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Ron Lester gained celebrity status at an early stage in his career, but his draw in Hollywood seemed to be based on one physical characteristic: his weight. Obese since 5 years old, by the time he was 30 years old, Ron weighed 508 pounds. Hollywood hired him as the lovable fat kid but his health was in serious danger. With the support of his friends, family, and co-workers, Ron decided to go through an experimental (at the time) type of gastric bypass surgery that almost took his life. When he recovered from flat-lining on the operating table Ron began to lose the weight - and his celebrity identity. 348 pounds were lost in under two years and he's had 14 plastic surgeries to tighten and remove excess skin. Now Ron has a hard time getting the roles he once won. Admits food was his 'drug of choice' to cover up pain from often being the new kid in school (he changed schools often due to discipline problems), and the death of 22 close friends and family members throughout his life.

Ron died in 2016 in Dallas, Texas, of liver and kidney failure.

Gruff, burly American character actor. Born in 1903 in Benkelman, Nebraska (confirmed by Social Security records; sources stating 1905 or Denver, Colorado are in error.) Bond grew up in Denver, the son of a lumberyard worker. He attended the University of Southern California, where he got work as an extra through a football teammate who would become both his best friend and one of cinema's biggest stars: John Wayne. Director John Ford promoted Bond from extra to supporting player in the film Salute (1929), and became another fast friend. An arrogant man of little tact, yet fun-loving in the extreme, Bond was either loved or hated by all who knew him. His face and personality fit perfectly into almost any type of film, and he appeared in hundreds of pictures in his more than 30-year career, in both bit parts and major supporting roles. In the films of Wayne and Ford, particularly, he was nearly always present. Among his most memorable roles are John L. Sullivan in Gentleman Jim (1942), Det. Tom Polhaus in The Maltese Falcon (1941) and the Rev. Capt. Samuel Johnson Clayton The Searchers (1956). An ardent but anti-intellectual patriot, he was perhaps the most vehement proponent, among the Hollywood community, of blacklisting in the witch hunts of the 1950s, and he served as a most unforgiving president of the ultra-right-wing Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals. In the mid-'50s he gained his greatest fame as the star of TV's Wagon Train (1957). During its production, Bond traveled to Dallas, Texas, to attend a football game and died there in his hotel room of a massive heart attack.

The blonde, sultry, dreamy-eyed beauty of Dorothy Malone, who was born Mary Maloney in Chicago on January 29, 1924, took some time before it made an impact with American film-going audiences. But once she did, she played it for all it was worth in her one chance Academy Award-winning "bad girl" performance, a role quite unlike the classy and strait-laced lady herself.

Raised in Dallas, she was one of five children born to an accountant father and housewife mother. Two older sisters died of polio. Attending Ursuline Convent and Highland Park High School, she was quite popular (as "School Favorite"). She was also a noted female athlete while there and won several awards for swimming and horseback riding. Following graduation, she studied at Southern Methodist University with the intent of becoming a nurse, but a role in the college play "Starbound" happened to catch the eye of an RKO talent scout and she was offered a Hollywood contract.

The lovely brunette started off in typical RKO starlet mode with acting/singing/dancing/diction lessons and bit parts (billed as Dorothy Maloney) in such films as the Frank Sinatra musicals Higher and Higher (1943) and Step Lively (1944), a couple of the mystery "Falcon" entries and a showier role in Show Business (1944) with Eddie Cantor and George Murphy. RKO lost interest, however, after the two-year contract was up. Warner Bros., however, stepped up to the plate and offered the actress a contract. Now billed as Dorothy Malone, her third film offering with the studio finally injected some adrenaline into her floundering young career, when she earned the small role of a seductive book clerk in the Bogart/Bacall classic The Big Sleep (1946). Critics and audiences took notice of her captivating little part. As a reward, the studio nudged her up the billing ladder with more visible roles in Two Guys from Texas (1948), Romance on the High Seas (1948), South of St. Louis (1949) and Colorado Territory (1949), with the westerns showing off her equestrian prowess if not her acting ability.

