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- Actor
- Soundtrack
Born in 1919 in Jerusalem, Nehemiah Persoff emigrated with his family to America in 1929.
Following schooling at the Hebrew Technical Institute of New York, he found a job as a subway electrician doing signal maintenance until an interest in the theater altered the direction of his life.
He joined amateur groups and subsequently won a scholarship to the Dramatic Workshop in New York. This led to what would have been his Broadway debut in a production of "Eve of St. Mark", but he was fired before the show opened. He made his official New York debut in a production of "The Emperor's New Clothes" in 1940.
WWII interrupted his young career in 1942, when he was inducted into the United Sates Army, returning to the stage after his hitch was over in 1945, three years later. He sought work in stock plays and became an intern of Stella Adler and, as a result, a strong exponent of the Actor's Studio. Discovered by Charles Laughton and cast in his production of "Galileo" in 1947, Persoff made his film debut a year later with an uncredited bit in The Naked City (1948).
Short, dark, chunky-framed and with a distinct talent for dialects, Persoff became known primarily for his ethnic villainy, usually playing authoritative Eastern Europeans.
In a formidable career which had him portraying everything from cab drivers to Joseph Stalin, standout film roles would include Leo in The Harder They Fall (1956) with Humphrey Bogart, Gene Conforti in Alfred Hitchcock's The Wrong Man (1956), Albert in This Angry Age (1958) and gangster Johnny Torrio in Al Capone (1959). That same year he played another gangster, the small role of Little Bonaparte, in Some Like It Hot (1959).
He was a durable performer during TV's "Golden Age" (Gunsmoke (1955), The Twilight Zone (1959)) and well beyond (Chicago Hope (1994), Law & Order (1990)), playing hundreds of intense, volatile and dominating characters.
In later years, his characters grew a bit softer as Barbra Streisand's Jewish father in Yentl (1983) and the voice of Papa Mousekewitz in the An American Tail (1986) will attest. Later stage work included well-received productions of "I'm Not Rappaport" and his biographical one-man show "Sholem Aleichem".
After declining health and high blood pressure forced him to slow down, Persoff took up painting in 1985, studying sketching in Los Angeles. Specializing in watercolor, he created more than 100 works of art, many of which have been exhibited up and down the coast of California. He celebrated his 100th birthday in 2019.- Director
- Producer
- Editor
John Sturges was an American film director, mostly remembered for his outstanding Western films. In 1992, Sturges was awarded a Golden Boot Award for his lifelong contribution to the Western genre.
Sturges was born in the village of Oak Park, Illinois, within the Chicago metropolitan area. By 1930, the village had a population of 64,000 people.
Sturges started his film career in 1932, as a film editor. During World War II, he started directing documentaries and training films for the United States Army Air Forces.
Sturges made his directing debut in 1946, in the drama film "The Man Who Dared" (1946) by the studio Columbia Pictures. The film's protagonist frames himself for murder, in order to prove that innocent people may be convicted by circumstantial evidence. His next film project was the film noir "Shadowed" (1946), about a corpse being found in a golf club, and how an innocent man finds his life threatened by a gang leader. Sturges' last film of the year was the crime drama "Alias Mr. Twilight" (1946), about an elderly con-artist who uses his earnings to provide for his beloved granddaughter.
Sturges was entrusted with directing the third film in the then -popular Rusty film series, about the adventures of a German shepherd. The film was called "For the Love of Rusty" (1947), and introduced the new dog actor Flame. Flame portrayed Rusty in four of the eight Rusty films.
Sturges' next film project was "Keeper of the Bees" (1947), the third film adaptation of the 1925 novel by Gene Stratton-Porter (1863-1924). The film involved aging beekeeper Michael Worthington (played by Harry Davenport ) who recruits a nomadic painter and an orphan girl as his new employees. Despite a high-profile cast, the film is considered a lost film.
Sturges' last film of the year was the war documentary "Thunderbolt" (1947), concerning Operation Strangle (March 19-May 11, 1944). The aerial operation had American aircraft attacking German supply routes in Central Italy, in order to force the Germans to withdraw. The documentary included actual combat footage from the operation, and part of its profits was used to finance the Army Air Force Relief Society.
Sturges returned to the film noir genre with the film "The Sign of the Ram" (1948). The film's villain protagonist Leah St. Aubyn (played by Susan Peters) was depicted as an invalid woman with an obsessive desire to control and dominate the life of her family and friends, and going to extremes in order to achieve her goal.
