It is, without question, one of the most oft-quoted anecdotes in the history of comedy. It goes, pretty much, like this: A woman with 10 (or 12 or 14 or 16 or whatever) children makes a guest appearance as a contestant on Groucho Marx’s quiz show You Bet Your Life (which started out on the radio and later found its […]

While many seniors celebrate their birthdays playing Bingo, followed by a late dinner at the Denny’s at 3pm, actor Christopher Lee had other plans this year- he was busy rocking out. Lee partnered with guitarist Richie Faulkner of Judas Priest fame on a heavy metal album that was released on his 91st birthday. The album is based on the life […]

Like so many later-comedians, Bill Cosby described himself in school as “the class clown”.  Born in 1937, William Henry Cosby worked at several different jobs growing up, including selling produce, stocking shelves in a supermarket, and apprenticing in a shoe repair store.  He served four years in the U.S. Navy and later entered Temple University on a track and field […]

Most people are lucky enough to never experience having a loved one taken from them as a result of violence. Kelsey Grammer is not one of those people- his father was shot and killed and his sister was raped and brutally murdered. You know him best as Dr. Frasier Crane, a psychiatrist originally from the hit television series, Cheers. Dr. […]

O.K., I know you might be asking yourself, “Who the devil is Eddie Deezen?”  And if you do happen to know who I am, the question might be, “Who cares?” 😉  Look, I know I usually write these “10 things you may not know about” articles on Frank Sinatra or Elvis or Abraham Lincoln or some such august cultural icon.  […]

Like a number of other celebrities, Audrey Hepburn helped fight against the Axis Powers during World War II, joining the ranks of Jimmy Stewart, Ian Fleming, Roald Dahl, James Doohan, Moe Berg, Noel Coward, Julia Child and Lucky Luciano, among others. Best known as a movie actress having starred in such classic movies as Sabrina, Funny Face, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, […]

Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis formed the most electric comedy team in the history of show business.  Joining together in the summer of 1946, their act caught on like wildfire.  A combination of Dean Martin’s smooth, cool, baritone-voiced suave and Jerry Lewis’s incredible, creative, explosive, comedic brilliance, Dean and Jerry were the top act in all of show biz from […]

For anyone of a certain age, Saturday mornings in the 90s were holy. It was a time to sit in front of the TV in your Pee Wee Herman PJs, eating your Cap’N Crunch, and watching back-to-back episodes of Garfield and Friends, X-Men, Bobby’s World, and Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?. But there was one Saturday morning program […]

It all happened over half a century ago on January 6, 1957.  One of the more famous, and by today’s viewpoint bizarre, acts of “censorship” in television history.  Elvis Presley was deliberately filmed from the waist up only. Why all that fuss over a 22-year-old, fully clothed, young man’s lower half?  It is a bit hard for our generation to […]

It was 1949, then as now, countless thousands of young actresses in Hollywood were unemployed.  Many give up the struggle.  Others take a wrong turn and make decisions they will later regret. A certain unknown, very small, percentage persevere. That songbird they are all chasing, called “success”, inevitably proves elusive. But this article isn’t about the countless scores of would […]

Contrary to popular belief, “Rock Around the Clock” was not the first Rock ‘n’ Roll record to be recorded.  In fact, it wasn’t even Bill Haley’s first Rock record.  “Rock Around the Clock” was, however, the first-ever Rock ‘n’ Roll song to hit the #1 spot on the pop charts.  It transformed rock from a novelty and a curiosity to […]