Cinema Scholars recently sat down for a chat with television producer, columnist, and historian Alison Martino to discuss Old Hollywood, growing up in Beverly Hills in and around celebrity circles, and a variety of other topics she’s interested in.
A native of Los Angeles, Alison is an expert on the history of the City of Angels. She’s a writer as well as a reporter for Spectrum News and has worked as a television producer over the years. She’s also the daughter of singer and actor Al Martino (The Godfather). Check out her website, Vintage L.A. at www.alisonmartino.com.
Ben: What was it like growing up with Old Hollywood? Tell me your perspective and your experiences?
Alison: “I grew up in the 70’s which was a very, very different place. When I grew up in Beverly Hills, nobody had ever heard of the ZIP code 90210 (laughs). That TV show was made later which made the zip code very famous. I never thought anything of growing up in my neighborhood. I knew it was a show-business town but I also went to school with a lot of kids who had parents who were bankers and business people. It wasn’t always “Show Business.”
Alison: “Beverly Hills was a small town. It was like a village. For example, you would see Doris Day riding her bike, or Fred Astaire at the post office. Kirk Douglas lived a block away from us and Edward G. Robinson lived directly across the street. There were a lot of old Hollywood celebrities living in my neighborhood at that time.”
Alison: “I lived really close to the famous Roxbury Drive, which you wrote a really great article about (Click Here to Read It). Stars like Lucille Ball, Rosemary Clooney, Jack Benny, and Jimmy Stewart all lived on that block. It has changed quite a bit too, but it’s still familiar.”
Ben: I don’t know what it is about that Roxbury article that captures the imagination of so many people. People love that article so much.
Alison: “I wrote a similar article about The Witch’s House (Click Here to Read It), which is over on Walden and that story goes viral every couple of months. Somebody shares it and it just goes “Whooo!” or I should say, “BOO!” Millions read it each year because of its kooky storybook architecture.”
Alison: “Today a lot of the old houses have been torn down. So when a house is still standing from the 20’s or the 30’s there’s always a chance it’s going to get knocked down. That started in the 80’s and it’s gotten really bad recently.”
Ben: What other celebrities did you see around Beverly Hills when you were growing up?
Alison: “I used to see Jack Lemmon at Thrifty getting ice cream for 35 cents and Milton Berle in the turnstile at Carl’s Market. I saw Fred Astaire at the post office when I was like six. My mom explained who that was. Obviously, this is the pre-TMZ era. There wasn’t that feeling that everything was going to end up on the Internet.”
Alison: “Once I asked Elizabeth Taylor for her autograph. Today people would want a selfie (laughs). You’d go to hot spots like Chasen’s or the Daisy (Click Here to Read Alison’s article about it), which was very popular in Beverly Hills. The Daisy was where Aaron Spelling met his wife Candy and where O.J. Simpson met Nicole Brown. That place was so popular that director Paul Schrader shot a sequence starring Richard Gere in his 1980 noir film American Gigolo there.”
Alison: “I used to see Natalie Wood shopping for her kids in a little clothing boutique called Pixie Town. Back then it was normal to see big Hollywood stars walking around casually. Today you don’t really see them like you used to because so many of them have passed on or have left the Beverly Hills area. I still see Warren Beatty around though, and I see Al Pacino at Dan Tana’s quite frequently.”
Ben: Do you know Al Pacino well?
Alison: “Yeah, obviously he was in The Godfather with Dad. So sure, I do. They (Al Pacino and Al Martino) had a short scene together in Las Vegas with Moe Greene (Alex Rocco). I think he’s (Pacino) one of the nicest guys in Hollywood.”
Ben: This is great. I think people are really going to respond to this because this is the kind of information that no one else is providing.
Alison: In the 1970’s I used to roller-skate around town. When I was growing up in Beverly Hills the big labels on Rodeo Drive didn’t have as big a presence as they do today. But I’ll tell you what DID have a big presence…roller skating! (laughs). I used to lace up and skate from Camp Beverly Hills to Flipper’s Roller Disco. In fact, roller skating was so popular at that time it worked its way into movies and TV shows such as Xanadu and CHIPS, and Charlie’s Angels.
