Nacido en una familia de campesinos de origen sueco pronto sintió interés por la interpretación por lo que, tras estudiar en Los Angeles City College, se inscribirá en el departamento de teatro de la UCLA, participando en varias obras de teatro como Billy Bud adaptación de una novela de Herman Melville. A principios de los 50 se muda a Nueva York con el objeto de estudiar junto a Steve Adler y en 1959 se produce su debut en el cine en “Cabalgando en solitario” uno de los westerns que formó parte del mítico ciclo dirigido por Budd Boetticher e interpretado por Randolph Scott.
El comienzo de la década de los sesenta supone una época de trabajo frenético para el actor interviniendo en numerosas series de televisión (muchas de ellas del oeste) como “Alfred Hitchcock presenta”, “Bronco”, “Bat Materson”, “Wichita Town” con Joel McCrea, “El pistolero de San Francisco” con Richard Boone, “Peter Gunn” serie creada por Blake Edwards, “Wanted dead or live” con Steve McQueen, “Death Valley Days” con Robert Taylor, “Los intocables”, “Cheyenne”, “El hombre del rifle”, “Rawhide” con Clint Eastwood, “Perry Mason”, “Bonanza” o “Combact” serie mítica de guerra por la que pasaron directores como Robert Altman, Burt Kennedy y Tom Gries.
Paralelamente desarrolla una lenta pero firme carrera en la gran pantalla y se le podrá ver en films de la altura de “Los siete magníficos” (1960) dirigida por John Sturges en la que interpretaba al experto lanzador de cuchillos de pocas palabras, “Comando” (1962) cinta bélica dirigida por Don Siegel en la que tuvo de nuevo como compañero a Steve McQueen, “La gran evasión” (1963) otro film bélico dirigido, en esta ocasión, por John Sturges que contaba con tres de los siete magníficos Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson y él o “Charada” (1963) delicioso thriller a lo Hitchcock pero con un tono de comedia dirigido por Stanley Donen e interpretado por Cary Grant y Audrey Hepburn.
1965 constituirá un año fundamental para el actor ya que le ofrecerán dos papeles clave en su carrera: el explorador Samuel Potts en el western de Sam Pekinpah “Mayor Dundee” protagonizado por Charlton Heston y Richard Harris y el de Zac, hombre de confianza del jefe Anthonny Quinn ,en la maravillosa película de piratas “Con el viento en las velas” de Alexander Mackendrik.
A partir de ese momento, y ya convertido en estrella, encadenará un gran número de éxitos que se alargarán durante la década de los setenta: “Flint agente secreto” (1966) y “F de Flint” en las que encarnaba a un agente secreto más irónico que James Bond al que parodiaba, “¿Qué hiciste en la guerra papi?” (1966) comedia bélica dirigida por Blake Edwards con el que repetiría en el thriller “Diagnóstico asesinato” (1972), “Pat Garret y Billy the Kid” (1973) y “La cruz de hierro” (1977) ambas de Sam Pekinpah (director al que le unía una estrecha relación de amistad), “Muerde la bala” (1975) dirigida por Richard Brooks y protagonizada por Gene Hackman y Candice Bergen, también en ese año “El luchador” film realizado por Walter Hill en el que volvería a coincidir con Charles Bronson o “Los últimos hombres duros” (1976) violento western del especialista Andrew V. McLaglen que le volvió a emparejar con Charlton Heston pero esta vez en un rol negativo .
Es en la década de los setenta en la que aparecerá en sus dos únicos pero excelentes spaghettis en los que compondrá dos personajes inolvidables: John Mallory, un irlandés experto en explosivos con un triste pasado que acaba ayudando a los revolucionarios en Méjico en la infravalorada película del maestro Leone “Agáchate maldito” en la que tuvo como compañero a Rod Steiger y Pembroke, el coronel degradado que dirigirá una misión suicida para recuperar un fuerte a los sudistas, del film dirigido por Tonino Valerii “Una razón para vivir y una para morir”.
En 1979 le diagnosticaron artritis reumatoide lo que provocó que espaciara sus apariciones tanto en la gran pantalla como en televisión. Parcialmente recuperado gracias a un tratamiento alternativo volvería a trabajar a buen ritmo en los noventa con apariciones en películas como “Intrépidos forajidos” (1990) en la que interpretaba al histórico ganadero John Chisum, “Maverick” (1994) junto a Mel Gibson, James Garner y Jodie Foster adaptación de una famosa serie de televisión de la década de los cincuenta y, sobre todo, “Aflicción” (1997) un estupendo drama basado en la gran novela de Russell Banks y dirigido por Paul Schrader por el que por fin obtuvo su merecidísimo Oscar (nunca antes había sido nominado) como actor secundario por su papel de padre de Nick Nolte.
Continuará trabajando hasta el mismo año de su muerte y su últimas apariciones serán en un episodio de la serie “Arli$$” y en los films “American Gunn” y “Aventuras en Alaska”.
Coburn's screen persona gave Americans what Sean Connery gave to the English: an urbane, sophisticated hero, who can let loose a one-liner, dry martini or deadly karate chop in the blink of one eye, while winking at us, the audience, with the other. His cat-like grace and steely intensity made him one of the top box office stars of the 60's and 70's, and Coburn still retains a strong following of fans as the 1990's come to a close.
Coburn has appeared in dozens of films. Just a few other noteworthy ones include Don Seigel's Hell Is For Heroes (1962), Charade (1963), Paddy Chayefsky's The Americanization of Emily (1964), Sergio Leone's Duck You Sucker! (1971), Richard Brooks' Bite the Bullet, and Walter Hill's Hard Times (both 1975). A near-fatal bout of rheumatoid arthritis slowed Coburn down in the late 70's, just when he was reaching the peak of his career. After focusing his considerable discipline on building (or re-building) his body, Coburn now happily declares that he is "pain free." Seeing the silver-maned, elegant Coburn stroll through the garden of the Beverly Hills home where this interview took place, one would never guess this was a man who was near death once upon a time. The lithe, cat-like grace is still there, as is the charm, easy laugh, and ten thousand watt smile that has been captivating the movie-going world for nearly 40 years. The foremost thing on Coburn's mind these days is his latest film, Paul Schrader's Affliction. In it, he plays Pop Whitehouse, father to Sheriff Wade Whitehouse (Nick Nolte). Affliction is the searing, much-talked about film that deals with domestic violence as it's passed down through the generations of a family like a cancerous heirloom. Coburn's venomous performance has critics and the public alike buzzing "Oscar." If nominated, it would be a first for Coburn, who, at 70, seems less like an old veteran gunning for a last lap around the track, than a seasoned pro whose powers are every bit at their peak when he enters the ring. There goes the bell. Round one...
Your character Pop Whitehouse is one of the most loathsome villains to grace a movie screen in recent memory. Did you have trouble shaking him off once the picture wrapped?
