William Wyler’s ‘The Big Country’: Why it endures
By Steve CrumFrom start to finish, director William Wyler languishes on expansive vistas through widescreen lens. The Big Country is about just that—a big country, and its proud, angry, dangerous, childish denizens. These are cowboys living by their own shared creed, a Western “Code” perpetuated and probably created by Hollywood filmmakers and the dime novels preceding them.
Land is the familiar theme, played out by barons who want each other’s property, at least the water rights in between. More than that, both want their counterpart killed. Burly Burl Ives earned an Oscar as Rufus Hannassey, a similar patriarch persona he portrayed the same 1958 year as Big Daddy in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Ives’ Rufus chews scenery and steals scenes. The always watchable Charles Bickford is his stern adversary, Maj. Henry Terrill.
The film’s climax is a long built-up rifle/shotgun fight between the two that cuts away before the conclusion. Then, from a high positioned camera, it appears both have died with Hannassey lying on top of Terrill, sprawled on canyon rocks. The decades-old feud finally ends with whimperless bangs.
By then, there has been a lengthy slug out over machismo between the characters played by Gregory Peck and Charlton Heston. A pre-Rifleman Chuck Connors, as Rufus’ thug son, has been killed—by his Pa, no less. Peck’s James McKay has broken a horse that no one could break. Loyalties have been tested, abandoned, and replaced.
A dominant, driving force that both enhances and propels the action is Jerome Moross’ terrific, Oscar-nominated score that could stand alone as a memorable concert piece. In fact, its main theme has been a staple of concert hall orchestras for decades.
The Big Country is all about power and avenging, skillfully told in Wyler’s frequent long distance and medium shots that are always landscape-wide, imbued in granite-hued Technicolor.
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THE BIG COUNTRY, released in 1958, 165 minutes. Directed by William Wyler; Cinematography by Franz F. Planer. Principal cast: Gregory Peck, Charlton Heston, Jean Simmons, Burl Ives, Charles Bickford, Chuck Connors, Carroll Baker.
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Burl Ives is awarded the Best Supporting Actor Oscar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsQ7ELCBrcE
Crum’s Handy Guide to celebrity interview no-no’s
By Steve Crum
Having not interviewed many celebrities, but more than the average Kansas wheat farmer, I nonetheless have experienced being prepped by a showbiz interviewee’s publicist regarding what NOT to bring up in conversation. On one occasion, the star himself reminded me to steer away from a line of questioning. (More on the Peter Falk story later.)
During my interview with Jerry Lewis on Nov. 8, 1995, I asked a question that should have been nixed before-hand, but I was unaware. (More on the Lewis faux pax later.) Press conferences are arranged for actors and actresses as they travel city to city while promoting a movie, stage appearance, or TV show. When entertainment writers travel to, say, Los Angeles or New York City to interview cast members in mass, it is called a press junket. I have never attended one. My experience has mostly been with celebrity interviews in Kansas City and the Kansas cities of Emporia and Iola. Sometimes they were one-on-one interviews, but more often I have been part of a roundtable of perhaps six interviewers. In the case of Jerry Lewis, there were probably 30 of us gathered, and Lewis stood before us at a podium.
Therefore and to with, heed my quick guide to “What Not to Say, Ask or Suggest During Either Celebrity Interviews or Chance Meetings.”
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•ED ASNER Advice: DO NOT BRING UP POLITICS, unless you want some caustic, opinionated, liberal remarks. As it turned out, I should have tapped into Asner’s political side since the hour I spent with him was unplanned, and we both were grasping for conversation. [See my Ed Asner story elsewhere on this site.]
•ROBERT CORNTHWAITE Advice: DO NOT COMPLIMENT HIS LOOKS. A star of the highly regarded 1951 sci-fi movie, The Thing (From Another World)—Cornthwaite played the lead scientist driven to madness. The aged actor was less than polite when I complimented him at the Area 51 movie event in Independence, Mo., during the summer of 2001. After shaking his hand, I told him, “You look no older than when you made The Thing.” His reply: “Bullshit.” What I really meant to say was that he portrayed a gray-haired old fart in The Thing, and he looked the same. So much for bullshit. 
