City and Residents Agree Asilomar Is Safety Concern
Photo by Rich Schmitt, Staff Photographer
For once, it sounded like the City of Los Angeles and Asilomar bluffs residents were saying the same thing at last Thursday’s Community Council meeting. But they were miles apart on how to solve the problem, which is the storm-damaged hillside about a quarter of a mile northwest of PCH and Temescal Canyon Road. While citizens insisted that the hillside requires immediate attention and considerable repair work, two engineering geologists agreed but explained that they can only perform limited, surface repairs at this time. The Asilomar landslide was first documented in 1957-1958, according to Craig Kunesh, an engineering geologist, who gave a history of the area. In 1998, the city repaired the sewer beneath Asilomar because of damage caused by the Northridge earthquake, but in subsequent years city engineers discovered two weakened areas underlying the street. The hillside was further damaged during the heavy rains in January and February of 2005, which caused the federal government to declare disasters in the area. The city applied for funding to the Federal Highway Administration, asking for approval and designation of the road as an Emergency Relief project. However, the application was denied in early April, according to Robert Hancock of the L.A. City Bureau of Engineering. Asilomar Boulevard was originally designated as a federal highway and is still under the jurisdiction of the FHWA, even though it was never made into one. Hancock told the council and residents that the city had prepared an appeal to the FHWA that was to be sent out “in the next couple of days.” The FHWA did give the city some money “to repave the street,” Hancock said, explaining that the minor repair work would consist of re-leveling Asilomar and reconstructing the curb and gutter. “This is a kind of band-aid to make the street passable and safe,” he said. “It still needs a much more effective repair of the street.” A large depression in the southbound lane of Asilomar has turned a segment of this two-lane asphalt and concrete street into one precarious lane. Thirty feet below Asilomar, a street called Puerto del Mar that cuts into the 200-ft. slope between Asilomar and the Palisades Bowl mobile home park, is in significantly worse shape. What began as numerous tension cracks in the privately owned portion of Puerto del Mar has now split the street into large segments that are loose and crumbling, making the road impassable to vehicular traffic. “Road Closed/ Extreme Danger/ Do Not Enter/ Private Property” reads a sign on the locked gate at the west end of Puerto del Mar, where it meets the city-owned portion of the street. To the east, Puerto del Mar joins Tahiti Avenue, which extends into the Tahitian Terrace mobile home mark to PCH. Gordon Greenberg, who lives on the publicly owned portion of Puerto del Mar several houses up from the bluffs, talked at the council meeting about how the city belatedly dealt with the hillside problems, which have been ongoing for years. He explained that water ran down the publicly owned portion of Puerto del Mar onto the private section for years, saturating the area, before the city installed a drain in recent years to catch the runoff. Now, the city says it can only focus on repairing Asilomar but not the dilapidated Puerto del Mar or the troublesome slope’both of which have contributed to the destabilization of Asilomar’because they are under the control of private owners. The Palisades Bowl and Tahitian Terrace mobile home parks are under the jurisdiction of the state’s Department of Housing and Community Development. “The owners [of the mobile home parks] would be thrilled if somebody would come and do something,” said Dick Wulliger, an Asilomar resident. He added that the repair work the city has proposed for Asilomar is “not going to do a darn thing about the slide.” Hancock agreed, saying that the planned repairs “will do some good for people on the upslope but not for the slide itself.” The city’s proposed repair project, which is pending funding from the FHWA, includes a series of dewatering wells as well as a “side-hill bridge” over Asilomar Boulevard in order to prevent further damage. “I have trouble envisioning a bridge,” said Asilomar resident Janice Olds, who is concerned that the city is focused on making “cosmetic” repairs. Last month, the city filled a large, pond-shaped sinkhole located just south of the depression, with concrete. The area was blocked off with sawhorses, just like the depression area. Olds wonders why city and state officials have not made Asilomar a priority. She compared the potential danger of the situation to La Conchita, the seaside community between Santa Barbara and Ventura, where a mudslide occurred in January 2005, killing 10 people and injuring many more. In March, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger allocated money for a study of the La Conchita area, which had suffered another major mudslide 10 years earlier. Both were apparently caused by heavy rains that soaked the hillside bluff. “We haven’t seen any movement comparable to La Conchita,” Kunesh said. “It more or less creeps rather than suddenly fails.” Residents refused to accept this answer. “I think you can do more than you have been doing,” Wulliger said, adding that he is deeply concerned about what would happen to the area should an earthquake occur. “The city will be liable. Don’t wait until somebody is killed. Do it now.”
