A lovely homage to the Fratellinis.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Friday, August 21, 2009
Thursday, August 20, 2009
ART METRANO
ART METRANO
From Wikipedia...Arthur "Art" Metrano (born September 22, 1936) is an American actor and comedian of Greek-Turkish-Jewish-Sephardic ancestry. He was born in Brooklyn, New York. Metrano may be best known for his role as Capt. Mauser in Police Academy 2 and Police Academy 3. He left the series due to a fall at home that seriously injured his spinal cord and left him disabled.
Among Metrano's TV guest appearances was a 1968 episode of Ironside. However, he is more known for his frequent appearances on The Tonight Show in the early 1970s as a "magician" performing absurd tricks (such as making his fingers "jump" from one hand to another) while constantly humming an inane theme song (named "Fine and Dandy", an early 1930s composition by Kay Swift). This bit was parodied in an episode of the cartoon show Family Guy entitled Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story. In December 2007, Metrano filed a lawsuit accusing the show of copyright infringement, and claiming damages in excess of two million US dollars.[1]
Currently, he tours with his one-man show, "Jews Don't Belong On Ladders...An Accidental Comedy", which has raised more than $175,000 for Project Support for Spinal Cord Injury to help buy crutches, wheelchairs, and supplies.
Among Metrano's TV guest appearances was a 1968 episode of Ironside. However, he is more known for his frequent appearances on The Tonight Show in the early 1970s as a "magician" performing absurd tricks (such as making his fingers "jump" from one hand to another) while constantly humming an inane theme song (named "Fine and Dandy", an early 1930s composition by Kay Swift). This bit was parodied in an episode of the cartoon show Family Guy entitled Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story. In December 2007, Metrano filed a lawsuit accusing the show of copyright infringement, and claiming damages in excess of two million US dollars.[1]
Currently, he tours with his one-man show, "Jews Don't Belong On Ladders...An Accidental Comedy", which has raised more than $175,000 for Project Support for Spinal Cord Injury to help buy crutches, wheelchairs, and supplies.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Monday, August 17, 2009
LUPINO LANE: Fandango (1928)
Lupino Lane
From Wikipedia...
Henry William George Lupino or Lupino Lane (June 16, 1892 London – November 10, 1959 London) was a British-born actor and theatre manager from the Lupino family. Lane appeared in a wide range of theatrical and film performances but he is best known for playing Bill Snibson in the play and film Me and My Girl which popularised the Lambeth walk.
Theatrical family
He was born Henry William George Lupino into a theatrical family that often claimed that they could trace their roots back to an Italian immigrant in the 17th century. He adopted the surname Lane from his great-aunt Sarah Lane (1822-1899, née Borrow), the director of the Britannia Theatre, Hoxton. Lane married actress Violet Blythe on 10 February 1917, and their son was also an actor, Lauri Lupino Lane (1921–1986). His brother, Wallace Lupino (1898–1961) was an actor, as was Wallace's son, Richard.
Henry and Wallace Lupino's niece, Ida Lupino, the daughter of actors Stanley Lupino (1893–1942) and Connie Emerald (1892–1959), was the most famous member of this acting family.
Early career
Harry Lupino and Lupino Lane, in Jack and Jill, 1907-8 at The Prince's Theatre, Bristol
Lupino Lane made his first stage appearance at the age of four in a benefit in Birmingham for Vesta Tilley. His London début was made in 1903 as Nipper Lane at the London Pavilion.
He worked hard as a performer steadily making his way towards the top of the bill. In 1915, he appeared at the Empire Theatre and played comic roles in theatre and film on both sides of the Atlantic from then on. Lane and Blythe were both in the Broadway musical Afgar, at the Central Theatre, in 1921, and then Lane appeared in the Ziegfeld Follies of 1924 at the New Amsterdam Theatre, from June 1924 to March 1925, and subsequently played Ko-Ko in The Mikado on Broadway in 1925 and received good reviews.
Lane appeared regularly in both British and US silent films. His film career started in 1915 in a series of British short films. As a comedy actor, he appeared in 40 Hollywood films made in the 1920s. He was known for his acrobatic ability and versatility playing 25 characters in one film.
British career in the 1930s
Lane returned to the United Kingdom in the 1920s. In the early 1920s, he appeared in a range of theatrical performances. He dived through seventy-four stage traps in three minutes while performing in a 1921 pantomime show of Aladdin at the Hippodrome in 6 minutes, he was being followed by a demon.
He made his first appearance as Bill Snibson in Twenty to One written by L. Arthur Rose and Frank Eyton with music by Billy Mayerl. Lane co-produced this play with Sir Oscar Stoll. The production in which Snibson was a tout was a big hit playing on the West End for a year starting from November 1935 and going on a long British tour after that.
Me and my Girl, the follow up written by Rose and Douglas Furber with music by Noel Gay, was an even bigger hit. Snibson inherited a country estate and invites his mates from Lambeth to stay with him. It featured a hit song and dance routine from Lane called the Lambeth Walk which became popular throughout Europe in the late 1930s. Lane directed and produced the show as well as starring in it for 1550 performances between 1937 and 1940. It was the first British musical comedy to be televised and was made into a film in 1939 . The film was known as Lambeth Walk due to the popularity of the dance.