•DAKOTA FANNING Advice: DO NOT JOKE DURING AN INTERVIEW. During an interview with then 11 year-old Dakota, in town to promote the horse racing movie, Dreamer, I tried to get her to laugh. She was so focused and serious for her age, and she reminded me of my own daughter. Here we sat at a table in a suite at a Plaza hotel. She said she just traveled from Chicago, and was on a multi-city tour to promote her film. I asked if she had a chance to see Kansas City yet, and she said, “No.” So I pointed to a nearby window overlooking the Country Club Plaza and said, “Well, take a look. There it is.” She did not crack a smile. Now that I think of it, I don’t blame her.
•SKITCH HENDERSON Advice: DO NOT ASK HIM ABOUT HIS GOOD TIMES ON “THE TONIGHT SHOW STARRING JOHNNY CARSON.” After several years as band leader on Carson’s show, Skitch had left, and was obviously bitter about his exit when I interviewed him in Emporia, Kansas. Evidently it was his choice, because he cracked that “The Tonight Show has been a sinking ship for some time, and it’s about to drown.” That was in in 1967. Johnny continued for many years thereafter, maintaining high ratings.•JERRY LEWIS Advice: NEVER EVEN HINT AT ASKING ABOUT HIS INFAMOUS, NEVER-TO-BE RELEASED MOVIE, “THE DAY THE CLOWN CRIED.” Of the room full of interviewers asking Lewis questions when he was in town starring in Damn Yankees in 1995, I was the one who asked him about the movie no one was supposed to mention. A collective gasp was heard when I did pop the question, and Lewis gulped, smiled, and proceeded to politely answer my question. Later I found out from several reporters that no one ever refers to this movie in Jerry Lewis’ presence. It is an extremely sore spot. [Read more details in a separate Jerry Lewis story on this site.]
•BILLY GRAY Advice: DO NOT EXPECT WARM AND TENDER STORIES ABOUT HIS YEARS ON TV’S “FATHER KNOWS BEST.” I talked to Bill Gray when he guested at the Area 51 Sci-Fi event in Independence, Missouri in 2001. His most famous acting portrayal as a child was in 1951’s The Day the Earth Stood Still, which was shown at the festival. I later regretted having him sign a photo of him with his Father Knows Best co-stars, which he graciously signed. I have since discovered Gray looks back on his Father Knows Best TV stardom (as teen son Bud) with disdain: “I wish there was some way I could tell the kids not to believe it. The dialogue, the situations, the characters…they were all totally false. The show did everyone a disservice.”
•ELEANOR KEATON Advice: LITERALLY COME DOWN TO HER LEVEL TO CHAT WITH HER. I consider it an honor to have talked to Buster Keaton’s widow, Eleanor, a couple of times. Once was at a private home in Iola, Kansas, around 11 p.m., in September, 1995. There were a dozen or so of us gathered, and Eleanor was sitting in an overstuffed chair. To make it comfortable for both of us to converse, I got down on both my knees, pressing the left side of her chair, which elicited a smile and raised eyebrows to her nearby lady friends who were also seated. “Are you proposing?” she asked. We then talked about Buster, eye to eye. [In this case, my advice is what to do rather than not do. It could easily have become a no-no.] 
•DE DE PIERCE Advice: FIND OUT AHEAD OF TIME THAT YOUR CELEBRITY IS SIGHT IMPAIRED. In 1967, while attending Kansas State Teachers College (now Emporia State University), I interviewed the husband and wife team of Billie and De De Pierce, two elderly New Orleans musicians touring with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Introducing myself backstage before their concert, I held out my hand to shake De De’s. His wife quietly said to him, “He wants to shake your hand.” De De was totally blind, and I was unaware. 
