The King of the Sunset Strip: Hangin' With Mickey Cohen and the Hollywood Mob

Steve Stevens and Craig Lockwood
Cumberland House Publishing (2006)
ISBN 1581825072
Reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views (8/06)

Steve Stevens was raised in Hollywood and had a promising acting career when he was still a teen.  Mobster Mickey Cohen, also known as, “The King of Sunset Strip,” took an interest in Stevens when he was in his late teens.  Having a rich, famous gangster take a liking to you while you are still struggling is a very easy way to fall in with the wrong crowd.  Initially, Stevens enjoyed the notoriety of being associated with this famous gangster, but after a time he saw a lot of things that he didn’t want to see and realized that it wasn’t helping his career or friendships.  He was also asked to do things that stepped outside of the law.  Stevens began to feel trapped in this situation and needed to find a way out without facing the consequences of offending Mickey.

“The King of the Sunset Strip” is a great story.  It flows well in its style and is definitely not another dry autobiography.  I got caught up in Stevens’ life and adventures, and really enjoyed reading about glamorous, old Hollywood and the stars back in the day.  It was unsettling to read about the things Mickey did, and know that it was true.  Mickey’s notoriety made his lifestyle seem glamorous, but really he was not a very nice person.  He did things for others, especially Stevens, with the expectation that he would be getting things done for him in return.  Cohen would buy people’s loyalty.  When he thought he was betrayed, he was brutal.  When Cohen began to be brought down, Stevens was able to make his escape.  He was not able to get all of his friends back, but he did manage to succeed in Hollywood and he managed to live to tell his story.

This is a great book for people who are interested in the Hollywood stories during its heyday.  You will read about interactions with famous people such as Frank Sinatra, Annette Funicello, Rick Nelson, Don Rickles and Red Skelton.  Pictures are interspersed throughout the book, so you can see the people that you are reading about.  I like how this was done, because usually the pictures are all lumped into the middle section of a book.  It isn’t just the people that are interesting to read about, you also learn about Hollywood in the 1950’s.  You get to visit places like, “The Brown Derby,” and to journey down Sunset Strip.  This is one story that you shouldn't miss!

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