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[UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING]

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NARRATOR: Leonard Soloway
has been a producer

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and general manager
on Broadway
for the last half century.

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MICHAEL WILSON:
He's the Broadway
of its golden age.

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And through him,
I feel like I was there.

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JOHN SLATTERY:
He was a gentleman.

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And that's sort of...
That was my first impression.

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It remains my impression.

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MANNY AZENBERG: He was
the first genuinely shameless
gay man I ever met.

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And I say that
with admiration.

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NARRATOR:
The plays and musicals

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that are part
of Leonard Soloway's
Broadway history

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have won every prize
the theater can give.

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And he's worked with
some of the most distinguished
talent on the Great White Way.

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ELIZABETH ASHLEY:
I value him, I respect him.

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And God knows, I wish
there were more people
like him in the theater.

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DEBBIE GRAVITTE:
Leonard is the person
in our business

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who always tells the truth.

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Sometimes it's brutal,

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most of the time
it's funny.

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ROBERT E. WANKEL:
He always has that smile,

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and he's got a good sense
of humor and good personality.

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So everybody likes him
and he stands out.

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He's tall.

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NARRATOR: At the age of 90,
he remains a familiar face
on the Broadway scene.

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BILL EVANS: Here's the truth.
Everybody on Broadway
loves Leonard.

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He really is
a Broadway legend.

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He tells me that
over and over

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He says, "Bill,
I'm a Broadway legend."

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AZENBERG: So, you get
to a certain age
and you're still coherent,

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then you should do
a documentary about it.

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Well, we better hurry
'cause I don't have
that much time left.

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[CREW LAUGHING]

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NARRATOR: As he has
countless times over
the course of his career,

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Leonard Soloway
is scouting his next show
at a regional theater.

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He finds an exciting prospect
in a show called
Tappin' Thru Life,

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the musical based on the life
and career of show business
veteran Maurice Hines.

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Played to sold-out crowds
on tour for more than a year.

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Well, hey, everybody.

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[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]

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NARRATOR:
Hines was joined on stage
by young tap dancing stars,

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brothers John and Leo Manzari.

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[AUDIENCE CHEERING]

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Leonard saw
the show's potential

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and decided to help
bring it to Broadway.

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I'm ready to go to Broadway.
For him, I'd go anywhere.

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That's eight shows a week.

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I don't mind it.
I don't mind
eight shows a week.

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NARRATOR: Leonard's office
is in a building close to
New York's Theater District.

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SOLOWAY: Are you working
on the director's contract?

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NARRATOR: Judith Drasner,
another Broadway veteran

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is Leonard's company manager.

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I love working for him
and I just enjoy
being with him.

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And somehow, it just
clicked and we just kept on

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working together through

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a variety of different shows.

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You know, it's just
a synergy that worked.

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SOLOWAY: I made
some corrections in this,
and I can't find them.

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Oh, here it is.

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JUDITH DRASNER:
When he's in go mode

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working on a show
or anything,
we're in go mode,

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and that can be exhausting
but it's always worth it.

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Can you set it up
for me to use...

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On your phone.

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...my subscription to
the New York Times
on my iPad?

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What I'm probably gonna need

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is your password for
your New York Times account.

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-How the fuck do I know that?
-[DRASNER LAUGHING]

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I was afraid you
were gonna say that.

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[UPBEAT JAZZ MUSIC PLAYING]

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I keep looking at you

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because I...
You look so familiar to me.

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Indeed I am familiar.

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I go back, what, 60 years?

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Sixty years? It's like
whenever I run into
anyone on the street

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they just say,
"We're still here."

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-[BOTH LAUGHING]
-It's true.

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You have some salad
in your tooth.

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-Oh, thank goodness.
-Good.

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It's nice seeing you.
Please say hello to Jack.
I'd appreciate it.

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-JANE A. JOHNSTON:
I will, Leonard.
-It's nice seeing you.

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-MARGOT MOSER:
Thank you so much.
-You're welcome.

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-As ever a gentleman.
-Oh, please.

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-It's my pleasure. Enjoy.
-JOHNSTON: Goodbye.

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JEFF WOLK:
So how's the producing
business this week?

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Well, I have a project
for you if you're interested.

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Yeah?

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I'm doing Maurice Hines

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in a review called
Tappin' Thru Life.

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-Tappin' Thu Life?
-ROB ANZALONE: That's
Gregory Hines' brother.

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-Oh, really?
-Yeah.

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Maurice Hines.

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It's sold-out everywhere
in regional theaters.

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So I need $20,000
to do it in, uh,

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Wilmington.

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WOLK: And you could do it
for how long, a week?

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-Four weeks.
-How long does $20,000 go?

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20,000 would cover
four weeks?

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Yeah, and then the plan
is to come to New York.

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For a couple of...
For like, six or eight weeks.

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And then go on the road.

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That might be interesting.
That's a great idea,
though, Rob.

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Now who you gonna blow
to get $20,000?

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NARRATOR: Maurice Hines
dedicated Tappin' Thru Life
to his late brother, Gregory.

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They had co-starred
in Hollywood films
as well as Broadway musicals.

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Maurice is a know quantity.

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His brother was
a known quantity.

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We were involved
in a couple of shows
that his brother did.

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It was a good story,
Gregory and Maurice.

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And we enjoyed
the performance.

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Tappin' Thru Life.

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[BAND PLAYING]

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The general manager handles
the day-to-day operations
of a show,

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including putting
the show together

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and running it
while it's playing.

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You'll engage
all of the creative team

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but most producers
are also artistic.

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And so, Leonard has
played both roles

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and in many cases,
he's usually

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the GM of shows that
he's also the producer.

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Keeping it in the family.

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NARRATOR: Leonard's family
started out far from
the bright lights

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and razzle dazzle of Broadway.

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His father immigrated
from Russia in the early 1920s.

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SOLOWAY: And when my father
arrived in New York,

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the people that he was
staying with sent him
to Cleveland.

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Because my father
wanted to be
in the building business,

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and their relatives
in Cleveland were
in the building business.

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My mother was born in America
and lived in Cleveland.

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So that's where
my father and mother met.

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And my mother did not
want to get married,

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but in those days,
you did what a Jewish father
told you.

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I had a grandmother
and aunts

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who were used to
running the family.

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And I think they scared
my father away from

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even handling me
when I was a baby.

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Today you see guys
walking on the street
with their sons.

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There's no attempt
at hiding they love somebody
in the family.

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Well, not those days.

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I had been the editor
of the high school paper

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when I was in
the 11th grade.

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And then, when I went back
the next season,

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prepared to continue
being editor

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they said, "Well, you can't
be the editor anymore."

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So I said to my mother,
"I'm not gonna finish
high school."

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She said, "Yes, you are".
Of course.

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And for some reason,
I don't know why, she said,

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"Why don't you go down
to the Cleveland Play House?"

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So I went the next day
and I was as tall as I am now.

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They handed me
a can of paint and a brush
and said,

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"Paint that." And I heard
bells ringing and everything.

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They did tease me.
Before one performance,

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they said, "Oh, my God,
we can't find the key
to the curtain."

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They said, "Leonard,
see if you can find it."

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I'm running around the theater
looking for it.

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I mean, there was
no key to the curtain,

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I finally figured out.

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I was in several plays,

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and I mean, listen,
as far as education,

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there's no better place
than Cleveland.

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'Cause we were taken
to the opera and to theater.

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We were exposed
to everything.

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And I couldn't wait
to get out of there.

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I wanted to go
to Carnegie Tech.

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And I went and auditioned
and much to my surprise,

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I got in.

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The thing about Carnegie Tech
was they didn't like me.

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Because I was
always telling them

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that they're training people
for the wrong reason.

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That they made...
People who had voices
that were distinctive,

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they would wipe that out.

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And I said,
"You can't do this.
What you're doing is

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"is training everybody
to be in some
repertory company

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"when they want to go
to Broadway and be a star.

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"And what's different
about them that will get them
a job on Broadway,

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"you're taking away
from them."

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And, uh...

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They didn't like that.

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They said, "We know there's
a place for you somewhere
in the theater,

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"but we don't know
where it is.

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"So please don't ask
to come back."

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I went home and said,

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"You know, you were gonna
go for more college years.
Let me go to New York."

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And I did get to New York.

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I was living on 55th Street
and Eighth Avenue
on the fifth floor.

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I had one bedroom.

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You couldn't open the door
all the way in.

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It hit the bed,
and there was a 40-watt
bulb hanging.

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And my mother came.
[CHUCKLES]

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She walked into the place
and burst into tears.

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She said,
"You can't live like this."

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I said, "I don't care.
I'm never here."

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Oh, my God.
Look at the line.

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WOLK: Do we have to
wait in this line?

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SOLOWAY:
If we're picking up
tickets, I hope not.

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NARRATOR: As a member
of the Broadway league,

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Leonard attends every
Broadway show every year

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00:11:00,193 --> 00:11:03,196
and therefore, is eligible
to vote for the Tony Award,

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00:11:03,196 --> 00:11:05,031
Broadway's highest honor.

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00:11:05,031 --> 00:11:06,866
Hi. Soloway tonight.

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00:11:06,866 --> 00:11:09,068
-How are you?
-How've you been? All right?

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00:11:09,068 --> 00:11:10,370
Yeah. How about you?

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00:11:10,370 --> 00:11:12,505
-Good.
-Hi there. How are you?

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00:11:12,505 --> 00:11:14,073
I hear you have
a big hit here.

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00:11:14,073 --> 00:11:16,509
-We hope so.
You have a good evening.
-I hope so, too.

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00:11:16,509 --> 00:11:19,479
I hear such
fabulous things about it.

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00:11:19,479 --> 00:11:20,947
-We'll see you.
-You, too.

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00:11:20,947 --> 00:11:22,815
Hi, Leonard.
You still look great.

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00:11:22,815 --> 00:11:24,817
-So do you.
-Time has never changed you.

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00:11:24,817 --> 00:11:26,286
-Oh, you're so sweet.
-How you feeling, brother?

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00:11:26,286 --> 00:11:29,022
-Very good.
-Good. You're gonna
have a great time.

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00:11:29,022 --> 00:11:32,025
-I hear so.
I'm looking forward to it.
-Have a great time.

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00:11:33,459 --> 00:11:37,063
NARRATOR: It was in 1947
that 19-year-old
Leonard Soloway

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00:11:37,063 --> 00:11:40,133
launched his career
in the New York theater.

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00:11:40,133 --> 00:11:44,170
He was hired as an assistant
in the theater department
of ANTA,

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00:11:44,170 --> 00:11:48,908
the American National
Theater and Academy
based at the Hudson Theater.

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00:11:48,908 --> 00:11:50,910
Later, he worked
on ANTA productions

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00:11:50,910 --> 00:11:54,280
at the Maxine Elliott Theater
on West 39th Street.

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00:11:54,280 --> 00:11:58,384
They included the historical
drama Galileo,
with Charles Laughton

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00:11:58,384 --> 00:12:00,253
and the play
Skipper Next to God

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00:12:00,253 --> 00:12:03,990
with stage and screen star,
John Garfield.

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00:12:03,990 --> 00:12:07,193
Leonard also took on
a few small roles
as an actor

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00:12:07,193 --> 00:12:10,964
but found his
true calling
backstage.

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00:12:10,964 --> 00:12:14,267
They came to me
and said, "We need an
assistant stage manager.

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00:12:14,267 --> 00:12:15,868
"Do you wanna do the job?"

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00:12:15,868 --> 00:12:17,403
I said, "Well,
what's in it for me?"

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00:12:17,403 --> 00:12:20,340
And they said, "Well,
it's another five dollars
a week."

230
00:12:20,340 --> 00:12:22,175
I said, "Okay, I'll do it."

231
00:12:22,175 --> 00:12:26,846
The stage manager takes
less shit from the producer
than the actors get.

232
00:12:29,482 --> 00:12:32,385
I was offered a job
as stage manager

233
00:12:32,385 --> 00:12:36,322
for the Chicago Fair of 1950.
It was in a tent.

234
00:12:37,223 --> 00:12:39,058
And I met my wife there.

235
00:12:39,058 --> 00:12:42,328
She was the star
of the show, Betty Gillett.

236
00:12:42,328 --> 00:12:45,999
We went to
Stony Brook, Long Island,
where we got married.

237
00:12:45,999 --> 00:12:49,502
And eventually, Betty came
back to Cleveland with me

238
00:12:49,502 --> 00:12:52,038
to meet my father
and my grandmother.

239
00:12:53,840 --> 00:12:55,241
Betty was absolutely gorgeous.

240
00:12:55,241 --> 00:13:00,079
She was in South Pacific,
playing one of the nurses.

241
00:13:00,079 --> 00:13:03,282
She got a job
for Drene Shampoo.

242
00:13:03,282 --> 00:13:07,320
And Betty was on billboards
all over the country

243
00:13:07,320 --> 00:13:08,655
and in magazines.

244
00:13:08,655 --> 00:13:12,525
And it said, "Betty Gillett,
rising star of Broadway

245
00:13:12,525 --> 00:13:14,861
"and Hollywood
uses Drene Shampoo."

246
00:13:15,361 --> 00:13:17,897
And actually, she

247
00:13:17,897 --> 00:13:20,500
brought up the gay thing
before I did.

248
00:13:20,500 --> 00:13:25,071
I was working at a theater
on Sixth Avenue,
a small theater

249
00:13:25,071 --> 00:13:29,475
and the guy I was working with
was one of the most
beautiful men

250
00:13:29,475 --> 00:13:32,211
I had ever seen in my life.

251
00:13:32,211 --> 00:13:34,614
So, Betty and I were walking
down the street one day,

252
00:13:34,614 --> 00:13:39,552
and I said to her that
I think you're attracted
to him,

253
00:13:39,552 --> 00:13:42,622
and she stopped
on the street and said,

254
00:13:42,622 --> 00:13:44,624
"The only reason
you would think that

255
00:13:44,624 --> 00:13:46,859
"is if you're
attracted to him."

256
00:13:47,393 --> 00:13:49,829
She said, "Because I am not."

257
00:13:51,631 --> 00:13:55,568
So we decided, you know,
it wasn't gonna work.

258
00:13:55,568 --> 00:14:01,340
And then, when we divorced
my mother said,
"What did you do wrong?"

259
00:14:01,340 --> 00:14:05,078
NARRATOR: In 1958,
Leonard was hired
as business manager

260
00:14:05,078 --> 00:14:09,182
on an off-Broadway production
called Ulysses in Nighttown.

261
00:14:09,182 --> 00:14:11,117
Based on a book
by James Joyce,

262
00:14:11,117 --> 00:14:14,287
it starred gifted comic,
actor Zero Mostel.

263
00:14:14,287 --> 00:14:15,655
SOLOWAY: The show
was a huge hit.

264
00:14:15,655 --> 00:14:18,658
It was one of the first
really big off-Broadway hits.

265
00:14:18,658 --> 00:14:21,227
The beginning of
off-Broadway theater.

266
00:14:22,929 --> 00:14:24,697
NARRATOR: Leonard moved
up the ladder quickly

267
00:14:24,697 --> 00:14:26,532
and he was always
in demand.

268
00:14:26,532 --> 00:14:30,136
SOLOWAY: I was managing
five or six shows
at the same time.

269
00:14:30,136 --> 00:14:33,439
I would nap in a cab
going from one theater
to the other.

270
00:14:33,439 --> 00:14:36,509
On a Saturday,
I'd have a performance
at 2:00 p.m.,

271
00:14:36,509 --> 00:14:38,377
3:00 p.m., 4:00 p.m.,

272
00:14:38,377 --> 00:14:41,481
6:00 p.m., 7:00 p.m.,
9:00 p.m., 10:00 p.m.

273
00:14:42,415 --> 00:14:43,649
I worked seven days a week

274
00:14:43,649 --> 00:14:47,086
from morning until,
like, 11 o'clock at night.

275
00:14:47,086 --> 00:14:50,456
And I was making
thousands of dollars a week.

276
00:14:50,456 --> 00:14:54,293
NARRATOR: Leonard's
social life also began
revolving around the theater.

277
00:14:54,293 --> 00:14:57,663
His new friends all had
their names up in lights.

278
00:14:57,663 --> 00:14:59,499
I was with a friend of mine

279
00:14:59,499 --> 00:15:03,169
and the intercom rang
at like one in the morning

280
00:15:03,169 --> 00:15:05,404
and she came back
from the intercom

281
00:15:05,404 --> 00:15:08,541
and said,
"Oh, it's Elaine Stritch
and Ben Gazzara.

282
00:15:08,541 --> 00:15:10,309
And I was a kid,
and I thought, "Oh, wow.

283
00:15:10,309 --> 00:15:12,178
"Elaine Stritch
and Ben Gazzara."

284
00:15:12,178 --> 00:15:15,348
The hostess said to Elaine,
"Would you like a drink?"

285
00:15:15,348 --> 00:15:17,416
And Elaine said,
"Yes, I would, thank you."

286
00:15:17,416 --> 00:15:21,687
She opens her purse,
takes out a bottle of Scotch
and a glass,

287
00:15:21,687 --> 00:15:24,190
and pours herself a drink.

288
00:15:24,190 --> 00:15:26,993
We used to send telegrams
to people on opening nights

289
00:15:26,993 --> 00:15:30,062
saying, "Have a good opening.
Remember, nothing
depends on tonight

290
00:15:30,062 --> 00:15:32,398
"except your entire career."

291
00:15:32,398 --> 00:15:35,468
So I sent it to her
when she opened
in Goldilocks

292
00:15:35,468 --> 00:15:38,404
and she said,
"How dare you send me that?"

293
00:15:38,404 --> 00:15:41,107
And so she didn't talk
to me for three months.

294
00:15:43,609 --> 00:15:44,777
Hello?

295
00:15:44,777 --> 00:15:46,946
[MAN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY
OVER PHONE]

296
00:15:51,217 --> 00:15:55,021
That was my travel agent
calling to wish me
happy birthday.

297
00:15:55,021 --> 00:15:56,455
WOLK: Your travel agent?

298
00:15:57,623 --> 00:16:00,760
So, just before I forget,
I just wanna write this down

299
00:16:00,760 --> 00:16:03,262
That play is called
Tapping Through Life?

