Charles Bronson - ©Theda Bara

The name I bring to you in this post is that of the American actor Charles Bronson, a specialist in crime films and westerns. Bronson started in the cinema in 1951, where he made two films: “You’re in the Navy Now”, character: “Wascylewski”, and “The People Against O’Hara”, character “Angelo Korvacsem”, both without having his name credited in the subtitles.

Few words and lots of action: this was Charles Bronson’s motto in his films. “Death Wish” (1974) started the first film in the franchise, in the role of “Paul Kersey”, a man who becomes a vigilante after his wife is murdered and his daughter is sexually abused by robbers. Eight years later (1982) “Death Wish 2” was released, in addition to three more sequels: “Death Wish 3” (1985); “Death Wish 4: The Crackdown” (1987) and “Death Wish 5” (1994). “Death Wish” was a turning point for Charles Bronson, who was 53 in the first film and was best known in Europe and Asia for his role in the war film “The Great Escape” (1963), character: “Hendley The Scrounger”. In March 2016, Paramount and MGM announced a remake starring Bruce Willis (1955-). The remake was released on March 2, 2018 and became a huge success again, where Willis, plays a surgeon “Paul Kersey” a man completely dedicated to his family and his profession. The story harks back to the original, in an unfortunate twist of fate, his wife is murdered and his daughter is sexually abused by thieves. 

Despite having acted in almost 200 films, awards were never Charles Bronson’s strong point, who won only one Golden Globe: the Henrietta Award for Favorite Actor in World Cinema in 1972 - an award that existed between 1950 and 1979.

Bronson’s last role was in the TV movie trilogy: “Point Blank” (1995/1997/1999) where he played investigator “Paul Flein”  and acted alongside his last wife Kim Weeks.

Charles Bronson has his star on the Los Angeles Walk of Fame, at number 6901 Hollywood Boulevard, in the Motion Picture category.

Charles Bronson, born Charles Dennis Buchinsky, on November 3, 1921, Ehrenfeld, Pennsylvania, United States, died on August 30, 2003, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, California, United States, four days before his 82nd birthday.

Charles Bronson was married three times, first to housewife Harriet Tendler Bronson (1929-2020) from 1949 to 1967. The couple had two children, New York theater and film writer Suzanne Bronson (1950-) and musician Tony Bronson (1972-), born 5 years after his parents separated in a reunion of the couple Bronson and Tendler, when the actor was already in his second marriage; Bronson’s second marriage was to British actress and singer Jill Dorothy Ireland (1936-1990) from 1968 to 1990, from whom the actor was widowed. The couple had two daughters, American film director Katrina Holden Bronson (1968-) and Zuleika Bronson (1972-) who even tried an acting career, but gave up; Bronson’s last marriage was to American actress Kim Weeks Bronson (1960-), from 1998 to 2003, with whom he lived for 5 years without having children and until leaving her a widow.

Haiku: Lead and Cotton - ©Theda Bara

Haiku and Art by ©Theda Bara — 2024

Evil is heavy as lead

Good is light as cotton

We humans live our free will of weights and measures!

Ronald Colman - ©Theda Bara

The name I bring to you in this post is Ronald Colman, a film actor born in England and based in the United States.

Colman won the Oscar for best actor (1948) for his performance in the film: “A Double Life” (1947), playing “Anthony John”, a stage actor who goes mad while staging a production of William Shakespeare’s (1564-1616) tragedy - “Othello” (1603), to the point where he can no longer distinguish what is real from what is drama. This film also earned the actor a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama.

Ronald Colman has two stars on the Los Angeles Walk of Fame, at 1623 Vine Street, in the TV category, and at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard, in the Motion Picture category.

Ronald Colman, born February 9, 1891, England, United Kingdom, died May 19, 1958, Los Angeles, California, United States, aged 67.

Ronald Colman was married twice, first to Brazilian actress Thelma Raye, née Thelma Victoria Maud Bell-Morton (1890-1966) from 1920 to 1934 and to British actress Benita Hume (1907-1967) from 1938 to 1958. Ronald and Benita had one daughter, American writer Juliet Benita Colman (1944-), who wrote the biography of her father: “Ronald Colman, a very private person : a biography” (1975).

Haiku: Fall Leaves - ©Theda Bara

Haiku and Art by ©Theda Bara — 2024

Fall hides the flower

The breeze dissipates the heat

And the ground is now covered in a carpet of still-living leaves.

Jackie Chan - ©Theda Bara

The name I bring to you in this post is Jackie Chan, who left China and became famous in Hollywood as an actor, producer, screenwriter, choreographer, film director, singer, martial arts specialist, and also a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. Chan is often compared to martial arts film actor, director and producer Lee Jun-fan, known worldwide as Bruce Lee (1940-1973), who was Chinese-American.

The actor, despite never having competed for an Oscar, received three MTV Movie Awards: in 1995, for lifetime achievement; in 1999 for Best Scene, for: “Rush Hour” and in 2002 for Best Fight, for: “Rush Hour 2”, Character: “Inspector Lee”; he also won a Daytime Emmy Award for Best Actor in an Animated Program, in 2002, for: “The Adventures of Jackie Chan”.

Jackie Chan has participated in more than 100 films throughout his career, having in the first 20 films secondary roles as a supporting actor, extra and even stunt double.

In 2010, he played “Mr. Han”, in “The Karate Kid”, a remake produced by actor and friend Willard Carroll Smith II - Will Smith (1968-), in which his son Jaden Christopher Syre Smith (1998-) plays the protagonist “Dre Parker”. “The Karate Kid 2” is scheduled for release in May 2025. 

Jackie Chan has a star on the Los Angeles Walk of Fame, located at Byken 6801 Hollywood Boulevard, in the motion picture category. He also has a star on the Avenue of Stars in Hong Kong and is considered by many to be the greatest Asian actor. 

Jackie Chan, born Chan Kong-sang on April 7, 1954, Victoria Peak, Hong Kong, a former British colony, now an autonomous territory in southeastern China, is now 70 years old.

Jackie Chan has been married to former Taiwanese actress Joan Lin Feng-jiao (1953-) since 1982. The couple has one son, American-born Chinese actor and singer Jaycee Chan Joming (1982-). He sings and performs in both Mandarin and Cantonese, and in 2004 released his first Mandarin CD album in Hong Kong. In 2015, Jaycee was arrested for possession of marijuana and served 6 months in prison. Jackie Chan has made no secret of his discontent with his son. He has not visited him in prison and has even made controversial statements. Speaking of controversy, Jackie Chan has an illegitimate daughter, Etta Ng Chok Lam (1999-), from an extramarital affair he had with Miss Asia 1990, Elaine Ng Yi-lei, sometimes credited as Elaine Wu (1972-). She announced that she was pregnant in 1999, after starring in a film by Chan, revealing her affair with the actor, who, after public speculation, admitted that he had “made a mistake that many men in the world make”.