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Retro Trivia


DownGoesFrazier
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5 hours ago, lavenderblue19 said:

I think I've got it. Sammee Tong?  Born in California and Sammee attended Stanford University. He appeared  with Grant in Only Angels Have Wings, Temple in Stowaway and Lombard in Love Before Breakfast all 1930's films.  His role was as Peter, John Forsythe's housekeeper in the hit tv sit com Bachelor Father . Forsythe of course starred in the Trouble With Harry.  Sammee's last tv show was in Mickey, starring Mickey Rooney, he would be the big 1940's star. Sammee was in It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.  Very Sadly, Sammee is reported to have committed suicide. They say he was in debt to the mob for his gambling debts and I guess that you might have your doubts about the way Sammee Tong died, since you wrote his death was "shrouded in mystery" are you thinking maybe a hit not suicide ?????

Yes, Lav. I know you liked Sammee Tong in "Bachelor Father" as much as I did.

To my knowledge he was the first Chinese-American to appear on the cover of TV Guide and to have articles written about his success in a series on television.

 His character was not subservient but stood up for his own rights--he was not a stereotype.

I'm a Carole Lombard fan so I bought a number of her DVDs and I had a pleasant surprise seeing Sammee in "Love Before Breakfast".

Your turn.

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This child actor appeared in many classic tv shows in the 1950's and 1960's.  One hit show especially, appearing many times.,  He became a very successful documentary producer later on.  His dad was an actor. Who was this child actor, name a hit show that he appeared in many times and extra for his dad ???

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3 hours ago, shutoo said:

Stephen Talbot?  I know his dad was actor Lyle Talbot, and he's remembered for his character of Gilbert on Leave it to Beaver.  

Correct  Shutoo, Stephen Talbot, son of Lyle Talbot. Stephen became a writer and producer of documentaries. He's won Peabody Awards and many other awards for producing documentries for PBS, and he wrote, reported and produced for Frontlne. Very accomplished and talented. Yes he was Gilbert on Leave It To Beaver. Good work, it's your turn to post one  :)

 

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This actress was a regular on a very early sitcom; her film credits include work with Hitchcock ...and a 50's musical:  she may be best known today, however, for a recurring role on a 60's tv  program....and her character's name was the same as in the 50's movie musical she co-starred in!  Name the lady, her early tv show,  60's role...and one of the film roles mentioned.

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On 1/27/2020 at 10:22 AM, shutoo said:

This actress was a regular on a very early sitcom; her film credits include work with Hitchcock ...and a 50's musical:  she may be best known today, however, for a recurring role on a 60's tv  program....and her character's name was the same as in the 50's movie musical she co-starred in!  Name the lady, her early tv show,  60's role...and one of the film roles mentioned.

After a lot of thought I think I've got it. Marion Lorne. She played Bruno Anthony's lunatic mother in Hitchcock's Strangers On a Train. she played Aunt Clara in the Rosalind Russell musical The Girl Rush. she played a teacher on the Wally Cox tv show Mr. Peepers and her most famous role as Aunt Clara on Bewitched. Whew, this was not such an easy one LOL

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16 hours ago, lavenderblue19 said:

After a lot of thought I think I've got it. Marion Lorne

Congrats!  yeah, it was kind of tough...I thought of her because I'd been watching Mr. Peepers  for the first time (thanks to the 'Uncle Earl's Classic tv' website), and her somewhat addled Mrs. Gurney character wasn't a far cry from the befuddled Aunt Clara on Bewitched.

Your thread, lavenderblue!

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12 minutes ago, MilesArcher said:

Could it be "American Bandstand"? 

