Gilbert Gottfried's Amazing Colossal Podcast - GGACP Rewind: Mini-Episode #22: "The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz" and "Paper Moon"

Episode Date: October 26, 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: Exit Paul Newman, enter Ryan O’Neal! Richard Dreyfuss comes of age! And the enigma of Randy Quaid! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hey, you like making great money, right? You sound like Chico Marx. Yeah. Hey, you like a great money. Hey, boss. Well, you got to get the book with horses in it. And then you get the book with the riders. You're picking a subpar Marx Brothers movie.

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Yeah, yeah. I usually go shut up. I'm in show business, and I'm above you. No. They love being their own boss. Yeah, I love being my own boss. Then I can make a joke that offends me and fire myself. Absolutely.

And cut out the middleman. And that still may happen. Also, I hear they make great money. They do. They do. It's easy to start. All you need is a car and a license. Now, you have one of those things.

Now, yes. Yeah, yeah, it's one of them around here. I don't know what. And driving with Uber is great if you need flexibility. Or if you're a parent like you are. Yes, yeah, because you're working around the family schedule or students. Right, that's right. They can make money in between classes.

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Is it drive with Uber.com? That's drive with ubeer.com. Hey, this is Gilbert Gottfried. Hi, this is Gilbert Gottfried. And I'm here with my co-host, Frank Santopadre. And this is Gilbert and Frank's amazing obsessions. Or is it amazing colossal ups? Doesn't matter.

Doesn't really matter. It doesn't matter. Although for the theme song that we put out there. We put out the invitation for somebody to actually write some music for us. And a friend of mine sent in a theme song, which I'm going to play for you later. And maybe we'll actually get an MP3 and we'll work it into the show. Oh, okay. So somebody actually took us up on the insane offer to write us some music.

So we've got some music, but I'm still not sure what the title. It doesn't matter. Is it amazing colossal? Amazing colossal obsessions. Yeah. Yeah, because we wanted to keep the branding. So then I should have said, this is Gilbert and, And Frank's amazing colossal obsessions.

Right. My standards have been lowered. Even if you come close, I accept it. I don't care. I never cared from the beginning. Quality control. What quality control? So you got a movie this week?

We're sitting in a 102-degree room at the Friars Club, by the way. I have one. We've spoken about this one. It's come up on the show before. I'm intrigued. And this is the apprenticeship of Dutty Kravitz. Oh, you're just saying that to get Richard Dreyfus to do the show. Yes, please do the show, Richard.

Yeah. And we just want to ask you about yours. Well, Joan and David said they were going to help us get Richard Dreyfus. Oh, I'd love to have Richard Dreyfus on. Me too. Because you know what, Richard Dreyfus is? A Jew. Yes.

In fact, I believe this film is about the Jewish experience. Yes. Yes. It's all about Jews. I think it's from the book, all about Jews. And it was written by Mordecai Rickler. That's the guy. I'm not sure what his heritage is.

I'm not sure you're pronouncing his name correctly anyway, but what the hell? I don't think I am. But with, yeah, and it's like, well, of course Richard Dreyfus. When he was young and pretty much unknown at the time. and Randy Quaid before he went bat shit crazy. Randy Quaid's in my movie too. Oh, yeah. Oh, great.

And Randy Quaid, at one point, the authorities were after him. Oh, yes. And he fled, he was going to hide out in Canada. So the first thing he did when he got to Canada was hold a press conference that I'm in Canada hiding out. Well, first he was. squatting in someone's home. Oh, yes, yes. And then he made a weird sex tape.

Do you remember this? And his wife was wearing a mask. Was it him and Dennis? No. His wife was wearing a strange mask. I don't know. It was some kind of political statement. Yes.

But anyway, in the old days, when he had a legitimate acting career. He was in this. Right. And he was actually good. Isn't Jack Warden in it? Yes. Yeah, yeah. And that's interesting, too, because this is kind of,

kind of once again, it's Jack Warden and Joseph Wiseman. Oh, Doctor No. Yes. Right. And they were in another film, I recommended. That was by-bye Braverman. They acted together and there. Correct.

Weird. And this was one of those, it's like a smaller film. I think it was a Canadian production company. I think Ted Kachif was the director. Do I have that right? A Canadian director? Oh, yes. I'm going to look it up on my phone while you're talking.

