For those walking down Mission Street in South Pasadena, Russ Campbell’s vintage eyewear boutique Old Focals is hard to miss in its bespectacled glory.
The one-storied building has the allure of a private museum: A giant pair of binoculars regard visitors from the roof, cartoon eyes glance from the window and a stained-glass rendering of the famous billboard from “The Great Gatsby” looks over the lot, eyes peering out from behind round glasses.
The impression continues once stepped inside: some sorted by colors of a rainbow and some by years and shapes, an extensive collection of frames spanning the course of centuries embellish the shelves and cases, joined by opera glasses, eclectic sculptures and film memorabilia.
That includes an autographed picture of Oscar-winning actor and producer Brad Pitt wearing a pair of Old Focals sunglasses from the Academy Award-winning film “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” and a ping-pong ball from “Marty Supreme,” held in place by the original pair worn by actor Timothee Chalamet in the Academy Award-nominated film.
“For over 40 years, I have always had something to do with award-winning movies and television shows and commercials,” Campbell said. “Every time there’s an Oscar, we usually did something with it.”
Campbell started collecting eyeglasses in his early 20s after having a dream where an old man gave him a pair of “old focals,” setting off a life-long obsession. Started in a warehouse where he repurposed old eyewear frames into sunglasses, Campbell has put his collection on a host of celebrities like Hayley Atwell, Johnny Depp and Samuel L. Jackson. Other collaborations include the Bob Dylan biopic film “A Complete Unknown,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” and “Ant-Man.”
Over the course of his career, Campbell has cultivated a cult following in the film industry, holding the longest running credit in Hollywood and collaborating with prop masters to put glasses on film and TV stars. The business spans wide. While the shop has been in its current location for 12 years, Campbell has sent glasses to Germany, New Zealand and Japan.
“We’re serious about what we do,” he said. “We try to be the first thing that comes to mind when you’re doing a period production.”
To Campbell, glasses are one of the first noticeable features about someone: it is personality in frames. He personally sports a pair from the 1950s, named after his father, Glen. The secret sauce to his success, he said, was consistency: a good eyewear provider knows his audience and reliably serves their needs.