Gilbert Gottfried's Amazing Colossal Podcast - Mini-Ep #37: Charley Varrick and Alone In The Dark

Episode Date: December 3, 2015

Each week, comedian Gilbert Gottfried and comedy writer Frank Santopadre share their appreciation of lesser-known films, underrated TV shows and hopelessly obscure character actors -- discussing, dissecting and (occasionally) defending their handpicked guilty pleasures and buried treasures. This week: Appreciating Don Siegel! Martin Landau busts out! And Walter Matthau meets the Scorpio Killer! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Ah, never mind. Hi, this is Gilbert Gottfried, and this is Gilbert and Frank's Amazing Obsession. Hi, this is Gilbert Gottfried. Yes. And one day I'll know the names of my co-hosts and the name of the show. And I'll know how to pronounce my own name, maybe. But anyway, I am Gilbert Gottfried. And this is Gilbert and Frank's Amazing Colossal Obsessions. It's not fair to you that the title should be so long. Yes.

It really should have been a shorter title, like MASH. Something you could just get very simply. So who wants to go first? You know, we just had Mr. Skin here on the show. We're here at Frank Nutmeg Post with the good graces of our friend Frank Verderosa. So I'm sitting here and I'm thinking, do I have a nude scene

in one of my movies? I'll go first. Okay. This first film, and I have a little bit of trivia that goes with this film that I think you're going to like. Director named Don Siegel.

Oh, yes. Yeah. Dirty Harry. That's right. And we haven't talked about him on the show. He made a lot of wonderful films, Escape from Alcatraz and The Killers with Burt Lancaster.

The Shootist with John Wayne, which I just bought for five bucks next door. But you're going to love this. He also directed the Don Gordon episode of The Twilight Zone that you and I talked about. The trading one? Yes. The one, it's called The Self-improvement of Salvador Ross. Yes! Yes. Don Gordon, as I always say,

is someone I always get confused with John Saxon. Right. John Saxon, I think they're both still with us, actually. They are? Well, John Saxon's alive. Maybe we should try him. Hmm, I wonder if Don... Maybe Don Gordon's gone. Yeah. But he was in Body Snatchers. Oh, yeah. Right? Which Don Siegel also directed. Yeah. Yeah. But he was in Body Snatchers.

Oh, yeah. Right. Which Don Siegel also directed. Yeah. The original Invasion of the Body Snatchers. But I knew you'd like that trivia. Yes. That's a very good trivia.

And I have a little something for you at the end of this. But let's get to Don Siegel and a 1973 movie, one of his lesser known movies called Charlie Varick. Oh, was this Walter Matthau? You bet. Yes. I referenced it briefly when we were talking to Artie Lang at Caroline's. Walter Matthau. I'm Charlie Varick.

That's pretty good. Charlie Varick. Matthau plays a crop duster and a washed-up stunt pilot who decides to knock over a bank. And he unwittingly steals mob money. Do you know this picture? Oh. It's very good. I saw it years ago.

It's very, very good. And he doesn't realize. He knocks over this small bank in New Mexico having no idea that it's dirty money. It's laundered money. And, of course, now he has the mob on his tail. And they hire a killer, a professional killer, a character, Molly, played by Joe Don Baker. Oh, yes. Who's on his trail.

And it starts out as a little bit of a caper movie and then it becomes kind of a cat and mouse story. It's very, very good. And it's Matthau a little bit of a caper movie and then it becomes kind of a cat and mouse story. It's very, very good. And it's Matthau kind of cast against type. You know, you think of Matthau for comedies. Maybe playing a bad guy in Charade. But he didn't play too many heavies. And he didn't play too many criminals. It's got a great 70s cast.

William Shallert turns up. Oh, yes. Who, by the way, is 93 and still with us. Wow. Patty Duke's father. You guys all know that actor. John Vernon turns up. Oh, my. Yeah.

Animal House is what he's best known for. Animal House. And we talked about him in Point Blank with Lee Marvin. And you'll love this. Norman Fell. Oh, my God. So now you have to run home and watch it. And an actor named Andrew Robinson

plays Walter Matthau's accomplice and he played the Scorpio killer in Dirty Harry. Oh, okay. You know that actor? He played Liberace in a TV movie. I'd have to see him. You'd recognize him right away. Andrew Robinson. He always played weirdos and psychos, kind of like Marjo Gortner. Yeah. Like a Marjo Gortner type.

It's a very good film. It's a tight little movie. Matthau's great. It's funny. It's a very good film. It's a tight little movie. Matthau's great. It's funny because it's a crime drama and yet he manages to be Walter Matthau. Oh, yes. He kind of shuffles through his scenes and he has a little shtick that he does. And here's some trivia. He beds Jack Lemmon's wife in the movie. Oh, my God.

