Madeline Kahn (55 page)

Authors: William V. Madison

BOOK: Madeline Kahn

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44
. “The Non-Perils of Playing Pauline.”

45
. Archive of American Television, interview with Phylicia Rashad, October 22, 2007, part 4 of 5. Rashad’s representatives did not respond to requests for an interview. All quotations from her are drawn from the archive interview.

46
.
Entertainment Weekly, Cosby
review, Ken Tucker, September 27, 1996.

47
.
NYT
, “Dad’s So Grumpy Now: The Cosby Persona Goes Into a New Phase of Life,” John J. O’Connor, September 16, 1996.

48
. Ted Barry letter to MK.

49
. MK personal notebook.

50
. See chapter 1, above.

51
. See chapter 4, above.

52
. See “The Butcher’s Boy,” collected in
Body, Boots & Britches: Folktales, Ballads and Speech from Country New York
, Harold William Thompson (Lippincott, 1939; reprinted by Syracuse University Press, 1979).

53
. Meara appears briefly as Arthur’s secretary in
Judy Berlin
, alongside Julie Kavner as a cafeteria worker.

54
. Barrie had known Madeline socially for years. Her brother-in-law, Sheldon Harnick, wrote the lyrics to
She Loves Me
.

55
.
Cosby
, “Loving Madeline,” December 29, 1999.

56
. Rashad, Archive of American Television interview.

EPILOGUE

1
. “The following week, the
Globe
[a gossip magazine] quoted Hansbury ‘sobbing’ those exact words ‘to friends.’”
Slate
, “Tabloids’ 1999 Secrets Exposed!” Jennifer Mendelsohn (Eric’s sister), December 31, 1999.

2
. MK personal notebook.

3
. See, for example, CNN interview with Chenoweth, December 7, 2011 (available at
http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/07/world/cnnheroes-kristin-chenoweth/
).

STAGE, SCREEN, AND TELEVISION ROLES AND RECORDINGS
STAGE ROLES

Roles at Hofstra University include:

Judy O’Grady,
The Adding Machine
(Rice), Miriam Tulin, director, 1960.

Jenny (a servant),
The Contrast
(Tyler), 1960 or 1961.

Jacquenetta,
Love’s Labour’s Lost
(Shakespeare), Bernard Beckerman, director, 1961.

Hilda Miller,
Plain and Fancy
(Hague, Horwitt, Stein and Glickman), Gene Nye, director; Albert Tepper, music director, 1961.

Miss Adelaide,
Guys and Dolls
(Loesser), Albert Tepper, music director, 1962.

Soloist,
Requiem
(Mozart), Herbert Beattie, conductor, 1964. (Concert)

Chorus member,
Kiss Me, Kate
(Porter), John Fearnley and Billy Matthews, directors; Pembroke Davenport, conductor; Hanya Holm, choreographer; City Center, New York City, 1965.

Daisy Mae,
Li’l Abner
(DePaul, Mercer, Panama, Frank), mid-1960s, exact date and location unknown. An unmarked publicity photo showing Madeline and an unidentified actor can be found in her personal collection.

Various roles,
Just for Openers, Mixed Doubles, Below the Belt
, Upstairs at the Downstairs, New York City, Rod Warren, director, 1965–66.

Miss Whipple,
How Now, Dow Jones
(E. Bernstein, Leigh, Shulman), Arthur Penn and George Abbott, directors, Shubert Theatre, Boston, 1967.

Various roles,
Leonard Sillman’s New Faces of 1968
, Leonard Sillman and Frank Wagner, directors, Booth Theatre, New York City, 1968.

Carol Melkett,
Black Comedy
(Shaffer), Martin Fried, director, Playhouse in the Park, Philadelphia, 1968.

Cunegonde,
Candide
(Bernstein, Wilbur, and Patinkin), Sheldon Patinkin, director; Maurice Peress, conductor, Philharmonic (Avery Fisher) Hall, New York City, 1968. (Concert staging.) Other appearances as Cunegonde include Corpus Christi and Philadelphia.

The Servant,
Promenade
(Carmines, Fornés), Lawrence Kornfeld, director, Promenade Theater, New York City, 1969.

Magnolia,
Show Boat
(Kern), Milton Lyon, conductor and director, Music Circus, Sacramento, 1969.

Musetta,
La Bohème
(Puccini), Maurice Peress, conductor, Washington Opera Society, 1970.

