Four Eyed Monsters and Tony Curtis: Difference between pages

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Revision as of 10:54, 2 July 2007

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{{otherpeople|Tony Curtis}}

{{Infobox Film

{{Infobox actor

| name = Four Eyed Monsters

| bgcolour =

| image = Femposter.jpg

| name = Tony Curtis

| image_size =

| image = Tony Curtis portrait.jpg

| caption =

| imagesize = 200px

| director = [[Susan Buice]]<br>[[Arin Crumley]]

| caption = Tony Curtis

| writer = Susan Buice<br>Arin Crumley

| birthname = Bernard Schwartz

| narrator =

| birthdate = {{birth date and age|1925|6|3}}

| starring = Susan Buice<br>Arin Crumley

| ___location = [[New York]], [[New York]], [[United States|U.S.]]

| music = Andrew A. Peterson

| cinematographydeathdate =

| deathplace =

| editing = Susan Buice<br>Arin Crumley

| othername = Boinie

| distributor = self-distributed

| height = 175 cm (5 foot 9 inches)

| released = [[December 1]], [[2006]] (NYC)

| spouses = [[Janet Leigh]]

| runtime = 70 minutes

| yearsactive = [[1949 in film|1949]]-[[Present (time)|Present]]

| country = {{USA}}

| homepage =

| language = [[English language|English]]

| budget notable role =

| academyawards =

| gross = $3,135 (Estimate)

| preceded_by emmyawards =

| followed_by tonyawards =

| website =

| amg_id = 1:326359

| imdb_id = 0439182

}}

'''Tony Curtis''' (born '''Bernard Schwartz''', [[June 3]], [[1925]]) is an [[United States|American]] film actor. Famous for his thick black wavy hair, good looks, flashing long eyelashes and trademark New York accent, he was most popular during the late 1950s and early 1960s. He is best known for his light comic roles, especially his musician on the run from gangsters in ''[[Some Like It Hot]]'' (1959). He has also essayed a number of more serious dramatic roles over the years, such as his escaped convict in ''[[The Defiant Ones]]'' (1958), for which he received an [[Academy Award]] nomination. He has appeared in over 100 films since [[1949]], and has also made frequent television appearances.

'''''Four Eyed Monsters''''' is a 2005 film by Susan Buice and Arin Crumley. It roughly follows Buice and Crumley's real life relationship; the couple initially communicated only through artistic means because Arin was too shy to introduce himself to Susan.

== Biography ==

The film was shot on [[MiniDV]] in [[Brooklyn]] and [[Manhattan]], [[New York]], [[Framingham, Massachusetts]] and [[Johnson, Vermont]]. It was edited on [[Apple Inc.|Apple's]] [[Final Cut Pro]] editing software. It debuted on the festival circuit in January 2006 at the [[Slamdance Film Festival]], and theatrically on December 1st, 2006 in New York City at the [[Cinema Village]] in [[Greenwich Village]].

Tony Curtis was born '''Bernard Schwartz''', the son of [[Jew]]ish [[Hungary|Hungarian]] (from the city of [[Mátészalka]], [[Szatmár]]) immigrants Emanuel and Helen Schwartz, in [[the Bronx]], [[New York]]. His father was a tailor who had left his home country to find a new life in the [[United States]]. In the early days the family lived in the back of his tailor's shop, parents in one corner and Tony and his brothers Julius and Robert in another. Curtis has said of his mother in interview ' When I was a child she beat me up and was very aggressive, antagonistic.' His mother was later diagnosed with schizophrenia, a mental illness which also affected his brother Robert and led to his institutionalization. When Curtis was 8, he and his younger brother Julius were placed in an orphanage for one month because their parents could not afford to feed them. There were more hard times to come. When Curtis was 13, Julius was hit by a truck and died. It fell to Tony to identify the body. He has said that he still keeps his brother's cap and school books because that's all that's left of him. With the realities of real life all too harsh, a young Curtis sought refuge in the cinema.

'When I was a child, I used to go to the movies and became enthralled by all the fencing, horseback riding, kissing the girls. I said to myself "Why can't I do that?"

It was released on DVD in May 2006.