JAMES COBURN: Not really, because I got it all out. It's really when you can't get it out or when you're doing it on stage and you have to do it over and over again that it can be troubling. But I learned long ago how to get rid of it by doing it! (laughs) You get it out...villains are really fun to play because they're usually meatier characters, because they've made decisions that haven't all been very good ones, (laughs) and are paying the price, with a little karma attached. They have something to say, I think. I never play them as a "bad guy." I play them like I have something to accomplish. In Affliction, it was "I have to get my boys to be men! If they're not strong men, by God, I'll beat the shit out of them!" That's what makes him seem so savage...it's that conflict. Scripts without conflict are really boring. Characters without conflict are really boring to play, because you're always trying to catch up with something. And this one was just loaded with conflict. Paul (Schrader) said to Nick and I in the beginning "I'm just gonna let you two guys go after each other!" And we did. We went for it. It was great fun. I'd like to do it all over again.
Is it difficult to go to such a dark place as an actor?
It's sometimes difficult to find, initially. But as actors, we don't have to be who we're playing. That's one of the good things about being an actor. But, if you let yourself get locked into that, where that character becomes your essence, that's scary. There was an old film called A Double Life (1947), starring Ronald Coleman, where he became so infected with Othello, that he actually performed it for real, with his own Desdemona. Stella Adler, who I studied with, said "Actors act. They don't have to be their roles." On Affliction, we were all joking around between takes, then when we went back to it, boom! We were right back into it again, because it was written so well. It was very straight-on. There was no ambiguity about the characters, and it's really fun and enriching when that happens. As actors that's what we try to do, enrich our own beings by absorbing impressions, then generating it out through our craft and giving it to the audience. Truth is obvious, it's always obvious, isn't it? Screenplays sometimes hide the truth, which isn't necessary. You have to give audiences some credit. You don't have to play around the truth. And what Pop Whitehouse was saying, even though you might hate him for it, was the truth! He knew exactly who he was. He was, nevertheless, afflicted, but he was also very honest.
Tell us some more about working with Paul Schrader.
Schrader knows what he wants and knows when he's got it. He'll play to shades. "A little darker, Jim." "Not so bright!" (laughs) It was a very good shoot, not difficult at all. And Paul certainly helped in that.
What was it like studying with Stella Adler?
Great. I actually studied with Jeff Corey out here first. His philosophy was more improvisational. Get away from your ego, get away from lines, things like that. Learn how to play the action of the scene, that's what improv is really about. Stella, on the other hand, was into style. The style of Shakespeare, modern styles...she'd show you how to do it. You'd see her transform into a raving hag and then into a little girl. Drop of a hat, bang. That's what I mean about acting. You don't have to live it. As long as the character doesn't inhabit you, that's the kick of acting. De Niro studied with Stella. She was furious with him for putting all that weight for Raging Bull. (laughs)(imitating Stella) "What are you doing to yourself?! You'll ruin your health!" (laughs). She was very demanding, very hard on women especially. She would just strip you down, peel your ego right off your skin.
Who was in your class at Stella's?
Warren Beatty was in my class. He played piano in this Irish drama we did called Red Roses for Me. I played an Irishman (in an Irish brogue) "Aye, what's goin' on over here?!" (laughs) There were a couple others, but Warren went on to the most prominence. From there, I went onto live TV. The first thing I ever did was with Sidney Lumet. That's how I paid my rent, that and commercials. I once did a Remington Rand commercial where I shaved off eleven days of growth, live on-camera, in less than a minute! (laughs)
You did a couple Twilight Zones also. What was Rod Serling like?
Serling was very tight-lipped. He had a jaw that never completely opened up! (laugh) But I really loved him. He was a sweet guy. I was always running into him when he was going back to D.C. to "do something." He was very active politically, always trying to "get things done." That's why all of his things had some sort of a political bent. Not just political, but sociological as well. They were all about something. You just don't have that anymore. You have a couple of guys beating each other up, a little sex here and there, but it's not about anything anymore. As good as NYPD Blue is, it's about relationships, and nothing else. But Rod was great, he was just dynamite and that's what killed him. He just used all of himself up. But now they don't even need actors. They've got The Rugrats, they've got the pig (Babe), they've got cartoons...they're slowly getting rid of the actor, which they've been trying to do for years. (laughs) "Why do we need actors?"
You and Steve McQueen were great friends. Tell us about Steve.
Steve always thought of himself as a re-actor, not an actor. I think he got that from John Wayne (laughs). What can I tell you about Steve? (His first wife) Neile used to call him a "male nymphomaniac." (laughs) He had an incredibly dynamic personality. He was like a kid. He said to me one time "Why can't they make a movie about just one guy--me!" (laughs) He even had a script idea about a guy who crashes in the desert, and trying to survive. While we were shooting Hell is for Heroes, we were shooting up in Redding, where it was so hot, I mean 110 in the shade. And the studio gave him this convertible. And we'd be driving along the road, and all of the sudden he'd shoot off the road and go tearing through the woods, as fast as he could until he ran into something! So he wore this car out in about a week and a half, and they sent a guy out who said "What the hell happened to this car?!" Steve said "I dunno. It just stopped running." (laughs) He would always test the producer, Marty Ransohoff. When they were doing The Cincinnati Kid (1965), he ordered two dozen pairs of Levis on the studio! Marty said "What the hell do you mean?! You don't wear any Levis in this picture!" Steve said "Yeah, but I wear them to and from the picture." (laughs) He hated to go out in public. He hated to sign autographs. He hated people to come up and bother him. So he'd put on disguises to go out.
It sounds like you guys were polar opposites.
We were, except that we both were fascinated with cars. We hung out together quite a bit, would drive cars, smoke grass, have a great time. He was a unique character, all those guys were. Steve. Peckinpah...
Tell us about Sam Peckinpah.
Sam Peckinpah was a genius for four hours a day. The rest of that time he was drunk. He called himself "a working alcoholic," but he was much more than that. I think the alcohol sort of quelled all the influences that were going on around him so he could really focus on what he was doing with the film. He would shoot with three cameras and just...do it. You never talked with Sam about things like motivation. I asked him one time, when we were doing Major Dundee. I said "Sam, what is it that makes my character tick?" And he thought about it for a minute and finally said "Drier. Dry. He doesn't give a shit." And that's who that character was! And that's how I played him...It was really sad what happened to that picture. The studio took it away from him and re-cut it. We had a great knife fight in that picture, between Mario Adorf and myself. And it was a viscous fucking knife fight. While we were shooting it, people were yelling for us to stop! That's how real it looked. It was a terrific piece of action, and it was cut from the film...the night it premiered at the Paramount theater, Sam saw the studio's cut and was just devastated. His hands were shaking. He had half a pint of whiskey and dropped it. It smashed on the floor. And my wife at the time said "Sam, it's okay, it's only a movie."
When you look at Major Dundee, it's sort of like looking at the U.S. cut of Pat Garrett, which was also severely compromised by the studio. You can see there's a masterpiece in there somewhere.
I agree, but what they call the "director's cut" of Pat Garrett is actually just the television cut. Sam had the only true cut that he made, and that's up in his archives in Sonoma. When he finished cutting Pat Garrett, it was taken away from him. This was Jim Aubrey at MGM and he was more interested in getting his hotel ready than he was in film. I think he really despised anybody who displayed artistry. He really like digging into them. When we started shooting Pat Garrett, I just finished shooting a film with Blake Edwards called The Carey Treatment (1973) that Aubrey also took away and re-cut. And I said to Sam "This guy's crazy! He could do this film all sorts of harm." Sam said "Don't worry about a thing, Jim. I just bought one share of stock in MGM, and if they mess with me, goddammit, I'll sue their asses!" (laughs) "One share of stock, Sam?! What's that gonna do ?!" "You'll see." (laughs)
I heard a story that Peckinpah got drunk during the shoot and didn't want to kill Billy! True?
