Victor Brauner (1903 - 1966)

Surrealist painter, associate of Man Ray, born in Rumania. Sudent of magic, which influenced his work. (bio by: David Conway)

Victor Buono (1938 - 1982)

In the summer of 1959, a talent scout from Warner Bros. saw the heavy-set Victor Buono play Falstaff at the Globe and took him to Hollywood for a screen test. Buono made his first network TV appearance playing the bearded poet Bongo Benny in an episode of 77 Sunset Strip. Over the next few years, […]

Victor c Francen (1888 - 1977)

Actor. Born in Tirlemont, Belgium, he began his career in the theater and toured through Europe, Canada and South America, after which he joined the Comedie Française in Paris. When the Nazis marched into France in 1940, he went to the USA where he was much in demand for playing spies and villains in Hollywood […]

Victor Cousin (1792 - 1867)

French Philosopher and Politician. Known for being the founder of Spiritualism, he was Professor at the Ecole Normal and at the Sorbonne in Paris. His ideas were substantially influenced by the thought of Immanuel Kant and German idealism. He argued that the basis of metaphysics are the observation and analysis of the facts of conscious […]

Victor Cowie (1970 - 2004)

Actor. Cowie appeared in films such as, “Mistress Madeleine” (1986), “Archangel” (1990), “Smoked Lizard Lips” (1991), “The Diviners” 1993), “Bordertown Cafe” (1993), “Harvest For The Heart” (1994), “Life In Day” (1999), “Escape From Mars” (1999), “We Were The Mulvaneys” (2002), “The Many Trials Of Jane Doe” (2002), “Cowards Bend The Knee” (2003), and “More Than […]

Victor David Brenner (1871 - 1924)

Sculptor. He was the designer of the United States Lincoln Cent, the most widely reproduced work of art in America; billions have been minted since production began in 1909. He produced over 125 different medals, badges and plaques during his career. He also produced sculptures, such as the “Song of Nature” which sits on the […]

Victor E. Aldridge (1893 - 1973)

Major League Baseball Player. He played Major League baseball as a pitcher for nine seasons (1917 to 1918, 1922 to 1928) with the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates, and New York Giants. He helped the 1925 Pirates clinch the National League pennant, and started Games 2, 5 and 7 in the subsequent World Series against the […]

Victor Francen (1888 - 1977)

Victor Francen (5 August 1888 – 18 November 1977), born Victor Franssens, was a Belgian-born actor with a long career in French cinema and in Hollywood. Victor Francen was born in Tienen, the son of a chief of police. He worked in trade in Belgium before settling in Paris where he trained in dramatic art under […]

Victor French (1934 - 1989)

Actor. He is probably best remembered for his role as ‘Isaiah Edwards’ on the NBC television drama series “Little House on the Prairie” which aired from September 1974 until May 1982, and as ‘Mark Gordon’ on the NBC television drama series “Highway to Heaven, from 1984 until 1989. Born in Santa Barbara, California, his father […]

Victor Hugo (1802 - 1885)

Victor Marie Hugo (/ˈhjuːɡoʊ/; French: [viktɔʁ maʁi yɡo] ( listen); 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French poet, novelist, and dramatist of the Romantic movement. He is considered one of the greatest and best-known French writers. Outside France, his best-known works are the novels Les Misérables, 1862, and The Hunchback of Notre-Dame […]

Victor Jory (1902 - 1982)

Born in Dawson City, Yukon, of American parents, he was the boxing and wrestling champion of the United States Coast Guard during his military service, and he kept his burly physique. Victor Jory toured with theater troupes and appeared on Broadway, before making his Hollywood debut in 1930. He initially played romantic leads, but later […]

Victor Jules “Trader Vic” Bergeron, Jr (1902 - 1984)

Businessman. He founded the Trader Vic’s chain of Polynesian restaurants. At the height of “Tiki” popularity, Trader Vic’s had more than two dozen locations around the world. The chain still survives today. Bergeron became acquainted with the food business as a child, when his father was a waiter at San Francisco’s famed Fairmont Hotel and […]

Victor Mature (1913 - 1999)

Victor Mature went to study and act at the Pasadena Community Playhouse. For three years he lived in a tent and was spotted by an agent for Hal Roach while acting in To Quito and Back. This led to a contract with Roach, who cast him in a small role in The Housekeeper’s Daughter, then […]

Victor Moore (1876 - 1962)

Victor Moore appeared in over 50 films and 21 Broadway shows. His first appearance was on Broadway in Rosemary (1896). He also appeared in George M. Cohan’s Forty-five Minutes from Broadway, which opened January 1, 1906, and its sequel, The Talk of New York (1907). He went on to star in shows such as Oh, […]

Victor Peirce (1958 - 2002)

In 2005, Victor Peirce’s widow, Wendy Peirce gave an interview to Australian media detailing how her husband planned and carried out the 1988 Walsh Street police shootings, a crime for which he was acquitted by jury along with three accomplices after she failed to give truthful evidence in court. Victor Peirce was shot dead in a […]

Victor Sen Yung (1915 - 1980)

Sen Yung made his first significant acting debut in the 1938 film Charlie Chan in Honolulu, as the Chinese detective’s “number two son,” Jimmy Chan. In this movie, Sidney Toler replaced the recently deceased Warner Oland as Charlie Chan and Sen Yung replaced Oland’s “number one son” Lee, who had been played by Keye Luke. […]