Despite this positive movement, Warner Bros. did not extend Dorothy's contract in 1949 and she returned willingly back to her tight-knit family in her native Dallas. Taking a steadier job with an insurance agency, she happened to attend a work-related convention in New York City and grew fascinated with the big city. Deciding to recommit to her acting career, she moved to the Big Apple and studied at the American Theater Wing. In between her studies, she managed to find work on TV, which spurred freelancing "B" movie offers in the routine form of Saddle Legion (1951), The Bushwhackers (1951), the Martin & Lewis romp Scared Stiff (1953), Law and Order (1953), Jack Slade (1953), Pushover (1954) and Private Hell 36 (1954).

Things picked up noticeably once Dorothy went platinum blonde, which seemed to emphasize her overt and sensual beauty. First off was as a sister to Doris Day in Young at Heart (1954), a musical remake of Four Daughters (1938), back at Warner Bros. She garnered even better attention when she appeared in the war picture Battle Cry (1955), in which she shared torrid love scenes with film's newest heartthrob Tab Hunter, and continued the momentum with the reliable westerns Five Guns West (1955) and Tall Man Riding (1955) but not with melodramatic romantic dud Sincerely Yours (1955) which tried to sell to the audiences a heterosexual Liberace.

By this time she had signed with Universal. Following a few more westerns for good measure (At Gunpoint (1955), Tension at Table Rock (1956) and Pillars of the Sky (1956), Dorothy won the scenery-chewing role of wild, nymphomaniac Marylee Hadley in the Douglas Sirk soap opera Written on the Wind (1956) co-starring Rock Hudson, Lauren Bacall and Robert Stack. Stack and Malone had the showier roles and completely out-shined the two leads, both earning supporting Oscar nominations in the process. Stack lost in his category but Dorothy nabbed the trophy for her splendidly tramp, boozed-up Southern belle which was highlighted by her writhing mambo dance.

Unfortunately, Dorothy's long spell of mediocre filming did not end with all the hoopla she received for Written on the Wind (1956). The Tarnished Angels (1957), which reunited Malone with Hudson and Stack faltered, and Quantez (1957) with Fred MacMurray was just another run-of-the-mill western. Two major film challenges might have changed things with Man of a Thousand Faces (1957) as the unsympathetic first wife of James Cagney's Lon Chaney Sr, and as alcoholic actress Diana Barrymore in the biographic melodrama Too Much, Too Soon (1958). Cagney, however, overshadowed everyone in the first and the second was fatally watered down by the Production Code committee.

To compensate, Dorothy, at age 35 in 1959, finally was married -- to playboy actor Jacques Bergerac (Ginger Rogers's ex-husband). A daughter, Mimi, was born the following year. Fewer film offers, which included Warlock (1959) and The Last Voyage (1960), came her way as Dorothy focused more on family life. While a second daughter, Diane, was born in 1962, the turbulent marriage wouldn't last and their divorce became final in December 1964. A bitter custody battle ensued with Dorothy eventually winning primary custody.

It took the small screen to rejuvenate Dorothy's career in the mid-1960s when she earned top billing of TV's first prime time soap opera Peyton Place (1964). Dorothy, starring in Lana Turner's 1957 film role of Constance MacKenzie, found herself in a smash hit. The run wasn't entirely happy however. Doctors discovered blood clots on her lungs which required major surgery and she almost died. Lola Albright filled in until she was able to return. Just as bad, her the significance of her role dwindled with time and 20th Century-Fox finally wrote her and co-star Tim O'Connor off the show in 1968. Dorothy filed a breach of contract lawsuit which ended in an out-of-court settlement.

Her life on- and off-camera did not improve. Dorothy's second marriage to stockbroker Robert Tomarkin in 1969 would last only three months, and a third to businessman Charles Huston Bell managed about three years. Now-matronly roles in the films Winter Kills (1979), Vortex (1982), The Being (1981) and Rest in Pieces (1987), were few and far between a few TV-movies -- which included some "Peyton Place" revivals, did nothing to advance her. Malone returned and settled for good back in her native Dallas, returning to Hollywood only on occasion.

Dorothy's last film was a cameo in the popular thriller Basic Instinct (1992) as a friend to Sharon Stone. She will be remembered as one of those Hollywood stars who proved she had the talent but somehow got the short end of the stick when it came to quality films offered. She retired to Texas and died in Dallas shortly before her 94th birthday on January 19, 2018.

