Paramount Studios

I spent a fair amount of time on the lot at Paramount Studios. Family friend and mentor Paul Stanley offered a standing invitation to visit whenever he was directing and he did a considerable number of Mission: Impossible episodes which filmed at Paramount next to the stage where Star Trek was shot.

Of all the studio lots I frequented, Paramount was my favorite and seemed to me the most symbolic of the Hollywood Studio era--a perception no doubt reinforced by scenes from Billy Wilder’s Sunset Boulevard in which the studio played a featured part.

One indelible memory was of Robert Evans, then head of the studio owned by Gulf-Western at the time, walking the lot impeccably dressed and showing just the right amount of cuff plus ten percent being followed by a photographer who seemed to be covering the movie mogul’s life moment by moment. A lifetime later when viewing The Kid Stays in the Picture, I realized that the constant photographer had made this fascinating documentary and Hollywood artifact possible. The amazing quantity of photographs gave the impression of watching film rather than photos. Robert was tan and handsome and should have been an actor but his inclination took him famously elsewhere.

I would sometimes have lunch in the commissary with Paul and discuss the day’s filming or cars—I had a Ferrari Berlinetta Lusso then and he drove a pristine 1959 fuel-injected Corvette—and it was fun watching famous faces at nearby tables. When I was working on the lot rather than visiting Paul, I usually ate lunch at Oblath’s just outside the main gate where Norma Desmond made a grand entrance in her Hispano-Suiza. The restaurant, long-since replaced by a parking lot, served great enchiladas and I was frequently joined by a certain Joe Gray who was a good friend and cohort of Henry Miller. Joe worked in films and had been a boxer. He was many years older than I and I cannot for the life of me recall how we met though it might have been via the Sinatra connection. What I do recall was his helpfulness with regard to the business and his very amusing anecdotes about the great writer of Tropic of Cancer.

One day, as I was returning to the sound stage after lunch, I saw a very interesting car approaching along the studio alleyway. It was chocolate brown and had the throaty rumble of a tuned, six cylinder. It sounded like a Jaguar but looked decidedly Italian. The carosserie badge announced Ghia. As the car went slowly past, I recognized the driver as Ricardo Montalban. Later, I would discover that it was indeed a 1955 Jaguar XK140MC with a one-off body. Recently I saw the car in a Hemmings edition, the chocolate brown paint replaced by resale red as seen here in the photo.

I remember asking Paul for his advice on becoming a director. We were sitting in our director’s chairs chatting as the Mission: Impossible crew was setting up for the next shot. After a moment’s reflection, Paul said, “Live a full life.” I know now better than I knew then what excellent advice that was.

Ferrari GTO in Paris

Someone has a wicked sense of humor!
Thank you to Tom Gurnee.

Ferrari GTO engine (3987)

From my new friend Serge Dermanian who looked after the cars in the Ralph Lauren collection for many years:

"Hello again. I found this picture I took of your GTO engine, when I was in Montauk, before the car was sent to be redone at Paul Russel. Hope you will like it!"

I do like it!

L'art de l'automobile: The Ralph Lauren cars

Yesterday in Paris brought forth a number of special events that would usually be spread over several days if not weeks or months. The first of these was the occasion to finally meet Marc Sonnery, author of the Ferrari Breadvan book Rebel, Rebel. Though I had communicated often with Marc via email and telephone which included being interviewed for his book, we had never met face-to-face. Marc took the TGV up to spend a very interesting day which began with lunch in la Galerie at the Georges V where we spoke of his passion for Maserati and stories of how his father, who worked for Citroën, brought home Maseratis thus setting Marc on the path.

After lunch we made our way to Les Arts Decoratifs by the Louvre where a certain Ralph Lauren has a number of magnificent cars from his collection on display. Walking through the entrance, one is confronted head-on by a stunning Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic. The only other time I'd seen one was on Mulholland Drive in Los Angeles approaching from the other direction with Jay Leno at the wheel. This one had a hypnotic effect and it was several moments before I could move on to see the object of our visit.

