Today is Timothy’s 83rd birthday anniversary. Here I am visiting his grave last September.

Today seems like the perfect day to make a very special announcement. Many of you know that I’m working on a book about Tim. I have lots of people to thank for helping me get started and for lending their support and encouragement, but it’s been basically a solitary effort. Well, today I am happy to announce that I have partnered up with Timothy’s son Romeo Carey to help produce Tim’s official, authorized biography. Several other folks are involved as well, and this promises to be an epic undertaking. Stay tuned to this blog for reports on the book’s progress! And keep your eye on the Absolute Films website for a major update!

Happy birthday, Timothy. I hope we will do you proud.

“First crack out of the box, I’ve gotta tell you something about myself. I’m the guy who had the assignment of beating Jimmy Dean to a pulp in East of Eden. But you couldn’t begin to dig why Jimmy Dean and I hit it off the way we did unless you were zeroed in on me. I’m a big sort of lummox with a head of black hair, a wild gleam in my eyes, an innate scorn for convention, an innate appreciation for women, an ambition to be a great actor that burns my insides, contempt for clothes and contempt for what other people think. In other words, if you mark me down for an extrovert, an odd-ball, you’re in the right neighborhood.”

– “The Highways of Heaven,” Movie Stars Parade magazine, September 1957 (as told to Bill Tusher)