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Sadako Sawamura

Biography

Sadako Sawamura (沢村貞子, Sawamura Sadako; 11 November 1908 – 16 August 1996) was a Japanese stage and film actress and essayist who appeared in more than 350 films between 1935 and 1976. Sawamura was born in the Asakusa district of Tokyo. After dropping out of Japan Women's University, she was active in left-wing theatre groups and was twice arrested for her political beliefs, spending over a year in prison with much of it in solitary confinement. She started acting in films in 1934, first at the Nikkatsu studio, later at Toho. She appeared in many supporting roles after the war, often working with director Mikio Naruse. Sawamura also acted in films by directors including Kenji Mizoguchi, Yasujirō Ozu, Keisuke Kinoshita and Kaneto Shindō. Her brothers were the actors Daisuke Katō and Kunitarō Sawamura. Her autobiography Watashi no Asakusa has been translated into English as My Asakusa. She was married three times: to actor Shigeo Imamura (1931-33), actor Kamatari Fujiwara (1936-46) and subsequently to film magazine editor and critic Yasuhiko Ohashi (1968-96, though domestic partners from 1946 onward).
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Joanna Lumley

Biography

Dame Joanna Lamond Lumley DBE FRGS (born 1 May 1946) is a British actress, presenter, former model, author, television producer, and activist. She has won two BAFTA TV Awards for her role as Patsy Stone in the BBC sitcom Absolutely Fabulous (1992–2012), and was nominated for the 2011 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for the Broadway revival of La Bête. In 2013, she received the Special Recognition Award at the National Television Awards, and in 2017 she was honoured with the BAFTA Fellowship award. Lumley's other television credits include The New Avengers (1976–1977), Sapphire & Steel (1979–1982), Sensitive Skin (2005–2007), Jam & Jerusalem (2006–2008) and Finding Alice (2021–present) as well as playing Elaine Perkins in Coronation Street in 1973. Her film appearances include On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), Trail of the Pink Panther (1982), Shirley Valentine (1989), James and the Giant Peach (1996), Ella Enchanted (2004), Corpse Bride (2005), The Wolf of Wall Street (2013), and Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie (2016). She had roles in two episodes of Are You Being Served? (1973–1975) written by Jeremy Lloyd, whom she had married and divorced three years prior to her first appearance on the show. Lumley is an advocate and human rights activist for Survival International and the Gurkha Justice Campaign. She supports charities and animal welfare groups, such as Compassion in World Farming and Vegetarians' International Voice for Animals. Lumley was made a Dame (DBE) in the 2022 New Year Honours for services to drama, entertainment and charity.
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Saima Noor

Biography

Saima (born May 5, 1967) is a Pakistani actress who has appeared in Punjabi and Urdu films and Pakistani dramas. She became a prominent film figure after starring in the film Choorian, which is considered as one of the highest grossing Pakistani films of all time.[1] Some of her other significant work includes Sher-e-Lahore (2001), Buddha Gujjar (2002), Majajan (2006), and Bhai Log (2011), all of which were commercial successes. She was one of the most popular leading actresses of Lollywood during 1990s, and early 2000s. Saima has acted in over 200 movies and is known for her work in multiple film genres, including action, romance, and comedy. She also did a supernatural film Naag aur Nagin in 2005. She has appeared in Shahzad Rafique's biographical film Salute.[2] She is currently active in Pakistani television industry, where she has established herself as one of the most acclaimed and highest-paid actresses of television in recent years.[3] In 2005, she married director Syed Noor with whom she had worked in a number of films.
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Michael Greene

Biography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Michael Greene (born November 4, 1933 in San Francisco, California) was an actor active from the 1960s through the 1990s. Early in his career, Greene was frequently featured in westerns, but was credited with over 100 television films appearances, including the 1962 film This is Not a Test (as Mike Green), as well as a leading role in the 1973 film The Clones. Description above from the Wikipedia article Michael Greene, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.​
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Koichi Iwaki

