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Faina Ranevskaya
Biography
Faina Georgiyevna Ranevskaya (born Faina Girschevna Feldman, on August 27th, 1896 in Taganrog), was a Soviet theatre and film actress. She is also very well known for her cheeky aphorisms. In childhood, she attended the Mariinskaya Gymnasium for Girls, receiving additional education usual for someone from an affluent family (music, singing, foreign languages). Heavily influenced by her mother's love for the arts, Ranevskaya had a budding interest in theatre and by the age of 14 was attending classes at the private theatre studio of A. Jagiello (A.N. Govberg), graduating in 1914. In 1915 she decided to move to Moscow, becoming estranged from her family due to her choice of career. During these years she met M. Tsvetaeva, O. Mandelstam, V. Mayakovsky, and V. Kachalov. In the post-revolutionary years, her family left Russia and settled in Prague, but she stayed to continue pursuing theatre. She worked in the theatres of Kerch, Rostov-on-Don, at the mobile theatre "The First Soviet Theater" in Crimea, also in Baku, Arkhangelsk, Smolensk, etc. In fall of 1915, Ranevskaya signed a contract to work in the Kerch troupe of Madame Lavrovskaya. Sadly, the public did not express great interest in the new troupe. Ranevskaya chose her stage name in honor of the main character in Anton Chekhov's play The Cherry Orchard. Once, on a walk with a fellow troupe member, Ranevskaya decided to check into the bank. The actress recalls the birth of this pseudonym: "When we came out of the massive bank doors, a gust of wind tore the banknotes out of my hands – the entire amount. I stopped, and, looking at the flying banknotes, said: 'Shame about the money, but how beautifully it flies away!' 'But indeed, you are Ranevskaya!' exclaimed her companion. 'Only she could say that!' When I later had to choose a pseudonym, I decided to take the surname of Chekhov's heroine. We have something in common–but far from everything, far from everything..." Ranevskaya also used to joke about herself, saying that she was Ranevskaya because she had butterfingers. Ranevskaya's mother and her had both greatly admired the writer himself.
In 1934, she made her debut in film as Madame Loiseau in Pyshka (dir. Mikhail Romm), based on Boule de Suif by Guy de Maupassant. Romain Rolland, a French writer, loved the film (his favorite actor in the movie was Ranevskaya). At his request it was shown in French cinemas and became a box-office hit. She remained both prominent film and theatre actress, although most of her work remained in theatre.
In her later years, Ranevskaya professed that meeting Pavla Woolf drastically changed her fate; it was thanks to Woolf that she became an actress. They met in 1918, when Ranevskaya worked as an extra for a circus production. She happened to see Pavla Woolf in "A Nest of the Gentlefolk", which left upon her a big impression. She asked the actress to help her (who willingly accepted), and from that day on they remained very close friends.
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Alex Désert
Biography
Alex Désert (born July 18, 1968) is a Haitian-American actor and musician most known for his roles in the TV series The Flash, Becker, and Boy Meets World. He is also a founding member of Los Angeles-based ska band Hepcat.
His first strong television presence was on a controversial CBS program entitled TV 101 where he co-starred with friend Matt LeBlanc. From 1990 to 1991, he played police lab scientist Julio Mendez alongside John Wesley Shipp in CBS' superhero TV series based on DC Comics' The Flash.
In 1992 he starred in the short lived Fox series the The Heights.
From 1995 to 1996 Désert played Eli Williams on the hit TV show Boy Meets World
From 1998 until 2004, he played the role of Jake Malinak, the blind magazine stand owner, on the American sitcom Becker alongside Ted Danson.
As a film actor he appeared in PCU with Jeremy Piven and Jon Favreau. He also appeared in Swingers with Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau, where he made famous the line "This place is dead anyway." He also had a small part as the character Louis in High Fidelity in 2000.
Désert also appeared in Sarah Silverman's The Great Schlep web advertisement, which encouraged young Jews to drive to Florida and convince their Jewish grandparents to support Barack Obama in the 2008 U.S. presidential election.
He also appeared in Let It Shine.
In 2009, he provided the voice for Col. Nick Fury in an episode of Wolverine and the X-Men. In early 2010 he starred in the film Lego: The Adventures of Clutch Powers and Lego Clutch Powers: Bad Hair Day. In late 2010, he reprised the role for the animated series, Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes and his father Jack Fury.
Later in 2009 he also made an appearance on the t.v. show, House. He played a claustrophobic patient at a mental hospital in the episode "Broken" during the sixth season.
In 2011, Désert starred as Wise in the YouTube web series The LeBrons.
Désert has lent his voice to various Video Games in his career, including Crystal Dynamic's Tomb Raider: Legend (as "Zip"), Tomb Raider: Underworld, Splinter Cell: Double Agent and Scarface: The World is Yours. He portrayed the auto-tuned pimp Zimos in the 2011 THQ release, Saints Row: The Third. In 2012, Désert co-starred as Levi in Disney's Let It Shine.
In 2013, Désert reprised his role as Zimos in Saints Row IV DLC.