Between [[1942]] and [[1945]] Curtis served in the [[U.S. Navy]] aboard the submarine tender, the USS PROTEUS. He witnessed the Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay in September 1945, from a vantage point of 300 yards away.<ref>http://tendertale.com/ttiii/ttiii1.html</ref> After his service in the Navy, the young Curtis studied acting alongside [[Elaine Stritch]], [[Walter Matthau]] and [[Rod Steiger]]. To use his own words, he got into the movies because he was 'the handsomest of the boys.' Arriving in Hollywood in [[1948]] aged 23 he was put under contract to [[Universal Pictures]] and had his name changed to Tony Curtis. The studio sent him to fencing and riding lessons, but Curtis admits he was only interested in girls and money.

==Plot==

A shy videographer (Arin) and an uninspired artist working as a waitress (Susan) meet on the Internet and spark a relationship. Fed up with the usual dating game, the two decide to not communicate verbally, only through artistic means to see if they can make it work.

Originally seen as just another pretty boy, he nonetheless proved he had great acting talent with many great performances in outstanding films such as the role of the scheming press agent Sidney Falco in ''[[Sweet Smell of Success]]'', along with [[Burt Lancaster]], and an [[Academy Awards|Oscar]]-nominated performance as a bigoted escaped convict chained to [[Sidney Poitier]] in ''[[The Defiant Ones]]''.

==Video Podcast==

Throughout the creation of the the feature film, the filmmakers were constantly documenting how making the film was affecting their relationship and eventually how the issue of crediting their friends who helped them with the film blew up.

Tony Curtis was so popular as a screen hunk during the 1950s that [[Elvis Presley]]<ref>[http://www.elvispresleynews.com/Elvis-Hairstyle.html Elvis Presley Elvis Presley News]</ref> copied his ducktail (DA) hairstyle after seeing it on screen.

At first they just sat on all of this footage for a while. Then, after the film premiered at Slamdance 2005, they went to [[SXSW]] where they were inspired by all of the talk about filmmakers using blogs to try making a daily video blog about being at the festival. It caught on fast, and the filmmakers had gotten their feet wet learning the power of web video.

Curtis has also appeared frequently on television; he co-starred with [[Roger Moore]] in the [[television program|TV series]] ''[[The Persuaders!]]''. He later starred in ''[[McCoy (TV series)|McCoy]]'' and ''[[Vega$]]''. He made his screen debut, uncredited, in ''[[Criss Cross (1949 film)|Criss Cross]]'' playing a [[rhumba]] dancer. He also provided the voice of "Stony Curtis" as a guest star on ''[[The Flintstones]]''.

Then they went to more film festivals, continuing to film everything and on [[October 12]], [[2005]], the day Apple announced the video capable [[iPod]], Four Eyed Monsters posted Episode 0, an introductory episode teasing what their planned series would reveal.

All his life, Curtis has enjoyed painting, and since the early 1980s, has had a second career as a [[painter]]. His work can command more than £25000 a canvas now and it is his career in paint that he now focuses rather than movies. 'I still make movies but I'm not that interested any more. I paint all the time.' In [[2007]] his painting ''The Red Table'' will be on display in the [[Metropolitan Museum]] in [[Manhattan]].

Attention from the blogosphere and enthusiasm from a growing audience put the pressure on the filmmakers to deliver, and they then edited Episode 1. It basically revealed the evolution of the filmmakers' real lives into the creation of their feature film and ended letting the audience know the film got a phone call from Slamdance. The remaining episodes went on to show how getting approval from a festival changed everything in their lives and goes on to show how people who had helped with their film then started to want to receive directing credits.

Curtis has spoken of his disappointment in never being awarded an [[Academy Award|Oscar]] 'I've never felt that my profession has recognized me for my work.' In March [[2006]], Curtis received the Sony Ericsson Empire Lifetime Achievement Award. He has a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] and received [[France]]'s honor, the [[Ordre des Arts et des Lettres|Order of Arts and Letters]], in [[1995]].

The video podcast helped it receive promotion from major websites that wanted to see more of this kind of thing happen. For example, MySpace featured episodes 1, 2 and 3 on their homepage. This was before there was a filmmaker section on MySpace and before MySpace allowed users to upload videos. The iTunes podcast directory would also regularly feature the video podcast when new episodes would post.

== Relationships ==

The filmmakers have also been active in encouraging other filmmakers to post their material to the web. During 2006 and 2007, they attended many film festivals and conferences including Sundance, Digimart, [[IFP_(Independent_Feature_Project)|IFP]], and Berlin Talent Campus, spreading the word about how the exposure they received from their video podcast enabled them to self-distribute their movie.