Yeah, but he wasn't that drunk. We were sitting in his trailer and he said "Goddammit! Why do we have to kill him?" "Well Sam, that's the way it happened." "Well, why can't we make it un-happen?" "Sam we can't do it." (beat) "Why...not?!" (laughs) I think he saw a lot of himself in the character of Billy...We found out halfway through the shoot that most of the masters we had shot were out of focus. We were using five or six cameras at once and we didn't have a camera mechanic because MGM wouldn't pay for one! So we used different lenses, different set-ups, and still, it's all out of focus. Finally the camera mechanic is sent out. It turns out the flange in the camera was off by one one thousandth of an inch, or some damn thing. So we tell Aubrey that we have to re-shoot all these masters. He says "You're not gonna re-shoot anything. The audience isn't gonna know the fuckin' difference!" Can you imagine?! It was just mind-blowing! So what we did was, we stole all those shots when the brass didn't know we were shooting and got it all! So now this really pissed them off, because now we had some real film on our hands! (laughs) So Sam had his cut previewed, and at the same time, Aubrey had his guys cutting their film. So all the editors got together and gave Sam a cut of his film, but without a soundtrack. He didn't get that back until he cut it for television. But there's only about five minutes missing from that cut he originally made.
I thought R.G. Armstrong was really amazing in that film.
R.G. Armstrong saved my life. I had rheumatoid arthritis really badly and every day for ten months he'd come over and give me a deep tissue massage. I couldn't stand up without breaking a sweat. This was about 1978-79. I didn't come out of it completely until the last couple years. Doctors don't really know anything about arthritis, other than to say "take these." So I went on a long fast, fifteen days, then broke the fast. Took a blood test and found out I was allergic to 45 out 75 foods that I was tested for. Started eating right, but I was still contaminated, so R.G. came over and just broke down all that crystallization that had occurred. I was turning to stone, really, is what happened. I'm free of pain now because of this drug I'm taking called MSM. It rejuvenates the tendons. It's fantastic because I couldn't move. And this was all right at the peak of my career. If you have a background of Irish or Scotch-Irish, you're predisposed to having that arthritic gene. But you never know what triggers it. Mine was triggered by negative emotion. I was going through a divorce and I wasn't going to "let it affect me." So I was just turning to stone on the inside instead. It's a terrible disease. The immune system takes calcium out of the bones, and puts it into the muscles. And then the ligaments shorten. That's why you see a lot of arthritics who look shriveled.
Tell us about the genesis of The President's Analyst.
Ted Flicker I met while we were shooting Charade in Paris. He'd come over to meet with his friend Peter Stone, who'd written the picture. So Ted was sitting in the background with his big black shades, watching us shoot. So Peter introduced us...George Peppard and Elizabeth Ashley were having a Christmas party a few years later. Ted was there. He said "I've just finished a script called 'The President's Analyst.'" I said "That's an intriguing title. Do you have a deal on it?" He said "No." So I took it home, read it, and wanted to do it. Ted said he wanted to direct it, so I said "Let me talk to Paramount." I had just done Waterhole No. 3 (1967) over there. Robert Evans had just taken over, he loved it. Peter Bart read it, loved it. They said "Can he direct?" I said "I dunno, let's find out." So they put the whole deal together in five days! It was Evans' first film at Paramount. There are some great scenes in there. It was named one of the finest political films of the decade by the Sunday Times in London...Ted Flicker never did another movie. He moved out to New Mexico, did one hit TV show, the name of which escapes me, and sculpts, paints. Just finished a script about the Civil War.
I know you were also very close to Bruce Lee. Tell us about Bruce.
Bruce was a true martial artist, created himself, from a little roustabout guy running around the streets of Hong Kong, into this magnificent fighting machine. He truly was an artist. His art had no defensive movements. It was all attack. He was so fast, you couldn't touch him. He was so fast, he had to slow down for the camera, because it couldn't catch him! It would look like he hadn't done anything. (laughs) We wrote a script together called The Silent Flute, with Sterling Silliphant. We all went to India. Everytime we went someplace, Bruce had this pad that he'd hold in one hand and punch with the other! It drove me nuts! (laughs) I said "Bruce, will you cut it out, man?! You're shaking the whole airplane!" He said "But it make my knuckles hard!" "I know, but it's pissing me off!" (laughs) Everything he did was related to his art. But he had a great sense of humor, or he did until he went to Hong Kong. He came back from Hong Kong one time, and he was always very outspoken about martial arts. "This martial arts in Hong Kong is bullshit," he said, because there was no bodily contact. "Judo good. Ju-jitsu good. Aikido, best. But this other stuff, no good." So we'd go to these tournaments and he'd spout off...he was back in Hong Kong, and was invited to this tournament that was televised, as an observer. He was famous, and controversial, as being an outspoken martial artists. So they were breaking boards and ice with their heads...Bruce said "That's not martial arts." So they said "Why don't you show us your idea of martial arts..." So they taped up three thick pine boards. So he held it out and side kicked it, and everything went flying into the air, knocked one of the lightbulbs out way up. Sparks came flying down...it was one of those great, dynamic moments! And the next day, the papers were filled with this! From that, both Run Run Shaw and Raymond Chow, who were big film producers there, made him offers to do films there. So he came back and we were having dim sum at the Golden Door down in Chinatown, and he's telling me all this. He said "They want me to do this TV series at Warner Brothers called Kung-Fu. But I'm also getting these offers in Hong Kong. What should I do?" So I thought about it for a minute, because he really wasn't a good actor. But he had great dynamic presence and had this macho attitude that he could play really well...but that would be very tiresome watching for an hour on television. Plus he spoke with a very heavy Chinese accent. So I said "Go back to Hong Kong and make southeast Asian movies. You'll be huge star." "But I want to work here." I said "You want to be a movie star, right? It's what you've always wanted." He thought for a minute and said "I want to make more money than Steve McQueen." (laughs) So he went to southeast Asia, David Carradine did Kung-Fu in slow motion, Bruce became a huge movie star and made more money than Steve McQueen. Strange story...Anyway, then I get a call one morning from Sterling Silliphant saying "Bruce is dead." I didn't believe him, but I learned that a couple months before he'd come home and passed out in between really these really intense workouts that he was doing. And this girl that he was with couldn't wake him up. He went to all of these doctors who told him "Your body's perfect, you're just over-worked." He went back and within six weeks he was dead of an edema of the brain. And that was that...
What do you think of the state of most Hollywood films today?
I'm from the Billy Wilder school. Somebody asked him "Do you ever go to movies?" He said "No." They said "Why not?" Wilder said (German accent)"Build da set, blow it up! Boom!" (laughs) Finally, they've gotten rid of the actors.
Still, there's films like Affliction, only they're all indie films, as opposed to studio pictures.
Right, they're all about something. You have to go the indie route. The English Patient was about something, and it was an indie. But look how long it took that to get made. But when it was, all the actors went for it. And we do, we do go for that. And Billy Wilder, one of the greatest directors in history, can't get a fuckin' job! He can't get hired.