Passing into the main hall, Marc introduced himself to one of the staff and made it known that I was a former owner of one of the cars on display. In recognition of the fact that taking photos was interdit, Marc asked if an exception could be made in our case. Word traveled up and down the chain of command and the result is that a very cordial and enthusiastic staff member snapped the photo you see here.

During our interview in Nice, Serge Dermanian told me to look closely at the headlights of the D-type Jaguar that is on display. One day, when cleaning them, he had discovered a smudge or blur that, when he cleaned it, revealed the words 'Le Mans' molded into the glass lens. Looking closely, I saw it and wondered how many had viewed this car and missed this detail.

As we approached GTO 3987, the sight of it reaffirmed all of the reasons one falls in love with such a car. Its shape is now classic--the iconic Ferrari--and as one takes a tour of the car, it is impossible to find an awkward angle. I have long thought that the weak part of any car design is the 3/4 rear view. From this angle, the GTO looks like a wild cat about to pounce. Difficult to imagine racing around the roads of southern California--going to the super market or looking for adventure--in this car but that is what I did.

Marc handed me a mini tape recorder and I did a commentary detailing how 3987 is now the same or different from when it was mine as we did a slow, methodical 360 of the car. It was an extraordinary process and reminded me of how I would hand wash the car every day before taking it out--feeling as well as seeing the curvatures and nuance of the design.

As we moved through the hall, a man who has long been an idol of mine passed by. This chance moment fell into the category of being introduced to Steve McQueen by mutual friends at the Chez, receiving a late-night phone call from Marlon Brando who had just watched one of my (Interview) shows on cable or having a conversation with Enzo Ferrari and Juan Manuel Fangio in the paddock at Monza. In 1997, I watched this man deliver a one-sentence introduction of an interview guest that was, for me, like watching Marcus Allen's 74 yard touchdown in SuperBowl XVIII. It was a question of the great being greater. As one who has conducted more than 500 interviews for my fictional interview series and real-life interviews with people like General Richard Wilmot talking about his meeting with Gulbuddin Hekmatyar in the Khyber Pass and with those who have graciously sat before my camera for the Carrera and GTO documentaries, I know that what I saw that night was a man at the top of the game. He never disappoints--my favorite segments were with John le Carré and Mick Jagger--but that night he hit it out of the park. I introduced myself and we talked for several moments. He proved to be courteous and inquisitive as one might expect of a natural-born interviewer. His name is Charlie Rose.

Returning to the hotel, I took up the camera and interviewed Marc Sonnery for my GTO documentary and another project to be disclosed at a later date. We spoke of his experiences in writing books about the Ferrari Breadvan and Maserati. He even showed me footage of Porfirio Rubirosa driving the Breadvan.

All in all, a stellar day.

Cannes: Day 4

This should read Nice/Monaco: Day 1 as the business of Cannes--my business--took place in these two locations on Day 4.

Thanks to Nath Van Doren, who introduced me to Serge Dermanian, I was able to meet and spend an afternoon with the man who looked after my Ferrari GTO along with all the other cars in the Ralph Lauren collection. Serge drove these cars every day and performed mechanical repairs and maintenance on them continually during the years he looked after them. Though we had been communicating via the Internet, it was a real pleasure to speak with Serge and his wife in person in their home which overlooks the Mediterranean from a seaside perch in Nice.

Serge was able to clear up one piece of mis-information that I had been guilty of assuming true and passing along. That is that Ralph Lauren had removed the orange 'Le Mans' lights on the roof that distinguished 3987 for all other GTOs. According to Serge, these were already absent by the time the car entered the collection. Mea culpa.

