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An Unlikely Pair: Woody Allen and Billy Graham
Filed under: The Squib Report Tagged: Betty White, Billy Graham, comedy, David Letterman, George Carlin, Kevin Drum, religion, Tony Randall, Woody Allen, Zach Galifianakis
Martin Schneider writes:
Kevin Drum flags an interesting comment by Woody Allen on the benefits of belief, from an interview with Ronald Lauder:
I was with Billy Graham once, and he said that even if it turned out in the end that there is no God and the universe is empty, he would still have had a better life than me. I understand that. If you can delude yourself by believing that there is some kind of Santa Claus out there who is going to bail you out in the end, then it will help you get through. Even if you are proven wrong in the end, you would have had a better life.
It reminded me that a few weeks ago, I watched Woody Allen interview Billy Graham on The Woody Allen Show (1969). That telecast was a curious kind of variety show that also featured some sketches and a performance by The Fifth Dimension. (The commercials, all for Libby's canned vegetables and featuring Tony Randall as an inept sleuth, are quite amusing in a Mad Men-ish way.)
In the interview, Allen and Graham treat each other with affable respect; it's quite fascinating to watch them discuss the merits of legalizing marijuana. It's easy to see why Graham was so greatly admired during his life. It's funny that we consider 1969 the high-water mark for cultural turmoil in the United States, but after a generation's worth of culture wars, it's very difficult to imagine such a civil conversation between, say, Zach Galifianakis and Rick Warren. (Even on Oprah.) You also get to see Allen in a rabbi getup (but not during the interview).
You can watch the entire show here.
I am indebted to WFMU's "Listener Kliph Nesteroff" for making this show known to me, in his detailed and engrossing account of Allen's early years. Nesteroff has done the same noble service for David Letterman, George Carlin, Betty White, and others. Look out for those as well.
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Hello! We're a small band of media enthusiasts, culture addicts, and journalists based in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Emdashes, formerly a New Yorker fan site, is our collection of conversations—mostly civilized—about magazines, movies, politics, design, punctuation, and other things that stir us.
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Dashes, some say, “are particularly useful in a sentence that is long and complex.” Emdashes—like an em dash itself—provides a thoughtful pause amid the hubbub.
Emdashes, founded in 2004, is written and drawn by Emily Gordon, Martin Schneider, Pollux, Jonathan Taylor, and Benjamin Chambers, as well as occasional guest contributors. All posts before October 2008 are by Emily Gordon.
The site was designed by House of Pretty with illustrations by Jesse R. Ewing.
Additional drawings are by Carolita Johnson and Pollux (author of our web comic, "The Wavy Rule"). The Emdashes pencil logo is by Jennifer Hadley, based on a 1943 Dorothy Gray ad.
Other writing by Emily Gordon
- Writing on theater: reviews (for Time Out Chicago; imperfect but workable search results)
- Profile: Valerie Casey, Designers Accord founder, is spearheading the design of sustainability (for SXSW World)
- Feature: Rea Irvin: visionary art director, bon vivant, New Yorker founding father (for Print)
- Slide show: the Coney Island Mermaid Parade (for NYCgo.com)
- Feature: Muslim immigration iconography in the Netherlands, and an interview with Ayaan Hirsi Ali (for Print)
- Review: King's Gambit: A Son, a Father, and the World's Most Dangerous Game by Paul Hoffman (for Newsday)
- Homage: Celebrating lindy-hop legend Frankie Manning (for NYCgo.com)
- Inquiry: Does a New Republic redesign mean a change of tune? (for Print)
- Interview: James Surowiecki on what's next for the wisdom of crowds (for Assignment Zero)
- Interviews: four up-and-coming designers under 30 (for Print)
- Profile: novelist and dance critic Laura Jacobs (for Newsday)
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Comments
Robert Lauder, priest, not Ronald Lauder, politically-involved, art-collecting millionaire. I was intrigued by the idea, though. And loved the link to Listener Kliph’s blog post.