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Bell, Book And Candle (play)
''Bell, Book and Candle'' is a 1950 Broadway play by John Van Druten. The original production was directed by John Van Druten with scenic and lighting design by George C. Jenkins, costumes by Anna Hill Johnstone with additional costumes exclusively designed for actress Lilli Palmer by Valentina. The play opened at the Ethel Barrymore Theater on November 14, 1950 and ran for 233 performances before closing on June 2, 1951. Following the close of the original Broadway production, a U.S. national tour of the play in 1952–53 starred Rosalind Russell and then Joan Bennett. A later West End production at London's Phoenix Theatre opened on October 5, 1954 and ran for 485 performances, closing on December 3, 1955. It was presented by H.M. Tennent Ltd and was directed by Rex Harrison, with settings by Alan Tagg and costumes by Pierre Balmain. This version relocated the action from Manhattan to Knightsbridge and changed the forename of the leading male character from Shep to Tony. ...
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John Van Druten
John William Van Druten (1 June 190119 December 1957) was an English playwright and theatre director. He began his career in London, and later moved to America, becoming a U.S. citizen. He was known for his plays of witty and urbane observations of contemporary life and society.Vineberg, Steve. “John Van Druten and the Remnants of a Lost Era.” The Threepenny Review, no. 165, 2021, pp. 25–26. JSTORAccessed 8 Mar. 2023. Biography Van Druten was born in London in 1901, son of a Dutch father named Wilhelmus van Druten and his English wife Eva. He was educated at University College School and read law at the University of London. Before commencing his career as a writer, he practised law for a while as a solicitor and university lecturer in Wales. He first came to prominence with ''Young Woodley (play), Young Woodley'', a slight but charming study of adolescence, produced in New York in 1925. However, it was banned in London by the Lord Chamberlain's office owing to its then-con ...
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Scott McKay (actor)
Scott McKay (born Carl Gose, May 28, 1915 – March 16, 1987) was an American film, television and theatre actor. Life and career McKay was born Carl Gose in Pleasantville, Iowa. He attended the University of Colorado, studying English literature. After graduating, McKay had ambitions to become a professor of English, but decided to pursue a career as an actor after an appearance in a Little Theatre Movement, Little Theatre production. His first work in theatre was as a straight man for a magician. He performed in Broadway plays from 1939 onwards, first appearing in the cast of ''The American Way (play), The American Way'', credited as Carl Gose. He played Captain Fisby in ''The Teahouse of the August Moon (play), The Teahouse of the August Moon'' replacing John Forsythe. McKay also played David Larabee in ''Sabrina Fair'', and Brigadoon#Characters and original cast, Jeff Douglas in a 1967 production of ''Brigadoon''. His final theatre credit was in 1974, as Ronald in ''Absurd ...
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Viola Lyel
Viola Lyel (19 December 1896 – 14 August 1972) was an English actress. In a long stage career she appeared in the West End and on Broadway, for leading directors of the day, including Sir Barry Jackson, and Nigel Playfair. Her roles ranged from Shakespeare and Restoration comedy to melodrama and drawing room comedies. Life and career Early years Viola Mary Watson was born in Hull, Yorkshire, the daughter of Frederick Watson and his wife Elizabeth (née Lyel). She was educated at Hull High School and Kilburn High School, London. She studied for the stage at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and was a student at the Old Vic where she made her first appearance in 1918, playing small parts and understudying.Gaye, pp. 899–901 In 1919 Lyel appeared in William Poel's company in '' The Return from Parnassus'' in London. She toured in Ben Greet's company, and in 1922 went to the Liverpool Repertory Company after which she was a member of Sir Barry Jackson's Birmingham ...
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Robert Flemyng
Benjamin Arthur Flemyng (3 January 1912 – 22 May 1995), known professionally as Robert Flemyng, was a British actor. The son of a doctor, and originally intended for a medical career, Flemyng learned his stagecraft in provincial repertory theatre. In 1935 he appeared in a leading role in the West End, and the following year had his first major success, in Terence Rattigan's comedy ''French Without Tears''. Between then and the Second World War he appeared in London and New York in a succession of comedies. On the outbreak of war in 1939 Flemyng volunteered for the Royal Army Service Corps, and served with distinction, winning the Military Cross. After the war he continued to appear in light comedies, but also took on more serious roles in plays by T. S. Eliot, Graham Greene, John Whiting and others. He toured Australia, Britain, Canada, India, South Africa and the US in a wide range of parts, from comedy to classic drama. Flemyng's broadcasting was principally in two tele ...
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Kay Kendall
Justine Kay Kendall McCarthy (21 May 1927 – 6 September 1959) was an English actress and singer. She began her film career in the musical film ''London Town (1946 film), London Town'' (1946), a financial failure. Kendall worked regularly until her appearance in the comedy film ''Genevieve (film), Genevieve'' (1953) brought her widespread recognition. Prolific in British films, Kendall also achieved some popularity with American audiences, and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for her role in the musical-comedy film ''Les Girls'' (1957). She began a romantic relationship with actor Rex Harrison after they appeared together in the comedy film ''The Constant Husband'' (1955) and they were married in 1957. Harrison learned from Kendall's doctor that she had been diagnosed with Acute myeloid leukemia, myeloid leukaemia, a fact that was kept from Kendall, who believed she was suffering from an iron deficiency. The actor cared for Kendall ...