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Benny Safdie
Biography
Benjamin Safdie (born February 24, 1986) is an American filmmaker, actor, and editor best known for his collaborations with his older brother, Josh Safdie. Together, the Safdie brothers have established themselves as leading voices in contemporary independent cinema with acclaimed films such as Heaven Knows What (2014), Good Time (2017), and Uncut Gems (2019).
In addition to directing, Benny has pursued a parallel career as an actor. His performance in Good Time earned him a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male. He has since appeared in high-profile films including Paul Thomas Anderson’s Licorice Pizza (2021), Kelly Fremon Craig’s Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. (2023), and Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer (2023).
On television, he co-created, co-wrote, and starred alongside Nathan Fielder and Emma Stone in the Showtime series The Curse (2023).
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Dean Khandjian
Biography
Dean Khandjian got his start in the entertainment industry as a model with DirectionsUSA at the age of 19. He returned to his hometown of Atlanta to pursue a career in TV/Film where he's enjoyed success in Tyler Perry's hit show Ruthless as the character Peter. He's also worked with Oscar winning actress Taraji P. Henson and prolific musicians such as Fantasia and T.I. in Celebrity Prank Wars; a reality prank show hosted by Kevin Hart and Nick Cannon. He's also the lead singer of an INXS tribute band called New Sensation who frequently sells out popular venues in the Southeast. Dean is of Armenian, Scotch-Irish, German, and English descent.
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Rosie Perez
Biography
Rosa María Perez (born September 6, 1964) is an American actress, community activist, talk show host, author, dancer, and choreographer. Her film breakthrough performance was her portrayal of Tina in Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing (1989), which she followed with White Men Can't Jump (1992). Among many honors, she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Fearless (1993) as well as three Emmy Awards for her work as a choreographer on In Living Color (1990–1994). Perez has also performed in stage plays on Broadway, such as The Ritz, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune, and Fish in the Dark. In addition, she was a co-host on the ABC talk show The View during the series' 18th season.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Rosie Perez, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Sean Connery
Biography
Sir Thomas Sean Connery (August 25, 1930 - October 31, 2020) was a Scottish actor and producer who won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards (one being a BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award), and three Golden Globes, including the Cecil B. DeMille Award and a Henrietta Award.
Connery was the first actor to portray the character James Bond in film, starring in seven Bond films (every film from Dr. No to You Only Live Twice, plus Diamonds Are Forever and Never Say Never Again), between 1962 and 1983. In 1988, Connery won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in The Untouchables. His films also include Marnie (1964), Murder on the Orient Express (1974), The Man Who Would Be King (1975), A Bridge Too Far (1977), Highlander (1986), Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), The Hunt for Red October (1990), Dragonheart (1996), The Rock (1996), and Finding Forrester (2000).
Connery was polled in a 2004 The Sunday Herald as "The Greatest Living Scot" and in a 2011 EuroMillions survey as "Scotland's Greatest Living National Treasure". He was voted by People magazine as both the “Sexiest Man Alive" in 1989 and the "Sexiest Man of the Century” in 1999. He received a lifetime achievement award in the United States with a Kennedy Center Honor in 1999. Connery was knighted in the 2000 New Year Honours for services to film drama.
On October 31, 2020, it was announced that Connery had died at the age of 90.
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Grayson Thorne Kilpatrick
Biography
Grayson Thorne Kilpatrick was born in Huntsville, AL to Sherry and Charles Kilpatrick. In 2013, at the age of 9 he fell in love with Acting. Grayson took some local acting classes at Hollywood Huntsville in Huntsville, AL and Gray Studio in Nashville, TN in 2013 Grayson made his screen debut with Tom Lester, Victoria Jackson and Ray Stevens in "Campin' Buddies". From 2013 until end of 2015 Grayson had received 24 IMDb credit for Feature Films, Short Films and TV Series. In 2016, Grayson and his family moved to Los Angeles where Grayson has already received several more IMDb credit for various TV Series and Films. Grayson joined the Screen Actors Guild and became SAG-AFTRA in February 2016, only one month after moving to L.A. Grayson has worked with legendary actors Shia LeBeouf, Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Bill Hader, Fred Armisen, Jamie Costa, Stephen Dorff, Rob Riggle, Alpha Trivette, Greg Alan Williams, Danny Vinson and Henry Zebrowski.
Grayson is known for his roles in Chicken Girls:The Movie, American Horror Story, Dave and many more
Grayson currently takes acting Classes from David Gray at Gray Studios in L.A as well as the Margie Haber Studios. Grayson takes private acting classes with Wendy Ann Faraone an on set Disney acting coach for shows as "Liv and Maddie", Carrie Ann Hunt actress from "Magic Mike" and Danny Vinson actor from such films as "Walk the Line", "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" and many more...
Grayson is currently pursing his Black Belt in Karate, and taking Surfing, and Parkour lessons. His hobbies is playing Minecraft with his friends, Archery and watching College Football (Alabama Crimson Tide).
