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Cavett
Apr 16, 2020 16:00:18 GMT
Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2020 16:00:18 GMT
I get that in my head whenever Paul Mason appears on the TV.
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Cavett
Apr 16, 2020 16:06:59 GMT
Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2020 16:06:59 GMT
Most Americans my age remember him for this, not his movies - Citizen Kane, Magnificent Ambersons, Third Man. I'd bet money on it. It's like they remember John Houseman for his Smith Barney ads. We got that ad or one very like it over here too. It wasn't for Californian champagne though, I think it was for sherry or something. How many booze ads did he do?
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Cavett
Apr 16, 2020 16:19:46 GMT
Post by Charlie O. on Apr 16, 2020 16:19:46 GMT
I was too young to really follow him during his network heydey, but his talk show was broadcast on public television from '77 to '82. That's when I watched him a lot - high school through college. I went back and looked at a lot of his older stuff once it got published on the Net. Same here. I have a great deal of affection for him, going back to that time.
But - classy and often witty though he was - I also find him painfully awkward much of the time. In many ways he really wasn't suited for the job, and I suspect he'd say as much himself.
Nonetheless, I've been watching a lot of the clips lately. I almost started a "What do we think of this?" thread on this one. I can't promise you won't find it a waste of time, though I perversely enjoyed it myself. And bear in mind it's a 15-minute edit of a 45-minute session.
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rayge
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Cavett
Apr 16, 2020 16:40:20 GMT
Post by rayge on Apr 16, 2020 16:40:20 GMT
Most Americans my age remember him for this, not his movies - Citizen Kane, Magnificent Ambersons, Third Man. I'd bet money on it. It's like they remember John Houseman for his Smith Barney ads. You could watch that clip and feel sadness. Sadness that such a great talent was "reduced" to advertising cheap champagne but...it's Orson...he's pissed...and he looks like he's enjoyed himself. And he probably used the fee to finance a movie
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Sneelock
god
you're gonna break another heart
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Cavett
Apr 16, 2020 16:55:33 GMT
Post by Sneelock on Apr 16, 2020 16:55:33 GMT
They paid him in food. Not a fat joke! I hear many jobs he took had gourmet catering as part of the deal.
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Post by Charlie O. on Apr 16, 2020 17:00:05 GMT
They paid him in food. Not a fat joke! I hear many jobs he took had gourmet catering as part of the deal. Oh, admit it - it was partly a fat joke...
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Cavett
Apr 16, 2020 17:19:56 GMT
Post by sloopjohnc on Apr 16, 2020 17:19:56 GMT
Most Americans my age remember him for this, not his movies - Citizen Kane, Magnificent Ambersons, Third Man. I'd bet money on it. It's like they remember John Houseman for his Smith Barney ads. You could watch that clip and feel sadness. Sadness that such a great talent was "reduced" to advertising cheap champagne but...it's orson...he's pissed...and he looks like he's enjoyed himself. Kinda like Truman Capote. They bled their past successes dry on being B list celebrities. The only thing that kept them from C level were their past efforts.
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Sneelock
god
you're gonna break another heart
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Post by Sneelock on Apr 16, 2020 17:32:44 GMT
OK, I'm going to need to start an Orson Welles thread to stop myself from hijacking this one. maybe we have one already? I'll have a look.
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Sneelock
god
you're gonna break another heart
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Post by Sneelock on Apr 16, 2020 17:39:30 GMT
Anyway, at his best, Cavett was great. Have you seen that interview where he explains when a guest died on the air? he has the gift of gab and he was usually interested in his guests - these were big plusses.
on the minus side - he could be show-offy like when he insulted Lester Maddox. sure, Lester Maddox was a man seriously in need of insulting but he was invited on the show. Randy Newman supposedly wrote "Rednecks" after viewing that episode. that'll teach him! Another time he wanted to engage Eddie Murphy in a discussion about Mark Twain's use of the n-word. Eddie made it realy clear he didn't want to go there but Cavett kept trying to take it there anyway.
