CEL E BRITY

SID CAESARSid Caesar is not simply a television pioneer, but a true gi-

ant of American comedy. His variety series Your Show ofShows (compilations of which are available on video) set the

tone for a generation of television humor, and brought to the

I'M NOT OPTIMISTICABOUT THE FUTURE OF SKETCH

COMEDY,PANTOMIME,AND DOUBLETALK. I'MAFRAIDTHEY'RE DYINGARTS.

NOTONLYIS SIDCEASARIN GREATSHAPE,BUTHEHASANEXERCISEVIDEO,SIDCEASAR'SSHAPE.UP.TOHELPOTHERSASWELL.

limelight such performers as Imogene Coca and HowardMorris, and a host of brilliant young writers, including MelBrooks, Larry Gelbart, Neil Simon, and Woody Allen. De-spite considerable personal adversity, Caesar has' never lost

his enthusiasm for life, or his desire to make people laugh.Steve Dale recently spoke with Sid Caesar about his career,his recent exercise video, and his thoughts about comedy.

VIDEOTIMES:The best of YourShowof Shows is availableonvideo, and so are many classic TV programs from that era.Will they all weather the test of time?

SIDCAESAR:We said the truth. The truth is the truth is the

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truth. It was then. It is now.It will always be. There's a mil.lion funny ways to open a door. If you're nervous in front ofa.girl, you may show it a certain silly way. It was funny when'we did it, and it is still just as funny.Wealso shyedawayfrom,topical material. And of course, there's [YourShow of Shows'costar] Imogene Coca. She is one of the few comedienneswho doesn't sacrifice her femininity.

VT: Your writers included costar Carl Reiner, Woody Allen,Mel Brooks, Larry Gelbart, and Neil Simon. Did you haveany-idea that one day they would all achieve such an out.Istanding degree of success?

SC:No. [Woody]Allen was highly intelligent and really off.beat. He was very shy.[Neil]Simonwas so shy,he had to talkthrough [Carl]Reiner. Carl was great. He proves that to be agreat straight man, you have to be a great comedian. Mel[Brooks]was a crazy man, loony,but in a nice way.

VT:Thuappeared with Buster Keaton in the movie It's a MadMad Mad Mad World, along with a host of other comic gi-ants. ~s Keaton an idol of yours?

SC:Oh,yes. That's how I met him, and I was in awe. He wasthe greatest pantomime artist and his mind was just beauti-ful. Meeting him was a great thrill. I didn't know what to saythough. I do regret never having met [Charlie]Chaplin. I wasat two parties he was also at. I just didn't have the nerve tointroduce myself.

VT: Were you very shy?

SC: Extremely shy- I didn't know who I was. I didn't feelvery good about myself.

VT:Did your drinking have something to do with that?

SC:I suppose. I know I wasn't too confident. To tell you thetruth, I'm very lucky to be alive. If I hadn't stopped [drink-ing], I wouldn't be here talking with you.

VT:Not only are you here, you're in great shape. And youhave an exercise video to prove it!

SC:George Bernard Shaw once said, "Youthis wasted on theyoung:' But I say, "Youth is wasted on the young, unlessyou're in shape." Because if you're in condition, and if you'relucky enough to have your health, you can do things. Agedoesn't have to mean a thing. A fifty-five-or sixty-five-year-

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CORN

old person is not over the hill. And you can enjoy life at anyage. My two hobbies are history and physics, that's what Ilike. I swim up to six days a week, and I walk a lot. I'm alsocareful about my diet.

VT:So, this is not a Jane Fonda workout tape?

sc: Oh,no. No bouncing women or big music, just how tokeep fit for men overfifty. Howyou can work out in your ownroom.

VT: Can video one day help to open doors for young comics,as television did for you and Imogene?

sc: That's an interesting possi!:>ility.You never can tell. Youdon't have to be on a network program to become popularanymore. The market is more narrow, and everything has be-come specialized. Whole stations are just devoted to weatheror news. Why not a station devoted to comedy?

VT:Which of today's comedians do you enjoy?

sc: RobinWilliams,George Carlin, Robert Klein, and Made-line Kahn.

VT:It's interesting that none of those performers is currentlyseen on a network sitcom.

sc: So what? Everyone thinks that if you're not on television,you're not alive. You can have a war some place in the world,but if it's not on television no one believes it exists. There's

more to life than sitcoms. Today's young comics only knowfrom stand-up and sitcoms. I'm not optimistic about the fu.ture of sketch comedy, pantomime, and double talk. I'mafraid they're dying arts. You have to be an actor first, beforeyou can be a funny actor.

VT:Lately we've seen an array of comics from your era suc-cessfully perform as actors in dramatic roles. Both GeorgeBurns and Art Carney wonBest Supporting Actor OscarsforThe Sunshine Boys and Harry and Tonto, respectively. Andyou have repeatedly appeared in serious roles on TV. . ..

sc: If a person is funny at parties, that's great. But it doesn'tmake you a comedian or an actor. If you want to be a clownonstage, you must know how to act first. Today, too manyyoung people want instant success, like instant. . .pudding!Everythingin our world is instant. And some get the instantgratification by shocking audiences. But let's see how long

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those people last. You gotta pay your dues.

VT:Are you worried about the direction that young comicsare taking today's humor?

sc: Well, you can tell a nation by its sense of humor. I'mafraid we're laughing at the wrong things. I worry that we're

IF YOUWANTTOBEA CLOWNONSTAGE,YOUMUSTKNOWHOWTOACTFIRST.TODAY,TOOMANYYOUNGPEOPLEWANTINSTANTSUCCESS.. .

YOURSHOW OF SHOWS PRESENTEDCAESARAND IMOGENECOCAIN A

VARIETYOF COMIC ROLES.

making heroes out of the dope scene. The world is more thanjust a few jokes.

VT: Would you like to see live television return?

sc: Yes,and so would half of America. People like to be in onthe gags. That's why those blooper programs have done sowell. .. I think there's a craving for live TV. And live[studio]audiences are coming back. People are too sophisticated forlaugh tracks. The Cosby Show, The Golden Girls,and othersuccesses use a live audience. Maybe the networks are finallybeginning to learn.

-STEVE DALE

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