The son of a legendary actress (Mary Martin) and a district attorney, Larry Martin Hagman was born on September 21, 1931 in Fort Worth, Texas. After his parents' divorce, he moved to Los Angeles, California to live with his grandmother. When he was 12, his grandmother died and he moved back to his mother's place, who had remarried and was launching a Broadway career. After attending Bard College in New York State, he decided to follow his mother's acting road. His first stage tryout was with the Margo Jones Theatre-in-the-Round in Dallas, Texas. He then appeared in the New York City Center production of "Taming the Shrew", followed by a year in regional theater. In his early-to-mid twenties, Larry moved to England as a member of the cast of his mother's stage show, "South Pacific", and was a member of the cast for five years. After that, he enlisted in the United States Air Force, where he produced and directed several series for members of the service.

After completing his service in the Air Force, Larry returned to New York City for a series of Broadway and off-Broadway plays, esp. "Once Around the Block", "Career", "Comes a Day", "A Priest in the House", "The Beauty Part", "The Warm Peninsula", "The Nervous Set" among many others. He began his television career in 1961 with a number of guest appearances on shows as "The ALCOA Hour". He was later chosen to be in the popular daytime soap opera The Edge of Night (1956), in which he starred for two years. But that was his start, he later went on to become the friendliest television star in the NBC sitcom I Dream of Jeannie (1965), in which he played the amiable astronaut Anthony Nelson. In the series, his life was endangered by this gorgeous blonde bombshell genie played by Barbara Eden. The series ran for five years and after that, he continued his success in The Good Life (1971) and Here We Go Again (1973), as well as a number of guest-starring roles on many series. He was also with Lauren Bacall in the television version of the hit Broadway musical Applause (1973).

In 1977, the soap opera Dallas (1978) came aboard and Larry's career was secured. He credits "Superchick" for convincing him to do the show. This program of an excessively rich Texas family, was one of the best, beloved, most-watched shows of all time as he portrayed the role of the evil yet perverted millionaire J.R. Ewing, the man who loved to be hated. The series ran for an amazing 14 1/2 seasons and the "Who shot J.R.?" episode remains the second highly-rated television show in the history of the satellite. Since his name was familiar with Texas, it was suiting that he hosted "Lone Star" (1985), an eight-part documentary series related to the history of Texas, for the Public Television Stations. That aired while celebrating the 150th anniversary of Texas as an independent republic. In the spring of 1987, Kari-Lorimar released "Larry Hagman--Stop Smoking for Life". Proceeds from this home video were donated to the American Cancer Society.

In July 1995, he needed a liver transplant in order for him to regain his life back after years of strong drinking that led to cirrhosis. He went over to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for this where he spent seven weeks in the hospital, and an operation took 16 hours but saved his life. In July 1996, one year after he had a new liver, he served as the National Spokesperson for the 1996 U.S. Transplant Games presented by the National Kidney Foundation and, on November 2, he later received the Award for his efforts in escalating public awareness of the concept of organ donation. He continued to serve as an advocate of organ donation and transplantation until his death. In November 1996, he starred in Dallas: J.R. Returns (1996), a 2-hour movie in which the ratings were a huge success for CBS, as well as in the network's drama series Orleans (1997) when his role of Judge Luther Charbonnet gave him some of the best reviews of his 36-year-career.

When he was feeling better than he had for so many years, he completed his two movie projects: The Third Twin (1997), a four-hour miniseries based on the author's best-selling novel, that aired on CBS, and Mike Nichols's Primary Colors (1998), a film based on the best-selling book by a journalist, Joe Klein. Starring in that film were John Travolta, Emma Thompson, Billy Bob Thornton, Kathy Bates and Adrian Lester. Larry played Governor Picker, an antipolitics politician who stands a grave danger crisis to the governor's bid for office. Primary Colors was his second presidential film having also appeared in Oliver Stone's Nixon (1995). Following these movies, his second Dallas reunion movie, Dallas: War of the Ewings (1998), aired on CBS. He also served as executive producer.

