It seldom happened with Broadway musicals and even less so with straight play translations to the big screen. Generally, you stood a better chance of doing the play and film if you were a member of the supporting cast than the lead ("Stalag 17" for instance with Robert Strauss and Harvey Lembeck" and "Guys And Dolls" with Stubby Kaye and Vivian Blaine to name two examples).
The show became a hit. A comedy. We ran for fourteen months and I won several acting awards from major theater organizations. And when the movie version of it was made, I was invited to buy a ticket to watch William Holden playing my part . . .
The show became a hit. A comedy. We ran for fourteen months and I won several acting awards from major theater organizations. And when the movie version of it was made, I was invited to buy a ticket to watch William Holden playing my part . . .
Back in 1960 who even heard of William Shatner? Some producers are supposed to have spent millions to star an unknown like Shatner in a major movie?
Shatner is just a big, fat ego, and as George Takei would say, "He can go fuck himself!"
Besides, Bill Holden was a bigger star then Bill Shatner could ever dream to have been.
