Fistful of Dollars (continued)

A Fistful of Dollars (Unidis, 1964). Italian Photobustas (6) (18.75" X 26.5")

U/A soon realised the pulling power of both James Bond and The Man with No Name, the company wasted little time in releasing this cracking double bill as featured in this U.K. Quad poster 30 x 40.

A Special thanks to my good friend Dave Worrall for providing this quality scan.

Below: The UK Double Crown version (30x20) 

Germany seemed to produce many varied forms of Poster design for A Fistful of Dollars, here are a couple of other A1 designs (23 x 33) the first of which, has proven incredibly hard to find.

A Fistful of Dollars, from Spain, here is a rare set of Hand tinted Lobby cards

A Fistful of Dollars, Here are a few of Spanish 1 sheet posters

Below: A Fistful of Dollars (Suomi Filmi, 1968). Finnish Poster

Below: A Fistful of Dollars Danish Poster from 1967

From a Mexican re-release, here's the complete set of lobby cards and a close up example

When it comes to the Dollar films, France has always provided fantastic artwork, below is a fine example.

A Fistful of Dollars, a couple of rarely seen designs from Argentina (29 x 43)

From Sweden, here's a 1975 re-release design

and here's the 1975 re-release Swedish Insert version

Below: Also from Sweden, here's an original release Insert

Below: A Fistful of Dollars Original Australian 1 sheet poster 29 x 41

Below: A Fistful of Dollars Original Australian Daybill poster

Below: A Fistful of Dollars Original Australian 3 sheet poster

Below: A Fistful of Dollars Romanian Poster

Below: A Fistful of Dollars Colombian Poster

Below: Yet another great example of German film artwork

Below: Another version of the Double Bill UK Quad featuring For a Few Dollars More

Below: Here's a wonderful new shot to me, Madrid, Spain and Clint arrives to shoot A fistful of dollars! Fantastic. Picture taken April 9th 1964.

A Fistful of Dollars (Towa 1965) Japanese STB 20 X 58

Below: A couple of Japanese B2 posters for A Fistful of Dollars

A nice collection of 8 b/w press stills from the U.S. Re-release of 1969








Below: Some rare and great shots from A Fistful of Dollars

Below: A Fistful of Dollars (Unidis, 1964). Promotional Brochure (12 pp) (9.25" X 13.5"). Sold in Nov 2010 for $191.20
This is a very scarce promotional brochure for sales abroad, sent to key heads of theatre chains in many countries. The provenance is very interesting. It is from the Eduardo Ezio Pizzi Collection. Mr. Pizzi was in charge of all publicity and press relations for both Jolly Film (Fistful production company) and Unidis (European over-all distributor). You will see his name on the lower right spine of the back cover. It was Mr. Pizzi who took a film from pre-production all the way through release and eventual award ceremonies. Pizzi conceived many ideas for the artwork, the entire publicity launch and the release campaign. This exciting twelve page brochure features unique artwork and photographs, and text in both Italian and English. Note the credits on page two with Sergio Leone becoming Bob Robertson, Gian Maria Volonte...John Wells; Benito Stefanelli...Benny Reeves; and Bruno Carotenuto ...Carol Brown. This was an attempt to "Americanize" the film to boost initial distribution.

Below: A Fistful of Dollars (Unidis, 1964). Signed Original Artwork in Tempera by Sandro Simeoni (18" X 25") and original Ad Artwork (10" X 10.5"). Sold in Nov 2010 for $8,962.50
Offered here is the unique original painting by noted and prolific Italian poster artist Sandro Simeoni. As this is the seminal Spaghetti Western to be released in the States, the studio used American and Italian actors and changed the names of several of the credits to American names. So the small ad mock-up offered here shows Sergio Leone's name changed to Bob Robertson, which is how it appears on the earliest posters as well. They had no idea of the impact the film would have on audiences and future filmmaking. Later promotional items list the credits with the correct Italian actors and Leone's name. Clint Eastwood's iconic portrayal of the "Man with No Name" would skyrocket his career and spawn two excellent sequels. This color painting offered here was used for both the original Italian 4-Foglio and the Locandia. The tempera painting is 14.5" x 16" on matt board measuring 18" X 25" and is signed by the artist, who signed as Symeoni. The borders show some stains, smudges and some creasing, but the actual painting is in excellent condition with exceptional detail and colors. The painting retains its original Glassine cover which is hinged to the verso. The smaller black and white mock-up for a print ad, known in Italy as a "flani," measures 10" X 10.5" and is based on the original artwork by Simeoni and has the director listed as "Bob Robertson." This piece is entirely hand drawn and inked. The original painting is an incredibly important item in the history of world cinema. This is from the collection of Edoardo Ezio Pizzi, the man who handled all publicity and press relations for Unidis and Jolly Films and handled this film from pre-production through release.