Away from films, Larry was actively involved in a series of civic and philanthropic events. An adamant non-smoker, he served as the chairperson of the American Cancer Society's "Great American Smokeout", from 1981 to 1992. Larry Hagman died at age 81 on November 23, 2012 at Medical City Dallas Hospital in Dallas, Texas from complications of throat cancer.

Eileen Evelyn Greer Garson was born on September 29, 1904 in London, England, to Nancy Sophia (Greer) and George Garson, a commercial clerk. Of Scottish and Ulster-Scots descent, Garson displayed no early interest in becoming an actress. Educated at the University of London intending to become a teacher, she opted instead to take a job at an advertising agency. During her off hours she appeared in local theatrical productions, gaining a reputation as an extremely talented and charismatic performer. During a stage production of "Old Music," Garson was offered a studio contract by MGM Vice President of Production Louis B. Mayer while he was on a visit to London looking for new talent. Garson's very first film under that arrangement was the immensely popular Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939), earning her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress - the first of six she would receive. The following year would see Greer in the highly acclaimed Pride and Prejudice (1940) as "Elizabeth Bennet". 1941 saw her earn a second nomination for her role as Edna Gladney in Blossoms in the Dust (1941), but it was the moving, if propagandist, Mrs. Miniver (1942), in a role that she would forever be known by, that actually brought her the Oscar statuette as Best Actress.

As Marie Curie in Madame Curie (1943), she would draw yet another nomination, and the same the next year in Mrs. Parkington (1944). It began to seem that any movie she was part of would be an automatic success. Sure enough, in 1945, she won yet another nomination, for her role as "Mary Rafferty" in The Valley of Decision (1945). Still, Garson began to chafe at the unbroken stream of "noble woman" roles in which the studio was casting her. MGM felt that they had an winning formula and saw no compelling reason to alter it. Two standard seven-year contract extensions kept her at MGM until 1954 when, by mutual consent, she left the only studio she had ever known. In 1946, Greer appeared in Adventure (1945), which was a flop at the box-office. 1947's Desire Me (1947) was no less a disaster, downward spiral finally arrested with the hit That Forsyte Woman (1949). The next year, she reprised her role as "Kay Miniver" in The Miniver Story (1950), though audiences were unsurprisingly put off by her character's untimely demise from cancer, leaving screen husband Walter Pidgeon to soldier on alone.

For the remainder of the 1950s, she endured several predictably unappreciated films. Then, 1960 found her cast in the role of Eleanor Roosevelt in Sunrise at Campobello (1960). This film was, perhaps, her finest work and landed her seventh and final Academy Award nomination. Her final screen appearances were in The Singing Nun (1966) as "Mother Prioress" and The Happiest Millionaire (1967). After a few TV movies, Garson retired to the New Mexico ranch she shared with her husband, millionaire Buddy E.E. Fogelson. She concentrated on the environment and other various charities. By the 1980s, she was suffering from chronic heart problems, prompting her to slow down. That was the cause of her death on April 6, 1996 in Dallas, Texas, at age 91.

Ronnie Claire Edwards was born on 9 February 1933 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA. She was an actress, known for The Dead Pool (1988), The Waltons (1972) and The American Parade (1974). She was married to Bill Record and Robert K. Sands. She died on 14 June 2016 in Dallas, Texas, USA.

Henry Calvin was born on 25 May 1918 in Dallas, Texas, USA. He was an actor, known for Babes in Toyland (1961), Zorro (1957) and Ship of Fools (1965). He died on 6 October 1975 in Dallas, Texas, USA.

August Schellenberg was born on 25 July 1936 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He was an actor, known for Black Robe (1991), The New World (2005) and Free Willy (1993). He was married to Joan Karasevich. He died on 15 August 2013 in Dallas, Texas, USA.