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Elina Pähklimägi
Biography
Elina Pähklimägi (credited as Elina Purde between 2014–2022; born February 7, 1983) is an Estonian stage, television and film actress whose career began in the mid-2000s.
Elina Pähklimägi was born in the town of Ambla in Järva County and grew up in the nearby village of Ussimäe. She attended the Rakvere Secondary Gymnasium and studied for a year at Tallinn's Estonian Sports Gymnasium before returning to graduate from Rakvere Secondary Gymnasium. Following her 2008 graduation from the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre in Tallinn she became a freelance actress.
Elina Pähklimägi began her career on various small stage venues throughout Estonia. She garnered her first small television roles on the Eesti Televisioon (ETV) series' Ohtlik lend and Õnne 13 and the Kanal 2 crime series Kelgukoerad in 2006 and 2007 while stile studying at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre. Her first starring role in a feature film was in the Liina Paakspuu-directed drama Soovide puu in 2008. This was followed by the role of Liis in the Andres Maimik and Rain Tolk-directed comedy film Kormoranid ehk Nahkpükse ei pesta in 2011. In 2015, she appeared in the Stanislav Govorukhin-directed Russian comedy-drama The End of a Great Era. In 2017, she had a starring role as Elen in the Andrejs Ekis-directed comedy Svingerid, opposite Jan Uuspõld, Ago Anderson, and Elina Reinold, and appeared in the Sulev Keedus-directed historical drama Mehetapja/Süütu/Vari. She has also appeared in a number of short films.
Pähklimägi is possibly best known to Estonian television viewers for her role of Häidi Õigepaulus on the TV3 comedy-crime series Kättemaksukontor; a role she played from 2009 until departing the series in 2013. Other notable television appearances include a starring role as Paula in the Kanal 2 comedy series Takso beginningin 2015, the recurring roles of Tibin in the 2008–2011 Kanal 2 comedy series Eestlane ja Venelane, Angela Salu on the ETV thriller Alpimaja in 2012, and as Irma Marmor on the crime series Siberi võmm in 2017.
Elina Pähklimägi married Andrus Purde in 2014 and afterward began using her married surname. In July 2014, she gave birth to a daughter, Mia. In 2022, the couple divorced. Prior to her relationship with Andrus Purde, she had been in a long-term relationship with actor Kristjan Sarv.
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Pat Jackson
Biography
Patrick Douglas Selmes Jackson (26 March 1916 – 3 June 2011) was an English film and television director.
Born in Eltham, to a formerly affluent family which was severely affected by the Wall Street Crash in 1929, and his father's long-term illness and early death ending Jackson's formal education. He joined the GPO Film Unit on his 17th birthday as a messenger boy after his mother persuaded her MP, Sir Kingsley Wood, then also postmaster general, to find work for her son. Rising to production assistant, he was part of the crew for the short film Night Mail (1936). The voice narrating the poem by W.H. Auden ("This is the Night Mail crossing the border, bringing the cheque and the postal order.") was Jackson himself. He directed a number of documentaries, the first being The Horsey Mail (1938) about the rural postal service in Suffolk. The First Days (1939), co-directed by Harry Watt and Humphrey Jennings, was the first of the wartime documentaries, in this instance concerned with the 'Phoney War' period.
Jackson's debut feature film was Western Approaches (1944), a semi-documentary war film for what was now the Ministry of Information's Crown Film Unit. For what became a three-year project, Jackson took on the writing, direction, editing and casting (of non-professional actors) a film about merchant seamen. Featuring an extended period on location at sea, the lifeboat sequences alone took six-months to complete.
After the war, Jackson spent three years in Hollywood under contract to MGM, although the only film he directed during this period was Shadow on the Wall (1950), based on the novel Death in the Doll's House by Lawrence P. Bachmann and Hannah Leessuch. His film Encore (1951) was in competition at the 1952 Cannes Film Festival . White Corridors (1951), a semi-documentary drama about a hospital in the regions, was critically well received at the time. What a Carve Up! (1961), a film in the old dark house genre, was the most commercially successful of Jackson's later feature films.
Jackson worked in television during the 1960s and 1970s. Impressed by the stage work of Patrick McGoohan, he seems to have been involved in casting him for Danger Man (US:Secret Agent), episodes of which he directed. Apart from McGoohan's The Prisoner (1967), he was also involved with episodes of The Saint and The Professionals.
Jackson died on 3 June 2011 aged 95.
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Ho Kay Tat
Biography
Dato’ Ho Kay Tat is a prominent figure within the Malaysian media landscape, holding the positions of publisher and group CEO at The Edge Media Group. Boasting over three decades of experience in the realm of journalism and media, he is renowned for his pivotal role in transforming The Edge Malaysia into the nation's premier financial news institution.
Notably, Dato’ Ho Kay Tat stands out as a trailblazer in the 1MDB investigation, where together with his team, he displayed remarkable courage and commitment to unbiased reporting. In the face of governmental pressures—which led to the closure of The Edge for several months—Ho emerged as a staunch advocate for media freedom and the promotion of ethical journalism within Malaysia.
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