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1-14 of 14
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Van Johnson was the fresh-faced, well-mannered nice guy on screen you always wanted your daughter to marry! This fair, freckled and invariably friendly-looking MGM song-and-dance star of the 40s emerged a box office favorite (1944-1946) and second only to heartthrob Frank Sinatra during what gossip monger Hedda Hopper dubbed the "Bobby-soxer Blitz" era. Johnson's musical timing proved just as adroit as his legit career timing for he was able to court WWII stardom as a regimented MGM symbol of the war effort with an impressive parade of earnest soldiers. He may have been a second tier musical star behind the likes of Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly, but his easy smile, wholesome, boy-next-door appeal and strawberry-blond good looks made him a solid box-office attraction while MGM's "big boys" were off to war.
Born Charles Van Dell Johnson in Newport, Rhode Island, on August 25, 1916, Van was the only child of Loretta (Snyder) and Charles E. Johnson. His paternal grandparents were Swedish, and his mother was of German, and a small amount of Irish, ancestry. Johnson endured a lonely and unhappy childhood as the sole offspring of an extremely aloof father (who was both a plumber and real estate agent by trade) and an absentee mother (she abandoned the family when he was three, the victim of alcoholism). A paternal grandmother helped in raising the young lad. Happier times were spent drifting into the fantasy world of movies, and he developed an ardent passion to entertain. Taking singing, dancing and violin lessons during his high school years, he disregarded his father's wish to become a lawyer and instead left home following graduation to try his luck in New York.
Early experiences included chorus lines in revues, at hotels and in various small shows around town. A couple of minor breaks occurred with his 40-week stint in the "New Faces of 1936" revue (making his Broadway debut) and in a vaudeville club act (based around star Mary Martin) called "Eight Young Men of Manhattan" that played the Rainbow Room. He served as understudy to the three male leads of Rodgers and Hart's popular musical "Too Many Girls" in October of 1939 and eventually replaced one of them (actor Richard Kollmar left the show to marry reporter Dorothy Kilgallen.) He also formed a lifelong and career-igniting friendship with one of the other leads, Desi Arnaz.
Johnson made an inauspicious film debut with Arnaz in Too Many Girls (1940) when the musical was eventually lensed in Hollywood, but he was cast in a scant chorus boy part. Following a stint on Broadway in "Pal Joey" in 1940, Warner Bros. signed Van to a six-month contract. He went on to co-star with Faye Emerson in Murder in the Big House (1942), but they dropped him quickly feeling that his acting chops were lacking. It was Arnaz's wife Lucille Ball, who had recently signed with MGM, who introduced Van to Billy Grady, MGM's casting head, and instigated a successful screen test.
With the studio's top male talent off to war, Van (along with Peter Lawford) served as an earnest substitute donning fatigues in such stalwart movies as Somewhere I'll Find You (1942) The War Against Mrs. Hadley (1942) and The Human Comedy (1943). In addition, he replaced actor/war pacifist Lew Ayres in the "Dr. Kildare/Dr. Gillespie" film series after Ayres was unceremoniously dumped by the studio for his unpopular beliefs.
Stardom came, and at quite a price, for Van when he was cast yet again as a wholesome serviceman in A Guy Named Joe (1943). During the early part of filming, he was severely injured in a near-fatal car crash (he had a metal plate inserted in his skull, which instantly gave him a 4-F disqualification status for war service). Endangered of being replaced on the film, the two stars of the picture, Spencer Tracy (who became another lifelong friend) and Irene Dunne, insisted that the studio work around his convalescence or they would quit the film. The unusually kind gesture made Van a star following the film's popular release and resulting publicity. Van's career soared during the war years, making him and Lawford the resident heartthrobs not only in musicals (Two Girls and a Sailor (1944), Easy to Wed (1946)), but in airy comedies (Week-End at the Waldorf (1945)) and, of course, more war stories (Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944)).
