"The feeling
remains... 
Even after 
the glitter fades"

Stevie Nicks

 

 

HOLLYWOOD BE THY NAME

If you remember any of these people, or if you are one of them, or if you know what happened to them or where they are, or if you had a connection of some kind with anybody listed, please leave a message in "feedback." I have information on a few, and I will give you any specifics that I may have. All of the following people frequented the Sunset Strip area in the late sixties, and were well known by the Hollywood crowd.
  

Elmer Valentine, the owner of the Whisky, and Mario Maglieri,
 the manager, and Gail who worked in the office. Gail married
Frank Zappa.

Chuck Blackwell, drummer, from Tulsa. He played on the Mad Dogs and Englishmen tour, and for Taj Mahal

Other Mad Dogs-- Bobby Keyes, Bobby Whitlock, and Carl Radle

Jackie Rosen, dancer at Gazzarri's. She had blonde hair, green eyes
and drove a silver Corvette convertible. 

Edward James Olmos, an actor, played in the house band at 
Gazzarri's, but was also in October Country and Pacific Ocean.

Rodney Bingenheimer  was a little guy, but he always made a grand appearance with a gorgeous girl on each arm or a rock star.  If you ever cruised the Strip, you could bet on seeing Rodney, because he was out on the Strip on foot every day, dressed to kill, along with his rock and roll entourage. "What's happening, Man" was Rodney's mantra.

Chantal, who was often one of the tall gorgeous 
ones on Rodney's arm

Sugar Bear, actor-- cute and sweet as can be. When Sugar Bear 
greeted me, he would stand on his toes and wrap his arms around my waste because he was so short. He was either dwarf or a midget.

Ronnie Benton and his wife Cotton. Ronnie was a beautiful black
musician/songwriter, and Cotton was from England.

Elmer Valentine

Dick Monda, (Daddy Dewdrop)

Byrd, (Larry Hindman) drummer, from Urbana, Illinois played with The
Groupies after Bobby Cortez.. 

 Any of the Classic Cat people--dancers, Jan, Wendy, Raul, 
 Carol, Brandy, Kitten, Haji, Dixie; owner, Alan Wells; 
band members, Lacy, John Cortinez:
bouncer, The Alaskan (Jay York)



More on the Classic Cat...

       Buzzard, the vice-president of the Blue Blaze in Fontana,
         a motorcycle gang. Thomas Medina was believed to 
         have been his real name.

         Kellie Everts, Miss Nude Universe
         
         Phillip Ivy

Edgar Arvay in the sixties
standing in front of a Deep Purple poster

         Richard Siegel, lived a stone's throw from the Whisky in '75

         Judy Paynter, lived at Leon's on Skyhill for awhile, had a
          young daughter named "Shannon"
         
         Kelly Thomas, was constantly at the Sea Witch and Cantor's

         Herbie Worthington, lived with Buddy Miles, and at one point
         rented Arthur Lee's guest house

         Benny Harris, Chuck Wien, Melinda Merriweather (aka Bambi)

        Ken Roland, from a band called Burnside (aka US Males)

         Bands:  October Country, Pacific Ocean, Yellow Balloon

        Terry Rae, drummer for the Yellow Payges and the Palace Guard

SWEET WINE played at Gazzaris.  James Rolleston on bass, Mike McCarty & Wolf Marshall on guitar and Terry Rae on drums. Contact Terry Rae at: threetraes@attbi.com

        Judy Thigpen, lived with Lee Michaels

        Susie Creamcheese, lived on Larrabee St. above the strip

       Buffalo Springfield

Neil Young
Photo: Thanks to Soosi

       Dino Valenti, lead singer for Quicksilver Messenger Service

Dino Valenti

Susie Foran--drove around Hollywood in a "wierd-looking"
two-cylinder French car called a Panhard

Susie's car

Any Body Shop people--dancers, Red, 
Monica, Kim, Angel Carter, 
Moriah, Susie, Kris Kross, Simone; 
comedian, Oscar Cartier; doorman, Tommy; 
owner, Al, also known as Big Al
More on the Body Shop

Photo courtesy of C.J. Wilson

Bob Nutt, promoter from Champaign, IL who later became
associated with REO.

Leland Sklar, incredible bass player. He played for Elvis.

Leigh Stephens, Blue Cheer, 1968

Michael Laine lived between Fairfax and LaBrea and went 
to Fairfax High

Nooney Rickett 5
(L-R) Bobby Blood, Bill McCubbin, Tom Funk, 
Kent Dunbar, Nooney Rickett

Ron Davies and his sister, Gail

Sky Saxon and the Seeds

Sky Saxon

Kenny and David Bracci, bartenders at the Classic Cat and later at the Whisky. The Bracci brothers were Sugar Bear's best buddies.

   Bill Watson and David England

Sally Doud, David Doud, and Michael Doud. Michael and David's father was a famous movie director and writer back in the forties and fifties.

Bill Gazzari, owner of Gazzari's

Any members of the Groupies band out of New York City, 
Cooker, Bird, Pete, Gordie, Bobby, Ronnie
 More on the Groupies

Any members of the band, Love; Arthur Lee, the lead singer, Brian McLean, guitarist; Arthur Lee's signature look was an Edwardian suit with a long scarf tied around his neck

Arthur Lee
Photo: Thanks to Soosi

Carl Franzoni, Szu, and Vito
Photo credit: Fisheye

Sandy, who married Chip, from "My Three Sons" or Stanley Livingston and his brother Barry

Aron Kay, The Pieman

Allan MacDougall, head of A&R department at A&M studios.

