All-Star BAM Bash; Irons Flies In (Newly Revised 2/15 to include personal account of panel discussion)
by Neal Travis, The New York Post
February 13, 2001
MOVIE people generally shoot their scenes in Brooklyn, then rush back to Manhattan. But some big names were partying late across the East River at the weekend opening of the Brooklyn Academy of Music's tribute to producer Ed Pressman.
"Reversal of Fortune" opened the retrospective, and its star, Jeremy Irons, flew in from London for the occasion to join Annie and Ed Pressman, Alan Dershowitz and Christine Baranski. (Alan and Christine were both involved with the making of the Claus von Bulow story.)
[Webmaster's Note: As the Brooklyn Academy of Music is in legendary and history Brooklyn, New York, the hometown of your webmaster, Colby Court and within walking distance of both my home and office, I herewith profer my account as a member of the audience on this auspicious occasion.
As soon as the house lights came up after the screening of Reversal, the panel members appeared stage left to take their places in the chairs which had been arranged in the narrow space between the first row of audience seats and the screen. I was in the first row, center. The panel sat, left to right: Christine Baranski, Jeremy, Glenn, David Denby (noted movie critic and moderator,) Alan Dershowitz, Elon Dershowitz (co-producer of Reversal,) Ed Pressman.
Jeremy was hungry and the first thing he did when he sat down was to demand some popcorn when he saw several bags of it among the seats. Poignant disappointment registered on his face when told the bags were empty. How badly I wished one were full and had belonged to me but, alas, none were. Those are the breaks!
OK, what was he wearing, you ask. Lace-up brown work boots, brown work pants, a plain black sweater with buttons across one shoulder over a white button-down collar dress shirt. His hair looked recently trimmed and styled -- rather short (for him) but slightly longish in back. Oh yes, gray socks.
Asked how Jeremy came to take the role of Claus, Jeremy emphasized that it was at Glenn's suggestion that they "go for Jeremy," at which point he reached for his wallet in jest and pantomimed paying Glenn off. Christine also added her personal tribute to Jeremy and it was agreed to by all that "no one else could have played it."
Jeremy explained the point at which he felt he had captured the character and said it was when he was satisfied he had mastered the voice. He claims he didn't have the voice down as he wanted at first. He had seen Claus on television but "TV is so ephemeral," he said. After some scenes had already been shot, he said "the voice appeared," which it hadn't, at the beginning. Once he felt he had the voice, the earlier scenes were dubbed over.
In a retelling of the story of his meeting with Claus, he provided these details: It took place at the mansion of one of the Gettys who lives near him in Oxfordshire on the occasion of a party for a cricketer whom one of Jeremy's sons admired. Claus happened to be one of the other guests. Among Claus's numerous petty criticisms was that he didn't think Jeremy's accent "was upper class enough." Jeremy declared, "that's my boy!"
At one point, a cell phone rang very loudly and it turned out to be Ed Pressman's. Jeremy immediately adlibbed, "someone want to get that?" and in a sly aside remarked, "it's probably his wife from right outside."
One of Jeremy's favorite people throughout the making of the movie turns out to have been Nicholas Kazan, the screenwriter who was scheduled to be on the panel but couldn't make it. He said Nick was always available to him by telephone and very open to suggestions for changes in dialogue.
When asked what his inspiration for Claus had been, Jeremy said he evoked his own father "to connect."
At the party at the Getty mansion where he met Claus, he said he developed a crush on the beautiful young actress who played Cosima and also that Claus tried to pick up Sinead!
In explaining how he would characterize Claus in order to personify him, he said Claus "is a bad actor."
When the panel discussion was declared over, I followed the celebrities out into the lobby from a discreet distance. Seizing a chance for an autograph, I asked Jeremy to sign my announcement for the retrospective. He takes autograph signing quite seriously. He signs very carefully and slowly. He is also extremely appreciative of his fans. When I thanked him, just as he had 16 years ago when he signed for me at the stage door of The Real Thing, he looked genuinely pleased and grateful to me. He smiled beatifically at me, extended his hand and reached out to pat me on the shoulder! But that is never enough for him. He started to move on but, again just like 16 years ago, he stopped and turned back to look for me and winked and smiled at me again. It's an extraordinary gesture and totally sincere.
He, Christine and Glenn hung out in the BAM lobby for a little while waiting to be taken to a party, I overheard someone say. Jeremy's coat was brought to him. Unlike the rather preppy style of the rest of his outfit, his coat was a full-length black wool smock -- very full, billowy, feminine and characteristically flamboyant. It's a gorgeous coat and very much what I would have hoped and expected to see him wear. They busied themselves autographing videotapes of Reversal for BAM and Jeremy finally got to have some popcorn!
By chance, I noticed a man standing nearby in the lobby who was very tall. Taller than Jeremy. I took the opportunity to finally get a really accurate reading on Jeremy's true height. I realized Jeremy was somewhat taller than I always thought. I asked this man how tall HE was and he said he was 6' 5 1/2". Compared to Jeremy, he was about 3" taller, I thought, which means Jeremy is approximately 6' 3" tall.
At this point, I went on my way.
Herewith, the rest of the article:
The party after was at Kino Resto, and Patty Bosworth was there taking a break from her Jane Fonda bio and mixing with Paul Schrader, Elizabeth and Sean Stone (Oliver's ex-wife and his son), George Butler, Kaylie Jones and James Atlas.
Ed Pressman, Ken Lipper and Elliott Kastner huddled in one corner discussing their co-production of "Indecent Exposure," the movie about Hollywood swindler David Begelman. I still think Anthony Hopkins is likely to play the lead, but I'm now hearing that the likes of Irons, Dustin Hoffman and Michael Caine are also hot for the project.
[Webmaster's Note: The following text and photo at top are brand new additions to this story from Variety.)
Manhattan's glittering skyline and the East River's black waters made a fitting backdrop to the after-party Friday at Brooklyn's Kino restaurant, where fans, friends, and colleagues arrived to celebrate the work of prolific New York producer Edward R. Pressman, whose five-week retrospective opened at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. New Yorker film critic David Denby, who grew up with Pressman in Manhattan, was definitive on the importance of Pressman. "He's the most original producer we've got. He chooses the most difficult material." Jeremy Irons, looking stylishly rumpled in brown jeans and a blue sweater, described Pressman as being "always supportive and dead straight on." About the earlier screening of "Reversal of Fortune," Irons said, "It's really a black comedy."