By Donald H. Harrison
SAN DIEGO – Actor Robert Davi has a scarred face, which is perhaps the reason why he typically is cast as a villain in the movies. His name is not a household word, and even less known about him is that he idolized Frank Sinatra to such an extent that he sounds like ‘Old Blue Eyes’ whenever he sings.
Davi’s Way, a film with a title playing off the Sinatra standard “My Way,” tells the story of Davi’s attempt to mount a grand concert celebrating the 100th anniversary of Sinatra’s birth. He wanted the concert, in which he would take the role of the late Sinatra, to be a recreation of a concert Sinatra once gave in the ring at Madison Square Garden, a concert called “The Main Event.”
Eventually, Davi did get to sing at a centennial celebration for his hero and mentor, but the concert only remotely resembled the grand affair that Davi had in mind.
Of Jewish interest in this documentary, scheduled for Sept. 4 digital release, is the somewhat hapless role played by Stevie Guttman, a comedian and wannabe actor temporarily working as a waiter, whom Davi hired to be his general all-around assistant. I grew up in a neighborhood that was largely Jewish or Italian, but the Guttman-Davi relationship was far more volatile. Guttman constantly ran afoul of Davi’s demands, especially over the question of wearing a hat. If Davi was wearing a hat and sun glasses, Guttman was ordered not to. There shouldn’t be any question which one of them was the star.
Although Davi had hoped to stage his 100th anniversary salute in Madison Square Garden, he eventually settled on a venue a continent away. And though he had hoped his “Main Event” indeed would be the main event, the venue demanded that the concert be finished by 10 p.m, as another event had been booked for later in the evening. There were other troubles as well.
For me, personally, Davi’s duet with his daughter Ariana in “Something Stupid,” a song that Frank Sinatra sang with his daughter, Nancy, had a great deal of sentimental value, as my wife, whose name also was Nancy, and I had adopted that song as “our song” sometime before our marriage in 1968.
So, while I’ll be happy to see the documentary again, if for that reason alone, I think its greatest appeal otherwise will be for those who went through hard times breaking into show business and who now are in the enviable position of being able to look back on that period of their lives with some nostalgia.
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Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted via donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com