Original subtitles

Ev'rytime I go to town

The boys start kickin' my dawg aroun'

Makes no dif'rence if he is a houn'

Better stop kickin' my dawg aroun'

Komboo! You're good doggy you.

- Hey, do I know you?

< Yeah, Harry, I'm John Landis.

- John Lan.. ooh.. Where do I know you're from?

- When I was 18 years old,

I went behind the Iron Curtain to the former Yugoslavia

to work as a gofer on a movie called Kelly's Heroes for MGM.

This is a film about Don Rickles who I met in 1969.

- Man was a pain in the ass runner, kept running up to my trailer,

Mr Rickles, they're ready for you.

Not now your little peggy ass.

go back to them you little son of a bitch.

- Let's go!

- You see, we're just a private enterprise operation.

- Those freaks! That ain't an army, it's a circus!

- It could be the perfect crime.

- And me.

So I figured I'd start with Clint Eastwood.

- I've seen probably his acts as more than most people,

more than I'd like to remember.

- That's nice.

What's in it for me?

- Did you see the action? - What kind of action?

- This kind of action?

- He used to always say in his act,

he'd say that, he says, what do I look like?

Larry Dickman from Des Moines or something like that?

And I always thought Larry Dickman, that's a hell of a name.

And I've registered in hundreds of hotels

across the country as Larry Dickman ever since then.

- Since Kelly's Heroes get all it's done for me?

How about nothing? That's how good an actor I am.

How about nothing?

The man raves, they all do that. De Niro, same thing.

- Don Rickles is a good actor.

- I'm sitting there with a cardboard box

on Hollywood boulevard with my wife.

- My name is Larry Dickman.

- Well he... is a..

a great comedian and very funny.

His delivery is uh was always you know great.

And and and I like that kind of humor.

- When you were alone with what he's like De Niro,

I don't light up a room.

- This is about Don Rickles?

I'm out of here.

- I know that the casino is very happy.

When Don Rickles here they got more gaming.

People, you know, I wouldn't say high class.

High rollers.

- Beautiful.

- Just yourself? - No, my husband's getting us a drink.

- Okay, A12, enjoy the show.

- Thank you comrade.

- Good evening, how are you? Thanks for coming.

- You're gonna be on a 284 suite close to an elevator.

You'll be dressed, you'll have the tuxedo wearing.

- I've meant to tell you, if I got to put my hands in..

- We'll see, we'll figure that out.

We know we know that that's an issue.

We're gonna figure out how to do it.

- I'm the cigarette girl here at the Star Dust.

Anyone that needs cigarettes or cigars, I take care of that.

But I also sell lighted souvenirs for adults, kids all different ages.

The Dodgers went tonight, they'll be in good shape.

< That'll put them what uh 2. 5 up? - Yeah.

< 2. 5.

- I go in the showroom,

the restaurants everywhere except for the fine dining restaurant.

I go around all the tables, the whole casino floor basically.

- G3.

B42. > B42.

There isn't an ocean too deep

A mountain so high it can keep, keep me away

Away from my love

And where he goes I'll follow, I'll follow, I'll follow

I know I'll always love him, I love him, I love him

And where he goes I'll follow, I'll follow, I'll follow

I know I'll always love him, I love him, I love him

And where he goes I'll follow, I'll follow, I'll follow

I know I'll always love him

Good night.

- And now here he is, Mr Warmth himself, Don Rickles!

- It's wrong! God damn it..

Stop the goddamn dance!

What the hell is the matter with you for Christ's sake?

It's a mexican thing, it's important for crying out loud.

You go ta-da-da-da, I walk out and do the circle.

They play the music.

They're playing it wrong and not a whole goddamn kitchen is gonna quit.

Am I right or wrong?

I don't want the colored guy to bud in.

- My name is Joe Mealy.

And for the past 20 years I've been working for Don Rickles.

I am his conductor, his arranger and his pianist.

- Did you pass away?

Am I talking to a wall here?

These are nice people.

Look at the front!

We're gonna stay home for Christ's sake.

Look at it!

Look at this old guy, spitting up all over himself for Christ's sake.

I hate that!

I hate you got old, go home and die!

I'll tell you this!

My luck, this guy will pass away.

Ah, you ruined the whole goddamn show!

No, I want to do a good job for Christ's sake!

I really do.

What are you doing smelling your hand?

I'll tell you this now.

Guy sitting here got, Jeez, I stink!

I'll tell you this! It's the whole God...

Get your head out of the seat, it's not a boat trip!

I'll tell you this!

Try to do a goddamn job, there's no..

You people in the back got screwed with those cheap seats.

I tell you this!

That's the main thing, I try to do a job.

I swear to God,

that's the whole goddamn thing to understand what people...

We have the china man get in here.

I'll tell you this!

40 million Jews, they got a chink sitting right the goddamn front!

Jesus christ! Get out of the way goddammit!

That's the whole damn thing... What's your name?

- Get up!

Now, get your ass out of here, I don't want you in here.

I want to be with you so badly lady.

I'm much older than you, but spider's alive.

You're queer? - No!

- Okay, go sit down. - All right.

- What are you, Irish, Italian? - Italian-Irish.

- Italian-Irish? Oh, your father was a sailor?

I'll tell you this!

Get the hell out of the way for christ's sake!

Trying to do a show and I got a big ass sticking out there in the front!

That's the whole goddamn thing.

I spoke to the home, you're going back.

I'll tell you this!

You're all ladies sitting there wheezing like it's normal for...

Chinese, Filipino, Japanese!

Three years in a jungle looking for your father!

Japanese!

Three years, I had a lot of that crap!

- You know, some guys just have that thing.

It's like, you know, being funny is like being a pretty girl,

you just get away with a lot of shit.

You know, it's like, he's got big tits like, you know.

It's like he can do no wrong.

- You're Italian? What is your heritage?

German? Get a rope!

I'll tell you this!

What's your name, Fritz, Hans?

What?

Frank my ass! Frank!

Never met one in World War II, my name is Frank.

Does this relax you Frank?

You wanna put on your helmet, don't you?

Is he smiling or go up for the rifle?

40 million Jews, I got a Nazi sitting on a goddamn front!

- Started playing with Don, at the Golden Nugget.

So it's been about 20 years now.

- Is that your wife? Jesus Christ!

I'll tell you this!

No, I'm kidding, I'm kidding.

That's a joke. I swear you're a pretty woman.

I'll tell you this!

- I grew up in New Hampshire,

so other than like me, I'm a jew, there weren't many other,

like there were no minorities or anything.

So listening to Don Rickles albums and stuff

really taught me about what other people were like, you know.

And then when I did meet a black person or a japanese person,

I was able to know what to expect.

- That's what I do, I laugh about people.

No matter what the hell you're Irish,

Jewish, Italian, Negro, Puerto Rican..

Well, Puerto Rican..

Puerto Rican said to me in New York in an alley.

I went, Son of a bitch, I don't even know Maria!

Anyway, hey, this is what you're going to hear lady!

If you're waiting for Billy Graham to come in and make your kid walk again,

forget about it!

- Ginny said to me, he's the sweetest man I think I've ever met.

And she said he's just, he's such a family man.

And you know, it kills him to be on the road.

And I said, Well honey, his act is going to be a little different

than the person you just met.

So we go in and Don comes out.

First thing he says, he said, The stammering idiot is here from Chicago

with his hooker wife from Bayonne, New Jersey.

So, and with that my wife's face fell. That's him.

- The funniest thing for me is watching people respond

because they sort of act like they're a little bit indignant,

but you know, they're so glad that he picked them

that it's just you know, harrumph, harrumph..

Oh my God Don Rickles picked me out!

- Black people can do black jokes,

Jews, do jew jokes, Italians do italian jokes,

etcetera etcetera...

He does them all and gets away with it because he's hysterical.

- Everybody wants to get shit on by Don Rickles.