300
00:16:03,262 --> 00:16:08,067
-Tappin'. T-A-P-P-I-N
with an apostrophe.
-T-A-P-P-I-N.

301
00:16:08,067 --> 00:16:10,336
-Tappin' Through Life.
-Life.

302
00:16:10,336 --> 00:16:12,371
T-H-R-U.

303
00:16:12,371 --> 00:16:15,208
Okay. And can you just
tell me a quick...

304
00:16:15,208 --> 00:16:18,578
It would be in September
in Wilmington.

305
00:16:18,578 --> 00:16:21,647
I just wanted
to make a few notes
'cause I wanna...

306
00:16:21,647 --> 00:16:25,651
And my 20,000 would be
the sort of seed money
or something?

307
00:16:25,651 --> 00:16:27,653
SOLOWAY: It'd be front money.

308
00:16:27,653 --> 00:16:29,388
If the show goes through.

309
00:16:29,388 --> 00:16:32,625
Would I be like an
executive producer of that...

310
00:16:32,625 --> 00:16:35,294
Well, it'll be presented by,

311
00:16:35,294 --> 00:16:39,799
by arrangement of
Leonard Soloway
and Jeff Wolk.

312
00:16:39,799 --> 00:16:42,201
WOLK: Okay. Okay.

313
00:16:42,201 --> 00:16:45,805
And then, if we
move to Broadway
or go on the road,

314
00:16:45,805 --> 00:16:47,273
which I hope we will,

315
00:16:47,273 --> 00:16:50,810
it'll be like
a $40,000 investment.

316
00:16:50,810 --> 00:16:52,478
It's a wonderful show.

317
00:16:52,478 --> 00:16:55,014
[DRUMS PLAYING]

318
00:16:56,349 --> 00:16:58,150
[BAND PLAYING]

319
00:17:05,157 --> 00:17:07,293
Well, hello, Wilmington.

320
00:17:08,694 --> 00:17:10,396
NARRATOR:
As he turned 30,

321
00:17:10,396 --> 00:17:14,467
Leonard Soloway would encounter
one of the most powerful forces
in the New York theater,

322
00:17:14,467 --> 00:17:15,635
the unions.

323
00:17:15,635 --> 00:17:17,536
I was in the box office
one day

324
00:17:17,536 --> 00:17:21,474
and this guy in a suit
and a hat arrives and says,

325
00:17:21,474 --> 00:17:23,809
"You can't work here
unless you're in the union."

326
00:17:23,809 --> 00:17:25,578
And I said, "Well,
how do I do that?"

327
00:17:25,578 --> 00:17:28,447
He said, "Well, you have to
apprentice to somebody."

328
00:17:28,447 --> 00:17:32,585
So, fortunately,
they sent along a guy
named Richard Horner

329
00:17:32,585 --> 00:17:34,820
and I was his assistant.

330
00:17:34,820 --> 00:17:37,857
Richard was hired
by Lester Osterman.

331
00:17:37,857 --> 00:17:41,527
NARRATOR: Lester Osterman
would soon be one of
Broadway's top producers

332
00:17:41,527 --> 00:17:45,865
and Leonard was taken along
by Richard Horner to join
the Osterman team.

333
00:17:45,865 --> 00:17:49,635
It was fine, except I was
making $85 a week,

334
00:17:49,635 --> 00:17:54,473
as opposed to all that money
I was used to making.

335
00:17:54,473 --> 00:17:57,910
And then,
the magical thing happened.

336
00:17:57,910 --> 00:18:00,579
How to Succeed in Business
was previewing

337
00:18:00,579 --> 00:18:04,884
at the 46th Street Theater
which is now
the Richard Rodgers.

338
00:18:04,884 --> 00:18:08,387
And Ernie Martin,
who was the co-producer

339
00:18:08,387 --> 00:18:11,357
was smoking a cigar
in the lobby during the show.

340
00:18:11,357 --> 00:18:13,392
Which you were allowed
to do in those days.

341
00:18:13,392 --> 00:18:16,262
But somehow,
we got into
a confrontation

342
00:18:16,262 --> 00:18:19,231
with this idiot's
house manager.

343
00:18:19,231 --> 00:18:21,167
So Ernie called Lester at home

344
00:18:21,167 --> 00:18:23,569
and said,
"I want this guy fired."

345
00:18:23,569 --> 00:18:27,373
And Lester said, "Okay,
and he called me
and he said,

346
00:18:27,373 --> 00:18:29,809
"On Monday, you're going
to the 46th Street Theater,

347
00:18:29,809 --> 00:18:31,711
you're gonna be
the house manager.

348
00:18:31,711 --> 00:18:33,379
Well, I loved it.

349
00:18:33,379 --> 00:18:37,383
Now I had to get
a real salary because I was

350
00:18:37,383 --> 00:18:40,820
the house manager
and the union couldn't say no.

351
00:18:40,820 --> 00:18:43,322
NARRATOR:
How to Succeed in Business
Without Really Trying

352
00:18:43,322 --> 00:18:45,057
became the must see
Broadway show.

353
00:18:45,057 --> 00:18:49,428
and was greeted by
the entertainment community
with great fanfare.

354
00:18:49,428 --> 00:18:51,964
The musical would go on
to win seven Tony Awards,

355
00:18:51,964 --> 00:18:56,302
including one for its
outstanding lead actor,
Robert Morse.

356
00:18:56,302 --> 00:19:00,339
SOLOWAY: How to Succeed
got rave notices
when it opened.

357
00:19:00,339 --> 00:19:03,743
There was a line
to Eighth Avenue
every morning.

358
00:19:03,743 --> 00:19:07,413
The producers never took
an ad in The Times.

359
00:19:07,413 --> 00:19:11,417
For one year,
there was no publicity

360
00:19:11,417 --> 00:19:13,853
on the show,
and it sold out and sold out.

361
00:19:13,853 --> 00:19:16,355
And then,
we got the note that

362
00:19:16,355 --> 00:19:18,824
the President was coming.

363
00:19:18,824 --> 00:19:22,662
There were six
secret service guys
and they were all

364
00:19:22,662 --> 00:19:25,264
movie-star grade looking.

365
00:19:26,298 --> 00:19:28,501
And one of the guys, uh,

366
00:19:28,501 --> 00:19:31,837
came and sat with me
in my office during the show.

367
00:19:31,837 --> 00:19:33,673
And... [CHUCKLES]

368
00:19:33,673 --> 00:19:38,477
We ended up having
an affair that lasted
for about six months.

369
00:19:40,012 --> 00:19:43,449
♪ Everyday I have the blues ♪

370
00:19:43,449 --> 00:19:45,284
NARRATOR: At the Delaware
Theater Company,

371
00:19:45,284 --> 00:19:46,819
Leonard's production
of Tappin' Thru Life

372
00:19:46,819 --> 00:19:50,322
was still working out
creative issues
in its try out.

373
00:19:51,424 --> 00:19:53,459
♪ Speaking of hard luck
and trouble ♪

374
00:19:55,661 --> 00:19:58,931
Listen, do you like
that fog that comes in?

375
00:19:58,931 --> 00:20:00,366
I noticed it tonight
for the first time.

376
00:20:00,366 --> 00:20:02,001
-I don't like the fog.
-I don't either.

377
00:20:02,001 --> 00:20:03,135
I want to cut it.

378
00:20:03,135 --> 00:20:05,471
-Can you tell somebody?
-I'm gonna do it right now.

379
00:20:05,471 --> 00:20:07,306
You tell them now
and it's bad for my throat.

380
00:20:07,306 --> 00:20:08,674
I wanna cut the fog.

381
00:20:08,674 --> 00:20:10,710
-Somebody turned it on.
-I'm happy to take it out.

382
00:20:10,710 --> 00:20:12,978
Jeff pleaded with me
to do it, so we do it.

383
00:20:12,978 --> 00:20:14,814
-Take it out.
-No, I had a big thing with him.

384
00:20:14,814 --> 00:20:16,649
Well, tonight, because it was
bothering my throat.

385
00:20:16,649 --> 00:20:17,583
-Really.
-I could hear.

386
00:20:17,583 --> 00:20:18,751
It was the first time
I'd ever seen it.

387
00:20:18,751 --> 00:20:21,020
-I said, "What is all this
smoke here?"
-[LAUGHING]

388
00:20:21,020 --> 00:20:22,922
I know I'm hot
but this is ridiculous.

389
00:20:22,922 --> 00:20:24,490
[ALL LAUGHING]

390
00:20:25,791 --> 00:20:28,494
NARRATOR: One fiery actor
who almost stopped a show

391
00:20:28,494 --> 00:20:32,031
was Oscar winner
and Broadway star,
Shelley Winters.

392
00:20:32,031 --> 00:20:37,269
She was playing the lead
in Saul Bellow's 1966 comedy,
Under the Weather.

393
00:20:37,937 --> 00:20:41,040
SOLOWAY: Finally,
at about 8:10,

394
00:20:41,040 --> 00:20:43,509
she still hadn't been there.

395
00:20:43,509 --> 00:20:46,045
So I told the understudy
to go on.

396
00:20:46,045 --> 00:20:49,715
So around about 8:20
I hear this scream.

397
00:20:49,715 --> 00:20:53,919
She's running down
the hallway lane,
"Stop the show! Stop the show!"

398
00:20:53,919 --> 00:20:55,888
So I grabbed her,
I said, "Shut up.

399
00:20:55,888 --> 00:20:57,356
"We're finishing
the first act."

400
00:20:57,356 --> 00:21:00,526
She said, "No,
you gotta stop it.
We'll start over."

401
00:21:00,526 --> 00:21:02,728
I said, "No. You can do
the second half,

402
00:21:02,728 --> 00:21:05,664
"but until then,
just go to your dressing room."

403
00:21:05,664 --> 00:21:08,467
So that's what happened,
but she was screaming.

404
00:21:08,467 --> 00:21:10,669
"Stop the fucking show!"

405
00:21:16,542 --> 00:21:19,945
Um, I just saw something
very interesting
about a computer.

406
00:21:19,945 --> 00:21:21,180
-Okay?
-What?

407
00:21:21,180 --> 00:21:22,381
When you're typing a word
and you don't know
how to spell it,

408
00:21:22,381 --> 00:21:25,718
you spell it out and then,
if you right-click on the word

409
00:21:25,718 --> 00:21:28,754
it gives you
all the suggestions of
how to spell it correctly.

410
00:21:28,754 --> 00:21:31,590
I'm saying, how do you
spell glamorous?
And you just right-click on it.

411
00:21:31,590 --> 00:21:32,791
O-U-R.

412
00:21:32,791 --> 00:21:33,959
[LAUGHING]

413
00:21:33,959 --> 00:21:37,396
G-L-A-M-O-R-O-U-S.
Glamorous.

414
00:21:37,396 --> 00:21:39,131
There's no U there.

415
00:21:39,131 --> 00:21:40,799
Little facts you can use.

416
00:21:43,402 --> 00:21:44,637
NARRATOR: During
the early 1960s,

417
00:21:44,637 --> 00:21:48,440
Leonard began working on
productions in Canada.

418
00:21:48,440 --> 00:21:49,875
At the O'Keefe Center
in Toronto,

419
00:21:49,875 --> 00:21:54,413
he produced a revival
of the popular musical
South Pacific.

420
00:21:54,413 --> 00:21:57,983
SOLOWAY:
The O'Keefe Center
has over 3,000 seats.

421
00:21:57,983 --> 00:22:01,587
And I wanted to do it
with Joe Layton
directing it.

422
00:22:01,587 --> 00:22:04,356
Joe was a very hot director.

423
00:22:04,890 --> 00:22:06,792
So we went to Toronto,

424
00:22:06,792 --> 00:22:09,428
and he said,
"I can't do the show here.

425
00:22:09,428 --> 00:22:11,597
"The orchestra pit is so big

426
00:22:11,597 --> 00:22:14,867
"that the first row is a mile
from the stage."

427
00:22:14,867 --> 00:22:18,771
I said, "All right.
The orchestra pit
is on an elevator.

428
00:22:18,771 --> 00:22:21,840
"I intend to bring
the orchestra pit
up to stage level.

429
00:22:21,840 --> 00:22:24,543
"Put the show
on the orchestra pit.

430
00:22:24,543 --> 00:22:27,846
"Put the band behind a curtain
on the stage."

431
00:22:27,846 --> 00:22:30,549
He said, "You can't do that.
Nobody's ever done that."

432
00:22:30,549 --> 00:22:33,452
I said, "Yeah,
but we can do it."

433
00:22:33,452 --> 00:22:36,956
And then it started this
whole new thing on Broadway.

434
00:22:36,956 --> 00:22:42,661
And to this day there are some
musicals where the band isn't
even in the theater.

435
00:22:42,661 --> 00:22:45,431
NARRATOR: It was in Canada
that Leonard first connected

436
00:22:45,431 --> 00:22:48,067
with up and coming producer,
Manny Azenberg.

437
00:22:48,067 --> 00:22:51,937
AZENBERG: I was
the company manager of
the O'Keefe Center in Toronto.

438
00:22:51,937 --> 00:22:55,207
And Leonard was touring
with Carol Channing's

439
00:22:55,207 --> 00:22:58,544
one-woman show
called Show Girl.

440
00:22:58,544 --> 00:23:01,480
That's when I met him.
We, sort of, became friends.

441
00:23:01,480 --> 00:23:04,850
We were relatively...
He's older than I am.

442
00:23:05,885 --> 00:23:08,153
And more goyish than you.

443
00:23:08,153 --> 00:23:09,989
-No, he's...
-He's more assimilated.

444
00:23:09,989 --> 00:23:14,193
Soloway becomes Soloway chicken
about eight seconds, you know.

445
00:23:14,193 --> 00:23:15,527
He didn't run away.

446
00:23:15,527 --> 00:23:16,528
One thing about Leonard,

447
00:23:16,528 --> 00:23:19,798
-he never ran away
from any identity.
-No.

448
00:23:19,798 --> 00:23:23,969
Leonard was gay Jewish
before anybody was gay
in Jewish.

449
00:23:23,969 --> 00:23:27,873
SOLOWAY: So Carol and I
became friendly and then
she did a one-woman show

450
00:23:28,507 --> 00:23:30,576
which I managed.

451
00:23:30,576 --> 00:23:35,147
And Liberace was playing
at the hotel

452
00:23:35,147 --> 00:23:38,550
And, he... Of course,
he knew Carol

453
00:23:38,550 --> 00:23:41,153
so Liberace and I
became friendly.

454
00:23:41,153 --> 00:23:44,657
And it was my first experience
with somebody

455
00:23:44,657 --> 00:23:47,192
who was
so completely theatrical.

456
00:23:47,192 --> 00:23:49,595
You know, he had
a long dressing gown

457
00:23:49,595 --> 00:23:52,698
and was obviously gay
and I liked him.

458
00:23:52,698 --> 00:23:55,834
He really was a nice guy.

459
00:23:55,834 --> 00:23:58,270
He had all day welcoming

460
00:23:58,270 --> 00:24:00,806
for whoever wanted to come up.

461
00:24:00,806 --> 00:24:03,575
There was food there
and liquor, whatever you wanted.

462
00:24:03,575 --> 00:24:05,778
He also had four beautiful men

463
00:24:05,778 --> 00:24:08,013
that anybody could also have.

464
00:24:08,013 --> 00:24:10,949
And every other day
two of the men would go

465
00:24:10,949 --> 00:24:12,985
and two new ones would arrive.

466
00:24:15,054 --> 00:24:17,856
We used to go to gay bars
and people would go,

467
00:24:17,856 --> 00:24:21,694
"Is that Carol Channing?
What would she be doing
at a gay bar?"

468
00:24:23,595 --> 00:24:27,633
We were going to drive back
from some place in Pennsylvania.

469
00:24:27,633 --> 00:24:31,003
So one of the stagehands said,
"Listen, there's a shortcut."

470
00:24:31,003 --> 00:24:34,973
You go this way, he goes,
"Well, you know me, I have no
sense of direction whatsoever."

471
00:24:34,973 --> 00:24:39,945
So we're driving along
the road, it gets narrower
and it's more country.

472
00:24:39,945 --> 00:24:42,948
And, finally, I didn't know
where the fuck I was.

473
00:24:42,948 --> 00:24:46,752
Then I saw a state police
phone, so I pick it up
and then I said,

474
00:24:46,752 --> 00:24:48,253
"I don't know where I am.
I'm lost."

475
00:24:48,253 --> 00:24:51,890
Then he said, "There's
a number there, tell me
what it is?"

476
00:24:51,890 --> 00:24:54,593
So I did and he said,
"Where do you think you are?"

477
00:24:54,593 --> 00:24:58,030
I said, "I think I'm in
the north eastern corner
of Maryland."

478
00:24:58,030 --> 00:25:01,734
He said, "You're in
the north western corner
of Maryland."

479
00:25:01,734 --> 00:25:04,770
We didn't get to New York
till five in the morning.

480
00:25:04,770 --> 00:25:08,040
Her husband was hysterical.

481
00:25:08,040 --> 00:25:12,611
NARRATOR: In 1966 Leonard
joined forces with Manny
in New York.

482
00:25:12,611 --> 00:25:15,080
It would take some luck
for them to succeed.

483
00:25:15,080 --> 00:25:18,050
But then one day,
luck walked in the door.

484
00:25:18,050 --> 00:25:20,319
SOLOWAY: He knew
Hal Holbrook very well.

485
00:25:20,319 --> 00:25:22,121
Hal Holbrook was a friend.

486
00:25:22,121 --> 00:25:26,625
He came into the office
one day and he said,
"What are you going to do?

487
00:25:26,625 --> 00:25:28,827
"Why don't you do me?"

488
00:25:28,827 --> 00:25:33,265
And in those days
we did a budget, $35,000.

489
00:25:33,265 --> 00:25:36,268
And we didn't have $35,000.
We borrowed it.

490
00:25:36,268 --> 00:25:39,138
I came by railroad.

491
00:25:39,138 --> 00:25:43,208
It's one of those trains
that gets tired
every seven minutes.

