Back in the saddle
A cinema legend in the bad guy role and a veteran of the Western, Jack Palanee returns on horseback for lighter family adventure in City S/iekers II. He reminisces on his career with Anwar Brett.
When he walks into the room. it comes as no surprise that Jack l’alance has been one of cinema's most imposing bad guys for oyei' ‘10 years. Tall. powerful looking. with the air of a man who knows his worth. l’alance clearly belieyes his worth is not connected with his nioyie career.
‘I don‘t see how you can be proud of anything you‘yc done as an actor.‘ he says with a slightly bemused air. ‘What is there to be proud of‘.’ I don't remember any of those things. they're no longer
important. I hayc no sensation of pride about doing realise it. I knew what he meant. though. I guess that curiosity and contempt. anything like that.‘ was just his way of saying thanks.‘ ‘There was a scene at the end of the film where my Born in Pennsylvania in l‘)2(). Walter Jack character had to climb a rope from the dock to a boat. ‘I don,t see how you can be proud of l’alahnuik spent his early years as a coal 'niinei'.‘ where there was a big rat guard. so I would have to _ professional boxer. short order cook. radro repairman fall in. l was Just getting ready to go when Kazan anythmg you’ve done as an aetor- What and -- perhaps surprisingly as a student of asked me what I was doing. He told me that's what is there to be [JI'OUd I don’t journalism at Stanford Uniycrsity. Subsequently he stuntmcn were for. So my stunt guy swaggeer up remember any of those things, they’re seryed in World War ll as bomber pilot. sustaining and set off instead. That sonofabitch was taking all no Ionger important-s injuries that required plastic surgery after one crash. the attention off me ~ he went along that rope. got resulting in hrs trademark taut features and hallway and tell. I applauded. l was so happy. He unchanging. powerful yisage. But it was the refused to do it a second time. so Kazan asked me if I It's quite an outspoken rebuttal of film stardom. llnlwml.‘ C-‘l‘C'TW‘CC [hill 1—"ch him “W “NC To" WWW“ l" haw 1111” considering hc hm» mu“.er u Wm“ 01‘ i]]]p['c\\l\'C acting. eycn though initially be was seen as perfect ‘lt took rue a while. but I made it. I got all the way performance-e m a tun-cu- wtm-c Slim”; Hui my [em/(t casting for the comic relief rather than the menacing tip to the rat guard. then dropped in and swam back and {Wm/(t wring “HM mud”). m mind “C. CW” hart-y that ha cy'cntuully' begging to the bank. Kazan turned to me and said: “God. am had 3 mm m- [)mw];l um] mil-mluccrt a young“; ‘I was in a bunch of plays. eight of them in two I glad you did it that sonofabitch couldn't do it. but contemporary audience to his inimitable screen years. and in eyery one I played the light. comic you did. That was wonderful." I didn't care about presence as (iothain (‘ity‘s crinie boss in Batman. role.‘ he says of his early days on the stage. ‘li’inally acting A who the hell cared about that —- Ijust cared This strong cuinulatiye body of work was no doubt a we were preparing the last play. it was called (hut! that eyei‘ybody had seen me do this physical thing. key factor when he won a Best Supporting Actor Song. and the director cast me again in the light, Kazan paused. then added. “Could you do it Oscar for his role iii ('i/y S/it'kt'iiy a couple of years comic role. i went arid begged liitii to let me play the agilian ago. Now he follows that performance by returning dramatic role. I still hayc the letter I receiyed from City .S'lt't'kei's ll? T/It’ 1.0.2014 0/13”le GUM “I’m-V for (‘in S/i't'kei's ll.‘ The leer/it! ()f ('nrlyiy (im’t/ in him. which said. “Jack. you‘ye got to forget this (III Friday 2.? .S't’pteni/n’r. spite of his character haying died in the original. thing about playing dramatic roles. People will laugh Playing the grizzled ('urly‘s twin brother. Duke. at you." So I played the comic role again. Palance is reuinited with disaffected fortysoinethings later on. I went to New York and was in fiyc or six Billy Crystal and Daniel Stern. as the team head off plays that didn't make it. and in eycry one of them.
into the sunset with a treasure map in order to dig tip the same thing. I played the light role in eyery one some lost gold. l-lis inyolyement in the sequel bushes until I did Sean ()‘C‘asey‘s The Silver 'liiysie. It's the
the rumours that he had fallen out with his erstwhile story of an Irish soldier who goes to war. gets co-stars after the first film. paralysed and spends the rest of his time in a Crystal. who was executiye producer first time wheelchair. That seemed to change things. it made a round and producer this time. sets the story straight: big difference to what I was offered from then en.‘ ‘I met Jack for the first time when I asked hint to do Jack l’algince‘s film debut came with Elia Kazaiis ('in Slit/(Cry. and lie was eyerything I expected. and Paint In The Streets. a tense thriller in which be more. I knew he was going to win the Oscar for his plays the heayy with memorable aploinb. but is performance. he really descryed it. But then he made eyentiially forced to go on the run unaware tlit he is his acceptance speech and didn‘t thank anybody. infected with the deadly pneuinonic plague. Yet. far didn‘t mention anyone in the moin —- not Ron from reyelling in his big break or recalling the joy of
Underwood. the director; not me. He just looked oyer working with a legend like Kazan. the actor's
towards me and said. "I crap bigger than you". That memories typify his ‘takc it or leaye it' attitude to an was a line from the moyie. btit a lot of people didn‘t t industry he seems to regard with a healthy mixture of ' _—— -- _—_‘—--V—— — -
The List 23 September (i ()ctober 1004 15