Chapter 11: Hollywood!

Ali & I flew to LAX on Friday, Oct 31, 1969. David Geffen picked us up. Along with our luggage, we had 7 of the new Folding Bikes with us. Each was in a Samsonite Case. We had to get a Taxi Van to bring them.

David drove us to an old Apartment Hotel I loved. I’d asked him to look into Leasing us a Suite there, as it would put us close to everything. I had also asked David to move in with us.

We drove up to the Sunset Tower, 8358 Sunset Blvd, aka the Sunset Strip. Sunset Tower was an Art Deco Masterpiece, built in 1931 & had 15-Floors. It was considered to be a Top-10 Art Deco Building In Los Angelas.

In Ralf’s Time, in the 1980’s, Sunset Tower had almost been torn down. It was saved by Col. Klink. No, really, the Actor who played Klink in Hogan’s Heroes, was living there & refused to be Evicted. His name was Werner Klemperer, & he delayed things long enough, until the plan was abandoned. He was 49yo in 1969.

Over the years, many famous people have lived at Sunset Tower.

We pulled up to the small Curved Front Entrance Drive. We left the car, so it could be Parked by the Valet. I was living the life!

David had a big shit-eating grin on his face, as he had Leased the Duplex Penthouse for us! Wow, over the years, only a few had ever been lucky enough to occupy the Penthouse. Frank Sinatra, Howard Hughes & John Wayne, to name a few, had all lived in the Penthouse one time or another.

It’s even been said that at a All Night Party, a drunken John Wayne, brought a Cow up to the Penthouse Apartment’s Terrace at 3am. He told his Guests, that if anyone wanted fresh Creme for their Coffee, they had to go to the source!

When Howard Hughes lived in the Penthouse, he kept Apartments downstairs for his many Mistresses, often more than one at a time!

What I thought really set off the Art Deco feel of Sunset Tower were the Rounded Corner, Floor-to-Ceiling Windows. It was super romantic at night.

In 1969, we were to find out that Sunset Tower was looking kinda frayed. It would eventually be brought back to its Brilliance, but it was funky in ‘69. It was good enough for me!

The Duplex Penthouse had 2 Floors. The 14th Floor had 6 Bedrooms. On its North Side, which faced Sunset Blvd, were the Living Room, Dining Room, Kitchen & Powder Room. There were 2 Corner Bedrooms, each with a Bath. There were 4 more Bedrooms, 2 with Baths, 2 without.

There was also a small Metal balcony off the North Side. It was part of the Fire Escape System, but it would be nice to sit out on.

There was a Curved Staircase that went up to the 15th Floor. It was neat, as it seemed to float in space.

The 15th Floor had the main Public Rooms: the Living Room, Dining Room, Kitchen & Library. There were another 2 Bedrooms, both Corner Suites. There were a total of 8 Bedrooms between the two levels.

Then there was the wide Terrace that wrapped completely around the 15th Floor. I could see us spending most of our time out there! Looking East, we could see Downtown LA, with the Hollywood Sign to the NE. Also to the NE, up in the Hills, was the Chateau Marmont. It was where John Belushi would die in 1982.

When I first looked across Sunset Blvd from atop Sunset Tower, a weirdness came over me. What I had seen as Ralf was only 1/2 there!

Looking across Sunset Blvd were 4 famous places I had seen in 2016. From Left to Right they were:

1. The Comedy Store building was there, but in 1969 it was a Rock Club, called Patch 2. Before that, it had been called Ciro’s. As Ralf, in 1977, I had been to the Comedy Store with my Brother. It was a Tuesday, so it was Amateur Night. It was almost empty of Patrons, which bummed us out. We were hoping to see Richard Pryor & Robin Williams Snorting Lines of Coke off the Piano on the Stage. The Comedy Store wouldn’t open until 1972.

2. The Hyatt House was there. It would soon be infamous as the Riot House. It would be featured in the Film, Almost Famous.

3. The Saddle Ranch Chop House, is like the bar in Coyote Ugly, where the Barmaids dress as sexy Cowgirls & Dance on top of the Bar. There was also a Mechanical Bull that Customers could pay to Ride. John Travolta did that in the Film, Urban Cowboy. Unfortunately, the Saddle Ranch wouldn’t open until 1999. It was an empty lot in 1969.

