Marvin Paige, Casting Director, passed away in November 2013 several weeks after he sustained injuries in a car accident when he was on his way (as he often was) to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for a film screening. The piece below was written by Randy Haberkamp of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and read at Marvin's memorial at the Egyptian Theatre on his birthday (Jan. 26, 2014).
ODE TO MARVIN
I’ve called my little speech, “Ode to Marvin”. I don’t know why. I think it’s because I don’t want to get
overly serious about Marvin Paige.
Because, quite frankly, Marvin was, as they say, a character.
The circumstances and particulars of meeting people
for the first time usually get cloudy as time passes. After all, we rarely know when we’re meeting
someone who will have more than a passing influence on our lives.
If my memory is correct, I first met Marvin at the
Moustache Café on Melrose Avenue in 1989.
I had offered to take him to lunch as I’d been told he was someone I
should meet who could help me with the celebrity appearances we wanted to have
at the first Cinecon to be held in Hollywood after many years, in the hopes
that it would become the convention’s permanent home.
It was the first of many times that I would buy Marvin
lunch. It was also the first of many
times when we would begin planning on whom we could get to attend various film
screenings and tributes. On that first
day I wasn’t really sure whether Marvin knew the people we were hoping to get,
or whether he was just a guy who was good at talking people into things. That didn’t really become clearer over the
years. All I know is that he would go to
incredible lengths to track someone down once his sights were set on them and
he had an incredible mental rolodex of where people were, what they had last
done, and what their health situation was.
Over the years I would work with Marvin for Cinecons,
for the Hollywood Studio Museum aka “the Barn” or Hollywood Heritage, and
eventually and most recently at The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences. In between there were dozens
of other places where films were screened or celebrated and Marvin was usually
there.
I can’t paint a complete picture of Marvin without
mentioning that I did spend a lot of time defending him. To be honest, I still do. Marvin wasn’t always an easy guy. He was down right tenacious. When he was overseeing a personal appearance
of a celebrity at an event, he was right by their side from beginning to end,
and when he felt the celebrity wasn’t being treated properly or needed
something, he spoke up and made sure they got everything he felt they deserved. If Marvin only knew the celebrity marginally
and sometimes not at all, he still took it upon himself to represent their
interests whether they asked for it or not.
More than once I’ve had to answer the question “Who is
that guy? Sometimes this question would
be followed by “and who does he think he is?”
That’s Marvin Paige, I’d answer.
He’s a casting director. The next
question would often be “Why are all these older stars so loyal to him?” Professionally many of us know that Marvin
cast BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY’S and TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN and later GENERAL
HOSPITAL for many years…and most notoriously that he advised Gloria Stuart that
she should return James Cameron’s call when he was searching for his older
version of Rose for TITANIC. Why, indeed
where they so loyal to him?
It had taken me a while to discover Marvin’s
secrets. He was one of the most loyal
fans any classic movie star could hope to have.
He knew people’s careers inside and out, and he had actually SEEN their
films (and continued to see them in revivals and reruns on TV.) His interest went beyond his professional
advancement or survival as the case may be.
He was invested.
But, beyond that, as many of you probably know, his
real secret was that he was one of the few people in Hollywood who made an effort
to show his appreciation to some of these classic actors in a way that actually
meant something to them personally.
While working as the casting director for General Hospital, Marvin would
give these actors a small part for a day or two. Basically whatever it required to keep their
SAG health insurance active. Even years
ago helping someone keep their health insurance was a great way to also insure their
loyalty.
When Marvin asked those stars to appear at a screening
or to join in a party, they were not only willing, but grateful for his
attention and devotion.
Marvin also knew that the way to a celebrity’s heart
was actually through their family. He
not only paid attention to the star, but to the current wife or husband, the
son, the daughter, the grandson, the granddaughter, of course, since he had
some treasured cats of his own, even their pets.
Given Hollywood politics, it’s shouldn’t be surprising
then, that this loyalty Marvin had built up often irritated younger publicists,
agents, or managers who couldn’t figure all this out. Marvin was never deterred. Over the years I even witnessed a few
celebrities who felt a bit stifled by his attention, but again, he was never
deterred.
