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Today's Birthday: 10 March Pick Another Birthday Date |
a2zpeople @ Wednesday, 10 March 2010 Today's PeoplesMontiel, SaraSpanish actress and singer. Discovered by the producer Vicente
Casanova. He made her to participate in a quiz for novel actresses,
which whe won. Her debut in cinema was in 1944. From 1950 till 1956 she
performed in SouthAmerica and the US.
María Antonia Abad Fernández was born in Campo de Criptana, a small
village in the province of Ciudad Real in Spain. At the age of 16 she
filmed 'Te quiero para mí (1944)'. She continued making other not very
important films until she flied to Mexico in 1950 advised by the
spanish writer Miguel Mihura. There she starred 14 films, among which
there are 'Cárcel de mujeres (1951)', 'Piel canela (1953)', and others.
In 1954 she started her Hollywood career with 'Veracruz (1954)'. The re
she made three films until 1957, one of them ('Serenade (1956)') under
the di rection of her husband, 'Anthony Mann' . James Dean's last photo which
was sent all over the world shows him together with Sara Montiel in a
break of the film 'Giant (1956)'. In 1957 she was back to Spain and
starred 'Último cuplé, El (1957)', directed by 'Juan de Orduña' , which became
one of the most popular spanish films of the epoque. Nowadays she's a
very important artist in Spain and has made more than 50 LPs also
edited out of Spain. Her last one is called "Amados míos".
Sara Montiel was born in the village of Campo de Criptana, province of
Ciudad Real, in the region of La Mancha, Spain, on March 10th, 1928.
Her parents were Isidoro Abad, a peasant, and Maria Vicenta Fernández,
a door to door beautician. The future star was christened Maria Antonia
Alejandra Abad y Fernández. Barely in her teens, she won a beauty and
talent contest held by Cifesa, the most influential film studio of that
era in Spain. As a reward she was signed to a long term movie contract
and in 1944 made her debut in the film "Te Quiero Para Mí" credited in
the cast as "Maria Alejandra" By the end of 1944 she was given the
starring role in the film "Empezó En Boda",which introduced her with a
new image and a new name: Sara Montiel. In the next four years Sarita
Montiel appeared in 14 films including her first international success
"Locura de Amor" (1948) which led to a long term contract in Mexico
where she established herself as one of the most popular film actors of
the decade making a total of 14 films between 1950 and 1954. Hollywood
producers won her over for their films and she was formally introduced
to American moviegoers in "Veracruz" (1954) starring Gary Cooper and
Burt Lancaster. Later she filmed for Warner Bros. "Serenade" (1955)
with Mario Lanza, directed by Anthony Mann who became her first
husband. After starring in Samuel Fuller's "The Run Of The Arrow"
(1957) with Rod Steiger, Sarita went to Spain to film "El Último Cuplé"
(The Last Song), a musical production which became the biggest
box-office success in Spain's film history. It played for over one year
in the same theaters in which it opened. A similar reaction followed in
Western Europe and Latin America. Sarita Montiel had become the most
popular actress-singer of 1957 and a national treasure for Spain. The
unprecedented success of "El Último Cuplé" threw a wrench into her
Hollywood career as she was offered a multimillion dollar contract to
star in four films in Europe. Her next vehicle "La Violetera" (The
Violet Peddler) confirmed Sara's popularity and broke the box-office
records set by the previous movie. The theme song from "La Violetera"
became Montiel's signature song. The soundtrack albums from both films
reportedly outsold Presley and Sinatra in the world market. From then
on, Sarita would combine the making of films with the recording of
highly successful albums and live concerts in four continents. By 1962
she had become a legend to millions of fans worldwide, reaching markets
that had previously been "uncharted territory" for Spanish cinema. As
her interest in films diminished (due largely to the almost
pornographic turn of Spanish films in the post-Franco era), she turned
