Yul Brynner - ©Theda Bara

The name I bring to you in this post is that of the excellent Russian-American actor Yul Brynner, winner of the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1957 for his performance in the film “The King and I” (1956), playing the role of “King Mongkut”.

In addition to the Oscar, Yul Brynner won two Tony Awards: one for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical in 1952 and a Special Tony Award in 1985.

Yul Brynner has a star on the Los Angeles Walk of Fame, located at 6162 Hollywood Boulevard, in the Motion Picture category.

Yul Brynner, born on July 11, 1920, in Vladivostok, Russia, died on October 10, 1985, at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, New York, United States, at the age of 65.

Yul Brynner was a charismatic and openly bisexual actor who married four times, the first three ending in divorce. He had three children and adopted two Vietnamese sisters. His first wife, from 1944 to 1960, was actress Virginia Gilmore (1919-1986), with whom he had a son, Yul Brynner Jr. (1946-2023), nicknamed “Rock” at age six, after American boxer Rocky Graziano (1919-1990). Brynner Jr. was a novelist and professor of history at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, New York, and Western Connecticut State University in Danbury, Connecticut. Yul Brynner had a long affair with the famous German actress Marlene Dietrich (1901-1992), who was 19 years older than the actor; In 1959, Brynner had a daughter, Lark Brynner (1959–), with Swiss actress Frankie Tilden (1939–), who was 20 at the time. Lark lived with her mother, and Brynner supported her financially. His second wife, Doris Kleiner (1931–2025), from 1960 to 1967, was a model born in the former Czechoslovakia and raised in Chile, whom he married during the filming of “The Magnificent Seven”. In 1960, the couple had a daughter, Victoria Brynner (1962–). Belgian novelist and artist Monique Watteau (1929–) also had a romantic relationship with Brynner, from 1961 to 1967. His third wife, Jacqueline Simone Thion de la Chaume (1932–2013), a French socialite, was widowed by Philippe Wiener de Croisset (1911–1965), son of French playwright Francis de Croisset (1877–1937). Brynner and Jacqueline adopted two Vietnamese children: Mia (1974–) and Melody (1975–). His third marriage ended, reportedly due to his affairs with fans of both sexes and his neglect of his children. On April 4, 1983, at age 62, Brynner married his fourth wife, Kathy Lee (1957–), a 26-year-old ballerina from Ipoh, Malaysia. They remained married for the last two years of his life.

Haiku: Traces of Life in the Mirror - ©Theda Bara

Haiku and Art by ©Theda Bara — 2025

The human gaze is lost in the distance

Observing traces of life in the mirror

Sad are those who wait for years that never return.

Patricia Neal - ©Theda Bara

The name I bring to you in this post is that of the talented American actress Patricia Neal, winner of the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1964 for her work in “Hud” (1963), playing “Alma Brown”. However, “The Day the Earth Stood Still” (1951) is her most famous film, in which she played the character “Helen Benson”. This film was remade in 2008, but did not achieve the same success.

In addition to the Oscar, Patricia Neal received two BAFTAs (1963 and 1965), a Golden Globe (1971), and a Tony Award (1947). The actress was also nominated for an Oscar for Best Actress for “The Subject Was Roses” (1968), playing “Nettle Cleary”, but did not win.

Patricia Neal has a star on the Los Angeles Walk of Fame, located at 7018 Hollywood Boulevard, in the Motion Picture category.

Patricia Patsy Louise Neal, born on January 20, 1926, in Packard, Kentucky, United States, died on August 8, 2010, in Edgartown, Massachusetts, United States, at the age of 99.

Patricia Neal was one of the rare Hollywood actresses to marry only once. After a torrid romance with Spanish hard rock, blues, and progressive rock guitarist and composer Robert William Gary Moore (1952-2011), the actress married the famous British writer of Welsh and Norwegian descent Roald Dahl (1916-1990), whose successful works, translated into film, include: "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" (1964) and "Matilda" (1988). The couple lived together for 30 years, from 1953 to 1983. They had five children: Olivia Twenty Dahl (1955-1962), who died at the age of seven from measles encephalitis, even before a vaccine against the disease was developed; British author and former actress Chantal Sophia “Tessa” Dahl (1957-); British-American businessman Theo Matthew Dahl (1960-); American lawyer Ophelia Magdalena Dahl (1964-) and British screenwriter Lucy Neal Dahl (1965-).

Haiku: The Girl and the Rose - ©Theda Bara

Haiku and Art by ©Theda Bara — 2025

The girl’s dress is pink

The rose in the garden is a girl

The rose and the girl complement each other.

Christopher Reeve - ©Theda Bara

The name I bring you in this post is the talented American actor Christopher Reeve, known for playing the most famous “Superman” in cinema, as well as for a series of four acclaimed films, beginning with “Superman” (1978), for which he was nominated for a BAFTA; and later in three other critically acclaimed films: “The Bostonians” (1984), playing “Basil Ransome”; “Street Smart” (1987), playing “Jonathan Fisher”; and “The Remains of the Day” (1993), playing “Jack Lewis”.

Christopher Reeve received a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Golden Globe nomination for his performance in the television film: “Rear Window” 1998, playing “Janson Kemp”, a remake of the (1954) classic of the same name. Reeve also won a Grammy Award for Best Album in 1999, for the documentary: “Still Me”.

On May 27, 1995, Reeve became a quadriplegic due to a fracture in the first two cervical vertebrae, which damaged his spinal cord. After a horseback riding accident during an equestrian competition in Culpeper, he began using a wheelchair for mobility and a portable ventilator for breathing. A year later, in 1996, he received a standing ovation at the Academy Awards. Since then, the actor led a campaign for the legalization of stem cell research and created the Christopher Reeve Foundation, in addition to co-founding the Reeve-Irvine Research Center. He died young due to a serious infection resulting from his frail health.

Christopher Reeve has a star on the Los Angeles Walk of Fame, located at 7021 Hollywood Boulevard, in the Motion Picture category.

Christopher D’Olier Reeve, born on September 25, 1952, in New York, United States, died on October 10, 2004, in Mount Kisco, New York, United States, at the age of 52.

Christopher Reeve was married twice. First, to British model Gae Exton (1951-), known for her work in “Superman: The Christopher Reeve Story” (2024), from 1977 to 1987. The couple had two children: British-American Matthew Exton Reeve (1979-) and British actress Alexandra Reeve Givens (1983-). His second marriage was to American singer, actress, and activist Dana Charles Morosini Reeve (1961-2006). The couple had a son, American actor and producer Will Reeve (1992-), known for his work in: “Superman” 2025. As a boy, Will’s life was not the easiest, as his famous father became a quadriplegic. After his father’s death, Will was adopted by actor Robin McLaurin Williams (1951-2014), with whom Reeve maintained a close friendship. Early in their careers, Reeve achieved greater success and helped Robin, who, after the accident, began to reciprocate. With Reeve’s death and soon after that of Dana (from lung cancer), Robin adopted Will and raised him as her own son. But Will’s life never seemed to have a happy ending, as Robin Williams (who struggled with depression and had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and dementia) committed suicide in August 2014 and was found dead by his adopted son in his California home at the age of 63. The cause of death was asphyxiation by hanging.