When the big stars such as Clark Gable, James Stewart and Robert Taylor returned to reclaim post-war stardom, Van willingly relinquished his "golden boy" pedestal, but he remained a high profile musical star opposite the likes of June Allyson, Esther Williams and Judy Garland. He continued to demonstrate his dramatic mettle in such well-regarded films as Command Decision (1948), State of the Union (1948), Battleground (1949), Brigadoon (1954) and The Caine Mutiny (1954) and remained a popular star for three more decades. When MGM's "golden age" phased out by the mid-1950s, Van's movie career took a sharp decline and the studio released him after he co-starred with Elizabeth Taylor in The Last Time I Saw Paris (1954).
While Van continued working as a freelancer in such as the English-made The End of the Affair (1955) with Deborah Kerr; Miracle in the Rain (1956) opposite Jane Wyman, The Bottom of the Bottle (1956) with Joseph Cotten, 23 Paces to Baker Street (1956) co-starring Vera Miles, Kelly and Me (1956) partnered with a dog, and Web of Evidence (1959), he again capitalized on his musical talents by reinventing himself as a nightclub performer and musical stage star on the regional and dinner theater circuits, including "The Music Man," "Damn Yankees," "Guys and Dolls," "Bells Are Ringing," "On a Clear Day...," "Forty Carats," "Bye Bye Birdie," "There's a Girl in My Soup" and "I Do! I Do!"
Van delved heavily into TV from the late 1960's on and served as a guest on such shows as "Laugh-In," "The Name of the Game," "The Red Skelton Show," "Nanny and the Professor," "The Virginian," "The Doris Day Show," "Love, American Style," "Maude," "Quincy," "McMillan & Wife," "The Love Boat," "Fantasy Island" and "Murder, She Wrote." He earned an Emmy nomination for his participation in the mini-series Rich Man, Poor Man (1976), and co-starred or was featured in such TV movies as Call Her Mom (1972), Superdome (1978), Black Beauty (1978), Getting Married (1978) and Three Days to a Kill (1992).
In later years, he grew larger in girth but still continued to work. He earned respectable reviews after replacing Gene Barry as Georges in the smash gay musical "La Cage Aux Folles" in 1985. His last musical role was as Cap' Andy in "Show Boat" in 1991, and his last several movies were primarily filmed overseas in Italy and Australia. Occasional featured roles on film in later years included Concorde Affaire '79 (1979), The Kidnapping of the President (1980), The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985), Killer Crocodile (1989), Delta Force Commando II: Priority Red One (1990) and Clowning Around (1992).
Van was married only once but it was the constant source of tabloid news. Typically in the closet as a high-ranking actor of the 1940s, he was extremely close friends with fellow MGM actor Keenan Wynn and his wife. Shockingly, Van wound up marrying Wynn's ex-wife, one-time stage actress Evie Wynn Johnson, immediately after the Wynn's divorced in 1947. Van and Eve went on to have one child, daughter Schuyler, in 1948, and were a popular Hollywood couple before separating after fifteen years of marriage. The marriage ended acrimoniously in 1968 and decades later Eve published a statement (after her death in 2004) confirming suspicions that MGM had engineered their marriage to cover up Johnson's homosexuality. In declining health, Van, who was estranged from his only child, died at age 92 on December 12, 2008, at a senior living facility in Nyack, New York.- Jean-Claude Bercq was born on 7 April 1929 in Valleroy, Meurthe-et-Moselle, France. He was an actor, known for Inferno (1964), Le Mans (1971) and The Train (1964). He died on 12 December 2008 in Saint-Louis, Haut-Rhin, France.
- Bryan Montgomery was born on 20 July 1946 in San Angelo, Texas, USA. He was an actor, known for Badlands (1973), Columbo (1971) and Barnaby Jones (1973). He died on 12 December 2008 in Malibu, California, USA.
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
- Cinematographer
After World War II, Alain Renoir entered college at the University of Santa Barbara. There he met the woman he was to marry, Jane, who was obtaining a degree in nutrition. One of his required classes was nutrition, and he had an assignment to describe a nutritious meal. With Jane's help, he and a friend devised a meal with the least nutrition possible. It drove his professor crazy.
Despite not being able to speak English until after he joined the American Army, Renoir was admitted to the Department of English at Harvard University's graduate school. While there, where he obtained a doctorate in Old English Literature under the brilliant (and slightly wacky) Francis P. Magoun, Jr.