But go ahead. Yeah. I'll take it. No one. attention. Not at all. While I'm talking. It's like, yeah, I'm going to go out and take a walk while you're talking.

I'm going to, I'm going to check on my dry cleaning while you're talking. I think I got it right. Yes. And Richard Dreyfuss is like, you know, a conniving character in it. But you're fascinated by him. It's a coming of age film. Oh, yes. Yes.

And so I recommend that one. The apprenticeship of. Isn't it Doody Cravets? Oh, yeah, Dutty Kravitz. And you know something, I think David Steinberg, a Canadian Jew, that people called him Dudi. Oh, Doodoo is a nickname for David, I believe. Yeah, so they all used to call him Dutie. Right.

I don't know why I know that being a Gentile. Yeah. The Gilbert Gottfried's amazing colossal podcast, producer of the month for August. is Kate Jones. Thank you, Kate. Be just like Kate and get rewarded for supporting our podcast. Head over to patreon.com slash Gilbert Gottfried. For a small amount each month, you can get some colossal benefits, such as access to new podcast episodes before anyone else, exclusive video hangouts, shoutouts from me on Twitter. I will even read something that you send me,

and it'll sound just like this. Go to patreon.com slash Gilbert Gottfried. that's Patreon P-A-T-R-E-O-N dot com slash Gilbert Gottfried we thank you for your generosity Randy Quaid also turns up in my movie which is... By accident he's hiding out

he wasn't in cast in the movie he was hiding out on the set he was in the balcony of a theater bootlegging him He thought it's a movie. No one will see me here. You remember when he had this big career, like the last detail? Yes. And what was he in the last picture show?

I think he's in that. Oh, yeah. Lots of stuff, the long riders. Anyway, this is Paper Moon. Oh, yes. Peter Bogdanovitch's Paper Moon. And I want to sing the praises of an unsung talent or an unheralded, lesser-known talent. Polly Platt, you know, Polly Platt, who was married to Bogdanovich.

Oh, yes. and was a production designer and a screenwriter, and she brought him this material. It was a novel. And she brought him the – she was involved, actually, with a lot of his films. She was involved with targets. We've talked about targets on the show with Sarah Karloff. She was involved with the last picture show. She was sort of the woman behind the man in Bogdanovitch's life, and later she went on to work with James L. Brooks.

But she's also – she's interesting because there would not have been a Simpsons without Polly Platt, because she was the person that took Matt Grainning's strip, one of the Life in Hell strips, and gave it to James L. Brooks. Oh. And that's when he hired Gaining to do the shorts on the old Tracy Ullman show. Remember how the Simpsons started out as those shorts? So Polly Platt, the late Polly Platt I wanted to give a shout out to, because she's connected to a film I'm going to recommend now, Paper Moon. And I should say that I worked for two weeks on a Peter Bogdanovich. Oh, there's a connection.

That's right. What was the Boganovich? It was the last of the Richard Pryor, Gene Weil. Oh, my God. And it was called Another You. I know that picture. And it was horrible. Wasn't he replaced as a director on that?

Yes. Somebody else, Arthur Hiller or somebody? Yeah, he was replaced as a director. Right. And then I knew already then we, that was. was the stamp. Who did you play? I was like one of the mental patients. Right. And Prior was really failing at that point. Oh, yeah. Because even in the previous one, where he was, see no evil. Here, he looked like a zombie. That's sad. And, and, and, but he was very nice to me. That's nice. Very

nice. And he acted like, he prior acted to me like I was the big comedy star and he was this donning fan. fascinating. He was great. But he got fired by Donovitch. And then they decided to cut all previously shot footage to make it into the classic movie. You could have been in this really terrible film. Yes, I could have been. I made up for it and other pieces of shit.

More than I would say. So go back to Paper Moon. This is Paper Moon, which was what I said was a novel. and she found the novel, brought it to Bogdanovich, and interestingly, it was originally developed as a movie for Paul Newman, and it was developed by John Houston, and Paul Newman was going to do the film with his actual daughter. Isn't that interesting?

And then Houston fell out, so Newman fell out. And Polly Platt, who was a fan of the book, brought it to Bogdanovich, and it was called, I believe it was called Addy Prey, after Adi, the character played by Tatum O'Neill, And they changed the title to Paper Moon. And Orson Wells, who Bogdanovich was spending a lot of time with at that time, said, that's a great title. You don't even have to make the movie.