I know a producer who wanted Wilder for a film at Tri-Star a few years ago, and the exec at Tri-Star said "Billy Wider...?" Isn't he, like, 70?"
(laughs) Yeah, but he's got 70 years of talent in him, too! I don't know where these guys come from. They come out of business school, not film school...All the studio heads when I started out were filmmakers, they knew and understood the craft. They weren't owned by corporations. Zanuck was always a filmmaker. Jack Warner was at Warners when I started. Cohn was at Columbia. All their movies were about something. It wasn't about making money so much, as about making entertainment that would make money. Now it's about build the set, blow it up! Give somebody a giant gun and let it go boom-boom-boom...but it's really in the hands of the people. If it goes into the hands of the mechanics, it's going to go down the tubes. But I think there's enough interest in some of the young filmmakers and actors in doing quality work. There's some wonderful actors out there: Johnny Depp, Robert Downey Jr., Helen Hunt, Ed Norton...I think real filmgoers are interested in something more intelligent and challenging...but where is it going? Well, if I could say where it was going, I'd invest in it! (laughs)
Una conversación con James Coburnpor Timothy Rhys
James Coburn himself will tell you that it's sometimes hard to separate the actor from the characters he plays, and since no one in Hollywood has played the Cool Customer longer or better than Coburn, he probably knew exactly what I was expecting as I drove to the Beverly Hills home of his longtime friend and manager, Hilard ("Hilly") Elkins, for the interview I'd scheduled right after I saw Affliction last fall. El propio James Coburn le dirá que a veces es difícil separar al actor de los personajes que interpreta, y ya que nadie en Hollywood ha jugado al Cliente Cool más o mejor que Coburn, probablemente sabía exactamente lo que yo esperaba que me dirigí a la Beverly Hills a casa de su amigo y manager, Hilard ("Hilly") Elkins, de la entrevista que había programado justo después de haber visto la aflicción el otoño pasado. The first thing I noticed was the voice --the rich, booming, God-on-a-mountain voice. Lo primero que noté fue la voz - los ricos, en pleno auge, el Dios-on-a-voz de montaña. He was in another room, just finishing a voice-over for a new movie, and as he spoke I recalled some of the characters I'd seen him play over the years. Él estaba en otra habitación, terminando de una voz en off para una nueva película, y mientras hablaba me acordé de algunos de los personajes que había visto jugar en los últimos años. From the impossible-to-ruffle knife thrower, Britt, in one of my favorite boyhood movies, The Magnificent Seven, to the silky smooth Commodore in Maverick, he has made a career of cool, setting a new standard for every actor who follows him. Desde el lanzador de cuchillos imposibles de volante, Britt, en una de mis películas favoritas infancia, Los siete magníficos, a la seda suave Commodore en Maverick, que ha hecho una carrera genial, estableciendo un nuevo estándar para todos los actores que lo sigue . He's fun to watch, but more than that, even in a cameo, he is a performer who demands to be watched. Él es muy divertido ver, pero más que eso, incluso en un cameo, es un artista que exige ser visto. (See Payback for a prime example.) The only problem I ever had with Coburn is that I never saw enough of him. (Vea la recuperación de la inversión para un buen ejemplo.) El único problema que tuve con Coburn es que nunca he visto lo suficiente de él. And I never understood why, since he's one of the few actors whose movies I'll watch for no reason other than that he's in them. Y nunca he entendido por qué, ya que él es uno de los pocos actores cuyas películas voy a ver por ninguna otra razón que está en ellos. Although I was aware of his crippling bout with rheumatoid arthritis in recent years, it still seemed to me that he was never fully appreciated by Hollywood. Aunque era consciente de su combate paralizante con artritis reumatoide en los últimos años, todavía me parecía que nunca se aprecia plenamente en Hollywood. That all finally changed in March, of course, when he was recognized with an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Glen Whitehouse in Affliction. Que todos finalmente cambió en marzo, por supuesto, cuando fue reconocido con un Oscar al Mejor Actor Secundario por su papel de Glen Whitehouse en la aflicción.
When he strode out to greet me, I was a bit surprised because, although he fills the room with his presence, as advertised, apart from the imposing height, toothy grin and father-of-all-pitch-men voice, the first thing I noticed about James Coburn was not the coolness, but the warmth of the man. Cuando él se acercó a saludarme, me sorprendió un poco porque, a pesar de que llena el ambiente con su presencia, como se anuncia, además de la imponente altura, amplia sonrisa y su padre-de-todo-terreno de juego, los hombres de voz, lo primero me llamó la atención James Coburn no era el frío, pero el calor del hombre.Timothy Rhys (TR): You shot affliction in Montreal, didn't you? Timoteo Rhys (TR): Se toma la aflicción en Montreal, ¿no?
James Coburn (JC): Yes, we did. James Coburn (JC): Sí, lo hicimos. The crews up there are good, the people are great. Los equipos de arriba son buenos, la gente es genial. And Montreal itself is really extraordinary. Y Montreal en sí es realmente extraordinario.
TR: I've been to the Montreal Film Festival the past few years. TR: Yo he estado en el Festival de Cine de Montreal en los últimos años. A lot of good movies are coming out of that city. Un montón de buenas películas están saliendo de esa ciudad.
JC: That's right. JC: Eso es correcto. Nick (Nolte) shot three or four films up there last year. Nick (Nolte) disparo con tres o cuatro películas hasta el año pasado. He did a fantastic job in this movie, didn't he? Él hizo un trabajo fantástico en esta película, ¿no?
TR: Absolutely. TR: Por supuesto. It was one of your nicest performances, too, I thought. Fue uno de sus mejores actuaciones, también, pensé.
JC: Yeah, it was good. JC: Sí, era bueno. Good writing, good director, good people to work with. La buena escritura, buen director, buena gente para trabajar.
TR: Had you worked with Schrader or Nolte before? TR: ¿Habías trabajado con Schrader o Nolte antes?
JC: No, I hadn't worked with any of them before. JC: No, yo no había trabajado con alguno de ellos antes. You know, Nick and Schrader put the whole thing together themselves. Usted sabe, Nick y Schrader poner todo junto mismos. Took them seven or eight years to do it. Se los llevó a siete u ocho años para hacerlo.
TR: When did you come on? TR: ¿Cuándo vamos?
JC: After they had it together. JC: Después de que lo pasamos juntos. They called me up and said, "Read the script." Me llamó y me dijo: "Lee el guión." I said, "Do I have to?" Le dije: "¿Tengo que?" (laughs). (Risas). You get an opportunity to work with those kind of people, the script can't be too bad. Usted consigue una oportunidad para trabajar con ese tipo de personas, el guión no puede ser tan malo. Schrader's body of work is really extraordinary. Schrader cuerpo de trabajo es realmente extraordinario. His writing, especially. Su escritura, sobre todo. This is probably his beat film, directorially. Esta es probablemente su película ritmo, directorially.
TR: I think it is. TR: Yo creo que es. The characters were fascinating and that's what it's all about. Los personajes eran fascinantes y eso es lo que se trata todo esto.
JC: It's his most complete picture. JC: Es la imagen más completa. The others were always a little ragged. Los otros fueron siempre un poco irregular. This one has a kind of an O'Neill dynamic to it. Esta tiene una especie de dinámica O'Neill a la misma. It's relentless, like a runaway locomotive--it just keeps going and going. Es implacable, como una locomotora fuera de control - simplemente sigue y sigue.
