The evening's surprise guest star David McCallum joins Robert Vaughn in acceding to Cinema Retro editor-in-chief Lee Pfeiffer's humorous demand that they sign his grade school Man From U.N.C.L.E. lunchbox. (Photo copyright: Tom Stroud)
By Lee Pfeiffer
Last evening, The Players club at Gramercy Park in New York City, in conjunction with Cinema Retro magazine, hosted a gala tribute dinner for member Robert Vaughn. The club dates back to 1888, when it was founded by actor Edwin Booth along with such luminaries as Mark Twain and General Sherman. The rich heritage continued with last evening's event. As Editor-in-Chief of Cinema Retro and a member of The Players, I had long wanted to hold an event in honor of Vaughn's career. Club Executive Director John Martello and I began planning the evening months ago, working around Vaughn's schedule for filming his hit TV series Hustle in England. The catalyst was the recent publication of Vaughn's acclaimed autobiography A Fortunate Life. Vaughn chose November 22 because of the date's significance in his life: it was his 77th birthday, the anniversary of the assassination of his political idol John F. Kennedy and also the date production began on The Man From U.N.C.L.E. 46 years ago.
Perhaps the most challenging aspect was the remarkable compilation of video clips assembled by John Martello and his editor. Rare videos from the Cinema Retro archive were contributed, but there were still key clips that seemed be impossible to find: Vaughn playing young Teddy Roosevelt in an obscure Western TV episode called Law of the Plainsman, his performance as Harry S. Truman in the 1974 TV special The Man From Independence and his Emmy-winning role as the political hatchet man in the 1977 mini-series Washington: Behind Closed Doors. With Vaughn's personal assistance, clips were obtained from fans, TV networks and museums. The resulting 25 minute compilation gave ample evidence of Vaughn's diverse talents.
Remember the Bizarro Superman characters from the comic books? In Bizarro world, everything is a mirror opposite of how it is on earth. The same can be said about the way Grade D direct-to-video films are marketed in foreign countries. The Hollywood Reporter's Risky Business has an amusing article that explores the attempts to capitalize on "superstars" such as Dolph Lundgren, Robin Givens and Rob Schneider through aggressive ad campaigns that often contain nonsensical tag lines and misspellings. To read click here
Doreen Kern "casts" Clint Eastwood in his latest role: as model for a surprise sculpture in 1977. (Photo copyright: Doreen Kern)
By Spencer Lloyd Peet
In 1977, Clint Eastwood was cast as himself; not in
a Hollywood blockbuster movie but as a life-size portrait sculpture. Renowned sculptor, Doreen Kern, immortalised Eastwood
in bronze on the request of his then wife Maggie Johnson who asked for it to be
made as a surprise gift for the Hollywood superstar. During her stay at the Eastwood’s home, Kern
vigilantly studied Eastwood’s face and expressions making notes as he went
about his daily business. Eastwood
suspected nothing as the ladies chatted amongst themselves.
Kern first met Johnson, a former swim-wear model,
in 1974 when she came to London. Â Because
Johnson didn’t really know anybody in London, but a mutual friend of theirs, Connie
De Nave, who was in the music business working in New York at the time,
suggested the two ladies should get together.Â
“I spoke to Connie on the phone,†remembers Kern, “and she said ‘A
friend of mine, Maggie Eastwood, is coming to London and I think it would be
nice for you to meet up with her. You
know, Maggie Eastwood, Clint Eastwood’s wife.’ I hope it doesn’t sound
detrimental, but I really didn’t know who Clint Eastwood was back then. When I told my children they said, ‘Oh,
mother, what planet are you on?’ Anyway,â€
continues Kern, “I spent some time with Maggie and took her to the theater. We had a really enjoyable time together.â€Â Eastwood was directing The Eiger Sanction, at that time and he also played the main
character, Dr. Jonathan Hemlock, a former professor of art and an assassin who
is forced out of retirement to track down the killer of an old friend.  Much
of the filming - in which Eastwood performed his own stunts - took place on
snow-covered mountains and involved some risky mountaineering. During her visit, Johnson told Kern that
Eastwood was extremely upset by the death of David Knowles, a stunt-climber
who, within a few days of shooting, was killed instantly after being hit on the
head by a falling bolder. Eastwood wanted to quit production but was persuaded to
carry on filming by the other professional mountaineers who were working on the
film.