Birthday Centric: Sal Mineo

One of my first and still one of my star crushes, Sal Mineo's birthday is today. His early career was full of hard work in some good and not-so-good films. Rebel Without a Cause, Dino & The Gene Krupa Story are a few of my favorites, and I like him enough that I've seen Exodus at least 4 times (he's beautiful in that film). Who Killed Teddy Bear goes without saying - well, except that I have to say that you should find it and watch it if you can; there's an excerpt here on YouTube.

Later in his career, Mineo re-wrote, directed and starred in a production of Fortune In Men's Eyes. Both Mineo and the production made a ruckus - Mineo because he was living as an openly gay man by that time in his life and the production because it pushed the boundaries of what had been seen on the stage in a homosexual way. You can see a young Don Johnson (yes, that one) in a couple photos from the production here along with a few other photos that have nothing to do with Sal's talent but everything to do with why I crushed on him so hard. But I'm wandering...

The night he was murdered Sal Mineo was on his way home from rehearsal for a stage version of P.S. Your Cat Is Dead.  P.S. is written by James Kirkwood and the book is one of my favorite things of all time.  He was perfect for the role of Vito & it's easy for me to read the book & imagine Sal as the character.

I know Sal Mineo didn't write any books, but there is an excellent biography of him by Michael Gregg Michaud. The book came out last year and is available in a hardcover, a paperback and soon, a James Franco film version.   I'm cautiously optimistic about the latter.   You can find many of Sal Mineo's films on DVD.  P.S. Your Cat Is Dead, was recently reprinted and is available in bookstores and libraries, as is Michael Gregg Michaud's biography of Mineo. Here's your list:
Find a library.
Find an independent bookstore.
Meet Michael Gregg Michaud.
The official Sal Mineo website (with a pretty good gallery) here.