Gilbert Gottfried's Amazing Colossal Podcast - GGACP Rewind: Mini-Episode #20: "The Harder They Fall" and "The Verdict"

Episode Date: October 12, 2026

In this series of topic-focused mini-episodes, Gilbert and Frank share their love of unheralded films, underrated TV shows, underappreciated pop songs and (often) unknown performers, discussing, dissecting and (occasionally) defending their handpicked guilty pleasures and buried treasures. This week: Bogie takes his final bow! Sidney Lumet takes to the road! And Paul Newman takes on the Prince of %$#@! Darkness! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is Gilbert Gottfried, and I'm here with my co-host, Frank Santo Padre. And this is Gilbert and Frank's amazing colossal obsessions. I love the way you say that. I think we need a theme song, a separate theme song for this show. What do you think? We never got a theme song. No, no. Maybe get Paul Schaefer or somebody to cook us something up.

Oh, that's an original composition. Yeah, we'll work on that. Maybe we'll put it out to our listeners. Yes. And see if anybody wants to come up with a theme song. song for the amazing colossal. And while you're coming up with a theme song? Uh-oh.

A new co-host. I know where this is going. Any recommendation. I don't care if he's ever worked in radio before. How about Omar Sharif? He's out, right?

Cross Omar off the list. I'd prefer him. Oh, so what do we got this week? Okay, who wants to go first? You go first. Oh, all right. Yeah. I pick, and it's funny, because we were talking to Max Bayer Jr.

Yes, we were. Whose father was, of course, the great price fighter, a Jew price fighter, I should say. That's right. That's right. He was, well, Jewish on his father's side. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And he, well, he boxed with a star of David on his Trumps. That's right. Right. and beat Max Schmelley. Correct, which we talked about. But his father, Max, yeah, Max Bayer, appeared in this movie, basically playing himself.

And the movie was Humphrey Bogart's last film, and it was called The Harder They Fall. And it was written by Bud Schulte. Oh, yeah, Bud Schilberg. Yeah, who, of course, wrote... Well, Requiem for Heavyweight and Right. And on the waterfront. Yeah. And it's, yeah, it's Bogart's last Rod Steiger is in it. And so it shows a weird mixing of old Hollywood and then actors like Rod Steiger, who were the new Hollywood, the method actors. And I always wondered, like, how the two of their styles clashed. But it was a very interesting film. Bogard was, since it was his last film, he was dying.

He was sickly. He had throat cancer. And he, so there were points where he couldn't be understood. And the great voiceover artist, Paul Freeze. Oh, that's right. Yeah. Loom. Did some looping.

Yeah. He was the voice of Boris Battenoff as well as, a million other. Paul Freeze, look him up. Cartoons. He was also the Cyclops in the Cyclops with Lanchine. I think that came up during our anniversary episode. And so he was called a man of a thousand voices.

Before Mel Blank. Yeah, he was a great voice. And so he was dubbing in. He would do a Humphrey Bogart imitation for the parts of the movie where you couldn't make out Bogart's voice. I never knew that. It's like when Anthony Hopkins was called into loop, I think it was Olivier. Yeah. Yeah. When they re-release Sparticus. Yeah. Yeah. And what's a picture about? And oh, it's about an hour and a half. Thank you. Thank you. Remember to tip you waitresses. Bogart's a sports writer. Yeah. It's basically, um, like, like on the story of this

Primo Carnera. Right, who we talked about with Max. Yeah. Who Max Bear won the heavyweight title from? Yeah, and I think Primo Carnera was basically I could have beat him in a fight. He was one of those

kind of fighters, and the mob owned him. You mean he was like a poluca? Yeah, exactly. A bum. Like Jerry Cooney. Yeah. And the mob

owned him. And they used to have him like either win or take a dive. Right. They would, and so Bogart gets involved with Rod Steiger, who's the head gangster. Right. And he starts to find out how they're using and abusing this fighter that they have and how he gets no money. He gets totally screwed on everything.

and, oh, the great character actor, what? Oh, oh, geez. Give me a hint. What was he in? Oh, geez, that's the problem. He was in this. Aldo Ray. Nehemiah Persoff. Yeah. He's in it, and he plays Leo, the accountant. And when Stiger's asking, how come Olus money isn't going to the fighter,

He goes, well, you'll have to ask Leo that, but don't argue with Leo. He's never wrong. Ooh, I like it. I like your Steiger. It's a little like your Olivier. Yes. Nehemiah Persoff. And I remember Steiger has a great part where, you know, Bogart goes, well, you know, I'll print this.

