 |
| Ed Wood associate Don Nagel (pictured, lower right) figures in this sordid story. |
FADE IN:
EXT. CITY - NIGHT.
A montage of nighttime scenes showing the hustle and bustle of life in the big city. Cars and trucks rushing about. Lit up storefronts casting their ruddy glow out into the night. And everywhere people. People... all going somewhere... all with their own thoughts... their own ideas... all with their own personalities.
DISSOLVE TO MEDIUM SHOT OF CRISWELL
We see CRISWELL, wearing a dark suit and evening coat, standing in profile to the camera as he browses through magazines at a news kiosk. Holding the most recent issue of Weird Tales, he turns and looks straight into the camera.
CRISWELL
I am Criswell. For years, I have told the almost
unbelievable, related the unreal and showed it
to be more than a fact. Now I tell a tale of the
entertainment industry, so astounding that some of
you may faint. This is a story of those in the twilight
time. Once human, now actors, in a void between
the employed and the unemployed. Actors to be
pitied, actors to be despised. A night with the
thespians, the thespians reborn from the innermost
depths of Hollywood.
MONOLOGUE CONTINUES AS CAMERA CUTS TO FULL MOON STOCK FOOTAGE, WOLF HOWLS
I am Criswell. For years, I have told the almost
unbelievable, related the unreal and showed it
to be more than a fact. Now I tell a tale of the
entertainment industry, so astounding that some of
you may faint. This is a story of those in the twilight
time. Once human, now actors, in a void between
the employed and the unemployed. Actors to be
pitied, actors to be despised. A night with the
thespians, the thespians reborn from the innermost
depths of Hollywood.
MONOLOGUE CONTINUES AS CAMERA CUTS TO FULL MOON STOCK FOOTAGE, WOLF HOWLS
CRISWELL (Voice Over)
It is said on clear nights, beneath the cold light of the
moon, howl the dog and the wolf, and creeping things
crawl out of the slime. It is then that thespians cavort
in all their radiance.
It is said on clear nights, beneath the cold light of the
moon, howl the dog and the wolf, and creeping things
crawl out of the slime. It is then that thespians cavort
in all their radiance.
My friends, it is 10 PM on the evening of March 15, 1949
and a full moon is overhead as we stand on West Pico
Blvd in Los Angeles. Two young men – marginally employed
actors and friends since high school – are moments away
from a date with destiny. If I am not pleased with tonight's
entertainment, I shall banish their souls to everlasting
damnation!
and a full moon is overhead as we stand on West Pico
Blvd in Los Angeles. Two young men – marginally employed
actors and friends since high school – are moments away
from a date with destiny. If I am not pleased with tonight's
entertainment, I shall banish their souls to everlasting
damnation!
TITLE MUSIC BEGINS
MAIN TITLES
TITLES are superimposed over a 1940s still photo of the intersection of West Pico and Overland Boulevards in West Los Angeles.
BIG GREEN DRAGON PRODUCTIONS
presents
CRISWELL
in
CROSSROADS OF WEST PICO
Copyright by Big Green Dragon Productions 1949
Starring
DON NAGEL
as himself
AZEL S. AMES, Jr.
as himself
featuring
Waitress………..JANE DOE
Bar Owner...........HARRY SIEGEL
Bartender.............RAUL J. DIAZ
Cabbie...........TOM MORGAN
Police Officer 1............... PATROLMAN WILLIAM P. PAILING
Police Officer 2..............PATROLMAN HAROLD R. GERSON
Doctor………..JOHN DOE
Azel's Mother………..MRS. GLADYS AMES
No names have been changed to protect the innocent.
FADE TO BLACK.
FADE IN.
EXT. MALIBAR CLUB AT 10663 WEST PICO BLVD – NIGHT
LONG SHOT of two young men bundled up against the chilly evening hurrying down the street and entering the Malibar Club. We hear the faint sounds of music as the door opens and closes.
INT. DIMLY-LIT COCKTAIL LOUNGE WITH TABLES AND BOOTHS
MEDIUM SHOT of the men removing their coats and settling into a booth. A pert little blonde waitress wearing a pink knit dress which grips every curve of her body quickly appears.
