| June 10 |
| 1895 -- Hattie McDaniel, who in 1939 becomes the first African-American to win an Academy Award, is born in Wichita, Kansas. A talented singer, she broke into film as a maid in 1932's 'The Golden West.' Just 5'2," what separated the domestics that Hattie portrayed early in her career was the willingness to stand up to their white employers, a trend epitomized by her Oscar-winning role of Mammy in the epic 'Gone With the Wind.' Unfortunately, that dynamic quality of roles became less and less frequent after her barrier-breaking win. Eventually she moved into radio, creating the classic role of 'Beulah,' but declined the role when ABC developed the television version, although she maintained the radio series during the TV run. In the third season, though, with her health declining and money almost gone, she finally accepted the role in the series' final season. After filming just six episodes, though, she suffered a heart attack; a stroke quickly followed and shortly after that a diagnosis of advanced breast cancer. Hattie McDaniel died October 2, 1952, at the age of 57. Rest in peace. (Note: for what I consider an absolutely brilliant summary of both Hattie and the 'Beulah' show, check out Billy Ingram's outstanding work at tvparty.com. As I tried to sort through the conflicting stories of what happened during the filming of the series, this set the record straight. Outstanding work, outstanding website!) 1908 -- Charles Clarence (Bob) Cummings is born in Joplin, Missouri. He won an Emmy for his role in the live TV courtroom drama Twelve Angry Men (1954), but he's best remembered for his comedy series: 'My Hero,' 'The Bob Cummings Show (with Rosemary Forsythe, Ann B. Davis and Dwayne Hickman)' and 'My Living Doll,' with Julie Newmar as an animatronic robot. 'Twilight Zone' fans remember him for the eerie 'King Nine Will Not Return,' about a flight squadron commander trying to find his lost crew in the desert. 'King Nine' certainly had some resonance with his own life; a flying enthusiast, Bob had indeed been a pilot during WWII. A lifelong nutrition buff, Bob died of kidney failure December 2, 1990, at age 82.His fitness regimen apparently worked. Married and divorced four times, he'd married for the fifth time just the year before and -- according to EW.com -- had already filed for divorce shortly before his death. 'The Bob Cummings Show,' by the way, was known in syndication as 'Love That Bob.' Autobiographical, no doubt . . . 1982 -- 'Taxi' airs for the final time on ABC, then moves to NBC for its final season. 1985 -- Gravelly-voiced sportscaster and unabashed 'homer' Bob Prince, baseball voice of the Pittsburgh Pirates for 28 years, including their dramatic championship season in 1960 during which he created the 'Legend of the Green Wienie, dies of mouth cancer at age 68. 1989 -- HBO's 'Tales From The Crypt' debuts. Definitely a step up from 'The Hitchiker' (once the decision is made to let actresses keep their clothes on, writers focus more on the story) 1991 -- David Lynch's quirky, spooky tv series 'Twin Peaks' airs for the final time. A terrific cast that included Michael Ontkean, Peggy Lipton and Kyle MacLauchlin was ultimately let down when Lynch couldn't maintain the momentum after solving the settling the mystery of 'Who killed Laura Palmer?' (Her dad did it.) |