Below: A Fistful of Dollars (Unidis, 1964). Color Poster Mock-up (5.5" X 8) and Photos (5) (4 shown) (7" X 9.25 to 9.5" X 12") Sold in Nov 2010 for: $2,031.50
This unique lot contains five original photos by set photographer, Julio Wizuete, of Clint Eastwood used to create the images for promotional posters. Four of the photos have informational ideas on the front and back. The lot also contains a small color mock-up for a finalized poster idea. The provenance is very interesting. These are from the Edoardo Ezio Pizzi Collection. Mr. Pizzi was in charge of all publicity and press relations for both Jolly Film (Fistful production company) and Unidis (European over-all distributor). It was Mr. Pizzi who took the film from pre-production all the way through release. Pizzi conceived many ideas for the artwork, the entire publicity launch and the release campaign.

Below: A Fistful of Dollars (Unidis, 1964). Black and White Photos (16) (2 shown) (4" X 5" - 9" X 16").
Julio Wizuete was a still photographer working for Foto Vaselli in the mid 1960s and is credited with the photos taken on set from this seminal Italian film. Included in this lot are 16 black and white, single weight, glossy photos of Clint Eastwood used by Unidis' publicity director Ezio Pizzi, to create the original posters, billboards and publicity campaign. Two of the photos are stylized printed composites which have drawn on the verso the design that would later be used on the Italian 4-foglio for the the sequel For a Few Dollars More. Two original folders with handwritten notes are included in the lot. Two of the cut-outs have minor edge tears, and there is the occasional very small corner bump. This is from the collection of Edoardo Ezio Pizzi, the man who handled all publicity and press relations for Unidis and Jolly Films and handled this film from pre-production through release. Sold in Nov 2010 for $597.50

Below: A Fistful of Dollars (Unidis, 1964). Amoldo Vaselli and Julio Wizuete Photos (12) (5 shown) (7" X 9.5"). (Bottom shot from For a few Dollars More)
This is as close as you can get to the actual production. Here are twelve amazing "on the set" photos of Clint Eastwood that were used to create poster and publicity campaign artwork. Some have the stamp of Foto Vaselli (Amoldo Vaselli), and most have instructions on the back as to how the printing of the photo was to be done. One is a great find for collectors, it has handwritten notes about what writing credits will go with the photo. It states "...di Sergio Leone (Bob Robertson)." It clearly indicates that two versions of the poster were to be printed, one for the Italian market, and one with Leone's "Americanized" entity, "Bob Robertson." He was fearful if the posters contained too many Italian names that the film would fail in the U.S.! A unique opportunity to own something amazingly unique to the title. This is from the collection of Edoardo Ezio Pizzi, the man who handled all publicity and press relations for Unidis and Jolly Films and handled this film from pre-production through release. These sold in Nov 2010 for $478.00





Below: A Fistful of Dollars (Unidis, 1964). Original "Flani" Black and White Artwork Mock-Ups (8) (4 shown) Various sizes: (6" X 17" - 10" X 19). Sold in Nov 2010 for $1,314.50
An amazingly complete set of the original "flani" artwork mock-ups. Once approved, with spell checking and contractual considerations satisfied, these went to the "zincografia" where plates were made and then sent to the various Italian newspapers. These are one-of-a-kind and the only copies. Two of the flani were for the 1964 Italian initial release in Florence, with Sergio Leone's name still concealed, with the name "Bob Robertson." Five of the flani have Sergio Leone's name written correctly, and were for the wider Italian release. What is unique about this lot is that it is a complete mini-archive of the pre-release ads, the first day of release material, and the follow up ads, all designed to attract moviegoers. An incredible chance to study the actual "roll-out" of a landmark film. There are only occasional very mild corner bumps, important handwritten notes, and mild wrinkles. This is from the collection of Edoardo Ezio Pizzi, the man who handled all publicity and press relations for Unidis and Jolly Films and handled this film from pre-production through release.




Below: A Fistful of Dollars (Unidis, R-1968). Original Tempera Painting by Michelangelo Papuzza (13" X 18"). Sold in Nov 2010 for $4,780.00
A beautiful very brightly colored tempera painting by noted Sicilian artist Michelangelo Papuzza. This is an alternate unused poster proposal, and is the only copy. Mr. Papuzza's other style painting was used for the Italian 1968 70mm release. Star Wars collectors will know the name, as Papuzza did the artwork for the very popular 1978 Italian 2-foglio for the science fiction film's release. The provenance is also very interesting. This is from the collection of Edoardo Ezio Pizzi, the man who handled all publicity and press relations for Unidis and Jolly Films and handled this film from pre-production through release and its re-releases. A terrific piece of art featuring Eastwood's "Joe" literally carrying away from all the dead bodies...a fistful of dollars. There are precious few opportunities to obtain original art connected to major, landmark films.

Below: French poster door panel style

Original Reviews:

A Fistful of Dollars (1964)
February 2, 1967
A Fistful of Dollars' Opens: Western Film Cliches All Used in Movie Cowboy
Star From TV Featured as Killer
By BOSLEY CROWTHER
Published: February 2, 1967

COWBOY camp of an order that no one has dared in American films since, gosh. Gary Cooper's "The Virginian" (which is prototypical) is flung on the screen with shameless candor in the European-made, English-dubbed, Mexican-localized Western, "A Fistful of Dollars," which opened in some 75 theaters in this area yesterday.

