Robert DeNiro and Friends
Tuesday, May 13th, 2008
The title of this posting may sound like a nightmarishly tacky variety show, but I am really referring to my initiative in both Summer of 1992 and 1997 to collect autographs from celebrities who worked in friends with Robert DeNiro. Since 1991 when I first saw Goodfellas and followed it up with Cape Fear – and then began collecting DeNiro films one by one, I have been enamored with his film career. In the early 1990’s my goal was to acquire all of his movies on Laserdisc, which at the time was costing $30 (for the cheap ones) and upward. Since then, I have shifted to DVD’s and am close to completing the entire catalog. Read the rest of this entry »
Two of Hume Cronyn’s earliest roles were in Alfred Hitchcock films, Shadow of Doubt in 1943 (in which he nearly stole every scene in which he appeared) and Lifeboat in 1944. He went on to work of the screenplay adapatations for two additional films with the Master of Suspense, Rope and Under Capricorn. His celebrated career went on for nearly sixty years, culminating in the magnificent Marvin’s Room (with my buddy Robert DeNiro), in which he again stole the show – without uttering a single word. 
I’m not sure exactly where I got the photo of Anthony Quinn – maybe at a movie memorabilia show in the mid-80’s – but I do know that I held onto it for a long time without doing anything with it. Finally, during my autograph surge of 1997, I sent it off to two-time Academy Award winner Anthony Quinn. He responded in kind by adding his brilliant and handsome signature to this still from Zorba the Greek, perhaps his most famous role – surpassing even the fame of his Oscars for Best Supporting Actor in 1952 (Viva Zapata!) and 1956 (Lust for Life). 
Like most kids, I loved the daily kid shows that were on in my pre-school days. Local show Uncle Al was probably my favorite with a close second by nationally syndicated Captain Kangaroo. His real name was Bob Keeshan and he had a show from 1955-84 on the CBS network. That’s quite a long haul. I remember Mr. Greenjeans and that bizarre moose that hung out with him. 
After I sent an eventually-successful autograph request to Robert Blake, I continued my program of making one attempt per day to obtain a variety of celebrity autographs. Some of my unsuccessful attempts between July 20, were to Kurt Vonnegut, Ronald Reagan, Tony Dow, Bill Clinton, and George Bush (who alternately refused, never answered, or sent along an autopen. Shame on you, President Bush!)