11,499 stories by "Trav S.D."
February 12, 1844 marked the premiere of the temperance melodrama The Drunkard, or The Fallen Saved. We've previously written about this play in our review of The Metropolitan Playhouse's 20…
Tribute today to radio, tv, film, and cartoon voice-over actor Joseph Kearns (1907-1962). Kearns was of Salt Lake City Mormon stock. He first went into show business in a vaudeville kiddie a…
February 12 was the birthday of French singer, comedian, and ventriloquist Robert Lamouret (1912-1959). Lamouret's "partner" was a talking duck in a sailor suit named "Dudule". Just how a ta…
Saddened to learn from Eve Golden that Bud Cort passed away today. Harold and Maude are reunited. Fly and be free, Brewster McCloud! My 2023 tribute to the actor is here.
For multiple legit reasons, I held my nose the last couple of nights and endured the new 3 part "documentary series", Dirty Talk: When Daytime Talk Shows Ruled TV (2026). (For reasons I will…
Today's new Travalanche posts for February 11, 2026 are about the late French clown guru Philippe Gaulier and a new docu-seeries about Trash TV. Also, we lost Bud Cort today. My 2023 tribute…
I am a little late with this tribute to the late clown teacher and theorist Philippe Gaulier (1943-2026) for the best possible reason. When all the obits began to hit yesterday, I was at the…
February 10 was the birthday of Roberta Flack (1937-2025). She passed away nearly a year ago. I found the recent tribute to her at the Grammys unexpectedly moving, so this seemed to be the y…
Today's new Travalanche posts for February 10, 2026 are about the late Roberta Flack, vaudeville singer Sid Gary, and pin-up/ starlet Valerie Allen. Earlier Travalanche posts for February 10…
Valerie Allen (1936-2013) would have been 90 years old today. Allen was second generation show business, and came awfully close to stardom, but she shifted gears after a dozen years before t…
A few fragments on vaudeville vet Sid Gary (Sidney Garfunkel, 1901-1973). Was he related to Art Garfunkel? I dunno, but I mean, come on, how many Garfunkels could there be? What I do know is…
Today's new Travalanche post for February 9, 2026 is about the political revolutionary Thomas Paine. Earlier Travalanche posts for February 9 (in no particular order) include ones on: The Co…
This year we celebrate the birthday of Thomas Paine (1737-1809) at a time when his ideas are once again in dire need of dissemination, absorption, and implementation. The cultural forces he …
Today's new Travalanche posts for February 8, 2026 are about music producer (and Doris Day son) Terry Melcher; and early movie actors Hallam Cooley and Doris McMahon. It's also National Oper…
February 8 was the birthday of early screen star Hallam "Hal" Cooley (Hallam Burr, 1895-1971). Cooley claimed to have been a relative of Aaron Burr's, hence, I surmise, the name change, for …
Today we treat of show business legend Terry Melcher (Terrence Paul Jorden, 1942-2004). Melcher's legacy has had the misfortune of being overshadowed by two larger personalities who interest…
Today we celebrate the birth of New Vaudeville comedian Emo Philips (Philip Soltanec, b. 1956). To those too young to process the designation " we do not mean that Philips sports a hat and c…
February 7 was the birthday of silent film star Ann Little (Mary Hankins Brooks, 1891-1984). We call her the "bigger" Ann Little because she was a more consequential star than another person…
Today's new Travalanche post for February 7, 2026 is about the silent western star Ann Little. It's also National Ballet Day! Check out the ballet section of Travalanche posts here. Other ea…
Today's new Travalanche post for February 6, 2026 is about Disney's new Muppet Show special. Earlier Travalanche posts for February 6 (in no particular order) include ones on: Charlie Chapli…
I had only just gushed online about how much I enjoyed the Feb 1 Grammy awards ceremony, with its mix of old and new performers, diverse artists and styles, and stunning, clever production n…
Today's new Travalanche post for February 5, 2026 is about Aleen Leslie, creator of A Date at Judy; and a new exhibition about The Battle of Brooklyn. Earlier Travalanche posts for February …
Born of a February 5, writer Aleen Leslie (née Wetstein, 1908-2010), best known as the creator of the multi-platform franchise A Date with Judy, and for being the oldest member of the WGA W…
The 250th anniversary of The Battle of Brooklyn (a.k.a. The Battle of Long Island) is coming up in August. Readers who give a hoot about such things know that I'm an enthusiast on this topic…
Today's new Travalanche post for February 4, 2026 is about David Ketchum (Get Smart). Earlier Travalanche posts for February 4 (in no particular order) include ones on: David Brenner Jerry A…
