If you’ve listened to any number of my podcast interviews this past year I'm sure you’ve heard me mention the name Allan Carr several times. Who is he and why do I have an obsession with him, you ask?
Read this blurb describing who he is from the amazing documentary “The Fabulous Allan Carr” and I think it’ll quickly become apparent to you why I’m SO fascinated with his extraordinary Hollywood story.
“In the pantheon of great showmen, there was P.T. Barnum. There was Mike Todd. And there was Allan Carr. Throughout the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, Allan Carr transformed himself from a pudgy sissy kid from Chicago into a major Hollywood power player turned Oscar producer. A sometimes producer / talent manager, other times marketing genius, and all the time party planner, Carr built his bombastic reputation amid a series of successes. He produced the mega-hit musical film Grease, with its profits to the tune of $400 million, he brought La Cage Aux Folles to Broadway for multi-year runs, he developed Oscar campaigns and platform rollouts for specialty films like The Deer Hunter. Oh, and the parties…
Armed with a limitless Rolodex and a Benedict Canyon enclave with its own disco, Carr threw the Hollywood parties that defined the 1970s. Audacious, hedonistic, almost Babylonian, Carr’s parties had two simple rules — RSVP in advance and check your inhibitions at the door. A rotund Pied Piper of the Hollywood Hills, Carr greeted partiers in a diamond-encrusted caftan with promises of stardom. His soirees unified stars young and old, conservative and liberal, gay and straight. His is a study in excess — an unfettered, uninhibited explosion of luxuriance the likes of which Hollywood had never seen. It’s a story that needs to be seen to be believed.”
Now that you know a little bit more about the man, the myth, the legend…you’ll hopefully have a better understanding of why, whenever I interview someone that knew him, I feel compelled to get at least one good “Allan Carr story” out of them.
Case in point, in my recent interview with actor Russell Todd (Episodes 49 & 50) I asked Russell to tell me the unique way that he got the lead role in the remake of the 1960 sex comedy film “Where the Boys Are” - co-starring actresses Lisa Hartman, Lorna Luft, Wendy Schaal, and Lynn-Holly Johnson - which was produced by Allan Carr. Here’s what he said…
Russell Todd's story about on how Allan Carr discovered him for his movie “Where The Boys Are” - Transcript from Episode 49
Russell: So I’m New in Hollywood…. and I’m asking all my friends that are actors, “Where do you get your haircut?” They all say you gotta go to Jerry Esposito… he does the best haircuts, and he’s on Fountain. Right near La Cienega and he knows everybody.
So I make an appointment and I go there. Fantastic haircut. He says, “Give me your 8 x 10”. I probably had one in the trunk of my car, of course like a good actor. I probably had 100 of them in the back of my car. LAUGHS And I give him one and he puts it up on his wall there and I thought that’s it.
I don’t know how much time went by but it was 2…3 weeks after that that I got a call from someone from Tri-Star… Not Allan… Someone who was in Casting who said, “Allan Carr saw your picture recently at Jerry Esposito’s and he’d like us to bring you in to read for the lead in his new movie.” When I called Jerry to tell him about it I said, “Thank you so much for putting (my picture) up there”
He said, “When Allan Carr looked up there he said, “who is that?” And Jerry said “That’s Russell Todd, he’s new in town…” Allan said, “He is going to star in my next movie!” It’s like he had already decided that I was going to star in the movie!! But I did have to go through the audition process with Lisa…. Lorna…with Lynn Holly…and Wendy Schaal as well. And it was like two or three calls we did….with different scenes and I got the role! And I remember being at his house… what did they call it? Hillhaven?
Tony: yeah it’s called Hillhaven Lodge.
Russell: yes…terrific house. A big-time Producer owns it now I can’t remember who ….
Tony: Brett Ratner owns it now….
Russell: Brett Ratner, right. You’re good… LAUGHS
Russell:….and I remember sitting there at this very long living room table and Allan was sitting at a chair on one end and I’m sitting in the other end and he’s holding two contracts. And I’m thinking “What the hell is that second contract?” LAUGHS
So he said “I want you to star in my movie” and I said “Terrific…that’s fantastic…thank you Allan so much” He said, “But I have to manage you”. I said, “Ohh ok… I have an agent but I don’t have a manager…let me think about it.” He said, “No, I have to manage you. That’s part of the deal.” It was called “Anonymous Management”. Probably not a good name for a management company…LAUGHS…but it was him and Dennis Pregliano….they were partners in that…and I signed both (contracts). Did the movie, and they were my management team for a while.
Tony: That’s amazing! It is like a real Hollywood story.
Russell: it’s like that Lana Turner at Schwab's story…which was not real…
Tony: no, but yours was real! Which is why I wanted you to tell the story. That’s why you see pictures hanging up in salons everywhere.
Russell: yeah, you never know. I still have some pictures hanging in restaurants. I’m hoping someone walks in there and sees them…again. LAUGHS
I’ve also heard some fun stories about Allan during my interviews with the director of “Grease” Randal Kleiser (Episodes 33 & 34), actors Keith Coogan (Episodes 5 & 6), Barry Pearl (Episodes 11 & 12) and actress Dinah Manoff (whose two episodes drop on February 12th) all of which fueled my fascination with Allan’s remarkable life.
By the way for those of you who are interested in finding out more about Allan’s outrageous life, I suggest you read the book “Party Animals: A Hollywood Tale of Sex, Drugs, and Rock ’n’ Rock Starring the Fabulous Allan Carr” by Robert Holfer or watch Jeffrey Schwarz’s marvelous documentary “The Fabulous Allan Carr” from Automat Pictures.
As a matter of fact, I’m planning on interviewing Jeffrey Schwarz soon to talk to him about his latest documentary but you know the moment I get him in the hot seat I'll have a slew of questions to ask him about Allan’s life. So prepare to immerse yourselves with more fantastic stories about Hollywood's greatest showman and his spectacular life on an upcoming episode of HOLLYWOOD OBSESSED!
To listen to my fascinating conversation with movie star RUSSELL TODD about starring in the 1984 film “Where The Boys Are”, his career and his interactions with the fabulous Allan Carr on my podcast - click on the links below. Enjoy!