Sturges next directed the historical drama "Best Man Wins", an adaptation of the short story "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" (1865) by Mark Twain (1835-1910). The film depicts professional gambler Jim Smiley (played by Edgar Buchanan) trying to use his jumping frog Daniel Webster to win bets. He hopes to use his earnings to win back the love of his ex-wife, and to buy the love of his estranged son.
Sturges' first Western was "The Walking Hills" (1949), which used film noir tropes in a new setting. The film involves treasure hunters searching for a lost wagon train carrying gold bars. But many of the characters are hiding secrets, and a there is a manhunt for a wanted fugitive in the area.
Sturges had a critically successful film with the biographical film "The Magnificent Yankee", which dramatized the life of Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. (1841-1935), Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1902 to 1932. The film was nominated for two Academy Awards, but won neither.
Sturges next projects included the film noir "The Capture" (1950), the film noir "Mystery Street" (1950), and the sports drama "Right Cross" (1950). His crime drama "Kind Lady" (1951) was a remake of a 1935 film with the same title, directed by George B. Seitz. In the film, wealthy art collector Mary Herries (played by Ethel Barrymore) allows painter Henry Springer Elcott (played by Maurice Evans) to move into her London house. But her new house-guest is planning to rob her.
Sturges' film noir "The People Against O'Hara" (1951) was a film noir with elements from courtroom drama. It was a box office hit, and had Sturges working with lead actor Spencer Tracy. Sturges was one of seven film directors who co-directed the anthology film "It's a Big Country", concerning life in the United States.
Sturges' biographical film "The Girl in White" (1952) dramatized the life of female surgeon Emily Dunning Barringer (1876-1961). The real-life Barringer was "the world's first female ambulance surgeon and the first woman to secure a surgical residency". Sturges returned to the film noir genre with "Jeopardy" (1953), an adaptation of a radio play by Maurice Zimm.
Sturges directed the sports comedy "Fast Company" (1953), about an exceptional race horse, and a struggle over its ownership. He returned to the Western genre with the American Civil War-themed film "Escape from Fort Bravo" (1953). In the film the prisoners confined in a Union prison camp attempt to escape. This color film used the Anscocolor process.
Sturges had a career highlight with the thriller film "Bad Day at Black Rock" (1955), which combined elements from both film noir and the Western. It involves a town hiding a secret, and mysterious stranger John J. Macreedy (played by Spencer Tracy) trying to uncover the elusive truth. Sturges was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director, but the award was won instead by rival director Delbert Mann (1920-2007).
Sturges' next film project was the treasure-hunting themed adventure "Underwater!" (1955). His historical drama "The Scarlet Coat" (1955) dramatized the plot of military officer Benedict Arnold (1741-1801) to surrender West Point to the British Army during the American Revolutionary War. The film also dramatized the life of British spy John André (1750-1780).The film's American counterspy John Bolton was loosely based on historical spymaster Benjamin Tallmadge (1754-1835).
Sturges returned to the Western genre with popular films such as "Backlash" (1956), "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral" (1957), "The Law and Jake Wade" (1958), "Last Train from Gun Hill" (1959). He also directed the adventure drama "The Old Man and the Sea" (1958), an adaptation of the 1952 novella by Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961). For this film, Sturges once again worked with leading actor Spencer Tracy.
Sturges' World War II-themed war film "Never So Few" (1959), featured a cast of rising actors, such as Frank Sinatra, Gina Lollobrigida, and Steve McQueen,. Sturges had another career highlight with a film remake, the Western "The Magnificent Seven" (1960). It was a loose adaptation of the Japanese film "Seven Samurai" (1954) by Akira Kurosawa. The film under-performed in the United States, but was a smash hit in Europe, and very profitable for the film studio United Artists. It sold 89,118,696 tickets sold in overseas territories, and broke box office records in the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union. Kurosawa himself liked this adaptation, and the film received three sequels, two remakes of its own, and a television series adaptation.
Sturges' next film project included the law-firm drama "By Love Possessed" (1961), which included controversial themes such as rape, suicide, and embezzlement. Sturges next Western film was "Sergeants 3", loosely based on the poem "Gunga Din" (1890) by Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936). This film is mostly remembered as the " last film to feature all five members of the Rat Pack".
Sturges' next film was more sexually explicit: "A Girl Named Tamiko" (1962). Lead character Ivan Balin (played by Laurence Harvey) is a man who desperately wants to emigrate to the United States, and uses his sex-appeal to seduce women who may help him achieve his goal. His next war film was "The Great Escape" (1963) about prisoners of war trying to escape from Stalag Luft III. It was one of the highest-grossing films of its year of release.