Theatrical family
He was born Henry William George Lupino into a theatrical family that often claimed that they could trace their roots back to an Italian immigrant in the 17th century. He adopted the surname Lane from his great-aunt Sarah Lane (1822-1899, née Borrow), the director of the Britannia Theatre, Hoxton. Lane married actress Violet Blythe on 10 February 1917, and their son was also an actor, Lauri Lupino Lane (1921–1986). His brother, Wallace Lupino (1898–1961) was an actor, as was Wallace's son, Richard.
Henry and Wallace Lupino's niece, Ida Lupino, the daughter of actors Stanley Lupino (1893–1942) and Connie Emerald (1892–1959), was the most famous member of this acting family.
Early career
Harry Lupino and Lupino Lane, in Jack and Jill, 1907-8 at The Prince's Theatre, Bristol
Lupino Lane made his first stage appearance at the age of four in a benefit in Birmingham for Vesta Tilley. His London début was made in 1903 as Nipper Lane at the London Pavilion.
He worked hard as a performer steadily making his way towards the top of the bill. In 1915, he appeared at the Empire Theatre and played comic roles in theatre and film on both sides of the Atlantic from then on. Lane and Blythe were both in the Broadway musical Afgar, at the Central Theatre, in 1921, and then Lane appeared in the Ziegfeld Follies of 1924 at the New Amsterdam Theatre, from June 1924 to March 1925, and subsequently played Ko-Ko in The Mikado on Broadway in 1925 and received good reviews.
Lane appeared regularly in both British and US silent films. His film career started in 1915 in a series of British short films. As a comedy actor, he appeared in 40 Hollywood films made in the 1920s. He was known for his acrobatic ability and versatility playing 25 characters in one film.
British career in the 1930s
Lane returned to the United Kingdom in the 1920s. In the early 1920s, he appeared in a range of theatrical performances. He dived through seventy-four stage traps in three minutes while performing in a 1921 pantomime show of Aladdin at the Hippodrome in 6 minutes, he was being followed by a demon.
He made his first appearance as Bill Snibson in Twenty to One written by L. Arthur Rose and Frank Eyton with music by Billy Mayerl. Lane co-produced this play with Sir Oscar Stoll. The production in which Snibson was a tout was a big hit playing on the West End for a year starting from November 1935 and going on a long British tour after that.
Me and my Girl, the follow up written by Rose and Douglas Furber with music by Noel Gay, was an even bigger hit. Snibson inherited a country estate and invites his mates from Lambeth to stay with him. It featured a hit song and dance routine from Lane called the Lambeth Walk which became popular throughout Europe in the late 1930s. Lane directed and produced the show as well as starring in it for 1550 performances between 1937 and 1940. It was the first British musical comedy to be televised and was made into a film in 1939 . The film was known as Lambeth Walk due to the popularity of the dance.
Subsequent career
The success of Me and my Girl made Lane a rich man. In 1946, after damage sustained during World War II, he purchased the shell of the Gaiety Theatre in the Aldwych to rescue it from dereliction, and provide a permanent home for comedic performance. He failed to win the financial backing to refurbish it and sold it in 1950. The theatre was demolished in 1956.
Lupino Lane died on November 10, 1959 in London, England at age 67 . Violet Blyth died 17 March 1983, aged 93.
Lupino Lane is buried at Streatham Park Cemetery and his memorial was recently restored by The Music Hall Guild of Great Britain and America.
Lupino Lane died on November 10, 1959 in London, England at age 67 . Violet Blyth died 17 March 1983, aged 93.
Lupino Lane is buried at Streatham Park Cemetery and his memorial was recently restored by The Music Hall Guild of Great Britain and America.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Friday, August 14, 2009
Thursday, August 13, 2009
MIKE PADILLA: Stories
I've been contacted by Mike's niece, Teresa Tenekedjian, looking for more information on Mike's years with Alf Landon as well as his many years on Ringling and Beatty-Cole. If anyone out there worked with Mike over the years please take a moment to post your stories in the "comments" of this post to share with the family.RED SKELTON: from the film "Lovely To Look At" (1952)
Video suggested by Mike Naughton
Dibs!
I called it.
Dibs!
I called it.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
BILLY VAUGHN: Yankee Doodle Circus
Billy Vaughn warming up the crowd at the Yankee Doodle Circus with a balloon act inspired by the classic acts of Dime & Connie Wilson and Blinko & Maran. Yankee Doodle owner and ringmaster Mike Naughton (very soon to reside in Sarasota, FL) in the background.
THE PICKLE FAMILY CIRCUS
THE PICKLE FAMILY CIRCUS
From Wikipedia...
The Pickle Family Circus was a small circus founded in 1975 in San Francisco, California, USA. The circus formed an important part of the renewal of the American circus. They also influenced the creation of Cirque du Soleil in Montreal. Neither circus feature animals or use the three-ring layout like the traditional circus.
