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Alison Martino, deemed "The Godmother of Los Angeles," sits down with Robin to recap the history, the drama, and the beauty of vintage Hollywood. The two talk about the ever-evolving entertainment industry, how social media changed the concept of "celebrity," and why old Hollywood was seen as the most glamorous era of them all. Alison recounts personal stories with Doris Day, Lucille Ball, Natalie Wood, and recounts the long feud her father had with Frank Sinatra. Robin and Alison talk about their favorite hot spots in LA while sipping on dirty martinis; if you have plans to visit LA, you NEED to hear these recommendations! Alison talks about her preservation efforts, fighting hard to protect the historical landmarks that we know and love. This episode will give you a front-row look at some of the most intimate details of Hollywood!
Alison Martino, Historian, Producer, "Godmother of Los Angeles"
Alison Martino is a Los Angeles-based television producer, documentarian, columnist for Los Angeles Magazine and lifelong resident of the city. Alison’s current social media reach is over 800,000 and growing. Her zeal for history and lifelong penchant for collecting has resulted in one of the largest collections of restaurant memorabilia, photographs, postcards, and matchbooks. Her deep knowledge of Hollywood history and personal acquaintances throughout the industry has resulted in features about Alison on ABC’s Eye on L.A., The Travel Channel, NPR Radio, The Huffington Post, CurbedLA, The New York Times, and the nationally syndicated show, The Insider. In December of 2015, she also landed on the cover of West Hollywood Magazine. 2017 was a banner year for Alison as she co-produced and starred in a film about the life of Jayne Mansfield (called “Mansfield ’66/’67”) which was featured in 17 film festivals worldwide. Alison also had the honor of hosting an event at the Aero Theatre where she interviewed Rose Marie, Dick Van Dyke, Peter Marshall and Carl Reiner. On top of all that, she was also featured in a commercial for Turner Classic Movies. 2019 is continuing right where 2018 left off with Alison busy as ever. Alison landed a new gig as an “on air” contributor on the Emmy nominated So Cal Scene on SPECTRUM1 in Los Angeles.
Martino is an advocate for historic preservation of the architecture that makes Los Angeles and its surrounding communities like West Hollywood, Beverly Hills and Santa Monica unique, and for the buildings that are iconic representations of the entertainment industry. She worked to bring back the original Chasen’s Chili, helped save vintage signs on Sunset Strip and to preserve the original caricatures on the walls of The Palm Restaurant, and advocated removal of vendor carts that blocked public access to the historic Chinese Theater in Hollywood — a crusade that was spotlighted in the New York Times and Hollywood Reporter.
Episode Resources:
Alison's Website: alisonmartino.com
Alison on IG: www.instagram.com/alisonmartino/
Vintage LA on FB: www.facebook.com/VintageLosAngeles