Biography

Kōichi Iwaki (岩城滉一, Iwaki Kōichi, born Lee Gwon-il) is a Japanese actor. Before entering the entertainment industry, Iwaki lived a high-profile life on the streets of Tokyo, which directly led to his discovery by movie producers. He was the vice-leader of COOLS, a legendary "hardcore" biker gang based in Harajuku and Omotesando, which he co-led with fellow future Japanese actor Hiroshi Tachi. He was scouted by the film studio Toei after photos of him riding his Harley-Davidson FLH1200 appeared in popular magazines like Heibon Punch and Weekly Playboy. Iwaki debuted in 1975 with the film Seishun Sanka: Boryoku Gakuen Dai Kakumei and quickly became the face of Toei's biker-themed "delinquent" movies.
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Roberto Bertea

Biography

Roberto Bertea made his debut as an actor in the theater at the end of the thirties; He was noticed by Carmine Gallone who had him write for a part in the film Oltre l'amore. After the war he began his collaboration as a voice actor within the CID and SAS cooperatives in Rome, until he became dubbing director in the 70s. He was very active in the radio prose of Radio Rai until the sixties, he also carries out the activity of presenter of entertainment shows, often together with his colleague Gianna Piaz, working, even if occasionally, as a scriptwriter, screenwriter, director and dialogue adapter.
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Kevin Spacey

Biography

Kevin Spacey Fowler KBE (born July 26, 1959) is an American actor, producer, and singer. He began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, obtaining supporting roles in film and television. Spacey's first roles in film were in Mike Nichols' Heartburn (1986), and Working Girl (1988). He gained critical acclaim in the 1990s, with an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for the neo-noir crime thriller The Usual Suspects (1995) and an Academy Award for Best Actor for the midlife-crisis-themed drama American Beauty (1999). His other starring roles have included Glengarry Glen Ross (1992), the comedy-drama film Swimming with Sharks (1994), the psychological thriller Seven (1995), the neo-noir crime film L.A. Confidential (1997), the drama Pay It Forward (2000), the science fiction-mystery film K-PAX (2001), the musical biopic Beyond the Sea (2004), the superhero film Superman Returns (2006), and the action film Baby Driver (2017). In Broadway theatre, Spacey starred in Long Day's Journey into Night in 1986 alongside Jack Lemmon. In 1991, he won a Tony Award for his role in Lost in Yonkers. He continued to act in theatre receiving his second Tony Award nomination for The Iceman Cometh in 1999. He was the artistic director of the Old Vic theatre in London from 2004 until stepping down in mid-2015. In 2017, he hosted the 71st Tony Awards. From 2013 to 2017, Spacey played Frank Underwood in the Netflix political drama series House of Cards, which won him a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama and two consecutive Screen Actors Guild Awards for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series as well as five consecutive Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Best Actor in a Drama Series. In October 2017, actor Anthony Rapp accused Spacey of making a sexual advance toward him in 1986, when Rapp was 14. Other men alleged that Spacey had made unwanted advances and had sexually harassed and assaulted them as well. Netflix cut ties with Spacey, shelving his film Gore and removing him from the last season of House of Cards. His role as J. Paul Getty in Ridley Scott's film All the Money in the World (2017) was reshot with Christopher Plummer in his place. Spacey appeared in the 2018 film Billionaire Boys Club (which had been completed before the allegations surfaced), which was released with his role unchanged. Description above from the Wikipedia article Kevin Spacey, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Joe Frazier