Tony Curtis has been married six times. His first (and most famous) wife was the actress [[Janet Leigh]] (1927–2004), to whom he was married for 11 years, and with whom he fathered actresses [[Jamie Lee Curtis]] and [[Kelly Curtis]]. He said of their relationship, "For a while, we were Hollywood's golden couple. I was very dedicated and devoted to Janet. I was on top of my trade, but in her eyes that goldenness had started to wear off. I realised that whatever I was, I wasn't enough for Janet. That hurt me a lot and broke my heart."

He has also been married to:

As they self distributed to theaters, the filmmakers would make video messages, announcements and invitations they'd post to their video podcast feed to encourage participation in their film's distribution.

* Jill Vandenberg Curtis ([[November 6]], [[1998]]&mdash;)

* Lisa Deutsch ([[February 28]], [[1993]]&ndash;[[1994]]); divorced

* Andrea Savio ([[1984]]&ndash;[[1992]]); divorced

* Leslie Allen ([[April 20]], [[1968]]&ndash;[[1982]]); divorced, two children

* [[Christine Kaufmann]] ([[February 8]], [[1963]]&ndash;[[1967]]); divorced, two children

His son, Nicholas (with Leslie Allen), died of a [[heroin]] overdose on July 2, 1994 at the age of 23. Of this, Curtis has said, "As a father you don't recover from that. There isn't a moment at night that I don't remember him." About his sexuality Curtis stated : "I was 22 when I arrived in Hollywood in 1948. I had more action than Mount Vesuvius! I loved it too. I participated where I wanted to and didn't where I didn't. I've always been open about it." [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053291/news] His current wife is 42 years his junior. They met in a restaurant in 1993 and married in 1998. "The age gap doesn't bother us. We laugh a lot. My body is functioning and everything is good. She's the sexiest woman I've ever known. We don't think about time. I don't use [[Viagra]] either. There are 50 ways to please your lover."

Currently, the video podcast is on a hiatus until the filmmakers have the next slew of episodes edited.

==Awards Trivia ==

{{Trivia|date=June 2007}}

*Best New Directors - 2005 [[Brooklyn International Film Festival]]

[[Image:The Persuaders.jpg|framed|Curtis and [[Roger Moore]] in ''The Persuaders!'' (1971/72).]]

*Chameleon Award - 2005 [[Brooklyn International Film Festival]]

* Tony Curtis currently resides in [[Henderson, Nevada]].

*Student Jury Award - 2005 [[Newport International Film Festival]]

* [[Audie Murphy]] suggested Curtis portray him in his biopic ''[[To Hell and Back]]''.

*Special Audience Award - 2005 [[SXSW|South by South West Film Festival]]

* Despite [[Lew Grade]] suggesting otherwise in his biography ''Still Dancing'', Curtis is good friends with [[Roger Moore]].

*Special Mention - 2005 [[Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival]]

* Curtis and actress-activist [[Bo Derek]] met in Washington, D.C. in support of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act in May 2004.

*Nominated for Best Cinematography - 2007 [[Independent Spirit Awards]]

* Has appeared in tourism advertisements for his ancestral homeland [[Hungary]].

*Nominated for John Cassavetes Award - 2007 [[Independent Spirit Awards]]

* Has stated that his favorite movie star and co-star was [[Cary Grant]].

*Winner of the Undiscovered Gems 2006 Showcase - Awarded 50K towards further theatrical release and 50K for a TV deal with [[Sundance Channel]] still under negotiation.

* Made "Top 10 stars of the year", [[1961]] and [[1962]].

* In late [[2005]], Curtis voiced criticism of the film ''[[Brokeback Mountain]]'', stating that he had no intention of seeing it.

* Being measured for their costumes for ''[[Some Like It Hot]]'', the designer apparently said after measuring Marilyn "you know Tony has a better-looking ass than you do." To which Monroe opened her blouse and said "Yeah, but he doesn't have tits like these!"

* Curtis has reportedly enjoyed watching [[science fiction]] for decades, and is a fan of the [[United Kingdom|British]] [[science fiction]] [[comedy]] [[television series]] ''[[Red Dwarf]]'' (1988). In [[1994]], this show achieved its highest accolade so far, winning an [[Emmy Award|International Emmy Award]] for the Outstanding Popular Arts category. Curtis was 69 at the time and presented the award to [[Robert Llewellyn]] (who played [[Kryten]] in the show). In Red Dwarf Series V episode, The Inquisitor, the character Rimmer remarks on Kryten and Lister being manacled together "Look, they come here with some cock-and-bull story, they're chained together like Sidney Poiter and Tony Curtis -- I say open the door to oblivion and kick 'em through."

