Q. I'd like some information on Debra Winger: where she went to school; what she's done lately. - M.L., Denver.
A. Hollywood's wild child attended public schools in her native Cleveland, Ohio, and two years at Cal State Northridge (studying sociology). In spite of a great start in movies in the early 1980s with "Urban Cowboy," "An Officer and a Gentleman" and "Terms of Endearment," Winger's career has been in low gear the past few years. She was supposed to be in this summer's "A League of Their Own" but withdrew after some problems.Q. Would it be possible to get some information about Larry Parks? As I recall, he was born in Illinois. - L.N., St. Joseph, Mo.
A. Parks was born in Olathe, Kan., but he attended the University of Illinois. A minor actor in minor movies most of his career, he found sudden fame in 1946 as Al Jolson in "The Jolson Story," following it in 1949 with "Jolson Sings Again." In the early 1950s, Parks' career came to a sudden end when he admitted to the House UnAmerican Activities Committee that he had once been a member of the Communist Party. After that he made only two movies. He died in 1975.
Q. Tell me about the movie "The Picture of Dorian Gray." Wasn't it filmed with either Cornel Wilde or Rock Hudson? All we see is an old one with someone else. - T.L. Tindall, Chicago.
A. The 1945 Hurd Hatfield feature is probably the best-known and the best version of Oscar Wilde's classic about the man who remains forever young. There is a 1970 European feature with Helmut Berger as Gray titled simply "Dorian Gray," plus two TV versions both titled "The Sins of Dorian Gray": a 1973 two-parter starring Shane Briant and a 1983 version with Gray as a woman, starring Belinda Baer.
Q. I saw a film not long ago with Patric Knowles. Is he still alive? I think I knew him in England under a different first name. - J.B., Sacramento, Calif.
A. Knowles was born Reginald Laurence Knowles in Leeds, England, in 1911. He did several movies in England before he was brought to the United States in 1935 to play in "The Charge of the Light Brigade." He's been in the United States ever since, having served in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II. His last movie was "Arnold" in 1973. Good investments in California real estate have given him a comfortable retirement.
Q. My father and I have a bet going on the age of Ricky Schroder. My father says he's in his thirties. I say he can't be that old. - M.C., St. Marys, Ohio.
A. He isn't. But it's Rick Schroder now; he's an adult actor of 22. He's been at it since he was 9 in 1979's "The Champ."
Q. "The Guiding Light" recently became my favorite soap because of the addition of Melissa Hayden as Briget Reardon. Tell me about her and where I can write. - C.R.B., Bridgeton, N.J.
A. Hayden is 24, a native of Santa Monica, Calif., started acting at 13 in two features, "Pennies from Heaven" and "Annie." She made her TV debut in "General Hospital," had her first regular TV role in the sitcom "Almost Grown." She joined "GL" in May 1991. Write: CBS-TV, 51 W. 52nd St., New York, NY 10019.
Q. Please give some information on Victor Newman of "The Young and the Restless." I heard he was from Germany. What is his real name and age? Where can I write him? - B.J., Lincolnton, N.C.
A. Eric Braeden is 51. He was born Hans Gudegast in Keil, Germany. He came to the United States at 18 in 1959 to visit a cousin and stayed to go to college in Montana and California. He did movies and the TV series "The Rat Patrol" under his real name, then changed it, he says, to avoid typecasting as a German villain. He joined "Y and R" in 1980. Write: CBS-TV, 7800 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90036.
Q. I love "In Living Color." Tell me about the man who plays Fire Marshal Bill. - S.C., Howell, Mich.
A. That's Jim Carrey, 30, a native of Toronto. He went to work at 16 to help his family, started in comedy at 17. He landed in Los Angeles and in the NBC comedy "The Duck Factory" in 1984. He's made several features and made his TV drama debut this year in the movie "Doing Time on Maple Drive." He's married with one daughter.
Q. May I have some information on Sam Waterston, of "I'll Fly Away," the best-looking man on TV? Where can I write to him? Is it true the show will be canceled? - D.R., Charlotte, N.C.
A. Waterston is 52, a native of Cambridge, Mass., who attended Groton and Yale and spent a year at the Sorbonne in Paris. He started acting out of college and made his Broadway debut in 1962 in "Oh Dad, Poor Dad." His theater credits range from Shakespeare to Noel Coward. On TV, he did one series, "Q.E.D." (and said he never intended to do another), and the PBS miniseries "Oppenheimer," plus TV movies like "Friendly Fire." His movie credits include two Woody Allen films, "Hannah and Her Sisters" and "Interiors," and his Oscar nominated role in "The Killing Fields." Write: NBC-TV, 30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10012. NBC decided to keep "I'll Fly Away" another season in spite of low ratings. But if audiences don't pick up expect to see it fade by midseason.
