In 1968, Keaton landed her first major professional role in the original Broadway production of the rock musical Hair. Notably, she was one of the few cast members who declined to undress for the show’s famous nude scene.

In 1969, she auditioned for Woody Allen’s Broadway play Play It Again, Sam. Her performance as Linda Christie earned her a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Play. This role sparked a long-term creative partnership and a romantic relationship with Allen.

Even in the late 1960s, Keaton was known for an idiosyncratic and personal style that favored vintage and thrifted pieces. She frequently visited Goodwill stores, which she called her “sanctuary,” to find unique items. Her look was characterized by a “fresh-faced” naturalism and a preference for unconventional fashion choices, such as requesting to wear a bowler hat to her high school prom just a few years earlier.

Photographers of the era, such as Peter Basch, captured her in 1968 as a young actress with a “relaxed yet sophisticated” demeanor, marking her as a unique presence compared to the typical Hollywood starlets of the time.

On July 17, 1939, Donn was hiking to the 5,267-foot summit of Mount Katahdin with his father, two brothers, and two family friends. Eager to reach the top, Donn surged ahead of his father and brothers. When a sudden, thick mist enveloped the peak, he became disoriented. Ignoring advice to stay put, he attempted to find his way back to his family but instead wandered into the dense, trackless wilderness. 

For nine days, Donn wandered approximately 80 to 100 miles through the Maine woods. He survived by recalling his father’s advice and Boy Scout training, he followed small streams downhill, knowing they would eventually lead to a river and civilization. He subsisted on wild strawberries and checkerberries.

Donn lost his shoes, trousers, and shirt while attempting to cross a stream, eventually wandering barefoot. He slept in a large burlap sack he found to stay warm during freezing nights. He encountered black bears, deer, and relentless swarms of insects and leeches. 

On July 25, 1939, Donn spotted a telephone line and followed it to a remote hunting camp near Stacyville, Maine. He was dehydrated, covered in bug bites, and had lost 16 pounds, but was otherwise remarkably unharmed.

His survival was front-page news across the U.S.. President Franklin D. Roosevelt awarded him the Army & Navy Legion of Valor’s medal for outstanding youth hero of 1939. Donn co-authored the book Lost on a Mountain in Maine (1939), which became a staple of Maine school curriculums for generations. He served as a Green Beret in the U.S. Army during WWII and the Vietnam War, retiring as a lieutenant colonel. He died in 2016 at the age of 90.

In 2024, his story was adapted into a feature film titled Lost on a Mountain in Maine, produced by Sylvester Stallone.

The brothers grew up in a household dominated by their father, Tommy Gallagher, who was an alcoholic and frequently violent. Both Noel and the eldest brother, Paul, were regularly beaten by their father. Interestingly, Liam (the “baby” of the family) was largely spared from the physical abuse, which created an early psychological divide between the brothers. The trauma was so severe that both Noel and Paul developed stammers. They eventually required four years of speech therapy to overcome them.

In 1982, when Liam was 10 and Noel was 15, Peggy took the children and left Tommy while he was out, moving them to a new home in Burnage to escape the violence. In both their old and new homes, Noel and Liam were forced to share a bedroom, while the eldest brother, Paul, had his own. This forced proximity contributed to their lifelong habit of arguing.

The five-year age gap and the differing treatment from their father shaped their personalities. Often described as a “daydreamer” and a “weirdo” by Liam, Noel spent much of his time alone in his room. He was the “scapegoat” for his father’s anger and learned to withdraw into his own world—which is where he began teaching himself guitar. Liam was the “golden child” of the family. He was high-energy, obsessed with football (Manchester City), and didn’t actually show any interest in music until he was nearly 18. He was a self-described “little sh*t” who spent his time getting into mischief and “wagging” (skipping) school.

Both parents were Irish immigrants (from Mayo and Meath). The brothers spent many summers in rural Ireland with their mother’s family, which they credit for their storytelling ability and “give-a-damn” attitude. They attended St. Bernard’s RC Primary and later Barlow Roman Catholic High. Neither was academically inclined; Noel was eventually expelled for allegedly throwing a flour bomb at a teacher, and Liam left with no qualifications.

Despite their later fame, their mother Peggy famously refused to move into a mansion. When the brothers became millionaires, she reportedly only asked them for a new garden gate.