* Tony Curtis is used as a continuing [[in-joke]] in the [[2005]] BBC series ''[[Look Around You]]''.

* On the [[March 17]] edition of [[Soccer AM]] Big Stan Hibbert finally told his rendition of the ' Tony Curtis Gag' which led to fireworks exploding and applause heard around the world. He was then showered in flowers from the watching audience and show crew and almost forgot to do his trademark ‘centrifugal force’ celebration.

== Filmography ==

==External links==

* ''[[Criss Cross (1949 film)|Criss Cross]]'' (1949)

*[http://www.Foureyedmonsters.com Official site]

* ''[[Bedrock Across the River]]'' (1949)

*[http://www.myspace.com/foureyedmonsters MySpace]

* ''[[The Lady Gambles]]'' (1949)

*{{imdb title|id=tt0439182|title=Four Eyed Monsters}}

* ''[[Take One False Step]]'' (1949) (scenes deleted)

*{{rotten-tomatoes|id=four_eyed_monster|title=Four Eyed Monsters}}

* ''[[Johnny Stool Pigeon]]'' (1949)

*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8rRFFi_stY Entire Movie On Youtube]

* ''[[How to Smuggle a Hernia Across the Border]]'' (1949) (short subject)

* ''[[Woman in Hiding]]'' (1950)

* ''[[Francis (film)|Francis]]'' (1950)

* ''[[I Was a Shoplifter]]'' (1950)

* ''[[Sierra (film)|Sierra]]'' (1950)

* ''[[Winchester '73 (1950 film)|Winchester '73]]'' (1950)

* ''[[Kansas Raiders]]'' (1950)

* ''[[The Prince Who Was a Thief]]'' (1951)

* ''[[Meet Danny Wilson]]'' (1952) (cameo)

* ''[[Flesh and Fury]]'' (1952)

* ''[[No Room for the Groom]]'' (1952)

* ''[[Son of Ali Baba]]'' (1952)

* ''[[Houdini (film)|Houdini]]'' (1953)

* ''[[The All-American]]'' (1953)

* ''[[Forbidden (1953 film)|Forbidden]]'' (1953)

* ''[[Beachhead]]'' (1954)

* ''[[Johnny Dark]]'' (1954)

* ''[[The Black Shield of Falworth]]'' (1954)

* ''[[Six Bridges to Cross]]'' (1955)

* ''[[So This Is Paris]]'' (1955)

* ''[[The Purple Mask]]'' (1955)

* ''[[The Rawhide Years]]'' (1955)

* ''[[The Square Jungle]]'' (1955)

* ''[[Trapeze]]'' (1956)

* ''[[Mister Cory]]'' (1957)

* ''[[Sweet Smell of Success]]'' (1957)

* ''[[The Midnight Story]]'' (1957)

* ''[[The Vikings (film)|The Vikings]]'' (1958)

* ''[[Kings Go Forth]]'' (1958)

* ''[[The Defiant Ones]]'' (1958)

* ''[[The Perfect Furlough]]'' (1958)

* ''[[Some Like It Hot]]'' (1959)

* ''[[Operation Petticoat]]'' (1959)

* ''[[Who Was That Lady?]]'' (1960)

* ''[[The Rat Race]]'' (1960)

* ''[[Spartacus (film)|Spartacus]]'' (1960)

* ''[[Pepe (film)|Pepe]]'' (1960) (cameo)

* ''[[The Great Impostor]]'' (1961)

* ''[[The Outsider (1961 film)|The Outsider]]'' (1961)

* ''[[Taras Bulba (film)|Taras Bulba]]'' (1962)

* ''[[40 Pounds of Trouble]]'' (1962)

* ''[[The List of Adrian Messenger]]'' (1963) (cameo)

* ''[[Captain Newman, M.D.]]'' (1963)

* ''[[Paris, When It Sizzles]]'' (1964) (cameo)

* ''[[Wild and Wonderful]]'' (1964)

* ''[[Goodbye Charlie]]'' (1964)

* ''[[Sex and the Single Girl]]'' (1964)

* ''[[The Great Race]]'' (1965)

* ''[[Boeing Boeing]]'' (1965)

* ''[[Chamber of Horrors (film)|Chamber of Horrors]]'' (1966) (cameo)

* ''[[Not with My Wife, You Don't!]]'' (1966)

* ''[[Arrivederci, Baby!]]'' (1966)

* ''[[Don't Make Waves]]'' (1967)

* ''[[On My Way to the Crusades, I Met a Girl Who...]]'' (1968)