Q. What has happened to Stepfanie Kramer since she left "Hunter?" - G., Detroit.
A. For one thing, she got married May 24 to financial advisor Mark Richards. The singing career she gave as the reason to depart the cop show doesn't seem to have materialized.
Q. Please tell me the name of the show Dennis James hosted. - J.F., Longmont, Colo.
A. Gulp. Which one of James' 19 game/quiz/variety shows do you have in mind? He's been on TV since 1938, when TV was still in its infancy. His first game show was "Cash and Carry" in 1946. His roster includes: "Okay, Mother" on the DuMont network in 1948 and named for a catch phrase he used while describing wrestling on DuMont; the game with the weirdest name, "Haggis Baggis"; taking over for Fred Allen on "Judge for Youself"; filling in for Bert Parks on "Stop the Music"; and a syndicated version of "The Price Is Right." His longest run was on "Chance of a Lifetime" from 1952-56.
Q. Give me some information on Jim Varney. - S.T., Lima, Ohio.
A. Born in Lexington, Ky., Jim Varney is 42 and, after 12 years of doing Ernest P. Worrell in nearly 3,000 commercials and three movies, people forget he had an acting career before he said "Hey, Vern" for the first time. He was a regular on seven TV series from "The Johnny Cash Show" to "Alice" and "The Rousters." Varney and wife Jaqi have twin sons. They live in Nashville, Tenn.
Q. In the early 1970s, wasn't there a cartoon "Wait `Til Your Father Gets Home" that aired on ABC? My co-workers say I'm crazy. Also, who was the voice of Fred Flintstone? - N.M., Philadelphia.
A. There was, in 1972. But it was syndicated, not a network show, and possibly was not seen where your co-workers lived at the time. It was aimed at adults and drew inspiration from "All in the Family." Alan Reed voiced Fred Flinstone.
Q. What has happened to Robert Hegyes of "Welcome Back, Kotter" in the 1970s? - A.R., Irvine, Calif.
A. Like the other Sweathogs from "Kotter" (with the exception of John Travolta, of course), Hegyes career went into low gear after the series departed in 1979. He's done TV guest roles, a few movies, worked on stage (including one play with "Kotter" co-star Gabe Kaplan) and had a regular role in "Cagney and Lacey."
Q. Please give me the address of Burt Reynolds of "Evening Shade." - J.L., Pearl Beach, Mich.
A. Write: CBS-TV, 7800 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90036.
Q. I enjoy watching "The Waltons" reruns and love Richard Thomas, who plays John Boy. How old is he; where did he grow up; has he a wife and children? - B.D., Salamanca, N.Y.
A. Thomas is 41, a New Yorker born and raised (both his parents danced with American Ballet Company). He married Alma Gonzales in 1975 and they are the parents of a son, 15, and triplet girls, 10. The couple recently separated but no divorce is planned.
Q. Aren't the recent brushes with death by Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa material for a feature film?
A. Even before the controversial defender-of-the-streets was ambushed in a taxi in June, Oscar-winning director John Avildsen ("Rocky" and "The Power of One") had been working several years on the Sliwa saga. Earlier this year Avildsen said he had decided to concentrate on Curtis' youth. But Sliwa's latest escape can't be omitted, the director says. Sliwa dived out of the taxi window with bullet wounds in his legs and lower abdomen. "In April he was clubbed by three men with bats, and now this," Avildsen said. "Curtis is down but will be bouncing up again as the real-life caped crusader."
Q. Did Cylk Cozart, who appeared in the movie "White Men Can't Jump," once play professional basketball?
A. Cozart, born and raised in Knoxville, Tenn., aimed for a basketball career. He had a tryout with the NBA's Denver Nuggets in 1980, but a foot injury sidelined him after training camp. Cozart headed to Hollywood and roles in "Staggerlee" and "School Daze" and TV shows including "Gabriel's Fire" and "Hunter."
Q. Was Jackie Gleason really Jason Patric's grandfather, or is that mere hype?
A. The Great One was indeed Patric's grandpa. Gleason wasn't much of a father, but occasionally he was an endearing grandfather. When Patric's mother Linda was born, Gleason wasn't around. "He was to be an absentee father for decades to come, sending big checks and making lavish purchases but rarely investing much of his time," writes William A. Henry 3d in "The Great One" (Doubleday). "He told colleagues from Art Carney to agent Sam Cohn that he considered himself a failure at fatherhood."
- Send your questions to Celebrity Questions, Detroit Free Press, 321 W. Lafayette Blvd, Detroit, MI 48231.