Charles McGraw (1914-1980) was the squarest jawed of all square-jawed Hollywood actors of the golden period, always playing a tough guy of some sort: police lieutenants and sergeants, rear admirals, sheriffs, captains, gladiators. If you were a casting director and you needed a certain granite-like face with oversized features, plus a steely demeanor to match,… Continue reading Charles McGraw’s Freakishly Sad and Incongruous Death
Author: Lee Wallender
Deception, influence, fakes, illusions, themed environments, simulations, secret places, secret infrastructure, imagined places, dreamscapes, movie sets and props, evasions, camouflage, studio backlots, miniatures.
Miss Lesley E. Bogert, Prominent Among Newport Socialites
It starts with a photo in a LIFE magazine, July 11, 1938, with the caption saying, “Miss Lesley E. Bogert was prominent among Newport socialites at opening of the summer season June 21.” LIFE was a family magazine, so risque comments like prominent didn’t happen often. You see: Lesley was born into the extremely upper-crust… Continue reading Miss Lesley E. Bogert, Prominent Among Newport Socialites
Predicting the Date Kamala Harris Becomes President
With Joe Biden’s election as U.S. president, a major power shift has happened in the White House. But there is also the belief that another power shift will happen within Biden’s presidency: that Joe Biden is a passthrough for Kamala Harris to become president. Whether Biden dies or becomes incapacitated is impossible to predict. But… Continue reading Predicting the Date Kamala Harris Becomes President
Houlihan’s Old Place: The Era of the Funky Themed Restaurant
It was the post-hippie era, early- to mid-Seventies, but the hippie influence had permeated into the lives of regular citizens and lingered for awhile. The full name was Houlihan’s Old Place, squarely identifying itself, as a theme restaurant. Along with TGI Friday and Bennigan’s, Houlihan’s marked the beginning of the theme restaurant era. Gilbert Robinson… Continue reading Houlihan’s Old Place: The Era of the Funky Themed Restaurant
Helen Dzo Dzo Kaptur: Pure Palm Springs Attitude
Getting invited by friend Nelda Linsk to her home in 1970 for a casual photo shoot immortalized Helen Dzo Dzo Kaptur.