Thursday, February 28, 2019

Sketch of the Day: Ronan Farrow

Sketch of the Day: Ronan Farrow
Satchel Ronan O'Sullivan Farrow (born December 19, 1987) is an American journalist, lawyer, and former government adviser. Farrow is the son of actress Mia Farrow and writer/director Woody Allen.

In late 2017, Farrow's articles in The New Yorker helped uncover the Harvey Weinstein sexual abuse allegations. For this reporting, The New Yorker won the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service, sharing the award with The New York Times. His subsequent investigations exposed similar allegations against Eric Schneiderman and Les Moonves, which led to the resignations of both in 2018.

Wednesday, February 27, 2019

John Steinbeck - Happy Birthday Feb 27, 1902



John Ernst Steinbeck Jr. (/ˈstnbɛk/; February 27, 1902 – December 20, 1968) was an American author. He won the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humour and keen social perception."[2] He has been called "a giant of American letters,"[3] and many of his works are considered classics of Western literature.[4]
During his writing career, he authored 27 books, including 16 novels, six non-fiction books, and two collections of short stories. He is widely known for the comic novels Tortilla Flat (1935) and Cannery Row (1945), the multi-generation epic East of Eden (1952), and the novellas Of Mice and Men (1937) and The Red Pony (1937). The Pulitzer Prize-winning The Grapes of Wrath (1939)[5] is considered Steinbeck's masterpiece and part of the American literary canon.[6] In the first 75 years after it was published, it sold 14 million copies.[7]
Most of Steinbeck's work is set in central California, particularly in the Salinas Valley and the California Coast Ranges region. His works frequently explored the themes of fate and injustice, especially as applied to downtrodden or everyman protagonists.

Tuesday, February 26, 2019

Happy Birthday, Fats Domino - Born Feb 26, 1934

Antoine Dominique Domino Jr. (February 26, 1928 - October 24, 2017) was an American pianist and singer-songwriter of Louisiana Creole descent. He had 35 records in the U.S. Billboard Top 40, and five of his pre-1955 records sold more than a million copies, being certified gold.

From 1955-60, he had eleven top 10 hits and his record sales were reportedly surpassed only by Elvis Presley.

During his career, Domino sold over 65 million records.
His musical style was based on traditional rhythm and blues, accompanied by saxophones, bass, piano, electric guitar, and drums.

Source: Wikipedia

Monday, February 25, 2019

Happy Birthday, George Harrison - Born Feb 25, 1943

George Harrison[nb 1] MBE (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician, singer-songwriter, music and film producer who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian culture and helped broaden the scope of popular music through his incorporation of Indian instrumentation and Hindu-aligned spirituality in the Beatles' work.[2] Although the majority of the band's songs were written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, most Beatles albums from 1965 onwards contained at least two Harrison compositions. His songs for the group included "Taxman", "Within You Without You", "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", "Here Comes the Sun" and "Something".

Sunday, February 24, 2019

Ronnie Schell

Ronald Ralph Schell (born December 23, 1931) is an American actor, stand-up comedian, and voice actor. He appeared on the May 28, 1959, episode of the TV quiz program You Bet Your Life, hosted by Groucho Marx. Schell demonstrated a comic barrage of beatnik jive talk.[1] As a stand-up comedian, he first developed his act at the world-famous hungry i nightclub in San Francisco, California. Schell is probably best known in his 1960s television role as Duke Slater in Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.

Saturday, February 23, 2019

Rita Moreno

Rita Moreno (born December 11, 1931) is a Puerto Rican actress, dancer and singer. Her career has spanned over 70 years; among her notable acting work are supporting roles in the musical films The King and I and West Side Story, as well as a 1971–77 stint on the children's television series The Electric Company, and a supporting role on the 1997–2003 TV drama Oz.
Moreno is one of the few artists[1] to have won all four major annual American entertainment awards: an Oscar, an Emmy, a Grammy and a Tony.[2] She is also one of 23 people who have achieved what is called the Triple Crown of Acting, with individual competitive Academy, Emmy and Tony awards for acting; she and Helen Hayes are the only two who have achieved both distinctions. She has won numerous other awards, including various lifetime achievement awards and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, America's highest civilian honor.