Palisadians Run to Heal the Bay
Several Palisadians participated in the inaugural Carpe Diem Santa Monica Classic 5/10K last Sunday. The race, organized to raise money for the Heal the Bay Foundation, started at Barnard Way and ended at the Santa Monica Pier. In the 5K, Michael Polan finished 15th in the men’s 25-29 age division in 29:20 and John Currie was 13th in the 55-59 category in 56:34. Tanya Niederhoff was the first Palisades woman to finish the 5K, placing 14th in the 25-29 age division in 28:48. Cameron Rogers-Sanchez was 20th in the same category with a time of 29:19 and Nicole Currie was 60th in 38:15. Jill Fischer was fifth among 40 to 44-year-olds in 24:48, Joanne Einhorn was eighth in the 50-58 division with a time of 46:17, Marge Currie was ninth in the 55-59 division in 56:35, Caroline Davis was second in the 60-64 division (36:44) and Tara Crow (36:31) was sixth in the Athena division. In the 10K, Doug Silberberg was 25th in the men’s 30-34 division, finishing the 6.2-miles in 49:30. Jim Breslo (45:46) was 18th in the 35-39 division, Kenneth Heisz (42:03) was eighth in the 45-49 division, Richard Griffin won the Clydes division in 40:55 and fellow Palisadian Ken Ehrlich was 15th in 59:44. Sepi Haghighi was the top female finisher, placing 11th in the 25-29 age group in 53:12. Maggie Davis (53:26) was 17th and Ami Settle (59:23) was 38th in the 30-34 division.
Tennis Nets Top Seed in City Playoffs
As expected, the Palisades High boys varsity tennis team was seeded No. 1 in the City Section playoffs. However, head coach Bud Kling, who did not attend last Thursday’s seeding meeting, expressed disapproval at where certain schools were placed in the 12-team championship bracket. “We definitely have a tougher draw than [No. 2 seed] Granada Hills,” Kling said. “We’ll have to play El Camino Real, which lost to us in the finals last year, and Taft, which I think is the third best team in the City. Eagle Rock got seeded third because it beat Taft but I understand Taft didn’t have all of its players.” The defending champion Dolphins (13-0) received a first-round bye and hosted eighth-seeded El Camino Real in the quarterfinals yesterday (result unavailable at press time). The Conquistadors defeated ninth-seeded Sylmar 16 1/2-3 on Monday. If Palisades eliminated El Camino Real, it will host fourth-seeded Taft in the semifinals Monday at 1 p.m. at Balboa Sports Center in Encino. The finals are May 12 at the same site. Several Palisades players traveled north for the 105th annual Ojai Valley Tournament last weekend. In the boys’ CIF singles division, Ben Tom lost to No. 7 seed Mike Youn of Glendale in the first round and the doubles tandem of Seth Mandelkern and Stephen Surjue lost in the first round to a team from Foothill. Mason Hays and Chase Pekar each lost first-round matches in the boys 16s division. In the girls’ CIF doubles division, Pali’s Sarah Jurick and Mary Logan advanced to the quarterfinals before losing in straight sets to the No. 3 seeded team. Lotte Kiepe lost in the first round of the CIF singles division. The Dolphins’ top player, Katy Nikolova, reached the quarterfinals of the 16s division, losing to top-seeded Catherine Isip, 6-1, 6-7 (8-6), 6-1. Audrey Ashraf and Kathryn Cullen each lost in the second round of the same division. “The competition was really strong,” Kling said of Ojai. “Katy’s quarterfinal match was very close. She had the other girl frustrated at the start of the third set.”