Speaking at length over glasses of Champagne, I was treated to some fascinating insights and hilarious anecdotes regarding everything you would imagine I wanted to know about Serge's involvement with cars. We then went on the record as I shouldered the camera and began an interview with Serge that will appear in my documentary about the Ferrari GTO. Though we focused on the GTO, I learned that Serge especially loved driving the Ferrari 250 LM, the 375 Plus and the blower Bentley. He says that the Ferrari P2/3 was less comfortable to drive than the LM and that if he could have taken one car away with him from the collection, it would be the Alfa Romeo 8C 2900 B MM which he once drove in pouring rain--no top, no windshield, just pure joy.

Serge is an expert of long standing with a deep appreciation for the fineness of these cars. He cares about these cars in a way that many owners regrettably do not. It was a real privilege to spend time with him and I look forward to our next meeting.


As if the conversation, the Champagne and the interview with Serge weren't enough, I drove south to Monaco where I did three laps of the grand prix circuit and then enjoyed an incredible dinner at Le Grill atop the Hôtel de Paris that was too delicious for me to put into words.

Cannes: Day 3

The previous evening ended with a decision to indulge in un diner gastronomique and we found ourselves in Vieil Antibes at a small restaurant, L'Amboise, run by a couple where we enjoyed a sumptuous meal including a broccoli risotto that was sublime. During my last visit to the old section of Antibes, I was shooting scenes for my movie Point of Departure and making a tour of this wonderful area again was a real treat. Its charm is from another era and it is very easy to imagine living in those times.

Day Three began at the Caffe Roma where some interesting projects were presented to us including one which had a very well-known writer/director who had previously taken an informal option on one of my (Interview) stories attached. Life comes in circles...

I saw a white Ferrari Italia on La Croisette following a beautiful and very old, black VW convertible in what seemed like brand new condition that was being towed. My eye followed the VW. Later I saw a Ferrari 348 in Cap d'Antibes which was as close as I could get to a vintage sighting. By far, the California dominated in terms of Ferraris on the scene.

After a visit to the market, we moved on to poolside at the Hôtel Majestic where more projects came our way including one from an English team that was very interesting and reminiscent to me of The Shout, the 1978 film with Alan Bates, John Hurt and Susannah York. Carol Anderson, from Los Angeles, made her first 'Elysée Wednesday' meeting with us at the Majestic and was a nice addition to Gianni, an Italian actor, and the producers whose company we enjoyed.

Cannes: Day 4

Cannes: Day 2

Neither too crowded nor sparsely populated, the market was just busy enough to justify a visit with an expectation of actually speaking to people with whom one could do business. It was a pleasure to make the acquaintance of the elegant Carole Curb of Curb Entertainment. My former wife worked on behalf of her husband Mike's political campaign back when. A representative of an entertainment company from Spain showed interest in the Carrera Panamericana documentary and contacts for same were made with companies from Mexico, Italy, France--even one from the USA.

Walking amongst the many exhibitor booths in the Palais, I crossed paths with Priscilla Lingenheim who had taped an episode of my (Interview) version française series. She will be joining Roy Martens and me at Caffe Roma tomorrow for a repeat of last year's marathon. All are welcome to join us there.

Lunch (late though it may have been) was taken at Restaurant Brun where the specialty is fruits de mer and I indulged in huitres chaudes and did not hesitate to dip my baguette into the sauce in the best French tradition. The weather is quite pleasant and without extremes unlike the sights which were extreme in every sense and that is both a compliment and a complaint falling on deaf ears in either case. I lost count of how many marvelous Ferraris--an Italia, several 430s and Californias--I've encountered though nothing vintage.

Retreating to Cap d'Antibes, it is a toss-up as to whether going to a screening or a long, leisurely dinner will win out.

Cannes: Day 3

Cannes: Day 1

Not the first day of the Festival, but the day of my arrival. Jet-lagged but revitalized by a landing at Nice during which the captain made parallelograms out of the tire treads on the first bounce and damn near got the Airbus sideways on the runway before reverse thrust was deployed and nature took its course. Didn't get any nearer to Cannes than Cap d'Antibes where the Mercedes' GPS drove me into a stranger's driveway about a mile from the hotel. The receptionist kindly talked me into the hotel forecourt on the portable causing me to recall a scene from Stanley Kramer's It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (Air traffic control tower staffer: If you can, give us your position. Who is flying the plane?).