•BERNADETTE PETERS Advice: DO NOT EVEN UNINTENTIONALLY MISLEAD BERNADETTE. During the hour I spent in Bernadette Peter’s dressing room following her concert in KC in 1995, I complimented her on the wonderful performance of “When You Wish Upon a Star” she sang at the AFI Salute to Steven Spielberg broadcast a few days earlier. Her eyes lit up, and she excitedly said, “Oh, you were there?!” “Er, no,” I said, “I watched it on TV.” Bernadette’s expression changed from ecstatic to pleasant as she then said, “Oh,” turning away to talk to someone else. 
•BILLY TAYLOR Advice: DO NOT TRY TO OUTTHINK THE BAND LEADER. While in the U. S. Army (and in uniform) in late January, 1971, I was in New York City sitting in the audience of The David Frost Show. Billy Taylor, the pianist/band leader, did the warm-up with the audience, and called on me. “Where are you from?” he asked. My reply: “You mean…now?” It got a big laugh from Taylor and the audience. Since I was in transit from Fort Dix, New Jersey to Germany, I wasn’t sure whether he wanted my itinerary or my home town. 
•JASON PATRIC Advice: DO NOT MENTION JACKIE GLEASON. When actor Jason Patric was in town promoting his new film, Narc, in 2002, his publicist sternly told me and other critics to not bring up anything about his grandfather, the late “Great One,” Jackie Gleason. It stemmed from Gleason deserting Patric’s grandmother and her kids (one was his mother, Linda Mae) many decades ago. He and his family never forgave Gleason.
•FRANKIE THOMAS Advice: DO YOUR HOMEWORK BEFORE MEETING FRANKIE. I ended up spending lunch in downtown Kansas City, Kansas with Mr. Thomas in 1997. He was part of an area comic book festival being held at Jack Reardon Center. I stopped by to meet my childhood hero (Tom Corbett, Space Cadet), who also co-starred in all those Warner Brothers Nancy Drew movies. Since it was around noon when I approached his table, and no one else was around, he asked if I wanted to have some coffee with him in the break room. Small talk ensued, and he talked about his admiration for John Litel, who played Nancy Drew’s father in the series. He also told of Bonita Granville’s having to tape down her breasts to look younger as Nancy Drew. I would have had much more to ask about Thomas’ career had I researched it before meeting him. (This was an impromptu interview, in other words.) 
•GLENN YARBROUGH Advice: DO NOT PHYSICALLY ABUSE YARBROUGH’S PIANIST. Meeting the “Baby, the Rain Must Fall” singer and former member of The Limelighters folk trio happened at the Civic Auditorium in Emporia, Kansas, in 1967. He had just finished his two hour concert, and I wrangled my way up on stage to meet the man himself. In the process of shaking his hand, I backed up and squarely stepped upon his pianist’s left foot. As I repeatedly apologized, Yarbrough kept laughing at the incident. His pianist painfully smiled.
•LARRY KERT Advice: AVOID TELLING HIM YOU ARE MEMBER OF THE INTERNATIONAL AL JOLSON SOCIETY. Outside his dressing room at KC’s Starlight Theatre in the summer of 1980, Larry Kert had just finished performing his Al Jolson Tonight! show when I complimented him. He shared a Jolson scrapbook I had brought along, chatted for about 15 minutes, and autographed a program. However, he was initially put off by my presence when I told him I was a member of the International Al Jolson Society. He said, “I’m surprised you are complimenting me. I’ve heard nothing but complaints and criticisms from other Jolson Society members while I’ve been on tour with this show.” Indeed Kert was definitely not a Jolson soundalike, but he had the drive and enthusiasm of Jolson, and connected with the audience as he sang Jolie’s songs. I told him as much, and he appreciated the positives. 