CUT TO MEDIUM-CLOSE centered on the booth.
WAITRESS
What'll you have, boys?
AZEL
What'll you have, boys?
AZEL
How about you, sweetie?
Are you on the menu?
WAITRESS
Sorry mister, I ain't on the menu
and if I was you couldn't afford me.
AZEL
Well, you don't have to be nasty about it.
WAITRESS
No, I don't, but it's more fun that way.
DON
We'll have two Old Fashioneds. Thanks.
The waitress slinks away to get their cocktails.
DON
Aze, you have to stop being such a jerk.
AZEL
Ah, what do you know.
Dames love that stuff.
DON
Well, I don't really think…..
AZEL
Anyway, thanks for being on the line for this
tonight. I haven't worked in months and I'm
tapped out. It's getting pretty bad Don.
DON
Hang in there, Aze. You never know
when a break will come your way.
Last year, right about now, I was in a bad
patch myself. When out of the blue my old
friend Chuck La Berge calls me for a role
in this show he's producing called The Blackguard.
Next thing you know, I meet this up and
coming director and I'm starring in a western.
AZEL
Who was that again?
DON
A guy named Eddie Wood.
AZEL
And what was the movie?
DON
The Streets of Laredo,
but it hasn't been released yet.
AZEL
Yeah, that's what I thought.
The waitress returns with their drinks and swishes off before either man can say a thing.
DISSOLVE TO MONTAGE showing the two men consuming a prodigious number of cocktails. A wall clock seen prominently in the background progresses from 10 PM to a few minutes before 2 AM. The two men – clearly drunk – are among the few customers left, along with the bartender and owner.
DISSOLVE TO MEDIUM-CLOSE centered on the booth.
DON
It's almost closing.
Let's call it a night.
AZEL
I got some business with the owner.
You wanna give me a hand?
I got some business with the owner.
You wanna give me a hand?
DON
What are you talking about?
What are you talking about?
AZEL
I'm talking about this.
(carefully shows him a .38 caliber revolver)
I'm gonna rob this joint.
DON
Put that away and stop kidding around.
You'll get us in trouble.
You'll get us in trouble.
AZEL
No trouble at all.
I'm just gonna buy myself some more time.
No trouble at all.
I'm just gonna buy myself some more time.
DON
You can't be serious…
You can't be serious…
AZEL
Did you look at that owner and the bartender?
They're pushovers… it'll be easy peasy.
Did you look at that owner and the bartender?
They're pushovers… it'll be easy peasy.
DON
You're nuts!
I'm getting out of here.
I'm getting out of here.
CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT of Don grabbing his jacket and unsteadily exiting the Malibar Club.
The Camera pans around to the bar where the owner and bartender briefly converse. We can't hear what they are saying.
OWNER
All right, folks. It's closing time.
The bartender begins to empty the cash register as the owner heads back to his office.
CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT of AZEL exiting the booth and following the Owner back into his office.
INT. OFFICE WITH DESK AND CABINETS
The Owner is seated behind a desk and Azel stands on the other side confronting him.
OWNER
Can I help you, pal?
AZEL (brandishing the gun)
This is a stickup.
OWNER
Kid, you can't be serious.
Before Azel can respond, the bartender appears at the office door carrying the night's receipts. The bartender tries to intervene, but Azel fires a shot into the floor.
AZEL
That's to let you know that I mean business.
Now turn over the dough, Pops.
That's to let you know that I mean business.
Now turn over the dough, Pops.
The Owner gathers some money from his desk and combines it with the night's receipts.
OWNER
Here's 170 bucks, that's all I've got.
Here's 170 bucks, that's all I've got.
Azel takes the money and flees from the office as the Owner picks up a phone to call police.
EXT. MALIBAR CLUB – NIGHT
LONG OVERHEAD SHOT of AZEL exiting the club. He flees one block down West Pico and then turns right onto Overland Avenue. Halfway down that block he disappears into the darkness of a backyard.
CUT TO LONG SHOT of a Los Angeles Police Department patrol car rolling up with siren going in front of the Malibar Club. A cabbie sitting nearby, exits his car and rushes up to the police.
