The 1950s and 1960s
I was born in 1950 when Harry Truman was President. Joe DiMaggio played outfield for the NY Yankees. Gas was 18 cents a gallon, and a new house cost $8,450.
On the set of Vera Cruz in 1954 with Gary Cooper, Burt Lancaster, and my brother Steven in the Cuernavaca Valley, Mexico—one of my dad’s most successful productions.
The following year, I watched my dad pick up the 1955 Best Picture Oscar for Marty on TV.
Before the ceremony with Harold, my mom Gloria, and Burt Lancaster.
In 1960, I was in two scenes of John Frankenheimer’s The Young Savages. He was a cinematic giant, and I was, a Puerto Rican background extra. You can check it out here.
Next stop: New York City! We’re moving to
40 E. 84th Street.
High school in NYC was at Rudolf Steiner, a Waldorf school, within walking distance of my apartment. I served on the Student Council for four years, played varsity Basketball for four years and varsity Soccer for three years, was editor of the yearbook, and worked as a sportswriter for the school newspaper.
But I couldn’t wait to get back to California.
I attended California Western University on the Sunset Cliffs in Point Loma. Richard Brautigan (Trout Fishing in America) taught prose, Robert Creeley taught poetry, and Jim Morrison of The Doors brought his UCLA film and gave a special performance for the film students, all 15 of us.
Richard Brautigan
American novelist
Robert Creeley
Poet