Dinner was with John Lawrence Ré at Restaurant Le César at Plage Keller discussing his Brigitte Bardot project, I Art House, Leon Trotsky and poster art agitprop along with the Weimar Republic, the vast difference between Formula 1 and the Carrera Panamericana and the correlation between pheromones and financial planning. A rosé de Provence complemented my Chateaubriand and I learned from the restaurant's host that he hadn't seen Cherries Jubilee served in a French restaurant in forty years. The evening finished with Grand Marnier on the hotel terrace under a full moon and the realization that I hadn't slept in twenty-four hours.

Is this what the Cannes Film Festival is all about? I pity anyone who thinks it isn't.

Cannes: Day 2
Cannes: Day 3
Cannes: day 4

Carrera Panamericana documentary to debut at Cannes Film Festival

Los Angeles, California, May, 2011--Filmmakers Stephen Mitchell and Jeanetta Dumouchel of InterFUND and Ron Kellogg of the Kellogg Auto Archives will introduce their documentary on the Carrera Panamericana road races which ran in Mexico from 1950-54 during the Cannes Film Festival (May 11-22). The documentary titled Carrera Panamericana 1950-54 presents original footage and photographs of the races along with new interviews conducted by Mitchell of participants including American race driver John Fitch.

"The races were run in stages over several days and took quite a toll on man and machine. What we have come to expect as safety concerns were nonexistent and we see crowds lining the road just inches away from race cars going by at a hundred miles per hour or more," says Mr. Mitchell. According to Ms Dumouchel, "The Carrera is probably the most dangerous road race ever run. It could never happen again as it did."

The catalyst for the documentary was Ron Kellogg, founder of the Kellogg Auto Archives, who states, "The original footage and photographs document an historic moment in auto racing and in the development of Mexico's infrastructure. It was my desire to present these along with the commentary and anecdotes of those who took part before time robbed us of the opportunity to hear their words."

The documentary will be screened privately to an invitation-only audience during the Cannes Film Festival.

The most dangeous road race ever

This is an extract from an interview I conducted at the Petersen Automotive Museum with Dr. David Scully for the Carrera Panamericana documentary.

Letter to the Editor

It is normal to receive feedback and comments from readers who enjoy, as I do, cars and movie trivia and the anecdotes from those who have been on the scene. The other day, I received one that resonated for me. A bit of his own story is told in it and it is the letter I wish I had written to David E Davis before his recent passing. I present it here as a "Letter to the Editor" with the blessing of the writer:

Hello Stephen-

I discovered "The Great Putdown" video while frequenting a muscle car forum several months back. And I can honestly say that within a matter of minutes I had devoured every bit of video, photographs and stories that had to do with you and 3987. I felt it was important that I contact you in order to thank you for posting all of the great information with respect to your time with the car. Additionally I enjoy just hearing the random stories from that time period from your perspective.

I myself grew up into a "car" family. My father enjoyed restoring Model As. While that was his passion he certainly managed to have an array of more current cars on hand to play with. Therefore, a full driveway of cars was typical for my house in the early 70's. Having 3 older brothers I was fortunate to see them bring home all kinds of different cars. We had VWs, customized vans, several Austin Healy's and muscle cars. I witnessed more car dismantling than at the local service shop. A weekend driveway paint job or trans rebuild was commonplace back then. Being that I was many years from being able to drive during this time I could only enjoy the cars from the passenger seat. I took a particular liking to muscle cars which has stayed with me to date as I have a couple of my own now. Now when I drive them I think of those days when I was a kid. The cars are my time machine. I now have a son who is 11 years old. When we drive together I look over at him in the passenger seat and picture myself (him being at almost the same age as I was) back in the 70's and remembering how much I enjoyed those times and their significance in my lifetime.

