Mary Tyler Moore 1966 Interview

[LittleRickyII]

with David Susskind:

http://www.hulu.com/watch/46485

I've watched the entire show. There's an astrologer on there named Katherine De Jersey. It's interesting to hear all the predictions she made that she got wrong: Richard Nixon would never become president; Robert Kennedy would become president in 1972; the Vietnam War would end in 1969. The only thing I heard that she got right was that Lyndon Johnson would not seek reelection. I'm not sure the mood of the country in 1966, but there may have been signs at the time that would lead anyone to conclude that. It's interesting to hear these wrong predictions, especially after someone questions her on whether she's ever gotten anything wrong. She says "probably," but she's not aware if she has. And she goes on to say that, if she did miss anything, it would have been something from earlier in her career when she was just a novice and didn't have as good an understanding of astrology. Regarding Mary, she makes the prediction she'll be a "smash" in Breakfast at Tiffany's, whether or not the play is successful. Here's how Wikipedia says that turned out: "[Mary Tyler Moore] was the star of a new musical version of Breakfast at Tiffany's in December 1966, but the show, titled Holly Golightly, was a notorious flop that closed in previews before opening on Broadway. In reviews of performances in Philadelphia and Boston, critics "murdered" the play in which Moore claimed to be singing with bronchial pneumonia."

A sign of how times have changed, an angry audience member gets and tries to engage the Ms. de Jersey in an argument, saying everything she has said is bunk. Mr. Susskind seems uncomfortable with this exchange and, after a commercial break, invites people to write in for tickets to participate on the show, but "only if you're sincerely interested in our guests." We don't want "kooks," he says. These days, TV hosts would be encouraging an argument and welcoming anyone who would start one.