I saw this live in '71 when I was 26. It's even better now at 78! 👍🤣👍 Also, amazing that I saw it just once...not able to rewind...but it was still in my memory till today, when I wondered if Dick Cavett was still alive. HE IS!!! 86. Awesome!!! Way to go, Dick!!!
"Perhaps you'd like two more chairs to contain your giant intellect." LOL, great cut by Cavett. He was the best talk show interviewer ever; his wit and smarts are sorely missed.
Once when David Bowie was on the show, and doodling on something during his interview, you had to figure Cavett was setting him up for a zinger when he asked, "What are you drawing?" But Bowie replied, "Your attention."
@@salicemccool9268 This is a kind of a nice example of the better line winning out over what happened. Bowie's actual response is a coked-up, not very sparkling 'It's therapeutic'.
@@salicemccool9268 Bowie was pretty witty himself. I had a lot of laughs during that interview. There was that scene where Bowie I think was twitching in his seat and being weird and Cavett just says "good idea"
OK I finally figured out who the older woman is. She was Paris correspondent for the elitist New Yorker magazine for decades. She had no place commenting Mailer / Gore Vidal were acting as if they were in their living rooms as if only they (and by association her) were privy to hearing honest talk. And she should have shut up when other guests were talking
Scummy boy Norm now basking in the fires of hell. Folded five ways and stuck where the moon don't shine is the Great Literary Lion who is not remembered anywhere in the world. So long, drunk pig Norman.
Lol the best part was cut out! When Mailor asks Cavett: "Did you just make that up?" and Cavett answers "I have to tell you a quote from Tolstoi?". Brilliant!
Mailer once slugged Vidal at a party. As he was getting up, Vidal said, "Once again, words fail Norman Mailer." He later said, "I saw this tiny fist coming at me."
@N That's a racist comment. Being Jewish has nothing to do with being narcissist or obnoxious. Anyone of any race or ethnic group can be narcissist, obnoxious, or an asshole.
Norman's behavior reminds me of the dinner scene from Notes from Underground. It's as if he's purposely trying to behave like a jackass and humiliate himself.
As my professor was around the same age as Mr. Vidal I pushed his wheel chair as we went to lunch. I spent just over two hours in his company, and in that short time this man taught me the grace and elegance in which personal intellect may be contoured and verbalized as one engages in conversation. Gore Vidal was one of the greatest and brilliant orators that I have ever heard or read. He even granted me the honor of reading over my abstract and playing the roll of devil's advocate.
Roger Edgerton - Vidal was in the military in WW2, the XO of a ship; he had a bad leg, but still worked out and was bigger than Mailer. Mailer had boxed, but was out of shape and drunk(and angry). Mr Vidal would've gained nothing by beating Norman like a gong. Plus, he liked Mailer, and knew he was angry and drunk - out of his mind. Gore Vidal was a prodigy, and WAS smarter than just about everybody - and he knew it, and could be a vicious Asshole, especially when drinking. He was an under appreciated national treasure that was just NFG to a lot of people. His writing is like his speech, dense and full of hidden meaning, and unfairly expecting the reader to know 5 or 6 languages, plus Latin and Greek, as well as history and literature - an acquired taste, for sure. If you don't like him, fine...but it's silly to think of him as dumb. He was more asexual than gay like everyone thinks of him. He was gay, but more "damaged" - It's complicated and irrelevant. He's a bitch here, but it's more like he tripped Norman up as he charged by; Mailer asked for what he got.
+PurpleFlame3 Janet Flanner (aka "Genet") is best known for her "Letters from Paris" for the New Yorker magazine from 1925 to 1975. Sadly, she has never received the attention in literary journalism that her talent and, quite frankly, influential prose, should warrant in such circles. Although her fictional writing career never took off, she did publish one beautifully lyrical novel, "The Cubicle City," which also deserves greater recognition and was reprinted as part of the "Lost American Fiction" series.
Flanner was well received in the U.S. and in France due to her popular column in the New Yorker and coverage of French social issues. She was a prominent member of the American expatriate community in Paris which included Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Dos Passos, e. e. cummings, Hart Crane, Djuna Barnes, Ezra Pound, and Gertrude Stein, and also played a crucial role in introducing her contemporaries to new artists in Paris, including Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, Henri Matisse, André Gide, and Jean Cocteau.
Her name was Janet Flanner. She was a European correspondent for the New Yorker during the 1920s (and '30s, I believe); she lived in Paris and was friends with Hemingway, Fitzgerald, e.e. cumings, and other poets and writers.
Believe it or not, at some point I was an intern for Dick Cavett , on NBC, New York. That is the stage was across the Hudson River in Blue Eyes town Frank Sinatra's town. He , Dick Cavett, was a great Witt, boss, a class act. Which even Gore Vidal recognized. This was a fun clip!!! These videos are such a relief from most off today's Media.