- Don has never lost his disdain for sensitivity.

- Clint,

I say it, nobody else has said it and I say it from my heart.

You're a lousy actor.

- I guess it's from the great tradition of the fool and the gesture of the,

you know being there to kind of level the king and keep it real.

- Good evening, Mr President. Nice to see you sir and your lovely wife Nancy.

It's a big treat for me to fly all the way from California

to be here for this kind of money.

Secretary of State's here

and Billy Graham, nice to see you, sir.

This hand is bothering me.

Anyway,

is this too fast running?

Anyway,

he's sitting there looking at the program going,

Where does he say, he makes fun of me?

Where does it say that?

- Really good ones could insult the king

and then back over, I'm just adjusting.

You know, I'm just kidding.

What are you talking about?

But your wife without the hump is a very attractive woman.

- He just can't help but tell the truth, that's where he's at.

That's why one of the reasons I put him right up there

in his own way with Lenny Bruce and Pryor because he's fearlessly honest.

- I'm married 41 years with jewish broke.

Don't applaud, you never saw her.

Anyway,

41 years, just let somebody go, is that about it?

Anyway, I make it exciting though.

Last night I was a barge going up the Mississippi.

Barge coming up the Mississippi!

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

And she's the dock.

Boom!

And she lays there, Hit the dock, hit the dock!

Boom!

Then I get a black brother to stand on my shoulders going,

Ol' Man River. Boom!

Then I got another one.

I tell her I'm a beaver.

I put my ass on top of the bed and I go...

And she lays there going, Find the dam, find the dam!

Oh the other one, the other one!

I tell her I'm Geronimo, see, like a wagon train.

I tied her to the couch and tell her she's a wagon train going west.

And I circle couch and an indian attack me going,

She lays, going, Attack Geronimo, attack!

I did that last night for about an hour.

Then I got fed up and put an arrow in her.

She's still up in her room going, Finish me off Geronimo, finish me off!

You're a nice crowd, God bless you, nice people.

I mean that sincerely, nice people.

This lovely lady, are you chinese here?

If you're not chinese, you better get your eyes fixed, okay?

- He did not say that.

He did not, but he was going in for the kill and he did, he killed.

- I can't believe he's saying that kind of stuff, you know that's not right,

but it was so hilarious, you know, it's like a guilty pleasure,

kind of like, you know, tongue kissing a third cousin or something.

- It gets funnier when he picks people out of the audience, of course.

The minute he turns to the guy in the front row it's over.

- Where's the guy that's Italian? You're italian?

What is your heritage, my friend? - English.

- English? Well how did you get those seats?

We need your people for the muffins.

I'll tell you this!

Are you married?

I love you guys when you make like, I want to take a pop at it, Mary.

Got to be like the Jews circle the bed and get an estimate.

- He's really wonderful to watch because he ties everybody together.

He's the plate spinner comic as he keeps working everybody off everything.

He's just vince he's just.. what was that the movie with..

The Last Angry Man?

Yeah, he's like that and he's very much like that

except he's just hilarious.

- I moved to the West Coast, I was pursuing my own career

and one of my first jobs was at Channel 13 in Hollywood,

went down to San Diego to do the news.

- You're lovely couple, are you married here?

Are you a mute?

Get Jerry Lewis on the phone, I found a mute!

- So after the show I said you know

my name is Regis and I'm starting out in television,

I'd love to interview with you.

Could we do it outside on the corner?

So we went out to the downtown San Diego right there on the, on the sidewalk,

and we did an interview

and of course he beat me up and I loved him even more.

- Where's the japanese guy? Where are you?

Where is the japanese guy?

Raise your hand the japanese guy.

Where are you? What's your name my friend?

< Joe. - Joe?

- I remember you guys when the truck stop.

Hey Joe, wanna meet my sister?

What's your last name, Joe?

What?

Joe Tan?

Don't need to get pissed off, Joe.

Just asking your name.

- My name's Tony 'O' Opedisano, although, most people call me Tonio.

And I've been Don's road manager for about 14 years.

And before that I was with Frank for a good 10 years.

It was about four year overlap when I was doing double duty with both of them.

- Who is your favorite male singer?

- Honest? - Yeah.

- Dick Haymes.

- Dick Haymes, I've never,

I've heard you with at the Paramount.

You always annoyed me!

- As a road manager for Don?

I'm in charge of sound and light design.

Watch.

And now here he is Mr Warmth himself, Don Rickles.

- I'm with him pretty much until he goes to bed.

Same thing I did with Sinatra.

Although the hours with Don are a lot shorter.

With Frank, we rarely went to bed before six or 7 in the morning.

Yeah.

< Dead.

Dead.

Cancer.

Dead.

Hanging on the ropes.

Very bad, very sick.

Almost dead and dying.

- Don has a little boy in him

and he's a rascal of a little boy.

And he is a busy body little boy and he gets into your life,

and he walks the edge and you know what that edge is.

Everybody who's ever seen Don work, they know what that edge is.

And they as a matter of fact, they come looking for it,

but that's who he is and that little boy still exists in the man.

I see it every time I see him.

And if I have a convers...

If I have a conversation with Don for a minute,

there's never been a time when that little boy didn't show up.

- We're gonna be Japanese soldiers.

I'm gonna be a general Paca Saima.

You're gonna be colonel, Yuho Duina.

And you're gonna be corporal

I'm about to give it harry carry. - Okay.

- You say, Do not die, great general, do not die. - Do not die.

- The japanese people are strong.

We must never let the island be taken.

We will fight to the last man.

There are people who know we are strong and we are brave.

Banzai, banzai!

But if they attack we will attack them and we will never die.

Banzai, banzai!

And you James say, Right.

Come on.

Now we bend our knees and we still got teeth like japanese.

Look at the sky, japanese style.

- It's a very dangerous thing to talk about why things are funny.

It's a bad business to be in because then you start dissecting things

and you start getting strange.

It's it's bad.

It's such a visceral response.

- I first saw Don Rickles live in the 70s at the Latin Casino.

And at that time I was punk.

And Don came out and did that show, holding the mic and dropping it

and that intensity.

And he had this quality of...

pleasing the audience was the most important thing in the world,

not in his life in the world,

but he would not compromise in any way to please them.

A very complicated, very important idea.

In a certain sense, the definition of art.

- Don Rickles my dream guy.

And I'll see him soon, live at the Latin Casino.

I think I'd better call in my reservation now.

Enjoy Mr Warmth, Don Rickles, plus Fabian and dinner live at the Latin Casino.

Call now for reservations.

- After I'd seen Don, it turned out that

the people that were my heroes

were like the Velvet Underground,

Iggy Pop and the Stooges, you know,

Bob Dylan, Houdini, Don Rickles.

Give a nice say and a nice guy, is that?

The computer guy, let's score.

- I mean when I was growing up,

Rickles was probably on every show, I remember watching,

all my favorite shows as a kid.

He was on Munsters, he was on F Troop, Gillian's Island,

Dick van Dyke,

Get Smart,

I spy, remember the Twilight Zone?

Adam's Family? He was at Bewitched, Gomer Pyle.

Oh and I remember a great thing with Don, on The Andy Griffith Show.

Have you ever shown [Inaudible]?

At least in my little world in the 1960s.

- How much you weigh, Chinee?

How much you weigh?

- I have this affinity for Don Rickles.

It's the same kind of thing that if you can't laugh at yourself,

just make fun of other people.

- That's your husband?

You must lay in bed and go, NO!

Goddamn it, NO!

Then you wake up in the morning going, Son of a bitch I'm flat!

- Came to see him in Vegas.

Actually came to see Lorna Luft, but I stayed for him.

- Looking good..

Give her mouth to mouth so she can see the whole show, okay?

- I managed Frank Sinatra, Liza Minnelli,

Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorm�,

Ben Vereen, Paul Anka, Julio Iglesias,

Sammy Davis Jr and Engelbert Humperdinck.