•PAT PAULSEN Advice: DO NOT EXPECT A REAL AUTOGRAPH. The late Pat Paulsen was a very funny comic with a distinctive style of delivery and humor. A running joke was his comedic presidential campaigning, which he did every four years for a decade or so. In 1990, I interviewed him in his dressing room at the Civic Auditorium in Emporia, Kansas. It was essentially a comedy concert, since he would not answer one question seriously. Then, when it was time to get his autograph (yes, interviewers are fans too), he stamped my blank paper with the inscription, “Stamped By Pat Paulsen.” I reminded him of this hilarious incident years later when I happened upon him at his winery in Napa Valley, California.•PETER FALK Advice: DO NOT STRAY FROM THE PURPOSE OF THE INTERVIEW. The Sept. 1, 2005 45-minute roundtable interview with Falk was all about his starring role in The Thing About My Folks, which was soon to open nationwide. KC was part of a cross-country promotion for the movie in which he played Paul Reiser’s father. We were supposed to have a separate half hour with each actor, but Reiser could not make it.
So Falk’s time was extended. The half dozen of us were seemingly blessed with getting to pick Falk’s brain for an unexpectedly lengthy time. There were questions ranging from Columbo to John Cassavetes to It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World to his numerous movie and TV parts. Falk would start to answer, say, one about his work with John Cassavetes. Then he would catch himself, and say, “Naw, naw…let’s stay with the reason I’m here. Let’s only talk about The Thing About My Folks.” After a couple of mundane publicity questions and answers, one of us would stroll back into Don’t Ask territory. “Mr. Falk, your years on Columbo were….” And Falk would interject, “Er…that’s all covered in my upcoming book, Just One More Thing. Now let’s get back to The Thing About My Folks, which is one terrific motion picture, maybe my best performance.”
Back and forth we went, trying to get to the interesting stuff. But Falk was savvy, and politely balked at answering anything outside of his current flick. It became a game of trickery, but we were up against Detective Columbo. He could not lose.
Meeting Ed Asner ~or~ Two Uneasy Souls Share An Embarrassing Hour Together
By Steve CrumEd Asner, Dee Wallace, and I have at least one thing in common: we graduated from Wyandotte High School in Kansas City, Kansas. Dee (then Deanna Bowers—long before she was the Mom in E.T.) was part of the 1966 Bulldog grads. I graduated a year earlier. Asner’s senior year ended a tad earlier, in 1947. That was also the year of my birth.
Dee and I both worked on Big Red’s school newspaper, The Pantograph. In fact, she was my cub reporter when I was on the Senior Staff. However, I confess I never knew her well then. Definitely I knew OF her, since she was a cheerleader, star of stage productions, and an overall popular young lady. I have since interviewed her a couple of times for the local newspaper.Ed Asner is another matter. The seven-time Emmy winning actor, forever linked with Lou Grant and Mary Tyler Moore, is a guy I had never met…until a warm day in 2002. He was the guest at a special tribute for him held in Wyandotte’s stately theatre.
Asner was honored as both a favorite son and prestigious Wyandotte graduate. His allegiance to his alma mater is well known. After all, for years a framed photo of himself as a Wyandotte football player was displayed in at least half of all Mary Tyler Moore Show episodes. Look at any given scene taking place in Lou’s office. His football pic is clearly seen on the wall behind Lou’s desk.
Before Asner’s tribute, I had sent e-mails to all my fellow film critics and entertainment writers to remind them of the Asner event. At that time, I was writing my weekly film column at the Kansas City Kansan, so my participation in the Asner event was solely as an audience member. Since I was not officially a newspaper staff member, I assumed The Kansan had assigned a reporter and photographer to cover the affair. 
As Asner sat with local dignitaries on the front row in the audience, student dancers and singers performed for him on stage. Speakers praised him, and a brief video was shown, covering Asner’s illustrious career. Asner was touched, and was nearly in tears when he thanked everyone from the stage in concluding remarks. After observing handshakes, pats on Asner’s back, and falderal, I joined the audience in departing the premises. A good pal of mine, the now late Vince Koehler, greeted me and asked if I was sticking around for punch and cookies in the adjoining Little Theatre. “Ed Asner will be there,” Vince said, “and I want to get some photos of him with the press.” I agreed to tag along, planning to stay for a few minutes.
