August 31 was the birthday of stage actress Florence Walton (1883-1981), whom I previously profiled here. As I mentioned in that earlier post, friend Mari Lyn Henry had the rare opportunity …
August 31 was the natal day of Robert Emmet Odlum (1851-1885), the first man to jump off the Brooklyn Bridge. You thought it was Steve Brodie, didn't you? Well, Brodie was the first man to j…
A few words today in celebration of Dick Vosburgh (1929-2007). New Jersey born and RADA educated, Vosburgh began writing for BBC radio in the 1950s. He then moved up to British television, w…
The briefest of squibs today on one of my favorite visual artists since boyhood, Jacques-Louis David (1748-1825). David's period of activity stretched from the end of the Ancien Régime, thr…
William Friedkin (1935-2023) was born August 29; we choose this year to add him to our annals as he passed away a couple of weeks ago; his final film is being released next month; and this y…
The title of this post is to indicate that we do NOT refer to the learned jurist Oliver Wendell Holmes JUNIOR (1841-1935) who served on the U.S. Supreme Court from 1902 to 1932, and was the …
For whatever reason, I don't find Hal Thompson (1899-1966) half as objectionable as most of the ciphers and cigar store Indians who played the male love interests in Marx Brothers' comedies.…
I remember the exact moment I learned of the existence of Lyndon Johnson (1908-1973). I was about 7 years old and thumbing through one of those "books of Presidents" we had (we had several) …
August 27 was both the birth date and death date of Romanian-American singer and actress Lisette Verea (1914-2003). Verea is chiefly known for but one thing: her hot, hot, hot performance as…
This September 20, at 7:30pm we remind you to "Fall Back" and go "back to school" (old school) by attending the next edition of The Variety Store, at QED Â ,27-16 23rd Avenue, Astoria). Is…
I have absolutely zero recollection of why I assigned myself to celebrate the centennial of the birth of fairly obscure character Tom Mahoney (1923-1982), but what the, hell I'm going to go …
Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990) is top of mind at the moment for a variety of reasons: I was privileged recently to meet the daughter one of his principal proteges; Steven Spielberg recently r…
Dave Chappelle turns 50 today. Chappelle's Show premiered 20 years ago. Even mentioning his name here will likely inspire paroxysms of fury from many. I hope most people will be rational eno…
Well, I don't know how I've managed to live this long without ever seeing this, as a life long classic comedy and vaudeville fan, as someone who grew up on Rankin-Bass specials, and also as …
Now that certain GOP politicians are rabid to relax the child labor laws, this might be a suitable time to recount the tale of Lucille Ricksen (Ingeborg Myrtle Elisabeth Ericksen, 1910-1925)…
August 21 was the birthday (and August 29 the death day) of Frank Perry (1930-1995); and August 26 is Women's Equality Day, a suitable season for a little reflection on the filmmaker and his…
Happy National Radio Day! The Old Time Radio section of Travalanche now has close to 500 posts for your perusal every day of the year, but this year finds us at a significant juncture. 2023 …
August 20, 1923 saw the debut of the Shuberts' Artists and Models revues on Broadway. The concept for this show was adapted from theatricals put on by the Illustrators Society of New York (u…
August 19 was the baptismal date of author Samuel Richardson (1689-1761). Richardson's biographical profile is unique among early British literary figures in that he was an autodidact. He ha…
To blink would be to miss the career of Andrea Leeds (Antoinette Lees, 1913-1984). Leeds career blazed most brightly not long before she ended it, when she was nominated for an Oscar for her…
I only learned about this couple of performers a few days ago from the intrepid explorer Eve Golden. But as it happens, August 17 was the birthday of one of them, Ruth Tester (1903-1993). Te…
Dewey Robinson (1898-1950) specialized in rough-tough bruiser characters, appearing in well over 250 Hollywood movies in the two decades between 1931 and his death. He was frequently cast as…
For her 130th natal anniversary, here's something I should have implemented upon producing West Fest back in 2018: a finding aid to help you navigate the three dozen posts about Mae West on …
There are two reasons for choosing to reflect upon Madonna (Madonna Ciccone, b. 1958) on this particular birthday. 2023 puts us at the 40th anniversary of her entry onto the pop charts and h…
Romanian born Aben Kandel (1897-1993) was many things over his long career: a boxer, a fiction writer, playwright and screenwriter. The fact that the first of his half dozen novels was calle…