James Cagney
Birthday: 1899-07-17
Place of Birth: New York City, New York, USA
Biography: James Francis Cagney, Jr. (July 17, 1899 – March 30, 1986) was an American film actor. Although he won acclaim and major awards for a wide variety of roles, he is best remembered for playing "tough guys". In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked him eighth among the Greatest Male Stars of All Time. In his first performing role, Cagney danced dressed as a woman in the chorus line of the 1919 revue Every Sailor. He spent several years in vaudeville as a hoofer and comedian until his first major acting role in 1925. He secured several other roles, receiving good reviews before landing the lead in the 1929 play Penny Arcade. After rave reviews for his acting, Warners signed him for an initial $500 a week, three-week contract to reprise his role; this was quickly extended to a seven year contract. Cagney's seventh film, The Public Enemy, became one of the most influential gangster movies of the period. Notable for its famous grapefruit scene, the film thrust Cagney into the spotlight, making him one of Warners' and Hollywood's biggest stars. In 1938, he received his first Academy Award Best Actor nomination for Angels with Dirty Faces, before winning in 1942 for his portrayal of George M. Cohan in Yankee Doodle Dandy. He was nominated a third time in 1955 for Love Me or Leave Me. Cagney retired for 20 years in 1961, spending time on his farm before returning for a part in Ragtime mainly to aid his recovery from a stroke. Cagney walked out on Warners several times over his career, each time coming back on improved personal and artistic terms. In 1935, he sued Warners for breach of contract and won; this marked one of the first times an actor had beaten a studio over a contract issue. He worked for an independent film company for a year while the suit was settled, and also established his own production company, Cagney Productions, in 1942 before returning to Warners again four years later. Jack Warner called him "The Professional Againster", in reference to Cagney’s refusal to be pushed around. Cagney also made numerous morale-boosting troop tours before and during World War II, and was President of the Screen Actors Guild for two years.
Movies
One, Two, Three
C.R. MacNamara is a managing director for Coca-Cola in West Berlin during the Cold War, just before ...
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Movie Tough Guys
This compilation of film highlights features many of the biggest box office tough guys of the 1930s,...
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Hollywood's Funniest All-Star Bloopers
William Shatner, Liz Taylor and many more stars blow lines, lose their pants and more in this hilari...
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Yankee Doodle Dandy
A film of the life of the renowned musical composer, playwright, actor, dancer and singer George M. ...
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Beer and Blood: Enemies of the Public
An examination of "The Public Enemy" (1931) by film historians and critics....
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White Heat: Top of the World
An examination of "White Heat" (1949) by film historians and critics....
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Angels with Dirty Faces: Whaddya Hear? Whaddya Say?
Documentary covering the Warner Bros. James Cagney /Pat O'Brien classic "Angels with Dirty Faces" (1...
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City for Conquest
The heartbreaking but hopeful tale of Danny Kenny and Peggy Nash, two sweethearts who meet and strug...
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Other Men's Women
The friendship of two working stiff railroad engineers is put to the test when one falls for the oth...
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Ragtime
A young black pianist becomes embroiled in the lives of an upper-class white family set among the ra...
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Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid
Juliet Forrest is convinced that the reported death of her father in a mountain car crash was no acc...
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The Seven Little Foys
Vaudeville entertainer Eddie Foy, who has vowed to forever keep his act a solo, falls in love with a...
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Captains of the Clouds
Inspired by Churchill's Dunkirk speech, brash, undisciplined Canadian bush pilot Brian MacLean and t...
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The Doorway to Hell
A vicious crime lord decides that he has had enough and much to the shock of his colleagues decides ...
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'G' Men
James “Brick” Davis, a struggling attorney, owes his education to a mobster, but always has refused ...
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Angels with Dirty Faces
Childhood chums Rocky Sullivan and Jerry Connelly grow up on opposite sides of the fence: Rocky matu...
