Ask American Profile 4/6/2008

Q In the early 1960s, I saw my first Broadway musical, Destry Rides Again. Do I remember correctly that Andy Griffith was one of the leads?
—Matt Banovetz, Babbitt, Minn.

That was, indeed, Andy Griffith in Destry Rides Again, which played for 14 months on Broadway before ending its run in the summer of 1960. During one performance, a small fire broke out backstage. Although it was extinguished quickly, enough smoke drifted onstage that there could have been a panic had not Griffith and his co-star, Delores Gray, continued calmly with the scene. For keeping their cool—and the audience collected—the New York City fire commissioner gave them citations for heroism.

Q Who starred in the old black-and-white show about Johnny Yuma, The Rebel? I can see his face, but can’t connect a name.
—John G. Navelanko, Greensboro, Pa.

Nick Adams played Johnny Yuma, a former Confederate soldier roaming the Southwest after the Civil War, in The Rebel, which aired from 1959 to 1961. You also may remember the show’s theme song, sung by Johnny Cash. Adams’ acting career was cut short in 1968 when he was found dead at the age of 36 from an overdose of drugs he was taking for a nervous disorder.

Q Why is Donald Trump called “The Donald”? Where did he get that nickname?
—C. Touchton, Texas City, Texas

Donald Trump’s ex-wife, Ivana, whose native language is Czech, once misspoke in an interview and referred to him as “The Donald,” and the media jumped on it. Since the couple’s divorce in 1997, Ivana, 58, has tried to trademark the name to use in various business opportunities, claiming it was meant for her son, Donald Jr. But Trump, 61, the star of TV’s successful Apprentice franchise, has so far successfully managed to keep the name for himself.

Q I enjoyed the “muscle men” movies of the late 1950s and early ’60s. Whatever happened to Steve Reeves, who starred in Hercules and Hercules Unchained?
—Dennis Slack, Scranton, Ohio

“I only did two Hercules films,” Reeves once said. “But everybody thinks I did 10.” That’s because of his starring roles in numerous other foreign-made, dubbed-into-English “sword and sandal” sagas in which he played various muscle-bound men of yore, all with Hercules-like prowess. Reeves, a Montana-born bodybuilding superstar who was crowned both Mr. America and Mr. Universe before finding fame in Hollywood, was 74 when he died May 1, 2000—the very week, ironically, the blockbuster movie Gladiator hit the screens and introduced a new generation of moviegoers to swords and sandals.

Q What happened to Ricky Nelson’s granddaughter, Tracy Nelson? I liked her very much as a nun in the Father Dowling Mysteries series.
—Norbert Grant, Oak Ridge, Tenn.

Tracy Nelson, 44, actually is the daughter, not granddaughter, of pop singer Ricky Nelson. Her grandfathers are Ozzie Nelson, of Ozzie and Harriett fame, and football great Tom Harmon, making NCIS star Mark Harmon her uncle. The mother of two continues to act and most recently appeared in the movies A Grandfather for Christmas (2007), The Rival (2006), Miracle at Sage Creek (2005), A Killer Upstairs (2005) and The Perfect Husband (2004). Nelson is a cancer survivor, diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease in 1987.

Q We’ve wondered what has become of Mark Russell, the pianist, comedian and social satirist? We so enjoyed his PBS show.
—Pat and Duane Pettengill, Cadillac, Mich.

Russell, 75, whose show went off the air three years ago, still performs locally in and around Washington, D.C., where he lives. He and his wife, Alison, have three children who “are so old I’m starting to lie about their ages,” he quips. If you don’t live near the nation’s capital and hanker for his humor, you can visit his website, markrussell.net, which he updates every day with new jokes. After spending nearly 30 years on television, Russell says he has no great desire to return to the small screen. “I’m much better live,” he says.

first appeared: 4/6/2008