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1-6 of 6
- Actor
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Tall and gaunt American character actor prominent in a number of classic American films. A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, he attended Brown University and subsequently went to work as an economist for the United States Department of State. In 1941, he joined the American Red Cross and served in Great Britain during the war. There he met director John Huston, who took a liking to Dierkes and recommended that he try Hollywood after the war. Instead, Dierkes went to work for the U.S. Treasury Department, which, coincidentally, sent him to Hollywood to function as technical adviser on the film To the Ends of the Earth (1948). 'Orson Welles' cast him as Ross in his adaptation of Macbeth (1948). Dierkes returned to the Treasury Department, but two years later, Huston called on him to play The Tall Soldier in The Red Badge of Courage (1951). Dierkes took a leave of absence from his job, a leave which lasted for the rest of Dierkes's life. His quiet dignity and distinctive appearance led him to dozens of roles in film and on television. In John Wayne's The Alamo (1960), Dierkes plays a Scot, "Jocko Robertson", named after Dierkes's own maternal grandfather. He died in 1975, and was survived by his wife, two sons, and two daughters.- A former telephone engineer who dabbled in amateur dramatics, John Gregson served aboard a minesweeper with the Royal Navy during World War II. After demobilisation, he joined the Liverpool Old Vic, making his stage debut in 'The Knight of the Burning Pestle'. Freshly married, he moved to London and acted alongside Robert Donat and Margaret Leighton in 'A Sleeping Clergyman' at the West End Criterion Theatre in 1947. During the same period, he was also cast in his first movie, the romantic period melodrama Saraband (1948), though his scenes ended up being cut. Undeterred, Gregson established himself as a popular favorite in subsequent Ealing comedies and later as a long term contractee with the Rank Organisation. His screen personae tended to be men of integrity: regular guys who don't necessarily finish on top, introspective, somewhat diffident, and often troubled. His most fondly remembered role was that of vintage car enthusiast Alan McKim, in the idiosyncratic (and typically British) comedy Genevieve (1953). Ironically, while he is featured in almost every scene behind the wheel, Gregson couldn't drive a car when filming began - and proved to be a slow learner.
For the remainder of the decade,he became somewhat typecast in traditional 'stiff upper lip' military roles. As film opportunities began to diminish, he turned more and more towards television, enjoying his greatest popularity as titular star of the police drama series Gideon C.I.D. (1964). Until his untimely death at the age of 55, Gregson alternated television work with acting on stage, as well as doing voice-overs and appearing in commercials for Hamlet cigars. - Olive Ann Alcorn was born on 10 March 1900 in Stillwater, Minnesota, USA. She was an actress, known for For a Woman's Honor (1919), The Long Arm of Mannister (1919) and Up the Ladder (1925). She was married to Harry Singer and Louis H. Scherer. She died on 8 January 1975 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Anthony Warde was born on 4 November 1908 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor, known for Dangers of the Canadian Mounted (1948), Radar Patrol vs. Spy King (1949) and Buck Rogers (1939). He died on 8 January 1975 in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Brooklyn-born tenor Richard Tucker had a unique dual career. As one of the great voices of the Metropolitan Opera, Tucker made his debut there as Alfredo Germont in Verdi's "La Traviata" in January, 1945, and became a specialist in the Italian and French lyric roles. Among his most famous roles with the company were Rodolfo in Puccini's "La Boheme," B.F. Pinkerton in the same composer's "Madama Butterfly," Don Jose in Bizet's "Carmen," and Radames in Verdi's "Aida." The latter, in addition to many performances at the Met, was also a role he sang in a televised concert performance under Arturo Toscanini and on a special Met broadcast performance in honor of Enrico Caruso's centeniary in February, 1973. Concurrently with his operatic career, Tucker, an Orthodox Jew, was regarded as one of the finest cantors ever, ranked in the company of the great Josef Rosenblatt and Moishe Oysher. His recordings of the cantorial literature on American Columbia records are regarded as among the finest of their kind, and he traveled to Vietnam to preside over High Holy Day services there at the behest of the USO. Although he recorded the role of Canio in Leoncavallo's "I Pagliacci" in 1953, he did not perform it on stage until 1970, at which time he scored one of his last great triumphs.
Privately, Tucker was regarded as a warm, friendly man who was devoted to his God and his family. He and the former Sarah Perelmuth (the sister of his Met colleague and rival, Jan Peerce) were married for over thirty years and had three sons and numerous grandchildren. He was also well known for his waggish sense of humor. During the protracted death scene for the baritone in Verdi's "Don Carlo," Tucker, in the title role, leaned over to baritone Robert Merrill and whispered, "Will you hurry up and die? I've got to catch the train for Great Neck in 45 minutes!" Merrill, one of Tucker's closest friends off-stage, had to bite his tongue to keep from laughing. In fact, he was in the midst of a concert tour with Merrill when he was found dead of a heart attack in his hotel room in Kalamazoo, Michigan, at the age of only sixty-one. He was just one week short of celebrating his thirtieth anniversary with the Metropolitan Opera Company, and his funeral service on the Met stage was only the second one ever for a company artist. The first? That of Enrico Caruso, the greatest tenor of all time and one of Tucker's idols.
Today, the most successful American tenor ever to sing with the Met, and one of the greatest American tenors ever, is honored with a portrait at the Met's Founder's Hall. That, and his considerable recorded legacy, will ensure that his name will live forever in operatic and cantorial annals.- György Botond Bolics was born on 22 October 1913 in Arad, Hungary. György was a writer, known for Van-e élet a Földön kívül? (1958) and Mikrobi (1975). György died on 8 January 1975 in Budapest, Hungary.