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Irene Handl
Biography
Irene Handl (27 December 1901 – 29 November 1987) was a British character actress who appeared in more than 100 British films; she also wrote novels.
Irene Handl was born in Maida Vale, London, the younger of two daughters of an Austrian-born father—Friedrich (later Frederick) Handl (1874–1961) and German mother, Marie (née Schiepp or Schuepp; 1875 – before 1924). Both of Handl's parents became naturalised British citizens. Her father came to England via Switzerland and started as a bank clerk, before becoming a stockbroker, then became a private banker. The Handls lived a comfortable middle-class life, with a German cook and housekeeper living in the family home. From 1907 to 1915, Handl attended the Paddington and Maida Vale High School. In the 1920s Handl travelled several times to New York with her father, with the ship's log listing her on each occasion as having no occupation and residing in the family home. Handl studied at an acting school run by a sister of Dame Sybil Thorndike, and then made her stage debut in London in February 1937, at the relatively advanced age of 36. In 1939, and by now an actress, she was living with her widower father in London. She continued to live with her father until his death in 1961. Her elder sister Liane (1898–1977) had married Russian electrical engineer and photographer Victor Kraminsky (born Viktor Azar'evich Kraminskii; later known as Victor Kennett; 1894–1980) in 1920 in Marylebone, Middlesex (now London). They had at least one child, a son, Charles Kennett.
Handl appeared in supporting roles in more than 100 British films, mostly comedy character parts such as slightly eccentric mothers, grannies, landladies and servants. She was a passionate lover of rock and roll, especially the work of Elvis Presley, and was president of the Lewisham branch of the Elvis Presley fan club. She was also a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, and one of Britain's most avid champions of Chihuahuas, being inseparable from the pair that she owned. Handl had minor roles in such landmark films as Night Train to Munich and Brief Encounter. Her other notable roles included the wife of the union activist Fred Kite (played by Peter Sellers) in I'm All Right Jack (1959); Mrs Gammon, the formidable cook, opposite Gordon Harker in Small Hotel (1957); Tony Hancock's landlady in The Rebel (1961); Sherlock Holmes's housekeeper, Mrs Hudson, in The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970); and Morgan's Communist mother, Mrs Delt, in Morgan – A Suitable Case for Treatment (1966). She also had small roles in two of the Carry On films, Carry On Nurse and Carry On Constable), and played Miss Peach in the original version of The Italian Job. She worked until 1987, the year of her death. Her last role was released posthumously the following year.
Handl died in her flat in Kensington, West London, on 29 November 1987, aged 85, reportedly from cancer. She never married. She was cremated at Golders Green Crematorium, North London.
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Miriam Makeba
Biography
Zenzile Miriam Makeba (4 March 1932 – 9 November 2008), nicknamed Mama Africa, was a South African singer, songwriter, actress, and civil rights activist. Associated with musical genres including Afropop, jazz, and world music, she was an advocate against apartheid and white-minority government in South Africa.
Born in Johannesburg to Swazi and Xhosa parents, Makeba was forced to find employment as a child after the death of her father. She had a brief and allegedly abusive first marriage at the age of 17, gave birth to her only child in 1950, and survived breast cancer. Her vocal talent had been recognized when she was a child, and she began singing professionally in the 1950s, with the Cuban Brothers, the Manhattan Brothers, and an all-woman group, the Skylarks, performing a mixture of jazz, traditional African melodies, and Western popular music. In 1959, Makeba had a brief role in the anti-apartheid film Come Back, Africa, which brought her international attention, and led to her performing in Venice, London, and New York City. In London, she met the American singer Harry Belafonte, who became a mentor and colleague. She moved to New York City, where she became immediately popular, and recorded her first solo album in 1960. Her attempt to return to South Africa that year for her mother's funeral was prevented by the country's government.
Makeba's career flourished in the United States, and she released several albums and songs, her most popular being "Pata Pata" (1967). Along with Belafonte she received a Grammy Award for her 1965 album An Evening with Belafonte/Makeba. She testified against the South African government at the United Nations and became involved in the civil rights movement. She married Stokely Carmichael, a leader of the Black Panther Party, in 1968. As a result, she lost support among white Americans. Her visa was revoked by the US government when she was traveling abroad, forcing her and Carmichael to relocate to Guinea. She continued to perform, mostly in African countries, including at several independence celebrations. She began to write and perform music more explicitly critical of apartheid; the 1977 song "Soweto Blues", written by her former husband Hugh Masekela, was about the Soweto uprising. After apartheid was dismantled in 1990, Makeba returned to South Africa. She continued recording and performing, including a 1991 album with Nina Simone and Dizzy Gillespie, and appeared in the 1992 film Sarafina!. She was named an FAO Goodwill Ambassador in 1999, and campaigned for humanitarian causes. She died of a heart attack during a 2008 concert in Italy.
Makeba was among the first African musicians to receive worldwide recognition. She brought African music to a Western audience, and popularized the world music and Afropop genres. She also made popular several songs critical of apartheid, and became a symbol of opposition to the system, particularly after her right to return was revoked. Upon her death, former South African President Nelson Mandela said that "her music inspired a powerful sense of hope in all of us." ...
