Who was Pat Morita?

The late Japanese-American actor and comedian Noriyuki ‘Pat’ Morita was born in Isleton, California USA, under the zodiac sign of Cancer on 28 June 1932. Pat was able to overcome all obstacles and appeared in close to 200 TV series and movies, while he’s probably still remembered best for starring as Miyagi in the evergreen 1984 family action movie “The Karate Kid”, which John G. Avildsen directed, and which also starred Elizabeth Shue and Ralph Macchio. It follows a martial arts master who’s begun coaching a bullied boy, and the movie won three of its seven award nominations, including Pat’s Oscar nomination for Best Actor in a Supporting Role.

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Family and disability

Pat was raised in Isleton alongside his 12 years senior brother Hideo ‘Harry’, by their Japanese immigrant parents Momoe and Tamaru.

Pat was only two when he was diagnosed with spinal tuberculosis, and spent the majority of the following eight years i the Weimar Institute, prior to being treated at San Francisco’s Shriners Hospital. He was often wrapped in a full-body cast, and it was believed that Pat would never be able to walk unaided.

He was 11 when he was released from the hospital and started to learn to walk again, however, Pat was then immediately taken to his parents who were interned at the Gila River Camp, a concentration camp built to keep Japanese Americans there during World War II; a year later, Pat was moved to the Tule Lake War Relocation Center.

Following the end of Second World War, Pat and his family moved back to San Francisco where he studied at Armijo High School, matriculating in 1949.

Career before acting

Pat then began helping his parents run their restaurant Ariake Chop Suey, which he described as a place for people who didn’t fit in anywhere. His father was murdered in a hit-and-run in 1956, and Pat and his mother then continued running the restaurant for a couple more years.

In the first half of the ‘60s, Pat began working as a data processor at the Department of Motor Vehicles, while he eventually began working at the rocket and mission propulsion manufacturer Aerojet General, the a few years later, Pat began working at the aerospace manufacturer Lockheed Corporation as a department head.

He eventually became bored with the job, and chose to test his luck in show business; although Pat failed to succeed as a comedian in San Francisco, everything changed when he moved to Los Angeles, California and began winning roles in both movies and TV series.

Roles in movies

Pat made his debut film appearance aged 35, in the popular 1967 romantic musical comedy “Thoroughly Modern Millie”, directed by George Roy Hill, and which starred Julie Andrews, James Fox and Mary Tyler Moore. It follows Millie Dillmount from New York City who’s determined to marry her boss – the movie won six of its 17 award nominations, including an Oscar win for Best Music, Original Music Score.

Some of Pat’s following roles were in the 1968 western comedy “The Shakiest Gun in the West”, and in 1972 the western comedy “Evil Roy Slade” and the mystery comedy “Cancel My Reservation”. What marked the ‘70s for him was perhaps portraying Rear Admiral Ryunosuke Kusaka in the historical action “Midway”, directed by Jack Smight, and which starred Charlton Heston, Henry Fonda and James Coburn. The film covers the major Battle of Midway during World War II, a catastrophic defeat for the Japanese..

Some of Pat’s most notable performances in the ‘80s were in the family sports action “The Karate Kid Part II” and the adventure family fantasy “Babes in Toyland” both in 1986, and the 1989 family action “The Karate Kid Part III”.

In 1992, he played Mahi Mahi in the hit romantic thriller comedy “Honeymoon in Vegas”, written and directed by Andrew Bergman, and which starred James Caan, Nicolas Cage and Sarah Jessica Parker. It follows Jack who’s lost $65,000 in a poker game in Las Vegas, Nevada while the winner’s promised to return his winnings if he’s allowed to spend the weekend with Jack’s fiancée Betsy; the movie was nominated for four awards. Pat could then have been seen appearing in the 1993 romantic action comedy “American Ninja 5”, the 1996 sports action “Bloodsport 2”, and the 1999 family war drama “I’ll Remember April”.

Most of the movies in which Pat appeared in the first half of the 2000s failed to attract any attention, with the exception of the 2003 biographical drama “High Roller: The Stu Ungar Story”, which starred Michael Imperioli, Andrew N. S. Glazer and Al Bernstein; it follows the life of professional poker player Stuey Ungar, and the movie won three awards.

