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Gene Merlino
Mario Gino Merlino (April 5, 1928 – January 8, 2024) was an American singer and musician known professionally as Gene Merlino, and most recognized for providing the singing voice of Lancelot in the musical film ''Camelot'', for being part of the Grammy Award winning quartet, The Anita Kerr Singers, and for being a prolific singer of song poems. Early life Gene Merlino was born Mario Gino Merlino on April 5, 1928, in San Francisco, California, to Cesare and Teresa (née Incaviglia) Merlino. His first exposure to music came from his two older brothers; John was an accomplished accordionist, and Victor took up the clarinet but did not stick with it for long. Gene originally wanted to play trumpet, as he admired Harry James, but instead picked up the available clarinet in his early teens. A few years later he had learned the saxophone well enough to start playing for dances and weddings near his Potrero Hill neighborhood. After graduating from Mission High School he enrolled ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
San Francisco, California
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of 2024, San Francisco is the List of California cities by population, fourth-most populous city in the U.S. state of California and the List of United States cities by population, 17th-most populous in the United States. San Francisco has a land area of at the upper end of the San Francisco Peninsula and is the County statistics of the United States, fifth-most densely populated U.S. county. Among U.S. cities proper with over 250,000 residents, San Francisco is ranked first by per capita income and sixth by aggregate income as of 2023. San Francisco anchors the Metropolitan statistical area#United States, 13th-most populous metropolitan statistical area in the U.S., with almost 4.6 million residents in 2023. The larger San Francisco Bay Area ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frankie Carle
Frankie Carle (born Francis Nunzio Carlone, March 25, 1903 – March 7, 2001) was an American pianist and bandleader. As a very popular bandleader in the 1940s and 1950s, Carle was nicknamed "The Wizard of the Keyboard" for his piano skills. " Sunrise Serenade" was Carle's best-known composition, rising to No. 1 in the US in 1938 and selling more than one million copies. Early life Carle was born in Providence, Rhode Island, on March 25, 1903. The son of a factory worker who could not afford a piano, he practiced on a dummy keyboard devised by his uncle, pianist Nicholas Colangelo, until he found a broken-down instrument in a dance hall. In 1916, a teenage Carle began working with his uncle's band as well as a number of local bands in the Rhode Island area. To ease acceptance with the public, Carle did what many others with immigrant backgrounds did, he Americanized his name from Carlone to Carle. Career Carle started out working with a number of mainstream dance bands. His earli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Born Free (song)
"Born Free" is a popular song with music by John Barry and lyrics by Don Black. It was written for the 1966 film of the same name and won an Academy Award for Best Original Song. Original version The song's composers, John Barry and Don Black, asked British singer Matt Monro, who was managed by Black at the time, to record the song for the film's soundtrack. The producers of the film considered the song uncommercial, however, and deleted it from the print shown at its Royal Command premiere in London. When Monro, who attended the event, made Black aware of the edit, they successfully lobbied the producers to restore it. Monro's interpretation appeared over the closing credits in a shortened version recorded especially for the film, which enabled it to qualify for the Academy Award. Monro's complete commercial recording was released on the film's soundtrack album and became the singer's signature tune for the remainder of his career. Charted versions Matt Monro's version n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer Simpson, Homer, Marge Simpson, Marge, Bart Simpson, Bart, Lisa Simpson, Lisa, and Maggie Simpson, Maggie. Set in the fictional town of Springfield (The Simpsons), Springfield, in an unspecified location in the United States, it caricatures society, Western culture, television and the human condition. The family was conceived by Groening shortly before a solicitation for a series of The Simpsons shorts, animated shorts with producer Brooks. He created a dysfunctional family and named the characters after his own family members, substituting Bart for his own name; he thought Simpson was a funny name in that it sounded similar to "simpleton". The shorts became a part of ''The Tracey ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ken Berry
Kenneth Ronald Berry (November 3, 1933 – December 1, 2018) was an American actor, comedian, dancer, and singer. Berry starred on the television series '' F Troop'' (1965–1967), '' Mayberry R.F.D.'' (1968–1971) and ''Mama's Family'' (1983–1990). He also appeared on Broadway in '' The Billy Barnes Revue'', headlined as George M. Cohan in the musical ''George M!'' and provided comic relief for the medical drama '' Dr. Kildare'' with Richard Chamberlain in the 1960s. Early life Berry was born in Moline, Illinois in 1933 of Swedish and English descent, one of two children of an accountant, Darrell Berry, and his wife, Bernice (née Larson). He realized he wanted to be a dancer and singer at age 12, as he watched a children's dance performance during a school assembly. He then dreamed of starring in musicals and went to movie theaters to watch Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly in some of his favorite films such as '' Easter Parade'', '' Royal Wedding'', '' On the Town'', and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Donny & Marie (1976 TV Series)
''Donny & Marie'' is an American variety show that aired on ABC from January 1976 to May 1979. The show starred brother-and-sister pop duo Donny and Marie Osmond. Donny had first become popular singing in a music group with his brothers, The Osmonds, and Marie was one of the youngest singers to reach No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' country music charts (with " Paper Roses", in 1973). The siblings were offered a weekly show by ABC-TV President Fred Silverman after he saw the duo co-host a week on ''The Mike Douglas Show'' which followed their series of popular remakes of oldies, such as "I'm Leaving It All Up to You", "Morning Side of the Mountain" and "Make the World Go Away". Donny and Marie (18 and 16 years old, respectively, when the program premiered) were the youngest entertainers in TV history to host their own variety show. A year later, The Keane Brothers would break this record. Overview ''Donny & Marie'' was a Friday night show that consisted of an ice skating number ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour
