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Bela Lugosi was born Béla Ferenc Dezsö Blaskó on October 20, 1882, Lugos, Hungary, Austria-Hungary (now Lugoj, Romania), to Paula de Vojnich and István Blaskó, a banker. He was the youngest of four children. During WWI, he volunteered and was commissioned as an infantry lieutenant, and was wounded three times.
A distinguished stage actor in his native Hungary, Austria-Hungary, he began his stage career in 1901 and started appearing in films during World War I, fleeing to Germany in 1919 as a result of his left-wing political activity (he organized an actors' union). In 1920 he emigrated to the US and made a living as a character actor, shooting to fame when he played Count Dracula in the legendary 1927 Broadway stage adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel. It ran for three years, and was subsequently, and memorably, filmed by Tod Browning in 1931, establishing Lugosi as one of the screen's greatest personifications of pure evil. Also in 1931, he became a U.S. citizen. Sadly, his reputation rapidly declined, mainly because he had been blacklisted by the main studios and had no choice but to accept any part (and script) handed to him, and ended up playing parodies of his greatest role, in low-grade poverty row films. Due to shady blacklisting among the top Hollywood studio executives, he refused to sell out or to compromise his integrity, and therefore ended his career working for the legendary Worst Director of All Time, Edward D. Wood Jr..
Lugosi was married to Ilona Szmik (1917 - 1920), Ilona von Montagh (? - ?), and Lillian Arch (1933 - 1951). He is the father of Bela Lugosi Jr. (1938). Lugosi helped organize the Screen Actors Guild in the mid-'30s, joining as member number 28.
Bela Lugosi died of a heart attack August 16, 1956. He was buried in a Dracula costume, including a cape, but not the ones used in the 1931 film, contrary to popular--but unfounded--rumors.- Actor
- Producer
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Since his screen debut as a young Amish farmer in Peter Weir's Witness (1985), Viggo Mortensen's career has been marked by a steady string of well-rounded performances.
Mortensen was born in New York City, to Grace Gamble (Atkinson) and Viggo Peter Mortensen, Sr. His father was Danish, his mother was American, and his maternal grandfather was Canadian. His parents met in Norway. They wed and moved to New York, where Viggo, Jr. was born, before moving to South America, where Viggo, Sr. managed chicken farms and ranches in Venezuela and Argentina. Two more sons were born, Charles and Walter, before the marriage grew increasingly unhappy. When Viggo was seven, his parents sent him to the St. Paul's boarding school, in the Córdoba Sierras, in Argentina. Then, at age eleven, his parents divorced. His mother moved herself and the children back to her home state of New York.
Viggo attended Watertown High School, and became a very good student and athlete. He graduated in 1976 and went on to St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York. After graduation, he moved to Denmark - driven by the need for a defining purpose in life. He began writing poetry and short stories while working many odd jobs, from dock worker to flower seller. In 1982, he fell in love and followed his girlfriend back to New York City, hoping for a long romance and a writing career. He got neither. In New York, Viggo found work waiting tables and tending bar and began taking acting classes, studying with Warren Robertson. He appeared in several plays and movies, and eventually moved to Los Angeles, where his performance in "Bent" at the Coast Playhouse earned him a Drama-logue Critic's Award.
He made his film debut with a small part in Witness (1985). He appeared in Salvation! (1987) and married his co-star, Exene Cervenka. The two had a son, Henry Mortensen. But after nearly eleven years of marriage, the couple divorced.
In 1999, Viggo got a phone call about a movie he did not know anything about: "The Lord of the Rings." At first, he didn't want to do it, because it would mean time away from his son. But Henry, a big fan of the books, told his father he shouldn't turn down the role. Viggo accepted the part and immediately began work on the project, which was already underway. Eventually, the success of "The Lord of the Rings" made him a household name - a difficult consequence for the ever private and introspective Viggo.
Critics have continually recognized his work in over thirty movies, including such diverse projects as Jane Campion's The Portrait of a Lady (1996), Sean Penn's The Indian Runner (1991), Brian De Palma's Carlito's Way (1993), Ridley Scott's G.I. Jane (1997), Tony Scott's Crimson Tide (1995), Andrew Davis's A Perfect Murder (1998), Ray Loriga's My Brother's Gun (1997), Tony Goldwyn's A Walk on the Moon (1999), and Peter Farrelly's Green Book (2018).
