Trivia: Flamboyant comedian, actress, author and screenwriter Fannie Flagg received an Oscar nomination for her first script Fried Green Tomatoes (1991) which was based on her book Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe (published in 1987). She started out as an actress and comedian, frequently writing her own material. Her first big break came after spending six years trying to win the Miss Alabama contest. From there she worked as a stand-up comedian, during the 1960s writing for Candid Camera and frequently appearing with host Alan Funt. During the early to mid '70s, Flagg made regular and guest appearances on TV sitcoms such as The New Dick Van Dyke Show, and, in 1970, she made her feature-film debut in Five Easy Pieces. She went on to play supporting roles in a few more films during the 1970s, including Rabbit Test and Grease (both 1978). In 1981, Flagg debuted as an author with Coming Attractions.

Trivia: Graduating cum laude from the University of Tulsa, Rue McClanahan studied acting with Uta Hagen and at the Perry-Mansfield school. After her professional debut with a Pennsylvania stock company in 1957, McClanahan headed to New York, where between acting gigs she worked as a waitress, took shorthand and sold blouses. Grabbing any opportunity available, she made her TV bow on a 1960 episode of the TV series Malibu Run, then appeared in a handful of exploitation films with come-hither titles like Five Minutes to Love (she played "Poochie, the girl from the shack," a credit she has since dropped from her resumé). She managed to find more prestigious work on the New York stage, starring in such well-received productions as MacBird, Jimmy Shine, Sticks and Bones and California Suite. She also played regular roles on the TV soap operas Another World and Where the Heart Is. A 1972 guest shot on Norman Lear's controversial series All in the Family led to her being cast as Vivian Harmon on Lear's popular sitcom Maude, a role she played until the series' cancellation in 1978. McClanahan's next project was her own starring series, 1978's Apple Pie, which unfortunately bit the dust after three shows. She went on to play the vitriolic Aunt Fran on the network version of Mama's Family (1983-85), then was co-starred with her Maude colleague Bea Arthur in The Golden Girls (1985-92). Her well-rounded portrayal of overly amorous museum worker Blanche Devereaux won her an 1986 Emmy award; she reprised the character in the Golden Girls spin-off Golden Palace (1992-93). The star of several made-for-TV movies, McClanahan co-produced and appeared in a brace of "dramedies," Mother of the Bride (1991) and Baby of the Bride (1992).

Trivia: Spindly musical comedy performer Carleton Carpenter was a professional magician and Broadway actor when he was signed to an MGM contract in 1949. In his second film, Three Little Words, Carpenter was paired with Debbie Reynolds, who, in the role of boop-a-doop girl Helen Kane, sang "I Wanna be Loved by You." MGM liked the chemistry generated between Carpenter and Reynolds, obligingly casting them in larger roles in Two Weeks With Love (1950); it was in this film that the twosome performed the tongue-twisting ditty "Abba Dabba Honeymoon." Carpenter went on to give straight dramatic performances in such films as Sky Full of Moon (1952) and Take the High Ground (1953) before returning to the stage. While he would occasionally resurface in films and on television, Carleton Carpenter was better known in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s as a best-selling mystery novelist; one of his more popular books, Deadhead, was adapted into a short-lived Broadway musical.

Trivia: A former industrial chemist, actor Gil Gerard first went on the stage in the mid-1960s, appearing in such productions as I Do, I Do. He spent several years in the role of Dr. Alan Stewart on the NBC daytime drama The Doctors. From 1979 to 1981, he played the title character in the fanciful prime-time series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century. Subsequent credits on Gil Gerard's TV resumé include his portrayal of eco-warrior Dr. John Harding on E.A.R.T.H. Force (1990) and his hosting chores on the 1992 "actuality" series Code 3.

Trivia: American character actor Dick O'Neill began showing up in films in 1961. Most of O'Neill's movie roles were in the supporting category, e.g. his portrayal of Sol Zuckermann in The Buddy Holly Story. His extensive TV credits include recurring roles on at least four weekly series. Dick O'Neill was seen as Judge Praetor D. Hardcastle in Rosetti and Ryan (1977), street-smart Malloy in Kaz (1978), corporate vice president Arthur Broderick in Empire (1984), and Fred Wilkinson in the 1987 episodes of Falcon Crest. Fans of the detective series Cagney and Lacey will remember O'Neill for playing Charlie Cagney. Before entering film and television, O'Neill was a well established supporting actor on the New York stage where he appeared on and off Broadway. In the early '50s, O'Neill was a charter member of the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. For the last seven years of his life, O'Neill served on the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Screening Committee.

Trivia: Widely beloved by television viewers for his memorable stint on the popular late-'70s sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati, longtime actor Gary Sandy has had a rich career both before and after the show that found him nationwide fame. From stage to screen and virtually everything in between, Sandy proved equally adept at comedy, drama, and even musicals. Born in Dayton, OH, in 1945, Sandy discovered his love of acting early in life. Attending Wilmington College in Ohio before pursuing his dreams at New York's American Academy of Dramatic Arts, a role on the long-running soap opera As the World Turns gave Sandy his first chance to shine in a role created specifically for him. Villainous roles in such daytime dramas as Somerset and Another World quickly followed, and, in 1971, Sandy made his feature debut in the social drama Some of My Best Friends Are.... Simultaneously finding off-Broadway success in such productions as The Children's Mass, it was only a matter of time before the bright lights of Broadway came calling and Sandy was cast in the Franco Zeffirelli-directed production of Saturday, Sunday, Monday. In the following years, Sandy belted out tunes in such plays-turned-Broadway musicals as Sheba (from Come Back, Little Sheba), Luv, and Windy City (from The Front Page). It was during this time that roles in such small-screen features as Shell Game and The Kansas City Massacre found him increasingly recognizable to audiences nationwide. In 1978, he was cast in the role of station manager Andy Travis in the classic sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati. As with many sitcom stars, the role would ultimately make it difficult for him to find work due to people associating Sandy too closely with his television counterpart when the show ended a successful four-year run in 1982. But two things that separated him from the pack: his talents on the stage and his marked determination to break the curse of typecasting. While subsequent appearances on Murder, She Wrote, Diagnosis Murder, and Martial Law found Sandy continuing on the small screen, feature roles in such efforts as the Oscar-nominated The Insider and a coast-to-coast tour of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas found the dedicated actor remaining in the public eye while staying true to his craft. In 2004, Sandy was featured in the television family drama Til' the River Runs Dry.

Trivia: American actor of stage, radio, and screen, Lou Steele was usually cast in supporting roles.

Trivia: Educated in convent schools, British leading lady Sylvia Syms trained for her craft at RADA. Syms made her film debut in 1956's My Teenaged Daughter. Though few of her films were memorable (exceptions include The Quare Fellow, Run Wild, Run Free), her popularity seldom faltered. Easing gracefully into character parts in the 1970s, Syms was frequently seen as bejeweled society matrons, often with hyphenated last names. She also starred as Isabelde Gines in British TV series Peak Practice. Sylvia Syms stage and screen credits should not be confused with those of Brooklyn-born nightclub entertainer Sylvia Syms, who died in 1992 at the age of 79.