Alison: “Beverly Hills used to have a village feel. Instead of shopping on Rodeo Drive, we used to shop at Robinson’s department store, which they criminally tore down. Chasen’s is also gone, which was the last of the old Hollywood era. The Sunset Strip was very different. I grew up with painted billboards and now they are digital. I prefer the painted billboards they were works of art. Digital just isn’t the same.”
Alison: “During my youth, we had themed restaurants in Beverly Hills such as Trader Vic’s and the Luau. They were the real deal, with tiki torches, tiki totem poles, and water surrounding them. And that was just the exterior!! Sadly, the Polynesian craze has vanished.”
Ben: I just want to go back to what you said about Rodeo Drive. Even in 1983 or 84, whenever they shot Beverly Hills Cop, it was becoming that way already with the big brand stores and everything.
Alison: “But it still wasn’t like it is today. I remember when Beverly Hills Cop was being filmed because Eddie Murphy, who was in a limousine, pulled right up next to me and rolled down the window, gave me a thumbs up and he kinda made a face. I was like, “Oh my God!!” because Eddie Murphy was so huge at that time, you know? And it was such a thrill to see him and I loved that movie because it captured the Beverly Hills of my era perfectly.”
Alison: “I mean I love American Gigolo that’s probably my favorite L.A. film and movies like Body Double. I’m really into movies…that were filmed in L.A., like To Live and Die in L.A. and Down and Out in Beverly Hills. There are so many great films that captured the L.A. that I remember, especially 10, with Dudley Moore.”
Ben: Oh yeah, absolutely.
Alison: “That opening sequence of 10 gives me goosebumps every time I watch it because…it’s still your town. I mean, you still see it’s La Cienega, San Vicente, and Whittier Drive because I know those streets like the back of my hand. But yet it’s different now (laughs). So I relive a lot of my memories through movies. And oh my god let’s talk about all the fabulous shows like Columbo and Rockford Files that shot everything on location…They are the ultimate LA time capsules.”
Alison: “Developments are getting bigger today which is creating more traffic. I know we all complain about traffic, but it really wasn’t that back in the day. You could get from Hollywood to Santa Monica in 20 minutes. Today you can’t even get from West Hollywood to Beverly Hills in 20 minutes. It’s just a harder life. The houses are more expensive and real estate is booming like never before.”
Alison: “But I think it’s the greatest city in the world. It’s just really hard for me to see all the changes. This is why I created the online community, Vintage Los Angeles. My social media platforms have been designed to celebrate and reminisce about our city’s past and future. It’s important we understand the past in order to move forward.”
Ben: Well, one of the reasons we have this site is because we think it’s interesting. We learn a lot and we’re putting these articles out there…there’s an audience for it and it makes people happy.
Alison: “Right. The concept of Vintage L.A. is basically an escape from “The Today” life. But I never want anyone to think I’m saying L.A. was better than it is now. That’s not what I’m saying. The point is we need to keep understanding the significance of older architecture because when developers come to L.A. they just tear it all down without realizing what they just lost.”
Alison: “For example, They recently tore down the old Scandia building. That was one of my favorite structures on Sunset Strip by architect Edward H. Fickett. Developers replaced it with a Marriott Hotel – which might be one of the ugliest buildings on the Strip. The new architecture they are replacing the old architecture with is atrocious. I truly believe that Los Angeles is suffering from an architectural nervous breakdown.”
Alison: “So, here’s a hotel that could have incorporated some of the old nuances of the prior Scandia building. Frank Sinatra had an office in there…(with) his own shower and I think he had his own Suite upstairs. Why wouldn’t you incorporate Sinatra’s office or shower into one of the new Suites? Don’t tourists want to see elements of Old Hollywood when they come to L.A.? (laughs).”
Alison: “It just makes no sense. L.A. is not embracing Old Hollywood like it once did. And I think that’s sad. Hollywood Boulevard is suffering from that too. I don’t see as many murals as I used to featuring the golden age of film. Although, I was happy to see one featuring Charlie Chaplin recently.
