Dean Martin
Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park
Dean Martin had several successful
careers in show business -- singer, dramatic actor, television star and half
of perhaps the most successful film comedy team of all time.
After dropping out of high school in Steubenville, OH, Martin worked
in a steel mill, as an unsuccessful amateur boxer, and a dealer in illegal
gambling houses. He discovered that singing was less dangerous and more
lucrative, and he began performing in nightclubs around the country. While
appearing in Atlantic City, NJ, in 1946, Martin met a young comedian named
Jerry Lewis, and they joined to form an act that became an immediate sensation,
featuring the romantic crooning of the laid-back Martin coupled with the manic
comedy of the uninhibited Lewis. Martin and Lewis made their film debut in
Martin and Lewis became the most popular comedy team and the
highest paid entertainers in the country. From 1951 to 1956, they were always
among the top-ten box office attractions.
When the pair broke up in 1956, fans were certain that Lewis
would continue to be successful on his own, but they weren't so sure about Martin.
While Lewis was certainly one of a kind, did the entertainment world really
need another handsome, wavy-haired crooner? Martin's first film without Lewis
was "Ten Thousand Bedrooms" (1957), a breezy romantic comedy in which he
cultivated his image as a sophisticated swinger. Co-starring in his next
film with Marlon Brando and Montgomery Clift in "The Young Lions" (1958),
Martin proved he was a talented actor who could handle more dramatic roles.
Martin co-starred with future Rat Pack partner Frank Sinatra in "Some Came
Running" (1958), and with John Wayne in the Western "Rio Bravo" (1959).
"Ocean's Eleven" (1960) brought the entire Rat Pack together -- Sinatra, Martin,
Sammy Davis Jr., Joey Bishop and Peter Lawford -- for a film featuring a group
of old Army pals getting together to rob the casinos in Las Vegas. The Pack
also appeared together in "Sergeants 3" (1962). Martin and Sinatra co-starred
in "Four for Texas" (1963), "Robin and the Seven Hoods" (1964) and "Marriage
on the Rocks" (1965).
Martin starred in a series of successful Westerns and
sophisticated romantic comedies in the 1960s, including "Bells are Ringing"
(1960), "Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?" (1963), "Kiss Me, Stupid" (1964),
"The Sons of Katie Elder" (1965), "Texas Across the River" (1966), "Rough
Night in Jericho" (1967), "Bandolero!" (1968) and "Five Card Stud" (1968).
He also starred as sexy secret agent Matt Helm in "The Silencers" (1966),
"Murderer's Row" (1966), "The Ambushers" (1967) and "The Wrecking Crew" (1969).
On the small screen, Martin starred in "The Dean Martin Show,"
a weekly music and variety series, beginning in 1965. The show typically
featured the sleepy-eyed Martin in his tuxedo, with a cigarette and a glass
of booze (though, more likely, it was apple juice), laughing and ab-libbing
his way though a series of songs and skits with his celebrity guests. The
popular show continued through 1974.
When Martin's son, Dino, an actor and member of the Air
National Guard, died in a plane crash in 1987, Martin retired from public
life, returning briefly for a national concert tour with Sinatra and Davis.
Martin's crypt marker includes the title of his theme song,
"Everybody Loves Somebody Sometime." Unfortunately, several people have
placed lit cigarettes on top of Martin's bronze crypt marker, and there
are a few burn marks on the marble.
Martin's crypt is usually decorated with flowers, ribbons
and an American flag.
Martin was born Dino Paul Crocetti on June 7, 1917,
in Steubenville, OH. He died on Dec. 25, 1995, in Los Angeles, CA.
1917 - 1995
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