Coward on Cavett

[Reidy]

The literati here may enjoy this. Rand was a Coward fan; she used him à clef in the early, posthumously-published story Her Second Career, alluded to Design for Living in The Fountainhead and championed him in the 60s when he was out of fashion.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QW-JSYuQ1x0

[Peter]

I remember Cavett was best friends with Brando. I wish there were shows like his still on. Leno and Letterman stink. I also liked Johnny Carson a lot. There were more laugh out louds on Carson than any other show.

Peter Taylor

[Dennis Hardin]

Back in the 1960s, NBI sold an LP recording--Noel Coward Duologues--which featured the playwright reading some scenes from three of his plays (along with actress Margaret Leighton). The three plays were Brief Encounter, Blithe Spirit and Private Lives. It is one of my all-time favorite recordings. I did a brief search on the internet, and it appears to be unavailable now.

Here is what the NBI brochure said about Coward:

There is a special delight in seeing or reading the best of Noel Coward's plays--the delight not only of finding a master of structure and drama (whose technical achievement has never received the recognition it deserves) but of spending a few hours in an enchanting world whose chief characteristics are brilliant wit, spirited intelligence and sophisticated cheerfulness.

It was rare for Rand to say that she shared another artist's 'sense of life,' but I have to think that this was a key reason she admired Coward.

[Reidy]

Sir Noel and I go way back. I saw the Grimes-Bedford Private Lives twice during its LA run several months after this interview ran. Traded my copy of Who is Ayn Rand?, autographed by both authors, for a couple of Coward autographs, including Private Lives. Most interestingly, he was in a building of FLlWright's, the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo, when he got the idea for the play.

[9thdoctor]

Back in the 1960s, NBI sold an LP recording--Noel Coward Duologues--which featured the playwright reading some scenes from three of his plays (along with actress Margaret Leighton). The three plays were Brief Encounter, Blithe Spirit and Private Lives. It is one of my all-time favorite recordings. I did a brief search on the internet, and it appears to be unavailable now.

http://www.audible.com/pd/ref=sr_1_13?asin=B002VAEKLC&qid=1330303142&sr=1-13

http://www.amazon.com/Noel-Coward-Audio-Collection-Selections/dp/0060764562/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1330303447&sr=8-1

[Dennis Hardin]

Back in the 1960s, NBI sold an LP recording--Noel Coward Duologues--which featured the playwright reading some scenes from three of his plays (along with actress Margaret Leighton). The three plays were Brief Encounter, Blithe Spirit and Private Lives. It is one of my all-time favorite recordings. I did a brief search on the internet, and it appears to be unavailable now.

http://www.audible.c...0303142&sr=1-13

http://www.amazon.co...30303447&sr=8-1

Thanks, Ninth. The Noel Coward Audio Collection includes the three duologues I mentioned. Glad to know they're available.