Evening star., 1955-05-29
They Just
DontKnoW
About TV
BY SHEMAH GRAHAM
HOLLYWOOD.

HOLLYWOOD.
II don't care about money"
said Jackie Gleason to your re-
porter in q dim corner Of his
favorite hangout, Toots Shor's.
while I was in New York for
the Newspaper Publishers Con-
vention. Jackie's new contract
with CHS gives him $11 million
in the next two years. So his
statement made me blink.
Success" continued Jack,
"is like a blue serge suit. You
pick up the lint Of your critics
behavior. People seem to think
I should be ashamed Of making
$11 million. I'm not. I didn't
rob a bank. This is America"
When I asked "Are you hap
py?" he replied: "It doesn't
make me sad. But there are
some burrs in success. 1t isn't
how you handle success, but Of
how success handles you. And
the secret Of long life in show
business is to know how to lay
an egg gracefully. And never
press-for a laugh, or to get
money. The only way to make
money is to cheat, and not to
cheat"
Not Arts Fault
BY this time my head was
spinning and I was admittedly
confused. So I started all over,
and asked about Jackie's TV
plans for next season.
"I'll be filming 78 shows
The Honeymooners.' And I'll
film them in New York, not
Hollywood"
"Is that because Art Car
ney doesn't like Hollywood"
I asked. ut isn't that at ALL"
Jackie replied. I'm fact, Art
has it in his contract with me
that il I go to Hollywood to
work, he has to come too. But
this would mean having to
move Is or 20 families to the
coast and the wives hoot and
howl. And I couldn't under
take that kind of RESPONSE
bility. But, truthfully, 1
wouldn't want to work there.
In Hollywood they don't know
about T'V. The new big tele-
vision studies there are wrong.
There's nowhere to fly the
scenery, and that affects the
comedy. I watched the Red
Shelton show when I was last
in Hollywood and he's working
under a handicap, the audi
ence in the studio could see
the sets moving and it's dis
tracing and that affects the
laughs
Gleason's deal with CHS is
for IT years. He works for
two. and they pay him 100000
a year for the next Is years,
ION condition I don't do any
television for anyone else. 1
can make pictures though, and
I will. I was to have made
Jack OF Spades in Hollywood
this summer, but I'll be too
busy filming my television
show. I won't have any vaca-
ton. except a few weeks, and
I'll probably go to the coast"
After the two years are up,
Jackie has so many plans that
he probably won't do any of
them. This is what he said:
First, I want to roam around
a Bit" Then, in the next
breath: First, I want to rest"
He'll probably keep on work.
ing.
What I didn't know about
the roly-poly comedian was
that, when he was under con-
tract to Warner Brothers, he
was billed as "Jackie c. Glea-
Son"-"so as not to be con-
fused with Jimmy Gleason. I
did IL pictures. and was an
inconspicuous flop, thank God"
The first time I heard Jackie
was when Bill Bendix was un-
available for the first filmed
TV series on "The Life of
Riley" and Gleason was signed
instead. Il made 26 Life of
Rileys' and I won an Emmy.
They can't be released again
without my permission"
About That Diet
OF course I wanted to know
about the famous diet that ex-
pired after Jackie went to
Florida. Remember when he
used to weigh himself on his
television show every Satur-
day night?
1.-THE diet? I had an idea.
1t was a matter of preparation.
But If it had worked, was 60
ing to sell it and give the
profits to charity. I can't tell
you about it yet, because I
might still do it."
Jackie, as you no doubt know,
is separated from his wife-but
he will nevery ask for a di-