Alex Summers articles

Fame by birth doesn’t always guarantee relevance, but these celebrities flipped the script. They took familiar surnames and turned them into empires with breakout performances and era-defining personas.

Mike Lookinland was famous as Bobby on The Brady Bunch, but when the show ended he faced serious choices about his future.

We often admire celebrities for their talent and larger-than-life personas. But behind their fame, many of today’s biggest stars prove that success doesn’t have to choose between brains and limelight.

Louise Lasser was the comedic genius who made Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman so funny—but her life behind the scenes was no laughing matter.

All in the Family was America's most-watched television series in the 1970s, but the show almost ended before it even started.

John Wayne realized he'd made a mistake by turning down the lead role in Dirty Harry. Then he played his own version of the maverick detective in McQ.

TV in the 1970s produced an amazing number of spinoffs, but not all of these shows were able to repeat the magic of their original source.

Dolph Lundgren went from chemical engineering and an MIT-bound future to Ivan Drago, Hollywood fame, and decades of action movies. Here’s how the unlikely transformation happened behind one iconic career.

This American sweetheart dazzled the country with music hits like “Buttons and Bows” and an impressive TV career. But behind all the glitz and glamor, Dinah Shore hid the details of a turbulent life.