Amalfi Ristorante & Bar: L.A.'s hip, upscale Italian on La Brea

AMALFI RISTORANTE & BAR | Former site of the Famous Swanee Inn

Nat "King" Cole, jazz pioneer

Amalfi Ristorante & Bar is the former site of the Famous Swanee Inn. You may ask why the Swanee Inn was famous, and the answer would sound a bit like this:

In 1937, club owner Bob Lewis suggested that budding Jazz musician Nathaniel "Nat" Cole assemble a small band to work at his Swanee Inn on North La Brea. The group's unorthodox instrumentation and size - due to the size of the stage at the Swanee, they had no drummer and, at the time, big bands were the rage - featured Wesley Prince on bass and the innovative phrasings of electric guitarist Oscar Moore. The Trio's blend of jump blues and jazzy instrumentals with bouncy vocal stylings was a collective effort, while Cole occasionally took the lead on standard ballads. A month's booking turned into a year's stay.

Now the Prince of the Ivories was to become a King. Wesley began calling Nat "King Cole", coming from the Mother Goose nursery rhyme, "Old King Cole". Nat was far from being old, but the name stuck. From there the name of the group would undergo many changes: first "King Cole and His Sepia Swingsters", then "King Cole's Swing Trio", then simply the "King Cole Trio". Along with their popularity at Bob Lewis' Swanee Inn, the Trio also made their first records for Standard Transcriptions, well over 100 tunes. And after their gig was over at the nightclub, they had built up a following in Hollywood, so everywhere they went, they were a hit. But the best was yet to come.

ADAM CAROLLA | Co-owner
Adam Carolla is one of the most versatile men in Hollywood. He recently hosted Comedy Central's "Too Late with Adam Carolla" and starred in TLC's "The Adam Carolla Project," which chronicled the renovation and subsequent sale of his boyhood home. After four successful seasons as co-host and co-creator of Comedy Central’s "The Man Show" Adam Corolla has become somewhat of an expert on men. Carolla along with his Jackhole Industries partners, Jimmy Kimmel and Daniel Kellison, have created the primetime series "Crank Yankers," which recently entered its third season. He can also now be heard every morning from 5-10am on 97.1 Free FM http://adam.freefm.com

Carolla’s career path has been anything but conventional. Carolla began working as a carpenter and boxing instructor in Los Angeles. It was his knowledge of boxing that introduced him to radio. An opportunity presented itself when LA-based radio station KROQ-FM announced they were looking for a trainer to prepare "Jimmy the Sports Guy" (Jimmy Kimmel/Man Show co-host) for an on-air boxing event. Carolla’s many calls to the station were never returned. Frustrated, he drove to the building and sneaked in with a delivery guy. Luckily for Carolla, at that moment Kimmel went for a bathroom break. Fittingly, Adam met Jimmy outside the men’s room. Kimmel lost the fight, but despite that, the two quickly became best friends.

Carolla developed the character "Mr. Birchum, Wood Shop Teacher" for KROQ’s "Kevin and Bean." show. "Mr. Birchum" soon became one of the hottest and most listened to segments on morning radio. His success on KROQ led to a hosting job on the radio show "Loveline", with Dr. Drew Pinsky, which is currently entering it’s seventh year of national syndication, heard in 86 markets. Due to the enormous success of "Loveline", MTV developed a television version of the show, which Adam co-hosted with Dr. Drew for four seasons. The popularity of the show led Adam to co-author "The Dr. Drew and Adam Book: A Survival Guide to Life and Love" which is now in it’s second printing.

Carolla has also appeared as himself in the Miramax film Down to You and can be seen in the film Frank McClusky, C.I .

M.D. SWEENEY | Co-owner
After graduating from the University of Michigan / Ann Arbor, with a B.A. in Film and Theatre, M.D. Sweeney moved to Los Angeles. Soon after his arrival, Sweeney landed the job of Art Director for Dick Clark Productions. He later went on to be an accomplished animation TV writer for such shows as WB’s "Tiny Toon Adventures" and "Animainiacs." However, after six years working solely on the creative end of the entertainment business, he found himself wanting to become involved with the business side as well.

At Dick Clark Productions he landed a job as a segment producer. His well rounded experience in the entertainment industry allowed him to realize his dreams of opening a theatre. With the help of his wife, writer/ producer Sherri Stoner, Acme Comedy Theatre was born just a few years later.

For over nine years, the Acme Comedy Theatre has become an institution for launching successful careers. Acme Players have gone on to win a total of seven Emmy Awards and two Peabody Awards for writing and producing such shows as "Friends," "Grounded for Life," "The Simpsons," "Norm," "Third Rock From the Sun" and Steven Spielberg’s "Toonsylvania," to name a few.

Most recently the Acme Comedy Theatre garnered national attention when Nia Vardalos’ one woman show, My Big Fat Greek Wedding was discovered by Rita Wilson and Tom Hanks at Acme. The movie earned over $240 million and was honored with two Golden Globe nominations and an Academy Award nomination for Vardalos. Acme Players are also currently taping their second installment of the hit HBO Special, "Sketch Pad" that will air in the fall.

Currently, Sweeney is opening an Italian Ristorante named Amalfi next to the Acme Comedy Theatre, of which Sweeney is the former owner and artistic director. Not ignoring his entertainment roots, the focus at Amalfi will be both food and entertainment.