In Memoriam

A Final Look...  Ned Wertimer Tony Lip Conrad Bain Patty Andrews Robin Sachs Dale Robertson Bonnie Franklin Malachi Throne Richard Griffiths Milo O'Shea Annette Funicello Jonathan Winters Frank Bank Allan Arbus Deanna Durbin Jacqueline Brookes Jeanne Cooper Steve Forrest Jean Stapleton Esther Williams Maxine Stuart Harry Lewis James Gandolfini Joe Conley Dennis Burkley Dennis Farina Eileen Brennan Michael Ansara Eydie Gorme Henry Polic II Lee Thompson Young Julie Harris Jane Connell Ed Lauter Marcia Wallace Shirley Mitchell Al Ruscio Jane Kean Paul Walker Danny Wells Eleanor Parker Audrey Totter Peter O'Toole Joan Fontaine 

Happy Birthday! Jeanette Nolan (1911) Bert Parks (1914) Jack Lord (1920) Macon McCalman (1932) At Rest: Lew Ayres (1996) Artie Shaw (2004) Bernie Hamilton (2008)

December 29, 1887 - February 3, 1960 In Memoriam Remembers: Pierre Watkin   

Happy Birthday! Cliff Arquette (1905) Lew Ayres (1908) Lou Jacobi (1913) Andrew Duggan (1923) At Rest: William Demarest (1983) Clayton Moore (1999) Jerry Orbach (2004)

Happy Birthday! Sydney Greenstreet (1879) Marlene Dietrich (1901) Cathy Lewis (1916) Helen Page Camp (1930)

Happy Birthday! Elisha Cook, Jr. (1903) Richard Widmark (1914) Steve Allen (1921) Alan King (1927) At Rest: Jack Benny (1974) Elsa Lanchester (1986) Vincent Schiavelli (2005)

Merry Christmas! Happy Birthday! Humphrey Bogart (1899) Barton MacLane (1902) Rod Serling (1924) Mabel King (1932) Royce D. Applegate (1939) At Rest: W.C. Fields (1946) Cheerio Meredith (1964) Charlie Chaplin (1977) Joan Blondell (1979) Betty Garde (1989) Dean Martin (1995) Denver Pyle (1997) Hurd Hatfield (1998) Richard Paul (1998) Eartha Kitt (2008)

Happy Birthday! Ava Gardner (1922)   At Rest: Nana Bryant (1955) Peter Lawford (1984) Charles Durning (2012) Jack Klugman (2012)

Happy Birthday! James Gregory (1911) Alan North (1920) Harry Guardino (1925) Corey Haim (1971)   At Rest: Jack Webb (1982) Billy Barty (2000)

Happy Birthday! Barbara Billingsley (1915) Gene Rayburn (1917) Ruth Roman (1922) Lynne Thigpen (1948) At Rest: Don DeFore (1993) Butterfly McQueen (1995) Michelle Thomas (1998)

Happy Birthday! Rolly Bester (1917) Paul Winchell (1922) At Rest: Richard Long (1974)

Happy Birthday! Charley Grapewin (1869 or 1875) Irene Dunne (1898) Dennis Morgan (1908) Ann Richards (1917) Audrey Totter (1920) Charita Bauer (1922) Charlie Callas (1924 or 1927) Mala Powers (1931) Kathryn Joosten (1939) John Spencer (1946) At Rest: Madge Sinclair (1995) Foster Brooks (2001) Arnold Stang (2009) Brittany Murphy (2009) Steve Landesberg (2010)

Happy Birthday! Mabel Paige (1880) Gary Morton (1924) Wayne Tippit (1932) Robert Urich (1946) At Rest: Desmond Llewelyn (1999) Hope Lange (2003)

Happy Birthday! Bill Zuckert (1915) Betty Grable (1916) Ossie Davis (1917) Hal Kanter (1918) At Rest: Mark Goodson (1992) Nick Stewart (2000) Joseph Barbera (2006) Majel Barrett (2008) Connie Hines (2009)

Happy Birthday! Richard Long (1927) George Lindsey (1928) Christopher Cazenove (1943) At Rest: Dana Andrews (1992)

December 16, 1890 - January 1, 1972 She was Connie Brooks' landlady, Mrs. Margaret Davis on the radio, television and film versions of "Our Miss Brooks." In Memoriam Remembers: Jane Morgan

Happy Birthday! Jeff Chandler (1918) Kasey Rogers (1925) At Rest: Charles Laughton (1962) Walt Disney (1966)

