Mark John Hellinger (March 21, 1903 – December 21, 1947) was an American journalist, theatre columnist and film producer.
57-596: Hellinger was born into the Orthodox Jewish family of Mildred "Millie" (nee Fitch) and Pol Hellinger in New York City, but in later life he became a non-practicing Jew. When he was 15, he organized a student strike at Townsend Harris High School and was expelled for his actions. This proved to be the end of his formal education. In 1921, Hellinger began working as a waiter and cashier at a Greenwich Village nightclub in order to meet theatre people. He later
114-651: A war correspondent , writing human interest stories about the troops. Back at Warners, he produced the all-star musical revue Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943) and made Between Two Worlds (1944), The Doughgirls (1944), and The Horn Blows at Midnight (1945). Hellinger set up at Universal, where he had his own producing unit. He had a big hit with The Killers (1946) which made stars of both Burt Lancaster and Ava Gardner . He followed it with Swell Guy (1946) with Sonny Tufts , The Two Mrs. Carrolls (1947) with Bogart back at Warners, Brute Force , and The Naked City , which he also narrated. The last film
171-491: A 99% graduation rate. Scores on standardized examinations are also high when compared to other public high schools; in the year 2005–2006, Harrisites had average scores of 628 and 632 on the SAT verbal and math sections, respectively, compared to 551 and 565 for what the city deems "similar schools" and 444 and 467 for students citywide. Ann Sheridan Clara Lou " Ann " Sheridan (February 21, 1915 – January 21, 1967)
228-722: A Fireman (1937) with Dick Foran for director John Farrow . She was a lead in The Patient in Room 18 (1937) and its sequel Mystery House (1938). Sheridan was in Little Miss Thoroughbred (1938) with Litel for Farrow and supported Dick Powell in Cowboy from Brooklyn (1938). Universal borrowed her for a support role in Letter of Introduction (1938) at the behest of director John M. Stahl . For Farrow, she
285-435: A Love Song (1936); Black Legion (1937) with Humphrey Bogart ; The Great O'Malley (1937) with Pat O'Brien and Bogart, her first real break; San Quentin (1937), with O'Brien and Bogart, singing for the first time in a film; and Wine, Women and Horses (1937) with Barton MacLane . Sheridan moved into B picture leads: The Footloose Heiress (1937); Alcatraz Island (1937) with John Litel ; and She Loved
342-525: A Male War Bride (1949) with Cary Grant . Clara Lou Sheridan was born in Denton, Texas , on February 21, 1915, the youngest of five children (Kitty, Pauline, Mabel, and George) of garage mechanic George W. Sheridan and Lula Stewart (née Warren). According to Sheridan, her father was a grandnephew of Civil War Union general Philip Sheridan . She was active in dramatics at Denton High School and at North Texas State Teachers College . She also sang with
399-581: A Sunday column his editors intended him to fill with news and gossip about Broadway theatre . Instead, he filled the space with short stories in the style of O. Henry . When his columns drew a considerable amount of fan mail, he was permitted to continue in this vein. Three years later he graduated to a daily feature called Behind the News . He numbered such personalities as Walter Winchell , Florenz Ziegfeld , Texas Guinan , Dutch Schultz , and Legs Diamond among his friends. In November 1929, Hellinger moved to
456-423: A comedy titled Affectionately Yours (1941) with Merle Oberon and Rita Hayworth . Hellinger went over to 20th Century Fox to make two films: Rise and Shine (1942), a musical, and Moontide (1942) with Jean Gabin , Lupino, Thomas Mitchell and Claude Rains . Due to a congenital heart condition, Hellinger repeatedly was rejected for active service during World War II . Instead, he briefly worked as
513-454: A film based on a story by Eleanore Griffin . She was going to make My Forbidden Past (originally titled Carriage Entrance ) at RKO. They fired her and Sheridan sued for $ 250,000 (equivalent to $ 3.2 million today) The New York Times reported the amount as $ 350,000 ($ 4.5 million today). Sheridan ultimately won $ 55,162 ($ 710,000 today). Sheridan made Woman on the Run (1950),