Mary Webster was born on 13 March 1935 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. She was an actress, known for The Twilight Zone (1959), Master of the World (1961) and Everglades! (1961). She died on 23 January 2017 in Dallas, Texas, USA.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy was born on May 29, 1917 in Brookline, Massachusetts, to Rose Kennedy (née Rose Elizabeth Fitzgerald) and Joseph P. Kennedy. John was named after his maternal grandfather, John "HoneyFitz" Fitzgerald, the mayor of Boston. John was very ill as a child and was given the last rites five times, the first one being when he was a new-born. He was the second of four boys born to an Irish Catholic family with nine children: Joseph Jr., John, Robert F. Kennedy (called Bobby), and Ted Kennedy (born Edward). Because Rose made Joe and Jack (the name his family called him) wear matching clothes, they fought a lot for attention. When John was young, the family moved from Boston to New York. John went to Choate, a private school. Most of the time, though, he was too sick to attend. In the late 1930s, father Joe became the ambassador to England. He took sons John and Robert with him, as well as his wife and daughters Kathleen and Rosemary Kennedy. John went to Princeton, then Harvard, and for his senior thesis, he wrote a piece about why England refused to get into the war until late. It was published in 1940 and called "Why England Slept". His older brother Joe was a pilot during the war, and was killed when the bombs his plane was carrying exploded. Not long after that, John's sister Kathleen and her husband died in a plane crash. In the early 1950s, John ran for Congress in Massachusetts and won. He married Jacqueline Kennedy (née Jacqueline Lee Bouvier) on September 12, 1953. Their daughter, Caroline Kennedy, was born on November 27, 1957 and their son, John Kennedy Jr., was born on November 25, 1960. They also had a stillborn daughter named Arabella and a son named Patrick Bouvier, who died a few days after birth. In 1954, J.F.K. had to have back surgery and in the hospital wrote his second book, "Profiles in Courage". His father always said that his son Joe was going to be President of the U.S.; when he died in World War II, though, that task was passed on to John. He ran for president in 1960 against Richard Nixon and narrowly won. His administration had many conflicts, the Bay of Pigs and the Cuban Missile Crisis being key examples. In November 1963, he and Jackie (his wife's nickname) went on a trip to Texas. Everywhere they went there were signs saying "Jack and Jackie." On November 22, 1963, John was to give a speech in Dallas, but on his way an assassin hidden on the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository opened fire at Kennedy, who was riding in an open car. Hit twice and severely wounded, Kennedy died in a local hospital at 1:00 P.M. The alleged assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, was captured a short time later after shooting and killing a Dallas policeman, and was himself assassinated before he could be thoroughly interrogated, let alone tried. In just a little bit of irony, considering the death of Abraham Lincoln a century earlier, Kennedy was shot in a Ford Lincoln (Lincoln was in Ford's Theater when he was shot). He was laid to rest on his son's third birthday.

Marc Gilpin was born on 26 September 1966 in Austin, Texas, USA. He was an actor, known for Jaws 2 (1978), The Legend of the Lone Ranger (1981) and Where's Willie? (1978). He was married to Kaki Gilpin. He died on 29 July 2023 in Dallas, Texas, USA.

Clark Gable III (born Clark James Gable, September 20, 1988) was an American actor and model. Gable started modeling at the age of five. He modeled for many designers including Prada, Chrome Hearts, Disney and the iconic Converse "Classics" campaign. Gable appeared in numerous music videos including those for artists Madison Cain and Lucy Schwartz. He also starred in and hosted the controversial hit reality television show Cheaters since 2012, syndicated in over 120 Countries worldwide.

He was a business entrepreneur in the tech and fashion industry, and spent his free time surfing, boxing, riding dirt bikes and flying RC planes. Gable resided in Malibu, California and was the grandson and namesake of the legendary Hollywood actor and American movie icon, Clark Gable. Clark Gable III studied acting at the New York Film Academy and completed his first major motion picture while studying abroad in Italy.

He died on February 22, 2019 in Dallas, Texas.

His five brothers all became policemen, encouraged on by their father, but Irish-American Michael O'Shea defied family tradition and turned to acting. Michael dropped out of school at age 12 and went the vaudeville route, touring with his boxing idol Jack Johnson's show. He tried everything. During the Prohibition years, he became a comedian and emcee at speakeasies. He put together his own dance band, "Michael O'Shea and His Stationary Gypsies", and later broke into radio.

