25 Oct 2019
Motion Pictures Permalink

Tom Moore

October 25, 2019

Thomas J. “Tom” Moore was an Irish-born American actor and director. He appeared in at least 186 motion pictures from 1908 to 1954. Frequently cast as the romantic lead, he starred in silent movies as well as in some of the first talkies.

Born in Fordstown Crossroads, County Meath, Moore, along with his brothers, Owen, Matt, and Joe, emigrated to the United States. Owen and Matt also had successful movie careers. Tom Moore appeared in his first silent motion picture in 1908. He also directed 17 motion pictures in 1914 and 1915, including The Secret Room. In 1914, he married silent star Alice Joyce, with whom he had a daughter, Alice Moore, who acted in six films with her father from 1934 to 1937. While in New York City on New Year’s Eve, 1920, Moore met the young French actress Renée Adorée. A whirlwind romance ensued and six weeks after meeting, they were married on February 12, 1921, in his home in Beverly Hills. The marriage lasted only a few years. In 1931, Moore was married a third time to Eleanor Merry.

The Great Depression saw many studios close and much consolidation as the motion picture industry went through tough times. Moore retired from the screen in the mid 1930s. Ten years later, he returned to act in minor supporting roles.

25 Oct 2019
Television Permalink

Tom Conway

October 25, 2019

Tom Conway was a British film and radio actor, and the older brother of actor George Sanders.

Conway was born to English parents as Thomas Charles Sanders in St. Petersburg, Russia; his younger brother was actor George Sanders, whom Conway strongly resembled, especially in his speaking voice. At the outbreak of the Russian Revolution, the family moved back to England, where both brothers were educated at Brighton College. The brothers tossed a coin to decide which would change his surname to avoid any confusion with each other.

Conway is remembered today for playing “The Falcon” in ten of that series’ entries, taking over from his brother in The Falcon’s Brother, in which they both star. Conway also played Sherlock Holmes following Basil Rathbone’s departure from the 1946–1947 radio series. Despite an uncanny similarity to the sound of Rathbone’s voice, he was not accepted as Holmes by the listening audience and was replaced in the same year by John Stanley. Conway also starred in three of film producer Val Lewton’s horror films while a contract actor for RKO Pictures, twice playing Dr. Louis Judd in two otherwise unrelated films?Cat People and The Seventh Victim a year later?-even though the character was killed in the first film. The third Val Lewton film in which he starred was I Walked with a Zombie. His screen career diminished in the 1950s, but he appeared in a number of English films, on radio, and on television. In 1951, Conway replaced Vincent Price as the star of the radio mystery series The Saint, taking on a role that his brother, Sanders, had played on film a decade earlier. In October, Conway performed as Max Collodi in Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode “The Glass Eye” to critical praise.

25 Oct 2019
Motion Pictures, Recording Permalink

Tom Jones

October 25, 2019

Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE, known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer. He was born in Trefforest, Pontypridd, near Cardiff in Wales. Jones is particularly noted for his powerful voice and overt sexuality.

Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung nearly every form of popular music ? pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel. Since 1965, Jones has sold over 100

25 Oct 2019
Radio, Recording Permalink

Tom Breneman

October 25, 2019

Thomas Breneman Smith was a popular 1940s American radio personality known to his listeners as Tom Breneman.

Born in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania, Breneman was host of the show Breakfast in Hollywood which aired on the Blue Network, ABC, NBC and Mutual at various times from 1941 to 1948.

Breneman’s program went through numerous title changes but was best known as Breakfast in Hollywood. By the mid-1940s, Breneman had ten million listeners. The popularity of the radio program was such that he created his own magazine, and in 1945 he opened his own establishment, Tom Breneman’s Restaurant, located on Vine Street off Sunset Boulevard.

25 Oct 2019
Motion Pictures, Television Permalink

Tim McCoy

October 25, 2019

Timothy John Fitzgerald “Tim” McCoy was an American actor.

Born the son of an Irish Union Civil War soldier who later became police chief in Saginaw, he became a major film star most noted for his roles in Western films. He was so popular with youngsters as a cowboy star that he appeared on the cover of Wheaties cereal boxes.

He attended St. Ignatius College in Chicago and after seeing a wild west show there, left school and found work on a Wyoming ranch. He became an expert horseman and roper and developed a knowledge of the ways and languages of the Native American tribes in the area. He competed in numerous rodeos, then enlisted in the United States Army when America entered World War I.