PALISADES HIGH ROUNDUP
Baseball Rebounds to Rout Fairfax
Right-hander Seri Kattan-Wright earned his second victory of the season at Fairfax Monday, allowing two hits and striking out six batters in five innings as the Palisades High varsity baseball team got back on the winning track with a 13-0 victory over the host Lions. The Dolphins (14-10 overall, 9-2 in league) remained tied with Westchester atop the Western League standings with four games remaining. Matt Skolnik had three hits, including a triple, three runs and three RBIs and Andy Megee added two hits, two runs and two RBIs for Palisades, which rebounded from a 12-1 loss to University last Thursday–the Dolphins’ worst home loss in league since co-coaches Tom Seyler and Kelly Loftus took over three years ago. Against Fairfax, the Dolphins broke open a close game with four runs in the fourth inning. Austin Jones had two hits and two RBIs, Tim Sunderland had two hits and an RBI, and Johnny Bromberg and Garrett Champion each added two hits for Palisades. “It’s all about winning league right now,” Pali co-coach Tom Seyler said. “We need to win out and it could come down to next Tuesday’s game against Westchester.” Palisades travels to Venice Friday, hosts Weschester next Tuesday and ends regular season play next Thursday at University. Boys Golf Coach James Paleno’s squad defeated Chatsworth by a score of 412 to 430 last Wednesday at Woodley Lakes Golf Course, improving the Dolphins’ record to 2-5-1 in the 6A League. Ben Seelig, Bo Jacobson and Jason Weintraub each shot an 8-over-par 80 to the lead the Dolphins, who host Granada Hills Kennedy in their final league match today at Rancho Park. Tee-off time is 1:42 p.m. Lacrosse Pali’s varsity boys team saw its four-game winning streak snapped by host Beckman, 9-8, last Friday in Tustin. Junior Josh Packer scored three goals and Riley Gitlin, Eric Rosen, Sudsy Dyke each added goals and goalie Jesse Poller made nine saves for the Dolphins. Defenders Max Canella, Max Porter, Jake Satz, Paul Rago also contributed. Pali played Loyola on Tuesday and ends its first season against Harvard-Westlake today in North Hollywood. The Dolphin girls squad won its first game ever last Wednesday, avenging an earlier defeat to Westridge, and followed that with a victory over New Jewish Community last Thursday and an 11-1 win at Brentwood on Friday that evened Pali’s record at 3-3. Softball Due to make-ups of two games that were rained out earlier in the season, the Dolphins had to play four games last week, winning two and losing two. Pali followed last Monday’s 6-3 victory over Hamilton with a 3-0 loss to Venice last Wednesday and a 2-1 loss at University last Thursday. The Dolphins (7-9 overall, 4-5 in league) rebounded to beat the Wildcats 8-1 on Friday at Stadium by the Sea and traveled to Venice for their league finale Tuesday (result unavailable at press time). Track & Field The Dolphins dominated last Friday’s dual meet at Westchester to finish undefeated in Western League competition. Jeff Fujimoto ran season-best times in the hurdles, Ryan Henry won both the 100 and 200, Unique Shanklin ran the girls’ 400 in 65 seconds and Kristabel Doebel-Hickok won the 1600 and 3200 to finish undefeated in league races this season. The Western League finals were held Wednesday at Culver City (results unavailable at press time). Boys Volleyball The Dolphins (10-3 overall, 8-2 in league) put up a valiant fight before falling to Venice 25-18, 25-18, 24-26, 35-33 in last Wednesday’s Western League finale, which left both players and coaches exhausted. “It was pretty intense,” Pali kill leader Joey Sarafian said. “I’ve never been set that much in a single game.” Palisades was seeded 12th out of 32 teams in the City Section playoffs and hosts 21st-seeded Roosevelt tonight at 7. If the Dolphins win, they will either travel to No. 5 Chatsworth or host No. 28 Jefferson in the second round next Tuesday night. If Pali loses tonight, it would drop to the Invitational bracket. “I feel pretty good about where we are,” Pali coach Matt Shubin, who led the Dolphins to second place in league in his first season. “Venice is a scrappy team and a match like the one we just played makes everyone better. Even though we lost, it was a big win in my book.”
