Sidney Lumet and Prince of the City

It's Gilbert Gtfried and I'm here with my co host from Gilbert Gottfried's amazing cololossal podcast. My co host Frank Santo Padre, and this is Amazing obsessions. Close enough. Aazing cololossal. whatever. It was the last time I couldn't pronounce colossal.'s okay And I said Colossal. Yes Yeah. Seververal people tweeted me about it. Yeah. is Colossal That's a Yiddish holiday. Colossal. this time you just you omitted a word, which is less of a sin. I w to wish all of you A very happy Colosial. Well, this is the Eve of Payck. yeah. Yeah. and the the end of Coloso You know, interestingly enough Amazing colossal podcast. There was originally, of course, the amazing Cossal. Correct, whichich gave us our name. Made by Bertt I Gordon. Right. With Grant Williams Ah, yes, just yes And just recently, I rewatched a movie I saw when I was a kid, The Cyclops. Withert Oh, another Bertt Gordon picture. Another He was always making things big. Let me guess you were trapped in a hotel room on the road. with nothing to do. that have something to do with it? And A horrible film as most of his films were, but definitely worth watching. And of course, my boy Laon Chaney Juni.. That's right was there And it's kind of like the amazing colossal man, but he's uglier and has one eye B Burt I Gordon. Yes. And the story makes absolutely no sense. L like the rest of his films Now we're going to pick out two films week. I kind of recommend you sing. Why don't you go first? Okay, my film, it's interesting ' you you just let on your choice, by the way, which we'll get to in a minute, but I think you have still yet to pick a comedy. And this is our f show So comedian keeps picking dark films. I've picked a couple of comedies already. This is a flawed comedy. It's a film that Gilbert and I have talked about I don't know that we've talked about it on the podcast, but we've had at least one guest on the podcast from this film, that would be Larry Storch. Oh, that's right. Yeah, I'm trying to think of a be second. Larry Storch said He was in the army with Tony Curtdish. Correct. And they became friends. Larry Storch told Tony Curtish Don't give yourself disappointment. You won't have a career in act. right But when Tony Curtis became a six a big star, he would hire Larry Stoy. Yeah, what's the other one? Is it Operation Petticoat or Operation Madball or one of those that he's he's also en Yeah. Yeah, he pulled him in a lot of times. Anyway, this picture is called The Great Race. and it's a Blake Edwards movie. Like I said, it's flawed. It's not a perfect comedy It's it's a comedy I fell in love with as a kid Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis. It's got an all star cast. Natalie Wood, Kanan win Ross Martin from from Wild Wild West plays a heavy How would you describe this film? It's kind of Edwards was a was a movie lover And it's kind of an homage. to slapstick comedies. and an homage to films like the Prisoner of Zenda. There's a whole prisoner of Zenda subplot. Do you remember where Jack Lemmon is the double of the prince. Oh, that's right. Right And it's a it's a it's a Peter Falk is in it. He plays he plays Jack Lemmons's henchman. It's it's really hard to describe. It's it's a three hour movie. It was shown with an intermission. It's a comedy about a race from New York to Paris Tony Curtis plays the great Leslie who is decked out all in white. and there's even a gag in the film where when he turns at certain angles and smiles, there's a little glint a reflection off of his teeth. and Jack Lemmon chewing up the scenery, never funnier as a snideley whiplash kind of character dressed all in black called Professor Fate And and Peter Fk is his is his flunky Named Max and it has everything. It has card car chase scenes. it has a a big pie fight set piece there's there's a middle part of the film that gets serious with a sword fight. Do you remember this with Yes with Ross Martin and Tony Curtis's character have a have a duel. Its's it's an homage to to silent films. Ross Martin who W famous in wild wild. Yeah. he was Artemis Gordon. Yeah Robert Conrad sidekick in the Wild Wild West. Here he plays a heavy. It's an homage to perils of Pauline kind of movies. and I think silent films particularly slapstick comedies, the kind of stuff that Edwards loved and did well. He was a great director, a physical comedy And I saw it recently in Los Angeles with some friends. someome friends loved it. A couple of friends didn't care for it. Like I said, it's flawed. It's wildly over the top pulls out every stop in the world. It's very broad. Um, But check it out and our friend Larry has a great short scene, a short scene, but a memorable scene as Texas Jack. Do you remember this sce? Oh, Denver Pyle is also in in the picture. a slew of recognizable character actors H Smith. Oh those people you always saw in the sixties. Right. House Smith who was Otis the drunk on the Andy Griffith show. Oh my God. ye up is the mayor of Barracho, this local this little town Drager Jerk order town that they that they drive through Lemon is hilarious. It's the only other I think I could be could be wrong on this, but I think it's the only other pairing of lemon and Curtis other than