Theo: An Autobiography

478 Pages·2002·9.41 MB·English

by  Theodore Bikel

The Autobiography of
The University of Wisconsin Press
The University of Wisconsin Press
1930 Monroe Street
Madison, Wisconsin 53711
www.wisc.edu/wisconsinpress/
3 Henrietta Street
London WC2E 8LU, England
Copyright © 1994, 2002 by Theodore Bikel
All rights reserved
5 4 3 2 1
Printed in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Bikel, Theodore.
Theo :the autobiography of Theodore Bikel
pp. cm.
Originally published:New York :HarperCollins, 1994.
Includes index.
ISBN 0-299-18284-3 (alk. paper)
1. Bikel, Theodore. 2. Actors—United States—Biography. 3. Singers—United States—Biogra-
phy. 4. Jewish actors—United States—Biography. 5. Singers, Jewish—United States—Biography.
I. Title.
PN2287.B4545 A3 2002
792(cid:1).028(cid:1)092—dc21 2002020311
Grateful acknowledgment is made to:
Georges Moustaki for use of his lyrics “Je Chante Si Je Chante”
The Estate of Bertolt Brecht for use of an excerpt from “Gleichnis des Buddh vom Brennenden Haus,”
copyright © 1961 Suhrkamp Verlag
Preface
Epilogue 429
Postscript 2002 431
Index 443

Preface
viii • PREFACE
aged not to be overwhelmed by their number or by their demands for
different kinds of attention and different aptitudes. I have dealt with
them by compartmentalizing. Each of the lives, as I live it, I treat as
though it were the only life I have. Yet in some way each in turn has
served to inform other facets ofme. In this book I have tried to open
each one to see ifthey hang together. In the process I often abandon
strict chronology, letting the themes be my guide rather than the cal
endar. Bear with me.
-1;-
Flashback
I
T IS A FINE DAY IN THE SPRING OF '92. I am arriving at the Pico
gate of the 20th Century Fox studio, as I have done many times
over the years. Normally the feeling ofreporting for work on a new
show is one of pleasant anticipation; today, not quite so. Of course,
simply driving through the gate at 20th Century Fox is apt to trigger
mind games, most often pleasant, occasionally strange, but rarely dis
turbing. Memories ofa time when there was no Century City, when
the lot was accessible from Santa Monica Boulevard through gates to
the north, west, and south, and all the guards knew you by sight and
by name. The memories usually take me back to interesting work
with interestingpeople in feature films and, much later, TV shows.
But today my mind is on none ofthese. The show is L.A. Law, a
prestigiousjob with people I have long admired; by rights the prospect
ofplaying a guest-starring role on this program should bring me noth
ing but pleasure. It's the role itselfthat causes strange and disquieting
thoughts, thoughts that can't be chased away with "It's just a job." I
never take that attitude anyway. There is no such thing as "just ajob,"
not ifyou have any sense ofresponsibility toward your craft. No, the
reason for my discomfort is that this role cuts awfully close to home.
The set presents the usual picture of activity: a mixture of high
organization and frantic confusion. Carpenters are hammering away,
occasionally stilled by an assistant's call of"Hold it down," there's a to
and-fro ofcables being pulled, a call for hairdressers and makeup peo
ple, and a cluster of actors, extras, and temporarily unbusy crew