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Post by Admin on May 10, 2024 7:02:13 GMT
From June 20 to September 22, we'll be spotlighting
95 Summer Stars
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Post by christine on Jun 6, 2024 23:58:33 GMT
Sorry topbilled - I'm trying to play around with this inserting picture thing. I think I have half of it. Anyway - here's a little bit about Dean.  Picture of Dean with his horse 'Tops'. Tops was Dean's own horse and he rode Tops in every western he made. SHOWDOWN 1973 was the only western Dean made without him. Tops died on location when this film was being made. At least his picture is bigger - but I'm still working on controlling the size? |
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Post by topbilled on Jun 7, 2024 1:14:27 GMT
Christine,
I'm going to save Dean Martin for the next Winter Under the Stars.
***
The 95 Summer Stars will consist of the following:
B-Movie Stars -- careers were mainly in B films
Names on Radio -- stars on radio who made films
Names on Television -- stars on TV who made films
Oscar Actresses -- female leads and supporting actresses who received Oscars
Tough Guys -- male stars that specialized in villains or gruff authority figures
English Stars -- stars from England who made Hollywood pictures
Irish Stars -- stars from Ireland who worked in Hollywood
"John" -- first name or last name is John
Singing Stars -- known more for their music but occasionally acted in films
Precode Stars -- film careers peaked in the early to mid-30s
Independent Spirits -- stars who faced adversity (some tragic) in their personal lives
Cast from TV's Gunsmoke -- a look at the performers associated with this hit series
***
I have chosen the 95 stars and I have written short bios for almost all of them, which was a lot of work. But I haven't decided which order I am going to present them in yet...so stay tuned!
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Post by christine on Jun 7, 2024 2:17:28 GMT
Totally understandable topbilled.
I'll be looking forward to 'Winter Under the Stars'!
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Post by topbilled on Jun 18, 2024 14:28:12 GMT
Group 1: B movie leads
Penny Singleton; Allan Lane; Mary Beth Hughes; Lyle Talbot; Jinx Falkenburg; Tom Conway; Ann Savage; Robert Lowery; Dale Evans
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Post by topbilled on Jun 20, 2024 15:53:48 GMT
Penny Singleton
Was there anyone more adorable than Penny Singleton? Especially when she played Blondie in Columbia’s long-running series based on the popular comic strip. Other performers came and went at the studio, but for twelve years Penny and costar Arthur Lake were in their own little world as Blondie and Dagwood Bumstead. They entertained moviegoers and helped them forget the more serious issues of the day. Altogether there were 28 films that showed the antics of the Bumstead household. Later Penny would gain even more fans when she was voicing June Jetson in Hanna-Barbera’s animated classic The Jetsons. In 1990 she “played” the character again in a feature film version. But it was her tenure as Blondie for which she is most remembered. Before she signed with Columbia, Penny had previously worked at Warner Brothers. Mostly she appeared in comedies, but there were some exceptions. For example, she had a role in the Jane Russell drama YOUNG WIDOW; and she can be seen slinging lead with Glenn Ford and Ann Miller in the western GO WEST, YOUNG LADY. Ford had previously played a supporting role in BLONDIE PLAYS CUPID. In fact, most of Columbia’s rising stars paid their dues supporting Penny as Blondie. Performers like Rita Hayworth, Larry Parks and Janet Blair. After her movie career went into decline Penny kept busy on television. Often she would use her talents as a voice actress for commercials and various animated programs. Audiences couldn’t get enough of Penny. She was delightful and always had a way of making people laugh, even when she was having a bad hair day. Suggested viewing:
BLONDIE (1938)BLONDIE ON A BUDGET (1940)
BLONDIE PLAYS CUPID (1940)BLONDIE GOES LATIN (1941)GO WEST YOUNG LADY (1941)BLONDIE GOES TO COLLEGE (1942)BLONDIE FOR VICTORY (1942)BLONDIE'S HOLIDAY (1947)BLONDIE'S ANNIVERSARY (1947)BLONDIE'S HERO (1950)
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Post by christine on Jun 20, 2024 17:50:08 GMT
Always adored the BLONDIE series - I grew up on them. I was actually shocked the first time I saw Penny Singleton as Polly in AFTER THE THIN MAN 1936, for the first time. It was hard for me to see her as a character other than Blondie! She also has a very nice singing voice.