@trha2222 Trump must be a liberal, by your definition: @ThisNBAgirl: @realDonaldTrump You are not as smart as Mark Cuban, no matter what you think. Keep to what you know. Lets do an I.Q. test!" (March 18, 2013) .@hardball_chris must have the lowest IQ on television-now telling people that domestic terrorists are from the right." (April 16, 2013) "@davidpylejr: @realDonaldTrump @edincamera2 @alphatreblesix you're not really smart Mr. Trump, you're an F-ing genius!" I.Q. tests confirm!" (April 20, 2013) "I know some of you may think l'm tough and harsh but actually I'm a very compassionate person (with a very high IQ) with strong common sense" (April 21, 2013) "@gharo34: @realDonaldTrump Not only is your IQ somewhere between Barack Obama and G.W.Bush...but you're entertaining!"Much higher than both" (April 30, 2013) "Sorry losers and haters, but my I.Q. is one of the highest -and you all know it! Please don't feel so stupid or insecure,it's not your fault" (May 8, 2013) "@JoshRosenfield: .@realDonaldTrump And yet he refuses to release his IQ results to the public. WHAT ARE YOU HIDING, MR. TRUMP." Ask Obama!" (May 8, 2013) "@NJWineGeek: @realDonaldTrump but Jon Stewart has a much higher IQ. Wrong, Jon Stewart(?) is an obnoxious lightweight with a lower I.Q." (May 8, 2013) "@samflaherty_: @realDonaldTrump I'd bet my life savings Obama has a higher IQ than you" You would lose!" (May 8, 2013) "@RealCoachHodge: @realDonaldTrump has a much higher IQ than idiot John Stewart" That's true, and by a lot." (May 22, 2013) "@A11_Seeing_Eye: @realDonaldTrump @DAM615 Does an IQ of 60 count as being smart?" No, sadly you are very dumb-but probably born that way." (May 24, 2013) "@Cokokkola: @realDonaldTrump has a much higher IQ than idiot Lord Sugar- that's why he has much more money!" True on both fronts!" (May 26, 2013) "@newnonny: @realDonaldTrump @sroyboyk prove it. And while you're at it, prove your alleged IQ as well." The highest, asshole" (June 29, 2013) "@ardow: @realDonaldTrump Jebs got no IQ ... same as his brother." (May 17, 2015)15. "@mirrorgrrl: Truly Great men come along only once a genration. DonaldTrump Is That Man. Has it all- gentle wisdom,fierce biz savvy,IQ. Wow!" (June 14, 2015) ".@GovernorPerry failed on the border. He should be forced to take an IQ test before being allowed to enter the GOP debate." (July 16, 2015) "@Hturne: @VanityFair You're spot on! He tries 2b an intellectual elitist.The truth: he has a low IQ, no imagination, no creativity" (November 15, 2015) "I'm much smarter than them. I think I have a much higher IQ. I think I went to a better college - better everything." (November 23, 2015) "Weak and totally conflicted people like @TheRickWilson shouldn't be allowed on television unless given an I.Q. test. Dumb as a rock! @CNN" (December 9, 2015) "@ajodom60: @FoxNews and as far as that low-info voter base goes, I have an IQ of 132. So much for that theory. #MakeAmericaGreatAgain" (December 13, 2015) "Let's do an IQ test." (May 16, 2016) "We have by far the highest IQ of any Cabinet ever assembled!" (January 19, 2017) "I heard poorly rated @Morning_Joe speaks badly of me (don't watch anymore). Then how come low I.Q. Crazy Mika, along with Psycho Joe, came." (June 29, 2017)
Many people can't tell if someone is smarter than them. You actually do have to tell them and then lay down specifics to prove it or exhibit an ability to create wealth or status of some kind.
I love this exchange. Something that sadly belongs to a different era; it is hard to imagine two public intellectuals going at it in such an entertaining way these days. An early highlight is Mailer with his 'we all know I stabbed my wife'. C'mon, man, don't make such a big deal out of it, we all make mistakes!
Nah, rather, Vidal cowered behind Cavett once he realized Cavett would have a go at Mailer and do all his sparring for him. Vidal was and always will be a true coward.
@@junkscience6397 Nah, Vidal decided not to interrupt Cavett because he liked where he was going with it. And before him the lady. He could have easily interrupted like modern narcissistic guests do, but he let the conversation continue as it did.
I love how Mailer says "think about it," as if he's won something over them with his giant intellect, when in fact he's just being a huge douche. Then, suddenly, he runs out of witty things to say and further proves his douchiness by trying get Cavett to return to his question cards. And before Cavett can even respond to this rude remark, he even makes a cowardly and pathetic attempt to bail himself out of the situation by trying to appeal to the audience. Then Cavett verbally bitch slaps him. Awesome.
I heard better rebuttals when I was in 4th grade, never mind from supposed "intellectuals." Mailer is an ass, and I'm delighted that few people of my generation are familiar with the name.
I saw three gay people dumping on one straight man.We all know Vidal(brilliant but gay) and the woman(very masculine I might add) is a known lesbian from way back-was never pretty.
One straight man who almost killed his wife with pen knife and deserved to get stomped for this behavior here. Mailer's work sucks and has not stood the test of time outside of some Berkley classes perhaps. The guy was a total rodent.
And while I don't consider myself necessarily a fan of Cavett per say - he is not forgotten. Search him on RUclips, then Mailer. Cavett is in a renaissance and is now tied into history permanently with all these critical years (decade +) of interviews he did. I didn't even effectively know who Cavett was 10 years ago. Now I'm very familiar with his show.
Mailer? Runs out of witty things to say? I don't think so. Cavett's "shove it where the sun don't shine" comment is dragging it down to a lower level than this conversation with these people deserves.
Not only did I meet Gore Vidal, but I had the extraordinary honor to have lunch with him. My thesis advisor was a close friend of Mr. Vidal's. It was an ordinary Thursday when I received a note from my professor in my department mailbox asking me to come by his office. I went, knocked on his office door, and when I opened it I saw Gore Vidal in his wheel chair chatting with my professor. (This was very close to his death). I was invited to lunch with them.
the whole show is on youtube last i checked. & if memory serves (tho i'm not certain it does) with an intro to the whole show by a very recent cavett. check it out. i will too. it may have been taken down (never can be sure about those things) but i strongly doubt it.
From the time I started watching late-night talk (just about the time Paar walked off the Tonight Show) till the time I stopped watching it (just about the time Carson retired), this is, IMO, the single greatest segment of talkshow repartee ever aired. (Note to X'rs, Y'rs, and Millennials: At one time, "Talk" shows were actually about... ...conversation.)