- You don't want those old jews in florida and the health club

Can I get a rub Herbie?

And you get the other type - hold the elevator doors!

You like that, ain't you?

Nazi I saw you're living in German, son of a bitch!

Come with my God. So put your mind at ease.

A polite God, lady, how about your knees

love? Little kids had a straight cat and dog.

But this group tonight is from six catalog

almost swept God, a bad face of grooving.

But they're all high, they think they're out a movie.

- First time I was aware of him, I think seeing him in different movies.

I think it was like a Kelly's Heroes,

you know, and those where you go, Who's that guy?

- Were you worried about drills? - No, sir.

- Buffen?

Now look, I never keep anything from a crew.

I don't expect them to keep anything from me.

So come on, speak up!

- Well, I guess it's area seven Mr Bledsoe.

- Did you hear the captain read the operation orders?

- That's just it, sir.

- They specifically mentioned the Bungle streets.

- Burt Lancaster would always come over to me and say,

Learn about the submarine,

Learn what happens, learn the control.

And Gable said, What is he bothering you about the submarine?

Just do the lines.

- I want this scope up as we dive? - As we dive, sir?

- I want to be ready to fire as soon as we level off at 50 ft.

I know this is all new to you, but you just have to get used to it.

The whole purpose of this drill is to dive and fire as soon as we leave.

Let's try it again.

Trevis, surface!

- Gable was always nice and he always,

I always sat in front of his trailer kidding around with him,

and Jack would come us and say listen,

Tonight, we're going to do something good.

While Gable's on the set, you and I gonna get undressed,

we go into his dressing room and we lay on the bed

and we'll act like with two gay guys having a good time.

Why, it's my dressing room, I'm not gonna knock at the door.

Well knocking at the door, I think somebody said..,

He says, Back Ruby, it's Clark Gable, I'm coming in.

We open the door and there he sees

the two of us laying on the bed in our underwear hugging each other.

He goes, I can't believe that these guys are fags!

These kids are fags, I can't believe it!

Damn, damn, goddammit they're fags!

- I was never offended by his faggot jokes

or his black jokes ot his asian jokes because my mother was Vietnamese.

No, but I was never I was never offended by any of that

because nothing is sacred do you know what I mean.

Just kind of yeah, it's all bets are off with him.

- I first became aware of Don Rickles probably on the old Tonight Show.

The real, not that this is a fake Tonight Show now,

but the Johnny Carson Tonight Show.

- Here's a dear friend that I affectionately call Mr Warmth.

- I grew up in Oak Park Illinois worshiping the Tonight Show.

So I became aware of Don watching his repartee with Johnny.

- Would you welcome, please Don Rickles.

- Johnny would introduce him in a way

that you know, something dangerous was about to come onto the stage.

- He's also going to host right here,

the week of when October the 13th I believe.

Would you welcome this year's poster child for rabies Don Rickles!

- All right!

Yes, yes, all!

No I'm not going on. - Come back!

- I just showed up and wore a clean shirt, you know that's all I had to do.

Anyway when I looked at the rundown and so Rickles was on

or gonna be on tomorrow night or whatever it was,

when I saw Rickles was gonna be there I got excited.

- My parents would watch the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.

I was too young to stay up but I would hide at the top of the stairs

where they couldn't see me or hear me or know I was there.

I heard them laughing so I knew

that I was at least hearing something very special.

- Would you welcome Mr Warmth, Don Rickles.

- He makes up his mind

that he's going to ignore Johnny and make a big fuss over me.

That's pure Rickles, I mean that's Rickles to the Nth degree.

that is Rickles right there.

- Johnny would never prepare material for any Don Rickles appearance.

Whatever was on Don's mind whatever came out of his mouth.

That's the way they would go.

- She's been good to me, that's my mother.

- Etta Rickles, right out there in the corner.

How are you? How are you, darling?

- Your mother thinks about the same way mine does.

Hi there! Quiet little old lady.

- And your mother bless her heart is a reserved lady from the midwest.

And when I first met her you said to me,

Well your mom doesn't get around too much.

And she came in the dressing room and said Hi,

and we had more fun, she was so great.

When she did that bottle trick..

She takes a whiskey and never hits your mouth.

Just throws it in the air and he goes in, his father goes...

And mom gets surprised and she goes, Ta-da!

- Okay so they didn't want to make a big thing out of it.

- But I must have seen him early in his earlier days and on the Tonight Show.

And he was like a representative of the black people

before we had a lot of black comedians on TV.

It was more like the Jewish ethnic,

all comedians were Jewish and today but..

He was more a black taste of comedian.

so I must been five or six and I was watching uh Don Rickles

And of course the reason I'm in the business.

Red Skelton, Red Buttons,

Red Fox, Pinky Lee, you know all people of color.

- My next guest and good friend Mr Warmth,

Don Rickles is finally very busy.

His television series C. P. O. Sharkey

seen on NBC wednesdays at nine will still be on this fall.

Thank you.

That's a new record.

Rickles has lost more pilots in the Japanese air force.

- One time on the Tonight Show, he went on to the audience

and there are two kids, he has two kids, he said,

You know what's your name?

Kid giving his name, he slapped him in the face,

Don't lie to me!

What is he doing, he's out of control!

You don't do that to the audience, just slapping the audience.

It's not a it's not an actor it's not somebody in show business.

The poor kid is, he just told him his name.

But even the absurdity, why are you on television?

Why are you part of this audience? It's all absurd.

- I was a fan of him on C. P. O. Sharkey back on NBC in the seventies.

So, I mean every time he was on the Tonight Show I always watched.

I remember one time..

- I was guest hosting for Johnny Carson and Don was a guest,

and we were talking and talking.

And and Don gestured somehow

and he slammed, he slammed his hand down on the desk

and he broke Johnny's cigarette box.

Johnny had a wooden cigarette box.

- This is not your line,

you're crazy and you're not going to have that line,

you're stupid, but you're not gonna have the land!

This is not your line you take!

Huh!

Of course in cigarette box!

- Oh!

Fucking Carson's cigarette box!

- Of course everybody went, Ooo!

Oh, you're in trouble now. Oh!

- What the hell happened with this?

You know how long I've had this cigarette box on this desk.

- You brought that up from New York city? - I brought this up from New York.

- What on earth..

- It happened last night? - Who?

- Don Rickles? - I did not see..

- Don Rickles did it last night.

He's taping across the hall, C. P. O. Sharkey.

- Can I get over there?

Can I get over there?

Be right back!

- They walk through the hallway

and they took the camera with him back there

which was like really innovative at that time,

because you never really saw what was going on backstage

And Don was rehearsing,

he was in his navy outfit and they went at it.

- Are they on the air? I don't give a damn if you're on the air.

Rickles!

Rickles, hold, stop the taping!

Stop the taping!

Somebody broke my cigarette box.

Come here, come here.

We're taping.

I just started the show.

I picked my box up off my desk I had for nine years.

My box is broken!

They told me,

they told me you broke it on the show last night.

- Well, I really... - I, I I..

- No, but I'm sorry about the box, I will come up with something.

- Well, I hope so. - But just keep me on your show.

You mean so much to me, can I? - No, wait, no, no, no.

Don't humble yourself.

- Please, I wanna be with you, soulmate. - Don't humble yourself.

I want something back,

Carry on, carry on and we'll see. - John Carson!

- They know who I am!

Wait a minute, why do you.. Why do you always do that?

Johnny Carson. They know who I am!

Don Rickles! What is that?

I'm going back to work.

Okay, now, what do we do?

Well that's, I mean to me that's the ultimate to have Don come on,

because I used to watch him with Johnny

and you know to see him try to nail me j with your stupid cars!

And he makes me laugh, you know.

Him, Rodney all the all the sort of the kings of comedy.

- You told me I was gonna have a career!

