Up next is...

From last Friday night, here's my wraparound for MURDER  BY DEATH, written by me and Courtney O'Brien.  Lots of names.  I stumbled a few times while taping this bad boy.  Join me on TCM next Friday night for three more Neil Simon films, including THE GOODBYE GIRL.  And now... MURDER BY DEATH. 

INTRO:


Hello and welcome to TCM. I’m Ken Levine – a TV writer and director, and here to once again shine our “Friday Night Ppotlight” on the work of Neil Simon. Tonight we’re going to bring you two Neil Simon double features.

In our first pairing, we have movies showcasing Simon’s tongue-in-cheek take on the mystery genre. For the second helping, it’s a double order of movies set in and around hotels.

Up first we bring you the 1976 murder mystery spoof “Murder by Death,” a film that is very much a sign of the times.

In the mid-1970s, parodies were incredibly popular. Writers and directors were spoofing many genres – Mel Brooks first parodied the western genre with the wildly funny “Blazing Saddles,” and then he took on monster movies with “Young Frankenstein.” the year before, Woody Allen gave his own spin to sci-fi flicks with “Sleeper.” so Neil Simon decided to take on the murder mystery genre, writing this film directly for the screen and drawing influence from Agatha Christie’s best seller, “And Then There Were None.”

In “Murder by Death,” Simon poses the question, “who is the greatest gumshoe of them all?”  He not only channels Miss Christie and her two major detectives – Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot – but also Dashiell Hammett’s Sam Spade, played most famously by Humphrey Bogart. Simon also includes his satirical versions of Nick and Nora Charles from the “Thin Man” film series, along with Charlie Chan.

All the names have been altered. Here you’ll meet Jessica Marbles, Milo Perrier, Sam Diamond, Dick and Dora Charleston, and Sidney Wang.

As you’ll see, Neil Simon and his producer Ray Stark rounded up an all-star cast: in alphabetical order, as they were billed: Eileen Brennan, Truman Capote -- yes, Truman Capote -- James Coco, Peter Falk, Alec Guinness, Elsa Lanchester, David Niven, Peter Sellers, Maggie Smith, and Nancy Walker.

Now. Warning: this is hardly a politically correct movie. Charlie Chan jokes alone are asking for it, but then to have Peter Sellers play the character – there are a few “yikes” moments in this film. From 1976, directed by Robert Moore, also with James Cromwell and Estelle Winwood, here’s Neil Simon’s “Murder by Death.”

OUTRO:

Though some of the jokes and puns may not work, the major problem Neil Simon had with “Murder by Death,” and perhaps an issue for some of you as well, was the casting of Truman Capote as the eccentric millionaire, Lionel Twain. Ray Stark, the producer of the film, thought the sheer publicity of casting Capote would draw an audience – and he was right. “Murder by Death” was a big box office hit.

But Simon thought Capote was completely wrong for the role – especially since he had no acting experience – and it showed.

Simon’s first choice for the role was Orson Welles, who wanted to do it but unfortunately had another commitment.

Coming up next, another mystery spoof from Neil Simon -- this one starring Peter Falk, and a film that blends “Casablanca,” “the Maltese Falcon,” “To Have and Have Not,” and many other classic Hollywood mysteries.

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And then I said...

These transcripts from my TCM intros have been a hit.  (Hey, you get the info and don't have to actually watch me.)  Here's my wraparound for THE OUT OF TOWNERS.  Many thanks to reader Johnny Walker for un-capping the all-caps.   It was written by me and Anne Wilson.  

NOTE:  Tomorrow I will review the Golden Globes. 

INTRO:


Hi, I'm Ken Levine – a TV comedy writer and a playwright -- back again as your host for this month’s “Friday Night Spotlight” on Neil Simon.

You know Murphy’s Law: “Anything that can go wrong, will”? Well, that basically sums up our next movie. It’s called “THE OUT OF TOWNERS,” released in 1970, with an “original” screenplay by Simon – although it’s really more of an adaptation.

In 1967, Neil Simon wrote a broadway play called “PLAZA SUITE,” which was initially comprised of four, one-act plays that all took place at New York’s Plaza Hotel. Well during rehearsals, he realized that one of the stories – called “THE OUT OF TOWNERS” – didn’t really work.

It was about a man who, with his wife, come to New York to interview for a job – during which time, seemingly everyone and everything in the city appears to be conspiring against them.

But just hearing about the ridiculous mishaps were not nearly as funny as actually seeing them. So Simon took the story out, leaving “PLAZA SUITE” with ultimately three one-act plays. And instead, wrote the “OUT OF TOWNERS” as a screenplay. The result is the movie we have coming up next.