MAILER - "I'm the gentlest of the four people here..." but I'm also the macho male leaning forward almost out of my chair to try and intimidate you... Seriously, who STILL doesn't run into guys like this...they have to make themselves BIGGER just to TRY to get in your face when they know they're utterly outclassed and wrong...
I wish that I could see these old interviews again like Frost, Paar, Susskind, Snyder, even Merv Griffin and Mike Douglas conducted interviews. We don't have this any more - let alone people to talk to.
Show, don't tell, Mailer. Trying to illustrate intellectual superiority by declaring oneself intellectually superior isn't the way it works. What a maroon.
Mailer was a genius...but he was also a misogynist, egomaniac, violent alcoholic who liked to abuse people in his circle. To read Mailer on must separate the man from the work.
In Mailer's defense, he was said to have been "impaired" during this confrontation on Dick Cavett's show, and allegedly reeked of alcohol back stage, where he and Vidal butted heads. The man is clearly not in top form, and even Dick Cavett has expressed regret for "ganging up" on Mailer during this interview. There was never animosity between the two (in fact, Cavett admired Mailer as a literary figure), and Mailer would appear on Cavett's show many more times following this incident. As for the feud with Gore Vidal, which sometimes had physical clashes, Mailer took exception to the fashion in which Vidal skewered his latest work The Prisoner of Sex. Cavett has said that what appeared on cameras was PG compared to what the two were saying off camera, and I believe the feud would go on for another 15 years.
Him being drunk is a "defense?" Was that not the same state of mind in which he stabbed his wife 11 years earlier? it's actually indefensible for him to still be using substances that impaired his brain after stabbing his wife.
When Mailer died Gore Vidal said and wrote some wonderful things about him. They were friends at the end of their lives, appeared together on the cover of Time with Vonnegut, opposing the Bush/Cheney junta. Gore Vidal never doubted Mailer's talent as a writer; was friends with him all through the 50s and 60s. They both fought against the war in Vietnam; but Mailer glorified violence in some ways (he was a great fan of boxing) that Vidal thought were not conducive to a good and just society.
two great lines by Cavett - "perhaps you would like two more chairs to contain your giant intellect" and "why don't you fold it 5 ways and stick it where the moon don't shine". Cavett was great.
"Writers who spend all their lives in New York are like scorpions in a bottle. Sometimes the bottle is named art, sometimes it's named politics but it's always the same bottle, a bottle named ego. And if you spend your life like a scorpion inside a bottle, you're not writing, you're wasting time talking about other writers and their opinions." HEMINGWAY And the moral of the story is, if you want to write something that re-defines eternity like THE OLD MAN AND THE SEA re-defines eternity, which both Mailer and Vidal never did, don't spend your life in New York. Or you end up like Vidal and Mailer, scorpions in a bottle, trading insults when they could have been putting valuable time in writing. Time is a luxury. Never waste a luxury.
Great post! I just heard about this exchange listening to the audio CDs of Cavett's book, "Talk Show," and so it was nice to see the actual show that he was talking about.
+bush He didn't just stab her he nearly killed her, you can read the details online. The man was a nut. When someone tried to help her after the ordeal he is quoted as saying "Get away from her. Let the bitch die."
I will make a recommendation to anybody that found Vidal to be fascinating, love him or hate him. There is a documentary available online called 'The Best Of Enemies'. This is a doc on the series of debates between Vidal and Bill Buckley Jr during the 68 Presidential campaigns. Vidal the openly (as openly as anyone dared be), snobbish, hard core liberal, and supremely intelligent. Him and Buckley hated each other, and man does it come across clear in that great doc. Watch it now and thank me later.
Finger bowls are small. If Mailer needs giant chairs for his intellect.... I think that's what he was getting at. But jeez, I never thought I'd be siding with Gore Vidal - Mailer makes him look almost like a gentleman in comparison.
yeah mailer's joke was pretty clear but at that point it was a roast battle and not a polite conversation, since Mailer had insulted everyone, so pretending to not understand your 'opponent's' joke is just one more way to counterattack by implying that it was confusing or not funny. unless cavett really didn't get it.
Mailer wasn't on his best behavior here, though Vidal is a class act and I love Cavett's "moon don't shine" remark. Both Mailer and Cavett had great interviews with the Rauschmonstrum.
I wish the uploader had let the video run for a few seconds longer after the "put it where the moon don't shine" zinger. An epic comeback in the history of television if ever I saw one.
I wish there are more shows like Dick Cavett's program around. I may be of the younger generation but this is some good stuff.I doubt any of the copycat shows will be as good as this show was though.
+reginald barnes Janet Flanner (March 13, 1892 - November 7, 1978) was an American writer and journalist who served as the Paris correspondent of The New Yorker magazine from 1925 until she retired in 1975.
After that 'moon don't shine' comment Mailler asks Cavett if he came up with that line himself and Cavett says something along the lines of 'it's Tolstoy, didn't you know that?'.
dick cavett is one of the most important man on the face of the earth and also the luckyest just because of the fact he knew, interviewed, lived with, admired, live in the centre of, the most interesting people of the 20 century, all of them everythime i want to see a writer, singer, thinker, anybody that interests me i watch a cavett show and from that i know more then any documentary sometimes, cavett himself was an interesting person
How was he a brilliant writer? He was mediocre at best, tedious and bloated at worst. He was entirely overrated and lauded only by a certain type of pseudo-intellectual.
I love Janet Flanner: ..."I'm becoming very very bored," then blowing Mailer a kiss. Cavett in response to the fingerbowl comment and the suggestion that he return to his notes "...why don't you fold it five ways and put it where the moon don't shine."
SCTV produced a great skit on this feud,featuring Mailer and Vidal plugging some detergent. Mailer ruins Vidal's silk tie and they eventually get in to it as the ad fades out.