some like it hot It's a big, crazy, loud, broad over the top comedy that throws in everything but the kitchen sink, wrritten by Arthur Ross, who also you would be particularly interested in this, wrote Creature fromrom the Black Lagoon. Oh wow. And he also wrote the thirty foot Bide of Candy Rock. with Lu Luca Ostceello And he's the father of Gary Ross who made sea biscuit in Pleasantville. They were those movies after they split up where Lu Castello Starnham himself. Was a dance with me, Henry or was Bud in that one? Oh Or it th Mud?m I thinking a little giant. Yeah, a little giant. Right. It was and and It was one of those things like I mean, Luke Costella was good, but you'd sit there going, well, where's habits? Right, right, right. But everyone is in this and you'll sit there. if you're a movie buff, you'll be sitting there saying, o him. o that guy. And over and over. just loved Keeenan Win. King and win's great. And he's the son of Edwin, great comedi. Wh many of our podcast guests have done an impression on. Yes So I recommend it with reservations, but it's just a film that's near and dear to my heart And Jack Lemon, we just had two wonderful guests on the show Joan Kramer and David Halley and there's a great Jack Lon, little Jack Lemmon anecdote in the book and that got me thinking of Jack Lemmon in the greatreat race. So a nod to David and Joan We will return to Gilbert Gtfried's amazing cololossal podcast after this And your movie, sir. And I'm picking, I guess I'm I guess I'm on a Sydney Lamette kit because I already named By B by Braverman and Rob Steiger and the pawn broker. made me think of another film like At One point, Sydney Lamette had made Serpico starring Alb Jin. sure And it was a terrific film. where it based on a real life story of Wh's, you know, blowing the whistle on all the other corrupt pololice crross sure and in the force And The one thing about Serpaco is it was very black and white A Serpico was the good guy The cops were all the bad guys So a few years later, Siddney Lamette and I think he said to rectify what he did' in Serpico He did another story based on a true story was Prince of the city And this was about a policeman whoo the who was working with internal affairs And he was turning in All of his his friends played by Trate Williams. Yes. Right. And U In this movie and Prince of the City, you start looking at it a different way because it's like the cops you see there corrupt there They also have a loyalty And they also look out for one another. Right, right. And treat Williams with internal affairs. They don't really care about him And then moving on to their next assignment And they don't care. And he meanwhile, he's destroying destroying the lives of these people who still are are giving him nothing but support. I remember the film. And Jerry Orbach's in it and And who else? So New York actors? Oh, anotherother great New York film Right, right. Harmine Caridi. Sure. Who was almost in the who was cast in the godfather Carmine career before losing the part of, I believe Sonny. Yeah. Yeah That's a sad story. Yeah, that's something that. I think Giani Russo told that story on our podcast, but that's going off off the subject. Who else is in Prince of the city? Who else isn't, Prince of the? There's so many great actors I wantan to say Jack Warden just because it was a Sidney LMette movie. I know. Tet Williams was the star of it because I think originally Robert De Niro was being set to play. I didn't know that. and Sidney Lamette didn't want a big name star. I think the thing had already fallen through at that point, but he wanted someone lesser known that you wouldn't get Right. You wouldn't keeppt saying that that's de Nero up there Yeah, it's ye Jerry Abeck God. There's Oh Lindsey Cruz. Oh Oh yes James Tolkien, right. Baliban. Right who's n Right we love Bob Baliban. Oh yeah, it's just loaded with these, you know, just It's loaded with those people where you go. Oh him him. Right, right, right. So so you're so you're now the president of the Syney Lumette Fan Club. You've done You've done three in a row. I waited tntil after he died, of course. On the way here tonight, I went into the the discount video and DVD store a couple of doors away from where we are here at Nutmeg Studios and I grabbed a copy the verdict Directed by Sydney L My God. Yeah. So it was Kismut with Jack Warden, who I worked with in the two probleblems. That's right. So you're two degrees two degrees removed from Paul Newman Well, I also played the Sundance kids. I don't know that. You forot that Yeah, I recommend Prince of the City because it's more, it's not black and white. It's more gray matter And and it's it's ultimately, you know depressing. Yeah. I find that fascinating. The comedian continues to to recommend depressing films. Suicidal. You just followed the pawnbroaker. You just followed a Holocaust picture with a film about police corruption And I'm sitting here desperately recommending comedies from my childhood So it's Prince of the City, Siddney Lumette and Blake Edwards the Great race. Yeah this week. Any else you want to add? yeah, I'm still looking for a new cohost. If anyone send me a tape for God's sake tape, what year is this? Send me a betaax