Category Archives: celebrity & famous people

How Hans And Sophie Scholl’s White Rose Movement Fought Back Against The Nazis

Sophie Scholl was just 21 years old when she was executed along with her brother, 24-year-old Hans Scholl, on Feb. 22, 1943. The Scholl siblings had been arrested three days earlier and undergone nearly constant interrogation by the Gestapo before their trial. Nazi judge Roland Freisler, infamous for handing out death sentences in some 90Continue reading “How Hans And Sophie Scholl’s White Rose Movement Fought Back Against The Nazis”

The Story Behind the Filming of Steve McQueen’s Dramatic Fence-Jump Scene in “The Great Escape”

The Great Escape is a 1963 American World War II epic film that depicts an escape by British Commonwealth prisoners of war from a German POW camp. The film is based on Paul Brickhill’s 1950 book of the same name, a non-fiction first-hand account of the mass escape from Stalag Luft III in Sagan (nowContinue reading “The Story Behind the Filming of Steve McQueen’s Dramatic Fence-Jump Scene in “The Great Escape””

Ananda Mahidol: The Mysterious Death of a King

Ananda Mahidol, Thailand’s king Rama VIII, died on the 3rd of June, 1946. He was only twenty at the time. A child when he was elected successor to the throne in 1935, he continued to be educated in Switzerland, not visiting Thailand as king until 1938 when he was thirteen. The Japanese invaded Thailand theContinue reading “Ananda Mahidol: The Mysterious Death of a King”

Viola Smith, a Pioneering Woman Drummer Who Was Still Actively Drumming at Age 107

Early in her music career, Viola Smith became known as “America’s fastest girl drummer.” She spent decades challenging the barriers facing female musicians — and the centenarian she still plays today. She is the drummer for a band in her home community. Smith was born on November 29, 1912 in Mount Calvary, Wisconsin, the eighthContinue reading “Viola Smith, a Pioneering Woman Drummer Who Was Still Actively Drumming at Age 107”

Amazing Photos of White Wolf, aka Chief John Smith, the Oldest Native American to Have Ever Lived

At the ripe age of 137, White Wolf a.k.a. Chief John Smith is considered the oldest Native American to have ever lived, 1785-1922. When asked the secret to good health, Chief Smith responded “I never fly United Airlines.” The Minneapolis Morning Tribune obituary says Ga-Be-Nah-Gewn-Wonce (variously known as Kay-bah-nung-we-way, Sloughing Flesh, Wrinkled Meat or plainContinue reading “Amazing Photos of White Wolf, aka Chief John Smith, the Oldest Native American to Have Ever Lived”

Clint Eastwood Skateboarding on Via Veneto, Rome in 1965

Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor, film director, producer, and composer. After achieving success in the Western TV series Rawhide, he rose to international fame with his role as the “Man with No Name” in Sergio Leone’s “Dollars Trilogy” of Spaghetti Westerns during the mid-1960s and as antihero cop HarryContinue reading “Clint Eastwood Skateboarding on Via Veneto, Rome in 1965”

In 1992, a 28-Year-Old Jenny Joseph Modeling for What Would Become Today’s Columbia Pictures Logo

Founded in 1918 by siblings Harry and Jack Cohn and friend Joel Brandt as CBC Film Sales Corporation, Columbia Pictures is one of the oldest studios in Hollywood. In its early years, the studio mostly churned out low-budget fare, leading the Cohns and Brandt to re-brand themselves in 1924 as the more sophisticated-sounding Columbia Pictures.Continue reading “In 1992, a 28-Year-Old Jenny Joseph Modeling for What Would Become Today’s Columbia Pictures Logo”

David Bowie With Goggles and Motorcycle in Los Angeles, 1974

Photographer Steve Schapiro was invited to photograph David Bowie in a photoshoot in 1974, he recalled: “It’s 4 a.m. in the morning and I am just finishing up this day’s shoot with Bowie on his bike lit by the headlights of a car. He seems to be creating another character for his repertoire.” David RobertContinue reading “David Bowie With Goggles and Motorcycle in Los Angeles, 1974”