Since casino, I'm in the toilet, I can't get a job!

I don't know what the hell is the matter?

Didn't I make a fuss? Didn't I walk around your mother and tell her?

Didn't I say her I'll tell you where the medicine is?

Can I do that?

Didn't I say you were normal

when you're wheezing and spitting up behind the camera

with that lousy oxygen mask?

Come on, you never lied to me, you ruined my damn career!

I don't need it!

- I was, the asthma, the asthma spray.

I didn't have one on me on the.. I've got so I couldn't do it.

I couldn't, I couldn't breathe,

I couldn't breathe.

It was, it was merciless, merciless classic.

- Who else is in that age group?

Still packs them in the house in Vegas

and you know, does it some Indian casino.

You know when I go places I go, who is just here? Rickles!

Rickles is just here? He's 80!

- Will I be performing when I'm 80?

Yes, I Don will be gone by then and I will be doing his act.

- My father, his name was Max Rickles.

Max S which we never knew what the S stood for.

My mother's name was Etta Feldman, her maiden name.

She was born here in the United States.

My father was born in Russia.

and came here when he was three

with a gun grenade and a picture of Stalin in his pants.

I was born in 1926.

Donald, J Rickles, J. A. Y.

I don't know J. A. Y. for Jay, Rickles.

I was raised in a place called Jackson Heights, Long Island.

Once I ran away from home.

I got fed up, my mother was yelling at me and I said, I'm leaving!

In those days, there was on the corner of the 5th Avenue bus used to be.

My mother packed a little bag and said, Goodbye.

I said, Okay, tell my father I left.

I was a baby 9, 8 years old.

So and I went to the corner, stood by the bus.

My mother opened the window and yelled out, You forgot your sweater!

And ever since I was a kid, I made fun of people

used to make fun of my mother of the way she smoked a cigarette.

Then on my way I drove a car.

They were, my cousins rode their bikes in the schoolyard

and girls I always had a problem with girls, 'cause I was a smart ass,

pretty much what I am tonight, always with the smart ass remarks.

And invariably girls just like, Here comes big mouth!

He's so crude, he has no class, big mouth is coming!

Then I get them under the stupe, and they go, Go big mouth go!

I went to Newtown High School.

I was president of the school,

I was president of basketball, dramatic society and failing every subject.

And I got a lucky break, World War II came.

I was so happy, I got a job with the Navy.

Told them when I enlisted at a Grand Central station in New York,

I do, I do comedy and jokes, and I'm an impressionist,

and I'm an entertainer.

Fine, I'd like to be in special services.. They said, Fine.

And they stamped my papers

and next thing you know about a train with the shades down.

I'm a special service, where am I going? Don't worry. Bam-bam-bam.

And I sent my ass to the Philippines for 2. 5 years.

I was on a PT tender, 300 men.

And PT tender was where the PT boats

would get repaired and they go into a tax

in the islands, we stayed in place called Lady in Tacloban in the Philippines.

And all I remember I was a guy running around the jungle going,

where are you Joe? Where are you Joe?

When they said attack, I kept saying I'm a special service,

I don't do this, I'm supposed to do comedy, and they said, Keep firing.

After I conquered the Japanese, I came back to conquer Broadway.

I really didn't want to be a comedian, I thought I'd be an actor.

My mother was very supportive and my father too,

but they were worried because like any other jewish family,

they said, what if you could only get, you know, more secure job,

where's he gonna be being an actor?

The american Academy of Dramatic Arts

And I was delighted and I got in the class and it's a long story.

I became great friends with Jason Robards, he was dear friend.

And Tom Poston is still a friend.

And Anne Bancroft who was in my class but we weren't buddy-buddy.

John Ericsson, Don Murray a lot of guys.

Grace Kelly was in the class behind me.

We didn't know each other,

but I always watched her with the

pillbox hat in those days and gloves.

She was very nice, but I never had any conversation with her,

but I wanted to be with her so bad, I could have been a prince.

There was a fellow called Phil Lober, a great director.

He said, Rickles, you have one problem.

You've got to stop beating the scenery, stop beating up the scenery!

Because I'd walk into a scene and I would say,

You know, Charlie, don't feel... Why? Why what's the matter with Charlie?

And a set would almost fall down.

What the hell is the matter with Charlie? You know.

I was always out of control and then I would try to calm down and he say,

Do me a favor, never forget.

He said, Never lose that energy

because that energy is going to make you pretty important.

I learned a lot from just walking around Broadway.

My mother would say, How did they go?

I spent half the day in the Capitol Theatre watching the movie

and the show and then go and see two ages.

I read for Stalag 17 which I thought would be perfect for me.

And the joke was everything,

you know in the dark stage with the work like you know.

I got, Thank you for coming! Thank you.

That became my title.

Thank you for coming!

They thought I was there for lunch.

Thank you for coming.

Then I did for Joshua Logan, I read Mr Roberts. Thank you for coming!

he was an agent,

and he used to take me in the Brill Building,

Went up in an elevator, I never forget it.

They take you by the windowsill, Rickles, come here.

Come here!

I said, Why are we by the window?

And the traffic was going,

'cause I don't want anybody to know the money I'm paying you.

I know, why? It's that good?

No schmuck, it's nothing!

And he came here like maybe $25, $30 work with, Tony passed his band,

you know I was the comedian, with a girl come out..

I do all my dumb impressions, and they go ta-ta-ta..

And they bring it on the girl again.

There be about three or four comedians

and we go in circles but I was the star, so called,

and in between the now

Boom and boom!

Now Don Rickles, tell four jokes boom-boom, impression

And now Benita Bandanana! and it continued like that.

My life was in strip joints.

You know, a night train was my favorite number.

When I when I heard drums, I started taking my clothes off.

- We met in Washington D. C.

I was working at a strip club called the Blue Mirror.

My job was to sing a couple of songs in between the strippers

just so they can dried them down.

And then I then I then I went out to sing a couple

and then they came out and danced

and when they sweated they dried them off.

And then I had to do another set.

And Don was working at a place called the Wayne Room.

- Here's a place where I'm walking around going,

You're dumbbell! Wait, when they..

Bring out the broad Shut up, Charlies!

And all of a sudden I do this dramatic thing,

the lights go down and I did a take off of Peter Lorrie.

I made it up, Peter Lorrie, going to the electric chair.

People could see into his head.

And I'm going,

Why are you looking into my head, while you look into my head?

They thought it was magnificent.

- I first met Don Rickles in Miami Beach.

And I was doing in 1958, a talk show at a restaurant called Pumper Nick's

in which I interviewed with celebrities and that's where I met Don Rickles.

He was working at Murray Franklin's.

- And I was like the warm up guy and I just..

I didn't have a performance, I just talked to the people,

made fun of them, not mean-spirited is I think you can tell, but..

I just had a good time.

My mother who rest her soul, was a strong woman.

She's sort of a Jew Patton.

And Dolly Sinatra Frank's mother rest her soul, and my mother rest her soul.

She was at a hotel that my mother knew

and my mother was very strong lady

and Dolly, Dolly Sinatra was a lovely lady, very, very strong too.

My mother went up to see her and had coffee.

She said, Dolly darling, can you help? Can you help, Don?

If you get Frank to come and see him, it would be so nice of you, please.

It's done Etta, it's done! That was my mother's name Etta.

It's done!

One night there it was.

Frank Sinatra in the front row with all his friends,

those wonderful men that sat behind them.

- I was there nights when when Frank was in the audience.

That was unbelievable what he would do to Frank.

Frank you're old, Frank, go up to your room.

Frank the chambermaid!

The chambermaid Frank!

And then he would look over at Jilly, who was Frank's very close friend,

and he say Jillly it's okay to laugh, Frank says it's okay.

And Larry King, who I know 45 years.

This is Larry King.

I'm larry King and you say to me, my brother has a brain tumor.

< My brother has a brain tumor.

