Sunday, April 19, 2009

George Hamilton recalls working with Mitchum


Story at Daily Mail (UK)

Gorgeous George Hamilton's tantastic tales: The actor recalls Elvis, Marilyn and JFK in his new autobiography.

An excerpt about Mitchum:

I worked with ROBERT MITCHUM on the 1960 film Home From The Hill and I never saw any star care less about being one. Bob could talk your ear off, but the one thing he didn't want to talk about was his lines or the film. He liked to get drunk and then sing songs - sea shanties, cockney ditties, Australian football songs, anything.

What he would usually say to me was: 'Gettin'any?' He was. Bob would send me to buy him liquor. On my first run back to his hotel room, I found him 'entertaining' a lady. He motioned me to open a bottle and hand it over. I was honored to be of service.

When he wasn't having sex, he'd sit in a rocking chair wearing just boxer shorts and alligator cowboy boots while casting for imaginary trout with a fishing rod.

He drank a lot and smoked a lot of dope. He also took a lot of pills, which he kept in his own leather doctor's bag. One night I asked him for something to help me sleep. He handed me a pill he called a 'nighty night' - and I slept straight through my call the next morning and on into a second day.

Bob once said to me: 'They think I don't know my lines. It's not true. I'm just too drunk to say 'em.'

The studio once sent a manager to keep Bob in line, but the minute he walked into the hotel room, Bob punched him, knocking him through the door.

For years, Bob sent me Mother's Day cards. I was never sure why, but he gave me confidence that you could always be a star in Hollywood on your own terms."

Thursday, April 16, 2009

'Young Billy Young" Coming to DVD


Source: Deseret News

Fox/MGM is releasing "Young Billy Young" (1969) with ROBERT MITCHUM and Angie Dickinson May 12. The film co-stars Robert Walker, Jr. and David Carradine.

Pre-order at Amazon.com

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Broccoli Only Man Brave Enough to Wake Mitchum


Story at Times Online


Albert "Cubby" Broccoli is best known as the producer of the classic James Bond series. The BFI is celebrating with a two-month season of his films, starting on April 8. Here's an anecdote regarding Mitchum:

"On the Caribbean shoot for Fire Down Below, Broccoli was the only man brave enough to dump a bucket of water over a comatose ROBERT MITCHUM to wake up the boozy actor."