That is a great remark that you have made here. I just read a popular fiction novel by Barbara Kingsolver where the protagonist, speaking in reference to the pervasive monotony of McCarthyism, said that the talkers had replaced the thinkers. It is all spectacle now and I imagine in 20 years' time, most people will not be able to comprehend this clip at all. -'tarotworldtour'
Thanks for the info love her attitude with those two talking like there was no one else there but the two of them. She put them in their place and I was in stitches laughing!
A pretty shocking interview, even today. Sadly, they were both great writers, in the particular styles, Vidal, yes, the more erudite person, but also cruel, Mailer, more accessible and representing the lives of everyday man and woman, but hobbled by doubt and thus could be a bully. They both have great works and will be read for some time to come. Ego can be destructive as both demonstrate. Flanner, essentially a reflective culture commentator and essayist, never produced a work equal to any of Vidal's or Mailer's greatest work, but she was smart, wry, observant, funny and cutting herself. Thus a good foil for the moment. Sadly, Mailer, generally ambivalent to negative, repressed, intense, primal, emotional, and frankly, bisexual psychologically when it came to men, a love/hate dynamic, couldn't regulate his emotional states and always responded when provoked. Alcohol doesn't help. He's not 'drunk' here; they were both heavy drinkers; Vidal insults him and provokes, even before the show, to put on a show, and Mailer, unfortunately allowed it to affect him. I'm more sympathetic to Mailer's obvious human vulnerability and hurt, even with his bad behavior and prickly personality, than Vidal's, however much I love his mind and his work, his manipulative and cunning predatory behavior.
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I saw this live in '71 when I was 26. It's even better now at 78! 👍🤣👍
Also, amazing that I saw it just once...not able to rewind...but it was still
in my memory till today, when I wondered if Dick Cavett was still alive.
HE IS!!! 86. Awesome!!! Way to go, Dick!!!
"Perhaps you'd like two more chairs to contain your giant intellect." LOL, great cut by Cavett. He was the best talk show interviewer ever; his wit and smarts are sorely missed.
Once when David Bowie was on the show, and doodling on something during his interview, you had to figure Cavett was setting him up for a zinger when he asked, "What are you drawing?" But Bowie replied, "Your attention."
@@salicemccool9268 This is a kind of a nice example of the better line winning out over what happened. Bowie's actual response is a coked-up, not very sparkling 'It's therapeutic'.
@@salicemccool9268 Bowie was pretty witty himself. I had a lot of laughs during that interview. There was that scene where Bowie I think was twitching in his seat and being weird and Cavett just says "good idea"
OK I finally figured out who the older woman is. She was Paris correspondent for the elitist New Yorker magazine for decades. She had no place commenting Mailer / Gore Vidal were acting as if they were in their living rooms as if only they (and by association her) were privy to hearing honest talk. And she should have shut up when other guests were talking
"im here, and i'm becoming very, very bored." that's the best line of the whole thing.
Four egos walk onto a set (and that’s just Mailer)
"Perhaps you'd like two more chairs to contain your giant intellect"
Dick Cavett was the best interviewer ever.
How refreshing to see a man on a talk show say confidently 'yes, we all know I stabbed my wife'.
Mailer was about as refreshing as a fart.
Scummy boy Norm now basking in the fires of hell. Folded five ways and stuck where the moon don't shine is the Great Literary Lion who is not remembered anywhere in the world. So long, drunk pig Norman.
Lol the best part was cut out! When Mailor asks Cavett: "Did you just make that up?" and Cavett answers "I have to tell you a quote from Tolstoi?". Brilliant!
Mailer once slugged Vidal at a party. As he was getting up, Vidal said, "Once again, words fail Norman Mailer." He later said, "I saw this tiny fist coming at me."
@N as opposed to you , an obnoxious asshole
He didn't even practice his faith. Even his fellow Jews couldn't stand him.
@N That's a racist comment. Being Jewish has nothing to do with being narcissist or obnoxious. Anyone of any race or ethnic group can be narcissist, obnoxious, or an asshole.
@N Interesting. Why bring up the Jew thing? Odd.
@N Fascinating. I identify as being Catholic even though I haven't been a "practicing" catholic for decades. Does that make Catholicism a race?
"I'm becoming very, very bored,"' is the best line.
I can't recall seeing anything like this in modern television.
They probably wouldn't let wife stabbers on talk shows now. I'd say that's a net good, but the spontaneity here is interesting.
Norman's behavior reminds me of the dinner scene from Notes from Underground. It's as if he's purposely trying to behave like a jackass and humiliate himself.
Great comparison!
That was brutal!
"Why don't you fold it five ways and put it where the moon don't shine!" Priceless, Cavett!
Live my friends lol
As my professor was around the same age as Mr. Vidal I pushed his wheel chair as we went to lunch. I spent just over two hours in his company, and in that short time this man taught me the grace and elegance in which personal intellect may be contoured and verbalized as one engages in conversation. Gore Vidal was one of the greatest and brilliant orators that I have ever heard or read. He even granted me the honor of reading over my abstract and playing the roll of devil's advocate.
Janet Flanner devastates them. That little kiss she blows Mailer is beautiful.
She probably got pissed and annoyed hearing this crap
Roger Edgerton - Vidal was in the military in WW2, the XO of a ship; he had a bad leg, but still worked out and was bigger than Mailer. Mailer had boxed, but was out of shape and drunk(and angry). Mr Vidal would've gained nothing by beating Norman like a gong. Plus, he liked Mailer, and knew he was angry and drunk - out of his mind. Gore Vidal was a prodigy, and WAS smarter than just about everybody - and he knew it, and could be a vicious Asshole, especially when drinking. He was an under appreciated national treasure that was just NFG to a lot of people. His writing is like his speech, dense and full of hidden meaning, and unfairly expecting the reader to know 5 or 6 languages, plus Latin and Greek, as well as history and literature - an acquired taste, for sure. If you don't like him, fine...but it's silly to think of him as dumb. He was more asexual than gay like everyone thinks of him. He was gay, but more "damaged" - It's complicated and irrelevant. He's a bitch here, but it's more like he tripped Norman up as he charged by; Mailer asked for what he got.
