Advanced search
- TITLES
- NAMES
- COLLABORATIONS
Search filters
Enter full date
to
or just enter yyyy, or yyyy-mm below
to
Only includes names with the selected topics
to
or just enter yyyy, or yyyy-mm below
to
1-50 of 905
- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Kevin Spacey Fowler, better known by his stage name Kevin Spacey, is an American actor of screen and stage, film director, producer, screenwriter and singer. He began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s before obtaining supporting roles in film and television. He gained critical acclaim in the early 1990s that culminated in his first Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for the neo-noir crime thriller The Usual Suspects (1995), and an Academy Award for Best Actor for midlife crisis-themed drama American Beauty (1999).
His other starring roles have included the comedy-drama film Swimming with Sharks (1994), psychological thriller Seven (1995), the neo-noir crime film L.A. Confidential (1997), the drama Pay It Forward (2000), the science fiction-mystery film K-PAX (2001)
In Broadway theatre, Spacey won a Tony Award for his role in Lost in Yonkers. He was the artistic director of the Old Vic theatre in London from 2004 until stepping down in mid-2015. Since 2013, Spacey has played Frank Underwood in the Netflix political drama series House of Cards. His work in House of Cards earned him Golden Globe Award and Emmy Award nominations for Best Actor.
As enigmatic as he is talented, Kevin Spacey for years kept the details of his private life closely guarded. As he explained in a 1998 interview with the London Evening Standard, "the less you know about me, the easier it is to convince you that I am that character on screen. It allows an audience to come into a movie theatre and believe I am that person". In October 2017, he ended many years of media speculation about his personal life by confirming that he had had sexual relations with both men and women but now identified as gay.
There are, however, certain biographical facts to be had - for starters, Kevin Spacey Fowler was the youngest of three children born to Kathleen Ann (Knutson) and Thomas Geoffrey Fowler, in South Orange, New Jersey. His ancestry includes Swedish (from his maternal grandfather) and English. His middle name, "Spacey," which he uses as his stage name, is from his paternal grandmother. His mother was a personal secretary, his father a technical writer whose irregular job prospects led the family all over the country. The family eventually settled in southern California, where young Kevin developed into quite a little hellion - after he set his sister's tree house on fire, he was shipped off to the Northridge Military Academy, only to be thrown out a few months later for pinging a classmate on the head with a tire. Spacey then found his way to Chatsworth High School in the San Fernando Valley, where he managed to channel his dramatic tendencies into a successful amateur acting career. In his senior year, he played "Captain von Trapp" opposite classmate Mare Winningham's "Maria" in "The Sound of Music" (the pair later graduated as co-valedictorians). Spacey claims that his interest in acting - and his nearly encyclopedic accumulation of film knowledge - began at an early age, when he would sneak downstairs to watch the late late show on TV. Later, in high school, he and his friends cut class to catch revival films at the NuArt Theater. The adolescent Spacey worked up celebrity impersonations (James Stewart and Johnny Carson were two of his favorites) to try out on the amateur comedy club circuit.
He briefly attended Los Angeles Valley College, then left (on the advice of another Chatsworth classmate, Val Kilmer) to join the drama program at Juilliard. After two years of training he was anxious to work, so he quit Juilliard sans diploma and signed up with the New York Shakespeare Festival. His first professional stage appearance was as a messenger in the 1981 production of "Henry VI".
Festival head Joseph Papp ushered the young actor out into the "real world" of theater, and the next year Spacey made his Broadway debut in Henrik Ibsen's "Ghosts". He quickly proved himself as an energetic and versatile performer (at one point, he rotated through all the parts in David Rabe's "Hurlyburly"). In 1986, he had the chance to work with his idol and future mentor, Jack Lemmon, on a production of Eugene O'Neill's "Long Day's Journey Into Night". While his interest soon turned to film, Spacey would remain active in the theater community - in 1991, he won a Tony Award for his turn as "Uncle Louie" in Neil Simon's Broadway hit "Lost in Yonkers" and, in 1999, he returned to the boards for a revival of O'Neill's "The Iceman Cometh".
Spacey's film career began modestly, with a small part as a subway thief in Heartburn (1986). Deemed more of a "character actor" than a "leading man", he stayed on the periphery in his next few films, but attracted attention for his turn as beady-eyed villain "Mel Profitt" on the TV series Wiseguy (1987). Profitt was the first in a long line of dark, manipulative characters that would eventually make Kevin Spacey a household name: he went on to play a sinister office manager in Glengarry Glen Ross (1992), a sadistic Hollywood exec in Swimming with Sharks (1994), and, most famously, creepy, smooth-talking eyewitness Verbal Kint in The Usual Suspects (1995).
The "Suspects" role earned Spacey an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor and catapulted him into the limelight. That same year, he turned in another complex, eerie performance in David Fincher's thriller Se7en (1995) (Spacey refused billing on the film, fearing that it might compromise the ending if audiences were waiting for him to appear). By now, the scripts were pouring in. After appearing in Al Pacino's Looking for Richard (1996), Spacey made his own directorial debut with Albino Alligator (1996), a low-key but well received hostage drama. He then jumped back into acting, winning critical accolades for his turns as flashy detective Jack Vincennes in L.A. Confidential (1997) and genteel, closeted murder suspect Jim Williams in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997). In October 1999, just four days after the dark suburban comedy American Beauty (1999) opened in US theaters, Spacey received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Little did organizers know that his role in Beauty would turn out to be his biggest success yet - as Lester Burnham, a middle-aged corporate cog on the brink of psychological meltdown, he tapped into a funny, savage character that captured audiences' imaginations and earned him a Best Actor Oscar.
No longer relegated to offbeat supporting parts, Spacey seems poised to redefine himself as a Hollywood headliner. He says he's finished exploring the dark side - but, given his attraction to complex characters, that mischievous twinkle will never be too far from his eyes.
In February 2003 Spacey made a major move back to the theatre. He was appointed Artistic Director of the new company set up to save the famous Old Vic theatre, The Old Vic Theatre Company. Although he did not undertake to stop appearing in movies altogether, he undertook to remain in this leading post for ten years, and to act in as well as to direct plays during that time. His first production, of which he was the director, was the September 2004 British premiere of the play Cloaca by Maria Goos (made into a film, Cloaca (2003)). Spacey made his UK Shakespearean debut in the title role in Richard II in 2005. In 2006 he got movie director Robert Altman to direct for the stage the little-known Arthur Miller play Resurrection Blues, but that was a dismal failure. However Spacey remained optimistic, and insisted that a few mistakes are part of the learning process. He starred thereafter with great success in Eugene O'Neill's A Moon for the Misbegotten along with Colm Meaney and Eve Best, and in 2007 that show transferred to Broadway. In February 2008 Spacey put on a revival of the David Mamet 1988 play Speed-the-Plow in which he took one of the three roles, the others being taken by Jeff Goldblum and Laura Michelle Kelly.
In 2013, Spacey took on the lead role in an original Netflix series, House of Cards (2013). Based upon a British show of the same name, House of Cards is an American political drama. The show's first season received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination to include Outstanding lead actor in a drama series. In 2017, he played a memorable role as a villain in the action thriller Baby Driver (2017).- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Dulé Hill can currently be seen starring as the patriarch Bill Williams in ABC's re-imagining of "The Wonder Years". Inspired by the beloved award-winning series of the same name, the Peabody Award winning, "The Wonder Years" is a coming-of-age story set in the late 1960s that takes a nostalgic look at a black middle-class family in Montgomery, Alabama.
Dulé was most recently seen in the Netflix film "Hypnotic" and opposite Chiwetel Ejiofor and Anne Hathaway in the HBO Max heist film "Locked Down". Previously, Dulé portrayed the role of Alex Williams in the USA Network drama "Suits," recurred in the second of the SHOWTIME series "Black Monday" with Don Cheadle and Regina Hall, appeared in the HBO series "Ballers" with Dwayne Johnson and starred in J.D. Dillard's drama "Sleight"
Theatrically, Dulé starred in the People's Light production of "Lights Out: Nat 'King' Cole" by Colman Domingo and Patricia McGregor. Hill reprised his role of Nat "King" Cole in the West Coast premiere production at the Geffen Playhouse. For eight seasons Dulé portrayed the role of Burton 'Gus' Guster in the USA Network comedy "Psych" and served as a producer of the series. He received seven NAACP Image Award nominations for "Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series." Dulé revived his role with the original co-stars in the films "Psych: The Movie," "Psych 2: Lassie Come Home" and the third comedy feature "Psych 3: This Is Gus," which premiered on PEACOCK.
Dulé first came to prominence as The Kid opposite Savion Glover and Jeffrey Wright in "Bring in 'Da Noise, Bring in 'Da Funk" (Public Theatre, Broadway), directed by George C. Wolfe. He also appeared in the Tony nominated musical "After Midnight" and co-starred in the Alicia Keys produced play "Stick Fly" on Broadway. His other stage credits include "Black and Blue" (Broadway), "Shenandoah" (Paper Mill Playhouse), "The Little Rascals" (Goodspeed Opera House) and Amiri Baraka's Obie award winning play "Dutchman" (Cherry Lane Theatre).
Dulé began attending dance school at the Marie Wildey School of Dance in East Orange, New Jersey when he was three and received his first break years later as the understudy to Savion Glover in "The Tap Dance Kid" on Broadway. He went on to perform the lead role in the musical's national tour alongside Harold Nicholas of the legendary Nicholas Brothers.
