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Jimmy Steinway is the dancing adman friend of Des and everyone else who connects the other characters like a tennis ball bouncing between them. Mack Astin was the first actor cast in the film.
A group of us went to a screening for Richard Attenboroughs IN LOVE AND WAR with Chris ODonnell and Sandra Bullock, but found ourselves only watching Astins performance as Hemingways best friend and memoirist, Henry Villard, Stillman says. DISCO co-editor, Andy Hafitz, who cut dailies for the dogsled adventure IRON WILL, remembered Astins strong performance, and it was Stillmans six-year-old daughters favorite film. IRON WILL is a movie with a definite cult following, though mostly under ten.
Astin co-starred with Jack Nicholson and Shirley Maclaine in EVENING STAR and appeared in such films as WYATT EARP, WIDOWS KISS and DREAM FOR AN INSOMNIAC with Jennifer Aniston and Ione Skye.
Mack grew up in Los Angeles but spent part of his youth touring the country with his parents, actress Patty Duke and actor-director-writer John Astin, while they were performing in plays. His mother has written two influential, partly autobiographical books on manic depression and other bipolar disorders, their treatment and cure (CALL ME ANNA). Mack says that THE LAST DAYS OF DISCOs non-problem-film treatment of manic depression through the character Josh made him especially interested in working in the film. Sean Astin (RUDY) is his elder brother.

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