Shirley Booth--1971 TV Interview, "Hazel," "Harvey"

it's silliest things to do a man came out and made up one of my cheeks I don't understand this business I never will my first guest is a lovely it's really booth my first guest actually oh okay then sure she is one of the certainly one of the best actresses and one of the best love actresses in America miss Shirley booth I don't know how to break this to you Shirley but we're sitting in the wrong chair well I see I thought I would cover for you because you sat in the wrong chair and I didn't want you to be embarrassed next thing I know you'll start coming you got the wrong day and the wrong well they called me up at the Cape and they told me to come on Tuesday and I thought I'm rehearsing so it's a little bit a little bit difficult because I in your when you're in the throes of a character you know you don't make very much sense not that I make very much sense on these sort of things anyway but I got here and I didn't look at the little slip that they sent me and I came in and looked like the FBI here there were so many people around and you had the Pentagon Papers last night no I don't think you would come to best a little bit it was it just I think I'm the face no I didn't wear my cap last night matter of fact I'm doing a repeat on my outfit are you had this I I couldn't resist wearing this again because I got it in an antique shop Stern on the Cape what is it well it's what they call a police and an old-fashioned skirt you know police PE liss0 I say police I don't say police even if I am a native thing how do you hold it up or in other words how do you support your police right there it's a jacket yeah is SAT lol I okay good I learned something lessons over say do people whether they yell to you on the street when they recognize he does anyone say miss booth or do they always say no oh it's always hazel it is yes yes and I love the idea of doing it the only thing is I'm awfully sad now because there there's a commercial on the air which people think I do and I don't do it all I have somebody impersonating my voice that's nothing I'm making thousands and thousands of dollars and I'm not doing it that's not you who says I'm the maid at the Baxters no no oh my gosh my understudy from Philadelphia story is it really yeah yeah but how can they get away with I thought that was it well they can't get away with it I'm suing them I really think if I've done all you just not doing commercials because I feel that when you're playing a part you should not be competing with yourself you should only be doing what you're doing and the people should think of you as the role you're playing which incidentally now is going to be Harvick you're going to hurry yes we've gig young and I'm telling you he is free he was born to play that card you know that's right I guess I can see he's just fantastic he simply it's like Quicksilver yes he's been seeing rabbits for you always wanted to play no this is my josephine whole year they asked me to do a snake in Old Lace but I chose to do this because I thought I taught a better lesson I like the idea of TV teaching people tolerance which obviously it does yeah and the other one does nothing but just step a little arsenic in their soup yeah do you ever get tired of the hazel reference of people in the street sing the fact that since I've done hazel I've done several things thinking I could create a variety of things for instance I did look through the lilies which was my ladies of the field uh-huh and I worked so hard to get a German accent yeah and to walk with it and you know do all these things and people would come back and they say oh we enjoyed it but we love you as hazel you know I might just as well have stayed home he could have taken the curtain call is hazel you can't help it i hazel to become a friend and I'm very grateful yeah yeah what do you what do you do when you don't when you aren't working does it bug you yes I have a place up on the Kennedy Wheaton way I love it 6:30 I'm galvanized out of bed and I'm out in the in the garden working weeding you for weeds with your hands or do absolutely I have the strongest hands feeling oh you do yes so that's one pulling down along I bet I can hurt you though yeah I've always had the illusions of being strong we let ik as a kid no but I lifted a piano on my back once no one got up on my knees and I lifted it someone dare you to do this get these impulses to lift a piano and AB subdued quite a bit the law of gravity is good a full-size Steinway or was it it yes it was a baby grand yeah it wasn't it wasn't concert brand it was just a beggar guys had you had a drink at the party or anything no honey I wish we wouldn't I didn't even know about anything except Virginia dad oh yeah that's what we used to have it on New Year's Virginia Dare wine you ever hear that I'm sure we didn't hear I'm glad I thought it dated me oh no were you kind of alone yes I've been a solitary person so I wonder yes but I love being a little you know people don't believe that anyone can I know I feel sorry for those people I feel awfully sorry for people who can't find things to do because I get so much satisfaction out of so many little thing I like reading and all sorts of things needlepoint could you spend a week alone in a house soul baby song I have gone up to the Cape and spent two months alone I never seen a soul you talk to yourself after time though no I don't I have a dog for Jetley he's quite a conversationalist and a real dog man you know she's a doll and she's great comfort doing and you do talk to the dog of course I talk to the dog you have a dog yeah don't you talk to it yes but I don't tell me anything intimate but I do I tell you as a matter of fact it discusses the details of contracts with a dog my agent Thompson she says yes carries on conduct so they wanted me to do this and I said no and she went by the door and she knew she had the shares a pug dog she listened to the key unless someone had moved very quickly I'm very suspicious of people I take a message excuse me to hear a few pointers on how to handle a backseat driver because it was handed to me by a publicity man and and said if you get a chance you say oh yes I don't take a hint I'm doing and I'm opening in Central City have you ever been there central city yes they're playing there the Opera House yes way up there I don't know whether I'll stand it's a little rarefied up there I do like 31st to August 28th and then August 30th I know then opened on my birthday the 30th of August in at the Huntington Hospital a there for five weeks that's right September 23rd and we're going to San Francisco San Francisco Dover 28th Phoenix Arizona I remember always October 25th and November the Studebaker in Chicago [Music] [Applause] the last time I was here yeah I think I told you something about being previous when I got I got to Chicago which reminded me of it and I got there a month soon too soon but it's a lot easier to go around the corner than it is to take the train back for three days to California that's true mr. Lee yeah it's very disconcerting I'm the guest that never lets a hostess take a shower but good when you were all the years that you've been around in various media ya know guess what media I never done anything else but act oh yeah yeah yeah I mean I mean but you've been a new down in radio and television did you ever have trouble with directors oh no one has ever said yes to the old thing of casting the old casting couch problem they always say they changed you when you were casting couch that's not the director no I've been chased around the table as well as anyone how did you handle that well I think a sense of humor is the best weapon you talk a wonderful Roy and that's the end of that you cannot take them seriously yes right yeah never cost you a job well I've lost a lot of jobs but I don't like to think it was for that reason yeah you do hear people who claim that they had lost I suppose so but I think a lot of it that is that sometimes an excuse for not getting the job is you know if you can come off victoriously by saying I would I didn't get it because I wouldn't pay the price [Applause] what did they ask you earlier if you had an imaginary friend as a kid or so I asked if the dog was imaginary you know where I get the idea that you know I lived in being an only child I did live in a world of fantasy and a lot of fun but I never did have it crystallized into any one person I never did either but I know kids who have had had a friend that was very real to them that they talked to home yeah and their parents think they're in their odd minutes it's good I don't think so I think it's wonderful to have that release any way that you feminine what's going on did you see the lights go on huh did you see the lights go on no I just looked yeah I looked over there and it certainly something went on here yeah that's the people home wonder what that is it's very distracting their lights go on the teleprompter and that tells me we have a commercial oh I see that's it I thought maybe I was doing something wrong let us take a message to my local stations and we'll be right back now you know [Music]

Channel: Alan Eichler

Views: 117,974

Rating: 4.9124088 out of 5

Keywords: Shirley Booth (Performer), Hazel (TV Program), Harvey (Play), Come Back Little Sheba (Play), Interview (TV Genre), Tony (Winners), Emmy (Winners), Oscar (Winners), Television Program

Id: TEGlQiF9tsE

Length: 12min 55sec (775 seconds)

Published: Thu Aug 09 2018