- Really? Don't, he'll be okay, he'll be fine.

Just you, just don't worry about it.

Up on the top, that's Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan,

who I got to know because they always say you're strange.

But he was, he was great with me.

I met him believe he was a good Jew.

He was very religious. Yeah, oh yeah.

< How often you see Bob Dylan? - Once in 30 years.

- I was in Florida working in a place called the Seville Lounge.

In those days, it was a big thing for me and I was doing real big.

And one night I'm on the stage and from the backing,

Ho-ho pal! It's showtime!

And I went, oh my God, what is that? Is that the great one?

Could that..

And there came Jackie Gleason, walking up the aisle with a chair in his hand,

a drink in the other hand,

came right up on the stage, You got a minute pal?

And put the drink down, picked up a table,

put it right next to me, sat down and said,

All right, sunny boy, make the big one laugh,

Jackie Gleason, Mr Miami Beach.

And hat was it.

And I did the whole show talking to him on the stage.

Well, Lenny Bruce,

who at that time was just becoming a big, big star

doing this off the wall stuff.

And he was working in a place called Slate Brothers,

so I gotta call both of whom, Henry Slates said, this guy is terrible

because he did the f-you this, f-you that.

In those days it was unheard of, and Henry didn't like it,

and he fired him.

And he says, get this kid Rickles, he insults people, maybe he'll catch on.

- The first time I ever saw Don Rickles

was when I went to see the Slate Brothers.

They told me that this funny guy was over there

and he was also, you know, a good friend of Frank Sinatra,

which naturally drew me to it because I love frank Sinatra too,

since we made from here to eternity together.

- Ernie Kovacs and I were out here doing a Playhouse 90

and he says, you want to see somebody crazy?

That there's a little house, the Slate Brothers little nightclub.

- I didn't know what the Slate Brothers Club was

because I had just come out for my first movie, my very first job.

And I went there with friends, we sat down and uh there he was!

He was, he was what he is today.

He was explosive!

He was impactful! He was funny!

I mean, outrageously funny.

He'd pick on anybody.

- I mean, big star, small star, director,

you name it, big executive in the show business.

I mean, he just ripped them apart!

- Every star in Hollywood felt that they had not made it.

Really made it.

I mean, they could be in Hedda Hopper's column,

they can be in Louella Parson's column,

but if they hadn't been insulted by Rickles, they really weren't with it.

So everybody showed up at the Slate Brothers.

Slate brothers become, became famous because of Rickles.

- I wouldn't sit down front once, once I learned

I'd sit way in the back, so then he couldn't get at me so easy

because I was a target.

He really liked to get at me.

Oh, you married that schmuck?

You know he was Don.

- It was all because of Sinatra.

When Frank came, he brought all the stars to see me.

Elizabeth Taylor, Jane Wyman, Sammy Davis Jr.

- The Slate Brothers didn't have a dressing room that good, you know.

This was like a pantry!

And who should be there but his mother.

And don't you know, she offered me soup.

Would you like to have some soup? Sure, why not?

So I was there eating soup.

- My mother lived, lived the acting through me.

My mother got up in the morning thought she was Sophie Tucker.

Some of these days she was always always

if I said, you know, mom, I think.. Shh, I'm talking.

She had a tremendous drive, drove me crazy,

but she was like the driving force for me.

And she'd always say to me, You're wonderful darling,

why can't you be like Alan King?

- Etta used to just beat his chops.

She just, she would.. she would say things like..

- Why can't you be more crazy like that guy for God's sake!

- She'd say I saw Sharkey.

He was on television.

Now that that's a funny man,

That's a funny man!

But he was very close to that.

- They had an apartment in Hollywood

in the Sunset Plaza where a lot of actors stayed.

And she was a lovely woman.

She was uh she was all for him, such a fan.

And she loved people and she loved show people

and everybody was welcome there.

She always had, there was always food going.

- I was returned to the base, to home base

where she stood with her stars in the living room.

Good morning son!

And I had to salute, take off my clothes and inspection hole thing.

- He'd always talk about her in the act.

And uh and she was living in Florida,

so he'd use that to go into a whole dissertation about Florida

and the community down there.

- Here on film from Florida, Mrs Etta Rickles.

- Hello, doughboy.

Tonight has been a long time coming, but I never doubted that it would come.

From the time that you would use my knitting needles

to conduct the orchestra in Radio City Music Hall,

I never doubted that you would be a great entertainer.

I wish I could be with you tonight and serve this delicious chopped liver,

- Chopped liver, seven days you lay in bed.

People came into my room and thought it was a harbor for ships.

And my dear mother, my dear mother,

when the whole world would admire mind you,

when the whole world bood this great lady stood by me.

I loved her.

I wish you my friends for years to come what I have

people around you who care.

You're more than kind and I appreciate it.

Oh, Jesus, trouble with the luggage?

Well, at the Slate Brothers, there's was a guy called Harry Goins

and he was a bartender.

And again my mother and he became very good friends.

He adored my mother.

I had no dressing room.

I used to go in the back and change, right by the bar to take off my tuxedo,

put on a hanger if Harry wouldn't take care of me.

And then we became very close, God bless him.

Then he started travel with me.

This is my friend, Harry Goins

and we've been together over 35 years and more.

And the beautiful part is he was with me when I was flat broke.

I think you all realized it's so damn easy to have a friend

when you're doing great, everybody wants to be around you.

But when you're up against it, boy, friends are hard to come by.

And this great man has stood by me.

And now some 35 years and more later because of you people,

I've been blessed with some money and success

and I'm proud and happy to tell you tonight.

I'm now getting rid of Harry.

You don't find guys like that today.

I mean he really cared.

I mean he would worry about me and so forth.

I'd worry about him.

The best thing I can say about him is I trust him with my life.

I like very much if you give my very dear friend a well deserved hand.

- I'm Roger Corman and I directed Don Rickles

The Man with the X-ray Eyes and I think it was 1963.

- Thanks!

The most fantastic experiment you have ever taken part in presents

Ray Milland, in his most challenging role

since his Academy Award winning Lost Weekend,

The Man with the X-ray Eyes.

- I've directed around 60 movies and produced I don't know how many

and I remember that picture very well

because it was just a joy to make that film.

- I sometimes wonder what you're doing here on the small-time hustle.

- What do you mean?

- I didn't mean nothing

except I wonder what do you want Mr Montano?

All he have to do in Ray, is run down the street,

you have the ink in your eyes and you scream, What's going on?

It's 5 o'clock, 5 o'clock.

I don't forget it.

I said, Man, it's five o'clock, he walks of, I was his interpreter.

He walks at five o'clock 'cause Ray was a very laid back guy.

I said the man wants to go.., man wants to go to his trailer,

it's five o'clock.

I went with him because we all got along.

This is my conductor and friend for 20 years he's been with me.

I met him in New York,

He was playing his organ in my car with his monkey.

Anyway,

he's a great musician and he worked with the famous Copacabana

and then he saw me down at the Golden Nugget

with my manager at the time Joe Scandore,

who said, I think this guy is good!

My manager was like a bird he had a little feather on his ass.

I think you're gonna like this guy, this guy's good!

My manager for 40 years was a fellow called Joe Scandore.

He was, he was a hell of a guy because he took me

when I was really just trying to make a move

and he was the guy that made it all happen.

- Joe discovered him, Joe stayed with him.

- Joe believed in him.

- He and I hung out, we became good friends.

My mother adored him, that was a big part of it.

My mother adored him.

And I love Joe.

He would always you know, real italian.

Burgundy shoes, short ankle black socks.

He always wore, don't forget, silk shirt.

And he was kind of heavyset and the shirt always parted,

and all you could see was the catholic cross laying on his chest.

And I swear to God if God knew what he did, the cross would have melted.

Joe Scandore was a short man with a with a lot of class.

