Trivia: Best remembered for his high-profile acting roles on two 1970s television sitcoms -- that of genial news writer Murray Slaughter on CBS's The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970-1977) and that of sweet-natured Captain Merrill Stubing on ABC's The Love Boat (1977-1986), stage-trained actor Gavin MacLeod in fact began his career typecast as a villain. He landed parts in Hollywood features including The Sand Pebbles (1966), Deathwatch (1966), and The Comic (1969), and enjoyed a tenure as Joseph "Happy" Haines on the sitcom McHale's Navy from 1962 through 1964. After The Love Boat permanently laid anchor in the mid-'80s, MacLeod signed on as a spokesperson and pitchman for Princess Cruises and returned to regional theatrical work. He also tackled guest spots on programs including Touched by an Angel and (in a move that surprised everyone) the HBO prison drama Oz. Off-camera, MacLeod is an outspoken born-again Christian. He hosted a popular talk show on the Trinity Broadcasting Network, along with his wife, Patti (whom he divorced in 1982 and remarried three years later), called Back on Course, and personally funded many of the Greatest Adventure Stories from the Bible animated videos for children.

Trivia: Universally recognized as Ship's Doctor Adam Bricker on the blockbuster prime-time sitcom The Love Boat (1977-1986) -- a part he held for the entire nine-season run of the series -- actor Bernie Kopell entered the doors of show business via a most unlikely route. Born in Brooklyn, Kopell attended Erasmus High and then New York University (with a dramatic art major). After a stint at sea aboard the naval vessel USS Iowa, Kopell signed on to drive a taxicab in Southern California -- and achieved his big break on the day that Oregon Trail (1959) film producer Dick Einfeld hitched a ride in the back of his cab. In a span of minutes, Kopell reportedly managed to convince Einfeld that he was not really a cab driver but an actor in serious need of work. The effort paid off, and Kopell snagged his first part -- a two-line part in Oregon as an aide to president James K. Polk. In the early '60s, Kopell joined the Actors' Ring Theatre in Los Angeles, where he developed a knack for characterizations and voices; this led, in turn, to character-type roles on a myriad of television programs including The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Steve Allen Show, and My Favorite Martian (which often, though not always, cast the wiry Kopell as a Hispanic). By the early '70s, Kopell had landed steady assignments on Get Smart, Bewitched, That Girl, and other series. The Love Boat, however, embodied his breakthrough. He followed it up with an emcee assignment on The Travel Channel (hosting its Railway Adventures Across Europe) and a surge in theatrical work, with portrayals in regional productions of such plays as Rumors, A History of Shadows, and Death of a Salesman.

Trivia: Actor Fred Grandy enjoyed two distinct careers -- an initial career as an actor and a proverbial second wind on the political stage. As a thespian, Grandy signed for guest spots on early-'70s series including Maude and Phyllis, but built his reputation via his nine-season portrayal of Yeoman-Purser Burl "Gopher" Smith, right-hand man to Captain Merrill Stubing (Gavin MacLeod), on the popular television sitcom The Love Boat (1977-1986). He proved popular with audiences, but by the mid-'80s reportedly grew tired of acting and gravitated to the political arena because he found it more challenging. Indeed, in 1986 -- the year of Boat's cancelation -- Grandy was elected as a Republican member of the House of Representatives from Iowa.

Trivia: For millions of Americans, the prime-time situation comedy The Love Boat will be forever inseparable from the image of Ted Lange, an actor cast for nine seasons as the genial Isaac the Bartender on the Pacific Princess luxury liner and trademarked by his iconic "two-finger drop" greeting. Yet Lange's portrayal of Isaac scarcely hinted at the actor's dexterity or dramatic range. In truth, this actor received classical dramatic training at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, and would go on, after the Princess took its final voyage in September 1986, to establish himself as a revered creative force in regional theater.Lange initially broke into films with many portrayals in Hollywood programmers during the early '70s, including Trick Baby (1972), Blade (1972), and Black Belt Jones (1974), and landed a regular role in the one-season ethnic sitcom That's My Mama (1974), as a streetwise philosopher opposite Clifton Davis (Amen) and Theresa Merritt. The Love Boat, of course, brought Lange his most widespread recognition; nonetheless (as indicated), he hearkened back to his theatrical roots beginning in the late '80s and divided his time between writing, directing, and stage acting roles. His resumé as a scribe sports at least 17 original plays including Lemon Meringue Facade, Behind the Mask -- An Evening with Paul Laurence Dunbar, and Evil Legacy -- The Story of Lucretia Borgia, while he has appeared dramatically in productions including Hair and Taming of the Shrew and has directed plays ranging from Othello to the rock & roll musical Born a Unicorn.

Trivia: Black supporting actress Ja'net DuBois first appeared onscreen in 1970.

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.