You could just release the title. And you've seen the movie. It's a Depression-era drama comedy. And this was before Ryan O'Neill was kicking the shit. Yeah, well before. Yeah. Well before. Again, speaking of what we were talking about Randy Quaid,

when Ryan O'Neill had a real acting career. Oh, my God. This was after Bogdanovich made a lot of it. Last Picture Show, and then What's Up, Doc, with Ryan O'Neill and Barbara Streisand. This is shot in black and white. It's shot by the great Laslow Kovacs, who shot Easy Rider, and Five Easy Pieces, and shampoo in the last waltz. And it's a sweet film. It's a simple film about a con man who sells Bibles to Grieving Widows. He looks them up in the obituaries and says, your husband ordered this Bible for you before he died. And this little girl comes into his life, played by his act.

real-life daughter, Tatum O'Neill, who would wind up winning an Oscar. Oh, yeah. For this part, I think she was at 10. Which I'm sure I had to have added to why he kicked the shit out of her years later. The story is, I saw, I was watching some of the extras on the DVD that because O'Neill, Ryan O'Neill and Bogdanovitch were not nominated, supposedly they didn't show up. Oh, my God. I can only assume that she was there to accept her Oscar, that she either came with her mother.

or some kind of guardian, you know, or the nanny, or someone. It's a terrific film. It's a sweet movie. It's got Madeline Khan shows up as Trixie Delight, the love interest for Ryan O'Neill's character. Randy Quaid, who we were just talking about, shows up as playing a hillbilly. He wrestles him for his car. And of course, the voice of the... The car in David Hasselhoff.

Oh, yes, very good. Yes. John Hillerman. John Hillerman. John Hillerman was also in, was Magnum P.I. Oh, yes, yes. John Hillerman plays two parts. He plays a bootlegger and his sheriff brother.

Yeah. Who busts O'Neill, bust him up physically. It's a beautiful looking film, lots of long takes. And Wells was kind of hanging around. as an advisor to Bogdanovich when he made the film. So see it. It's terrific. I just watched it again with my wife this morning.

Paper Moon. And then look up Polly Platt, who had a fascinating career. They actually made a comedy about Bogdanovich and Polly Platt's marriage ending, which was a movie called A Reconcilable Differences. Oh, my God, with Ryan O'Neill. With Ryan O'Neill, of all people. And Sheldie Long. Right, with Sharon Stone playing the civil.

Simple Shepherd character. Oh, my God. Yes. The beautiful woman that comes between and Polly Platt, rather Riley, said that they got more right about the film than they got wrong. Yeah. But she would later go on to work with James L. Brooks, and she did a lot of cool stuff in her career.

And she was a production designer and a writer and a producer. Anyway. So you recommend... Oh, what was the Paul Newman movie that he directed starring his daughter? Oh, gosh. Had a girl's name in it. Oh, I know the one you mean. Like something, something.

Like Rachel, was it Rachel Rachel? I think it was. Which was then maybe parodied on Seinfeld as Rochelle, Rochelle. Oh, yes, yes. Or at least the title was. Yeah. He directed a couple of movies, Newman. He directed, I think he directed sometimes a great notion, which was the movie about the...

Oh, Sherlock Holmes. No, no. It was a movie about Loggers. Oh! And I think he directed that one. He definitely directed a movie called Harry and Son with Robbie Benson. Oh, okay. About a father and son.

having a difficult relationship. But I think that's the one you're talking about with Joanne Woodward in the lead. Yeah, Rachel Rachel. Rachel, Rachel, which I have never seen. So I'm recommending Paper Moon. It's a lot of fun. If you get your hands on the DVD, the extras are a lot of fun. And you recommend it.

And I'm recommending Richard Dreyfus and, of course, the once again, Jack Warden and Joseph Wiseman working together. I love Joseph Wiseman. In the apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz. Does Jack Guilford show up in that one? He might. I seem to remember him in the trailer. He certainly fits the ethnic background. And I could be crazy wrong, but I think the director was Ted Kachif.

Yes, I think you're right. It's 106 degrees in this room and I'm delirious. So we'll see you next week.