Articles filed under Sotonoff/Gire

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  Suburban man the standby star of 'Book of Mormon' May 14, 2013 12:00 AM
  Eight times a week, Rob Colletti goes down to the Bank of America Theatre in Chicago, warms up his vocals, sits in the dressing room while the hit musical "The Book of Mormon" is performed, and then goes home. Colletti, a Wheaton native, is the standby for the lead role of the nerdy but lovable Elder Cunningham. And, "it's been incredible," he said.
  

   
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  New 'Star Trek' movie beams up Fremd grad May 7, 2013 12:00 AM
  In college, Palatine native Jon Lee Brody thought his life was laid out with his girlfriend. "My plan was to marry this girl, go to law school, become a corporate lawyer and raise a family. That was the plan," he said. But when she abruptly ended the relationship, Brody moved to LA to become an actor. He plays a security guard in the upcoming "Star Trek Into Darkness."
  

   
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  Gilberts filmmaker finds the Force of ‘Star Wars’ in families Apr 23, 2013 12:00 AM
  Gilberts resident Cris Macht and his sister went with their dad to see the original "Star Wars." When "Return of the Jedi" hit the screens six years later, their father was dead. Macht has now created a film "The Force Within Us" all about how the "Stars Wars" films have bonded parents and their children. "I wanted to show the father/son thing in "Star Wars' because it's something that I was longing for myself."
  

   
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  HGTV designer’s style rooted in the suburbs Apr 9, 2013 12:00 AM
  HGTV Design Star winner Meg Caswell found all sorts of inspiration while shopping at Scentimental Gardens in Geneva last week. The 35-year-old Kenilworth native and Chicago design firm owner is always on the lookout for items she can feature on her HGTV show, “Meg’s Great Rooms.” “My business before was my heart and soul, but it was a lot of hard work. I sometimes had 20 clients at once. Now, I have the privilege to select just a few clients,” she said.
  

   
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  Wheaton native looks back on playing 'Pippi'Apr 2, 2013 12:00 AM
  Wheaton native Tami Erin won the title role in the 1988 musical "The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking," beating out more than 8,000 girls to play the heroine from Astrid Lindgren's popular books about an orphan's fantastic adventures. "It was really phenomenal!" Tami said. "It was like getting on a rocket ship and shooting into the sky! And I haven't gotten off the rocket ship, yet!"
  

   
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  Lombard filmmaker turned to skateboarding worldMar 26, 2013 12:00 AM
  During jury duty, filmmaker Brett Novak had an epiphany. The Lombard native was enjoying a thriving career as a visual special effects director and producer. He worked on huge projects like "Acts of Valor" and "Water for Elephants," plus music videos for Beyoncé, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga and other A-listers. But he gave it all up for the skateboarding world. "I got to see the sunlight in California for the first time," Novak said.
  

   
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  Mitzi Gaynor: Superstar, one-time Elgin girlMar 19, 2013 12:00 AM
  "Oh, honey," Mitzi Gaynor told us, "it's hard to be Mitzi Gaynor. I drive myself crazy worrying and hoping all the time, and I never want to disappoint anyone." Count us definitely not disappointed. Especially when we found out that the legendary dancer/singer/actress, star of screen and stage, lived in Elgin as a little girl.
  

   
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  Hoffman Estates native hits right notes in Hollywood Mar 12, 2013 12:00 AM
  Emerson Swinford, who once played guitar and trombone in the band and musical pit at Conant High School in Hoffman Estates, has made a happy transition to successful musican and TV theme composer in Los Angeles. He teamed up with fellow Conant graduate Todd Milliner on TV Land's "Hot in Cleveland," composing the catchy theme that earned him honors from the ASCAP Movie and TV Music Awards.
  

   
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  Argonne scientist moonlights as 'Breaking Bad' actorFeb 26, 2013 12:00 AM
  He's spent years contributing to important, high-level science projects — helping make nuclear power safer and improving the durability of energy products. Yet, what's made Argonne National Laboratory scientist Marius Stan famous is his side job — a small, recurring role as Romanian car wash owner Bogdan Wolynetz on "AMC's “Breaking Bad” — and his eyebrows.
  

   
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  WWE announcer started as admiring Buffalo Grove fan Feb 19, 2013 12:00 AM
  During the last WrestleMania, WWE announcer Justin Roberts looked out at the arena of 80,000 cheering fans, and then over at world champion wrestler CM Punk. Roberts, who grew up in Buffalo Grove, and Punk were both starting out at small wrestling events around the suburbs when Roberts was 17. Now, here they were. "We didn't say anything, but we looked at each other and thought, wow, we've come a long way from Chicago," Roberts said.
  

