#?@% ‘EM!
THE MANTRA OF MAURICE DUKE
An Interview With His Daughter,
FREDRICA DUKE
Maurice Duke and wife Evelyn, and celebrities including Sabu, Danny
Thomas and June Wilkinson
Maurice Duke had show business in his blood. At the age of 15, he won a talent contest in Central Park, playing harmonica. He parlayed that victory into Vaudeville success by performing with his group, The Cappy Barra Boys In those years of the Depression, he sent all the money he made back home to his parents. At some point, Duke realized that he could earn more managing the harmonica group than by playing with them. Duke would soon become personal manager for Mickey Rooney, Zero Mostel, newscaster and talk show host Tom Snyder, and even Lassie the Dog. In short order, he was producing movies starring many of his clients. His daughter, Fredrica, is producing a documentary about her father, whose distinctive appearance with a leg brace and a cane—a legacy of childhood polio—made him the subject of countless show business anecdotes, and which seemed to even more firmly establish his persona as a one-of-a-kind Hollywood showman
Q: What inspired you to do a documentary about your father?
I MISS HIM SO MUCH, IT’S THE ONLY WAY I COULD THINK TO BRING HIM BACK TO LIFE.
Q: Can you give us a little background about how your dad began his career in the area of entertainment?
HE CONTRACTED POLIO AS A CHILD. WHILE BEDRIDDEN DURING A LONG STAY AT THE CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL, HE TAUGHT HIMSELF TO PLAY HARMONICA. LATER HE WON A TALENT SHOW IN CENTRAL PARK. THAT SET OFF ON A VAUDEVILLE CAREER PLAYING IN A HARMONICA BAND CALLED THE CAPPY BARRA BOYS.
Q: In an interview, the late Herman Cohen suggested that your dad was able to turn the polio he had suffered from around, in a sense, by using it to his advantage in life and in business. For instance, he referred to his “wild tongue. Tell us about that.
HE OVERCOMPENSATED FOR HIS HANDICAP. THOUGH HE WAS LIMITED PHYSICALLY, HE MADE UP FOR IT WITH HIS MOUTH AND BIGGER-THAN-LIFE PERSONALITY, WHICH WAS SO INFECTIOUS, PEOPLE WANTED TO BE AROUND HIM. I THINK STUDIO EXECUTIVES MADE DEALS WITH HIM JUST TO BE AROUND THAT ENERGY.
Q: Also, according to Cohen, he also had quite a sense of humor. As someone who lived with this daily, what was it like?
SHOCKING. OUTRAGEOUS. BRUTALLY HONEST. HE DIDN’T HOLD A THING BACK.
Q: He has been quoted as having produced “103 pieces of s---” in referring to his movies. In his heart of hearts, did he really believe this, or do you think he had a sense of pride veiled behind comments like that, or just what was it??
HE WAS PROUD OF GETTING A LOT OF MOVIES MADE. HE WAS A GREAT SALESMAN. HOWEVER, HE DID KNOW THAT MOST OF THEM WERE PIECES OF S—T. I THINK HE WAS SECRETLY PROUD OF “THE ATOMIC KID,” WITH MICKEY ROONEY, WRITTEN BY BLAKE EDWARDS.
Q: Either way, was there a particular film that gave him a sense of satisfaction that made it all worthwhile for him? Possibly BELA LUGOSI MEETS A BROOKLYN GORILLA.
I THINK HE HAD FUN ON EVERY FILM.
Q: He was very proud of having won a plaque for “Worst Movie of All Time” for BROOKLYN GORILLA. Who was the donor of this plaque?
I’M PRETTY SURE IT WAS UCLA FILM SCHOOL.
GORILLA FILMMAKING
Speaking with Writer
MICHAEL BARRIE
Michael Barrie is not only the husband of Fredde Duke, and thereby, of course, the son-in-law of the late Maurice Duke, but is also an accomplished, Emmy-nominated writer of television. He is currently on staff at “The Late Show with David Letterman,” and has also written for Johnny Carson and Dean Martin. In addition, his film credits include BAD BOYS and AMAZON WOMEN ON THE MOON. He has co-written--with Jim Mulholland—“Plenty of Money & You,” a screenplay about the making of BELA LUGOSI MEETS A BROOKLYN GORILLA, which they hope to produce.
