Trivia: Angela Lansbury received an Oscar nomination for her first film, Gaslight, in 1944, and has been winning acting awards and audience favor ever since. Born in London to a family that included both politicians and performers, Lansbury came to the U.S. during World War II. She made notable early film appearances as the snooty sister in National Velvet (1944); the pathetic singer in The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945), which garnered her another Academy nomination; and the madam-with-a-heart-of-gold saloon singer in The Harvey Girls (1946). She turned evil as the manipulative publisher in State of the Union (1948), but was just as convincing as the good queen in The Three Musketeers (1948) and the petulant daughter in The Court Jester (1956). She received another Oscar nomination for her chilling performance as Laurence Harvey's scheming mother in The Manchurian Candidate (1962) and appeared as the addled witch in Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971), among other later films. On Broadway, she won Tony awards for the musicals Mame (1966), Dear World (1969), the revival of Gypsy (1975), Sweeney Todd (1979) and, at age 82, for the play Blithe Spirit (2009). Despite a season in the '50s on the game show Pantomime Quiz, she came to series television late, starring in 1984-1996 as Jessica Fletcher in Murder, She Wrote; she took over as producer of the show in the '90s. She returned to the Disney studios to record the voice of Mrs. Potts in Beauty and the Beast (1991) and to sing the title song and later reprised the role in the direct-to-video sequel, The Enchanted Christmas (1997). Lansbury is the sister of TV producer Bruce Lansbury.

Trivia: The great-grandson of a famous and influential 19th century Minnesota senator, actor William Windom was born in New York, briefly raised in Virginia, and attended prep school in Connecticut. During World War II, Windom was drafted into the army, which acknowledged his above-the-norm intelligence by bankrolling his adult education at several colleges. It was during his military career that Windom developed a taste for the theater, acting in an all-serviceman production of Richard III directed by Richard Whorf. Windom went on to appear in 18 Broadway plays before making his film debut as the prosecuting attorney in To Kill a Mockingbird. He gained TV fame as the co-star of the popular 1960s sitcom The Farmer's Daughter and as the James Thurber-ish lead of the weekly 1969 series My World and Welcome to It. Though often cast in conservative, mild-mannered roles, Windom's offscreen persona was that of a much-married, Hemingway-esque adventurer. William Windom was seen in the recurring role of crusty Dr. Seth Haslett on the Angela Lansbury TV series Murder She Wrote.

Trivia: Character actor, onscreen from the early '70s.

Trivia: It took 18 years of voice lessons for Paul Sorvino to console himself to the fact that an operatic career was beyond his reach. Having done some acting while attending the American Music and Dramatic Academy, Sorvino decided to pursue the theatre full-time, continuing his studies at New York's American Academy of Dramatic Arts. He made his Broadway debut as a constable in the 1964 musical Bajour, and six years later appeared in his first film, Where's Poppa. His stardom was secured when he received an avalanche of critical praise for his performance as Phil Romano in the 1972 Broadway play That Championship Season, a role he repeated in the 1981 film version. A convincing heavy in such films as Goodfellas and Dick Tracy, Sorvino has been even more effective in comedy, notably as the Reverend Willie Williams, a flamboyant Jimmy Swaggart takeoff in Carl Reiner's Oh, God (1978). And in the 1976 Elliott Gould-Diane Keaton vehicle I Will, I Will...For Now, Sorvino served up a near-autobiographical vignette in which he tearfully mimed to a recording of I Pagliacci. Squeezing as many TV appearances into his schedule as possible, Sorvino has starred in the weekly series We'll Get By (1975, as George Platt), Bert D'Angelo/Superstar (1976, in the title role) and The Oldest Rookie (1987, as Detective Ike Porter). In 1991, he took over from George Dzundza on the popular series Law and Order, and in 1993 he subbed for the late Raymond Burr in a Perry Mason TV movie. Additional scattered TV credits have included sporadic appearances as Bruce Willis' dad in Moonlighting, and the "Lamont" counterpart in the never-aired original pilot for Sanford and Son. Possessed of seemingly inexhaustible versatility, Sorvino played Henry Kissinger in Oliver Stone's Nixon (1995). Despite his many on-camera commitments, Sorvino has remained active in the theatre as both an actor and director. Paul Sorvino is the father of Oscar-winning actress Mira Sorvino. In the years to come, Sorvino would remain active on screen, appearing in films like The Cooler and Mr. 3000. In 2014, he guest-starred on the comedy The Goldbergs, playing Jeff Garlin's semi-estranged father.

Trivia: The youngest of the seven children of a Brooklyn contractor, Vince Edwards left vocational school when he won an athletic scholarship to Ohio State University. He subsequently gave up college to attend New York's American Academy of Dramatic Arts. After working as a chorus boy in the Broadway musical High Button Shoes, Edwards fell under the spell of the then-fashionable "Method" school of acting: "whoever had the dirtiest outfit was top man on Broadway," he would later comment. Edwards tended to be cast on the basis of his physique rather than his acting ability in such films as Mr. Universe (1951) and Hiawatha (1952). After ten years of film roles of varying quality, Edwards was starred in the television series Ben Casey (1961-66), rapidly developing a reputation as "TV's surly surgeon." Toward the end of the Casey run, Edwards began dabbling in directing, an activity that he has pursued ever since. Later projects involving Vince Edwards have included the brief 1970 TV series Matt Lincoln, an attempt to establish himself as a nightclub singer, and a voiceover stint for the TV cartoon daily The Centurions.