570-482: A film producer and was still just a newspaper scribe, Mr. Hellinger went for Manhattan in a blissfully uninhibited way — for its sights and sounds and restless movements, its bizarre people and its equally bizarre smells. And he made quite a local reputation framing his fancies in flowery billets doux which stirred the hearts and the humors of readers of the tabloid press." Hellinger won the 1947 Edgar Award for Best Motion Picture for The Killers . In 1926, Hellinger
627-699: A little bit longer: Kid Nightingale (1939), and British Intelligence (1940). Then Hellinger established himself as a top level producer with It All Came True (1940) starring Ann Sheridan and featuring Bogart. He followed it with Torrid Zone (1940) starring Cagney and Sheridan, and Brother Orchid (1940) with Edward G. Robinson , Bogart and Sheridan. Hellinger made four classics directed by Raoul Walsh : The Roaring Twenties (1939) with Cagney and Bogart; They Drive by Night (1940) with George Raft , Sheridan, Bogart, and Ida Lupino ; High Sierra (1941) with Lupino and Bogart; and Manpower (1941) with Robinson, Marlene Dietrich and Raft. He made
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#1732798420892684-521: A long-term relationship with publicist Steve Hannagan that lasted until his death in 1953. Hannagan bequeathed Sheridan $ 218,399 (equivalent to $ 2.5 million today). Sheridan engaged in a romantic affair with Mexican actor Rodolfo Acosta , with whom she appeared in 1953's Appointment in Honduras . She and the married Acosta shared an apartment in Mexico City for several years, and Sheridan
741-973: A mandatory subject and replaced the Regents-level course. Every subject requires students to execute at least one major project a year, with history classes requiring one per semester and English several per semester. These projects are referred to as "collaterals." In the 2022-23 school year, Townsend Harris offered the following Advanced Placement (AP) classes: Computer Science A , Computer Science Principles , English Language and Composition , English Literature and Composition , Art History , Calculus AB & BC , Statistics , Capstone , Biology , Chemistry , Environmental Science , Physics 1 , French Language and Culture , Japanese Language and Culture , Spanish Language and Culture , Spanish Literature and Culture , Macroeconomics , Psychology , United States Government and Politics , United States History , World History: Modern . The most notable feature of
798-497: A minimum of the 90th percentile (4.3 on both English and Math). Now, post-pandemic, beginning in 2022, students are grouped in tiers based on their final 7th grade core subjects (ELA, Social Studies, Math and Science) averages, with Tier 1, an average greater than 94, having priority for admissions. A short video and a humanities/science essay are also required as part of the application process. Some seats are available for 9th graders wishing to start Townsend as sophomores, though as
855-462: A noir also starring Dennis O'Keefe which she produced. She wanted to make a film called Her Secret Diary . Woman on the Run was distributed by Universal, and Sheridan signed a contract with that studio. While there, she made Steel Town (1952), Just Across the Street (1952), and Take Me to Town (1953), a comedy with Sterling Hayden that was the first film directed by Douglas Sirk in
912-672: A private mausoleum at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York on Christmas Eve. In January 1949, the 51st Street Theatre in Manhattan was renamed the Mark Hellinger Theatre in his honor. In 1989, the venue was converted into the Times Square Church . The Hellinger Award annually acknowledges the accomplishments of St. Bonaventure University's most promising young journalism student. It
969-515: A smash-hit trucking melodrama. Sheridan was back with Cagney for City for Conquest (1941) and then made Honeymoon for Three (1941), a comedy with George Brent . Sheridan did two lighter films: Navy Blues (1941), a musical comedy, and The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942) with Bette Davis , wherein she played a character modeled on Gertrude Lawrence . She then made Kings Row (1942), in which she received top billing playing opposite Ronald Reagan , Robert Cummings , and Betty Field . It
1026-586: A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7024 Hollywood Boulevard . Sheridan married actor Edward Norris August 16, 1936, in Ensenada , Mexico. They separated a year later and divorced in 1939. On January 5, 1942, she married fellow Warner Bros. star George Brent , who co-starred with her in Honeymoon for Three (1941); they divorced exactly one year later. Following her divorce from Brent, she had
