Review
Toots Shor's name hasn't lighted up a New York sign for more than 30 years, but thanks to Kristi Jacobson, his granddaughter, it will now grace movie marquees. An established documentarian before setting her sights on her mother s father, Ms. Jacobson is a rare exception to the seemingly bottomless pool of aspiring filmmakers whose on-screen familial explorations come across as self-serving therapy sessions. Her first-rate portrait of Shor, restaurant owner and saloonkeeper extraordinaire, is anything but. Instead it s both a highly entertaining look at a man who played host and drinking buddy to many of the biggest celebrities from the 1940s and 50s and a fascinating tour through post-Prohibition New York. Mixed with archival city scenes are thoughtful reminiscences by Pete Hamill, Frank Gifford, Mike Wallace and assorted other regulars from 51 West 51st Street, home to Shor s most celebrated joint, as well as samplings of television appearances and voice recordings of the spotlight-loving Shor himself. His darker days and mob ties are also touched on, as is his eventual downfall, which was sparked by an inability or unwillingness to change with the times that held strong until his death in 1977. Cheers to Ms. Jacobson for keeping alive the memory of New York nightlife s golden era, and a man who embodied it. --Laura Kern, The New York Times
Product Description
Toots Shor is many things to many people, said Edward R. Murrow of the legendary Manhattan saloonkeeper in 1955. A friend to the famous, a crook to the feds, father, brother, gambler, bum, but most of all Toots Shor was the owner of America s greatest saloon. Directed by his granddaughter, TOOTS is a provocative, loving and unmistakably authentic portrait of the self-made, unapologetic and quintessentially American man who became the unlikely den-mother to the heroes of America s golden age. Politicians and gangsters, sports heroes and movie stars -- Sinatra, Gleason, Dimaggio, Ruth, Costello, Eisenhower, Nixon, Warren -- for 30 years, they all found their way to Toots eponymous saloon on New York s West 51st Street for food and drink, served up with a heaping side of insults and put downs. From its post-WW II heyday to its devastating decline in the 1970s, this film reveals as much about the city Toots loved as it does about the man and his enduring legacy. Featuring: Walter Cronkite, Mike Wallace, Frank Gifford, Whitey Ford, Yogi Berra, Nick Pileggi, David Brown, Peter Duchin, Maury Allen, Dave Anderson, Bill Gallo, Joe Garagiola, Sidney Zion, Gay Talese, and Gianni Russo.
