Category: Hall Of Fame

Biographies of people from the Kenosha area who made it to the big time.

Daniel J. Travanti

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Daniel J. Travanti
Hometown: Kenosha, WI You Know Him As: Captain Frank Furillo on Hill Street Blues. Daniel J. Travanti was originally born Danielo Giovanni Travanty on March 7, 1940 in Kenosha to Italian immigrant parents. He was raised in Iowa for some of his childhood, but eventually returned back to his home state and attended Bradford High School, where he received All American Honorable Mention. During his school years, Daniel displayed both athletic and academic talents while on the football and debate teams. Travanti continued his studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison for his college years and finished his undergraduate work in only three years! At this same time, Daniel first developed an interest in drama, appearing in every single play production at the university. He even turned down top football scholarships in order to try and pursue a career in acting. To continue on with his goal, Daniel trained at the... More

Justin Mentell

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Justin Mentell
Birthplace: Waukegan , IL You Know Him As: Garrett Wells on ABC’s Boston Legal. Did you know?: Mentell likes to travel and has visited 25 (mostly European) countries. On December, 16, 1982, Justin Mentell was born in Austin, Texas. He made his stage debut when he was only three years old as an orphan in “Miss Liberty.” He would appear in several local theater productions, including “Peter Pan,” where he was a Lost Boy. His family moved to Waukegan, Ill., while Mentell was still a child. He had the opportunity to continue performing on stage with the Northbrook Children’s Theater. Another hobby he took up was speed skating. Mentell was dedicated enough and talented enough to rise in his competitions. He would go on to be a member of the U.S. Speedskating’s Junior National long track team and even placed third at the Junior Olympics. However, he retired from the... More

Will Schaefer

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Will Schaefer
Composer Born In: Kenosha, WI You Know Him As: Arranger for the music on the “Its A Small World” ride for Disney. Did you know?: Will Schaefer was responsible for many of the theme songs of your favorite TV shows while growing up. Will Schaefer (November 23, 1928 – June 30, 2007) was an American composer nominated for both an Emmy Award and a Pulitzer Prize for his work. He wrote background music for a number of popular television shows and composed over 700 commercials. Schaefer was born in Kenosha, Wisconsin in 1928. His father, Helmut Schaefer, was a founder of the Kenosha Symphony Orchestra. Schaefer was educated at Mary D. Bradford High School, De Paul University (B.M.), and Northwestern University (M.A. and some work toward a Doctor of Music degree). His first credits as a film and television composer date from 1948. He served during the Korean War with... More

Dr. Lola May

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Dr. Lola May
Educator Born In:Kenosha, WI You May Know Her As:Developer of the ‘New Math’ process. Did You Know?:Dr. Lola J. May (1923-2007) was a noted mathematics educator, consultant, author and producer of audio-visual materials. A pioneer in mathematics education and an early proponent of the new math educational process, May was beloved by her students, and became a household name among mathematics educators. The Kenosha, Wisconsin, native graduated summa cum laude from the University of Wisconsin in 1945. She earned a master’s degree in mathematics at Northwestern University and received her doctorate in 1964. May taught mathematics at New Trier Township High School in the Chicago area until 1960, and was a mathematics consultant for the Winnetka, Illinois public schools until 1998. During her lengthy career she taught all grades, created a 20-session “live” mathematics series for TV, taught at the college level and spoke at educational conferences all over the... More

Kevin C. Anderson

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Kevin C. Anderson
Birthplace: Gurnee, IL You Know Him As: The trusty drama professor in the Julia Roberts flick, Sleeping With The Enemy (1991). Did You Know?: Anderson received his training at the Goodman Theatre School of Drama in Chicago, where he appeared in “Hey, Stay Awhile” and “Pal Joey”. Kevin was born on January 13,1960 in Gurnee, Illinois. Growing up with three older brothers and one older sister, he seemed to crave the spotlight as he was interested in acting from childhood. He began pursuing acting while he attended Viking Junior High where he became the founding member and President of the drama club. Thereafter, while attending Warren Township High School, he joined the forensics team and specialized in Oral Interpretation. After high school graduation, Kevin went on to major in acting at the Goodman School of Drama (which is now part of DePaul University in Chicago) and graduated in 1981. Three... More