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Footlight Parade
A fledgling producer finds himself at odds with his workers, financiers and his greedy ex-wife when ...
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Love Me or Leave Me
A fictionalized account of the career of jazz singer Ruth Etting and her tempestuous marriage to gan...
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Each Dawn I Die
A corrupt D.A. with governatorial ambitions is annoyed by an investigative reporter's criticism of h...
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Mutiny on the Bounty
Fletcher Christian successfully leads a revolt against the ruthless Captain Bligh on the HMS Bounty....
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The Bride Came C.O.D.
A financially-strapped charter pilot hires himself to an oil tycoon to kidnap his madcap daughter an...
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Man of a Thousand Faces
The turbulent life and professional career of vaudeville actor and silent screen horror star Lon Cha...
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Lady Killer
An ex-gang member tries to resist his old cohorts' criminal influence after he suddenly becomes a Ho...
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The Roaring Twenties
After World War I, Armistice Lloyd Hart goes back to practice law, former saloon keeper George Hally...
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Mister Roberts
Mr. Roberts is a Navy officer who's yearning for battle but is stuck in the backwaters of World War ...
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White Heat
A psychopathic criminal with a mother complex makes a daring break from prison and then leads his ol...
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Great Guy
A meat inspector sets out to rid his town of payoff deals affecting the quality of meat being sold t...
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Smart Money
Two brothers' trip to the big city to do a little gambling results in a fateful turn of events....
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The Public Enemy
Two young Chicago hoodlums, Tom Powers and Matt Doyle, rise up from their poverty-stricken slum life...
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Picture Snatcher
An ex-con uses his street smarts to become a successful photojournalist....
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The Oklahoma Kid
McCord's gang robs the stage carrying money to pay Indians for their land, and the notorious outlaw ...
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13 Rue Madeleine
Bob Sharkey, an instructor of would-be spies for the Allied Office of Strategic Services, becomes su...
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Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye
Ralph Cotter, a ruthless criminal, escapes violently from a farm prison. Then, he seduces a dead inm...
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A Midsummer Night's Dream
Four young people escape Athens to a forest where the king and queen of the fairies are quarreling, ...
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Short Cut to Hell
A hitman is found out because he was paid off in traceable stolen money. On the run, he kidnaps the...
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Breakdowns of 1941
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1941....
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Showbiz Goes to War
While a few Hollywood celebrities such as James Stewart and Clark Gable saw combat during World War ...
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Los Angeles Plays Itself
From its distinctive neighborhoods to its architectural homes, Los Angeles has been the backdrop to ...
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Jimmy the Gent
An unpolished racketeer, whose racket is finding heirs for unclaimed fortunes, affects ethics and te...
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The West Point Story
A Broadway director helps the West Point cadets put on a show, aided by two lovely ladies and assort...
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Winner Take All
Overworked boxer Jim goes to a health ranch in New Mexico to recover where he falls in love with Peg...
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Taxi!
Amidst a backdrop of growing violence and intimidation, independent cab drivers struggling against a...
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Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
Out-takes (mostly from Warner Bros.), promotional shorts, movie premieres, public service pleas, war...
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What Price Glory
Two military men, Captain Flagg and Sergeant Quirt, who are rivals to begin with, grow more at odds ...
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The Fighting 69th
Although loudmouthed braggart Jerry Plunkett alienates his comrades and officers, Father Duffy, the ...
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Tribute to a Bad Man
Jeremy Rodock is a tough horse rancher who strings up rustlers as soon as looks at them. Fresh out o...
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Here Comes the Navy
A cocky guy joins the Navy for the wrong reason but finds romance and twice is cited for heroism....
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Ceiling Zero
War veteran pilots Dizzy Davis, Texas Clark and Jake Lee are working in an airline. Dizzy is fooling...
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Blood on the Sun
Nick Condon, an American journalist in 20s Tokyo, publishes the Japanese master plan for world domin...