To play the leading man – who really gets put through the ringer – who better than the buttoned-up, yet always-ready-to-explode Jack Lemmon?

Lemmon was one of Neil Simon’s favorite actors, having already costarred in the movie you just saw, “THE ODD COUPLE.” and in turn, Lemmon was such a fan of Simon’s that he signed on to do “THE OUT OF TOWNERS” without even reading the script. Simon gave him the rough storyline over lunch one day and Jack Lemmon said he was in.

Oh, if it were that easy for the rest of us.

Playing Lemmon’s wife in our movie – with great comic timing – is Sandy Dennis, whose mousey character makes a perfect foil for Lemmon’s caged Daffy Duck.

Here, with appearances by Billy D. Williams and Paula Prentiss’ sister Ann Prentiss, who looks like Paula Prentiss. From 1970, “THE OUT OF TOWNERS.”

OUTRO (Note: the final gag is they are about to land back home in Ohio when their plane is hijacked to Cuba.)

Wow. I don’t know about you, but that ending really threw me for a loop. In this post- 9/11 world, it certainly plays differently than it must have to movie audiences in 1970.

But having said that, I really do love this film.

Interestingly, Neil Simon is a New Yorker through and through -- in fact, he actually became a playwright because he didn’t want to move to Los Angeles. Yet this movie is hardly a love song to his beloved city. We see the real New York – warts and all – with Simon incorporating a number of things that were happening in the Big Apple at the time, such as sanitation and transit strikes, crowded hotels and crime.

I mean, Woody Allen’s “MANHATTAN” this is not.

Maybe it was just his sneaky way to keep people from moving to New York. Hey, it worked on me.

Up next in our Friday Night Spotlight – a movie based on a semi-autobiographical play that marked Neil Simon’s first solo writing effort on Broadway. It’s from 1963 and stars ole’ blue eyes.

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RIP Taylor Negron

I was shocked to learn that Taylor Negron has passed away. He was only 57. Cancer. I’ve known Taylor for many years, and worked with him as recently as last year when we both did a reading for Comedy Central’s Sit-n-Spin. The first time I met Taylor was in the late ‘70s when he was doing an improv show for THE L.A. CONNECTION on Venice Beach one Sunday afternoon. He was so funny and so inventive that he inspired me to get into improv myself.

You may not know the name but you’ve seen him in hundreds of movies and TV shows. He was Mr. Pizza Guy in FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH. He was the villain in THE LAST BOY SCOUT.

Taylor had the rare ability to play exaggerated characters and make them seem absolutely real and believable. He was also a chameleon. Give him any character and he could pull it off. He could also elevate just about any material you gave him.

And offstage, he was the dearest soul. I will miss his smile, the twinkle in his eye, and his uplifting spirit. Taken from us way too soon. RIP Taylor.

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Okay, here's another one

Here's another script from my TCM Neil Simon Film Festival.  Written by me and Courtney O'Brien.  It's for CALIFORNIA SUITE, which aired last night... but so late on the East Coast that probably very few saw it (live).   It's in all-caps because that's the way it was prepared for the teleprompter.  I'm too lazy to take the time to turn it into upper and lower case.  Enjoy. 

HI, WELCOME BACK. I’M KEN LEVINE, A PLAYWRIGHT AND TV WRITER, AND YOUR HOST FOR THIS MONTH’S “FRIDAY NIGHT SPOTLIGHT” FOCUSED ON THE WORK OF NEIL SIMON.

IN OUR LAST FILM, “PLAZA SUITE,” SIMON SHARED WITH US THREE STORIES ALL TAKING PLACE IN THE SAME HOTEL ROOM AT NEW YORK’S FAMED PLAZA HOTEL. WELL, UP NEXT, WE TRAVEL TO THE WEST COAST AND THE BEVERLY HILLS HOTEL FOR A FILM FROM 1978 CALLED, OF ALL THINGS, “CALIFORNIA SUITE.”

THIS ONE TOO, WAS ORIGINALLY A PLAY. SIMILAR IN FORMAT, IT CONTAINS FOUR STORIES – EACH ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS, SOME MORE COMICAL THAN OTHERS. BUT IT’S MUCH MORE CINEMATIC. THE CAMERA OFTEN LEAVES THE ACTUAL SUITE. SO IT FEELS MORE LIKE A – Y’KNOW – MOVIE.

FILLING THE SCREEN ARE SOME OF THE BIGGEST STARS OF THE DECADE – JANE FONDA, BILL COSBY, RICHARD PRYOR, MICHAEL CAINE, MAGGIE SMITH, WALTER MATTHAU, ELAINE MAY, AND ALAN ALDA.

