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Interview With Don Rickles

Aired July 28, 2003 - 15:39   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Most people remember Bob Hope for his stand-up comedy but many believed that on film he was funnier still. Among his many movie hits were the zanny "Road Movies" with his Hollywood cohort Bing Crosby.
Bob Hope starred in more than 50 films, some highly acclaimed, some less so. His annual failure to take home an Oscar nearly provided new jokes for Hope the comedian.

Joining us now by phone, another very funny man, from Los Angeles, Don Rickles. What a pleasure to have you, Don.

DON RICKLES, ENTERTAINER: Thank you. Sorry to have to talk to you on this kind of occasion. But thank you.

PHILLIPS: Well, understandably. But it's fantastic that you can come forward and tell us about some really wonderful memories with a very good friend of yours. Let's talk about some memories that you have. You appeared on a number of Bob's shows. Tell us about that experience.

RICKLES: Well, working with Bob was great. A lot of people didn't realize, he was a perfectionist. I mean, we'd have a run- through show, what they called a dress rehearsal show, and if you ad- libbed and it was funny, he'd put it in. But he stuck to what he believed in.

And it was great to work with him because the joke was, you'd say, Hello, Bob, and he'd say to me, You're going to do it like that? And I'd say, What did I do wrong? Just try it again. Hello, Bob. That's the way. I never could figure that out.

But he was always trying to change or make everything perfect, and that's why he became the great man he is.

PHILLIPS: Well, he didn't mind it when people made fun of him. I remember the time -- we were looking back at some of the special moments when you were on Dean Martin's show, and he walked into the audience. Tell me about that experience.

RICKLES: Oh, yes. Dean Martin and Greg Garrison, they gave me a chance to invite quite a few movie stars, and they just said, Sit down, and Don, you do what you do. Rib everybody. And the cameras will keep going.

And I got up there, and they kept rolling, and all of a sudden in the back of the room in the midst of my conversations and kidding, Bob Hope walked in. At that time it was the Vietnam War. And I turned around and said, Bob, what are you doing here? Is the war over?

(LAUGHTER)

RICKLES: And that got quite a reaction from newspapers and what have you. And he laughed. He was great that way.

PHILLIPS: What is it about his sense of humor -- what was it about his sense of humor that's so different from the comedy that we watch now?

RICKLES: Well, he worked with the American flag around him. That's a joke.

(LAUGHTER)

RICKLES: In other words...

PHILLIPS: He was very patriotic.

RICKLES: He was. He was perfect. I mean, I don't know -- in my lifetime, I had never met anybody that said, I didn't like Bob Hope. I mean when comedians were selling ourselves and certain people say I don't like this guy's particular humor, whether it be mine or anybody else, not everybody says we love you.

But he was the kind of guy everybody loved him, in rehearsal, socially, sitting back in his home. I remember one evening I was at the home, my wife and I were there with Jackie Gleason and Bob and the whole night we were kidding Bob. And he was great with taking a ribbing. And it was fun to be with him.

PHILLIPS: Was it always funny, or were there times where you were hanging out with him and talking about serious stuff? Or was it always...

RICKLES: Well, it was very serious when I asked him about the money.

(LAUGHTER)

RICKLES: As soon as we brought up the contract and the money, he got very serious and said, Let's come in the office.

PHILLIPS: Did you owe him any money?

RICKLES: With the money he's got, believe me.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: It wouldn't matter.

RICKLES: America is his, my God.

(LAUGHTER) PHILLIPS: What do you think is your best memory with Bob Hope?

RICKLES: Well, I think with he and Dolores at his home, we had an evening which I was very happy to be with him. He invited us for dinner, my wife and I, and, as I said, and Jackie Gleason, rest his soul, who was a great man in his way. And we were all there for dinner and just chatting and listening to stories that he told.

And then on the golf course, too...

PHILLIPS: I was going to ask you, did you ever play golf with him?

RICKLES: Yes, a few times. I took the club and it's the same thing all over again. I'd tee off and the ball would go down the middle. I wasn't a great golfer, not at all. He'd say, Is that the way you're going to play?

(LAUGHTER)

RICKLES: And he was teaching me golf. And he was very kind. It Frankie Avalon, God bless him. Frankie Avalon and myself played over at Lakeside (ph), we played golf, and I played on his course right behind his house. He had a little small golf course. And we had lunch, and we played a little golf there. And he was very serious about his golf.

PHILLIPS: Well, did he think you were funny?

(LAUGHTER)

RICKLES: Well, he did, but it was a great word. And he Milton Berle always had a great word with me. I would say something, he'd say, Be quiet, huh? We're talking.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: Don Rickles. And you were also his 100th birthday party, right?

RICKLES: Yes, I was. That was quite a treat. And that -- one of the fun times when I was on Johnny Carson, he'd come walking on. And one night he walked on and said, Oh, Rickles is here. I thought he was out walking his rat.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: Well, now you're even. You got to give him a hard time at Dean Martin's show. He gave you a little. That's fair.

RICKLES: Yes. Certainly is. And he will be missed. And my heart goes out to Dolores, his wonderful wife, and the family. She is a great lady, and he has a wonderful family, and he will be missed certainly.

PHILLIPS: Sixty-nine years of marriage, it's pretty amazing. Don Rickles, thank you so much for your time.

RICKLES: Thank you, Dear, for your time.

PHILLIPS: It was a pleasure.

RICKLES: OK. Speak to you on happier occasions.

PHILLIPS: Thank you, Don.