But in those days when you work the Copa or you worked Basin Street East,

which I worked all those places,

and in Florida when I worked the hotels,

it was all mostly, you know, wise guys.

- Well you, you uh, you never ask um,

of the owner, what did you do before this?

You know, it was kind of uh not written rule.

- Sweet man, very sweet man.

Always looking for girls.

- He was a lapel guy.

He would always say, he would come up to you and say,

You know what, I was just thinking about you the other day and you know what..

- When he died, you would think he was the most holy of holy guys,

which Joe wasn't.

He certainly wasn't a man wanted by the law or in trouble that way,

but he knew everybody, you know.

So it wasn't that you say Mary Johnson was at the funeral,

Tom Livindon and Irving Katzman,

It wasn't, it was Vinny, Boone-Boone, Charlie one eye

Eddie the dribble, Charlie the nose, some of those people.

Now he has a monsignor, a cardinal.

I'm not catholic, so I don't know, but I also know that they got good costumes.

And he's laying album and I'm in the front role.

There's a guy called Mikey Falco.

He's gone now but he was, he was, he was like..

Joe gave him,

gave him to me years ago when I was at Basin Street,

as my bodyguard.

I said, Joe, I don't need a bodyguard.

This guy said, I'm gonna take care of you!

Talk like Joe, don't you worry sweetheart, nobody bothers you!

A drummer one night said he didn't like me

and he took out a stick and boom and almost broke his leg.

I said, Why did you do that?

He said, He didn't like you, he has no right to say that.

He's got to show respect.

He was crazy.

Anyway, he was insane.

Anyway, so he was always around me.

So now he's outside,

he's in charge of the people pulling up in the cars

and seeing that people get into the church.

So happens that churche's packed,

there's no more room and it's a snowy day.

And you know the exhaust..

Like you've seen the sopranist guys in coats.

All guys, you know, they look like

you know, they're all looking like this.

Nobody was normal, they were all like this, you know.

Anyway, so he's outside.

The guy says, I'm Charlie I love Joey, I want to get in.

Can't get in, it's closed, closed, it's over, boom, boom, boom.

- Well, suddenly the door opens.

You let me in! I'm a friend of Joe!

Comes Joe again.

I kill your sister!

I'll take the eyes out of your mother!

And we're all trying to be straight.

I was like this, people said, don't gonna pull himself together.

I was trying to keep a straight face

every time the door opens.

I'm gonna I'm gonna I'm gonna take your sister

and wrap her in her own dress and shoot her in the head.

You'd better open the door!

That's what happened.

- Tony Curtis as the nicest guy, who ever came from Milwaukee,

Debbie Reynolds as the beautiful babe from Tampa.

Scrambling for survival in a jungle of men.

- I'm ready if you are, sweetie. - I was born ready.

- Selling herself for 10 cents a dance

left without a dime to buy a bed of her own.

- She's like a big plate of hot fried chicken and a truck driver's picnic.

Everybody's ravin from every direction.

- They called me at Paramount

and they said Don Rickles is going to play this really bad guy.

- There are just two roads you can take.

One says the good times, the other says the bad times.

And which one are you gonna travel?

- He's gonna be your boss at a dance studio and you're a call girl,

kind of kind of semi call girl I guess. Dancehall girl, you know.

- No!

- You got anything more to say?

- I knew he wanted a family and I knew he wanted a special lady

and you don't meet them on the road necessarily.

And I always prayed that he would have that happiness.

- You danced like a baby hippo with leg cramps.

You didn't have a sweet tooth, you had a sweet tusk.

And you dance Swan Lake, 200 swans plucked themselves to death.

And after you dance Swan Lake, you made it into Swine Lake.

- Don was a fellow that was looking,

he was always looking for the right girl but he was always looking at hookers.

- Jack Gilardi was a picture agent and my wife was his secretary.

And I came to get a job at the G. A. C. at the time.

- I met Don when I was a secretary of G A. C.

at theatrical agency in Los Angeles, Beverly Hills actually.

- And I said Hi dear, I'd like to see Jack Gilardi,

and she said what does it regard to.

And I said I'm a butcher,

I have a truck outside and I'd like to sell some meat.

Being a wise guy will not get you in to see Mr Gilardi.

I said, What is wrong with you?

She said, Nothing is wrong with me, what is wrong with you?

Don't be smart,

don't be smart because being smart will not get you in.

- He did a shtick for Barbara and Barbara never laughed

and that challenged him.

- She pissed me off so much that I started calling her up,

and she kept saying, I'm not interested, leave me alone.

- He asked me out and we went out a few times and we started dating.

- She came downstairs, I never forget.

She stood there and I said, Well let's go I had a Chevy then.

I said, Let's go, come on.

She said, So what are you standing there for?

I'm not used to this.

Oh, have to get out and open the car door.

I never took a girl out ever that I opened the car door for.

Opened the car door and she got it in and we started going out.

- Barbara, I love Barbara too, she's a strong woman.

- I was always going, So you want another drink?

Stop yelling, stop yelling!

- Well, he finally met Barbara.

Uh! We were thrilled.

We were so thrilled with joy, we were crying.

- We were engaged on Thanksgiving.

He was in Vegas and I was in Los Angeles and he called.

I think I was visiting his mother.

- Barbara, I think could be the jewish mother Teresa

because I don't care how great Etta was,

it's still was a mother in law and Barbara had to put up with that.

And the mother always came first in Don's eyes.

- It was a strong lady and interesting lady, but I did get along with her.

- My mother was very strong and Barbara was very outspoken.

Listen, that was about it.

When she want to rebuttal I think... And then she thought otherwise.

- Ginny Newhart,

who was Ginny Quinn at the time, was dating my boss at G. A. C. Jack Gilardi.

So I knew Ginny from that.

- This before Ginny and I met

because obviously once Ginny met me, no one, no one stood a chance.

- And then they got married then we were in Vegas

and Ginny called me or I called Ginny I don't recall,

but whatever the case may be

and we had, I think they came,

they came to the show and then we had dinner afterwards.

- He was at the.. in the main room

and it was Ginny and myself and Barbara we were sitting in the booth.

And Don's attacking people and attacking.

And Barbara's just sitting there going, Well, that's new, that's new.

- Don, Don, give Don a double. I'll have one too!

Not, not too full, you know.

- Of course everybody makes fun of Barbara in the way, the way she talks.

- There was a at Don's house

and Barbara had all the, you know, the stuff,

all the pastrami and all that.

And we were waiting, we were all starving.

Bobby, not yet the candy,

you can't eat till after the morning comes.

You know, everybody has to sit and wait.

We were starving!

- You want to get him being serious and being a sweet man.

You ask him about his wife,

you ask him about his children,

you ask him about his grandchildren and a whole other personality comes out,

- We were very happy.

It's our kids that are dragging us down.

- I grew up in Las Vegas.

So to me, Don Rickles like be like if you grew up in Anaheim.

Don Rickles wasn't Mickey Mouse,

I think Frank Sinatra's probably Mickey Mouse,

but he was Donald Duck.

It seemed like he was always here almost as if he was the mayor of the town.

I saw him, I was probably 18 years old.

I was too young to be there, I probably shouldn't have been there,

but every once in a while I get into something.

The first concert I ever saw was Sammy Davis Jr

so I had an unusual upbringing.

And Don Rickles, I mean,

there's nobody makes me laugh harder than he does.

- Stan Irwin, who was Entertainment Director of the Sahara Hotel

and the agent saw me

and they worked it out that I get a chance

to work in the lounge at the Sahara Hotel

where the great Louis Prima was the headliner.

- Louis and I were working in the Sahara Hotel in the lounge

and we worked from midnight till six in the morning.

We did five shows a night.

So naturally there were other acts that worked opposite us in between,

and Don Rickles was one of those.

- That called Key Howard, it was my kind of plan.

and I say Don Rickles!

- Sinatra would come in our lounge a lot

and he'd bring people like Spencer Tracy and Gary Coooper.

