A Moment With ...
JACK KLUGMAN
ack Klugman and Tony
Randall, stars of televi-
sion's The Odd Couple,
were friends in real life as well
as on screen. In Tony and Me:
A Story of Friendship (Good
Hill Press; $24.95), Klugman
re-creates nearly five decades
of comradeship and collabora-
tion. As opening night speaker
for the 2005 Jewish Book Fair,
Klugman will speak — and
show video clips — 8 p.m.,
Thursday, Nov. 3, at the JCC in
West Bloomfield. $12 JCC
members; $15 non-members.
j
Q: You have been an actor all your
life, and now you're a writer, too. Are
there similarities between the two?
A: Not for me. Acting is my life. It's my
reason for waking up in the morning, and
it's been that way for over 50 years.
I don't feel that way about writing. I like
it. And I enjoyed the process very much,
particularly because I got to spend so
much time with Tony's memory, but in the
end I'm an actor.
Q: How would Tony Randall feel if he
knew you had written a book about
him?
A: I think he would be thrilled about the
book. He loved new projects, and he loved
A Moment With ...
ALAN ZWEIBEL
W
e caught up with comedy writer
Alan Zweibel in Toronto, where
comedian Billy Crystal is perform-
ing the award-winning play 700 Sundays,
which Zweibel co-wrote. A former writer for
Saturday Night Live, Zweibel last spoke at
Book Fair in 2001, when he published
Bunny, Bunny, his memoir about his friend-
ship with comedian Glide Radner.
This year, Zweibel will talk about his first
novel, The Other Shulman (William Morrow;
$25.95), a story of middle-aged angst and
marathon running. He'll be at the JCC in
West Bloomfield 8 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 6. $5
JCC members; $8 non-members.
Q: You've written material for perform-
ance on stage and television, a children's
book, a memoir and now a novel. How do
the different types of writing compare?
A: I'm essentially a comedy writer, and,
October 27.2005
to see people taking risks and trying new
things. And let's face it, in Tony and Me, he
gets top billing!
A Moment With
Q: Has your eth-
nicity influenced
your acting career
or your attitude
toward life?
A: My ethnicity is
never really been an
issue. I'm proud of
being Jewish, but I
don't make a big deal
out of the holidays or
practice very hard.
It's a lot like my
acting career. It's a big
part of who and what I
am, but I really don't
give it much thought beyond that. It's me.
I'm Jewish. I'm an actor. I'm proud of both
of those things.
n Tab Hunter Confidential: The
Making of a Movie Star
(Algonquin Books; $24.95), the
former screen idol writes about his
life during and after Hollywood. He
speaks — and shows clips from sev-
eral of his movies — at the JCC in
West Bloomfield 8 p.m., Saturday,
Nov. 12. $12 JCC members; $15
non-members.
Q: Is Judaism something you and
Tony Randall ever discussed?
A: No. Like I say in the book, I didn't
even know he changed his name until I
knew him for 20 years. So whatever Tony
felt about being Jewish was a private mat-
ter, and I never asked.
More than anything, I got the sense it
wasn't really an issue for him, either. It
seemed that Tony, like me, thought of him-
self as an actor first and everything else
second.
■ 1 ■
TAB HUNTER
I
Q: You've been an actor and
now a writer. How would you com-
pare the two — are there similari-
ties? Which is harder?
A: I find it hard to compare acting with
writing. Both involve relying on instincts and
feelings — and, of course, being truthful.
Being able to build a character is exciting for
the actor. Digging into your life and being
accurate is important as a writer. Writing also
rekindles emotions that have been stored
away in the mind or forgotten. Each presents
its own challenges.
Q: Why did you decide to write a book
about your experiences in Hollywood?
A: I decided to write a book because I was
told that someone was preparing to do one. I
figured, "Get it from the horse's mouth. Not
from some horse's ass after I'm gone:' I know
how people can distort things and put their
own spin on things.
— Diana Lieberman
hopefully, this is a funny novel.
little bit:
Writing a novel, for me, is a lot more liberat-
In the novel, the characters in the running
ing. A script is pure dialogue, so it
f
group are based on my running
has to be all story, all tak-
group; the wife is based on my
ing place at that time, in
wife. Of course, there's a lot of
- - Alan invention, but I was writing
the open.
ZweioeL about something I know about
In a novel, you can
meander a little bit, get
— it's not like I was writing
into the characters' back-
about cowboys or something.
grounds, their thoughts.
So far, I've run in three
marathons. And, yes, it worked;
Q: Where did you get
it took me out of myself.
the idea for the character
of Shulman in your novel? I
Q: Would you comment on
You write so realistically
the place of the religion
about running; are you a
and/or ethnic background on
runner yourself?
how the two Shulmans live their lives?
A: The main character is based, by and
Yourself?
large, on me. I don't own a stationery store,
A: If one reads the book, it's infused with
but four or five years ago, I was in a little bit of
my main character's religion, his relationship
a rut. My marriage felt flat, my children were
with God, his loss of faith and his regaining
going off to college, a couple of movies I wrote that faith. It's funny, but it's also spiritual.
didn't do so well.
When I was growing up on Long Island, I
I saw a sign, 'You too can run a marathon!'
had to work out my relationship with God. I
I thought, 'Maybe this will clear my head a
was very impressed with the story of Abraham
the
o th er
' hulmaa
Q: From what we hear now, the movie
community was generally aware of which
stars were homosexual, but the public
wasn't. Is that true? Do
you think today's
movie going public is
more accepting
especially of gay
actors playing het-
erosexual romantic
leads?
A: I really have no
idea what the movie
community knows or
doesn't know about stars
that might be gay. I was-
n't aware of the word
"gay" in the '50s. I personally have always
been a very private person and wanted to
keep it that way.
Today's public does seem to be more
accepting of people and their diverse
lifestyles. I was brought up with "old school"
thinking and being taught, "nothing is for
show." Funny that I should wind up in "show
business."
Q: Was there any contact with Judaism
as a religion or ethnicity in your child-
hood? Have you maintained this contact?
A: There was no contact with Judaism as a
religion in my childhood. I only found out at
age 66 that my father was Jewish. I discov-
ered this at the archives in Washington, D.C.
My mother embraced the Jewish religion and
my partner of 23 years is Jewish.
— Diana Lieberman
and how he was ready to sacrifice Isaac
because God asked him to.
I remember the rabbi asking, "What do you
think about the sacrifice of Isaac?" Well, I
thought it was horrible parenting. I didn't get
it.
I went home and asked my parents if they
would sacrifice me if God asked them, and
they said, "Yes:'
I had to get older before I understood the
difference between where faith begins and
where human deeds begin.
Q: What project(s) are you working on
now?
A: It's been a banner year.
First, writing a Tony Award-winning play for
Billy Crystal. Then, my children's book, Our
Tree Named Steve — it's about family and the
comfort that comes in a home. Then, The
Other Shulman.
All these happened in one year. All have a
spiritual yet also a funny aspect.
— Diana Lieberman
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