Monty tells me that Corriganville-the old western set being-restored-is not open to the public yet. I am sure I speak for most of us when I say that when it does open it will be foremost on our must see list.
Since our last conversation Paradise had been cancelled and Monty has been working on the feature film Two Jakes as a stunt driver. This film stars Jack Nicholson and is a sequel to Chinatown and is supposed to be taking place 10 later.
I hope you enjoy the following interview.
MC
I've heard AS&J was an unhappy crew, what is your comment
on this?
ML Some days were very enjoyable, but the long working
hours would put a crew on edge regardless of the show. But Pete,
Ben, and I were considered the jokesters of the crew and would
always come up with something to put the crew in a happy mood!
MC
In "The Day They Hanged Kid Curry", there was a fire
scene. How difficult was it and was it dangerous'?
ML No, it wasn't dangerous at all. They had people in the
water out of frame of the scene so that you couldn't see them
and they programmed how to do it-how to fight that fire in the
water. They went to school for that so it wasn't dangerous at
all.
MC Were Pete and Ben nervous about the fire?
ML Oh actors are always nervous about that. But Ben and
Pete were both Pro's and they listened intently to who was giving
the instructions and how to do it and when to do it and it went
off with no hitch.
MC That was a great scene.
ML Oh yeah...
MC
Who was your favorite director?
ML Fernando Lamas, without a doubt. He was a great guy.
Not only that he was a good actor and he could direct very good.
He was a funny man.
MC
Which was your favorite episode?
ML Smiler with a Gun, cos I doubled Ben and Roger. That
was the only one where I could outdraw and kill myself. I was
doubling for Ben and Roger when they shot it out. I fast drawed
for Ben and I fast drawed for Roger. Roger did a cross draw. I
was also in the montage fast draw contest-I'm the one that came
in second. I doubled Ben in the fast draw hand inserts and I doubled
Roger when he got killed. I took the fall.
MC Why didn't Roger do it?
ML In the contracts back in those days they wouldn't let
the actors do things like that. Suppose he fell over and hit his
head and he's out of the show. You can't risk it.
MC How did you get along with Roger?
ML I get along with Roger fine. In fact the first day on
the set when he started with AS&J he broke down and
started to cry and I was there helping him out and talking to
him and going down the road. But no, Roger's a nice guy.
MC
Do you recall working with Jack Cassidy?
ML Yes very much so, in fact, at the memorial Jack was
there.
MC I heard they were friends and planned to work on a play.
ML Yes, they were planning on it as far as I knew...I didn't
get too involved in it, but I understood they were. Jack liked
Peter very much.
MC Did they meet on AS&J?
ML They knew each other prior to that. You've gotta remember
down here in California a lot of actors go to a lot of different
functions and meet a lot of different people. A lot of actors
are friends before the papers get ahold of it.
MC Like a small town?
ML Yeah, I'd say so. Any well known actor, they always
go to functions and their paths do meet and they become friends.
Prior to that, you know, acting schools, agents, drama school...whatever
have you.
MC What type of friendship did Peter and Jack Cassidy have?
ML Jack and Pete had a real close knit friendship, how
close I don't know. I know that Jack and him were very close.
MC Did Pete know his son, David Cassidy, who was also on
television at the time?
ML Oh sure, in fact when Jack was on the set he brought
David in with him. I rode David around on the back of a horse
a couple times.
MC What kind of person was he?
ML Just a kid. Just a kid to the actor. That's all we saw.
We didn't see David Cassidy as a grown up boy doing wonderful
things.
MC
Sally Field was on the show, was she replaced with Michelle Lee-it
was the same type role.
ML They were doing basically the same type role, but Sally
was playing one character-she was a guest star. Michelle came
on after...Sally didn't want to stay. I remember one where they
were carrying her (Sally) out through the desert. She was a real
trouper she was, cos it was cold, she was cold that day and they
had to carry her off the set. Ben did that. Ben picked her up
and carried her off the set cos she got so cold. You know, wind
blowing, dust and everything else. Sally was a real trouper.
MC How did you like working with Michelle Lee?
ML Oh she was a card. Michelle was always funny. I enjoyed
Michelle.
MC
What are your recollections of working with Burl Ives?
ML Burl was a strange guy. We had a lot of fun with Burl.
Burl used to play and sing on the set-he was a balladeer. It was
great. Who we really liked was Fernando Lamas. Fernando directed
a couple. He was in one and directed one. (Lamas directed Smiler
with a Gun and guested in Return to Devils Hole).
MC
You mentioned Pete had gone to a chiropractor, had he been hurt?
ML No, he just had a bad back. He had a trick back and
now and again it would go out on him.
MC Had Pete ever been injured on the show?
ML No he was...me and Peter used to talk before he'd get
ready to do anything that was hazardous. We talked about it..
he was a pretty wise boy. He would take his time. He'd listen
to the wranglers, they'd listen to the raw data and he'd analyze
it and go do it. Peter never got hurt, no.
MC
Ben and Pete were not real familiar with the weapons. What did
you have to teach them as far as handling the weapons was concerned?
ML Ben was not familiar with weapons. I had to teach fast
draw and gun spinning. I had to teach Pete what type and style
were used in that time frame.
MC The guns Ben used were yours. Pete used stock guns,
why was that?
