Title: Patricia Marx Interviews: Bob Hope
Last Updated: 2016-06-25 4:20PM
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Thank you for this in the laboratory.
I do also because I turn the machine
on
at the notes and kind of the sound of the spark at the other day What was I don't forget their cover
for the pay
of his this is true it's gone on a
thirty Republican joke.
Hello I'm on the way to the
airport with Bob Hope you will impersonate Bob
Hope I think no further introduction is necessary.
Mr Hope I won't ask you to begin
with there lot of people that have a very highly vent developed sense of humor.
What is it to make somebody become a comedian by profession.
Well I think experience is a great part of it
because when you've been in show business long enough to meet all kinds of audiences I think
that's where you develop all
facets of comedy timing editing
and delivery which I noticed last night at this is a
testimonial dinner that we did for two a chore. I notice a fella called Bob Considine that you
know very well great columnist and you'd never dream that
he had a sense of timing but I heard some of the nicest timing and
I graduate them last night after the dinner he did such a
wonderful job. Well is this is what is a very important elements in his time in Co
Yes What do you what about timing just as it sends
the audience and how long the waiter
or yes to change not exactly how long to wait because they're waiting for
you and if you if you notice
how Jack Benny makes an
audience where they're waiting for the punch line you know that's a. Different other another kind
of timing of course of a lot of people don't work as a as slow as Jack but Jack is
the is the master of the abating an audience and building it up to where
they're anticipating the G.O.P. because they're laughing almost before he gets to the punch line.
We used those to wait almost longer than any other
comedians and no I'm not no Jack is the Jack is the all time a long
way to long take as we say I say most comedians can milk a joke
but he can get chicken fat out of this. I know that at the Palladium in
London that was a great
story where Phil Harris in a deuce Dimon said the theory is Jack Benny and just
they applauded and when Jack came out he said to Phil thanks very much that introduction feels that that's all right.
He looked at the audience said I'll do anything to get this old man
over and. Jack stared at him and glared at him and then looked at
the audience the audience screamed and Jack glared
and stared and glared and stared and finally got a second back he looked down and said
For God's sake say something which I think is so great because Jack I think
there's holes alas as long as great as
anybody will let you know I understand that you have been right here that
you pay up the hundreds of thousands of dollars in here tonight material I sure do. I sure do and I
don't have enough sometimes when know if this is the case why could not if I
paid writers say you know five hundred thousand dollars you want to not be like Bob.
Well I don't know whether you'd know how to what to added or what to want or
are after you got it how to deliver it. That's the whole trick because there are so many wonderful
young comedians around now who are you know you think are
ready for their own television series and somebody writes him a good script and they
go on and they do a pretty good
pilot and they go on and they're good for a couple of shows but it takes comedy
mines and you'll notice behind every show that there is some great editor
or some good comedy mine like Dick Van Dyke. Francis who I think is a
bright
young comic and has a guy called. Carl Reiner behind him who is also a
very able in a
wonderful comedy mind helping him you know that's that's the important part is an
awful lot. Do you have endurance to Laurie are you the I'm the editor and so
the so essentially it's a matter of knowing what material to pick out of this great body will get it always right or
Oh sure. No I want to begin then right now and then
this man early on when you produce and when you produce like I think all these
fellows to do the half hour comedy show or the
our comedy show every week should be decorated by the government they really
should for a great job of entertaining the people and the bringing
the people laughs which we need in this
world and I would never attempt that next year I'm going to host a
series on our show but I'm just going to host that I'm going to be the center Hitchcock next
year and but putting together a
comedy show like Jack Benny For
instance I mean is a tremendous job and requires a lot of know
how you know what the what you think of the younger comedians
have come along come along they often the called the
sick comedians that Lenny Bruce and
and many others that are and there are many others. Well they're they're
too kind to the yes to
comedians mainly Lenny Bruce and sick jokes that have been around and then there's
a Mort Sahl and and Elaine May Mike
Nichols Shelly very well always Oh you're all I know you know I did I say the
satirical comedian has always been with us and these people that you mention a marvelous not Lenny Bruce is really
sick and it's sad because the second always and he is one I
thought was going to develop into one of the finer comedians Kizzy he's got a
great knowledge of show
business and unfortunately he got off on the wrong track because he was one of my
favorite guys and I'd like to see him get well mentally and physically
and get into our business and really. Make a contribution cap because he
can you think he's gone over the line in terms of being well I thought well he's actually
not money is not well let you know it's not it's not anything to joke
about and he's about the he's really sick
you know yeah yeah. Not just his motive of humor.
