While attending the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Brooklyn, 19 year-old Helen Jurgens married fellow student Clark Twelvetrees and adopted his unusual and unique surname as her own. Clark was a troubled man, who once attempted suicide at a dinner party. He jumped from a high-story window, but survived. Helen divorced Clark in 1931. …
Inktober 2021 comes to a close and the final subject is Dwight Frye. Dwight Frye packed nearly 70 screen credits into a career that spanned almost half a century. He is best remembered for tow roles in classic horror films — both released in 1931. Dwight played the sadistic assistant “Fritz” in the original Frankenstein. …
Twenty-year-old Evelyn McHale boarded a train at 7 in the morning in on May 1, 1947. She was headed back home to Tuckahoe, New York after visiting her fiance in Easton, Pennsylvania to celebrate his 24th birthday. When she arrived at Penn Station, she walked to the Empire State Building and purchased a ticket to …
Inktober 2021 winds down to week 4. A popular pin-up during World War II, Anne Gwynne appeared dozens of film noir and musical comedy. But her few forays into horror were memorable among her fans. In 1940, she played Boris Karloff‘s daughter in Black Friday and 1944 she returned to the Universal lot for House …
After some modeling work, 22-year old Nora Lane was cast in the silent Western Jesse James in 1927. She went on to co-star in over 80 films throughout her career, including a recurring role in the Hopalong Cassidy serials. Her popularity led to a spokesperson gig for Lux Soap in the early 1930s. In the …
Inktober 2021: Week 3 highlights Dick Miller. Dick Miller appeared in nearly 200 films and was happy to take lead character roles as well as those that required just a few lines of dialogue. In his 1955 debut, he played two roles — a townsperson and a Native American. In one scene in the film, …
The child of vaudeville performers, Bill Thompson’s destiny was show business. At 21, he started singing and doing voices on The Breakfast Club, a popular national morning radio show originating in Chicago. He developed a slow-speaking, mush-mouth character he dubbed “Mr. Wimple.” Bill would nurture this voice for the rest of his career. In 1936, …
It’s week number two of Inktober (the JPiC version) and prolific character actor Lionel Atwill is the featured star. While Lionel Atwill appeared in a slew of films in all genres, including romance and comedy, he is best remembered for his supporting work in a number of Universal horror films. Beginning with 1932’s Dr. X, …