- Louis would say, why are you here?

I said, Louis, I'm gonna go. Well, don't be gone too long.

Louis's always worried somebody would do great,

but he was a magnificent performer.

- You could go two blocks off of the strip and there was nothing there.

It was like tumbling.

- Wasn't bumper to bumper traffic, there weren't freeways.

You know when the Dunes hotel, ended at the Dunes Hotel,

if you looked at the back into the Dunes Hotel

it's just desert or any of the hotels.

I mean there was nothing beyond the rear of the hotel.

There were pools and that was it.

It was just desert.

- There were only three acts.

There was the

There was Louis Prima & Keely and Don.

- And at that time they had the lounges and the main rooms.

And I was the opening act of the main room,

but the two big acts were Shecky Greene and Don Rickles

that you ran to see in the lounge.

I went to see him and I just was blown aaway.

No one was doing what he was doing at that time.

No one.

- Nothing spontaneous ever seemed to happen in a big room.

You'd always hear through friends of your dad

or somebody who's in Vegas and they saw Rickles and oh my God,

he went off on this guy or something happened.

But the lounges seemed like the coolest, sexiest, most fun places to be there.

- The Maitre D in the lounge was a guy named uh Johnny Joseph

and people would be lined up to go in to see Don's show.

And Johnny Joseph would walk down

and he would pick out people.

He'd pick out obese people,

he'd pick out people with, with bad hair pieces.

- And I got a real heavy lady boom, boom boom.

And I got a skinny guy..

- And he said, would you like to sit in front?

And they would, Oh wow, hey, March,

we're going to be able to sit in front!

Now, little did they know that of course Don is going to attack

their obesity or their age or their hair piece.

- For the first time in the history of the lounge,

for me, they charged a $5 cover charge.

That was the biggest thing in the world

for me to have a $5 cover charge in the lounge.

And my competition, competition always was

and he's a funny, funny man, was Shecky Greene.

Because he worked in the lounge at the Riviera

and he was big in Vegas in those days.

He was biggest thing in the world.

And I was his next opponent, so to speak.

So say Shecky, did, You had 200, you had 150

or tonight you had two lady and he had only 100.

I mean it was like a Duel In The Sun.

- When Don was working in the lounge, he was the king of the lounge.

Iddy and I would go watch his 2, 3 o'clock,

4 o'clock in the morning show and have breakfast there.

- And all of a sudden,

there's Don doing at 5 in the morning at the Zara, which was hilarious!

We all rent of course.

- And I saw Jack Carter was forever going in.

And all the comedies went in there just to get nailed by that.

- All the guys were there, you know, Frank Sinatra,

Sammy Davis and all that.

And then we'd hang out with all the boys and afterwards

because Louis Prima was there

and Sam Butera and Katie Smith and there in the land.

So we all had to get up on stage.

We didn't have to but you see, we're really big hams.

- Every hotel in those days had a big name in the showrooms.

You could come in and see Frank Sinatra at the Sands,

Judy Garland at the Frontier,

Ray Bolger at the Sahara,

Patti page, all the stars worked there.

- It was the Mecca, it was Mount Olympus.

You would drive down the main strip which is a lot smaller

and every major Anne Margaret, Frank Sinatra Sammy Davis Jr,

Tony Bennett just on and on.

It was if they had blown up Vegas, it would have blown,

I think they blow up show business.

- You have to be dressed to go into a showroom.

You had a gentleman had to have the shirt and a tie and the jacket.

Women wore gloves!

I mean it was, it was a wonderful time.

- The excitement of walking into a big showroom

with a plush velvet robes and the gold on the thing,

and going down the tears and getting into the good booths.

And the game with the Maitre D you would watch them

and keep slipping them money to get them further forward.

Oh, and the dress. It was an occasion!

- It was really elegant. It was beautiful.

- When the Mob Ran Vegas, it was glorious.

We were like kings, you know,

we were, we walked in everywhere.

We had the run of the room camp, boom bang.

- You could walk anywhere,

go anywhere, drive anywhere, totally safe because the Mob ran it.

- Tough guys, tough guys,

but seemingly had a good sense of humor

and kind of loved the performers who appeared there.

They were, they were held in some kind of reverence

that you really don't see anymore.

- They ran the town great, I mean they just,

what happened was

when I was there in the sixties, the Hughes came in

and the corporate mentality kind of took over the town.

He bought the D. I., he bought the Sands,

he bought the Frontier,

the Landmark.

Everything had to pay for itself.

Now prior to that, the boys..

You know, the, the showroom didn't have to show a profit

because they knew they'd make the money in the casino.

Like if a guy had a good time and comped him and he's with a girl

and she's impressed 'cause the guy's getting comped.

They know he's going to drop a lot of money in the casino.

But when the corporate mentality came in, every coffee shop had to make money,

showroom had to make money and the hotel had to make money

and there were fewer comps

and it was, it wasn't the same town, it became a, a different town.

Say what you want about the boys,

but they, they knew how to run a gambling place.

- Part of the world, we admired greatly.

Myself, my old friends down the lower east side

of course was the Rat Pack and Vegas

and Ocean's Eleven was one of our favorite pictures.

I mean it's not a great picture but it's great.

It's like a time capsule in and of itself.

Just the last half of it alone,

just the shots of Vegas at that time on wide screen and color.

- 47 years, 47 years in this town.

I started out in the lounge of the Sahara Hotel.

Then I became a star overnight.

Johnny Carson gave me a shot

and see, Harry got ill one night and I took his place

and headlined ever since.

That was great, great.

I miss Johnny, he was a great guy.

- And Stan Irwin came to me and said,

Johnny took ill and you can take his place.

I said, it's crazy Stan, I never worked a big role in my life like that.

Place is packed, you're going to be great.

Don, go out and just do your thing.

And sure enough I went out on the stage boom and I was, I was a hit.

And I forgot the lounge, they assigned me to the big room.

They gave me like a two year deal to work in a big room.

And then I went to the Desert Inn,

worked there for a while.

Then I went to Tropicana, worked there for a while.

and I worked at the Flamingo.

In fact I worked most of the hotels.

If I work one more I'm gonna work the airport.

Anyway,

and now I'm working at the hotel that's they heard I was coming,

said, I'm going to blow it up.

- He's the last guy standing in Vegas

that's full of hundreds of people

and thousands of dollars and millions of dollars worth of special effects

and it's just like a movie except it's on stage

and there's water and there's fire and this thing.

There's one guy prowling the stage, filling the stage,

filling the room.

You just realize the power of that one driven,

crazy, insane funny guy is bigger than all the rest of that stuff.

- Don Rickles brings a level of classic and class entertainment.

He also brings in a level of people that have a propensity to gamble.

These people when they leave on a high note are in the casino

having a good time spending their dollars

on the blackjack tables or on the slots.

And of course our bottom line goes up thanks to Mr Rickles.

- Rickles said he has left footprints

and you don't know when you start this,

you're gonna leave any footprints in the cement or the sands of a career.

We did, we didn't know we're going to do that.

He's done his mark.

- Jack Benny never changed, the material changed.

Smothers Brothers never changed. - George Burns!

- John Wayne didn't change, it was the same thing.

So when you get comfortable with someone

that you like and has a delivery that's consistent,

a personality that's profound, you get longevity in this uh in

this very difficult competitive world of show business.

- And then God love you Catholics, you do your great sign.

And to you Jews, that means the highway's blocked,

take the other road.

Look at the Irish guy laughing.

You know, you can always spot the Irish.

I love you guys, when you go to the monsignor,

I want to confess, where's the monsignor?

Then the monsignor comes out, who wants to confess to me?

- An hour and a half running up and down the sand,

watching Frankie Avalon go, Hi and that, how are you?

A bunch of guys with clown hats on.

That was a great treat for me.

I was big Joe, big daddy,

big monkey, big Charlie, big everything.