AT THE TIME ALDA MADE THIS FILM, HE WAS ALSO STARRING IN THE TV VERSION OF “MASH,” I WAS A HEAD WRITER ON THE SHOW AT THE TIME AND IT’S BIZARRE TO THINK THAT NEIL SIMON AND I WERE WRITING FOR THE SAME ACTORS. I WOULD KID ALAN AND SAY, “WHO IS BETTER, ME OR NEIL?” ALWAYS A MENSCH, ALAN NEVER GAVE ME THE HONEST ANSWER.

I DID ASK ABOUT THE PROCESS OF WORKING WITH NEIL SIMON. HE SAID THAT SIMON WAS USUALLY ON SET, VERY APPROACHABLE, AND IF YOU HAD A PROBLEM WITH A LINE OR MOMENT IN THE SCRIPT HE WAS ALWAYS AVAILABLE AND HAPPY TO ADJUST IT. ACCORDING TO ALAN AND MANY OTHER ACTORS, NEIL SIMON IS AN INCREDIBLY COLLABORATIVE ARTIST – PROBABLY ONE REASON HE WAS ABLE TO GET SUCH TALENTED PEOPLE TO APPEAR IN BOTH HIS PLAYS AND HIS FILMS.

HERE’S AN EXAMPLE -- FROM 1978, DIRECTED BY HERBERT ROSS, HERE’S “CALIFORNIA SUITE.”

 OUTRO

IN HIS MEMOIR, NEIL SIMON WROTE THAT THE CENTRAL STORYLINE OF THE FILM AND PLAY “CALIFORNIA SUITE” WAS THE ONE INVOLVING DIANA AND SIDNEY, PLAYED BY MAGGIE SMITH AND MICHAEL CAINE. AND I HAVE TO SAY, IT’S ALSO THE STORYLINE WITH SOME OF THE BEST LINES, ESPECIALLY THE WAY MAGGIE SMITH DELIVERS THEM. OF COURSE, FANS OF DOWNTON ABBEY ARE NOT SURPRISED BY THAT.

WHEN DIANA SAYS, “GLENDA JACKSON NEVER COMES AND SHE’S NOMINATED EVERY GODDAMNED YEAR” – IT’S TRUE. JACKSON RECEIVED 4 OSCAR NOMINATIONS IN A SIX YEAR PERIOD – AND WON TWICE, HER SECOND TIME AS THE BEST ACTRESS OF 1973 OVER MARSHA MASON, WHO WAS SIMON’S WIFE AT THE TIME.

AND AS GREAT AS EVERYONE IS IN THE FILM, MAGGIE SMITH WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO RECEIVED AN OSCAR NOMINATION – AND SHE WON FOR BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS. SHE’S IN THE ACADEMY AWARD HISTORY BOOKS AS THE ONLY PERSON TO WIN AN OSCAR FOR PLAYING SOMEONE WHO LOSES AN OSCAR.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING ME TONIGHT. I’M KEN LEVINE, YOUR FRIDAY NIGHT SPOTLIGHT HOST. SEE YOU NEXT WEEK FOR NEIL SIMON. COMING UP NEXT, MORE MOVIES, WITHOUT INTERRUPTION. ENJOY.

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'Cause you asked for it

A lot of you have asked me to post some of the scripts from my TCM stint hosting the Neil Simon Film Festival.  Here's the first one.   In all, I did seventeen of these.  As you can see, I try to include a lot into a very short time.  Hey, I can't get by on just smoldering looks to the camera.   This was from last week.  THE ODD COUPLE.  This script was written by TCM producer Anne Wilson and me.  Try saying it out loud without screwing up.  If you can you're better than I am.   NOTE: Thanks to an anonymous commenter who changed the text from all-caps to regular. 


 INTRO

Hi, I’m Ken Levine – a playwright, tv writer and director and i’m thrilled to be TCM’s “Friday Night Spotlight” host for January. this month, we’re saluting a Pulitzer prize and Tony winning playwright and a screenwriter I’ve always admired, Neil Simon – someone with an amazing work ethic and also a master at using humor to both enrich his characters and move his stories forward. trust me, that’s an art and no one can do it better.

On Broadway, Simon has been prolific but he’s also had great success in Hollywood, which we will showcase every Friday night this month.

We start with his work that’s probably had the greatest longevity, originating on broadway in 1965 but with countless stage, TV and film versions done over the years. it’s “THE ODD COUPLE,” our movie released in 1968, starring jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau – Matthau reprising his stage role.