CUT TO MEDIUM-CLOSE SHOT of the cabbie talking with the police.
CABBIE
I saw it all, officers. I heard a shot
and then this guy ran out of the Malibar.
PATROLMAN 1
Where was he headed?
CABBIE
He ran down Pico and then up Overland.
PATROLMAN 1
What did he look like?
CABBIE
I don't know, just some young guy… small.
He wasn't too steady.
He wasn't too steady.
PATROLMAN 1
Thanks.
CUT TO LONG SHOT of patrol car making its way down Pico and turning right onto Overland. A spotlight from the car pans from side to side illuminating the houses on both sides of the street. Halfway down the street on the left there's a shadowy movement in the darkness.
Thanks.
CUT TO LONG SHOT of patrol car making its way down Pico and turning right onto Overland. A spotlight from the car pans from side to side illuminating the houses on both sides of the street. Halfway down the street on the left there's a shadowy movement in the darkness.
CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT of the patrol car stopping in front of 2341 Overland Avenue as PATROLMAN 2 draws his pistol and exits from the front passenger side.
PATROLMAN 2 (sternly)
Put your hands up!
AZEL (partially in shadow)
My hands are up.
My hands are up.
Azel fires twice, but misses.
CUT TO CLOSEUP of Patrolman 2's revolver returning fire four times.
CUT TO MEDIUM-CLOSE SHOT of Azel dropping his gun and clutching his left shoulder as he falls to the ground.
CUT TO CLOSEUP of Azel's face contorted in pain.
AZEL (whimpering)
Mother…. Mother….
Mother…. Mother….
FADE TO MEDIUM SHOT of Patrolman 1 walking a handcuffed and oddly buoyant Azel into the prison ward of Los Angeles General Hospital for treatment.
CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT of Azel in a hospital bed surrounded by police, a doctor, newsmen and his mother.
PAN IN TO MEDIUM-CLOSE centered on hospital bed.
DOCTOR
Your wound is not serious, son.
You should recover just fine.
Your wound is not serious, son.
You should recover just fine.
AZEL
I'm a lucky man, doc.
If I hadn't been drunk, I'd be dead.
(motioning to the reporters)
Hey, can somebody get these
hacks out of here?
AZEL'S MOTHER (sternly)
Shut up, you have no right to tell anyone what to do!
If I hadn't been drunk, I'd be dead.
(motioning to the reporters)
Hey, can somebody get these
hacks out of here?
AZEL'S MOTHER (sternly)
Shut up, you have no right to tell anyone what to do!
DISSOLVE TO CLOSEUP of Criswell's face as he laughs maniacally.
FADE TO TITLE CARD
TITLE CARD
Don Nagel was arrested by West LA police later that same morning
at the home he shared with his parents at 3323 Watseka Avenue.
After two days of questioning, he was released from custody without charges.
Don Nagel was arrested by West LA police later that same morning
at the home he shared with his parents at 3323 Watseka Avenue.
After two days of questioning, he was released from custody without charges.
FADE TO THE END
•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•
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| Some vintage news photos of Ames' arrest and hospitalization. |
Malibar Club
The scene of the crime at 10663 West Pico Blvd was originally a two story, Western-themed nightclub named Lisle's Frontier Dining that opened in July 1939. It was a popular Westside LA locale known for its dining, dancing and cocktails. Like many other small businesses, Lisle’s Frontier succumbed to the effects of World War Two rationing restrictions closing sometime after July 1944.
From March to December 1945 it operated as the Westwood Lodge. By June 1946, the locale had reopened as the Malibar Club. It retained this name throughout the remainder of its turbulent history. In June 1950 the club was robbed again, this time losing $900 at the hands of two gunmen posing as musicians for hire. Thereafter the Malibar Club changed ownership several times, eventually becoming a popular Cantonese restaurant and nightclub.
In April 1956 it burned down in a suspicious fire and was a complete loss. The property was redeveloped later that same year into the one-story commercial building found onsite today.