Pali Swim Wins League Meet
You can put the Palisades High swim team in a new league, but you can’t stop it from winning championships. The Dolphins dominated at every level of last Wednesday’s Western League Finals Meet at the Venice High pool and emerged as the strong favorite to win the City Section title May 24 in Los Angeles. Palisades’ boys varsity squad accumulated 413 points, far outdistancing second-place Venice (284). Pali’s girls varsity totaled 489 points to the Gondos’ 398. In the frosh/soph division, Pali’s boys and girls both won by lopsided margins. “I feel optimistic going into the City prelims,” PaliHi coach Maggie Nance said. “We have as good a chance as any team. We have really strong relay teams which will help us score a lot of points.” The Dolphins were switched from the Marine League to the newly-formed Western League this season. So instead of facing familiar Westside and South Bay schools like San Pedro and Gardena, Palisades has spent the season lapping the likes of LACES, Crenshaw and Dorsey. And while their opposition has changed, the Dolphins’ superiority has not. Brian Johnson won both the 200 Individual Medley and 100 Backstroke and Paris Hayes won the 50 Freestyle and 100 Freestyle. Peter Fischler won both the 100 Butterfly and 200 Freestyle events. Palisades’ girls varsity was led by sophomore Jasmine Punch, who swam the 200 Freestyle in 2:06.5 and Chelsea Davidoff (2:08.93) and freshman Nicole Washington, who swam 26.6 in the 50 Freestyle and 1:08.04 in the 100 Butterfly, winning both events. Another ninth-grader, Sophia Perelshtein, won the 200 Individual Medley in 2:30.51. Having finished undefeated in dual meets, it was no surprise that Palisades outraced its competition in the most important meet of the year to this point. Having passed this first test with flying colors, the Dolphins are itching for a new challenge. City preliminaries are May 17 at the AAF/John C. Argue Swim Stadium next to the Los Angeles Coliseum.
Running the Extra Mile
Kristabel Doebel-Hickok Burns up the Track at Palisades High
Photo by Rich Schmitt, Staff Photographer
Less competitive runners might be ecstatic finishing sixth in the City Section cross country finals and qualifying for the state meet as a junior. Not Palisades High’s Kristabel Doebel-Hickok. Deep down inside she knew she was capable of so much more. “I think the state meet [in December] was an eye-opener for Kristabel,” Palisades coach Ron Brumel says. “It was a whole new experience, a totally different level. She realized right then the sacrifices you have to make, the pain you must endure to be an elite runner.” Instead of relying on talent alone, the Dolphins’ captain rededicated herself in preparation for track. She began running 40 to 50 miles a week. With the help of a personal trainer, she monitored her diet and shed 15 pounds. She started lifting weights to build strength in her legs. By the time the season rolled around in March, Doebel-Hickok was in peak shape and she hasn’t let up since. “Running cross country makes me appreciate track more,” she says. “I’ve always preferred track because of the shorter distances. The mile is definitely my favorite event but I like the 800 and the two-mile, too.” An instinctive runner who possesses the innate ability to judge speed, Doebel-Hickok often finishes with negative splits, meaning she runs the second half of her races faster than the first half. “She’s an artist on the track,” Brumel says of his No. 1 runner, whose best times include 5:13 for the mile and 2:25 in the 800. “She has a great sense of pace. Even when she wants to improve her time she knows what her body can do.” By the time she entered seventh grade, Doebel-Hickok was showing so much potential that Paul and Stacey Foxson, who run the after-school program at Paul Revere, encouraged her to try the sport in high school. At last year’s City finals she was fourth in the mile and just missed qualifying for the state championships. “Running has a lot to do with confidence,” says Doebel-Hickok, a straight ‘A’ student who is considering several universities including Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount. “I’ve learned that when you compete against faster girls you have to believe you can stay with them. You have to believe you’re in their class. Otherwise you wouldn’t be there.” Doebel-Hickok confesses she never sets time goals for herself and is careful not to expend too much energy in league meets, preferring to save her best efforts for invitationals. The strategy has worked so far. An example is the Rotary Meet at Birmingham High in April when she clocked a personal-best 11:19.78 in the 3200–the fifth time this season she has bettered a previous mark. “I used to get really nervous before a big race,” says Doebel-Hickok, who routinely runs with boys captain Jann Stavro at practice. “Now, it’s more excitement than nerves. I like the competition.” Doebel-Hickok takes her role as captain seriously and tries to set a positive example for her teammates. She has learned how to be a leader from assistant coach and mentor Nicole Campbell, a 2000 Pali alum who ran cross country and track, making the City finals in the mile all four years. “Kristabel is more dedicated than I ever was in high school,” says Campbell, who went on to run at Humboldt State where she graduated last May with a degree in Environmental Engineering. “She’s got it all down. I don’t worry about her slacking off. If anything, she has to be careful not to train too hard.” Whether its a pre-meet stretch or a post-race cool down, Doebel-Hickok wears a broad smile on her face. As soon as the starting gun goes off, however, she is all business. In last Friday’s dual meet at Westchester, she easily won both the mile and two-mile events to remain undefeated heading into yesterday’s Western League finals in Culver City. Right now, she has her sights set on the City championships May 25 and a second crack at dethroning two-time mile champion Emmaline Hartel of Birmingham. This time around, Pali’s top gun will show up for the final exam knowing she has done her homework. “Except for Arcadia, Kristabel has won every race she has entered,” Brumel says. “She’s worked very hard all season and she’s going to have a great shot at City.”