Just about every Western cliche that went with the old formula of the cool and mysterious gunslinger who blows into an evil frontier town and takes on the wicked, greedy varmints, knocking them off one by one, is in this egregiously synthetic but engrossingly morbid, violent film, put together as an Italian-German-Spanish co-production and shot for the most part in Spain.

There's this fellow who comes out of nowhere, laconic and steely-eyed, looking for business as a killer and fantastically swift on the draw. There are these families, the Baxters and the Rojos, locked in an ineffectual feud over who will control the smuggling business that centers in this Mexican town. There's the timid cantina proprietor, the coffin-maker waiting for clients — everything except the customary moral redemption and the naughty woman with the heart of gold.

It is notable that the lanky gringo who rides into San Miguel and virtually depopulates the area before he rides out again is in no way devoted to justice or aiding the good against the bad. He is an icy and cynical gunman whose only interest is what's in it for him.

Swiftly, he scan the situation. "There's money to be made in a place like this," he informs the cantina proprietor, and therewith sets about making it.

His first piece of business is to gun down four Baxters, just to show that he runs an efficient operation and clue the Rojos into hiring him. But the span of his secret activities soon includes both sides, playing them one against the other and collecting fees and bounties from each. Finally, after he has touched off a community holocaust and destroyed the last of his employers, he casually rides out of town.

Clearly, the magnet of this picture, which has been a phenomenal success in Italy and other parts of Europe, is this cool-cat bandit who is played by Clint Eastwood, an American cowboy actor who used to do the role of rowdy in the "Rawhide" series on TV. Wearing a Mexican poncho, gnawing a stub of cheroot and peering intently from under a slouch hat pulled low over his eyes, he is simply another fabrication of a personality, half cowboy and half gangster, going through the ritualistic postures and exercises of each.

His distinction is that he succeeds in being ruthless without seeming cruel, fascinating without being realistic. He is a morbid, amusing, campy fraud.

The other distinction of the picture is that it is full of spectacular violences. Sergio Leone, who directed from a script which we understand is a rewrite of the script of "Yojimbo," a Japanese samurai picture made by Akira Kurosawa with Toshiro Mifune, has crowded it with such juicy splashes as a big fat fellow being squashed by a rolling barrel, a whole squad of soldiers being massacred, and punctured men spitting gore.

Ultimately, the cool, non-hero is beaten to a bloody, swollen pulp, from which he miraculously recovers to go forth and kill his tormentors.

Filmed in hard, somber color and paced to a musical score that betrays tricks and themes that sound derivative (remember "Ghost Riders in the Sky"?). "A Fistful of Dollars" is a Western that its sanguine distributors suggest may be loosing a new non-hero on us—a new James Bond. God forbid!

A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS; directed by Sergio Leone; produced by Harry Colombo and George Papl for Jolly Film of Rome, Constantin Film of Munich and Ocean Film of Madrid; released by United Artists. At neighborhood theaters. Running time: 96 minutes.

Man With No Name . . . . . Clint Eastwood

Marisol . . . . . Marianne Koch

Ramon Rojo . . . . . John Wets

John Baxter . . . . . W. Lukschy

Esteban Rojo . . . . . S. Rupp

Benito Rojo . . . . . Antonio Prieto

Silvanito . . . . . Jose Calvo

Consuelo Baxter . . . . . Margherita Lozano

Julian . . . . . Daniel Martin

Rubio . . . . . Benny Reeves

Chico . . . . . Richard Stuyvesant

Antonio Baxter . . . . . Carol Brown

Below: A couple of nice shots of Marianne Koch

Below: A super rare shot of Clint and Maggie on location during the filming of A Fistful of Dollars

Below: An original US Newspaper article from The New York World Journal Tribune Jan 15th 1967

Below: An Original Japanese advert for the Fistful of Dollars Soundtrack album

Below: A rare Japanese magazine advert for A Fistful of Dollars

Below: An original flyer for A Fistful of Dollars from 1967

                         

Below: A nice rare press still from A Fistful of Dollars

Below: A Fistful of Dollars Japanese Laserdisc 

Below: The super Japanese 50th Anniversary Blu-ray release of A Fistful of Dollars

Below: The UK Blu-ray release

Below: An original newspaper ad from New Zealand 

Below: The very rare A Fistful of Dollars Soundtrack reel to reel 4 track tape 3 ips. This one sold for $112 in 2013

Below: A couple of original stills from A Fistful of Dollars 

Below: A rare audio interview from the Canadian Radio Show 'Assignment' Jan 3rd 1967 Bill McNeil talks to Clint about his new film A Fistful of Dollars

Below: A rare U.S. double page Trade Ad from 1966

Below: The very rare U.S. 6 sheet (81" x 81") Fistful of Dollars poster from 1967. This poster sold in December 2022 for $4,000. A real beauty. 

