Edd Byrnes appeared in a minor role on a show called 77 Sunset Strip.
He got a lot of attention as the ‘archetypical’ teenager of the 1950s. His character, Kookie, spoke in jive and was always seen with his comb, (a characteristic repeated in the movie ‘Grease‘) for Byrnes was a Teen Aged Idol.
He was so famous a song was made about him; “Kookie, lend me your comb” which got a lot of airplay.
As usual with talentless suddenly famous characters, he wanted more money. In a show of gross stupidity, he walked off the show.
The producers conceded; he was paid more money BUT bound into a contract which insured that he could not take other roles for many years. By the time he was ‘free’ no one was interested.
That’s the joke with people who are ‘Legends in their own Mind’. Actors who don’t realise people are ‘in love’ with the character, not them. Actors who don’t realise they aren’t ‘self-employed’.
Lana Wood, the sister of Natalie, got her chances. Chances because of her sister.
Lana did a number of one off appearances on television, from Playhouse 90 to Have Gun – Will Travel, to name only two.
She played very small parts in a number of movies few recall.
She tried to play more earthier characters than her sister, and wound up bouncing around television programs in the 60s, from Bonanza to The Wild Wild West.
She tried everything, from posing for Playboy to appearing in a Bond movie.
But she never made it.
In 1981 she tried to capitalise on the death of her sister Natalie by a tell-all book “Natalie, A Memoir by Her Sister”.
Which wasn’t very nice.
I know, you never heard of her.
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Of course I've heard of these people. But then I'm probably older than most people here, lol. I love reading about celebrities from back then.
I vaguely think I saw re runs of 77 Sunset Strip and do recall seeing the name Lana Woods...
I remember both of them. But even though they didn't make it really big, most folks from my generation still remember them. 77 Sunset Strip was real popular TV show and as you say everybody knew Lana because everybody knew Natalie. :)
You would think Natalie would have helped her sister a little more
In the entertainment business there's only so much you can do for your siblings. Your siblings need to be able to shine on their own if they want to be a star. Fact is Natalie was much more talented than Lana. In the case of the Roberts kids it happened backwards. Eric Roberts was in the business first. He got his sister Julia Roberts into the film business and she has been way more successful than him! She was the star! No matter what she couldn't share that brightness with him.
The nasty bio Lana did of Natalie sort of shows the bad feelings. I also think it has a lot to do with personality, how you act with others. With Edd, well, he made the mistake of signing the contract which put him in prison for a few dollars. Whether he was a nice man or not... but Lana prob wasn't very nice.