1083-428: A temporary home until a permanent facility could be realized. In early 1995, the school moved into a new building located on the campus of Queens College . In 2000, Eileen F. Lebow published a history of the original school, The Bright Boys: A History of Townsend Harris High School ( ISBN 0-313-31479-9 ). Brian Condon became principal after a heated debate concerning Interim Principal Rosemarie Jahoda, which
1140-675: A week (equivalent to $ 1,710 in 2023 ), where she played mostly uncredited bit parts for the next two years. She can be glimpsed in the following 1934 films, and if credited, as Clara Lou Sheridan: Bolero , Come On Marines! , Murder at the Vanities , Shoot the Works , Kiss and Make-Up with Cary Grant , The Notorious Sophie Lang , College Rhythm (directed by Norman Taurog whom Sheridan admired), Ladies Should Listen with Cary Grant, You Belong to Me , Wagon Wheels , The Lemon Drop Kid with Lee Tracy , Mrs. Wiggs of
1197-621: A year, touring with the USO to perform in front of the troops as far afield as China. She returned in One More Tomorrow (1946) with Morgan. She had an excellent role in the noir Nora Prentiss (1947), which was a hit. It was followed by The Unfaithful (1948), a remake of The Letter , and Silver River (1948), a Western melodrama with Errol Flynn . Leo McCarey borrowed her to support Gary Cooper in Good Sam (1948). She
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#17327984208921254-423: Is reminiscent of the adventures of Nancy Drew . It is part of a series known as "Whitman Authorized Editions", 16 books published between 1941 and 1947 that always featured a film actress as heroine. Sheridan was given the lead in the musical Shine On, Harvest Moon (1944), playing Nora Bayes , opposite Dennis Morgan . She was in a comedy, The Doughgirls (1944). Sheridan was absent from screens for over
1311-562: The New York Daily Mirror . While continuing to write daily and Sunday columns, he contributed sketches to the Ziegfeld Follies , wrote plays, published magazine articles, produced two collections of short stories, Moon Over Broadway (1931) and The Ten Million (1934), and co-wrote the screenplay for Broadway Bill with Robert Riskin . Some films were based on his works including Justice for Sale (1932),
1368-486: The City University of New York system. The school was named in honor of Townsend Harris , the 19th-century American merchant, politician, and diplomat who served as the first American Consul to Japan. The school's students and alumni often refer to themselves as "Harrisites". Townsend Harris High School was founded in 1984 by alumni of Townsend Harris Hall Prep School , who desired to reopen their school that
1425-545: The NBC soap opera Another World . Her final role was as Henrietta Hanks in the television comedy Western series Pistols 'n' Petticoats , which was filmed while she became increasingly ill in 1966, and was broadcast on CBS on Saturday nights. The 19th episode of the series, "Beware the Hangman", aired as scheduled on the same day that she died in 1967. For her contributions to the motion picture industry, Ann Sheridan has
1482-651: The "oomph" tag." She continued, "But I'm sorry now. I know if it hadn't been for 'oomph' I'd probably still be in the chorus." This was later referenced and spoofed on the 1941 animated short Hollywood Steps Out . Sheridan co-starred with Dick Powell in Naughty but Nice (1939) and played a wacky heiress in Winter Carnival (1939). She was top billed in Indianapolis Speedway (1939) with O'Brien and Angels Wash Their Faces (1939) with
1539-622: The 1948 presidential elections. In 1966, Sheridan began starring in a new television series, a Western-themed comedy called Pistols 'n' Petticoats . She became ill during the filming and died of esophageal cancer with massive liver metastases at age 51 on January 21, 1967, in Los Angeles. She was cremated and her ashes were in the private vault at Chapel of the Pines Crematory in Los Angeles until they were reinterned in
1596-566: The Cabbage Patch , Ready for Love , Limehouse Blues with George Raft and Anna May Wong , and One Hour Late . Along with fellow contractees, Sheridan worked with Paramount's drama coach Nina Moise and performed on the studio lot in such plays as The Milky Way and The Pursuit of Happiness . While in The Milky Way , Paramount decided to change her first name from Clara Lou to the same as her character Ann. Sheridan