In 1999, Dulé joined the cast of NBC's acclaimed series "The West Wing," as Charlie Young, personal aide to the President (Martin Sheen) and subsequently, deputy special assistant to the chief of staff (Allison Janney). During his seven seasons on the series, Hill garnered an Emmy Award nomination and four Image Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, as well as receiving two Screen Actors Guild Awards as part of the ensemble in a drama series.
Some of Dule's previous film credits include David Mamet's "Edmond," opposite William H. Macy, "The Guardian," "Sugar Hill," "She's All That" and the 2003 Disney release "Holes," an adaptation of the award-winning children's novel by Louis Sachar in which he appeared as Sam the Onion Man alongside co-stars Sigourney Weaver, Jon Voight, Shia LaBeouf and Patricia Arquette.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
William Atherton's career has spanned motion pictures, Broadway and television. He first achieved international recognition as the leading man in Steven Spielberg's debut feature The Sugarland Express (1974), and next starred in John Schlesinger's The Day of the Locust (1975), Robert Wise's The Hindenburg (1975) and Richard Brooks' Looking for Mr. Goodbar (1977). He is known worldwide for what have become his signature film characters: the television reporter, Dick Thornburg in the action blockbusters Die Hard (1988) and Die Hard 2 (1990), the EPA official, Walter Peck in Ghostbusters (1984), Professor Jerry Hathaway, the conniving professor in Real Genius (1985) and Dr. Noah Faulkner, the mad scientist in Bio-Dome (1996). Among his more than 30 feature films are co-starring roles in John Landis' Oscar (1991), Bill Duke's Hoodlum (1997), Richard Pearce's No Mercy (1986), Alan J. Pakula's The Pelican Brief (1993), Costa-Gavras' Mad City (1997) and Edward Zwick's The Last Samurai (2003).
On television, he has starred in numerous miniseries including the classic Western Centennial (1978) and headed the all-star cast in Malibu (1983). His many made-for-TV movies include leading roles in TNT's production of Joan Didion's Broken Trust (1995) and his portrayal of Darryl F. Zanuck in HBO's Golden Globe winner Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999). Atherton was a recurring series lead opposite Damien Lewis on NBC-TV's Life (2007) and portrayed Principal Reynolds in the final season of Lost (2004). He has reprised his role as Walter Peck in the video game Ghostbusters (2009), released on June 16, 2009.
Consistently honored for his work on the stage, Atherton has created roles on and off Broadway for many of America's leading playwrights. These include the title role in Joseph Papp's original production of David Rabe's "The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel", the role of Ronnie in John Guare's "The House of Blue Leaves" and Bing Ring Ling in his "Rich and Famous". He also starred in the Broadway premiere of Arthur Miller's "The American Clock" and the Tony-winning revival of Herman Wouk's "The Caine Mutiny Court Martial". Among his more than 20 well-known productions are the acclaimed New York premieres of Franz Kafka's "The Castle" and Kressman Taylor's "Address Unknown". For his work on the stage, he has received the Drama Desk Award, the Outer Circle Critics Award, the Theatre World Award and nominations for an Obie and Chicago's Joseph Jefferson Award.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Michael Carmen Pitt (born April 10, 1981) is an American actor, model and musician. A casting agent, whom Pitt mistook as a police officer attempting to arrest him, noticed him and recommended him for a guest role on the television series Dawson's Creek (1998) (he played Henry Parker in 15 episodes between 1999 and 2000).
Rising through the ranks of indie cinema, Michael starred in dramas like Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001), The Dreamers (2003), and Last Days (2005), along with roles in the thrillers Murder by Numbers (2002) and Funny Games (2007). Moving back to television, he played Jimmy Darmody on Boardwalk Empire (2010) and Mason Verger in Hannibal (2013). In 2017, he appears opposite Scarlett Johansson in the science fiction action adaptation Ghost in the Shell (2017).- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Born in Santa Ana, California in 1970, Jason Lee is an American film photographer, actor, producer, and director. Well known for having been a professional skateboarder during skateboarding's very pivotal late 80s and early 90s, Lee would go on to pursue acting in 1993, working in film, television, and voiceover, and with such directors as Kevin Smith, Cameron Crowe, Lawrence Kasdan, and Brad Bird.
Retiring from skateboarding in 1995, Lee has maintained solid ties to the industry, most notably through his partnership with longtime friend and fellow ex-professional skateboarder, Chris Pastras, and their now 25-year-old skate brand, Stereo Skateboards, which Lee co-manages with Pastras.
In 2002, Lee developed a passion for film photography and has been an active photographer and film advocate ever since, having had his work both published and exhibited throughout the years. In October 2016, Lee published a selection of small and large format Polaroid and Fuji instant film photographs spanning a decade as a special limited hardbound issue of Fort Worth-based Refueled Magazine. Just 500 sold-out signed and numbered copies were produced, with three of those copies now living in the libraries of the SFMOMA, Amon Carter, and Philbrook museums. Lee's next publication, to be released in 2017, will be a book comprised of large format color film photographs made throughout Texas.
Lee is also the subject of a 2018 documentary from director Greg Hunt that will take the viewer on the road with him as he exposes his remaining boxes of now-expired 8x10 Polaroid film, a favorite medium of Lee's and one that is no longer being produced. An accompanying book of the large format Polaroids will be published, with the originals being exhibited. Additionally in 2018, Lee will be publishing and exhibiting selections of B&W film photographs from the past 10 years, with the collection's focus primarily on the West Coast and Southwest.
Lee has also produced and directed music videos for Beck and the band Midlake, a short documentary and live concert film featuring Midlake, two Stereo Skateboards films, and a previously unreleased 2006 short film starring Giovanni Ribisi and Beth Riesgraf, which will have its online debut in 2017.
'Acting has been a lot of fun, and I've liked that I've been able to bounce around a bit, and that I was able to make some movies for my kids, do some dramas, play 'Earl,' work with Pixar... It's a fun gig. And I enjoy being a part of that bigger process. But just as with skateboarding, photography is much more uniquely personal, and more of an independent endeavor. Very fulfilling. I look forward to continuing to work as an actor, as I do maintaining my ties to skateboarding and having Stereo as the outlet that it's been for me for over two decades now, and perhaps directing more projects, but photography will remain my primary creative focus as it has been for the past 15 years.'
Lee can be followed on Instagram at @jasonlee, @stereoskateboards, and @filmphotographic, an Instagram film community gallery and resource page founded by Lee in 2015.- Actress
- Producer
Curry grew up as the youngest of three children in Orange County, California. She graduated from Sonora High School in La Habra, California in 2004. She attended California State University Fullerton, receiving a degree in theater. She has worked with The Second City, Phantom Projects theater groups, performing roles as Jennie Mae in The Diviners, Monique in Out, Out, Brief Candle!, Oklahoma!, Bus Stop, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, and The Diary of Anne Frank.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Mikey Day was born on 20 March 1980 in Orange County, California, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for Saturday Night Live (1975), Home Sweet Home Alone (2021) and Terminator: Termination (2012).- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Zach Braff was born and raised in South Orange, New Jersey, to Anne Hutchinson (Maynard), a clinical psychologist, and Harold Irwin Braff, a trial attorney. His father is from Russia and Austria, while Zach's mother is from a family with deep roots in New England. Zach attended Columbia High School in Maplewood, New Jersey, and also graduated from Northwestern University with a BA in film. Zach is known for playing Dr. John 'J.D.' Dorian on the television series Scrubs (2001), for writing, directing, and starring in the films Garden State (2004) and Wish I Was Here (2014), and for starring in the movies Chicken Little (2005), The Last Kiss (2006), and The Ex (1996).
He just completed directing the New Line/ Warner Bros. feature "Going In Style" starring Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine and Alan Arkin.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Lean, angular-faced and authoritatively spoken lead / supporting actor Roy Scheider obviously never heard the old actor's axiom about "never appearing with kids or animals" lest they overshadow your performance. Breaking that rule did him no harm, though, as he achieved pop cult status by finding, fighting and blowing up a 25-foot-long Great White shark (nicknamed "Bruce") in the mega-hit Jaws (1975) and then electrocuting an even bigger Great White in the vastly inferior Jaws 2 (1978).
Athletic Scheider was born in November 1932 in Orange, New Jersey, to Anna (Crosson) and Roy Bernhard Scheider, a mechanic. He was of German and Irish descent. A keen sportsman from a young age, he competed in baseball and boxing (his awkwardly mended broken nose is a result of his foray into Golden Gloves competitions). While at college, his pursuits turned from sports to theater and he studied drama at Rutgers and Franklin and Marshall. After a stint in the military, Scheider appeared with the New York Shakespeare Festival and won an "Obie Award" for his appearance in the play "Stephen D."
His film career commenced with the campy Z-grade horror cheesefest The Curse of the Living Corpse (1964), and he then showed up in Star! (1968), Paper Lion (1968), Stiletto (1969) and Puzzle of a Downfall Child (1970). In 1971 he really came to the attention of film audiences with his role in the Jane Fonda thriller Klute (1971) and then as Det. Buddy Russo (scoring his first Oscar nomination) alongside fiery Gene Hackman in the crime drama The French Connection (1971). His performance as a tough street cop in that film led him into another tough cop role as NYC Det. Buddy Manucci in the underappreciated The Seven-Ups (1973), which features one of the best car chase sequences ever put on film.