492
00:25:43,208 --> 00:25:44,376
[MAN LAUGHING]

493
00:25:44,376 --> 00:25:48,147
It has to stop and rest
for three quarters of an hour.

494
00:25:48,147 --> 00:25:50,649
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]

495
00:25:50,649 --> 00:25:54,119
One of the passengers
advised the conductor

496
00:25:54,119 --> 00:25:58,724
to take the cowcatcher
off the front end
and put it on the rear.

497
00:26:01,193 --> 00:26:02,828
Because at the rate
we were going,

498
00:26:02,828 --> 00:26:05,164
we were not going to
catch any cows.

499
00:26:05,164 --> 00:26:06,865
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]

500
00:26:07,666 --> 00:26:09,368
SOLOWAY: We had no money.

501
00:26:09,368 --> 00:26:12,938
We did the advertising
on credit.

502
00:26:12,938 --> 00:26:17,976
And if the show had
not made it, we would've
been in a shitload of trouble.

503
00:26:17,976 --> 00:26:20,913
But it just got
sensational notices.

504
00:26:20,913 --> 00:26:24,116
I was running into people
on the streets who would say,

505
00:26:24,116 --> 00:26:26,985
"Why didn't you call me?
I would've invested
in the show."

506
00:26:26,985 --> 00:26:30,989
And I said, "I did call you,
and you turned it down."

507
00:26:30,989 --> 00:26:34,193
But we weren't smart enough
to do a contract with him

508
00:26:34,193 --> 00:26:39,598
that allowed us to share
in that after it closed
on Broadway.

509
00:26:40,799 --> 00:26:43,702
So he was doing it every year
somewhere,

510
00:26:43,702 --> 00:26:47,072
but we never got
any money from it.

511
00:26:47,072 --> 00:26:51,343
But listen, it was great
for our careers to get going
that way.

512
00:26:51,343 --> 00:26:53,312
[BELL TOLLING]

513
00:26:53,312 --> 00:26:55,948
NARRATOR: Leonard and Manny
later traveled to London

514
00:26:55,948 --> 00:27:00,385
to work on the production
of a play called
Word War Two and a Half.

515
00:27:00,385 --> 00:27:03,422
AZENBERG: So Leonard and I
were in London.

516
00:27:03,422 --> 00:27:06,758
Certainly, my first trip
to London. And I think
it was Leonard's as well.

517
00:27:06,758 --> 00:27:08,193
And we were doing
everything we...

518
00:27:09,294 --> 00:27:11,630
British. Tea...

519
00:27:12,731 --> 00:27:14,766
Little bit of pretense.

520
00:27:14,766 --> 00:27:16,101
NARRATOR: One night
after the theater,

521
00:27:16,101 --> 00:27:18,770
they were having drinks
at the Grosvenor House Hotel

522
00:27:18,770 --> 00:27:22,441
with Leonard's good friend,
British actress Adrienne Corri.

523
00:27:22,441 --> 00:27:24,142
AZENBERG: And in the lobby

524
00:27:24,142 --> 00:27:27,946
there was an argument
going on between a Sheikh
and a civilian.

525
00:27:27,946 --> 00:27:31,350
And it was
a very noisy argument.

526
00:27:31,350 --> 00:27:36,054
And the guy that was arguing
with the Sheikh had
a German accent.

527
00:27:36,054 --> 00:27:39,825
The Sheikh leaves
and this guy who's drunk

528
00:27:39,825 --> 00:27:42,995
comes over to us
and he says,

529
00:27:42,995 --> 00:27:45,764
[IN GERMAN ACCENT]
"You're American. Yes?"

530
00:27:45,764 --> 00:27:48,367
[IN NORMAL ACCENT]
And we're sort of taken aback.

531
00:27:48,367 --> 00:27:51,803
And he says,
"What are you doing here?"

532
00:27:51,803 --> 00:27:54,206
And we said, "Well,
we work in the theater."

533
00:27:54,206 --> 00:27:58,076
He says, "Well,
I was a flyer
in the Luftwaffe,

534
00:27:58,076 --> 00:27:59,945
but we had no petrol.

535
00:27:59,945 --> 00:28:01,813
So I became a paratrooper."

536
00:28:01,813 --> 00:28:03,448
I remember Manny.
We were like...

537
00:28:03,448 --> 00:28:06,718
He jumped to save Mussolini.

538
00:28:08,353 --> 00:28:10,322
You can't make this story up.

539
00:28:10,322 --> 00:28:12,424
And we're sitting there
dumbfounded.

540
00:28:12,424 --> 00:28:16,295
And he concludes by,
[IN GERMAN ACCENT]
"The war is over.

541
00:28:16,295 --> 00:28:19,698
"And now I'm an investor
in the New York Theater."

542
00:28:20,799 --> 00:28:25,103
So Leonard said,
"What show did you invest in?"

543
00:28:25,103 --> 00:28:27,172
He says,
[IN GERMAN ACCENT]
"Fiddler on the Roof."

544
00:28:29,808 --> 00:28:31,310
It really happened.

545
00:28:35,280 --> 00:28:39,217
NARRATOR: In Delaware,
Leonard's instincts about
Tappin' Thru Life

546
00:28:39,217 --> 00:28:40,986
seemed to be paying off.

547
00:28:45,524 --> 00:28:48,894
We usually see or read
every show we book.

548
00:28:48,894 --> 00:28:52,264
So, therefore, we went down
to Delaware to see the show.

549
00:28:52,264 --> 00:28:53,298
[AUDIENCE CHEERING]

550
00:28:53,298 --> 00:28:56,201
Then Leonard said
he was going to proceed with it.

551
00:28:56,201 --> 00:28:58,070
And he asked us if we would

552
00:28:58,070 --> 00:29:00,906
be an investor in the show
and we agreed.

553
00:29:04,876 --> 00:29:06,144
[AUDIENCE CHEERING
AND APPLAUDING]

554
00:29:06,144 --> 00:29:11,516
So we were wearing
two hats, theater owner
and as an investor.

555
00:29:11,516 --> 00:29:14,886
NARRATOR: That investment
propelled Tappin' Thru Life
to New York,

556
00:29:14,886 --> 00:29:16,488
but not to Broadway.

557
00:29:16,488 --> 00:29:19,358
Instead, it moved
into New World Stages

558
00:29:19,358 --> 00:29:20,826
and off-Broadway venue,

559
00:29:20,826 --> 00:29:22,494
owned by
The Shubert Organization.

560
00:29:22,494 --> 00:29:26,398
WANKEL: If someone
doesn't drive the ship,
it will never happen.

561
00:29:26,398 --> 00:29:29,601
It was really Leonard's drive
to bring it to New York.

562
00:29:29,601 --> 00:29:31,903
Maurice certainly wanted
to come to New York.

563
00:29:31,903 --> 00:29:33,505
Everybody wants
to come to New York.

564
00:29:33,505 --> 00:29:37,476
You made all this possible.
Stand up so that I can give you
a hug for that.

565
00:29:37,476 --> 00:29:40,879
-[SOLOWAY CHUCKLING]
-You know... Oh...

566
00:29:42,147 --> 00:29:45,417
EVANS: Leonard knows
exactly how to handle stars.

567
00:29:45,417 --> 00:29:47,886
Even Marlene Dietrich.

568
00:29:47,886 --> 00:29:51,923
[CHUCKLES] He managed
her last one-woman show.

569
00:29:53,325 --> 00:29:56,128
SOLOWAY: Burt Bacharach,
the famous song writer.

570
00:29:56,128 --> 00:29:59,097
He was the conductor
for Marlene Dietrich.

571
00:29:59,097 --> 00:30:02,501
when she did her one-woman show
at the Lunt-Fontanne,

572
00:30:02,501 --> 00:30:05,103
and I was the house manager.

573
00:30:05,103 --> 00:30:08,974
And I got a call
one Saturday morning
from the porter,

574
00:30:08,974 --> 00:30:11,476
who said,
"Miss Dietrich is here.

575
00:30:11,476 --> 00:30:15,247
"And she would like to see you."
It was eight in the morning.

576
00:30:15,247 --> 00:30:19,151
So I threw on some clothes,
I ran down the theater
and she says,

577
00:30:19,151 --> 00:30:22,287
"I need to get
my dressing room painted."

578
00:30:22,287 --> 00:30:24,956
I said, "Well, it's going to be
painted Monday morning."

579
00:30:24,956 --> 00:30:26,958
She said, "No, no, no.

580
00:30:26,958 --> 00:30:30,395
"I'm opening Monday night.
I need it painted today."

581
00:30:30,395 --> 00:30:34,366
I said, "Well, I don't know
if I can find anybody
to paint it."

582
00:30:34,366 --> 00:30:38,103
She said, "No, no.
Just get me the paint.
I'll paint it."

583
00:30:38,103 --> 00:30:42,174
She climbed up on a ladder
with some kind of disinfectant

584
00:30:42,174 --> 00:30:45,911
over the walls and the ceiling.
And then she painted
the fucking thing.

585
00:30:47,045 --> 00:30:49,648
Everybody in the world came
and said hello to her,

586
00:30:49,648 --> 00:30:53,485
but nobody ever asked her
to go out for a drink
or for supper.

587
00:30:53,485 --> 00:30:58,256
And I think they just figured
that she was busy all the time.

588
00:30:58,256 --> 00:31:02,227
So she and I
and the company manager
would go to Sardi's.

589
00:31:02,227 --> 00:31:05,897
And every matinee day,
she would bring food
for the band

590
00:31:06,565 --> 00:31:08,533
which she cooked.

591
00:31:08,533 --> 00:31:11,269
Dietrich was amazing.

592
00:31:11,269 --> 00:31:14,306
She had a twenty-minute
curtain call. Twenty minutes.

593
00:31:15,674 --> 00:31:17,676
And then she hired somebody

594
00:31:17,676 --> 00:31:21,246
to always come down
and throw roses at her feet

595
00:31:21,246 --> 00:31:23,014
at the curtain call.

596
00:31:23,014 --> 00:31:25,083
And everybody said to me,

597
00:31:25,083 --> 00:31:28,019
"That can't be her figure
in that dress."

598
00:31:28,019 --> 00:31:30,622
It was all her underneath.

599
00:31:30,622 --> 00:31:32,991
And it was all real
at her age.

600
00:31:32,991 --> 00:31:38,363
♪ I can't give you anything
But love

601
00:31:40,565 --> 00:31:43,168
♪ But love

602
00:31:44,636 --> 00:31:47,005
♪ But love ♪

603
00:31:50,575 --> 00:31:52,210
[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]

604
00:31:54,679 --> 00:31:56,281
DRASNER: Okay.

605
00:31:56,982 --> 00:31:59,718
[LAUGHING] I don't need...

606
00:31:59,718 --> 00:32:02,454
Okay. No problem.

607
00:32:02,454 --> 00:32:07,058
Thank you, sir.
[CHUCKLES] Thank you.
Talk to you soon. Bye.

608
00:32:07,058 --> 00:32:09,628
-He's so cute.
-So what's the problem
with Jeff?

609
00:32:09,628 --> 00:32:14,166
He feels that because
they're coming,
you know, after...

610
00:32:14,166 --> 00:32:16,168
From two days off
onto a matinee.

611
00:32:16,168 --> 00:32:18,236
We don't have to give a shit
about the matinee.

612
00:32:18,236 --> 00:32:20,639
All right. Well, then
there's nothing I can do.

613
00:32:20,639 --> 00:32:21,706
That was what...
I said I would check.

614
00:32:21,706 --> 00:32:24,609
Well, he can rehearse
on Tuesday if he wants to.

615
00:32:24,609 --> 00:32:27,379
Oh, all right.
But why don't you
give a shit about the matinee?

616
00:32:27,379 --> 00:32:30,081
-What?
-It's our opening performance,
that's why he wants it to be...

617
00:32:30,081 --> 00:32:31,516
Well, it's a matinee.

618
00:32:31,516 --> 00:32:34,286
-Who the fuck do you think
is going to be there?
-I know. Shh, shh.

619
00:32:34,286 --> 00:32:36,688
They've been doing the show
for how many fucking weeks?

620
00:32:36,688 --> 00:32:39,224
I know, I know,
but now he's suddenly
getting nervous

621
00:32:39,224 --> 00:32:41,459
about the time,
and the girls,
and the boy and all.

622
00:32:41,459 --> 00:32:43,528
Well then, they have to
start working earlier.

623
00:32:43,528 --> 00:32:45,530
In fact, I think that
they're coming in on the 15th.

624
00:32:45,530 --> 00:32:48,366
I think Maurice said was
when they wanted to start
working with the girls.

625
00:32:48,366 --> 00:32:50,702
Well, that's up to Joe,
not up to them.

626
00:32:50,702 --> 00:32:53,305
Yeah, I think he
already spoke to Joe,
but I'll check that out.

627
00:32:53,305 --> 00:32:56,741
That they would have a space
and the guys
would just try tech.

628
00:32:56,741 --> 00:32:59,177
Tech week is
not a joy for anybody

629
00:32:59,177 --> 00:33:00,679
because all the elements
of the show

630
00:33:00,679 --> 00:33:04,115
come together
for the first time
and they don't fit.

631
00:33:04,115 --> 00:33:06,551
So all the amount of tinkering
that you have to do

632
00:33:06,551 --> 00:33:08,420
makes everyone crazy.

633
00:33:08,420 --> 00:33:09,387
And it's not a good time.

634
00:33:09,387 --> 00:33:13,225
So he can be
a little intense
at those times.

635
00:33:13,225 --> 00:33:16,194
And , you know,
you just know that
about him.

636
00:33:16,194 --> 00:33:18,663
And I understand that
because this is it.

637
00:33:18,663 --> 00:33:20,799
He's committed.
He's the producer.

638
00:33:20,799 --> 00:33:22,767
He's the one on the line.

639
00:33:22,767 --> 00:33:27,172
WANKEL: Off-Broadway is
a little bit more challenging
than Broadway these days.

640
00:33:27,172 --> 00:33:30,442
Only because it takes
longer for a show to take off.

641
00:33:30,442 --> 00:33:34,045
You have to worry about
the risk-reward factor.

642
00:33:35,313 --> 00:33:38,850
SOLOWAY: All right, let me just
preface this by saying

643
00:33:38,850 --> 00:33:42,487
we are way over budget
because of the set.

644
00:33:43,455 --> 00:33:44,522
Okay.

645
00:33:44,522 --> 00:33:47,459
And so, whatever we can cut,

646
00:33:49,160 --> 00:33:50,161
I would like to do.

647
00:33:50,161 --> 00:33:52,130
JACKIE LAVANWAY:
Oh, how old is this budget?

648
00:33:52,130 --> 00:33:53,698
-Older than you.
-[DRASNER LAUGHING]

649
00:33:53,698 --> 00:33:55,200
We can use this one.

650
00:33:55,200 --> 00:33:57,569
-Can I get it in Hebrew?
-Yeah, you can.

651
00:33:58,837 --> 00:34:02,173
If we need
to make cuts, um...

652
00:34:02,707 --> 00:34:04,109
We can talk about that.

653
00:34:34,806 --> 00:34:37,275
SOLOWAY: Okay, take care.
Thanks. Bye.

654
00:34:40,879 --> 00:34:42,414
It's very hot.

655
00:34:45,617 --> 00:34:46,685
Hot.

656
00:34:51,623 --> 00:34:53,758
They didn't want to
give me an open-end...

657
00:34:53,758 --> 00:34:54,960
Hot.

658
00:34:54,960 --> 00:34:56,828
They didn't want to give me
an open-end at the theater.

659
00:34:56,828 --> 00:34:58,930
They wanted to give me
ten weeks, I said that

660
00:34:58,930 --> 00:35:01,232
I can't raise a million dollars

661
00:35:01,232 --> 00:35:03,335
on a show that's only
going to run ten...

662
00:35:03,335 --> 00:35:07,772
Anyway, so they, you know,
I met with Bob over the weekend,

663
00:35:07,772 --> 00:35:11,176
ah, Wankel, and he said
"I'll talk to them."

664
00:35:11,609 --> 00:35:13,144
Okay, honey.

665
00:35:14,346 --> 00:35:16,648
Anybody you know
with money, holler.

666
00:35:16,648 --> 00:35:18,216
There are certain things
that you learn over time

667
00:35:18,216 --> 00:35:22,454
what has to be done
if a play isn't doing this well,
this is what we'll cut back.

668
00:35:22,454 --> 00:35:25,390
And what to do,
he's very knowledgeable,
but you have to be.

669
00:35:25,390 --> 00:35:27,525
There's nothing to talk about.

670
00:35:27,525 --> 00:35:30,128
DASNER: Well, here's
my question, there is
something to talk about.

671
00:35:31,329 --> 00:35:33,198
They want to have
a rehearsal room

672
00:35:33,198 --> 00:35:35,900
-from ten to one on the 17th.
-No.

673
00:35:35,900 --> 00:35:38,670
-They want a rehearsal room? No.
-Okay.

674
00:35:39,604 --> 00:35:41,840
-They can't.
-Okay.

675
00:35:41,840 --> 00:35:43,341
It has to be done
in the theater.

676
00:35:43,341 --> 00:35:44,876
We don't have
any money, Judith.

677
00:35:44,876 --> 00:35:46,478
You don't have to tell me,
I know.

678
00:35:46,478 --> 00:35:49,714
So we're not going to spend
$300 for a rehearsal room.

679
00:35:49,714 --> 00:35:50,615
DRASNER: Okay.

680
00:35:51,883 --> 00:35:53,184
SOLOWAY: I'm going to
send Jeff a note.

681
00:35:53,184 --> 00:35:55,553
DRASNER: Yeah, that would
be great if you did.
I would love that.

682
00:35:57,889 --> 00:36:00,191
I hate this fucking business.

683
00:36:03,561 --> 00:36:06,498
DRASNER: Sometimes,
especially if it's going
to be late at night

684
00:36:06,498 --> 00:36:11,269
and, you know,
it's not been a good day,
and tempers flare.

685
00:36:11,269 --> 00:36:12,437
[JEFF CALHOUN SPEAKING]

686
00:36:22,380 --> 00:36:23,982
-SOLOWAY: I want it out.
-This is what I'm...

687
00:36:23,982 --> 00:36:26,551
No, I want it out.
I'm not paying for it.