Source: Article "Miriam Makeba" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.
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Brett Marx
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Brett Marx (born December 26, 1964) is an American movie and television actor.
Best known as "Jimmy Feldman" in the Bad News Bears movies, Marx was born in Los Angeles, California. He has also appeared on television, in one episode each of Tales from the Darkside, My Two Dads and Party of Five.[1] In 1981, he was nominated for a Genie Award for Best Performance by a Foreign Actor in The Lucky Star.[2]
Today, Marx is a commercial and film producer. He is married and has two children.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Brett Marx, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia
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Andy On Chi-Kit
Biography
Andy On Chi-Kit (Cantonese: 安志傑) (born 11 May 1977 in Providence, Rhode Island, United States) is a Chinese American actor and martial artist.
He was born Andy Tien and as a child, he idolized Jackie Chan and would perform back flips and attempt to do martial arts in his backyard. While working as a bartender, someone suggested he go to Hong Kong to pursue a film career. Tien would leave and was discovered by Charles Heung and Tsui Hark, who cast Tien and gave him the new name "On Chi-Kit". Andy scored the titular role in Black Mask 2: City of Masks. To prepare for the role, On went to Shaolin Temple to train in wushu for a month. Andy is a practitioner of kickboxing and Wing Chun Kung Fu under friend and fellow actor Philip Ng. He is married to Jessica Cambensy, whom he met on the set of Zombie Fight Club. The couple have two children, daughter Tessa and son Elvis. Description above from the Wikipedia article Andy On, licensed under CC-BY-SA,full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Sean Connery
Biography
Sir Thomas Sean Connery (August 25, 1930 – October 31, 2020) was a Scottish actor and producer. He won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards (one being a BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award), and three Golden Globes, including the Cecil B. DeMille Award and a Henrietta Award. Connery was the first actor to portray the character James Bond in film, starring in seven Bond films (every film from Dr. No to You Only Live Twice, plus Diamonds Are Forever and Never Say Never Again), between 1962 and 1983. In 1988, Connery won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in The Untouchables. His films also include Marnie (1964), Murder on the Orient Express (1974), The Man Who Would Be King (1975), A Bridge Too Far (1977), Highlander (1986), Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), The Hunt for Red October (1990), Dragonheart (1996), The Rock (1996), and Finding Forrester (2000).
Connery was polled in a 2004 The Sunday Herald as "The Greatest Living Scot" and in a 2011 EuroMillions survey as "Scotland's Greatest Living National Treasure". He was voted by People magazine as both the “Sexiest Man Alive" in 1989 and the "Sexiest Man of the Century” in 1999. He received a lifetime achievement award in the United States with a Kennedy Center Honor in 1999. Connery was knighted in the 2000 New Year Honours for services to film drama.
On October 31, 2020, Connery died at the age of 90.
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Takumi Saitoh
Biography
Takumi Saitoh (斎 藤 工 Saitō Takumi, Tokyo, Japan, August 22, 1981) is a Japanese actor, singer, and model.
Saitoh was born on August 22, 1981, in the city of Tokyo, Japan. He made his acting debut in 1992, playing a small role in the Japanese drama Ippai no kakesoba. In the following years, he worked as a model for companies like Calvin Klein and Issey Miyake. In 2001, he starred in the movie Toki no kaori: Remember me (a remake of the Korean film Ditto), while in 2006, he participated as Yūshi Oshitari in the musical adaptation of the manga The Prince of Tennis, a role that made him gain popularity as an actor.
Also, in 2006, he played Shūya Arisada in the drama Princess princess D, an adaptation of the homonymous manga by Mikiyo Tsuda. However, his most important role was undoubtedly that of Noeru Kisaragi in the direct-to-video movie BOYS LOVE. The film tells the story of a magazine editor who meets and interviews a young model (later he also discovers that he is a gigolo) and the immediate attraction that arises between them. After the success of the film, the following year a theatrical successor to it was released (titled Schoolboy Crush in the West), but with a different plot and without Saitoh's involvement.
Another of his most important works is Sukitomo, another homosexual-themed film, released in 2007, and Itsuka no kimi e, also released that same year. The expressiveness of Saitoh as an actor and his natural way of embarking homosexual characters has contributed to give a "normalized" image of homosexual love in Japan, to the point of making it accessible and understandable to the general public. However, he ran the risk of being caught in a series of characters of that nature, so he joined the cast of the lightweight 2007 drama Delicious Gakuin. He participated in the 2009 graduation special of the Gokusen drama series and in HANA-KIMI 2011, the second Japanese TV adaptation of the comics of the same title.
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Candice Bergen
Biography
Candice Patricia Bergen (born May 9, 1946) is an American actress and former fashion model. She won five Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards for her portrayal of the title character on the CBS sitcom Murphy Brown (1988–1998, 2018-2019). She is also known for her role as Shirley Schmidt on the ABC drama Boston Legal (2005–2008). In films, Bergen was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for Starting Over (1979), and for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Gandhi (1982).