In the early 1970s the Peter Benchley novel "Jaws" was a phenomenal best-seller, and young director Steven Spielberg was chosen by Universal Pictures to direct the film adaptation, Jaws (1975), in which Scheider played police chief Brody and shared lead billing with Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss in the tale of a New England seaside community terrorized by a hungry Great White shark. "Jaws" was a blockbuster, and for many years held the record as the highest-grossing film of all time. Scheider then turned up as the shady CIA agent brother of Dustin Hoffman in the unnerving Marathon Man (1976) and in the misfired William Friedkin-directed remake of The Wages of Fear (1953) titled Sorcerer (1977), before again returning to Amity to battle another giant shark in Jaws 2 (1978). Seeking a change from tough cops and hungry sharks, he took the role of womanizing, drug-popping choreographer Joe Gideon, the lead character of the semi-autobiographical portrayal of director Bob Fosse in the sparkling All That Jazz (1979). It was another big hit for Scheider (and another Oscar nomination), with the film featuring a stunning opening sequence to the tune of the funky George Benson number "On Broadway", and breathtaking dance routines including the "Airotica" performance by the glamorous Sandahl Bergman.
Returning to another law enforcement role, Scheider played a rebellious helicopter pilot in the John Badham conspiracy / action film Blue Thunder (1983), a scientist in the sequel to 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) simply titled 2010 (1984), a cheating husband who turns the tables on his blackmailers in 52 Pick-Up (1986), a cold-blooded hit man in Cohen and Tate (1988) and a CIA operative in the muddled and slow-moving The Russia House (1990). The versatile Scheider was then cast as the captain of a futuristic submarine in the relatively popular TV series SeaQuest 2032 (1993), which ran for three seasons.
Inexplicably, however, Scheider had seemingly, and slowly, dropped out of favor with mainstream film audiences, and while he continued to remain busy, predominantly in supporting roles (generally as US presidents or military officers), most of the vehicles he appeared in were B-grade political thrillers such as The Peacekeeper (1997), Executive Target (1997), Chain of Command (2000) and Red Serpent (2003).- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Javier "Harvey" Guillén is a Mexican-American actor who is best known for his role as the human familiar Guillermo de la Cruz in the 2019 television series "What We Do in the Shadows." Guillén has appeared in recurring roles on a number of television series, such as Alistair Delgado on "Huge" (2010), Cousin Blobbin on "The Thundermans" (2013-2018), George Reyes in "Eye Candy" (2015), and Benedict Pickwick on "The Magicians" (2017-2018). He also appeared in the 2013 film "The Internship."- Actor
- Writer
- Director
Enver Leif Gjokaj is an American film and television actor. He is known for his roles as Victor in Joss Whedon's science fiction television series Dollhouse and as Agent Daniel Sousa on Agent Carter (2015). Gjokaj was born in Orange County, California. His father is Albanian, and his mother is American. Gjokaj has an older brother named Bekim and an identical twin brother named Demir. Both Gjokaj and his brother attended Amador High School, in Sutter Creek, California, where Gjokaj participated in multiple plays and variety shows. Gjokaj graduated with a Master of Fine Arts from New York University's Graduate Acting Program at the Tisch School of the Arts. While at NYU, he was a semi-finalist for Tisch's Vilar Global Fellows Program, a Rhodes Scholar-style program in the Arts. In 2002, he received a Bachelor of Arts in English from UC Berkeley.- Actor
- Producer
Coby Bell was born on 11 May 1975 in Orange County, California, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Burn Notice (2007), Third Watch (1999) and The Gifted (2017). He has been married to Aviss Pinkney-Bell since 9 June 2001. They have four children.- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Handsome American leading man who developed into one of Hollywood's greatest and most popular Western stars. Born to George and Lucy Crane Scott during a visit to Virginia, Scott was raised in Charlotte, North Carolina in a wealthy family. After service with the U.S. Army in France in World War I, he attended Georgia Institute of Technology but, after being injured playing football, transferred to the University of North Carolina, from which he graduated with a degree in textile engineering and manufacturing. He discovered acting and went to California, where he met Howard Hughes, who obtained an audition for him for Cecil B. DeMille's Dynamite (1929), a role which went instead to Joel McCrea. He was hired to coach Gary Cooper in a Virginia dialect for The Virginian (1929) and played a bit part in the film. Paramount scouts saw him in a play and offered him a contract. He met Cary Grant, another Paramount contract player, on the set of Hot Saturday (1932) and the pair soon moved in together. Their on-and-off living arrangement would last until 1942. Scott married and divorced wealthy heiress Marion DuPont in the late 1930's. He moved into leading roles at Paramount, although his easy-going charm was not enough to indicate the tremendous success that would come to him later. He was a pleasant figure in comedies, dramas and the occasional adventure, but it was not until he began focusing on Westerns in the late 1940s that he reached his greatest stardom. His screen persona altered into that of a stoic, craggy, and uncompromising figure, a tough, hard-bitten man seemingly unconnected to the light comedy lead he had been in the 1930s. He became one of the top box office stars of the 1950s and, in the Westerns of Budd Boetticher especially, a critically important figure in the Western as an art form. Following a critically acclaimed, less-heroic-than-usual role in one of the classics of the genre, Ride the High Country (1962), Scott retired from films. A multimillionaire as a result of canny investments, Scott spent his remaining years playing golf and avoiding film industry affairs, stating that he didn't like publicity. He died in 1987 survived by his second wife, Patricia Stillman, and his two adopted children, Christopher and Sandra. He is buried in Charlotte, North Carolina.- Keleigh Sperry was born on 16 October 1992 in Orange County, California, USA. She is an actress, known for Taylor Swift: I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor's Version) (2021), Dance (2017) and E! Live from the Red Carpet (1995). She has been married to Miles Teller since 1 September 2019.
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Stephanie Kay Panabaker is an American actress, who was born on May 2, 1990 in Orange Grove, Texas, USA. She is the daughter of Donna (née Mayock) and Harold Panabaker. She has an older sister, Danielle Panabaker, who is also an actress. She started acting at various community theaters in Chicago, Philadelphia and Atlanta. In Naperville, Illinois, Kay attended Crone Middle School for sixth grade, and moved to Los Angeles, California, at the start of seventh grade. In between projects, Kay focuses on her academics. She graduated from high school, as valedictorian, when she was thirteen-years-old and received her Associate's Degree at age fifteen. Kay received two academic scholarships from Glendale Community College, where she attended, studying acting, and where she was on the Dean's list, graduating with honors. She was accepted to the UCLA online program as a junior history major, when she was fifteen, and completed her online BA in History from UCLA, before she turned eighteen. Kay was inspired by an elementary school teacher, who made learning exciting, and she wants to do the same for others, hoping to teach 4th or 5th grade, once she finishes her teaching degree. Panabaker has guest-starred in several television dramas and soap operas. She portrayed "Alice Brand" in 7th Heaven (1996); "Melissa Rue" in ER (1994); "Sara" in Port Charles (1997); "Carrie Bauer" in The Brothers Garcia (2000); "Elisha" in Medium (2005); "Lindsey Willows" in CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2000); to name a few. In film, she appeared in Dead Heat (2002) as "Sam LaRoche"; and did some voice work in the Disney/Pixas film, Monsters, Inc. (2001). Panabaker's breakout role came when she starred in The WB's Summerland (2004) as "Nikki Westerly", in the 2004-2005 season. She also appeared as "Georgie" in Nancy Drew (2007), alongside Emma Roberts and Amy Bruckner. She starred in the 2007 movie, Moondance Alexander (2007), along with actors, Don Johnson, Lori Loughlin, James Best, Sasha Cohen and Whitney Sloan. She co-starred on the ABC sci-fi series, No Ordinary Family (2010), along with actors Michael Chiklis, Julie Benz, Jimmy Bennett, Autumn Reeser, Romany Malco and Stephen Collins.- Marti Matulis was born on 4 July 1970 in Orange, California, USA. He is an actor, known for The Mandalorian (2019), Evil (2019) and Studio 666 (2022).
- Nuufolau Joel Seanoa is an American professional wrestler and color commentator, better known by the ring name Samoa Joe who is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) where he is the company's World Champion since December 30th, 2023. During his career, Joe has also worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) and WWE.
- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
One of the finest screen/television character actors of his generation, playing against a spectrum of Hollywood's leading action heroes, Patrick Kilpatrick's entertainment career has spanned 200+ films and television shows as lead actor, producer, screenwriter, director, and global entertainment teacher - from 'Minority Report' with Tom Cruise to 'Dark Angel' with Jessica Alba, from the largest production in Public Broadcasting history to the Los Angeles Theater Center with John Goodman and Academy Award-winning British director Tony Richardson in Shakespeare's 'Anthony and Cleopatra'. He has appeared in over 75 hit TV shows such as '24', 'Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman' and all 'CSI'.
His action film villain appearances embrace a multitude of genres and an international Who's Who of directors, writers, production talent and leading men and women of the last quarter century. The Replacement Killers (1998 - director Antoine Fuqua) against Yun-Fat Chow, Arnold Schwarzenegger and James Caan in Eraser (1996 - Chuck Russell), Last Man Standing (1996 - Walter Hill), opposite Bruce Willis, Under Siege 2: Dark Territory (1995- Geoff Murphy), opposite Steven Segal, The Presidio (1988) - Peter Hyams), opposite Sean Connery and Mark Harmon, two award-winning and highly rated original cable westerns opposite Tom Selleck, Last Stand at Saber River (1997- Elmore Leonard) and Crossfire Trail (2001), one western opposite Sam Elliot and Kate Capshaw HBO's Premiere Films adaptation of Louis L'Amour's The Quick and the Dead (1987), and the ever-popular action mainstay Death Warrant (1990) opposite Jean-Claude Van Damme, as 'The Sandman'. He has even done battle with the largest mammal on earth in Free Willy 3: The Rescue (1997).