Friday, February 22, 2019

"Mr. Rogers" Fred McFeely Rogers 1928 - 2003




"Mr. Rogers"
Fred McFeely Rogers
1928 - 2003

was an American television personality, musician, puppeteer, writer, producer, and Presbyterian minister.

He was known as the creator, composer, producer, head writer, showrunner and host of the preschool television series Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.
Born: March 20, 1928, Latrobe, PA
Died: February 27, 2003, Pittsburgh, PA
Spouse: Joanne Rogers (m. 1952–2003)
Children: James Byrd Rogers.

Thursday, February 21, 2019

Ellen Page - Happy Birthday! Feb 21,1987





Ellen Grace Philpotts-Page(born February 21, 1987)[2][3] is a Canadian actress and producer. Her career began with roles in Canadian television shows including Pit Pony, Trailer Park Boys, and ReGenesis. Page starred in the 2005 drama Hard Candy, for which she won the Austin Film Critics Association's Award for Best Actress. Her breakthrough role was the title character in Jason Reitman's comedy film Juno (2007), for which she received nominations for Academy Award, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Actress, and won awards including the Independent Spirit Award, MTV Movie Award and Teen Choice Award for Best Actress Comedy.

Page portrayed Kitty Pryde in the X-Men series of films. She also appeared in the crime-drama film An American Crime (2007); the drama The Tracey Fragments (2007), a role that won her the Vancouver Film Critics Award for Best Actress; Smart People (2008); the sports-comedy-drama film Whip It (2009); Super (2010); and Inception (2010). She also provided the voice acting, motion capture, and likeness for the character Jodie Holmes in the video game Beyond: Two Souls (2013).

Wednesday, February 20, 2019

Happy Birthday... Sir Sidney Poitier (born February 20, 1927) is a Bahamian-American actor, film director, author, and diplomat




Happy Birthday...
Sir Sidney Poitier
(born February 20, 1927) is a Bahamian-American actor, film director, author, and diplomat

Tuesday, February 19, 2019

Lee Marvin - Happy Birthday! Born Feb 19, 1924

Lee Marvin (February 19, 1924 – August 29, 1987) was an American film and television actor.[1]
Known for his distinctive voice and premature white hair, Marvin initially appeared in supporting roles, mostly villains, soldiers, and other hardboiled characters. A prominent television role was that of Detective Lieutenant Frank Ballinger in the NBC crime series M Squad (1957–1960).
One of Marvin's most notable film projects was Cat Ballou (1965), a comedy Western in which he played dual roles. For portraying both gunfighter Kid Shelleen and criminal Tim Strawn, he won the Academy Award for Best Actor, along with a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe Award, an NBR Award, and the Silver Bear for Best Actor.

Monday, February 18, 2019

George Harris Kennedy Jr. - Happy Birthday! Feb 18, 1925

George Harris Kennedy Jr.[1] (February 18, 1925 – February 28, 2016) was an American actor who appeared in more than 100 film and television productions. He played "Dragline" opposite Paul Newman in Cool Hand Luke (1967), winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for the role and being nominated for the corresponding Golden Globe. He received a second Golden Globe nomination for portraying Joe Patroni in Airport (1970).
Among the notable films he had a significant role in are Charade, Strait-Jacket, McHale's Navy, Shenandoah, The Sons of Katie Elder, The Flight of the Phoenix, The Dirty Dozen, The Boston Strangler, Guns of the Magnificent Seven, Thunderbolt and Lightfoot, Airport 1975, Earthquake and The Eiger Sanction.
Kennedy was the only actor to appear in all four films in the Airport series, having reprised the role of Joe Patroni three times. He also played Police Captain Ed Hocken in the Naked Gun series of comedy films, and corrupt oil tycoon Carter McKay on the original Dallas television series.