Walking into the large, high-walled room, we noticed Ed Asner standing near the punch bowl. He was alone, not even a handler or agent with him. Not one reporter or photographer from any radio, TV or newspaper outlet in Greater Kansas City was present. Not one local civic leader or politician was there. The school principal had skipped out as well. I was jaw-dropping stunned at the scene. What an insult to Ed Asner. What an embarrassment. I felt shame for everyone who should have been there. Most of all, I felt sorry for Ed.
Here I had planned on observing from afar, and now I could not help but walk up to the man and chat with him as a makeshift greeter. Whenever I interview any celebrity, I always do my homework and have questions ready to ask. Otherwise, my mind blanks out. Unprepared was I, understandably so.
It was then friend Vince said, “I’ll stand back here and take some pictures of the two of you.” My response was “But…but…but….” and Vince snapped away. I was air-headedly hoping that just introducing myself to Asner would take at least 20 minutes, and then I could leave. As I stood there with a very patient and seemingly unfettered Ed Asner, I wondered who had brought Asner here, and why isn’t he/she with him now? It appeared that Ed was driven to the event, dropped off, and the driver was told to return at a given time which factored in both the auditorium time and the “reception” following. There were no cell phones in those days, so a quick call was not possible.
Ed Asner and I shook hands. I told him I had graduated in 1965, and that I was a long time fan of his. Groping for something original to say, I asked if he knew about the history of Wyandotte’s theatre, particularly the carved images across the top of the proscenium. He seemed interested, so I took him back to the theatre to see the images of men near the ceiling. Even though I knew only sketchy details, I spoke with conviction about the stick figures clasping each other’s hands that symbolized the four workers who had died during the theatre’s construction that began in 1935.
Nothing like a grim remembrance to get a conversation going. It’s my way of impressing multiple Emmy winners. Ed seemed to appreciate my mini-guided tour. We headed back to the punch and cookies.
Still no one had entered the room, so I decided to reference his brother, Ben, a guy I had known for years since he owned a popular area record store, Capers Corner. “Yes,” commented Ed, “Ben is a character.” I told Ed about the time in 1967 when I shopped at Ben’s store. Ed, then known as Edward, was co-starring in Blake Edwards’ Gunn, a movie version of the popular TV show, Peter Gunn. Ben had a large Gunn poster hanging near the store’s entrance, and he stopped me as I entered to point out the poster. (He was probably stopping each person entering.) Ben proclaimed, “That’s my brother’s movie!” Sure enough, Ben had boldly circled Ed’s name and labeled it “MY BROTHER.” Ed smiled at my telling. 
That took all of 50 seconds, and there we stood. Ed was as bad about small talk as I was. I sensed he was growing a bit frustrated about the situation as the minutes ticked on. As we stood facing each other, he would repeatedly poke me in my stomach like I was the Pillsbury Dough Boy. I stood about 6’ to Asner’s 5’ 7”, making index finger contact with my tummy a given. My fat gut only encouraged him. Finally, after nearly 60 minutes of small talk and testing the resilience of my stomach, Asner’s driver appeared, and accompanied his boss outside, down the steps (Asner tripped, but Vince caught him), and into the awaiting car.
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Lo and behold, I recently discovered Ed Asner and I share another Wyandotte memory. We both worked as feature page editors for the school newspaper, The Pantograph. In a 2002 interview I stumbled upon two days ago, Asner said, “I was feature page editor of the Wyandotte High School Pantograph—the only editor who was an editor and played football at the same time.” Another commonality we share: Asner’s journalism teacher was Mr. William Corporon. Seventeen years later, Corporon was my principal at Wyandotte. 
I only knew of Asner’s being a football jock. Had I known about his Pantograph experience, and his working with Corporon, our punch bowl conversation could easily have filled an hour. And maybe Asner would have focused more on drinking punch, and less on giving my stomach a playful punch. Brosnan kicks butt as vengeful, bitter spy in ‘The November Man’
By Steve CrumWhereas Pierce Brosnan as James Bond would bed down virtually all the ladies he encountered, Brosnan’s Peter Devereaux spy has a lot more than ladies on his mind in the edgy thriller worth seeing, The November Man. Here is a ticked-off ex-CIA guy, driven by revenge, and bitter about virtually everything and everybody. It appears that years of faithful government service have twisted Devereaux into his cold hearted demeanor, and now he is surrounded by assassins. Literally.
