| MAY 4 |
In 1903, actor Luther Adler was born in New York city. In a recurring role, he played the head of the criminal Vachon family on Hawaii 5-0 and for fans of 'The Twilight Zone,' he played a pawnbroker who discovered a genie in the 1960 episode 'The Man in the Bottle.' Luther died December 8, 1984, at age 81. In 1957, the "Alan Freed Show" premiered on ABC-TV. It was the first prime-time network rock show. The first guests on the D-J's show included the Del-Vikings and Screamin' Jay Hawkins. In 1958, Canadian comedians Johnny Wayne and Frank Shuster made their first of a record 67 appearances on 'The Ed Sullivan Show.' The first Grammy Awards were held this date in 1959. From a television standpoint, composer extraordinaire Henry Mancini won Album of the Year for "The Music from Peter Gunn." Mort Sahl was the host. In 1964, two future soap opera giants premiered on two different networks but both were created by the same woman, Irna Phillips: "Another World" premiered on NBC while "As the World Turns" debuted on CBS. Interestingly, 'Another World,' which went off the air in 1999, spawned two spinoffs: 'Somerset' and 'Texas.' In 1977, former President Richard M. Nixon spoke with interviewer, David Frost in the first of four television interviews. These events were memorialized in the 2008 film 'Frost/Nixon.' Frank Langella portrayed Nixon. Game show host Jack Barry died this date in 1984. Although tainted in the quiz show scandals, he bounced back in the '70s with 'The Joker's Wild.' Jack was 66 years old. Rubber-faced actor/comedian Alvy Moore died in 1997. Although indelibly linked with his role as the easily befuddled county agent Hank Kimball on 'Green Acres,' it's often forgotten that he was one of Marlon Brando's gang in 1951's 'The Wild Bunch.' Alvy was 75. In 1999, the final episode of "NewsRadio" aired on NBC. In 2001, Bonny Lee Bakley, wife of Robert Blake ('Baretta' and 'Hell Town'), was shot as she waited in a car outside a Los Angeles restaurant. Blake, who also played a cop in the gritty film 'Electra Glide in Blue,' was acquitted of murder in a criminal trial. Birthdays Comedian Pete Barbutti ('The John Davdson Show,' 'Pete's Place') 1935. Singer Jackie Jackson of The Jacksons 1952. Actress Mary McDonough (middle daughter Erin on 'The Waltons') 1962. |