+Roger Edgerton Mommy issues have we? Everything she said was spot on.
trha2222 The only snobbish person there was Mailer. A bully, too.
Well timed and quite appropriate. And I am really surprised that someone, anyone, didn't knock Mailer on his ass .
The woman is Janet Flanner who was a columnist in Paris in the 1920s.
+PurpleFlame3 Janet Flanner (aka "Genet") is best known for her "Letters from Paris" for the New Yorker magazine from 1925 to 1975. Sadly, she has never received the attention in literary journalism that her talent and, quite frankly, influential prose, should warrant in such circles. Although her fictional writing career never took off, she did publish one beautifully lyrical novel, "The Cubicle City," which also deserves greater recognition and was reprinted as part of the "Lost American Fiction" series.
brilliant thank you
Flanner was well received in the U.S. and in France due to her popular column in the New Yorker and coverage of French social issues. She was a prominent member of the American expatriate community in Paris which included Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Dos Passos, e. e. cummings, Hart Crane, Djuna Barnes, Ezra Pound, and Gertrude Stein, and also played a crucial role in introducing her contemporaries to new artists in Paris, including Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, Henri Matisse, André Gide, and Jean Cocteau.
Words once again fail Norman Mailer.
"Perhaps you'd like two more chairs to contain your giant intellect."
Her name was Janet Flanner. She was a European correspondent for the New Yorker during the 1920s (and '30s, I believe); she lived in Paris and was friends with Hemingway, Fitzgerald, e.e. cumings, and other poets and writers.
Norman Mailer was promoting his book "How to Win Friends and Influence People"
Believe it or not, at some point I was an intern for Dick Cavett , on NBC, New York. That is the stage was across the Hudson River in Blue Eyes town Frank Sinatra's town. He , Dick Cavett, was a great Witt, boss, a class act. Which even Gore Vidal recognized. This was a fun clip!!! These videos are such a relief from most off today's Media.
What do you mean, “which even Gore Vidal recognized?” Anyone with a shred of intelligence recognized it.
"I'm here, and I'm becoming very, very bored."
This whole clip was worth sitting through just to hear Cavett's final, take-no-prisoners verbal TKO of Mailer. Dick Cavett is my hero.
I love how much Vidal seems to be enjoying himself here.
If one has to state that their intellect is greater than someone else's...
Dick Cavett is a liberal. I think he is rather modest for his intelligence
@trha2222 Trump must be a liberal, by your definition:
@ThisNBAgirl: @realDonaldTrump You are not as smart as Mark Cuban, no matter what you think. Keep to what you know. Lets do an I.Q. test!" (March 18, 2013)
.@hardball_chris must have the lowest IQ on television-now telling people that domestic terrorists are from the right." (April 16, 2013)
"@davidpylejr: @realDonaldTrump @edincamera2 @alphatreblesix you're not really smart Mr. Trump, you're an F-ing genius!" I.Q. tests confirm!" (April 20, 2013)
"I know some of you may think l'm tough and harsh but actually I'm a very compassionate person (with a very high IQ) with strong common sense" (April 21, 2013)
"@gharo34: @realDonaldTrump Not only is your IQ somewhere between Barack Obama and G.W.Bush...but you're entertaining!"Much higher than both" (April 30, 2013)
"Sorry losers and haters, but my I.Q. is one of the highest -and you all know it! Please don't feel so stupid or insecure,it's not your fault" (May 8, 2013)
"@JoshRosenfield: .@realDonaldTrump And yet he refuses to release his IQ results to the public. WHAT ARE YOU HIDING, MR. TRUMP." Ask Obama!" (May 8, 2013)
"@NJWineGeek: @realDonaldTrump but Jon Stewart has a much higher IQ. Wrong, Jon Stewart(?) is an obnoxious lightweight with a lower I.Q." (May 8, 2013)
"@samflaherty_: @realDonaldTrump I'd bet my life savings Obama has a higher IQ than you" You would lose!" (May 8, 2013)
"@RealCoachHodge: @realDonaldTrump has a much higher IQ than idiot John Stewart" That's true, and by a lot." (May 22, 2013)
"@A11_Seeing_Eye: @realDonaldTrump @DAM615 Does an IQ of 60 count as being smart?" No, sadly you are very dumb-but probably born that way." (May 24, 2013)
"@Cokokkola: @realDonaldTrump has a much higher IQ than idiot Lord Sugar- that's why he has much more money!" True on both fronts!" (May 26, 2013)
"@newnonny: @realDonaldTrump @sroyboyk prove it. And while you're at it, prove your alleged IQ as well." The highest, asshole" (June 29, 2013)
"@ardow: @realDonaldTrump Jebs got no IQ ... same as his brother." (May 17, 2015)15. "@mirrorgrrl: Truly Great men come along only once a genration. DonaldTrump Is That Man. Has it all- gentle wisdom,fierce biz savvy,IQ. Wow!" (June 14, 2015)
".@GovernorPerry failed on the border. He should be forced to take an IQ test before being allowed to enter the GOP debate." (July 16, 2015)
"@Hturne: @VanityFair You're spot on! He tries 2b an intellectual elitist.The truth: he has a low IQ, no imagination, no creativity" (November 15, 2015)
"I'm much smarter than them. I think I have a much higher IQ. I think I went to a better college - better everything." (November 23, 2015)
"Weak and totally conflicted people like @TheRickWilson shouldn't be allowed on television unless given an I.Q. test. Dumb as a rock! @CNN" (December 9, 2015)
"@ajodom60: @FoxNews and as far as that low-info voter base goes, I have an IQ of 132. So much for that theory. #MakeAmericaGreatAgain" (December 13, 2015)
"Let's do an IQ test." (May 16, 2016)
"We have by far the highest IQ of any Cabinet ever assembled!" (January 19, 2017)
"I heard poorly rated @Morning_Joe speaks badly of me (don't watch anymore). Then how come low I.Q. Crazy Mika, along with Psycho Joe, came." (June 29, 2017)
If someone has to write that if one has to state....