 

It could be American Bandstand and is.  "The Committee"  was a nickname given to Bob Clayton and Justine Carrelli, Ken Rossi and Arlene Sullivan who were regulars who danced daily on American Bandstand. These teens received 15,000 Fan Letters weekly!  American Bandstand was on tv for 37 years. 1952-1989. Dick Clark hosted beginning in 1956. Good work Miles. Your thread :)

 

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On 2/3/2020 at 4:20 PM, lavenderblue19 said:

It could be American Bandstand and is.  "The Committee"  was a nickname given to Bob Clayton and Justine Carrelli, Ken Rossi and Arlene Sullivan who were regulars who danced daily on American Bandstand. These teens received 15,000 Fan Letters weekly!  American Bandstand was on tv for 37 years. 1952-1989. Dick Clark hosted beginning in 1956. Good work Miles. Your thread :)

 

"it's got a good beat and it's easy to dance to.  I'll give it an 85".  That's the thing I'll always remember about "American Bandstand".  It was on weekdays at 4 PM from Philadelphia.  There was a series called "American Dream" that was on in the early 2000's about a family in Philadelphia whose oldest daughter, played by Brittany Snow, wanted to be an "American Bandstand" dancer.  They made sure that there were plenty of old songs from that era on the show.

Now, we just had the anniversary of "The Day The Music Died" when Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper were killed in a plane crash.  There was only room on the plane for three passengers.  Another singer gave up his seat to  The Big Bopper, whose name was J.P. Richardson, because Richardson had the flu.  That way Richardson could get to their destination early and nurse his condition.  Who was that now famous singer/musician who gave up his seat? 

 

 

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4 hours ago, MilesArcher said:

"it's got a good beat and it's easy to dance to.  I'll give it an 85".  That's the thing I'll always remember about "American Bandstand".  It was on weekdays at 4 PM from Philadelphia.  There was a series called "American Dream" that was on in the early 2000's about a family in Philadelphia whose oldest daughter, played by Brittany Snow, wanted to be an "American Bandstand" dancer.  They made sure that there were plenty of old songs from that era on the show.

Now, we just had the anniversary of "The Day The Music Died" when Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper were killed in a plane crash.  There was only room on the plane for three passengers.  Another singer gave up his seat to  The Big Bopper, whose name was J.P. Richardson, because Richardson had the flu.  That way Richardson could get to their destination early and nurse his condition.  Who was that now famous singer/musician who gave up his seat? 

 

 

"The Wanderer" himself Dion DiMucci.  And I don't know what happened to The Belmonts. LOL

Seriously, years later Dion still felt guilty about the whole thing and had some profound bouts of depression.

 

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Sorry Princess.  It's not Dion.  This man was not yet a star at the time, but later he became a big star in country music.  He also sang the theme song and served as narrator for a popular TV series in the late 70's and 80's.  At the time of the plane crash, he was a member of Buddy Holly's band, and yes, he felt guilty about the incident for the rest of his life.   Now, can you name him?

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2 minutes ago, MilesArcher said:

Sorry Princess.  It's not Dion.  This man was not yet a star at the time, but later he became a big star in country music.  He also sang the theme song and served as narrator for a popular TV series in the late 70's and 80's.  At the time of the plane crash, he was a member of Buddy Holly's band, and yes, he felt guilt about the incident for the rest of his life.   Now, can you name him?

I've always thought it was Waylon Jennings?

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Yes, it is Waylon Jennings.  He was a twenty-one year old bass guitar player in Buddy Holly's band at the time, who gave up his seat to The Big Bopper.  He felt terrible guilt the rest of his life, thinking that he should have died in the crash.  He went on to be a leader of what became known as "Outlaw Country"music.  He sang the theme song and served as  narrator for "The Dukes Of Hazzard" TV series.    Here is an audio clip:

 

Nice work, Lavender.  You're up next.

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Thanks Miles :)

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This classic comedy series only lasted 1 season. At first the ratings were poor but as the season progressed it picked up an audience and beat out the 2 very popular shows it was up against in that time slot. It's a mystery why it was canceled. The 2 stars of this series played buddies and co-workers. In the tv show one character was married, the other not. TV show and the 2 stars ??

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