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Henry Koster
Biography
Henry Koster (May 1, 1905 – September 21, 1988), born Hermann Kosterlitz, was a German-born film director, who worked in Europe as well as in Hollywood. Although he never won an Oscar, Koster directed six different actors in Oscar-nominated performances.
In 1932, Koster directed his first film in Berlin, the comedy Thea Roland. In the midst of directing his second film Das häßliche Mädchen, Jewish Koster had been the subject of antisemitism, and knew he had to leave the country. He left Germany for France, where he was rehired by director Curtis Bernhardt, who had also fled. Eventually Koster went to Budapest, where he met and married Kató Király in 1934. There he also met Joe Pasternak, who represented Universal in Europe, and directed three films for him. Through his friend Gabriel Levy he ended up directing Dutch sound film De Kribbebijter, released internationally as The Cross-Patch, which proved a success both in the Netherlands - where it played in cinemas for no less than seven years - and in the UK. Soon after, Koster signed a deal with Universal Pictures in Hollywood and moved to the United States.
Although Koster did not speak English, he convinced the studio to let him make Three Smart Girls, for which he personally coached to-be star Deanna Durbin. This picture, a big success, pulled Universal out of bankruptcy. Koster's second Universal film, One Hundred Men and a Girl, also was successful. After this, Koster discovered Abbott and Costello at a nightclub in New York. He returned to Hollywood and convinced Universal to hire them. Their first picture was One Night in the Tropics; the female lead, Peggy Moran, became Koster's second wife in 1942.
Ironically, despite Koster's escape from Nazi Germany, when the United States entered World War II Koster was considered an enemy alien and had to stay in his house in the evening. Actor Charles Laughton would visit Koster and play chess with him. Nonetheless, Koster's postwar career proved equally successful. He was nominated for an Academy Award for The Bishop's Wife (1947). In 1950, he directed his biggest success: the James Stewart comedy Harvey. He directed Richard Burton's first U.S. film, My Cousin Rachel, and then in 1953, he was given The Robe, the first CinemaScope film. His last picture was The Singing Nun in 1965. Koster retired to Leisure Village in Camarillo, California, where he painted a series of portraits of the movie stars with whom he worked.
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Bruce Welch
Biography
Bruce Welch OBE (born 2 November 1941 as Bruce Cripps) is an English guitarist, songwriter, producer, singer and businessman best known as a founding member of the Shadows.
Bruce Welch was born in Bognor Regis in 1941. His parents (Stan Cripps and Grace Welch) moved him to 15 Broadwood View, Chester-le-Street, County Durham shortly after. Welch's mother died when he was aged six, and he grew up with his Aunt Sadie.
After learning to play the guitar, he formed a Tyneside skiffle band called the Railroaders when he was fourteen. His Rutherford Grammar School friend Brian Rankin (later to be known as Hank Marvin) joined the group, and they travelled to London in 1958 for the final of a talent competition. Although they did not win, they joined with members of other entrant bands and formed the Five Chesternuts with Pete Chester (born 1942), son of comedian Charlie Chester, on drums.
Upon moving to London, Bruce Welch and Hank Marvin briefly operated as the Geordie Boys before enlisting in an outfit called the Drifters. In September 1958, Welch and Marvin joined the Drifters, later to become the Shadows, as Cliff Richard's backing band. As well as success with the Shadows, Welch acted as producer for (among others) Richard and songwriter for his ex-fiancée, Olivia Newton-John. He also released a solo single, "Please Mr. Please", which was not commercially successful, though the song has been covered by several recording artists (most notably Newton-John, who would take it into the top 10 of the US pop and country charts in 1975).
Welch wrote several number 1 hit singles for Richard and for the Shadows. Among tunes or songs written or co-written by Welch are the Shadows' hits "Foot Tapper", "Theme for Young Lovers", and "The Rise and Fall of Flingel Bunt", Marvin Welch & Farrar's "Faithful" and "My Home Town", and Cliff Richard hits "Please Don't Tease", "In the Country", "Summer Holiday", "I Love You" and "I Could Easily Fall (In Love with You)".
He was the musical consultant for the West End musical Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story.
After the Shadows disbanded in 1990, with Marvin deciding to tour with his own band, Welch's plans for his own tours did not fully materialise until 1998, when he formed Bruce Welch's Shadows (originally called 'Bruce Welch's Moonlight Shadows' – a name that was dropped after 1998). The group featured former Shadows bassist Alan Jones and keyboardist Cliff Hall, with Bob Watkins on drums. Phil Kelly and Barry Gibson (owner of Burns Guitars) shared lead guitar duties until Gibson's departure in 2000. Daniel Martin replaced Phil Kelly for the 2012 Shadowmania.
In 1998, he produced Shadowmania, a one-day show comprising various Shadows tribute bands, with his own band topping the bill. Due to the event's success he presented it annually until 2012, missing only 2004 and 2009 due to tours with the reformed Shadows.
