11,744 stories by "Trav S.D."
Today is the birthday of Delta blues guitarist and singer Booker T. Washington White, a.k.a Bukka White (1909-1977). A native of Aberdeen, Mississippi, he was the first cousin of B.B. King&#…
Today is the birthday of Grace Kelly (1929-1982). Unknown to most people, hers is one of the great acts of self-creation of modern show business history, ranking perhaps with Cary Grant̵…
Today is the birthday of Jack Oakie (Lewis Delaney Offield, 1903-1978). A Missouri native who spent part of his childhood in Oklahoma, he moved to New York to break into show business around…
This is one in a series of posts we are producing in connection with our new book Chain of Fools: Silent Comedy and Its Legacies from Nickelodeons to Youtube, available from Bear Manor Media…
This is one in a series of posts we are producing in connection with our new book Chain of Fools: Silent Comedy and Its Legacies from Nickelodeons to Youtube, available from Bear Manor Media…
Today is the birthday of Lorayne Brox (for the full story on Stars of Vaudeville #387, the Brox Sisters, go here. Here they are singing “Falling in Love Again” in tribute to Marl…
William Henry Johnson (ca. 1842-1926) was so revered in the show business community that in his latter years he was known as “the Dean of Freaks”. Born the son of former slaves, …
Today is the birthday of Star of Vaudeville #78: Joe Penner (for more on him go here). In vaudeville and on radio his usual partner was a duck…that’s why he is singing this love …
Today is the birthday of Jonathan Winters (b. 1925). No one ever calls it this because he came along too late, but Winters had what they called in variety and vaudeville a Protean act,…
The Hall of Hams is my series on some of my favorite actors who have brought the art of melodramatic acting into the modern era. Today is the birthday of Sir Richard Burton (1925-1984). In h…
The Hall of Hams is my series on some of my favorite actors who have brought the art of melodramatic acting into the modern era. Today is the birthday of Claude Raines (1889-1967). The story…
Today, Saturday, Nov 10th at 2:30, The Silent Clowns Film Series presents its final 2012 program, entitled – “OF HOBOES AND CIRCUSES” Johnny Hines in “The Live Wir…
My first exposure to Martin Short came not on SCTV or Saturday Night Live , but even earlier, when he was the star of the short-lived CBS sit-com The Associates (1979-1980). Short played …
Capt. Costentenus, a.k.a Alexandros Constentenus, a.k.a Prince Constantine, a.k.a George Constantine, a.k.a. Djorgi Konstantinus is often considered the first professional tattooed man, alth…
This is one in a series of posts we are producing in connection with our new book Chain of Fools: Silent Comedy and Its Legacies from Nickelodeons to Youtube, available from Bear Ma…
Today is the birthday of Star of Vaudeville # 76: Ed Wynn (for my full article on him go here). Here he is introducing Buster Keaton on his television show in 1949, a spot that played a cruc…
Francine "The Lucid Dream" is a singer, burlesque performer and producer of The Pink Room: David Lynch Burlesque, Francine's Pink Room and Franny's FLICKS. Francine started her career on the…
This is one in a series of posts we are producing in connection with our new book Chain of Fools: Silent Comedy and Its Legacies from Nickelodeons to Youtube, available from Bear Ma…
This is one in a series of posts we are producing in connection with our new book Chain of Fools: Silent Comedy and Its Legacies from Nickelodeons to Youtube, available from Bear Ma…
Joseph Jacobs (1813-1870) was a Jewish conjurer and ventriloquist who also billed himself as a Wizard, Improvisator, Mesmerist, and Electro-Biologist. Born in Canterbury, England, he was tou…
Today is the birthday of Martin Van Buren Bates, the Kentucky Giant (1837-1919). Normal at birth, he started in a-growin’ at around age 6. By the time he was 12, he was 6 foot tall and…
Big John/ Little John was a Saturday morning kid’s show on CBS that ran for one season in 1976. Sherwood Shwartz of Gilligan’s Island and The Brady Bunch was executive produce…
This is one in a series of posts we are producing in connection with our new book Chain of Fools: Silent Comedy and Its Legacies from Nickelodeons to Youtube, available from Bear Manor Media…
Gin Minskystarted hitting the stage with taps on her feet at the tender age of five and hasn’t looked back since. She got her start as a classically trained dancer studying jazz, balle…
The Ravel Family were a four generation clan of French circus/ variety performers. The progenitor was Gabriel the father, but the family troupe appears to have originally been founded and le…
