Actors

George Stroumboulopoulos

George Stroumboulopoulos

A broadcast veteran in television and radio, George Stroumboulopoulos has earned a reputation for being authentic and relatable and is one of the most trusted and respected broadcasters in Canada. George is a passionate advocate of many social and environmental issues and has been an active supporter of numerous causes throughout his career. In March 2011, George was named the first Canadian National Ambassador Against Hunger for the world's biggest humanitarian agency, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). In 2008, George was the driving force behind One Million Acts of Green, which resulted in the registration of over 1.6 million acts of green on the official website. In January 2010, George helped rally together actors, artists and athletes for Haiti relief efforts as the executive producer and co-host of Canada for Haiti, a live benefit that raised over 27 million dollars for Haitian earthquake victims. On March 6, 2012, the World Economic Forum announced that George had been selected as a Young Global Leader (YGL) for 2012 - George was one of three Canadians to receive the global honor. George has also been involved with numerous charitable initiatives including Nelson Mandela's Children's Fund (Canada), the Canada Africa Partnership on AIDS (CAP AIDS), War Child Canada, and Make Poverty History. George sits on the Board of Directors for The David Suzuki Foundation, as well as Artists for Peace and Justice Canada (APJ). In September 2011, George received the inaugural 'Swarovski Humanitarian Award' at the 5th annual Playback Canadian Film and Television Hall of Fame Gala in Toronto. George is the host and co-executive producer of George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight, Canada's primetime talk show, connecting his audience to the world's most influential and fascinating actors, musicians, and newsmakers through his signature interview style. Award-winning interviews continue to serve as the focal point for the show, with the addition of some unique, new elements, including the fast, furious and funny nightly comedy panel, featuring homegrown and international comedians. George's impact and influence remains, with close to 3 million Canadians watching George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight weekly and reaching 1 in 5 Canadians this season to date. Online, the George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight YouTube Channel has over 60 million views and a strong international following. George began his journalism career in 1993 at a radio station in Kelowna, British Columbia. He then moved to Toronto, Ontario, where he worked in radio for four years, at The Fan 590 and 102.1 The Edge. In 2000, George began his television career as the producer and host of NewMusic and MuchNews on the popular specialty television channel, MuchMusic. He remained at MuchMusic until 2005 when he joined the CBC as host and co-executive producer of The Hour. Starting out on what was then CBC Newsworld, he quickly grew The Hour to a critical and popular success on the main CBC Network. In 2007, George returned to radio to host a syndicated music and talk show, The Strombo Show. Audiences can enjoy The Strombo Show Sunday nights on CBC Radio and George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight weeknights at 7 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. on CBC Television.
George Takei

George Takei

George Takei was born Hosato Takei on April 20, 1937 in Los Angeles, California. His mother was born in Sacramento to Japanese parents & his father was born in Japan. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, he & his family were relocated from Los Angeles to the Rohwer Relocation Center in Arkansas. Later, they were moved to a camp at Tule Lake in Northern California. His first-hand knowledge of the unjust internment of 120,000 Japanese Americans in World War II, poignantly chronicled in his autobiography, created a lifelong interest in politics & community affairs. After graduating from Los Angeles High School in 1956, he studied architecture at UC Berkeley. An ad in a Japanese community paper led to a summer job on the MGM lot where he dubbed 8 characters from Japanese into English for Sora no daikaijû Radon (1956). Bitten by the acting bug, he transferred to UCLA as a theater arts major. Contacting an agent he had met at MGM led to his appearance as an embittered soldier in postwar Japan in the Playhouse 90 (1956) production. Being spotted in a UCLA theater production by a Warner Bros. casting director led to his feature film debut in Ice Palace (1960), various roles in Hawaiian Eye (1959) &other feature work. In June 1960, he completed his degree at UCLA and studied at the Shakespeare Institute at Stratford-Upon-Avon in England that summer. After starting a master's degree program at UCLA, he was cast in the socially relevant stage musical production Fly Blackbird! but was replaced when the show moved to New York. He took odd jobs until returning to his role at the end of the run. Getting little work in Manhattan, he returned to Los Angeles to continue his studies, once again appearing in TV & films. He earned his master's in 1964. Wanting a multi-racial crew, Gene Roddenberry cast him in Where No Man Has Gone Before, the second Star Trek (1966) pilot. Mr. Sulu remained a regular character when the series went into production. In the hiatus after the end of shooting the first season, he worked on The Green Berets (1968), playing a South Vietnamese Special Forces officer. After Star Trek (1966) was canceled, he did guest stints in several TV shows, voiced Sulu for the animated Star Trek series & regularly appeared at Star Trek conventions. He also produced & hosted a public affairs show Expression East/West, which aired in Los Angeles from 1971-1973. That year, he ran for the L.A. City Council. Although he lost by a small margin, Mayor Tom Bradley appointed him to the board of directors of the Southern California Rapid Transit District, where he served until 1984 & contributed to plans for the subway. During this period, he co-wrote a sci-fi novel Mirror Friend, Mirror Foe. He campaigned to get more respect for his character in the Star Trek features, resulting in Sulu finally obtaining the rank of captain in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991), a role reprised in the Star Trek: Voyager (1995) episode Flashback. He has run several marathons and was in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Torch Relay. He received a star on Hollywood Boulevard's Walk of Fame in 1986. He also left his signature & hand print in cement at the Chinese Theater in 1991. His 1994 autobiography, To the Stars, was well-received. He remains active as a stage, TV & film actor as well as as an advocate for the interests of Japanese Americans.