Karl Malden’s & Michael Douglas’s Birthday Wishes! By Tony Piazza
Imagine searching through your parent’s memorabilia and coming across a birthday card to your dad from work. It is signed by all his co-workers with well wishes for his special day. Now imagine that this job was with a television production…and those co-workers were celebrities and crew from that show. That is exactly what I came across this morning and am sharing with you today. The show was “The Streets of San Francisco,” and I worked with my dad on it through its run of five seasons.
It looks common enough from the cover, but when you open it up!
Look closely you will see Karl Malden.
And this page has Michael Douglas, Jill St. John, and SF journalist Herb Caen amongst others!
Now that is one birthday card, wouldn’t you say!
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Tony Piazza is author of the 1930s Hollywood murder mystery novel, “Anything Short of Murder,” which had its roots on the TCM fan website. His second novel, “The Curse of the Crimson Dragon” was next released early 2012, and in July of this year, his latest Tom Logan Mystery, “A Murder Amongst Angels” was published and is now available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble websites. He was an actor/extra during the 1970s and worked with such legends as Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, and Karl Malden. His non-fiction e-book “Bullitt Points” is an in depth look at the making of “Bullitt” from a person who was there. Look for it on Amazon and Barnes and Noble websites, or at the link posted below. All profits go to the Boys Republic charity: www.bullittpoints.com.
My earlier bestselling novels, “The Curse of the Crimson Dragon” and “Anything Short of Murder” now joins “A Murder Amongst Angels” on Amazon’s Kindle at a new, low price of $2.99. Now you can have hours of adventure, thrills, mystery, and romance for the price of a cup of coffee- and just as stimulating! Look for it on Amazon. Print versions have also been reduced.
Also: The new Tom Logan mystery thriller, A Murder Amongst Angels .
Find them all on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and wherever fine books are sold. Also available for $2.99 on Kindle.
That is a real piece of Hollywood nostalgia! You must’ve had your mind blown when you found it.
I too used to be an actor here in NYC, was in pretty much every series that rolled through town as a principle and minor principle player, and I’ve been in a number of films, both “Analyze This”, and “Analyze That” for Harold Ramus, as well as doing a ton of theater here. I got married and could no longer follow that dream of acting full time for a living – had two kids and that was that!
What your message did for me was to make sure that I find every piece of memorabilia that I acquired over the years and set them aside for my kids, later in life. I too got a thrill of reading that card to your dad – it was really endearing, man! Hopefully my children will get the same thrill if and when they start going through my trunk full of “junk” in my attic.
You made my day – and thank you for that!
Rob Cea
Hi Rob,
Nice meeting you. Thank you so much for taking the time to comment. Yes, save all those things for your kids, it helps them stay connected to you. I also remember Mr. D’Antoni. My dad worked with him and Robert Relyea. I mentioned them in my e-book “Bullitt Points.” I really liked Steve McQueen- I met him on Bullitt and again when I was working in films on The Towering Inferno. Both times he was super. I had the pleasure to meet his son Chad recently, and he is every bit as nice as his dad. Take care, and I hope you check out the rest of my stories at http://www.authortonypiazza.com. -Tony.
By the way – I failed to mention that I am pretty good friends with Phil D’Antoni – he produced Bullit – which I think you said your dad worked on that film! Phil gave me a blurb on my book cover, “No Lights No Sirens”, which he wanted to produce as a feature film – he is a GREAT guy as I’m sure you know if you ever met him. He truly was one of the good guys in the Hollywood establishment.
Again, thanks for the cool message, and for getting me off my butt to set my box of memories aside for my kids!
Best,
Rob Cea
PS – good luck in your endeavors, it seems like you had a GREAT start in the biz!