Mortensen is also an accomplished poet, photographer and painter.- Music Artist
- Actor
- Producer
Snoop Dogg is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, producer, media personality, entrepreneur, and actor.
His music career began in 1992 when he was discovered by Dr. Dre and featured on Dre's solo debut, "Deep Cover", and then on Dre's solo debut album, The Chronic. He has since sold over 23 million albums in the United States and 35 million albums worldwide.
Snoop's debut album, Doggystyle, produced by Dr. Dre, was released in 1993 by Death Row Records. Bolstered by excitement driven by Snoop's featuring on The Chronic, the album debuted at number one on both the Billboard 200 and Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. Selling almost a million copies in the first week of its release, Doggystyle became certified quadruple platinum in 1994 and spawned several hit singles, including "What's My Name?" and "Gin & Juice". In 1994 Snoop released a soundtrack on Death Row Records for the short film Murder Was the Case, starring himself. His second album, Tha Doggfather (1996), also debuted at number one on both charts, with "Snoop's Upside Ya Head" as the lead single. The album was certified double platinum in 1997.
After leaving Death Row Records, Snoop signed with No Limit Records, where he recorded his next three albums, Da Game Is to Be Sold, Not to Be Told (1998), No Limit Top Dogg (1999), and Tha Last Meal (2000). Snoop then signed with Priority/Capitol/EMI Records in 2002, where he released Paid tha Cost to Be da Boss. He then signed with Geffen Records in 2004 for his next three albums, R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece, Tha Blue Carpet Treatment, and Ego Trippin'. Malice 'n Wonderland (2009), and Doggumentary (2011) were released on Priority. Snoop Dogg has starred in motion pictures and hosted several television shows. He also coaches a youth football league and high school football team.
Snoop has 17 Grammy nominations without a win. In March 2016, the night before WrestleMania 32 in Arlington, Texas, he was inducted into the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall of Fame, having made several appearances for the company, including as Master of Ceremonies during a match at WrestleMania XXIV. On November 19, 2018, Snoop Dogg was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He released his seventeenth solo album, I Wanna Thank Me in 2019.- Actor
- Soundtrack
William Christopher was born on 20 October 1932 in Evanston, Illinois, USA. He was an actor, known for M*A*S*H (1972), The Fortune Cookie (1966) and Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1993). He was married to Barbara Christopher. He died on 31 December 2016 in Pasadena, California, USA.- Music Artist
- Actor
- Composer
Thomas Earl Petty was an American musician and actor who was the lead vocalist and guitarist of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, formed in 1976. He previously led the band Mudcrutch, was a member of the late 1980s super-group the Traveling Wilburys, and had success as a solo artist.
Petty had many hit records. Hit singles with the Heartbreakers include "Don't Do Me Like That" (1979), "Refugee" (1980), "The Waiting" (1981), "Don't Come Around Here No More" (1985) and "Learning to Fly" (1991). Petty's solo hits include "I Won't Back Down" (1989), "Free Fallin'" (1989), and "You Don't Know How It Feels" (1994). Solo or with the Heartbreakers, he had hit albums from the 1970s through the 2010s and sold more than 80 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Petty and the Heartbreakers were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002. Petty was honored as MusiCares Person of the Year in February 2017 for his contributions to music and for his philanthropy.
In 2017, Petty died of an accidental drug overdose, at the age of 66, one week after the end of the Heartbreakers' 40th Anniversary Tour.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Grandpa Jones was born on 20 October 1913 in Niagara, Kentucky, USA. He was an actor, known for The Marty Stuart Show (2008), Hee Haw (1969) and Country Boy (1966). He was married to Ramona Jones and Eulalia Marie Losher. He died on 19 February 1998 in Nashville, Tennessee, USA.- Actor
- Composer
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Al Greenwood is a Grammy nominated musician who is also a songwriter, composer, producer, and actor. He grew up in New York City where he attended Brooklyn Conservatory of Music. He became a session musician for a number of groups and toured with the British progressive band Flash. In 1976, he met up with Mick Jones and became one of the original founding members of the legendary group Foreigner. As the keyboardist in Foreigner, Al has contributed to the songwriting for a group that has sold over 75 million albums worldwide. He went on to form the group SPYS on EMI Records and released 2 critically acclaimed albums. Al then teamed up with _Joe Lynn Turner, the lead singer from Rainbow, and co-wrote Joe's solo album for Elektra Records. This led to his acting debut in the movie _Blue de Ville (1986 TV Movie)_ for which he also has songwriting credits. He has also written or co-written over 60 songs for a varied list of artists ranging from Deep Purple to Fiona. His playing has appeared on a multitude of albums by artists ranging from Redman to Jennifer Rush as well as production credits on a long list of recordings. His songs have been included in the soundtracks for the movies Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit (1993) and Ghost in the Machine (1993). Al also composed the music score for the TV documentary Women Under Cover.- Givi Tokhadze was born on 20 October 1922 in Poti, Georgian SSR, TSFSR [now Republic of Georgia]. He was an actor, known for Captain Nemo (1975), Pilatelistis sikvdili (1969) and The Right Hand of the Grand Master (1969). He died on 25 November 2010 in Tbilisi, Georgia.