MacDougal (center)
Anka, on left, later married Eddie, the conga player for Santana.
The girl on right is unknown.

Brandon De Wilde, child actor and friend of Gram Parsons. Brandon
played the little kid in Shane, that favorite old movie.

The Flying Burritto Brothers

Craig Nuttycombe and Denis Lambert

Lambert and Nuttycombe

Dog Breath Music

Michael Muentz, close friends with Brandon DeWilde and Gram Parsons

DeWilde's second or third wife, Janice, was Janice Gero. She was one
of the Classic Cat dancers.

Gram Parsons,  1968
Photo courtesy of Earl Crabb
www.humbead.com/skyriver/

Bob Jenkin, photographer who did album covers for Kris Kristopherson,
Rita Coolidge and the Eagles.

The Dependables--a group that included Joey Stec and Ralph Skala

Hammond Guthrie, a familiar face at love-ins and on the Strip

Hammond

Brian Hyland

Mark Rodney, who used to hang out at the Doud's house.
He had a group called Batdorf and Rodney 

Five Man Electrical Band
They were from Canada, but spent time in L.A.
They did the original version of the song: "Signs"

Terry Reid--he played the Whisky several times--had a killer voice

George Mather--actor/director, head of Filmex--a commercial
production company

Adele Bishop. worked with choreographer, Roland DuPree

The Band, East Side Kids,--Joe Madrid, Mike and David Doud,
Dave Potter and Joe Madrid

The Yellow Payges

Ronnie Tutt, drummer with Elvis

Gary Lewis and the Playboys

Photo courtesty of C.J. Wilson
L-R: Jayne Brady, Sara Youngblood,
Gary Lewis, C.J. (Cecil) Wilson 
C.J.'s email:   Siege7@aol.com

Jesse Ed  Davis, played guitar with Taj Mahal

Pat and Lolly Vega

Judy Sims of Teenset Magazine

Erica Gavin of "Vixen" fame

Lorrie Mattox (Lori Lightning) and Jimmy Page.

Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart

The Knickerbockers

Rich Harney, keyboard player, from Champaign, Illinois, who went to Austin, Texas

Arthur, Whisky doorman

Nancy Holliday

Francine Brockey, waitress at the Classic Cat, from Tulsa, and one of the Mad Dogs and Englishmen entourage

Cynthia Plaster of The Plaster Casters

Steve Venet, from New York City, the Groupies' band manager, also produced records such as "Boy From New York City." He was one of 
the producers who "rocked the 60's" from the Brill Building in New York and produced songs for the Monkees, Freddy Cannon, The Astronauts (remember Surf Party?) among many, many others.

Kay Poorboy, dancer, and Francine Brockey; waitress, from the Classic Cat, both were from Tulsa, and both of them traveled  with Mad Dogs and Englishmen. 
They lived at Leon's on Skyhill and at the Plantation. If anybody has ANY information of these two women, I would personally like to know,
as they were two of my dearest friends. My email is:  hllywd4ever@aol.com

Patsy Camp, who was "Crazy Mama"  and "Magnolia" from Atlanta, Georgia, and  was JJ Cale's girlfriend back then

Michael Doud

            
              Ron Davies
                   

Sylvia, dancer from from Big Al's, Cher, dancer, Charlotte, dancer with Ray Charles, Marguerite Zalud, dancer

Gypsy (formerly the Underbeats) played Gazzarri's and were the house band at the Whisky for about eight months in 1969. The original members were: James Walsh, Jim Johnson, Enrico Rosenbaum, Jay Epstein, and Doni Larson. 

      

Wild  Man Fisher, and he was exactly that. He was out on the Strip
daily doing his "Wild Man" thang.

Wild Man Fisher

Ron Darling and the Smokestack Lightning band--Ric Eiserling,
Kelly Green and Art Guy

Bobby Jones, of Mad Dogs and Englishmen, and Chris Stainton, 
Sweet Emily, Jim Keltner, Jim Price, Jim Gordon, Claudia Lennear, 
Kathi McDonald, Donna Washburn,  and Merry Clayton

Kim Fowley

                                                      The GTO's

Consisted of: Pamela DesBarres, Cynderella,
Sparky, Miss Mercy, Christine, Lucy, and Sandra.

 
Barry McGuire

Lili St. Cyr  was the most elegant, dazzling stripper of them all. She was most well-known for taking a bath on stage and she lived next door to David and Michael Doud. Lili's husband was a major druggie.

Lili St. Cyr

Frankie Rowena, from New York, owner of Head East, and manager, 
Roger Varon

Sandy Nelson, infamous drummer icon.

Scooby, sax player, and president of the musician's union

Scooby

"Miko" aka Mike Wylie, from Champaign

Record executives:  Clive Fox, Steve Backer, John Deverian

Chas Chandler, bassist (Animals)

 Roland Dupree. choreographer

If you know someone who should be added to
this list, please leave their name and a brief 
description in the guest book or email me. Hllywd4ever@aol.com

                            Specifics on a Few People

    Artists We Loved

Hammond's Historical Habitat  

Amanda's Hollywood   

  Sixties Posters      Video Clip     Maps

     Soosi's Page     Joe Cocker Drunk and On Tape

      Raggi's Ramblings     Links
    
Tulsa Time    Early Sixties

"On the edge of a golden skyline
to the beat of a broken chord
The newest generation
Was out there...
On the boulevard"