688
00:36:26,551 --> 00:36:28,186
-It doesn't work.
-But it's already here.

689
00:36:28,186 --> 00:36:32,690
Listen to me. I'm not
the only person that wonders
if there's a fire backstage.

690
00:36:32,690 --> 00:36:34,626
I'm not the only person
that thinks that.

691
00:36:34,626 --> 00:36:36,528
-Leonard, it's not...
-I want it out of the show.

692
00:36:36,528 --> 00:36:38,530
Okay, this is where
we have a problem.

693
00:36:38,530 --> 00:36:40,899
No, I don't have a problem
because I'm a producer.

694
00:36:40,899 --> 00:36:43,568
-We do have a problem
because...
-I'm saying you can't have it.

695
00:36:43,568 --> 00:36:46,271
I mean,
hello and welcome to theater.

696
00:36:46,271 --> 00:36:48,573
All right,
then take my name
off the show.

697
00:36:48,573 --> 00:36:50,875
-Oh, don't be silly.
-No. Forget it.

698
00:36:50,875 --> 00:36:54,245
-You don't listen.
You don't listen to me.
-I don't ask for a lot.

699
00:36:59,417 --> 00:37:00,752
SOLOWAY: You're fired.

700
00:37:03,855 --> 00:37:05,790
CALHOUN: Okay. Thank you.

701
00:37:05,790 --> 00:37:07,826
DRASNER: I mean,
everybody knows
Leonard doesn't blow up.

702
00:37:07,826 --> 00:37:11,362
It's just a thing, you know.
And then it's over with.

703
00:37:11,362 --> 00:37:15,366
Seriously, theater people
are different.

704
00:37:23,908 --> 00:37:26,044
SOLOWAY: Let's see
what you got, kids.

705
00:37:26,044 --> 00:37:27,812
MAN: So, the front
is the key art.

706
00:37:28,780 --> 00:37:31,516
Oh, it's the same as... Yeah.

707
00:37:31,516 --> 00:37:33,585
What's the difference
in the price?

708
00:37:33,585 --> 00:37:36,387
That package
is just over $11,000.

709
00:37:36,387 --> 00:37:38,857
SOLOWAY: So we're still
on budget pretty much, right?

710
00:37:38,857 --> 00:37:41,726
KEITH SHERMAN:
PR and the theater
go hand in hand.

711
00:37:41,726 --> 00:37:45,930
It's changed a lot,
predominantly with the use
of social media.

712
00:37:45,930 --> 00:37:51,002
Which has caused a lot
of print media to go
out of business.

713
00:37:51,002 --> 00:37:55,673
We have dozens and dozens
of websites now
devoted to the theater.

714
00:37:55,673 --> 00:37:59,077
So the mix has shifted
but it's just a different way

715
00:37:59,077 --> 00:38:01,813
to communicate with audiences.

716
00:38:01,813 --> 00:38:03,448
NARRATOR: Though print media
has dwindled,

717
00:38:03,448 --> 00:38:05,850
The New York Times
still holds great importance

718
00:38:05,850 --> 00:38:07,952
in driving Broadway business.

719
00:38:07,952 --> 00:38:09,721
A good review,
or a well-placed ad

720
00:38:09,721 --> 00:38:11,890
can be vital
to a show's survival.

721
00:38:14,425 --> 00:38:16,361
DRASNER: I'm very excited
about this ad.

722
00:38:16,361 --> 00:38:18,029
It looks beautiful.
It really pops.

723
00:38:18,029 --> 00:38:22,934
It's everything that it should
be and that's why I'm in
such a hurry to go get a paper.

724
00:38:22,934 --> 00:38:25,303
Good morning. Oh.

725
00:38:26,571 --> 00:38:28,439
Where did she go
with the camera?

726
00:38:29,040 --> 00:38:30,775
Gorgeous, isn't it?

727
00:38:33,678 --> 00:38:34,846
Thank you.

728
00:38:41,452 --> 00:38:43,621
Now that everybody thinks
I'm a star

729
00:38:43,621 --> 00:38:46,457
because I carry
my own media with me

730
00:38:46,457 --> 00:38:48,660
-SOLOWAY: That girl.
-Mmm-hmm.

731
00:38:49,460 --> 00:38:51,763
-Did you look at it?
-Yes.

732
00:38:51,763 --> 00:38:55,867
But I love the excitement
of opening the page to you.

733
00:38:55,867 --> 00:38:57,602
-SOLOWAY: Wow.
-Mmm-hmm.

734
00:39:02,473 --> 00:39:03,741
NARRATOR: At the start
of the 1970s,

735
00:39:03,741 --> 00:39:07,512
Leonard was producing
and managing a heavy schedule
of plays.

736
00:39:07,512 --> 00:39:09,814
From comedies
to historical dramas,

737
00:39:09,814 --> 00:39:13,151
and from a rock opera to
classics of the American stage.

738
00:39:17,422 --> 00:39:20,091
WILSON: I was so thrilled
to be able to see

739
00:39:20,091 --> 00:39:22,994
Colleen Dewhurst
and Jason Robards

740
00:39:22,994 --> 00:39:25,697
perform live together on stage.

741
00:39:25,697 --> 00:39:29,100
They famously did
A Moon for the Misbegotten
together

742
00:39:29,100 --> 00:39:31,169
with Jose Quintero as director.

743
00:39:31,169 --> 00:39:33,905
That Leonard
was the General Manager for.

744
00:39:33,905 --> 00:39:36,908
And that production
of A Moon for the Misbegotten

745
00:39:36,908 --> 00:39:42,880
was one of
the landmark productions
of the 20th century.

746
00:39:44,148 --> 00:39:45,783
NARRATOR: A Moon
for the Misbegotten

747
00:39:45,783 --> 00:39:47,685
was an emotionally
draining play.

748
00:39:47,685 --> 00:39:50,655
With Jason Robards cast
in the role of an alcoholic

749
00:39:50,655 --> 00:39:52,757
haunted by the death
of his mother,

750
00:39:52,757 --> 00:39:54,893
it was not expected
to have a long run.

751
00:39:54,893 --> 00:39:58,196
But the explosive chemistry
between Robards and Dewhurst

752
00:39:58,196 --> 00:40:01,532
gave the production
an unexpected charge.

753
00:40:01,532 --> 00:40:03,868
What happened
was the show just took off.

754
00:40:03,868 --> 00:40:07,672
I mean, it was an enormous,
enormous hit.

755
00:40:07,672 --> 00:40:10,575
We kept extending
the extension.

756
00:40:11,809 --> 00:40:14,746
Jason was
a great guy. Great.

757
00:40:14,746 --> 00:40:16,681
But one night,

758
00:40:16,681 --> 00:40:19,951
he went out after
the Wednesday matinee

759
00:40:19,951 --> 00:40:23,221
and got drunk.
Came back bombed.

760
00:40:23,221 --> 00:40:26,691
And I said, "Listen,
what are we going to do?"

761
00:40:26,691 --> 00:40:29,027
He said, "I'll go on,
get Betty."

762
00:40:29,027 --> 00:40:33,865
So I called Betty,
Lauren Bacall, his ex-wife,

763
00:40:33,865 --> 00:40:36,501
who showed up
in a mink coat over a slip

764
00:40:36,501 --> 00:40:38,169
with her hair in curlers.

765
00:40:38,169 --> 00:40:40,705
And she was, you know,
"Get me this. Get me tea.

766
00:40:40,705 --> 00:40:43,241
"Get me water.
Get me coffee."

767
00:40:43,241 --> 00:40:46,511
And, you know,
half an hour later

768
00:40:46,511 --> 00:40:48,446
he came out
of the dressing room.

769
00:40:48,446 --> 00:40:52,850
And Colleen said it was
the most touching performance
she'd ever had with him.

770
00:40:52,850 --> 00:40:57,922
'Cause it just broke her heart
playing with him.

771
00:40:57,922 --> 00:41:01,225
NARRATOR: During this time,
Leonard often went
to New Haven, Connecticut,

772
00:41:01,225 --> 00:41:03,995
a Mecca for
out of town tryouts.

773
00:41:03,995 --> 00:41:05,930
On one trip
with his business partner

774
00:41:05,930 --> 00:41:09,634
Leonard reluctantly went to see
a play called The Shadow Box

775
00:41:09,634 --> 00:41:13,571
with a cast that included
a young Mandy Patinkin.

776
00:41:13,571 --> 00:41:16,074
SOLOWAY: Nobody wanted it
because of the subject matter.

777
00:41:16,074 --> 00:41:19,644
It was the first play
to deal with terminal illness.

778
00:41:20,578 --> 00:41:22,847
So we went to the theater

779
00:41:22,847 --> 00:41:27,218
and at intermission
I turned and I said,
"We have to do this."

780
00:41:27,218 --> 00:41:31,289
We not only won
the Tony Awards,
we won the Pulitzer Prize.

781
00:41:31,289 --> 00:41:35,860
It was so far ahead
of its time that it never
did any business.

782
00:41:37,295 --> 00:41:39,630
We lost every nickel.

783
00:41:39,630 --> 00:41:41,199
NARRATOR: For Leonard's father

784
00:41:41,199 --> 00:41:45,036
even winning
Broadway's highest honor
had little meaning.

785
00:41:45,036 --> 00:41:48,106
SOLOWAY: His first sentence
to me on the phone always was

786
00:41:48,106 --> 00:41:49,807
"You making any money?"

787
00:41:49,807 --> 00:41:52,744
He didn't understand
what a Tony Award was.

788
00:41:52,744 --> 00:41:54,879
And didn't care what it was.

789
00:41:55,847 --> 00:41:57,382
Every Saturday
I'd call my mother

790
00:41:57,382 --> 00:42:01,018
and my father would get
on the phone
in the other room.

791
00:42:01,018 --> 00:42:05,256
And one day,
he ended his conversation
by saying,

792
00:42:05,256 --> 00:42:08,025
"I love you, Leonard."

793
00:42:08,025 --> 00:42:11,129
And my mother said,
"Better late than never."

794
00:42:15,800 --> 00:42:17,702
NARRATOR: The truth is
historically,

795
00:42:17,702 --> 00:42:21,072
the odds of succeeding
on Broadway are always
against you.

796
00:42:21,072 --> 00:42:24,042
Leonard's losers
are enshrined at Joe Allen

797
00:42:24,042 --> 00:42:27,044
with many others that failed
to find an audience.

798
00:42:27,044 --> 00:42:29,080
KEN BILLINGTON:
Joe Allen's
is a theatrical hangout.

799
00:42:29,080 --> 00:42:32,784
And I remember going
back there in mid 60s

800
00:42:32,784 --> 00:42:34,952
when I just started working
on Broadway.

801
00:42:34,952 --> 00:42:37,722
Some show closed,
that was a big failure.

802
00:42:37,722 --> 00:42:41,392
And, I think, maybe as a joke
and I may be wrong about this

803
00:42:41,392 --> 00:42:45,363
but a poster for that flop
was put on the wall

804
00:42:45,363 --> 00:42:46,564
because it was so terrible.

805
00:42:46,564 --> 00:42:50,401
And then over the years
it just grew and grew and grew.

806
00:42:50,401 --> 00:42:53,204
And, you know,
as I always say about myself,

807
00:42:53,204 --> 00:42:57,875
"I can throw a big potato
over my shoulder and hit
a flop show that I did."

808
00:42:57,875 --> 00:43:00,645
NARRATOR: One flop
that Ken Billington
shared with Leonard

809
00:43:00,645 --> 00:43:03,347
was a musical called
The Story of My Life.

810
00:43:03,347 --> 00:43:05,917
It ran for five performances.

811
00:43:05,917 --> 00:43:09,654
SOLOWAY: The critics hated it
and I'm convinced to this day

812
00:43:09,654 --> 00:43:14,826
that the reason they hated it
was that we never said what
the show was really about.

813
00:43:14,826 --> 00:43:18,029
Which was that
these two guys grew up together

814
00:43:18,029 --> 00:43:19,697
and were best friends.

815
00:43:19,697 --> 00:43:21,866
But one of them
was in love with the other.

816
00:43:21,866 --> 00:43:24,902
I mean, it was implied
but it never was stated.

817
00:43:24,902 --> 00:43:28,706
And I think that
that's what killed that show.

818
00:43:28,706 --> 00:43:32,844
There's an intrepid quality
to people like Leonard.

819
00:43:32,844 --> 00:43:36,380
They're willing to take a shot,
you know, over and over again.

820
00:43:36,380 --> 00:43:40,918
And like anybody's career,
you know, they're not all scores
and the most interesting stories

821
00:43:40,918 --> 00:43:43,955
are the ones
that didn't go well.

822
00:43:43,955 --> 00:43:49,393
SOLOWAY: Rockabye Hamlet
was directed by Gower Champion.

823
00:43:49,393 --> 00:43:54,198
And we had gone
to Canada to see the show
which was terrific.

824
00:43:54,198 --> 00:43:57,301
But when we got to New York
all of a sudden we're having

825
00:43:57,301 --> 00:44:00,438
huge scenery
and stuff being added,

826
00:44:00,438 --> 00:44:03,107
so it became
this big fucking production.

827
00:44:03,107 --> 00:44:07,311
And I said to them
we should really only
have the music critics

828
00:44:07,311 --> 00:44:09,046
instead of the theater critics.

829
00:44:09,046 --> 00:44:11,482
'Cause it basically
was an opera.

830
00:44:11,482 --> 00:44:13,184
Well, we had
the theater critics

831
00:44:13,184 --> 00:44:16,053
and it was
a major disaster.

832
00:44:16,053 --> 00:44:17,788
NARRATOR:
The New York Post's critic

833
00:44:17,788 --> 00:44:19,457
Martin Gottfried, wrote,

834
00:44:19,457 --> 00:44:21,025
[NARRATOR READING]

835
00:44:28,499 --> 00:44:31,369
A promising newcomer
to theatrical heartbreak

836
00:44:31,369 --> 00:44:33,204
was Bernadette Peters.

837
00:44:33,204 --> 00:44:35,373
SOLOWAY:
Bernadette and I
became friendly

838
00:44:35,373 --> 00:44:36,941
on A Mother's Kisses

839
00:44:36,941 --> 00:44:39,477
on a show with Bea Arthur.

840
00:44:39,477 --> 00:44:41,846
And, uh, we were
in New Haven

841
00:44:41,846 --> 00:44:44,882
and the show was too long
and we had to cut

842
00:44:44,882 --> 00:44:46,050
at least 20 minutes,

843
00:44:46,050 --> 00:44:48,953
and what the creative people
decided to do

844
00:44:48,953 --> 00:44:51,088
was to cut
a whole segment.

845
00:44:51,088 --> 00:44:54,358
Well, that was the segment
that Bernadette was in.

846
00:44:54,358 --> 00:44:57,695
So, I was the company
manager, I had to fire her.

847
00:44:58,396 --> 00:45:00,231
And she was crying
and I said,

848
00:45:00,231 --> 00:45:03,834
"You know, Bernadette,
everything works out
for the best.

849
00:45:03,834 --> 00:45:06,370
"You'll see,
it's gonna be just fine."

850
00:45:06,370 --> 00:45:09,340
So, we went to Baltimore
where we closed

851
00:45:09,340 --> 00:45:12,843
and she went to New York
where she got
Dames At Sea.

852
00:45:13,544 --> 00:45:15,479
So, then,
when I ran into her

853
00:45:15,479 --> 00:45:16,981
when we were back
in New York,

854
00:45:16,981 --> 00:45:18,783
several years later, she said,

855
00:45:18,783 --> 00:45:21,852
"Oh, there's the man
that made me a star."

856
00:45:21,852 --> 00:45:23,955
And we still see each other,

857
00:45:23,955 --> 00:45:26,090
and I love going
to opening nights

858
00:45:26,090 --> 00:45:29,160
'cause if she's there
she always runs over
and grabs me.

859
00:45:33,364 --> 00:45:36,267
LYNN WANKEL:
When he was most
prolific in his career,

860
00:45:36,267 --> 00:45:38,269
he was the odd man out.

861
00:45:38,269 --> 00:45:39,403
Leonard was the fellow,

862
00:45:39,403 --> 00:45:41,138
as much as
he wanted the job done,

863
00:45:41,138 --> 00:45:43,207
he would also
catch in the corner

864
00:45:43,207 --> 00:45:44,909
and say, you know,
"Is everything okay?

865
00:45:44,909 --> 00:45:47,411
"'Cause your performance,
I think, is a little off
tonight."

866
00:45:47,411 --> 00:45:49,981
Or, uh,
"You're okay financially?"

867
00:45:49,981 --> 00:45:52,350
Uh, he was always interested

868
00:45:52,350 --> 00:45:54,185
in someone, as a person.

869
00:45:54,585 --> 00:45:56,053
NARRATOR: In 1986,

870
00:45:56,053 --> 00:45:57,555
Leonard was
the general manager

871
00:45:57,555 --> 00:45:59,957
for the hit comedy
Social Security

872
00:45:59,957 --> 00:46:01,192
directed by Mike Nichols,

873
00:46:01,192 --> 00:46:04,929
and starring Olympia Dukakis
and Marlo Thomas.

874
00:46:04,929 --> 00:46:08,132
Leonard formed a special
bond with Olympia.

875
00:46:08,132 --> 00:46:11,102
I felt like
if I had a problem

876
00:46:11,102 --> 00:46:11,936
I could go to him

877
00:46:11,936 --> 00:46:15,439
and he would be discreet,
number one,

878
00:46:15,439 --> 00:46:18,042
and, uh, because
with Mike Nichols

879
00:46:18,042 --> 00:46:21,145
it was a really
rough kind of scene.

880
00:46:21,145 --> 00:46:25,283
One day in rehearsal,
he was so impatient

881
00:46:25,283 --> 00:46:27,118
and he lashed out at me.

882
00:46:27,118 --> 00:46:30,187
And maybe it's because
Leonard saw me through that,

883
00:46:30,187 --> 00:46:33,991
plus, my son,
he was having issues

884
00:46:33,991 --> 00:46:36,193
and I needed to go home.

