Tony Curtis 1925 - 2010

Roger Ebert shares this story on the occasion of Mr. Curtis' death:

This is allegedly a true story. It was related to me by Walter Matthau.

After World War Two, Matthau and Tony Curtis, then known as Bernard Schwartz, were classmates at the Dramatic Workshop of The New School in New York.

They both found employment on Broadway. The handsome Schwartz was spotted by a talent agent and signed by Universal Pictures. During 1949, he quickly appeared in four features, including "Criss Cross" with Burt Lancaster and Yvonne De Carlo.

After this whirlwind of activity, he returned home, taking the train from Los Angeles.

"I gather he came straight from Grand Central to Shubert Alley," Matthau told me. "I walked out of the theater after a performance and there's this guy shouting at me from across the street: Walter! Walter! It's me -- Bernie! I fucked Yvonne De Carlo!"