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  • ♪ ♪ ♪ >> Stephen: HEY, EVERYBODY.

  • WE'RE BACK WITH BILLY CRYSTAL.

  • YOU'RE STARRING IN THE FILM "STANDING UP, FALLING DOWN," AND

  • WHO DO YOU PLAY?

  • AND WE HAVE A CLIP HERE WITH YOU-- WHAT'S THE YOUNG ACTOR

  • PLAYING THE LEAD?

  • >> HE'S GREAT.

  • HIS NAME IS BEN SCHWARTZ.

  • HE'S A WONDERFUL ACTOR.

  • >> Stephen: IT'S YOU AND BEN SCHWARTZ IN A CHURCH.

  • WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE?

  • >> WE'RE GOING TO A FUNERAL.

  • I AM HIS DERMATOLOGIST.

  • I'M A HARD-DRINKING, POT-SMOKING DERMATOLOGIST, WHICH WAS HARD

  • FOR ME BECAUSE I'M NOT A DERMATOLOGIST.

  • AND THEY MEET AT THIS FUNERAL.

  • THEY GO FOR DIFFERENT REASONS.

  • BEN'S CHARACTER, SCOTT, GOES TO, THINKING HIS EX-GIRLFRIEND WILL

  • BE THERE.

  • AND I GO THINKING THAT MY SON, WHO I'M ESTRANGED FROM, WILL BE

  • THERE, AND WE SEE EACH OTHER IN THE BACK OF THE CHURCH.

  • >> Stephen: JIM.

  • ♪ ♪ ♪ >> HEY, ROLLINS, RIGHT.

  • ROLLINS, HEY, HOW ARE YOU DOING?

  • >> ARE YOU EVERYWHERE?

  • >> I GET AROUND.

  • WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?

  • >> HONESTLY, I DON'T EVEN KNOW.

  • WOW.

  • YOU KILLED RORY.

  • >> I DIDN'T KILL RORY.

  • >> THAT'S WHY YOU WERE STRESSED.

  • >> WHAT ARE YOU DOING?

  • >> YOU HAD YOUR HANDS ON HIS SHOULDER RIGHT BEFORE YOU

  • STRANGLED HIM!

  • >> HE DIED OF LEUKEMIA.

  • >> ARE YOU HIGH?

  • >> YEAH ( LAUGHS )

  • >> WOW.

  • >> WOW.

  • >> Stephen: NOW, YOU KNOW ME, YOU KNOW I KEEP MY FINGER ON THE

  • PULSE OF THE ORCHAR BUZZ OUT THERE, AND THIS THING-- THIS

  • OSCAR BUZZ IS HUMMING LIKE A REFRIGERATOR COIL AROUND YOU.

  • WHAT-- WHAT-- WHO WAS YOUR ACTING HERO GROWING UP?

  • WAS THERE SOMEBODY YOU WANTED TO MODEL YOURSELF AFTER?

  • >> THERE WAS A LOT, BUT JACK LEMMON.

  • >> Stephen: OF COURSE "THE APARTMENT" THE GREATEST OF ALL

  • TIME.

  • >> YEAH, BECAUSE WHAT I LOVED ABOUT MR. LEMON WAS HE COULD BE

  • OUTRAGEOUSLY FUNNY "MR. ROBERTS," "SOME LIKE IT

  • HOT," AND THEN HE COULD BREAK YOUR HEART, "THE APARTMENT,"

  • "DAYS OF WINE AND ROSES" "SAVE THE TIGER"

  • WHEN I GOT THE SCRIPT, A SMALL MOVIE, "MY NAME IS MARTY," I

  • DIDN'T EVEN HAVE A LAST NAME.

  • TO ME IT WAS A JACK LEMMON KIND OF PART.

  • AND THERE WAS ANOTHER GREAT ACTOR WHO I REALLY LOVED.

  • HIS NAME WAS MIKIE ROONEY.

  • >> Stephen: OF COURSE.

  • PEOPLE FORGET ABOUT MIKIE ROONEY, HE WAS, AT ONE TIME, THE

  • BIGGEST BOX OFFICE STAR IN THE WORLD.

