Alexa Kenin (1962 - 1985)

Alexa Kenin was born in New York City. Her parents divorced when she was young and her mother, actress Maya Kenin, married character actor John Ryan. Kenin began acting as a child and won her first professional part with a supporting role in the 1972 holiday TV special The House Without a Christmas Tree, which […]

Alexander “Boots” Smith (1902 - 1963)

Professional Hockey Player. Smith who was a native of Bootle, England, played for teams in the National Hockey League (NHL), International Hockey League (IHL), Eastern Hockey League (EHL), Quebec Senior Hockey League (QSHL), and the IAHL. Smith played the position of Defense for the Ottawa Senators from 1924 to 1931, 1932 to 1933, and 1945 […]

Alexander Afinogenov (1904 - 1941)

Playwright. One of the more talented Soviet playwrights to emerge in the years before World War II, he managed to retain his individuality in the face of Stalinist repression. Alexander Nikolayevich Afinogenov was born in Skopin, Russia, and raised in Yaroslavl. He had an early interest in literature, turning out three books of poetry while […]

Alexander Alexandrovich Blok (1880 - 1921)

Poet,  Playwright.  Considered by many the greatest figure of Russia’s Symbolist Movement.  His experiments in rhythm and prosody broke new ground in his country’s literature. Blok’s masterpiece, the long poem “The Twelve” (1918), reflected his initial enthusiasm for the Russian Revolution. It depicts twelve Bolshevik soldiers on a winter night, raping, looting, and killing their […]

Alexander Anderson, Jr (1920 - 2010)

Cartoonist. Best remembered as the creator of the cartoon characters “Rocky and Bullwinkle”. In 1938 he began his career in animation working with his uncle Paul Terry at New York’s Terrytoons, the studio that turned out “Mighty Mouse”, “Heckle and Jeckle”, and other theatrical shorts. After serving in the US Navy during World War II, […]

Alexander Baron (1917 - 1999)

Highly acclaimed British novelist and screenwriter. He was Britains greatest writer during World War II. Baron wrote books such as “From The City, From The Plough,” “There’s No Home,” and “The Human Kind.” As a scriptwriter “The Human Kind” was sold to Hollywood as “The Victors.” Also sold to Hollywood was “The Golden Princess” other […]

Alexander Beliayev (1884 - 1942)

Alexander Beliayev was born in Smolensk in the family of an Orthodox priest. His father, after losing two other children (Alexander’s sister Nina died at childhood from sarcoma and his brother Vasiliy, a veterinary student, drowned during a boat trip), wanted him to continue the family tradition and enrolled Alexander into Smolensk seminary. Belyaev, on […]

Alexander Benois (1870 - 1960)

Theatrical Designer, Painter, Historian. An imaginative Classicist, his colorful style blended Russian Folk and French Rococo influences. He played an instrumental role in the founding of Serge Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes.  Alexander Nikolayevich Benois was born in St. Petersburg,  Russia,  into a distinguished family of French-Italian descent.  Apart from a brief course in stage design at […]

Alexander Bruce Bielaski (1883 - 1964)

FBI Director. He served as the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) from April 30, 1912 to February 10, 1919. After leaving the Bureau he went into law and later as a prohibition agent operating a decoy speakeasy in New York City. In 1929 he became President of the National Board of Fire […]

Alexander Buckley (1891 - 1918)

Alexander Buckley was born on 22 July 1891 to James and Julia Buckley at Gulargambone, New South Wales, Australia. One of four children, he was home schooled on his parents’ property Homebush during his childhood. After completing his schooling, he worked on the family farm with his father. Buckley enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on […]

Alexander Calder (1898 - 1976)

Artist. A prolific sculptor, he is best known for inventing the kinetic sculptures called mobiles. The first American abstract sculptor to achieve international acclaim, he is considered one of the great pioneers of his time. Born in Lawnton, Pennsylvania (now part of Philadelphia) into a family of artists, both his father Alexander Stirling Calder and […]

Alexander Cameron Rutherford (1857 - 1941)

1st Premier of Alberta. A member of the Alberta Liberal Party, he served in this position from September 1905 until May 1910. Born in Osgoode Township, Ontario, Canada, his parents emigrated from Scotland and operated a dairy farm. Following his local education, he attended the Canadian Literary Institute in Woodstock, Ontario, graduating in 1876, and […]

Alexander Carr (1878 - 1946)

Circus, Vaudeville and Theatre Actor. He is best remembered for his role as ‘Perlmutter’ in a trio of “Potash and Perlmutter” films in the 1920s. Carr acted in 15 films and wrote the play “April Fool” in 1926. (bio by: TLS)

Alexander Chambers (1832 - 1888)

Alexander Chambers (August 23, 1832 – January 2, 1888) was a US Army officer, who became a general during the American Civil War. Chambers was born in Cattaraugus, New York. He graduated from West Point with the class of 1853 (which also included John Schofield and Philip Sheridan), and was commissioned a second lieutenant. He […]

Alexander Courage (1919 - 2008)

Alexander Courage began as an orchestrator and arranger at MGM studios, which included work in such films as the 1951 Show Boat (“Life Upon the Wicked Stage” number), The Band Wagon (“I Guess I’ll Have to Change My Plan”), Gigi (the can-can for the entrance of patrons at Maxim’s), and the barn raising dance from […]

Alexander Dallas Bache (1806 - 1867)

