Nathan Lane and Brad Oscar

[bially082]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 3:19pm

So, I was reading on another thread that Nathan Lane has said some bed words about Brad Oscar in print. I was just wondering what he said. Does anyone know? I always find this stuff interesting.

Thanks

[capnkidd]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 3:43pm

At risk of starting another round w/other posters...back when Nathan & Matthew came back to The Producers,there was an interview w/Nathan in either the Daily News or The NY Times about his return...Nathan said that the reason Brad had not returned to the show as Franz because he(Brad)thought he had "gotten too big" for the part-Brad had never said any such thing,and I found it an oddly catty & unnecessary shot @ him....
This should not be construed as an attack on Nathan...I'm sure he's a fine man & a complicated creative individual who sometimes says things that he regrets.

[Mythus]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 3:54pm

I just going to poke my head in and point out that it's possible Nathan was joking. Spoken words never translate well into print.

[capnkidd]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 4:10pm

mythus,you absolutely have a point...much as misunderstandings often happen online,& things can be taken out of context...but it is not the only example of him trashing other actors(onstage & in print),and that was just the first one that came to mind...
As charles grodin says(and god knows where he got it)one can estimate one's level of hostility by how often you have to say "hey, just kidding..".Nathan's not a happy guy-he's said it himself,and sometimes that's evidenced by his lashing out @ others...doesn't make him a bad guy,but it's quite simply the case.

[jmaclover]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 4:11pm

Sorry, jw, was Brad Oscar Franz when Nathan and Matt came back? I know Cady left already - but was Brad there?

[capnkidd]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 4:25pm

Brad Oscar was the original Franz(in ny anyway),understudied Nathan,& took over the role of Max when Henry Goodman got fired-I'm not 100% certain of the timeline,but I think Brad had been in the role when Nathan came back.There was another actor who had played Max Lou (his last name escapes me),but I'm pretty sure it was Brad that Nathan took the role back from.I'm sure SamIam will correct me if I'm wrong..

[stacey717]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 4:30pm

Oscar was back in the role of Franz when Nathan and Matthew came back last year--if I'm not mistaken I saw him in the show last 3/21, as Franz of course...

(Plus I totally agree with you Mythus--I didn't get the chance to respond when I would have responded directly to you on this thread...thought about posting and then came back to a few more posts in between lol-- Actions, such as sarcasm/joking, etc, don't really translate well onto print...and he very well could have/expect in fact was joking...

[jmaclover]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 4:50pm

Thanks, stacey

[bially082]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 6:06pm

Brad wasn't in the show for Nathan and Matt's return.

Updated On: 11/30/04 at 06:06 PM

[jmaclover]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 6:20pm

OH NO

[SamIAm]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 6:38pm

The comments that this thread refers to may have something to do with a really stupid debacle going on over at Dress Circle in which an usher and an ice cream vendor who had the privilege of being joined by Lane at party took his joking comments out of context and created a real broo ha ha which, I would think might get them fired from another venue.

The comments were said in private as a joke...you know...'he's got a great voice...really nice guy...but not as funny as me' and were used to make someone feel important and superior. Needless to say the Dress Circle members have dressed these two kids down and told them that their behavior was unprofessional and that they should be professional enough to keep comments said in private IN private and not take them out into the street and out of context where they can hurt someone's relationship.

I think the flap is over now and that the original situation you were referring to about Lane's comments about Brad was also a joke that was taken out of context. Lane and Oscar get along just fine and in fact I believe Lane recommended Oscar when they wanted to push for a bigger name on Broadway and when they were looking to replace Lane over in London.

[timote316]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 7:33pm

John Tracey Egan was Franz for the return run, Brad was listed as standyby for Max in the Playbill.

I don't know if that quote is exactly what Nathan meant. I didnt take it as an insult, just maybe Nathan's sense of humor.

Although, after playing Max for so long, would you really blame Brad for not stepping down to play Franz? If he doesn't, he gets to rest his voice as standby.

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 7:41pm

I know this is kind of off topic for the post's original intent, don't you think Brad Oscar and Nathan Lane are getting tired of playing Max? Since the show opened, they have been associated with the show. Nathan was in the original cast, came back a year or two later, and then went onto London. Brad was in the original NY Cast as Franz and was also a Max standby. Now he's playing it on Broadway and will move onto London. I'd want a break by now!

[producersfan2]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 8:05pm

If I were Lane, I'd be angry that another actor is channelling my performance and taking my decisions without any personal creative contributions to the interpretation. Oscar is charmless in the role. He's appropriated Lane's mannerisms but can't pull them off since he isn't Lane himself. I can't wait for Richard Kind to take over.

[SamIAm]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 8:32pm

Sorry, I happen to think that Brad has a great voice and, after they let him STOP imitating Lane, he has brought his own charm to the role. Is he Lane? No, but then he is the only one that has had a modicom of success in this role other than Lane and he does a darn good job.

I'm glad he's going to London though he must be about as sick of this role as Lane is right now...and my guess is that he'll be taking a vacation after this is over. It's been a long haul for both of them.

[HeartinNYC]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 9:03pm

And one thing - none of us like to be quoted, because it's so easy for a comment to translate incorrectly. How many times have we all said something that would sound nasty when repeated out of context? Nathan is like all of us in that we all "talk" from time to time. But since none of us, I assume, were actually there, we don't know what was said, or how. Isn't it unfair to judge people based on so little?

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 9:06pm

I can't wait for Kind to take over, either. He and Ruck will make a great team!

[jmaclover]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 9:11pm

Kind is an annoying Hack who should go back to the primordial ooze from which he came!

[capnkidd]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 10:21pm

That's pretty harsh-Kind has comported himself quite well on broadway.Filling Lane's or Oscar's shoes will be tough(I'm actually guessing strictly on physical types that he's playing Max,and Ruck Leo-I'm sure someone here can tell me),but he's certainly no hack.

[MasterLcZ]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 11:35pm

I like Brad Oscar. He sang the SH&&%t out of that role. He has the stamina of a bull. He's a trouper and much loved by his colleagues. And Nathan likes him a lot too - if a recent blind item can be interpreted, he wanted to showhorn Brad into some role in the PRODUCERS film as a way of saying 'Thanks'.

I like Richard Kind. I think he can do something really interesting and funny with the role.

[capnkidd]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 11:40pm

Oscar-great actor,nice guy-I take it from your post,master,that he's not doing franz in the movie?Do you know who is?

[Herbert_Von_Krolock]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 11:48pm

I think Will Ferrel *sp?* is the movie Franz, not sure though.

[CaTheatreGirl]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 11:51pm

Will Ferrell is playing Franz in the movie. Sure wish it'd be Brad. He was terrific in that role on Broadway. Brad is one of the all time nice guys. I wish him well in London.

[capnkidd]

Posted: 11/30/04 at 11:56pm

Will ferrell?What an odd choice...

[SamIAm]

Posted: 12/1/04 at 3:41pm

The choice of Will Ferrell to play Franz (while I would rather have seen Brad in the role) is certainly no odder than the choice of Nicole Kidman to play Ulla. Both of these were clearly box office choices by Brooks but I think Ferrell will fare better than Kidman...let's not start THIS discussion again.

Casting is done...we should just move on.