One of his final roles was voicing The Emperor in the 2004 animated adventure comedy “Mulan II”, having previously voiced the same character in the evergreen 1998 movie “Mulan”. Many films featuring Pat have been released since his death, as a way to pay tribute; some of the most recent amongst these include the 2011 comedy “Act Your Age”, the 2013 romantic comedy “Blunt Movie” and the 2014 adventure family comedy “Rice Girl”.

Please have #fun this weekend, watch #Rice #Girl on #AmazonPrime, #comedy for the whole #family, seriously! https://t.co/AWFzW7vkB0

— Cheryl Ling the Cat, Rice Girl Patriots (@myricegirl) December 1, 2019

Roles in TV series

Pat made his debut TV series appearance in the 1967 episode “The Recruiting Poster” of the war comedy “Gomer Pyle: USMC”, but he only began attracting attention in 1975, when cast to play the supporting character Matsuo ‘Arnold’ Takahashi in the critically acclaimed musical family comedy “Happy Days”. Garry Marshall created the series, which starred Mario Ross, Henry Winkler and Ron Howard, and follows the lives of members of the Cunningham family; the series aired until 1984, and won 19 of its 38 award nominations.

In 1987 and 1988, Pat starred as Lieutenant Ohara in the crime thriller “Ohara”, created by Hal Sitowitz and Ronald M. Cohen, and which also starred Robert Clohessy and Rachel Ticotin. It follows the life of a Los Angeles Police Department officer Ohara, and the series was nominated for two awards.

The ‘90s saw Pat appear in an episode of many series, including the science fiction comedy “The Munsters Today”, the family fantasy comedy “Harry and the Hendersons” and the science fiction action adventure “Space Rangers”. From 1998 through 2000, he starred as Uncle Pat in the family drama “Adventures with Kanga Roddy”, which also starred Alison Miller and Mickey Thomas, and follows Kanga Roddy as he’s teaching children dance, music and martial arts.

Pat’s three final TV series roles were in five episodes of the crime action adventure “Baywatch” (2000-2001), the 2002 episode “Yes Master” of the drama “Body & Soul”, and the 2003 episode “When Jimmy Met Greggy” of the comedy “Yes, Dear”.

Other credits

Pat wrote the 1987 romantic war movie “Captive Hearts” and two episodes of the 1988 crime thriller series “Ohara”.

He received special thanks (posthumously) for the 2005 sports documentary movie “The Way of the Karate Kid”, the 2007 romantic sports film “American Pastime”, and the 2018 episode “Counterbalance” of the hit action comedy series “Cobra Kai”.

Pat was occasionally invited to appear in talk-shows – some of his final appearances were in “An Evening at the Improv”, “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” and “Lista Top 40”.

Awards and accolades

Pat received his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on 4 August 1994.

He was nominated for two Golden Globes in 1985 and 1986, for his performance in “The Karate Kid” and “Amos”, respectively.

Love life and relationships

Pat was married to his third wife, American retired actress Evelyn Guerrero at the time of his passing; the two exchanged vows on 26 March 1994. Evelyn appeared in 39 TV series and movies prior to retiring in 1999. She was 17 years younger than Pat; they had no children together.

Pat’s first wife was non-celebrity American Kathleen Yamachi, and they had a daughter Erin Morita together; the two married on 13 June 1953, and divorced in 1970.

Pat’s second wife was non-celebrity American of Asian descent Yukiye Guerrero, and they had two daughters Aly and Tia together; Pat and Yukiye married on 28 December 1970 and divorced in 1989.

Interesting facts and hobbies

Pat was nicknamed ‘Hip Nip’ by a drummer, and he liked it so much that he used it as his stage name while working as a stand-up comedian.

He revealed that he was never able to do karate, and was only good at acting.

Pat often joked about famous American actor John Wayne becoming a millionaire only thanks to the Japanese.

He wasn’t expecting to be nominated for an Oscar for his performance in “The Karate Kid”, and was uncomfortable when his name was read at the ceremony.

Pat enjoyed playing billiards with his friends.

He was writing his own autobiography, but never managed to finish and publish it.

Death and wealth

Pat died from kidney failure on 24 November 2005, aged 73; he was an alcoholic from the start of his career, and it’s believed that alcohol contributed to his death. His remains were cremated.

Pat’s net worth was estimated at over $2.5 million at the time of his death.

Veronica Hamel is a retired model and Hollywood actress, who is mostly known for her role of Joyce Davenport, the public defender in the “Hill Street Blues” TV series.

