Ask American Profile 9/27/2009

George Reeves, Sean Penn, Jane Krakowski, Planet of the Apes, Foreigner

Q Is the George Reeves who played one of the redheaded brothers in Gone With the Wind the same Reeves who starred in the 1950s black-and-white TV series Superman?
—Judy Shoemaker, Lebanon, Mo.

Yes! Reeves portrayed Stuart Tarleton, and Fred Crane played his twin Brent, in Gone With the Wind. (However, the movie credits mistakenly have their roles reversed.) Reeves played TV's Man of Steel from 1952 to 1958. He was found shot to death in his Los Angeles home in 1959 at the age of 45. The case was ruled a suicide, but some devotees believe he was murdered. The plot of the 2006 film Hollywoodland centers on this real-life mystery.


Q There's an episode of Little House on the Prairie where the kids of Walnut Grove help a man named Tinker Jones make a church bell. One of the children looked a lot like Sean Penn. Was it him?
—Jason Fry, Springdale, Pa.

It was! Penn was 14 when he appeared in the 1974 episode of Little House, which marked his acting debut.


Q My sister and I have a dinner bet. I say 30 Rock star Jane Krakowski was on a soap opera. My sister says no.
—Dianne Tracy, Northridge, Calif.

Tell sis to ante up. Krakowski, 40, was only 14 when she joined the cast of Search for Tomorrow in 1984, a role which brought her two Daytime Emmy nominations. When Search was canceled in 1986, the native of Parsippany, N.J., who began taking dance lessons at age 3, launched a Broadway career. That led to parts in Starlight Express, Grand Hotel and her Tony Award-winning role in Nine before connecting her with a role on the TV series Ally McBeal.


Q Besides Charlton Heston, were there any other famous actors associated with the Planet of the Apes movies and TV series?
—B.K. Daugherty, Strattanville, Pa.

Heston was by far the biggest star of the franchise, appearing in the original 1968 movie and its 1970 sequel, and making a cameo appearance in the 2001 remake. Other recognizable actors who went Ape on the big screen include Roddy McDowall, Victor Buono, James Whitmore, Sal Mineo, Ricardo Montalban, Kim Hunter and Longstreet TV star James Franciscus. The 1974 Planet of the Apes TV series starred McDowall, James Naughton and Ron Harper.


Q What can you tell me about Kelly Hansen, the lead singer of Foreigner?
—Alyssa De Marco, Wisconsin Dells, Wis.

Los Angeles-based Kelly Hansen, 48, joined Foreigner in March 2005 after he learned they might be looking for a new lead singer. He gave a stellar audition, and the gig was his. "I had five days to learn the show. We took off and we haven't stopped," says Hansen, the former lead singer of the rock group Hurricane, which released three albums from the late 1980s until breaking up in 1991. Hear what he sounds like on Foreigner's new CD, Can't Slow Down, sold exclusively at Wal-Mart.

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