Iowa Almanac
Iowa Almanac -- Friday, December 06, 2024
Iowa's Oscar winner. More from the Iowa Almanac in a moment. It wouldn't be Christmas without Camp Courageous Fruit Cakes, and they're now available in stores across Iowa and at Camp Courageous.org/fruitcakes. Camp Courageous Fruit Cakes are generously filled with cherries, nuts, pineapple, coconut, and just the right amount of cake batter to hold it all together. Best of all, proceeds go to support Camp Courageous near Monticello, Iowa. For a list of stores or to order online go to Camp Courageous.org/fruitcakes. Dominic Felix Amici's father was concerned that the Kenosha Wisconsin boy might fall in with the wrong elements, so the Italian immigrant saloonkeeper sent his 11-year-old son to Iowa in 1919. Young Dom attended St. Burchman's Boys Academy in Marion, where as an 8th grader he first tried acting and found it to his liking. He later attended what is now Lawrence College in Dubuque, where the yearbook described him as one of the most promising actors at the school. In the early 1930s, actors were making a living performing in radio dramas, and Chicago was one of the nation's broadcasting centers at the time. Amici's rich baritone voice put him in demand, and it wasn't long before he parlayed his radio career into a Hollywood movie career. Now known as Don Amici, he made his movie debut in 1936 playing dual roles in the movie Sins of Man. His portrayal of Alexander Graham Bell in 1939 won him rave reviews, as did the 1943 comedy Heaven Can Wait. He was part of radio's quarrelsome couple The Bicker Sins, and starred on Broadway. Don Amici turned to directing in the 1960s and 1970s, but made his return to the movie screen in 1983's Trading Places, and he was discovered by a new generation for his Oscar-winning performance in the 1985 film Cacoon. "I feel tremendous. I'm ready to take all the words." Don Amici always considered Iowa his home base, marrying a woman from Dubuque and raising their six children their part-time. For seven decades, Don Amici found fame in show business, appearing regularly in major films until his death from prostate cancer on this date in 1993. And that's Iowa Almanac for December 6th. There's more online at IowaAlmanac.com. Until Monday, I'm Jeff Stein.