Many people can't tell if someone is smarter than them. You actually do have to tell them and then lay down specifics to prove it or exhibit an ability to create wealth or status of some kind.
@@torgman Who is going to read that, I came here for Norman.
Where are the Dick Cavett's on TV today?
I wish we still had public intellectuals debating on TV...
There surely weren't any here.
Yes: TV worth watching...
@Billy Doyle Billy, STFU.
@Billy Doyle you pollute the country with vile comments like that.
@Billy Doyle haha Hating Jews and ALL CAPS makes you seem real sane. Get help, filthbag.
I love this exchange. Something that sadly belongs to a different era; it is hard to imagine two public intellectuals going at it in such an entertaining way these days. An early highlight is Mailer with his 'we all know I stabbed my wife'. C'mon, man, don't make such a big deal out of it, we all make mistakes!
Which two? All were exceptional in their trade... though I must admit I think Vidal was the giant here.
Nah, rather, Vidal cowered behind Cavett once he realized Cavett would have a go at Mailer and do all his sparring for him. Vidal was and always will be a true coward.
It's hard to imaging two public intellectuals nowadays period.
@@junkscience6397 Nah, Vidal decided not to interrupt Cavett because he liked where he was going with it. And before him the lady. He could have easily interrupted like modern narcissistic guests do, but he let the conversation continue as it did.
Her name is Janet Flanner. She was a journalist and writer.
"Perhaps you'd like two more chairs to contain your giant intellect?" ...that was brilliant!
"Perhaps you'd like two more chairs to contain your giant intellect."
That's when you drop the mic.
"Why don't you fold it 5 ways & put it where the Moon don't shine" ROFL
I love how Mailer says "think about it," as if he's won something over them with his giant intellect, when in fact he's just being a huge douche. Then, suddenly, he runs out of witty things to say and further proves his douchiness by trying get Cavett to return to his question cards. And before Cavett can even respond to this rude remark, he even makes a cowardly and pathetic attempt to bail himself out of the situation by trying to appeal to the audience. Then Cavett verbally bitch slaps him. Awesome.
I heard better rebuttals when I was in 4th grade, never mind from supposed "intellectuals." Mailer is an ass, and I'm delighted that few people of my generation are familiar with the name.
I saw three gay people dumping on one straight man.We all know Vidal(brilliant but gay) and the woman(very masculine I might add) is a known lesbian from way back-was never pretty.
One straight man who almost killed his wife with pen knife and deserved to get stomped for this behavior here.
Mailer's work sucks and has not stood the test of time outside of some Berkley classes perhaps.
The guy was a total rodent.
And while I don't consider myself necessarily a fan of Cavett per say - he is not forgotten. Search him on RUclips, then Mailer.
Cavett is in a renaissance and is now tied into history permanently with all these critical years (decade +) of interviews he did.
I didn't even effectively know who Cavett was 10 years ago.
Now I'm very familiar with his show.
Mailer? Runs out of witty things to say? I don't think so. Cavett's "shove it where the sun don't shine" comment is dragging it down to a lower level than this conversation with these people deserves.
It's a shame we will never see the Gore Vidal film now. That would've been awesome.
Rest in Peace Mr. Vidal. A most distinct life.
Not only did I meet Gore Vidal, but I had the extraordinary honor to have lunch with him. My thesis advisor was a close friend of Mr. Vidal's. It was an ordinary Thursday when I received a note from my professor in my department mailbox asking me to come by his office. I went, knocked on his office door, and when I opened it I saw Gore Vidal in his wheel chair chatting with my professor. (This was very close to his death). I was invited to lunch with them.
Mailer was so insufferable. Even as a Buckley-ite, it's hard not to love Vidal in this clip.
I don't know how in the hell I came across this, but it sure is great!
My God Mailer was such a jerk
and yet he is your God
mizofan That make me LOL. Thank you!
He stabbed his wife, of course he was.
I saw this when it first aired and couldn't believe what I was seeing. I loved this show.
I wish the whole show was online here
the whole show is on youtube last i checked. & if memory serves (tho i'm not certain it does) with an intro to the whole show by a very recent cavett. check it out. i will too. it may have been taken down (never can be sure about those things) but i strongly doubt it.
link it if you find it. I haven't been able to find it.
From the time I started watching late-night talk (just about the time Paar walked off the Tonight Show) till the time I stopped watching it (just about the time Carson retired), this is, IMO, the single greatest segment of talkshow repartee ever aired.
(Note to X'rs, Y'rs, and Millennials: At one time, "Talk" shows were actually about...
...conversation.)
You go girl!
Cavett pulls this off with class. Most impressive.
Flanner is the true winner here.
did you say 'flamer'? i'm not sure thats the politically correct term for vidal...
Rick Deckard No Janet Flanner was the name of that very witty old woman.
Oh my bad lol
James Kane lol
Rick Deckard
you tit
I met him several years ago at a LA Times Festival of Books. Was an honor to shake his hand.
MAILER - "I'm the gentlest of the four people here..." but I'm also the macho male leaning forward almost out of my chair to try and intimidate you... Seriously, who STILL doesn't run into guys like this...they have to make themselves BIGGER just to TRY to get in your face when they know they're utterly outclassed and wrong...
