Mollie Lane
Classic Movies and Televison
Ernest Borgnine
Appears at Chiller Theatre
April 30, 2011
By Mollie Lane
It was a long trip in from NYC. Clearly almost 3 hours. First a cab to Penn Station followed by a 90 minute ride to Morris Plains Station and then a pickup by the shuttle bus to the Hilton Hotel in Parsippany. But as I walked into the hotel lobby and passed by the major section where celebrities are seated for their autograph signings, I knew it was well worth the trip.
The show did not begin till 10am and it was only a little after 9am. But there in the "pit", a sunken area where autograph tables are lined up sat a white haired man drinking a cup of coffee and shooting the breeze with a hotel employee.
As me and my friends got closer I was surprised to see that the area had not been roped off so we just stepped in. And it was true. There he was. No security personnel, no outrageously long line, no rush to get to the next person waiting; just us. I walked up to him and said I came all the way from New York to shake the hand of the man who beat the crap out of Frank Sinatra! Ernest Borgnine smiled and let out a big laugh as I grabbed his hand, knowing all the while that this was a hand that had no doubt touched the hands of countless legendary stars including Spencer Tracy, Lee Marvin, William Holden, Gene Hackman, Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift, the list goes on and on.
At age 94, judging by the sheer weight of his energy he appeared to seem more like 64. We all stood there like a buch of deer in the headlights listening to his musings about experiences he had in the making of his most memorable motion pictures including From Here to Eternity, Marty, The Wild Bunch, The Poseidon Adventure, The Dirty Dozen and oh so many too numerous to mention.
He talked about his decision to do McHale's Navy when he spoke to a little boy who asked him who he was. The boy was selling candy for his school. He told the boy at first that he was James Arness. The boy said that's impossible. He watches Gunsmoke all the time and he could be James Arness. Then he told the boy that he was Richard Boone to which the boy replied that he watches Have Gun Will Travel all the time and he couldn't possibly be Richard. Boone. So when he told the boy he was Ernest Borgnine, the kid had no reaction. That was the moment that sealed his decision to do a television series. But Borgnine is no stranger to television. But Borgnine was by no means a stranger to television. He began his career in 1951 with two appearances on Captain Video and his Video Rangers.
I asked him about what it was like to work with Montgomery Clift. While he didn't go into much detail, you could tell by the look on his face that a lot of good memories were flashing through his mind and that Clift must have been an actor who was very much loved and respected.
Before we knew it the security personnel at Chiller had finally discovered us and were asking us to move along. Granted we had not yet turned in our tickets and gotten our wrist bands yet. But these were 20 minutes I will definitely remember when I'm 94 should the good Lord allow me to make it that far. We followed the rules and now we had to stand in line for about 45 minutes just to get his autograph. No complaints though and certainly no regrets. I have attended many of these autograph shows over the last several years. Most of the folks I meet are charming and gracious although quite frankly I have met a few that were very much full of themselves. In all my experiences this one has to stand out as the best.
After I got off the line, I didn't want to see anyone else. I figured nobody would be able to top this. Talking to Ernest Borgnine felt as if I had stopped over a neighbor's house to have coffee and chat. It was that natural. Under his photo on the chiller guest list it said, "Back by Popular Demand"! And it's no wonder.
April 2011
April 30, 2011
By Mollie Lane
It was a long trip in from NYC. Clearly almost 3 hours. First a cab to Penn Station followed by a 90 minute ride to Morris Plains Station and then a pickup by the shuttle bus to the Hilton Hotel in Parsippany. But as I walked into the hotel lobby and passed by the major section where celebrities are seated for their autograph signings, I knew it was well worth the trip.
The show did not begin till 10am and it was only a little after 9am. But there in the "pit", a sunken area where autograph tables are lined up sat a white haired man drinking a cup of coffee and shooting the breeze with a hotel employee.
As me and my friends got closer I was surprised to see that the area had not been roped off so we just stepped in. And it was true. There he was. No security personnel, no outrageously long line, no rush to get to the next person waiting; just us. I walked up to him and said I came all the way from New York to shake the hand of the man who beat the crap out of Frank Sinatra! Ernest Borgnine smiled and let out a big laugh as I grabbed his hand, knowing all the while that this was a hand that had no doubt touched the hands of countless legendary stars including Spencer Tracy, Lee Marvin, William Holden, Gene Hackman, Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift, the list goes on and on.
At age 94, judging by the sheer weight of his energy he appeared to seem more like 64. We all stood there like a buch of deer in the headlights listening to his musings about experiences he had in the making of his most memorable motion pictures including From Here to Eternity, Marty, The Wild Bunch, The Poseidon Adventure, The Dirty Dozen and oh so many too numerous to mention.
He talked about his decision to do McHale's Navy when he spoke to a little boy who asked him who he was. The boy was selling candy for his school. He told the boy at first that he was James Arness. The boy said that's impossible. He watches Gunsmoke all the time and he could be James Arness. Then he told the boy that he was Richard Boone to which the boy replied that he watches Have Gun Will Travel all the time and he couldn't possibly be Richard. Boone. So when he told the boy he was Ernest Borgnine, the kid had no reaction. That was the moment that sealed his decision to do a television series. But Borgnine is no stranger to television. But Borgnine was by no means a stranger to television. He began his career in 1951 with two appearances on Captain Video and his Video Rangers.
I asked him about what it was like to work with Montgomery Clift. While he didn't go into much detail, you could tell by the look on his face that a lot of good memories were flashing through his mind and that Clift must have been an actor who was very much loved and respected.
Before we knew it the security personnel at Chiller had finally discovered us and were asking us to move along. Granted we had not yet turned in our tickets and gotten our wrist bands yet. But these were 20 minutes I will definitely remember when I'm 94 should the good Lord allow me to make it that far. We followed the rules and now we had to stand in line for about 45 minutes just to get his autograph. No complaints though and certainly no regrets. I have attended many of these autograph shows over the last several years. Most of the folks I meet are charming and gracious although quite frankly I have met a few that were very much full of themselves. In all my experiences this one has to stand out as the best.
After I got off the line, I didn't want to see anyone else. I figured nobody would be able to top this. Talking to Ernest Borgnine felt as if I had stopped over a neighbor's house to have coffee and chat. It was that natural. Under his photo on the chiller guest list it said, "Back by Popular Demand"! And it's no wonder.
April 2011