Acting
Don Ameche
Don Ameche (born Dominic Felix Amici; May 31, 1908 – December 6, 1993) was an American actor and radio entertainer whose career spanned over six decades. Known for his charming, dapper presence and signature mustache, Ameche became one of 20th Century Fox's premier leading men throughout the 1930s and 1940s. Born in Kenosha, Wisconsin, to an Italian immigrant father and a mother of European descent, he adapted his family's surname from "Amici" to "Ameche" to preserve its original Italian pronunciation in the United States. He began his entertainment career in vaudeville and radio, where he achieved nationwide fame as the host of popular broadcasts like The Chase and Sanborn Hour. He transitioned to film in 1935, starring in a string of successful musical comedies and dramas, most notably Alexander's Ragtime Band (1938), The Story of Alexander Graham Bell (1939), and Ernst Lubitsch’s classic comedy Heaven Can Wait (1943). As film roles slowed in the 1950s, Ameche worked extensively in live theatre and television. His screen career experienced a celebrated renaissance in the 1980s, beginning with his role as the scheming commodities broker Mortimer Duke in Trading Places (1983). Two years later, he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of a revitalized retiree in Ron Howard’s Cocoon (1985). In his final years, Ameche introduced himself to a new generation of filmgoers providing the warm, patriarchal voice of Shadow the Golden Retriever in Disney's Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey (1993), before completing his final screen appearance in Corrina, Corrina (1994). Ameche was married to Honore Prendergast from 1932 until her death in 1986; the couple had six children. Ameche died of prostate cancer in Scottsdale, Arizona, in 1993 at the age of 85.
Filmography
Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History - The 1940s: Stars, Stripes and Singing
Film · 2009
Hidden Hollywood: Treasures from the 20th Century Fox Film Vaults
Film · 1997
The Silver Screen: Color Me Lavender
Film · 1997
Corrina, Corrina
Film · 1994
Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey
Film · 1993
Folks!
Film · 1992
Sunstroke
Film · 1992
Oscar
Film · 1991
Our Shining Moment
Film · 1991
Oddball Hall
Film · 1990
Cocoon: The Return
Film · 1988
Things Change
Film · 1988
Coming to America
Film · 1988
Harry and the Hendersons
Film · 1987
Pals
Film · 1987
A Masterpiece of Murder
Film · 1986
Cocoon
Film · 1985
The Golden Girls
Series · 1985
Trading Places
Film · 1983
Night of 100 Stars
Film · 1982
The Chinese Typewriter
Film · 1979
The Kennedy Center Honors
Series · 1978
The Love Boat
Series · 1977
The Love Boat
Series · 1977
The Love Boat
Series · 1977
Good Heavens
Series · 1976
Quincy, M.E.
Series · 1976
Ellery Queen
Series · 1975
The American Film Institute Salute to ...
Series · 1973
Gidget Gets Married
Film · 1972
Alias Smith and Jones
Series · 1971
Columbo
Series · 1971
The Boatniks
Film · 1970
Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came?
Film · 1970
McCloud
Series · 1970
Shadow Over Elveron
Film · 1968
Rings Around the World
Film · 1967
Picture Mommy Dead
Film · 1966
Burke's Law
Series · 1963
Petticoat Junction
Series · 1963
The Greatest Show on Earth
Series · 1963
The Merv Griffin Show
Series · 1962
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Series · 1962
A Fever in the Blood
Film · 1961
The Mike Douglas Show
Series · 1961
The Mike Douglas Show
Series · 1961
The Lux Show
Series · 1957
DuPont Show of the Month
Series · 1957
Tonight Starring Jack Paar
Series · 1957
Climax!
Series · 1954
Coke Time with Eddie Fisher
Series · 1953
What's My Line?
Series · 1950
Slightly French
Film · 1949
Sleep, My Love
Film · 1948
The Ed Sullivan Show
Series · 1948
That's My Man
Film · 1947
So Goes My Love
Film · 1946
Guest Wife
Film · 1945
It's in the Bag!
Film · 1945
Wing and a Prayer
Film · 1944
Greenwich Village
Film · 1944
Heaven Can Wait
Film · 1943
Something to Shout About
Film · 1943
Happy Land
Film · 1943
The Magnificent Dope
Film · 1942
Girl Trouble
Film · 1942
Moon Over Miami
Film · 1941
That Night in Rio
Film · 1941
The Feminine Touch
Film · 1941
Confirm or Deny
Film · 1941
Kiss the Boys Goodbye
Film · 1941
Down Argentine Way
Film · 1940
Four Sons
Film · 1940
Lillian Russell
Film · 1940
Midnight
Film · 1939
The Story of Alexander Graham Bell
Film · 1939
Hollywood Cavalcade
Film · 1939
The Three Musketeers
Film · 1939
Swanee River
Film · 1939
Land of Liberty
Film · 1939
Screen Snapshots Series 18, No. 8
Film · 1939
Happy Landing
Film · 1938
Alexander's Ragtime Band
Film · 1938
In Old Chicago
Film · 1938
Josette
Film · 1938
Gateway
Film · 1938
Love Is News
Film · 1937
One in a Million
Film · 1937
Love Under Fire
Film · 1937
You Can't Have Everything
Film · 1937
Fifty Roads to Town
Film · 1937
Ramona
Film · 1936
Ladies in Love
Film · 1936
Sins of Man
Film · 1936