This is pretty cool:
A few months ago I had made a comment on You Tube re: Maurice guest starring in an episode of "The Facts Of Life". Here is my comment and his response:
"This is one of my favorite FOL episodes. So many clever and funny lines. And Maurice LaMarche is great as "Rod Serling". "
"Thank you. It was a ton of fun to do. And everyone was incredibly nice. In fact, we all got so friendly that one day, after rehearsal, I did all the girls' (and Clooney's) answering machines as their favorite impressions. And yes, I did Kim Fields' machine as Rod Sperling, saying "Tootie... I just love saying, Tootie"
"What was interesting to see, from an writing perspective, was how, as the week went on, the script kept getting cut down for time, but they took out all the most hilarious stuff! For instance, at one point midway, Cloris was supposed to do this whole "Frau Blucher" parody, complete with neighing offscreen horses. It was so funny we could barely get though it at rehearsals. Then on day 3, it was suddenly out!
"The script started out as one of the hippest, funniest things I'd ever read. Don't even ask about what the writers went through for Rod Sperling (important distinction there) to have an unlit, or even a candy, cigarette in his hand, but in the end NBC Standards and Practices won out, and Rod (me) was suddenly a non-smoker.
Hey, it was still pretty good by the time we shot it, and I know it's a big FOL fan favorite. And yes, George Clooney is really, really nice.
- Maurice LaMarche "
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbsEWj1nBSg
