Hollywood Studio Magazine (November 1972)

spare time on the high seas. However, don’t get the impression that Bob is a non-conformist. He has his serious moments for sure. At the age of eighteen he headed off to a good start when he wrote, directed and appeared in a one-act play, “Aunt Mignon,” which premiered in a dentist’s office in New York. He also played a slightly underaged Ivan Stepanovich in Chekov’s “The Boor,” on the same program. He apologe tically describes the ‘ ‘ Steambath” at the Century City Playhouse and Bob smilingly recalls “that was the only show I’ve ever done where the critics were unanimous in the reviews. Nobody, absolutely nobody, liked the show. Each individual member of the cast was really good, but put us together in a team and we resembled Jim Ryan at the Olympics.” Without doubt Robert Kurston believes in what he’s doing and thinks the future of Hollywood today is just Robert Kurston-he's headed for Hollywood f It’s refreshing in this day and age, with so many cynical observers predicting the doom of Hollywood, to find a young actor who thinks otherwise and is doing something about it. When first you meet Robert Kurston you might think he is an angry young man. That is certainly not the case. Determined! Yes, indeed. He believes in speaking his mind, he’s aggressive and he’s convinced his future is aligned with the world of make-believe. When Bob dropped by to see his agent recently during a one-day break from his stage appearance in “Mr. Roberts” at the San Diego Off Broadway Theatre, he was kind enough to give me a few moments of his time, and I only needed those few minutes to realize that here is a young actor who has everything going for him. Good looks, charming Personality, but most of all the enthusiasm so often lacking in many actors today. It was a sheer delight talking to him and finding out just what makes this young fellow tick. Born in Lockport, New York, Bob will soon reach his twenty-second birthday but during the recent few years he has racked up an impressive list of accomplishments. Raised and educated in Palos Verdes Estates and Manhattan Beach he attended Torrance High School, Cal State at Dominguez Hills and did Extension work at UCLA. He attended a Catholic Seminary for two years but found the lack of freedom both a strain and an emotional cop-out. Naturally you would expect a young man like Bob to want to spread his wings and he did by living the life of a beach bum, surfing, swimming and sailing. Oh yes, he preferred blue jeans and barefeet to anything eise and having his own sailboat he spent a great deal of his production as a “painful experience.” Back in his New York days, Bob was actually David Marks. “I went through several names, each one sort of encompassing a phase or period of my life. But at that time I was just looking for escapes. It wasn’t until I decided to use my own name that things really started happening. I guess that was the day I got my head together,” said Bob, when we were discussing his life and he had the opportunity to let go. As with all young actors there seems to be a period of adjusting, and with Bob it was no different. He appeared in several small theatre productions in Hollywood before the Industry began to take notice, and since that time his climb has been steady and fast. Only last fall he appeared in the role of Petruchio in “The Taming of the Shrew” at the Los Angeles Cultural Center and here he was spotted by Gary Shaffer, Casting Director at MGM, who gave Bob his first television role in “Medical Center.” Immediately following he landed the role of a longshoreman in the West Coast Premiere of as rosy for the young thespians as it was many years ago. Like all aspiring actors Bob has had his disappointments, but why dwell on those. Think positive and be determined, and that is what he is doing everyday of his young life. Reviews from various Trade papers have bolstered his courage. Of his role in “Mr. Roberts,” the Hollywood REPORTER commented that his work was outstanding, with commanding and polished stage presence. Other reviewers who have seen his work proclaimed he “was the strongest actor throughout the evening,” while another stated that Bob “walked off with the lion’s share of the kudos ... he developed his characterization above and beyond the deficient script. He created sympathy in a role written as a self-pitying, self-destructive sponge and lights up the production whenever he’s in view.” To all of you who like to get on the bandwagon this is your chance to follow the career of Robert Kurston. As the future unfolds his climb to fame will be a sure-thing and it couldn’t happen to a nicer fellow. *** 22