Tom Regner

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Tom Regner
NFL player Birthplace: Kenosha, WI You Know Him As: Guard for the Houston Oilers. b]Did you know?:  Tom Regner (born April 19, 1944 in Kenosha, Wisconsin) is a former professional American football player who played guard for six seasons for the Houston Oilers (1967 – 72) and was an All-American offensive lineman for the University of Notre Dame. Source: Wikipedia More

Rebecca Scott

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Rebecca Scott
Model Birthplace: Kenosha, WI You Know Her As: Playboy Magazine’s Playmate of the Month (August 1999); dubbed by the magazine as “the Anna Nicole Smith look-alike.” Did You Know?: Scott is a big fan of comic books and admits to having had a crush on He-Man from “Masters of the Universe” while growing up. On Sept. 27, 1972, Rebecca Scott was born in Kenosha. She remained there throughout her childhood and graduated from Reuther Central High School in 1990. Nine years later, Scott appeared as the August 1999 Playmate of the Month. This was an unusual event, as Scott did not share the same anorexic and silicone look of most Playmates. At 5-foot-8, and 140 pounds, she represents a surprisingly healthy body shape. She was also unusual in that she was 26 when she posed-slightly older than most playmates. “The average Playmate is 5-foot-6, 115 pounds, 22 years old, proportioned... More

George Pollard

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George Pollard
Artist Lived In: Kenosha, WI You Know Him From: His awesome portraits of many people. Did You Know? George Pollard (March 20, 1920 – April 17, 2008) was an American portrait painter. Born in Waldo, Wisconsin, he painted portraits of famous people, such as Harry S. Truman and Muhammad Ali. Pollard served in the United States Marine Corps during World War II. When Eleanor Roosevelt visited Australia, Pollard was ordered to paint her portrait. Mrs. Roosevelt loved it. For more than 50 years George and his wife Nan Pollard sketched and painted together, winning national and international acclaim in quite different areas. While Nan has illustrated more than 2,000 books for children, George has produced more than 5,000 portraits of the rich and famous. George was raised in the small farming community of Waldo, Wisconsin. Encouraged by his mother, he began drawing at a young age and attended the Layton... More

Edward Cline

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Edward Cline
Birthplace: Kenosha, WI You Know Him As: The director of such films as “My Little Chickadee,” “The Bank Dick” and “Million Dollar Legs.” Did you know?: Eddie Cline directed the 1943 hit “Swingtime Johnny,” which starred the Andrews Sisters: Laverne, Maxene and Patty.   Edward F. Cline was born on November 7, 1892, in Kenosha. Despite living in little Kenosha County, with but 15,000 citizens, Cline dreamed of a much grander life as a director in Hollywood. He was able to begin his career in the movie industry at age 21, with a brief stint acting as one of Mack Sennett’s Keystone Cops in 1913. Mack Sennett, through his Keystone Film Company, produced a plethora of silent film comedies featuring an incompetent group of policeman, of which the cast could change for every movie. After this, Cline began assisting Sennett in his productions. By 1916, he had learned and gained... More

Margaret Landon

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Margaret Landon
Author Birthplace: Somers, WI You Know As From: Author of “Anna and the King of Siam”, basis for “The King & I” (1956), starring Rex Harrison and Irene Dunne and “Anna and the King” (1999), starring Jodie Foster and Chow Yun-Fat. Did You Know?: Living in Thailand with her new husband after their 1926 wedding, Margaret served as Headmistress of Anakul Satru Girl’s School while husband Kenneth traveled extensively as an evangelist. On September 7, 1903, Margaret Dorothea Mortenson was born to A.D. (Annenus Duabus) and Adele Mortensen in Somers, Wisconsin. She was one of three daughters in a devout Methodist family. The family did not stay in Southeast Wisconsin for long but moved instead to Evanston, Ill., where Margaret graduated from Evanston Township High School in 1921. She had her eye on attending college out East after high school. However, when it was time to begin applying to college,... More
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