- David Hall was born on 20 October 1930 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA. He died on 6 May 2016 in San Diego, California, USA.
- Julie Payette was born on 20 October 1963 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
- Producer
- Actor
- Writer
Steven M. Greer was born on 20 October 1955 in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA. He is a producer and actor, known for Adventures of a Hip Hop Alien Chaser, Sirius (2013) and The Lost Century: And How to Reclaim It (2023).- Actor
- Soundtrack
Jeff MacKay was born on 20 October 1948 in Dallas, Texas, USA. He was an actor, known for Magnum, P.I. (1980), All the President's Men (1976) and JAG (1995). He died on 22 August 2008 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA.- Director
- Actress
- Producer
Melanie Mayron was born on 20 October 1952 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. She is a director and actress, known for Thirtysomething (1987), Girlfriends (1978) and Snapshots (2018).- Actress
- Additional Crew
- Director
Rachel House (Kai Tahu, Te Atiawa, Ngati Mutunga) is an acclaimed New Zealand actor, writer and director.
Rachel's directorial debut feature film 'The Mountain' will premiere in Taranaki, Aotearoa New Zealand in 2024. As a student at Prague Film School, Rachel was awarded Best Director and the audience award for her two short films. She continued to garner awards as a director, notably for the Te Reo Maori version of Troilus and Cressida performed at the Globe Theatre in London.
Rachel's acting career spans film, television and theatre. She has recently appeared in 'Our Flag Means Death 2' for HBO Max, Netflix's Heartbreak High and Apple TV+ series 'Foundation' and soon-to-released 'Time Bandits'. Her other acting credits include 'Moana', 'Soul', 'Thor: Ragnarok', 'Boy', 'Hunt for the Wilderpeople', 'Penguin Bloom', 'Cousins', 'Millie Lies Low', 'The Moon is Upside Down', 'Next Goal Wins' and 'The Portable Door'. She is also a celebrated voice artist for television having starred in 'Sherwood', 'The Lion Guard', 'Underground Uglies', 'Amphibia', 'Princess and Pony', '100% Wolf' and 'Koala Man'. As an acting coach she has worked alongside Jane Campion for 'Top of the Lake' and 'The Power of the Dog'; and with Taika Waititi on 'Boy', 'Hunt for the Wilderpeople', 'Jojo Rabbit' and 'Next Goal Wins'.
In recognition of her significant contributions to the theatre, film and television industry, Rachel has been awarded an Arts Laureate, NZ Order of Merit, 'Mana Wahine' from WIFT NZ and Te Waipuna a Rangi (Matariki Awards) as an actor and director.- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Michael Dunn was born Gary Neil Miller in Oklahoma. His parents were Mr. and Mrs. Fred Miller. They moved to Detroit, Michigan, in 1938. Dunn was 5 years old when he knew he'd be a dwarf but was determined not to let it stop him or make him dependent. He graduated from Detroit's Redford High School in 1951, where he had been active in many school activities, including the student council, and was captain of the cheer-leading team. At 18 he enrolled as a student at the University of Michigan, but a leg injury incurred when he was accidentally knocked down a flight of stairs forced him to leave. Later he transferred to the University of Miami, where he acted, was a cheer leader and editor of the college newspaper, and he received his degree in 1956. He'd supported himself during school by singing at local bars, and knew by graduation that he wanted to be an actor. "Frankly", he told a reporter, "I knew there wouldn't be too much competition for roles. There are a great many professional midgets, but there aren't too many dwarfs who can act". Waiting for his big break, he found employment as a sports reporter, a hotel detective and a missionary. When he hit New York he finally got some acting parts in off-Broadway plays--and when he was nominated for a Tony Award in 1963 (for his role in Edward Albee's "Ballad of A Sad Cafe"--his luck changed for the better. He even landed an Oscar nomination for his role as narrator in Ship of Fools (1965). Still, Dunn was frustrated by the lack of variety in the parts he was offered. While filming The Abdication (1974) on location in England in 1973, the 3'11" actor died. He was 38.- Actress
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- Producer
After this feisty, highly offbeat actress from Chattanooga, Tennessee, broke into TV in the 1980s, she immediately set herself apart from the norm with a prime role as new owner Bud Cort's female friend in the bizarre mini-movie Bates Motel (1987). This rather inauspicious beginning would also set Lori Petty off on a career as a kinetic fighter and a misfit, types for which she would be best known.