Goldie,
Two by Two
(Rodgers, Charnin, Stone), Joe Layton, director; Jay Blackton, conductor; Imperial Theatre, New York City, as well as tryouts in New Haven (Shubert Theatre) and Boston (Shubert Theatre), 1970–71.

Chrissy,
Boom Boom Room
(Rabe), Julie Bovasso and Joseph Papp, directors, Vivian Beaumont Theater, Lincoln Center, New York City, 1973. (Tony nomination, Drama Desk Award.)

Amalia Balash,
She Loves Me
(Bock, Harnick, Masteroff), John Bowab, director; Wally Harper, conductor; Town Hall, New York City, 1977. (Concert staging.)

Diane McBride,
Marco Polo Sings a Solo
(Guare), Mel Shapiro, director, Public Theater, New York City, 1977.

Lily Garland/Mildred Plotka,
On the Twentieth Century
(Coleman, Comden & Green), Harold Prince, director; Paul Gemignani, conductor; St. James Theatre, New York City, as well as tryouts in Boston (Colonial Theatre), 1978. (Tony nomination.)

Multiple roles,
Amerika
(Porat, Gronich), Robert Allan Ackerman, director, Festival Theater, Santa Fe, 1982.

Mme. Arcati,
Blithe Spirit
(Coward), Robert Allan Ackerman, director, Festival Theater, Santa Fe, 1983.

Shirley,
What’s Wrong with This Picture?
(Margulies), Claudia Weill, director, Manhattan Theatre Club, New York City. (Workshop production.)

Billie Dawn,
Born Yesterday
(Kanin), Josephine Abady and John Tillinger, directors, 46th Street Theatre, New York City, 1989, as well as national tour prior to Broadway. (Tony nomination.)

Melissa Gardner,
Love Letters
(Gurney), John Tillinger, director, Winter Garden Theatre, Toronto, 1990; Canon Theater, Beverly Hills, CA, 1991.

Dolly Gallagher Levi,
Hello, Dolly!
(Herman, Stewart), Lee Roy Reams, director, touring production in Atlanta, St. Louis, and Kansas City, 1992.

Gorgeous Teitelbaum,
The Sisters Rosensweig
(Wasserstein), Daniel Sullivan, director, Vivian Beaumont Theater, Lincoln Center, and Ethel Barrymore Theater, New York City, 1992–93. (Tony Award, Drama Desk Award, Outer Critics Circle Award.)

Cora Hoover Hooper,
Anyone Can Whistle
(Sondheim, Laurents), Herbert Ross, director; Paul Gemignani, conductor, Carnegie Hall, New York City, 1995. (Concert staging.)

Helen Hobart,
Once in a Lifetime
(Kaufman & Hart), Michael Mayer, director, Roundabout Theatre Company, New York City, 1996. (Public reading.)

Kandall Kingsley,
Impossible Marriage
(Henley), Scott Ellis, director, Roundabout Theatre Company, New York City, 1996. (Workshop, closed reading.)

Gabrielle, the Madwoman of Montmartre,
Dear World
(Herman, Lawrence, Lee), Scott Ellis, director, Roundabout Theatre Company, New York City, 1998. (Public reading.)

SCREEN ROLES

Arthur’s Wife,
A Song of Arthur, or How Arthur Changed His Tune and Solved a Weighty Problem
, David Hoffman, director, 1967.

Cousin Sigfrid,
De Düva
(The Dove), George Coe and Anthony Lover, directors, 1968.

Eunice Burns,
What’s Up, Doc?
, Peter Bogdanovich, director, 1972. (Golden Globe nomination for most promising newcomer.)

Trixie Delight,
Paper Moon
, Peter Bogdanovich, director, 1973. (Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for supporting actress.)

Schoolteacher,
From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
, Fielder Cook, director, 1973.

Lili von Shtupp,
Blazing Saddles
, Mel Brooks, director, 1974. (Academy Award nomination for supporting actress.)

Elizabeth,
Young Frankenstein
, Mel Brooks, director, 1974. (Golden Globe and New York Film Critics nominations for supporting actress.)

Kitty O’Kelly,
At Long Last Love
, Peter Bogdanovich, director, 1975.

Jenny Hill,
The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes’ Smarter Brother
, Gene Wilder, director, 1975.

Estie del Ruth,
Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood
, Michael Winner, director, 1976.

Victoria Brisbane,
High Anxiety
, Mel Brooks, director, 1977.

Mrs. Montenegro,
The Cheap Detective
, Robert Moore, director, 1978.

Woman in the El Sleezo Café,
The Muppet Movie
, James Frawley, director, 1979.

