Saving His Life
Tony had gone through so much at such a young age that he was bound to head onto the wrong path in life. He joined a gang in the neighborhood and would commit petty theft at local dime stores with them while skipping school. He said that a neighbor of his saved him at age 11 by sending him to a Boy Scouts camp, which helped him get on a better path in life.
Saving His Life
Agent Discovers Him
After getting his life together, and after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Curtis joined the US Navy. Once he was discharged, he enrolled at the City College of New York and started taking acting classes at the New School. There he met Joyce Selznik, a talent agent. In 1948, he made the decision to move across the country to Hollywood, where a total chance encounter gave him the opportunity to meet film exec Jack Warner.
Agent Discovers Him