Filled
with booze, sex, and all-night romps, Entourage: The Movie
gives the Everyman a two-hour glimpse into the hedonistic, drunken
debauchery of the Hollywood elite. Turtle has become a tequila
aficionado, pioneering his own brand of the stuff and earning
millions of his own dollars. “Drama”, seeking solace from the
clutches of his career woes, drinks cocktails of molly and water. And
then, of course, there’s our Golden Boy, Vince, kissing
scantily-clad women just days after the dissolution of a nine-day
marriage... The boys are back at it again – and showing us,
perhaps, just what it means to have livers of indestructible steel.
(Is “limitless stamina” hidden in those awards show swag bags?).
It’s
no secret that many of today’s rich and famous enjoy honing not
just their craft, but the art of boozing as well. It’s the era of
La Lohan, after all, where the DUI’s and mug-shots of every
twenty-something starlet have become front-page tabloid fodder...
What’s
often over-looked, however, are the partying elite of Hollywood’s
yesteryears – Sinatra, Burton, Warhol...Booze-fuelled and riding
the crests of superstardom, some of cinema’s greatest legends have
reputations that would make even Vince and his gang run for the
nearest detox. Without the constant scrutiny of Internet
gossip-mongers, Classic Hollywood could afford to be a little looser,
drink a little more vodka, and hop from bed to bed with reckless
abandon...
Take
a look at some of Hollywood’s most notorious partiers below. Could
the Entourage boys keep up? Could you?
Ava
Gardner: With those heavy lidded cat-eyes and raw sensuality, Ava
Gardner was a femme fatale of the rarest form. A man-magnet and
booze-lover, Gardner was already a two-time divorcee by the tender
age of 23 – a testament, perhaps, to the irresistibility of her
appeal and often fickle temperament. Gardner was usually seen
cavorting about on the town, flirting with her endless line of
suitors and drinking everyone else under the table. Even legendary
crooner and then-married man, Frank Sinatra, was no match for Ava’s
charms. In fact, the pair’s relationship led to the demise of
Frank’s marriage to Nancy Sinatra, earning Ava a few points in The
Homewrecker’s Hall of Fame...They divorced years later after
multiple break-ups and passionate reunions, spurring Gardner to find
refuge in Spain amongst sexy bullfighters and late-night skinny
dipping sessions with Ernest Hemingway. A lover of life and love,
Gardner once stated she wished grow old “with a lot of wonderful
chums, good music, and booze around.”
Andy
Warhol: Andy Warhol was a man who surrounded himself with a
variety of creative types. From fellow artists and musicians to drag
queens and sexual radicals, the famous icon had a posse that
surpassed even Entourage standards. Nowhere was this penchant
for individuality and liberalism more apparent than in his famous
“Factory” where he and his like-minded companions would gather to
drown in an all-consuming cocktail of art, love, and drugs. A day in
Warhol’s Factory was truly a feast of talent and debauchery that
continued long past the sinking of the sun. Rampant amphetamine
consumption, adult film production, and regular appearances from
“superstars” like Edie Sedgwick and Bob Dylan were all part of
the Warhol-“Factory” norm. Apart from being the mastermind behind
this centre of bohemianism and artistic expression (in all its
forms), Andy had a notoriously addictive personality. Extremism was
his game, and this manifested itself in his art, shopping habits, and
dalliances with harder drugs like heroin and prescription pills.
Frank
Sinatra: With three marriages in his arsenal and a number of
extramarital affairs, Frank Sinatra had garnered a bit of a
reputation for womanising in his hey-day. Beyond a closet full of
romantic scandals (one of which involved a staged suicide attempt to
guilt-trip the aforementioned Ava Gardner), however, was the
excessive boozing and subsequent violent tantrums. Sinatra loved
throwing parties for his famous friends – dubbed “The Rat Pack”,
each member clad in a monogrammed robe supplied by singer-actor –
hosting legendary all-night fetes in his large California home. As
time progressed and fame began to elude him, Sinatra’s depression
and alcohol abuse increased. Notorious incidences include a drunken
golf cart crash and a $500,000 gambling debt (all amassed in a single
night)!
But
what cocktail was most likely responsible for such debauchery, you
ask? Frank’s perennial favourite: Jack Daniel’s whiskey with
four ice cubes and a splash of water. Rumour even has it that his
Twin Palms home sported a Jack Daniel’s flag which, when raised,
signified the beginning of another round of rapacious schmoozing and
boozing with friends. Maybe if Ol’ Blue Eyes were around today,
Turtle could convert him into a tequila-lover...
Richard
Burton and Elizabeth Taylor: Arguably Hollywood’s most famous
couple, the lore and legacy of the Burton-Taylor relationship is
peppered with stories of alcoholism, incessant squabbling, and
cheating scandals. Taylor, herself, married eight times throughout
her life while Burton wrote repeatedly of his struggle with alcohol
abuse. Together, the two raised hell on and off film sets, leaving a
trail of extraneous demands (Taylor, well-known as one of Hollywood’s
most high-maintenance stars) and empty bottles (Burton, whose diary
highlights many of his drunken shenanigans) in their wake. Stories
will have it that Burton and Taylor, along with party pals like Peter
O’Toole, were often drinking on-set, regardless of the hour.
Extravagant gifts were bought and exchanged, like the 68-carot
diamond Burton gave Taylor in ‘69, as a tokens of their undying,
roller-coaster love. However, this shared passion and zest for life
often resulted in physical confrontations, ruthless verbal
abuse...and temporary salvation found in liquor cabinets (and
eventually each other’s arms).
Spencer
Tracy: Spencer Tracy is yet another Old Hollywood actor known for
his partying and loose behaviour. As with so many of his peers, Tracy
endured a life-long battle with alcoholism that repeatedly interfered
with his work schedule and inflamed the tempers of his employers.
Furthermore, the actor was known to stray from his wife’s bed with
the likes of Joan Crawford, Ingrid Bergman, and, most famously,
Katherine Hepburn. Above all, though, were Tracy’s long and
unpredictable drunken binges (one of which saw him blasted on several
bottles of whiskey for days on end). Perhaps one of the most
notorious incidences in Tracy’s roster of crazy antics is his
strained relationship with MGM studios, who came to regard Tracy as
both a significant asset and liability. At one point in his
career, the studio required a team of medics, police, and security
guards to be on-hand should Tracy stir up any trouble while on the
job. This was even after Fox studios had reportedly fired the
actor for similar behaviour. Star, trouble-maker, and partier indeed!
SEE
HOW THE BOYS OF ENTOURAGE PARTY WHEN IT HITS
THEATRES 19 JUNE.
