BEING SPARTACUS KIRK DOUGLAS CELEBRATES 90 YEARS OF ACTION-PACKED LIVING.Byline: Evan Henerson Staff Writer He's still Spartacus. And Col. Dax, Vincent Van Gogh, Ned Land, Doc Holliday
The author of eight books -- with a ninth due out in January -- Douglas is a longtime goodwill ambassador This title may refer to:
Verb [sprucing, spruced] to make neat and smart Verb 1. spruce up - make neat, smart, or trim; "Spruce up your house for Spring"; "titivate the child" playground facilities. A continuation high school A continuation high school is an alternative to a comprehensive high school primarily for students who are considered at-risk of not graduating at the normal pace. The requirements to graduate are the same but the scheduling is more flexible to allow students to earn their credits in Northridge carries his name, and Douglas attends every commencement ceremony, giving each graduate a congratulatory $500 check. The Douglases also provided the initial donation for Center Theatre Group's Kirk Douglas Theatre The Kirk Douglas Theatre is located in Culver City, California and in 2004, was acquired by the famed Center Theatre Group. The theatre is the most intimate of the groups 3 stages and seats 317 patrons at max occupancy. in Culver City Culver City, city (1990 pop. 38,793), Los Angeles co., S Calif., a residential suburb of Los Angeles; inc. 1917. It is a center of the U.S. motion-picture industry, whose roots in the city date to c.1915. Its chief manufactures are rubber products and computers. , where they are regular patrons. Douglas celebrated his 90th birthday last weekend. We met with Douglas and Anne -- his wife of 52 years -- at their Beverly Hills Beverly Hills, city (1990 pop. 31,971), Los Angeles co., S Calif., completely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles; inc. 1914. The largely residential city is home to many motion-picture and television personalities. home before the celebration. Q: Can you tell us about the new book? KD: When you're 90 years old, you don't think so much about the future. You start to think about the past. Usually when you have a birthday, you make a silent wish for yourself when you blow out the candles. This time, I will make a wish for the people and the world because, as I face a world that I wrote about in my book ``Let's Face It,'' the world is in a mess, and it's up to the young people to solve the mess that we created. So that's what I'm concerned about, and that's why I wrote a book about my experiences and my mistakes. Hopefully, it will be a help to them in dealing with the many problems they will have to deal with. My children and especially my grandchildren GRANDCHILDREN, domestic relations. The children of one's children. Sometimes these may claim bequests given in a will to children, though in general they can make no such claim. 6 Co. 16. will have to deal with these problems. I hope the book will help in some way. Q: The book covers some difficult periods in your life including the death of your son (Peter Douglas). Was it emotionally difficult writing about some of these topics? KD: Yes, in a way it was, because when you write a book, you have to not think about writing a book that might make you self-conscious. You have to write a book thinking it will never be printed. Then you have a chance to write about the things you think about. I found that my book, at the end, it was also a love story between me and my wife. I didn't start it that way, but when I finished it, that aspect of it became a very important part. Q: Mrs. Douglas, did your presence in the book take you by surprise? AD: Completely. He actually started that book and it originally had a different theme. I think as time went by, the world got more into conflict all over, so he decided to change course, and I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. how I ended up being a big part of that book. I guess the durability of our relationship and the tremendous understanding and connection that we have together supports us through this in a more serene way. Q: Do the two of you still manage to travel as goodwill ambassadors? KD: I think everybody in movies is more or less an ambassador of our country. When I took the trip to about 40 countries with my wife speaking to university students, I was amazed a·maze v. a·mazed, a·maz·ing, a·maz·es v.tr. 1. To affect with great wonder; astonish. See Synonyms at surprise. 