After working with the San Francisco Mime Troupe, the Pickle Family Jugglers (founded by Peggy Snider, Larry Pisoni, and Cecil MacKinnon) decided to create the Pickle Family Circus. Their first show was in May 1975, in the gymnasium of John O'Connell School in San Francisco. After they received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts in 1976, they went on their first tour, going to five cities in Northern California. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Circus performed on weekends in the Bay Area during Spring and Fall, and toured for 3 months in the summer, mostly in towns along Highway 101 in Northern California and Oregon. In these years, the Pickles operated with a business model that every show was a benefit, usually for a local community organization. The local sponsor sold advance tickets (getting a portion of the revenue), did publicity and site preparation, and ran a midway. The Circus returned to the same towns year after year, and these events became an important source of funding for the sponsors. This freed the company from much of the advance work. In 1979, the Pickles extended their tour to perform at the Alaska State Fair in Palmer, Alaska, and in 1981 performed a two-month winter run at the Roundhouse Theater in London.
A critical part of the early financing of the Circus was through the federal CETA Arts Program, founded by John Kreidler in San Francisco in 1974-75. Under this program, Larry Pisoni, Bill Irwin, Geoff Hoyle and Michael Nolan were employed. John Kreidler's Alameda County Neighborhood Arts Program was the Pickle's first fiscal sponsor, which received the $10,000 NEA grant. Nolan secured the grant with the assistance of Eric Reuther and then proceeded to book the first tour of Northern California. Among the sponsor's was Bill Irwin's mom, Liz Irwin, and her nonprofit Senior Center in Ft. Bragg.
In the early years, the circus boasted three clowns: Larry Pisoni, Bill Irwin, and Geoff Hoyle; they were the stars of a Pickle Family Circus production in 1981 called Three High. After Irwin left the Pickles in 1979, Pisoni and Hoyle worked as a duo. It was at this point that Hoyle evolved his Mr. Sniff character. The clowns were always central to the Pickle performance, making multiple cameo appearances throughout the show and interacting with the other artists.
The early company operated on three fundamental principles: All decisions were made collectively by the entire group, all members got the same pay, and all performers also had offstage jobs. Only a very few company members did not perform, serving the need to maintain an ongoing office while the company was on tour, and to have one person on hand who could get dirty during the show. The company had its office and rehearsal space in a former church at 400 Missouri Street at the corner of 19th Street in the Potrero Hill neighborhood of San Francisco, and many of its members lived in and were active in that community.
Juggling was always an essential part of the Pickle Family Circus, and every show ended with the "Big Juggle", involving almost every cast member in intricate club passing patterns.
Several members of the Pickle Family Circus were in the 1980 movie Popeye starring Robin Williams, including Bill Irwin (playing Ham Gravy), Larry Pisoni (Chico), Geoff Hoyle (Scoop), and Peggy Snider (playing Pickelina and credited as Peggy Pisoni).
The Pickle Family Circus is now a part of Circus Center, which comprises the San Francisco School of Circus Arts, the New Pickle Circus, and the San Francisco Circus; The New Pickle Circus stages a professional show mounted each December in San Francisco and several special productions throughout the year.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
JOE VANI SHERMAN: From Arte Bausman
Pat,Thanks for running Bill's photo of the Shermans. Joe Vani has been gone over a year now.I was recently reconnected with a girl I knew in high school. She was my magic assistant.In the process of catching up, she mentioned that she had worked for the Greenville, Ohio newspaper as a reporter. She said that one of her fondest memories was when she got to kiss a clown at the circus. I've attached a copy of the photo. It was taken in 1981.She had no way of knowing at that time that I knew the clown she was kissing in the photo. When she showed me the photo, I looked at it, laid it down, rolled up my sleeve and showed her my tattoo of Joe. We've been dating ever since!Thanks for all you do;Arte BausmanPS: I think the other two in the photo are George Jr. and Vicky Hanneford.
THE SECRET POLICEMAN'S BALL: Cha Cha Cha
Graham Chapman, John Cleese and Tim Brooke-Taylor who starred with Cleese on I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again and both Cleese and Chapman on Not the 1948 Show prior to their work on Monty Python's Flying Circus.
MARIO: Kelly-Miller Festival Circus (2009)
Does anyone else like Morningstar Farms vegetarian chicken patties?
I like them a lot. I think that I like them best on Arnold's Multi-Grain Sandwich Thins with some lettuce and just a little bit of barbecue sauce.
I have a writing project that I have to finish up and then I might go to Old Navy today and get Shane some Marvel superhero t-shirts while they are still on sale. They have a cool Captain America one AND you get a free reprint copy of Amazing Fantasy #15 (first appearance of Spiderman) with every purchase.
Monday, August 10, 2009
CLOWN ALLEY: Shrine Circus; Barbecue Gag (undated)
Photo courtesy of Bill Strong
Rex Young, Antar Wazzan, Joe Sherman and Charlie Cheer performing together on an unknown Shrine Circus date.
Rex Young, Antar Wazzan, Joe Sherman and Charlie Cheer performing together on an unknown Shrine Circus date.
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