Celebrity Interview: Eddie Deezen!

Eddie Deezen jumped onto my radar pretty early in his career - appearing as Eugene in the film Grease. Playing a perfect nerd, Mr. Deezen popped up in scads of movies over the next couple of decades, always bringing something hilarious to the table. In 1991 he voiced a character in the animated feature Rock-A-Doodle and opened up a whole new career as a voiceover actor in dozens of animated series and some video games, most famously as Mandark in Dexter's Laboratory on Cartoon Network and in the film The Polar Express as Know-It-All.

I became Mr. Deezen's acquaintance through mutual friends online, and he agreed to an interview. Thankfully it was not conducted at the top of a tall Ferris Wheel. Here we go:

Craig Edwards: When and where did the world gain an Eddie Deezen?

 

Eddie Deezen: I WAS BORN ON MARCH 6, 1957 AT 8:47 P.M. IN CUMBERLAND, MARYLAND.

Midnight Madness (1980)

CE: What are your earliest pop culture memories?

 

ED: GOOD QUESTION. I REMEMBER TALKING ABOUT THE BEATLES WITH MY MOM AND FAMILY WHEN THEY CAME TO AMERICA. I WATCHED THEM ON "THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW" THAT GREAT NIGHT IN FEBRUARY OF '64. I REMEMBER GOING TO WATCH "A HARD DAY'S NIGHT" AND "HELP!" IN THE THEATERS AND THERE WAS JUST CONSTANT SCREAMING FROM BEGINNING TO END OF THE MOVIES- GIRLS SCREAMING AND YOU COULDN'T HEAR THE DIALOGUE- AND THIS WAS OUT IN CUMBERLAND, MD. - HARDLY A BIG MEDIA CITY OR SOCIAL MECCA.

CE: When did you know you wanted to work in the entertainment industry?

 

ED: I THINK AFTER DISCOVERING DEAN MARTIN AND JERRY LEWIS MOVIES IN THE SUMMER OF '73. I WAS KIND OF A LOST SOUL IN HIGH SCHOOL, DRIFTING THROUGH, NOT MANY FRIENDS, ACNE ON MY FACE AND I WATCHED THIS GUY, THE YOUNG JERRY LEWIS, AND HE DEFINITELY INSPIRED ME TO WANT TO DO SOMETHING WITH MY LIFE. WITHOUT JERRY, I THINK I'D HAVE JUST DIED OUT. I THINK IT'S SAFE TO SAY JERRY LEWIS DID SAVE MY LIFE- PHYSICALLY AND SPIRITUALLY.

Beverly Hills Vamp (1989)

CE: How did you go about breaking in?

 

ED: I BROKE IN AS A STAND-UP COMIC AT THE COMEDY STORE- JANUARY 26, 1976. I DID THREE GIGS AT THE COMEDY STORE, BUT STAND-UP COMEDY WASN'T FOR ME. MY TV DEBUT WAS ON "THE GONG SHOW" WITH CHUCK BARRIS ON NOVEMBER 29, 1976.

I wonder if Eddie was featured on any of the cards?

CE: What was your act on The Gong Show? Do you remember who your judges were?

 

 

ED: I DID A STAND-UP COMEDY ACT. THE THREE JUDGES WERE JAYE P. MORGAN, PAUL WILLIAMS AND JAMIE FARR. PAUL W. GONGED ME.

The Deezen Gang - Midnight Madness

CE: What was the first project you worked on?

 

 

ED: I DID SOME LOW-BUDGET COMMERCIAL, BUT "GREASE" WAS ACTUALLY MY FIRST REAL PAYING JOB. SO, I STARTED AT THE TOP. I WAS VERY LUCKY.

CE: You're well known as a Beatles fan. How did you discover them?

 

 

ED: I GOT REALLY HOOKED BY READING BEATLE BOOKS AFTER I FIRST CAME TO L.A. IN 1975. I WAS EXTREMELY LONESOME, SO I READ BOOKS ALL THE TIME, AS I HAD NO FRIENDS. AND I READ "THE BEATLES" BY HUNTER DAVIES, THEIR FIRST BOOK. AND I JUST GOT REALLY HOOKED ONTHEM. MY FIRST BEATLES ALBUM WAS "HELP!" IN HIGH SCHOOL, I HAD THAT. I HAD THE RECORD "AIN'T SHE SWEET" AS A KID AND MY BROTHER BROKE IT AND I WAS FURIOUS AND I THINK I CRIED, SO I DID ADMIRE THEM AS A KID. I ALSO REMEMBER LISTENING TO "PLEASE MR. POSTMAN" AS A KID, SO I GUESS I ALWAYS HAD SOME AFFINITY FOR THEM. I LIKED JOHN BEST AS A KID.