full time to recording and her live performances. She had uncontested
successes with her stage shows "Sara en Persona" (1970-73),
"Saritísima" (1974-75), "Increible Sara" (1977-78), "Super Sara Show"
(1979-80), "Doña Sara de La Mancha" (1981-82), "Taxi Vamos Al Victoria"
(1983-84), "Nostalgia" (1985-86), "Sara, Siempre Sara" (1987-88)and
many others. In the 1990's Sara surprised everyone by branching out
into television: "Sara Y Punto", a mini-series of seven one-hour
episodes included a serialized biography of the star, many
internationally popular guests (including Luciano Pavarotti, Charles
Aznavour and et al) and Miss Montiel singing her greatest hits in
addition to new songs written especially for her. Next came "Ven Al
Paralelo with Sara", taped in a Barcelona theater where Montiel hosted,
sang and acted in comedy sketches in front of a live audience. This
series ran for over two years. We can not cover here all the awards
Sara Montiel has won in her long successful career but we must mention
the "Premio del Sindicato" (Spain's equivalent to the Hollywood Oscar)
for best actress, won two years in a row for her performances in "El
Último Cuplé" and "La Violetera". In 1972 she was proclaimed honorary
citizen of Los Angeles by Mayor Sam Yorty and was given de gold keys to
the city. Similarly she has the gold key of New York, Miami and
Chicago. In 1974 the Spanish government placed a commemorative plaque
on the house where she was born and has, since then, turned the house
into a museum of the star. The street where it is located has also been
named after her. In 1981 she received Israel's most prestigious honor,
the Ben Guiron Award and in 1983 she received France's Legion of Honor
medal, after a retrospective of her career ran at the Autumn Film
Festival in Paris. In 1986 she was awarded Hollywood's Golden Eagle
Award for life achievement presented to her by "Veracruz" costar and
producer Mr. Burt Lancaster in an emotional reunion that merited a
standing ovation from all their Hollywood peers witnessing the event.
In 1996 she was awarded Spain's "Medalla del Cine," also a life
achievement award given rarely by the Ministry of Culture. The one-hour
ceremony was beamed live by international TVE. Sara Montiel's private
life has also been a stronghold of her legend. After divorcing Anthony
Mann, she married twice (Vicente Ramirez Olalla 1964-1978; Jose Tous
1979-1992). Before, during and after these marriages she had countless
affairs, among them Nobel prize scientist Severo Ochoa, writer Ernest
Hemingway and Italian actor Giancarlo del Duca-Viola. Unable to have
children she adopted two: Thais (born in 1979) and Zeus (born 1983). In
the year 2000 she published an autobiography, which is now on its 8th
printing, and she continues with her TV and live performances.
- Author: Anonymous
Stone, SharonSharon Stone was born and raised in Meadville, a small town in
Pennsylvania. Her strict father was a factory worker, and her mother
was a homemaker. She was the second of four children. At the age of 15,
she studied in Saegertown High School, PA, and at that same age,
entered Edinboro State University of Pennsylvania, and graduated with a
degree in creative writing and fine arts. She was a very smart girl
(with an IQ of 154), became a bookworm, and once was told that a
suitable job for her (and her brains) was to become a lawyer. However,
her first love was still the black-and-white movies, especially those
featuring 'Fred Astaire' and 'Ginger Rogers' . So, the 17-year-old Sharon
got herself into the Miss Pennsylvania beauty contest and won it. From
working part-time as a McDonald's countergirl, she worked her way up to
become a successful Ford model, both in TV commercials and print ads.
Finally, in 1980, she made her debut in 'Woody Allen' 's 'Stardust Memories (1980)' as "pretty
girl in train". Her first speaking part, though, was in Wes Craven's
horror movie, 'Deadly Blessing (1981)' . She struggled through many parts in B-movies,
notably in 'King Solomon's Mines (1985)' , and 'Action Jackson (1988)' . She was also married in 1984 with
'Michael Greenburg' , the producer of "MacGyver," but they divorced two years later.
