An Interview with Author Howard Johns author of A Stolen Paradise, The True Story of the Making of The Night of the Iguana
Listen to The Podcast Player Below!
Hello fellow travelers, welcome this episode of the Puerto Vallarta Travel show. I am your host Barry Kessler and I am just so happy to be to introducing you to my favorite vacation destination, and maybe even yours, Puerto Vallarta Mexico.
Subscribe On iTunes & Leave a Good Review
Subscribe On Android Devices
Send Barry an Email
That music you were just listing to is performed by Alberto Perez, the owner of the La Palapa group of restaurants, La Palapa and The Eldorado Restaurant on the Southside of town, right down on the beach in Puerto Vallarta and if you play your cards right you can catch Alberto Perez singing and playing the Samba de Puerto Vallarta and more lovely tunes while enjoying dinner under the stars, toes in the sand at the waters edge. So romantic, so Puerto Vallarta.
Now before we get into this interview, I want to do a little housekeeping.
I have added a new page to the website and I’m very excited about this, it has all of the best Webcams in Puerto Vallarta. Some of these cameras are great for watching a sunset right from your Barcalounger at home so go to www.puertovallartatravelshow.com and click the webcam tab and catch your Puerto Vallarta sunset today and if you have a favorite webcam that I have missed, just send me a link and I will add it for you. The more the merrier right?
Click Here to Learn To Count to 100 in Spanish
Next, in the last episode I talked a little about learning the language about learning Spanish and how to count to one hundred in Spanish. I forgot to mention that if you go to my website and check the shownotes to the last episode, I have a link to a site where you will learn to count to 100 in Spanish. It’s easy it’s free and you will find it by going to www.Puertovallartatravelshow.com , the episode with JR about the customs and the people of Puerto Vallarta.
Lastly, I have the new prices for the Federal Airport taxis leaving the airport to your hotel or resort or condo and I will give you that info
after my interview with Author Howard Johns, which I’ going to get right into now.
Listen to The Podcast
Most people know that Puerto Vallarta was put on the map by those folks in Hollywood. The filming of the Night of the Iguana turned this once tiny little fishing village into a jet-setter destination. And since this is a podcast about Puerto Vallarta, I would be remiss If I were to ignore this large piece of the historic puzzle of this place Puerto Vallarta. So naturally I reached out to my next guest.
Howard is the author of the soon to be released book A Stolen Paradise, The True Story About the Making of the Night of the Iguana.
Howard Johns is a film historian, author and television personality from Palm Springs, California. In 2004, he wrote the bestselling
nonfiction book Palm Springs Confidential: Playground of the Stars (Barricade Books), which sold out through three printings.
Two years later, Johns published the scandalous follow-up Hollywood Celebrity Playground with similar success.
Howard Johns has been interviewed on numerous TV news broadcasts and documentary programs, discussing the lives and deaths of celebrities. He first gained widespread recognition as a producer for NBCs live coverage of the funeral of Congressman Sonny Bono. Howard has met and interviewed such stars as Frank Sinatra, Bob Hope, Kirk Douglas, Stefanie Powers, George Hamilton, and Suzanne Somers. He also has been featured on such top-rated network programs as Entertainment Tonight, Inside Edition, and Hard Copy.
So without any further ado, let’s go to my apartment in Puerto Vallarta, just two blocks from Casa Kimberly, the famous home of Elizabeth Taylor and we’ll talk about the filming of the night of the Iguana and more with Author Howard Johns.
The Characters
These 7 Color Photos Used with Permission From the Author
Tennessee Williams
Listen to the Podcast
That was a fun interview wasn’t it? I can’t wait for the book to come out. Waiting, Waiting, Waiting… For more information about Howard Johns, you will find his Bio and links to his website at the bottom of this blog post.
Okay, back to the new federal taxi rates from the airport to a resort near you, here they are. As I reported earlier, there was an increase in fuel prices here in Mexico and it was going to be just a matter of time till it effected the taxi prices so here we go.
New Federal Taxi Rates From the Airport to Your Hotel Accommodation Destination
- Zone 1-A from the airport to the Marina area.
Taxi Pay Window in the Puerto Vallarta Airport - $242 pesos or about $12 US for a taxi $458 or $22 US for a van.
- Zone 1 From the airport to the hotel zone area south of the airport.
- $258 pesos or $13 US for a taxi $520 or about $25 US for a van.
- Zone 2 from the airport south to Centro to the Southside and Conchas Chinas.
- $345 pesos or about $18 US for a cab $690 pesos or $35 US for a van.
- Zone 3 South beyond Conchas Chinas all the way to Mismaloya.
- $415 pesos or $20 for a cab $811 pesos or $40 US for a Van ride.
- Make sure to tip your drivers if they are handling your luggage.