In one 18-month period Kilpatrick did five major studio films, two independents and 27 television guest star spots on 18 different shows - among them 'Criminal Minds', James Woods 'Shark', 'BoomTown', and 'Cold Case'. A record that remains to this day of audition prowess.
His further and recent work includes the film Parasomnia from director Bill Malone ('Fear.com', 'House on Haunted Hill'), 'Nip/Tuck', 'Chuck', 'Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles', 'Burn Notice', all NCIS franchises and the film 'American Violence' with UFC Light Heavyweight Champion of the World Stipe Miocic.
Graduating from the University of Richmond with a BA in English/History/Teaching he attended New York University's Professional Film and Television Graduate Program.
Professionally first as an advertising writer, journalist, creative director and on-air reporter for 11- time Emmy winning 'What's Happening America', Patrick worked for nearly every major magazine and ad agency in New York - TIME Inc., Playboy, Rolling Stone and Sports Illustrated to Interview, Life Magazine, Cycling, Sailing, Popular Photography, Modern Bride, Cosmopolitan, The New York Times, Luxe Magazine, Quest '78, Popular Mechanics and Psychology Today, etc.
Interspersed he created full spectrum print and media productions for glamour fashion icons such as Givenchy and Maud Frizon while bodyguarding Jefferson Airplane, Jethro Tull, the Grateful Dead, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Procol Harem, Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, Rod Stewart, Steve Marriot and Humble Pie, Jeff Beck, etc. He served from '78 to '80 as a foreign correspondent in Columbia and Venezuela and was responsible for the creation of mass mailing packages for Publishers Clearinghouse in the states.
On sabbatical from TIME to write a novel he transitioned to play-writing. Kilpatrick directed/assistant directed off and on Broadway, the West End of London and was a founding member of Divine Theater in New York City. His play 'Zone of Bells/Room of See Saws', starring him and iconic acting teacher/Academy Award nominee Bill Hickey premiered at the 1984 East Village Arts Festival. His appearance in 'Linda Her and The Fairy Garden' at NYC's prestigious Second Stage catapulted him into mainstream TV and film beginning with Nicholas Roeg's masterpiece 'Insignificance', the global cult film 'Toxic Avenger', and the largest production in the history of PBS 'Roanoak'.
Since 1987 in between international film and television appearances he has been scriptwriter and producer consultant on a multitude of pictures.
Kilpatrick is president and CEO of Uncommon Dialogue Films, Inc. (UDF) (founded 2005) - a full-service script, casting, film and production company. His producing/fundraising/film financing and production background has taken him from Fiji to the London Stock Exchange for the presentation of investment film slates.
He has taught acting, auditioning, directing, producing and film distribution, Men in the Movies, Star Trek and Stage Combat at the University of Wisconsin (Whitewater) and Hampton Sydney College in Virginia and at the Texas Theater Center in Dallas/Fort Worth. Kilpatrick has prepared a full film school curriculum for the governments of Brazil and Nigeria while privately and group entertainment coaching in Los Angeles and via Skype/Zoom.
The Uncommon Dialogue Film Mentorship Program - under his directorship and chief instruction, utilizing his 'Deliver the Goods' Curriculum - has coached countless students from beginners to active professionals in all phases of entertainment warrior status while guiding each to agency representation and self-production.
He was invited by New York Film Academy Veterans Advancement Program to present a Master Class on Oct. 13, 2017.
He has in the past partnered with Los Angeles Film Academy for his charitable event The Hollywood Celebrity Sporting Clays Invitational which raises money for wounded warriors and City of Hope Hospital.
He is appearing in theaters, stores and Netflix in 'American Violence' and 'Assassin X', 'Cops and Robbers' with UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Quentin Rampage Jackson, 'Black Water' with Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren, 'Night Walk' filmed in Casablanca, Morocco, and Upcoming 'Catalyst', 'Nessie' and 'Dying for Living'.
Kilpatrick is a member of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, winner of the People's Choice Award at the 2015 Action on Film Festival in Los Angeles (Best Picture 'Assassin X') and the recipient of the 2015 Distinguished Alumni Professional Achievement Award from his Alma Mater - The Gilbert School in Winsted, Connecticut. He was that school's graduate guest speaker in spring 2017.
His memoir of 30 years Dying For Living: Sins and Confession of a Hollywood Villain and Libertine Patriot Vol. 1 - Upbringing was published by Boulevard Books (NYC) on Oct.1, 2018 and was launched Oct. 3, 2018 at the National Press Club and Kennedy Center for Performing Arts. Vol. 2 Dying for Living: Wasted Talent in the Valley of Debacle - Showbiz is due out in early 2023. He was on a book tour throughout America and his works are available in digital, hardcover, softcover and audio version on Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com, autographed copies via PatrickKilpatrick.com and at the numerous signings through the U.S. and particularly Los Angeles - updated listings on PatrickKilpatrick.com.
As a voiceover performer, he has appeared as the voice of Sailplane Grand Prix, the narrator of the Olympic IMAX movie, and as political VO for candidates Ohio Governor John Kasich (R) and Mayor of Miami/Governor candidate Florida's Phillip Levine (D).- Emily Mae Young was born on 14 February 1990 in Orange County, California, USA. She is an actress, known for Step by Step (1991), Undercover Angel (1999) and Santa and Pete (1999).
- Writer
- Actor
- Art Department
Walter Dohrn is an American animator, writer and voice actor from Orange County who is mostly known for voicing Rumpelstiltskin from Shrek Forever After. He also wrote several episodes of SpongeBob SquarePants including Sailor Mouth and voiced in other DreamWorks Animation films such as Trolls, Shrek the Third and Trolls World Tour.- Leo Fitzpatrick was born on 10 August 1978 in Orange, New Jersey, USA. He is an actor, known for Kids (1995), Bully (2001) and Bubble Boy (2001).
- Writer
- Actress
- Producer
Taylor Tomlinson was born on 4 November 1993 in Orange, California, USA. She is a writer and actress, known for Untitled Taylor Tomlinson- based film, New Couple Gets Quarantined (2020) and Untitled Taylor Tomlinson/ABC Project.- Christopher Backus was born on 30 October 1981 in Orange County, California, USA. He is an actor, known for Black Bird (2022), Mindhunter (2017) and Jett (2019). He has been married to Mira Sorvino since 11 June 2004. They have four children.
- Actress
- Writer
Natasha Behnam is a bilingual actress, comedian and writer who received her BA from Loyola Marymount University's prestigious Film & TV Production school. She stars in the upcoming HBO Max show "The Girls on the Bus." On the feature front, she starred in the Universal Studios / Netflix reboot of "American Pie: Girls' Rules" (2020), and Hulu's holiday Rom-Com, "Cupid for Christmas" (2021). Her TV credits include Mayans (recurring, FX/Hulu), Camp Friends (series lead, HBOMax pilot '22), and Crazy Ex Girlfriend (Guest Star, CW). Natasha is a UCB and Groundlings trained improviser, and has performed with a plethora of sketch and improv teams over the years. In 2021, she was an Actress & Writer for the ViacomCBS Comedy Showcase, and she continues to write and direct her own projects. Aside from acting, Natasha has an affinity for traveling and learning new languages (she speaks basic German and French, and is fluent in Farsi, English, and Spanish). She is a meditation teacher, trained in multiple lineages, and brings a soulful touch of genuine human connection to all of her work.- Actress
- Producer
- Director
Naturi Naughton is an American Actress/Singer best known for her performance as "Tasha St. Patrick" in the hit show "Power" on the Starz Network. She has won 2 NAACP Image Awards for her performance in this role. Many also remember her thrilling portrayal of "Lil Kim" in Fox Searchlight's film "Notorious". Naughton has starred in various other projects such as MGM's remake of the classic film "Fame", Lottery Ticket, The Playboy Club, Mad Men and The Client List. She also appeared on Broadway in the Tony Award winning musical, "Hairspray" for 3 years. Before her transition into film and television, Naughton was a member of the Platinum selling girl group 3LW. Born and raised in East Orange, NJ, she was greatly inspired by Whitney Houston as a child and knew by the age of 5 that she wanted to be a performer. Naughton continues to thrive in Hollywood as a respected actress who has been lauded for her ability to transform into any role she is given.- Crystal Allen was born in California, where she now resides; however, she was raised in Camrose in Alberta Canada.
With dual Canadian/American citizenship, she has landed many leading roles. Crooked Arrows (2012) opposite Brandon Routh and Ghost Storm (2011) with Carlos Bernard, both to be released in spring of 2012.
Allen has also starred in the latest two sequels to their already hit film, Anaconda (1997), which have just been released. In Anaconda 3 & 4, Allen stars in the lead role of "Dr. Amanda Hayes", a scientist having to fight for what she believes in while holding firm to her integrity in these action-packed sequels.
She is also know for her portrayal of the "Orion Slave Girl D'nesh" on Bound (2005) and as "Navigator Yara" in the popular independent film, Star Trek: Of Gods and Men (2007).