Graduated West Point in 1825 at the top of his class. Professor of natural philosophy and chemistry University of Pennsylvania. Appointed Superintendent of the Coast Survey by Pres. Tyler in 1843, a position he held until 1861. Bache introduced many new and innovative ideas into the Coast Survey including the involvement of many of the […]

Alexander Drevin (1889 - 1938)

Artist. A leading Russian avant-garde painter before and after the 1917 Revolution. His style has been characterized as “primitivist” in its rough handling of paint and emotional objectivity, especially in his portraits. He refused to compromise his art under Stalinism and died in the political purges of the late 1930s. Alexander Davidovich Drevin was born […]

Alexander Engel (1902 - 1968)

Actor. After his movie premiere in “Hasenklein kann nichts dafür” (1932) he appeared in over 70 movies including: “Das Kalte Herz” (The Cold Heart, 1950), “A Time to Love and a Time to Die” (1958), “Im Stahlnetz des Dr. Mabuse” (In the Steel Cabinet of Dr. Mabuse, 1961), “Der Henker von London” (The Mad Executioners, […]

Alexander Frank (1970 - 1939)

Actor. In films in the 1910s to 1920s, his work includes directing “A Suspicious Wife”(1914), writing the scenario for “The Trail of the Cigarette” (1920),and acting in “The Wall Street Mystery”(1920). On stage, some of the original productions he appeared in were “Richard Savage” (1901), “Man and His Angel” (1906), “I Pagliacci” (1908), “In the […]

Alexander Gardner (1821 - 1882)

Civil War Photographer. He was born in Paisley, Scotland, and was reared in poverty, and left school at 14 to work as a jeweler’s apprentice. To further his education, he took evening classes at the Glasgow Athenaeum, studying astronomy, optics, physics and chemistry. At 21 he joined the Glasgow Sentinel as a reporter. By the […]

Alexander Godunov (1949 - 1995)

Dancer, Actor. Born Aleksandr Borisovich Godunov, son of Boris Godunov and Lidia Nicholaevna Studentova on Sakhalin Island, USSR. He began studying dance at the age of nine at the Riga State Ballet School and at 17 he joined Igor Moiseyev’s Young Ballet. He joined the Bolshoi Ballet in 1971 as its youngest principal dancer. He […]

Alexander Granach (1893 - 1945)

Actor. Born in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Ukraine, he established himself as a leading figure of the flourishing theater and film industry of the Weimar-era in post-war Germany. He appeared in over 50 films over the coarse of his career such as “Nosferatu” (1922), “The Last Fort” (1929), “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (1939), “Joan of […]

Alexander Hamilton (1812 - 1882)

Lawyer and jurist. Born in Philadelphia, he came to St. Louis in 1835 and began a career in law that lasted for nearly fifty years. Among his contemporaries in the legal field were Edward Bates, Hamilton Gamble and Henry Geyer. The latter two were participants in the Dred Scott trials.Hamilton was first appointed a judge […]

Alexander Hesler (1823 - 1895)

Daguerreotypist/Photographer. Hesler’s family left Canada in 1835 and removed to Vermont where he attended school. By the time he turned twenty he moved to Racine, Wisconsin and began working in a hardware store. He realized that his main interest was in photography so he moved to Buffalo, New York where he received his training and […]

Alexander Jackson Davis (1803 - 1892)

Architect. Recognized as the premier architect of mid-19th Century America, Davis was instrumental in popularizing the Greek Revival style which characterized the nation’s public buildings and private houses from the Federal Period to the outbreak of the Civil War. His many works include the old New York Customs House, the state capitols of Illinois, Ohio, […]

Alexander Joy Cartwright, Jr (1820 - 1892)

Alexander Cartwright led the establishment of the Knickerbocker Base Ball Club (after the Knickerbocker Fire Engine Company) in 1842. The Knickerbockers played a brand of bat-and-ball game often called “town ball” or “round ball,” but in New York more usually “base ball,” somewhat similar to but not identical to the English sport of rounders, on […]

Alexander Keith (1795 - 1873)

He was the founder of Alexander Keith’s Brewery in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. He was born at Halkirk, Caithness Highland, Scotland and at the age of 17, his father sent him to an uncle in northern England to learn the brewery business. Around 1817 he relocated to Halifax where he became the sole brewer and […]

Alexander Knox (1907 - 1995)

Knox was born in Strathroy, Ontario and graduated from the University of Western Ontario. He later moved to Boston, Massachusetts to perform on the stage with the Boston Repertory Theatre. After the company folded following the stock market crash of 1929, Knox returned to London, Ontario where for the next two years he worked as […]

Alexander Majors (1814 - 1900)

In 1848 Alexander Majors started hauling overland freight on the Santa Fe Trail. On his first trip, he set a new time record of 92 days for the 1564-mile (2500 km) round trip. Eventually he employed 4,000 men, including a 15-year-old lad named Billy Cody, later known as Buffalo Bill. Cody became one of his […]

Alexander Mendelssohn (1798 - 1871)

Financier. As head of the Berlin-based Mendelssohn & Co. from 1848 until his death, he built it into Germany’s most important private bank of the late 19th Century. The son of the firm’s founder, Joseph Mendelssohn, he was born in Berlin into a distinguished family. His grandfather was German-Jewish philosopher Moses Mendelssohn,  and his cousins […]