His career advanced with the legit stage, where he was billed for a time as "Eddie O'Shea". His noticeable performance in "The Eve of St. Mark" in 1942 led to a string of '40s films, notably as Barbara Stanwyck's boyfriend comic in Lady of Burlesque (1943). He also managed great reviews repeating his stage role in the film The Eve of St. Mark (1944). Other WWII-era films included the leading role opposite Anne Shirley in the romantic drama Man from Frisco (1944); a military man lead in the musical Something for the Boys (1944) in which he managed to show off a little of his Irish tenor in the song "Wouldn't It Be Nice?" with Vivian Blaine, Phil Silvers and Carmen Miranda; the male co-star in the Sonja Henie skating vehicle It's a Pleasure (1945); and lead and support roles in a string of crime dramas including Circumstantial Evidence (1945), Mr. District Attorney (1947), Violence (1947), Parole, Inc. (1948) and The Underworld Story (1950).

The father of two, Michael met his second wife, the beautiful actress Virginia Mayo, during the time he was filming the title role of Jack London (1943). They married four years later and had one daughter. The couple subsequently appeared on the stock stage together in such productions as "George Washington Slept Here", "Tunnel of Love" and :Fiorello!". One of those fine talents who did not make a big name for himself, Michael was out of films by 1952, but revitalized on TV and starred in the mild TV sitcom It's a Great Life (1954) also starring James Dunn, William Bishop, Frances Bavier and Barbara Bates playing a former GI trying to find a civilian job.

Interestingly, Michael became a plainclothes operative for the CIA after retiring from show business in the 1960s. He died suddenly of a heart attack in 1973.

Meri Welles was born on 27 February 1937 in Dallas, Texas, USA. She was an actress, known for The Pink Panther (1963), The Little Shop of Horrors (1960) and Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955). She was married to Michael M. Moses, Mel Welles and Gene Arthur Cates. She died on 27 August 1973 in Dallas, Texas, USA.

Virginia Susanne Gumm was born in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, as Dorothy Virginia Gumm. She was an accomplished talented performer, an actress, known for La Fiesta de Santa Barbara (1935), The Wedding of Jack and Jill (1930), and The Harvey Girls (1946). She was a member of the Gumm Sisters, along with "Baby" Frances (better known as Judy Garland) and Mary Jane Gumm. She died on May 27, 1977 in Dallas, Texas.

Character actor Bill Thurman was born on November 4, 1920 in Texas. A large, rugged, stocky man with a hard, lined, puffy face, a deep, twangy, amicable voice, a strong, bulky build, and a charmingly low-key and down-to-earth unaffected natural screen presence, Thurman often portrayed police officers and assorted scruffy redneck types in a huge number of entertainingly cheap'n'cheesy Southern-fried fright flicks and delightfully down'n'dirty drive-in fare made throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Bill frequently acted in features for legendary Grade Z low-budget independent filmmaker Larry Buchanan; said movies include "The Eye Creatures," "High Yellow," "Zontar the Thing from Venus," "Mars Needs Women," "Curse of the Swamp Creature," "In the Year 2889," the especially atrocious "It's Alive!," and "A Bullet for Pretty Boy." Moreover, Thurman had bit parts in two Steven Spielberg films: he's a hillbilly hunter in "The Sugerland Express" and an air traffic controller in "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." Bill's other memorable roles include the abusive Coach Popper in Peter Bogdanovich's magnificent "The Last Picture Show," a doomed hitchhiker in "Keep My Grave Open," a corrupt sheriff in the Claudia Jennings exploitation classic "'Gatorbait," a mean small town deputy in "Ride in A Pink Car," a more amiable sheriff in the fantastic Bigfoot winner "Creature from Black Lake," Cheryl "Rainbeaux" Smith's father in "Slumber Party '57," a priest in "The Evictors," and the boozy, dissolute Reverend Bill McWiley in the enjoyably crummy "Mountaintop Motel Massacre." Bill Thurman died in Dallas, Texas on April 13, 1995.