Q:How did the whole idea for the film BELA LUGOSI MEETS A BROOKLYN GORILLA come about?
The comedy team of Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis were a show business phenomenon, the Beatles of their era. Maurice Duke wanted to make a Martin & Lewis picture and the fact that he didn’t have Martin & Lewis to make it with wasn’t going to stop him.
Q: It has seemed unclear as to how Bela Lugosi became involved with the film, which might be considered to have been his last “good” role. Did Maurice Duke have anything to do with this?
Legend has it that Duke spotted Bela on the lot and immediately offered him the title role. Lugosi accepted. All Duke had to do then was come up with a title role. Lugosi needed money and Duke needed a “star.” Had he been crossing the lot on a different day, the movie might have been, “Dane Clark Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla.”
Q: Duke Mitchell and Sammy Petrillo do an amazing impersonation of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis in the film. Yet the “real” Jerry Lewis was not pleased or amused. In fact, at one point, he stormed into the office and had a “screaming session” with producer Jack Broder. Did Maurice face him about this at any point?
Duke Mitchell was a decent looking singer with a pleasant voice, but he didn’t really “do” Dean. Petrillo, however, was a dead ringer for Lewis and could do all his bits. He had once played Lewis’s son on the Colgate Comedy Hour. Even with all their success, Jerry Lewis and Paramount must have felt that this impersonator would somehow steal Jerry’s fans and grosses. In retrospect, it’s like Johnny Carson feeling threatened by Rich Little, or Kirk Douglas fearing Frank Gorshin. It was absurd, but comedians are like that. When Duke sensed the level of paranoia in the Lewis camp, he felt he could make more money selling the negative to Paramount than releasing the picture. That plan was foiled when Broder let Jerry and the movie execs screen the film and of course they realized there was no threat whatsoever.
Q: The film is also interesting in that it was a collaboration between three noted independent producers: Maurice Duke, Jack Broder (Realart Pictures, BRIDE OF THE GORILLA) and Herman Cohen(I WAS A TEENAGE FRANKENSTEIN AND WEREWOLF). Were these men able to “express” their ‘unique selves” in working, or from working with each other?
Nothing would stop Duke from expressing his unique self. I can’t vouch for the other two.
Q: What was your own first, personal “experience” with BROOKLYN GORILLA?
As a kid, I came upon it changing the TV channel. For about five minutes, I thought it was Jerry Lewis… and then I wasn’t so sure … and finally I realized it was a clone. That made it much funnier.
Q: The idea of writing a script to be performed that is geared around the making of an old low budget movie is very unusual, except for say, Wim Wenders and THE STATE OF THINGS. What was your inspiration for doing the script?
When Duke died in 1996, I had known him for about five years. He was a major Hollywood character and pretty well-known, though I don’t think he was on anyone’s A-list. He was loud, profane and had no inhibitions about talking to anyone in any setting: restaurants, weddings, funerals. As a writer, you’re always looking for a character you can hear in your head. He had hundreds of anecdotes, but the one about making a Martin & Lewis pic without Martin & Lewis, and then trying to extort their studio into buying the film was too good to pass up. Talk about the audacity of hope.
Q: Did you ever get a chance to discuss your script with Maurice Duke before his passing. If not, what do you think he would have thought of it?
I never planned to write it when he was alive, so we never discussed it. Though he’d often preface an anecdote with, “When they make the movie of my life…” It only occurred to Jim Mulholland & me after the obits and the reminiscences about Duke. I’m sure of two things: he would have loved it and he wouldn’t have read it.
Q: Who do you see as being cast in the lead roles in the film: Bela Lugosi, Sammy Petrillo, Duke Mitchell, and, of course Maurice Duke?