So in a long drawn out way which I hope wasn't too boring I'd like to thank you for your stories. Stories told so well that I feel like I am in the passenger seat with you. I anxiously await your GTO documentary and look forward to new stories on your blog. In my mind, 3987 will always be the "Stephen Mitchell GTO".

Best regards,
Darren Costello
St. Charles, Illinois

Re: GTO at speed 2

After I mentioned that I had been unable to find a photo reference to Richie Ginther driving 3987 at Riverside, Scott Sperka found this photograph at Vintage Sports Car Photos:
http://www.vintage-sportscar-photos.com/portfolio1.php?pageNum_rsPhotographs=16&totalRows_rsPhotographs=251

Re : GTO 3987 at speed

This arrived in response to 'GTO at speed' from a gentleman who took care of Ralph Lauren's cars:

"...when I drove it [3987] in Montauk NY, the steering box had too much play. I immediately removed the box and rebuilt it myself. Look at these photos--the steering box in the process of being rebuilt.

Now 17 of Ralph Lauren's cars are on display at the Louvre museum in Paris & this GTO is there!"

My thanks to Serge Dermanian for sending these photos and his continuing interest in this car.

GTO 3987 at speed

I am in the middle of editing the documentary on the Carrera Panamericana and find myself relying on the Racing Sports Cars website to discover or confirm the identities of the cars and drivers I see in the vintage footage. I kept seeing a particular Osca and, thanks to the website, I discovered that the driver was Louis Chiron.

For as long as I can remember, I've been told that Richie Ginther raced my GTO at Riverside Raceway when it was owned by Otto Zipper. This fact is also cited on the Barchetta database. However, when I searched Racing Sports Cars, there was no listing of Richie ever driving 3987 at Riverside. Possibly an oversight--an event no one took the trouble to post on the site?

In conducting this search, I came across two photographs of 3987 taken by Scott Sperka. They show the GTO at Road America with Augie Pabst (in color) at the wheel and the other with Roger Penske (black & white) driving. The two drivers were paired in the car when it was owned and campaigned by Texas oilman John Mecom. I went in search of Scott to ask permission to use the photos and found him to be a real car enthusiast and a dedicated photographer. In discussing the photos, Scott wrote, "All too many shots that you see online are of the car only and the human element is cropped out. It totally changes the photo and the 'being there' element is lost. Kind of like a Norman Rockwell cover--you gaze at it and relate to the scene."

I am in complete agreement with Scott. Studying the photos and comparing them to the cropped versions presented on Racing Sports Cars, I find the full, wide framing of the original photos to be the more compelling as they better convey a sensation of speed, the car's attitude in the corner and give a sense of the driver's control of the car.

The photos seen here are courtesy of Scott Sperka whose other racing photos are equally compelling. His contact is : scott.sperka@gmail.com

Ferrari Berlinetta Lusso

I recently spent a pleasurable hour or so having drinks at the BLVD in the Beverly Wilshire Hotel with a gentleman who is the current owner of my very first Ferrari--a Berlinetta Lusso--and who is now in the process of fully restoring the car. He showed me project photos that revealed details which first led him to suspect that the car had been mine. He is an affable fellow and a very dedicated Ferrari enthusiast. The Lusso is not his only Ferrari nor is it the first that he has restored.

We spoke at length about my experience with the car and various historical events concerning the car and my exploits with it. He took notes about things that were perhaps of interest with regard to the restoration. It is a pity he lives so far away as I would love to witness the roll-out at project's end.

The photo shown here--which the owner graciously sent me--was taken prior to commencement of the restoration project and shows the car as it looked during the last year or so of my ownership.

Ron Kellogg: An historic moment at the Porsche factory

An excerpt from my interview with Ron Kellogg wherein he speaks of an historic moment during his visit to the Porsche factory.