Maybe it is a cheap shot to make comparisons between Brosnan’s Bond and Brosnan’s Devereaux, but maybe not. After all, he portrayed the man “licensed to kill” in four movies, 1995-2002. The spy genre has been a staple for Brosnan’s career, one that jump started with his title role in TV’s Remington Steele. Despite showing his acting chops in the heavy drama Evelyn, and a musical detour in Mama Mia!, it is Brosnan as a spy the public pays big bucks to savor. In fact, early last year, Brosnan enthusiastically admitted, “We’re gonna do a piece called November Man, so I shall jump back into that arena.” He even played a reluctant spy in 2001’s The Tailor of Panama.Back he is, and, despite all the expected violence, it makes for comfort viewing. As “The November Man,” Brosnan is a nitty, gritty, Bondish (due to his handsomeness) secret agent with absolutely no penchant for tongue-in-cheek joking, drinking non-stirred booze, or loyalty to the Queen. The gimmicky gadgetry is absent too.
The film is based on one of a popular series of spy novels written by Bill Granger. Director Roger Donaldson, who helmed Dante’s Peak (with Brosnan), nicely balances pulsating action with intimate set pieces. Referencing the latter, of particular note is the car sequence involving Devereaux and his ex-wife. The “November Man” nickname is revealed in both the movie and its trailer: “After you passed through, nobody lived.” The moniker is apt with the qualification that many of the killings are attributable to the bad guys either chasing or being chased by Devereaux.
After a flashback introduction involving an assassination attempt and the emotionally upsetting outcome that caused CIA operative Devereaux to opt out of the spy game, the action resumes several years later. He is retired, and living a leisurely, obscure life in Switzerland. A young CIA protege, David Mason (played by Luke Bracey), finds Devereaux and wants him back in the spy game. Enough spoiler danger dangled, so let us say the action soon picks up. 
Devereaux becomes a reluctant spy who finds himself both with and against his former agency. His adversaries include a corrupt Russian official, the sleazy Arkady Fedorovc (Lazar Ristovski), who is responsible for heinous war crimes the CIA has kept covered up for years. In other words, who can Devereaux trust? Make that “whom.” Further complicating the works, Devereaux becomes a self-appointed protector of key witness Alice Founier (Olga Kurylenko)…who is being tracked by the calculating Russian assassin Alexa (Amila Terzimehic). Then there is Devereaux’s old CIA pal, Hanley (Bill Smitrovich), whose allegiance is questionable. To paraphrase Mad Magazine, it’s spy vs. spy vs. spy.
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Two side notes: [1] Olga Kurylenko was a Bond girl who played opposite Daniel Craig’s James Bond in Quantum of Solace…another Bond comparison. [2] Playing the assassin with the uniquely attractive face, Amila Terzimehic is a Bosnian champion gymnast. “Do all your friends try to kill you?” “Eventually,” answers Devereaux. Since a sequel to The November Man is already planned, just announced by Brosnan, Peter Devereaux will undoubtedly continue to encounter hopeless friendships. ——————————
GRADE on A-F Scale: B
Addressing the issue of cross-dressing in Hollywood
By Steve CrumTwo occurrences prompted my writing about actors cross-dressing on TV and in movies: the recent death of Robin Williams, and this week’s Entertainment Weekly cover that features Kevin Spacey in drag. Williams’ arguably best film role is that of the title character in Mrs. Doubtfire, which features him in a dual role of father/ex-husband who has lost child custody and chooses to pose as an elderly female nanny to be near his kids. The film is both hilarious and touching, and Robin Williams is brilliant.
