Here's a shot from the 1962 movie of The Music Man. The guy at far right is Charles Lane. If you don't know who Charles Lane is, go read this posting and then read this one and then, once you know who Charles Lane is, come back here and read the rest of this posting. We'll wait for you.
Now then. One of the eight million movies in which Charles Lane played a mean old man was, obviously, The Music Man. This afternoon, the American Cinematheque group ran it out at the Aero Theater in Santa Monica. The guest of honor, interviewed on stage before the film began, was Charles Lane.
The place was packed with film buffs, all of whom chuckled at the marquee which along with the name of the movie included big letters that said CHARLES LANE LIVE. If I were closing in on my 101st birthday, I think I'd enjoy seeing that in lights. Mr. Lane's appearance was preceded by a fifteen minute sampler of a documentary on his life and career that's currently being produced. (In fact, cameras at the event were getting footage to be included in it.) Much of the fifteen minutes consisted of clips from different films and TV shows in which he appeared and it was staggering. We all know how much he'd done but still, we sat there, amazed to see scenes in rapid-fire. There's Charles Lane with Groucho. There's Charles Lane with Barrymore. There's Charles Lane with Lucy. There's Charles Lane in It's a Wonderful Life and State of the Union and 42nd Street and It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World and before long, we were all going, "My God, this man's been in everything!" The funny part is that he was playing an old man seventy years ago.
The interview was delightful. Mr. Lane can't recall much of his fabulous career but he's still rather sharp. Asked about the secret of his longevity, he said he had no idea and that for fifty years, he smoked two packs of cigarettes a day. (His friend, actor Robert Donner, was in the audience and he corrected Lane. Apparently, it was three packs a day.) He loved everyone he ever worked with but singled out Lucy and Desi, as well as director Frank Capra, and seemed very moved at the several standing ovations he received. He also managed to spit out a few lines in perfect keeping with this grouchy screen character. It was a very touching presentation.
So was the movie that followed. I keep forgetting how much I enjoy a certain kind of movie when it's on a big screen and I'm watching it in the dark with other people. There is much that is sappy in The Music Man and the plot has more holes than an old colander but I don't care. It always gets to me, especially at the end when Professor Harold Hill says, "I always think there's a band" — for me, one of the great moments in cinema history. Robert Preston is wonderful, Shirley Jones is wonderful, Paul Ford and Hermione Gingold are wonderful, the whole thing is wonderful. I'd be very happy if the American Cinematheque people would show this every year or two. Especially if they can get Charles Lane to show up each time.