It was, it was a long time and the Bill Asher directed it

and we did it in 15 days running up and down the beach.

- But I want you to know something.

I have nothing against kids.

I don't mind, I don't mind kids as a whole.

In a group, they annoy me.

So we're in for a big trip, right?

- Right.

- God.

I want you to know that he's sitting in our audience right here.

My friend Frankie Avalon!

I love your Frank.

Even though you're older than me.

I'll trade you laughter for love

I'll trade you one for the other

Laughter for love. What can you lose?

Some madness from earth and for whatever it's worth

Whether you like it or not

I'll give you all that I've got

- Laughter for love.

I'll trade you one for another.

- I said, why are you still singing?

nephew of my uncle Sam

born on the 4th of July!

Sheets by yankee junior suite, huh!

Jackie Jr went to London just to ride the pony!

- I said, I've been in the audience when you do your salute to Jimmy Cagney.

Do you know what people are doing when you're doing that?

He said no, what are they doing?

I said they're going like this..

There's a 12:30 flight and there's a 2:30 flight now, I can tell.

I said they're making travel arrangements.

- Hey, ham, look, I'm Picasso!

- I don't get it. - You uncultured swine!

What are you looking at you hockey puck?

- Don Rickles invited us over to his Malibu house to have a meeting.

I handed him the Mr Potato head

and as a handed him the hat falls off

and there Don is holding a Mr Potato head with a hat off

and it looked just like him.

- Mrs potato head, Mrs potato head, Mrs potato head.

- And mrs Potato head is brilliantly played in Toy Story 2 by Estelle Harris.

She just she kills.

It's really funny and the two of them together are great.

- Oh my little sweet potato! - Oh, you found it!

- I just love working with him and I'm so glad he did the part.

And you know, forever, forever, when you look at this face,

you can only hear one voice coming out of this spud.

- Bob Newhart, I met in las Vegas.

We got two different stories.

- I was at the Desert Inn in the main room

and Don was in the lounge at the Sahara.

- He says this on trips when we have nothing past the butter.

I was headlining at the Sands and you were in the lounge.

Is it Munich when I'm trying to figure out how Hitler got on that balcony.

- First trip I think was, I think we went to the Caribbean

and we went to, we went to Venice a number of times.

Um Southeast Asia.

- These are my children.

During the war, I stopped off here for about 10 minutes.

This is Lahm and this is John.

- Mediterranean,

Italy.

We've done the globe.

- We've taken all over the world.

Germany I loved in particular because I walked down the street,

I go like this.

Why are you doing that? I have cramps in my legs.

They said, Don, Don, that's not funny.

I said, Why? There's nothing to be ashamed of.

If your legs cramp up, you gotta do this.

He said, Don, don't do that.

- I'd like to see him and Bob Newhart in China.

All right, I made 4000 and die.

This is Bob the great wall hover

- We have Don recording personal name Jin Cha

who comes out and goes.

Caucasian people now, What? Your problem!

What? Your problem.

And they come at people and say, What what's wrong with you?

Let me get you some mayonnaise!

And you know you come after them and we are very excited,

but have Don Rickles come to Shanghai

just for a good time party all the time.

We see him as a great hero,

because when we... Don Rickles.

We'll be right back he not coming.

< We're on our way to what, Barbara?

- Malaysia! - Kota Kinabalu.

- I was just very jealous that Bob got to spend time with him

and I didn't have anyone in my generation that was that kind of a comic.

I always had my brother and my brother

never hung out with anyone that was in the business.

- Now he doesn't even like me.

- How would you like to do a play called The Odd Couple?

So I said, well, I've heard of it

and it's a pretty good show and everything else.

I said, but who's the other guy?

Said, what do you think about Don Rickles?

Don Rickles doing a play in the stage?

Neil Simon came to my dressing room

and he said, I want to tell you something.

And if you ever say it uh, to anybody else, I'll call you a liar.

He says, you two guys are the greatest guys I've ever seen in this play.

- I spent time with Dean Martin's widow.

And she said that towards the end,

you know Dean, they were walking through an airport

and someone said, Dean, you're really cool!

And he looked and said, Do people think I'm cool?

And that's what I, you know, I always try to get across to Don

and any of these guys that I can get to

is that we still love you and respect you and you're so you know,

you are cool and you are great and we have so much to learn from you.

- So John Stamos is my buddy.

He has his head so far up Rickles's ass,

he seriously,. he's got Rickles shit on his neck,

- Bob Saget, if we're very quiet right now,

we can hear him complaining somewhere in the city.

The guy is the biggest pain in the ass on the planet.

I mean he'll call, you know, he calls me and says,

I'm so I'm too busy, I can't talk.

Don't, don't call me then! He's calling me.

- And Dean Martin rest his soul,

he was, he was a good friend to me

and I was in his wedding when he married the nine year old.

- Dean Martin Roast is where he really, he really got to shine.

- Many, many years ago, he gave me a break on a television show

with hair with this, not you, not you.

I'll let you know when but it's good that you practice standing.

Later on, we're gonna have you walking and talking and mixing with people.

You're gonna have such a good time.

Forget about great stars such as you,..

because you're old and washed up.

But I'll tell you this,

you're laughing, Dean, take a look, see if

We ain't laughing show him a picture of Jack.

I'll tell you this!

I kid Jack Benny a great star, god bless him.

Milton Berle, great people.

This is wonderful being here at the home.

And I say this from my heart.

It's a joke! It's a joke!

It's a joke!

I take it back! It's a joke!

It takes many years to be a great comedian.

- Sure it does, you've reached that here yet.

- Thank you, Jerry.

- It's how that person takes it, how that persona takes it.

And in taking it it elevates the person.

It makes the person the object of the uh wild ridicule from Rickles.

It makes that person,

we we saw how how Johnny react, Johnny Carson reacted,

how Sinatra reacted.

And we appreciated them even more for that

from not taking themselves that seriously.

- But all the great stars Bob hope couldn't be here tonight.

He's looking for a war.

What is this, London?

- Jilly Rizzo who gave me a break in Miami Beach

like I said, You stink!

And Jilly walked up and sit..

- He does this black voice that they used to do in 69.

I don't know where you go.

I was like, what black guy is that?

Like the Mexican guys he does and..

Oh, it's very offensive, but not if you're in the comedy.

- Can I touch that?

To the black people!

Remember the words of a great negro Johnson Jones

who said in Biloxi, Mississippi on a saturday night,

If the white man and the negro

can work in harmony,

the people know get the white folk and the man is harmony with love.

Man is now in a state hospital.

- No set routine, just working on the people who are out there.

A face, what somebody wore, what he said.

God, God, it was funny!

- Well, thank you for getting me here.

- Don Rickles draws high rollers.

He draws a very diverse crowd as a matter of fact.

I don't think he can go anywhere in this country

where anybody doesn't know him.

- I'm Leo Golembiewski,

the head coach at the University of Arizona Icecats.

In my life, there's two people that I really wanted to meet.

One was Pope John Paul II, the other was Don Rickles.

Came down here to see him at the Golden Nugget

as he opened up his new show here.

It's a new venue.

It was an honor to be in his presence again.

- Thank you.

- Great! Okay, you get 1 and 2 room B.

Oh when you smilin'

When you smilin'

The whole world smiles with you

When you laughin', oh you laughin'

And the sun come shinin' through

But when you cryin' you bring on the rain

So stop your sighin'

Be happy again

And keep on smilin, keep on smilin'

And the whole world smiles with you

Ooo, his love belongs to me

At night when I'm asleep

Into my tent you'll creep

And the stars that shine above

Will light our way to love

And you'll rule this crazy land...

- And now here he is, Mr Warmth himself. Don Rickles!

- And I looked to the sky and say, Thanks boss for the wonderful life.

- You can fetch your ass on it!

God bless America and God bless you!

Good night!