Trivia: Born March 15th, 1935, Bronx-native Judd Hirsch attended CCNY, where he majored in engineering and physics. A blossoming fascination in the theatre convinced Hirsch that his future lay in acting. He studied at the AADA and worked with a Colorado stock company before his 1966 Broadway debut in Barefoot in the Park. He spent many years at New York's Circle Repertory, where he appeared in the first-ever production of Lanford Wilson's The Hot L Baltimore. After an auspicious TV-movie bow in the well-received The Law (1974), Hirsch landed his first weekly-series assignment, playing the title character in the cop drama Delvecchio (1976-77). From 1978 to 1982, he was seen as Alex Reiger in the popular ensemble comedy Taxi, earning two Emmies in the process. While occupied with Taxi, Hirsch found time to act off-Broadway, winning an Obie award for the 1979 production Talley's Folly. In the following decade, he was honored with two Tony Awards for the Broadway efforts I'm Not Rappoport and Conversations with My Father. His post-Taxi TV series roles include Press Wyman in Detective in the House (1985) and his Golden Globe-winning turn as John Lacey in Dear John (1988-92). Judd Hirsch could also be seen playing Jeff Goldblum's father in the movie blockbuster Independence Day (1996). In 2001, Hirsch co-starred with Paul Bettany and Christopher Plummer in the multi-Award winning biopic A Beautiful Mind. The actor once again found success on the television screen in CBS' drama Numb3rs, in which he took on the role of Alan Eppes, father of FBI agent Don Eppes (Rob Morrow) and Professor Charlie Eppes (David Krumholtz). After appearing on all four seaons of Numb3rs, Hirsch took a small role in director Brett Ratner's crime comedy Tower Heist (2011).

Trivia: Born in Oklahoma, African American actor Cleavon Little was raised in California where he attended San Diego College. Trained for a performing career at the American Academy of Dramatic Art, Little made his off-Broadway debut in the 1968 political satire MacBird In 1970, he won a Tony award for his work in the Broadway musical Purlie, and within a year was hired as an ensemble player (along with such luminaries as Jack Gilford and Marcia Rodd) on the syndicated TV variety weekly The David Frost Revue. Little's star turn as Dr. Jerry Noland on the network sitcom Temperatures Rising (1972-74) made him a "hot" enough performer to win the coveted lead role of Sheriff Bart in Mel Brooks' Blazing Saddles (1974) -- beating out Richard Pryor, who had written the part for himself! Blazing Saddles was the high point of Little's career, which subsequently went into a slow decline. Cleavon Little's last major assignment was the role of Sal on the 1991 TV series Bagdad Café; one year later, he died of colon cancer at the age of 53.