Lori was born on October 14, 1963, and spent her childhood traveling the US with her father, a Pentecostal minister. Her keen talents first lent themselves toward being a graphic artist in Omaha, Nebraska, but an impulsive desire to act quickly took precedence and soon she was off to New York, where she took acting classes and pounded the pavement for jobs.
Going nowhere fast, she eventually headed for Los Angeles and finally found an "in". Following a number of mediocre TV roles, she won a bit of attention on the short-lived series Booker (1989) as a lippy secretary, then hit pay dirt in secondary roles as an outrageous Cyndi Lauper wannabe in Cadillac Man (1990) and as Patrick Swayze's ex-girlfriend/waitress who hooks up with Keanu Reeves in Point Break (1991).
It looked like mainstream stardom might happen for the tomboy actress, especially after getting cast as Geena Davis' bratty baseball-playing sister in the highly successful A League of Their Own (1992). However, while Lori proved to be an intriguing, kooky sort, she also proved more difficult to cast. Such disparate roles as a kind-hearted animal trainer in Free Willy (1993) and the sole female recruit in Pauly Shore's inane comedy In the Army Now (1994) only proved the point.
She seemed bent towards playing scrappy, hard-edged figures alongside the big action guys but started off on the wrong foot when she was replaced by Sandra Bullock in Sylvester Stallone's Demolition Man (1993) due to "artistic differences". She did play a lone female cop in the thriller The Glass Shield (1994), then found her true calling as the bizarre cartoon heroine Tank Girl (1995), which was billed as "a post-apocalyptic comedy." Playing along the same hard lines, Lori portrayed an FBI agent who teams up with a Tokyo policewoman Yûki Amami in the crime thriller Countdown (1996); played a butch lesbian in the social comedy Relax... It's Just Sex (1998); and an aggressive, tough-talking stripper at odds with the Mafia in the potboiler The Arrangement (1999). She ended the decade on TV as Max, a motel clerk, in the crime drama fantasy series Brimstone (1998).
Into the millennium, the crop-haired, tough-as-nails actress continued to take it to the limit. Following roles in the action films Firetrap (2001) and Route 666 (2001), Lori co-starred alongside the similarly tough-styled Gina Gershon in Prey for Rock & Roll (2003) as members of a punk rock band. She later starred in the creature vs. human horror opus Cryptid (2006); had a small part (First Murderer) in a contemporary Hollywood updating of Shakespeare's Richard III (2007); a deputy in the cross-country sports movie Chasing 3000 (2010); a doctor in the horror thriller Dead Awake (2016); a starring role as a lady Marine in Fear, Love, and Agoraphobia (2018); and a campy role in the low-budget horror flick A Deadly Legend (2020).
On TV, Lori would be seen as a guest in such shows as "The Beast," "NYPD Blue," "CSI: NY," "Masters of Horror," "House," "Prison Break," "Hawaii Five-0," and, more notably, in the recurring and amusing role of loony, paranoiac Lolly in the women's prison series Orange Is the New Black (2013). On the other side of the camera, the still-single Lori wrote and directed the film The Poker House (2008) starring Jennifer Lawrence, a re-dramatization of Lori's teenage years in Iowa. The film earned awards at the Los Angeles Film Festival- Actress
- Producer
- Costume and Wardrobe Department
A wholesome beauty with comedic appeal, Dawn Elberta Wells was born on October 18, 1938 in Reno, Nevada. Wells' childhood was a happy and healthy one. She and her mother grew their own fruits and vegetables in their gardens and Dawn rode horses. In her high school years, she was the class treasurer, President of the debate team and an honor roll student. Dawn was on her way to becoming a ballerina, but bad knees prevented her from realizing the dream. She was Miss Nevada in 1959 and went on to the 1960 Miss America Pageant. Dawn had wanted to be a doctor, and enrolled in the elite Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri to study medicine, but then she discovered the Drama Club. She then transferred to the University of Washington, which was known for their Theatre Department, and she graduated with a Degree in Theatre.
