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Distinguished character player James Firman Daly first appeared on stage in his home town of Wisconsin Rapids in 1928. He was set on acting from an early age, and was strongly encouraged by his parents. His father was in the fuel business and his mother at one time a CIA employee. Upon leaving school, Daly studied dramatic arts at various Midwestern colleges, eventually graduating from Grinnell in Iowa. His acting career was then put on hold as a result of the war and he served in all three of the service branches, the last four years spent in the navy as an ensign.

Daly's acting career got off to a good start once he arrived in New York in 1946, landing a part as understudy to Gary Merrill in the long-running hit play "Born Yesterday" on Broadway. By the time he appeared in his third play, "Man and Superman" (1949), he was billed third in the cast and won a Daniel Blum Award for his performance. Subsequently, Daly had a busy time on stage, both on and off-Broadway. He co-starred three times with the legendary Helen Hayes, most famously in "The Glass Menagerie" in 1950. That same year he also collected the Theater Guild Award as the star of "Major Barbara". His other theatrical roles of note included "Billy Budd", "Saint Joan", "The Merchant of Venice" and (on tour with Colleen Dewhurst) "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?".

A hard-working actor and intent on diversifying into different media, Daly clearly understood the potential of live television drama. He made his small screen debut in the late 1940s and soon starred in early Playhouse productions. Within a few years he featured in his own weekly syndicated series, Foreign Intrigue (1951), about a family of foreign correspondents in Europe. This was one of the first TV shows to be shot on location and it necessitated his and his family's temporary relocation to Paris and Stockholm. Throughout the next twenty years, Daly remained much in demand as a reliable leading television actor with 'gravitas', often playing tragic or despairing figures. He was commanding as the titular star of Give Us Barabbas! (1961). Four years later, he picked up an Emmy for his role in the Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951) episode "The Eagle and the Cage".

Another memorably poignant portrayal was in The Twilight Zone (1959) episode "A Stop at Willoughby", with Daly as a salesperson driven to the brink of a nervous breakdown, desperately escaping his world to a fantasy town in his own mind where life is perpetually simple and peaceful. He was also David Vincent's ill-fated business partner and friend in the pilot episode "Beach-Head", one of the first victims of The Invaders (1967). Many viewers will remember Daly as 'Flint', the solitary near-immortal from the Star Trek (1966) episode "Requiem for Methuselah". There were countless other guest starring roles and even a few choice movie parts, such as Planet of the Apes (1968). Daly enjoyed another recurring role in the long-running (170 episodes) Medical Center (1969) as resident 'elder statesman' to young surgeon Chad Everett. He had just completed filming on an episode of "Roots: The Next Generations" and was scheduled to appear in the play "Equus" at the historic Westchester Theatre, Tarrytown Music Hall, when he died of a heart attack at the age of 59.

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.

Known as "The First lady of the American Theater", Helen Hayes had a legendary career on stage and in films and television that spanned over eighty years. Hayes was born in Washington, D.C., to Catherine Estelle "Essie" Hayes, an actress who worked in touring companies, and Francis van Arnum Brown, a clerk and salesman. Her maternal grandparents were Irish. A child actress in the first decade of the 20th century, by the time she turned twenty in 1920 she was well on her way to a landmark career on the American stage, becoming perhaps the greatest female star of the theatre during the 1930s and 1940s. She made a handful of scattered films during the silent era and in 1931 was signed to MGM with great fanfare to begin a career starring in films. Her first three films, Arrowsmith (1931), The Sin of Madelon Claudet (1931), and A Farewell to Arms (1932), were great hits and she would win the 1932 Oscar for Best Actress for her work in Madelon Claudet. Alas, her lack of screen glamour worked against her becoming a box office star during the golden era of Hollywood, and her subsequent films were often not well received by critics. Within four years she had abandoned the screen and returned to the stage for the greatest success of her career, "Victoria Regina", which ran for three years starting in 1935. Helen Hayes returned to motion pictures with a few featured roles in 1950s films and frequently appeared on television. In 1970, she made a screen comeback in Airport (1970), a role originally offered to Claudette Colbert, who declined it, earning Hayes her second Oscar, this time for Best Supporting Actress. Helen Hayes retired from the stage in 1971 but enjoyed enormous fame and popularity over the next fifteen years with many roles in motion pictures and television productions, retiring in 1985 after starring in the TV film Murder with Mirrors (1985).