Sunday, February 17, 2019

John Travolta - Happy Birthday! Feb 18, 1954

John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954)[1][2] is an American actor, film producer, dancer, and singer. Travolta first became known in the 1970s, appearing on the television series Welcome Back, Kotter (1975–1979) and starring in the box office successes Saturday Night Fever (1977) and Grease (1978). His acting career declined through the 1980s, but enjoyed a resurgence in the 1990s with his role in Pulp Fiction (1994), and he has since starred in films such as Get Shorty, Broken Arrow, Face/Off, Swordfish, Be Cool, Wild Hogs, Hairspray, and The Taking of Pelham 123.
Travolta was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for performances in Saturday Night Fever and Pulp Fiction. He won his first and only Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for his performance in Get Shorty and has received a total of six nominations, the most recent being in 2011. In 2010, he received the IIFA Award for Outstanding Achievement in International Cinema.[3] In 2016, Travolta received his first Primetime Emmy Award, as a producer of the first season of the anthology series American Crime Story, subtitled The People v. O. J. Simpson. He also received an additional Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe nomination for his portrayal of lawyer Robert Shapiro in the series.

Saturday, February 16, 2019

Levar Burton - Feb 16, 1957 - Happy Birthday!




Levardis Robert Martyn "LeVar" Burton Jr. (born February 16, 1957) is an American actor, presenter, director and author. He is best known for his roles as the host of the long-running PBS children's series Reading Rainbow, Lt. Commander Geordi La Forge in Star Trek: The Next Generation and the young Kunta Kinte in the 1977 award-winning ABC television miniseries Roots. He has also directed a number of television episodes for various iterations of Star Trek, among other programs.

Friday, February 15, 2019

Mark Richt - Happy Birthday! - Feb 18 1960

gregjoens.com

Mark Allan Richt (born February 18, 1960) is a retired American football head coach and former player. He was the head football coach at the University of Miami, his alma mater, and recipient of the 2017 Walter Camp Coach of the Year Award.
Richt played college football as a quarterback at Miami. His previous coaching affiliations include 14 years at Florida State University where he served as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach under Bobby Bowden, a year as offensive coordinator at East Carolina University, and 15 years as head coach at the University of Georgia.[1] He has the third highest winning percentage among active FBS Division 1 coaches who have coached 200 or more games[2] and has produced 93 draft picks (second highest).

Thursday, February 14, 2019

Ned Ryerson? BING


Simon Pegg - Happy Birthday - Feb 14, 1970

 www.gregjoens.com

Simon John Pegg ( Beckingham;[1][2] born 14 February 1970)[3] is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer.
Pegg came to public prominence in Britain as the co-creator of the Channel 4 sitcom Spaced, directed by Edgar Wright. Pegg went on to co-write and star in the Three Flavours Cornetto film trilogy: Shaun of the Dead (2004), Hot Fuzz (2007), and The World's End (2013). He and Nick Frost wrote and starred in the sci-fi film Paul (2011). Pegg portrays Benji Dunn in the Mission: Impossible film series (2006–present) and played Montgomery Scott in Star Trek (2009), Star Trek Into Darkness (2013), and Star Trek Beyond (2016), co-writing the latter.

Tuesday, February 12, 2019

Jack Palance - Happy Birthday - Born Feb 18, 1919





Jack Palance (/ˈpæləns/ PAL-əns; born Volodymyr Palahniuk (Ukrainian: Володимир Палагню́к); February 18, 1919 – November 10, 2006) was an American actor and singer. He was nominated for three Academy Awards, all for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, receiving nominations for his roles in Sudden Fear (1952) and Shane (1953), and winning the Oscar almost 40 years later for his role in City Slickers (1991).

Monday, February 11, 2019

Natalie Dormer - Happy Birthday - Born Feb 11, 1982

Natalie Dormer
Natalie Dormer (born 11 February 1982)[2] is a British actress. Born in Berkshire, she was educated at Chiltern Edge Secondary School and Reading Blue Coat School, and trained at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London. She received widespread praise for her portrayal of Anne Boleyn on the Showtime series The Tudors (2007–08), and was nominated for two Gemini Awards for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Drama Series.
She made her stage debut at the Young Vic in 2010 in the play Sweet Nothings, and portrayed the Duchess of York in Madonna's film W.E. (2011) and Private Lorraine in Captain America: The First Avenger (2011). In 2012, her lead performance in After Miss Julie at the Young Vic attracted widespread critical acclaim. Dormer gained international attention with her performance of Margaery Tyrell on the HBO series Game of Thrones (2012–2016), for which she was nominated for two Screen Actors Guild Awards (2014–2015). She is also known for playing Irene Adler/Moriarty on the CBS series Elementary (2013–15), Cressida in the science fiction adventure films The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 (2014) and Part 2 (2015), and Sara Price/Jess Price in The Forest (2016).