The actress Felicia Farr. Yeah. So that's kinky since they were best buddies. And the last piece of trivia I have for you on Charlie Varick, which is a movie I think you guys should all see, is Dean Reisner, the screenwriter, and you'll love this, in real life was married to Vampyra. Oh, geez. How about that? So that's all I got. Charlie Varick, 1973.

It's the 12th floor, Felix, not the 11th. And his son turns up, Charlie Matthau. Oh, yes. Has a little tiny part as a little boy. So not only recommending Charlie Varick, but also the movies of Don Siegel, A Jew. A Jew. And Matth Jew. A Jew. And Matthau, another Jew. Right, right.

Yeah, it's that period of Walter Matthau's career like Taking a Pelham 123 and The Laughing Policeman. Yeah, very odd period there. Yeah, yeah. He was departing from comedy a little bit, but yet he manages to be funny oh yeah get rewarded for supporting our podcast head over to patreon.com slash gilbert godfrey for a set amount each month, you can get some colossal benefits, such as access to new podcast episodes before anyone else, early access to tickets to live podcast tapings, exclusive video hangouts. And, just added, I will record a personalized roast of you

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That's Patreon. P-A-T-R-E-O-N dot com slash Gilbert Gottfried. Thank you for your generosity. Mine is a movie starring Jack Palance, Donald Pleasence, and Martin Landau. Oh, my God. What did you say? Jack Palance, Donald Pleasence, and Martin Landau. I'm ashamed of myself.

I think I'm stumped. It's called Alone in the Dark. Wow. And it's a weird film. I mean, once again, could have been better. So you're recommending it with reservations? Yes. There's an opening scene where it turns out to be a weird nightmare scene that if the rest of the movie had more like that more imagination like

that it could have been a great film but it it's before scream and stuff like that this is a movie taking a slightly tongue-in-cheek approach to the whole slasher and horror uh franchise interesting what was the plot when that this is before uh landau made his big comeback oh to the whole slasher and horror franchise. What was the plot? This is before Landau made his big comeback and won the Oscar for Redwood, right? It's like Palance and Landau and one other actor somehow escape from an insane asylum. Okay. Somehow escape from an insane asylum. And they're out on the loose. And there's like an insane doctor played by Donald Pleasance. Of course.

The part Lionel Atwell would have played. Yes. Right. And the funny thing about it is, you know, so there's some good some bad with it but it's like any movie where you have jack palance donald pleasance and martin landau what a trio and trying to out ham each other oh so they're both they're all chewing the scene yeah yeah and and and wonderfully as only they could do and that that's Alone in the Dark. Yeah.

Landau played, I think it was in a film called Without Warning. There's one film where he plays a character called Fred Dobbs. Oh. Which is the Bogart character in Sierra Madre, which was a funny kind of movie in-joke. Yeah. I wonder if it's this one or if it was something called Without Warning. Does that sound familiar? I don't know. I think he plays – I think he's kind of like a crazy preacher or something.

Okay. In this one. I mean we talked about this, how Martin Landau, you know, the highs and the lows of show business. Oh, my God. I mean this is the time of his career, the period of his career where he's doing things like the Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island. Oh, yes. And a couple of years later, he's up there accepting his Oscar. And I'll never forget one critic who didn't like the movie. His review was, Jack Palance has seen better days. Donald Pleasance has seen better parts. And Martin Landau should see a better agent.

Oh, wow. I like Donald Pleasance, too. Yeah, but I think the three of them just make it fun. But you're recommending that one with reservations. Yeah, yeah. It's not a great film, but totally enjoyable. Alone in the Dark. Yeah.

Okay, and mine is Charlie Varick. Any other math-o-isms you want to throw in there? You know, we just had Mr. Skin here. We must have talked about 400 movies. Yeah. And we walked out of the booth and you said, I can't think of a single movie. Oh, yes. But congratulations.

Yeah, when it comes to movies to jerk off to, I can think of them. No nude scenes for Landau or Donald Pleasence? Oh, yes. In this movie, you could see there's a nip slip. For which one? When Donald Pleasence is climbing over a wall. Really? Some nipple point down.

Nip and a bush. At an hour and 23 seconds. That was the best thing about Mr. Skin. He not only knows the movie, he knows this. And in the days of VCRs, I think he knew the footage. Oh, yes. Yeah. He was a great guest.

So those are the two we're recommending, Charlie Varick and Alone in the Dark. Okie doke. See you next time. Colossal Obsessions Colossal Obsessions Colossal Obsessions