1953: William and Dolores Fritzsche
Golden Couples of the Palisades
“Quite honestly, I married the girl of my dreams,” Bill Fritzsche says. “As a boy I used to dream of someone like Dolores. I got lucky.” Fritzsche grew up in Los Angeles, attended Loyola High School and, after a year at the University of Washington, came back to enroll at Loyola Marymount University. He shared a house at the beach with nine other college students, many of whom were World War II veterans. “We’re best friends to this day,” Fritzsche says. Dolores Jones grew up in St. Louis and moved to Los Angeles to attend Immaculate Heart College, where she received a degree in history and elementary education. She also formed a group of close friends, “The Basic Five,” that still gets together. While Dolores was in college, the Catholic colleges in Los Angeles would organize programs such as gathering 90,000 people in the Coliseum to pray for peace and say a rosary against Communism. In 1951, she and Fritzsche were introduced at one of these church events by one of Bill’s roommates. After dating for two years they were married in St. Louis on October 31, 1953’halfway through Bill’s military duty. They honeymooned at the Greenbriar Hotel in Silver Springs, West Virginia, where Bill’s father designed the town’s railroad station. After Bill’s discharge from the Army, he and Dolores moved to Eagle Rock and then on to Santa Monica (with their toddler, William Jr., who was followed by James, Caroline, Elizabeth, Maria, Thomas and Vincent). They wanted to buy a house, but “nice houses in Santa Monica were too expensive,” Dolores says, so they looked instead in Pacific Palisades and found a house on Via de la Paz, where they lived for 16 years. “Living here has been amazing,” Bill says, “You can walk to school, to church and to the stores.” In 1960, the Fritzsches bought a Rayne Water Conditioner franchise, and they eventually owned seven franchises in Southern California. While Bill was expanding their business, Dolores was at home running the household. “Laundry was a racket,” Dolores says. “The children were not allowed to put clothes in a hamper willy-nilly.” “Thank God for wash-and-wear,” Bill adds. “We ate simply; I didn’t cook for leftovers,” Dolores says. “We had lots of bologna and peanut butter sandwiches. When you have seven kids, you get organized.” And you put the kids to work around the house. “Boys need to do things that they know are worthwhile, like raking the leaves,” says Bill, who recalls that when the family moved to a home on Ocampo, the people who bought their house wanted to hire their gardener. “We have two,” Bill told them. The people started to object that they couldn’t afford two. “We have one son do the front yard,” Bill continued, “and one does the back.” Their children all attended Corpus Christi School, over a 23-year span. “I think I was at the school longer than any mom,” says Dolores, who recalls that every summer her husband would plan cross-country trips with all the kids in a station wagon. Without DVDs and Gameboys, how did they cope? Simple, according to Bill. “No eating in the car, and I’d make one child the navigator who got to sit in the front seat with the map.” “After lunch, I’d drive,” Dolores says, “and Bill would call on our daughter Caroline for the ‘Miss Caroline story hour.'” “She’d tell the most amazing stories,” Bill recalls, “and I would do the commercials.” He turns radio announcer and gives his spiel: “Stay at the Dirty Sheets Hotel…” “We’d always stop early and find a motel with a swimming pool,” Dolores adds. Making a marriage work, according to the Fritzsches, comes from having a deep faith and a love for each other. Dolores jokes, “We don’t have more than one fight a day.” “If we fight, we separate and then one or the other will say ‘Sorry’ and the other will be sorry that they didn’t say it first,” Bill says. All of the Fritzsche children are married, and there are 14 grandchildren’with another due in June. “We are blessed,” Bill and Dolores both say.
