HOLLYWOOD TIDBITS: THE OMEN

For The Omen. one of Richard Donner's first requests to screenwriter David Seltzer was to remove all suggestions of the supernatural, such as cloven-hoofed demons and witches' covens. The golden rule was that nothing was allowed in the script that couldn't happen in real life. The idea was that there should be some degree of doubt over whether or not the main character Thorn was deranged.

Charlton Heston, Roy Scheider, Dick Van Dyke, and William Holden turned down the lead role. Gregory Peck, accepted the lead. One of the reasons why Peck accepted the role of a tortured father, conflicted with guilt, was because he hadn't been around when his son Jonathon committed suicide in 1975. Holden would star in the sequel "Omen II: Damien" (1978).

The film seemed to fall victim to a sinister curse. Peck and Seltzer took separate planes to the UK...yet BOTH planes were struck by lightning. While producer Harvey Bernhard was in Rome, lightning just missed him. Rottweilers hired for the film attacked their trainers. A hotel at which Donner was staying got bombed by the IRA; he was also struck by a car. After Peck canceled another flight, to Israel, the plane he would have chartered crashed...killing all on board. On day one of the shoot, several principal members of the crew survived a head-on car crash. The jinx appeared to persist well into post-production... when special effects artist John Richardson got into a major auto accident and his assistant was cut in half when the vehicle's front wheel sliced through the chassis and into the passenger seat...

STORY BEHIND THE PHOTO: 1998 EMMY AWARDS

Here is a very rare appearance by the Mount Rushmore of television comedy. On September 13, 1998 Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, and Bob Hope appeared together on the Emmy Awards telecast. At the time Milton Berle was 90, Bob Hope was 95, and Sid Caesar was a young 76. Berle passed away first in 2002, Hope in 2003, and Sid lived until 2014...

BLACK COFFEE - SWING'S HIDDEN GEMS

 

BORN ON THIS DAY: ALAN HALE JR

Alan Hale Jr was born on this day in 1921. He was the son of actor Alan Hale Sr. His television career spanned four decades, but he was best known for his secondary lead role as Captain Jonas Grumby, better known as The Skipper, on the 1960s CBS comedy series Gilligan's Island (1964–1967), a role he reprised in three Gilligan's Island television films and two spin-off cartoon series.

Alan Hale MacKahan was born in Los Angeles, California. His father was character actor Rufus Edward MacKahan, who used the stage name of Alan Hale, and his mother was silent film actress Gretchen Hartman. His father appeared in more than 235 films and had a successful screen career, both as a leading man in silent films and as a supporting actor in sound movies. Hale Jr. was in the silent movies as a baby.

In 1931, Hale made his Broadway stage debut in Caught Wet. The play opened on November 4 and closed later that month. He made his screen debut in Wild Boys of the Road which was released in 1933. Although his role was deleted from that film's final release, he still received screen credit for his performance. He later appeared in roles in To the Shores of Tripoli (1942), Yanks Ahoy (1943), Sweetheart of Sigma Chi (1946), and When Willie Comes Marching Home (1950). During the late 1940s and early 1950s, he frequently appeared in Gene Autry films and also had a recurring role from 1950 to 1952 on The Gene Autry Show.

By the early 1950s, Hale began to work in television. In 1952, he landed the starring role in CBS's Biff Baker, U.S.A. The series was canceled in 1954. He continued his career on the small screen by appearing in guest spots on a variety of other series, such as The Range Rider (five times), Annie Oakley, Fireside Theater, Frontier, Matinee Theater, Fury, Northwest Passage, and The Man from Blackhawk.

Despite his growing commitment to roles on television, Hale throughout the 1950s and into 1960s continued his work in supporting roles in feature films. Some of those include The Gunfighter (1950) with Gregory Peck, At Sword's Point (1952) with Cornel Wilde and Maureen O'Hara, The Man Behind the Gun (1953) with Randolph Scott, Silver Lode (1954) with John Payne and Dan Duryea, The Sea Chase (1955) with John Wayne and Lana Turner, The Three Outlaws (1956) with Neville Brand as Butch Cassidy and Hale as the Sundance Kid, The True Story of Jesse James (1957) with Robert Wagner as Jesse James and Jeffrey Hunter as Frank James, and Up Periscope (1959) with James Garner 

In 1964, Hale won the co-starring role as the Skipper on the CBS sitcom Gilligan's Island. The series aired for a total of 98 episodes from 1964 to 1967. His character proved to be the most prominent role of Hale's career, as the show continued in reruns. The popularity of the show typecast its actors, making it difficult for them to successfully pursue different roles. Hale did not mind being so closely identified with the Skipper. According to series creator Sherwood Schwartz, he often visited children in hospitals dressed as the Skipper. And the rest is history...

