Actor Steve Guttenberg arrived for his Hollywood Walk of Fame star ceremony Monday morning in a LAPD patrol car. Dressed in a three-piece suit, lilac-colored shirt and purple tie, the former honorary mayor of Pacific Palisades was all smiles as he emerged onto Hollywood Boulevard. Fans like San Diego residents Andres Martin and Mi Chao, who drove up for the event, cheered when they saw him. ’We’re big fans,’ Martin explained, noting that his favorite Guttenberg film was ‘Police Academy.’ Fittingly, Guttenberg’s star is at 6411 Hollywood Blvd., in front of the LAPD’s Police Activity League, between Wilcox Avenue and Cahuenga Boulevard. Although it was pouring rain, president/CEO of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce LeRon Gubler pronounced the weather ‘liquid sunshine,’ and told the assembled crowd of about 100 (many from the Palisades) that he had heard that Steve Guttenberg was the best honorary mayor the Palisades had ever had, which prompted additional cheers. In introducing Guttenberg’s credits, which included ‘Three Men and a Baby,’ ‘Diner’ and ‘Cocoon,’ among others, Gubler noted that Guttenberg had starred in a dozen films that each grossed more than $100 million at the American box office. As the emcee, Gubler also praised Guttenberg for his philanthropic efforts, including the Guttenhouse project, which provides foster children, who turn 18 and have no place to go, with a home/bedroom, computer, regular oversight by a trained social worker and mentoring. He said that Guttenberg had also headed a campaign to provide glasses for 50,000 sight-challenged youngsters whose families could not afford eye care. Gubler then introduced Tom Sherak, president of the Academy of Motion Pictures, who joked, ‘Steve told me ‘I hope it rains when I get my star.” Sherak continued, ‘I’m proud to honor someone who is also a dear friend. I’ve known him 25 years and he hasn’t changed in 25 years. He’s kind and generous and faithful to family and friends.’ Actor/comedian Jon Lovitz was next on the dais and called Guttenberg a good friend, while lauding his success. Lovitz recounted a time when he did a sketch on ‘Saturday Night Live’ with the star. ’I was a blind man, and Steve pretended to be a woman,’ Lovitz said, noting that as the sketch progressed Lovitz tried to bed the woman, only to discover Guttenberg was a man. The sketch concluded with Guttenberg saying, ‘You shouldn’t fool a blind man. It’s just wrong.’ L.A. City Councilman Tom LaBonge also congratulated Guttenberg, saying, ‘You are an angel in the City of Angels.’ Guttenberg spoke next. ‘I came out here [from Brooklyn] in 1976 and even though they call this the boulevard of broken dreams, it isn’t today.’ He said that when he initially came to Los Angeles as a 17-year-old, one of his first visits was to a casting director in the PAL building’the same spot where he was now receiving a star. He recounted how the woman told him, ‘Never come back. We can’t use you.’ He said he remembered thinking, ‘I’ll give it a little more time.’ ’I’ve been in the business for 35 years,’ Guttenberg said Monday. ‘I guess I’ll give it a little more time.’ Guttenberg currently is starring in the Broadway hit play ‘Relatively Speaking,’ a collection of three one-act comedies written by Ethan Coen, Elaine May and Woody Allen, and directed by John Turturro. He immediately flew back to New York following the ceremony. The Walk of Fame honoree also produced and stars in the independent feature, ‘A Novel Romance,’ which is currently in theaters. ’I love Los Angeles; it accepted my raw ambition and for a regular guy like me to get a star is amazing,’ Guttenberg said. He thanked his parents, telling them, ‘This is a love letter to my mom and dad; you are my queen and king.’ He also thanked his many friends and supporters, including Pacific Palisades Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Arnie Wishnick, who worked closely with him during his honorary mayor years 2002 to 2006. The sidewalk star, made of terrazzo and brass, joins those for Carl and Rob Reiner, Carol Burnett, Jim Nabors, Eddie Albert and Cloris Leachman on the north side of Hollywood Boulevard (number 2,455 on the Hollywood Walk of Fame).
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