Bergen began her career as a fashion model and appeared on the cover of Vogue before she made her screen debut in the film The Group (1966). She starred in The Sand Pebbles (1966), Soldier Blue (1970), Carnal Knowledge (1971), and The Wind and the Lion (1975). She made her Broadway debut in the 1984 play Hurlyburly and starred in the revivals of The Best Man (2012) and Love Letters (2014). From 2002 to 2004, she appeared in three episodes of the HBO series Sex and the City. Her other film roles include Miss Congeniality (2000), Sweet Home Alabama (2002), The Women (2008), Bride Wars (2009), Book Club (2018) and Let Them All Talk (2020).
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Gillian Broderick
Biography
Formerly a Teacher, Gillian retrained to pursue her love of acting in theatre, film and TV. Gillian continues with regular sessions at the Actors' Temple in London.
Gillian has an untrained singing range from Tenor to Mezzo-Soprano and sings in a Community A Cappella choir. She is also a UK qualified athletics coach for all track and field events and has found a passion for javelin and coaches to a high standard.
A short film called To Dust - a photographic, Art film which was filmed on the beautiful Isle of Skye in Scotland December 2015 and was shown at Cannes 2016 in the Short Film Round.
- IMDb Mini Biography By: Gillian Broderick
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Chikako Aoyama
Biography
Japanese actor, color psychotherapist, and a native of Osaka Prefecture. In 1989, Chikko Aoyama played a role in the movie "Sentamako". In 1999, Chikko Aoyama obtained qualifications as a color psychotherapy consultant and teacher in the United Kingdom, and has qualifications as a color blender and JAA aroma therapist in Japan, but is now active in Japan as a color psychotherapist. She appeared in many restricted movies in her early stage, mainly showing her perfect figure and glamorous look. In the early 1990s, she starred in the Hong Kong films "Female Robot" and "Breaking Out", as well as a guest star in "When the King Comes Back". In the same period, he published the beautiful art photo album "Subtropical Climate" and "Subtropical Climate".
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Zo Tipp
Biography
Zo (pronouns: they, them, theirs) is a San Francisco born, Lenapehoking/NYC based, Jewish Japanese American queer neurodivergent performer.
They were a recurring guest star on American Horror Story Season 12: Delicate (FX, Hulu), have appeared on Only Murders in the Building (Hulu, Disney+), Dickinson (Apple TV), and have starred in several independent films, including selections for screenings at Newfest and Outfest.
In theater, they've worked on productions at INTAR, Playwright’s Horizons, Pan Asian Rep at Theatre Row, Cherry Lane Theatre, Westchester Broadway Theatre, Access Theatre, Frigid Fest, The American Museum of Natural History, and TheaterWorksUSA, and in workshops at Roundabout Theatre, NYTW, Breaking the Binary, The Playwright’s Realm, New Dramatists, CSC/Oregon Shakes Play On! festival, Rattlestick Theater, Red Bull Theatre, WP Theatre, The Movement Theatre, The Acting Company, The Lark, Faultline Theater, Huntington Theater Company, Playbill.com, and The Actors Fund.
Zo has narrated articles for The New Yorker and New York Magazine on Apple News, and has been featured in dramatic podcasts, including Play On!/OSF’s collaboration with Next Chapter Podcasts.
Zo has sung at Birdland Theater, in Times Square, at Spectrum NYC, and at the Joventuts Musicals Festival in Barcelona.
They have performed operatic roles with Opera on Tap, Dell’Arte Opera, Underworld Productions Opera, Garden State Opera, and Manhattan Opera Studio.
Zo has been described as “the biggest badass onstage,” “a gracefully athletic faerie,” and “endearingly twitchy,” portraying characters from Hamlet to Puck, from a frustrated tech genius to a sword-fighting kitsune spirit.
Zo studied Meisner for 3 years with Paul Perez, scene study with Larry Singer for about a decade, and Lucid Body with Fay Simpson. With Gwendolyn Schwinke, Zo delved into Feldenkrais for actors, Linklater, and Viewpoints. Zo has taken intensives in Kinetic Awareness with Francis Becker, Peking Opera movement with Liu Mianzong and Zhang Yanhong, about 100 hours of yoga teacher training, has studied fundamentals of ballet, Cunningham, and tap dance, and has learned a variety of stage combat techniques on the job. Zo completed Improv 101, 201, and 301 at the Upright Citizens Brigade NYC Training Center taught by James III and Molly Thomas.
Zo earned a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance with Highest Honors from SUNY Binghamton, completed coursework in the Master of Music programs at SUNY Binghamton and Hunter College, and studied classical singing with the legendary Benita Valente, as well as Carol Yahr, Mary Burgess, and Peyton Hibbitt. Zo currently studies with Sarah K Brown, and has coached contemporary and musical theater singing styles with Lilli Wosk. Zo also plays guitar, piano, ukulele, and a little drum and violin.
Zo is a Guild Certified Feldenkrais Practitioner. Zo completed the New York Feldenkrais Method Professional Training Program, directed by David Zemach-Bersin, concurrent with intensive Feldenkrais-based vocal and somatic studies with Maxine Davis.
They are a proud member of SAG-AFTRA and Actors Equity.
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