  • >> I THINK SEVEN YEARS IN A ROW HE WAS NUMBER ONE IN THE "ANDY

  • HARDY" MOVIES.

  • HE COULD DO EVERYTHING.

  • HE COULD SING.

  • HEBD DANCE.

  • HE COULD PLAY INSTRUMENTS.

  • HE WAS AN AMAZING TALENT AND AS HE GOT OLD ETHE PARTS GOT MORE

  • INTERESTING FOR HIM.

  • AND SO THE MOVIE I LOVE WAS "THE BLACK STALLION."

  • >> Stephen: INCREDIBLE, THROWING IT AWAY, THROWING IT

  • AWAY.

  • >> EXACTLY, THREW IT AWAY, THREW IT AWAY.

  • HE PLAYED AN AGING JOCKEY, AND I GOT TO INTERVIEW HIM AT AN

  • "EVENING AT THE ACADEMY" WHERE THEY WERE CELEBRATING THE

  • 50th ANNIVERSARY OF "IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD."

  • AND ON STAGE WAS CARL REINER, JONATHAN WINTERS, AND MICKY, AND

  • OTHER PEOPLE FROM THE MOVIE UPON I INTRODUCED HIM.

  • HONESTLY, HE WAS IN A WHEELCHAIR.

  • HE WAS 5'1", 5'2".

  • I INTRODUCED HIM.

  • HE ROLLED OUT, THEN GOT OUT OF THE CHAIR AND DID AN AMAZING

  • TIME STEP, AND THEN SAT BACK DOWN.

  • AND AFORESAID WE WERE TALKING, AND I TOLD HIM HOW MUCH I LOVED

  • "THE BLACK STALLION."

  • AND HE SAID, "YEAH, I WAITED A LONG TIME FOR THAT."

  • HE SAID TO ME, "YOU WAIT AROUND, THOSE PARTS COME TO YOU.

  • SO WAIT.

  • YOU'RE GOING TO FIND AN AGING JOCKEY ROLE.

  • IT WILL HAPPEN.

  • IT WILL HAPPEN."

  • SO THIS GUY MARTY WAS NOT A JOCKEY, BUT IT WAS A ROLE-- IT

  • WAS A BLESSING TO GET A PART THAT I COULD JUST BE AND NOT,

  • YOU KNOW, NOT REALLY HAVE TO DO TOO MUCH.

  • I JUST LOVED THIS GUY.

  • THAT WAS REALLY GOOD ADVICE.

  • BECAUSE I THINK THE LONGER, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE AROUND, THE MORE IT

  • INFORMS YOUR WORK.

  • AND THEN IT-- I DON'T KNOW, I JUST FELT REALLY AT EASE PLAYING

  • THIS GUY.

  • >> Stephen: I HAVE TO ASK YOU--

  • >> IT'S NICE AFTER ALL THESE YEARS TO JUST FEEL LIKE, HEY,

  • I'M GETTING-- I'M GETTING IT."

  • >> Stephen: YOU'RE GOING-- YOU'RE GOING TO MAKE IT SOME

  • DAY.

  • I HAVE FAITH IN YOU.

  • BUT I HAVE TO ASK ABOUT CARL REINER.

  • OF ALL THAT GENERATION OF COMEDIANS OR COMIC WRITERS OR

  • COMIC PRODUCERS, HE, TO ME-- I DON'T WANT TO SAY THE MOST

  • ADMIRABLE, BUT HE WAS THE ONE I LOVED THE MOST.

  • UNFORTUNATELY, I NEVER GOT A CHANCE TO MEET HIM.

  • I MET MEL BUT I NEVER GOT TO MEET CARL.

  • HOW THAT MAN DIED WITHOUT A KENNEDY CENTER HONOR, I DON'T

  • KNOW.

  • BUT WHAT DID HE MEAN TO YOU?

  • BECAUSE HE WAS THE GREAT.

  • >> HE WAS.

  • HE WAS-- IF THERE WAS A CAREER TO ASPIRE TO FOR ME, IT WAS HIS.

  • BECAUSE HE DID SO MANY THINGS.

  • HE WAS A GREAT SKETCH■ç PLAYER.