Lemmon plays Felix Unger, a man despondent over splitting with his wife. with nowhere to go, he moves in with his best friend Oscar Madison – that’s Matthau. the two are polar opposites: Felix is a neat-nick, hypochondriac, TV newswriter. Oscar is a slob, a sportswriter with a “who gives a crap?” attitude. so the comedic possibilities are endless.

The idea for the story actually came from Neil Simon’s brother Danny – also a writer – who was, himself, divorced and rooming with a friend who just split from his wife. the two brothers agreed the situation was ripe for a comedy so Danny started writing. but after several false starts, he eventually told Neil to take the story and run with it – so he did – still giving Danny a percentage of the profits.

Neil had trouble writing the play as well. In out-of-town previews, the first two acts were hilarious but the last act just died. neither Simon nor the play’s director Mike Nichols could figure out how to make it work. It was a theatre critic in Boston who suggested the fix – that two characters who appeared early in the play, “THE PIGEON SISTERS,” be brought back to help tie the story up. That did the trick.

It was a huge hit and won four Tony awards, including one for Neil Simon. This film version -- with an Oscar nominated Neil Simon screenplay -- was also a smash. Here -- from 1968, “THE ODD COUPLE.”

OUTRO

As i mentioned before the film, Neil Simon did numerous rewrites for the play, but by comparison he felt the screenplay for this movie was one of the easiest he’d ever written. That’s because nearly all of the dialogue from the play went directly into the film.

I’ve seen the play and it is great, but I admit some sequences play better in the film because they could open things up on location. One example is that scene with Jack Lemmon clearing out his sinuses in the diner – it’s way funnier in a public place.

now, Lemmon and Matthau were both terrific in this movie and they are one of the great movie teams. and I know I may get in trouble for saying this – but to me, when I think of Oscar and Felix, I think of the two actors who played them in the 1970’s TV sit-com: Jack Klugman and Tony Randall.

Maybe it’s a generational thing – you know, like the different answers you get when asking someone “who is ‘the real’ James Bond?” (Sean Connery) but to me, Klugman And Randall are “the real” odd couple.

Stick around for another Neil Simon treat. up next from 1970 -- once again starring Jack Lemmon.

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Friday Questions

Friday Questions but first a plug: I’ll be hosting four Neil Simon movies tonight on TCM. MURDER BY DEATH, THE CHEAP DETECTIVE, PLAZA SUITE, and CALIFORNIA SUITE. It starts at 8:00 on the East and 5:00 on the West. Come for the wraparounds. Stay for the laughs.   Thank goodness for DVR's.  I wonder how many people on the East Coast are going to see my outro for CALIFORNIA SUITE live at around 3:00 AM.

Now to the business at hand:

One More Question gets us started.

I was having a discussion with myself in my head last night about whether certain characters could only have worked, or become iconic, with the actors who in fact played them, due to one of those cosmic convergences where the character found its soulmate actor.

For example, I feel like Diane Chambers, the Crane brothers, Urkel, and Columbo could not have become iconic with any other actors in the role. I don't know if Archie Bunker, Ralph Kramden, and Fonzie (the later version, not the first season Fonzie) could have worked at all with any other actor.

Do you think there are characters that, no matter how well-written, can only work or become iconic with just that one soulmate actor who was born to play them? Or is there always another actor out there who can give that character that special quality that makes it work or break out?

This question has sparked a lot of debate in the comments section. My answer is yes and no (Fuck Yes or No).

There are certain characters, where the actor has so embodied the role that it’s almost unimaginable to picture anyone else in the part. Phil Silvers as Sgt. Bilko is one. Humphrey Bogart as anybody Humphrey Bogart played is another.

But for the most part, I think if a part is well-written then a multitude of actors can play it. This is especially true in the theater. For many people who grew up in the ‘60s, the ODD COUPLE is Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau, who starred in the movie. But for younger generations it’s Tony Randall and Jack Klugman.  And on Broadway originally it was Art Carney and Walter Matthau.  And at one point they switched roles. 

Now let’s take Diane Chambers. I have always contended that without Shelley Long playing her the series dies after thirteen weeks. She made a potentially unlikable character funny and adorable and real while still keeping Diane's infuriating qualities. That’s not just hard to do. It’s next to impossible.

But…

Now that the character is established and the Sam & Diane relationship is established, if there were say a theater production of some of the episodes I could see the character working with someone else. It might be different, and you might have to put Shelley out of your mind, but who knows? It could be an interesting alternate interpretation.  Not saying it would be better per se, but I'd be curious to see what someone else could do with the role. 