ETHEL WATERS: A TRAILBLAZING VOICE

Ethel Waters (October 31, 1896 – September 1, 1977) was a pioneering American singer and actress whose life and career broke barriers and reshaped the cultural landscape of the 20th century. Born in Chester, Pennsylvania, Waters overcame a childhood marked by poverty and hardship to become one of the most influential performers in blues, jazz, and theater.

 
Waters was born into extreme poverty and faced a turbulent upbringing. She was married at the age of 12 and began working as a chambermaid in Philadelphia by 13. That same year, she sang publicly for the first time in a local nightclub. By 17, she was performing professionally in Baltimore under the stage name “Sweet Mama Stringbean,” and became the first woman to sing W.C. Handy’s “St. Louis Blues” on stage. Her talent quickly propelled her to New York City, where she performed at Harlem’s Plantation Club in 1925. This led to her Broadway debut and a series of successful stage performances, including the all-Black revue Africana in 1927, Blackbirds in 1930, and Rhapsody in Black in 1931. 

In 1933, Waters broke racial barriers by appearing in Irving Berlin’s As Thousands Cheer, her first show with a mixed-race cast. Her rendition of “Heat Wave” became iconic, and she was soon collaborating with jazz legends like Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman. Songs like “Dinah” and “Stormy Weather” became closely associated with her.

Waters transitioned into dramatic roles with great success. Her first major acting role came in Mamba’s Daughters (1939), followed by a season on Broadway in Cabin in the Sky, which she also starred in for the 1943 film adaptation. Her most acclaimed performance was in The Member of the Wedding (1950), earning her the New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award. She reprised the role in the 1952 film version. Her film career included notable roles in Cairo (1942), Pinky (1949)—for which she received an Academy Award nomination—and The Sound and the Fury (1959). 

Waters was a trailblazer in many respects: she was the first African American woman to star in her own television show and the first to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award. Her autobiography, His Eye Is on the Sparrow (1951), became a bestseller and offered a candid look into her life and faith. 

In the 1960s, Waters became deeply religious and frequently appeared alongside evangelist Billy Graham in his crusades. Though her later years were marked by health challenges, her legacy endured through her groundbreaking achievements in music, theater, and film.

Ethel Waters’s life was a testament to resilience, talent, and the power of breaking barriers. From the slums of Philadelphia to the heights of Broadway and Hollywood, she carved a path for future generations of African American performers and left an indelible mark on American culture...

WHAT A CHARACTER: WARWICK DAVIS

Warwick Davis’s journey to stardom began in the most unexpected way. As a child, he was a passionate Star Wars fan, never imagining he would one day be part of the galaxy far, far away. Born with a rare condition that limited his growth, he grew up in a world where opportunities seemed scarce. But fate intervened when his grandmother heard a radio announcement calling for people under four feet tall to audition for Return of the Jedi. That call would change his life.

At just 11 years old, Davis stepped onto a movie set for the first time, cast as Wicket the Ewok. Despite being surrounded by towering film legends, his presence shone brightly. That small role opened the door to Willow, where he carried an entire fantasy epic on his young shoulders. The film cemented him as a leading man, not just in niche roles, but as a true cinematic hero. Behind the scenes, he worked tirelessly to ensure his performances were never about his height, but about his skill, charisma, and heart.

He played the title character in Willow (1988) and the Leprechaun film series (1993–2003); several characters in the Star Wars film series (1983–2024), most notably Wicket the Ewok; and Professor Filius Flitwick and the goblin Griphook in the Harry Potter film series (2001–2011).

Over the years, Davis faced challenges many never see typecasting, industry prejudice, and the physical demands of certain roles yet he built a career spanning decades. From the Harry Potter series to Life’s Too Short, he showcased both comedic timing and dramatic weight. Off-screen, he became a powerful advocate for actors with disabilities, proving time and again that talent knows no size. His story isn’t just about acting; it’s about persistence, dignity, and rewriting the rules for those who come after him...

THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF BUDDY CLARK