October 24 Birthday Wishes

Merian C. Cooper [1893 - 1973]
I. Stanford Jolley [1900 - 1978]
Jean Allison [1929 - ]

Howdy Manco!!

Merian.C.Cooper fought in the Polish war with Russia, had his plane shot down and spent 9 months in a Russian P.O.W. camp.
He had a dream about a giant ape destroying New York, woke up and wrote it down. This story was the basis for both King Kong and later Mighty Joe Young. He worked on many films with John Ford as producer and executive producer, including The Searchers, Wagon Master, The Quite Man, Fort Apache, 3 Godfathers and She Wore A Yellow Ribbon. When he interviewed Fay Wray for her role in King Kong, he told her that she was going to have the tallest, darkest leading man in Hollywood. He was the director of King Kong and The last Days Of Pompei.

I. Stanford Jolley began his film career in 1935 and for over 40 years, he appeared with his pencil thin mustache in hundreds of B-westerns, matinee films and in A- films like,, Westward The Women, Cattle Queen, Sands Of Iwo Jima, and Rancho Notorious. Most often cast as either a member of the bad guys gang or a Snidely Whiplash type of crooked banker. During the 50's he appeared on many of westerns t.v. series like, The Lone Ranger, Hopalong Cassidy, The Cisco Kid, The Adventures Of Kit Carson and The Gene Autry Show. If you can't place this fella, just pull up his picture and you'll recognize him immediately, Wherever they needed a skulking, no good, lowdown, backshootin outlaw, is where you'll find I.Stanford. Jolley.

Jean Allison first appeared in film, in 1957 and for over 25 years, this beautiful short haired blonde appeared on ever western and action/adventure series on t.v., including Maverick, Trackdown, M-Squad, The Rifleman, McCloud, The Restless Gun, Marcus Welby M.D., Then Came Bronson and dozens of others. She may be best remembered for her roles in the George.C.Scott film, Hardcore and, the 1972 western, Bad Company. She did her last acting on the 1984 series, Highway To Heaven and retired from acting to become a full time mother and grandmother.

Ed

Also Today:

F. Murray Abraham (1940-) first appeared in bit parts in '70s movies such as Serpico, The Sunshine Boys and All The Presidents Men. He then played a drug dealer along with Al Pacino in Scarface. In 1984, he played the Oscar winnig role of Antonio Salieri in Amadeus. He would later play in The Name of the Rose anf Finding Forrester (both with Sean Connery), Woody Allen's film Mighty Aphrodite, Mobsters (as Arnold Rothstein), Larry McMurtry's Dead Man's Walk, and Star Trek: Insurrection.

Kevin Kline (1947-) is a star of stage and screen. His first big break in films was opposite Meryl Streep in Sophie's Choice. After that, he starred in The Big Chill, Silverado, A Fish Called Wanda, Soapdish, Chaplin, Dave, and the Wild Wild West. He's been nominated for numerous awards, and won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for A Fish Called Wanda.