TR: You were really brutal in this film. TR: Usted fue realmente brutal en esta película.
JC: Yeah--like you said, it was a wonderful character. JC: Sí - como usted ha dicho, era un personaje maravilloso. But you know, I didn't think he was a bad guy. Pero usted sabe, yo no pensaba que era un mal tipo. He was trying to stimulate his kids to be somebody else, to be men. Estaba tratando de estimular a sus hijos a ser otra persona, a ser hombres.
TR: it was actually touching at the end when he said, "You're of my blood." TR: era tocar realmente al final cuando dijo: "Tú eres de mi sangre." He was so proud, for the wrong reasons. Estaba tan orgulloso, por las razones equivocadas.
JC: (in his booming, God-on-the-mountain voice)"Love? Hell, I'm made of love!" JC: (en su auge, por Dios en la montaña de voz) "El amor infierno, estoy hecho de amor?" (laughs) (Risas)
TR: That's a great line. TR: Eso es una gran línea. Was that in the book? Fue que en el libro?
JC: I'm not sure, but it fit. JC: No estoy seguro, pero en forma que. It was great. Fue genial. And that was an extraordinary scene, wasn't it? Y que era una escena extraordinaria, ¿no? To be stamped on and humiliated, pulling his own teeth, going through this whole goddamned thing he's going through. Para ser pisotones y humillado, tirando de sus propios dientes, pasando por toda esta cosa maldita que está pasando. And then I say, "By God, I know you!" Y entonces yo digo: "Por Dios, yo te conozco!"
TR: You're proud that he's a chip off the old dysfunctional block. TR: ¿Estás orgulloso de que él es un palo tal astilla disfuncional de edad. Did Schrader rehearse you much? Schrader hizo ensayar mucho?
JC: Oh yeah, we had a whole week of rehearsal before we started shooting. JC: Sí, tuvimos una semana entera de ensayos antes de empezar a rodar. We'd go through the scenes and set up some idea of what we were going to do. Nos gustaría ir a través de las escenas y crear una idea de lo que íbamos a hacer. We didn't nail anything down, because it doesn't work that way. No teníamos nada en el estómago de uñas, ya que no funciona de esa manera. Sidney Lumet likes to nail it down, and then you can't do it anyplace. Sidney Lumet le gusta clavar, y después no se puede hacer en cualquier lugar. And it doesn't give the opportunity for a dynamic to really build, because something takes place--the divine accident. Y no le da la oportunidad de una dinámica para construir de verdad, porque algo se lleva a cabo - el accidente divino. If you nail it down too much you eliminate the possibilities. Si lo concretar demasiado a eliminar las posibilidades.
TR: You have to trust yourself. TR: Usted tiene que confiar en ti mismo.
JC: As long as you know where you're going, you can be free within that form. JC: Siempre y cuando usted sabe dónde usted va, usted puede ser libre dentro de esa forma. Schrader knows how to deal with that dynamic. Schrader sabe cómo lidiar con esa dinámica. He likes actors. Le gustan los actores. Many times he'd say, "You know, I'm just going to let you guys go with it." Muchas veces me decía: "Usted sabe, yo sólo voy a dejar que ustedes van con él." He never held us back. Él nunca nos detuvo.
TR: Did it come together quickly when he started rolling, or did he do a lot of takes? TR: ¿Se reúnen rápidamente cuando comenzó a rodar, o fue lo que hizo muchas tomas?
JC: Three takes was about the most we'd ever do. JC: Tres se trataba más que nunca haría. He covered a lot in some scenes. Cubrió una gran cantidad en algunas escenas.
TR: It all seemed amazingly natural. TR: Todo parecía asombrosamente natural.
JC: That's the way it was written. JC: Esa es la forma en que fue escrito. He writes for people talking, not for people reading. Escribe para la gente hable, no para la gente que lee. A lot of writers have the tendency to write "right," and then you have to say writer's words. Muchos escritores tienen la tendencia a escribir "bien", y entonces usted tiene que decir las palabras del escritor. There's a special technique, writing for actors. Hay una técnica especial, escrito para los actores. You can say so much more with so much less if you know the character. Se puede decir mucho más con mucho menos si se conoce el carácter. Schrader doesn't write a lot of exposition. Schrader no escribe una gran cantidad de exposición. He lets the character play that stuff out. Que permite que el carácter de juego esas cosas a cabo. He extracted from the book the real essence of it. Se extrae del libro la verdadera esencia de la misma.
TR: When I interviewed Schrader a couple of years ago, he told me the best way to prepare for being a director is to learn to play a good game of chess. TR: Cuando me entrevisté con Schrader un par de años atrás, él me dijo que la mejor manera de prepararse para ser un director es aprender a jugar un buen partido de ajedrez. I thought that was fascinating. Pensé que era fascinante. He said if you practice until you can see maybe 20 moves ahead in your mind, then you'll be able to set up your shots, because you'll know how they all edit together. Dijo que si se practica hasta que pueda ver unos 20 avanza en su mente, entonces usted será capaz de crear sus tiros, porque usted sabe que todos ellos juntos edición.
JC: When I first started working -- I think The Magnificent Seven was my third film -- John Sturges was the director. JC: Cuando empecé a trabajar - Creo que Los Siete Magníficos fue mi tercera película - John Sturges fue el director. He'd been an editor before he became a director, and you could walk into his office and see the whole film laid out and storyboarded. Había sido un editor antes de convertirse en director, y se podía entrar en su oficina y ver la película entera establecidos y storyboard. As an actor you'd know exactly what you had to do -- but within that form he never told you anything. Como actor sabría exactamente lo que tenía que hacer - pero dentro de esa forma nunca te dijo nada.
TR: So you found the process helpful? TR: ¿Así que encontró el proceso de ayuda?
JC: Oh, yeah. JC: Sí, claro. Because you don't have to search around when you know what's necessary. Debido a que usted no tiene que buscar en todo cuando se sabe lo que es necesario. Young directors today, they don't know what af**ing storyboard is. Directores jóvenes de hoy, no saben lo que f ** ING storyboard es. They just turn the cameras on and say "Let's try it this way". Sólo a su vez las cámaras y decir "Vamos a intentarlo de esta manera". They keep shooting and shooting. Que seguir disparando y disparando. "Oh yeah, I like that one. Let's try another. How about let's try it a little faster this time. No, actually that was a little too fast, can we slow it down some?" "Oh sí, me gusta eso. Vamos a probar con otro. ¿Qué vamos a intentarlo un poco más rápido esta vez. No, en realidad eso era un poco demasiado rápido, podemos frenar un poco?" Christ. Cristo.
TR: Sounds pretty frustrating. TR: Suena bastante frustrante.
JC: They don't know what they want. JC: No saben lo que quieren. If they did, they could say, "OK, this is the objective of a particular scene. This is where we want to go." Si lo hicieran, podrían decir: "Bueno, este es el objetivo de una escena en particular. Aquí es donde queremos ir." I mean, it should be written down. Es decir, debe ser por escrito. Any good actor can read the thing and say, "OK, now I know what we've got to do." Cualquier buen actor puede leerlo y decir: "Bueno, ahora sé lo que tenemos que hacer".