Allen's additional notable performances were on hit TV shows such as Haven (2010), Prison Break (2005), Desperate Housewives (2004), Boston Legal (2004), Star Trek: Enterprise (2001), "NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service" (2003)_, Modern Men (2006), Sex and the City (1998), The Sopranos (1999), Ed (2000), and the feature film, Maid in Manhattan (2002). Allen was also well-received as the lead in the Hallmark movie, Falling in Love with the Girl Next Door (2006). One may also affectionately remember Allen as the Tic Tac spokeswoman a few years back. Previous to making her mark on screen, Allen studied dance for many years in NYC which then brought her to Japan and Monte Carlo. Her modeling career took her to Greece, London, Germany, and South Africa before ending back in NYC where she studied acting at the Lee Strasberg Institute. It's her love and commitment to the roles she plays which keeps Allen focused and successful which is evident in her short film festival hits, "Comic Con" and "Lake Arrowhead". Then, there are the Crystal Allen's dinner parties, where she shines in her passion for cooking up elaborate meals to host a wonderful evening with the most interesting group of friends from all over the world. - Actor
- Soundtrack
Albert Gordon MacRae was born on March 12, 1921, in East Orange, NJ. During his early years, he resided in Syracuse, NY, and, while in high school, spent much of his time singing and acting in the Drama Club. It was also during this time that he learned to play the piano, clarinet and the saxophone. At 19, he entered a singing contest and won a two-week engagement at The World's Fair in New York, performing with the Harry James and Les Brown bands. In 1940, while working in New York City as a page, he was "discovered" and hired to sing for the Horace Heidt Band. After a two-year stint, he joined the Army Air Corps and worked as a navigator for the next two years. He made his Broadway debut in a show called "Junior Miss", as a replacement in the role of "Tommy Arbuckle". Next, he appeared, again on Broadway, in Ray Bolger's 1946 revue, "Three To Make Ready". It was here that he was spotted by Capitol Records and signed to a long-term recording contract in 1947. He stayed with the label for more than 20 years. In October 1948, on ABC, he starred on the radio show "The Railroad Hour". The show moved to NBC in October 1949 and continued until June of 1954. It presented operettas and musical dramatizations, all starring Gordon and many different leading ladies. Also in 1948, he was signed to a seven-year contract with Warner Brothers Pictures and, soon after, made his film debut in the non-musical, The Big Punch (1948), opposite Lois Maxwell (well-known later as "Miss Moneypenny" in the James Bond films). What followed was a string of hit musicals, starting with Look for the Silver Lining (1949), in which MacRae had a featured role opposite June Haver and Ray Bolger, and five fondly remembered films with Doris Day, beginning with Tea for Two (1950). Perhaps his two best and well-known films were two of his last: Oklahoma! (1955) and Carousel (1956), both written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II and both opposite screen newcomer Shirley Jones. MacRae began to suffer, in the late 1950s and early 1960s, from bouts of heavy drinking and, by his own admission, developed into an alcoholic. He revealed that he had been "picked up for drunk driving" during the filming of "Carousel". He conquered the disease in the 1970s and went on to counsel other alcoholics. He continued recording and performing on dozens of television shows. He and his wife, Sheila MacRae, appeared together frequently and even released an album together. His daughters, Meredith MacRae and Heather MacRae, acted in films and on TV. On September 22, 1974, he appeared as a sheriff on an episode of McCloud (1970), starring Dennis Weaver, entitled "The Barefoot Girls of Bleeker Street". His final film came in 1979, a fine dramatic role in The Pilot (1980), which starred Cliff Robertson. He suffered a stroke in 1982. He continued on with the support of his second wife, Elizabeth, and his five children. This brilliant performer continued to tour, when his health would permit, allowing audiences to relive some of his biggest film hits. On January 24, 1986, Gordon MacRae died at the age of 64, at his home in Lincoln, NE, of pneumonia, the result of complications from cancer of the mouth and jaw.- Brittany Ishibashi was born in Orange, California, USA. Brittany is an actor, known for Runaways (2017), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (2016) and Grace and Frankie (2015). Brittany has been married to Jeff Horowitz since 29 May 2011. They have one child.
- Actress
- Producer
Athena Massey has captivated audiences with an array of multifaceted performances in film and television. She made her film debut opposite Don "The Dragon" Wilson in "Virtual Combat." Massey's physically demanding role garnered a lot of attention and respect. Skilled in Martial Arts and Krav Maga, she performed her own stunts in the film and continued to impress audiences and critics with her kickboxing skills in "Cybertracker 2."
Massey went on to star in films such as "Undercover Heat," "The Unspeakable," "Star Portal," "Termination Man" and "Harold Robbins' Body Parts." She can also be seen in "The Nutty Professor" with Eddie Murphy, "Poison Ivy: The New Seduction," "Molly," and "Black Scorpion Returns."
Emmy Award-winning television shows "Seinfeld" and "The Larry Sanders Show" each offered her a guest-starring appearance. Other television credits include: "Doogie Howser M.D.," "Murder One", "LA Heat", "Young and the Restless," "Nash Bridges," "Red Shoe Diaries," "Black Scorpion" and the highly-acclaimed series, "Star Trek: Voyager."
Massey has also successfully crossed over into the CD Rom interactive world, initially in "Quarterback Attack" with Mike Ditka. She then portrayed a GDI Pilot in "Command & Conquer: Tiberian Sun" and played Lieutenant Eva Lee in "Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2" and "Red Alert 2: Yuri's Revenge."
Massey resides in Los Angeles, California, where she raises two teenage daughters and is passionate about Health & Wellness and travel.- Briana White is a professional actress and content creator. She has succeeded in all worlds of performing, with credits such as Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (Apatow Productions, Andy Samberg), Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders (CBS), and as the lead in hit indie feature, Occupants, which earned her 12 Best Actress Wins. She is the voice of lead character Aerith Gainsborough in the hit video game series Final Fantasy VII Remake, which sold over 7 million copies. She has made digital content since her appearance in viral hit, Princess Rap Battle: Snow vs Elsa, with over 200+ million views. She founded her own video game YouTube & Twitch channel, Strange Rebel Gaming, and has built a loyal and wildly engaged viewer base of over 470k+ with over 21+ million views across YouTube, Twitch, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. She is also an experienced live host, with appearances in ArcadeCloud from Omnia Media, Machinima's Game Night, Game the Game from Geek & Sundry, and Oculus Rift on Facebook. Her acting background is rooted in her entire life of community theater from her hometown of Orange County, California, and her education from NYU's prestigious Tisch School of the Arts where she graduated with a B.F.A. in Theater in only 3 years.
- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Ryan O'Nan is an American TV writer, actor, producer, director and author. Ryan wrote and directed the feature film "Brooklyn Brothers Beat the Best" which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and was released by Oscilliscope Laboratories. As an actor, Ryan is known for playing "Donno" on "Big Sky", and "King George" on "Queen of the South".
Ryan's debut sci-fi novel "Winders" was published in 2021.
Born and raised in San Diego, California, Ryan attended Mason Gross School of the Arts and studied at The Globe Theater in London.- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Rick Glassman was born on 23 July 1984 in Orange, Ohio, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Undateable (2014), A Futile and Stupid Gesture (2018) and The Sixth Lead (2015).- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Andrew Shue was born on 20 February 1967 in South Orange, New Jersey, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for The Rainmaker (1997), Melrose Place (1992) and Gracie (2007). He was previously married to Amy Robach and Jennifer Hageney.- Writer
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
English writer, scholar and philologist, Tolkien's father was a bank manager in South Africa. Shortly before his father died (1896) his mother took him and his younger brother to his father's native village of Sarehole, near Birmingham, England. The landscapes and Nordic mythology of the Midlands may have been the source for Tolkien's fertile imagination to write about 'the Shire' and 'hobbits' in his later book the Hobbit (1937). After his mother's death in 1904 he was looked after by Father Francis Xavier Morgan a RC priest of the Congregation of the Oratory. Tolkien was educated at King Edward VI school in Birmingham. He studied linguistics at Exeter College, Oxford, and took his B.A. in 1915. In 1916 he fought in World War I with the Lancashire Fusiliers. It is believed that his experiences during the Battle of the Somne may have been fueled the darker side of his subsequent novels. Upon his return he worked as an assistant on the Oxford English Dictionary (1918-20) and took his M.A. in 1919. In 1920 he became a teacher in English at the University of Leeds. He then went on to Merton College in Oxford, where he became Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon (1925-45) and Merton professor of English Language and Literature (1945-59). His first scholarly publication was an edition of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (1925). He also wrote books on Chaucer (1934) and Beowulf (1937). In 1939 Tolkien gave the Andrew Lang Lecture at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland titled: "On Fairy-Stories". Tolkien will however be remembered most for his books the Hobbit (1937) and the Lord of the Rings (1954-55). The Hobbit began as a bedtime story for his children". He wrote Lord of the Rings over a period of about 14 years.
Tolkien also discussed parts of his novels with fellow Oxfordian and fantasy writer CS Lewis during their 'meetings'. He was trying to create a fantasy world so that he could explain how he had invented certain languages, and in doing so created 'Middle-earth'. However among his peers at Oxford his works were not well received as they were not considered 'scholarly'. It was after LOTR was published in paperback in the United States in 1965 that he developed his legendary cult following and also imitators. Tolkien was W. P. Ker lecturer at Glasgow University in 1953. In 1954 both the University of Liege and University College, Dublin, awarded him honorary doctorates. He received the CBE in 1972. He served as vice-president of the Philological Society and was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He was made an honorary fellow of Exeter College. Despite the immense popularity of his books today Tolkien did not greatly benefit from their sales. His son Christopher Tolkien was able to publish some of his works posthumously after his manuscripts were found.- Ciara Hanna got her start in the entertainment world at the young age of 8, and has since been a part of several commercials, music videos, television series, and movies. She is best known for her role of "Gia" the Yellow Power Ranger on the 20th anniversary series of Power Rangers MegaForce and Super MegaForce. Her film, Stars Fell on Alabama (2021), premiered in 2021, starring alongside Big Time Rush's star, James Maslow.
