Charles Nelson Reilly
Charles Nelson Reilly just died. A bit of a surprise. I didn't even know he was sick.
He was a celebrity, no question, if not of the top rank. A friend just emailed that he thought Charles Nelson Reilly was really good as that pompous ass on M*A*S*H. No, that's David Ogden Stiers (though he is playing a Charles). Reilly was the tall, thin guy with the weird laugh.
He's best known for his TV work, but had a succesful career first in Broadway musicals. He was Dick Van Dyke's understudy in Bye Bye Birdie, then won a Tony as Bud Frump in How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, and got another nomination as Cornelius Hackl in Hello Dolly!. Unfortunately, he didn't recreate any of his famous roles on film--I especially miss his Bud Frump, since the film uses many from the original cast, and the part is perfect for him. (In fact, Anthony Teague seems to be channeling Reilly in the film.) He would occasionally return to Broadway throughout his career, usually to direct.
Reilly (it seems weird calling him "Reilly") became widely known in the late 60s as the finicky--finicky was his specialty--Claymore Gregg in the TV series The Ghost And Mrs. Muir. Even though he got an Emmy nomination for the part, he's probably better known as The Great Hoodoo, Butch Patrick's nemesis on the kids' show Lidsville.
He went on to even greater fame as a regular on game shows, especially Match Game, where he occupied the upper right-hand corner. (Trivia: host Gene Rayburn replaced Dick Van Dyke in Bye Bye Birdie--I wonder if Reilly understudied him.) In fact, I'd guess most people couldn't name anything else he did--they probably figured he was one of those people who are famous for being famous.
I actually saw him on stage. He starred in the LA production of Terrence McNally's It's Only A Play. I went with some friends on my birthday. While we were in the theatre, the Rodney King riots started. During curtain calls, he came out and said the town is on fire and we should all go straight to our homes. I don't remember much about the play, but that I recall.
posted by LAGuy @ 12:27 AM
4 Comments:
The poor man's Paul Lynn (or vice versa)
Great remembrance! I remember Reilly from Lidville and the Ghost & Mrs. Muir. It also seems he appeared as one shot characters on many sit comes (I can't remember specifically, but didn't he show up on I Dream of Jeannie, the Beverly Hillbillies, and others?).
I've had the soundtrack to How to Succeed... for a long time and never realized he was Frump. I recently got the DVD of the film, and assumed the film Frump was the same as the show Frump (they sound so alike).
Thanks for the retrospective. I loved him on Match Game and Laugh-In, and always thought he was so clever and quick-witted. Unfortunately I was so young a lot of the double entendres were lost on me, so seeing reruns of him now in any guest-star appearance is a hoot. My father-in-law had all of the Dean Martin Roast videos, and I got to see him perform in some of those (classics, all of them).
Sorry - Lynde. I thought they both personified the era's portrayal of the "acceptable homosexual"
I would like to see a dean martin roast again- I have the idea that they would be horrifying and fascinating. I know I used to watch them but I can only really recall one they did for Henry Aaron right around record-breaking time- as I recall the Hammer just looks like he is enduring more death threats (Mel Allen-I think- told some story about Henry selling home run balls to sick kids in the hospital)
Wouldn't a modern day roast of Barry Bonds be entertaining?
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