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Beach Press-Telegram Sunday, December 8, 1996 Local News, Front page "Downey blends past,
present" What's love got to do with Johnie's Broiler? Practically everything. It's the reason owner Christos John Smyrnotis has kept the kitschy 1958 drive-in since buying it in 1965. He loves its design and craftsmanship. "The integrity of this building supersedes any building I've ever seen in my life," Smyrnotis said, quickly answering a question he's had 38 years to ponder. Character is one thing Johnie's has a surfeit of - just ask movie producers. Film scenes shot here include the diner scene where Ike Turner, played by Laurence Fishburne , blows up in "What's Love Got To Do With It"; an argument scene from the recent Pacino-DeNiro crime flick "Heat", and a coffee shop clip from "Reality Bites," which starred Ethan Hawke and Winona Ryder. After nearly two-score years, Smyrnotis, 58, has few regrets. The only thing he said he'd change is the coffee shop's name - back to Harvey's, as it was known in the early '60s when writer Tom Wolfe chronicled a night of hot rodding there in his short story "The Hair Boys." "My middle name is John," he explained, "and when you're young, you don't know about things. If I knew this was going to happen, I never would have changed it." |