How serious a purpose do you think humans should have to point
out things that should be made fun of
and you take the content very
Here you have to you have to walk
the case line there that all the time you know like for instance you talk
about it was in the paper that Mrs Kennedy was expecting and I did a
big routine about
it on my show last week and it
and I received no complaints out of our audience you know which we
think is rather large and must be because otherwise I'm stealing a lot of money.
So in other ways you can take any counting anything in almost anything and do it with case or taste right.
But to do you are you concerned about pointing out things that are wrong in
the society or things that are third
in official places and
with authority this kind of
thing where I think in these terms. Yes I think in all terms and I just I I
stay away from things that I think will love to provoke it if I like
to I like I'm I'm merely in this business for the last and it's
a it's not to be provocative and hurt
anybody and so I said I steer away from anything I think will injure
anybody is using the most human this thing in the world to talk about what makes something funny but you have any ideas
of what it is that makes something amusing.
Oh sure what is it. Well it's a it's it's like this you know this is a
kind exaggeration of what we're doing in the back car you know back here and we're
taping on the way to the airport when we really should be sitting in a nice quiet.
Spot on the hotel this is this is almost
like this is going to be funny with you know here we are with cars
streaming by and they should be laughing but they're just driving.
We're running away from our audience at this speed.
So the so is it and soon all the you know minute duration.
Yes that's right. And there's it's tearing down dignity as
it is another form of comedy. You know and there's so many
ways that you can as so many facets of comedy.
Do you work on a joke. Do you shape it in front of audiences and make it come alive
sure we play around with it right that the best time like last night we were
at this testimonial
and Jim Farley was sitting there who has been connected with Coca-Cola for years
you
know and I said to just happen to think that there is Jim Farley who
is Coca-Cola as an answer to Joan
Crawford you know and her and usually jokes
that people have to think about a little are the best kind of jokes. They catch on. Yeah
and president of Fordham father McKinley was there and I'm sure the Sterling to see him
here he's such an influential man. The only man I know could get into this ballroom without a
tie and those are those are the kind of things that you
shape right there the same know that you're you're you're making
up and you have got to be very angry at you if you're making a joke about them in
their presence.
Very few very few
times you know I usually try to steer away from anything like
that but you started working with him in Florida building you how does
that compare to the kind of routines you do now
is there about the same. I've always worked along the lines I've always
tried to be
semi pseudo
subtle have an audience
think that I'm I'm doing settlement area which really is you know that they
get and because an audience likes to be.
They like to they like to be thinking like a little quiz going with a joke all the time you know.
So there's they're really show is showing that they're pretty smart when they last right.
But they enjoy it if they have to look for it yourself as the level of audiences just occasion increased over
the years in Arundel
days canary much so on and how they've been educated through the you know the television on the
radio and now every
year every house has their own picture show you know where the furniture
with the building popcorn in the whole thing and they've got to know more
about showbusiness and they get so many jokes thrown at them through the week. You know all so many shows
of that they're all educated and there's no more sticks or all
just one big community that used to be where you go and I on they were
the sticks they know right now just what Gordon Cooper did and they know what we said
last night here because it was on T.V. and it went right to
them and they were listening they probably in they know more about it than anybody I heard a very cute thing last
night so I plan to lobby you know Cooper when he was up there he was supposed to have said that
he could look down and see his place where he lives you know and this little boy he process. He
probably said get that car out of the
driveway which is you know the head and the eyes of
the funny
little do you practice on your
children all the
time with a good audience a very good and they're great. They're great that having the other ones
you know when I want to want to find out about a job they're very fast
to as well and probably very critical. They are in all of them their
murder not polite a bit I would know now that you were
that there were some the critics however when you travel around the world and
it's helped you find that senses of humor different in different countries.
Well that's that's understandable can actually the English audiences are I think of the best audiences in the
world are very eager to understand our jokes and
they're they're just waiting. You know I can the
best audience just as like at the platy I'm in London you can't find a better audience than that because they come
in laughing they're laughing when they're But when they buy the ticket and they
want they want to understand their way to a little ahead of time. The faster Saudis
or how about the New York audiences.
