First choice for the lead in the CBS mystery drama Murder, She Wrote was actress Jean Stapleton. The role of mystery writer/sleuth Jessica Fletcher was created with her in mind, but before production began, Stapleton's husband died and she chose to bow out. Angela Lansbury was selected to replace her in the part.

Flamboyant entertainer Liberace, who "cried all the way to the bank," owned thirty-nine pianos; eighteen of his most rare instruments are on display in the Piano Gallery at the Liberace Museum in Las Vegas, Nevada. One of the most notable pianos in the collection is Chopin's French Pleyel. Liberace's favorite Baldwin concert grand piano, covered with thousands of etched mirror tiles, is also on display. Elaborately ornate cars are showcased in the Car Gallery, including a one-of-a-kind Rolls Royce covered with mirror tiles etched with galloping horses. The Rolls is a Phantom V Landau limousine with a James Young body and Deville extension. Only seven were made, and it is the only one with left hand steering.

Following his breakup with the Beatles in 1971, Paul McCartney formed his group Wings. The group was nameless until McCartney, awaiting the birth of his daughter Stella about a month later, prayed for her health. He came up with the group's name on the "wings of an angel."

Following Marilyn Monroe's untimely death, the older and narcissistic film sex symbol Mae West made the following comment: "She had something. She photographed well, but of course, she copied me."

For decades, it was the film studios' practice to imperiously rename any of their stars. Film newcomer Ava Lavinia Gardner refused to change her name just to be an actress; MGM studio heads liked her and her birth name enough to agree with her. However, they informed the press that the beautiful starlet's original name was "Lucy Ann Johnson," so it would seem that "Ava Gardner" was a studio invention. Some entertainment reference books still reflect this fabrication of Gardner's name.

For her role as the Egyptian queen in Cleopatra,, Elizabeth Taylor audaciously asked for, and received, the first $1 million contract in the film industry. The role was first offered to starlet Joan Collins, who turned it down. Film production became much more elaborate and costly than originally budgeted once Taylor came on board.

For his X-Files audition, David Duchovny showed up in a tie with pink pigs all over it.

For Hollywood, Edda van Heemstra, born in Belgium, changed her name to Audrey Hepburn.

For its release in France, the film City Slickers (1991), starring Billy Crystal and Jack Palance, was re-titled Life, Love, Cows.

For many years, the globe on the "NBC Nightly News" spun in the wrong direction. On January 2, 1984, NBC finally set the world spinning back in the proper direction.

For the 1994 box office hit Speed, starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock, 12 buses were used total in the film. Two of the buses were blown up, and a specially rigged one was used for the famous freeway jump.

For the film The China Syndrome (1979), the lead role of the television reporter was originally to be played by Richard Dreyfuss, but the character was changed to a woman — Jane Fonda then was cast in the part.

For the first time, the Academy Awards ceremony was opened to the general public in 1947.

For the knife fight between Jim (James Dean) and Buzz (Corey Allen) in the 1955 blockbuster Rebel Without a Cause, the actors used real switchblades. They protected themselves by wearing chainmail under their clothes.

For the role of Mike Brady, father to TV's The Brady Bunch in the 1970s, Robert Reed was ultimately selected. However, a strong contender for the patriarchal part was actor Gene Hackman.

For the upcoming motion picture Mission To Mars, director Brian DePalma and crew needed to re-create the surface of the planet Mars. They chose the more than two million square feet of a 45-acre sand dune in Vancouver, Canada. To give the sand dune the color of the planet Mars, they covered it with over 15,000 gallons of red paint.

Former Calvin Kline jeans model Andie McDowell reportedly was unable to shake her Southern accent for the film Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984). According to reports, all of her dialogue was redubbed by actress Glenn Close.

Former cartoonists include John Barrymore, Tim Burton, Xavier Cugat, and Federico Fellini.

Former MGM star Mickey Rooney turned down the role of bigoted family man Archie Bunker in the 1970s sitcom, All in the Family. The former child star was convinced that the show would bomb, and he wasn't willing to jeopardize his professional reputation, although his film career had been on the skids for years. Little-known character actor Carroll O'Connor won the role as a result of Norman Lear, All in the Family's creator, spotting him in the film What Did You Do In the War, Daddy? O'Connor loved the show's concept and Lear's pilot script, but didn't believe that the innovative sitcom had a chance for American acceptance. After a shaky start, the show took off like a firecracker and dominated television for a decade. O'Connor won four Best Actor in a Comedy Series Emmys and a Golden Globe award for his portrayal of cantankerous bigot Archie Bunker.

Former President Ronald Reagan, when an actor, signed with Warner Brothers in 1937 and appeared in 50 films with that company. His first film with them was King's Row, released in 1941.

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