Happy Birthday! Lillian Randolph (1898) Frances Bavier (1902) Morey Amsterdam (1908) Dan Dailey (1915) June Taylor (1917) George Furth (1932) Lee Remick (1935) Thuy Trang (1973) At Rest: William Bendix (1964) Myrna Loy (1993) Norman Fell (1998) Jeanne Crain (2003) Mike Evans (2006)

Happy Birthday! Van Heflin (1910) John Hart (1917) Robert Prosky (1930) At Rest: Tim Moore (1958) Spencer Williams, Jr. (1969)

Happy Birthday! Edward G. Robinson (1893) Frank Sinatra (1915) Ed Koch (1924) At Rest: Johnny Lee (1965) Tallulah Bankhead (1968) Jack Cassidy (1976) Anne Baxter (1985) Peter Boyle (2006) Van Johnson (2008)  

Happy Birthday! Bella Bruck (1911) Marie Windsor (1919) Eddie Firestone (1920) Vampira (1922) Dick Tufeld (1926) Ron Carey (1935) Tom Fuccello (1936) At Rest: David Lewis (2000)

Happy Birthday! Ray Collins (1889) Moyna MacGill (1895) Harold Gould (1923) Jean Byron (1925) Dan Blocker (1928) Tommy Rettig (1941) Michael Clarke Duncan (1957) At Rest: Ed Wood (1978) Freeman F. Gosden (1982) Richard Pryor (2005)

Happy Birthday! Tim Moore (1887) Emmett Kelly (1898) Margaret Hamilton (1902) Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. (1909) Broderick Crawford (1911) Frances Reid (1914) Redd Foxx (1922) Paddi Edwards (1931) At Rest: Louella Parsons (1972) Vincent Gardenia (1992) Gene Barry (2009)

Happy Birthday! Frank Faylen (1905) Lee J. Cobb (1911) Sammy Davis, Jr. (1925) Flip Wilson (1933) David Carradine (1936)

Happy Birthday! Clarence Nash (1904) Hurd Hatfield (1917) Ted Knight (1923) At Rest: Harry Morgan (2011)

Happy Birthday! Agnes Moorehead (1900) George Blair (1905) Wally Cox (1924)   At Rest: Frances Bavier (1989) Don Ameche (1993) Werner Klemperer (2000)

Happy Birthday! Walt Disney (1901) Otto Preminger (1905) Alvy Moore (1921) Carrie Hamilton (1963) At Rest: Robert Karvelas (1991) Beverly Garland (2008) 

Happy Birthday! Isabel Randolph (1889) Deanna Durbin (1921) 

Happy Birthday! Len Lesser (1922) At Rest: Roxie Roker (1995) Madeline Kahn (1999) Glenn Quinn (2002) Richard Todd (2009) 

 "The Waltons" which ran on CBS from 1972 to 1981 actually began as a two hour television movie in 1971 called "The Homecoming: A Christmas Story." In the film, Patricia Neal (1926-2010) and Andrew Duggan (1923-1988) played John and Olivia Walton respectively.  Miss Michael Learned (1939- ) and Ralph Waite (1928- ) took over the roles on the weekly series.  They also appeared in the two-hour television reunion films of the 1980's and 1990's.  Edgar Bergen (1903-1978) played Grandpa Zebulon Walton in the film and Will Geer (1902-1978) played him for the show's first six seasons (1972-1978).  Geer passed away in between the conclusion of the 1977-1978 season and the beginning of the 1978-1979 season. Ellen Corby (1911-1999) played Grandma Esther Walton in the 1971 tele-film and the television series.  Corby suffered a massive stroke in late 1976 and was absent during the final weeks of season five and all of season six except for ...

Happy Birthday! Robert F. Simon (1908) Virginia Carroll (1913) Bill Erwin (1914) Ray Walston (1914) Jonathan Frid (1924) Julie Harris (1925) At Rest: Desi Arnaz (1986) Bob Cummings (1990) 

Happy Birthday! Mary Martin (1913) Joanne Siegel (1917) Malachi Throne (1928) David Doyle (1929) Richard Pryor (1940) At Rest: Paul Benedict (2008) Alan Sues (2011) 

Happy Birthday! Marco Rizo (1915) Virginia Mayo (1920) Richard Crenna (1926) Dick Clark (1929) At Rest: Arthur Q. Bryan (1959) Zeppo Marx (1979) 

Happy Birthday! Zamah Cunningham (1892) Luis Van Rooten (1906) Fran Ryan (1916) At Rest: Natalie Wood (1981) Cary Grant (1986) Ralph Bellamy (1991) Gene Rayburn (1999) 

April 10, 1923 - November 26, 2013 In Memoriam Remembers: Jane Kean 

Happy Birthday! Dick Powell (1901) Harry Bartell (1913) Elliott Lewis (1917) Hope Lange (1931) Gloria Winters (1931) At Rest: Rosalind Russell (1976) Garry Moore (1993) Terry Lester (2003) Leslie Nielsen (2010) 

