Veteran performers usually have a raft full of stories about the people they've worked with, but most of them save 'em for their autobiographies (and even then, some of them never come out with the good stuff). I did a delightful interview a few years back with veteran actress Carol Lynley, who was more than willing to share her honest opinions about her experiences in show business. In addition to discussing her work with Otto Preminger (with whom she made one of the finest thrillers of the Sixties, Bunny Lake is Missing, and one of the campiest mellers, The Cardinal), she also talked about her work as a teen actress, and her starring role as a damsel in distress in Radley Metzger's The Cat and the Canary.
Two of my favorite portions of the chat were about her friend Roddy McDowall:
and her many visits to Fantasy Island:
Friday, February 20, 2009
Friday, February 13, 2009
My favorite Satan: Roddy McDowall
Since it is currently not being rerun anywhere on cable, and because they stopped after one damned DVD box set, I offer up the following short segments from one of my all-time favorite Fantasy Island episodes, to honor the memory of god... er, Ricardo Montalban. Feast on this bit of classic camp TV, played entirely straight by the participants. Roddy McDowall is Lucifer (looking like a roadshow Sky Masterson), Carol Lynley is the wife who has made a deal with him (unbeknownst to her hubby, played by the ever-hesitant Mr. Adam West), and Ricardo is, well, he's Mr. Roarke taking on the mantle of Daniel Webster. This show may have been patently ridiculous, but it damned well knew it was patently ridiculous!
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