2. Obsolete To bewilder; perplex. v.intr. because they didn't think of me as a Republican or a Democrat. I was an American. So all movie people in a way are ambassadors, and I applaud actors like Angelina Jolie, Madonna and George Clooney George Timothy Clooney (May 6, 1961) is an American actor, director, producer and screenwriter who gained fame as the lead doctor in the long-running television drama, ER . They often are criticized as if they were doing it for self-aggrandizement. Not at all! They have contributed so much money. They have committed so much time. AD: I'm also impressed with Bono. Wherever he goes around the world, if he's on a concert tour, he doesn't care about talking about that. He talks to heads of government. This is what we used to do for many years, and it was tremendously interesting. We got a lot out of that because we had the feeling we made various countries understand our country much better than the politicians can do. KD: My wife is more capable of understanding what America means than I am because she was an immigrant. She wanted to pay back something for this country, and when she read that all the playgrounds at schools for children were decrepit de·crep·it adj. Weakened, worn out, impaired, or broken down by old age, illness, or hard use. See Synonyms at weak. [Middle English, from Old French, from Latin d and dangerous, she said, ``I'm going to fix them all.'' Of course, I thought she was crazy, but she wasn't crazy. I was so proud of her when we went to Washington and she received the Jefferson Award for Public Service by a Private Citizen. We always go to every playground dedication. Sometimes I resent re·sent tr.v. re·sent·ed, re·sent·ing, re·sents To feel indignantly aggrieved at. [French ressentir, to be angry, from Old French resentir, people shaking me in the morning, ``Get up! It's time It's Time was a successful political campaign run by the Australian Labor Party (ALP) under Gough Whitlam at the 1972 election in Australia. Campaigning on the perceived need for change after 23 years of conservative (Liberal Party of Australia) government, Labor put forward a to go to school!'' I thought I was through with that. But when you get there and you see the future citizens of my country, it inspires me. I said, ``Honey, I'm so proud of you, and what can I do to help?'' And she said, ``Get a job! We need the money!'' (Laughs). Q: What would you have done with your life if you couldn't have been an actor? KD: An actor (laughs). I think as long as I can remember, I was interested in acting, because I was raised in abject poverty and I think I wanted to escape reality. That was a motivating force. Q: In your most recent film, ``It Runs in the Family,'' you got to act opposite members of your family. How cool was that? KD: That was a very interesting experience. My son Michael is Michael I, Byzantine emperor Michael I (Michael Rangabe), d. c.845, Byzantine emperor (811–13), son-in-law of Nicephorus I. He supported orthodoxy against iconoclasm and recalled Theodore of Studium from exile. my favorite My Favorite is an independent synthpop band from Long Island, New York. They released two CDs: Love at Absolute Zero and Happiest Days of Our Lives. My Favorite broke up on September 14, 2005, when singer Andrea Vaughn left the band. actor, and I also enjoyed the experience of working with his son, Cameron, who is such a natural. I also had my ex-wife (Diana Douglas), with no objection from my (current) wife. It was not a big success, but I thought it was a very good movie. Q: Now that the book's finished, are there any plans for another film? KD: I said to my agent, ``Don't you have a part for a 75-year-old man?'' I knocked off 15 years. What the hell! I mean who's going to have a part for a 90-year-old man? Q: You could go back on stage. You've got a theater with your name on it and two new knees. KD: You have a point there. I never wanted to be in movies. When I was working on Broadway, the first time someone offered me to come to Hollywood, I declined. Then I had my son Michael, and I was broke, and I wondered if that producer still wanted me, so I called him up. I did my first movie, and then I went back to Broadway. When they inaugurated the Kirk Douglas Theatre, I said I always wanted to be a star on the stage, not in the movies. In my old age, I knew how to do it. You build your own theater. Q: That first film was ``The Strange Love of Martha Ivers.'' What are your recollections of the experience? KD: Van Heflin was very nice to me. Barbara Stanwyck was very cold, but after a while, she loosened up and we became friends, and I enjoyed the experience. Also I had never smoked cigarettes, but the producers said I have to smoke a cigarette, and the first time I was smoking, I got sick and they had to stop the production. But that hooked me on cigarettes, and for about 10 years I was smoking like mad. Q: You've also shared the screen with the man who would become our governor. KD: Arnold and I did one of his early pictures, ``The Villain VILLAIN., An epithet used to cast contempt and contumely on the person to whom it is applied. 