"), extremely flammable liquid. It is commonly used as a solvent in laboratories and as a starting fluid for some engines. It was formerly used as a general anesthetic, until non-flammable drugs were developed, such as halothane. It has been used as a recreational drug to cause intoxication. Production Most diethyl ether is produced as a byproduct of the vapor-phase hydration of ethylene to make ethanol. This process uses solid-supported phosphoric acid catalysts and can be adjusted to make more ether if the need arises. Vapor-phase dehydration of ethanol over some alumina catalysts can give diethyl ether yields of up to 95%. Diethyl ether can be prepared both in laboratories and on an industrial scale by the acid ether synthesis. Ethanol is mixed with a stro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
