Dear Ken: What’s the background of Rooney Mara, who plays Erica Albright in the movie “The Social Network”?

Mara, 25, who last starred as Nancy in this year’s remake of “Nightmare on Elm Street,” is currently making “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.” She is the younger sister of actress Kate Mara, and the great-granddaughter of Art Rooney, the founder of the Pittsburgh Steelers football team. In 2005, she appeared in “Urban Legends: Bloody Mary,” a horror flick, with her sister. Rooney operates a charity, Faces of Kibera, which benefits orphans in a Nairobi, Kenya, slum.

Dear Ken: I love the show “Pawn Stars.” Where did the guy named Chumlee pick up his nickname?

Austin “Chumlee” Russell got it from friends in elementary school who nicknamed him from the walrus who was the sidekick to the penguin star of the 1960s Saturday morning cartoon show “Tennessee Tuxedo.” He and Corey Harrison, his best bud on the show, have been friends for 15 years. In case you didn’t know, there is now Chumlee merchandise on the market, including shirts, shot glasses, coffee cups, golf balls, cigar cutters and even a bobblehead.

Dear Ken: My favorite Thanksgiving movie is “Trains, Planes & Automobiles.” Who is the woman who played the wife of Steve Martin? What else has she been in?

That is actress Laila Robins, 51, a native of St. Paul, Minn., who works a lot on the stage. Among her other film credits are “The Good Shepherd,” “True Crime,” “Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael” and “A Walk on the Moon.” Her TV credits are “Gabriel’s Fire,” “Law & Order,” “The Sopranos,” “Witchblade,” “The Book of Daniel” and “Army Wives.”

Dear Ken: I am familiar with “The Thin Man” movie series, starring William Powell and Myrna Loy, but it seems to me there was once a short-lived TV series as well. Well, was there?

Yep. It ran for two seasons, from 1957 to 1959, and starred Peter Lawford as Nick Charles and Phyllis Kirk as his wife, Nora Charles. And they had their dog, Asta, as well. 

If you have a trivia question about actors, singers, movies, TV shows or pop culture, e-mail your query to Ken Beck at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it