They're great they're really great.
I find very little difference and audiences them to the same jokes play
in New York to play in Chicago in London and same thing everybody's got the same set
of you
know have you played audiences in in the countries and speak a
foreign
language here and I think yes. How does that work is that every little thing that's a little different things
yeah I did a show for the in Brussels for
the for the
Belgium newspaper people and I only knew a
few words of French. So I had to bring in an interpreter you know and I was a little
rougher because he got most of the laughs and usually what they interpret
say they leave out of order or something and it doesn't just I was funny
and there's no I know I have trouble speaking the French language and I'm trying to something funny in it
and it is rather murderous just because you were I guess it's timing is all mine. It's
just a really rough. How do you feel
about developments
abroad in terms of the way that America is thought up is our country
is always the ugly Americans are we.
How we received abroad. I think they're very jealous
of us and a lot of a lot of countries and it's where the rich relatives you
know that never is a very popular position all and we've got to stay that
way out of the
parcel and and naturally we we've been giving him all
money and so you know how relatives react when they get money they want
more and they're
jealous but there's been no animosity towards you presume you don't feel like
this American no no but I made a mistake in Paris six. Earlier years ago because I was
driving with a French chauffeur who understood English was a regulatory
chauffeur over there and I said gee I
said I forgot I think his name
was Marcel I said Marcel and you have been America and he said No
I have not I said well I said America is the greatest country in the were and I thought he was going
to run me into a bus.
They're already dangerous drivers you unknowns
a greatest country in their words this is to prove that they went up in the alley with this
fat Buick and send me out a little. Funny thing Chrysler I'm sorry.
He
said I'm with Chrysler you know.
Put it will put the plug in there let's cut that I guess
that's what we get we can cut we can any of this out so that's
good good.
The job is there any
political administration isn't much more easy to
to make jokes about than others how do you feel about the candidates in the
state they're marvelous you know I got a call on for my show was
on Wednesday and I got a call on
Thursday morning from operator eighteen Washington D.C. I was in Palm Springs the White House calling.
So I thought when I'd done a few jokes about Mrs
Kennedy expecting everything I'd been doing all around the country and I knew they were in good
taste because I had received no
plans but I called back and it was Mrs Ted Kennedy asking me if I
was going to do a show for the twenty seven Project Hope show that they're putting on a strong
team and she said well I just want to tell you that we saw the show last
night and we just how we thought it was a great is you know that's just
marvelous and they seem
to have. Better. You know that they receive these jokes. Or than anybody that had
a better sense of humor than anybody and I
was marvelous you know I could like all agog jokes and of course I still play with springs
every once in awhile when
I get the chance to play with him because he's such a wonderful man
and he just loves he just loves humor they all of you Mr Truman was great
Mr Roosevelt just loved loved you so they're good sports. They are
they're marvelous. A couple of finer broadminded to you know they've got to be big
people to be in that position. They love it and they appreciate
it have any jokes of that made about you that you know and across
be said some pretty nasty been the
comedians that you've been marred the most. Well I've been marred a lot of comedians of course Fred Allen was one
of my favorites the late Fred Allen and Jack Benny. I love Jack Benny I enjoy him
very much and I love that wild man Jonathan Winters. I think he's
really
imaginative. Do you really do you read comic books very
much comic books come at work. Oh no I am
so
busy reading scripts and different things that I don't I don't have too much chance by the time I read
things I have to you know for my show and for my different things I don't have too much
chance to read
you want to I mean we hear What We Can
Do you
know who you know we go you know I'm going to Springfield
this one
assume you're really serious about Julia's not
always we will save for this program that I
wasn't sure he did say so we're going
to that's very nice of you we'll get you on the
Yes on the tape
to those wondering I thought maybe this is a bus terminal but I really thought
it was over doing in there so I thought maybe he had a has a kind of a walk here anyway.
Oh I see how that was. Was winding up the
interview I thought it was the first thirty
minutes or so so we got quite
a ways to go yet have
we can we can we play on the tape or do you want
to cut this because then I can edit it and keep Party and all that but that's
marvelous because I was I was a skipping over because we thought we was a most
Laureus God of course effort to
learn new ways.