Zapped! (1982)

CE: Tell us something about one of the Beatles that we don't know.

 

 

ED: JOHN LENNON USED TO SLEEP IN A COFFIN, AS A TEENAGER.

CE: What was it like as a Beatles fan to work on a movie like I Wanna Hold Your Hand?

 

 

ED: I BASICALLY WAS PLAYING MYSELF. "RINGO" KLAUS IS MY FAVORITE CHARACTER I'VE EVER PLAYED, IT WAS JUST ME BEING ME.

Ringo Klaus in action!

CE: Did that similarity lead to you contributing any lines or bits of business, or was it all already on the page?

 

ED: THAT WAS MY JOKE, COP: 'NOW I'VE GOT YOU, YOU LITTLE S**T!" ME: "WHO YOU CALLING "LITTLE"?"

My favorite scene in 1941 - Eddie's cruel side...

CE: What are some of your favorite projects you've worked on?

ED: "GREASE" WAS LIKE A TWO-MONTH PARTY, THE GREATEST PARTY YOU'VE EVER BEEN TO, AND IT JUST LASTED FOR TWO MONTHS. I LOVED "POLAR EXPRESS". BOB ZEMECKIS IS MY ALL-TIME FAVORITE FILM DIRECTOR. TOM HANKS, THE NICEST GUY YOU COULD EVER IMAGINE. A FUNNY, GREAT GUY. JOHN TRAVOLTA MADE "GREASE" SPECIAL, HIS KINDNESS, FRIENDLINESS. ALL THE "GREASE" CAST WAS AWESOME. I LOVED "I WANNA HOLD YOUR HAND", BOB ZEMECKIS WAS THE BEST AS A DIRECTOR. I LOVED "WARGAMES" BECAUSE I GOT TO USE CUE CARDS FORB THE FIRST TIME. "MOB BOSS" I GOT TO MAKE OUT WITH MORGAN FAIRCHILD. MORGAN WAS A DOLL, A GREAT COMEDIENNE, FUN TO WORK WITH. ALL THE FILMS WERE SPECIAL IN SOME WAY. AS A CARTOON, I ENJOYED "DEXTER'S LABORATORY" THE MOST.







CE: Are there any productions you appeared in that you recommend people stay away from?

 

 

ED: HMMMMM..."GREASE 2" PERHAPS. MAXWELL WAS A WONDERFUL GUY, MICHELLE WAS VERY NICE, BUT AS A MOVIE, UH, WELL, EVERYONE HAS THEIR OWN TASTES, YOU KNOW.

That advice appears to have worked for me - I've seen Grease dozens of times - but I've still never seen Grease 2!





CE: I'm going to mention a few of my favorite movies you appeared in. Will you tell us a little something about each?

 

CE: Grease. 

ED: JOHN TRAVOLTA, THE KINDEST ACTOR EVER. JEFF CONAWAY TRIED TO GET ME LAID WITH A HOOKER. I WAS A SCARED 20-YEAR-OLD KID. IT NEVER HAPPENED. RANDAL KLEISER, A FINE DIRECTOR, A NICE MAN. RIDING AROUND IN A CAR WE HIJACKED WITH OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN. JACK NICHOLSON YELLING AT US TO QUIET DOWN FROM A NEARBY SET. HE CAME ON OUR SET AND I RAN UP AND SHOOK HIS HAND.

 

 

 

 

CE: Laserblast.

ED: I HAD A HUGE CRUSH ON A GIRL IN THE CREW NAMED BETTY GOLDBERG. I WONDER WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO HER???? IT IS THE ONLY FILM I DID IN WHICH MY CHARACTER DIES. THE ONLY ONE.

 

 

I did a little research on Betty Goldberg. (Not sure I can really call it research. I looked her up on the IMDB.) If all of her credits are the same person - she directed a couple of episodes of The White Shadow before Laserblast - for which she was the script supervisor. She was script supervisor on low budget movies like The Incredible Melting Man and bigger shows like Beverly Hills Cop from the 70's throughout the 80's. Since then she has taken to writing - with some TV movie credits up to 2002. Not sure what's she's been up to the last ten years or so - but there's some kind of update!

 

But I digress.







CE: 1941.

ED: BEING DIRECTED BY STEVEN SPIELBERG, A GREAT HONOR. JOHN BELUSHI, A SUPER NICE GUY. I LOVED HIM. DAN AYKROYD, A REALLY NICE GUY. I LOVED JOHN CANDY SO MUCH. NICEST GUY EVER!!!







