Banana oil, I’m afraid. Soph may have worn pants in the '20s, but by then a lot of show-business women were (lounging pyjamas, popular on the South of France). Irene Castle was wearing men’s trousers to go horseback-riding in Central Park in the 1910s.
Speaking of Irene, here’s another bit of trivia: dancer and actress Irene Castle’s paternal grandfather, Dr. Edwin Foote, wrote a series of “children’s books” in the 1870s featuring Sponsie, a berserk monkey, and pretty explicit sex.
Connors also played briefly in the NBA for the Boston Celtics. According to The Basketball Hall of Shame , he allegedly broke 2 backboards in a single game–while shooting free throws!
John Beradino , longtime star of General Hospital , was a 2nd baseman for the Cleveland Indians in the 1950’s
The original Chairman Kaga of Iron Chef played Jesus in a Japanese production of “Jesus Christ Superstar”.
“The secret ingredient is: MY BODY AND BLOOD!”
I’m going straight to hell for that one.
Now THAT has officially set the bar for hard to top interesting trivia. I’ve officially added Sponsie to my ebay and other wishlists.
I love this:
That’s hellaciously racy and daring for the 1870s!
Speaking of interracial couplings and the 1870s, 130-or-so-year-old flake Carol Channing was born of one. Channing says in her autobiography that her father was a lightskinned biracial southerner who crossed the color line. (I’m surprised racial separatists don’t use Carol as “why this is wrong” propaganda.)
Sarah Bernhardt, a mistress of self-promotion if ever there was one, alternately claimed to be the illegitimate daughter of Pope Pius IX, Victor Hugo, Alexandre Dumas, Abraham Lincoln and a variety of other famous men. Dumas, who claimed to have fathered 500 children, “verified” her claim (which was almost certainly totally false- it’s highly doubtful he ever even met Sarah’s mother).
Sarah’s real father was probably an upper middle class Belgian college student named Edouard who coupled with Sarah’s unholy horror of a mother, Judith, in a probably commercial romance in the early 1840s. Sarah’s half sisters probably were close relatives of Emperor Napoleon III as one of Judith’s “protectors” was his half-brother the Duc de Morny, and Dumas and Hugo both may have been Sarah’s lovers). Sarah’s grandchildren were members of the Polish royal family through her daughter-in-law, Terka Jablowska.
In my upcoming biography of the Castles, I devote a whole page to the redoubtable Sponsie. Let me know if you ever get your hands on the Holy Grail, Vol. 5 (the “sex volume”)! I’ve only read Vol. 2, which I then forwarded to Irene Castle’s son, who had no idea.
Who, it shouold be noted, is the mother of Law and Order: SVU star Mariska Hargitay.
Albert Brooks *real * name is Albert Einstein.
I beat you to that one about 15 posts ago. 
You know, it’s perfectly legal to reproduce completely ANYTHING written/published in America before the 1920s- they’re all out of copyright. SPONSIE *FALLS ON HIS KNEES AND BEGS TO BE REPRINTED WITH A NEW FOREWORD BY SOME ENTERPRISING NYC/NJ AREA DOPER WITH A GREAT WIT AND IN NEED OF A FEW BUCKS. Such a person should talk to their publisher about it (and it would be one HELL of a promotion for the Castles book- I mean, when you have monkeys, miscegenation and Castles all in one book what more could you ask for?).
And Jayne Mansfield’s daughter is Mariska Hargitay - from Law and Order fame (the dark haired, lead actress).
Betty White (best known from Golden Girls and Mary Tyler Moore Show) has the record for starring in the most television shows in history, spanning back to 1949.
(Side note…Bea Arthur and Betty White are not good friends, trust me on that one.)
I meant, Betty had the record for starring in the most television series. Others may have appeared in shows more often over the year.
And isn’t their father the comedian Parkyakarkas? (spelling may vary)
VCNJ~
Why the regional qualification?
Because I think he wants it to be Eve in particular…
Not really – just the woman who starred in the most series. She is listed in the IMDB as starring in the ten:
“The Golden Palace” … Rose Lindstrom Nylund
“The Golden Girls” … Rose Nylund
“Another World” (1964) TV Series … Brenda Barlowe (1988)
“Santa Barbara” (1984) TV Series … Waitress (1988)
“Mama’s Family” … Ellen Jackson (1983-1985, 1986)
“The Betty White Show” (1977) TV Series … Joyce Whitman
“Mary Tyler Moore” (1970) TV Series … Sue Ann Nivens (1973-1977)
“The Pet Set” (1971) TV Series … Hostess
“Date with the Angels” (1957) TV Series … Vicki Angel (1957-1958)
“Life with Elizabeth” … Elizabeth
“Hollywood On Television” (1949) TV Series … Phone Girl
Harry Morgan has eleven:
“You Can’t Take It with You” (1987) TV Series … Martin Vanderhof
“Blacke’s Magic” (1986) TV Series … Leonard Blacke
“After MASH” (1983) TV Series … Dr. Sherman Potter
“MAS*H” … Col. Sherman T. Potter (1975-1983)
“Hec Ramsey” (1972) TV Series … Doc Amos B. Coogan
“The D.A.” (1971) TV Series … H.M. ‘Staff’ Stafford
“Dragnet 1967” … Officer Bill Gannon
“The Richard Boone Show” … Various Characters (1963-1964)
“Kentucky Jones” (1964) TV Series … Seldom Jackson
“Pete and Gladys” (1960) TV Series … Pete Porter (1960-62)
“December Bride” (1954) TV Series … Pete Porter
And Robert Urich is the champ:
“Emeril” (2001) TV Series … Jerry McKenney
“The Love Boat: The Next Wave” … Captain Jim Kennedy III
“Invasion America” (1998) TV Series (voice) … Briggs
“Vital Signs” (1997) TV Series … Host
“Boatworks” (1997) TV Series … Host
“The Lazarus Man” (1996) TV Series … Lazarus (James Cathcart) (1996)
“It Had to Be You” (1993) TV Series … Mitch Quinn
“Crossroads” (1992) TV Series … John Hawkins
“American Dreamer” (1990) TV Series … Tom Nash
“Spenser: For Hire” (1985) TV Series … Spenser
“Gavilan” (1982) TV Series … Robert Gavilan
“Vega$” … Dan Tanna
“Soap” (1977) TV Series … Peter Campbell (1977)
“Tabitha” … Paul Thurston
“S.W.A.T.” … Officer Jim Street
I think he’s thinking of a particular doper from the NY/NJ area who is just dripping with wit and has been known to publish great biographies of stars from yesteryear.
My tidbit. Mick Nesmith from The Monkees mom invented White-Out.
Aldous Huxley was George Orwell’s French teacher for one semester at Eton.
B.B. King has fifteen children by fourteen mothers. They range from medical students to convicted drug dealers.
Wilford Brimley’s past careers includ circus clown and bodyguard for Howard Hughes.
What on earth does “with a cup of coffee” mean in relation to baseball?
That’s excluding the gay porn portion of his move career, I assume?
My favourite that that Hedy Lamarr co-invented frequency-hopping radio during WWII, so far ahead of its time that it was 20 years before the US Navy could put it to practical use.
Thanks for the correction. I was close.