You will find similar rates for the zones north of the airport and you can see the map and prices by going to my show notes and looking for it on my blog-post for this episode of the Puerto Vallarta Travel Show.
Once again, looks like we have gone long so let’s save some for next week shall we? Until then, remember, this is an interactive show where I depend on your questions and suggestions about all things Puerto Vallarta. If you think of something I should be talking about, please reach out to me by clicking on the Contact us tab and sending us your message.
And remember, if you are considering booking any type of tour while you are in Puerto Vallarta, you must go to Vallartainfo.com, JR’s website and reserve your tour through him, right from his website. Remember the value for value proposition. His experience and on the ground knowledge of everything Puerto Vallarta in exchange for your making a purchase of a tour that you would do anyway, you’re just doing it through him as a way of saying thank you. It costs no more than if you
were to use someone else so do it. Really. And when you do take one of these tours, email me about your experiences. Maybe you can come onboard and share with others what you liked or didn’t like about the tour. Again contact me by clicking on the Contact us tab and sending off a message.
And one more favor please, if you like this podcast, please take the time and subscribe and give me a good review on iTunes if you would. That way we can get the word out to more and more people about the magic of this place.
So, thanks to you for listening all the way through this episode of the Puerto Vallarta Travel Show. This is Barry Kessler signing off with a wish for you all to slow down, be kind and live the Vallarta lifestyle. Nos Vemos amigos!
ABOUT HOWARD JOHNS
Howard Johns is a film historian, author and television personality from Palm Springs, California. In 2004, he wrote the bestselling nonfiction book Palm Springs Confidential: Playground of the Stars (Barricade Books), which sold out through three printings. The title was chosen by Turner Classic Movies as Book of the Month, and selected by InsightOut® Book Club and Advocate magazine for their Christmas book selection. Two years later, Johns published the scandalous follow-up Hollywood Celebrity Playground with similar success.
TELEVISION APPEARANCES
Howard Johns has been interviewed on numerous TV news broadcasts and documentary programs, discussing the lives and deaths of celebrities. He first gained widespread recognition as a producer for NBC live coverage of the funeral of Congressman Sonny Bono.
During the revitalization of Palm Springs, Johns provided exclusive access to the homes of Cary Grant, Loretta Young and Jane Wyman. Among his guest appearances are: Legendary Hollywood Homes, narrated by Sally Kellerman (American Movie Classics); Mysteries & Scandals, hosted by A.J. Benza, and E! True Hollywood Story (Entertainment Television).
In 2004, Johns appeared on the Kraft two-hour holiday special Hollywood Home Movies, directed by Morgan Neville (Arts & Entertainment Network), and shown on Time Warner Cable and Comcast. He also has been featured on such top-rated network programs as Entertainment Tonight, Inside Edition, and Hard Copy.
PALM SPRINGS LIFE MAGAZINE
From 1996 to 2002, Howard Johns was editor-at-large for the monthly California prestige magazine Palm Springs Life, where he met and interviewed such stars as Frank Sinatra, Bob Hope, Kirk Douglas, Stefanie Powers, George Hamilton, and Suzanne Somers. Among his acclaimed feature-length articles are: Too Much of a Good Thing is Wonderful, His Kind of Town, The Great and the Beautiful, Housing Authority, Bob & Dolores: A Love Story, The Desert of Oz, and In the Swing.
In 2008, Johns was a contributing editor for the magazine’s 50th anniversary issue, providing a multilayered commentary about the history and development of this unique desert oasis. His extensive research has also been featured in Vanity Fair and Architectural Digest.
Johns currently resides in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, where he recently completed his third nonfiction book, A Stolen Paradise.
PREVIOUS ACCLAIM FOR HOWARD JOHNS
“Howard Johns, who raised eyebrows and activated scandal sheets with his Palm Springs Confidential, is back with another full-bodied pictorial about the West Coast glitterati.”
– Barnes & Noble
“Johns delights in his tabloid antics and his range of trivial knowledge about a vast array of movie and TV stars is impressive. Bitchy and irreverent… a guilty pleasure.”
– Publishers Weekly
“Talk to Howard Johns and you’re talking to a living encyclopedia of glamour… His mellifluous voice gilded with an Australian accent speeds by you at a mile a minute, but he chooses his words with charm and journalistic precision.”
– The Bottom Line
“Hollywood Celebrity Playground picks up where his scandalous Palm Springs Confidential left off… dishes the dirt on celebrities and the lavish, lecherous lives they lead.”
– TCM Movie News
“In the tradition of Hollywood Babylon comes this riveting, nosy encyclopedia of desert gossip, with cameos by every LGBT visitor imaginable, from Liberace and Udo to Lily and Jane…”
– The Advocate
“Howard Johns once again busts through the security gates of the rich and famous to not only give us a look at their cribs and celebrity sleepovers but also their crimes…deliciously scandalous!”
Get Your Copy of A Stolen Paradise