L.M. Kit Carson was a talented and versatile Texan writer, actor and producer whose career has taken a diverse and always interesting course. He was born in Dallas, to Louise (Roche) and Minor Lee Carson. His first appearance was the lead in the acclaimed David Holzman's Diary (1967). He moved into writing, with initially mixed results in The Last Word (1979) and Breathless (1983) before his beautiful adaptation of Sam Shepard's Paris, Texas (1982) tangibly showed his talent. Next up was the oddity The Chinese Box (1986) before associate producing and writing The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986). It was back to acting in 1988 for an effective appearance in the acclaimed Running on Empty. A family friend of the Wilson brothers, their black-and-white 13 minute Bottle Rocket made its way into his hands in 1994. His championing of it was instrumental in Wes Anderson being given funding to shoot a full-length version in 1996, which he co-produced. Carson's output in was nothing if not varied - including several collaborations with his son, Hunter Carson, from his marriage to actress Karen Black; Hurricane Streets (1997) was a worthwhile drama of inner-city kids, Midsummer (1997) an interesting take on Shakespeare. He reprised his role of David Holzman for Grifin Dunne's industry mockumentary Lisa Picard is Famous (2000) then produced and wrote the disasterous Bullfigher (2000). Since then, Perfume (2001) was a behind-the-scenes look at the fashion industry, CQ (2001) a homage to European cinema of the 60s and staying in Paris the interesting low-budget thriller Tempo (2003).

Ed Blaylock was born on 6 September 1952 in Dallas, Texas, USA. He was an actor, known for Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie: Conqueror of Shamballa (2005), Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (2009) and Fullmetal Alchemist (2003). He died on 19 April 2017 in Dallas, Texas, USA.

Alleged assassin of President John F. Kennedy, son of Marguerite Frances Claverie Oswald. He never knew his father, Robert Edward Lee Oswald, who had died 2 months before his birth of a heart attack. Oswald had 1 older full brother and another half-brother (from his mother's first marriage). Young Oswald was placed in a Lutheran orphanage at the age of 3, but he was removed when his mother left for Dallas in January 1944 and married her 3rd husband Edwin A. Ekdahl. Oswald left school in 1954. He was in the US Marines until 1959 when he was discharged due to hardship as his mother was suffering from physical problems. Oswald was interested in Marxist ideologies and lived for some time in the USSR (1959-62). He unsuccessfully tried to get Soviet citizenship. When he was initially denied and as his visa was about to expire he even attempted suicide. In 1961 he married a Russian woman, Marina Nikolaevna Prusakova, (Marina Oswald) and was allowed to stay indefinitely. However by October 1963 Oswald moved along with his wife and daughter back to the States, and settled in Dallas. Oswald began to publicly express his opinions about Communist regimes like Cuba and China by distributing pamphlets. He was working for the Texas School Depository, a 6 story building located in the now 'infamous' Dealey Plaza area of Dallas, Texas. On November 22, 1963 when President Kennedy's motorcade passed by the building it is believed that Oswald was in the building. He may shot the president from the 6th floor and then concealed the rifle behind some crates. Whether he acted alone or not is still an ongoing debate. Oswald apparently left the depository when pandemonium broke out after the incident. He then headed home where he picked up a pistol. Oswald returned to the Depository where he is believed to have fired 4 bullets into police officer J.D. Tippit who approached him to ask him a question. Oswald then ran into the Texas Theatre where the double bill: War Is Hell (1961) and Cry of Battle (1963) was playing. He had not bought a ticket and the authorities cornered him in the theatre and quickly took him into custody. On 23 November 1963 he was charged with the murder of President Kennedy, whom he was alleged to have shot from the 6th floor of the Texas School Book Depository, as the President passed by in a motor cavalcade. Oswald however vehemently denied his involvement in both the Kennedy assassination and the shooting of officer Tippit. On November 24, 1963 just 2 days later, while authorities were transferring Oswald to the county jail, he was shot dead by night club owner Jack Ruby (1911-67), live before the cameras. Ruby claimed he was avenging Jacqueline Kennedy (Jackie Kennedy Onassis). Claims were made that Oswald had links with the US secret service and with the Mafia. But it seems that there are more conspiracy theories than facts.

Eve Bruce was born on 23 November 1936 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA. She was an actress, known for Cactus Flower (1969), In Like Flint (1967) and The Unholy Rollers (1972). She was married to Dr. Gerald Herbert Vind. She died on 3 June 2002 in Dallas, Texas, USA.