Alison: “Back in the 70’s and especially the 80’s when I got really into movies, and I was a young teenager that loved movies (laughs) I wanted movie posters. My mom used to take me to the cinema shops on Hollywood Boulevard.”
Alison: “We have one left, the Larry Edmunds Bookshop. Thank God…One guy, Jeff Mantor, runs that place. Thank God because if he doesn’t do it, nobody’s going to do it. Walking into his bookshop reminds me of what my bedroom used to look like; full of movie posters.”
Ben: I think posters today are just lousy. They are Photoshop junk. The artistry of those old posters…we did an article on Frank Frazetta (Click Here to Read It), who was a comic book artist and he did posters for a lot of the Peter Sellers comedies in the 60’s.
Alison: “I have those on my wall right now.”
Ben: Oh yeah?
Alison: “Right on my wall I’ve got There’s A Girl In My Soup with Goldie Hawn. I’ve got The Party. I’ve got Salt and Pepper with Sammy Davis, I’ve got the Riot on Sunset Strip. I have all my 60’s movie posters in my hallway. I’m obsessed with the art on those. Don’t you just love the artwork of Jack Davis, who worked on some of these posters?”
Ben: That’s right. Did you know that both Jack Davis and Frazetta worked at EC comics before working on posters?
Alison: “Yeah, these posters were works of art and I just lost a friend named Sandy DVore who was an entertainment artist whose style was very similar to Davis. I just miss the art of movie posters and still collect them and proudly display them.”
Ben: What things about being a part of Gen- X do you think shaped your perspective on society and our culture?
Alison: “Is that us? Yeah, we are Gen-X.”
Ben: I think it goes from 1968 to 1981.
Alison: “I think we are the most unique generation because we lived half of our lives without the internet and half our lives learning it. We know what it was like to not have a computer growing up.”
Alison: “I remember when I got an answering machine in 1987. I thought that was amazing. I am 16 years old and I have an answering machine, which you couldn’t even check until you got home. It’s not like we were out checking our messages when we would go out.”
Alison: “Today is so different because we are tracked down every second. If you don’t text back within an hour they think you are ignoring them. I always say that movie, Easy Rider could never be remade today, because they literally got lost in America, and you can’t get lost in America anymore because Big Brother is tracking your every move.”
Ben: You just named two movies that I love together, Easy Rider and the movie Lost in America which is a yuppie take-off on Easy Rider that Albert Brooks did 15 years later. What else can you say about Easy Rider? It’s the movie that made Jack Nicholson a break-out star.
Alison: “It broke all of them. It paved the way for New Hollywood…which brings me to Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood, which I talk about quite a bit.”
Ben: I think that’s the best movie Tarantino has made in maybe the last 20 years.
Ben: Really?
Alison: “I basically camped out at the New Beverly. They should have just left a cot for me in the back of the theater.”
Ben: Wow.
Alison: “When I watch Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood I really do feel like I’m watching a movie that was actually made in 1969.”
Ben: Have you read the Once Upon A Time In Hollywood book?
Alison: “I’m halfway through it. I’m really, really enjoying it.”
Ben: I finished it yesterday.
Alison: “Good. I’m getting there. I saw Tarantino at the New Beverly about a month and a half ago. He did a monumental Q&A and I am forever grateful to the New Beverly for inviting me. Quentin read several excerpts from the book and it was sublime to witness that in person.”
Ben: Now, that’s great. What I like about the book is that it’s very different, it’s got alternate versions of scenes. I love that he changed the settings and expanded the story.
Alison: “I love that.”
Ben: I enjoyed it tremendously. I thought it was great.
Alison: “I really like getting into Cliff Booth’s backstory too. I hope he does another book that continues that character. Also, I wanna know more about Rick Dalton’s life after 1969 beyond those great details that are already in the novel. I want to read more about his life in the 1970’s and 80’s.”
Ben: I hope he does. I also want to watch those 10 episodes of Bounty Law he talked about doing.
Alison: “I’d like to see that 9-hour version of the movie. You know, Tarantino is more than a filmmaker, he is a preservationist. For example, saving the New Beverly and most recently the Vista Theater. He loves movies that much.”