- Actress
- Producer
- Sound Department
Tamara Mello began acting in a community theater as a child. She was born and raised in Southern California. She moved to Los Angeles to pursue acting and made her professional debut as a guest star on Boy Meets World (1993). Several other guest starring and small film roles followed until she was cast as a regular on the controversial ABC series Nothing Sacred(1997). Shortly after the series cancellation Mello landed the role of Chandler in the now classic teen comedy She's All That (1999). On the heels of the success of the film Mello landed the role of teen activist Lily Esposito on Ryan Murphy's first series, Popular (1999). Following 2 seasons on Popular Tamara continued to work in theater, film and television before taking several years off to raise her daughter. She has recently returned to acting and lives in Los Angeles.- Emily Longstreth was born on 5 January 1967 in Orange County, California, USA. She is an actress, known for Pretty in Pink (1986), Gimme an 'F' (1984) and Wired to Kill (1986).
- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
Robert David Hall was born on 9 November 1947 in East Orange, New Jersey, USA. He is an actor, known for CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2000), Starship Troopers (1997) and The Negotiator (1998). He has been married to Judy Stearns since 1999. He was previously married to Connie Cole and Susan Petroni.- Actress
- Soundtrack
- Music Department
From a dry, intelligent teenager with a dark sense of humor navigating the waters of her parents divorce, to portraying one of the most notable former members of Charles Manson's commune, to a 16-year-old girl who embarks on a nation-wide killing spree of the country's dumbest, most irritating celebrities, Tara Lynne Barr has quickly become known in the entertainment industry for the complex characters she has brought to life in film and on television.
Tara is best known for her starring role in Hulu and Lionsgate Television's original comedy series Casual (2015). Executive produced by Jason Reitman, Tara is a scene stealer as Laura, the sarcastic yet wise and witty daughter of Valerie (Michaela Watkins). The series follows a bachelor brother (Tommy Dewey) and his newly divorced sister (Watkins) as they navigate the crazy world of dating while living together and raising a teenager. Casual premiered in October 2015 to critical acclaim, and was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Television Series - Comedy or Musical. In addition to working with Hulu, Tara was also seen throughout the summer of 2015 on NBC's 1960's thriller-drama series Aquarius (2015). She appeared opposite Golden Globe winner David Duchovny, who stars as a police sergeant in Los Angeles who embarks on an undercover investigation of a cult leader: Charles Manson. Tara portrayed the character of Katie on the show, who was based on real life Manson follower Patricia Krenwinkel.
Tara made her feature film debut in the award-winning independent film God Bless America (2011), which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2011. Written and directed by Bobcat Goldthwait, Tara commanded the screen as Roxy, a 16-year old girl who teams up with terminally ill Frank (played by Joel Murray), and heads out on a mission to rid society of its most repellent citizens. The film, which has since gone on to become a cult hit, was nominated for an Audience Award at the 2012 SXSW Film Festival, and Tara earned a Young Artist Award nomination as Best Leading Young Actress in a Feature Film for her work in the project. In 2014, Tara once again made waves in the indie scene (in another 1960's period piece) starring as the title character in the short film Dawn, Rose McGowan's directorial debut. The dark and dramatic film premiered at Sundance, and was nominated for the Short Film Grand Jury Prize.
Born and raised in Orange County, California, Tara got her start in theater at the age of seven. She was instantly drawn to the stage, and loved bringing diverse characters to life. Although acting quickly became her passion, she also desired a sense of normalcy and realized early on that driving back and forth from the OC to Los Angeles took up a ton of time from school. She dabbled in the Disney and Nickelodeon world growing up and appeared on a handful of series, however at the end of the day, she wanted to wait to seriously pursue a career in acting until after graduating from high school. Shortly before graduation, Tara booked God Bless America (2011), and she has been working ever since.
While working in television and film are two of Tara's greatest passions, she also has a love of music. She sings, is a self-taught guitar player, and has hopes to learn how to play the bass in the near future. Tara is a fan of the arts, she loves plays, musicals, supporting local theater, and reading crime mystery novels. She also is a big fan of horror films, from classic to contemporary, she tries to see them all. Tara currently lives in the Los Angeles area.- Music Artist
- Actress
- Composer
Lauryn Hill, a native of South Orange, New Jersey, first came to attention with the multi-talented Fugees. Their first album, "Blunted On Reality", went virtually unnoticed by the public; their real breakthrough came with the sophomore album, "The Score", which featured "Killing Me Softly". That album stills remains the worldwide top-selling rap album of all time (17 million units shipped). She earned two Grammys (Best Rap Album and Best R&B Performance by a duo or group) in 1996 and gave birth to Zion (alleged father is Bob Marley's son) before releasing her self-written and self-produced solo album, "The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill", which topped Billboard charts the moment it came out.- Actor
- Producer
- Soundtrack
The athletically gifted 6' 7" Charles Aaron "Bubba" Smith played defensive end / defensive tackle for the National Football League's Baltimore Colts (1967-1971), Oakland Raiders (1973-1974), and Houston Oilers (1975-1976). After the conclusion of his football career, Smith moved into a TV & film career, with initial guest appearances on prime time TV shows including Wonder Woman (1975), Charlie's Angels (1976) and Eight Is Enough (1977).
Smith is best known to international film audiences as the softly spoken police officer "Moses Hightower" from the Police Academy (1984) series of comedies, in which he has appeared in all but one of the numerous sequels.- Marjorie Monaghan was born on 19 March 1964 in Orange County, California, USA. She is an actress, known for Regarding Henry (1991), Babylon 5 (1993) and Star Trek: Voyager (1995). She has been married to Grant Rosenberg since 2 February 2011.
- Actor
- Stunts
- Writer
Noah Munck was born in Orange County, California, to Kymbry (Robinson), a full-time mom, and Greg Munck, an executive pastor at a Mission Viejo church. Noah is the oldest of 5 kids, he has 4 brothers and 1 sister. After seeing how much fun his sister's were having in an improv class, Munck decided that he wanted to be enrolled as well. Encouraged by his sister and his improv teacher, Munck decided that he wanted to pursue acting professionally. Munck first broke into the entertainment business as a commercial actor at age 10 with a Volkswagen spot followed by a national "Got Milk?" and a campaign for Kellogg's. Shortly thereafter, the talented young actor co-starred in several television series including "All of Us" (2003), "American Body Shop" (2007), and 1321 Clover (2007). He also guest-starred in "Rules of Engagement" (2007), "Wizards of Waverly Place" (2007), and "ER" (1994). In 2007 Noah landed the role of Gibby on Nickelodeon's hit series "iCarly" (2007). Noah made his feature-film debut as the foul-mouthed tough-guy Ryan Tucker in The Rainbow Tribe (2008). Noah's filmography also includes roles in All About Steve (2009), Four Christmases (2008), and Bad Teacher (2011). An avid gamer, he also voiced a character in the DVD game Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? In 2011, Munck also made a triumphant return as TruGreen's spokesman Bobby Sinclair, the Neighborhood Lawn Kid, in which he starred once again as the junior lawn-mowing entrepreneur in its second national multimedia advertising campaign. The positive consumer response and outpouring of feedback prompted the company to hire Noah as its teen spokesperson. In his free time, he enjoys reading books and graphic novels, swimming, playing football and video games, and working out. In the future, Noah hopes to be producing, directing, and writing his own projects.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Blond, blue-eyed Joan Caulfield was born on June 1 1922 in Orange, New Jersey, one of three daughters to Henry R. Caulfield, an aircraft company administrator based in Manhattan. She received a private education and enrolled in Columbia University in late 1940. Her early forays into acting with the Morningside Players acting troupe did not appear to suggest any special talents in that direction, so she turned her ambitions towards a modelling career. Joan's exceptional looks and demure personality soon secured her top fashion shoots through the Harry Conover Agency, including the May 11 1942 cover of Life magazine. This, in turn, caught the attention of renowned Broadway producer George Abbott who asked her to audition for a small part (as Veronica, a dumb blonde) in his upcoming production of "Beat the Band". While the musical was poorly received, critics singled out for praise Joan's "decidedly winsome" looks and her budding comedic talent. Abbott, to his credit, stuck with her and cast her as the female lead in his 1943 comedy "Kiss and Tell", co-starring as her brother a young Richard Widmark. This time, Joan attracted rave reviews for her "natural and endearing" performance and was voted most promising actress in the New York Drama Critics annual poll. After fourteen months and 480 shows, Joan quit the cast of "Kiss and Tell" in early 1944 (the play went on for 962 performances, was filmed twice and turned into a TV and radio series as Meet Corliss Archer (1954)).