I
want to. Not just doesn't have to be on the take
but if you have any feelings that maybe you don't want to talk about about just what's going
on our country versus Russian Communism and space race and some of
the greater absurdities of what is going on can we get into some of that are you why don't you go.
OK
fine how do you feel this joke about this
race for the moon what is your is this something that we should be doing or or not.
Well you know I've heard a lot of pros and cons about this and
I feel that there's scientifically I am for the
future of the world I guess we have
to continue in this race and I know it's it's called a
spending its money is called keeping up with a crucial House.
But it's it's it's quite a question and I guess we have to do
it I guess there's a if
we're going to the moon. I mean if we got to have parking space I guess
we better continue on that and that right.
Have
you ever thought of taking a trip up there.
Well I've I have I've always thought of going that way but not while I was alive.
How about the the many movies you've made the road to Mandalay road to about as many
many places. Why so many. The you like this one
that the
road probably only run the reason we kept you on the road because they were very
very commercial and
very funny and they worked out so great you know it's a successful format is just like
doing our show every week we keep doing it because we've had three we have requests for it and those
are the biggest money makers we remain I'd like to make another one. What's the next place you
want to get well we want. My dear oh dear
India how can you enjoy working
with movies. I do very much.
Hi Joy all of this. Otherwise I wouldn't be in and I'd be a definite golf
pro not good but I'd bet that it would be my next
move would he done if you were the comedian.
Well I think that I would be in some form of you know show business.
I'd be producing here and I think if I was out of that I'd be in maybe in the
restaurant business I'd enjoy that you know another public relation would you ever go into politics
or diplomacy will I ever do it will never think of doing that well ironically choice.
I doubt it I might have been thrown into that angle but
I had never had any idea of
what actually led you into the field this is this in the family I was a very lucky as my mother was a concert
singer and my dad was sort of an amateur comedian and I developed a sense of humor
and when I was young and started dancing and singing and telling jokes.
I found out that I could tell jokes and get to last with an audience
and I was on the way I just considered you always
very confidentially to news in the beginning
that you know I don't I'm a I was a pose I don't think that I don't think that I was all that
stuff and I'm not I'm not confident today as late as last night I was sitting there
wondering whether you know this material that I had for this dinner would
would play with this particular group I don't think you can ever become
confident because I think that
I would be a dangerous position to be and I think you have to keep. Thinking
people keep talking
to people now when I get a routine France if I'm doing an academy award show or call of three or four of
my friends that I know have a sense of humor and I'll just sort of feel I'm
out about certain jokes and get their reaction you
know right. Implies you did a very good job with Apple and that's a tough thing
to do with
the Academy Awards it sure is because you're fine to a critical audience a right front of
you even though there are friends and everything but they're they're very show wise they know all
the answers and everything and you have to come
up with something a little different little sophisticated.
How about television do you have freedom there to do pretty much what you want yes I do.
How do you explain your long life in television when so often good programs go
off one world I think we covered that in the first part it's a matter of
knowledge and knowing what the audience wants in the editing sense.
You see one when you have a
staff and they are they bring in material you have to
know whether this particular piece of material or
play or how to be received whether it's good taste
and that's the that's the trading value that knowing what you do any have to produce it and get
it on right you know you
know you ever wanted to act in
serious roles is it saying that most comedians want to play Hamlet
a result
of that no I don't have to have the desire because a lot of my comedy is pretty
serious I go and let everyone
know what about the saying that that comedians off stage
is very melancholy does this apply to
you No
no no I care there's no way because a people are always walking up and telling me
jokes and so it's a funny joke last night about this
New York Allo join the Peace
Corps and when she came back she had one of
these witch doctors with a bone through his nose and everything
and better. A mother at the dock and the mother said No no I met a
rich doctor.
I
was
really
confident over that job last night you know Miller and you know
I I there's no way I can keep away from comedy because people walk right up
and laugh in my face.
Can you a huge joke like that in your
routine three people oh my you
never get in trouble with somebody using your material
and claiming that you use theirs.