The Kevin Spacey gag cover is his impression of Vice-President Selina Meyer (played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus) from the TV show Veep. An alternate cover for the same issue showcases Louis-Dreyfus dressed as Spacey’s President Frank Underwood in House of Cards, another hit television show. Tit for the proverbial tat. Cross-dressing has been around since the beginning of motion pictures and television. Glancing further back, I would not be surprised if cavemen sometimes dressed as cavewomen. There has to be a Neanderthal joke here somewhere.
Although I am not much of a fan of cross-dressing extremists like RuPaul and the like, there are some c-d bits and sequences that have made me laugh. I think the key is the c-d is done either by comedians or very good actors in the context of a script. A guy merely dressed like a babe, singing like Judy Garland, or traipsing around a stage like a female model is novelty at best. Transgender or not, his drag bit is a drag.
Listed in no particular order, here are my favorite cross-dressing memories (or mammaries) throughout TV and movie history. This is not a definitive listing. These are my picks.—————
•JULIE ANDREWS—Victor/Victoria (1982)…Andrews is superb as a Depression era talent in Paris who finds fame posing as a man posing as a woman singer. To make matters hilariously more complicated, James Garner’s hoodlum character falls for her/him/her.
•BOB HOPE—The Princess and the Pirate (1944)…Hope poses as a woman to avoid being hurt. He also dresses in drag in Casanova’s Big Night (1954), The Lemon Drop Kid (1951), and several other flicks. In many comedies, Hope’s included, the leading male comic dons a wig and dress to elude the bad guys.
•MILTON BERLE—from his Texaco Star Theater and onward (1948-throughout his long career)…Berle’s frequently portrayed drag queen was so identified with him he repeated it on a classic Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour episode in 1959.•ROBIN WILLIAMS—Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)…Williams is simply hilarious, from accidentally setting his (Mrs. Doubtfire’s) breasts on fire while cooking to his frantic quick changes at the restaurant.
•CURLY HOWARD of The Three Stooges—Uncivil Warriors (1935)…Romancing a Yankee general; and Micro-Phonies (1945)…Lip synching a record by a female opera singer.
•JACK LEMMON and TONY CURTIS—Some Like It Hot (1959)…In 1920’s Chicago, two musicians witness The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, and are soon on the run in an all-female band. But “nobody’s perfect.” 
•CARY GRANT—I Was a Male War Bride (1949)…Grant dresses as Ann Sheridan’s French female friend officer so he can return to the United States with his wife (Sheridan) during WWII. •TOM HANKS and PETER SCOLARI—Bosom Buddies (1980-82)…An entire series was inspired by Some Like It Hot, except this is set in an all-female boarding house in which the two young men are living out of desperation.
•HARVEY LEMBECK—Stalag 17 (1953)…Lembeck gussies up as a makeshift woman to dance with Animal (Robert Strauss) during Christmas in a German POW camp.
•ALAN HALE with male cast members—This Is The Army (1943)…Irving Berlin’s song, “Ladies of the Chorus,” gets cross-dressing laughs.
•JACK BENNY & RAY BOLGER—Charley’s Aunt (1941) & Where’s Charley? (1952 ), respectively…In both Benny’s comedy take and Bolger’s musical comedy version (“Once in Love with Amy”), the stars portray a friend’s proper, dowdy aunt. On TV and stage, Benny occasionally dressed up as Gracie Allen to play comedy opposite George Burns. 
•MARY MARTIN—Peter Pan (1955)…It was an original, live television spectacular when Mary Martin acted, flew, and sang as the boy who never grew up.
•ANTHONY PERKINS—Psycho (1960)…Norman’s murderous momma is shown from above, in silhouette, and through a shower curtain at various times throughout Alfred Hitchcock’s chilling thriller, but he/she is finally seen in closeup during the basement scene near the end.
•TIM CURRY—The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)…Curry’s transvestite from Transsexual, Transylvania is a highlight of this cult musical comedy.
•DUSTIN HOFFMAN—Tootsie (1982)…He can only get a job acting in a soap opera if he is a woman, so Hoffman’s character dresses and acts (very well!) as a woman. •BARBRA STREISAND—Yentl (1983)…Babs plays a Polish Jew in early 1900’s who poses as a male to study the Talmud.
