Monday, March 18, 2024

Who Are the Stars of Marxfest? by Trav S.D.

Who are the stars of Marxfest, the Marx Brothers festival taking place in NYC just two months from now? Well, I’ll tell yer! And in my patented, condensed, prioritized way, for the conveni…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 02:42PM

Tomorrow Night: A Salute to Molly Picon by Trav S.D.

Concert Lecture: A Salute to the Remarkable Molly Piconat the Museum at Eldridge StreetTuesday, March 19 | 6PM ET In conjunction with the exhibition On the Lower East Side: Twenty-Eight Rema…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:12AM
Sunday, March 17, 2024

Slán, Mr. McCourt by Trav S.D.

Malachy McCourt (1931-2024) passed away just a week ago; it made sense to me save a little send-off to him for today, St. Patrick’s Day. Malachy was not as well known internationally as hi…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 05:54PM

The Lovin’ Spoonful (Happy 80th Birthday, John Sebastian) by Trav S.D.

John Sebastian (b.1944) turns 80 years old today. Sebastian grew up in Greenwich Village — what was it like having a birthday there on St. Patrick’s Day, I’d like to know? Well, this i…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 01:36PM
Saturday, March 16, 2024

On Keaton’s Sound Shorts (1934-41) by Trav S.D.

90 years ago today (March 16, 1934) saw the release of The Gold Ghost, the first of Buster Keaton’s sixteen short subject comedies for Educational Pictures. The years of Keaton’s talkie …

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:24AM

The Travalanche Finding Aid for Posts About Jerry Lewis by Trav S.D.

Be prepared, readers! The Jerry Lewis centennial approaches; there will be many more posts about the divisive comedian over the next couple of years. I have even been telling friends that I�…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:24AM
Friday, March 15, 2024

For Shoe the World Day: Show Business Looks at Shoe Business by Trav S.D.

Know thou of the Giant Shoe Museum at Pike Place Market in Seattle? Its mandate is not shoes as big as houses (although that’s entirely possible), but shoes worn by pituitary giants, inclu…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 01:54PM
Thursday, March 14, 2024

Ben Dova: The Vaudevillian Who Survived The Hindenburg by Trav S.D.

March 14 was the birthday of Joseph Anthony Spah (1905-86), professionally known as “Ben Dova”. Spah was 17 when he immigrated to the U.S. from his native Alsace-Lorraine in 1922. A circ…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:54AM
Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Dig Yerself a “Dead Outlaw” by Trav S.D.

Here’s a crazy yarn about a crazier yarn! In 2006, Broadway brilliantine David Yazbek (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Full Monty, Tootsie), having read my book No Applause and learning that …

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 11:12AM
Tuesday, March 12, 2024

In Which We Scrutinize “Scooby Doo” by Trav S.D.

Ken Spears and Joe Ruby had a lot in common: both born in March (Spears #otd), both died in 2020, both born in Los Angeles, both served in the Navy. Oh, and both were co-creators of Scooby D…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 12:12PM
Monday, March 11, 2024

The Tragedy of Albert Salmi by Trav S.D.

We begin our look at the life of character Albert Salmi (1928-1990) in the middle rather than the beginning or the shocking end, for it is the part that will orient you. Like 99.99% of you I…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 02:12PM
Sunday, March 10, 2024

Richard Haydn: The Carp Who Crossed the Atlantic by Trav S.D.

What an amazing life and career was the portion of British-American comedy character actor Richard Haydn (1905-1985), a creature of live theatre, film, radio, television, and the printed pag…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:32AM
Saturday, March 9, 2024

Lloyd Price: Mr. Personality by Trav S.D.

March 9 was the birthday of an important figure in rock and roll history whose name and contributions have never been well-known enough to satisfy justice, Lloyd Price (1933-2021). Price cam…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 11:24AM
Friday, March 8, 2024

Clarifying Claire Trevor by Trav S.D.

I’ve always found Claire Trevor (Claire Wemlinger, 1910-2000) enigmatic, and Hollywood’s use of her confounding, which is to say the same thing, I guess. She was normally cast as hard, b…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 11:32AM
Thursday, March 7, 2024

Now Available to Pre-Order: “Zeppo, The Reluctant Marx Brother” — and More! by Trav S.D.

We awoke to exciting news this morning — Robert S. Bader has just announced his new book Zeppo: The Reluctant Marx Brother, published by Applause, will be on shelves as of October 15, and …

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:32AM

Heads Up! Live Screenings of Vintage Comedy Shorts Coming Your Way in NYC by Trav S.D.

Great news for lovers of vintage comedy shorts in NYC — there are many live screenings coming up in your near future! It starts today (March 7, 2024, for those of you who don’t look at t…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 05:06AM
Wednesday, March 6, 2024

Lewis Gilbert: From the Music Hall to Moonraker by Trav S.D.