2. To call a man a villain in a letter written to a third person, will entitle him to an action without proof of special damages. 1 Bos. & Pull. 331. ,'' and he played like a wimp. But what I remember about Schwarzenegger, I told my wife, ``He had a lot of muscles, but he had a lot of brains.'' He was very intelligent. I liked him. I still like him. Evan Henerson, (818) 713-3651 evan.henerson@dailynews.com SPOTLIGHT ON A LEGEND Background: Born Dec. 9, 1916, in Amsterdam, New York Amsterdam, New York is the name of two locations in Montgomery County, New York:
I'm Spartacus: Long before he produced and starred in the acclaimed epic of a slave rising to lead an army, Douglas' own motivation for success was fueled by childhood struggles. ``I have always told my sons that they didn't have my advantages of being born into abject poverty.'' No looking back: Fully content in the now, Douglas dismisses reminiscent talks of the ``(good) old days.'' Having survived a war, a stroke, two knee replacements, a helicopter crash and a heart attack, Douglas describes celebrating 90 as ``miraculous mi·rac·u·lous adj. 1. Of the nature of a miracle; preternatural. 2. So astounding as to suggest a miracle; phenomenal: a miraculous recovery; a miraculous escape. 3. .'' Just as alive is his love for second wife Anne, with whom he renewed his vows in 2004 on their 50th anniversary. Human first: ``I've made a career of playing sons of bitches,'' Douglas once said of his successful Hollywood run. Not as obvious -- but recognized -- is his active role in humanitarian causes. Most recently, Douglas issued a public letter calling on the youth to take action in a world ``facing many problems.'' Never one to hold his tongue, Douglas' own actions in the '50s, demanding recognition for blacklisted ``Spartacus'' screenwriter Dalton Trumbo Noun 1. Dalton Trumbo - United States screenwriter who was blacklisted and imprisoned for refusing to cooperate with congressional investigations of communism in America (1905-1976) Trumbo began the end of such policies that had destroyed many careers in Hollywood for almost a decade. What's in a name: Born Issur Danielovitch Demsky, the cleft-chinned, gravelly-voiced Douglas has made his mark on and off screen. The father of successful actor/producer Michael, he was voted the 36th Greatest Movie Star of all time by Entertainment Weekly, has a star on the Hollywood Boulevard For uses other than the original street, see Hollywood Boulevard (disambiguation). Hollywood Boulevard is a boulevard in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States, beginning at Sunset Boulevard in the east and running northwest to Vermont Avenue, where it straightens out Walk of Fame, received an Oscar in 1996 for 50 years as a creative and moral force in the motion picture community, and has a host of memorable roles ensuring that the Douglas name will be long remembered. -- S. Debessai IN THE SPIRIT OF PUBLIC SERVICE More than 14 schools in the Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. Unified School District's District 1, which is located in the West Valley, have received Anne and Kirk Douglas Playground Awards, a $25,000 grant that goes toward campus playground refurbishments. Apperson Elementary in Sunland is due for a dedication ceremony -- which includes a visit by the Douglases -- in January. To date, the AKDPA has donated more than $7 million to provide new facilities at more than 360 campuses. The Kirk Douglas Continuation School continuation school: see vocational education. in Northridge also receives regular donations. Kirk and Anne Douglas have separately won the Jefferson Award for Public Service by a Private Citizen. The Los Angeles Mission for the Homeless operates the Anne Douglas Center for Women, and the Motion Picture & Television Hospital's Alzheimer's Unit, which is named ``Harry's Haven'' after Kirk Douglas' father. -- E.H. CAPTION(S): 3 photos, 2 boxes Photo: (1 -- cover -- color) Kirk and Anne Douglas at home in Beverly Hills. (2 -- color) Douglas stands beside a statue of his younger and older self in the backyard of his Beverly Hills home. John McCoy/Staff Photographer (3 -- color) no caption (Kirk Douglas) Box: (1) SPOTLIGHT ON A LEGEND (see text) (2) IN THE SPIRIT OF PUBLIC SERVICE (see text) |
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