At Shadowmania 2011 he included a 'Tribute to Jet Harris', his former band member who had died from cancer in March of that year. At Shadowmania 2012, Phil Kelly could not appear because of illness and was replaced by session guitarist-songwriter Daniel Martin, and Justin Daish, leader of The Shadowers (Jet Harris' final backing band). ...
Source: Article "Bruce Welch" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.
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Victoria Diamond
Biography
Victoria Diamond is a multi-disciplinary artist who started performing at a young age in Halifax, Nova Scotia. As a child, she studied ballet, jazz and tap dance, and she was cast in her first professional lead role in a play at age 9. From there, she performed a variety of roles in TV, film, theatre, and musicals, as well as voiceover work in her home city.
After graduating from a French immersion high school and finishing university studies in philosophy and history, she was accepted in a 3-year contemporary dance program in Montreal. It was there that she came to the attention of a director who had an extensive background in French theatre and encouraged Victoria to pursue acting, casting her in her first French play. Upon graduation from dance school, Victoria continued to pursue her acting studies in various programs and workshops, including the Neighbourhood Playhouse in NYC, physical theatre in Italy, as well as a various other forms of acting and movement related training: clown, voice training, improvisation, yoga teacher-training, and Alexander technique.
Victoria has developed an eclectic and successful career, working in both English and French entertainment industries in television, theatre, film and voice-over work. In 2019, she won a Gemini award for her performance in the Quebec TV series, Nomades.
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Sean Connery
Biography
Sir Thomas Sean Connery (August 25, 1930 - October 31, 2020) was a Scottish actor and producer who 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, it was announced that Connery had died at the age of 90.
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Saif Ali Khan
Biography
Saif Ali Khan (born 16 August 1970) is an Indian film actor and producer. The son of actress Sharmila Tagore and the late cricketer Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi. Khan made his acting debut in Yash Chopra's unsuccessful drama Parampara (1993), but achieved success with his roles in the romantic drama Yeh Dillagi and the action film Main Khiladi Tu Anari (both 1994). Khan's career prospect declined through much of the 1990s, and his biggest commercial success of the decade came with the ensemble drama Hum Saath-Saath Hain (1999). He rose to prominence with roles in two ensemble comedy-dramas—Dil Chahta Hai (2001) and Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003).
The 2004 romantic comedy Hum Tum proved to be Khan's first success in which he played the sole male lead, earning him the National Film Award for Best Actor, and starring roles in the drama Parineeta and the romantic comedy Salaam Namaste (both 2005) established him as a leading actor in Bollywood. He went on to earn wide critical praise for his portrayal of an apprentice in the 2006 English film Being Cyrus, a character based on William Shakespeare's antagonist Iago in the 2006 crime film Omkara and a terrorist in the 2009 thriller Kurbaan. Khan's greatest commercial success came with the 2008 thriller Race and its 2013 sequel, the 2009 romance Love Aaj Kal, and the 2012 romantic comedy Cocktail.
Khan is the recipient of several accolades, including a National Film Award and six Filmfare Awards, and received the Padma Shri, the fourth highest Indian civilian award, in 2010. He has been noted for his performances in a range of film genres—from crime dramas to thrillers and occasional romances—and his film roles have been credited with contributing to a change in the concept of a Hindi film hero. Khan was married to his first wife, Amrita Singh, for thirteen years, after which he married the actress Kareena Kapoor. He has three children—two with Singh and one with Kapoor. In addition to film acting, Khan is a frequent television presenter, stage show performer and the owner of the production company Illuminati Films.
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Robert Isaac Lee
Biography
Robert "Bob" Isaac Lee (August 16, 1956 – October 20, 2004) was a Chinese-American actor.
Robert was born Robert Alexander Isaac Lee in Gansu, China; he and his family had emigrated from China to the United States when Lee was 8 years old, moving to Sacramento, California.
Lee married Jenny Anne Wong on September 5, 1989. They had 3 children together: 1 son born 1990, a daughter in 1992 and a second son in 1994.
Lee died on October 20, 2004, in Phoenix, Arizona at the age of 48. His cause of death was noted as a heart attack.