McCoy was also a decorated soldier in the United States Army during World War I and again in World War II in Europe, rising to the rank of Colonel with the Army Air Corps. He also served the state of Wyoming as its Adjutant General between the wars with the brevet rank of Brigadier General. At 28, he was reputed to be the youngest Brigadier General in the history of the US Army. McCoy was a known expert in Indian sign language and was accepted as a ‘brother’ by the Arapahoe Tribe on the Wind River Reservation. When Hollywood needed an authentic group of Indians for a movie in Utah, his name came up and McCoy resigned from his position as Adjutant General for the State of Wyoming and recruited a group of Indians and was hired on by the production company as a sort of laision between the company and the Indians.

25 Oct 2019
Motion Pictures, Recording Permalink

Tim Robbins

October 25, 2019

Oscar winning actor Tim Robbins celebrated his 50th birthday with the 2,371st star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Leron Gubler, President and CEO of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, presided over the ceremony. Guests included Susan Sarandon, Jack Black, Eva Amurri, and Derek Luke.

6801 Hollywood Boulevard on October 10.

BIOGRAPHY

Born October 16, 1958 in West Covina, California and raised in New York City's Greenwich Village, Tim Robbins has a long list of notable credits as an actor, director, writer and producer of films and theater.

He has starred in such films as Mystic River,The Secret Life of Words, Catch a Fire, The Player and Short Cuts, The Shawshank Redemption, The Hudsucker Proxy, War of the Worlds, Arlington Road, Code 46, Human Nature, Five Corners, Jacob's Ladder and Bull Durham. Robbins will next be seen in Fox Walden's City of Ember, which opens nationwide today.

Robbins has won numerous awards for his acting including an Oscar®, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Supporting Actor for Mystic River, Best Actor Award at the Cannes Film Festival and the Golden Globe for Best Actor for The Player. He was nominated by the Golden Globes for Best Actor for Bob Roberts and by the Screen Actors Guild for Best Actor for The Shawshank Redemption. Warner Home Video will be releasing The Shawshank Redemption, which Robbins considers one of his four all-time favorite films in a magnificent new Blu-Ray Hi-Def version on December 2.

As a director, Robbins distinguished himself with Cradle Will Rock, which he also wrote and produced, winning Best Film and Best Director at the Sitges Film Festival in Barcelona and the National Board of Review Award for Special Achievement in Filmmaking in the United States.

Dead Man Walking, which he also wrote and produced, won multiple awards including the Academy Award for Best Actress for Susan Sarandon, the Christopher Award, the Humanitas Award and four awards at the Berlin Film Festival, as well as four Oscar nominations including Best Director and a Golden Globe nomination for Best Screenplay.

His first film, Bob Roberts, won the Bronze Award at the Tokyo International Festival and Best Film, Best Director and Best Actor at the Boston Film Festival.

Robbins also serves as Artistic Director for the Actors' Gang, a theater company formed in 1982 that has over 80 productions and more than 100 awards to their credit. As a playwright he has been produced in London, Paris, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and at the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland. His latest play, Embedded, played to sold out audiences for over four months at the Public Theater in New York before playing the Riverside Studios in London and embarking on a National Tour in the U.S.

Most recently he directed the Actors Gang in their shockingly relevant and wildly successful adaptation of George Orwell's 1984 which for the past two years has toured IN over 40 states and four continents.

From 2006 until the present, Le Petit Theatre de Pain's production of Embedded has been touring France, most recently playing at the Theatre du Soleil in Paris. In the US, Embedded was revived recently in productions in Chicago and Tampa Bay.

Robbins is also very proud to sponsor educational programs with the Actors Gang that provide arts education to Elementary, Middle and High School students in the L.A. area. The Gang has also worked for the past three years providing theatrical workshops to incarcerated inmates in the L.A. prison system.

25 Oct 2019
Recording, Television Permalink

Tina Turner

October 25, 2019

Tina Turner is an American singer and actress whose career has spanned more than 50 years. She has won numerous awards and her achievements in the rock music genre have earned her the title The Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll.

Turner started out her music career with husband Ike Turner as a member of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue. Success followed with a string of hits including “River Deep, Mountain High” and the 1971 hit “Proud Mary”. With the publication of her autobiography I, Tina, came allegations of spousal abuse against Ike Turner following their 1976 split. Turner rebuilt her career, launching a string of hits beginning in 1983 with “Let’s Stay Together” and the 1984 release of her album Private Dancer.

Her musical career led to film roles, beginning with a prominent role as The Acid Queen in the 1975 film Tommy, and an appearance in Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. She starred opposite Mel Gibson as Aunty Entity in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome for which she received the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture, and her version of the film’s theme, “We Don’t Need Another Hero”, was a hit single. She appeared in the 1993 film Last Action Hero.