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Post by topbilled on Jun 21, 2024 15:41:25 GMT
Always adored the BLONDIE series - I grew up on them. I was actually shocked the first time I saw Penny Singleton as Polly in AFTER THE THIN MAN 1936, for the first time. It was hard for me to see her as a character other than Blondie! She also has a very nice singing voice. |
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Post by topbilled on Jun 21, 2024 15:45:29 GMT
Allan Lane
Allan Lane arrived in Hollywood just as talkies were becoming all the rage. He had been signed to a contract at Fox, but he was young and not yet skilled as an actor so he failed to make an impression. The parts quickly became less important and he drifted over to Warner Brothers where he didn’t fare much better. For a stretch of the mid-30s, his acting career had lost all momentum and he was entirely off screen. But Fox showed an interest again in 1936, and that year, he had a supporting role in a Shirley Temple film. But again, Allan did not catch on at Fox...so he moved over to RKO where he fared better. The bosses at RKO put him in a series of romantic comedies and adventure pictures.  He costarred with Lucille Ball and Joan Fontaine during this time. He had his first leading roles in modestly budgeted programmers, and his motion picture career finally gained traction. By 1940, he had signed with Republic where the studio planned to use Allan in a variety of genres as RKO had done, but he seemed most popular in westerns. A series of B westerns were produced during the 1940s that featured Allan Lane in the lead. Initially he was put into the Red Ryder franchise, taking over for Bill Elliott. But then Republic gave him his own series rebranding him as Allan ‘Rocky’ Lane.  For the rest of the 40s and early 50s, he appeared in a succession of hit westerns for the studio. His output was just as prolific during these years as Gene Autry and Roy Rogers. From 1947 to 1953, he starred in 40 B westerns, averaging over six per year. He also had his own comic book series which proved popular with the matinee crowd.After his contract ended with Republic, he transitioned into television but eased up his workload. He appeared in popular TV westerns like Gunsmoke, Bonanza and Wagon Train. For a season in the late 50s, he again played Red Ryder on his own show. In the 60s, he switched to voice-over work and enchanted a new generation of fans as the voice of Mr. Ed. Suggested viewing:
STOWAWAY (1936)MAID'S NIGHT OUT (1938)THIS MARRIAGE BUSINESS (1938)CRIME RING (1938)PANAMA LADY (1939)SILVER CITY KID (1944)CORPUS CHRISTI BANDITS (1945)A GUY COULD CHANGE (1946)THE WILD FRONTIER (1947)CARSON CITY RAIDERS (1948)
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Post by jamesjazzguitar on Jun 21, 2024 16:30:18 GMT
Allan Lane is in a Tales of Wells Fargo episode made in the late 50s. He plays an older brother that kills his sister's boyfriend (their parents have died so the brother is head of the household), because he doesn't feel the guy was good-enough.
I didn't know he had that robust of an acting career.
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Post by topbilled on Jun 22, 2024 13:39:15 GMT
Mary Beth Hughes
Mary Beth Hughes had a stage mother and a stage grandmother. With that kind of support, she was bound to make it on the big screen. Her grandmother had been a successful opera diva who inspired the younger generations of the family to perform.When Mary Beth was still in high school, she began touring in various road shows on the east coast. She was spotted by a British talent scout and offered a movie contract but turned it down. After she graduated from high school, she and her mother decided the time was right for movies, so they packed up and headed to Hollywood. About six months later, she signed with MGM and had bit parts in several films. A year later she moved over to Fox. The studio gave her a lead role in a John Barrymore comedy called THE GREAT PROFILE. But for the most part she was put in B films. Audiences would remember her as Lloyd Nolan’s girlfriend in some of the Michael Shayne mysteries. When Fox didn’t renew her contract in 1943, she went back to the stage and worked in nightclubs.There were still movie parts—usually in poverty row productions. She made I ACCUSE MY PARENTS, a harrowing tale of child neglect, at PRC.  While making another low budget picture, MEN ON HER MIND, she acted with Ted North whom she ended up marrying. They had a son before divorcing a short time later.After her divorce, Mary Beth continued with her popular nightclub act and took occasional movie jobs. While the quality of her roles diminished she remained in demand and continued to stay busy. She successfully transitioned to TV, but around 1960 she took a break from show biz. She was occasionally lured back to the nightclubs where she had developed a loyal following. In 1970, she was on TV again, and she made sporadic appearances in movies during the next few years. She knew Hollywood was no longer what it had been and she decided to pack it in for good after a bit part in a tepid 1976 film. She would find a new career in the medical field. Though she no longer appeared on screen, she continued to work until shortly before her death in 1995.Suggested viewing:
 LUCKY CISCO KID (1940)SLEEPERS WEST (1941)THE COWBOY AND THE BLONDE (1941)CHARLIE CHAN IN RIO (1941)THE NIGHT BEFORE THE DIVORCE (1942)GOOD MORNING JUDGE (1943)MELODY PARADE (1943)OVER MY DEAD BODY (1943)I ACCUSE MY PARENTS (1944)TIMBER QUEEN (1944)
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Post by topbilled on Jun 23, 2024 14:50:56 GMT
Lyle Talbot
Lyle Talbot had an interesting background. Before arriving in Hollywood, he had worked in magic acts and traveling tent shows. When he did a screen test at Warner Brothers in the early 30s, he impressed the bosses with his natural-sounding voice and was put under contract. He appeared in many notable talkies at the studio during those years. In some productions he was the lead, but usually he was a secondary player. At Warners he worked alongside all the big names. He was in films with Kay Francis, Bette Davis, Pat O’Brien and Dick Powell, to name a few. But unlike those stars, Lyle quickly fell out of favor with Jack Warner when he became actively involved in the formation of the Screen Actors Guild. His parts lessened in importance and his contract was soon terminated. Still young and handsome looking, he quickly landed assignments at other studios. There were supporting parts in prestigious films, but eventually he transitioned to character parts in order to keep his motion picture career going. Maybe it was a combination of stubbornness and sheer talent, but Lyle would end up having a very long screen career, though he appeared in many thankless roles. Of course, some roles were meaningful. In addition to jobs in Z-pictures for director Ed Wood, he was featured prominently on hit television series of the 50s and 60s. For example, he played Joe Randolph, best friend to Ozzie Nelson in The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet. He also had a recurring role on one of Bob Cummings’ sitcoms. Plus he turned up on Leave It to Beaver, where his son Stephen was featured as one of Beaver’s friends. In later years, Lyle was back on stage. He appeared on Broadway and did touring road shows, which probably reminded him of his days at the beginning of his career. His last professional acting job would come in 1987, when he appeared on an episode of Newhart as Jose Ferrer’s uncle.