Below: The German press book for the 1970's re-release of A Fistful of Dollars

Below: Some rare shots from A Fistful of Dollars

A Fistful of Dollars An original Italian cut down version on the Super 8mm format

Below: Arrow's Brand New 2025 release of A Fistful of Dollars 2 Disc Blu-ray and 4K HD

Clint Autographs: True examples

A friend of this site, Alex had written to me recently in regards to finding a genuine Eastwood autograph. While I cannot really suggest a 'route' in obtaining such a signature or in fact whom to trust in terms of sellers, I never really rested until I finally got to meet the man in person, and on that occasion Clint kindly signed 2 photos for me, one of which is dedicated to me and the other of which is just a signature. What I can do is reproduce the autograph here, if only in order to show what the genuine article looks like, circa 2004. Clint's autograph has of course changed throughout the years, like most people's do. To illustrate this I will also show a really early example of his signature, which again is a genuine example.

Above: An example of Clint's signature from the 1950's
Below: Clint's Autograph circa 2004, much more liberal and flowing in style.

Below: Here is a close up of the above autograph, for reasons of closer examination, I have left the HTML code of this scan unedited, so by clicking on the image will allow you to see the signature in larger detail in the hope that it will help you in your search.

I must stress though, it's a really thin line, even looking at my 2 autographs, which were signed within minutes of each other, there is still a distinct difference in the signing of his name, which means of course that even genuine signatures on the open market can differ from the above example and as a result, leaves it open to exploit. I guess the only way to obtain an autograph in the safe knowledge that it is in deed genuine, is to have it signed in front of you, it can be a long long wait, but it's absolutely worth it in the end. Never give up...

Clint Interview: Focus on his land and properties, past and present

This Eastwood interview given to John Sammon for Today's Woman in 2007 provides a fascinating insight into Clint's early life and more specifically the homes, property and land owned by the actor, past and present. It's rather unique in that it barely touches upon Eastwood the actor, and, as a result, makes for a highly original and very interesting piece. The original source piece came without pictures. I have added these pictures below, just to make the interview 'look' a little more appealing on the eye.

 

I did an interview with actor Clint Eastwood. Eastwood is a worldwide celebrity, who rarely grants interviews. He graciously consented to talk about his early career, golf, including the annual U.S. Open golf tournament, his Mission Ranch development, and the frustrations of water and politics in his hometown of Carmel.

Clint Eastwood, actor, producer and Carmel’s former mayor - has been involved in the game of golf for nearly five decades. Eastwood relates his feelings about golf and his attitude toward a few other subjects. Here are the questions and Eastwood’s responses.

Question. Mr. Eastwood. Let’s begin with some background. What was your childhood like?

Answer. I was born in San Francisco, but raised mostly in Oakland. My family moved a lot, and I lived in places like Redding and Spokane in Washington and Sacramento, and Pacific Palisades in California. During the World War II years, my dad worked for Bethlehem Steel in Oakland. I attended Glenview Grammar School. As a kid, I earned a little money selling Liberty and Colliers magazines. Both of these are out of print now. Every magazine I ever worked for went out of print. Then I took a job with the Oakland Tribune, a paper route.

After the war, my father went to work for California Container, a corrugated box company. Later on, Dad was transferred to Seattle, where he became a plant manager. I graduated from high school and joined my parents up there for a while. I was trying to get into Seattle University on a music program, but I applied too late. I was drafted into the U.S. Army at the time of the Korean War, 1951. I came to Fort Ord. That’s how I got used to the Carmel area. I got to spend time in Monterey, Carmel, Pebble Beach and Salinas.

I even used to come to Mission Ranch when I was a soldier earning $75 a month.

Question. Did you dream that one day you would own Mission Ranch?

Answer. No. Back then, I didn’t plan on owning too much of anything. After I got out of the service, I went to Los Angeles where I attended Los Angeles City College, studying business administration. I started taking acting classes in the evening. After I landed a steady job on Rawhide (a 1950s TV western), I came up to the Monterey Peninsula and bought a little house across from the Monterey Peninsula Country Club. A tiny house with all the furniture inside. I’d been coming up periodically at that time, and stayed wherever I could. I loved that house. It was the first home I ever owned. I paid $20,000, and later sold it for $25,000.

Question. When was the first time you played golf at Pebble Beach?

Answer. I used to play over in Pacific Grove where there was a nine hole course. When a friend returned from Korea, we celebrated by playing Pebble. It was overwhelming, a much more difficult course than Pacific Grove, much longer. But Pebble was such a beautiful layout. You knew you were playing on a first-class course. I was 21 years old and I wasn’t very good. My friend and I just went out and tried to hit the ball as hard as we could. The ball would go in a lot of different directions. But we had a good time.

Later, I traipsed over the courses during the Bing Crosby Pro-Am, so I knew what they looked like. I didn’t play too much after that. A lot of years, I’d play once a year, or not at all, because I was busy trying to get a career going. It never gave me much of a chance to be a player.

