|
Variety Girl
''Variety Girl'' is a 1947 American musical comedy film directed by George Marshall and starring Mary Hatcher, Olga San Juan, DeForest Kelley, Frank Ferguson, Glenn Tryon, Nella Walker, Torben Meyer, Jack Norton, and William Demarest. It was produced by Paramount Pictures. Numerous Paramount contract players and directors make cameos or perform songs, with particularly large amounts of screen time featuring Bing Crosby and Bob Hope. Among many others, the studio contract players include Gary Cooper, Alan Ladd, Paulette Goddard, Ray Milland, William Holden, Burt Lancaster, Robert Preston, Veronica Lake, William Bendix, Barbara Stanwyck and Paula Raymond. Overview The opening caption reads, "This picture is dedicated to Variety Clubs, International, "The Heart of Show Business", which beats constantly in behalf of the under-privileged children of the world ... regardless of race, creed or color". The story revolves around two young girls who exchange identities, causing co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George Marshall (director)
George E. Marshall (December 29, 1891 – February 17, 1975) was an American actor, screenwriter, producer, film and television director, active through the first six decades of film history. Relatively few of Marshall's films are well-known today, with '' Destry Rides Again'' (1939), '' The Ghost Breakers'' (1940), ''The Blue Dahlia'' (1946), '' The Sheepman'' (1958), and '' How the West Was Won'' (1962) being the biggest exceptions. John Houseman called him "one of the old maestros of Hollywood ... he had never become one of the giants but he held a solid and honorable position in the industry." In the 1930s, he established a reputation for comedy, directing Laurel and Hardy in three classic films, and also working on a variety of comedies for Fox, though many of his films at Fox were destroyed in a vault fire in 1937. Later in his career he was particularly sought after for comedies. He did around half a dozen films each with Bob Hope and Jerry Lewis, and also worked w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldest film studio in the world, the second-oldest film studio in the United States (behind Universal Pictures), and the sole member of the Major film studio, "Big Five" film studios located within the city limits of Los Angeles. In 1916, film producer Adolph Zukor put 24 actors and actresses under contract and honored each with a star on the logo. In 1967, the number of stars was reduced to 22 and their hidden meaning was dropped. In 2014, Paramount Pictures became the first major Hollywood studio to distribute all of its films in digital form only. The company's headquarters and studios are located at 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, California. Paramount Pictures is a member of the Motion Picture Association of America, Motion Picture Associ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barbara Stanwyck
Barbara Stanwyck (; born Ruby Catherine Stevens; July 16, 1907 – January 20, 1990) was an American actress, model and dancer. A stage, film, and television star, during her 60-year professional career she was known for her strong, realistic screen presence and versatility. She was a favorite of directors, including Cecil B. DeMille, Fritz Lang, and Frank Capra, and made 85 films in 38 years before turning to television. Orphaned at the age of four and partially raised in foster homes, she always worked. One of her directors, Jacques Tourneur, said of her, "She only lives for two things, and both of them are work." She made her debut on stage in the chorus as a Ziegfeld girl in 1923, at age 16, and within a few years was acting in plays. Her first lead role, which was in the hit ''Burlesque'' (1927), established her as a Broadway star. In 1929, she began acting in talking pictures. Frank Capra chose her for his romantic drama '' Ladies of Leisure'' (1930). This led to additi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William Bendix
William Bendix (January 14, 1906 – December 14, 1964) was an American film, radio, and television actor, who typically played rough, blue-collar characters. He is best remembered for his role in ''Wake Island'', which earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. He also portrayed the clumsily earnest aircraft plant worker Chester A. Riley in both the radio and television versions of ''The Life of Riley'', and baseball player Babe Ruth in ''The Babe Ruth Story''. Bendix was a frequent co-star of Alan Ladd, the two appearing in ten films together; both actors coincidentally died in 1964. Early life Bendix was born in Manhattan, the only child of Oscar and Hilda (Carnell) Bendix, and was named William after his German paternal grandfather. His uncle was composer, conductor, and violinist Max Bendix. In the early 1920s, Bendix was a batboy for the New York Yankees and said he saw Babe Ruth hit more than 100 home runs at Yankee Stadium. However, he was fired ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Veronica Lake
Constance Frances Marie Ockelman (November 14, 1922 – July 7, 1973), known professionally as Veronica Lake, was an American film, stage, and television actress. Lake was best known for her femme fatale roles in film noirs with Alan Ladd during the 1940s, her peek-a-boo hairstyle, and films such as '' Sullivan's Travels'' (1941) and ''I Married a Witch'' (1942). By the late 1940s, Lake's career began to decline, due in part to her alcoholism. She made only one film in the 1950s, but made several guest appearances on television. She returned to the big screen in 1966 in the film ''Footsteps in the Snow'' (1966), but the role failed to revitalize her career. Lake's memoir, ''Veronica: The Autobiography of Veronica Lake'', was published in 1970. Her final screen role was in a low-budget horror film, '' Flesh Feast'' (1970). After years of heavy drinking, Lake died at the age of 50 in July 1973, from hepatitis and acute kidney injury. Early life Lake was born Constance Franc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Preston (actor)