Happy Birthday! Whitney Ellsworth (1908) Stephen Elliott (1918) Bruce Lee (1940) At Rest: David White (1990) Billie Bird (2002) 

Happy Birthday! Charles Schulz (1922) Robert Goulet (1933) Marian Mercer (1935) 

Happy Birthday! Ricardo Montalban (1920) At Rest: Laurence Harvey (1973) Jack Albertson (1981) Flip Wilson (1998) 

Happy Birthday! Cathleen Nesbitt (1888) Bernard Lenrow (1903) Don MacLaughlin (1906 or 1907) Howard Duff (1913) Geraldine Fitzgerald (1913) At Rest: Richard Carlson (1977) Jeffrey Lynn (1995) Pat Morita (2005) 

Happy Birthday! Boris Karloff (1887) Harpo Marx (1888) Nana Bryant (1888) George O'Hanlon (1912) Michael Gough (1916) Steve Landesberg (1936) At Rest: Shemp Howard (1955) Marie Wilson (1972) Larry Hagman (2012) 

Happy Birthday! Elizabeth Patterson (1875) Roland Winters (1904) Mary Jackson (1910) Rodney Dangerfield (1921) Geraldine Page (1924) At Rest: Mae West (1980) Michael Conrad (1983) Sterling Holloway (1992) Parley Baer (2002) Also today we remember one of America's greatest heartbreaks fifty years later... President John F. Kennedy May 29, 1917 - November 22, 1963

 As you may or may not know the great Shirley Mitchell passed away on November 11, 2013 at the age of 94.  Ms. Mitchell's career was long and amazing, she appeared on just about every program of the 1950's-1970's.  At the time of her death she was the final surviving player from the "I Love Lucy" show.  In honor of Ms. Mitchell this post will not only remember her but also all the other supporting players that made "I Love Lucy" a strong program.  Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance and William Frawley have already been covered extensively on this blog so I will skip them this time around. Shirley Mitchell played Lucy's friend Marion Strong in three episodes during the 1953-1954 season. Doris Singleton (1919-2013) played Lucy's friend/nemesis Carolyn Appleby in ten episodes during the shows run Elvia Allman (1904-1992) played three different parts the candy factory forewoman in "Job Switching", Minnie Finch's neighb...

Happy Birthday! Reginald Denny (1891) Evelyn Keyes (1916) Phyllis Thaxter (1919) Danny Dayton (1923) Franklin Cover (1928) Richard Dawson (1932) 

Happy Birthday!  Clifton Webb (1889) Trevor Bardette (1902) Eleanor Audley (1905) Tommy Dorsey (1905) Tom Villard (1953)

Happy Birthday! Imogene Coca (1908) Arthur Peterson (1912) Jocelyn Brando (1919) Malcolm Mealey (1920) At Rest: James Coburn (2002) 

Happy Birthday! Byron Keith (1917) Rock Hudson (1925) Rusty Burrell (1925) At Rest: Esther Rolle (1998) 

Happy Birthday! Richard Hale (1892) Jim Jordan (1896) Burgess Meredith (1907) George O. Petrie (1912) Daws Butler (1916) Guy Stockwell (1934) At Rest: Clark Gable (1960) William Holden (1981) Ralph Edwards (2005) 

Happy Birthday! Jack Ingram (1902) Carol Bruce (1919) Arnold Johnson (1921) Barbara Cason (1928) Whitman Mayo (1930) At Rest: Tyrone Power (1958) 

Happy Birthday! Dick Powell (1904) Louise Brooks (1906) Rosemary DeCamp (1910) Sherwood Schwartz (1916) Brian Keith (1921) Veronica Lake (1922) McLean Stevenson (1927) Robert Ginty (1948) At Rest: Eddie Bracken (2002) 

November 4, 1919 - November 11, 2013 In Memoriam Remembers: Shirley Mitchell 

Happy Birthday! Hermione Baddeley (1906) Leonard Penn (1907) Robert Sterling (1917) Jack Elam (1920) Jack Narz (1922) Richard Mulligan (1932) Dack Rambo (1941) 

Happy Birthday! Kim Hunter (1922) William Lanteau (1922) Grace Kelly (1929) At Rest: Eve Arden (1990) Penny Singleton (2003) 

Remembering everyone (both past and present) who served this country in order to keep us free and safe.  You are all heroes! Happy Birthday! Jess Oppenheimer (1913) Jonathan Winters (1925) Vincent Schiavelli (1948) 