Early life and family

Veronica Hamel was born on 20 November 1943, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA, so she holds American nationality and her zodiac sign is Scorpio. Veronica’s father was a carpenter, while her mother was a housewife, taking care of her kids. It is known that Veronica was not an only child in her family, yet there is no information on the number of her siblings, as she likes to keep her private life low-key. From her early years, Veronica knew that she was beautiful enough to start a modelling career, so she dreamt about it since becoming a teenager.

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However, she had to work as a secretary for a factory which produced ironing board covers to save some money, and to feel independence from her parents.

Educational background

Veronica matriculated her local high school in Philadelphia at the age of 17 in 1960, and instantly started working as a model. She tried to study at Temple University, but her tight work schedule left her no choice but to quit college and to focus on her modelling career, which brought her a lot of money despite her young age.

Career

Modelling career

In her interview with People magazine in 1982, Veronica shared that she started working as a model anonymously, and enjoyed the fact that she could hide her real name.

Discovered by Eileen Cecile Ford, the co-founder of Ford Models, 17-year-old Veronica began modelling for Vogue, participating in multiple photoshoots and catwalk shows; her pictures in haute couture dresses are now called ‘iconic’ by many sources and magazines. She had a chance to wear the legendary Mondrian dress, created by Yves Saint Laurent, captured in September 1965 by one of the most famous photographers of those times, Helmut Newton.

Veronica worked as a model for more than a decade, earning six-figure salaries and frequently having a chance to travel around the globe. She is also famous for appearing in the last cigarette commercial that was on air in the US, as Richard Nixon, who was the president of the US those years, signed legislation which banned cigarettes advertising on TV and radio.

Veronica Hamel

The last cigarette commercial appeared on TV right at midnight between 31 December 1970 and 1 January 1971 during an advertising block of “Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show”; Veronica could be seen in the short episode of the ad.

However, by the age of 30 Veronica had got bored (she insists it was her own decision and not the lack of job offers) and decided to conquer Hollywood as an actress. In 1971 she appeared as a model in the movie “Klute” starring Jane Fonda and Charles Cioffi, which made her think she made the right choice, so she closed all her modelling contracts and prepared to move to ‎Los Angeles.

Starting an acting career

In 1975 Veronica landed her first role in Hollywood, portraying Elenora in the episode “How Cruel the Frost, How Bright the Stars” of the TV series “Kojak”.

In 1976 she appeared in such series as “The Bob Newhart Show”, “Starsky & Hutch”, “Switch” and “The Rockford Files”. She then played Vicki Webber in one of the episodes of “Family”, and Laura Koshko in the TV mini-series “79 Park Avenue”. Veronica struggled a lot during her first years in Hollywood, as she was always offered similar roles of beautiful women who don’t talk too much, and mostly smile while being filmed: ‘There’s a stigma put on models—that you can’t walk and talk at the same time, let alone act. So you have to work twice as hard’, she remembers her first years of acting experience in one of her interviews to People. On that note, she declined an offer to become an Angel for “Charlie’s Angels” series; she was considered for the role of Kelly Garrett, but when the producers knew about her decision to turn down the role, they chose Jaclyn Smith instead.

Veronica remembers her agents were ‘in tears, had stokes, convulsions’ when they found out the news on her turning down the offer, but Veronica felt she made the right choice, finally quitting the dull pattern of living off her looks. ‘They said it would make me a star. But I said, ‘You’re talking about my life, my work—and I’ll be miserable’, she recalled the situation.

Starring in “Hill Street Blues”

After several years of landing episodic roles in such series as “The Eddie Capra Mysteries”, “The Hustler of Muscle Beach” and “Eischied”, Veronica was cast for the series “Hill Street Blues” in 1981. She landed the role of Joyce Davenport, an independent, dedicated and smart defense attorney, and that role made her truly famous. Veronica shared that she liked the role as both Joyce and Veronica herself were ‘not appendages’, and lived on their own, never living through anyone else.

However, in a few years of portraying the public defender, Veronica felt a little uncomfortable to film in the sixth season of the series: ‘We feel the changes, obviously – I was not happy about it and I don’t think anybody was happy about it – but <…> everybody was trying to be professional and supportive and get it going again’, she said in her interview with The Morning Call in 1985. The show was rumored to be closed after the sixth season, yet none of the cast wanted to talk about it. In 1986 the seventh season was aired, after which the series eventually end. Veronica wanted to play more comedy roles, as she admired Kay Kendall, the late British comedian, so after “Hill Street Blues” was cancelled, Veronica was ready to jump into other series.

