I'm terribly late in paying tribute to the wonderful Charles Nelson Reilly, a pivotal figure of my childhood (as were many of the Match Game panelists). (One of the many downsides to moving is that sometimes it takes a while to get basic services like the Internet up and running.)
But I was thinking about Charles as I watched part of the Game Show Network's Match Game marathon tribue on Saturday and perused YouTube for videos of him (including this very odd dinner visit to his house that somebody uploaded). I was even tempted to break out my old Skyscraper cast album for a listen, but my loyalty only goes so far!
Incidentally, I did have the privilege of interviewing him nine years ago for Back Stage West when he was directing a production of The Gin Game starring Julie Harris and Charles Durning. Initially it was supposed to be a dialogue between the two actors, but luckily for me Charles Durning doesn't do a lot press, so Reilly, who'd been a friend of Harris' ever since they co-starred in Skyscraper, filled in. The article doesn't contain even half of the wonderful anecdotes they share during our lenghty conversation, but I'm pretty sure I still have the full interview somewhere, and if I were more techno-savvy I'd find a way to upload it.
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