Trending:
When Tony Clifton showed up and wreaked havoc on the set of the late ’70s and early ’80s sitcom Taxi, the cast was not amused.
The alternate persona of comedian Andy Kaufman — who played Latka Gravas on the ABC series from 1978 to 1983 and died in 1984 at age 35 — Tony was not a welcome guest on the show. Unbeknownst to Kaufman’s costars, though, at some point during contract negotiations, he added a detail that said Clifton had to appear in one episode, otherwise he would not play the popular Latka character.
Kaufman’s best friend and writer Bob Zmurda recalls the situation in Thank You Very Much, a newly released documentary about the late comedian from Emmy-nominated director Alex Braverman.
“The cast will say, ‘We’re getting our lawyers, forget what’s in the contract. I’m not going to look like an idiot when we shoot this on Friday because Andy Kaufman’s playing this character and f—ing everything up,” he says.
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Danny DeVito, who played Louis DePalma, remembers Clifton showing up on the lot. “Andy is Tony Clifton, but it’s not Andy. It’s Tony Clifton…. Okay. What?.” Clifton was supposed to play a character that was DePalma’s brother.
“And the f—ing door opens, and it comes, this f—ing makeup, pounds of makeup on. He’s got two hookers, dressed to the nines.”
In audio from that day on set that’s played in the documentary, Judd Hirsch, who starred as Alex Rieger on the sitcom, can be heard loudly arguing with Clifton on set.
In the audio, Hirsch says, “Yeah, well my contract’s got a hell of a lot more shows than you’ve got.”
Clifton says, “I’ve got a contract for four shows.”
“You got one show, and you’re off the lot,” Hirsch fires back before turning around, presumably to the cast and crew, and saying, “Come on guys! Come on! Let’s get the f— out of here. Come on, let’s get him out!”
DeVito recalls, “And now everybody’s going, ‘Wait a f—ing minute. Are we gonna what?”
After calling Kaufman to inform him they were going to fire Clifton, which was a project in itself, Hirsch requested they fire Clifton in front of everyone.
Marilu Henner, who played Elaine Nardo, says, “We were a huge success. This was a huge opportunity to us, and then all of a sudden, we have this insane situation, totally giving in to somebody that we love and adore. And it’s like. Why is — why, why?”
Clifton was hauled off the lot by security, with tipped-off members of the press waiting and capturing the spectacle. After this moment, headlines questioning Kaufman’s sanity began to surface.
“Andy never drank, never smoked — vegetarian, holistic medicine. Clifton was the opposite,” Zmurda says, comparing his best friend to the alter ego. “Steaks, rare; chain smoker; booze, Jack Daniels. Wow, you know, heavy stuff? And Andy never got kinky.”
Learn more about Kaufman’s controversial life in Thank You Very Much. Visit here for information on how to see the film.
Read the full article here