  • HE WAS A WONDERFUL WRITER, RIGHT UP UNTIL THE DAY HE PASSED AWAY

  • HE WAS STILL WRITING.

  • HE PRODUCED.

  • CREATED "THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW," WAS HILARIOUS IN IT.

  • AND WHEN I FIRST SAW HIM, I WAS FIVE OR SIX YEARS OLD, AND HE

  • MADE ME LAUGH WITH SID ON THAT AMAZING SHOW OF SHOWS, AND LATER

  • ON "CAESAR'S HOUR."

  • AND THEN WHEN HE WAS 98, AND I WAS WITH HIM ON HIS BIRTHDAY, HE

  • MADE ME LAUGH.

  • AND IN BETWEEN ALL THAT TIME, HE MADE EVERYBODY LAUGH.

  • AND-- AND-- HE WAS AN UNCLE TO ME.

  • AND MEL HAS BEEN THE SAME WAY.

  • THAT'S ONE OF THE GREAT BLESSINGS.

  • ROB IS MY DEAREST FRIEND, AND THEN CARL AND I HAD A WHOLE

  • SEPARATE, WONDERFUL RELATIONSHIP WHERE WE WOULD SPEAK AND TALK

  • AND-- HE WAS JUST A GIANT.

  • I MEAN, REALLY A GIANT.

  • MY FAVORITE PHOTOGRAPH OF US TOGETHER, I MEAN "SHOW OF SHOWS"

  • REALLY MADE ME WANT TO BE FUNNY.

  • I MEAN, THERE WAS NOBODY FUNNIER ON SCREEN THAN SID.

  • AND LOOK WHO WROTE THAT SHOW.

  • THAT HUMOR WAS IN THERE.

  • MEL AND NEIL SIMON AND LATER WOODY ALLEN AND LARRY GELBARTON.

  • THIS IS A PICTURE BACKSTAGE AT THE VERY FIRST "COMIC RELIEF"

  • THAT I DID WITH ROBYN AND WHOOPI AND ALL OF OUR FELLOW COMEDIANS.

  • AND WE HONORED "SHOW OF SHOWS."

  • >> Stephen: I GOT IT.

  • WE SEE IT.

  • >> THERE'S EMMA JEAN COKE ASID, ME HUGGING SID'S LEG.

  • AND THERE'S CARL.

  • THE REASON I'M HUGGING SID'S LEG WAS THEY DID A ROUTINE THAT YOU

  • MAY REMEMBER, A SKETCH ON "THIS IS YOUR LIFE," THE RALPH EDWARDS

  • "THIS IS YOUR LIFE."

  • AND SID PLAYED A GUY WHO DIDN'T WANT HIS LIFE TO BE TOLD.

  • SO HE WAS IN■ç A MISERABLE MOOD AND THEY PLAYED OUT UNCLE GOOPY

  • AND HE CAN'T STOP CRYING, AND EVERY TIME HE SEES SID HE CRIED.

  • AND HE JUMPED ON HIM.

  • AND SID WAS SO STRONG, AND HE WAS ONID SID'S LEG AND HE

  • DRAGGED HIM AROUND THE SET.

  • I WAS FOUR OR FIVE.

  • IT WAS BEDTIME, AND MY DAD WOULD COME IN FROM WORK AND I WOULD

  • GRAB ON HIS LEG AND HE WOULD DRAG ME AROUND THE HOUSE AND PUT

  • ME TO BED.

  • WHEN I SAW THEM AND MET THEM ALL FOR THE FIRST TIME I JUST

  • GRABBED SID'S LEG LIKE THAT.

  • AND, YOU KNOW, IT WAS A CHANCE TO BE UNCLE GOOPY.

  • THEY MEANT EVERYTHING TO ME.

  • AND SID, SID WAS A GIANT.

  • AND I GOT TO TALK WITH HIM SEVERAL TIMES.

  • AND WHEN HE CAME TO SEE ME IN MY SHOW, IT WAS THE GREATEST, LIKE,

  • REVERSAL.

  • I MEAN, HE WAS THERE WATCHING ME, AND I WAS ON STAGE, YOU

  • KNOW, REALLY BECAUSE OF HIM.

  • IT WAS-- AND THE SAME WITH CARL.