1653-746: The Dead End Kids and Ronald Reagan . Castle on the Hudson (1940) put her opposite Garfield and O'Brien. Sheridan's first real starring vehicle was It All Came True (1940), a musical comedy costarring Bogart and Jeffrey Lynn . She introduced the song " Angel in Disguise ". Sheridan and Cagney were reunited in Torrid Zone (1940) with O'Brien in support. She was with George Raft , Bogart and Ida Lupino in They Drive by Night (1940),
1710-642: The Hunter (1957), was shot in Africa. She performed in stage tours of Kind Sir (1958) and Odd Man In (1959), and The Time of Your Life at the Brussels World Fair in 1958. In all three shows, she acted with Scott McKay, whom she later married. In 1962, she played the lead in the Western series Wagon Train episode titled "The Mavis Grant Story". In the mid-1960s, Sheridan appeared on
1767-634: The United States. Sheridan starred with Glenn Ford in Appointment in Honduras (1953), directed by Jacques Tourneur . She appeared opposite Steve Cochran in Come Next Spring (1956) and was one of several stars in MGM's The Opposite Sex (1956), a remake of The Women starring June Allyson , Joan Collins , Dolores Gray , Sheridan and Ann Miller . Her last film, Woman and
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1824-562: The actress with the most "oomph" in America. "Oomph" was described as "a certain indefinable something that commands male interest". She received as many as 250 marriage proposals from fans in a single week. Sheridan reportedly loathed the sobriquet that made her a popular pin-up girl in the early 1940s. However, she expressed in a February 25, 1940, news story distributed by the Associated Press that she no longer "bemoaned
1881-611: The characters are composites of people I knew, and the situations are those that actually occurred. Bitter or sweet, most memories become precious as the years move on. This film is a memory - and I am grateful for it. Hellinger began worked as a producer on B pictures such as The Adventures of Jane Arden (1939), Women in the Wind (1939), Hell's Kitchen (1939) and The Cowboy Quarterback (1939). Hellinger also helped produce The Roaring Twenties (1939) starring James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart, his first "A" film. He produced Bs for
1938-461: The college's stage band and played basketball on the North Texas women's basketball team. Then, in 1933, Sheridan won the prize of a bit part in an upcoming Paramount film, Search for Beauty , when her sister Kitty entered Sheridan's photograph into a beauty contest. After the release of Search for Beauty in 1934, Paramount put the 19-year-old under contract at a starting salary of $ 75
1995-587: The many Warner Bros. stars who had cameos in Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943). She was the heroine of a novel, Ann Sheridan and the Sign of the Sphinx , written by Kathryn Heisenfelt and published by Whitman Publishing Company in 1943. While the heroine of the story was identified as a famous actress, the stories were entirely fictitious. The story was probably written for a young teenaged audience and
2052-447: The number depends on the number of students who decide to leave the school during freshman year, the number varies significantly from year to year. In 2006, only 5 were available, and in 2019, just 10 seats were available to 5,000 students who applied. In addition to the standard three-year Regents English program, all students take a "fifth year" of English as freshmen in the form of a "Writing Process" composition course. In addition to
2109-471: The producer's memory. See Rózsa, Double Life , 2nd ed., 1989, pp. 153-154. Townsend Harris High School Townsend Harris High School (often shortened to Townsend Harris or simply Townsend , and often abbreviated as THHS ) is a public high school for the humanities in the New York City borough of Queens . It is located on the campus of Queens College , a public college part of
2166-500: The school's curriculum is the senior "Bridge Year" program. Students in good standing may take up to 12 credits at Queens College at no cost to themselves. This includes an elective course taught by Queens College faculty and a required humanities seminar co-taught by Harris teachers and Queens College faculty. The curriculum and format is fairly similar to the Great Books seminars required of liberal arts freshmen at colleges around