Sturges directed his first science fiction film at age 55, and that film was "The Satan Bug" (1965). The film depicted the manufacture of bio-weapons, and their potential release against American major cities. Sturges also directed the Western comedy "The Hallelujah Trail" (1965), about a predicted harsh winter threatening the whiskey supply of a frontier town. He next directed a more serious Western, "Hour of the Gun" (1967). It was his second film about the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1881), but attempted to be more historically accurate than previous film depictions of the events.
Sturges' next film project was the Cold War thriller "Ice Station Zebra" (1968), loosely based on the missing experimental Corona satellite capsule (Discoverer II) which fell to Norway in 1959, and the efforts to recover it before it fell on Soviet hands. The film was mildly controversial, since it dramatized events that were still classified secret at the time of production. Sturges used former American agents as technical advisers.
Sturges' second science fiction film was Marooned (1969), depicting a potentially deadly accident affecting the Apollo program. Released at a time of high public interest on the Apollo program, it attracted an audience but was a box office flop. The film's visual effects expert won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.
Sturges partially directed the auto racing film "Le Mans" (1971), but quit before the film was completed. He was replaced by fellow director Lee H. Katzin (1935-2002). Sturges returned to the Western genre with the peasant-revolt themed "Joe Kidd" (1972). It featured bounty hunter Joe Kidd (played by Clint Eastwood) hunting down a Mexican revolutionary who is campaigning for land reform. The film is considered an example of the Revisionist Western, a more cynical take on the genre.
Sturges last Western was the Italian-produced "Chino" (1973). He returned to the film noir genre with the neo-noir "McQ" (1974), with lead character Lon "McQ" McHugh (played by John Wayne) being an aging police detective who is trying find out who was behind a failed attempt on his life. Sturges' last film was the war film "The Eagle Has Landed" (1976), depicting a German plot by Abwehr leader Wilhelm Canaris (1887-1945) to kidnap Winston Churchill. His last film was a box office hit in its own right.
Sturges retired from film directing at the age of 66. He continued living in retirement until his death in 1992. He was 82-years-old, and several of his film were finding retrospective critical acclaim.- Actor
- Director
- Producer
G.D. Spradlin was born on 31 August 1920 in Pauls Valley, Oklahoma, USA. He was an actor and director, known for Ed Wood (1994), Apocalypse Now (1979) and The Godfather Part II (1974). He was married to Frances Hewitt Hendrickson and Nell Ethelyn Hulsizer. He died on 24 July 2011 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.- Actor
- Additional Crew
Burr DeBenning was born on 21 September 1936 in Seminole, Oklahoma, USA. He was an actor, known for The Incredible Melting Man (1977), A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Dream Child (1989) and Turner & Hooch (1989). He was married to Susan Silo. He died on 26 May 2003 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Billy Booth was born on 7 November 1949 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an actor, known for Dennis the Menace (1959), Assignment: Underwater (1960) and The Detectives (1959). He was married to Kathern. He died on 31 December 2006 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.- George Cooper was born on 24 January 1920 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for Crossfire (1947), Blood on the Moon (1948) and Roughshod (1949). He was married to Valerie M. Conte. He died on 14 February 2015 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.
- Writer
- Director
- Producer
L. Ron Hubbard was born on 13 March 1911 in Tilden, Nebraska, USA. He was a writer and director, known for Battlefield Earth (2000), The Secret of Treasure Island (1938) and How the E-Meter Works (1976). He was married to Mary Sue Whipp, Sara Northrup and Margaret Louise Grubb. He died on 24 January 1986 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.- Florence MacMichael was born on 26 April 1919 in Hagerstown, Maryland, USA. She was an actress, known for The Twilight Zone (1959), Mister Ed (1961) and Young and Willing (1943). She was married to James L. McCoy and Sellwyn Lorain Myers. She died on 1 May 1999 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.
- Kirk Scott was born on 7 June 1936 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA. He was an actor, known for Heathers (1988), Quantum Leap (1989) and Dallas (1978). He died on 16 November 2013 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.
- Soteron "Sam" Vlahos was born in San Diego, California, on August 10, 1935, to Theodore Vlahos of Kakouri, Greece, and Juanita Romero of Baja, Mexico. After serving in the U.S. Air Force in the 1950s, he pursued his acting career.
He worked extensively in television and movies, but the theater was his greatest love because of the challenge of one-take delivery and the spontaneity of audience feedback.