ML Because Ben needed the gun that was single action and
that was fast. I made the guns and tuned 'em so they were fast.
Pete didn't play a fast gun-Ben did.
MC
Pete sang some on the show, how did he like to do this?
ML Well, Peter played the guitar, he liked to play the
guitar. He liked to do little things like that. I think he would
have liked to sing-well his sister did. We used to go to the Ecetra
Club over in Hollywood to see her. We used to go over there all
the time.
MC
Had Pete and Ben known each other before AS&J?
ML They had met a few times but I don't think they became
friends till they were dialed in for AS&J.
MC How
did they feel about the teen magazines?
ML Oh they thought that was great, that they'd become sex
symbols. They're normal men and anybody that put them out as sex
idols they thought that was funny and great. They were trying
to figure how come.
MC They didn't see themselves that way?
ML No they didn't see themselves that way at all. They
were just everyday men. They were trying to eminate themselves
as cowboys-they lived it, they breathed it. They hung around the
wranglers and they tried to act like cowboys. They wanted their
characters to be as close and true on the screen as the characters
they were playing. They didn't want to cheat the public. When
they said they rode horses they rode horses. They said they camped
out and made bar-b-que that's what they went and did. And they
chased women just like any other cowboy. They trained and believed
in the characters they were portraying, especially Pete. We used
to go to the hills and have bar-b-ques, drink beer, play volleyball
and chase girls, all that kind of stuff. We were just plain old
cowboys, that's all we were.
MC
How well a rider was Pete?
ML Pete stole my horse! I rode a clayback horse called
it Clay. Good old long legged thoroughbred type looking horse.
In fact, in several of the episodes you see Pete riding him. And
I was riding him...a good horse. All of a sudden the boss wrangler
comes to me and says, "Monty, how's that clayback doing for
you?", I said, "Oh, he's doing fine." I was one
of the Devil's Hole Gang and that's one of the horses I rode.
Well anyway, he said, "Pete's interested in that horse.",
and I said, "You're kidding!" so I go a couple of times
I got out there and made the horse cut up a bit and Pete said,
"That ain't gonna work, I want that horse for riding",....so
he got the horse for himself and he rode it the rest of the show.
They kept the same horses and had back up double horses.
MC Was he familiar with horses? Because Peter and Geoff....
ML Both of 'em. Both of 'em were good riders. Geoffrey
especially. Peter was an excellent rider.
MC Had he mentioned where he learned to ride?
ML No, he never did to my knowledge. He never did. He never
bragged about his past...how he learned anything. Peter never
did that. Peter wasn't a braggadocious type person. Neither was
Ben.
MC
How would you describe Pete and Geoff's relationship? I've heard
that Geoff felt he was living in Pete's shadow...that he couldn't
break out on his own always being compared to Pete.
ML They were the tightest of brothers I ever met. They
loved each other and maybe Geoff did feel that way sometimes,
that Peter was getting a better break than he was-but Geoff went
off and did whatever he had to do to keep alive to keep on acting
and he would have made it if he had kept it up. But no, they were
real tight brothers. They loved each other very much.
MC And his relationship with Pam?
ML You know, I didn't know Pam that well. I met her a few
times - we had a talk now and again. She always called me the
"wild one" cos I was always doing crazy things with
Pete and Ben and everything else. We used to chase each other
like you wouldn't believe. You'd think we were 10 years old!
MC Was Geoff like that?
ML No, Pete was the most outgoing person I'd ever met.
Pete was the most personable, outgoing person and he loved to
see a smile on anybody's face.
MC He was more that way then Geoff then?
ML Yes...oh definitely. Pete loved everybody.
MC Geoff didn't?
ML Geoffrey didn't want to. Geoffrey was hurt, Geoffrey
lost a brother.
MC What was he like before?
ML Well, he used to come on the set. The first time I met
Geoffrey I called him Pete. That probably went over like uh...well
he was sitting in the chair and I'd just come on the set and he
was there visiting his brother and I walked through as I walked
through-you know, the kid was all cocked up in Pete's chair-and
I said, "Hey Pete, Good Morning!", and I walked by and
he said, "No....no, no, no I'm Geoffrey.", and I turned
around and said, "Well I'll be a son of a bitch."
MC Do you think that sort of thing bothered him?
ML Yes, that happened to him several times.
MC There are times when Geoff and Pete sound quite
a bit alike.
ML Like on Chisum, they thought it was Pete. A lot
of people they still say, "Did you see Pete on Chisum
the other day?" I say, "No, that's not Pete that was
Geoffrey." They don't relate it.
MC
In our last conversation I asked you about an incident that happened
on the set. Pete had collapsed and was sent home for a few days.
Do you recall which episode that was?
ML Smiler with a Gun. We were out at Last Chance Rock.
It was very hot and Peter came down with a very bad virus, but
he was only out a couple of days.
MC
Is Pete a person you'd remember...say if you were a guest on the
show?
ML Oh yeah...in fact, Pete made an impression on everybody
whether he was guest starring, doing a bit role or if he was just
there visiting.
MC
Before we close, can you think of anything I've forgotten?
ML No, not off hand, except that we're talking about two
great guys that loved each other and were willing to play the
characters just as people wanted to see them and they lived it.
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