Alexander Hamilton was the illegitimate son of James Hamilton, a younger son of a laird from Ayrshire Scotland. James abandoned his son shortly after birth but later turned up seeking handouts (which he gave) after Alex was wealthy from his law practice and from his marriage to the wealthy Elizabeth Schuyler. Ever a social climber, Hamilton named his home “The Grange” after the home of his illegitimate grandfather in Ayrshire even though he’d never seen it and had no contact with the family; the entire house was recently moved through a few blocks in Harlemto a new location.
Hamilton, Joe Frank, and Reynolds had a hit single with “Don’t Pull Your Love,” when Reynolds left the group, the performed as Hamilton, Joe Frank, and Dennison.
Burt Reynolds had a minor career comeback with his appearance as a sleazy porn impresario in the film Boogie Nights.
Allie “The Chief” Reynolds threw two no-hitters for the Yankees in the 1951 season.
After retiring from baseball, Reynolds returned to his native Oklahoma and got rich in the mud business (oil drilling companies buy a lot of mud as a coolant and lubricant).
President Lincoln offered Gen. John Reynolds, a highly regarded corps commander, the opportunity to lead the Army of the Potomac not long before the Battle of Gettysburg. Although no records were kept of the conversation, historians now believe that Reynolds probably declined command because Lincoln couldn’t or wouldn’t assure him a completely free hand (Lincoln had had more than a few problems with previous generals up to then). Reynolds remained in corps command, and was killed on the first day of Gettysburg, July 1, 1863.
Aluminum foil is also often called Reynolds wrap after Reynolds Metals, the leading manufacturer in North America.
Aluminum was as expensive as silver when the tip of the Washington Monument was made from it, as part of a massive lightning protection system. It was the largest aluminum casting ever produced at the time. After uncounted thousands of lightning strikes, the original inscriptions on it are still clear, due to the bond strength of the aluminum oxide molecule. If the tip had been made just 2 years later, after the invention of the Hall-Heroult process, it would have been almost as cheap as steel.
Lightning occurs most frequently in the village of Kifuka in the eastern mountains of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. On average this region receives 158 lightning strikes per square kilometer per year.
The rock group Mountain (best known for the song “Mississippi Queen”) took their name from a previous solo album by their guitarist Leslie West. Felix Pappalardi, his producer (and former producer for Cream) and bassist for the solo album joined with N. D. Smart to perform as a group. The name refers to West, who was very large (he has since slimmed down).
James West, an agent of U.S. Army Intelligence, was played by Will Smith in the oft-mocked 1999 Hollywood blockbuster Wild Wild West. The character was played by Robert Conrad in the 1965-69 TV show.
One of Robert Conrad’s jobs during the 1970’s was being the spokesman for Eveready batteries. In a typical commercial, he’d place an example of the product on his shoulder and dare the viewer to challenge the battery’s power by trying to “knock it off”.
Robert Conrad starred in Black Sheep Squadron, which also featured a young John Larroquette.
NFL Hall of Famer Merlin Olsen hated St. Louis Cardinal offensive lineman Conrad Dobler, whom he regarded as the dirtiest player in the league. After retirement, when Olsen was starring in the TV series “Father Murphy,” he had Dobler’s name placed on a tombstone in a graveyard scene. The epitaph read, “Here lies Conrad Dobler, gone but not forgiven.”
[del]Black Sheep Squadron was based on the career of Greg “Pappy” Boyington, who had served in China with the Flying Tigers before Pearl Harbor.[/del]
The native language of Joseph Conrad, one of the greatest stylists of the English language, was Polish.
Combining (even though it’s no longer necessary):
William Conrad, best known for his role as Cannon on TV, was the narrator for “Rocky the Flying Squirrel.” Conrad also played Matt Dillion on the Gunsmoke radio show, but was considered physically wrong for the TV role.
Matt Dillon was played on TV by James Arness, who had a limp from his service in World War II. Because of the limp, producers hired another actor to portray him from the back in the opening credits where he was seen walking down a street; the actor, thinking he was doing routine stand-in acting (often done when stars aren’t available for some scenes where their face is necessary) perfectly emulated Arness’s limp, not realizing he wasn’t supposed to and defeating the whole purpose of getting another actor. Nevertheless, this remained the opening for a few seasons.
One of James Arness’s early movie roles was as the title character in the original (1951) version of “The Thing”.
In the TV sitcom The Addams Family the 6’9 actor Ted Cassidy who portrayed Lurch the butler also portrayed Thing, the family’s pet hand; in a pilot for the 1970s revival of the series the family had added a female hand named ‘That’ as well.
Jane Addams, founder of the egalitarian Settlement House movement, starting with Hull House, was the second woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize.
Hugh Laurie auditioned for *House *by (belated) video, unshaven, unkempt, quite visibly depressed and lacking much hope of getting the part. He still got it part because… well, that’s who House is.