THE FORTUNE CHRONICLES PART ONE.

One Man's Remembrances of working with SAL MINEO by JOE BONELLI

Hello, my name is Joe Bonelli. I was a member of the FORTUNE AND MEN'S EYES company in its original two productions (New York & Los Angeles) in 1969-70. Over the run of both production I acted, was sound technician, handled wardrobe and prop maintenance, was house manager, was assistant stage manager, and most importantly, cast and directed under studies (mostly in L.A) and actually ran the show as acting stage manager for the last 5 or 6 weeks of it's New York run. If I can give any insights in to the workings of Sal Mineo's professional mind during this time, I will feel proud.

Sal was, and IS, the most overlooked of stars. Primarily ( I believe) because of his rapid decline as a major presence in the working Hollywood world after EXODUS and the mistaken categorizing of Sal in later days as the "gay" star, Sal have been ignored by the mainstream Hollywood press in discussing "stars" of his era. I believe the truth is (and I think Sal would have agreed) that by the time of EXODUS, Sal (who was only 20 or 21) had begun to alienate much of Hollywood's main steam. He himself told me that he woke up on one day not long after the EXODUS hype had died down to find out that not only had he been mismanaged into "broke" status, but owed a great deal of money --a situation that lasted the rest of his life. (One day a process server wandered into an afternoon understudy rehearsal of FORTUNE, with a summons for Sal. Sal shook the guy's hand, told him "No sweat, it's your job!" and got me to get the fellow a couple of passes to the show. Then he muttered to me, "They'll have to get in line!!" Now, THAT'S class, folks!!!) I believe that many people who had felt the sting of Sal's youthful arrogance were delighted at his downfall and helped kick dirt on his career from then on.

I believe that Sal originally decided to mount FORTUNE as a big shock tactic rather than just help his career. I don't really think that he realized initially that the show would turn out to be a catalyst (that obviously did NOT work ) for prison reform. He wanted to titillate. That I know is true, and, boy did he succeed!! FORTUNE AND MEN'S EYES was a play by Canadian author John Herbert that had payed a successful off-Broadway run in the early sixties and had been the staring point of a movement to help ex-prisoners readjust to society. The movement, still a powerful force in its field, is the admirable FORTUNE SOCIETY. Herbert's script is a pretty good read (I've never seen it staged), but is awfully "poetic" for a prison mulieu. The play worked initially and worked (especially in Sal's L.A production) as a dramatic "warning" to society.

I believe however that the play in both Herbert's original and Sal's reincarnation (which Herbert HATED-- more later!) would be HOPELESSLY dated today. I considered a remount in 1990 in New Orleans and contacted Ken Waissman (the New York producer of Sal's "version") and he put me in touch with John Herbert's agent. Subsequently I received a SCATHING anti-Mineo 7 page letter from Mr. Herbert. In it he vilified Sal, implying that I could NOT do such a promotion. It is interesting that Mr Herbert, in the film version from which he excluded Sal, that he DID incorporate the live rape scene (that is off-stage in the original ) and DID have the wonderfully talented Michael Greer recreate his role as Queenie from Sal's L.A and N.Y productions. (The film is and intimate downer and an bore, to boot, in my opinion; but, I admit, my thoughts are colored by over familiarity with the material and not having seen the movie for over 25 years.)

The initial production of FORTUNE AND MEN'S EYES in Los Angeles, opening in late 1968, needs to be looked at in context of its times. FORTUNE was one of TWO theatrical "Hits" that opened about the time in the notoriously NON-THEATRICAL city of Los Angeles (I speak of 30 years ago, now, so don't you L.A theatre people take offence!!) The other hit was a cultural and social phenomenon called HAIR. HAIR had opened in New York about a year previously and was, of course, a hit, but it was the Los Angeles production that opened in 1968 at the Aquarius Theatre, that made the show well know. The Aquarius was, I believe, a former large nightclub. It had been the site of the HULLABALOO folk music TV show, and most ironically, was located directly across the street from The Palladium where the Lawrence Welk Show was produced.