Henry Winkler turned a supporting character (the Fonz) into a breakout star. There is a HAPPY DAYS musical. Do you really think there’s no one else who can play Fonzie? How about anyone who’s ever been in GREASE?  That said, whoever plays him in the musical, no matter how capable, probably could not have made the character a breakout star the way Henry Winkler did. 

Carroll O’Connor WAS Archie Bunker – in America. Another actor played him first in Great Britain.

Who IS James Bond depends on which one you grew up with... although it's really Sean Connery. 

I must say that when I saw the English version of THE OFFICE I couldn’t imagine any other actor playing the Ricky Gervais part. But God bless him, Steve Carell pulled it off. So in my opinion, in most cases you can find other actors to play iconic roles. It’s bloggers you can never substitute.

Mark Solomon asks:

As great as the film is, I agree with your statement on the TCM broadcast that the TV series defines "The Odd Couple."  Do you have a favorite episode?

There were a lot of great ones. I think my favorite is the flashback when they were in the service stationed at Fort Ira Epstein.

There was a Blackout episode I recall that was also hilarious.

What are some of your favorites?

Here’s one from another Mark:

I see actors leave successful shows for miserable failure (MacLean Stevenson, Katherine Heigel to name a couple) and I wonder what the problem is.

Is it that they can't read scripts and see how they would end up? Do they have bad agents steering them to bad projects? Do they have so few offers they take what they can get? Do they not have an idea of how they want their career to develop? Do they just work with the wrong people all the time? Did they have minimal talent that only looked good in certain situations but couldn't hit a curve ball if their life depended on it?

Pathetically, I've wondered about this for years and hope you could shed some light on it.

You’d have to take each one on a case-by-case basis. First off, remember there have been actors who have bolted successful TV series and made it as big movie stars. Clint Eastwood, Goldie Hawn, Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, and James Garner to name a few. But clearly they are the exception to the rule.

In a number of cases, actors who are supporting players feel it’s worth leaving a hit series for the chance to star in a vehicle.  They're rolling the dice.  Unfortunately, some of these actors are second bananas for a reason.

And in other cases, actors are just given bad advice from their management teams. You read all the time about actors firing managers and agents and attorneys. Although in some instances, the actor is to be blamed. Agents will often inflate an actor’s status to win their favor – telling them they’re hotter or more popular or in more demand than they really are – and if the actor believes them it’s at his own peril.

Sometimes a TV actor will do a movie that becomes a big hit and think it's because of them.  This can be a costly misjudgement.  

One other factor, sometimes actors just get tired playing the same character over and over and need to move on. Again, it’s a personal choice.

Personally, I feel the odds are so staggering against an actor being cast as a regular in a huge hit series that if you are you should ride that gravy train as far as it will take you. But that’s me, a guy who can’t act his way out of a hard rain.

What’s your Friday Question? See you tonight on Turner Classic Movies.

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The music "bumnpers" on CHEERS

That's what we call those little musical passages that transition scenes -- bumpers. 

On Elvis' birthday I thought I would do a music-related post.  Here’s one of those Friday Questions that became an entire post because I have a special guest to answer it.

Dan Ball asks:

When I watch CHEERS, I always wonder how music was handled? I know Craig Safan scored the whole series (along with some great scores for THE LAST STARFIGHTER and REMO WILLIAMS), but would he actually score each episode or record a bunch of cues at one recording session per season that the director/editor could whip out in the editing room? Was it actually the director and editor who chose those cues? You've probably had to sit in this music chair plenty times in the past, so what's your strategy for picking the best ear candy for us, the audience? Are you more/less demanding in your scoring tastes because of your background in radio?

I didn't select the music cues.  For the shows I ran I had our line producer handle that.  Nor was I involved in the music on CHEERS.   So I personally don’t know the answer to Dan's question, but I figured why not go to the source? Craig Safan was nice enough to provide the answer.

You’re both right! I would score around half of each season’s episodes specifically for individual episodes. Usually these were recorded in groups of three episodes per session as there were union minimums and only one episode’s worth of music wouldn’t fill up that minimum amount of the musicians’ time. But I didn’t score each and every episode… I also recorded a “library” of musical cues in the “Cheers” style at the beginning of each season. Then that library was used for the shows that weren’t individually scored. Of course any new music I’d write for shows during the season would get added to that library so it would become quite extensive and after so many seasons… well you get the idea. It wasn’t the director or producer or editor who would choose the library music cues… it was the music editor. That would be Chips Swanson who was the music editor during the entire run of “Cheers”.

Thank you so much, Craig. And just know I’d be happy to return the favor. If you ever want me to conduct a session for you sometime, just say the word. But seriously, how cool that actual artists give their time to contribute inside info to this blog?

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