Robert Preston Meservey (June 8, 1918 – March 21, 1987) was an American stage and film actor and singer of Broadway and cinema, best known for his collaboration with composer Meredith Willson and originating the role of Professor Harold Hill in the 1957 musical ''The Music Man'' and the 1962 film adaptation; the film earned him his first of two Golden Globe Award nominations. Preston collaborated twice with filmmaker Blake Edwards, first in '' S.O.B.'' (1981) and again in ''Victor/Victoria'' (1982). For portraying Carroll "Toddy" Todd in the latter, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor at the 55th Academy Awards. Early life Preston was born Robert Preston Meservey in Newton, Massachusetts, the son of Ruth L. (née Rea) (1895–1973) and Frank Wesley Meservey (1899–1996), a garment worker and a billing clerk for American Express. After attending Abraham Lincoln High School in Los Angeles, he studied acting at the Pasadena Community Playhouse. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burt Lancaster
Burton Stephen Lancaster (November 2, 1913 – October 20, 1994) was an American actor and producer. Initially known for playing tough guys with a tender heart, he went on to achieve success with more complex and challenging roles over a 45-year career in film and, later, television. He was a four-time nominee for the Academy Award for Best Actor (winning once), and he also won two BAFTA Awards and one Golden Globe Award for Best Lead Actor. The American Film Institute ranks Lancaster as of the greatest male stars of classic Hollywood cinema. Lancaster performed as a circus acrobat in the 1930s. After serving in World War II, the 33-year-old Lancaster landed a role in a Broadway play and drew the attention of a Hollywood agent. His breakthrough role was in the film noir '' The Killers'' in 1946 alongside Ava Gardner. A critical success, it launched both of their careers. Not long after in 1948, Lancaster starred alongside Barbara Stanwyck in the commercially and critically ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William Holden
William Holden (born William Franklin Beedle Jr.; April 17, 1918 – November 12, 1981) was an American actor, and one of the biggest box-office draws of the 1950s. Holden won the Academy Award for Best Actor for the film ''Stalag 17'' (1953) and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie for the television film '' The Blue Knight'' (1973). Holden starred in some of Hollywood's most popular and critically acclaimed films, including ''Sunset Boulevard'' (1950), '' Sabrina'' (1954), ''Picnic'' (1955), ''The Bridge on the River Kwai'' (1957), ''The Wild Bunch'' (1969) and ''Network'' (1976). He was named one of the " Top 10 Stars of the Year" six times (1954–1958, 1961), and appeared as 25th on the American Film Institute's list of 25 greatest male stars of Classical Hollywood cinema. Early life and education Holden was born William Franklin Beedle, Jr., on April 17, 1918, in O'Fallon, Illinois, son of Mary Blanche Beedle (née Ball), a sc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ray Milland
Ray Milland (born Alfred Reginald Jones; 3 January 1907 – 10 March 1986) was a Welsh-American actor and film director. His screen career ran from 1929 to 1985. He is remembered for his Academy Award and Cannes Film Festival Award-winning portrayal of an alcoholic writer in Billy Wilder's '' The Lost Weekend'' (1945) and also for such roles as a sophisticated leading man opposite John Wayne's corrupt character in '' Reap the Wild Wind'' (1942), the murder-plotting husband in Alfred Hitchcock's '' Dial M for Murder'' (1954) and Oliver Barrett III in ''Love Story'' (1970). Before becoming an actor, Milland served in the Household Cavalry of the British Army, becoming a proficient marksman, horseman and aeroplane pilot. He left the army to pursue a career in acting and appeared as an extra in several British productions before getting his first major role in '' The Flying Scotsman'' (1929). This led to a nine-month contract with MGM, and he moved to the United States, wher ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paulette Goddard
Paulette Goddard (born Marion Levy; June 3, 1910 – April 23, 1990) was an American actress notable for her film career in the Golden Age of Hollywood. Born in Manhattan and raised in Kansas City, Missouri, Goddard initially began her career as a child fashion model and performer in several Broadway productions as a Ziegfeld Girl. In the early 1930s, she moved to Hollywood and gained notice as the romantic partner of actor and comedian Charlie Chaplin, appearing as his leading lady in '' Modern Times'' (1936) and ''The Great Dictator'' (1940). After signing with Paramount Pictures, Goddard became one of the studio's biggest stars with roles in '' The Cat and the Canary'' (1939) with Bob Hope, '' The Women'' (1939) with Joan Crawford, '' North West Mounted Police'' (1940) with Gary Cooper, '' Reap the Wild Wind'' (1942) with John Wayne and Susan Hayward, '' So Proudly We Hail!'' (1943) — for which she received a nomination for Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress — '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alan Ladd
Alan Walbridge Ladd (September 3, 1913 – January 29, 1964) was an American actor and film producer. Ladd found success in film in the 1940s and early 1950s, particularly in films noir and Westerns. He was often paired with Veronica Lake in films noir, such as ''This Gun for Hire'' (1942), ''The Glass Key'' (1942), and ''The Blue Dahlia'' (1946). ''Whispering Smith'' (1948) was his first Western and color film, and ''Shane'' (1953) was noted for its contributions to the genre. Ladd also appeared in ten films with William Bendix; both actors coincidentally died in 1964. His other notable credits include '' Two Years Before the Mast'' (1946) and '' The Great Gatsby'' (1949). His popularity diminished in the mid 1950s, though he continued to appear in numerous films, including his first supporting role since ''This Gun for Hire'' in the smash hit ''The Carpetbaggers'' released in 1964. He died of an accidental combination of alcohol, a barbiturate, and two tranquilizers in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gary Cooper
Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, as well as an Academy Honorary Award in 1961 for his career achievements. He was one of the top10 film personalities for 23 consecutive years and one of the top money-making stars for 18 years. The American Film Institute (AFI) ranked Cooper at No.11 on its list of the 25 greatest male stars of classic Hollywood cinema. Cooper's career spanned 36 years, from 1925 to 1961, and included leading roles in 84 feature films. He was a major movie star from the end of the silent film era through to the end of the golden age of Classical Hollywood. His screen persona appealed strongly to both men and women, and his range included roles in most major film genres. His ability to project his own personality onto the characters he played contributed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