Though initially reluctant to forsake the stage for motion pictures, Joan succumbed to an offer from Paramount in early 1944. Her contract even included a special clause permitting her to work on Broadway for six months each year. During her tenure with the studio (1944-50), she appeared in eleven films (including a couple of loan-outs to Warner Brothers and Universal, respectively). As a leading lady, she was genteel, cultured and alluring, without exuding too much overt sex appeal. Often, she was merely decorative. As love interest to both Fred Astaire and Bing Crosby (with whom she was rumoured to have had an affair) in Blue Skies (1946), Bosley Crowther of the New York Times considered her "most lovely and passive". Nevertheless, the picture was a huge hit and Joan found herself in number ten spot on Variety's list of 1946 top-grossing actresses, despite the inescapable fact, that, as a dancing partner to Astaire, she was barely adequate. In the course of her later films, it also transpired that she was not particularly convincing as a dramatic actress. Joan did, however, come into her own in breezy comedy roles, point in case her chambermaid in Monsieur Beaucaire (1946) (Crowther calling her performance "delightfully nimble"). The highlight of her Hollywood career was a starring role (opposite William Holden) in the wholesome family comedy Dear Ruth (1947), which did for Joan what Gilda (1946) did for Rita Hayworth. From the play by Norman Krasna and allegedly based on the household of Groucho Marx, the picture was box office gold. Joan was to be typecast in peaches and cream roles thereafter. The law of diminishing returns applied.
Following her loan-out to Warner Brothers for the mystery thriller The Unsuspected (1947) (a victory of style over content, thanks mainly to taut direction by Michael Curtiz), Joan was cast in the all-star musical jamboree Variety Girl (1947), getting rather lost among the more extrovert performers. Her other loan-out was to Universal for Larceny (1948), in which she played a naive widow, conned by a hustler (John Payne) out of a large sum of money for erecting a bogus monument to her late husband. There was also a sequel to "Dear Ruth" (Dear Wife (1949)), chiefly enjoyable for the histrionics of that excellent character actor, Edward Arnold, but otherwise unremarkable. By this time, Joan had come to reject her wholesome image, referring to George Abbott who had once quipped that "she looked better on a tennis court than in bed". Increasingly dissatisfied with her assignments, Joan later claimed to have been poorly advised by drama coaches, agents and studio executives alike. She also blamed herself for some of her choices, "copying the mannerisms of other stars", "striking poses", etcetera. Her contract was not renewed in 1949 and Joan free-lanced from then on, but choice roles in films remained elusive. The Petty Girl (1950) , The Lady Says No (1951) and The Rains of Ranchipur (1955) were all decidedly trite, lacklustre affairs, later to be followed by a trio of dismal low-budget westerns. Television anthologies offered her some relief from typecasting. Joan starred in her own NBC comedy series, Sally (1957). It was produced by her then-husband, Frank Ross, and boasted an impressive supporting cast, including Gale Gordon, Arte Johnson and Marion Lorne (who received an Emmy nomination). As fortunes would have it, the series fared poorly in the ratings because of its unfortunate time slot which put it up against top-ranking shows like Maverick (1957) and Bachelor Father (1957). Yet another setback to her career was the 1963 play "She Didn't Say Yes" which folded before making it to Broadway.
In the end, Joan Caulfield reinvented herself as a business woman with considerable financial acumen on the stock exchange, becoming vice president of Lustre Shine Co. Inc., a company which produced and installed self polishing machines in airports and hotels. There were also two divorces and several law suits which kept her name in the public consciousness. In 1971, she received some good notices for performing in Neil Simon's play "Plaza Suite" at the Showboat Dinner Theatre in Florida. Joan made several more guest appearances on television, her last in an episode of Murder, She Wrote (1984). She fittingly commented on her show business career, saying: "Before 1952, I was just playing myself, then I learned to be an actress" (The Evening Independent, June 5 1971).- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Los Angeles native Ian Verdun is a graduate of the California Institute of the Arts and the British American Drama Academy, and can be seen in Freeform's upcoming sci-fi thriller Siren as "Xander McClure".
Xander McClure is a small-town, salt-of-the-earth, deep sea fisherman. A native of Bristol Cove, he's fiercely loyal and much smarter than people give him credit for. After witnessing something inexplicable in the open ocean, Xander finds himself embroiled in the bizarre events surrounding a mysterious young woman who comes to town, ultimately putting him on a dangerous path as he hunts for the truth.
Verdun's past performances have been described as "brimming with grit and honesty" by Backstage, "quirkily charming" by Variety, and "finely nuanced" by LA Weekly. He has also been hailed by Stage Scene LA as the "brightest stage discovery of 2011".
Ian continues to cut his teeth on the stages of New York and Los Angeles, along with writing and producing several plays himself. After appearing on ABC's Last Resort, TNT's Hawthorne and FOX's Lucifer, Ian thew his energy into his own television creation, Life's A Drag. Following years of experiencing the lackluster opportunities for diverse entertainers, Life's A Drag went on to win a number of awards in the burgeoning web festival circuit, including a special award for recognition in diversity.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Denim Richards has been performing for over two decades with numerous TV, film and musical theater credits under his belt.
He can currently be seen in the role of 'Colby' opposite Kevin Costner in the hit Paramount Network series "Yellowstone". Additionally, Denim can be seen in the Netflix feature film "The Chickasaw Rancher" as 'Jack Brown' which tells the remarkable story inspired by the life of renowned Chickasaw cattleman Montford T. Johnson.
In 2006, Denim took first place in acting and singing in the Los Angeles NAACP competition. He went on to take fourth in nationals. For those who knew him well, the accolades came as no surprise. Denim found his passion for the arts when he was just six years old while performing as a guest soloist at the world-renowned Crystal Cathedral. Since then, he has never looked back. Through his acting, Denim loves to guide audiences through a range of emotions that leave them feeling uplifted and inspired. He is often attracted to roles that require extreme character development and vocal ability.
Denim has always had a burning desire to own and create, so in 2010, he established his own production company, Lazer Focus Productions, LLC (LFP). LFP is a multi-ethnic company that takes pride in telling original stories of quality while providing opportunities for professionals in the entertainment industry. Denim believes that there is amazing talent everywhere, and LFP is the platform that is needed to showcase that talent.
Denim's brand is Love. He believes that everyone should receive it, especially children. Denim strongly believes that, "in this day in age where everyone is so busy, we have to remember that the youth are our future." With this in mind, he launched Youth Empowering Success (YES). YES is a nonprofit organization that focuses on giving youth a positive voice through the arts: singing, acting, dancing, public speaking and/or filmmaking. In conjunction with his nonprofit, Denim also mentors third, fourth and fifth-grade children at MLK Elementary.
Denim is also very active in many different charities such as United Steps, which addresses homelessness; RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network); Rowell's Foster Children's Positive Plan and the Innocent Justice Foundation. Denim hopes to continue being a positive role model and an inspiration of hope.- A classy, smart-looking African-American actress who broke racial barriers in 1970s Hollywood but suffered greatly in her private life years after her TV glory days, award-winning actress Gail Fisher was born on August 18, 1935, in Orange, New Jersey, the youngest of five children. Her father, a carpenter, died when she was only two years old and the family was destitute, living in the slums ("Potters Crossing") with their widowed mother Ona Fisher. Gail was a cheerleader as a teen and found some joy performing a leading role in one of her Metuchen High School plays in Metuchen, New Jersey. Beauty pageants became a source of pride during this period, earning distinction on the beauty-pageant circuit and becoming the first African-American semifinalist in the New Jersey State Fair beauty contest. A multiple pageant winner, among her titles were "Miss Transit," "Miss Black New Jersey" and "Miss Press Photographer."
Thanks to a contest sponsored by Coca-Cola, Gail won the chance to study acting at New York's American Academy of Arts for two years. She trained under Lee Strasberg for a time and subsequently became a member (the first African-American accepted) of the Repertory Theater at Lincoln Center, where she worked with Elia Kazan and Herbert Blau. The young serene beauty also worked as a model at the time and even worked in a factory to pay bills. In 1964 she married John Levy (1912-2012), a bassist and pioneer jazz talent manager whose clients included some of the jazz world's biggest names (Nancy Wilson, Joe Williams, Cannonball Adderley, Betty Carter, Freddie Hubbard, Herbie Hancock, Abbey Lincoln, Shirley Horn, Les McCann, Wes Montgomery). He also managed Gail's acting career. John and Gail, who was his second wife, had two children, Samara and Jole.
In 1965, teacher Herbert Blau cast Gail in a classical stage production of "Danton's Death" in 1965. Gail also understudied Ruby Dee in "Purlie Victorious" on Broadway and toured with a production of "A Raisin in the Sun". The 25-year-old broke into TV years earlier in 1959, appearing in the syndicated program "Play of the Week" entitled "Simply Heavenly," a musical starring Mel Stewart and Claudia McNeil, and also played a singer in the series "The Defenders" and a judge on daytime's "General Hospital". During the early part of the 1960s, she made history when she appeared in a nationally televised commercial for All laundry detergent and became the first black performer to be given dialogue.
The crime series Mannix (1967) starring Mike Connors was revamped in its second season due to mediocre ratings and Gail was added to the mix as Peggy Fair, Mannix's widowed secretary whose murdered husband, a cop, was a friend to the detective and who was now raising their small son alone. Sometimes Peggy would go undercover as a housekeeper or prostitute to help him solve crimes. The public immediately took to the dusky-voiced actress and the ratings soared. Any slight hint of romance between the Peggy Fair and Joe Mannix characters was never acted upon as CBS (who initially was hesitant in hiring a black woman in this role), or any other network for that matter, would not allow an interracial romance. Gail went on to win an Emmy (the first black actress to do so -- besting Susan Saint James of "McMillan and Wife" and Barbara Anderson of "Ironside") and two Golden Globe trophies (the first black actress to win this award) in the process. In between she made amiable guest appearances on such popular TV series as "My Three Sons," "Love, American Style" and "Room 222."
