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1-23 of 23
- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Alexis Merizalde Knapp hails from Allegheny in Pennsylvania. She worked as a model before breaking into acting, starting with small roles in Couples Retreat (2009) and Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010). She also came to public attention during a high-profile relationship with Ryan Phillippe, which ended on September 2010. On July 2011, Knapp gave birth to her first child, a girl named Kailani Merizalde Phillippe-Knapp.- Director
- Writer
- Actress
Lois Weber, who had been a street-corner evangelist before entering motion pictures in 1905, became the first American woman movie director of note, and a major one at that. Herbert Blaché, the husband of Frenchwoman Alice Guy, the first woman to direct a motion picture (and arguably, the first director of either gender to helm a fictional narrative film), cast her in the lead of "Hypocrites" (1908). Weber first got behind the camera on A Heroine of '76 (1911), a silent that was co-directed by pioneering American director Edwin S. Porter and actor Phillips Smalley, who played George Washington. She also starred in the picture.
In 1914, a year in which she helmed 27 movies, Weber co-directed William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice (1914) with Smalley, who also played Shylock, making her the first woman to direct a feature-length film in the US. (Jeanie Macpherson, who would play a major role in cinema as Cecil B. DeMille's favorite screenwriter, also acted in the film).
In the spirit of her evangelism, she began directing, writing and then producing films of social import, dealing with such themes as abortion, alcoholism, birth control, drug addiction and prostitution. By 1916 she had established herself as the top director at Universal Film Manufacturing (now Universal Studios), the top studio in America at the time, making her the highest-paid director in the world. The following year she formed Lois Weber Productions.
She directed over 100 films, but her production company went bankrupt in the 1920s as her career faltered. She did not make the transition to sound, although she did make one talkie, White Heat (1934), in 1934.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Stanley Fields was born on 20 May 1883 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor, known for Little Caesar (1931), Algiers (1938) and Hell's Kitchen (1939). He was married to Alta Bailey. He died on 23 April 1941 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Additional Crew
- Actress
- Writer
American dancer and choreographer Martha Graham was a revolutionary artist of modern dance in the early 20th century. Born in Allegheny, a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in May 1894, her family moved to California when she was 10. She was inspired at that early age to become a dancer when she saw Ruth St. Denis perform her exotic "Epytia" modern dance in 1914. After much study, Graham brought a different dynamics and interpretation to modern dance, one of sharp angles and natural motion. Graham's father was an "alienist," a term used at the turn of the century describe a physician who specialized in human psychology. Dr. Graham was interested in the way people used their bodies, and that interest was passed on to his eldest daughter. Martha frequently repeated her father's maxim of "Movement never lies." Her abstract approach to dance and her minimal use of costumes and set decorations was disconcerting to audiences accustomed to the lovely fluid movements of modern dance introduced earlier by the likes of Isadora Duncan (many critics accused Graham of making dance "ugly"). What Graham wanted to evoke with her style of dance was a heightened awareness of life. She eventually developed a strong following and won over the critics. Her dance themes were inspired by America's past, biblical stories, historical figures, classical mythology, primitive rituals, and surprisingly, psychoanalyst Carl Jung's writings, Emily Dickinson's poems, Georgia O'Keeffe's paintings, and Zen Buddhism. She danced with such a passion that her presence on stage was electrifying. Graham founded the Dance Repertory Theater in New York in 1930. She was the first dancer to receive a Guggenheim fellowship in 1932. From 1931 to 1935, Graham toured the United States in the production "Electra." She was fascinated by different cultures, and her interest in Native Americans of the southwest United States was first embodied in the production "Primitive Mysteries." In 1937, she danced for President Franklin D. Roosevelt at the White House. Her most famous dance, "Appalachian Spring," was first performed in 1944. Graham gave her last stage performance in 1968, at age 74. In all, she produced 181 original ballets. A year before her death in 1990, she choreographed, at age 95, Scott Joplin's "Maple Leaf Rag"; the show featured costumes by Calvin Klein.- Actor
- Composer
- Writer
Dan Smyers was born on 16 August 1987 in Wexford, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, USA. He is an actor and composer, known for Dan + Shay: Tequila (2018), Dan + Shay & Justin Bieber: 10,000 Hours (2019) and Dan + Shay: From the Ground Up (2016).- Actor
- Soundtrack
Dancer Hal Skelly was born in Wisconsin in 1892, he left home at 15 to join a circus, went with 17 to comedy, toured with light opera China and Japan, joined after that Dockstader's minstrels, made his Broadway debut in 1918 in "Fiddlers Three". His biggest success was the play "Burlesque", what was filmed as "Dance of Life". He died in 1934, when the car of his friend in which he was traveling was hit by a train on a crossing.- Harry Todd was born on 13 December 1863 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor, known for One Is Guilty (1934), Ten Nights in a Bar-Room (1931) and Tea: With a Kick! (1923). He was married to Margaret Joslin. He died on 15 February 1935 in Glendale, California, USA.
- Writer
- Producer
Lesser Samuels was born on 26 July 1894 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for Ace in the Hole (1951), No Way Out (1950) and The Silver Chalice (1954). He died on 22 December 1980 in Winchester, Massachusetts, USA.- Writer
- Actress
Gertrude Stein was the fifth child in the Daniel and Amelia Stein family. She grew up in a trilingual environment, spending her childhood in Vienna and Paris, then living in California. She graduated from Radcliffe College and went to the Medical School at Johns Hopkins University for 2 years. She continued her medical studies in Europe, but traveling and writing eventually took over. Her first novel "Q.E.D." was written in New York, but was published only after her death under the title "Things As They Are".