She finally received her big break with 'Arnold Schwarzenegger' in
'Total Recall (1990)' and also posed nude for Playboy, a daring move for a
32-year-old actress. But it worked; she accepted a breaktrough role as
a sociopath novelist, Catherine Tramell, in in 'Basic Instinct (1992)' with 'Michael Douglas' .
Her interrogation scene has become a classic in film history, and her
performance captivated everyone, from MTV viewers, who honored her with
Most Desirable Female and Best Female Performance Awards, to a Golden
Globe nomination for Best Actress. After she got famous, she didn't
want to be typecast, so she played a victim in 'Sliver (1993)' and in 'Intersection (1994)' ,
she was the aloof, estranged wife of 'Richard Gere' . These movies didn't
"work," so she got herself again into more aggressive roles , such as
'Specialist, The (1994)' , with 'Sylvester Stallone' and 'Quick and The Dead, The (1995)' with 'Gene Hackman' . But it wasn't until she
played a beautiful but drug-crazy wife of 'Robert De Niro' in 'Casino (1995)' that she
got far more than just fame and fortune--she also received the
acknowledgement of the movie industry for her acting ability. She
received her first Golden Globe and an Oscar nomination. She did a
couple of films afterwards, teaming up with 'Isabelle Adjani' in 'Diabolique (1996)' , and as
a woman waiting for her death penalty in 'Last Dance (1996)' . In 1998, she married
a newspaper editor, Phil Bronstein. She also received her third Golden
Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress that year for 'Mighty, The (1998)' , a
film that her company, Chaos, also co-executive produced. The next
year, she entered her first comedic role in 'Muse, The (1999)' , which starred and
was directed by 'Albert Brooks' , and gave her another Golden Globe nomination.
Sharon Stone, a diva who thoroughly enjoys her hard-won stardom, is now
a mother of an adorable baby boy, Roan Joseph. - Author: Johannes Prayudhi Norris, ChuckChuck Norris is an Executive Producer of Walker, Texas Ranger as well
as the actor in the title role. Norris is familiar to fans worldwide as
the star of action films including The Hitman, Delta Force, and Delta
Force II. He also starred in Missing in Action and its sequels,
Firewalker and Sidekicks. Norris was born Carlos Ray in Ryan, Oklahoma.
The eldest of three children, he helped his mother raise his two
younger brothers in Torrance, California, where his family moved when
he was 12. Norris joined the Air Force after graduating from high
school. During a stint in Korea, he began to study the Asian martial
art of Tang Soo Do. After returning home, Norris worked for Northrop
Aviation and moonlighted as a karate instructor. Two years later, he
was teaching full-time and running a number of martial-arts schools.
His students included Steve McQueen, Priscilla Presley, and the
Osmonds. In 1968, Norris became the Professional World Middleweight
Karate Champion. He held the title undefeated until he retired in 1974.
He is a black belt in Tang Soo Do and Tae Kwan Do, both Korean fighting
arts, and knows all forms of the martial arts. In 1969, he earned the
Triple Crown for the highest number of tournament wins, and was named
Fighter of the Year by Black Belt magazine. By the time he was 34,
Norris had established 32 karate schools and had been a champion for
six years. In 1996, he became the first Westerner to be awarded an
eighth-degree black belt in Tae Kwan Do. Norris, who was urged to get
into acting by his friend Steve McQueen, skillfully incorporates his
martial-arts knowledge into his series and feature film projects,
stressing action and technique over violence. He is the author of the
books The Secret of Inner Strength and The Secret Power Within - Zen
Solutions to Real Problems.. He works for many charities, including the
Funds for Kids, Veterans Administration National Salute to Hospitalized
Veterans, the United Way Make-a-Wish Foundation, and Kick Drugs Out of
America, a nonprofit organization he created to help battle drugs and
violence in schools. Norris recently completed production on the
television movie The Hitman: Bound by Honor for broadcast on CBS. He
lives on a ranch when not filming. His birthday is March 10. - Author: DANIEL |
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