synak
29-09-2007, 07:14 AM
The following is written by Don Aly who allegedly knew Sal Mineo personally:
http://www.donaly.com/don_alys_column10.html
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000543/
“I’ve got this new film project I’m really hot on, but I’m a little nervous about it,” Mineo said. He told me the film was tentatively titled “Sirhan Sirhan,” and it dealt with the alleged assassin of Robert F. Kennedy.
One reason he was so excited about the film was because Donald Freed had written the script. Freed’s the fellow who wrote “Executive Action,” and “Sirhan Sirhan” had much of the same explosive intrigue as Freed’s successful film, he said.
I didn’t want to “rain on Sal’s parade,” but I asked him if he had any bad vibes about launching such an obvious controversial project. “Well,” he commented, “at first, I did have a lot of apprehension, but it’s such a strong body of work, I felt it had something valid to say and I just had to do it.
“It’s a little eerie, though,” he confessed. “We want to use film clips of Bobby Kennedy in it. I think the public is wondering why he was killed, particularly since JFK was gunned down in Dallas.”
Mineo said he thought “Sirhan Sirhan” would have the same kind of impact on the theater-going public as “Executive Action.” Though I was leery of Sal’s film project, in lieu of the fact that I resided in Dallas when JFK was assassinated, I encouraged him in his ambitious endeavors. As it turned out, he needed my encouragement and much more.
Mineo initially had envisioned Omar Shariff playing the title role, but when he approached Sirhan Sirhan’s family about it, they nixed the proposed film idea completely. Then, he started getting pressure from political groups who even threatened him if he proceeded with his plans.
I’m sure Sal was aware of the consequences, but, never the less, he continued to push forward to get “Sirhan Sirhan” on the screen. He called me one day to confirm that he had been successful in raising the money necessary to make the movie. And then, a few days later, he called me back and told me he was afraid somebody was going to kill him.
“Somebody wants to snuff me out,” he whispered on the telephone. “I’ve had death threats and been stalked from time to time whenever I leave my apartment and go to the grocery store. There are people out there, evidently, who don’t want the American public to know the truth about what caused the death of Bobby Kennedy.”
I told Sal he had every right to be concerned and suggested he notify the FBI. He told me, based on his research, he had become paranoid about governmental agencies, particularly the FBI and CIA. He said he’d be careful, okay, but he was going to continue cautiously with the “Sirhan Sirhan” project.
I didn’t hear from Sal any more after that last phone conversation, and I wondered if all the threats had subsided or if Sal was in danger as he fearfully expressed. One day I was watching a football game on TV when the announcer cut in with a news bulletin that actor Sal Mineo’s body had been found dead on the parking lot outside his apartment.
As with most cases of this nature involving a celebrity, the newsman was sketchy with his preliminary comments, but a lot of observations were made that his death may have been drug related, a robbery, or a hate crime by homophobics who knew Mineo was gay.
I checked with a few of my Hollywood friends to see if they knew anything more specific about Mineo’s death. Most (who knew of Sal’s “Sirhan Sirhan” project) said things were pretty “hush hush,” but agreed with me that the drug comments and the homosexual comments were nothing more than a giant smokescreen.
One friend of Mineo’s, Beatle John Lennon, was furious about the death of the actor. He immediately enlisted the aid of lawyers, fellow entertainers and media types to uncover the real reason why Sal had died.
The “establishment” tried to keep Lennon from stirring up a hornet’s nest and when that failed, trumped up a deportation charge to get his butt out of the country. But Lennon came back, this time, armed with more facts and determined more than ever to uncover the real reason while Mineo died.
Despite his efforts, Lennon was never able to uncover the truth. But his star status and determination attracted so much attention to Mineo’s death, newspapers and the radio-TV guys began demanding the Mineo case be reopened and reexamined. Things got so hectic at one point, the “establishment” issued a memo to their staff members to put a stop to all the John Lennon-Sal Mineo nonsense.
A few days later, John Lennon was shot to death outside his Dakota residence, in New York City. Newspaper types, particularly close friends of Sal and John, rallied to the cause and tried to bring closure to the matter. But, to no avail.
You probably know the rest of the story. Mineo’s death was declared “a mysterious drug-related incident” and the case was closed. Period. Lennon’s assassin, Mark David Chapman, was sentenced to prison and life went on as usual.
Naturally, Mineo’s “Sirhan Sirhan” movie project never made it to the big screen. There was talk in Hollywood circles that some of Sal’s friends would eventually produce the film, despite the confrontations. But, as far as I know, this never happened.