   
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  Downers Grove songwriter nominated for two Grammy AwardsFeb 5, 2013 12:00 AM
  More than 25,000 people have sent emails and letters to Matthew West, sharing their life stories with him. The singer/songwriter from Downers Grove has sifted through nearly all of them. The stories that moved him he turned into songs. West's latest album, "Into the Light," is a nominee for Best Contemporary Christian Music Album at the Grammy Awards. "It's about more than just music at this point. And it should be that way, anyway," he said.
  

   
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  Prospect grad creates 'Zero Dark Thirty' sound effects Jan 29, 2013 12:00 AM
  Prospect High graduate Alex Ullrich works as a Foley artist in Hollywood. He's the guy who supplies the sounds you hear in movies, cartoons and TV shows. Every sound he adds is in postproduction. "You start with a scene that's completely blank, sound-wise. By the time we're done with it, it's completely alive!" he said.
  

   
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  Sean Hayes, suburban pal team up for TV success Jan 22, 2013 12:00 AM
  Glenbard West High School (Glen Ellyn) graduate Sean Hayes joined Conant High School (Hoffman Estates) graduate Todd Milliner in 2004 to create the L.A. company Hazy Mills Productions that now boasts three TV shows. “I take working in Hollywood on television as a blessing,” Milliner said.
  

   
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  From Chucky to 'Vampire Diaries,' Schaumburg native makes living behind the cameraJan 15, 2013 12:00 AM
  At 16, Schaumburg High grad and Hollywood cinematographer Paolo Cascio found his life's calling at Alcatraz. He had visited the prison with his parents. A movie crew was shooting. When Cascio spotted the Panavision camera, "It hit me like a bolt of lightning," he said. "It's like when you see somebody and it's love at first sight. I knew in that moment that this was what I was meant to do."
  

   
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  In Hollywood, suburban strengths shine through Jan 1, 2013 12:00 AM
  Even before we started our “From Suburbs to Showbiz” news team, we knew people from the suburbs were something special. We quickly found out how right we were. Every time we talked to local people who've made it big in show business, we heard testimonials about the strengths and qualities that come from growing up around here. It's not that they're any better than the others. It's just that ... well. hey, let's let our interviewees speak for themselves. Comedian, actor, and “Windy City Live” contributor Mark DeCarlo, a Downers Grove native:
  

   
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  Mannheim Steamroller puts Lombard native center stage for Christmas concerts Dec 25, 2012 12:00 AM
  Becky Kia doesn't listen to Christmas music at this time of year. That's because her job is to play Christmas music, night after night. Kia, a native of Lombard, is the lead violinist of Mannheim Steamroller, a popular, multiplatinum- selling Christmas group whose pumped-up orchestral music is all over the radio dial during the holidays.
  

   
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  Elmhurst's Celozzi driven to Hollywood successDec 18, 2012 12:00 AM
  Nick Celozzi II started out as the son of Nick Celozzi, famous for building the successful Celozzi-Ettleson Chevrolet dealership in Elmhurst. Today, young Celozzi has become an established filmmaker who produces, acts, directs, writes, and whatever he needs to do to create movies and TV shows. His new documentary on his great uncle, mob boss Sam Giancana, might come to Chicago in February.
  

   
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  Elk Grove grad an opera superstar? Go FigaroDec 11, 2012 12:00 AM
  Opera soprano Ailyn Perez remembers the pivotal moment in second grade that music — and a teacher named Mr. Jacobs — rocked her world at Salt Creek Elementary School in Elk Grove Village. She didn't know it at the time, but the seemingly innocuous moment transformed Perez's life. "I wasn't the obvious candidate to be an opera singer," she said.
  

   
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  Schaumburg native rocks the violin in Trans-Siberian OrchestraDec 4, 2012 12:00 AM
  When Roddy Chong plays violin, he's doesn't sit on a chair. He leaps into the air, runs across the stage, lunges forward, and flips his hair like he's playing in an '80s rock band. Chong, a Schaumburg native, considered one of the world's premier violinists, is pure energy onstage — a prerequisite for his job as the Trans-Siberian Orchestra's rock violinist.
  

   
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  Hinsdale native composes music for movies, TV, video gamesNov 27, 2012 12:00 AM
  While other kids his age watched “Sesame Street,” Tyler Bates jammed in his Hinsdale living room to Sly and the Family Stone. The cool suburban preschooler with a knack for music grew up to be one of Hollywood’s most sought-after music composers. Bates, 47, composes original songs for movies, television shows and videos games. Some of his highest profile work includes the movies “Watchmen,” the “Halloween” remake, “Dawn of the Dead” and “Killer Joe.”