2223-401: The short I Know Everybody and Everybody's Racket (1934), Broadway Bill (1934), and Walking Down Broadway (1938). By 1937, Hellinger was a syndicated columnist featured in 174 newspapers. That same year he was hired as a writer/producer by Jack L. Warner . He worked on the story for Racket Busters (1938) starring Humphrey Bogart and Comet Over Broadway (1938) and provided
2280-576: The standard modern language requirement which may be fulfilled with classes in Spanish, French, or Japanese, students must meet a two-year classical language requirement which can be fulfilled by classes in Latin or classical Greek. There is also a rigorous physical education requirement, especially in freshman year, and a senior project required of students. A variety of electives and AP classes are also offered to students. As of 2004, AP World History became
2337-458: The story for the 1939 Raoul Walsh gangster film The Roaring Twenties starring James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart, basing it on his own experiences during that decade . In his onscreen foreword to the film, he wrote: It may come to pass that, at some distant date, we will be confronted with another period similar to the one depicted in this photoplay. If that happens, I pray that the events, as dramatized here, will be remembered. In this film,
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2394-421: The studio loaned her out to Poverty Row production company Talisman to make The Red Blood of Courage (1935) with Kermit Maynard . After this, Paramount declined to renew her contract. Sheridan made Fighting Youth (1935) at Universal and then signed a contract with Warner Bros. in 1936. Sheridan's career prospects began to improve at her new studio. Her early films for Warner Bros. included Sing Me
2451-548: The world, with heavy emphasis on critical reading and writing. Townsend Harris was originally an all boys school, but is now open to all. As of 2023, the school's population is largely Asian; the 2022-23 school survey showed Asians making up 57% of the student body total, comprising the largest segment of the school's population. White students comprise 16% of the population, Hispanic students 16% and black students 6%. As of 2024, 60% of students at Townsend Harris are from an economically disadvantaged background. The school has
2508-532: Was a big hit and critically acclaimed. Sheridan was reunited with the Dead End Kids in They Made Me a Criminal (1938) starring John Garfield . She was third-billed in the Western Dodge City (1939), playing a saloon owner opposite Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland . The film was another success. In March 1939, Warner Bros. announced Sheridan had been voted by a committee of 25 men as
2565-507: Was a major success and one of Sheridan's most memorable films. Sheridan and Reagan were reunited for Juke Girl (1942) released about six weeks after Kings Row . She was in the war film Wings for the Eagle (1942) and made a comedy with Jack Benny , George Washington Slept Here (1943). She played a Norwegian resistance fighter in Edge of Darkness (1943) with Errol Flynn and was one of
2622-454: Was an American actress and singer. She is best known for her roles in the films San Quentin (1937) with Humphrey Bogart , Angels with Dirty Faces (1938) with James Cagney and Bogart, They Drive by Night (1940) with George Raft and Bogart, City for Conquest (1940) with Cagney and Elia Kazan , The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942) with Bette Davis , Kings Row (1942) with Ronald Reagan , Nora Prentiss (1947), and I Was
2679-540: Was charged with criminal adultery in Mexican federal court in October, 1956, following an accusation by Acosta's wife, Jeanine Cohen Acosta. Mexican authorities issued a warrant for Sheridan's arrest. Nothing came of the criminal charges, and the relationship ended c. 1958. On June 5, 1966, Sheridan married actor Scott McKay , who was with her when she died seven months later. Sheridan supported Thomas E. Dewey in
2736-433: Was closed in the 1940s. This process started in 1980. The first principal was Malcolm Largmann, a former high school English teacher with a strong belief in a classical education who also handpicked the school's original faculty. Largmann served as principal of Townsend Harris from 1984 until his retirement in 2001. He would die in 2021. The new school began in a small building on Parsons Boulevard , originally intended as