Absolutely, a riveting classic. So long ago but so contemporary in many ways to see these titans going for the jugular.
this is one of the most intellectual, entertaining segments on YT!! deservedly has almost 500, 000 posts. fabulous!!
where has the 'script' gone in TV, movies, and regular conversation? LOVE this!
I'm watching this because I just found out Rip Torn once hit Mailer in the head with a hammer. r.i.p. hero
You can't blame him for it!
And you can watch that incident in all its glory on youtube.
Gj Dj I love Rip Torn! He was great on The Garry Shandling Show.
I wish that I could see these old interviews again like Frost, Paar, Susskind, Snyder, even Merv Griffin and Mike Douglas conducted interviews. We don't have this any more - let alone people to talk to.
Indeed. They all brought something different and interesting to their interviews. I loved watching Tom Snyder's late night show.
Show, don't tell, Mailer. Trying to illustrate intellectual superiority by declaring oneself intellectually superior isn't the way it works. What a maroon.
Mailer was a genius...but he was also a misogynist, egomaniac, violent alcoholic who liked to abuse people in his circle. To read Mailer on must separate the man from the work.
Any man who says I am the king, is no true king
I mean in this case it does because his work speaks for itself.
It's like Norman Mailer is lobbing the ball in the air, and Dick Cavett smashes it for the point. Game, set, match, Cavett.
I wish Groucho Marx was a guest in this episode! He would've made Norman mailer look even more ridiculous! If that's possible!
What makes you think Groucho Marx would have had any opinion on this matter?
Or Christopher Hitchens!
Or Martin Bormann!
I love that little old lady!
In Mailer's defense, he was said to have been "impaired" during this confrontation on Dick Cavett's show, and allegedly reeked of alcohol back stage, where he and Vidal butted heads. The man is clearly not in top form, and even Dick Cavett has expressed regret for "ganging up" on Mailer during this interview. There was never animosity between the two (in fact, Cavett admired Mailer as a literary figure), and Mailer would appear on Cavett's show many more times following this incident. As for the feud with Gore Vidal, which sometimes had physical clashes, Mailer took exception to the fashion in which Vidal skewered his latest work The Prisoner of Sex. Cavett has said that what appeared on cameras was PG compared to what the two were saying off camera, and I believe the feud would go on for another 15 years.
+Fuchsia Swing Dick Cavett on Judy Gold's Kill me know podcast confirmed he was smashed.
+MrFin487 hah, "swing dick"...
Him being drunk is a "defense?" Was that not the same state of mind in which he stabbed his wife 11 years earlier? it's actually indefensible for him to still be using substances that impaired his brain after stabbing his wife.
When Mailer died Gore Vidal said and wrote some wonderful things about him. They were friends at the end of their lives, appeared together on the cover of Time with Vonnegut, opposing the Bush/Cheney junta. Gore Vidal never doubted Mailer's talent as a writer; was friends with him all through the 50s and 60s. They both fought against the war in Vietnam; but Mailer glorified violence in some ways (he was a great fan of boxing) that Vidal thought were not conducive to a good and just society.
Wow! I didn’t know 70’s television was so awesome 👏
Man, Mailer was out of control. Seriously hilarious stuff.
I'm amazed Vidal was able to sit quietly for that long.
two great lines by Cavett - "perhaps you would like two more chairs to contain your giant intellect" and "why don't you fold it 5 ways and stick it where the moon don't shine". Cavett was great.
I would've knocked mailer flat out when he leaned in at that old lady and after talking about stabbing his wife.
I sympathize with your feelings I actually felt the same, but to be fair he did a good job of knocking himself out intellectually.
That's unfortunate, because Mailer was caught off-guard by Cavett's response and the look on his face was priceless.
great classic tv very entertaining
Dick Cavett always had great interviews and discussions
"Writers who spend all their lives in New York are like scorpions in a bottle. Sometimes the bottle is named art, sometimes it's named politics but it's always the same bottle, a bottle named ego. And if you spend your life like a scorpion inside a bottle, you're not writing, you're wasting time talking about other writers and their opinions." HEMINGWAY And the moral of the story is, if you want to write something that re-defines eternity like THE OLD MAN AND THE SEA re-defines eternity, which both Mailer and Vidal never did, don't spend your life in New York. Or you end up like Vidal and Mailer, scorpions in a bottle, trading insults when they could have been putting valuable time in writing. Time is a luxury. Never waste a luxury.
Well Vidal lived in Italy and L.A. too, but I take your point.
Great post! I just heard about this exchange listening to the audio CDs of Cavett's book, "Talk Show," and so it was nice to see the actual show that he was talking about.
Mailer was famous for picking fights. Physical and otherwise. He was an instigator.
+bush He didn't just stab her he nearly killed her, you can read the details online. The man was a nut. When someone tried to help her after the ordeal he is quoted as saying "Get away from her. Let the bitch die."
Big boozer with an uncontrollable temper...
What a hideous individual he was. Can't believe that Norman Podhoretz could stand him, let alone count him as a close/intimate friend.
@@amandajstar What was Podhoretz and that Medusa wife of his? Some sort of gift to mankind?
Oh she got them good. Love Janet
I don't know who the woman is, but I love her!
trha2222 no she was a writer for New Yorker magazine
That isn't Ayn Rand.
Her name is Janet Flanner.
Rich P LOL
I will make a recommendation to anybody that found Vidal to be fascinating, love him or hate him. There is a documentary available online called 'The Best Of Enemies'. This is a doc on the series of debates between Vidal and Bill Buckley Jr during the 68 Presidential campaigns. Vidal the openly (as openly as anyone dared be), snobbish, hard core liberal, and supremely intelligent. Him and Buckley hated each other, and man does it come across clear in that great doc. Watch it now and thank me later.
