Celebrity Biographies
Edd byrnes
Edd Byrnes, famous above all for his small role as Vince Fontaine in “Grease”, has died at the age of 87. The news was made public by his son Logan, a television presenter in San Diego, through social networks.
The childhood of Edward Byrne Breitenberger, born in New York in 1931, was miserable, he was born into a poor family, and the three brothers suffered from their father’s alcoholism, who was found dead one day when he was barely 13 years old. These and other memories would be recorded in his autobiography, published in 1996, “Kookie No More”. In order to get ahead and be busy, he spent a lot of time in the gym, taking care of his physical appearance. This would lead him to develop another murky facet, that of “companion” of men older than him, and this not being homosexual. One of these would end up supporting him in his efforts to open a gap in the world of cinema. Legend has it that he arrived in California in 1955, the same day that James Dean was crashed to death in his car.
His first big break came on the Warner 77 detective series Sunset Strip , where he shared the screen with Efrem Zimbalist Jr. and Roger Smith . His role as Kookie, the peculiar parking attendant, was striking. He even recorded a hit single, with Connie Stevens, “Kookie, Kookie, Lend Me Your Comb”, which became a best-selling theme song. At that time he had some interesting offers for the movies, but the contract that tied him to the series prevented him from being, for example, in Río Bravo .
His most famous foray into the cinema is Grease (1978), where he played the character of Vince Fontaine. His speech is famous, in which he said: “”Thank you, fans and friends, locals and strangers. And now, for you boys and girls, a few words for the smart boys. You, Jims and Sals, are my best friends. And to look your best in the big pageant, be yourselves don’t let the ball hit the ground. That’s what it’s all about, after all.”
His problems with addictions affected him a lot, also in his personal life, because after marrying the actress Asa Maynor in 1962 , and having their only son, Logan, with her, the marriage broke up a decade later. Neither of them remarried. Ed managed to come clean, and was active on television, with minor roles, until 1999. He is survived by both his ex-wife and his son.