Suggested viewing:MARY STEVENS M.D. (1933)
REGISTERED NURSE (1934)
RED HOT TIRES (1935)
IT HAPPENED IN NEW YORK (1935)THE FALCON OUT WEST (1944)APPOINTMENT WITH MURDER (1948)LUCKY LOSERS (1950)GLEN OR GLENDA (1953)SUDDEN DANGER (1955)PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE (1959)
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Post by lydecker on Jun 23, 2024 20:45:34 GMT
Lyle Talbot is one of my favorites. Always watchable. I highly recommend his daughter's book: "The Entertainer: Movies, Magic and My Father's Twentieth Century" by Margaret Talbot. So well written, it paints a wonderful picture of "golden age" Hollywood -- not just what happened in Lyle Talbot's career but how LA expanded and changed. One of my favorite "Holllywood" books. From 2013, it's still available on Amazon (for less than $2!)
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Post by kims on Jun 24, 2024 15:18:56 GMT
Taking your recommendation, Lydecker. I just ordered it.
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Post by topbilled on Jun 24, 2024 16:22:01 GMT
Jinx FalkenburgJinx Falkenburg was born with the name Eugenia. But she was called Jinx because her mother had an ironic sense of humor. Her mother was also superstitious in reverse, thinking such a name might bring luck. And it did. Jinx’s mother had been a professional tennis player so Jinx and her brothers were taught to play the sport. Jinx was also encouraged to swim and when she was just two years old, people marveled at her athleticism in the water. By the time she was 16, Jinx was already modeling and thinking of a career in show biz. The family had lived in Spain and Chile, so Jinx was fluent in Spanish. In the late 1930s, she was spotted at a Hollywood tennis club and signed to a movie contract. Because of her fluency in Spanish she was cast in films geared for Latin American audiences. She failed to make much of an impression in these, but after her contract was dropped, she was even busier modeling. She was featured in several national advertising campaigns. In fact during the late 30 and 40s she had appeared in hundreds of magazines, often on the cover. Because her image was plastered everywhere, she again caught the eye of Hollywood moguls. This time Columbia Pictures offered her a contract and she was put into a series of musical comedies. These were mostly B films, where she costarred with people like Joan Davis and Rita Hayworth. Jinx was usually cast because of her looks not her acting ability. She stayed busy on screen during the 40s and when she wasn’t on the set, she was touring extensively with Bob Hope and others, entertaining troops overseas. Somewhere along the way she found time for a whirlwind courtship with a well-connected P.R. man named Tex McCrary. Jinx and Tex married at the end of the war, and as her motion picture career was now on the wane, she and her husband began to concentrate their energies in new directions. Those directions included radio and TV. In fact, Jinx & Tex had one of the first radio chit-chat shows where important issues of the day were discussed with notable guests. Other radio shows and a newspaper column followed. Their success as talk show hosts led to an early TV series adhering to a similar format. They continued to be popular well into the 1950s. Since the shows with her husband consumed so much of Jinx’s time, she basically gave up her career as a movie star. Her last big screen appearance was in a musical romance for Columbia called TALK ABOUT A LADY. Seems like an appropriate title for a lady who would become more known for her skills as a talk show hostess and broadcast journalist. Talk about Jinx Falkenburg indeed!
Suggested Viewing:
SONG OF THE BUCKAROO (1938)TWO LATINS FROM MANHATTAN (1941)SING FOR YOUR SUPPER (1941)LUCKY LEGS (1942)SHE HAS WHAT IT TAKES (1943)TWO SENORITAS FROM CHICAGO (1943)TAHITI NIGHTS (1944)THE GAY SENORITA (1945)MEET ME ON BROADWAY (1946)TALK ABOUT A LADY (1946)
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