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Something to Sing About
James Cagney has a rare chance to show his song-and-dance-man roots in this low-budget tale of a New...
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The Strawberry Blonde
Biff Grimes is desperately in love with Virginia, but his best friend Hugo marries her and manipulat...
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The Time of Your Life
Joe spends a lot of his time at Nick's Pacific Street Saloon. Tom, who credits Joe with once saving ...
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Torrid Zone
A Central American plantation manager and his boss battle over a traveling showgirl....
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Run for Cover
An ex-convict drifter and his flawed young partner are made sheriff and deputy of a Western town....
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Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
Period music, film clips and newsreel footage combined into a visual exploration of the American ent...
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The Mayor of Hell
Members of a teenage gang are sent to the State Reformatory, presided over by the callous Thompson. ...
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The Gallant Hours
A semi-documentary dramatization of five weeks in the life of Vice Admiral William F. "Bull" Halsey,...
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The Crowd Roars
Famous auto racing champion Joe Greer returns to his hometown to compete in a local race, discoverin...
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A Lion Is in the Streets
A charismatic peddler from the Bayous finds his true calling in politics. Is he a demagogue in the m...
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Come Fill the Cup
Alcoholic newspaperman Lew Marsh hits bottom, loses his job and is rehabilitated by Charley Dolan. A...
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Boy Meets Girl
Two lazy screenwriters need a story for the studio's cowboy star. A studio waitress turns out to be ...
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Happy Birthday, Bob: 50 Stars Salute Your 50 Years with NBC
Stars celebrate Bob Hope's 50 years with NBC....
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Johnny Come Lately
Cagney is a human dynamo as a drifter who helps save ailing Grace George from losing her newspaper. ...
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Doris Day: It's Magic
When the cameras rolled, Doris Day wore a happy face, never hinting at the pain she endured in her p...
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Public Enemies: The Golden Age of the Gangster Film
Produced for Turner Classic Movies, this documentary looks at the early days of the gangster film....
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Frisco Kid
After a roustabout sailor avoids being shanghaied in 1850s San Francisco, his audacity helps him ris...
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Remembering Ragtime
Memories from the making of the classic Milos Forman film "Ragtime"....
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Sinners' Holiday
Ma Delano runs a penny arcade in Coney Island, living upstairs with her sons and daughter. Story inv...
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Parkinson at 50
Sir Michael Parkinson looks back over his 50 years as a broadcaster, revealing some tricks of the in...
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He Was Her Man
A safecracker goes straight after doing a stretch for a bum rap. He agrees to do one last job for hi...
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Starlift
To impress a movie star, a U.S. Air Force crewman pretends he is soon to see combat. When his lie ge...
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The St. Louis Kid
Trucker Eddie Kennedy gets involved with the law when he has an car accident with Ann Reid and knock...
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The Irish in Us
A boxer and his policeman brother feud over a police captain's daughter....
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The Millionaire
A millionaire automaker retires upon the advice of his doctor, but becomes so bored he buys half int...
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You, John Jones!
John Jones contemplates how fortunate he and his family are in America, where no wartime bombing occ...
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Never Steal Anything Small
Director Charles Lederer's 1959 musical stars James Cagney as an unscrupulous longshoreman who'll re...
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The Road to the Wall
A brief summary on Comumunism, its origins with Marx, passing through two world wars which leads all...
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Hollywood Hobbies
In this short film, two starstruck movie fans hire a tour guide and see a plethora of Hollywood star...
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Going Hollywood: The '30s
Robert Preston hosts this documentary that shows what people of the 1930s were watching as they were...
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Shake Hands with the Devil
In 1921 Dublin, the IRA battles the "Black & Tans," special British forces given to harsh measures. ...
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The Singing Fool
After years of hopeful struggle, waiter and aspiring singer-songwriter Al Stone is on his way. He ge...
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Terrible Joe Moran
A wheelchair-bound, former boxer deals with his long estranged granddaughter whom is seeking financi...