4. Carney’s Hot Dogs & Hamburgers was in an old Union Pacific Railroad Dining Car. It would be packed with drunken Movie Stars late into the wee hours of the morning. It’s purported to have Gourmet Burgers, but in 2016 when I ate there, it was PURE SLOP. But the Rail Car wasn’t even there in 1969. It wouldn’t be placed at that location until 1978.

I thought to myself that I might just open both locations myself, ASAP.

For Dinner, David took us a little further West on Sunset Blvd, to the Polo Lounge at the Beverly Hills Hotel.

There, we were introduced to some in the Industry, including Norman Lear, who was 46yo in 1969. Norman invited David, Ali & I to join him & his friend, saving us from having to wait for a Table. We gladly accepted, so the Wait Staff quickly brought Chairs for us. The other person at Norman’s Table was Glen A Larson. Glen was 32yo in 1969.

For Dinner, I had the New Caledonian Prawns, which were huge & Grilled to just the right crispiness. Ali had the Polo Lounge Caesar Salad, & David had the Hotel Eden’s Rigatoni Alla Norma. We all shared bites with each other. I could get fat eating like that.

As we were eating, David was telling Norman & Glen about how I was just getting started in Hollywood. They were intrigued, as it seemed I was getting a fast repartition as a winner. It also seemed that my dear friend David Geffen had been talking me up pretty good to those he knew. And David Geffen knew EVERYONE.

I couldn’t resist asking if either Norman or Glen would be interested in me being a Partner in their Production Companies. That way they could be part of my new Production Company: T-SqFilm&TV. I explained that we were setting up a System where all parts of a Production would have Plans in Place for any number of issues. The best part would be that we would Fund their Projects 100%. They would NEVER have to go begging for money to get a Project started.

I knew that Glen & Norman would soon come out with the best TV Shows ever, so I was itching to lock these guys up before they developed those Shows.

To keep us talking, I suggested that they join David, Ali & me the next day, as we were going to look at what I hoped would be our new LA Offices. They were seeing the possibilities, so they said they would join us the next day.

Back at the Sunset, David took one of the 25th Floor Bedrooms, while Ali & I took the other. We spent the rest of the night going over Strategy, especially on how to cement our Partnerships with Norman & Glen.

Saturday, Nov 1, 1969, found Ali & I giving David his new Folding Bike. We then Rode up & down Sunset Blvd.

After cleaning up, David drove of us to another of my dream places, the Bradbury Building. It was built in 1893 & designed by a complete amateur, but boy did he hit it out of the park on his 1st swing! You guys gotta Google these places, as they are great. Norman & Glen met us there.

The Bradbury was a nice Red-Brick Building on the outside, but it Exploded the Senses INSIDE. There was a Glass Paned Skylight that took up the middle 3rd of the roof. It cast Light & Shadows around the 5-Floor High Interior Atrium, that had each Floor surrounded on all 4 sides by Wide Interior Balconies. Being built in 1893, there were Open Walled Elevators to the left & right called Birdcage Elevators. The Elevators were cool too, with their exposed Cabling, Gears, Counter Weights, etc. It all reminded me of a Jules Verne Film.

In 1969, the Bradbury was pretty run down, kinda grungy. We didn’t care, as we saw its inner beauty. Its Darkness fit the Mood in the Film, Blade Runner, that would be Filmed there in 1982. It would be Renovated after that.

Just as he had done with Sunset Tower, David had set us up with a nice Lease in the Bradbury. We were getting the 3rd Floor’s Western 1/2, which had 25 Offices & faced Broadway.

David insisted that Ali & I take the NE Corner Suite of Offices, as they were the best. That was because they faced both 3rd & Broadway. He took the SW Corner Suite of Offices facing Broadway.

Ali said she’d work at getting some of her Girlfriends in to help David out, as he was about to get real busy.

I then brought smiles to Norman’s & Glen’s faces, as I said that all my Partners would get a their own Office in the Bradbury. I also thought it would be cool if they moved into one of the Bedrooms on the 14th Floor of our Sunset Tower Penthouse Duplex Apartment. That would leave 4 Bedrooms free. They could share the Kitchen, Living & Dining Rooms on the 14th, but they were free to consider the 15th Floor as an extension of the 14th.

The large 15th Floor Terrace would be fantastic for Cocktail Parties, which they would be encouraged to often have. Between all of us, there would be daily Lunches, Dinners, Cocktail Parties, etc.