Question. You bought the Mission Ranch in 1986. One of the proposals at the time was to turn the site into condominiums?

 Answer. Yes. The Ranch was approved to be torn down in order to put in sixty-six condos. There were a bunch of owners at the time, guys and their ex-wives, their girlfriends…you name it. In fact, fourteen people had to sign off when I bought this place. They had to meet a lot of conditions to put up these condos, so I offered them some dough. They agreed on a price, and I had to go and get these fourteen signatures, and sort them all out. Mission Ranch had once been a farm and a dairy. One of the buildings, the bunkhouse, dates back to 1852.

The floors had to be replaced. We just went through the place piece by piece, redoing everything. Like the barn for instance. They used to joke that the only thing holding it up were termites holding hands. The site has also been an auto court (motel), and during World War II, an officer’s club for all branches of the service. When I bought the property, the big barn had a low ceiling. I took the ceiling out and saw that all the windows were painted black. I asked Maggie Denault, who had been the owner, how come the windows were black? She said that during the war years, they used to have dances in there. They were worried about Japanese submarines off the coast so they painted the windows to block the light from showing.

Question. Did you get the site on the historical register?

Answer. No. I didn’t put it on the Historical Register. We wanted to keep the site historically accurate, however, so I went ahead restoring from what I knew about the place. Maggie was my source of information. She’d owned the property for many years. We took this false ceiling out and scraped the paint off the windows. The roofs have all been replaced. We went from a shake roof to fire-proof roofing materials. We moved some units out, five little cottages that were built in the 1950s. They looked like agricultural buildings, and they’re out in the (Carmel) Valley now. They’ve been painted and fixed up pretty nicely, I think. We used the space to build a four-plex that looks like it goes with the area. The tennis club had a 1950s type building sort of flat and low. I took that out and replaced it with a building that looks like it belongs here, an early American style farm.

There used to be a swimming pool there. We’ve got pictures of gals sitting around the pool during the 1930s, and they had a big polo field farther out. We’ve preserved those areas as wetlands. That way it can’t be built on. I’d like to see it stay like it is, forever.

Question. When did you start the Hog’s Breath Inn in Carmel?

Answer. That would be in 1972. Malcolm Moran owned the building, and one day he was showing it to me, and he said, “wouldn’t this make a great place for a saloon?” One thing led to another. Walter Becker and I started the business as sort of a lark.

Question. Didn’t you buy the building housing the Hog’s Breath Inn during the 1980s?

Answer. Yes. Malcolm was moving (to Port Townsend), so he sold me the building.

Question. You done some things with other properties that a lot of people aren’t familiar with. I believe you owned a piece of land with James Garner. Is it true you gave that land away?

Answer. James Garner and I had 360 acres up in Carmel Valley. We owned that for some time. He loved the area, and I think he thought about moving here. We had donated some money to save Jack’s Peak from development. Finally, we decided to give the property to the County Housing Authority for a senior housing program. Pacific Meadows they’ve named it. A beautiful property. Very pristine. I owned that and another piece called Canada Woods.

There's also more than 200 acres down the coast that’s been permanently preserved, Odello East too with all the artichoke fields. The Big Sur Land Trust holds a big portion, and the county has some. It’s agricultural use only.

Question. Outside of preserving a lot of property, the only thing you’re really developed is Tehama Golf Course (mid-Carmel Valley)? And Tehama is an 18-hole golf course, with 34 units?

Answer. It was contiguous to a piece of property in Canada Hills that I had in the Valley. The property was approved by the people who owned it, for 139 units, which I thought was rather dense. My business manager, who doesn’t play golf, asked, “what about a golf course?” I said, yeah, that sounds interesting. We checked out the feasibility, bought the property from my neighbors, extinguished plans for the 139 units, and put up the golf course.

Question. So Canada Woods now has a modest development density?

Answer. Yeah. Forever.

Question. Even though you had the right to build more than 200 units?

Answer. We reduced that number considerably. That property is interesting. Years ago, they talked about a county road through there. They thought the road would take heat off Highway 1 for people coming from Monterey, but then they got rid of that idea. When I was mayor of Carmel, we offered the county the property to build a holding reservoir for water. At that time, everybody was concerned about the water issue, as they are today. But water is such a tricky issue. The objections to improving water situations are usually based on trying to suppress development, and they sometimes get off track and don’t stay on the track of preserving water for everybody who needs it. Everybody worried about increasing the amount of water for more development in the area, so water became a political football.

I thought the reservoir was a good idea, and we offered to give the property to the county for that purpose. They studied and surveyed it a little bit and said, “yeah, you could put a dam across there, and pull water in.” But nobody bit. The pro-dam people didn’t want it because they thought it might discourage building a big dam, and the anti-dam people didn’t want it because they didn’t want to improve the water supply…period. The proposal got meshed in there with desalinization and all the other things that went down the tube.

Since then, the county has spent a horrendous amount of money, and we’re back where we started. I guess I’m naïve. I just thought it would be interesting to have a better quality water supply, not just more.