Upon receiving his Ph.D., Renoir came to the University of California, Berkeley, where he remained a professor of English until his retirement in 1989. He co-founded the Department of Comparative Literature there, where it still thrives. A number of important scholars of Old English received their doctorates under his guidance. He was a formidable figure in the field of Oral-Formulaic theory, where his experience as a cinematographer helped bring to life the ancient techniques of storytelling of 7th-10th century England.
He often spoke with great fondness of his father, Jean Renoir, to his students, but he never permitted anyone to discuss his grandfather. Occasionally he would make reference to Pierre-Auguste Renoir (whom he never met) by saying, "I had a grandfather who painted pictures."
Alain Renoir died at his country estate in Northern California on December 12, 2008 in the presence of his late-life companion, Pat Powers.- Mary Slattery was born on 4 June 1915 in Lakewood, Ohio, USA. She was married to Arthur Miller. She died on 12 December 2008 in Laguna Beach, California, USA.
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Stephen J. Roth was a producer, known for Last Action Hero (1993), Scrooged (1988) and Night Heat (1985). He died on 12 December 2008.- Writer
- Additional Crew
Ichirô Miyagawa was a writer, known for Crimson Bat, the Blind Swordswoman (1969), Sûpâ jaiantsu (1957) and Odoshi (1966). He died on 12 December 2008 in Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan.- Actress
Virginia Ruth Ellis grew up in southern California and was introduced to music (and specifically the violin) at a very young age, becoming a member of the Hollywood Baby Orchestra at age 4. Soon after, she joined the Peter Meremblum California Junior Symphony, a popular training orchestra in the area for children and teenagers. Under the tutelage of Maestro Meremblum, Ellis's skills matured significantly.
In 1938, the Meremblum Orchestra was hired to perform in "They Shall Have Music", a Samuel Goldwyn movie designed to showcase virtuoso violinist Jascha Heifetz. The storyline of the movie was for Heifetz to save a struggling music school for children. Because the cute Ellis looked younger than her 13 years, she was given the role of Concertmaster (or Concertmistress if you prefer the old-fashioned term) in the movie (the actual position was jointly held during Ellis's tenure with the orchestra by Tom Facey and Reta Robbins and later by Shirley Cornell and Dorothy Wade). Ellis went on to appear in three other movies as a member of the orchestra: "There's Magic in Music", "Song of Russia", and "California Junior Symphony", the latter being a one-reeler about the orchestra itself.
After her schooling was finished, Ellis went on to become a member of various symphonies and chamber groups, as well as appearing as a soloist. While living in Sacramento, she frequently played in show orchestras at Lake Tahoe in support of various entertainers.
Ellis was married to Paul Beaver for most of her adult life. She passed away on December 8, 2008 from natural causes.- André Chanu was born on 28 December 1910 in Paris, France. He was an actor, known for Si Paris nous était conté (1956), Charmants garçons (1957) and Love Me Strangely (1971). He died on 12 December 2008 in Puteaux, Hauts-de-Seine, France.
- Madeleine Cheminat was born on 26 March 1908 in Nancy, Meurthe-et-Moselle, France. She was an actress, known for Auntie Danielle (1990), Rocambole (1964) and Tout feu tout flamme (1982). She died on 12 December 2008 in Nerac, Lot-et-Garonne, France.
- Ah Quon McElrath was born on 15 December 1915 in Iwilei, Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii, USA. She was married to Bob McElrath. She died on 12 December 2008 in Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii, USA.
- Producer
- Production Manager
- Director
Paul Van Dessel was born on 25 October 1925 in Belgium. He was a producer and production manager, known for Schau mal her... Antwerpen grüßt Hamburg (1954), The World Our Stage (1958) and De familie Bludts (1954). He died on 12 December 2008 in Belgium.- Make-Up Department
Bette Iverson was born on 5 October 1929 in the USA. She is known for Gattaca (1997), Witness (1985) and The Untouchables (1987). She died on 12 December 2008 in North Hollywood, California, USA.- Tassos Papadopoulos was born on 7 January 1934 in Nicosia, Cyprus. He died on 12 December 2008 in Nicosia, Cyprus.