885
00:46:36,193 --> 00:46:38,029
She came to me and said,

886
00:46:38,029 --> 00:46:40,431
"I don't know what to do.
I'm... I'm very distraught."

887
00:46:40,431 --> 00:46:42,066
I said, "Well,
you should go."

888
00:46:42,066 --> 00:46:43,367
And she said,
"Well, what will I..."

889
00:46:43,367 --> 00:46:45,469
I said, "Your understudy
will go on."

890
00:46:45,469 --> 00:46:46,570
She said,
"Oh, I hate to do that."

891
00:46:46,570 --> 00:46:48,139
I said, "Go."

892
00:46:48,139 --> 00:46:50,641
DUKAKIS: Leonard
made it possible for me.

893
00:46:50,641 --> 00:46:53,477
I mean, you know,
when it's your kid

894
00:46:53,477 --> 00:46:56,213
who cares about a play?

895
00:46:56,213 --> 00:46:58,215
NARRATOR:
Leonard developed
enduring friendships

896
00:46:58,215 --> 00:47:01,152
with many of the women
he worked with
over the years.

897
00:47:01,152 --> 00:47:03,521
Tony Award winning actress
Elizabeth Ashley

898
00:47:03,521 --> 00:47:05,990
starred in the 1975 revival

899
00:47:05,990 --> 00:47:09,026
of Thornton Wilder's
The Skin of Our Teeth.

900
00:47:09,026 --> 00:47:10,928
Before I'd ever worked
with Leonard,

901
00:47:10,928 --> 00:47:13,497
I had met Leonard
and I knew Leonard.

902
00:47:13,497 --> 00:47:16,367
And I was doing
this French play

903
00:47:16,367 --> 00:47:19,403
by Jean Giraudoux
called The Enchanted.

904
00:47:19,403 --> 00:47:22,640
And it's a very romantic play

905
00:47:22,640 --> 00:47:25,209
with the great, sort of...

906
00:47:25,209 --> 00:47:28,045
Uh, a lot of,
sort of, sexuality

907
00:47:28,045 --> 00:47:30,381
kind of running
underneath it.

908
00:47:30,381 --> 00:47:32,083
And my leading man

909
00:47:32,083 --> 00:47:36,153
was one of
the most beautiful

910
00:47:36,153 --> 00:47:38,989
and seductive leading men
at the time

911
00:47:38,989 --> 00:47:41,359
named Stephen McHattie.

912
00:47:41,359 --> 00:47:43,227
We were playing
the Kennedy Center.

913
00:47:43,227 --> 00:47:47,665
And Leonard was
general managing
something else.

914
00:47:47,665 --> 00:47:50,134
And, on a matinee day,

915
00:47:50,134 --> 00:47:53,137
I'm sitting on the floor
of my dressing room,

916
00:47:53,137 --> 00:47:55,206
you know, with all those
cartons of Chinese food,

917
00:47:55,206 --> 00:47:57,108
the way you do
between shows,

918
00:47:57,108 --> 00:48:00,478
and there's a knock
on the door and...
[CHUCKLES]

919
00:48:00,478 --> 00:48:02,947
And, uh, I said, "What?"

920
00:48:02,947 --> 00:48:05,149
Door opens and it's Leonard,
and Leonard is...

921
00:48:05,149 --> 00:48:07,585
I mean, Leonard is suited up

922
00:48:07,585 --> 00:48:09,286
and he stood there
and he said,

923
00:48:10,154 --> 00:48:13,157
"I wanna know one thing.
Is he gay?"

924
00:48:13,157 --> 00:48:16,093
And I knew immediately
who he's talking about

925
00:48:16,093 --> 00:48:18,696
because, I mean,
McHattie caused a stir

926
00:48:18,696 --> 00:48:20,631
when he walked
down the street.

927
00:48:20,631 --> 00:48:24,034
And, well, I was so happy
to say, "No!"

928
00:48:24,034 --> 00:48:26,270
[CHUCKLING] Years later,
I think, Leonard said,

929
00:48:26,270 --> 00:48:30,441
"I knew that you got him
before I did."

930
00:48:30,441 --> 00:48:32,977
NARRATOR:
Leonard first met
actress Tovah Feldshuh

931
00:48:32,977 --> 00:48:34,712
when she appeared
in an off-Broadway play

932
00:48:34,712 --> 00:48:36,347
early in her career.

933
00:48:36,347 --> 00:48:37,982
I met Leonard Soloway

934
00:48:37,982 --> 00:48:42,219
when I was doing Yentl
at the Brooklyn Academy
of Music.

935
00:48:42,219 --> 00:48:44,421
I have known him
throughout my career.

936
00:48:45,089 --> 00:48:46,724
He's a real gent.

937
00:48:46,724 --> 00:48:49,326
He's elegant.
He looks marvelous.

938
00:48:49,326 --> 00:48:50,628
He has style.

939
00:48:50,628 --> 00:48:52,296
NARRATOR:
And Leonard was impressed
with Tovah.

940
00:48:52,296 --> 00:48:56,167
When she took on the role
of Israeli Prime Minister
Golda Meir

941
00:48:56,167 --> 00:48:58,736
in the off-Broadway
production of
Golda's Balcony,

942
00:48:58,736 --> 00:49:01,205
Leonard offered
to take it to Broadway.

943
00:49:01,205 --> 00:49:03,607
FELDSHUH: But the deal
was a terrible offer.

944
00:49:03,607 --> 00:49:05,476
[LAUGHING]
I didn't take it.

945
00:49:05,476 --> 00:49:07,111
NARRATOR:
Leonard would have
another chance

946
00:49:07,111 --> 00:49:09,146
to work with Tovah,
on a new play

947
00:49:09,146 --> 00:49:11,382
that also started
off-Broadway.

948
00:49:11,382 --> 00:49:14,218
FELDSHUH:
He was the general manager
of Irena's Vow.

949
00:49:14,218 --> 00:49:17,321
He and Daryl Roth,
wonderful producer,

950
00:49:17,321 --> 00:49:19,390
took a real shine
to the piece,

951
00:49:19,390 --> 00:49:22,493
and they brought us
to Broadway.

952
00:49:24,195 --> 00:49:26,664
NARRATOR: In 1999,
Leonard oversaw

953
00:49:26,664 --> 00:49:28,332
the momentous
Broadway comeback

954
00:49:28,332 --> 00:49:31,402
of stage and screen icon,
Lauren Bacall

955
00:49:31,402 --> 00:49:33,637
in his production
of Noel Coward's

956
00:49:33,637 --> 00:49:35,239
Waiting in the Wings.

957
00:49:35,239 --> 00:49:37,508
Waiting in the Wings
boasted an amazing cast.

958
00:49:37,508 --> 00:49:39,243
Not just Lauren Bacall,

959
00:49:39,243 --> 00:49:41,512
but Rosemary Harris,
Dana Ivey.

960
00:49:41,512 --> 00:49:43,647
There was an all-star cast.

961
00:49:43,647 --> 00:49:45,516
At that point in her life,

962
00:49:45,516 --> 00:49:47,651
Lauren Bacall was not

963
00:49:47,651 --> 00:49:49,620
the easiest
to get along with,

964
00:49:49,620 --> 00:49:51,322
but Leonard, uh,

965
00:49:51,322 --> 00:49:53,357
not only knew
how to charm Bacall

966
00:49:53,357 --> 00:49:55,526
but also knew
how to stand up to her.

967
00:49:55,526 --> 00:49:57,795
When I was, uh,

968
00:49:57,795 --> 00:50:00,698
boss, and she called me
into her dressing room

969
00:50:00,698 --> 00:50:01,799
and she said,

970
00:50:01,799 --> 00:50:04,835
"Listen, I hear we got
a fabulous notice."

971
00:50:04,835 --> 00:50:06,337
I said, "Yeah, we did."

972
00:50:06,337 --> 00:50:07,771
She said,
"Why didn't you tell me?"

973
00:50:07,771 --> 00:50:10,174
I said, "Because
it's no good for you."

974
00:50:11,342 --> 00:50:13,143
She said,
"What did they say?

975
00:50:13,143 --> 00:50:15,679
"That I missed a few
lines here and there?"

976
00:50:15,679 --> 00:50:17,181
"Missed a few lines?"

977
00:50:17,181 --> 00:50:19,116
I had a girl
sitting in the front row

978
00:50:19,116 --> 00:50:21,685
"throwing her
every fucking line."

979
00:50:21,685 --> 00:50:23,687
And then she came
to me and said,

980
00:50:23,687 --> 00:50:27,291
"I saw this bracelet
at Cartier's

981
00:50:27,291 --> 00:50:29,593
"that I would like
to get to wear in the show."

982
00:50:29,593 --> 00:50:31,161
I said, "Number one,

983
00:50:31,161 --> 00:50:32,396
"the woman in the show

984
00:50:32,396 --> 00:50:35,466
"would not have
a $6,000 bracelet.

985
00:50:35,466 --> 00:50:36,700
"So, forget about it.

986
00:50:36,700 --> 00:50:38,168
"But, if the show's
a hit in New York,

987
00:50:38,168 --> 00:50:39,336
"I'll get it for you."

988
00:50:39,703 --> 00:50:41,338
Well, she,

989
00:50:41,338 --> 00:50:44,308
of course, forgot
all about it, so...

990
00:50:44,308 --> 00:50:46,310
We did get her
a dog, however.

991
00:50:47,578 --> 00:50:49,546
And I did adore her.

992
00:50:49,546 --> 00:50:51,215
Great sense of humor.

993
00:50:52,616 --> 00:50:55,319
-Okay. [CHUCKLING]
-MAN: Well,
we just wanna thank you

994
00:50:55,319 --> 00:50:57,788
-for coming here today.
-Where is he now?

995
00:50:57,788 --> 00:50:59,690
Oh, uh, we can call him.

996
00:50:59,690 --> 00:51:00,557
I think we should
give him a call.

997
00:51:00,557 --> 00:51:01,825
MAN 2: Why don't we
call him, then?

998
00:51:01,825 --> 00:51:03,394
Just to say hello...

999
00:51:03,394 --> 00:51:05,429
MAN 2: Give me my,
uh, cellphone.

1000
00:51:05,429 --> 00:51:06,463
Hi, Leonard.

1001
00:51:07,364 --> 00:51:09,133
It's Olympia.

1002
00:51:09,133 --> 00:51:11,235
SOLOWAY: [ON PHONE]
Olympia, my darling treasure.

1003
00:51:11,235 --> 00:51:13,270
-How the fuck are you?
-Alive.

1004
00:51:13,270 --> 00:51:15,472
Yes, alive, and kicking,

1005
00:51:15,472 --> 00:51:16,774
and well, and, uh...

1006
00:51:16,774 --> 00:51:18,342
What are you, 90 now?

1007
00:51:19,677 --> 00:51:21,145
Yeah.

1008
00:51:22,746 --> 00:51:24,281
[CHUCKLES]

1009
00:51:25,749 --> 00:51:28,085
-[MAN LAUGHING]
-Really?

1010
00:51:33,490 --> 00:51:35,826
Oh, of course, of course.

1011
00:51:35,826 --> 00:51:37,127
-I love you very much.
-I love you too,

1012
00:51:37,127 --> 00:51:38,595
-And I think of you
all the time.
-sweetheart.

1013
00:51:38,595 --> 00:51:40,531
-Bye-bye.
-Bye, honey.

1014
00:51:40,531 --> 00:51:43,200
Take care. Bye. Bye.

1015
00:51:43,200 --> 00:51:45,836
Do you want me to scan that
and send it to them?

1016
00:51:45,836 --> 00:51:47,771
-Just so they can...
-Yes.

1017
00:51:47,771 --> 00:51:50,774
So, have... Add him here.

1018
00:51:50,774 --> 00:51:52,276
NARRATOR:
Throughout the 1980s,

1019
00:51:52,276 --> 00:51:55,179
Leonard was involved
with a number
of musical productions.

1020
00:51:55,179 --> 00:51:57,381
One of them would pose
a major challenge

1021
00:51:57,381 --> 00:51:59,450
to his well-honed
people skills.

1022
00:52:01,418 --> 00:52:03,420
AZENBERG: Jerome Robbins
was maybe

1023
00:52:03,420 --> 00:52:05,556
the single most difficult
man I'd ever met

1024
00:52:05,556 --> 00:52:06,457
in the theater.

1025
00:52:06,457 --> 00:52:07,925
[CHUCKLING]
Maybe in the world.

1026
00:52:07,925 --> 00:52:09,393
He was relentless.

1027
00:52:09,393 --> 00:52:11,228
WANKEL: Jerome Robbins' Broadway

1028
00:52:11,228 --> 00:52:13,864
was a big show

1029
00:52:13,864 --> 00:52:17,601
putting together
the six-month
rehearsal period

1030
00:52:17,601 --> 00:52:19,403
which is unheard of,

1031
00:52:19,403 --> 00:52:21,939
but that's what
Mr. Robbins insisted on.

1032
00:52:21,939 --> 00:52:24,174
We did rehearse
for six months.

1033
00:52:24,575 --> 00:52:26,410
Sixty-two dancers.

1034
00:52:27,277 --> 00:52:29,613
For six months,
six days a week.

1035
00:52:29,980 --> 00:52:31,415
It was monumental.

1036
00:52:31,415 --> 00:52:34,284
We were squished
into the Imperial Theater.

1037
00:52:34,284 --> 00:52:35,686
SOLOWAY:
We'd rehearse six weeks.

1038
00:52:35,686 --> 00:52:37,287
We'd take off six weeks.

1039
00:52:37,287 --> 00:52:39,957
It took a year
to get the show going.

1040
00:52:39,957 --> 00:52:42,693
Jerome Robbins' Broadway
was the top number

1041
00:52:42,693 --> 00:52:43,794
from all of his shows.

1042
00:52:43,794 --> 00:52:46,230
And the thing about
Jerry Robbins was that

1043
00:52:46,230 --> 00:52:47,564
you could never tell
from his shows

1044
00:52:47,564 --> 00:52:49,533
that he was
the choreographer.

1045
00:52:49,533 --> 00:52:53,570
Because all of his dancers
came out of the material.

1046
00:52:53,570 --> 00:52:56,407
In those days, they didn't
write down choreography

1047
00:52:56,407 --> 00:52:58,575
They didn't notate
what it was.

1048
00:52:58,575 --> 00:53:01,879
So, uh, we brought people
over from Holland

1049
00:53:01,879 --> 00:53:04,248
and from Paris,

1050
00:53:04,248 --> 00:53:07,351
and people who had been
in the original production

1051
00:53:07,351 --> 00:53:09,853
of whatever show
we were talking about.

1052
00:53:09,853 --> 00:53:12,656
People were constantly
coming in with their memories.

1053
00:53:12,656 --> 00:53:15,559
Now, they didn't, maybe,
necessarily know the steps,

1054
00:53:15,559 --> 00:53:17,294
but all of a sudden, like,
somebody would go,

1055
00:53:17,294 --> 00:53:18,829
"Oh, and I remember
we did this."

1056
00:53:18,829 --> 00:53:21,932
And all of a sudden,
"Oh, and you know what,
I did that."

1057
00:53:21,932 --> 00:53:23,867
And everybody,
all of a sudden,

1058
00:53:23,867 --> 00:53:25,469
fell right into it

1059
00:53:25,469 --> 00:53:28,005
because we all have
that muscle memory.

1060
00:53:28,005 --> 00:53:30,874
You were sort of
auditioning, basically,

1061
00:53:30,874 --> 00:53:32,543
everyday for him.

1062
00:53:32,543 --> 00:53:35,012
All this incredible
dance and movement

1063
00:53:35,012 --> 00:53:36,146
and things were happening,

1064
00:53:36,146 --> 00:53:39,383
and then, it all, like,
went down to, like,

1065
00:53:39,383 --> 00:53:40,818
Girl in the Spotlight.

1066
00:53:40,818 --> 00:53:42,886
And it was me.

1067
00:53:42,886 --> 00:53:44,721
And when he first lit it,

1068
00:53:44,721 --> 00:53:45,923
something happened
with the lighting

1069
00:53:45,923 --> 00:53:48,725
and I was a little...
Guess I wasn't happy.

1070
00:53:48,725 --> 00:53:50,327
And I said to him,

1071
00:53:50,327 --> 00:53:53,497
"Well, I just want it
to be perfect." And he said,

1072
00:53:53,497 --> 00:53:55,599
"Now you know how I feel."

1073
00:53:55,599 --> 00:53:57,568
NARRATOR: But Robbins'
demands for perfection

1074
00:53:57,568 --> 00:54:00,037
didn't sit well
with some of the producers.

1075
00:54:00,037 --> 00:54:02,506
In particular,
Manny Azenberg.

1076
00:54:02,506 --> 00:54:05,476
Manny called me
one morning
and he was really

1077
00:54:05,476 --> 00:54:08,545
not himself, and he says,
"I'm resigning."

1078
00:54:08,545 --> 00:54:09,880
"So, what are you
resigning for?

1079
00:54:09,880 --> 00:54:11,381
"The show hasn't even opened.

1080
00:54:11,381 --> 00:54:13,016
I was just exhausted.

1081
00:54:13,016 --> 00:54:14,384
He said,
"I can't take it, Phil.

1082
00:54:14,384 --> 00:54:17,621
"If I don't resign,
I'm gonna either have
a nervous breakdown

1083
00:54:17,621 --> 00:54:19,823
"or I'm gonna lose Lani,
I'm gonna lose my wife."

1084
00:54:20,924 --> 00:54:23,360
I said, "Just take it easy.
Relax.

1085
00:54:23,360 --> 00:54:26,396
"Don't... Don't resign.
Don't do anything.

1086
00:54:26,396 --> 00:54:28,365
"Leonard can take the show.

1087
00:54:29,399 --> 00:54:30,701
"And when Leonard
handles the show

1088
00:54:30,701 --> 00:54:33,670
"you don't have to be in there,
on the firing line."

1089
00:54:33,670 --> 00:54:35,939
It was sort of
a perfect combination

1090
00:54:35,939 --> 00:54:38,342
of the two of them,

1091
00:54:38,342 --> 00:54:39,476
because Leonard's honesty,

1092
00:54:39,476 --> 00:54:41,578
I think Jerry
could handle that.

