11,509 stories by "Trav S.D."
We all return to Clay. And by that I mean Clay M. Greene (1850-1933), playwright, critic, journalist, film-maker, and man of business. The phrase also happens to apply to Greene's life. A co…
March 11 is the birthday of downtown impresario Robert Prichard, co-founder and bull goose looney of the much missed performance space known as Surf Reality (or, by the full title, Surf Real…
Today happens to be a notable comedy history day for two reasons: 1) it is the centennial anniversary of the released of the Buster Keaton comedy Seven Chances (1925). But I wrote about that…
This one is strictly for New York area hardcore comedy freaks. Tomorrow, March 11, 2025, at 7:30pm " a rare chance to see what many feel is the comedy to end all comedies, It's a Mad, Mad, M…
Had she lived a bit longer, Luba Lisa (Luba Lisa Gootnick, 1941-1972) would almost certainly be well known and associated with the other show bizzy chicks of her generation: Barbra Streisand…
Actor Stuart Holmes (Joseph Liebschen, 1884-1971) may have appeared in as many as 600 movies from the years 1909 through 1964. Throughout his career he was mostly a supporting player, often …
This one goes out to all W.C. Fields fans, silent movie fans, circus fans, and fans of the Borough of Queens and its history! I sure hope that covers everyone! My old friends at the Greater …
First off, that's not a typo: Sue Ane Langdon (b. 1936) spells the second part of her first name with a single "n" " as in "Nything to stand out in show business." In her heyday, she was mos…
March 8 was the birthday of stage and screen performer Ada May (Ada May Weeks, 1896-1978.) She was the most successful of four performing sisters from Oyster Bay, Long Island named Weeks. Of…
I had been creating Travalanche for many years before I began taking note of centennials and other major anniversary benchmarks here (I think 500 may be the oldest I've observed). I didn't b…
This is a mind blower of a story; I'm astounded that it's not more widely known. I wasn't aware of it myself until I sat down to write this post. And for once I won't bury the lede: Gus Mein…
The Happiest of birthdays to Penn Jillette (b. 1955) who enters his seventh decade today. My previous Penn and Teller post was published on Teller's birthday, because he was the one I got to…
I first encountered Gladys Leslie (Gladys Leslie Moore, 1899-1976) as Houdini's leading lady in Haldane of the Secret Service (1923). Though she was a star in her own day, Haldane was to be …
March 5 is the birthday of lady magician Suzy Wandas (Jeanne Van Dyke, 1896-1986). Suzy was a second generation conjurer, born and raised in Belgium to a husband-wife variety team. Her initi…
I first learned about mentalist Washington Irving Bishop (1855-1889) many decades ago from Ricky Jay's indispensable Learned Pigs and Fireproof Women. Born in New York City (plainly to fans …
On the Saturday Night Live 50th anniversary special the other night, one participant you might not have noticed (for he was seated in the audience, and at 5'2″ is easy to miss) was for…
Believe it or not I actually know where I was " not because it was a major trauma for me, but because it was when I first took note of the name in the first place. Cookie Mueller (Dorothy Ka…
Today marks the 125th anniversary of the birth Kurt Weill (1900-1950). (I sure love his music, but pictures of him always make me think he would have been good in the lead role in M. This wa…
March 1, 1925 was the release date of the silent comedy/adventure Too Many Kisses, which contains the earliest extant footage of a Marx Brother prior to the release of The Coc…
Born 100 years ago today, the man who brought the Beats together Lucien Carr (1925-2005). (Confusingly, this important figure has nothing to do with either Lucien Truscott IV or C. Carr, who…
We love to share the lives of remarkable people here on Travalanche " on rare occasion they're still alive! So it is with Diane Kiesel, a New York Supreme Court Justice for almost 20 years, …
Marian Anderson (1897-1993) retired the year I was born (1965) but she continued to be widely revered as an American institution long afterward. Anderson reigned as something like America's …
We wake to the sad news of Gene Hackman's passing, along with wife Betsy Arakawa, and their dog. All sources are vague about the manner of death. The police say they don't suspect foul play,…
Great fun at the Zeppo Marx birthday at the Algonquin Hotel last night, sponsored by the Al Hirschfeld Foundation, all in celebration of Robert Bader's new biography Zeppo: The Reluctant Mar…
For the Great One's birthday, a navigational aid to our many posts about, or relevant to, the comedian. Some additional posts, about particular films that Gleason appeared in, are planned. O…
