Betty White and Lorne Greene Host the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade,1968
In the below photograph sits the legendary, eccentric actress Betty White, alongside “Bonanza” actor Lorne Green, as they host the 1968 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. For Americans, this celebrated New York City parade is just as much of a holiday tradition as is turkey, football and awkward family conversations at the Thanksgiving table. Back in the day, White and Green were regular hosts of this annual parade, hosting this traditional Thanksgiving for 9 straight years, from 1962 to 1971.
It was in 1968, the very year this photo was taken, that the iconic Snoopy balloon made its first official debut in the parade. While this quintessential Thanksgiving event first started back in 1924, it was not until the 1927 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade that balloons appeared among the parade’s display. Before this, believe it or not, the first three years of this parade featured not floating fantasy creatures, but actual real-life animals from the Central Park Zoo!
Tattoo the Martian and Mr. Roarke - Fantasy Island, 1977
Taken during one 1977 episode of the television series “Fantasy Island,” here Tattoo (played by Hervé Villechaize) stands alongside a kneeling Mr. Roarke (played by Ricardo Montalbán). Created by Gene Levitt, the ABC-made, classic television series “Fantasy Island” was on the air from 1977 to 1984, and then again for one 1998–99 season.
Starring the two characters seen in the photo below, this show takes place on an extraordinary resort island located somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. On this seemingly perfect Utopia-like island, guests travel far and wide to reach the mysterious island, in order to live out their ultimate fantasies…for a price.
An Oscar-winning Performance: Sally Field as “Norma Rae” (1979)
In the below photo, A-list actress Sally Field poses as Norma Rae, in the 1979 film, which would later earn her an Oscar for Best Actress in 1980. The drama follows Norma Rae's life, a worker at a local textile mill, as she goes against her family and employers' wishes, in order to lead a shutdown to protest the mill’s poor working conditions. Sally Field first rose to fame as a much-loved actress thanks to roles in popular sitcoms like “Gidget”, “The Flying Nun” and “The Girl with Something Extra” (1973-1974). In 1977, Field would take on her first-ever film role, in the movie “Smokey and the Bandit.”
It was not until 1979 that Fields would win the Academy Award for Best Actress, for her outstanding acting performance in “Norma Rae.” Of the many nominations and awards Fields’ has collected over the span of her acting career, some of the most notable include her 1985 Academy Award nomination and win in the “Best Actress in a Leading Role” category for her performance in the 1984 film, “Places in the Heart,” and her 2013 nomination for her compelling performance as Mary Todd Lincoln—Abraham Lincoln’s wife—in 2012.
“Raw Wind in Eden”: A Fashion Model, a Playboy, a Crash Landing...and a Mystery Man (1958)
The below photo features the starring cast members of the 1958 film, “Raw Wind in Eden." Originally titled, “The Islander,” the plot of this film-noir adventure/thriller follows the story of a fashion supermodel named Laura (played by actress as Esther Williams, pictured below) and her playboy friend Wally Drucker (played by actor Carlos Thompson) in the events following their plane's crash landing on a small Mediterranean island.
Upon surviving their plane crash, Laura and Wally find themselves on this Eden-like island, and soon become acquainted with its fellow island dwellers. As the plane crash survivors begin to live among the island locals, new relationships form and complex love triangles emerge, as Laura falls for the mysterious Moore.
Hall of Famer, Kenny “Snake” Stabler: Oakland Raiders Quarterback (1970-1979), Alongside Coach John Madden
Photographed below is legendary Hall-of-Famer Kenny “Snake” Stabler, pictured alongside his coach, John Madden. Before joining the NFL as the quarterback for the Oakland Raiders, Stabler played football for the University of Alabama Tuscaloosa. Though no one is 100% sure how exactly this famous footballer player got his nickname, Stabler always says that it originated from a comment made by his high school football coach Denzil Hollis, who said, “Damn, that boy runs like a snake,” as he watched Stabler weave in and out on the football field.
Stabler is most known for bringing the Raiders a Super Bowl XI victory in 1976. Throughout the ‘70s, Stabler’s career blossomed. In 1974, he was named NFL’s Most Valuable Player, and was even selected to hold the honorable title as a quarterback on the NFL 1970s All-Decade Team! Though Stabler passed away in July of 2015, his legacy continues to live on in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, an honor which the late football player earned posthumously in 2016, just a year after his death.