Toots
Director: Kristi Jacobson. Cinematography: Daniel B. Gold, Tom McDonough. Film editing: Lewis Erskine, Penelope Falk. Music: Mark Suozzo. Producers: Whitney Dow, Kristi Jacobson, Alicia Sams. With: Walter Cronkite, Mike Wallace, Frank Gifford, Whitey Ford, Yogi Berra, Nick Pileggi, David Brown, Peter Duchin, Maury Allen, Dave Anderson, Bill Gallo, Joe Garagiola, Sidney Zion, Gal Talese, Gianni Russo, LeRoy Neiman, Pete Hamill, Bill Buchbinder, John Clancy, Perian Conerly, Bill Fugazy, Pat Futcher, Bill Gallo, Harry Lavin, Larry Merchant, Liz Murray, Charles Reilly, Dick Sherman, Bert Randolph Sugar, Kerry Jacobson, Toots Shor. USA. 84 min. 2006.
Toots Shor, the legendary New York City saloonkeeper, started his career as a bouncer in the early 1930s and eventually opened his own restaurant, located on West 51st Street at first; in new digs a block north starting in 1960; and two blocks farther north starting in the early 1970s, when his celebrity-studded clientele lost its former loyalty and his business took a dive. He died in 1977.
This bright, lively documentary comes from bright, lively Kristi Jacobson, who is Shor’s granddaughter. Her smartest move was to have the late restaurateur narrate the picture himself, using an oral history he recorded two years before his death. Chockfull of commentary by famous folks who frequented his establishment, the movie makes up in charm and energy what it lacks in clear-eyed objectivity. You won’t find a more vivacious portrait of mid-century Manhattan any time soon. – David Sterritt