on the other hand - look at those guests! I'll never forget some segments that people have already mentioned. Also when James Baldwin discussed racism to some Pilsbury Doughboy looking m.F. who said something like "you people always try to make everything about race" Baldwyn stretched and said something to the effect of "I am a black man living in America - everything IS about race." As a kid, seeing things like this and "Woodstock generation" stuff really rounded out the world the TV was showing me. Also, great movie stars who were still kicking with nothing to promote still had a lot to say to somebody who was interested. Bette Davis & Katherine Hepburn seemed amazed that people clapped at them and liked their personalities. it was a wonderful program.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2020 18:26:53 GMT
OK, I'm going to need to start an Orson Welles thread to stop myself from hijacking this one. maybe we have one already? I'll have a look. Do it!
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Cavett
Apr 16, 2020 20:29:41 GMT
Post by sloopjohnc on Apr 16, 2020 20:29:41 GMT
Anyway, at his best, Cavett was great. Have you seen that interview where he explains when a guest died on the air? he has the gift of gab and he was usually interested in his guests - these were big plusses. on the minus side - he could be show-offy like when he insulted Lester Maddox. sure, Lester Maddox was a man seriously in need of insulting but he was invited on the show. Randy Newman supposedly wrote "Rednecks" after viewing that episode. that'll teach him! Another time he wanted to engage Eddie Murphy in a discussion about Mark Twain's use of the n-word. Eddie made it realy clear he didn't want to go there but Cavett kept trying to take it there anyway. on the other hand - look at those guests! I'll never forget some segments that people have already mentioned. Also when James Baldwin discussed racism to some Pilsbury Doughboy looking m.F. who said something like "you people always try to make everything about race" Baldwyn stretched and said something to the effect of "I am a black man living in America - everything IS about race." As a kid, seeing things like this and "Woodstock generation" stuff really rounded out the world the TV was showing me. Also, great movie stars who were still kicking with nothing to promote still had a lot to say to somebody who was interested. Bette Davis & Katherine Hepburn seemed amazed that people clapped at them and liked their personalities. it was a wonderful program. One of the show's great moments. Also love this moment with Lester Maddox and Jim Brown. I don't know if Maddox knew how big of a bad ass Brown was. Brown is unbelievably calm during this. Brown was not only one of the greatest US football players ever, he is also a member of the LaCrosse Hall of Fame. You never get this kind of debate nowadays.
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Cavett
Apr 16, 2020 20:43:49 GMT
Post by sloopjohnc on Apr 16, 2020 20:43:49 GMT
His conversations with Groucho and Lennon were always pretty stellar. Here's a conversation with George, which was not.
Cavett's more recent comments on the interview.
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Cavett
Apr 16, 2020 20:51:40 GMT
Post by oh oooh on Apr 16, 2020 20:51:40 GMT
His conversations with Groucho and Lennon were always pretty stellar. I enjoyed the show with Groucho but I seem to remember G being a bit whingy about young people. He spent quite a bit of time complaining - more of that than the jokes you might have expected.
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Cavett
Apr 16, 2020 20:52:22 GMT
Post by oh oooh on Apr 16, 2020 20:52:22 GMT
The Lennon stuff's great, isn't it? I've actually got a DVD box with all the shows, some extras where DC reminisces, some outtakes.
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Sneelock
god
you're gonna break another heart
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Post by Sneelock on May 18, 2022 16:27:15 GMT
the cable channel DECADES is usually showing an old episode of Cavett about the time I get home from work. last night it was Muhammad Ali and Norman Mailer.
whooooo-boy does Mailer come off like a dick. Ali takes it all in stride. Mailer presumes to tell him why he lost to Frazier, Ali listens more politely than Mailer deserves.
it's fun returning to a time when people who wrote books were famous but Holy Fuck what kind of macho goddam chip does Mailer have on his shoulder? KEE-reist.
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