Happy Birthday, Mickey Rooney

Sep 23, 2021

Happy Birthday, Mickey Rooney (September 23, 1920 - April 6, 2014)

Rooney was perhaps best known for his films of the 1930s and 1940s, including the Andy Hardy series and his collaborations with Judy Garland.

Nearly all of Rooney’s life was spent in show business. Laurence Olivier called him “the greatest actor of...

Tired of the everyday grind?

Jul 7, 2021

Escape is often considered a “sister series” to CBS’ Suspense, but where “radio’s outstanding theater of thrills” had sponsorship dollars to attract the biggest names in Hollywood, Escape was a sustaining series without a sponsor. Since it couldn’t rely on the likes of Cary Grant and Gregory...

Stewart on Suspense

May 20, 2021

When he appeared on Suspense, James Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) played against type very effectively. His characters on “radio’s outstanding theater of thrills” were miles away from George Bailey and Jefferson Smith. His turns were closer to his haunted protagonist of Hitchcock’s Vertigo, and his...

Happy Birthday, James Mason

May 15, 2021

Nominated for three Academy Awards, James Mason (May 15, 1909 - July 27, 1984) had the marquee looks of a leading man but could convey a cool menace that made him a dastardly screen villain. Among his credits are Brutus in Julius Caesar, Captain Nemo in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Humbert Humbert in Lolita,...

Happy Birthday, William Holden

Apr 17, 2021

The down-on-his-luck scriptwriter who enters into a doomed romance with a faded star; the cynical POW who reigns as king of a German camp; the aging television executive who watches his era fade away as he desperately tries to cling to his job - and a beautiful young woman: Oscar and Emmy-winner William Holden (April...