Once "Mannix" was canceled in 1975, however, acting offers slowed down considerably and chaos rose beneath her usually calm and controlled exterior. Not in keeping with her public image, she flew into a series of marriages and divorces and developed a major drug problem. She made tabloid headlines in 1978 when she was busted for possession of marijuana and cocaine and for using an illegal phone device. She entered rehab and eventually recovered but her career was irreparably damaged. Sporadic acting roles came in such series as "Medical Center," "Fantasy Island," "Knight Rider" and "Hotel," and the TV movie Donor (1990) and the grade-Z crime film Mankillers (1987) co-starring Edd Byrnes, but they were very few and far between. Fisher was married at least twice and had two daughters, Samara and Jole, from her marriage to John Levy, which ended in divorce in 1972 during the run of "Mannix". She briefly married second husband Robert A. Walker the following year.
Gail's battle with drug addiction contributed to her health decline. A diabetic as well, she was later diagnosed with emphysema. Gail died of renal failure in Los Angeles in 2000 at age 65 and was cremated. News of her death did not surface until four months later. Survived by brother Herbert and sister Ona, another brother, Clifton, died of heart failure twelve hours after Gail's passing. Gail was such a class act on TV. - Actress
- Producer
- Music Department
Krysta Anne Rodriguez (born July 23, 1984) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her roles as Ana Vargas in the NBC series Smash, Summer Henderson in the NBC series Trial & Error, Maxine Griffin in the ABC series Quantico and Ms. Crumble in the Netflix comedy series Daybreak.
Rodriguez grew up in Orange County, California. She began taking dance lessons at the age of 13, after being involved with cheer-leading in middle school. After traveling to New York and seeing eight Broadway shows, she realized performers had to sing and act as well as dance, so once she returned home Rodriguez began taking singing and acting lessons. She was a cast member of the Christian television show Colby's Clubhouse from 1995 to 2000. She attended Orange County High School of the Arts where she played many lead roles including Marian in The Music Man, as well as the lead role in Gidget: The Musical, a musical co-written and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, that starred Orange County High School of the Arts students during its tryouts in 2000. She attended New York University for a few years, but began working soon after enrolling.
Rodriguez made her Broadway debut in the short-lived 2005 jukebox musical Good Vibrations. She later became a replacement for the role of Bebe in the Broadway revival of A Chorus Line in 2007. She has played numerous ensemble and understudy parts in the Broadway productions of Spring Awakening and In the Heights, as well as a regional production of The Boy Friend directed by Julie Andrews. She made her feature film debut in the role of Krysta in the 2010 film The Virginity Hit.
Beginning performances in fall 2009, Rodriguez originated the role of Wednesday Addams in the world premiere Chicago try-out run of the new Broadway-bound musical The Addams Family, based on the cartoons of Charles Addams. From March 2010, the show received its planned debut at New York's Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. After playing the role for over a year and lending her voice to the show's original cast recording, Rodriguez left the musical on March 8, 2011 and was replaced by Rachel Potter.
Other credits include an Encores! production of Bye Bye Birdie. Her first television role was a guest appearance as the character Jordan Steele in Gossip Girl. In 2011, Rodriguez starred in the television movie Iceland as Rose, one of a group of friends who reunite to heal and nurture each other after the death of one of their own.
In 2012, Rodriguez starred in another television movie Shadow of Fear as Lauren. The movie is about the push and pull between a schizophrenic new waiter and a popular young waitress. In 2013, she guest starred in the web series created by Mitchell Jarvis and Wesley Taylor, It Could Be Worse. She played an assistant to a Broadway Star named Bridgett/Bridget in two episodes entitled Payment Plan and Let Your Hair Down.
Rodriguez joined the cast of the NBC series Smash for its second, and final, season in 2013, playing the role of Ana Vargas, an aspiring Broadway performer and the new roommate of Katharine McPhee's character Karen.
In July 2013, Rodriguez returned to Broadway playing the lead in First Date the Musical, co-starring with Zachary Levi.
In December 2013, Rodriguez appeared in Hit List, a concert presentation of the fictional musical created for the second season of Smash, as The Diva/Sarah Smith. Rodriguez was scheduled to have a major role in the planned CBS sitcom How I Met Your Dad; a spin-off and successor to the long-running sitcom How I Met Your Mother, but on March 25, 2014 it was announced that Rodriguez had exited the pilot.
Rodriguez guest starred on Married in 2014, as Kim, a friend of a couple desperately trying to save their marriage. On Ian, Rodriguez guest starred as Fly Girl. Additionally, Rodriguez starred in the Lifetime holiday movie entitled Wishin' and Hopin' in the role of Annette Funicello, a teen idol, movie actress and Mickey Mouse Club Mousekteer.
Also, in the fall of 2014 Rodriguez was diagnosed with breast cancer. In 2015, Rodriguez started the website ChemoCouture.com to create a blog detailing her journey during chemotherapy as well as providing various fashion, beauty, and wellness tips that she employs during her battle with cancer. After going public with her diagnosis, Rodriguez was contacted by Cosmopolitan to blog for their Cosmo Online Health and Fitness readers about her experiences.
In 2015, Rodriguez was cast as Vanessa, a straight talking, no-nonsense cancer patient ready to share her truth, in a multi-episode arc in the second season of the ABC Family television show Chasing Life. The season aired in the summer of 2015.
Also in 2015, she played Madison in an episode of Inside Amy Schumer. Krysta also guest starred in an episode of The Mysteries of Laura as April Watkins.
Rodriguez also recently starred in a film entitled My Bakery in Brooklyn in which she plays one of the lead characters, Chloe. The film was released in 2016.
Through June 14, 2015, she returned to star as Ilse in the Deaf West Theatre production of Spring Awakening, held at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills, California. The Los Angeles Times featured her in an article about her return to the production that she helped to create on Broadway. In July 2015, it was announced that the production would be transferring to Broadway with its current cast for a limited engagement at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre. Rodriguez performed in the Broadway revival September 8, 2015 through its closing on January 24, 2016. The show ran two weeks past its intended run due to its rave reviews, and garnered three Tony Award nominations including Best Revival of a Musical.
Rodriguez performed in the Off-Broadway production of What We're Up Against, a play about how women are treated in the workplace. It shows the inequality of women and how nothing has changed in the past twenty-five years. She played "Eliza, a sharp young architect who new to the firm". The show ran from October 28-December 3, 2017. This was the first time Rodriquez and Skylar Astin worked together since Spring Awakening in 2006.
In 2017, Rodriguez starred as Summer Henderson in the NBC comedy series Trial & Error. In the same year, it was announced that Rodriguez was cast in the recurring role of Maxine Griffin in the second season of ABC's thriller series Quantico.
In 2018, it was announced that Rodriguez was cast in the main role of Ms. Crumble in the Netflix comedy-drama series Daybreak.
Rodriguez made her solo debut at Feinstein's/54 Below from September 10-14, 2019, directed by Ben Rauhala. Special guests included: Kathryn Gallagher, Andy Mientus, Joe Iconis, Megan McGinnis, Jelani Alladin, and Adam Josef Levy.- Producer
- Actor
- Additional Crew
As flamboyant as any character in his movies, Joel Silver can be credited along with Jerry Bruckheimer as practically reinventing the action film genre in the 1980s. Born in New Jersey, he attended the New York University Film School. After college, he worked at Lawrence Gordon Pictures, earning his first onscreen credit as associate producer of The Warriors (1979). He eventually became president of the motion picture division of Gordon Pictures. Together with Gordon, Silver produced 48 Hrs. (1982) and Streets of Fire (1984). In 1983 he formed Silver Pictures and initially set up shop at Universal Pictures to produce Brewster's Millions (1985) before going to Fox and continued producing hit action films such as Commando (1985), the "Lethal Weapon" franchise, the first two films of the "Die Hard" franchise and the three films of "Matrix" franchise of action films. He had then subsequently joined Warner Bros. in 1987 after leaving Fox. Despite these successes, he has hit some rough spots and has been banned from working on several studio lots. He was unable to produce the "48 Hrs" sequel Another 48 Hrs. (1990), the third "Die Hard" film, Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995) and the fourth "Matrix" installment The Matrix Resurrections (2021) because of past run-ins with studio executives. Because of his habit of wearing sport shirts and talking loudly and quickly, he has been parodied in several films, even spoofing himself in Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) by playing the frustrated cartoon director in the film's opening sequence. In order to perform in that role, he had to use an alias to get onto the Walt Disney lot, and his onscreen credit was not revealed to Disney executives until the very last minute. He had worked in television, setting up his own television branch with his first project Parker Kane (1990), a project that would eventually never made to series, and then worked at HBO for many years, until he found a home at Warner Bros. Television in 1998, where he had developed two UPN shows The Strip (1999) and Freedom (2000) before finding commercial success with the hit Veronica Mars (2004). In 1999, Silver Pictures had teamed up with film director/producer Robert Zemeckis to set up Dark Castle Entertainment to produce genre and horror films with the first film under Dark Castle being House on Haunted Hill (1999). Joel Silver pioneered the practice of shooting action movies in Australia with the "Matrix" films, and has been credited with either inventing or reinventing the careers of Eddie Murphy, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Steven Seagal. He was mentioned in Halle Berry's Academy Award acceptance speech. Other credits include non-action pictures, ranging from Xanadu (1980), Weird Science (1985) and Fred Claus (2007) to HBO's long-running TV series, Tales from the Crypt (1989). He had resigned from his founding production company in 2019.- Actress
- Producer
- Additional Crew
A.J. Johnson was born on 3 September 1963 in Orange, New Jersey, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for Baby Boy (2001), House Party (1990) and Dying Young (1991).