CHARACTERS AND CARICATURES (PART ONE) - FILMIC FACTS WITH TIM LEATHERBARROW

Tim Leatherbarrow is an artist from England who‘s been drawing caricatures for over forty years at a variety of different events. Well, not only does he draw for his own personal pleasure, but he also draws pictures for corporate seminars, live functions, and a number of other occasions where an artist’s work would lighten the mood and spread joy to the masses. Now, though, Tim’s art has found another place to promote pleasure. Namely, this website, and each illustration he has kindly given us has been furnished with an appropriate fact associated with the person (or people) being depicted. Want to know more? Then please check out the following image gallery drawn by Tim and composed by me...

Filmic Fact: Bob Hope first worked with Bing Crosby in 1932 at The Capitol Theatre, New York, where Bing was singing on stage while Bob was hosting the show. Little did they know, though, that eight years later they would both start appearing in a series of successful movies together (which would ultimately cement their friendship). They made seven ‘Road to’ movies in total, starting with Singapore and ending with Hong Kong.

Filmic Fact:  Even though Clint Eastwood and Kirk Douglas have never worked together on the same film, that doesn’t necessarily mean that the two of them haven’t had a lot in common. After all, they’ve both set up their own production companies (Malpaso /  Bryna), they’ve both cheated on their wives (Maggie / Anne), and they’re both known for having a macho quality that brandishes them as mavericks (Dirty Harry / Spartacus), both on and off screen.

Filmic Fact: In an interview he gave to ‘The Guardian’, Mel Brooks told a journalist that he based the screenplay for ‘The Producers’ on an actual producer he worked for when he was 16 years old. "He would pounce on little old ladies and make love to them", Brooks said, "... and in turn, they would give him money for his plays, which ultimately flopped".

Filmic Fact: Marty Feldman, who’s best known for playing Igor in ‘Young Frankenstein’, was first introduced to American audiences in 1970 when he made a number of “special guest” appearances on ‘The Dean Martin Show’. At the time, Dean’s show was the highest-rated TV show in America, so to keep the momentum going, NBC’s summer replacement series, ‘The Golddiggers in London’, was hosted by Dean and featured a variety of local acts, including Marty's.

Filmic Fact: In 1977, Robert Vaughn and Christopher Lee starred in a science fiction film that was so, so, bad, neither of them would mention it -- it, being, ‘Starship Invasions’ -- ever, ever again. Not even the inflatable flying saucer or the robot with the pointed nose. 

So, what did you think of that, folks? Both the art and the trivia! Did you think they were good? Did you think they were bad? Or did you think they were bloody ugly? Either way, please feel free to leave your thoughts in the comment section below, before checking out Tim’s official Blog, Facebook, and LinkedIn pages.