Trivia: Actress/singer/comedienne Misty Rowe's career peaked in the 1970s and 1980s and placed its strongest emphasis on television and stage. Born in 1952, Rowe studied under preeminent acting coach Stella Adler, and achieved her most enduring fame as one of the longest-reigning contributors (outstripped only by a handful of regulars including Roy Clark and Minnie Pearl) to the country music-themed comedy variety program Hee Haw; Rowe signed on with the program in 1972 and remained with the cast until 1991, or two years before its first-run syndication ended. In the interim, she joined the cast of Happy Days for the first season only, won the part of Maid Marian in Mel Brooks' short-lived sitcom farce When Things Were Rotten (1975), and -- very briefly -- starred opposite Kathie Lee Johnson (soon to become Kathie Lee Gifford), Lulu Roman, and others in the comedy variety spinoff of Hee Haw, Hee Haw Honeys (1978). Meanwhile, Rowe also eked out a presence on-stage in such productions as the musical comedy Lil' Abner opposite Joe Namath. Following Rowe's stint on Hee Haw, she endured a bout of personal tragedy, but overcame the related emotional difficulties and scored a triumph by headlining the touring stage production Always...Patsy Cline as the famous, tragic country crooner. Rowe then embarked on a stand-up act, headlining clubs including Caroline's, Stand-Up New York, and Don't Tell Mama. Rowe's feature film career witnessed her landing supporting roles in projects including Loose Shoes (1980), National Lampoon's Class Reunion (1982), and Meatballs Part II (1984).

Trivia: Lead actor and former star quarterback Namath appeared onscreen from 1970.

Trivia: Comedian Vicki Lawrence got her big break in show business with a prominent role on the 70's sketch comedy series The Carol Burnette Show. The California native was particularly popular for her recurring character of "Mama," which earned her a successful spin-off, the sitcom Mama's Family, which ran from 1986 to 1990. She would go on to also enjoy runs on shows like Hannah Montana, and also had a career as a successful singer, reaching number one in 1973 with the song "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia".

Trivia: Actress and comedienne Brett Somers was best known to audiences for her turn as a panelist on The Match Game, from 1973-1982. Born in Canada as Audrey Johnston, Somers got her start acting in theater productions, which led to minor Broadway roles and appearances in theater-based television shows like Playhouse 90. Married to fellow actor Jack Klugman in 1953 (the couple separated in 1974 but never divorced), Somers acted in several low-budget films throughout the years, in addition to her long-running Match Game gig and numerous guest-starring roles on weekly television shows. She died of stomach and colon cancer in 2007.

Trivia: When drummer/bandleader Phil Harris made his screen debut in the RKO short So This is Harris (1933), his screen image was that of a wavy-haired Lothario, utterly irresistible to women. When Harris became a regular on Jack Benny's radio broadcasts of the 1930s and 1940s, his persona began taking on elements of self-parody, with a reputation for heavy imbibing thrown in for comic effect. Both the womanizing and drinking aspects of the "public" Harris were allowed to lapse on his own radio series, The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show, in which he co-starred from 1946 to 1954 with his second wife, screen star Alice Faye. Now Harris was depicted as a rumbly-voiced, good-natured schmo, who was easily outclassed intellectually by his wife and his two daughters. During this period, Harris, whose previous song hits included the rapid-fire "That's What I Like About the South," began making such child-oriented recordings as "The Thing" and "I Know an Old Lady." This aspect of Harris' career proved a logical lead-in to his later voiceover assignments in such Disney feature-length cartoons as The Jungle Book (1967), The Aristocats (1970) and Robin Hood (1973). While Phil Harris' off-screen personality was very much like his laid-back, genial stage character, he was a man of definite likes and dislikes: one of the latter was the Broadway musical The Music Man, which was written for Harris but which he turned down flat, steadfastly refusing to appear even in road-company or revival stagings.

Trivia: Pennsylvania-born actress Lauren Tewes achieved broadest recognition for her stint as Cruise Director Julie McCoy on the long-running ABC situation comedy The Love Boat. Unfortunately, Tewes (unlike many of her fellow cast members) left the program prior to the final voyage of the Pacific Princess -- reportedly spiraling into a much-publicized bout of severe cocaine addiction from which she eventually fully recovered, but which cost her the role on the series. Tewes nevertheless demonstrated admirable resilience by returning for at least two Love Boat telemovies and remained active in television and film. Subsequent projects included guest appearances on the small-screen series dramas Hunter and Murder, She Wrote, and roles in features such as The Doom Generation (1995) and It Came From Outer Space 2 (1996).

Trivia: Jill Whelan enjoyed an acting career as a child star, with a seven-season (1979-1986) portrayal of Vicki, Captain Merrill Stubing's young daughter, on the prime-time ABC situation comedy The Love Boat. After the series wrapped in 1986, Whelan returned for a number of Love Boat telemovies, acted in regional theater, and played a regular role on the daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless. Astute movie buffs may remember Whelan for a brief but memorable big-screen contribution that happened during her Love Boat tenure: she also portrayed Lisa Davis, the ailing child sent into convulsions when a singing nun knocks out her I.V., in the Zucker-Abrams-Zucker farce Airplane! (1980).