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Theatre Royal, Sydney
Theatre Royal Sydney (TRS) is a theatre in Sydney, Australia. Earlier theatres also called the Theatre Royal, on the same site, date back to 1833. The current building, designed by modernist architect Harry Seidler, was built in 1976 and has offered a broad range of entertainment since the 1990s. After being closed in 2016, the theatre reopened in December 2021 under parent company Trafalgar Entertainment. Earlier theatres First Theatre Royal Construction by Barnett Levey of the first Theatre Royal commenced in 1827 and was opened on 5 October 1833. It closed in March 1838 and a few days later Joseph Wyatt's Royal Victoria Theatre, a much larger building, was opened, with an entrance on Pitt Street. Levey's Theatre Royal burned to the ground in 1840 with the "Vic" (Royal Victoria), which abutted the rear, having a narrow escape. However, the "Vic" was itself totally destroyed by fire on 22 July 1880. Second Theatre Royal The Prince of Wales Theatre was built in 1855 and d ...
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Frank Lawton
Frank Lawton Mokeley (30 September 1904 – 10 June 1969) was an English actor. Biography Frank Lawton was born in St Giles, London, on 30 September 1904. His parents were stage players Daisy May Collier and Frank Mokely Lawton. His first major screen credit was ''Young Woodley'' (1930). In the mid-1930s, Lawton appeared in some Hollywood films, most significantly as the adult David Copperfield in MGM's classic literature adaptation of ''David Copperfield ''David Copperfield''Dickens invented over 14 variations of the title for this work; see is a novel by English author Charles Dickens, narrated by the eponymous David Copperfield, detailing his adventures in his journey from infancy to matur ...'' (1935). However, Lawton never made his big breakthrough in Hollywood and returned to British film and theatre. He was married to actress Evelyn Laye from 1934 until his death in 1969 aged 64. They acted together several times, including in the TV series '' My Husband and ...
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Evelyn Laye
Evelyn Laye (''née'' Elsie Evelyn Lay; 10 July 1900 – 17 February 1996) was an English actress and singer known for her performances in operettas and musical theatre, musicals. Born into a theatrical family, she made her professional début in 1915 aged fifteen and quickly established herself in Edwardian musical comedy, musical comedy. By 1920 she was starring in leading roles in the West End theatre, West End at Daly's Theatre, Daly's and other theatres, becoming London's highest-paid star. Her first marriage, in 1926, to the performer Sonnie Hale was brief and ended in divorce after he abandoned her for the singer Jessie Matthews. Laye made her American debut in 1929 starring in Noël Coward's musical ''Bitter Sweet (operetta), Bitter Sweet''. In the 1930s she divided her time between the West End and Broadway theatre, Broadway, and starred in American and British films. She entertained Royal Navy, naval personnel during the Second World War. Afterwards, when fashion ...
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King John (play)
''The Life and Death of King John'' (also ''King John''), by William Shakespeare, is a history play about the reign of John, King of England (r. 1199–1216), the son of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine, and the father of Henry III. ''King John'' was written in the mid-1590s, but published in 1623 in the First Folio of Shakespeare's works. __TOC__ Characters * King John – King of England * Eleanor – the Queen mother, widow of King Henry II * Prince Henry – his son, later King Henry III * Blanche of Castile – John's niece * Earl of Essex – an English nobleman * Earl of Salisbury – an English nobleman * Earl of Pembroke – an English nobleman * Lord Bigot – Earl of Norfolk * Peter of Pomfret – a prophet * Philip Faulconbridge – also known as Philip the Bastard and Sir Richard the Plantagenet; natural son of Richard I of England * Robert Faulconbridge – his half brother; legitimate son of Sir Robert Faulconbridge * Lady Faulconbridge – their ...
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William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of River Avon, Warwickshire, Avon" or simply "the Bard". His extant works, including William Shakespeare's collaborations, collaborations, consist of some Shakespeare's plays, 39 plays, Shakespeare's sonnets, 154 sonnets, three long narrative poems and a few other verses, some of uncertain authorship. His plays List of translations of works by William Shakespeare, have been translated into every major modern language, living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright. Shakespeare remains arguably the most influential writer in the English language, and his works continue to be studied and reinterpreted. Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire. At the age of 18 ...
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Anathema
The word anathema has two main meanings. One is to describe that something or someone is being hated or avoided. The other refers to a formal excommunication by a Christian denomination, church. These meanings come from the New Testament, where an anathema was a person or thing cursed or condemned by God. In the Old Testament, an anathema was something or someone cursed and separated from God because of sin. These represent two types of settings, one for devotion, the other for destruction. Etymology Anathema derives from Ancient Greek: , , meaning "an offering" or "anything dedicated", itself derived from the verb , , meaning "to offer up". In the Old Testament, חֵרֶם (''Herem (censure), chērem'') referred to both objects consecrated to divine use and those dedicated to destruction in the Lord's name, such as enemies and their weapons during religious wars. Since weapons of the enemy were considered unholy, the meaning became "anything dedicated to evil" or "a curse". I ...
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Esmond Knight
Esmond Penington Knight (4 May 1906 – 23 February 1987) was an English actor. He had a successful stage and film career before World War II. For much of his later career Knight was half-blind. He had been badly wounded in 1941 while on active service on board HMS ''Prince of Wales'' when she fought the ''Bismarck'' at the Battle of the Denmark Strait, and remained totally blind for two years, though he later regained some sight in his right eye. Childhood Knight was born on 4 May 1906 in East Sheen, Surrey, the third son of Francis and Bertha Knight. His father was involved in the family cigar import business. In 1917, Knight and his older brother, Robert, alleged that the writer Norman Douglas indecently assaulted them during a 1916 visit to the Natural History Museum in London. Robert identified Douglas amongst a group of men at the Westminster Police Court. Douglas provided an alibi of being overseas at the time and it was proven to be a case of mistaken identity. Knig ...
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