Growing Up in the Shadow of Hollywood
I was raised in a Studio City suburb called Laurelwood. Situated on the southern tip of the San Fernando Valley, the neighborhood is a short jaunt to Hollywood via Laurel Canyon. Many of our neighbors worked in the film and television industry. There were directors, actors, camera operators and studio executives. Locals included John Cassavetes, cinema cowboy Gene Autry, rocker heartthrob Bobby Sherman and screenwriter Frank De Felitta. The area was also home to child actors like Ron Howard, Scott Baio, Leif Garrett and Erin Moran.
My father Igo Kantor was an independent film producer. He grew up in Portugal dreaming of making movies in Hollywood. As a boy, his favorite films were the early Republic serials like Spy Smasher and Dick Tracy. When he was 17 he organized a film club and became a projectionist at a local cinema. He interviewed American movie stars like Bob Hope and Jerry Lewis for a Portuguese film magazine called Flama.
My father’s movie dreams permeated our home. The walls were covered with celebrity photos, film scripts were stacked everywhere and there was an automated film screen in the family room. On weekends, my dad hauled out his 16mm projector and screened old…