Gertrude Stein lived in Paris for 40 years, becoming a patron of artists Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, Henri Matisse, Paul Cezanne, and others. She amassed an enormous collection of art, that is now displayed in major museums. Her 1906 portrait by Pablo Picasso was finished after more than 50 sittings. She experimented with stream-of-consciousness in her own deconstructive style, and by using words as rhythmical brush-strokes. She was called a "literary cubist", being compared to the cubist artists for her ability of projecting reality beyond reality. Her literary secretary, Alice B. Toklas, was a lifetime companion. They traveled in Spain together, while Stein worked on the book "Tender Buttons" (1914). During WWI Stein was driving her Ford and helping the wounded soldiers. She and Alice were both honored for this work.
After WWI Gertrude Stein became the center of the American expatriate community in Paris. She was the catalyst in the development of modern artists and writers. Her home was the meeting place for such artists and writers, as Pablo Picasso, Ernest Hemingway, Thornton Wilder and F. Scott Fitzgerald. Ernest Hemingway confessed on meeting Stein..."It was a vital day for me when I stumbled upon you." She was credited for dubbing them as "The Lost Generation".
"The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas" (1933) became a best seller and turned Stein into a celebrity. Her lecture tour of the United States was a great success, and she was praised by Thornton Wilder, Sherwood Anderson, and Charles Chaplin. Back in Paris she went through changes of moving to a new apartment, and soon moving out of Paris before the Nazi occupation in WWII. Gertrude Stein and Alice, being both Jewish, barely escaped a concentration camp, protected by their French neighbors. They returned to Paris in 1944 and found the precious art collection untouched.
Her health declined and she was diagnosed with colon cancer. When rushed into emergency surgery her last words to Alice were: "What is the answer?" ...without a reply, "In that case...what is the question?"- Mary Roberts Rinehart was born on 12 August 1876 in Allegheny City [now North Side, Pittsburgh], Pennsylvania, USA. She was a writer, known for The Nurse's Secret (1941), The Bat Whispers (1930) and Tish (1942). She was married to Stanley Rinehart. She died on 22 September 1958 in New York City, New York, USA.
- Special Effects
- Actor
- Additional Crew
Regis Survinski was born on 2 December 1928 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor, known for Night of the Living Dead (1968), The Crazies (1973) and Effects (1979). He died on 2 November 2012 in Pennsylvania, USA.- Writer
- Actor
Clement Biddle Wood was born on 3 September 1925 in Bryn Mawr, Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. He was a writer and actor, known for Barbarella (1968), The Day and the Hour (1963) and The Woman in Red Boots (1974). He was married to Jane Harvey. He died on 4 December 1994 in Water Hill, New York, USA.- Producer
- Additional Crew
- Production Manager
Herbert W. Browar was born on 21 April 1918 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. He was a producer and production manager, known for Panic! (1957), Mister Ed (1961) and Flight (1958). He died on 19 May 2001 in Burbank, California, USA.- Bartley Campbell was born on 12 August 1843 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. He was a writer, known for The Crucible of Life (1918), My Partner (1916) and The Galley Slave (1915). He died on 30 July 1888 in Middletown, New York, USA.
- Margaret Deland was born on 23 February 1857 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. She was a writer, known for Smouldering Fires (1925), The Awakening of Helena Ritchie (1916) and The Iron Woman (1916). She died on 13 January 1945 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
- Actor
- Stunts
Bob Pepper was born on 10 June 1915 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor, known for The Hidden Eye (1945). He died on 27 October 1964 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Cyrus Brady, an Episcopal minister, was a successful author, with over 100 books to his credit, and went to work for Vitagraph in 1914 as a screenwriter. He wrote everything from romances to action pictures, and even took on the serial genre. His brother, Jasper Ewing Brady, was also a screenwriter, first for Vitagraph and then for Metro. Cyrus died in Yonkers, NY, in 1920.
- Donnie Lee was born in Allegheny, Virginia. His mother is a casting director and his father works for the Electric Company in Hot Springs, Virginia. His parents met while his mother was working on a film in the Hot Springs area. Between his two parents Donnie has 2 half sisters and 5 half brothers. Donnie grew up on sets and has had many parts in many films as background. His love for film extends beyond acting to filmmaking and he has several films that are running on YouTube. One series of shorts called Just Another Tuesday Night is an example of his incredible sense of humor.
- Bob Reel McKee was born on 18 October 1901 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor, known for Happy Days (1929) and Framed! (1931). He died on 30 May 1958 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA.
- Elizabeth Fisher was born on 1 April 1913 in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, USA. She was married to Zachary Fisher. She died on 12 January 2004 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA.
- Eugene Grennan was born on 11 August 1914 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. He died on 14 December 2001 in Tacoma, Washington, USA.
- Art Director
- Art Department
- Set Decorator
Charles M. Kirk was born on 16 May 1895 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an art director and set decorator, known for Christopher Strong (1933), Seven Keys to Baldpate (1935) and Romance in Manhattan (1934). He died on 10 December 1969 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Lulu Glaser was born on 2 June 1874 in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. She was an actress, known for Love's Pilgrimage to America (1916), How Molly Malone Made Good (1915) and Pathé's Weekly, No. 63 (1913). She was married to Tom Richards and Ralph Herz. She died on 5 September 1958 in Norwalk, Connecticut, USA.