Question. How did you come to purchase the Pebble Beach Company?

Answer. The company was owned by the Sumitomo Company of Japan, and had been through quite a few different owners and situations. I always expressed an interest. There were rumors they were going to sell, but nobody had much faith in the rumors. Peter Uberroth (former baseball commissioner) and I discussed the situation. Peter called and asked if I could stop by and visit. We sat and talked. He said there’s a little bit of interest on the part of the Japanese owners. He said it’s probably a long shot, probably won’t happen. But he said he wanted me to be part of the deal if I was interested. I said I was.

Our philosophy was that we didn’t want to get into a bidding war, but just to put together a proposal. One day Peter came and said, “it looks like it’s coming together.” I said fine, tell me where and when. He did a splendid job, and had the idea of getting together a group who really like Pebble Beach, and who were in a position not to have to roll the company over and take the first offer that came flying along.

Everybody understood this would be a long-term deal, maybe somebody’s great granddaughter or son would see some profit some day, but all the other people would enjoy taking part anyway. They’re people who love the area.

We could of built up to 890 housing units there. The former owners presented a plan that would have had 315 lots, and put in a golf course. Our compromise eliminates the 315 lots, and has us staying in the visitor service business. The plan will include an 18-hole golf course, approximately 60 additional hotel rooms (at the 161-room lodge at Pebble Beach), and another 80 rooms at the 270-room Inn at Spanish Bay, and 38 residential lots averaging two acres each, to be sold to private buyers in the Pebble Beach, Poppy Hills and Pescadero Canyon areas. In addition, the project would install a golf cottage of 24 suites, 60 housing units for employees of the lodges, and 425 acres of permanent open space. Approximately 54 units deemed as more affordable will be located in Pajaro.

I believe this is better for the county. It increases the tax base, diminishes traffic, and uses less water. One politician who heard the proposal said, “are you crazy? You’re giving up 898 lots at the prices they’re going for today?"

Question. You played Pebble Beach at 23 years old, and you had to scrape together some cash just to get on the course. And here you are, one of the owners. How did you do it?

Answer. You hang around and a lot of stuff happens. You just outlive everybody.

Question. In 1916, Pebble Beach was known as the icon of American golf. At that time, the Big Four in San Francisco were gentlemen named Huntington, Stanford, Crocker, and Hopkins. Today, the Big Four are Richard Ferris, Clint Eastwood, Peter Uberroth and Arnold Palmer. Your careers were all different, but you all made it to the top, right?

Answer. We made it each in our own odd ways. Ferris is a Bay Area self-made guy. Uberroth went to San Jose State. Palmer is self-made. I went to Los Angeles City College. Who knows where you will end up in life. I think this must be fate driven.

Question. What changes have you noticed over the years?

Answer. In 1991, they changed the rough to rye grass. Some complain about how hard it is to get out of the rough, don’t they? I’ve played the course, and when you get in the rough, you might as well hit the ball out in this (Mission Ranch Hotel) empty field. The guy who can keep the ball in the fairway does the best. The fairways and the greens are great. But the rough. That’s tough.

Question. What would you consider the best part of your game?

Answer. The best part of my game is realizing that nothing comes easy. When I’m on my game, chipping is the best part. But that’s a very fleeting romance. It can leave you quick.

Question. What are your final thoughts on the U.S. Open?

Answer. It’s gotten to be really big. The enthusiasm is there. It’s a much bigger business than it once was. It was a nice tournament, sort of sedate. But golf has increased in popularity because of Payne Stewart and his involvement, and Tiger Woods. There’s a lot of interest among people in Central California. This means a lot to our economy. I’m glad to be a part of it.

THE MISSION RANCH, this was recently sent to me by my good friend Jerry Whittington, who has has eaten there and tells me it serves wonderful food!

Clint Eastwood bought the historic Mission Ranch property on the Carmel River in 1986

More than a few local residents breathed a sigh of relief when Clint Eastwood bought the historic Mission Ranch property on the Carmel River in 1986. It wasn't just the threat that the old ranch would be torn down and replaced by condominiums. That was bad enough. But the possibility of losing the restaurant that had been a favorite local hangout for as long as some of them could remember made it doubly distressing.

Going back to the early '50s, when Eastwood himself, then stationed at Fort Ord, had started coming there, Mission Ranch Restaurant was the place for "good food and good fun." All you had to say was "meet me at the ranch" and everyone knew that you meant the Mission Ranch Restaurant. Families and honeymooners who came to stay in the cottages that dotted the 12-acre property ate many meals there, but it was the locals who laid claim to it as their own private watering hole and family restaurant.

The food was never the fancy gourmet fare you could get at some of the restaurants in downtown Carmel. This was real food steaks and chops and ribs and potatoes. The drinks were generous; there was always music of some kind in the bar (even if it was only an impromptu group sing) and best of all, you met up with your friends and neighbors to discuss the weather, the tourists, golf scores and politics.