Possessed by ‘The Black Rider’
Theater Review
Most people go to the theater to see a show that will transport them to a different place or time, to step out of their own reality or fantasy and into someone else’s. But when you go see “The Black Rider: The Casting of the Magic Bullets,” playing at the Ahmanson Theatre, you’d better be prepared for a full-body experience. The musical fable is the artistic collaboration of avant-garde director Robert Wilson, singer/songwriter/composer Tom Waits and Beat writer William S. Burroughs, who died in 1997. But the production feels like it belongs mostly to Wilson (“Einstein on the Beach”), who also designed the set and lighting. So, if you resist selling your soul to Wilson, you might not make it to intermission. Wilson uses grand-scale scenery, shadow and psychedelic light to create a surreal atmosphere for “The Black Rider,” which is based on Carl Maria von Weber’s German Romantic opera “Der Freisch’tz” (“The Free-Shooter”). The show premiered in Germany at Hamburg’s Thalia Theater in 1990. In the contemporary retelling of this Faustian tale, Wilhelm, a young clerk, accepts magic bullets from the diabolical Pegleg in order to win a shooting contest and the hand of his true love, K’thchen, a woodsman’s daughter. The text, lyrics and images foreshadow the fate of these star-crossed lovers, but the story takes unexpected turns and becomes increasingly wild and dark with every whip of Pegleg’s tuxedo tails. Trees that look like giant, uneven paper cutouts collapse from top to bottom and then later appear upside down. Shooting becomes an amusement, like a carnival game with loud sound effects that go off when the player hits his mark. The highly theatrical production begins like a cabaret, with the characters introduced as “freaks of nature,” and continues to entice the audience with its vaudevillian humor. Wilhelm (Matt McGrath) is, of course, the leading act. McGrath dances with grace and ease even when his partner is the rifle slung across his chest. He also proves to be a smooth and skillful mime, acting out his character’s curiosity and desperation. Like the other characters that inhabit this misty forest world, Wilhelm has a powder-white face and vampire-red lips. But he is the least creepy of the zombie-like creatures, who emerge from a coffin that rises and turns upright in center stage. Leading the crew, as a ringmaster of sorts, is Pegleg, played by the dynamic Vance Avery, who creeps across stage with a slow limp and a dangerously seductive gaze. Actor Nigel Richards is particularly awesome to watch in his three-part role. He plays the hunting boy that K’thchen’s father, Bertram (Dean Robinson), would have liked his daughter to marry, and he howls and screeches like an animal, echoing Bertram and predicting Wilhelm’s struggle. The twisted love story of Wilhelm and K’thchen unfolds tenderly yet comically, as they perform a song-and-dance number in the air, floating awkwardly back and forth but never quite meeting. Actress Mary Margaret O’Hara cleverly portrays the distraught, lovesick K’thchen, singing in an exaggeratedly high-pitched tone and often appearing breathless. She shines during her solo “I’ll Shoot the Moon.” While some audiences will embrace this powerful sensory experience, others might find the production’s stylized beauty and Expressionist storytelling techniques overwhelming. The show is also quite long and the second half is partially performed in slow motion, which adds to its hallucinatory intensity. One thing is clear: Wilhelm is not the only one possessed by magic bullets. “The Black Rider” runs through June 11 at the Ahmanson Theatre. Tickets are available by calling (213) 628-2772 or online at www.CenterTheatreGroup.org.