Dawn moved to Hollywood and was cast as Mary Ann Summers on CBS's Gilligan's Island (1964). The rest is history. However, there was much more to Dawn than her simple Mary Ann character. Wells refused to be an unemployed actor after the show ended and was never out of work since the show decades ago. She performed in over 66 theatrical productions, including the National Touring Company of "They're Playing Our Song!" She did countless voice-overs, commercials and talk shows. She worked for the Australian news show "Midday" and interviewed such talents as Julia Roberts, Eddie Murphy and Tom Hanks, to name a few. Dawn has also had great success as a producer and has a number of television movies to her credit. After years of touring and performing in dramas, comedies, and musical theatre, Dawn slowed down a little. In 1998, she founded the Dawn Wells' Film Actors Boot Camp in Driggs, Idaho. The camp is for the already trained actor looking to make the transition from the amateur to the professional actor.
Wells managed the camp for many years. She has been in a popular commercial for Western Union, capitalizing on her character Mary Ann Summers. In 2003, Dawn did tours of the plays "Love Letters" with Adam West and Eve Ensler's Award Winning "The Vagina Monologues." In early 2004, Dawn established and founded The Spud Film Institute in Idaho and Wyoming, and held the first ever Spud Drive in Film and Music Festival in the summer of 2004. She was also the artistic director of the festival. If that is not enough, Ms. Wells also had her own clothing line for the physically challenged called "Wishing Wells Collections" and she recently launched her own skin care line, Classic Beauty. Dawn Wells continued to contribute to the business she loved so much and constantly gave back to the acting community. She mentored young actors and traveled to colleges all across the United States to teach Master Classes. She served as Artist in Residence at several Universities. Dawn was in constant demand for personal appearances and speaking engagements, yet never forgot to give back to the Artistic community. She will surely be remembered for all her good work. Wells passed away on December 30, 2020 at age 82. You can get information about all of Dawn's organizations at her website, dawn-wells.com.- Actor
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Tim Minchin was born on October, 1975, as Timothy David Minchin, and was brought up in Perth, Western Australia. He is an actor, comedian, musician, writer, and director known for Californication (2007), Larrikins (2018), and Tim Minchin and the Heritage Orchestra (2011). He is the composer lyricist of the Broadway musicals, Matilda and Groundhog Day. He has been married to Sarah since 2001. They have two children.- Kozlowski is a Juilliard graduate with Broadway play experience, who found movie success in the billabongs of Australia with frequent co-star Paul Hogan. The film romance with her Crocodile Dundee (1986) costar grew into a real-life relationship during the filming of the first two movies. Linda married Paul Hogan in 1990 and they lived in California and have one son, named Chance. In 2001, Linda and Paul returned to their popular on-screen romance roles to complete the Crocodile Dundee trilogy. Linda and Paul divorced in 2014.
- Actor
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- Soundtrack
John Edward Kassir is an American actor and producer from Baltimore, Maryland who is known for voicing the Crypt Keeper from Tales from the Crypt. He also played Jibolba from Tak and the Power of Juju, Deadpool in various Marvel games and cartoons, Ralph from Reefer Madness and many more roles.- Special Effects
Fred Lord is known for Kingpin (1996).- Writer
- Producer
- Additional Crew
While in junior high school, he became interested in science fiction, and years later while reading a copy of 'Astounding Stories' when he was working as an airline pilot, he decided to give it up and become a writer. He moved West and joined the Los Angeles police force to gain experience that would help him toward a writing career in Hollywood. He began selling scripts for television shows such as 'Dragnet' and 'Naked City'. He was head writer on 'Have Gun Will Travel' for two years, winning the 'Writer's Guild Award' for 'Best Script'. He created and produced 'The Lieutenant' followed by 3 years of the 'Star Trek' television series and produced the films 'Pretty Maids All in a Row', the first 'Star Trek' film and was executive consultant on the following two.- Music Artist
- Actor
- Composer
Sting was born Gordon Matthew Sumner on 2 October, 1951 in Wallsend, North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England, the eldest of four children of Audrey (Cowell), a hairdresser, and Ernest Matthew Sumner, an engineer and milkman. He received his name from a striped sweater he wore which looked like a bee. He grew up in the turmoil of the ship-building industry and wanted to become a musician very early. He played cruise ships, backing strippers in cabarets, and developed a love for the bass guitar. Having played in jazz/rock bands like "Last Exit" and other various groups, including a dixieland jazz group, he settled down with Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers for a decade-long tenure with the smashing rock trio, The Police.