Lewis Gilbert (1920-2018) was a successful British film director, but it was his trad show biz origins that tipped the balance toward his inclusion in these annals. Gilbert’s parents had a…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:32AM
Tuesday, March 5, 2024

The Other Sheila Terry by Trav S.D.

A few words on the breif career of B movie actress Sheila Terry (Kathleen “Kay” Mulhern, 1910-1957). The title of this post is to clarify a confusion that could only happen to the kind o…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 08:24AM

Clémentine Delait and the Cafe of the Bearded Woman by Trav S.D.

Today we throw a few crumbs to Clémentine Delait (1865-1939), the Most Celebrated Bearded Lady in France! Delait was born and raised in Lorraine, France, near the German and Swiss borders.…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 07:18AM
Monday, March 4, 2024

The Original Channing Pollock by Trav S.D.

Your correspondent is one of the few people who requires the specificity that characterizes this post’s title. There was a later Channing Pollock, a magician who lived from 1926 through 20…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 08:36AM

Scamming with John Scarne by Trav S.D.

The name John Scarne (Orlando Carmelo Scarnecchia, 1903-1985) was brought back to me recently when I was working on my article on NYC’s magic shops for Chelsea Community News. That’s thr…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 07:32AM
Sunday, March 3, 2024

Hooray for Heidi Swedberg: Seinfeld’s Susan is Now Sukey with a Ukey by Trav S.D.

I just…had to do this. It’s only right. A couple of years ago I binged Seinfeld (1989-1998), because I had only caught it sporadically during the original run, though I did manage a pret…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 01:54PM

A Monument to Harold J. Stone by Trav S.D.

Today, a brief remembrance of character actor Harold J. Stone (1913-2005). I associate Stone with crook and thug characters but he also played doctors, generals, and other rough-hewn authori…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 08:32AM
Saturday, March 2, 2024

The Vaudeville of Lucy and Desi by Trav S.D.

Like our recent post about Lucy and Desi bio-pics, this post arises out of the quality time I spent with this entertaining couple and their various shows during the Covid lockdown (in partic…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 08:48AM
Friday, March 1, 2024

Alan Thicke: Thicke of the Night by Trav S.D.

People just a shade younger than me have an entirely different mental association with Alan Thicke (Alan Jeffrey, 1947-2016). To them, he is the dad on the TV sitcom Growing Pains (1985-1992…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:48AM
Thursday, February 29, 2024

Travalanche Turns Sweet 16 (and Also Four) by Trav S.D.

February 29, 2008 was the day Travalanche was launched, making this erstwhile offspring of mine 16 years old, but having had only four birthdays. A Leap Year Baby. I launched the blog while …

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 04:24PM

How Leonard Nimoy Helped Alex Rocco Go Straight by Trav S.D.

It isn’t often (once every four years, in fact) that we get to add a new Leap Year Baby to Travalanche. Thus far, out of thousands of bios here, we’ve only got Dinah Shore, William Wellm…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:54AM
Wednesday, February 28, 2024

The Dorothy Stratten Story by Trav S.D.

The sordid tragedy of Dorothy Stratten (1960-80) has been rehashed countless times over the past four decades. I find it less compelling for the horrific story itself than for its resonances…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:54AM
Tuesday, February 27, 2024

Steinbeck on Stage and Screen by Trav S.D.

There’s an actor and an opera star I could be writing about this morning, but I just can’t get myself worked up about them, whereas there’s much more to be said on the topic of John St…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 05:18PM
Monday, February 26, 2024

Of Fact, Fiction, and Flammarions by Trav S.D.

This post will lap around the edges of carnival, though nothing really connects its constituent parts beyond a name. February 26 was the birthday of the intriguing French figure Camille Flam…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:48AM

Of Billy Reed and His Little Club by Trav S.D.

A few words on Billy “Zoot” Reed (1913-1974) and Billy Reed’s Little Club (1947-1965). I first learned about this long gone Manhattan institution in writing about the magician Harry Lo…

SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 08:42AM

All that Chat

2023-2024 BROADWAY SEASON
May 30, 2023: Grey House - Lyceum Theatre
Jun 26, 2023: Just For Us - Hudson Theatre
Jul 24, 2023: The Cottage - Hayes Theater
Nov 16, 2023: Spamalot - St. James Theatre
Dec 18, 2023: Appropriate - Hayes Theater
Mar 07, 2024: Doubt - Todd Haimes Theatre
Apr 14, 2024: Lempicka - Longacre Theatre
Apr 17, 2024: The Wiz - Marquis Theatre
Apr 18, 2024: Suffs - Music Box Theatre
Apr 25, 2024: Mother Play - Hayes Theater
Jun 10, 2024: The Drama Desk Awards