Biography

Joseph William "Joe" Frazier (January 12, 1944 - November 7, 2011) was a former Olympic and World Heavyweight boxing champion, whose professional career lasted from 1965 to 1976, with a brief comeback in 1981. He was nicknamed 'Smokin' Joe' in the ring. Frazier emerged as a contender in the mid-1960s, defeating Jerry Quarry, Oscar Bonavena, Buster Mathis, Eddie Machen, Doug Jones and Jimmy Ellis en route to becoming undisputed heavyweight champion in 1970, and followed up by defeating Muhammad Ali in the highly-anticipated "Fight of the Century" in 1971. Two years later Frazier lost his title when he was knocked out by George Foreman. He launched a comeback, beating Joe Bugner, losing a rematch to Ali, and beating Quarry and Ellis again. Frazier's last world title challenge came in 1975, but he was beaten by Ali in their brutal rubbermatch. He retired in 1976 following a second loss to Foreman. He made a comeback in 1981, fighting just once, before retiring for good. The International Boxing Research Organization (IBRO) rates Frazier among the ten greatest heavyweights of all time. He is an inductee of both the International Boxing Hall of Fame and the World Boxing Hall of Fame. Frazier's style was often compared to that of Henry Armstrong, dependent on bobbing, weaving and wearing down his opponents with relentless pressure. His best known punch was a powerful left hook, which accounted for most of his knockouts. Compared to Ali's style, he was close enough to the ideal bruiser that some in the press and media characterized the bouts as the answer to the classic question: "What happens when a boxer meets with a brawler?" Since retiring Frazier has made cameo appearances in several Hollywood movies, and two episodes of The Simpsons. His son Marvis also became a boxer - trained by Frazier himself - although was unable to emulate his father's success. Frazier continues to train fighters in his gym in Philadelphia. His later years have also seen the continuation of his bitter rivalry with Ali, in which the two periodically exchange insults, interspersed with brief reconciliations.
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Brian Johnson

Biography

Brian Francis Johnson (born 5 October 1947) is an English singer and songwriter. In 1980, after the death of Bon Scott, he became the third lead singer of the Australian rock band AC/DC. He and the rest of the band were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003. In March 2016, he stepped down from touring on the Rock or Bust World Tour due to hearing problems. He stated in an interview that he "had a pretty good run" in AC/DC and implied that he might not be returning. On September 30, 2020, AC/DC officially confirmed that Johnson along with fellow band mates Phil Rudd and Cliff Williams returned to record the band's 2020 album, Power Up in August 2018.
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Nedumudi Venu

Biography

Kesavan Venu Gopal, known popularly by his stage name Nedumudi Venu, was an Indian actor, writer and director. He was widely regarded as one of the greatest actors in Indian cinema. Venu was born as Venugopal to P. K. Kesavan Nair-a school master- and P. Kunjikkuttiyamma in Nedumudi, Alappuzha as the youngest of their five children. He has four elder brothers. He had his primary education from N S S Higher Secondary School, Nedumudi, and St. Mary's Higher Secondary School,Champakulam. He was involved in art and music since his academic period. After graduating from Sanatana Dharma College, Alappuzha, he worked as a journalist in Kalakaumudi and as a teacher in a tutorial institute. Venu was living in Thiruvananthapuram when he made friends with the likes of Aravindan, Padmarajan, and Bharath Gopi. This ultimately paved way for his film career. He is a talented Mridangam player. Venu started his career in theater and went on to act in films. He was a member of Kavalam Narayana Panicker's dramas. He debuted in the film Thambu (1978) by director G. Aravindan. His acting skills were showcased in the Bharathan film Aaravam. Padmarajan's Oridathoru Phayalwan and Kallan Pavithran set a milestone for him. It marked his start in karanavar (head of the family) roles, which included most of his memorable performances. Venu also wrote scripts for movies. He wrote the stories for the films Kattathe Kilikkoodu, Theertham, Sruthi, Ambada Njane, Oru Katha Oru Nunnakkatha, Savidham, and Angane Oru Avadhikkalathu. He also tried his hand in direction with Pooram. He has also acted in a few Tamil films with director Shankar, such as Kamal Hasan's Indian and Vikram's Anniyan. Venu has also acted in some television serials. He acted in NFDC film Parinamam (The Change), directed by P. Venu that won the best screenplay award at the Ashdod International Film Festival held in Israel. He won the Best Actor award for his role in Saira at the Zimbabwe International Film Festival which concluded in September 2007; Saira was the only film from India to be included in the festival. The committee mentioned that he acted compellingly and convincingly in his portrayal of a man caught between secularism and fundamentalism.
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