TR: For the most part directors aren't getting their material from literature anymore. TR: Para los directores mayor parte no están recibiendo el material de la literatura más. Schrader stands out because he's a prolific reader and writer. Schrader se destaca porque es un lector y escritor prolífico. There aren't many young directors with his kind of background. No hay muchos directores jóvenes con su tipo de fondo.
JC: But they don't even attempt to tell a story. JC: Pero ni siquiera intento de contar una historia. They've got to shoot someone. Tienen que matar a alguien.
TR: There's more form that substance. TR: No hay más forma que sustancia.
JC: That's right -- style without substance. JC: Eso es correcto - estilo sin sustancia.
TR: John Sturges was a great director. TR: John Sturges fue un gran director. You've directed some yourself, haven't you? Usted ha dirigido algunas ti mismo, ¿no?
JC: I've directed a little bit, y yeah. JC: Yo he dirigido un poco, y sí. Television. Televisión. TV's not very exciting. TV no es muy emocionante.
TR: I attended a Budd Boetticher retrospective recently, and was lucky enough to see Ride Lonesome. TR: Yo asistí a una retrospectiva de Budd Boetticher hace poco, y tuve la suerte de ver paseo solitario. That was your first movie, wasn't it? Esa fue su primera película, ¿no? You were very -- Usted fue muy -
JC: --Skinny. JC: - Delgado.
TR: Yeah, tall and skinny. TR: Sí, alto y flaco. But it was a very dynamic part for you. Pero fue una parte muy dinámica para usted. As always, you...demanded to be watched. Como siempre, ... exigido para ser visto. From that point on you did a lot of westerns. A partir de ahí se hizo un montón de westerns.
JC: That's right. JC: Eso es correcto. The next one I did was for Columbia. El siguiente que hice fue para Colombia. Throughout this time, I was doing a lot TV and Joel McCrae had a western show. A lo largo de este tiempo, yo estaba haciendo un montón de televisión y Joel McCrae tenía un programa occidental. So when The Magnificent Seven came up, I-- Así que cuando los Siete Magníficos llegó, me -
TR: --That was an amazing movie. TR: - Eso fue un divertido video.
JC: Yeah, The Magnificent Seven was really kind of a miraculous event that took place in my life. JC: Sí, Los Siete Magníficos era realmente una especie de milagro que tuvo lugar en mi vida. The first Japanese film I'd ever seen was Kurosawa's The Seven Samurai. La primera película japonesa que había visto era de Kurosawa Los siete samurais. I went back for a week, taking friends of mine to see it. Volví a la semana, teniendo mis amigos para verlo. I just sat and absorbed all of Kurosawa's genius at work. Me senté y absorbe todas las del genio de Kurosawa en el trabajo. And that character, the great swordsman, for some reason I identified with him. Y ese personaje, el gran espadachín, por alguna razón me identificaba con él. And then I moved back to California, ran into an old friend, and he says "I'm doing The Magnificent Seven." Y luego me mudé a California, se encontró con un viejo amigo, y él dice: "Yo estoy haciendo Los siete magníficos". I said, "You're doing what ?" Le dije: "Estás haciendo qué?"
TR: You knew it was based on Samurai? TR: Usted sabía que estaba basado en Samurai?
JC: When I was in New York I'd heard that they were going to do something based on Kurosawa's work. JC: Cuando yo estaba en Nueva York que había oído que iban a hacer algo basado en el trabajo de Kurosawa. I found out Yul Brynner had just gotten it away from Anthony Quinn. Me enteré de Yul Brynner acababa salido de Anthony Quinn. He took it to Sturges to start putting it together. Se la llevó a Sturges para empezar a poner juntos. So this was on a Thursday and there was an actor's strike coming up. Así que esto fue un jueves y hubo una huelga de un actor por venir. All films that were going to start soon had to be cast by midnight, Saturday. Todas las películas que se van a empezar pronto tuvo que ser arrojado a la medianoche, el sábado. So I immediately called my agent and said I gotta see Sturges because of this character. Así que inmediatamente llamé a mi agente y me dijo que tengo que ver Sturges, porque de este personaje. This was about 2 pm Friday and so I walked in there and he said, "We have to case one of the seven." Esto fue alrededor de 2 pm del viernes y así entré allí y me dijo: "Tenemos que caso de que uno de los siete". I said, "Is it the swordsman?" Le dije: "¿Es la espada?" He says, "Yeah, the guy with the knife." Él dice: "Sí, el tipo con el cuchillo." I said, "That's the one -- that's the character I want to play!" Le dije: "Ése es el que - ese es el personaje que yo quiero jugar" He says, "Well, there's some other guys we're seeing, too." Él dice: "Bueno, hay algunos otros muchachos que estamos viendo, también." So I went home and at 3 pm I get a call and he says, "Come on back over and get your knives." Así que me fui a casa a las 3 pm y recibo una llamada y le dice: "Vamos hacia atrás y obtener sus cuchillos." (Laughs) (Risas)
TR: So it all came together kind of miraculously. TR: ¿Así que todos se reunieron especie de milagro. And it turned out to be a huge success. Y resultó ser un gran éxito.
JC: yeah, it was. JC: Sí, lo fue. Because it was the essence of the thing that we went for. Debido a que era la esencia de lo que fuimos para. And that'll take you through every time. Y que te llevará a través de todo el tiempo. The only thing we really couldn't get was that ending of an era, where the greatest swordsman in the country was shot in the back with a gun. La única cosa que realmente no podía conseguir era que el fin de una era, donde se filmó el mejor espadachín del país en la espalda con un arma de fuego. We couldn't do it. No podía hacerlo.
TR: A lot of your great roles were in westerns, as recently as Maverick. TR: Muchos de sus grandes papeles fueron en westerns, tan recientemente como Maverick.
JC: Yeah. JC: Así es. Maverick was the last western I did. Maverick fue el último occidental que hice. I've done a lot of other kind of-- He hecho un montón de otra clase de -
TR: --I know you have. TR: - Yo sé que usted tiene. I love westerns, is why I ask. Me encanta el western, es por eso que pido. Were you partial to those roles early on? ¿Le parcial de los roles desde el principio? Did you seek them out at all? ¿Buscó a cabo en todos los?
JC: The Peckinpah film, yeah. JC: La película de Peckinpah, sí. They were really hard work. Eran realmente un trabajo duro. But I loved them. Pero yo los amaba.
TR: I have to tell y you what a great voice you have. TR: Yo tengo que decir y que lo que una gran voz que tiene. When I came in today I think you were doing some voice-over work. Cuando llegué hoy creo que estaba haciendo algo de voz-sobre el trabajo. Do you do a lot of that these days? ¿Hace mucho de eso en estos días?
JC: Thanks. JC: Gracias. Yeah, I was doing something for a television film, Vengeance, that an old friend of mind is directing. Sí, yo estaba haciendo algo para una película de televisión, la venganza, que un viejo amigo de la mente es el director. There's a voice offstage, and he thought, "Let's get Coburn to do it!" Hay un escenario de voz, y él pensó: "Vamos a Coburn que hacerlo!"
TR: He called the right guy. TR: Se llama a la persona correcta. So you get a lot of calls to do voice-overs? Así, tenemos un montón de llamadas para hacer la voz en off?