April Gilpin was born on 18 March 1969 in Dallas, Texas, USA. She was an actress, known for Jaws 2 (1978), The Dark Dancer (1995) and Earthbound (1981). She died on 30 July 2017 in Dallas, Texas, USA.

Helen Hovey was born on 28 August 1942 in Philip, South Dakota, USA. She was an actress, known for The Sadist (1963). She was married to Garland Brock. She died on 18 July 2009 in Dallas, Texas, USA.

Mickey Charles Mantle was born in Spavinaw, Oklahoma, on October 20, 1931, the son of a minor-league player who never made it to the big leagues and named him after Major Leaguer Mickey Cochrane. Mickey's father and grandfather -- who also never made it to the majors -- taught him how to play baseball, but more importantly also taught him how to be a switch-hitter.

Mickey grew up during the Great Depression, which hit Oklahoma especially hard. Times were so tough that the only way to play sports as a kid was to play with friends; there were no organized leagues around back then. It was while playing baseball with his friends that Mickey's astonishing talent for the game made itself evident. When he got into high school he played baseball, basketball and football and excelled at all three. Some thought that he would become a football player when he grew up, but Mickey had known what he wanted to be since the age of five: a baseball player, and nothing else. A devastating knee injury almost ruined his chances of getting into that -- or any other -- sport, and would be the beginning of the knee problems that would plague him throughout his career.

He was drafted into the minors at age 18, and while in the Yankee farm system his astounding talent was so obvious that he was jumped from the Class C division directly to the Yankee team itself. When he got there he was given #6, because Yankee management thought he would be the next "superstar" and in line with the other Yankee greats: Babe Ruth (#3), Lou Gehrig (#4), Joe DiMaggio (#5). Mick didn't do well, however, and was sent back down to the minors. After a couple of lackluster games he told his dad he was going to quit, but after giving it some thought he decided to stick with it and soon began to hit again. He was recalled back to the Yankee team (and given #7 this time), and that was when the Mickey Mantle of legend was born. He started in right field before DiMaggio left. During the 1951 World Series Mickey stepped into a water drain in the outfield, a serious injury that affected his playing from that point on.

In his 18-year career he set (and broke) numerous records and, as he himself has said, if he had taken better care of himself -- most of his home runs were hit while he was injured -- he would have broken every record in the book. Even his injuries and his penchant for hard drinking were no match for his mind-boggling talent -- he once hit a home run with one arm, and has admitted that many of his homers were hit while he was not only injured but drunk and / or hung over. In his later years he came to regret the chances he had and missed because of his drinking and partying. He even made a public service message to the kids who idolized him, recounting the kinds of things he had done and the mistakes he had made, and telling them, "Don't be like me." It's doubtful if there ever can be anyone like him; someone like Mickey Mantle comes along only once in a lifetime. He died August 13, 1995 at the age of 64.

Leon Allen White (May 14, 1955 - June 18, 2018), better known by his ring names Big Van Vader or simply Vader, was an American professional wrestler and professional football player. Throughout his career, he performed for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), World Championship Wrestling (WCW), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), and Pro Wrestling Noah (NOAH) during the 1990s and 2000s. Widely regarded as one of the greatest super-heavyweight professional wrestlers of all time, he was a 13-time world champion.

Among other accolades in WCW and Japan, he won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and the WCW World Heavyweight Championship three times each, the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship twice, the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship once, and won the battle royal main event of the 1993 Battlebowl pay-per-view (PPV). He headlined multiple PPV events for the WWF and WCW. Vader was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 1996.

In 2022, Vader was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.

Brice Armstrong was a small-time Texas actor who grew up in the city of Dallas. He didn't get his big breakthrough until he became a voice actor for Funimation when they first started on their own English version for Dragon Ball Z & Dragon Ball. For one decade Brice has provided voice work for several Funimation anime and most of the Dragon Ball video games. He became best known to anime fans as the English voice of Captain Ginyu & Tim Marcoh. Which were the most popular characters he had voiced throughout his career. Sometime in 2009, Brice retired from acting.