Great comedian Bob Newhart #BobNewhart

Ben Mankiewicz, who hosts Turner Classic Movies and the comedian Bob Newhart.

Ben Mankiewicz, who hosts Turner Classic Movies, asked comedian Bob Newhart, "Did you recognize that you simply were such a deep influence?"

He replied, "Not deeply."

"Well, just touching?"

"That's it, I'm not getting to take this anymore, okay? I'm leaving ..."

We start with a word of caution: don't attempt to flatter Bob Newhart.

As a pioneer in monitored humor, the comedian has taken his stand-up show to award-winning comedy albums and classic TV series.

Mankiewicz spoke to New Hart last week within the l. a. home he shares with his wife, Jenny. "You are one among the standard Hollywood players, woman after woman, how long have you ever and Jenny been married?"

Newhart replied, "57 years old."

"Why does one think so?"

"Laughter. There's just something about laughter, and therefore the longevity of a wedding ."

While the planet has changed tons since he appeared on the scene in 1960, apparently Bob Newhart didn't get the note. He was laughing an equivalent way he did within the beginning. he's an authentic observer. 

Sure, he seems like he's your father's boss at the agency, but he's got a subversive streak, delivered in perfect timing. it's a standup school with alumni Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld.

Newhart was born outside of Chicago during the good Depression, and his faltering style wasn't an order. So he spoke sort of a shy kid with a sarcastic wit. 

After serving within the Army, Newhart became an accountant - an accountant who wasn't excellent at handling numbers. "If I were with Enron, they might still be working," he said. they might never have discovered my book. 

Mr. Wilkinson - I still remember his name - said, 'Jeez, these aren't sound accounting principles.' I said, “I don’t think I'm reckoned with.” then I made a decision, well, let's determine if I'm good [at comedy]. ”

Mankiewicz asked, "How does one know you're funny?"

The honest response was: "People were telling me I used to be funny."

His failure became a hit. it had been successful in 1960. His debut album, "The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart," won three Grammy Awards, including Surprise: Best Album.

Mankiewicz asked, "You beat Harry Belafonte, Nat King Cole and Sinatra - then meet Frank later?"

"I need to know Frank," said Newhart. "It gets worse when I'm discussing it! I do not think Frank was happy that a comic beat his album"

Newhart's trademark is his beat. Takes his time. Stop. And he has those phone calls. His favorite? A publicist chatting with his client, Abi Lincoln, before the Gettysburg address:

"You changed 'four degrees and seven' to '87'?"

"I wear the wall, a dad Lincoln routine. they need to place it within the Smithsonian."

"Abe Lincoln's 1960 routine getting to the pre-eminent museum within the country? So good!"

"Yes, now that I brought it up, yes!" Newhart said.

This disarming style fit him perfectly on TV, first on "The Bob Newhart Show," as a married psychologist Suzanne Pleshette, who is a component of CBS's strong lineup on Saturday Night: "All within the Family," "MASH," and " Mary Tyler Moore, Bob Newhart, and Carol Burnett.

"Row the killer," said Newhart. "We want to have Super Bowl numbers. there have been only three nets at the time - well, some people claim there are two and a half nets."

"Whichever is half the network?"

Newhart objected, "I may need to figure with them one day!"

The Bob Newhart Show (4/5) Bob takes an intelligence test (1972) by Shout! Factory on YouTube

Mankiewicz said, "You and Susan Bleshet, I still think, seem to be the simplest TV marriage I've ever had."

"Yes, we had great chemistry," said Newhart.

A second show, "Newhart", came within the 1980s. He played the role of a bar owner in Vermont. It ran for eight seasons, with a classic ending: the whole show was a dream, and he awakened in bed together with his first TV wife, Pleshette.

Mankiewicz asked, "Was it always decide to end the show the way I did?"

"No, it had been my wife's idea," said Newhart. "The crowd went crazy."

Newhart Finale by GetKempt on YouTube

"It created an indelible television moment," Mankiewicz said.

Newhart replied, "I did! I didn't."

Newhart has legions of latest fans, from "Elf" with Will Ferrell, to "The explosion Theory". "I adore the large Bang Theory," Newhart said. "I think it's written alright . Also within the back of my head I used to be like, I do know the way to roll in the hay ."

Next month, the 1992 show, "Off the Record," showing its greatest parts, is going to be available for streaming.

Mankiewicz said, "Until the epidemic, you were still running."

"Yes, it's dope!" Newhart smiled. People were saying, 'Why are you continue to do this? “I say, 'Yeah, you're right, I'm uninterested in people laughing. I hate this!"

“I have this theory that when everything ends, for the sake of death, and your ascension, I ascended to believe the sky and there's a god and says, 'What have you ever done? and that I say, "I made people laugh." "Yeah, but that real transportation system in there."