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Juris Podnieks
Biography
Juris Podnieks was born in Riga, Latvia in 1950. He graduated from the celebrated Soviet film school, VGIK, in 1975. He went to work at the Riga studio, first as assistant cameraman, then as cameraman before finally becoming a director in 1979. His first production "The Cradle" won a prize at the Leipzig Festival, and shortly afterwards "The Brothers Kokari” took first prize at the Kiev Youth Festival in 1981. In the same year he received wide recognition inside and outside of the Soviet Union for his film „Constellation of Riflemen” which won honours in the 17th All State Festival in Leningrad, and also the Latvian Kosovo prize. The film which first won him international recognition was "Is It Easy To Be Young?” which exploded many popular myths about Soviet youth. Juris happened to shoot some footage of young people at a rock concert in July 1985, which achieved some notoriety because a train returning to Riga afterwards was badly vandalised. He tracked down some of the youngsters and questioned them about their lives and aspirations. Two of them were tried and convicted of criminal damage on the train, and Juris managed to bluff his way into the courtroom to film the trial. The film broke box-office records in the Soviet Union and was later shown across the world. Podnieks’ collaborations with British Television (Central TV and Channel 4) have been very rewarding, giving British viewers insights and perceptions into events inside the Soviet Union. "Hello, Do You Here Us?” a five part documentary, was filmed over a three year period: showing unrest in Uzbekistan, survivors of the earthquake in Armenia, striking workers in Yaroslavl and former residents returning to Chernobyl. "Red Hot”, the first film in the series, was awarded the coveted Prix Italia. Podnieks’ later films were constructed around the rising tide of nationalism in the Baltic States. "Homeland” was an inspiring record of the outpouring of feeling accompanying Song Festival in Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania at which hauntingly beautiful songs banned for 50 years were sung by massed choirs. While filming the follow-up to "Homeland”, Podnieks and his crew came under sniper fire during a disturbance in Riga. This incident, still a subject of some controversy, is under investigation by the Latvia authorities. Andris Slapins, a long time friend and collaborator was killed instantly and Gvido Zvaigzne, who had worked with Juris filming, "Hello, Do You Hear Us?” died later from his injuries. Both shared camera credits on "Homeland” with Podnieks. The incident was captured on video and was broadcast as a postscript to "Homeland”. Podnieks used a mixture of interviews, music and archive footage to create a uniquely poetic form of documentary without the intrusion of voice-over. At the time of Podnieks’ tragic death he was developing a new project which later was included in the film “Unfinished Business” made by his colleagues.
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Shanaia Gomez
Biography
Shanaia Gomez learned one thing during the pandemic: to never give up. After a stint in Idol Philippines last 2019, she went back to Canada. But Team Rise saw potential in her, and off she went back, repacked her bags and flew to Manila with renewed hope for her career– now as a multiplatform artist. Because of her charming look, Shanaia appeared to the music video of Sam Conception’s newest single “Diwata”. She also did an exposure to DonBelle’s trending series “He’s Into Her” as Dominique.
Shanaia is a natural on talk shows– quickly, she gained loyal viewers on her live streams, she is now part of the millionaires’ row on Kumu. She continues to create content on her Tiktok with her following increasing– and fast. As she continues to hone her acting skills under the training program of Rise, she is also being prepped to be a frontliner in the non-narrative array of content for TFC.
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Henry Cavill
Biography
Henry William Dalgliesh Cavill (born May 5, 1983) is a British actor. He is known for his portrayal of Charles Brandon in Showtime's The Tudors (2007–2010), DC Comics character Superman in the DC Extended Universe, Geralt of Rivia in the Netflix fantasy series The Witcher (2019–present), as well as Sherlock Holmes in the Netflix film Enola Holmes (2020).
Cavill began his career with roles in the feature adaptations of The Count of Monte Cristo (2002) and I Capture the Castle (2003). He later portrayed supporting roles in several television series, including BBC's The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, ITV's Midsomer Murders, and Showtime's The Tudors. He has since appeared in numerous major studio films, such as Tristan & Isolde (2006), Stardust (2007), Blood Creek (2009), Immortals (2011), The Cold Light of Day (2012), Sand Castle (2017) and Night Hunter (2018). Cavill gained international recognition with his role as Superman in the DC Extended Universe superhero films Man of Steel (2013), Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) and Justice League (2017). He also starred in the action spy films The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015) and Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018).
Description above from the Wikipedia article Henry Cavill, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Laura Gemser
Biography
Laurette Marcia "Laura" Gemser (born October 5, 1950, Java, Indonesia) is a Dutch-based actress of Indo descent. She is known for her work with director Joe D'Amato and Bruno Mattei, in particular, for doing a set of exploitation-style and Black Emmanuelle films. Gemser has also been credited as Moira Chen, most notably in Love Is Forever (1983).
Gemser left Indonesia in 1955, at the age of four, and moved with her parents to the Netherlands. She grew up in the Dutch city of Utrecht, where she attended the MULO Regentesseschool high school. After that, she attended the Artibus Art School in Utrecht, where she specialized in fashion design. In 1975 she moved to Italy.
After modelling in various magazines in the Netherlands and Belgium, Gemser began to take part in some soft erotic films. She became internationally recognised after starring in a number of Black Emanuelle films in the 1970s.
Her most mainstream and well-received role was as Laotian refugee Keo Sirisomphone in Michael Landon's 1983 American television movie, Love Is Forever, in which she was credited as Moira Chen.[citation needed] Gemser continued to do films: at times, she worked with her actor husband, Gabriele Tinti. In the 1990s, she left the movies to do costume designing for film. In addition, she lost her husband, who died of cancer in 1991. Today she lives in retirement and low profile in Rome, but she is still remembered as one of the many beautiful women who played the sensual adventuress Emmanuelle.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Laura Gemser, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia
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