Trivia: While growing up in Chicago, Tom Bosley dreamed of becoming the star left-fielder for the Cubs. As it turned out, the closest Bosley got to organized athletics was a sportscasting class at DePauw University. After additional training at the Radio Institute of Chicago and two years' practical experience in various dramatic radio programs and stock companies, he left for New York in 1950. Five years of odd jobs and summer-theater stints later, he landed his first off-Broadway role, playing Dupont-Dufort in Jean Anouilh's Thieves' Carnival. Steadier work followed at the Arena Theatre in Washington, D.C.; then in 1959, Bosley landed the starring role in the Broadway musical Fiorello!, picking up a Tony Award, an ANTA Award, and the New York Drama Critics Award in the bargain. In 1963, he made his film bow as Natalie Wood's "safe and secure" suitor Anthony Colombo in Love With the Proper Stranger. Occasionally cast as two-bit criminals or pathetic losers (he sold his eyes to blind millionairess Joan Crawford in the Spielberg-directed Night Gallery TV movie), Bosley was most often seen as a harried suburban father. After recurring roles on such TV series as That Was the Week That Was, The Debbie Reynolds Show, and The Sandy Duncan Show, Bosley was hired by Hanna-Barbera to provide the voice of flustered patriarch Howard Boyle on the animated sitcom Wait Til Your Father Gets Home (1972-1973). This served as a dry run of sorts for his most famous series-TV assignment: Howard Cunningham, aka "Mr. C," on the immensely popular Happy Days (1974-1983). The warm, familial ambience of the Happy Days set enabled Bosley to weather the tragic death of his first wife, former dancer Jean Elliot, in 1978. In addition to his Happy Days duties, Bosley was narrator of the syndicated documentary That's Hollywood (1977-1981). From 1989 to 1991, he starred on the weekly series The Father Dowling Mysteries, and thereafter was seen on an occasional basis as down-to-earth Cabot Cove sheriff Amos Tupper on Murder, She Wrote. Reportedly as kind, generous, and giving as his Happy Days character, Tom Bosley has over the last 20 years received numerous honors for his many civic and charitable activities.

Trivia: Former pro football player Bernie Casey turned to acting in the early 1970s. He has been steadily employed in theatrical films ever since, playing supporting roles in such films as Boxcar Bertha (1972), Cleopatra Jones (1976), Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989), and all three Revenge of the Nerds epics (as "U.N. Jefferson"). Casey's series-TV assignments included the title character (a blue-collar father of five children) in 1979's Harris and Company and the role of baseball coach Ozzie Peoples in Bay City Blues (1983). A ubiquitous TV-movie actor, Bernie Casey was seen in such highly-rated efforts as Brian's Song (1971), Gargoyles (1972) and The Sophisticated Gents (1981).

Trivia: Leading and supporting film and television actress Anne Lockhart made her feature-film debut in Jory (1972). The daughter of actress June Lockhart and the granddaughter of actors Gene and Kathleen Lockhart, she also does occasional voice-over work.

Trivia: Of Franco-Spanish descent, American actor Reni Santoni began his show business career as a comedy writer. Santoni's big film break came when director Carl Reiner cast him in the leading role of aspiring thespian David Kolowitz (Reiner's blatantly obvious alter ego) in Enter Laughing (1967). Thereafter, Santoni could be seen in supporting parts in such films as Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982, again directed by Carl Reiner), Brewster's Millions (1985), and Cobra (1986). He has also provided voice-over characterizations for crowd scenes in Rain Man (1988), Bright Lights, Big City (1988), and other films. Reni Santoni's weekly TV credits include the roles of lawyer Danny Paterno in Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law (1973-1974 season only) and police captain Nick Rivera in Manimal (1983).

Trivia: Grew up in Meriden, Connecticut, United States.Played baseball, basketball and football in high school.Rejected an offer to play baseball with the Kansas City Athletics.Was co-captain of the football team during his senior year at University of Connecticut.Was a captain in the U.S. Army JAG Corps.

Trivia: Played in a band as a teenager and dropped out of high school in his senior year to pursue a career in music. Returned to finish high school at age 19. Was inspired to pursue acting by reading King Lear. Performed with the prestigious Stratford Shakespeare Festival in Ontario. His wife, Nanci Chambers, appeared with him on CBS's JAG as Lt. Loren Singer. The pair also costarred in the 2003 made-for-TV movie Code 11-14. An avid runner, he completed the Boston Marathon in 2004. In 2010, spent two weeks in Ecuador with his family to study the people and culture.