Happy Birthday! Claude Rains (1889) Harry Andrews (1911) George Fenneman (1919) Richard Burton (1925) Alaina Reed-Hall (1946) Brittany Murphy (1977) 

Happy Birthday! Ed Wynn (1886) Lou Lubin (1895) Paulene Myers (1913) Hady Lamarr (1914) Dorothy Dandridge (1922) 

Happy Birthday! June Havoc (1912) Robert Strauss (1913) Esther Rolle (1920) Darla Hood (1931) 

November 7, 1964 - May 8, 1999 In Memoriam Remembers: Dana Plato 

Happy Birthday! Eric Wilton (1882) Jonathan Harris (1914) Also today marks the 56th anniversary of the show that directly followed "I Love Lucy."  Originally known as "The Ford Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show" it was later called "Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse presents the Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show" and then finally "The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour" in reruns.  Its first installment, "Lucy Takes a Cruise to Havana", originally aired on November 6, 1957.  This episode was 75 minutes long and featured several guest stars.  Here is a look back at the cast. Lucille Ball (1911-1989) Desi Arnaz (1917-1986) Vivian Vance (1909-1979) William Frawley (1887-1966) Special Guest Stars Hedda Hopper (1885-1966) as herself Rudy Vallee (1901-1986) as himself Cesar Romero (1907-1994) as Carlos Garcia Ann Sothern (1909-2001) as Susie MacNamara Frank Nelson (1911-1986) as the Cruise Director Sothern crossed over from her sh...

Happy Birthday! Natalie Schafer (1900) Joel McCrea (1905) Roy Rogers (1911) John McGiver (1913) Vivien Leigh (1913) Elois Jenssen (1922) Herbert Edelman (1933) At Rest: Ward Bond (1960) Stafford Repp (1974) Fred MacMurray (1991) Jill Clayburgh (2010) 

Happy Birthday! Ian Wolfe (1896) Frank Jenks (1902) Walter Cronkite (1916) Art Carney (1918) Martin Balsam (1919) Kate Reid (1930) Noam Pitlik (1932) Linda Gary (1944) At Rest: Sheree North (2005) Andy Rooney (2011) 

 Happy Birthday! Gilbert Mack (1912) Charles Bronson (1921) Leonard Stone (1923) Aneta Corsaut (1933) Mike Evans (1949) Philip J. Amelio II (1977) At Rest: Mary Martin (1990) Bob Kane (1998) Jonathan Harris (2002)

Happy Birthday! Burt Lancaster (1913) Ann Rutherford (1917) Shepard Menken (1921) At Rest: Paul Frees (1986) Sid Melton (2011) 

Happy Birthday! Jeff Richards (1924) Dean Miller (1924) Emmaline Henry (1928) Marcia Wallace (1942) At Rest: Phil Silvers (1985) Noah Beery, Jr. (1994) 

Happy Birthday! Ethel Waters (1896) Dale Evans (1912) Barbara Bel Geddes (1922) Michael Landon (1936) John Candy (1950) At Rest: John Houseman (1988) River Phoenix (1993) Rosalind Cash (1995) 

Happy Birthday! Ruth Gordon (1896) Hugh Reilly (1915) Hamilton Camp (1934) Ed Lauter (1938) At Rest: Steve Allen (2000) Robert Goulet (2007) 

Happy Birthday! Fanny Brice (1891) Hope Emerson (1897) Lew Parker (1907 or 1910) Neal Hefti (1922) At Rest: Lloyd Bochner (2005) 

 Happy Birthday! Elsa Lanchester (1902) Douglas Seale (1913) Dody Goodman (1914) Jack Soo (1917)

This is yet another post I am sad to write... I just saw this lady last week on reruns of "The $25,000 Pyramid."  So sad... I don't think there is any question that she is best known as Carol Bondurant on "The Bob Newhart Show" from 1972 to 1978 and as the voice of Edna Krabappel on "The Simpsons" a role which she played on a recurring basis from 1990 until her passing.  Her role as Mrs. Krabappel earned her an Emmy win in 1992. In 2001 she also played Maggie Hawley on the President George W. Bush spoof series "That's My Bush!" Among her television guest work credits are appearances on "Bewitched", "The Brady Bunch", "The Love Boat", "Fantasy Island", "Magnum, P.I.", "Murder, She Wrote", "Gimme a Break!", "ALF", "Night Court", "Full House", "The Young and The Restless", "Murphy Brown" and "7th Heaven....

Happy Birthday! Jack Carson (1910) Frederick De Cordova (1910) Teresa Wright (1918) Ned Wertimer (1923) Carrie Snodgress (1945) At Rest: Lew Parker (1972) Allan "Rocky" Lane (1973) Rex Stout (1975) Morey Amsterdam (1996)