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James Cagney: Top of the World
Michael J. Fox hosts this documentary featuring film clips and rare behind-the-scenes footage that t...
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Breakdowns of 1936
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1936....
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Calling All Girls
The process by which girls are chosen for chorus line members in movie musical is shown. Numbers fro...
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How I Play Golf, by Bobby Jones No. 11: 'Practice Shots'
Golf expert Bobby Jones arrives on the golf course to join actors James Cagney, Anthony Bushell, Don...
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Blow-Ups of 1947
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1947....
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Intimate Interviews: James Cagney
Dorothy West, an interviewer for the New York-based filmed interview series "Intimate Interviews" ca...
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You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story
Jack L. Warner, Harry Warner, Albert Warner and Sam Warner were siblings who were born in Poland and...
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A Trip Thru a Hollywood Studio
This short shows the entrances of the various Hollywood studios, then specifically visits Warner Bro...
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Ballad of Smokey the Bear
"Ballad of Smokey the Bear" tells the story of how Smokey got his name. Smokey and his forest friend...
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The Hollywood Gad-About
A parade highlights the Screen Actors Guild's Film Stars Frolic, hosted by Walter Winchell as Master...
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Things You Never See on the Screen
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1935....
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A Dream Comes True
A promotional short to hype the production of A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935)....
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Breakdowns of 1939
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1939....
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Breakdowns of 1940
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1940....
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Show-Business at War
A multi-studio effort to show the newsreel audience the progress of the Hollywood war effort....
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Complicated Women
Looks at the stereotype-breaking films of the period from 1929, when movies entered the sound era, u...
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That's Entertainment, Part II
Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire present more golden moments from the MGM film library, this time includi...
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This Is Bob Hope...
During his career, Bob Hope was the only performer to achieve top-rated success in every form of mas...
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Bogart: The Untold Story
Stephen H. Bogart narrates the rise to fame of his father, Humphrey Bogart through the use of film c...
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Arizona Bushwhackers
During the Civil War, a Confederate spy takes a job as marshal of a small western town as a cover fo...
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Okay for Sound
This short was released in connection with the 20th anniversary of Warner Brothers' first exhibition...
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The Voice That Thrilled the World
This short traces the history of sound in the movies, beginning with French scientist Leon Scott's e...
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That's Dancing!
A documentary film about dancing on the screen, from it's orgins after the invention of the movie ca...
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1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year
This documentary focuses on 1939, considered to be Hollywood's greatest year, with film clips and in...
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James Cagney: That Yankee Doodle Dandy
During the filming of Ragtime, the 81-year old Cagney talks about his career. Cagney tells us about ...
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Screen Snapshots No. 11
Long before the release of the cult film Dracula vs. Frankenstein, the original stars of Dracula and...
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Night of 100 Stars
The most glittering, expensive, and exhausting videotaping session in television history took place ...
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Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1930s: Dancing Away the Great Depression
A two-hour in-depth exploration into the Hollywood musicals of the 1930s....
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Texaco Presents: A Quarter Century of Bob Hope on Television
A two hour celebration of Bob Hope's 25 years of television shows that features highlights starting ...
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The Bob Hope Chevy Show
The Bob Hope Chevy Show (21 October 1956) is an episode of The Bob Hope Show. It first aired 21 Octo...
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Tupac: Resurrection
Home movies, photographs, and recited poetry illustrate the life of Tupac Shakur, one of the most be...
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Hooray for Hollywood
A celebration of Hollywood in the 1930s, featuring a compilation of clips from features and newsreel...
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Dynamite Chicken
A collection of subversive comedy sketches and routines relating to the peace movement....
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Showbiz Ballyhoo
Rare footage reveals how stars were created and motion pictures sold, and how the the advent of soun...
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The Day of the Oath
"This film presents rare documentary footage of presidential inaugurations, from William McKinley in...
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