Tony Curtis and His Art Work

Eleven Picture Photo Spread

Photographs by Laura Deni

MOB SCENE -- Hundreds of people packed the Art of Entertainment gallery in the MGM-Grand Hotel, while hundreds more waited outside. The mob congregated an hour before Curtis was to make his 2 p.m. appearance, and patiently awaited his arrival. When I suggested to hotel pr person Michelle Rikard that I'd like a photo of the mob scene, the accommodating Michelle went into a storage area and hauled out a hugh, metal ladder. When I attempted to climb the steps, Michelle noticing I was wearing high heels, pointed out that she was in flats, and suggested that she climb the ladder. While a store associate steadied the ladder and I held her leg, Michelle gamly snapped this shot. We thank her for her assistance.

BOYISH LOOKING AT 72, the crowd of fans included people of all ages who raved about his appearance and noticed that he's lost none of the glimmer in his piercing blue eyes.

"I WAS A SCREW UP," admits the former drug addict, who went into treatment for cocaine and alcohol abuse. "I don't ever remember being without drugs of some kind. I was taking sleeping pills, pep pills for years. I did it all. But that's over with I've beaten that down." After his cocaine and prescription drug addiction almost ruined his career, Curtis went through three sessions at the Betty Ford Clinic in 1984 and completely turned his life around.

"BE YOURSELF" Tony told a man who informed the actor/artist that Tony was his idol and he tried to be just like him. "There's nothing the matter with you," Tony declared. "Be yourself. Don't try to be like anybody else. You're a terrific person. Don't ever try to be like anybody else."

CURTIS SIGNS AUTOGRAPH for an unidentified fan. Behind Curtis is one of his paintings. Curtis had a kind word, hug or hand shake for every person who stood in line. The previous night the hotel held a VIP reception. When a mass of people appeared outside the store, Curtis excused himself from the group, went outside the store to shake hands and speak to his many fans. He then returned to his reception. MGM-Grand staffers called Tony the most unassuming and cooperative star that has ever been inside the hotel.

WAS IT AS GOOD FOR YOU - "After I finish a painting or two I put them aside. I sleep with them in my bedroom - I put them away at the end of the room and wake up two or three times and watch them in the moonlight." Then his intoxicating blue eyes took on a wicked glint and he added: "And then we smoke a couple of cigarettes and in the morning, I ask them, Was it as good for you as it was for me?'"

CHILDHOOD ESCAPE: Curtis began painting as a child and explained, "I had a tough Bronx childhood. Art was my escape. There was no place I went where I wouldn't sit down and draw. It was an absolute out-of-body experience. You forget your whole body and you're drawn into the picture. That's what drawing did for me - allowed me to escape. It still does."

ART AND ACTING MERGE "Being a thinking actor and a thinking painter, there's a definite correlation. I must make my work so artful it comes out looking artless. That's the way you judge."

SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION "I want my paintings to look as if they have so much exuberance and energy that they just shot out spontaneously."

BOLD AND VIBRANT Curtis' collections of drawings, paintings, and lithographs have appeared in various galleries throughout the world. His still lifes - acrylic on canvas - are bold and vibrant, blending elements of impressionistic painting while utilizing cubistic space.