Ben: You touched on a few different things I wanted to ask you about so let me just ask you a couple of questions here. If you could hop in Doc Brown’s DeLorean and fire up the Flux Capacitor where do you go?
Alison: “1966 because it feels like the new world colliding with the old world. The new Hollywood’s coming in and Motown is fresh. The Beatles have already been around for a few years and it’s a little pre-hippie, it’s a little more mod.”
Alison: “My favorite two restaurants are Dan Tana’s and Musso & Frank, but Formosa is also a favorite of mine. I went to Dan Tanas with my parents as a kid and later in life with my dear friend Harry Dean Stanton. So it feels like an extended living room or my office. The chicken Parmesan was always my go-to dish, but recently I’m really obsessed with the manicotti and pesto. If you go to Musso & Frank’s, you must get sand dabs. There’s just no other choice. I adore the Hollywood Bowl. Seeing anything at the Hollywood Bowl is a treat because it’s the most amazing setting for a concert venue imaginable.”
Alison: “If I had somebody coming in from out of town, I’d most likely take them up Roxbury Drive and point out Lucille Ball’s house and everyone else’s who lived on that famous block. As I mentioned earlier, I’m a big Columbo fan so I love going past Peter Falk’s old house. I think it’s really fun to go driving around looking at the architecture of these classic celebrity homes – especially while we still can.”
Alison: “As I mentioned earlier a lot of these houses have been torn down. Rosemary Clooney’s house is gone. Jimmy Stewart house? That’s the biggest tragedy when they took that down.”
Ben: When George Clooney was living with his aunt Rosemary did you ever see him around?
Alison: “He grew up in Kentucky, right? I never saw him in the late 80’s when he was going on auditions. I didn’t see him until he was on ER.”
Ben: Yeah. His father Nick Clooney was a newscaster in Cincinnati, Ohio when I was growing up there.
Alison: “No. But I do know that he recorded it in New York. I don’t think he even realized it was going to be used at the very end as Bette is driving away. That gives me goosebumps every time.”
Ben: Did you ever encounter either of those great actresses?
Alison: “Oh, yes. So if somebody asked me “Who’s the most famous person you ever ran into?” I mean I have to say either Bette Davis or Lucille Ball and I saw them all at the Hamburger Hamlet. I mean that’s where you saw EVERYBODY. The Hamburger Hamlet was the hub because it anchored Sunset Strip and Beverly Hills and West Hollywood and Trousdale. Those are the four areas that all the celebrities lived in and they all came to the Hamlet.”
Ben: Oh yeah. It’s good. One last thing, your dad played Johnny Fontaine in The Godfather. Did he have any stories about filming the movie?
Alison: “I’ll just say yes, my dad played Johnny Fontaine and the role was kind of a mixed blessing because after he took the part of Johnny Fontaine, he didn’t play Vegas again until 1991. In a nutshell, Frank Sinatra got pretty pissed about that part because he thought people would assume the Johnny Fontaine part was based on him. Sinatra did not like that part and unfortunately, dad suffered the consequence when accepting that role.”
Ben: Because that part was based on him, right?
Alison: “It was based on several Italian American singers, but Frank thought that everyone was going to falsely think it was about him and so he got mad. He tried to eliminate the entire Johnny Fontaine part. He wanted it all gone, but as you know, it sets up the movie, and it does show you the power Vito Corleone had (laughs), you know, like the horse’s head found in Woltz’s bed? Actually, the first time Marlon says “I’m going to make him an offer he can’t refuse,” he says it to the Johnny Fontaine character.”
Alison: “Yes, it’s a very important part, but as he was filming that movie he saw that his part shrinking. It was supposed to be a much bigger par, But it all worked out. He ended up in a classic scene. It’s the greatest movie ever made, but dad paid a big price because he lost Vegas where every singer in the world played. That’s the town of milk and honey for singers like my dad. Thankfully he performed all over the world except Vegas for almost twenty years because Frank kept him out of it. That’s an Italian for ya. It’s like they have Italian Alzheimer’s where they forget everything but a grudge!”