* ''[[Rosemary's Baby (film)|Rosemary's Baby]]'' (1968) (voice)

* ''[[The Boston Strangler]]'' (1968)

* ''[[Those Daring Young Men in Their Jaunty Jalopies]]'' (1969)

* ''[[You Can't Win 'Em All]]'' (1970)

* ''[[Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came?]]'' (1970)

* ''[[Mission: Monte Carlo]]'' (1974)

* ''[[Lepke]]'' (1975)

* ''[[London Conspiracy]]'' (1976)

* ''[[The Last Tycoon]]'' (1976)

* ''[[Casanova & Co.]]'' (1977)

* ''[[Sextette]]'' (1978)

* ''[[The Manitou]]'' (1978)

* ''[[The Bad News Bears Go to Japan]]'' (1978)

* ''[[Double Take]]'' (1979)

* ''[[Title Shot]]'' (1979)

* ''[[Little Miss Marker]]'' (1980)

* ''[[It Rained All Night the Day I Left]]'' (1980)

* ''[[The Mirror Crack'd]]'' (1980)

* ''[[The Scarlett O'Hara War]]'' (1980)

* ''[[Othello, the Black Commando]]'' (1982)

* ''[[Where Is Parsifal?]]'' (1983)

* ''[[BrainWaves]]'' (1983)

* ''[[The Fantasy Film Worlds of George Pal]]'' (1985) (documentary)

* ''[[Club Life]]'' (1985)

* ''[[Insignificance]]'' (1985)

* ''[[The Last of Philip Banter]]'' (1986)

* ''[[Balboa (film)|Balboa]]'' (1986)

* ''[[The Passenger - Welcome to Germany]]'' (1988)

* ''[[Lobster Man from Mars]]'' (1989)

* ''[[Midnight (1989 film)|Midnight]]'' (1989)

* ''[[Walter & Carlo In America]]'' (1989)

* ''[[Prime Target]]'' (1991)

* ''[[Center of the Web]]'' (1992)

* ''[[Hugh Hefner: Once Upon a Time]]'' (1992) (documentary)

* ''[[Naked in New York]]'' (1993)

* ''[[The Mummy Lives]]'' (1993)

* ''[[A Century of Cinema]]'' (1994) (documentary)

* ''[[The Immortals (film)|The Immortals]]'' (1995)

* ''[[The Celluloid Closet]]'' (1995) (documentary)

* ''[[Hardball (1997 film)|Hardball]]'' (1997)

* ''[[Brittle Glory]]'' (1997)

* ''[[Alien X Factor]]'' (1997)

* ''[[Stargames]]'' (1998)

* ''[[Louis & Frank]]'' (1998)

* ''[[Play It to the Bone]]'' (1999) (cameo)

* ''[[Reflections of Evil]]'' (2002) (narrator)

* ''[[Where's Marty?]]'' (2006)

* ''[[Funny Money]]'' (2007)

* ''[[The Blacksmith and the Carpenter]]'' (2007) (voice)

* ''[[David & Fatima]]'' (2008)

* ''[[Oceans 14]]'' (2009)

== References ==

[[Category:2005 films]]

<references/>

[[Category:American films]]

[[Category:Drama films]]

== Further reading ==

[[Category:English-language films]]

* {{cite book |last= Curtis |first= Tony |authorlink= |coauthors= [[Barry Paris]] |title= Tony Curtis: The Autobiography |year= 1993 |publisher= William Morrow & Co |___location= New York |isbn= 978-0-688-09759-2 }}

[[Category:Independent films]]

* {{cite book |last= Ayres |first= Ian |title= Van Gogh's Ear: The Celebrity Edition |year= 2006 |publisher= French Connection |___location= Paris |isbn= 978-2-914-85307-1 }}

== External links ==

{{Commons}}

* {{imdb name|0000348|Tony Curtis}}

* {{tcmdb name|848347|Tony Curtis}}

* [http://www.oralhistoryproject.com/TonyCurtis1.html Biography] and [http://www.oralhistoryproject.com/tcurtis_navy.html naval service] from the California Center for Military History website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Curtis, Tony}}

[[Category:American film actors]]

[[Category:Hollywood Walk of Fame]]

[[Category:Jewish American actors]]

[[Category:Hungarian-Americans]]

[[Category:People from the Bronx]]

[[Category:American military personnel of World War II]]

[[Category:United States Navy sailors]]

[[Category:1925 births]]

[[Category:Living people]]

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