Name: Fan Request: Sandra Bernhard's First Appearance With Dave | Letterman
Uploaded: 2022-12-02T16:01:16.000Z
Description: Watch the stand-up comedy video 'Fan Request: Sandra Bernhard's First Appearance With Dave | Letterman' from Letterman on Comedy Buff. Published 2022-12-02. Transcript available.

Watch the stand-up comedy video 'Fan Request: Sandra Bernhard's First Appearance With Dave | Letterman' from Letterman on Comedy Buff. Published 2022-12-02. Transcript available.

My next guest is a very talented stand-up comedian and actress, and she is co-starring
in Martin Scorsese's newest film, The King of Comedy, and she's receiving
wonderful reviews for her work in that film. It's a pleasure to welcome Sandra
Bernhardt, ladies and gentlemen.
Hello, Sandra. Nice to see you.
Chris, congratulations on your success in this film. It's terrific.
I know, it is.
For people who have not seen the film, why don't you explain to them your part
in the movie?
I play a very obsessed girl who's in love with Jerry Lewis and stalks him and
gets him where I want him.
And are you anything like this woman?
I have been.
Ever done any kidnapping in the past just for fun?
No, but you're giving me some ideas.
No, no, no, no, no, no.
Literally, how long has the movie been out now?
The movie's been out for three days.
And are people reacting to you when they see you?
Yes, they are. They're stopping me in the street.
They're, you know, asking for my autograph, begging for it.
Are they pretty polite, reasonable folks?
Yeah, actually they are. They seem to be very intellectual types.
Yeah.
You know, engage me in long conversations.
I fall asleep on street corners, the New York audiences.
Well, that's good.
Yeah, it is.
Now, we have some of the film.
That's what I understand.
Yep. And do you know what we're going to look at?
I think I do. Would you want me to explain it?
Please do.
It's a scene where I'm stalking, actually, De Niro down the street, trying to
give him a letter to give to Jerry Lewis.
And it's kind of high intensity.
It was done on the hottest day of the summer, 1981.
And I was sweating and I looked very contorted and interesting.
All right. Shot right here on the streets of NYNY.
Right in front of the Paramount Plaza.
Paramount Plaza?
Yes. On Broadway.
Broadway. Oh, okay.
The Brill Building. Near the Brill Building?
Not far from the fabulous Brill Building.
Okay.
So a New York City landmark.
Something you can look for in this clip.
Right, exactly.
This will be Sandra Bernhardt in King of Comedy. Watch your TV.
Very nice.
Very impressive.
You do that very well. And you look great. You look terrific in there.
Thank you. Really? You think so?
I think so, sure. I think the audience seems to think so.
Now, you have distinctive looks. Unique looks, don't you?
This is true. It must be my lips, you know.
Your lips?
I just don't see lips like this on a white girl often enough, Dave.
What? You know, it's hard for...
When I see that, I have to keep telling myself, you are in a movie with Robert
De Niro.
Now, that's...
It's... I can't get over it yet. I'm...
And what was that like going to work every morning and suddenly there's Robert
De Niro eating donuts and whatever?
He's kind of a low-key guy, really. Very friendly, nice and warm and supportive.
Him and Martin Scorsese, they were great to work with. They really were.
Well, didn't they frighten you? Weren't you scared?
No, I was never intimidated by them. I think they were more intimidated by me.
Really?
Yeah.
How so?
I'm not sure.
Now, tell me about Jerry Lewis. Here's another guy.
Now, here's a guy, David, that I could talk about for the next 10 years.
Yeah?
He is so incredible. I care so much about that man.
Did you get along well with the guy?
Oh, please, David. I was by his bedside right after the heart surgery.
And he is something else. He really is.
We speak every night and...
Now, you know, I see...
Now, people are going to get the feeling from this that you're being facetious.
I'm not. I really care about him very much.
I do.
Okay.
Now, when I first knew you, I guess you were working as a manicurist.
I was.
In a posh Beverly Hills salon.
It wasn't posh. It was sort of a low-key, kind of scummy Beverly Hills.
And, well, what was that like?
It was wonderful. I did all the greats and the near-greats, Jacqueline Smith,
and...
Who used to tip me 50 cents.
Jacqueline Smith, who...
Well, that's got to be the lowest.
Who was on the high end? Who was good?
General Omar Bradley's wife.
Kitty Bradley.
Kitty...
I have very fond memories of Kitty.
The general's wife would have her nails done?
She used to have her nails, like, cut down to the quick, and then I'd file them
and paint them, and she took me $5.
Five bucks is a good tip for a manicure.
Five bucks is a great tip.
Yeah.
But my favorite is Tina Louise, though.
Because she used to come in, and she'd just sit down, and I'd be in total awe
for it.
I'd say, could I do my impression of you from Gilligan's Island?
And she'd say no, and, um...
Ooh, Gilligan.
I was shattered.
No, no, wait a minute.
Is that it?
Is that the total impression from Gilligan's Island?
Yeah.
Oh, do it again.
Do it again.
That was great.
Ooh, Gilligan.
That's very nice.
One of my best impressions.
Now, what other actresses influenced your work?
Um, I'd say Nastassia Kinski.
Of course, I loved her on your show.
She was, you know, she was very entertaining.
She was brilliant on your show.
She blew me away.
She was very nice.
Yeah, we're doing a remake of Cat People, along with Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughn,
and Karma McRae, called Scat People.
Scat People.
Slee-da-da-da-slee-da-rare-slee-da!
Scat People!
Uh, now, uh...
Now, uh, where part of the country are you originally from?
I was born in Flint, Michigan, and raised in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Uh-huh.
Amid the cactus, the prickly pear, the cholla, the stately saguaro.
The stately...
The stately saguaro.
I don't know what that is.
Get a little bored, walk into a bar, put on Tammy Wynette, stand by your man.
Uh-huh.
Walk up to the bar, order yourself a beer, break the top of the bottle off, cut
your lips, taste the blood, my God, because you want to live.
It's Arizona.
That's the state slogan, I believe, isn't it?
That is the state slogan.
Uh, and, uh, and you also, uh, now, what's Dad do?
My father's a proctologist, my mother's an abstract artist, that's how I view
the world.
Yeah, and, uh, they, uh, they must be very, very proud of you.
They are so excited.
I, I mean, they are just blown away by the whole thing.
They're wonderful.
Uh, what is your, what is your next, uh, film gonna be?
Well, I'm working on a series of, uh, small but important films right here in
New York City.
I'm producing, directing, starring in them, doing them in black and white.
They're women's films, of course.
Um, the first film will be out about six months.
It's called Fifteen Women Cross the Country by Railroad.
I play a Chinese woman and a small black girl.
The film will be out immediately after that is titled Simply Woman.
It stars myself and two small animals.
It's a sensitive portrayal of a woman in need.
Uh, certainly check our local listings for that.
Uh, we will.
This is, uh, uh, once again, uh, I'm, I'm glad you're here.
And I'm, I'm, uh, I'm very excited for you about the, the success you're
getting.
I wanted to sit next to you in this chair for so long.
When did we first meet? This was a long time ago.
At the Comedy Store on Sunset when I was a small, thin child.
Me too.
You were.
Sandra Bernhardt, ladies and gentlemen, from The King of Comedy.
Thank you very much, Sandra. Very nice.
Thank you.
We'll be right back. We'll stay where you are.