Author Dwayne Epstein during a recent book signing of his new book on the life of actor Lee Marvin. Randy Economy Photo
By Brian Hews
Author Dwayne Epstein has scored a direct bull’s eye with his recently released bio book on legendary actor Lee Marvin called “Point Blank.” (Schaffner Press, Inc. $27.95 Retail)
Epstein and his family moved into a newly built housing tract located at 183rd Street and Marquardt Avenue back in the late 1960’s back when Cerritos was controlled by thousands of cows, and “billions of flies.”
The son of the late Morris and Royce Epstein, Dwayne sat down with Los Cerritos Community Newspaper last week for an interview at Off Street Café for lunch to talk about his passion and commitment in documenting the life of Marvin to whom he calls a “complex man, who was a surprisingly intelligent and heroic figure in Hollywood history.”
“When I was raised in Cerritos, I was always a movie buff and a huge fan of Lee Marvin,” Epstein said. “Just having the opportunity to tell the real story of the life of a Hollywood legend like Lee Marvin is a huge honor.”
Epstein, who graduated from Cerritos High School in 1978, also attended Carmentia Elementary School, Cerritos Elementary School and Carmenita Junior High School. “I loved growing up in Cerritos, it will always be my hometown,” he said.
English: Publicity photo of Lee Marvin as a guest star on a 1971 Bob Hope special. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Point Blank is a masterpiece and Epstein deserves a huge amount of praise to tell Marvin’s life story in a clear, crisp and precise matter.
The 300 page hard cover book includes great interviews with son Christopher Marvin, iconic legends such as Angie Dickenson.
“If the media hype from the time was to be believed, 1965 was hailed as “The Year of Lee Marvin,” Epstein writes.
“It was almost impossible to pick up a periodical or turn on a TV talk show without seeing his by now familiar visage. Paradoxically, his personal life spiraled into free fall, just as two films released the same year established the forty-year-old Lee Marvin as a major film star beyond anyone’s expectation,” Epstein says in a chapter of the book under the title “Tension, Baby, Just Tension.”
Lee Marvin “is the guy who started it all in terms of modern American cinema violence,” according to Epstein.
Epstein believes the Oscar-winning tough guy Marvin “was part of a new generation of acting in film.”
“If Marlon Brando was the dividing line between the old theatrical way of acting on film and the new realistic way of acting on film, Lee was the dividing line between John Wayne and Clint Eastwood in terms of the male action-oriented actor. The man who made Eastwood’s screen persona possible was Lee Marvin,” Epstein said.
Epstein has been travelling all across the United States since January pitching “Point Blank” at book signings, film festivals, television interviews, radio talk shows and other media outlets.
“This has been the greatest part of my life,” said Epstein, who is now a resident of Long Beach.
Epstein is now part of the life and legacy of Lee Marvin, and for his efforts movie buffs across the globe “Point Blank” is a MUST for your book collection.