Further career

Done with “Kane & Abel” (1985) mini-series, in which Veronica played Kate Kane, the actress mostly appeared in TV films, as if she was fed up with series.

Veronica Hamel

She could be seen in such TV films as “A New Life” (1988), “She Said No” (1990), and “Stop at Nothing” (1991). She also played leading roles in “The Disappearance of Nora” (1993), “The Conviction of Kitty Dodds” (1993) and “A Child’s Cry for Help” (1994). Veronica landed the role of Lily Munster in “Here Come the Munsters” (1995), that of Sadie in “Talk to Me” (1996), and the role of Jennifer in “Stranger in My Home” (1997).

Among her latest works there are episodes of such series as “Touched by an Angel”, “The Division”, “The Fugitive” and “Philly”. From 2002 to 2003, Veronica appeared in several episodes of the series “Third Watch”, then played Margo Shephard in episodes of the popular series “Lost” from 2004 to 2010. She also played Commissioner Hayes in “Bone Eater” in 2008.

Personal life, ex-husband actor Michael Irving

In 1971 Veronica married her fellow actor Michael Irving; the couple lived together for more than 10 years, divorcing in 1981. In 1982 Veronica shared that she was not pitying at all being alone: ‘I have many friends. We organize tennis tournaments on Sundays. I have some close women friends I don’t think I could live without—that holds it all together’, she shared in her interview with People. Michael Irving was one of the co-founders of the Half Moon Theatre, which in 1990 was turned into the Half Moon Young People’s Theatre. Michael is an experienced stage and screen actor, who played in such productions as “Rough Music” and “Apart from George”, and in movies and series including “Lou Grant” (1977 – 1981), “Personal Services” (1987) and “How To Be” (2008), starring Robert Pattinson and written and directed by his son from his second marriage, Oliver Irving.

35 years ago today in 1984, the cover of #TVGuide featured #VeronicaHamel and #DanielJTravanti of the NBC police drama #HillStreetBlues. pic.twitter.com/cWZBDnZU7X

— Silver Age Television 📺 (@SilverAgeTV) March 24, 2019

Hobbies, favorite things and interesting facts

Veronica was an avid equestrian, however, she had to give up jumping as she was starring in “Hill Street Blues”, so any injuries could put the whole show under risk.

In 1972, Veronica and Michael Irving bought the house in Brentwood which was earlier owned by Marilyn Monroe. When the couple started replacing the roof, they discovered a telephone tapping system and bugging eavesdropping devices which covered every single room of the house. The most interesting fact was that all those devices were not commercially available in the years Marilyn lived in the house, but some experts recognized them as ‘standard FBI issue’.

Veronica and Michael had to spend over $100,000 to clean their house from the system.

After divorce from Michael, Veronica rented another house in Brentwood, not wanting to leave the area she liked so much. She admitted that she couldn’t afford to buy the house of her dreams as it would cost her around $1 million, yet her house was big enough to have parties and barbecues, even for such big companies as the whole cast of “Hill Street Blues”.

Appearance

Veronica has long naturally curly dark brown hair and green eyes. She is 5ft 8ins (1.76m) tall, but her current weight and vital statistics are not available.

Net worth and salary

As of 2020, Veronica’s net worth is reported to be around $4 million. Of course her annual income depends on her commitments during any specific year.

Who is Holly Hallstrom?

Holly Anne Hallstrom was born in San Antonio, Texas USA, on 25 August 1952 – her zodiac sign is Virgo and she holds American nationality. She is a former model, retired actress and a TV personality, who is still perhaps best known for having served as a model in the game show “The Price Is Right” from 1977 to 1995.

What is she doing today or has she died?

There are rumors circulating the internet about how Holly died sometime in the early 2000s, as she hasn’t been appearing on TV or in the media, however, it is known that she decided to retire from appearing in TV shows in the late ‘90s, but came back on several occasions when invited as a guest in talk shows.

Today, Holly is renting-out several houses that she owns, and is leading a peaceful life in San Antonio.

Early life and education

Holly was raised alongside her younger sister in San Antonio, by the girls’ father who was a car mechanic, and their mother who was a housewife.