1093
00:54:41,578 --> 00:54:42,980
He went right along with it.

1094
00:54:42,980 --> 00:54:44,581
Any time when you had humor,

1095
00:54:44,581 --> 00:54:46,416
and obviously, Leonard
[CHUCKLES SOFTLY]

1096
00:54:46,416 --> 00:54:48,819
is one of the gods
of humor.

1097
00:54:48,819 --> 00:54:52,623
That, you know,
is one of his great,
great strengths.

1098
00:54:52,623 --> 00:54:53,857
So, I think...

1099
00:54:53,857 --> 00:54:56,693
So, I think that
for Jerry Robbins,
it was, it was good.

1100
00:54:56,693 --> 00:54:58,862
SOLOWAY: He said
to his assistants once,

1101
00:54:58,862 --> 00:55:02,065
he said, "Don't say anything
important in the car.

1102
00:55:02,065 --> 00:55:04,835
"'Cause the driver
is a spy for Leonard."

1103
00:55:04,835 --> 00:55:08,572
Leonard's attitude is,
"You can't pull
that shit on me."

1104
00:55:08,572 --> 00:55:10,674
And Leonard was a stalwart.

1105
00:55:10,674 --> 00:55:13,510
SOLOWAY: The first
dress rehearsal
in New York,

1106
00:55:13,510 --> 00:55:16,113
I broke the show at 10:00.

1107
00:55:16,113 --> 00:55:18,115
And he came to me and said,

1108
00:55:18,115 --> 00:55:21,552
"What... What happened?"
And I... I just lost it.

1109
00:55:21,552 --> 00:55:24,788
And I said, "Everybody's been
working 18 hours a day.

1110
00:55:24,788 --> 00:55:26,423
"They're dead tired...

1111
00:55:26,423 --> 00:55:28,592
"The musicians, the crew,

1112
00:55:28,592 --> 00:55:30,594
"and they just
can't keep going."

1113
00:55:30,994 --> 00:55:32,863
And he said, "Oh, okay."

1114
00:55:33,764 --> 00:55:35,132
So, some...

1115
00:55:35,132 --> 00:55:37,467
I... I thought
the theater was empty.

1116
00:55:37,467 --> 00:55:41,405
Some stagehand was there
and heard all this.

1117
00:55:41,405 --> 00:55:44,441
I got home
and my phone was ringing.

1118
00:55:44,441 --> 00:55:46,843
I suddenly was
a hero on Broadway

1119
00:55:46,843 --> 00:55:49,913
'cause I told Jerry Robbins
to go fuck himself.

1120
00:55:49,913 --> 00:55:51,615
[KEYBOARD CLACKING]

1121
00:55:55,919 --> 00:55:57,487
-Judith?
-Mmm?

1122
00:55:57,487 --> 00:55:59,156
Tell our stage manager

1123
00:55:59,156 --> 00:56:00,991
that she should
come through us

1124
00:56:00,991 --> 00:56:03,627
before she talks to anybody.

1125
00:56:03,627 --> 00:56:06,463
This is fucking ridiculous,
what's going on here.

1126
00:56:08,098 --> 00:56:09,733
What are you looking
at me like that for?

1127
00:56:09,733 --> 00:56:11,535
Well, because.

1128
00:56:11,535 --> 00:56:14,037
When we were on the road
that's what she did.

1129
00:56:14,037 --> 00:56:16,073
-I know.
-And that's what I want.

1130
00:56:16,073 --> 00:56:18,041
She can't just call Joe

1131
00:56:18,041 --> 00:56:19,710
and say this is
what she wants.

1132
00:56:20,043 --> 00:56:21,712
Okay.

1133
00:56:21,712 --> 00:56:23,480
Looks like your mail.
Did you see it?

1134
00:56:23,480 --> 00:56:24,781
-[COMPUTER DINGS]
-I saw it, yeah.

1135
00:56:25,816 --> 00:56:26,817
I mean,

1136
00:56:26,817 --> 00:56:28,051
who does she think she is,
for Christ's sake.

1137
00:56:28,051 --> 00:56:30,887
Every... Every other
stage manager
I've ever dealt with

1138
00:56:30,887 --> 00:56:33,624
called me to say
what they wanted to do.

1139
00:56:34,191 --> 00:56:35,459
Well, she's making a schedule.

1140
00:56:35,459 --> 00:56:37,928
She always talks to you
but she's trying
to make the schedule.

1141
00:56:37,928 --> 00:56:39,596
I want to know
what's happening.

1142
00:56:39,596 --> 00:56:41,665
I don't wanna hear it
second hand.

1143
00:56:41,932 --> 00:56:42,933
Okay.

1144
00:56:52,175 --> 00:56:53,777
NARRATOR: In 1997,

1145
00:56:53,777 --> 00:56:55,646
Leonard was asked
to see a production

1146
00:56:55,646 --> 00:56:58,949
of an off-off-Broadway play
called Gross Indecency.

1147
00:56:58,949 --> 00:57:01,218
It was based on
the true story of the trials

1148
00:57:01,218 --> 00:57:04,221
of Irish poet and playwright,
Oscar Wilde.

1149
00:57:04,221 --> 00:57:06,056
Future Emmy winner
Michael Emerson

1150
00:57:06,056 --> 00:57:09,493
won praise for his breakout
performance as Wilde.

1151
00:57:10,594 --> 00:57:13,230
In 1895,
the Marquess of Queensberry,

1152
00:57:13,230 --> 00:57:15,966
father of Wilde's lover,
Lord Alfred Douglas,

1153
00:57:15,966 --> 00:57:18,602
accused Oscar Wilde
of being a sodomist

1154
00:57:18,602 --> 00:57:19,836
and enticing young men

1155
00:57:19,836 --> 00:57:22,939
into, then,
illegal homosexuality.

1156
00:57:22,939 --> 00:57:24,675
You will hear these men testify

1157
00:57:24,675 --> 00:57:29,046
that Mr. Wilde committed
acts of gross indecency.

1158
00:57:29,046 --> 00:57:30,881
You will hear from their lips...

1159
00:57:30,881 --> 00:57:33,617
It is, in this century,
misunderstood.

1160
00:57:34,918 --> 00:57:36,953
So much misunderstood

1161
00:57:36,953 --> 00:57:38,288
that it may be described as

1162
00:57:38,288 --> 00:57:40,857
the love that
dare not speak its name.

1163
00:57:41,792 --> 00:57:44,528
Wilde was found guilty
of gross indecency

1164
00:57:44,528 --> 00:57:46,163
and received
the harshest sentence

1165
00:57:46,163 --> 00:57:48,265
of two years
with hard labor.

1166
00:57:48,265 --> 00:57:50,934
After his release,
he left Britain for France

1167
00:57:50,934 --> 00:57:53,170
where he continued to write
until his death

1168
00:57:53,170 --> 00:57:54,871
at the age of 46.

1169
00:57:56,273 --> 00:57:59,176
In a rare review
for an off-off-Broadway play,

1170
00:57:59,176 --> 00:58:01,111
Ben Brantley
of The New York Times

1171
00:58:01,111 --> 00:58:03,180
gave Gross Indecency a rave,

1172
00:58:03,180 --> 00:58:05,615
calling it
"absolutely gripping."

1173
00:58:06,149 --> 00:58:07,284
Leonard agreed to take the play

1174
00:58:07,284 --> 00:58:09,720
to a larger venue
in Greenwich Village,

1175
00:58:09,720 --> 00:58:11,922
the Minetta Lane Theater.

1176
00:58:11,922 --> 00:58:15,625
SOLOWAY:
And I called my friend
Chase Mishkin

1177
00:58:15,625 --> 00:58:18,028
and I said,
"I'm doing this play

1178
00:58:18,028 --> 00:58:19,363
"about Oscar Wilde,

1179
00:58:19,363 --> 00:58:22,065
"and, uh, would you be able
to set it in investing?"

1180
00:58:22,065 --> 00:58:24,034
And she said, "Yes, sure."

1181
00:58:24,034 --> 00:58:26,903
And I knew I was home free.

1182
00:58:26,903 --> 00:58:29,673
And then we played Toronto,
we played Chicago,

1183
00:58:29,673 --> 00:58:31,808
we played Los Angeles,

1184
00:58:31,808 --> 00:58:33,610
San Francisco.

1185
00:58:33,610 --> 00:58:35,345
Everybody found it fascinating

1186
00:58:35,345 --> 00:58:37,948
and we sold out
everywhere we went.

1187
00:58:37,948 --> 00:58:39,783
[APPLAUDING]

1188
00:58:39,783 --> 00:58:41,785
NARRATOR:
Another highlight
of Leonard's career,

1189
00:58:41,785 --> 00:58:43,987
was serving as producer
and general manager

1190
00:58:43,987 --> 00:58:46,223
for a revival
of Whoopi Goldberg's

1191
00:58:46,223 --> 00:58:47,824
One Woman Show.

1192
00:58:47,824 --> 00:58:50,594
The limited Broadway run
was a sellout.

1193
00:58:50,594 --> 00:58:51,628
[AUDIENCE CHEERING]

1194
00:58:51,628 --> 00:58:53,330
So, it weren't
no surprise to me

1195
00:58:53,330 --> 00:58:54,898
what happened,
I'll tell you.

1196
00:58:54,898 --> 00:58:56,666
But I'll tell you
what was a surprise.

1197
00:58:56,666 --> 00:58:58,668
When this election
was the first one,

1198
00:58:58,668 --> 00:59:00,070
that shit
shot the hell out of me.

1199
00:59:00,070 --> 00:59:02,873
'Cause I always thought
in order to be President
of the United States,

1200
00:59:02,873 --> 00:59:04,808
-you had to be smart...
-[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]

1201
00:59:04,808 --> 00:59:07,978
...you know what I mean?
No, no, wait, wait,
wait, wait. No, it's...

1202
00:59:07,978 --> 00:59:10,147
Let me... Let me
explain what I'm saying.

1203
00:59:10,147 --> 00:59:11,114
You know, I'm just saying

1204
00:59:11,114 --> 00:59:13,183
I thought you had to know
shit like geography.

1205
00:59:13,183 --> 00:59:15,085
[AUDIENCE LAUGHING]

1206
00:59:15,085 --> 00:59:17,287
SOLOWAY: So, there was
a very big weekend,

1207
00:59:17,287 --> 00:59:19,656
I mean, there was
a big holiday weekend,

1208
00:59:20,023 --> 00:59:21,324
and...

1209
00:59:21,324 --> 00:59:23,693
Uh, it was gonna be huge

1210
00:59:23,693 --> 00:59:26,229
and she was desperately ill.

1211
00:59:26,229 --> 00:59:28,098
She missed the whole weekend.

1212
00:59:29,032 --> 00:59:32,035
So, when the show closed,
she said to me,

1213
00:59:32,035 --> 00:59:33,703
"Did you break even?"

1214
00:59:33,703 --> 00:59:36,139
And I said, "Not quite."
And she said, "Well,

1215
00:59:36,139 --> 00:59:38,341
"how much were you...
How much do you think
you lost?"

1216
00:59:38,341 --> 00:59:40,410
I said, "About 100,000."

1217
00:59:40,410 --> 00:59:42,179
She went to Clearwater

1218
00:59:42,179 --> 00:59:43,847
and played a Saturday night

1219
00:59:43,847 --> 00:59:46,750
and gave me a check
for $100,000.

1220
00:59:46,750 --> 00:59:48,385
And I thought,
"You know what?

1221
00:59:48,385 --> 00:59:50,854
"I'm gonna try to
walk in my heart

1222
00:59:50,854 --> 00:59:53,857
"with the idea that
in spite of everything,

1223
00:59:53,857 --> 00:59:55,826
"there's still good
in people."

1224
00:59:56,393 --> 00:59:57,994
SOLOWAY: I loved her.

1225
00:59:58,728 --> 01:00:00,864
She's quite a lady.

1226
01:00:02,299 --> 01:00:04,401
NARRATOR:
In 2002, Leonard was told

1227
01:00:04,401 --> 01:00:05,836
that Hollywood superstar
Paul Newman

1228
01:00:05,836 --> 01:00:09,005
wanted to bring
Thornton Wilder's
timeless play

1229
01:00:09,005 --> 01:00:11,041
Our Town to Broadway.

1230
01:00:11,041 --> 01:00:13,210
Newman and his wife
Joanne Woodward

1231
01:00:13,210 --> 01:00:16,446
were patrons of the
Westport Country Playhouse
in Connecticut

1232
01:00:16,446 --> 01:00:18,982
where a revival
of the play
had opened.

1233
01:00:18,982 --> 01:00:20,817
All profits from
the New York production

1234
01:00:20,817 --> 01:00:22,352
would go to that theater.

1235
01:00:22,352 --> 01:00:26,156
Newman wanted
to personally select
the Broadway venue.

1236
01:00:26,156 --> 01:00:29,159
So, he, for some reason,

1237
01:00:29,159 --> 01:00:30,393
wanted to take a look at

1238
01:00:30,393 --> 01:00:32,729
what is now
the Walter Kerr Theater.

1239
01:00:32,729 --> 01:00:35,999
I said, "No.
You got to see the Booth

1240
01:00:35,999 --> 01:00:38,835
"which is right
at the Shubert alley

1241
01:00:38,835 --> 01:00:41,338
"and where we have
a lot of other theaters."

1242
01:00:41,338 --> 01:00:43,173
So, Paul goes through
and he says,

1243
01:00:43,173 --> 01:00:44,307
"Oh, I wanna go
on the stage."

1244
01:00:44,307 --> 01:00:46,276
I said, "Well,
the door is over here."

1245
01:00:46,276 --> 01:00:47,210
He said, "No."

1246
01:00:47,210 --> 01:00:50,080
He's 70 years old.
He jumps up on the stage.

1247
01:00:50,080 --> 01:00:51,414
[CRICKETS CHIRPING]

1248
01:00:51,414 --> 01:00:53,183
I mean, he was just a doll.

1249
01:00:55,452 --> 01:00:57,254
Well...

1250
01:00:57,254 --> 01:00:59,289
Now is the time to tell you,

1251
01:00:59,289 --> 01:01:01,124
I think that
the Cartwright interests

1252
01:01:01,124 --> 01:01:03,994
are building a new bank
in Grover's Corners.

1253
01:01:05,195 --> 01:01:08,398
I had to go to Vermont
for the marble,
I'm sorry to say.

1254
01:01:08,398 --> 01:01:10,934
And, uh, they've asked
some friends of mine

1255
01:01:10,934 --> 01:01:11,968
what we should put
in the cornerstone

1256
01:01:11,968 --> 01:01:15,472
for people to dig up
a thousand years from now.

1257
01:01:15,472 --> 01:01:17,207
Of course, so,
we are putting in a copy

1258
01:01:17,207 --> 01:01:20,477
of the Constitution
of the United States of America,

1259
01:01:20,477 --> 01:01:21,878
and the Bible,

1260
01:01:21,878 --> 01:01:24,681
and some of Shakespeare's plays.

1261
01:01:26,283 --> 01:01:28,752
What do you say?
What do you think?

1262
01:01:28,752 --> 01:01:30,520
Everybody worked for minimum,

1263
01:01:30,520 --> 01:01:31,821
including Paul.

1264
01:01:31,821 --> 01:01:35,091
But they were getting
a percentage of the profits

1265
01:01:35,091 --> 01:01:37,294
and we ended up
making so much money

1266
01:01:37,294 --> 01:01:39,296
that they all made
more money

1267
01:01:39,296 --> 01:01:40,497
than they would have made

1268
01:01:40,497 --> 01:01:43,066
if they'd been with
their regular salaries.

1269
01:01:50,173 --> 01:01:53,243
All right, darling, thank you.
Give my love to her.

1270
01:01:53,243 --> 01:01:55,111
Your welcome. Bye.

1271
01:01:56,379 --> 01:01:58,114
Oh, dear!

1272
01:01:59,849 --> 01:02:02,852
Everybody's fucking dying.

1273
01:02:02,852 --> 01:02:05,522
You know, I don't understand
why you have to have a coffin

1274
01:02:05,522 --> 01:02:07,824
even if you're being cremated.

1275
01:02:07,824 --> 01:02:10,226
-They have to have a coffin.
-I know.

1276
01:02:10,226 --> 01:02:12,862
I know. You can just
put me in a trash bag

1277
01:02:12,862 --> 01:02:14,331
[CHUCKLING] and throw me out.
What do I care?

1278
01:02:14,331 --> 01:02:15,832
That's what I think.

1279
01:02:17,901 --> 01:02:19,769
[KEYBOARD CLACKING]

1280
01:02:27,110 --> 01:02:29,879
SOLOWAY: You know, he gets
depressed very often.

1281
01:02:29,879 --> 01:02:32,315
So, this doctor put him
on this regime

1282
01:02:32,315 --> 01:02:34,417
of when he gets home
at night,

1283
01:02:34,417 --> 01:02:36,886
to write, um, write down

1284
01:02:36,886 --> 01:02:39,289
what was nice during the day.

1285
01:02:40,423 --> 01:02:42,459
And he said
it's been three months now

1286
01:02:42,459 --> 01:02:43,893
that he's doing this

1287
01:02:43,893 --> 01:02:46,262
and it has changed
his whole brain.

1288
01:02:46,262 --> 01:02:48,164
That's great. Good for him.

1289
01:02:48,164 --> 01:02:49,899
That's what
my shrink always said.

1290
01:02:49,899 --> 01:02:50,934
You have to look for the good.

1291
01:02:50,934 --> 01:02:53,870
The bad is all over,
you have to find the good.

1292
01:02:53,870 --> 01:02:55,372
It's not easy.
Look for the good.

1293
01:02:55,372 --> 01:02:57,907
This show is gonna be open
and it's gonna be great.

1294
01:02:58,408 --> 01:02:59,576
[CHUCKLES]

1295
01:02:59,576 --> 01:03:01,111
But we... We didn't have

1296
01:03:01,111 --> 01:03:04,180
much competition
in all the other towns.

1297
01:03:04,180 --> 01:03:08,051
-I know.
-When there's
30 fucking shows on Broadway.

1298
01:03:09,352 --> 01:03:13,490
I know, but there are
60 gazillion people
going to these shows.