2793-559: Was covered extensively by student reporters from The Classic . Over 15,400 students compete for approximately 270 seats in the freshman class each year based on their middle school grades, standardized test scores and attendance records. Admission is available to all New York City residents in the 8th grade. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic , a minimum grade point average of 91 was required of all applicants to be considered for admission, as well as standardized reading and math scores at
2850-490: Was employed by Lane Bryant to write direct mail advertising for clothing for larger and pregnant women. The following year he began his journalistic career as a reporter for Zit's Weekly , a theatrical publication, where he remained for 18 months. In 1923, Hellinger moved to the city desk of the New York Daily News . He wrote the play None Are So Blind (1923). In July 1925, he was assigned About Town ,
2907-431: Was established in 1960 by columnist Jim Bishop in memory of his mentor. Bishop also wrote a biography of Hellinger entitled The Mark Hellinger Story: A Biography of Broadway and Hollywood . The composer Miklós Rózsa , who had scored The Killers, Brute Force , and The Naked City , was particularly devoted to Hellinger and dedicated his suite of music from those films ( Mark Hellinger Suite or Background to VIolence ) to
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#17327984208922964-589: Was in Broadway Musketeers (1938), a remake of Three on a Match (1932). Sheridan's notices in Letter of Introduction impressed Warner Bros. executives and she began to get roles in better quality pictures at her own studio starting with Angels with Dirty Faces (1938), wherein she played James Cagney 's love interest; Bogart, O'Brien and the Dead End Kids had supporting roles. The film
3021-654: Was just playing the lead, that's all", she later said. She next had a support role as the romantic interest in Rocky Mountain Mystery (1935), a Randolph Scott Western. She then appeared in Mississippi (1935) with Bing Crosby and W. C. Fields , The Glass Key (1935) with George Raft in a brief speaking role for which she was billed as "Nurse" in the cast list at the end of the film, and (having one line) The Crusades (1935) with Loretta Young . In her last picture under her deal with Paramount,
3078-643: Was meant to star in Flamingo Road . She then left Warner Bros., saying: "I wasn't at all satisfied with the scripts they offered me." Her role in I Was a Male War Bride (1949), directed by Howard Hawks and starring Cary Grant , was another success. In 1950, she appeared on the ABC musical television series Stop the Music . She made Stella (1950), a comedy with Victor Mature at Fox. In April 1949, she announced she wanted to produce Second Lady ,
3135-515: Was one of the judges for a beauty contest sponsored by the Daily News . The winner was Ziegfeld showgirl Gladys Glad, and on July 11, 1929, the two were wed. She divorced him in 1932, but after a year the two remarried on the same date as their original wedding, and they remained wed until his death at age 44 from a coronary thrombosis in Cedars of Lebanon Hospital in Los Angeles. He was buried in
3192-552: Was released several weeks after Hellinger's death, and in his review for the New York Times , Bosley Crowther called it "a virtual Hellinger column on film" and "his appropriate valedictory" and observed, "The late Mark Hellinger's personal romance with the City of New York was one of the most ecstatic love affairs of the modern day — at least, to his host of friends and readers who are skeptics regarding l'amour. Before he became
3249-752: Was then cast in the film Behold My Wife! (1934) at the behest of director and friend Mitchell Leisen . The role provided two standout scenes for the actress, including one in which her character commits suicide, to which she attributed Paramount's keeping her under contract. She continued with bit parts in Enter Madame (1935) with Elissa Landi and Cary Grant, Home on the Range (1935) with Randolph Scott and Evelyn Brent , and Rumba (1935) with George Raft and Carole Lombard , until her first lead role in Car 99 (1935), with Fred MacMurray . "No acting, it
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