It'll be in all the papers. The people will find out. And Steiger goes, oh, the people, the people, the little people who drink beer and fall asleep in front of their television sets. That's good. I never heard you do Rod Steiger and all the time we've been doing this. It's well worth it. The heart of they fall. Yeah, yeah.

Okay. We were talking to Max Baer Jr. about his father. His father had a lot of roles. His father did a fair amount of acting. He had an onion roll, a cinnamon roll. And you would work with a guy. I named Slapsie Maxie Rosenblum, but we didn't get to mention. And I remember every comedian on TV when I was growing up,

if they would play, do a joke with a punch drunk fighter, it was basically a Slapsie Maxie, yeah. They would always talk like that. Does he show up in the movie, Slapsie Maxie, or is it just? He might. I don't know. I think he definitely shows up in Requiem for a heavy way. Right, okay.

But yeah, no, he's. And also it's, you know, it's one of those films. It's very depressing. I haven't seen it. I know of it. I've read about it. Oh, and another great character actor who I wish we could have interviewed. Who's that?

Edward Andrews. Oh, Edward Andrews. Yeah. Oh, he was in a lot of stuff. Yeah. And most people would remember him as the uncle in 16 candles. Edward Andrews. That's right.

Yeah. That's right. Loads of things. Yeah, he was kind of like James Cairn. He had one of those careers. It just went on and on and on. You couldn't name a movie he was in. You couldn't name him, but you said,

that was that guy. Right. And speaking of Slapsie Maxie Rosenblum, I think he's referenced in a Honeymoor's episode. Oh, yes. In the TV. Yeah. Where they buy the TV and Ralph and Ed are trying to decide what to watch,

and Ralph's going through the TV guide. And he says, Slapsie Maxi Rosenblum versus Kingfish Levinsky. Do you remember this? And Norton wants to watch Captain Video. Oh, yes. I think I misspoke. I think, and Darrah just passed out. Dara, I think I misspoke.

I think that Rod Serling may have written Requiem for heavyweight. Yes. So I said Bud Schulberg. Official Space Helminton! Captain Video! My movie is one that you know, and I'm going to steal your favorite director this week. You've been talking about Sidney Lomet.

Yes. In previous weeks, we talked about by Braverman. The pawnbroker. We talked about a couple of things. Oh, God, the Prince of the City. Right, those are three that you picked. Yeah. And I watched one last night, The Verdict.

Yes. Which is just a terrific movie from the 80s with Paul Newman in a major role. I talked about Paul Newman in two previous picks. I picked the Hudsonucker proxy and Road to Perdition, but those were both small Paul Newman roles. This was a starring role. And it's important to remember. Because you don't remember. That's right.

You're sure you don't want to change the title of these shows going forward? And also in the verdict. The verdict he plays an Irishman from Boston. And it's got one of my co-stars from Problems. Jack Warden. Also, Irish-Jewish. Really? Jack Wharton.

And I'll tell you else who turns up, Edward Binns. Oh, my God. turns up in the verdict playing the Cardinal. And Edward Binns was in night moves with Gene Hackman, not I recommend. But he was all, that's right. But he was also juror number six to Jack Warden's juror number seven and 12 Angry Men. Oh, my God, yes. So there you go.

He was the, was he the advertising exec? I think so. Yeah. I'm trying to remember. Wasn't Robert Weber? Oh, it could have been Robert Weber. Who was a favorite of Blake Edwards? Blake Edwards.

That's right. Love Robert. Because he's the gay songwriter in 10. Oh, yes. Yeah, we love Robert Weber, too. So a little bit about the verdict. I mean, Newman's great. He plays a drunk Boston lawyer who's got one last shot.