1299
01:03:13,490 --> 01:03:15,325
And they can come
see ours too.

1300
01:03:15,325 --> 01:03:16,660
Especially for less...

1301
01:03:16,660 --> 01:03:19,462
Remember, when we were
first thinking about
bringing it on Broadway?

1302
01:03:19,462 --> 01:03:21,131
This is gonna be much better.

1303
01:03:21,131 --> 01:03:23,466
Oh, I... I think
we're in the right place.

1304
01:03:23,466 --> 01:03:24,501
Absolutely in the right place.

1305
01:03:24,501 --> 01:03:27,003
It's in... It's in town.

1306
01:03:27,003 --> 01:03:30,073
It's really in Broadway.
They can go to TKTS
walk right over there.

1307
01:03:30,940 --> 01:03:32,442
So, I think
it's gonna be very good.

1308
01:03:32,442 --> 01:03:34,144
I'm excited
about this, Leonard.

1309
01:03:41,918 --> 01:03:43,953
NARRATOR: As the New York
opening night approached

1310
01:03:43,953 --> 01:03:45,155
for Tappin' Thru Life,

1311
01:03:45,155 --> 01:03:47,323
there were the usual jitters.

1312
01:03:47,323 --> 01:03:49,292
WANKEL: Everybody has
the same concern.

1313
01:03:49,292 --> 01:03:52,629
You pick the show,
you put it together,

1314
01:03:52,629 --> 01:03:54,364
you bring
all of the parts together

1315
01:03:54,364 --> 01:03:57,934
and then the audience decides
whether it's good or bad.

1316
01:03:57,934 --> 01:04:00,236
And so, you never know
what the audience is gonna do.

1317
01:04:00,236 --> 01:04:02,605
They either buy the tickets
or they don't.

1318
01:04:02,605 --> 01:04:04,240
And it could be a great show

1319
01:04:04,240 --> 01:04:06,443
and people don't seem
to have interest,

1320
01:04:06,443 --> 01:04:09,245
or the press could not
give it the kind of attention

1321
01:04:09,245 --> 01:04:10,480
that it may need.

1322
01:04:10,480 --> 01:04:12,449
A lot of things going into

1323
01:04:12,449 --> 01:04:14,150
having a show sell.

1324
01:04:14,150 --> 01:04:16,019
And the best thing
is word of mouth.

1325
01:04:16,019 --> 01:04:19,355
So, you have to just sit back
and wait and hope

1326
01:04:19,355 --> 01:04:23,326
that everybody says,
"You must see
Tappin' Thru Life."

1327
01:04:23,326 --> 01:04:25,128
[TAP DANCING]

1328
01:04:36,206 --> 01:04:38,975
NARRATOR: At the opening
night performance
for Tappin' Thru Life

1329
01:04:38,975 --> 01:04:41,177
a jubilant audience
had investors believing

1330
01:04:41,177 --> 01:04:43,279
that they had a hit
on their hands.

1331
01:04:43,279 --> 01:04:44,914
[AUDIENCE APPLAUDING]

1332
01:04:47,951 --> 01:04:49,619
Members of Broadway's elite,

1333
01:04:49,619 --> 01:04:52,055
including Brooke Shields,
Tommy Tune,

1334
01:04:52,055 --> 01:04:54,290
Michele Lee and Savion Glover,

1335
01:04:54,290 --> 01:04:56,392
came out to celebrate
with the cast.

1336
01:04:57,994 --> 01:05:00,997
WOMAN:
So, now we're just gonna
jump to press land,

1337
01:05:00,997 --> 01:05:02,966
if you don't mind.

1338
01:05:02,966 --> 01:05:05,568
So, uh, last night we opened

1339
01:05:05,568 --> 01:05:07,737
and it was a blast.

1340
01:05:07,737 --> 01:05:09,305
Sentiment was very positive

1341
01:05:09,305 --> 01:05:11,374
over Facebook, Twitter,
Instagram.

1342
01:05:11,374 --> 01:05:14,377
Basically, there's been
no negative feedback
about the show.

1343
01:05:14,377 --> 01:05:15,612
Everybody loves it.

1344
01:05:15,612 --> 01:05:17,981
NARRATOR: In fact,
the influential New York Times

1345
01:05:17,981 --> 01:05:19,649
described the show this way,

1346
01:05:19,649 --> 01:05:23,353
"Monday's performance,
in front of a buoyant
opening-night audience,

1347
01:05:23,353 --> 01:05:25,054
"was blistering hot."

1348
01:05:26,689 --> 01:05:28,224
Okay, well...

1349
01:05:28,591 --> 01:05:29,425
Thank you.

1350
01:05:29,425 --> 01:05:31,394
-If you guys can...
-WOMAN: Yeah.

1351
01:05:31,394 --> 01:05:32,529
-...excuse us.
-Okay.

1352
01:05:34,164 --> 01:05:35,331
[WOMAN WHISPERING]
Thank you...

1353
01:05:44,274 --> 01:05:46,276
Of course, the role
that money plays

1354
01:05:46,276 --> 01:05:49,412
is extremely important
in every production

1355
01:05:49,412 --> 01:05:52,782
because you can't have
a show without money.

1356
01:05:52,782 --> 01:05:54,751
And so, it has to be
very carefully watched.

1357
01:05:54,751 --> 01:05:58,087
It has to be really
looked over like a Mother Hen

1358
01:05:58,087 --> 01:05:59,789
and the budget
is always out there.

1359
01:05:59,789 --> 01:06:02,091
And we're always looking
to see what happens.

1360
01:06:02,091 --> 01:06:03,459
And especially Leonard.

1361
01:06:03,459 --> 01:06:05,562
And so, you know, he does,

1362
01:06:05,562 --> 01:06:07,163
because that money is crucial.

1363
01:06:07,163 --> 01:06:09,132
Crucial, especially today.

1364
01:06:18,041 --> 01:06:21,511
When I did Dame Edna,
we had not one seat sold.

1365
01:06:22,245 --> 01:06:24,247
We started previews on Monday.

1366
01:06:24,247 --> 01:06:28,418
And with no advertising
we were selling out
by Friday night.

1367
01:06:28,418 --> 01:06:30,587
I thought the same thing
would happen here.

1368
01:06:31,287 --> 01:06:32,355
But it didn't.

1369
01:06:32,355 --> 01:06:34,123
WOLK: But you already have
some money coming in.

1370
01:06:34,123 --> 01:06:35,692
-From what?
-WOLK: The figures
you showed.

1371
01:06:35,692 --> 01:06:37,560
But still if we only do

1372
01:06:37,560 --> 01:06:39,996
50,000 a week
we're in trouble.

1373
01:06:41,397 --> 01:06:43,233
25,000 is not enough

1374
01:06:43,233 --> 01:06:44,634
to cover the weekly expenses.

1375
01:06:44,634 --> 01:06:46,803
You couldn't just call
a few people and say listen

1376
01:06:46,803 --> 01:06:48,271
-Yeah, and they said no.
-we've got this...

1377
01:06:49,105 --> 01:06:50,673
They said no.

1378
01:06:50,673 --> 01:06:52,609
Well, you did make some calls.

1379
01:06:52,609 --> 01:06:54,444
You've obviously done
a 100 shows.

1380
01:06:54,444 --> 01:06:56,412
These things come up,
they go down.

1381
01:06:57,313 --> 01:06:59,616
-What...
-It was never as bad as this.

1382
01:06:59,616 --> 01:07:01,150
It was just a mistake
to launch it

1383
01:07:01,150 --> 01:07:03,152
not having it fully capitalized?

1384
01:07:03,152 --> 01:07:04,053
Yes.

1385
01:07:05,221 --> 01:07:06,856
Which was your decision?

1386
01:07:06,856 --> 01:07:08,491
I regret it enormously.

1387
01:07:08,491 --> 01:07:12,428
I got a big lecture from
Phil Smith about doing that.

1388
01:07:12,428 --> 01:07:14,430
He said,
"You should know by now
you should not have gone

1389
01:07:14,430 --> 01:07:17,100
"into rehearsal
until you had all the money."

1390
01:07:18,101 --> 01:07:19,535
You know I've said
all along that

1391
01:07:19,535 --> 01:07:22,839
the problem is
we don't have money
to advertise.

1392
01:07:22,839 --> 01:07:24,674
But that poster
that's in the front.

1393
01:07:24,674 --> 01:07:26,175
Can't we put a label on there,

1394
01:07:26,175 --> 01:07:28,311
-that says "Blistering hot."
-That costs money.

1395
01:07:28,311 --> 01:07:30,413
But that's,
that's just one label.

1396
01:07:30,413 --> 01:07:31,314
It costs money.

1397
01:07:31,314 --> 01:07:33,650
Hundreds of dollars,
don't you get it?

1398
01:07:33,650 --> 01:07:35,184
Look, you don't know
the business.

1399
01:07:35,184 --> 01:07:37,320
So, don't start
telling me
what to do.

1400
01:07:39,188 --> 01:07:40,523
So, it must be pretty hard
when you have to

1401
01:07:40,523 --> 01:07:42,258
tell someone
you're closing
the show.

1402
01:07:43,393 --> 01:07:44,294
It is.

1403
01:07:46,329 --> 01:07:47,864
I'll call the company together

1404
01:07:47,864 --> 01:07:49,332
and say I have to put up

1405
01:07:50,333 --> 01:07:51,267
the notice.

1406
01:07:51,267 --> 01:07:53,636
I mean, won't you tell
Maurice in person?

1407
01:08:00,743 --> 01:08:03,613
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]

1408
01:08:04,881 --> 01:08:05,915
NARRATOR: In fact,

1409
01:08:05,915 --> 01:08:06,883
Leonard would have to
let it be known

1410
01:08:06,883 --> 01:08:09,419
that the show was going
to close.

1411
01:08:09,419 --> 01:08:10,787
The same night

1412
01:08:10,787 --> 01:08:12,889
that Maurice Hines was being
honored with a caricature.

1413
01:08:12,889 --> 01:08:14,123
At Sardi's.

1414
01:08:15,625 --> 01:08:17,660
[SOLOWAY SPEAKING]

1415
01:08:18,361 --> 01:08:19,228
Okay.

1416
01:08:22,598 --> 01:08:23,599
Got you.

1417
01:08:38,381 --> 01:08:40,583
[ALL CHEERING]

1418
01:09:07,343 --> 01:09:08,711
Bob is saying
we should wait till

1419
01:09:08,711 --> 01:09:11,714
after the show to tell him,
but I can't do that.

1420
01:09:11,714 --> 01:09:13,616
It's purely by Union regulation.

1421
01:09:14,517 --> 01:09:16,786
Simply said,
it has to be up a specific

1422
01:09:16,786 --> 01:09:20,957
amount of time the actors,
the company and everything
needs to know it

1423
01:09:20,957 --> 01:09:22,558
That's it.

1424
01:09:22,558 --> 01:09:24,861
And we'd have to
pay more money,
a lot more money

1425
01:09:24,861 --> 01:09:25,795
and we couldn't afford
the money,

1426
01:09:25,795 --> 01:09:27,330
we'd have to pay the cast
for another week.

1427
01:09:27,330 --> 01:09:30,366
We'd have to do a lot of...
Make out a lot of payments
that we didn't...

1428
01:09:30,366 --> 01:09:32,769
If we had the money
we would have stayed open.

1429
01:09:32,769 --> 01:09:33,703
But we didn't have it.

1430
01:09:36,939 --> 01:09:39,976
SOLOWAY: Shall we go
in the corner to talk?

1431
01:09:39,976 --> 01:09:41,544
Come, we have to talk a bit.

1432
01:09:41,544 --> 01:09:43,613
-You want me to talk... Okay.
-Yeah.

1433
01:09:43,980 --> 01:09:45,581
[INDISTINCT]

1434
01:09:52,588 --> 01:09:54,323
I kept going

1435
01:09:54,323 --> 01:09:57,427
and collecting more
and more debts.

1436
01:09:57,427 --> 01:10:01,564
Because we never made enough
money to break even, weekly.

1437
01:10:03,032 --> 01:10:04,667
And Maurice was wonderful,

1438
01:10:04,667 --> 01:10:07,704
in that he offered
to not take his weekly

1439
01:10:07,704 --> 01:10:09,305
choreography fee.

1440
01:10:14,944 --> 01:10:16,679
So, do you think
this will be your last show?

1441
01:10:17,046 --> 01:10:19,348
Absolutely.

1442
01:10:19,348 --> 01:10:22,518
Because I would never
be able to raise money.

1443
01:10:24,520 --> 01:10:26,422
It's too difficult these days.

1444
01:10:26,422 --> 01:10:28,391
All of my contacts are gone.

1445
01:10:37,033 --> 01:10:38,434
Did you see this?

1446
01:10:54,917 --> 01:10:57,854
So far, everything
is going very well.

1447
01:10:59,622 --> 01:11:00,523
Period.

1448
01:11:01,824 --> 01:11:03,659
Moving out today.

1449
01:11:05,461 --> 01:11:06,395
Period.

1450
01:11:06,395 --> 01:11:08,331
Moving in tomorrow.

1451
01:11:09,732 --> 01:11:10,633
Period.

1452
01:11:11,701 --> 01:11:12,702
[SOLOWAY SPEAKING]

1453
01:11:26,949 --> 01:11:28,551
You know, you can just...

1454
01:11:28,551 --> 01:11:31,053
You can just drop this stuff
off the balcony.

1455
01:11:31,053 --> 01:11:32,288
[LAUGHS]

1456
01:11:36,826 --> 01:11:39,462
Those are all
my boyfriends,
ex boyfriends.

1457
01:11:41,397 --> 01:11:43,799
He was one of
the top models
in the world.

1458
01:11:43,799 --> 01:11:45,368
He hardly exercised

1459
01:11:45,368 --> 01:11:47,537
and he was built
like a brick shithouse.

1460
01:11:47,537 --> 01:11:49,572
And the guy
in the horseshoe frame,

1461
01:11:49,572 --> 01:11:52,808
comes from one of
the wealthiest families
in the world

1462
01:11:52,808 --> 01:11:56,445
His family discovered
how to take oil out of water.

1463
01:11:56,913 --> 01:11:58,014
He was great.

1464
01:11:58,014 --> 01:11:59,715
And the one behind him

1465
01:11:59,715 --> 01:12:02,318
raised Arabian horses.

1466
01:12:06,522 --> 01:12:09,325
That's my parents,
behind the lamp.

1467
01:12:12,829 --> 01:12:16,566
That's one my favorite pictures
it's called Lonesome Cowboy.

1468
01:12:17,800 --> 01:12:19,435
That's me.

1469
01:12:19,435 --> 01:12:21,504
That's really me that painting.

1470
01:12:22,905 --> 01:12:26,475
I mean it's not really me,
but that's emotionally me.

1471
01:12:27,143 --> 01:12:29,378
I don't know,
I just plug into it.

1472
01:12:35,418 --> 01:12:37,987
NARRATOR: Leonard had one
last goodbye to make.

1473
01:12:37,987 --> 01:12:39,388
To The Shubert Organization,

1474
01:12:39,388 --> 01:12:42,625
which had played
such a big role
in his career.

1475
01:12:42,625 --> 01:12:44,827
When I was on Take me along,

1476
01:12:44,827 --> 01:12:47,129
before it started, uh,

1477
01:12:47,129 --> 01:12:50,499
-MAN: Jackie Gleason?
-Jackie Gleason said,

1478
01:12:50,499 --> 01:12:54,537
"Who got the most money
on Broadway ever?"

1479
01:12:54,537 --> 01:12:56,038
And I checked around, I said,

1480
01:12:56,038 --> 01:12:59,041
"Mary Martin got $5000 a week."

1481
01:12:59,041 --> 01:13:01,644
He said, "I want $5001."

1482
01:13:01,644 --> 01:13:03,045
[BOTH LAUGH]

1483
01:13:03,045 --> 01:13:06,048
And when we went
from Boston to Philly,

1484
01:13:06,048 --> 01:13:07,483
you know, in those days,

1485
01:13:07,483 --> 01:13:10,052
if you got a parlor car,

1486
01:13:10,052 --> 01:13:12,521
you got a freight car.

1487
01:13:12,521 --> 01:13:14,523
And the scenery
would go with you.

1488
01:13:14,890 --> 01:13:15,925
So, from Boston...

1489
01:13:15,925 --> 01:13:17,793
He hired a 5-piece jazz band

1490
01:13:17,793 --> 01:13:21,063
that played on the train
all the way
from Boston to Philadelphia.

1491
01:13:21,063 --> 01:13:22,531
And when we got to Philadelphia,

1492
01:13:22,531 --> 01:13:24,834
he picked up the check
for the entire company.

1493
01:13:24,834 --> 01:13:26,535
MAN: Leonard,
why would you
give this up?

1494
01:13:26,535 --> 01:13:27,870
Why would you ever
give up theater?

1495
01:13:28,671 --> 01:13:30,206
I'm through with the business.

1496
01:13:30,206 --> 01:13:32,808
-What?
-I am.

1497
01:13:32,808 --> 01:13:35,211
-This it?
-I'm not going through
that again.

1498
01:13:35,211 --> 01:13:37,847
It's all about money now,
it's not, it's no fun.

1499
01:13:38,514 --> 01:13:39,715
The only one I would ever

1500
01:13:39,715 --> 01:13:41,984
think of doing, would be, uh,

1501
01:13:41,984 --> 01:13:44,820
Fellow Travelers,
if we could find
a star for it.

1502
01:13:44,820 --> 01:13:47,490
Otherwise, I don't,
I don't want to do it anymore.

1503
01:13:48,891 --> 01:13:51,727
NARRATOR: So after producing
and managing more than 100

1504
01:13:51,727 --> 01:13:55,097
productions on Broadway
and in theaters
around the world

1505
01:13:55,097 --> 01:13:58,601
Leonard was trading
his home in the heart
of the theater district.

1506
01:13:58,601 --> 01:14:01,704
For the peace and quiet
of East Hampton, New York.

1507
01:14:04,073 --> 01:14:06,676
[INDISTINCT CHATTERING]

1508
01:14:09,178 --> 01:14:10,513
WOMAN: Very nice.