Cynthia Mallory,
Simon
, Marshall Brickman, director, 1980.

Bunny Weinberger,
Happy Birthday, Gemini
, Richard Benner, director, 1980.

Aunt Yochtabel (The Witch),
Wholly Moses!
, Gary Weis, director, 1980.

Constance Link,
First Family
, Buck Henry, director, 1980.

Empress Nympho,
History of the World, Part I
, Mel Brooks, director, 1981.

Eliza and Lutetia Swain,
Slapstick (Of Another Kind)
, Steven Paul, 1982–84.

Mrs. Yellowbeard,
Yellowbeard
, Mel Damski, director, 1983.

Caroline Howley,
City Heat
, Richard Benjamin, director, 1984.

Mrs. White,
Clue
, Jonathan Lynn, director, 1985.

Draggle,
My Little Pony: The Movie
, Michael Joens, director, 1986. (Voice only.)

Gussie Mausheimer,
An American Tail
, Don Bluth, director, 1986. (Voice only.)

Lola Hopper,
Betsy’s Wedding
, Alan Alda, director, 1990.

Mrs. Muchnik,
Mixed Nuts
, Nora Ephron, director, 1994.

Martha Mitchell,
Nixon
, Oliver Stone, director, 1995. (Shared Screen Actors Guild Award for outstanding performance by a cast.)

Gypsy,
A Bug’s Life
, John Lasseter and Andrew Stanton, directors, 1998. (Voice only.)

Alice Gold,
Judy Berlin
, Eric Mendelsohn, director, 1999.

NOTABLE TELEVISION ROLES

Various roles,
Comedy Tonight
, 1970.

Nurse Ruth Kelly,
Harvey
, Fielder Cook, director, 1972.

Doris Attinger,
Adam’s Rib
, Peter H. Hunt, director, 1973.

Madeline Wayne,
Oh Madeline
, J. D. Lobue, director, 1983–84. (People’s Choice Award for favorite female performer in a new TV program.)

Violet Kingsley,
Chameleon
, John Rich, director, 1986.

Ellie Coleman,
ABC Afterschool Specials
, “Wanted: The Perfect Guy,” Catlin Adams, director, 1986. (Daytime Emmy Award.)

Lois Gullickson,
Mr. President
, various directors, 1987–88.

Pigeon Plumtree,
Avonlea
, “It’s Just a Stage,” René Bonnière, director, 1991.

Billie,
For Richer, for Poorer
, Jay Sandrich, director, 1992.

Esperanza, Queen of the Gypsies,
Lucky Luke
, “Midsummer in Daisy Town,” Terence Hill, director, 1992.

Grace Anderson,
Kurt Vonnegut’s Monkey House
, “More Stately Mansions,” Brad Turner, director, 1993.

Nan Chase,
New York News
, various directors, 1995.

Sabrina,
Ivana Trump’s For Love Alone
, Michael Lindsay-Hogg, director, 1996.

Sharon Semple,
Neil Simon’s London Suite
, Jay Sandrich, director, 1996.

Pauline Fox,
Cosby
, various directors, 1996–99.

Notable guest appearances on:

The Carol Burnett Show
, 1976.

Saturday Night Live
, 1976, 1977, 1995.

The George Burns Special
, 1976.

Klein Time
, 1977.

The Muppet Show
, 1977.

Sesame Street
, 1978, 1983, 1987, 1988, 1993.

A Salute to American Imagination
, 1978. (Marking the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Ford Motor Company, the program was written by Rod Warren of Upstairs at the Downstairs. As co-host, Madeline appeared with several notable colleagues, including Telly Savalas, Edward Asner, Imogene Coca, Sid Caesar, Neil Simon, and Johnny Mathis.)

Fridays
, 1981.

All-Star Party for Burt Reynolds
, 1984.

Comic Relief
, 1986. (In this first benefit for the homeless, Madeline performed “I’m Tired.”)

Celebrating Gershwin
, 1987.

Irving Berlin’s 100th Birthday Celebration
, 1988.

Love Laughs
, 1993. (Madeline sings “Das Chicago Song” and “Ain’t Got No Home” in this program hosted by Teri Garr.)

Sondheim: A Celebration at Carnegie Hall
, 1993.

NOTABLE RECORDINGS

Upstairs at the Downstairs: Just for Openers
original cast album, 1965.

Upstairs at the Downstairs: Mixed Doubles/Below the Belt
original cast album, 1966.

New Faces of 1968
original cast album, 1968.

Two by Two
original cast album, 1970.