Burly, coarse, raspy-voiced Mike Kellin was often cast as a tough cop, gangster, or soldier, usually a corporal or sergeant, so it may be surprising to some that during his stint in the US Navy during World War II he was a Lieutenant Commander.

Though he seemed to be straight out of the tenements of New York City, he was born in upscale Hartford, Connecticut, and received his education at Boston College. After his discharge from the Navy, he enrolled in the Yale School of Drama. He appeared in more than 50 plays, winning an Obie award and being nominated for a Tony. He made his film debut in the Dean Martin/Jerry Lewis comedy At War with the Army (1950)--as, of course, a sergeant. He turned in a first-rate performance as a tough infantry soldier with a soft spot for a young Polish refugee in the WWII film Hell Is for Heroes (1962). He died of cancer in Nyack, New York, in 1983.

Gerry Becker was born on 11 April 1951 in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. He was an actor, known for Spider-Man (2002), Happiness (1998) and The Game (1997). He died on 13 April 2019 in Nyack, New York, USA.

Bill Gunn was born on 15 July 1929 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for Ganja & Hess (1973), Stop! (1970) and The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964). He died on 5 April 1989 in Nyack, New York, USA.

Zita Johann was born on 14 July 1904 in Temesvar, Austria-Hungary [now Timisoara, Timis, Romania]. She was an actress, known for The Mummy (1932), The Sin of Nora Moran (1933) and Tiger Shark (1932). She was married to Bernard Edward Shedd (Schetnitz), John McCormick and John Houseman. She died on 20 September 1993 in Nyack, New York, USA.

Harry Bellaver was born on 12 February 1905 in Hillsboro, Illinois, USA. He was an actor, known for From Here to Eternity (1953), Another Thin Man (1939) and Miss Sadie Thompson (1953). He was married to Gertrude Dudley Vaughan Smith. He died on 8 August 1993 in Nyack, New York, USA.

Norman Rose was born on 23 June 1917 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor, known for The Front (1976), Radio Days (1987) and The Anderson Tapes (1971). He was married to Catherine Vagnoni. He died on 12 November 2004 in Upper Nyack, New York, USA.

Sally Moffet was born on 21 April 1932 in New York City, New York, USA. She was an actress, known for Tough Guys Don't Dance (1987), Matinee Theatre (1955) and Camera Three (1954). She was married to Mike Kellin and Robert Dozier. She died on 8 May 1995 in Nyack, New York, USA.

Kathleen Collins only managed to direct two films (she also wrote short stories and plays) but left an impact on the cinema as the second African American woman to direct a film, and as a teacher through her students. She had a strict upbringing in Jersey City as the daughter of an undertaker (who later became a school principal).Her college years at Skidmore in Saratoga Springs, New York brought her into the time of early 1960s activism when she wrote for the student paper, travelled to Georgia with SNCC where she was briefly arrested, and then abroad after graduation to Africa as part of the Crossroads program.There she met her future husband who she would reconnect with when she went to the Sorbonne in Paris to pursue her master's degree, that was also where she became more interested in film. In the 70s, back in New York, she got the film program going at City College and worked as an editor on Sesame Street and such. She died young, in her early 40s, of cancer, but her two features from the 1980s are being rediscovered by a new generation.

Carson McCullers was born on 19 February 1917 in Columbus, Georgia, USA. She was a writer, known for The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968), Reflections in a Golden Eye (1967) and Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre (1963). She was married to James Reeves McCullers Jr.. She died on 29 September 1967 in Nyack, New York, USA.

John Valentine was born on 3 November 1969 in Mount Kisco, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for A Soldier's Story (1984), Writer's Block (1995) and Cheers (1982). He was married to Pegeen Michael Daly. He died on 20 April 2021 in Nyack Village, New York, USA.

Dennis O'Neil began as Stan Lee's editorial assistant in the mid-1960s. He wrote comic stories for Batman starting in the 1970s, and was one of the guiding forces behind returning the Batman character to its dark roots from the campiness of the '60s. He's written several novels, comics, short stories, reviews and teleplays, including the novelization of the movie Batman Begins.