CE: Midnight Madness.

ED: WE HAD TWO DIRECTORS ON THAT ONE, WHICH WAS UNUSUAL. A PRETTY FUNNY FILM.








CE: Zapped!

ED: SCOTT BAIO WAS A VERY NICE GUY.







CE: Wargames.

ED: I RODE TO THE SET (WE WERE DRIVEN BY A DRIVER) WITH MATTHEW BRODERICK. HE WAS A GREAT GUY. I KEPT FORGETTING MY LINES AND THE DIRECTOR HAD ME READ THEM FROM CUE CARDS. THAT WAS THE FIRST TIME I EVER USED "IDIOT CARDS". THAT IS A VERY GOOD FILM. MY DIRECTOR, MARTY BREST, GOT FIRED, BUT THEY KEPT MY BIT IN, LUCKILY. MATTHEW'S FIRST FILM.







CE: Surf II.

ED: A FUN SHOOT. LOTS OF CUTE GIRLS IN BIKINIS. ONE OF MY FEW "LEAD ROLES". A FAIRLY FUNNY FILM. RON PALILLO, A VERY NICE GUY. I GOT TO BE PUT IN A STRAIGHT JACKET!!!







CE: Mob Boss.

ED: A WONDERFUL DIRECTOR, FRED OLEN RAY. I LOVE FRED. SO MUCH FUN TO SHOOT. I HAD A BALL. MORGAN FAIRCHILD, A LOVELY LADY.







CE: Beverly Hills Vamp.

ED: FRED OLEN RAY AGAIN. A FUN SHOOT. GREAT TIMES.







CE: Three words: EddieDeezen.com. Beatles Quiz. Please give us 34 words about that.

ED: YOU CAN ENTER MY BEATLES QUIZ AT eddiedeezen.com I PUT IT UP ON MY FACEBOOK SITE TOO. THE PRIZE IS $100.00, PLUS A $25.00 FREE MOVIE PASS TO REGAL CINEMAS, PLUS AN AUTOGRAPHED PHOTO.







CE: What's more fun for you? Live action acting, or voiceover acting?

ED: BOTH ARE FUN, IT REALLY DEPENDS ON WHO YOU ARE WITH AND HOW GOOD THE SCRIPT IS. I HAVE TROUBLE MEMORIZING LINES, SO VOICEOVERS ARE USUALLY EASIER ON ME.

Know-It-All, Eddie's character from The Polar Express

CE: What's the perfect Eddie Deezen breakfast?


ED: TOMATO JUICE, LOTS OF EXTRA CRISPY BACON, EGGS OVER EASY, TOAST, DECAFF WITH CREAM AND SUGAR, ICE WATER (BAD FOR MY HIGH CHOLESTEROL, BUT I LOVE THAT BACON!!!)







CE: Friday the 13ths. Can't believe they made that many, or why did they stop?

ED: I HAVE NO IDEA, NOT PART OF MY WORLD OR MY UNIVERSE. BUT I KNOW WE ALL HAVE OUR OWN SUBJECTIVE TASTES IN MOVIES (AND EVERYTHING ELSE IN LIFE.)

Laserblast got laser blasted by the Mystery Science Theater 3000 crew...

CE: What advice would you give someone who wants to work in the entertainment industry?

ED: IT IS THE VERY TOUGHEST, HARDEST FIELD IN THE WORLD, JUST BECAUSE OF SUPPLY AND DEMAND. THERE ARE MILLIONS OF ACTORS AND ACTRESSES, SO MUCH TALENT, BUT ONLY SO MANY ROLES, SO MANY PROJECTS. BUT IF YOUR HEART IS REALLY IN IT, I SAY, GO FOR IT. GIVE IT YOUR BEST TRY. BE TRUE TO YOUR DREAMS, YOUR HOPES. YOU OWE IT TO YOURSELF. AND ALSO, YOU WILL MEET THE COOLEST, MOST WONDERFUL PEOPLE IN THE WORLD IN SHOW BUSINESS. CREATIVE, GOOD-HEARTED, WONDERFUL PEOPLE. A FEW GNARLY ONES, A FEW NASTY ONES, BUT MOSTLY GREAT FOLKS.

 

 

 

 

CE: Thanks again, Mr. Deezen! I've been a fan of yours since renting Laserblast - on BETA! I'm very excited for this interview post!

ED: I WISH YOU A GREAT AND SUCCESSFUL NEW YEAR IN 2013, CRAIG. WISHING YOU ALL THE BEST!

 

 

 

And to you as well, Mr. Deezen!




Until next post, you Can Poke Me With A Fork, Cause I Am Outta Here!