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Authors: Marlo Thomas
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“I don’t even know why I’m here tonight. I don’t play on Passover.” Henny was funny, too. He’d sit in a chair and tell one joke after another, and everyone would be convulsing. He loved any kind of audience. But he always had the same line whenever I’d invite him to a party: “Over six people, and they pay.”
Going to Work with Mom and Dad
Ben: I remember when they opened in the Persian Room at the Plaza. They were performing with Lola Falana. I was six or seven and I got to hang backstage in Lola’s dressing room, which was really exotic. I also remember going to Vegas and Reno with them when they played the hotels out there. That was the best thing ever.
Jerry: Anne and I would schlep out to Vegas or Tahoe, and in summer we’d take the kids with us. We had a nanny who looked after them while we worked. One time, Gladys Knight and the Pips were staying at our hotel, so while Anne and I rehearsed, the kids would play in the pool with the Pips. We also put the kids into a day school. Later we found out they weren’t going to the school. They were going to Circus Circus and playing the slots.
Following in Their Footsteps. Or Not.
Ben: You know I resisted it for a long time. I didn’t think I wanted to be in show business, partly because my parents did it, and I wanted to do my own thing.
Jerry: Anne and I were once guest-hosting The Mike Douglas Show , and the talent coordinator says, “You’ve got to bring your kids on the show.” Anne says to me, “No we are not going to bring the kids on”—she was vehement about this. But they kept pushing us. “Come on, they’ll have a little fun.” I finally said okay. The talent coordinator asks me, “So what do they do?” I say, “What do you mean what do they do? They’re kids. It’s not like they do impressions. They don’t do anything!” Finally I tell him, “Well, they are taking violin lessons.” “Great,” the talent coordinator says, “let’s have them play the violin.” I say, “But they’re terrible .”
So they bring Amy and Ben on anyway, and they play “Chopsticks” on the violin—and they’re really horrible. The audience was nice, but Amy and Ben were humiliated. Ben said to me, “You know, Dad, the kids in school are going to give it to us good for being so bad.” And we did get a couple of cards from people saying, “How could you bring such terribly untalented children on television?”
Learning the Craft
Ben: Both of my parents were actors first, so I learned from them that you don’t approach comedy any differently than you approach drama. If the material is funny, you don’t need to play it up. You make your acting choice, and it just happens to be the more comedic one. That’s what I always saw my parents do.
Jerry: I remember when Ben and Amy were about ten or eleven, they created this pretend acting class. Ben played the teacher, and I was the student coming in to take acting lessons. I started to do my first line, and Ben stopped me in the middle and tore me apart. He’d given me a name—“Bernard”—and he said, “Bernard, why don’t you start the scene again, and this time think a little more about where you were before you came on stage.” I tried again, but Ben wasn’t very encouraging. He said, “Bernard, do not go into this business. It will only bring you heartbreak. You will bring humiliation upon yourself.” It was a riot.
Using the Craft—and Embarrassing Your Parents
Ben: The masturbation scene in There’s Something About Mary —yeah, I remember that day. That was a lonely scene. The directors, everybody, just sort of disappeared. Honestly, that was one of those things that, as an actor, I thought was very funny. I thought the movie was funny. And I was happy to have the job.
Jerry: When we got into the theatre, Ben was sitting about three rows in front of us, and he turned around and he said, “Dad, Mom, I hope you don’t get embarrassed by what you’re going to
Going to Work with Mom and Dad
Ben: I remember when they opened in the Persian Room at the Plaza. They were performing with Lola Falana. I was six or seven and I got to hang backstage in Lola’s dressing room, which was really exotic. I also remember going to Vegas and Reno with them when they played the hotels out there. That was the best thing ever.
Jerry: Anne and I would schlep out to Vegas or Tahoe, and in summer we’d take the kids with us. We had a nanny who looked after them while we worked. One time, Gladys Knight and the Pips were staying at our hotel, so while Anne and I rehearsed, the kids would play in the pool with the Pips. We also put the kids into a day school. Later we found out they weren’t going to the school. They were going to Circus Circus and playing the slots.
Following in Their Footsteps. Or Not.
Ben: You know I resisted it for a long time. I didn’t think I wanted to be in show business, partly because my parents did it, and I wanted to do my own thing.
Jerry: Anne and I were once guest-hosting The Mike Douglas Show , and the talent coordinator says, “You’ve got to bring your kids on the show.” Anne says to me, “No we are not going to bring the kids on”—she was vehement about this. But they kept pushing us. “Come on, they’ll have a little fun.” I finally said okay. The talent coordinator asks me, “So what do they do?” I say, “What do you mean what do they do? They’re kids. It’s not like they do impressions. They don’t do anything!” Finally I tell him, “Well, they are taking violin lessons.” “Great,” the talent coordinator says, “let’s have them play the violin.” I say, “But they’re terrible .”
So they bring Amy and Ben on anyway, and they play “Chopsticks” on the violin—and they’re really horrible. The audience was nice, but Amy and Ben were humiliated. Ben said to me, “You know, Dad, the kids in school are going to give it to us good for being so bad.” And we did get a couple of cards from people saying, “How could you bring such terribly untalented children on television?”
Learning the Craft
Ben: Both of my parents were actors first, so I learned from them that you don’t approach comedy any differently than you approach drama. If the material is funny, you don’t need to play it up. You make your acting choice, and it just happens to be the more comedic one. That’s what I always saw my parents do.
Jerry: I remember when Ben and Amy were about ten or eleven, they created this pretend acting class. Ben played the teacher, and I was the student coming in to take acting lessons. I started to do my first line, and Ben stopped me in the middle and tore me apart. He’d given me a name—“Bernard”—and he said, “Bernard, why don’t you start the scene again, and this time think a little more about where you were before you came on stage.” I tried again, but Ben wasn’t very encouraging. He said, “Bernard, do not go into this business. It will only bring you heartbreak. You will bring humiliation upon yourself.” It was a riot.
Using the Craft—and Embarrassing Your Parents
Ben: The masturbation scene in There’s Something About Mary —yeah, I remember that day. That was a lonely scene. The directors, everybody, just sort of disappeared. Honestly, that was one of those things that, as an actor, I thought was very funny. I thought the movie was funny. And I was happy to have the job.
Jerry: When we got into the theatre, Ben was sitting about three rows in front of us, and he turned around and he said, “Dad, Mom, I hope you don’t get embarrassed by what you’re going to
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