Nineteen-year old Brigitte Helm couldn’t have imagined what she signed on for. With lofty aspirations of starring on the big screen, the Berlin teen joined a cast of thousands on director Fritz Lang’s vision of a dystopian future, Metropolis. She was subjected to Lang’s attempt at presenting gritty realism and, in 1927, without the aid of …
Recently, I had a Twitter conversation with my internet buddy, Philadelphia singer-songwriter-holder of a Guinness Book World Record* Adam Brodsky. Evidently, folksinger Loudon Wainwright III is featured in a current commercial for retail giant Walmart and Adam didn’t like it one bit. In typical “Josh Pincus” fashion, I smart-assed him. Our exchange went like this (including “two …
Long before Jeff Dunham, even long before Paul Winchell, there was Edgar Bergen. Bergen started off as a ventriloquist in vaudeville. He was offered an appearance on Rudy Vallee’s radio program. Bergen proved himself so popular, he was given his own radio show, The Chase and Sanborn Hour (sponsored by the then-famous coffee company), in 1937. Bergen and his …
One morning, when Gregor Samsa woke from troubled dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into a horrible vermin.
The weather was great and everyone had a wonderfult time at the Red Skull Family Reunion. Even some distant relatives came in for the occasion.
Stints as a mechanic, a chauffeur, valet and chef were not a good fit for Sebastian Cabot. He wanted to act — a type of lying, as he called the profession. Sebastian worked regularly in films for thirty years, beginning with his debut in Alfred Hitchcock‘s 1936 thriller Secret Agent. (Actors Michael Rennie and Michael Redgrave …
Just a small town girl Livin’ in a lonely world She took the midnight train Goin’ anywhere
As a teenager traveling through Paris in the 1920s, Faith Bacon began her career as a dancer through a chance meeting with singer Maurice Chevalier. She performed in Paris reviews exclusively in the nude, using bubbles, flowers and fans as props. When she returned to the United States, she appeared in Earl Carroll’s notorious nude …
A host of kings. How many can you recognize? (Click HERE for a larger version.)
After a stint as a backup singer on for Leonard Cohen on an early 70s European tour, Laura Branigan knew she wanted a career as a professional singer. Impressed by her four-octave range, Atlantic Records chief Ahmet Ertegun signed Laura to a contract. She released her debut album, a collection of up-beat pop songs and ballads, …