Sunday, February 10, 2019

Emma Roberts - Happy Birthday Feb 10, 1991





Emma Rose Roberts (born February 10, 1991) is an American actress and singer. After making her film debut as Kristina Jung in the crime film Blow (2001), Roberts gained recognition for her lead role as Addie Singer on the Nickelodeon television series Unfabulous (2004–2007). She released her debut studio album Unfabulous and More in 2005. Roberts then appeared in numerous films, including Aquamarine (2006), Nancy Drew (2007), Wild Child (2008), Hotel for Dogs (2009), Valentine's Day (2010), It's Kind of a Funny Story (2010), and The Art of Getting By (2011).
Looking for more mature roles, Roberts obtained starring roles in the films Lymelife (2009), 4.3.2.1. (2010), Scream 4 (2011), Adult World (2013), We're the Millers (2013), Palo Alto (2013), The Blackcoat's Daughter (2015), and Nerve (2016). She starred in the lead role of Chanel Oberlin on the Fox horror-comedy series Scream Queens (2015–2016), and appeared in four seasons of the FX horror anthology series American Horror Story.


Saturday, February 9, 2019

Bob Denver aka Gilligan - Born February 9, 1935

Robert Osbourne Denver (January 9, 1935 – September 2, 2005) was an American comedic actor, widely known for portraying Gilligan on the television series Gilligan's Island and the beatnik Maynard G. Krebs on the 1959–1963 sitcom The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis.

Friday, February 8, 2019

Nick Nolte - Born Feb 8, 1941

Nicholas King Nolte (born February 8, 1941)[2] is an American actor, producer, author, and former model. He won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for the 1991 film The Prince of Tides. He went on to receive Academy Award nominations for Affliction (1998) and Warrior (2011). His other film appearances include The Deep (1977), Who'll Stop The Rain (1978), North Dallas Forty (1979), 48 Hrs. (1982), Teachers (1984), Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1986), Another 48 Hrs. (1990), Everybody Wins (1990), Cape Fear (1991), Lorenzo's Oil (1992), The Thin Red Line (1998), The Good Thief (2002), Hulk (2003), Hotel Rwanda (2004), Tropic Thunder (2008), and A Walk in the Woods (2015). He was also nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy for his role in the TV series Graves.


Thursday, February 7, 2019

Charles Dickens - Born Feb 7, 1812

 https://fineartamerica.com/featured/charles-dickens-greg-joens.html?product=art-print


Charles John Huffam Dickens (/ˈdɪkɪnz/; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era.[1] His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime, and by the 20th century critics and scholars had recognised him as a literary genius. His novels and short stories are still widely read today.[2][3]
Born in Portsmouth, Dickens left school to work in a factory when his father was incarcerated in a debtors' prison. Despite his lack of formal education, he edited a weekly journal for 20 years, wrote 15 novels, five novellas, hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles, lectured and performed readings extensively, was an indefatigable letter writer, and campaigned vigorously for children's rights, education, and other social reforms.

Wednesday, February 6, 2019

Mike Farrell - Born Feb 6, 1939




Michael Joseph Farrell Jr. (born February 6, 1939) is an American actor, best known for his role as Captain B.J. Hunnicutt on the television series M*A*S*H (1975–83). He is also an activist and public speaker for various political causes.
Farrell was a producer of Patch Adams (1998) starring Robin Williams, and starred in the television series Providence (1999–2002). He appeared as Milton Lang, the father of Victor Lang (John Slattery), husband of Gabrielle Solis (Eva Longoria) on Desperate Housewives (2007–08).
He was seen in the season 10 episode "Persona" of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. He appeared as the character Fred Jones in the season 8 episode "Hunteri Heroici" of Supernatural. In 2014 he was a supporting cast member on the Sundance TV Network criminal drama series The Red Road. Most recently, he portrayed Lee Miglin, a real estate baron who fell victim to serial killer Andrew Cunanan, in FX's anthology series American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace.

