Monday, February 28, 2022
Today would have been the 80th birthday of Rolling Stones founder Brian Jones (1942-1969); this year will also mark the 60th of the Stones as a group. The fact that the Stones outlasted him …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:33AM[SHARE]Sunday, February 27, 2022
To clarify what we intend by the title of this post and what is meant by "us": A member of the human race? Sure. A proponent of (small "L", small "D") liberal democracy? No doubt. Jewish? Tr…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 05:06PM[SHARE]"Happy birthday, Howard Hesseman" " sounds like the title of a Kurt Vonnegut novel, doesn't it? Mr. Hesseman (1940-2022) passed away a month ago, but it happened during a seemingly unprecede…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:42AM[SHARE]Saturday, February 26, 2022
Here's a major British entertainment phenomenon that never seemed to cross the puddle, but is well worth knowing about. Ventriloquist Peter Brough (1916-1999) was a major star of music hall/…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:48AM[SHARE]Appropriately surnamed was Alan, or Al Bridge (1891-1957), whose nearly 300 screen credits are split between B movies (mostly westerns) and main features. And we all know the drill by now " …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:48AM[SHARE]Happy World Sword Swallowers Day! It is scheduled every year for the last Saturday in February. This year's is a special one on Travalanche however as it is the first one to come along since…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:48AM[SHARE]February 26 is a good day for Paulines. It gave us Pauline Musters, the Smallest Woman Ever. And also stage star Pauline Hall (Pauline Fredrika Schmidgall (1860-1919). Like Musters, Hall was…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 07:33AM[SHARE]Friday, February 25, 2022
One week from today (March 4, 2022) will mark the centennial anniversary of the passing of the great black comedian Bert Williams. To observe this milestone I'll be presenting a podcast abou…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 06:24PM[SHARE]A nod today to ventriloquist Ronn Lucas (b. 1954). El Paso native Lucas has been a professional vent for nearly 50 years. Judging strictly from video clips, he just might be the most technic…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:48AM[SHARE]Thursday, February 24, 2022
As we write this, Putin's armies are streaming over Russia's western border in a bid to swallow the sovereign nation of Ukraine. There is no denying that historically Ukraine has long been p…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 03:03PM[SHARE]Having already done a post today with a down ending about a young talented star who died way too young, I contemplated a kicking the can down the road and saving this one on Mitch Hedberg (1…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 02:03PM[SHARE]Pete Duel (1940-1971) would have been 82 today, which seems unthinkable, for like so many who would be so old now (James Dean, JFK) he left this world when he was in the prime of life. In ol…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:42AM[SHARE]Wednesday, February 23, 2022
Today something I almost never do: plug a book that's decades old (as opposed to 150 years old or new). My friend Last-Up Larry kindly gave me some used books a few months back; two were by …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 04:18PM[SHARE]Tuesday, February 22, 2022
Of all things, a rare appeal to support a website I write for that isn't the Travalanche campaign. In point of fact, I'm super proud of many of the articles I've cooked up for Chelsea Commun…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 03:06PM[SHARE]The provocative title of this morning's post happens also to be the name of an actual American court case, one of the most ironically yet aptly named in history, right up there with "Loving …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 03:06PM[SHARE]Monday, February 21, 2022
I sure hope you recall a project I contributed to a while back, organized and presented by the Bowery Alliance of Neighbors, entitled Windows on the Bowery, which put informative placards in…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 12:54PM[SHARE]Playwright Leonard Melfi (1932-2001) would have been 90 years old today. In a time when many people live to that advanced age, it's worth looking at the circumstances as to how and why Melfi…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:37AM[SHARE]Sunday, February 20, 2022
I'm not a sci-fi guy per se, nor even a steam-punk guy, but more like a straight-up, uncut Victoriana guy, which is why you may find posts on H.G. Wells and Jules Verne here on Travalanche, …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 03:12PM[SHARE]A portmanteau post this morning, concerning two different men with a very real connection. The first is English novelist Henry Cockton (1807-1853). I often opine that various public figures …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:54AM[SHARE]We'll expend just a few lines on William Henry ("W.H.") Turner (1845-1941), for that's about all we have! As Delno Fritz also shares this birthday, February 20 is apparently a very good day …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:54AM[SHARE]Saturday, February 19, 2022
Born 100 years ago today: broadcast personality Sandy Becker (George Sanford Becker, 1922-1996). Becker enjoyed both a national and local (NYC) show biz imprint over a quarter century in the…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 11:03AM[SHARE]Friday, February 18, 2022
I few syllables about British-American character actress Queenie Leonard (Pearl Walker, 1905-2002). She's Travalanche's third Queenie, by my count, following on the heels of Queenie Vassar a…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 11:54AM[SHARE]New York Readers of Travalanche, I bring you Glad Tidings! This Sunday at 11am, the Film Forum (Jr) will be showing Charles Lane's wonderful 1989 film Sidewalk Stories, and Mr. Lane will be …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 11:54AM[SHARE]Thursday, February 17, 2022
Arkansas native Arthur Hunnicutt (1910-79) traveled for years with medicine shows and stock companies before making it to Broadway in Love's Old Sweet Song (1940) by William Saroyan, one of …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:24AM[SHARE]Wednesday, February 16, 2022
William LeBaron (1883-1958) is a figure I knew chiefly about as a Hollywood executive who gave a lot of opportunity and support to some of my favorite classic comedians, but it's important t…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:36AM[SHARE]Tuesday, February 15, 2022
Self-evidently, the writing of history is vital because it tells us what happened before we were to witness events. Sometimes, however, it is also useful because we don't mark important deve…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 04:54PM[SHARE]Monday, February 14, 2022
Like any diligent Marx Brothers fan I know about Florence Rice (1907-1974), primarily through her appearance as the ingenue in At the Circus (1939). If you ever wondered how we go from the l…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 10:24AM[SHARE]We in America have no true equivalent to British music hall and television impresario Valentine "Val" Parnell (1892-1972). The closest would be if you crossed Edward Albee (the vaudeville bo…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:18AM[SHARE]Sunday, February 13, 2022
Ernest "Tennessee Ernie" Ford (1919-1991) was the sort of figure we don't seem to have in American pop culture any more: a country artist with mass, mainstream appeal, less because the count…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 01:42PM[SHARE]February 13, 1884 was the likely natal day of Lillian Margaret St. Cyr, though some sources say the less likely 1873, which would have made her 101 at the time of her death. This "Lilly" is …
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 09:24AM[SHARE]Saturday, February 12, 2022
The year 2028 will mark 150 years of acting Adlers in this world. Jerry Adler (b. 1929) is arguably the best known nowadays in strict numerical terms, by virtue of his film and television wo…
SOURCE: Trav S.D. at 06:03PM[SHARE]Loading more stories…
