Tony Piazza's Blog, page 8
May 31, 2013
In Old Chicago (1937): Hollywood History Vs. Fact
My wife’s great, great grandmother was Mrs. O’Leary of the Chicago fire fame. This is no “coming over on the Mayflower” legend of the family, but a documented fact. One of the O’Leary daughters married a Cooke…the same Cooke family that spawned the silent movie actor and actress I mentioned in an earlier [...]
May 21, 2013
BULLITT 45th ANNIVERSARY EVENT
As film historian, I will be sharing my movie memories about being on the set of “Bullitt” and meeting and eventually working with STEVE MCQUEEN. The occasion is the 45th Anniversary of the film “Bullitt” which will be taking place in the bay area June 20- 23. Chad McQueen will be present, a car show is [...]
May 8, 2013
Marion Davies by Tony Piazza
Actress/comedienne MARION DAVIES (Jan. 3, 1897- Sept. 22, 1961). Davies was mistress to newspaper tycoon, WILLIAM RANDOLPH HEARST. She was hostess at many of Hearst’s parties, including those at Hearst Castle in San Simeon, California. Guests at these affairs usually included such notable actors as CHARLIE CHAPLIN, DOUGLAS FAIRBANKS, and MARY PICKFORD. Hearst micro-managed [...]
May 7, 2013
April 24, 2013
Surprise Celebrities in the Family by Tony Piazza
Myrtle Gonzales (my wife’s second cousin) You’ll never know what you’ll dig up when you start exploring the roots of your ancestral tree. This tree isn’t mine however, but the paternal side of my wife’s family. Incidentally, I’m afraid to trace my roots. My father’s side originated in Sicily, and I may find out that I’m related [...]
April 15, 2013
Karl Malden’s Joke by Tony Piazza
This is a short memory, but a fond one. We (the crew of “The Streets of San Francisco”) were shooting a scene for an episode near Ghirardelli Square. As with most location shooting, we were attracting a crowd. And with this being a Friday night and a popular tourist spot, even more so than normal. [...]
February 22, 2013
Victor Mature and the Lion. By Tony Piazza
Mature with Hedy Lamarr in Samson and Delilah CECIL B. DEMILLE and VICTOR MATURE was the subject of a story told by CUBBY BROCCOLI in his excellent autobiography, “When the Snow Melts.” My wife’s uncle, worked for DeMille as a groundskeeper at his Paradise Ranch in Little Tujunga Canyon. I met Broccoli, as you may remember [...]
February 12, 2013
Early Hollywood: Will Rogers Park. By Tony Piazza
WILL ROGERS was an extremely popular celebrity of the 1920s and 30s. He was a film actor, cowboy trick roper, vaudeville performer, humorist, and social commentator. His political wit was widely read through the syndicated columns he wrote for national newspapers. “I never met a man that I didn’t like.” ― Will Rogers. Early Will Rogers [...]
February 7, 2013
A Short Observation about Meeting the Famous Perry Mason. By Tony Piazza
Erle Perry Mason was the creation of Erle Stanley Gardner. Gardner was a bestselling author who had a total of 135 million of copies of his books available during the time of his death in the late 1960s. Eighty of his novels and short stories featured Perry Mason, a fictional defense attorney who along with [...]
January 9, 2013
My Meeting with Dr. No by Tony Piazza
Cinema Retro produced a fiftieth anniversary salute to James Bond in their release of the amazing magazine “Movie Classics,” which dedicates all of its 148 pages to the first Bond film “Dr No.” It’s a marvelous read, filled with fun information and detailed facts which more or less follow the chronology of the [...]