Holly grew up being focused on her studies, and when she enrolled at a local high school, she and her peers started reading girly magazines and watching models on TV – this is when Holly began dreaming about becoming a famous model one day, but still focused on her studies, and after matriculating in 1970, she enrolled at a college.

While still attending college, she visited Los Angeles in California, and there began working as a model which led her to quit college and focus on her career.

Career as an actress and a TV personality

Holly’s first appearance in a TV show was what made her famous – “The Price Is Right” starred Bob Barker, Janice Pennington and Dian Parkinson, and followed multiple contestants competing to win cash, cars and vacations. All the games in the show were related to the consumer goods pricing, and was a huge hit, winning 48 awards and being nominated for 122 others.

In 1980, Holly appeared as a panelist in two episodes of the comedy family game show “Match Game PM”, and in 1984 featured in the TV special “TV’s Funniest Game Show Moments”.

She made her debut TV series appearance in 1989, when she was cast to portray Newlywed Woman in the episode “The Nutt Cracker Suite” of the comedy “The Nutt House”, and in 1993 Holly made an uncredited appearance as the Spin the Wheel Girl in the action comedy crime movie “Loaded Weapon 1”. In the same year, she guest starred in a single episode of the game show “Family Feud”., and the following year made her second movie appearance when she played The Female Office

Holly Hallstrom

r in the short science fiction adventure comedy “Galaxy Beat”. Two years later, Holly played The Toothpaste Spokesperson in the adventure science fiction thriller movie “The Tomorrow Man”.

She featured in the TV special “The Price Is Right 25th Anniversary Special” in 1996, and in 2002 guest starred in a single episode of the documentary series “E! True Hollywood Story”. Her final two appearances on TV were captured in 2005, when she guest starred in an episode of the mini-series “Game Show Moments Gone Bananas”, and an episode of the talk show “The View”.

Filling a lawsuit

Holly was let go from “The Price Is Right” in 1995 by the show’s host Bob Barker, and subsequently claimed that she was dismissed because she gained 14lbs (6.4kgs), also that she was let go because she wouldn’t support Bob when he was sued for sexual harassment by Dian Parkinson, a former American model.

Bob counter-sued Holly, but dropped the suit two days before the trial began, and had to pay Holly’s legal fees – this motivated Holly to sue Bob, and the legal fight went on for years before it was settled in October 2005. During the years she fought Bob in court, Holly used all her savings, sold her house to pay for her lawyer, and lived in a car for a year. She eventually received several million dollars as settlement, and could’ve received more if she had accepted to not talk about Bob in the media ever again – she launched a foundation which has since been helping people who have been mistreated at their workplace.

After the models Kathleen Bradley and Janice Pennington, production assistants Sherrill Paris and Linda Riegert, and the director Paul Alter all testified against Bob, they were fired from the show – every one of them sued Bob, accepting out-of-court financial settlements, while Paul was eventually invited to come back to the show which he accepted in 2000.

Love life and relationships

Holly has kept details of her love life hidden from the media’s attention since she launched her modelling career, and there are rumors circulating the internet that she dated several men during those years she was shooting for “The Price Is Right”. Many of her fans claimed that they saw her walking hand in hand with several men in a period of three months, but Holly has never agreed to comment on her love life – it is also believed by some that she is a lesbian, while two of her fans have even claimed to have seen her kissing her female friend at a Los Angeles club.

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As of September 2020, Holly is single, she hasn’t married and doesn’t have children.

Hobbies and other interests

Holly has ventured into the real estate industry, and is the owner of several houses around San Antonio, most of which she leases, while she is today living in one of these.

She apparently spent her entire life being on a strict diet, eating mostly vegetables and fruits, and it wasn’t until she was done with modelling that she became interested in tasting various cuisines and travelling around the world – she has been to many European countries with her favorite being France, especially its capital city Paris, and she has also travelled to Asia on multiple occasions visiting China and Japan.

She is a lover of animals, and has had many pet dogs and cats.

Holly likes to watch movies late at night, and her favorite actors and actresses are Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon and Angelina Jolie, and some of her favorite movies are “Titanic”, “Catch Me If You Can” and “Good Will Hunting”.

Net worth

Holly’s age is 68. She has long brown hair and blue eyes, her height is 5ft 11ins (1.8m) and she weighs around 155lbs (70kgs).

As of September 2020, her net worth has been estimated at over $10 million.