Well no more no more use to and thought of it all is they say that you
know they had that job before because jokes play back in the subconscious and you'll
switch him and bring him out another way and I remember the
original I was wondering about that you hear the same is it just seven basic plots
and seven basic jokes and also true
variations actually on a news
event will bring out a new situation you know
a fresh new thing like the space
thing if we really got sound effects
of this we can do that a little drama like it's the horn blowing
at certain times of the brink
of doing well and it was a great crash you're sure and you say oh I have a
little you want to do the second to your lies.
We're going to policemen the Colossus a mr all yours made a
good
one you're doing very
well but we were just
about
people feeling the fury of about
the seven. You know the basic you're going to say that you get
something political types
and like the space shuttle.
Oh you can say that I said a fresh news event would bring on for instance a new plot that they've
never heard
of but you handled it in pretty much one
of several ways in
which you know you and I relate a lot here in this in this last show of ours Francis corporate went up.
We had our show take a week before and in the middle of the week.
Cooper went up you know and had this wonderful
trip and I was so worried that our show it to be stale and then I
remembered that luckily Fred MacMurray was doing
a spaceman sketch where he opened up a sleep
in this capsule. Which was unbelievable because it looked like we wrote it that they did you see the
movie and it was just it just fit and then I had it all and I
said this is my last show of the season that only means one thing on my house
countdown at the unemployment here. You know which is also tied into a group or you are so
lucky you find it does a difficult when you make your tapes of topical if they've
been dating you can't be well I had a
little oh I have to run in every once in a while and
do a hot monologue or something real important happens and you have to
comment like if a cruise ship starts banging his foot on the desk you
know I have to run in and you know
are just just doing new monologue because they expect
it and they criticize me if I don't because I'm We keep you know
so oppressed to the news that they expect that if something big happens.
They want to comment on they want they want to hear something.
Do you have any favorite political figures that you like to take off or can you
just
about know we just we just do the boys on top you know
our president. Mr Gold or
Mr
Rockefeller plenty of material less than a material or because you know on
the Seraph I got there and we just plain they were searching for another
vote and nasty little things like.
We say the wonderfully good in the White House because of
the Great to see those gas pumps on the White House
lawn should be a joke. What is that what about the statement
that Americans are losing a sense of humor that the younger generation is serious or not people are coming
more
standardized it's not true laughing just
as great all over the country I just finished touring all over the country I played a
high University in Athens I played Cincinnati
university played Chicago Cleveland two or three
shows on the spot and they're wonderful.
When do you like to travel you would you do that just because you know I like
to stay in Palm Springs and plague office when but I I'm such a ham and
I get stuck into these things when your friends ask you to do certain
things to get stuck into a project and you want
to post and Tupac
would say that but you do if you
do I don't know yet if you're in show business.
You kind of get the feeling that you have to help things like you make a picture and I say
but when you go to New York and play a couple seers with Lucy and you think that I'll be fun we'll do it
so that's what we did last weekend we played nineteen theaters
in three days. That's pretty good if you're really in showbiz
particularly when you're in deep like to get that blood back to
Joe
I've want to close a final question do you have a favorite
joke a favorite joke
yeah I have it on favorite
show you tell us one favorite joke for the
club and I mean I mean that's true but one is not too topical by the way
to make a play later.
Sure say the rich Dr Just think
of
a lot
of things which. As
a
good
good
psychic you think we're good clean one
to get me off the S.S. Thanks a lot.
This is a
crazy
because
it's
such a know if this goes on with Genesis one
that you can understand alright. I can't
because
it's my favorite joke. First of
all when I told last night about the gods for the want to make it
but you gotta it's got a punchline that I don't think is just good for the world if you go around the world you go around
the world with
this you know this goes to good
in Europe and Latin America. That's where they pretty much
know but also that's in the news a
lot but you
know that you know that one of my favorite jokes about the about the
foursome that's playing and the other one fella dies on the night screaming drops dead of a
heart attack and they have to bring him back to the clubhouse they're all sitting around having a drink trying to forget this
terrible incident and all the members are walking over to console him and said What a
terrible thing to experience this must have been for
him and that they had another drink and thought about it at once so I said gee the
worst part must have been carrying him back to the clubhouse and one of the members of
the foursome said no the worst part was putting him down and picking him up between
shots in the gulf your favorite.
Thank you very much doubt with this interview
that. Oh that was lovely but Thank You know the job and I'm
the one that just put it on and I don't
know look
up.