The L.A production of HAIR was co-produced by Tommy Smothers (who turned a large contingent of Sunset Strip Hippies loose with paint cans and brushes and much smoke and let them pain the building in Psychedelic Motif.) HAIR and LAWRENCE WELK in your same sitelines-- what a TRIP!!!! HAIR was not only a local hit, but broke nationally by "covers' of such songs as "Aquarius" and "Let the Sunshine In" by the 5th Dimension, "Hair" by the teeny bop Cowsills, and "Good Morning Starshine" by Oliver. The Los Angeles production of HAIR was a theatrical stunner!! It shocked, involved and wasted its audience. It was, and remains, one of the greatest evenings I've EVER spent in the American Theatre. HAIR became a National Phenomenon!! 
And people got NUDE in it !!! For the first time on the mainstream stage (out of New York, where they had been doing it for a year!).

In HAIR, the first-act curtain had the cast disrobing in dim, atmospheric light and standing there bared definatly to the world as Claude, the protagonist who winds up dead from Vietnam, burns his draft card. A magnificent and moving effects!! AND THEN ALONG CAME SAL !!!

In FORTUNE AND MEN'S EYES, people not only took their clothes off, they moved around!! Sal Mineo actually simulated rape on another young man in plain view onstage!! It shocked!! It outraged!! It moved!! And it was NOT pornographic in any way. NOR did it promote any kind of "homosexual agenda."

FORTUNE was about a decent young man who gets sent to jail for six months for car theft -- a joyride!! Today, it might be for DUI. Not crimes to be minimized, mind you, but things a person who is not basically a criminal, might be punished for. the message of the play is that these institutions demoralize and brutalize in such a way that they CREATE criminals rather than rehabilitate them. That is the reason for FORTUNE'S existence. The specific message of Sal's version is no different from Herberts' original, in my opinion. IT is (o0r WAS, in this day) a wake-up call to society to clean up the that particular mess. As we know, associated did no such thing, and there you are!! I was not a member of the company in either L.A or New York until after the initial rehearsal periods, so, unfortunately, I cannot give information of these valuable periods. I CAN report stagings done in the preview But who am I?  

Who is Joe Bonelli and how did her get involved with this??

A bit of background
I am a native of Mississippi, a relatively unschooled actor who spent a couple of years in New York in the early 60's after some college. I went to Los Angeles in early 1967. Who was to know that I would be, by April of that year, ensconced as a waiter-bus-cashier-you-name-it smack in the middle of a cultural phenomenon called the '67 Sunset Strip!! I worked at an Italian restaurant called Anggelos where a lot of film and music people hang out. The co-owner of the place (and owner of the property itself) was Elmer Valentine, who owned the famous Whisky-a-Go-Go on the corner.

I had a variety of terrific customers including Sonny and Cher, the Mamas and Papas (ALL of them), Johnny Rivers, Lou Adler (who produced all of the above), Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda (who were planning their motorcycle movie) and Sal Mineo. I waited on him several times, and again later at another place of La Cieniga whose name escapes me. We got along well (I'm a good waiter with celebs!)

I left L.A in mid 68, but returned in December.

FORTUNE had just opened, and there was an ad for Understudy Open Auditions in one of the trade papers. I said to my friend Johnny who had come to L.A with me from Mississippi, "Let's go!!" I had no idea there would be a role for me in this show. I just wanted to see the audition and let my friend see that a real "movie star" knew me. At the audition, an number of people read. After a while, I realized that I probably could read the role of Queenie and I did! And I did again! and again! For the rest of the afternoon. I got the first dose of Sal's "cinematic" way of working-quietly suggesting nuances and tacks to take with the part to elicit reaction from the other actors.

My great triumph was that he told me to keep the script, that it was mine, in front of the WHOLE auditioning group!
Sal hired me on the spot!!!  And the next day I got a telephone call firing me!!!!

Of course I was crushed!! But, I hadn't been expecting to be cast anyway.
Then, a couple of days later, came ANOTHER call. Could I come down to the theatre and see Sal. I did. They RE-hired me. The guy they had hoped to get to understudy Michael Greer had fallen through and I was it!!
(this actor was a guy named Robert Redding who would, subsequently, become Michael's understudy--he and Michael were both 6'4" and I was 5'9"-- in a show choreographed fights. THEN, I would be kicked upstairs!!!!) but all that was a number of weeks later.

In the next instalment of this chronicle, I'll talk about FORTUNE at the beginning and how I wound up directing understudies instead of BEING one !!!

Joe Bonelli January 2000