1509
01:14:10,980 --> 01:14:11,947
[PHONE RINGING]

1510
01:14:12,848 --> 01:14:14,984
[CHATTERING CONTINUES]

1511
01:14:19,188 --> 01:14:20,523
SOLOWAY: Hello.

1512
01:14:22,024 --> 01:14:23,492
Did you just call me?

1513
01:14:24,026 --> 01:14:25,061
It says Wankel.

1514
01:14:26,996 --> 01:14:28,731
I may have accidently.

1515
01:14:28,731 --> 01:14:30,132
Oh, I know.

1516
01:14:30,132 --> 01:14:32,601
Bob you don't have to pretend.

1517
01:14:32,601 --> 01:14:35,004
-I think...
-Everybody knows about us.

1518
01:14:35,004 --> 01:14:37,940
Oh, all right, well,
then you told everybody else.

1519
01:14:44,146 --> 01:14:47,016
To our dear friend
Leonard Soloway.

1520
01:14:47,016 --> 01:14:51,253
Who has abandoned
the metropolitan
center of the world.

1521
01:14:51,253 --> 01:14:53,122
To live the leisure life

1522
01:14:53,122 --> 01:14:54,590
in East Hampton.

1523
01:14:55,157 --> 01:14:56,692
And we want him

1524
01:14:56,692 --> 01:14:59,729
to enjoy the very best
of everything.

1525
01:14:59,729 --> 01:15:02,765
So we're gonna let him
pick up the check today.

1526
01:15:02,765 --> 01:15:04,600
[ALL LAUGH]

1527
01:15:04,600 --> 01:15:06,836
-Here, here!
-Understand what
the country life

1528
01:15:06,836 --> 01:15:08,904
-is now like.
-Very good, thank you.

1529
01:15:08,904 --> 01:15:09,972
Cheers.

1530
01:15:44,206 --> 01:15:45,207
NARRATOR: It turns out,

1531
01:15:45,207 --> 01:15:46,242
that Leonard's heart

1532
01:15:46,242 --> 01:15:48,344
had never really left
42nd street.

1533
01:15:48,344 --> 01:15:49,678
LYNN WANKEL: I think
he got bored.

1534
01:15:49,678 --> 01:15:50,813
And I think he missed

1535
01:15:50,813 --> 01:15:53,682
the, as we say,
the razzle-dazzle stuff.

1536
01:15:53,682 --> 01:15:55,651
By the second winter coming in,

1537
01:15:55,651 --> 01:15:57,119
I think he just realized,

1538
01:15:57,119 --> 01:15:59,655
"Boy, I'm in the wrong place."

1539
01:15:59,655 --> 01:16:00,923
And I think also, he had many

1540
01:16:00,923 --> 01:16:02,825
friends out there
from years ago.

1541
01:16:03,058 --> 01:16:03,993
Um.

1542
01:16:03,993 --> 01:16:06,062
Uh, Betty Bacall.

1543
01:16:06,062 --> 01:16:08,164
Uh, Jason Robards.

1544
01:16:08,164 --> 01:16:10,332
And I think,
that was the Hamptons,

1545
01:16:10,332 --> 01:16:12,301
that he remembered
and that he loved.

1546
01:16:12,301 --> 01:16:14,637
And it just wasn't
there anymore.

1547
01:16:14,637 --> 01:16:15,838
NARRATOR: Leonard
had also lived through

1548
01:16:15,838 --> 01:16:18,874
one of the darkest
periods in modern history.

1549
01:16:18,874 --> 01:16:22,711
When AIDS swept through
the gay community
during the 1980s.

1550
01:16:23,345 --> 01:16:24,380
The deadly epidemic

1551
01:16:24,380 --> 01:16:25,948
took an enormous toll
on Broadway.

1552
01:16:25,948 --> 01:16:29,985
With the loss of some
of its brightest,
artistic talent.

1553
01:16:29,985 --> 01:16:32,354
Including the creator
of A Chorus Line.

1554
01:16:32,354 --> 01:16:34,957
Broadway's most iconic show.

1555
01:16:34,957 --> 01:16:35,858
Michael Bennett.

1556
01:16:36,292 --> 01:16:38,360
SOLOWAY: Michael was

1557
01:16:38,360 --> 01:16:40,296
you know, couple of times
I was in trouble

1558
01:16:40,296 --> 01:16:43,766
with a show out of town
and I would call him

1559
01:16:43,766 --> 01:16:46,735
and he would be there
the next day
on his own dollar.

1560
01:16:46,735 --> 01:16:49,104
And he would sit
with the creative people,

1561
01:16:50,306 --> 01:16:53,008
and tell them
what he thought

1562
01:16:53,008 --> 01:16:55,744
and he'd get on the plane
and go back to New York.

1563
01:16:56,879 --> 01:16:58,848
LYNN WANKEL: You know
he always said to me

1564
01:16:58,848 --> 01:17:00,216
I really shouldn't be alive.

1565
01:17:01,383 --> 01:17:03,152
He said it's really
quite astonishing.

1566
01:17:03,152 --> 01:17:06,055
When I look at all the men
and friends and lovers

1567
01:17:06,055 --> 01:17:06,989
that I've lost.

1568
01:17:06,989 --> 01:17:10,192
That why am I the one
that's still here.

1569
01:17:10,192 --> 01:17:11,760
And, um...

1570
01:17:13,295 --> 01:17:16,432
I think that's part
of his fearlessness.

1571
01:17:16,432 --> 01:17:19,301
I think, he feels
he's here for a reason.

1572
01:17:19,301 --> 01:17:21,070
And, um...

1573
01:17:21,070 --> 01:17:23,806
He's gonna do it,
he's gonna do
what makes him happy.

1574
01:17:23,806 --> 01:17:26,308
And he's gonna do
what keeps him
in the industry.

1575
01:17:26,308 --> 01:17:28,344
Um, yeah.

1576
01:17:28,344 --> 01:17:31,347
NARRATOR: For Leonard Soloway,
the revels have not ended.

1577
01:17:31,347 --> 01:17:35,217
He did in fact,
put the play
Fellow Travelers on its feet.

1578
01:17:35,217 --> 01:17:36,685
For an out of town tryout

1579
01:17:36,685 --> 01:17:39,722
in the picturesque,
Long Island Town
of Sag Harbor

1580
01:17:39,722 --> 01:17:43,125
only 2 hours and 45 minutes
from Broadway.

1581
01:17:43,125 --> 01:17:45,194
With the backing
of The Shubert Organization.

1582
01:17:45,194 --> 01:17:49,064
The play would have
it's premiere
at the Bay Street Theater.

1583
01:17:49,064 --> 01:17:52,935
WILSON: I arrived here,
to begin tech ten days ago.

1584
01:17:52,935 --> 01:17:56,171
Leonard was here
in the house ahead of me.

1585
01:17:56,171 --> 01:17:57,473
Ah, just as we were about to

1586
01:17:57,473 --> 01:17:59,808
begin spacing the play on stage.

1587
01:17:59,808 --> 01:18:01,277
And then he was here for

1588
01:18:01,277 --> 01:18:04,280
every single minute
of our tech
and preview process.

1589
01:18:05,347 --> 01:18:07,082
You don't get that
with all producers.

1590
01:18:07,082 --> 01:18:09,084
You don't get that
with all general managers.

1591
01:18:09,919 --> 01:18:12,821
I think of Leonard as an artist.

1592
01:18:13,889 --> 01:18:15,357
You have your tickets?

1593
01:18:15,357 --> 01:18:18,193
-Well I...
-All you have to do is sit here
and look handsome, you see

1594
01:18:18,193 --> 01:18:20,996
-And everything else
falls into place.
-I like to, I like...

1595
01:18:20,996 --> 01:18:25,301
I like telling them
dirty stories
it gets them off guard.

1596
01:18:29,905 --> 01:18:31,240
Leonard!

1597
01:18:31,974 --> 01:18:32,841
How are you?

1598
01:18:32,841 --> 01:18:34,410
I'm fine, how are you?

1599
01:18:34,410 --> 01:18:37,780
Leonard, I have missed you,
sweetie.

1600
01:18:37,780 --> 01:18:40,082
I've missed you,
I would rather
have been with you.

1601
01:18:40,082 --> 01:18:42,818
I have something for you
but I'll give it to you
after the performance.

1602
01:18:42,818 --> 01:18:45,454
-So you don't have to...
-You got a man in this bag?

1603
01:18:45,454 --> 01:18:46,388
I do.

1604
01:18:46,388 --> 01:18:47,790
SOLOWAY: Leonard Soloway.

1605
01:18:47,790 --> 01:18:48,924
-Leonard Soloway,
-Congratulations.

1606
01:18:48,924 --> 01:18:51,026
Producer Extraordinaire.

1607
01:18:51,894 --> 01:18:53,495
That's a gorgeous outfit.

1608
01:18:53,495 --> 01:18:55,264
-Absolutely gorgeous.
-Thank you, thank you.

1609
01:18:55,264 --> 01:18:57,866
-You got my message
though, right?
-What did it say?

1610
01:19:01,170 --> 01:19:03,138
[LAUGHS]
No problem.

1611
01:19:03,138 --> 01:19:05,874
Five years ago,
I discovered this script.

1612
01:19:05,874 --> 01:19:08,210
It was given to me
by Evan Bergman

1613
01:19:08,210 --> 01:19:12,448
And I just plugged into
the political aspects of it.

1614
01:19:12,448 --> 01:19:15,184
I mean, it's even
more pertinent now.

1615
01:19:15,184 --> 01:19:18,053
NARRATOR: The play looks back
at a turbulent time in America

1616
01:19:18,053 --> 01:19:20,823
when artists were accused
and many blacklisted,

1617
01:19:20,823 --> 01:19:23,592
for being sympathetic
towards communism.

1618
01:19:23,592 --> 01:19:25,561
Two men at the center
of this storm

1619
01:19:25,561 --> 01:19:28,163
were Oscar winning Director,
Elia Kazan

1620
01:19:28,163 --> 01:19:29,365
known as Gadg.

1621
01:19:29,365 --> 01:19:31,767
And the brilliant Playwright,
Arthur Miller.

1622
01:19:32,201 --> 01:19:33,335
Close friends.

1623
01:19:33,335 --> 01:19:35,170
They soon became adversaries.

1624
01:19:35,170 --> 01:19:37,172
over the choice
to remain silent

1625
01:19:37,172 --> 01:19:39,041
or to betray friends
and colleagues

1626
01:19:39,041 --> 01:19:42,111
to the House Un-American
Activities Committee

1627
01:19:42,111 --> 01:19:44,546
The inquisition
destroyed lives.

1628
01:19:44,546 --> 01:19:46,181
And tore the country apart.

1629
01:19:47,883 --> 01:19:49,718
In the play,

1630
01:19:49,718 --> 01:19:53,455
Kazan tries to warn Miller
about the scrutiny
he could face in Hollywood.

1631
01:19:53,455 --> 01:19:55,324
Gadg says in that first act.

1632
01:19:55,324 --> 01:19:56,425
He says,

1633
01:19:56,425 --> 01:19:58,294
"There's no blacklist
on Broadway."

1634
01:19:58,294 --> 01:19:59,261
And Miller says,

1635
01:20:00,462 --> 01:20:02,197
"Not yet."

1636
01:20:02,197 --> 01:20:04,166
I think a lot of
the people last night

1637
01:20:04,166 --> 01:20:06,101
got emotionally
involved with it.

1638
01:20:06,602 --> 01:20:08,470
And, uh.

1639
01:20:08,470 --> 01:20:11,073
What pleased me
a lot was that

1640
01:20:12,107 --> 01:20:14,076
Before the lights even came up

1641
01:20:14,076 --> 01:20:17,012
on the curtain call,
people were already standing.

1642
01:20:17,613 --> 01:20:20,482
Ah, which was a very good sign.

1643
01:20:20,482 --> 01:20:24,920
NARRATOR: And the play received
enthusiastic reviews
in local papers.

1644
01:20:24,920 --> 01:20:27,656
He has a path for us.

1645
01:20:27,656 --> 01:20:30,993
He knows he's got Broadway
in mind for this play.

1646
01:20:35,898 --> 01:20:38,567
NARRATOR: Leonard decides
to sell his recently acquired
property.

1647
01:20:38,567 --> 01:20:41,937
And put all but a few
of his possessions
into storage.

1648
01:20:45,207 --> 01:20:51,613
♪ Give my regards to Broadway

1649
01:20:51,613 --> 01:20:57,252
♪ Remember me to Herald Square

1650
01:20:59,121 --> 01:21:05,461
♪ Tell all the gang
at Forty-Second Street

1651
01:21:05,461 --> 01:21:12,000
♪ That I will soon be there

1652
01:21:13,001 --> 01:21:19,575
♪ Whisper of how I'm yearning

1653
01:21:19,575 --> 01:21:21,443
♪ To mingle with

1654
01:21:21,443 --> 01:21:22,678
SOLOWAY: You're coming?
You're here?

1655
01:21:22,678 --> 01:21:26,081
♪ Time throng

1656
01:21:26,081 --> 01:21:28,016
Where the fuck are they?

1657
01:21:28,016 --> 01:21:34,323
♪ Give my regards
to old Broadway

1658
01:21:34,323 --> 01:21:38,694
♪ And say that

1659
01:21:38,694 --> 01:21:44,333
♪ I'll be there e'er long

1660
01:21:52,975 --> 01:21:58,280
♪ I'll be there e'er long ♪

1661
01:21:59,148 --> 01:22:01,250
I've got several emails asking

1662
01:22:01,250 --> 01:22:04,319
is there a producer attached,
how do I get involved?

1663
01:22:04,319 --> 01:22:06,688
I guess I'll just forward
them all to you.

1664
01:22:06,688 --> 01:22:09,057
Absolutely, with a picture.

1665
01:22:09,057 --> 01:22:11,059
Yes, a picture.

1666
01:22:11,059 --> 01:22:13,028
NARRATOR: To begin
his search for two stars.

1667
01:22:13,028 --> 01:22:15,364
To take on the lead roles
in Fellow Travelers.

1668
01:22:15,364 --> 01:22:17,533
Leonard meets with Director,
Michael Wilson.

1669
01:22:17,533 --> 01:22:20,369
And Public Relations
Specialist, Keith Sherman.

1670
01:22:21,403 --> 01:22:23,639
New York post Theater Critic,
Michael Riedel

1671
01:22:23,639 --> 01:22:26,441
called the script
for Fellow Travelers,
"Terrific."

1672
01:22:26,742 --> 01:22:27,810
He wrote,

1673
01:22:27,810 --> 01:22:29,511
"But the issue of finding
a star..."

1674
01:22:29,511 --> 01:22:30,412
[NARRATOR READING]

1675
01:22:37,786 --> 01:22:40,789
Still the quality
of the material
doesn't always outweigh

1676
01:22:40,789 --> 01:22:43,525
the importance
of casting a big name.

1677
01:22:43,525 --> 01:22:46,295
Having stars is, is a magnet.

1678
01:22:46,295 --> 01:22:49,364
For attention,
for audiences.

1679
01:22:49,364 --> 01:22:50,432
For ticket sales.

1680
01:22:51,600 --> 01:22:53,368
It's impactful.

1681
01:22:53,368 --> 01:22:55,337
NARRATOR: Whether or not
a major star appears

1682
01:22:55,337 --> 01:22:57,172
for Leonard's return
to Broadway.

1683
01:22:57,539 --> 01:22:58,640
He's back.

1684
01:22:58,640 --> 01:23:00,742
In the arena he loves.

1685
01:23:00,742 --> 01:23:03,712
SLATTERY: Once you
breathe this air.

1686
01:23:03,712 --> 01:23:07,649
It's hard to go back
and do anything else.

1687
01:23:07,649 --> 01:23:08,817
It's his life blood, I mean

1688
01:23:08,817 --> 01:23:12,287
he eats and drinks
and sleeps and walks,

1689
01:23:13,388 --> 01:23:15,290
showbiz and theater.

1690
01:23:15,290 --> 01:23:16,291
He can't stop.

1691
01:23:16,825 --> 01:23:18,126
And it's not,

1692
01:23:18,560 --> 01:23:20,495
it's not madness.

1693
01:23:21,129 --> 01:23:23,365
It's natural for him.

1694
01:23:26,802 --> 01:23:28,604
JOE ALLEN: Look at the prices.

1695
01:23:28,604 --> 01:23:29,805
Now you gotta save up.

1696
01:23:29,805 --> 01:23:33,208
And rob a gas station
before you go
to the theater.

1697
01:23:34,810 --> 01:23:38,146
He was among the first
customers to arrive.

1698
01:23:38,747 --> 01:23:40,816
That I remember.

1699
01:23:40,816 --> 01:23:43,085
It was plenty of bad behavior.

1700
01:23:43,085 --> 01:23:47,389
But he stayed within
the reasonable confines.

1701
01:23:47,389 --> 01:23:50,292
We don't have
a very high standard,
that's why he's here.

1702
01:23:54,196 --> 01:23:57,466
♪Give my regards to Broadway

1703
01:23:57,466 --> 01:24:01,470
♪ Remember me to
Old Times Square

1704
01:24:01,470 --> 01:24:05,274
♪ Tell all the gang
at Forty-Second Street

1705
01:24:05,274 --> 01:24:09,244
♪ That I will soon be there

1706
01:24:09,244 --> 01:24:12,581
♪ Whisper of how I'm yearning

1707
01:24:12,581 --> 01:24:16,785
♪ To mingle with the
old time throng

1708
01:24:16,785 --> 01:24:19,888
♪ Give my regards
to old Broadway

1709
01:24:19,888 --> 01:24:24,426
♪ And say that
I'll be there e'er long

1710
01:24:24,426 --> 01:24:30,232
♪ I'll be there e'er long ♪

1711
01:25:11,206 --> 01:25:12,541
DRASNER: I'm crazy, crazy busy.

1712
01:25:12,541 --> 01:25:17,879
I've got a show opening
on Monday and I am
out of my fucking mind.

1713
01:25:17,879 --> 01:25:20,716
-Hi, honey.
-Do you need help with anything?

1714
01:25:20,716 --> 01:25:22,284
SOLOWAY: Can I get some vodka?