11,746 stories by "Trav S.d."
Hey, it’s still Women’s History Month! I bet you forgot all about women, didn’t you? I know that you did. In the spirit of our St Patrick’s post which savaged “…
I was going to post this on March 1 for the launch of Women’s History Month, but I have been very pokey on the blogging front lately. I’m no less pokey today, but let’s con…
Today is the birthday of the legendary James Cruze (Jens Vera Cruz Bosen, 1884-1942). Cruze’s early life sounds like excellent preparation for his most famous film as director, The …
Today is my late father’s birthday I got the idea for this post as we binge watched Mad Men for the umpteenth time in preparation for the series finale a few months ago. My father was …
Today is the birthday of big band leader Paul Specht (1895-1954). Much like Paul Whiteman, his contemporary and competitor, though he often used the word “jazz” to describe his w…
Much afoot! We’re nearing three milestones: 1) the 20th year of Trav S.D.’s American Vaudeville Theatre; 2) the 1,000th vaudevillian to be profiled on Travalanche; and 3) the bra…
Well, I believe I have solved a mystery I had been laboring on for over a year, and even if no one is the slightest bit interested I have to get it out. The mystery I’ve been moaning a…
I’ve dithered about this post for a long while, but ultimately decided it can’t go in my Stars of Vaudeville series, for the simple reason that there’s no way in hell that …
Today is the birthday of Anatole (sometimes spelled Anatol) Friedland, although there is some disagreement about the year, claims ranging from 1881 to 1888. He died in 1938. Born in St. Pete…
Tonight starting at Midnight: several Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle shorts, some starring the man himself (always a bonus) and several additional treats — shorts starring other c…
It’s well known that Charlie Chaplin employed his brothers Sydney Chaplin and Wheeler Dryden on his films, and then later cast most of his children, and equally well known that Buster …
Today is the birthday of actress Amelia Bingham (1869-1927). Originally from Ohio, Bingham was considered one of the great actresses of her age. After debuting at the People’s Theat…
Our main evidence that Gregory Kelly (ca. 1891-1927) was in vaudeville is Eddie Cantor’s account that he performed with him in Gus Edwards‘ big time Kiddie Kabaret act. …
My quest for a little Irish authenticity, mentioned in a couple of earlier posts, continues apace. My DNA test reported “11% Irish”, but among other things, I don’t know ho…
It might be argued that the period of around two years after their official breakup was the artistic nadir for former Beatles John Lennon and Paul McCartney, with both setting back the front…
Today being St. Patrick’s Day, and Women’s History Month, it seemed a fitting time to do a profile on Elizabeth Murray (circa 1871-1946), whose date of birth is unknown. Murray p…
Today is the birthday of Florence Roberts (1861-1940). A stock player who began her career in New York and ran a company of her own in Philadelphia for 15 years, she eventually went into fil…
Filed under: Contemporary Variety, Magicians/ Mind Readers/ Quick Change, PLUGS Tagged: Adam Real Man, Cardone, magic, Matt Holtzclaw, New York House of Magic, Rocco
Today is the birthday of Fiske O’Hara (George Russ Clary Fiske O’Hara, 1878-1945). Originally from Rockland, Maine, he started out with regional stock and minstrel companies, usu…
Filed under: Hollywood (History), Movies, PLUGS, Silent Film Tagged: early films in color, Pacific Film Archives, The Great Nickelodeon Show
Wow — you could have knocked me over with a feather when I learned about this one. I’d long known that back in the day there was some kind of outfit on network radio called ̶…
The word just came down that character George Kennedy has passed away. He was an amazingly busy actor, given that he started out as military advisor to the sit-com Sgt. Bilko. He was a…
The Southern Sideshow Hootenanny returns to New Orleans this week, and I’m honored and thrilled to have been asked to participate in a panel there this Friday, called “Sideshow, …
Today is the birthday of Alice Davenport (Alice Shepphard, 1864-1936). Born in New York, Alice went on the stage as a child and acted in stock and melodrama productions for decades. She was …
Today is the birthday of burlesque legend Tempest Storm (Annie Banks, b. 1928). We’ve waited so long to do a post on her because her proper birthday doesn’t roll around too often…