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| A map of the events in this sad, violent story. |
Don Nagel
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| Don Nagel in Ed Wood's Crossroads of Laredo. |
If there is a relationship between Don and Conrad's ancestral lines, it lies back in Germany which would render them distant cousins at best. The situation is further complicated in that two separate and irreconcilable ancestral lines have been documented for Conrad (same mother, two different fathers). It's also possible that there might have been a familial relationship between Don's father (Donald Murphy) and Conrad's mother (Frances Wright Murphy), but again, this would render them cousins.
Don's immediate ancestry traces to Chicago, where his grandfather John Paul Nagel married Elizabeth C. Hecker. John Paul worked as a tile setter and Elizabeth kept house. They had three daughters: Lena M. (who died at age 9 in 1906), Helen Marie, and Marie A. Between 1920-1922 the family moved to Los Angeles initially residing at 1620 North Serrano Avenue in Hollywood (address no longer exists). By 1930 they were living at 203 Maple Drive in Beverly Hills (redeveloped 1989).
Donald Francis Murphy was born out of wedlock to Donald Murphy and the Nagel's middle daughter Helen Marie on December 13, 1926 in Hollywood, CA. He grew up in the Nagel home on Maple Drive living with his mother, his aunt Marie and his grandparents. In the 1930 Census three-year-old Don was listed as "Donald Francis Nagel" and was claimed to be his grandparents' adopted son, thus obscuring his illegitimate birth. Don claimed that his career began in 1932-1933 when he was a child actor with Dick Staly and had non-speaking extra roles in Our Gang comedy shorts.
In early 1936 his mother Helen, who was working as a secretary/stenographer, married insurance agent George Eininger Jansen who lived a few blocks away at 145 South Maple Drive (redeveloped 1962). They moved into Jansen's house and George adopted Don giving him his last name. Perhaps young Don was not thrilled with these new arrangements – in early July 1936 he set fire to bedding and a mattress while playing with matches in the house. The fire was quickly doused and the damage done was minimal. Ironically, this event resulted in a close brush between Don "Nagel" Jansen and Conrad Nagel. The small newspaper blurb reporting the fire appeared adjacent to a much more substantial piece involving Conrad.
By 1940 the Jansens were living at 1524 Reeves Street in Beverlywood (still exists). Don attended Alexander Hamilton High School in the Castle Heights neighborhood of Westside Los Angeles from 1941-1944. It was there that he met Azel Sherman Ames, Jr. when they were castmates in the school's production of Arsenic & Old Lace. Don received billing under his adopted name of Don Jansen. In September 1943 (a few months short of his 17th birthday) Don legally changed his name to Donald Francis Nagel. He registered in Los Angeles for the draft on December 16, 1944.
Sometime in 1945 the Jansens moved to 3323 Watseka Avenue (3323 South Beverly Drive in Castle Heights, still exists). Don enlisted in the U.S. Navy on February 12, 1945 and was discharged July 3, 1946. Although they were both in the Marines at the same time and in the same region, Don did not meet Ed Wood until fate brought them together in 1948 as castmates in The Blackguard. This connection led to Don getting a starring role in Ed's western Streets of Laredo (aka Crossroads of Laredo) which was filmed in August 1948 at the Iverson Ranch in Saugus, CA.
Don recalled also working on Playhouse 90 at the same time. Unfortunately, that anthology TV series aired almost a decade later (1956-1960), and Don is not credited in any of its 133 episodes.
At the time of the Malibar robbery on March 16, 1949, Don was working as an actor and stuntman while still living with his parents at 3323 Watseka Avenue. He was arrested later that same morning in connection with the robbery. Don told police that he tried to dissuade Ames, then told him he "was nuts" and left the club. Don was released two days later after eyewitnesses confirmed that he had left the club prior to the robbery attempt.
Following his early days with Ed Wood, Don went on to a successful and varied career in radio, film and television. He worked with John Wayne in numerous films including The Sands of Iwo Jima and She Wore A Yellow Ribbon. By the mid-1960s he had a successful restaurant in Palm Springs, CA. He later appeared in the movie Airport and on several television shows (Bob Newhart Show, Colombo, Barnaby Jones, etc.).