What was it that Sal knew that caused him to be silenced? Your guess is as good as mine. We may never know the answer. And maybe it was supposed to be that way.
http://www.donaly.com/don_alys_column10.html
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000543/
“I’ve got this new film project I’m really hot on, but I’m a little nervous about it,” Mineo said. He told me the film was tentatively titled “Sirhan Sirhan,” and it dealt with the alleged assassin of Robert F. Kennedy.
One reason he was so excited about the film was because Donald Freed had written the script. Freed’s the fellow who wrote “Executive Action,” and “Sirhan Sirhan” had much of the same explosive intrigue as Freed’s successful film, he said.
I didn’t want to “rain on Sal’s parade,” but I asked him if he had any bad vibes about launching such an obvious controversial project. “Well,” he commented, “at first, I did have a lot of apprehension, but it’s such a strong body of work, I felt it had something valid to say and I just had to do it.
“It’s a little eerie, though,” he confessed. “We want to use film clips of Bobby Kennedy in it. I think the public is wondering why he was killed, particularly since JFK was gunned down in Dallas.”
Mineo said he thought “Sirhan Sirhan” would have the same kind of impact on the theater-going public as “Executive Action.” Though I was leery of Sal’s film project, in lieu of the fact that I resided in Dallas when JFK was assassinated, I encouraged him in his ambitious endeavors. As it turned out, he needed my encouragement and much more.
Mineo initially had envisioned Omar Shariff playing the title role, but when he approached Sirhan Sirhan’s family about it, they nixed the proposed film idea completely. Then, he started getting pressure from political groups who even threatened him if he proceeded with his plans.
I’m sure Sal was aware of the consequences, but, never the less, he continued to push forward to get “Sirhan Sirhan” on the screen. He called me one day to confirm that he had been successful in raising the money necessary to make the movie. And then, a few days later, he called me back and told me he was afraid somebody was going to kill him.
“Somebody wants to snuff me out,” he whispered on the telephone. “I’ve had death threats and been stalked from time to time whenever I leave my apartment and go to the grocery store. There are people out there, evidently, who don’t want the American public to know the truth about what caused the death of Bobby Kennedy.”
I told Sal he had every right to be concerned and suggested he notify the FBI. He told me, based on his research, he had become paranoid about governmental agencies, particularly the FBI and CIA. He said he’d be careful, okay, but he was going to continue cautiously with the “Sirhan Sirhan” project.
I didn’t hear from Sal any more after that last phone conversation, and I wondered if all the threats had subsided or if Sal was in danger as he fearfully expressed. One day I was watching a football game on TV when the announcer cut in with a news bulletin that actor Sal Mineo’s body had been found dead on the parking lot outside his apartment.
As with most cases of this nature involving a celebrity, the newsman was sketchy with his preliminary comments, but a lot of observations were made that his death may have been drug related, a robbery, or a hate crime by homophobics who knew Mineo was gay.
I checked with a few of my Hollywood friends to see if they knew anything more specific about Mineo’s death. Most (who knew of Sal’s “Sirhan Sirhan” project) said things were pretty “hush hush,” but agreed with me that the drug comments and the homosexual comments were nothing more than a giant smokescreen.
One friend of Mineo’s, Beatle John Lennon, was furious about the death of the actor. He immediately enlisted the aid of lawyers, fellow entertainers and media types to uncover the real reason why Sal had died.
The “establishment” tried to keep Lennon from stirring up a hornet’s nest and when that failed, trumped up a deportation charge to get his butt out of the country. But Lennon came back, this time, armed with more facts and determined more than ever to uncover the real reason while Mineo died.
Despite his efforts, Lennon was never able to uncover the truth. But his star status and determination attracted so much attention to Mineo’s death, newspapers and the radio-TV guys began demanding the Mineo case be reopened and reexamined. Things got so hectic at one point, the “establishment” issued a memo to their staff members to put a stop to all the John Lennon-Sal Mineo nonsense.
A few days later, John Lennon was shot to death outside his Dakota residence, in New York City. Newspaper types, particularly close friends of Sal and John, rallied to the cause and tried to bring closure to the matter. But, to no avail.
You probably know the rest of the story. Mineo’s death was declared “a mysterious drug-related incident” and the case was closed. Period. Lennon’s assassin, Mark David Chapman, was sentenced to prison and life went on as usual.
Naturally, Mineo’s “Sirhan Sirhan” movie project never made it to the big screen. There was talk in Hollywood circles that some of Sal’s friends would eventually produce the film, despite the confrontations. But, as far as I know, this never happened.
What was it that Sal knew that caused him to be silenced? Your guess is as good as mine. We may never know the answer. And maybe it was supposed to be that way.