Rick McKay's CARL REINER Broadway: Golden Age Trilogy Tribute!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Carl Reiner, one of our stars of Rick McKay's BROADWAY: THE GOLDEN AGE FILM TRILOGY. He starred on Broadway in Call Me Mister opposite BROADWAY: THE GOLDEN AGE stars BETTY GARRETT and JOAN KOBIN, is a legend of the early years of television comedy, and from 1950 to 1957, he co-wrote and acted on Caesar's Hour and Your Show of Shows, starring comedian Sid Caesar. In the 1960s Reiner was best known as the creator, producer, writer, and actor on The Dick Van Dyke Show. He also had great success as a film director and writer, and partnered with Steve Martinin the 1970s when Reiner co-wrote and/or directed some of Martin's most successful films, including 1979's The Jerk. Carl also played a comedy duo in "2000 Year Old Man" with Mel Brooks, and acted in films such as The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming (1966) and the Ocean's Trilogy (2001-2007). Reiner has won twelve Emmy Awards and one Grammy Award during his career. He is the father of actor and director Rob Reiner and author Annie Reiner.

An interesting footnote about this interview: Fay Wray, my dear friend, and the original star of KING KONG and 90 other movies, had loaned me her apartment in Century City in Los Angeles to film the interviews that I was doing on this trip from New York. When Carl was walking around as I was lighting, he noticed a directors chair with Fay's name on it and looked at me and said, "I bet this cost you a pretty penny on eBay!" I laughed politely and said that actually it belonged to Fay Wray and that this was her apartment she was letting us use. He laughed politely as well, thinking I was kidding, I am sure. He then noticed some family pictures on the coffee table and said, "Oh I know this woman, that's Vicki Riskin, she is the president of the Writers Guild and her father was Robert Riskin the great screenwriter. Do you know her?" And I said, "Yes I do, very well," and he suddenly remembered, "Wait a minute. Her mother is Fay Wray," looking at me quizzically. "Is this apartment really Fay Wray's? And what have you done with her?!" I think for a moment he was actually worried that this crazy guy that was interviewing him may have kidnapped Fay Wray and he might be next, and he was looking for an exit just in case! I convinced him that all was well when he saw pictures of Fay and I around the apartment, and he relaxed and started studying the Miros and Picasso on the walls and ended up having a great time in the interview as well.

By the way, for those of you who are trivia buffs and Broadway: The Golden Age Trilogy fans, you'll notice that Carole Cook and Amanda Plummer were both also shot in Fay's apartment and you'll recognize some of the same artwork in the background ;-).

So here is Carl Reiner in our interview – the first six or seven minutes with absolutely no cuts and no extra pictures or video overlaid – because he just plain doesn't need it. You will see one cut and it is only because I am babbling as I zoomed in to check my focus and I didn't really want to waste your time as I yacked while focusing – otherwise it is just Carl being his brilliant self. Happy Birthday Carl. And by the way, have I told you that I think you're the best? Because I do!

From Producer/Director Rick McKay and "Broadway: BEYOND the Golden Age" mega-producers Anne Bernstein, William Nix, Jamie DeRoy, Richard Eric Weigle, Jane Klain, Corey Brunish, Rachel Roark Stange, Fran Bator, Michael Anastasio, Jack Coco and Celia Castevens.

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