OLD GOLDEN HOLLYWOOD

Probably the 1930's. A bit before my time in Hollywood, which began in the late 1950's when the Capitol Records building towered over the record business. Looks like Vine Street to me.

Used under terms and conditions with thanks from Dover Publishing

(125) THE BIG GRAPEVINE / ELVIS GOT THE INSIDER INFORMATION

Elvis was one of the most popular stars in the world and as a result he got privileged information. He was attached to what we called "the Big Grapevine," - Inside Information - the real truth - about a great number of stories that hit the press - and the rag sheets - spun a whole other way. We'd be sitting around the house talking and laughing and he'd tell something he learned that was particularly scandalous or strange, like the idiosyncrasies of other top stars. He knew things about everybody.

There was a top star - a singer - who was a kleptomaniac but only for neck ties...

Elvis said that President of Columbia Pictures, Harry Cohn (and his wife), had given millions to charity but didn't want anyone to know about it. So he would threaten to kill anyone who told in such a serious and intimidating manner that even when he laughed people took him seriously.

One time an actor visited Harry personally upset about the budget of a film he was working on. The star wanted to quit. Harry and the star got into it, and the star took a leisurely whizz all over Harry's desk, which was covered with scripts for the film...

We used to laugh and joke about all of this.

JAMES DEAN OR MARLON BRANDO?

If you could be either

the Next James Dean or The Next Marlon Brando

which would you be?

(10) Will The Real JAMES DEAN Please Stand Up?

Ever since the waitress on roller skates told me I looked like James Dean I'd made it a point to learn all I could about him. I saw his movies, "Rebel Without A Cause," and "Giant," and I had become a big James Dean fan. But James Dean had died in a tragic accident, one that shocked my generation.

For years since his death, James Dean has been idolized by actors around the world. I can't imagine trying to fit in such big shoes now, but as a 20 year old in New York, signed to United Artists as Wes Bryan, I felt up to the challenge. Hollywood was looking for someone to take his place - why not me?

"James Dean; actor, photographer, race driver, artist, ultimate rebel and represented by CMG Worldwide is one of the greatest Legends of the 20th Century."

http://www.jamesdean.com/
THE OFFICIAL SITE OF JAMES DEAN
http://people.smu.edu/shhill/index.html JAMES DEAN Uninhibited

REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE (1955) on IMDb Movie Databasehttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048545/

GIANT (1956) on IMDb Movie Database - NEW LIKE 1/12/2011 click on title.