Victor Spinetti (1929 - 2012)

Vittorio Giorgio Andrea Spinetti (2 September 1929 – 18 June 2012) was a Welsh comedy actor, author, poet and raconteur. Victor Spinetti appeared in dozens of films and stage plays throughout his 50-year career and is best remembered today for appearing in the three Beatles films in the 1960s, A Hard Day’s Night, Help! and […]

Victor Young (1900 - 1956)

Victor Young was born in Chicago on August 8, 1900, into a very musical Jewish family, his father being a member of one Joseph Sheehan’s touring Opera company. The young Victor began playing violin at the age of six, and was sent to Poland when he was ten to stay with his grandfather and study […]

Victoria Forde (1896 - 1964)

Victoria Forde (April 21, 1896 – July 24, 1964) was an American silent film actress. Born in New York City, Victoria Forde was the daughter of Broadway actress Eugenie Forde who got her into films with Biograph at age 14. In 1912, at age 16, Victoria Forde signed with Nestor Studios to make comedy films under […]

Victoria Hopper (1909 - 2007)

Actress. Born in Vancouver, British Columbia and raised in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, she was a leading lady of the 1930s and 1940s who appeared mainly in British films. She is best known for her roles in “The Constant Nymph” (1933) and “Lorna Doone” (1934),  both directed by her husband,  Basil Dean. Her other memorable performances include […]

Victoria Horne (1911 - 2003)

Actress. She appeared in 46 films, including “Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer,” “Blue Skies,” “Daisy Kenyon,” “Forever Amber,” “The Ghost and Mrs. Muir,” and the Jimmy Stewart classic “Harvey.” She retired from show business in 1952 to spend time with her husband, comedy star Jack Oakie. After her husband’s death in 1978, Victoria Horne […]

Victoria Risk (1915 - 1992)

Stage, motion picture, and television actress. She appeared in the 1950s era TV series “Dragnet.” The 1970s series “Apple’s Way” and the 1973 motion picture “A Reflection of Fear” are also among her credits. (bio by: A.J. Marik)  Family links:  Parents:  Wolf A. Risk (1885 – 1948)  Mareena Risk (1894 – 1930)  Sibling:  Victoria Risk […]

Victoria Risk (1915 - 1992)

Stage, motion picture, and television actress. She appeared in the 1950s era TV series “Dragnet.” The 1970s series “Apple’s Way” and the 1973 motion picture “A Reflection of Fear” are also among her credits. (bio by: A.J. Marik)  Family links:  Parents:  Wolf A. Risk (1885 – 1948)  Mareena Risk (1894 – 1930)  Sibling:  Victoria Risk […]

Victoria Spark (1950 - 2006)

Actress. A native of Augusta, Georgia, she is probably best known for her portrayal of United Airlines Flight 93 Flight Attendant Lorraine Bay in the 2005 television film, “The Flight That Fought Back.” The film told the story of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the heroes of United Airlines Flight 93, which later […]

Victoria Sutherland (1970 - 1902)

Vaudevillian Actress. Appeared in vaudeville acts in the 1880s along with her sisters. They were distinguished by their very long hair.  Family links:  Parents:  Fletcher Sutherland (1816 – 1888)  Mary Brink Sutherland (1824 – 1867)  Siblings:  Dora Sutherland (____ – 1926)*  Charles C. Sutherland (____ – 1887)*  Mary Sutherland (____ – 1939)*  Sarah Sutherland (1845 […]

Victoria Woodhull (1838 - 1927)

Victoria Woodhull, later Victoria Woodhull Martin (September 23, 1838 – June 9, 1927) was an American leader of the woman’s suffrage movement. In 1872, Woodhull was the first female to run for President of the United States. An activist for women’s rights and labor reforms, Woodhull was also an advocate of free love, by which she […]

Vidal Sassoon (1928 - 2012)

Sassoon was born in Hammersmith, London, and lived in Shepherd’s Bush. His parents were Sephardic Jews. His mother, Betty (Bellin), came from a family of immigrants from Spain, and his father, Jack Sassoon, was from Thessaloniki, Greece.[citation needed] Sassoon had a younger brother, Ivor, who died from a heart attack at the age of 46. […]

Viking Eggeling (1880 - 1925)

Artist, Motion Picture Director. Born in Lund, Sweden, he moved to Paris in 1897 and lived in Switzerland during World War I, where he joined the Dada movement. In 1918 he settled in Berlin and began his association with German painter Hans Richter;  together they created a series of elaborate scroll paintings through which they […]

Viktor Ivanovich Patsayev (1933 - 1971)

Viktor Ivanovich Patsayev (Russian: Ви́ктор Ива́нович Паца́ев; 19 June 1933 – 30 June 1971) was a Soviet cosmonaut who flew on the Soyuz 11 mission and had the unfortunate distinction of being part of the second crew to die during a space flight. On board the space station Salyut 1 he operated the Orion 1 […]

Vilhelm Hammershøi (1864 - 1916)

Painter. Considered one of the most distinctive painters of his era. His work is noted for its simple,  quiet subjects and subdued tones. During the late 20th century he was re-discovered internationally, and his paintings have obtained huge prices at auction houses in London and New York. In 2005 the British Broadcasting Corp. (BBC) made […]