''The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour'' is an American variety show starring American pop singers Sonny Bono and Cher, who were married to each other at the time. The show ran on CBS in the United States, and premiered in August 1971. The show was cancelled in May 1974, due to the couple's divorce, but the duo reunited in 1976 for the similarly formatted ''The Sonny and Cher Show'' (a title sporadically used during the run of the ''Comedy Hour''), which ran for two seasons, ending August 29, 1977. ''The Sonny & Cher Nitty Gritty Hour'' (1971) ''The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour'' was preceded by a one-off television special titled ''The Sonny & Cher Nitty Gritty Hour''. Commissioned by the Canadian network CTV, it was recorded in 1970 and aired on May 31, 1971, at 8:30 p.m. on Channel 4 in Toronto. The special featured guest appearances by Sandy Baron, Suzanne Charney, Billy Van, Jerelyn Homer, psychologist Dr. Joyce Brothers and Andrea Davidson of the National Ballet of Canada. ''The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Julie Andrews Hour
''The Julie Andrews Hour'' is a television variety series starring Julie Andrews that was produced by ATV and distributed by ITC Entertainment. It aired on the ABC television network in the United States. It was known as ''The Julie Andrews Show'' in the United Kingdom, and aired there on the ITV network. Production history In order to secure Andrews, Sir Lew Grade and ABC offered her a generous five-year contract which included not only Andrews starring in a weekly television variety show, but also allowing her to do films. In 1963, when another major star, Judy Garland, was signed to a weekly television variety series, it failed to catch on with the public. One of the main reasons for its demise was its constant change of format and the fact that critics and audiences felt that Garland was not shown off to her best advantage. In order to avoid that error, Andrews asked producer Nick Vanoff what the premise of the show would be about. Vanoff immediately answered her by sayi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carol Burnett Show
''The Carol Burnett Show'' is an American variety/sketch comedy television show that originally ran on CBS from September 11, 1967, to March 29, 1978, for 279 episodes, and again with nine episodes in fall 1991. It starred Carol Burnett, Harvey Korman, Vicki Lawrence, and Lyle Waggoner. In 1975, frequent guest star Tim Conway became a regular cast member after Waggoner left the series. In 1977, Dick Van Dyke replaced Korman, but it was agreed that he was not a match and he left after 10 episodes. The series originated in CBS Television City's Studio 33, and won 25 primetime Emmy Awards. In 2013, ''TV Guide'' ranked ''The Carol Burnett Show'' number 17 on its list of the 60 Greatest Shows of All Time, and in 2007 it was included on the list of ''Time''s 100 Best TV Shows of All Time. In 2023, ''Variety'' ranked ''The Carol Burnett Show'' #23 on its own list of the 100 greatest TV shows of all time. After the original run ended, material from 1972 to 1977 (seasons 6–10) was repac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Judy Garland Show
''The Judy Garland Show'' is an American musical variety television series that aired on CBS on Sunday nights during the 1963–1964 television season. Despite a sometimes stormy relationship with Judy Garland, CBS had found success with several television specials featuring the star. Garland, who for years had been reluctant to commit to a weekly series, saw the show as her best chance to pull herself out of severe financial difficulties. Despite it being cancelled relatively early on, it is now revered and considered an important piece of television history. Production difficulties beset the series almost from the beginning. The series had three different producers in the course of its 26 episodes and went through a number of other key personnel changes. With the change in producers also came changes to the show's format, which started as comedy and variety but switched to an almost purely concert format. (In fact, as of episode 20, the on-screen title of the show became J ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Pearl Bailey Show
''The Pearl Bailey Show'' is an American variety show that aired on ABC Saturdays 8:30–9:30 P.M. from January 1971 to May 1971. A Cooper-Finkel Company production in association with the Pearl Bailey Production Corporation, the show starred veteran entertainer Pearl Bailey. Overview Pearl Bailey had a decades long successful career as a singer and stage and film actress by the time she was given her her own variety show in 1971. Bailey's husband, drummer Louis Bellson, was the conductor of the Orchestra for the show. The Robert Sidney Dancers and the Allan Davies Singers were regulars, performing a variety of musical entertainment. ''The Pearl Bailey Show'' featured an array of guest performances by prominent entertainers, including Lucille Ball, Bing Crosby, Louis Armstrong, B.B. King, The Supremes, Tony Bennett, Ike & Tina Turner, and Liberace. "She got everybody she wanted. Nobody would turn her down," recalled the show's producer Bob Finkel Robert S. Finkel (March 25, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Red Skelton Show
''The Red Skelton Show'' is an American television comedy/variety show that aired from 1951 to 1971. In the decade prior to hosting the show, Richard "Red" Skelton had a successful career as a radio and motion pictures star. Although his television series is largely associated with CBS, where it appeared for more than sixteen years, it actually began and ended on NBC. During its run, the program received three Emmy Awards, for Skelton as best comedian and the program as best comedy show during its initial season, and an award for comedy writing in 1961. In 1959 Skelton also received a Golden Globe for Best TV Show. Origins: 1950s Red Skelton's network television program began at the start of the 1951 fall season on NBC (for sponsor Procter & Gamble). The MGM agreement with Skelton for television performances did not allow him to go on the air before September 30, 1951. After two seasons on Sunday nights, the program was picked up by CBS in the fall of 1953 and moved to Tues ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