Palisades Film Festival Honors Dom DeLuise
When multi-talented Dom DeLuise is asked if there is anything he doesn’t do, he responds with his usual instant wit: “I don’t run fast.” His zest for life’and for food’is legendary. The fullness of his stature is matched only by the immensity of his pursuits over the years as an actor, comedian, singer, dancer, director, chef, radio host and children’s book author. Friends of Film will honor DeLuise with a lifetime achievement award at the Palisades Film Festival’s opening night reception on Thursday, May 11 at Chefmakers Cooking Academy. “We’re very proud to be honoring Dom, a real class act and a true living legend of the film and television world,” says Bob Sharka, executive director of Friends of Film. “I can’t think of a better place to hold this event, as Dom is a local guy who, like me, is no stranger in the kitchen.” DeLuise and his wife, the actress Carol Arthur, are longtime Palisadians. They raised their three sons Peter, Michael and David (all are in the entertainment business) in the Riviera ranch house they still call home’an energetic household filled with birds, tropical fish, family and friends, where three grandchildren now come to cavort. DeLuise served as honorary mayor of Pacific Palisades in 1984 and, over the years, he has brought his sparkling, lovable clown persona to the Fourth of July parade, serving as grand marshal in 1983. “My father used to yell and scream a lot,” says DeLuise, who switches to Italian and a deep baritone voice to imitate his father’s stern nature. Dom grew up in Brooklyn, where he was one of three children. “When he would leave, we would all be trembling and I’d make some sort of joke about him scaring us. This is when I first realized I could in fact make people laugh.” A graduate of Manhattan’s High School of the Performing Arts, he spent his summers at the Cleveland Playhouse, appearing in productions such as “Guys and Dolls,” “Kiss Me, Kate,” “Stalag 17,” and “Hamlet.” In 1961, DeLuise debuted on the New York stage in the off-Broadway hit production of “Little Mary Sunshine.” He met his wife Carol while appearing in a summer production of “Summer & Smirk” in Provincetown, Massachusetts. Eight off-Broadway shows later, he starred in the 1968 Broadway production of Neil Simon’s “Last of the Red Hot Lovers.” He first appeared on television as “Dominick the Great” on the “Garry Moore Show,” performing with his good friend Ruth Buzzi. Other television credits include a regular role on “The Entertainers” with Carol Burnett and Bob Newhart, 12 years on the “Dean Martin Show” and many memorable moments as guest host for Johnny Carson on the “Tonight Show.” He starred in his own show, “Dom DeLuise and Friends,” from 1983 to 1990. On the big screen, DeLuise debuted in Sydney Lumet’s 1964 film “Fail Safe.” On the recommendation of the late Anne Bancroft, Mel Brooks’s wife, DeLuise was cast in “The Twelve Chairs,” earning him a place in many of Brooks’s best comedies. He and his longtime buddy Burt Reynolds made a string of madcap comedies together including “Smokey and the Bandit II,” “Cannonball Run I & II” and “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.” “It was always great fun to work with Burt because you could ad lib,” DeLuise recalls. “I feel like Burt is my brother because we have so much fun together.” These days, DeLuise hosts his own radio cooking segment every Saturday on the syndicated show “On the House” with the Carey Brothers. His cookbooks'”Eat This,” “Eat This Too” and his latest “Eat This Again”‘ are bestsellers. He even has his own Web site, www.domdeluise.com, where he sends out monthly recipes and cooking tips to loyal fans and subscribers. His most recent children’s book is entitled “There’s No Place Like Home” and he continues to regularly lend his talent for voiceover to animated productions. “A lady once pinched my cheeks in an elevator and said ‘I’d like to make soup for you,'” Deluise says, confirming how he projects an image as everyone’s favorite uncle. “They wouldn’t do that to Burt Reynolds or Spencer Tracy,” he adds with a laugh. And given his multi-faceted career, how does he hope to be remembered? “They’re going to remember that I was round, that I was friendly, that I didn’t put anybody down when I did my jokes and there was the smell of garlic in my home at all times.” The Pacific Palisades Film Festival, now in its third year, will screen 20 films from May 11 through 13 at Pierson Playhouse, 941 Temescal Canyon Road. For more information, go online to www.FriendsofFilm.com.