It’s actually a fictionalized version of Maurice Duke’s story, so we changed names and created personalities for all but Duke. The movie within the movie is similar to the original, but doesn’t include Lugosi as that was pretty well covered in “Ed Wood.” The real Petrillo was only 17 when Gorilla was made, so we plan on finding an unknown who can do a young Jerry Lewis. Charlie Sheen would be great as our temperamental singer. The perfect Maurice Duke would probably be Danny DeVito. Duke looked & sounded very much like Danny and was about the same height. Some actors who have expressed interest in playing Duke are Joe Pesci, Nathan Lane & Lewis Black.
Q: Such a film would of course, be likened to Tim Burton’s ED WOOD, in regards to Bela Lugosi and low budget filmmaking in general. How would you compare both film endeavors?
I loved “Ed Wood.” However, Wood had illusions of being a great director. Maurice Duke had no such illusions. He was basically a producer of exploitation films, capitalizing on some craze or fad of the moment. Also, we think of our movie as something of a romantic comedy. At the time he made “Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla,” Maurice Duke was about 41 years old. He was a 5-foot tall, bald, Jewish, cigar-smoking loudmouth from New York, who walked with a brace & cane due to polio. He fell in love with and married a beautiful, genteel (& gentile) southern model, twenty years his junior. She was quite stunning—Evelyn. It was a unique love story and we kind of re-imagine it in the screenplay.
Q: The film THE CANDIDATE(1964) was loosely based on the scandal concerning Bobby Baker, who was Secretary to the Democrats, involving ties to underworld figures and casino operations. This was a departure from the usual light hearted fare your dad was associated with. What drew him to this project?
IF IT WAS MORE SERIOUS FARE, IT MUST HAVE BEEN SOMEBODY ELSE WHO DREW HIM INTO IT. HE WAS NOT A SERIOUS OR A POLITICAL GUY. I’VE NEVER SEEN THE FILM.
Q: It seems that there was some confusion between your dad’s film and a later film with the same title with Robert Redford, which led to some legal issues being raised. What happened with that?
MY FATHER SAW IT AS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR A FRIVOLOUS LAW SUIT. HE LOST.
Q: He was executive producer of future Seinfeld star Jason Alexander’s first sitcom, Everything’s Relative. Are there any anecdotes that foreshadowed the future success that Jason would have?
ONLY THAT HIS EGO THEN WAS AS BIG AS IT IS NOW.
Q: You worked with your father, as an actress on a number of occasions, including TWIST ALL NIGHT and KEATON’S COP. What was that like?
BEING AROUND MY FATHER WAS ALWAYS EXCITING, WHETHER I WAS WORKING AS AN ACTRESS OR NOT. HE WAS ALWAYS VERY PROUD OF ME AND I LOVED THAT.
Q: Who are some of the other people involved with your documentary?
UNFORTUNATELY, I PROBABLY WAITED TOO LONG TO BEGIN THIS PROJECT. THE SUMMER BEFORE I STARTED, THE TWO PEOPLE WHO TOLD THE BEST STORIES ABOUT THE DUKE —RED BUTTONS AND JAN MURRAY—DIED. SO, IT’S REGRETTABLE THAT I DIDN’T GET THEM. BUT I LOVED INTERVIEWING SHECKY GREENE, WHO WAS A CLOSE FRIEND OF MY FATHER’S. ALSO JUNE WILKINSON, WHO WAS MY DAD’S BEST FEMALE FRIEND, ABOUT WHOM HE SAID, “HER TITS ARE SO BIG, THEY HAVE TITS.” I ALSO INTERVIEWED ACTOR BARRY NEWMAN, WHO WAS A BIG DUKE FAN.
Q: There is an irony in that someone who came across so abrasively and profanely as Maurice Duke could also inspire such love and appreciation among others not just in the family circle. How do you account for this?
HE COULD CHARM ANYBODY. HE HAD THESE TWINKLY EYES. EVERYONE WANTED TO BE AROUND HIS BOUNDLESS ENERGY AND ENTHUSIASM. HE REALLY POURED LOVE AND SUPPORT INTO HIS CHILDREN, FRIENDS & CLIENTS.
Duke and his children Fredrica(Fredde) and son Alan
|
