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Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood

Directed by Matt Tyrnauer2017USA98 mins

“Just what are you?” Scotty Bowers is asked at one point. “I’m everything!” he says with a cackle — a fitting introduction to this bewitching unsung Hollywood icon, also known as the pimp to the stars.

Bowers made a name for himself in the 1950s, when he began facilitating discreet liaisons for Hollywood stars. Working as a gas station attendant after returning from serving in the Marine Corps during WWII, Bowers started arranging quickies and orgies for clients in a nearby trailer or adjacent hotel. He continued his “introduction service” while working parties throughout Hollywood, catering to the wide-ranging tastes of both men and women — gay, straight, and everything in between. The actor Stephen Fry ruminates, “Scotty himself was pre-gay.”

Though Bowers ended his services at the start of the AIDS epidemic, he left a lingering impact on many lives. Bowers was the source of some of the scandalous revelations in the notorious Hollywood Babylon, and in 2012 he finally released his own exposé, the bestselling memoir Full Service. “The truth can’t hurt them anymore,” Bowers says of his decision to dish on the private lives of his mostly deceased clients.

Matt Tyrnauer (Studio 54) captures Bowers, now 94, in all his spry charm and lets his storytelling be the star of the show, taking in the wild tales of Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, Ava Gardner, Spencer Tracy, and other Hollywood royalty with an irresistible relish.

Expected Guests

Matt Tyrnauer
Director
Quick links
Director
Matt Tyrnauer
Year
2017
Country
USA
Running Time
98 mins
Language
English
Premiere
Bay Area
Section
Documentary
Program Note Writer
Elliott Breeden

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