Was Mailer suffering from hemorrhoids?
I wish there was the full interview uploaded
Finger bowls are small. If Mailer needs giant chairs for his intellect.... I think that's what he was getting at. But jeez, I never thought I'd be siding with Gore Vidal - Mailer makes him look almost like a gentleman in comparison.
yeah mailer's joke was pretty clear but at that point it was a roast battle and not a polite conversation, since Mailer had insulted everyone, so pretending to not understand your 'opponent's' joke is just one more way to counterattack by implying that it was confusing or not funny. unless cavett really didn't get it.
Cavett is the supreme interviewer ..Super cool
Mailer wasn't on his best behavior here, though Vidal is a class act and I love Cavett's "moon don't shine" remark. Both Mailer and Cavett had great interviews with the Rauschmonstrum.
I wish the uploader had let the video run for a few seconds longer after the "put it where the moon don't shine" zinger. An epic comeback in the history of television if ever I saw one.
I wish there are more shows like Dick Cavett's program around. I may be of the younger generation but this is some good stuff.I doubt any of the copycat shows will be as good as this show was though.
Cavett owned the hell out of Mailer through the entire interview
whoever the lady is, that was great....she brought that show to a nice close. almost.
+reginald barnes Janet Flanner (March 13, 1892 - November 7, 1978) was an American writer and journalist who served as the Paris correspondent of The New Yorker magazine from 1925 until she retired in 1975.
The show is from December 15, 1971, and the sharp witted lady is journalist Janet Flanner.
Does anyone know if there's a full existing recording of this episode of Cavett? I can't find one anywhere online.
After that 'moon don't shine' comment Mailler asks Cavett if he came up with that line himself and Cavett says something along the lines of 'it's Tolstoy, didn't you know that?'.
dick cavett is one of the most important man on the face of the earth and also the luckyest just because of the fact he knew, interviewed, lived with, admired, live in the centre of, the most interesting people of the 20 century, all of them everythime i want to see a writer, singer, thinker, anybody that interests me i watch a cavett show and from that i know more then any documentary sometimes, cavett himself was an interesting person
The dude stabbed his wife. Period. You don´t come back from something like that.
He came back. Way back.
He actually became more famous after stabbing his wife.
Not a single speck of that is surprising, S.D.
Roger Edgerton There were half a dozen witnesses. She didn't shoot at him and he nearly killed her.
Adele Morales died at the age of 90 and in poverty.
You=jerk is one of the best lines I've read in a while, good job sir.
Why was it cut off? Where can I see all of this?
"why dont you fold it five ways and put it where the moon dont shine"
Cavett gets the W on this one
Jesus Christ Norman Mailer and Gore Vidal on a Television talk show. wow!
Mailer, what a stump of a man.
trha2222 indeed
How was he a brilliant writer? He was mediocre at best, tedious and bloated at worst.
He was entirely overrated and lauded only by a certain type of pseudo-intellectual.
I love Janet Flanner: ..."I'm becoming very very bored," then blowing Mailer a kiss.
Cavett in response to the fingerbowl comment and the suggestion that he return to his notes "...why don't you fold it five ways and put it where the moon don't shine."
This clip has been here for years, but have yet to see the whole interview. Anyone know where to find it?
Have you found it yet?
*****
nope, thanks for replying i remember this, so entertaining gonna watch it again.
Dᴀʀʟᴜʀ Nᴀᴍsɪʟʟ Did you hear about the new film about them? Best of Enemies?
Dᴀʀʟᴜʀ Nᴀᴍsɪʟʟ I miss coming across your comments. I may not agree with you, but I rather like you.
SCTV produced a great skit on this feud,featuring Mailer and Vidal plugging some detergent. Mailer ruins Vidal's silk tie and they eventually get in to it as the ad fades out.
Looking that up RIGHT NOW! Thanks for the heads up!
Why is the "where's the beef" lady on?
Now that is very funny lol.
That is a great remark that you have made here. I just read a popular fiction novel by Barbara Kingsolver where the protagonist, speaking in reference to the pervasive monotony of McCarthyism, said that the talkers had replaced the thinkers. It is all spectacle now and I imagine in 20 years' time, most people will not be able to comprehend this clip at all. -'tarotworldtour'
Norman Mailer was so arrogant at this time in his life. Or possibly drunk.
Thanks for the info love her attitude with those two talking like there was no one else there but the two of them. She put them in their place and I was in stitches laughing!
A pretty shocking interview, even today. Sadly, they were both great writers, in the particular styles, Vidal, yes, the more erudite person, but also cruel, Mailer, more accessible and representing the lives of everyday man and woman, but hobbled by doubt and thus could be a bully. They both have great works and will be read for some time to come. Ego can be destructive as both demonstrate. Flanner, essentially a reflective culture commentator and essayist, never produced a work equal to any of Vidal's or Mailer's greatest work, but she was smart, wry, observant, funny and cutting herself. Thus a good foil for the moment. Sadly, Mailer, generally ambivalent to negative, repressed, intense, primal, emotional, and frankly, bisexual psychologically when it came to men, a love/hate dynamic, couldn't regulate his emotional states and always responded when provoked. Alcohol doesn't help. He's not 'drunk' here; they were both heavy drinkers; Vidal insults him and provokes, even before the show, to put on a show, and Mailer, unfortunately allowed it to affect him. I'm more sympathetic to Mailer's obvious human vulnerability and hurt, even with his bad behavior and prickly personality, than Vidal's, however much I love his mind and his work, his manipulative and cunning predatory behavior.
Janet, you are savage. Bravo!
Who's the old lady?
That's Janet Flanner. She wrote for The New Yorker for 50 years including World War II.
Thanks.
Did anyone else applaud when the old lady interjected?
The golden days of TV.