Neil,
Thank you so much for that great review of the interview with Ms. Rainer.
While I still cannot believe MGM didn't hire Anna Mae Wong for THE GOOD
EARTH, Rainer is absolutely brilliant in it. THE GREAT ZIEGFELD I
wanted to slap her but she did give good phone.
Thanks again, and thanks for taking the time to share.
freeman fisher
In a message dated 2/1/2010 5:34:56 P.M. Pacific Standard Time,
[email protected] writes:
Hi all
So, for those who are interested.....
I just got back from seeing newly-minted centenarian, Ms Luise Rainer,
talk for 90 minutes at London's National Theatre (to Sir Christopher
Frayling). Unusually, although perhaps characteristically, Rainer had decided
in
advance that she intended to only take questions from the audience (although
Frayling did a great job of posing interesting follow-up questions and kept
things moving along).
The 'Viennese Teardrop' was on fantastic, fun, combative form, happily
killing off rumours that she was in any way Thalberg's protege ("I hardly knew
him! He met me at a party!') and downplaying her role in getting Brecht
out of Nazi Germany ('He was already in Sweden!').
The Brecht story was one of the best anecdotes. Apparently Luise thought
he was a genius and so happily signed an affidavit to speed his entry into
the States. Brecht was so grateful and enchanted by Rainer that he wrote
The Caucasion Chalk Circle for her. When Frayling asked Rainer why she had
never appeared in this or any other Brecht plays, she laughed and said it
was because after she met Brecht she realised she couldn't stand him!
Rainer was also fascinating on the subject of her two Oscars, claiming
that - for a newly-arrived foreigner to the US from Europe - these awards
didn't really mean that much. Rainer says that director Max Reinhardt running
up to her after a rehearsal to say 'Rainer, how did you do that?!' meant
more to her than any Oscar.
Rainer was also very interesting on her 'genius' husband Clifford Odets,
who tried to, but could not, get her interested in politics: 'I know the
difference between good and bad, rich and poor. But when he gave me Marx's
book I read three pages and gave it back.'
The best anecdote was about Rainer and Odets' honeymoon in Mexico. Odets
religiously wrote at night (and slept during the day) and so it came to pass
that, on their wedding night, his double oscar-winning bride was banished
downstairs to the hotel bar. Here, she fell in with a large group of
vacationing midgets who were drunk and who decided to revere the 'giant'
Rainer
as their God. They claimed that they had a miniature version of Rainer in
their ranks which they proudly introduced to the actress. Rainer fled to
the beach, where she stumbled across Odets. Thrilled to see him, she tried
to leap into his arms, but he ducked out of the way fearing injury and she
ended up in a heap on the sand.
The evening ended with Frayling asking Rainer why she doesn't wear a watch
(she never has). Rainer told him she doesn't need one. When Frayling
asked her how she knows what time it is, she looked at him as if he was an
idiot, 'Instinct!" she announced, "Instinct and intuition!"
Rainer received a standing ovation at the end and was completely at ease
and animated throughout. What an absolute pleasure to have a front row seat
to such an event. I hope the NT will release a transcript to compensate
for my sketchy memory.
Apologies to MOPOers for who this is way, way OT!
Best to you all
Neil
PS I just remembered that, when she was asked for her memories of her
favourite leading men, Rainer told the audience that her favourite was not who
they might think.
With everyone suitably intrigued and waiting to hear who it was, Rainer
threw her hands into the air with exasperation and announced that she had
forgotten his name. She then flashed her eyes at the audience and shouted
'Give me a chance! I am a hundred you know!" Cue uproar and once the
laughter had subsided, she announced that she HAD now remembered and that it
was
Melvyn Douglas.
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