RICKLES: Bye-bye.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired July 28, 2003 - 15:39   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Most people remember Bob Hope for his stand-up comedy but many believed that on film he was funnier still. Among his many movie hits were the zanny "Road Movies" with his Hollywood cohort Bing Crosby.
Bob Hope starred in more than 50 films, some highly acclaimed, some less so. His annual failure to take home an Oscar nearly provided new jokes for Hope the comedian.

Joining us now by phone, another very funny man, from Los Angeles, Don Rickles. What a pleasure to have you, Don.

DON RICKLES, ENTERTAINER: Thank you. Sorry to have to talk to you on this kind of occasion. But thank you.

PHILLIPS: Well, understandably. But it's fantastic that you can come forward and tell us about some really wonderful memories with a very good friend of yours. Let's talk about some memories that you have. You appeared on a number of Bob's shows. Tell us about that experience.

RICKLES: Well, working with Bob was great. A lot of people didn't realize, he was a perfectionist. I mean, we'd have a run- through show, what they called a dress rehearsal show, and if you ad- libbed and it was funny, he'd put it in. But he stuck to what he believed in.

And it was great to work with him because the joke was, you'd say, Hello, Bob, and he'd say to me, You're going to do it like that? And I'd say, What did I do wrong? Just try it again. Hello, Bob. That's the way. I never could figure that out.

But he was always trying to change or make everything perfect, and that's why he became the great man he is.

PHILLIPS: Well, he didn't mind it when people made fun of him. I remember the time -- we were looking back at some of the special moments when you were on Dean Martin's show, and he walked into the audience. Tell me about that experience.

RICKLES: Oh, yes. Dean Martin and Greg Garrison, they gave me a chance to invite quite a few movie stars, and they just said, Sit down, and Don, you do what you do. Rib everybody. And the cameras will keep going.

And I got up there, and they kept rolling, and all of a sudden in the back of the room in the midst of my conversations and kidding, Bob Hope walked in. At that time it was the Vietnam War. And I turned around and said, Bob, what are you doing here? Is the war over?

(LAUGHTER)

RICKLES: And that got quite a reaction from newspapers and what have you. And he laughed. He was great that way.

PHILLIPS: What is it about his sense of humor -- what was it about his sense of humor that's so different from the comedy that we watch now?

RICKLES: Well, he worked with the American flag around him. That's a joke.

(LAUGHTER)

RICKLES: In other words...

PHILLIPS: He was very patriotic.

RICKLES: He was. He was perfect. I mean, I don't know -- in my lifetime, I had never met anybody that said, I didn't like Bob Hope. I mean when comedians were selling ourselves and certain people say I don't like this guy's particular humor, whether it be mine or anybody else, not everybody says we love you.

But he was the kind of guy everybody loved him, in rehearsal, socially, sitting back in his home. I remember one evening I was at the home, my wife and I were there with Jackie Gleason and Bob and the whole night we were kidding Bob. And he was great with taking a ribbing. And it was fun to be with him.

PHILLIPS: Was it always funny, or were there times where you were hanging out with him and talking about serious stuff? Or was it always...

RICKLES: Well, it was very serious when I asked him about the money.

(LAUGHTER)

RICKLES: As soon as we brought up the contract and the money, he got very serious and said, Let's come in the office.

PHILLIPS: Did you owe him any money?

RICKLES: With the money he's got, believe me.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: It wouldn't matter.

RICKLES: America is his, my God.

(LAUGHTER) PHILLIPS: What do you think is your best memory with Bob Hope?

RICKLES: Well, I think with he and Dolores at his home, we had an evening which I was very happy to be with him. He invited us for dinner, my wife and I, and, as I said, and Jackie Gleason, rest his soul, who was a great man in his way. And we were all there for dinner and just chatting and listening to stories that he told.

And then on the golf course, too...

PHILLIPS: I was going to ask you, did you ever play golf with him?

RICKLES: Yes, a few times. I took the club and it's the same thing all over again. I'd tee off and the ball would go down the middle. I wasn't a great golfer, not at all. He'd say, Is that the way you're going to play?

(LAUGHTER)

RICKLES: And he was teaching me golf. And he was very kind. It Frankie Avalon, God bless him. Frankie Avalon and myself played over at Lakeside (ph), we played golf, and I played on his course right behind his house. He had a little small golf course. And we had lunch, and we played a little golf there. And he was very serious about his golf.

PHILLIPS: Well, did he think you were funny?

(LAUGHTER)

RICKLES: Well, he did, but it was a great word. And he Milton Berle always had a great word with me. I would say something, he'd say, Be quiet, huh? We're talking.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: Don Rickles. And you were also his 100th birthday party, right?

RICKLES: Yes, I was. That was quite a treat. And that -- one of the fun times when I was on Johnny Carson, he'd come walking on. And one night he walked on and said, Oh, Rickles is here. I thought he was out walking his rat.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: Well, now you're even. You got to give him a hard time at Dean Martin's show. He gave you a little. That's fair.

RICKLES: Yes. Certainly is. And he will be missed. And my heart goes out to Dolores, his wonderful wife, and the family. She is a great lady, and he has a wonderful family, and he will be missed certainly.

PHILLIPS: Sixty-nine years of marriage, it's pretty amazing. Don Rickles, thank you so much for your time.

RICKLES: Thank you, Dear, for your time.

PHILLIPS: It was a pleasure.

RICKLES: OK. Speak to you on happier occasions.

PHILLIPS: Thank you, Don.

RICKLES: Bye-bye.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com