The ranch, built in the mid-1880s, was a diary farm until the '20s, and what is now the restaurant was once the dairy's creamery. It was first turned into a private club in the '30s; then Bert and Maggie Dienelt took it over and ran it as a restaurant and resort for 40 years. During World War II, the ranch became an officers' club, but was still open to the public for $1 a year. By the time Clint Eastwood bought it, Mission Ranch and its restaurant were badly in need of help. Locals who had come to know Eastwood as a man of his word during his two-year term as mayor of Carmel were confidant he would do what had to be done to restore it mainly invest big bucks.

Actually, he went beyond restoring. Even in their heyday, the buildings that house guests never looked more fresh and tidy than they do now, nor were the grounds quite so manicured and lush, nor the restaurant as spacious and airy. A large, airy dining room was added with one wall of windows overlooking a soothing view of sheep grazing in the meadow and the wetlands beyond stretching to the sandy shores of Carmel River beach, Point Lobos and the sea. For an even more unobstructed view of this pastoral scene, one can eat outside on a wide deck with umbrella tables.

The dining room has a comfy ranch look, with checkered tablecloths and a huge stone fireplace designed to look like it was built 100 years ago. There's also an antique, pot-bellied stove that was used in Eastwood's film "The Unforgiven." The bar is just as popular a hangout for locals as it ever was. The crowd is lively and there is piano entertainment seven nights a week. Customers are not in the least bashful about joining in for a chorus or two when old, familiar melodies are played.

The basic menu concept hasn't changed, possibly because locals didn't want it to change. It's still hearty, ranch-style food with emphasis on prime rib, steaks and BBQ ribs. But Craig has moved it into the '90s with touches of modern California cuisine (if I may use that much-maligned term), such as a tapanade of black olives, artichokes, capers and sun-dried and fresh tomatoes served on loin of lamb or salmon served on a bed of lentils and fresh herbs.

Fresh fish is also featured. In addition to the salmon, there's always a catch of the day (on one occasion, the grilled mahi mahi was excellent) and a delicious version of jumbo scallops, sauteed in brown butter with baby artichokes, capers and tomatoes. Roasted chicken and beef brochette are also available and for the vegetarians, meatless lasagna with layers of vegetables, cheeses and a tomato-basil sauce.

Baby back ribs can be ordered as an appetizer or an entree. Either way, they're lean, cooked till the meat is ready to fall off the bone and finished with a sweet-tangy sauce. Many regulars won't order anything else.

Sunday brunch is always a popular time at the restaurant, especially when the sun is shining and the skies are clear and one can sit outside and revel in the joy of being in a place where nature's beauty is bestowed so generously.

The Hog's Breath Inn

This page has been set up for The Hog's Breath Inn, the restaurant that Clint part owned in the 1970's and instantly became world famous. It is located in Carmel and is part of the Eastwood Building complex. Here are a few bits to start.

Below: An original book of matches, this was the design used when Clint had an interest in the restaurant. The design changed slightly over the years.

Below: The original Main Menu and Wine List

Below: Here is a very rare example of a Hog's Breath Inn glass ashtray 

Eastwood, Clint Eastwood.. Clint confirms he was offered the role of James Bond!

Here's an interesting Interview I recently found, published by Indie London where Clint states the he was originally offered the role of British Agent 007, which would of placed it around 1967/68 shortly after Connery retired from the role with You only live Twice (1967) before returning for Diamonds are Forever(1971), or so we assume, shame the interviewer didn't get further confirmation as to when? Of course it could have been after Diamonds are forever which would have seen Clint coming off the back of Dirty Harry(1971) Super cop to Super spy? Sounds logical I suppose...Interesting nevertheless.

Q: Changeling has been described as one of your most ambitious films. Do you agree?

Clint Eastwood: Well, I think all of them are ambitious in some way or another. But I guess you could describe it as that.

Q: Was it your intention to have the audience think they were watching one kind of movie and then as the story develops, give them something they possibly didn’t expect?

Clint Eastwood: I think that is the nature of the material. It does that, it makes you follow the woman’s story and her dilemma and then, all of a sudden, after they have humiliated her as much as they can, then we bring in the whole mystery of what has been going on.

Q: Do you think in a way the film Changeling shows that corruption is a constant factor in our lives?

Clint Eastwood: Yes, it is a constant, and it’s not an irony lost on me that Los Angeles has had corrupt moments in its history. For some reason, I think that’s the inspiration for Film Noir films that were made in those times and there were so many kind of bizarre incidents. But for some reason, because Los Angeles was left out there by itself in those days on the West Coast, it became a world of its own and I don’t know why this happens, and corruption is always there.

I don’t know how to relate it to the current economic crisis, but there is definitely corruption there, not only from Wall Street. Everybody’s blaming it on Wall Street, but there are people who think they can just take a plastic card and charge the world on it and not really pay attention to what they can afford, and live within their means. We’re all living in a kind of a dream world, including Wall Street, and including the politicians who are afraid to institute an economical restraint.

Q: How do you decide that you’ve got the people that you really have at the top of your list for characters?