•GWYNETH PALTROW—Shakespeare in Love (1998)…Paltrow’s 16th Century Shakespearean actor won her a Best Actress Oscar.
•MARTIN LAWRENCE—Big Momma’s House (2000)…An FBI agent goes undercover. Lawrence can be very funny, and he is here.
•EDDIE MURPHY—The Nutty Professor (1996) as Granny Klump + the same role in the 2000 sequel. Murphy should have been Oscar nominated for brilliantly playing Granny and a half dozen other characters. Credit the makeup man as well. Tyler Perry’s Madea character was reportedly inspired by Murphy’s Granny Klump.
•GLENN CLOSE —Albert Nobbs (2011)…To make more money as a male butler in a posh 19th Century Irish hotel, she dresses the part. Close was Oscar nominated.
•BUSTER KEATON—Sherlock Jr. (1924)…Buster briefly wears dress and scarf to help him escape. Buster also went drag during The Hollywood Revue of 1929.
•MARLENE DIETRICH—Morocco (1930)…Dietrich, as cabaret singer Amy Jolly, wears a tuxedo, which turns on Gary Cooper’s legionnaire character. The very thought of her in a tux caused a minor sensation in 1930.
•STAN LAUREL (1934)—The March of the Wooden Soldiers aka Babes in Toyland…Stan dresses as a woman to trick the villain. He became a ballerina in 1943’s The Dancing Masters. In fact, Laurel posed as women in numerous movies.
•LIONEL BARRYMORE (1936)—The Devil Doll…Barrymore plays a murderous ex-con who hides as an old woman, sending out shrunken humans to kill his enemies.
•LON CHANEY—The Unholy Three (1925 silent and 1930 talkie)…”The Man of a Thousand Faces” plays both Prof. Echo and elderly Mrs. O’Grady, so disguised to help Echo and his gang perpetrate robberies. 
•ELIZABETH TAYLOR—National Velvet (1944)…Taylor’s Velvet Brown disguises herself as a male jockey so she can ride in a steeplechase.
•LOU COSTELLO—Abbott and Costello Meet The Killer, Boris Karloff (1949)…Lou is dressed as the hotel maid to hide from Karloff and associates.
•ALEC GUINESS—Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949)—One of Guiness’s many disguises is that of the distinguished, daffy Lady Agatha D’Ascoyne.•CHRISTOPHER HEWITT—The Producers (1968)…As c-d director Roger De Bris, Hewitt (later TV’s Mr. Belvedere) is expectedly flamboyant and funny.
•JOHN TRAVOLTA—Hairspray (2007)…Edna Turnblad is a major part of this musical comedy, and Travolta carries that big momma persona well.
•JOHNNY DEPP—Ed Wood (1994)…In character, Depp dresses as a woman in a couple of scenes.
•HARVEY KORMAN—Korman’s buxom Jewish woman popped up in multiple sketches on The Carol Burnett Show (1967-77).
•FLIP WILSON—Geraldine Jones on his Flip Wilson Show (1970-74)…His/her catchphrase was “The devil made me buy this dress!”•KENAN THOMPSON—Saturday Night Live (2003-14)…Thompson has hilariously played a variety of characters, including female.
•JAMIE FARR—M*A*S*H (1972-83)…While Farr’s Corporal Klinger repeatedly tried to get out of the Army by dressing as a woman, he eventually gave up. Then he married a Korean woman. —————
An addendum: Radio had its own c-d star. Actually, he was a cross-talker since radio was an audio medium. Beulah featured a black maid, Beulah, who was voiced by Marlin Hurt, a white male. When the show was later renamed The Marlin Hurt and Beulah Show, Hurt did both Beulah’s voice as well as her white male employer.
No, I did not forget ventriloquist Edgar Bergen, who voiced the very astute female Effie Klinker in addition to male dummies Charley McCarthy and Mortimer Snerd.