Alfred Sole, a multi-talented individual, was born on July 2, 1943, in Paterson, New Jersey. Growing up, he developed a passion for films, particularly those of the renowned director Alfred Hitchcock, whose influence can be seen in Sole's most notable work, Alice, Sweet Alice (1976),also known as Alice, Sweet Alice.
After graduating from the University of Florence in Italy with a degree in architecture, Sole pursued a career in architecture, working in this field for several years. He made his directorial debut with the tongue-in-cheek hardcore parody Deep Sleep (1972),starring Harry Reems and Georgina Spelvin, which won first prize at the New York Erotic Film Festival despite being made on a modest budget of $25,000. However, the film was eventually pulled from theaters due to obscenity charges and all prints were confiscated.
Sole's subsequent work, Alice, Sweet Alice, fared much better, winning first prize at the Chicago Film Festival and receiving positive reviews from critics, including Roger Ebert. The film, which marked the screen debut of then-unknown Brooke Shields, was also shot on location in Paterson. Although it did poorly at the box office due to poor distribution, the film remains a cult classic.
Sole's next project was the quirky and kinky soft-core fantasy film Tanya's Island (1980),starring Vanity under the pseudonym D.D. Winters and featuring a remarkable ape costume designed by Rob Bottin. Unfortunately, the film suffered from limited theatrical distribution.
His final film as a director was the silly slasher-movie spoof Pandemonium (1982),which boasted an all-star cast, including Tom Smothers, Phil Hartman, Tab Hunter, Eileen Brennan, Carol Kane, Eve Arden, Judge Reinhold, Kaye Ballard, Paul Reubens, and David L. Lander. After this, Sole wrote stories for episodes of TV shows such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Friday the 13th: The Series, and Hotel.
Disillusioned with the Hollywood system, Sole retired from directing in 1982 and went on to become a successful production designer. He has worked on numerous films and TV shows, including Halloweentown High, These Old Broads, Clubland, Wishmaster 2: Evil Never Dies, Glory Daze, Bodily Harm, and Night of the Running Man. More recently, Sole has handled production design duties on the TV series Veronica Mars.