JC: Oh yea, sure. JC: Oh sí, claro. Like Chevy trucks--that "like a rock" thing. Al igual que los camiones Chevy - que "como una roca" cosa. All kinds of weird stuff. Todo tipo de cosas raras.
TR: You were born in Nebraska, and you went to LA City College? TR: Usted nació en Nebraska, y se fue a Los Angeles City College?
JC: I grew up in Compton. JC: Yo me crié en Compton. I was the only child; we came here in 1932, I guess it was. Yo era el único niño, que vino aquí en 1932, creo que fue. Had my fifth birthday out here, and we were staying at my mother's brother's place because the depression wiped us out. Tuve mi quinto cumpleaños aquí, y nos estábamos quedando en casa de hermano de mi madre, porque la depresión nos borrado. So we got in our silver Model A Ford -- great car -- and I guess it took four or five days to get out here. Así que nos dieron en nuestro Modelo de plata Un Ford - gran coche - y supongo que lo llevó a cuatro o cinco días en llegar aquí.
TR: You remember it? TR: ¿Lo recuerdas?
JC: Oh, yeah. JC: Sí, claro. Vivid memories of traveling out here; it was great. Recuerdos vívidos de viajar aquí, que era genial. After the army I went to LA City College to earn some more grade points so I could get into USC. Después de que el ejército me fui a Los Angeles City College de ganar algunos puntos más de grado para poder entrar en la USC. I wanted to direct. Yo quería dirigir. So I started working in the City College drama department. Así que empecé a trabajar en el teatro City College departamento. And it was so much fun -- I dropped all the other classes. Y fue tan divertido - me cayó todas las otras clases. After two years there I went back to New York. Después de dos años que volví a Nueva York. I got my Equity card doing "Billy Budd." Yo tengo mi tarjeta de Equidad de hacer "Billy Budd".
TR: What attracted you to directing? TR: ¿Qué te atrajo de dirigir? That's not the usual thing young guys wanted do back then. Eso no es lo habitual muchachos quería hacer en ese entonces. Now it's in vogue, but you were kind of ahead of your time. Ahora está en boga, pero que eran una especie de adelantado a su tiempo.
JC: It was the desire to do the complete thing. JC: Es el deseo de hacer las cosas completas. I only took taking acting lessons because my whole thing, really, was to direct. Sólo tomé a tomar clases de actuación porque mi todo, en realidad, era directa. But my first jobs were acting jobs. Pero mis primeros trabajos estaban actuando de puestos de trabajo. First job I went out on in new York I got, and when I came back, the first job I went out on, I got. Primer trabajo que salió en nueva york que tengo, y cuando regresé, el primer trabajo que salió, que me dieron.
TR: It was easy for you. TR: Fue fácil para usted.
JC: Yeah. JC: Así es. A week after I got to New York I was a "New York Actor" (laughs) When I came back and started doing westerns I was ready because in New York the first thing I'd gotten was a GE Theater thing that Hume Cronyn and Eva Gabor were doing. Una semana después de que llegué a Nueva York era un "actor de Nueva York" (Risas) Cuando volví y empecé a hacer westerns que estaba listo, porque en Nueva York lo primero que había conseguido era algo que Teatro GE Hume Cronyn y Eva Gabor estaba haciendo. And in two days Hume Cronyn taught me a whole thing technique. Y en dos días Hume Cronyn me enseñó una técnica de todo el asunto. He was very patient. Fue muy paciente. It wasn't until three or four years ago that I had an opportunity to thank him. No fue sino hasta tres o cuatro años que he tenido la oportunidad de darle las gracias. Now I'll help a kid on the set who's wondering what the f*** he should do. Ahora voy a ayudar a un niño en el set que se pregunta qué c *** que debe hacer. If he doesn't have a big ego. Si no tiene un gran ego. If he understands you must submit to the work. Si él entiende que debe presentar para el trabajo. You don't, and it's all bullshit. De lo contrario, y es una mierda todo.
TR: Who are some of your favorite directors you've worked with? TR: ¿Quiénes son algunos de sus directores favoritos que has trabajado?
JC: Well, Peckinpah, of course. JC: Bueno, Peckinpah, por supuesto.
TR: Of course. TR: Por supuesto.
JC: And Schrader. JC: Y Schrader. I loved working with him; he was really good. Me encantó trabajar con él, que era realmente bueno. And Leone. Y Leone. And Sydney Lumet was really something. Y Sydney Lumet era realmente algo. And Sturges Poor John, he really got screwed. Y John Sturges pobres, que realmente jodido.
TR: How so? TR: ¿Cómo es eso?
JC: Well, The Magnificent Seven. JC: Bueno, Los siete magníficos. Yul Brynner had a deal that he'd get 20 percent of the gross. Yul Brynner había un acuerdo que él conseguiría el 20 por ciento de los ingresos brutos. And we shot the opening where Eli Wallach played this seemingly benevolent general. Y filmamos la abertura por donde Eli Wallach jugado este general aparentemente benévolo. Ferris Webster (the editor) put it together and it was great. Ferris Webster (el editor) poner juntos y fue genial. You wanted to strangle the sonofabitch, he was so obsequious. Que quería estrangular al hijo de puta, era tan obsequioso. But when Brynner saw it he said, "That doesn't give me anything to play against." Sin embargo, cuando Brynner lo vio, dijo: "Eso no me da nada a jugar en contra." He wanted Wallach to play a real bad guy, so he could play the king. Quería Wallach jugar una mala persona real, para poder jugar el rey. John always gave his top actors whatever they wanted. John siempre le dio a sus actores principales lo que querían. So he went to the company and they said, "No, we like it the way it is. You wanna shoot it over you're on your own." Así que fue a la empresa y le dijeron: "No, nos gusta la forma en que está. Usted quiere disparar por encima de usted por su cuenta." So he borrowed a million dollars against his house. Así que le prestó un millón de dólares frente a su casa.
TR: You're kidding! TR: ¿En serio! Just to please Brynner? Sólo para complacer a Brynner?
JC: Re-shot the whole thing. JC: Re-shot toda la cosa. And he never got the money back; he lost his house. Y nunca tuvo el dinero, perdió su casa. And Yul kept collecting that 20 percent. Y Yul mantuvo recoger que el 20 por ciento. John got nothing. John no tiene nada.
TR: John shouldn't have rolled over so easy. TR: Juan no debe tener la vuelta tan fácil.
JC: No, you're right. JC: No, tienes razón. But that was his nature, see. Pero esa era su naturaleza, ver. He was brought up in the old school, where if you didn't have the actor you didn't have anything. Fue criado en la vieja escuela, donde si usted no tiene el actor no tenía nada. The actor was everything. El actor fue todo.
TR: They still are. TR: Y lo siguen siendo.
JC: Yeah, well, to a degree. JC: Sí, bueno, hasta cierto punto. Now they have ants, though. Ahora tienen las hormigas, sin embargo. And they have rugrats, and pigs, and bugs of all kinds. Y tienen Rugrats, y los cerdos, y los errores de todo tipo. They finally figured out a way to get rid of the actor. Finalmente encontró una manera de deshacerse de el actor. Studios have been trying to get rid of the actor for a long time and now they can do it. Estudios han estado tratando de deshacerse del actor durante mucho tiempo y ahora lo pueden hacer. They got animation. Tienen animación. NO more actor, although for now they still have to borrow a voice or two. Ningún actor más, aunque de momento todavía tienen que pedir prestada una voz o dos. Anyway, I find it abhorrent. De todos modos, me parece abominable.
