Archive for the 'b' Category
Bruce Cabot Biography (1904-1972)
niedziela, czerwiec 15th, 2008
Actor. Born Etienne Pelissier Jacques de Bujac on April 20, 1904 in Carlsbad, New Mexico. The son of a French Colonel, Bruce Cabot was raised without a mother; she died shortly after giving birth to him. He briefly attended the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee, then worked several odd jobs before winding up in Hollywood in 1931. He made his film debut that year and built a sizeable career out of supporting roles, often playing villainous characters, during the next four decades.
Cabot appeared in 11 films with close friend and actor John Wayne, including 1947’s Angel and the Badman, 1968’s The Green Berets and 1969’s The Undefeated. The actor is probably best remembered, however, as Jack Driscoll, the man who famously rescued Fay Wray in 1933’s King Kong. Cabot’s final performance for the big screen was in the 1971 James Bond film Diamonds are Forever.
During World War II, Cabot left Hollywood to work in Army intelligence and operations in Africa, Sicily and Italy. After the war, he continued to work steadily, oftentimes with The Duke.
Bruce Cabot was married to actress Adrienne Ames from 1933 to 1937 and to actress Francesca De Scaffa until 1951. He died from lung and throat cancer on May 3, 1972. He was 68 years old.
© 2007 A&E Television Networks. All rights reserved.
Bernhard, prince von Bülow Biography (1849 - 1929)
sobota, czerwiec 14th, 2008(born May 3, 1849, Klein-Flottbek, near Altona, Ger.—died Oct. 28, 1929, Rome, Italy) German imperial chancellor and Prussian prime minister (1900–09). After holding a number of diplomatic posts, he was appointed state secretary for the foreign department in 1897. He quickly became a potent force and succeeded to the chancellorship in 1900. In cooperation with William II, he pursued a policy of German aggrandizement in the years preceding World War I. He was unable to prevent the formation of the English-French-Russian alliance against Germany ( Entente Cordiale; Triple Entente) and increased international tension with the first of the Moroccan crises.
Béjart, Maurice Biography (1928 - 2007)
sobota, czerwiec 14th, 2008Maurice-Jean Berger
French dancer and choreographer (born Jan. 1, 1927, Marseille, France—died Nov. 22, 2007, Lausanne, Switz.) was renowned for his flamboyant theatricality, his use of African dance rhythms, and his erotic, often shocking interpretations of such works as Igor Stravinsky’s Le Sacre du printemps (1959) and Maurice Ravel’s Bolero (1961). Béjart’s modern works ranged from an homage to the rock band Queen to the masterful Symphonie pour un homme seul (1955), set to musique concrète. The diminutive (1.6-m [5-ft 4-in]) Béjart studied dance in Paris and made his professional debut in 1945 with the Marseille Opera. He toured with the Ballets de Paris de Roland Petit (1947–49), the International Ballet (1949–50), and the Royal Swedish Ballet (1951–52) before forming (1954) his own troupe in Paris. He was resident choreographer for Brussels’s Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie and founder (1960) of its Ballet du XXe Siècle (Ballet of the Twentieth Century), which he directed until 1987, when he moved to Switzerland to establish the Béjart Ballet Lausanne. Béjart also directed for the theatre and wrote a novel, autobiographical works, and a play.
Buenaventura Báez Biography (1810 - 1884)
sobota, czerwiec 14th, 2008(born 1810, Azua de Compostela, Hispaniola [now Azua, Dominican Republic]—died 1884, Puerto Rico) politician who served five terms as president of the Dominican Republic and is noted principally for his attempts to have the United States annex his country.
Báez was a member of a wealthy and prominent family in the Dominican Republic. He was educated in Europe and began his political career in 1843 by helping lead the revolt that established the independence of the Dominican Republic from Haiti, with which it shares the island of Hispaniola. At this time, Báez believed that his nation could maintain its independence only by becoming a French protectorate, and to secure that end he was sent to Europe in 1846; the French, however, were not interested.
Báez served his first term as president in 1849–53, and in 1850 he tried unsuccessfully to have his country annexed by the United States. His second term (1856–58) ended when his government was overthrown by a coup d’état because of his involvement in corrupt financial transactions. He then invited Spain to occupy the Dominican Republic, and in return he was exiled to a comfortable life in Europe, financed by the Spaniards. When Spain abandoned the Dominican Republic in 1865, Báez returned to begin a third presidential term, but in May 1866 he was removed by another coup. In 1868 he was again made president, this time determined to gain annexation by the United States. He even succeeded in persuading the United States to send warships, ostensibly to protect his country from Haiti; in reality he sought to protect his own business interests. The warships were soon removed, however, and in 1874 Báez again was forced to leave office. He served his last term in 1876–78 and was then exiled permanently to Puerto Rico.
Benjamin F(ranklin) Butler Biography (1818 - 1893)
sobota, czerwiec 14th, 2008(born , Nov. 5, 1818, Deerfield, N.H., U.S.—died Jan. 11, 1893, Washington, D.C.) U.S. army officer. A prominent attorney in Lowell, Mass., Butler served two terms in the state legislature (1853, 1859). In the American Civil War he commanded Fort Monroe, Va., where he refused to return fugitive slaves to the Confederacy, calling them “contraband of war,” an interpretation later upheld by the government. He oversaw the occupation of New Orleans in 1862 but was recalled because of his harsh rule. He led the Union army in Virginia, but after several defeats he was relieved of his command in 1865. In the U.S. House of Representatives (1867–75, 1877–79), he was a Radical Republican prominent in the impeachment trial of Pres. Andrew Johnson. He switched parties in 1878 to support the Greenback movement and later served as governor of Massachusetts (1882–84).
Barbara Bush Biography (1925 - )
sobota, czerwiec 14th, 2008née Barbara Pierce
Former first lady. Born Barbara Pierce on June 8, 1925 in Rye, New York. At the age of 16, she met her husband-to-be George Bush at dance. The couple became engaged about 18 months later before George Bush left to serve in the U.S. Navy during World War II. She attended Smith College for a while, but later dropped out. She and George were married on January 6, 1945.
Barbara and George Bush had six children together: George, Robin, Jeb, Neil, Marvin, and Dorothy. The couple suffered a great personal loss when their oldest daughter Robin died of leukemia in 1953. She raised her children and supported her husband through the many phrases of his life from success oil businessman to politician and statesman. She helped her husband with his campaigns for public office, starting with his first unsuccessful run for the U.S. Congress in 1964.
Barbara Bush was first thrust into the national spotlight when her husband became vice president of the United States under President Ronald Reagan in 1981. She chose to use her position to help promote literacy. She continued her humanitarian efforts once her husband won the presidency in the 1988 election. Barbara established the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy in 1989. She also wrote two children’s books—C. Fred’s Story (1984) and Millie’s Book (1990) and donated the profits to literacy organizations.
Barbara Bush continued to write after her husband left office in 1993. Her memoir was published in 1994 and her post-presidency thoughts appeared in 2003’s Reflections: Life After the White House. Besides writing, she remains active in her foundation and in supporting several other charitable organizations, such as Americares. She lives in Houston, Texas, with her husband.
© 2006 A&E Television Networks. All rights reserved.
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