In 2009 he was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (lung scarring of unknown origin) and passed away on September 3, 2011. He is survived by his wife, Jill, his two sons Mark and Chris from a previous marriage, and his three grandsons Joe, Jimmy, and Danny. To take 1 John 4:19 a bit out of context, we loved him because he first loved us, and we were so blessed to have him in our lives. - Gastón Santos was born on 12 July 1931 in Mexico, Distrito Federal, Mexico. He was an actor, known for Los diablos del terror (1959), El silencioso (1967) and La flecha envenenada (1957). He died on 17 January 2024 in La Jarilla, San Luis Potosí, Mexico.
- Actress
- Casting Department
Dorothy Dells was born on July 16, 1928 in Medford Oregon. Her career began when she was discovered while working at a drive in restaurant on Sunset Blvd. She was immediately signed for the TV series Have Gun - Will Travel (1957). She went on to appear in many television series, including Rawhide (1959), My Three Sons (1960), The Richard Boone Show (1963), Hollywood Wives (1985), Marcus Welby, M.D. (1969), Bachelor Father (1957), Highway to Heaven (1984), L.A. Law (1986), Sledge Hammer! (1986), and Lou Grant (1977). She also appeared in such made-for-television movies and feature films as Eleanor, First Lady of the World (1982), Death Warrant (1990), Another Woman's Child (1983), and Summer Dreams: The Story of the Beach Boys (1990). Dells died on April 3, 2020, aged 91, in San Luis Obispo, California.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Lupe Tijerina was born in 1947 in Mexico. He was an actor, known for Palm Springs (2020), Cazador de asesinos (1983) and Los dos amigos (1980). He died on 5 July 2016 in Río Verde, San Luis Potosí, Mexico.- Actress
Peggy Doyle was born on 27 September 1920 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA. She was an actress, known for Fletch (1985), The Kentucky Fried Movie (1977) and Dream On (1990). She died on 3 July 2006 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.- Director
- Animation Department
- Producer
David Hand was born on 23 January 1900 in Plainfield, New Jersey, USA. He was a director and producer, known for Bambi (1942), Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and The Cuckoo. He was married to Josephine Hale Marks. He died on 11 October 1986 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.- Janet De Cordova was born on 14 September 1919. She was married to Frederick De Cordova. She died on 1 September 2009 in San Luis Potosí, Mexico.
- Eric Lawson was born on 28 December 1941 in Glendale, California, USA. He was an actor, known for Gymkata (1985), King Cobra (1999) and Rumpelstiltskin (1995). He was married to Susan. He died on 10 January 2014 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.
- Composer
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Don Rich was born on 5 August 1941 in Olympia, Washington, USA. He was a composer and actor, known for The Badge (2002), From Nashville with Music (1969) and Hee Haw (1969). He died on 17 July 1974 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Max Smith was born on 23 January 1913 in Des Moines, Iowa, USA. He was an actor, known for One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961), Puddin' Head (1941) and Jingle Belles (1941). He was married to Helen Leyser. He died on 23 July 1999 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.- Actress
Earlene Heath was born on 1 May 1914 in Dallas, Texas, USA. She was an actress. She died on 31 May 1958 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.- Additional Crew
- Writer
James Menzies was born on 12 August 1926 in New York, USA. He was a writer, known for The Streets of San Francisco (1972), The Virginian (1962) and Combat! (1962). He died on 1 October 2008 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.- Conchita Carracedo was born on 28 August 1922 in Bilbao, Spain. She was an actress, known for Bailando en las nubes (1946), La otra (1946) and El que murió de amor (1945). She was married to Tito Davison. She died on 29 March 1996 in Ciudad Valles, San Luis Potosí, Mexico.
- Herbert Gunn was born on 17 May 1921 in Long Beach, California, USA. He was an actor, known for Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944) and Always in My Heart (1942). He died on 12 July 1999 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.
- Editor
- Editorial Department
- Actor
Ferris Webster was born on 29 April 1912 in Seattle, Washington, USA. He was an editor and actor, known for The Great Escape (1963), The Manchurian Candidate (1962) and Escape from Alcatraz (1979). He died on 4 February 1989 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.- Eileen O'Malley was born on 8 July 1917 in New York City, New York, USA. She was an actress, known for Cupid's Fireman (1923), Partners of Fate (1921) and The Ragged Heiress (1922). She was married to Paul Donnelly. She died on 19 September 1988 in San Luis Obispo, California, USA.