Don retired from acting in 1990 but remained an important part of the entertainment industry. He was instrumental in the organization and operation of the Screen Actors Guild Conservatory and the Actors Legacy Program. Don served three terms on the SAG Board of Directors as well as with the Stuntmen's Association. Don passed away on December 28, 1996 in Los Angeles. Like Ed Wood, Don was cremated and his ashes were scattered at sea.
Azel Sherman Ames, Jr.
Azel was born to Azel Sherman Ames, Sr. and Gladys Mary [Karns] Ames on August 8, 1928 at Anita, Iowa. Azel grew up in the small town through his 1942 freshman year at Anita High School where he won 1st place in the humor category of the school's annual Declamatory contest. His father, a newspaperman, led something of an itinerant life and moved the family to Los Angeles in the latter half of 1942. From 1943-1944, Azel attended Alexander Hamilton High School in western Los Angeles where he took part in the school's dramatic productions including roles in My Sister Eileen and Arsenic and Old Lace. It was then that he and Don Nagel became friends.
In 1945 Azel's parents separated and his father moved to the Phoenix suburbs where he started a newspaper (the Sunnyslope Journal), remarried and began another family. Perhaps as a result of this turmoil, Azel was sent to repeat his junior year of high school at the prestigious Wentworth Military Academy in Lexington, MO. The school had an excellent reputation and maintained close ties with the U.S. military serving as a pipeline of future personnel. Wentworth closed in 2017 but produced several famous alumni: Academy Award-winning director Robert Altman (M*A*S*H, etc.), Lewis Hill (co-founder of Pacifica Radio), James Walton (co-founder of Walmart), and two Medal of Honor recipients. For his senior year in 1946 Azel presumably returned to Alexander Hamilton High School (he was not at Wentworth).
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| Some vintage photos of Azel Ames, Jr. |
On August 8, 1946 Azel registered for the draft in Los Angeles specifying that he was unemployed and living with his mother at 3344 Oakhurst Drive in Beverly Hills (address no longer exists). Azel must have been drafted quickly because on December 28th he reported for duty as an Apprentice Seaman aboard the Navy destroyer U.S.S. Glennon (DD-840), then being overhauled at Newport, VA. A little over two months later (March 8, 1947), Azel was listed as a deserter and it's unclear whether military authorities ever caught up with him.
At the time of the Malibar Club robbery on March 16, 1949, Azel was an unemployed actor living with his mother at 3207 Urban Street in Santa Monica (address now part of I-10 freeway). It's unknown what punishment Azel faced for his ill-advised crime; newspapers never bothered to follow up on the armed robbery charges that were filed against him. In any event, Azel lived an apparently unremarkable life after that. He married in early 1951, had two children, and lived in California into the 1990s. Azel passed away on July 6, 2010 in Kingman, AZ.
Sources
Newspapers and Public Records
- 1880 – 1950 United States Federal Census, National Archives and Records Administration.
- Classic TV Archive (ctva.biz)
- Daily News (Los Angeles, CA)
- Evening Star-News (Culver City, CA)
- Evening Vanguard (Venice, CA)
- Los Angeles Evening Citizen News (Hollywood, CA)
- Los Angeles Mirror
- Los Angeles Times
- Pasadena Independent
- Ventura County Star
- West Los Angeles Independent
Yearbooks
- Alexander Hamilton High School (Los Angeles, CA) Yearbooks, 1941-1942
- Anita (Iowa) Junior High/High School Yearbooks, 1940-1942
- Wentworth Military Academy (Lexington, MO) Yearbooks, 1945-1946
Books and Magazines
- Craig, Rob, 2009, Ed Wood, Mad Genius: A Critical Study of the Films, Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, 306 pp.
- Hayes, David C. and Davis, Hayden, 2001, Muddled Mind: The Complete Works of Edward D. Wood, Jr., Shreveport, LA: Ramble House, 199 pp.
- Parla, Paul, 1996, "Ed Wood… A Casual Company of Friends… An Interview with Don Nagel," Scary Monsters Magazine, no. 26, pp. 133-139.
- Parla, Paul and Donna, 1998, "Wood Worker: An Interview with Ed Wood regular Don Nagel," Ultra Filmfax, no. 63-64, pp. 51-55.