One of the world’s most popular entertainers, Turner has been called the most successful female rock artist and was named “one of the greatest singers of all time” by Rolling Stone. Her records have sold nearly 200 million copies worldwide. She has sold more concert tickets than any other solo music performer in history. She is known for her energetic stage presence, powerful vocals, career longevity, and widespread appeal. In 2008, Turner left semi-retirement to embark on her . Turner’s tour became one of the highest selling ticketed shows of 2008-2009.

25 Oct 2019
Motion Pictures, Recording Permalink

Tim McGraw

October 25, 2019

Samuel Timothy "Tim" McGraw is an American country singer and actor. Many of McGraw's albums and singles have topped the country music charts, leading him to achieve total album sales in excess of 40 million units. He is married to country singer Faith Hill and is the son of former baseball player Tug McGraw. His trademark hit songs include "Indian Outlaw", "Don't Take the Girl", "I Like It, I Love It", "Something Like That", "It's Your Love", and "Live Like You Were Dying".

McGraw had eleven consecutive albums debut at Number One on the Billboard albums charts. Twenty-one singles hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country 100 chart. Three singles became the No. 1 country song of the year. He has won 3 Grammys, 14 Academy of Country Music awards, 11 Country Music Association awards, 10 American Music Awards, and 3 People's Choice Awards. His Soul2Soul II Tour with Faith Hill is the highest grossing tour in country music history, and one of the top five among all genres of music.

McGraw has ventured into acting, with supporting roles in The Blind Side, Friday Night Lights, The Kingdom, and Four Christmases, and a lead role in Flicka. He was a minority owner of the Arena Football League's Nashville Kats. Taylor Swift's debut single, "Tim McGraw", refers to him and his song, "Can't Tell Me Nothin.

In a nod to his Italian-American heritage, McGraw was honored by the National Italian American Foundation in 2004, receiving the NIAF Special Achievement Award in Music during the Foundation's 29th Anniversary Gala.

25 Oct 2019
Recording, Television Permalink

Tim Conway

October 25, 2019

Thomas Daniel “Tim” Conway is an American comedian and actor, primarily known for his roles in sitcoms, films and television. Conway is best-known for his role as the inept second-in-command officer, Ensign Charles Parker, to Lt. Commander Quinton McHale, in the popular 1960s WWII sitcom McHale’s Navy, and for co-starring alongside Carol Burnett on The Carol Burnett Show.

Conway was born in Willoughby, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland, and grew up in nearby Chagrin Falls. He attended Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio, having majored in speech and radio. After graduating from Bowling Green State University, he joined the Army, following which he took a job answering mail for a Cleveland radio station, where he went on to become a writer in the promotional department. Conway later changed his first name to “Tim” to avoid confusion with actor Tom Conway.

Conway later moved back to Cleveland to work with the late television broadcasting legend Ernie Anderson on KYW-TV, an NBC affiliate, in 1958 and 1959 and later, from 1960 to 1962, on WJW TV, on the weekday morning movie where he also wrote material for the comedic skits shown in between movie intermissions. Conway also recorded a comedy album with Anderson.

However, WJW would dismiss Conway, in part because he misled station management into thinking he was a director, whereas they found out he really wasn’t able to do so. Because of this move, which deprived Anderson of his co-host and comic foil, the station asked Anderson if he could host a B-grade horror movie show on Friday nights instead. Conway would continue to make many appearances alongside Anderson’s massively popular alter ego Ghoulardi, alongside “Big Chuck” Schodowski, a station engineer whom Anderson tapped to assume much of Conway’s sidekick status .

25 Oct 2019
Motion Pictures, Radio Permalink

Tippi Hedren

October 25, 2019

Nathalie Kay “Tippi” Hedren is an American actress and former fashion model with a career spanning six decades. She is primarily known for her roles in two Alfred Hitchcock films, The Birds and Marnie, and her extensive efforts in animal rescue at Shambala Preserve, an wildlife habitat which she founded in 1983.

Hedren is the mother of actress Melanie Griffith, and they share credits on several productions, notably Pacific Heights. Hedren was born in New Ulm, Minnesota, the daughter of Dorothea Henrietta and Bernard Carl Hedren. Her paternal grandparents were immigrants from Sweden, and her maternal ancestry was German and Norwegian. Her father ran a small general store in the small town of Lafayette, Minnesota and gave her the nickname “Tippi.” “My father thought Nathalie was a little bit much for a brand new baby,” Hedren explained at a 2004 screening of The Birds.

As a teenager, Hedren took part in department store fashion shows. Her parents relocated to California while she was still a high school student. When she reached her 18th birthday, she bought a ticket to New York and began a professional modeling career. Within a year she made her film debut as a Petty Girl model in The Petty Girl musical comedy, although in interviews she refers to The Birds as her first film.