TR: So you're not a big tech buff. TR: ¿Entonces usted no es aficionado a la tecnología grande.
JC: NO, I don't know how it would enhance my life. JC: No, yo no sé cómo podría mejorar mi vida. It seems to take away from the actual living of your life. Parece tomar distancia de la vida real de su vida. There are people that get so into this thing; it's like television. Hay personas que ponen tan en esta cosa, es como la televisión.
TR: You can get addicted to it. TR: Puede volverse adicto a ella.
JC: Yeah, my daughter, she's making programs, the whole thing. JC: Sí, mi hija, ella es la realización de programas, toda la cosa. To me, it's just a drag. Para mí, es sólo un lastre.
TR: Well, it's seductive because it opens up the universe for you. TR: Bueno, es seductora, ya que abre el universo para ti. You can tap into anything you want. Puede tocar en cualquier cosa que desee.
JC: But it's all...fake. JC: Pero todo es falso .... I don't know. No se. So you get pictures, you get information. Por lo que obtener imágenes, se obtiene información. Ever hear of an encyclopedia? ¿Ha oído hablar de una enciclopedia? That's always been available. Ese ha sido siempre disponibles. The only thing you don't get in encyclopedias are the opinion of amateurs all over the world! Lo único que no salen en las enciclopedias son la opinión de los aficionados de todo el mundo!
TR: (laughs) The cinematography in Affliction is beautiful. TR: (Risas) La cinematografía en Affliction es hermoso. In MovieMaker lately we've been running some articles on digital video. En MovieMaker últimamente hemos estado corriendo algunos artículos en video digital. I think many more people will become storytellers because the technology isn't so expensive or difficult-- Creo que muchas más personas se convertirán en narradores de historias, porque la tecnología no es tan caro o difícil -
JC: --Everybody wants to make movies, but very few people know how to make them. JC: - Todo el mundo quiere hacer películas, pero muy pocas personas saben cómo hacerlas.
TR: Right, but don't you think this might facilitate the learning -- TR: Sí, pero ¿no crees que esto podría facilitar el aprendizaje -
TR: --It's a world of amateurs. TR: - Es s un mundo de aficionados. There are amateur actors making millions of dollars, amateur cinematographers, amateur directors...Jesus! Hay actores aficionados ganando millones de dólares, los cineastas aficionados, directores amateur ... ¡Jesús! These amateur directors can get deals for anything. Estos directores aficionados pueden conseguir ofertas para nada. Another comic book? Otro libro de historietas? Oh, very good. Oh, muy bien.
TR: How old is your daughter? TR: ¿Qué edad tiene tu hija? And do you have other children? ¿Y usted tiene otros niños?
JC: MY daughter's just 40; my son mist be 36. JC: Mi hija de tan sólo 40, mi hijo de 36 niebla.
TR: Are they in "the business", too? TR: Se encuentran en "el negocio", también?
JC: yeah, my son's a sound mixer, working all the time. JC: Sí, mi hijo es un mezclador de sonido, trabajando todo el tiempo. It's good for him; he's had some hard times doing all the things people did growing up in Beverly Hills -- strung out on this, that, not learning how to do anything. Es bueno para él, que ha tenido a veces dificultades para hacer todas las cosas que la gente ha crecido en Beverly Hills - que se encadenan a cabo sobre este tema, que, no aprender a hacer cualquier cosa. I always say, learn to do one thing well and it can save your life! Yo siempre digo, aprender a hacer una cosa bien y que puede salvar su vida!
TR: It's hard, though, when you have so many seductive options wide open in front of you. TR: Es difícil, sin embargo, cuando usted tiene las opciones de seductor para muchos de par en par en frente de usted.
JC: Knowing both sides, though, it's better clear. JC: Conocer ambos lados, sin embargo, es mejor claro.
TR: So you're completely sober these days? TR: ¿Así que estás completamente sobrio en estos días?
JC: Oh yea, I even stopped smoking. JC: Oh sí, hasta dejé de fumar.
TR: Really? TR: ¿En serio? Because in so many of your great parts you were chewing on a cigar. Debido a que en muchos de sus grandes papeles que fueron masticando un cigarro.
JC: Yeah, cigars are great -- I love 'em! JC: Sí, los cigarros son grandes - I love 'em! But I stopped smoking, stopped buying them. Pero dejé de fumar, dejó de comprarlos. For no reason except it's a really stupid habit. Por ninguna razón, excepto que es un hábito muy tonto.
Taking in and blowing out smoke? Tomar y soplar el humo? And now you see girls smoking cigars. Y ya ves puros chicas fumando. It got to be such a fad. Llegó a ser una moda pasajera. Girls on the covers of magazines, smoking cigars. Niñas en las portadas de revistas, fumando puros. Give me a break. Dame un respiro. I didn't want to be a part of that. Yo no quería ser parte de eso. I don't like "popular". No me gustan los "populares".
TR: You're a contrarian, which is one of the reasons why you're so cool. TR: ¿Usted es contraria, que es una de las razones por qué estás tan fresco. And you're still a pretty huge screen presence, you know. Y usted sigue siendo una presencia en pantalla bastante grande, ya sabes. Even in a cameo you bring this bigger-than-life quality to a scene. Incluso en un cameo de llevar esta calidad mayor a la vida a una escena.
JC: Personality. JC: Personalidad. Gotta have some kind of personality and you don't wear your personality on your body. Tengo que tener algún tipo de personalidad y no te pones tu personalidad en tu cuerpo. It's gotta come from someplace. Tiene que venir de algún lugar. Like Stella (Adler), she was all about "What's your style?" Al igual que Stella (Adler), fue una cuestión de "¿Cuál es tu estilo?" Everything has style. Todo lo que tiene estilo.
TR: You can communicate so much with just a sneer. TR: Se puede comunicar tanto con sólo una mueca. Or the narrowing of your eyes. O el estrechamiento de sus ojos. You're a natural film actor. Usted es un actor de cine natural. Well, it seems natural -- you probably worked hard to achieve all that. Bueno, parece natural - probablemente trabajado duro para conseguir todo eso. But you just seem to capture your characters effortlessly. Pero apenas se parecen a la captura de sus personajes sin esfuerzo.
JC: You learn something after 40 years of trying! JC: Se aprende algo después de 40 años de intentarlo!
TR: When you're doing a movie, what do you do to capture a character, in your face I mean? TR: Cuando estás haciendo una película, ¿qué hacer para capturar a un personaje, en su cara que me refiero?
JC: You don't waste energy. JC: No es el desperdicio de energía. And a lot actors waste it. Y los actores mucho perderlo. They're thinking about their next line or how they're going to say it. Están pensando en su próxima línea o cómo van a decirlo. You don't act with your lines. No actuar con sus líneas. The words come out of an action. Las palabras salen de una acción. You play to a person and you can relate to a person without staring at them. Usted juega a una persona y que puede relacionarse con una persona sin mirarlas. Good actresses, like Sissy Spacek, will do that. Buenas actrices, como Sissy Spacek, lo hará.