In 1984, he went on to record solo albums, and holds a reputation as one of the most literate songwriters and talented musicians in the world. He has also delved into acting, having starred in such films as Quadrophenia (1979), Radio On (1979), Plenty (1985), Julia and Julia (1987) (aka Julia and Julia), Dune (1984), Bring on the Night (1985) (a documentary about the formation of his Blue Turtles jazz group), most recently, Gentlemen Don't Eat Poets (1995), where he plays a bisexual, conniving butler.
He received an honorary Doctorate of Music degree from Northumbria University in October 1992, and from Berklee College of Music in May 1994. He plays guitar, bass guitar, mandolin, piano, harmonica, saxophone and pan-flute, and he gave a name to his bass (Brian).
Sting is married to film producer Trudie Styler, and has six children with Trudie and ex-wife, actress Frances Tomelty. Sting owns a Jacobian castle in Wiltshire, which he calls "Lake House", where he records his albums, as well as a place in London, an apartment in New York, a place on the beach in Malibu, California, and a Renaissance Florentine Villa called "Palagio" in Figline Valdarno, Tuscany, Italy. Along with his wife Trudie and a Brazilian Indian, he started the Rainforest Foundation in 1989 to help save rainforests.- Actor
- Soundtrack
The imposing Scottish character actor Graham Crowden was one of the most recognizable and reliable British screen actors who worked for over half a century. He was the third of four children of a Scottish Presbyterian classics teacher. His first job was in a tannery in Edinburgh. He joined the Royal Scots Youth Battalion in 1940, but was invalided out after being accidentally shot by his own platoon sergeant. After studies at Edinburgh Academy, he worked for the stage in 1944 as student assistant stage manager at the Memorial Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon. This was followed by repertory experience in Dundee, Glasgow, Nottingham and with the Bristol Old Vic. A prolific actor at the Royal Court from the mid-1950's, and later with the Royal Shakespeare Company and Laurence Olivier's National Theatre. Tall and possessed of an incisive manner, resonant voice and larger-than-life personality, Crowden was at his best in eccentric portrayals as mad scientists or flawed men-of-the-cloth.
One of his most memorable film appearances was as the maniacal chief surgeon in Lindsay Anderson's Britannia Hospital (1982). In television, he turned down the role of Doctor Who (1963) in 1974 but later appeared in it opposite Tom Baker, who had been cast as the Doctor instead, to give the series one of its most memorably over-the-top villains. He also achieved success in later life in television comedies such as A Very Peculiar Practice (1986) and opposite Stephanie Cole in Waiting for God (1990). He continued to act until shortly before his death.- Actress
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Frances Barber has worked in a string of award-winning productions for the National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company, taking roles as diverse as Eliza in Pygmalion and Lady Macbeth in Macbeth. Among her film appearances are roles in Stephen Frears' Prick Up Your Ears (1987) and Sammy and Rosie Get Laid (1987), Dennis Potter's Secret Friends (1991) and John Irvine's Shiner (2000) with Michael Caine, Peter Greenaway's A Zed & Two Noughts (1985), Peter Capaldi's Soft Top Hard Shoulder (1992), and Still Crazy (1998). Most recently she has appeared in The Escort (1999) (The Escort) with Daniel Auteuil and Esther Kahn (2000). Frances made her television breakthrough in Mike Leigh's Home Sweet Home (1982). Subsequent TV work includes Kenneth Branagh's Twelfth Night, or What You Will (1988) as Viola, a role she reprised for Branagh on stage, BBC's Annie Besant, Inspector Morse (1987), Spitting Image (1984) and the BBC's adaptation of the Nancy Mitford classic Love in a Cold Climate (2001). On stage, Frances won the 1984 Olivier award for Most Promising Newcomer as Marguerite in the RSC production of Camille. She has worked in some of the UK's most prestigious theatres, including the Royal National Theatre, the RSC, Hull Truck, Oxford Playhouse, the Royal Exchange, the Donmar Warehouse and the Royal Court. Frances was most recently seen on stage in Patrick Marber's production of Closer at The Lyric, Hammersmith. She attended Bangor university.