Peter DeMaio was born on 6 December 1934 in Hartford, Connecticut, USA. He was an actor, known for Finding Graceland (1998), Great Performances (1971) and Search for Tomorrow (1951). He was married to Phyllis G Rice and Rue McClanahan. He died on 7 October 2023 in Nyack, New York, USA.

Jerome Chodorov was born on 10 August 1911 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a writer, known for Murder in the Big House (1942), Conspiracy (1939) and Dulcy (1940). He was married to Rhea Grand. He died on 12 September 2004 in Nyack, New York, USA.

Thomas Berger was born on 20 July 1924 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. He was a writer, known for Little Big Man (1970), Meeting Evil (2012) and Neighbors (1981). He was married to Jeanne Redpath Berger. He died on 13 July 2014 in Nyack, New York, USA.

Carl Low was born on 30 October 1916 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. He was an actor, known for Armstrong Circle Theatre (1950), Hud (1963) and Dark of Night (1952). He was married to Virginia Margaret Keffer. He died on 15 October 1988 in Nyack, New York, USA.

Don Ettlinger was born on 16 January 1914 in Detroit, Michigan, USA. He was a writer, known for The Great American Broadcast (1941), Life Begins in College (1937) and Guilty Bystander (1950). He was married to Katrina. He died on 6 August 2000 in Nyack, New York, USA.

George DeTitta Sr. was born on 26 November 1930 in Bronx, New York City, New York, USA. He was a set decorator, known for State of Grace (1990), Death Wish (1974) and Lock Up (1989). He was married to June Flugel. He died on 23 December 2024 in West Nyack, New York, USA.

Myron Cohen was born on 1 July 1902 in Grodno, Poland, Russian Empire [now Hrodna, Belarus]. He was an actor and writer, known for On Location: Myron Cohen Revisited (1978), On Location: Myron Cohen (1976) and When Nature Calls (1985). He was married to Miriam Hyman. He died on 10 March 1986 in Nyack, New York, USA.

Don Pippin was born on 25 November 1926 in Macon, Georgia, USA. He was an actor and composer, known for Great Performances (1971), Broadway at the Hollywood Bowl (1994) and Eat and Run (1986). He was married to Marie Santell. He died on 9 June 2022 in Nyack, New York, USA.

Augustus Thomas was born on 8 January 1857 in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. He was a writer and director, known for Checkers (1913), The Jungle (1914) and The Nightingale (1914). He was married to Lisle Colby. He died on 12 August 1934 in Nyack, New York, USA.

Nicolas Koline was born on 7 May 1878 in Russia. He was an actor and director, known for La cible (1924), Variétés (1935) and Napoleon (1927). He died on 3 June 1973 in Nyack, New York, USA.

Rose Caylor was newspaper reporter, author, screenwriter and playwright. She was born in Vilna, Russia (now Vilnius, Lithuania) in 1898, the daughter of Morris and Elizabeth Libman. Her father came to America in 1906 where he found work in Chicago as a department store salesman. Rose, her mother and two sisters joined him there the following year. Rose's older sister was the author and Jewish historian Anita Libman Lebeson (abt. 1897-1987) and her younger sister, Minna Libman Emch (abt 1904-1958), was a noted Chicago psychiatrist and psychoanalyst.

Rose graduated second in her class at the University of Chicago and went on to work as a journalist for the Chicago Daily News. While at the Daily News she met and fell in love with writer Ben Hecht and moved to New York City with him in 1924. The next year they married after his divorce from writer Mary Armstrong was finalized. Over their almost forty year marriage Rose collaborated on a number of projects with her husband and helped as his assistant.

In 1930 she translated and adapted for Broadway Anton Chekhov's play "Uncle Vanya". Among her novels are "The Woman on the Balcony" (1927) and "The Journey" (1933).

Her only child Jenny Hecht was an actress who died of a drug overdose in 1971. Rose Caylor Hecht passed away in 1979. Her headstone at the Oak Him Cemetery in Nyack, New York bears the inscription "and rooks in families homeward go, and so do I." from the Thomas Hardy poem "Weathers".