It's a redemption story. One last shot at making a name for himself. And it's a malpractice suit. And it's a terrific film. I don't want to give too much of it away. There's so much to like about it. I watched it with my wife last night. And she said, you know, it really takes its time getting

to where it's going. It's long. Yeah. And it's deliberate. It's just like a great three-act play written by a playwright, David Mamet. A smart film, this you'll find interesting, that everybody was attached to this film when Richard Zannick and David Brown bought the rights to the novel. Supposedly, Frank Sinatra offered to play the part of Frank Galvin for no money. Oh, wow. Now, I don't know if this is true, so we'll do a little deep research into it. but everybody was attached to it. Roy Scheider wanted to do it. Dustin Hoffman wanted to do it.

Robert Redford had it for a while. Sidney Pollock was going to do it. Arthur Hiller was going to do it. It was one of these movies that had a journey and wound up with Lumet and Paul Newman. And as the villain, playing The Prince of Fucking Darkness, to quote Jack Warden, James Mason. Oh, yes. James Mason was great, Matt. In one of his last films, because he died two years later. And I think was that yet another film? Like I know, Heaven can wait.

They originally wanted Carrie Grant, I think. Carrie Grant was supposedly discussed for this. Yeah. According to what I found on IMDB, but it's a little... He died, I think. I think he was dead by 86. And that made it difficult. Well...

Yeah. This was 82. And I can't imagine that... And Grant wasn't acting. Hadn't acted since the 60s. So I don't know if that's true. Charlotte Rampling turns up. Oh, and Milo Shamed.

And Milo O'Shea is great. He's the evil judge. As the corrupt judge. I don't want to give too much of the plot away. Sadly, Newman, who's great in the role, lost the best actor to Ben Kingsley that year. And Hoffman was also lost, played starring to Tutsi that year.

They both lost to Ben Kingsley. A smart film, just an absorbing film that you actually can't pull yourself away from. Dustin Hoffman and Ben Kingsley are Jewish. And Jack Warden, what? Half a Jew? Yeah, half a Jew. I understand Milo O'Shea.

All so Jewish. Yes, yes. He was circumcised. By way of county cork. He wouldn't work on Saturdays. And they had a close production because it was Yom Kippur. And Milo O'Shea refused to work. I want you to know how many podcasts in the world.

And what are there now, Darrah? Six, seven, ten, thousands of podcasts? How many podcasts? Are there any podcasts that mentioned both James Mason and Slapsy Maxie Rosenblow? I'm a punch drunk fighter. Go ahead. Punch me in the face. Now, I think Slapsie Maxie...

Yeah, it was in the Monsters. Yeah, but wasn't he also in a movie that was very similar? It was basically almost like a rip-off, trying to be like arsenic and old lace. Ooh. With Boris Karloff and Peter Lorry. Oh my God. I got to look that one up.

It was... With Slapsie Maxie in the Raymond Massey part? I think... I think Slapsie Maxie was in it. Yeah. But it was like playing up like people killing people as a comedy. Right. Oh, God.

They used to show that on TV. We'll Google it after we record this. Slapsie Maxi was probably getting the parts Mike Mazzirky turned down. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. look up. I remember him in the Munsters.

Oh, yeah. Yeah. And he would, he always played the punch drunk fighter or the poluca or the bank robber or the guy that was basically, you know, because Max Bear died young and Slapsie Max he got his parts. So this week. The two movies, my pick was

the harder they fall with the great Humphrey Bogart and Rod Steiger about the fight racket. And your film, of course. The verdict. Yeah. And we'll keep bringing up. I think Sydney Lemette's going to keep coming back. And this is interesting because this is one of the Sydney Lemette films, not in New York. That's right. Yeah. That's right. Set in Boston. Yeah. But a terrific film, and Newman was never better. So see this one, and I will actually watch the heart of they fall. You know, after Problem Child came out, the reviews were Gilbert Gottreeds

never been better. Really? Yeah. That was in the street news, right? He's certainly never been better. We've seen everything else he's done, and we can assure you, he's never been better. They call you a young Edward Binns. Yes.