If nothing else, surviving in Hollywood takes guts, and
Marvin had guts. I learned over time
that if you didn’t work with him up front, you’d be working with him one way or
another down the line. More than once
I’ve seen Marvin get the upper hand when someone thought THEY were going to be
the one in charge.
Despite Marvin’s tenacity, he was amazingly easy to
please. Though I knew I’d be hit up for
a lunch every time I needed his help, I never minded, because Marvin knew that
the organizations I was working for didn’t have money to pay him and he never
once asked me for money for himself.
He would ask for all kinds of arrangements for the
various celebrities we were working with, and I’d give them whatever
accommodation I could, but other than some extra tickets, some extra reception
guests, or some extra programs or giveaways, I never paid Marvin directly for
his work.
I have no doubt he was able to receive income
indirectly in other ways through the connections and goodwill he made from the
work we did together, but Marvin was amazingly happy and content to see his
classic stars in the spotlight he thought they deserved.
Marvin was extremely proud of his membership in the
Academy and if you paid attention he usually had an Academy pin on his
lapel. I know because he lost a few over
the years and I was immediately hit up to supply him with replacements.
He loved having any Academy program or poster and I’m
sure there’s a plentiful supply of them from over the years among his stash of
movie memorabilia.
But that’s fine because Marvin was always willing to
share his treasures. Whenever we ran a
film, he’d stop by with posters, lobby cards, press books, stills….all kinds of
things he’d gathered together over the years.
He was equally proud of telling me stories of where
he’d found his various treasures, or stories of how he had given copies of the
various photographs to the celebrities who had never seen that particular photo
before, or of how he had managed to get them to autograph it. Marvin’s collection wasn’t just his treasure,
his collection was his memory.
I’m told that Marvin was heading to the Academy for a
screening of THE CROWD when he was in the car crash that would result in the
injuries from which he was unable to recover.
It’s unsettling of course, but also somehow fitting. He was in pursuit of his love for movies
right til the end. We at the Academy
suspected something was wrong when he didn’t show up that night, because he had
called several times that day to confirm his tickets and change his guest
list. When Marvin didn’t show up for a
screening of a classic film, it was noticed.
Since his death I’ve had several meetings with people
from various organizations who inevitably ask a question something like, “Is
there anyone who would know how to reach the family of this actor or that
actress?” “Is there anyone who would
know if there are any surviving cast members from this classic film? “
And while I know there are lots of people IN Hollywood
who know lots of people FROM Hollywood, I can honestly say there isn’t anyone
else who has quite the perspective, quite the rolodex, or quite the love that
Marvin had. Ironically Marvin probably
had the last PHYSICAL Rolodex in town.
Despite his tenacious nature, despite his ability to
aggravate, Marvin did provide a unique and very personal and very genuine
service to movie fans everywhere as he not only arranged personal appearances here
in LA, but for TV and DVD interviews as well.
Los Angeles/Hollywood/the Golden
Age…what have you, is a little less golden.
There are many things I don’t know about Marvin that
I’m sure I’ll discover from other stories here today. And maybe even a few things I’d be better off
not knowing. One thing I do know is that
over the years Marvin managed to give quite a few stars an opportunity to
continue shining… with a boost to their morale if not exactly their bank
account, AND… he gave literally thousands of fans the opportunity to meet those
stars and perhaps even obtain an autograph, or better yet, a cherished personal
anecdote.
I know that Marvin helped the Academy present dozens
of programs over the years that were made special through the appearance of the
filmmakers and for that reason I’m glad that on behalf of the Academy I can
publicly thank him, not only for his service, but that I was able to get permission
from the powers that be to help cover the cost of today’s reception. It seemed only fitting that after all Marvin’s
help, there be another free lunch to share with his friends.
Thank you American Cinematheque for providing the
Egyptian. Thank you Hollywood Heritage
for your additional support, and on behalf of the Academy and myself, thank you
Marvin Paige somewhere in movie heaven.