Tuesday, February 5, 2019

Norman Reedus

Norman Reedus

(born January 6, 1969)is an American actor, television host, and model. He is best known for starring in the popular AMC horror drama series The Walking Dead as Daryl Dixon and in the film The Boondock Saints (1999) and its sequel The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day (2009) as Murphy MacManus. He has also acted in numerous films and television series, and modeled for various fashion designers (most recognizably Prada in the 1990s).

Monday, February 4, 2019

Charles Lindbergh - American Aviator pioneer Born Feb 4, 1902

www.gregjoens.com

Charles Lindbergh - American Aviator pioneer
Born Feb 4, 1902
Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, explorer, and environmental activist. At age 25 in 1927, he went from obscurity as a U.S. Air Mail pilot to instantaneous world fame by winning the Orteig Prize: making a nonstop flight from Roosevelt Field, Long Island, New York, to Paris, France. Lindbergh covered the ​33 1⁄2-hour, 3,600-statute-mile (5,800 km) flight alone in a single-engine purpose-built Ryan monoplane, the Spirit of St. Louis.

Sunday, February 3, 2019

Amal Clooney - Born Feb 3, 1978

Amal Clooney (born 3 February 1978) is a Lebanese-British barrister at Doughty Street Chambers, specialising in international law and human rights.  Her clients include the likes of Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, in his fight against extradition;[3] the former prime minister of Ukraine, Yulia Tymoshenko;  and Egyptian-Canadian journalist Mohamed Fahmy. She is married to American actor George Clooney. 

Saturday, February 2, 2019

Nathan Lane

Nathan Lane
(born Joseph Lane; February 3, 1956) is an American actor and writer. He has played the roles of Albert in The Birdcage, Max Bialystock in the musical The Producers, Ernie Smuntz in MouseHunt, Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls, and Pseudolus in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. His voice work includes The Lion King as Timon and Stuart Little as Snowbell, and has played recurring roles on Modern Family, The Good Wife, and The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story as F. Lee Bailey.

He has received three Tony Awards: he won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum and The Producers and the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play for Angels in America, as well as six Drama Desk awards, six Outer Critics Circle awards, two Obies, the Lucille Lortel Award and the Olivier Award. He has also received two Golden Globe nominations, six Primetime Emmy nominations, a Screen Actors Guild Award, two Daytime Emmy Awards, and a People's Choice Award. In 2006, Lane received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and in 2008, he was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame. Source: Wikipedia

Friday, February 1, 2019

RIP James Ingram 1952 - 2019


 
gregjoens.com
 
RIP, R&B singer, James Ingram
(February 16, 1952 – January 29, 2019)

James Edward Ingram was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and instrumentalist. He was a two-time Grammy Award-winner and a two-time Academy Award nominee for Best Original Song.

Since beginning his career in 1973, Ingram had charted eight Top 40 hits on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart from the early 1980s until the early 1990s, as well as thirteen top 40 hits on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. In addition, he charted 20 hits on the Adult Contemporary chart (including two number-ones). He had two number-one singles on the Hot 100: the first, a duet with fellow R&B artist Patti Austin, 1982's "Baby, Come to Me" topped the U.S. pop chart in 1983; "I Don't Have the Heart", which became his second number-one in 1990 was his only number-one as a solo artist. In between these hits, he also recorded the song "Somewhere Out There" with fellow recording artist Linda Ronstadt for the animated film An American Tail. The song and the music video both became gigantic hits. Ingram co-wrote "The Day I Fall in Love", from the motion picture Beethoven's 2nd (1993), and singer Patty Smyth's "Look What Love Has Done", from the motion picture Junior (1994), which earned him nominations for Best Original Song from the Oscars, Golden Globes, and Grammy Awards in 1994 and 1995.