Clint Eastwood: It’s just a matter of how you feel at the time. When I was first given this script, I was told that Angelina had read this and liked it, so I told Brian Grazer that I didn’t see any reason to look further. I liked her very much, I liked her as an actress and she is a mother and a famous mother now, but I figured that she would just know all the proper things about this character. And the others were cast the same way.

I do a lot of casting by videotape of people coming in and reading scenes and what have you, because I’ve been turned down for so many parts over the years in my early career. I hated to be like one of those guys sitting there smoking a cigar and blowing smoke in the actors’ faces as they came in to read and so I figure if they come in and casting can give them a read, you just give them a look, how they look, how they sound, how they feel, and then if you get close to casting them, then you maybe meet with them and talk further, or maybe not at all, sometimes just a reading, like Jason Harner who plays Northcott. He just did a brilliant reading on tape, you just could go: “Yeah! Too bad the regular camera wasn’t running at all.” It just that he is the guy. So we didn’t go any further.

We’ve done that on other pictures. I remember with Bird years ago with Diane Venora, we had a whole tape of about five different actresses I was supposed to look at. She came on first and she got about halfway through the scene and I said: “That’s the girl. Okay.” And then everybody said: “No, don’t you want to look at the rest of them?” And I said: “For the next picture. For this picture, this is her.”

Q: Have you talked to your children about the danger of strangers – since this is a movie about serial killers?

Clint Eastwood: I grew up in a time that was similar to this picture. But by the same token, kids went out and played. There was no television, everybody played outdoors and your parents always told you to beware of strangers – and to be aware of that old gimmick – which is used in the picture – of somebody coming up and telling you: “You’re mother’s in the hospital, you must jump in the car and come with us now.”

That is one of the oldest ploys in the book, and was used by Northcott and other people over the years. I think your parents have to instill that in you and we have to instill in our children that not everybody has their best interests at heart, and there are a lot of motivations out there.

It’s hard for kids not to know that today, with all the great information age we live, plus watching all the mayhem on television all night, just by watching the news, not even the fictional stories. So, I think it’s up to parents to do the educating on that on that level and naturally, a person of higher profile is probably a little more diligent about that than somebody who is not a public figure.

But by the same token, you want to give the child a normal life, you don’t want to scare the child and have them going around thinking that there’s somebody waiting around the corner to hit them with a club or something. So it’s a fine line and you have to work that out in your family, and what your philosophies are and I suppose the adults at least have to build up a supposing situation.

Q: One of the most chilling scenes in the film is the execution. Why did you decide on showing such detail?

Clint Eastwood: I just felt that it deserved to be told in detail. Northcott was convicted and then spent two years in solitary confinement and was then taken out to be hanged.

Q: How do you get the energy to direct so many movies at such a pace?

Clint Eastwood: Well, I don’t know. I guess that I am not in front of the camera as much as I used to be. I suppose I feel like it is a good time to be doing it.

Q: Did you do the music for Gran Torino, as you did for Changeing?

Clint Eastwood: Well, I did some of the work on Gran Torino and my son [Kyle Eastwood] also worked on it and we got Jamie Cullum to do some lyrics.

Q: Music appears to be a passion for you?

Clint Eastwood: Music does have a very special place in my heart. I enjoy it very much. I suppose it is my first love and I do a lot of it. It seems to be when you are making a project it inspires you sometimes to jot down something that you think fits the situation.

Q: It is also very evident that you do not follow fashions. Instead you set trends as you did with Unforgiven when they said Westerns were finished?

Clint Eastwood: I think it is more important to tell a story rather than follow any trend; that is a less bold way to go. If you do that [follow trends] you are just trying to ride on the coat tails of someone else’s success. I could certainly do another Western film if I found a script. But I have never found a script that was as good as Unforgiven. In my mind, Unforgiven was to be my last Western.

Q: What about The Human Factor, your film about Nelson Mandela? How far are you on the plans for that?

Clint Eastwood: I’m not planning anything right now. Right now, I’m taking it easy. I am doing the Mandela film in March. But I’m taking a break between now and then. We are in slow gear right now.

Q: As you said you are not on screen as much as you once were. Obviously you are in Gran Torino but do you miss not acting as often?

Clint Eastwood: I enjoyed acting in Million Dollar Baby and in Gran Torino I play a character who is my age and it is a character that I enjoyed playing. But I’m not looking for it [acting roles]. I’m more interested in staying behind the camera.

Q: Were you at one time asked if you would play James Bond?

Clint Eastwood: I was, yes at one time. This was after Sean [Connery quit]. I had the same attorney as the Broccoli family.

Q: Any regrets about not having been 007?

Clint Eastwood: I thought that James Bond should be British. I’m of British descent but by the same token I thought that it [Bond] should be more of the culture there and also, it was not my thing, it was somebody’s else’s thing.

Q: How involved are you in the DVD of films like Changeling?

Clint Eastwood: You want the DVD to be as close as it can be to the original film. Nowadays people have nice television screens, High Definition and all that and it is nice for them to have the same experience or something close to as you have in the theatre.