11,700 stories by "Trav S.D."
For the life of me I can't recall how I stumbled upon the existence of Janelee "Twinkle" Watts (1933-2018), and I only know the public part of the story, but it seemed worth sharing. Born in…
Yes, it's true! The birthday of Joey Heatherton (b. 1944) is a couple of days after that of Lola Falana (b. 1942). I don't know if Catherine O'Hara knew that when she cooked up her satirical…
How rare is it for the public to know the name of ANY network television executive? We know the stars, and sometimes some of the writers/producers/showrunners, but the guys who make the deci…
There were a couple of famous singers born on this day, but I find myself much more jazzed to write about this fellow Bruce Mahler (b. 1950) than about either of them. I also find that he ra…
Well, I don't know if it's true that Lola Falana (b. 1942) is more alive than others as this advert claims, but she is still alive. The reason we haven't heard much from her since the late 1…
September 5, 1774 was opening day of the First Continental Congress, and the odds are very good that the only place you're hearing about it is HERE. I might have missed it myself if not for …
A celebration today of burlesque queen Georgia Sothern (Hazel Anderson, 1909-1981). She was no apparant relationship to Ann Sothern, but I can see where it might cause confusion, as the latt…
September 9 was the birthday of silent screen actress Marguerite Snow (1889-1958). Snow was second generation showfolk, her father being the old time minstrel performer Billy Snow (ca. 1855-…
A brief celebration today of country crossover singer Patsy Cline (Virginia Hensley, 1932-1963). Her birthday falls on the same day as country pioneer Jimmie Rodgers, who also died young, an…
A bulletin has just reached my desk about yet another half-century anniversary. Today marks 50 years since the premiere of the original Land of the Lost (1974-76). How fortuitous that it hap…
It's Julie Kavner's birthday as I type this (b. 1950), but we're also a couple of days shy of a second benchmark " 50 years since many of us have known who she is. Rhoda premiered on Septemb…
No foolin'"Leo McCarey's younger brother Ray (1904-1948) was also a hard-working screen director, one also associated with comedies. I'm not quite sure why this is an obscure fact. Leo is of…
Save the dates and stop the presses! For those who missed Marxfest, the Marxian fun is not yet over by a long way! I have two upcoming launch events tied to the release of my new book The Ma…
If the Jazz Age followed hard upon World War One, no one was in more of a hurry to pivot than British stage star Billie Carleton (Florence Leonora Stewart, 1896-1918), whose sordid drug deat…
Thanks, Eve Golden, for the intel that James Darren (James Ercolani, 1936-2024) left us yesterday. I am going to lead with the elephant in the room, which most other obits have been either t…
September 2 is World Coconut Day! We observe it as we did with National Banana Day last year, with a little survey of key moments when the humble coconut (sometimes spelled cocoanut) has ins…
This one goes out to my good buddy Kevin Fitzpatrick, who made me more aware than I might otherwise be of Helen Falconer Buck (1890-1968), and who enhanced her Find a Grave entry substantial…
This is something I only became aware of a few days ago, on a recent trip to the Museum of Modern Art. On September 1, 1966, artist Öyvind Fahlström staged and filmed a work of street t…
Born 100 years ago today, child star Lawrence "Sunny" McKeen (1924-1933). McKeen was only two years old when he was cast as Snookums in a series of silent comedy shorts based on George McMan…
There were two generations of Tiny Littles in this miniature musical dynasty. The elder, Irvine "Tiny" Little (1902-82) was originally from Goldfield, Iowa, but eventually settled in Worthin…
Today is a banner day for lovers of early American jazz " it's the release date for Archeophone Record's epic new box set Centennial: King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band. The centenary it celebra…
August 29 was the birthday of exotic dancer Carol Doda (1937-2015). And learning about her has provided delights beyond the obvious. To wit: I had long wondered about when American culture t…
I think we can go ahead and call my old friends of The Bindlestiff Family Cirkus a New York institution by now. Among their many programs and activities (their Open Stage Variety Show, the F…
Don't get the wrong idea! I almost never take requests on this blog, maybe one time in a thousand. The fuel that this blog runs on is its author's own whims. Has to come from me. In fact, th…
Born 100 years ago today, blues, jazz and pop vocalist Dinah Washington (Ruth Lee Jones, 1924-1963). Washington started out singing and playing piano with gospel choirs in her native Tuscalo…
