Anthony Perkins was born on this day in 1932

Actor Anthony Perkins was born on this day in 1932, he was an actor, director, singer and an Academy Award nominee, but one role overshadowed his entire career – he played Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho.

Perkin’s was nominated for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his second on-screen role, in 1956 he appeared in the film Friendly Persuasion  in which he played the son of leading man Garry Cooper.

He appeared in Fear Strikes Out (1957) playing baseball player Jimmy Piersall, showed of his range in the comedy The Matchmaker (1958) appearing alongside Shirley Booth and Shirley MacLaine and joined the star studded cast On The Beach which included Gregory Peck, Ava Gardner and Fred Astaire.

His role as Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock’s acclaimed thriller Psycho, it is recognised as one of the director’s greatest works, and it’s shower scene and soundtrack have become engrained in the cultural zeitgeist. Perkins reprised his role for several sequels.

HIs later films including the Disney sci-fi caper The Black Hole and Sidney Lumet’s adaptation of Agatha Christie’s Murder om the Orient Express which featured Albert Finney, Lauren Bacall, Ingrid Bergman, Sean Connery, John Gielgud, Vanessa Redgrave, Jaqueline Bissett, Michael York and Wendy Hiller.

Perkins died at his home on 12th September 1992 from AIDS-related pneumonia, he was 60 years old. He was diagnosed with HIV during the filming of Psycho IV: The Beginning in 1990.

After is death it was revealed that he had exclusively had same-sex relationships up until he was in his forties. Actor Tab Hunter, artist Chrisopher Makos, dancer Rudolph Nureyev, and composer Stephen Sondheim were listed as his past lovers.

In 1972 he met photographer Berinthia Berenson, they married the following year and went on to have two sons. They remained married until Perkins death. Berenson was killed nine years later, she was a passenger on the American Airlines flight that was hijacked by terrorists and crashed into the World Trade Centre on September 11th.

Record executive Clive Davis was born on this day in 1932

American record executive Clive Davis was born on this day in 1932.

From 1967 until 1973 he was the President of Columbia Records. He then went on to found and run Arista Records from 1974 until 2000. He later created another record label J Records and served as CEO of BMG North America. As of 2018 he is the Chief Creative Officer at Sony Music Entertainment.

Davis is credited with signing many significant artists including Janis Joplin, Sly and the Family Stone, Santana, Bruce Springsteen, Aerosmith, Billy Joel, and Ace of Base.

His most famous signing though was Whitney Houston. Davis signed her to Arista records after hearing her sing in a New York nightclub alongside her mother, Gospel singer Cissy Houston. Davis guided Whitney’s career which saw her become one of the highest selling artists of all time.

Davis has been married and divorced twice and hand has four children, and many grandchildren. In 2013 he shared that he is bisexual. Promoting his autobiography The Soundtrack of My Life Davis said he hoped his coming out would lead to a greater understanding and acceptance of bisexuality.

Graham Norton turns 61 today

Actor, comedian, writer, and TV host Graham Norton celebrates his 61st birthday today.

Norton first began performing comedy in the early 90s. He made a memorable appearance at the Edinburgh Comedy Festival in 1992 where he performed as a drag act paying homage to Mother Teressa via many tea towels.  He appeared in the Irish sitcom Father Ted, where he played the part of Father Noel Furlong.

He appeared on Britain’s Channel 4 from 1998 with a succession of chat shows including So Graham Norton and V Graham Norton. His camp and flamboyant style quickly brought him a lot of fans.

In 2007 he moved to the BBC where he began his chat show The Graham Norton Show, which continues to draw major stars and global audiences.

Alongside his own show Norton has hosted a wide variety of programs in the UK including Strictly Come Dancing, and a series of singing competition show that aimed to find stars for West End productions.

Since 2008 he’s also been the commentator for the British broadcast of the Eurovision Siong Contest, as well as being a regular radio presenter on the BBC, and more recently Virgin Radio. 

He’s also appeared in West End musicals, written a few books, published a newspaper advice column, and written multiple volumes of his autobiography. In his spare time, he appears as a judge on RuPaul’s Drag Race UK.

OIP Staff, This post was first published in 2021