Deep Inside The Ed Sullivan Theater, Part 1
Deep Inside The Ed Sullivan Theater, Part 1
On the left, Jackie Gleason’s favorite door! This door is located in the basement and on the other side of it is a now capped set of stairs, but in Gleason’s time, the stairs let to The Cordial Bar. The Cordial was located inside the 13 story office building which adjoins the ground floor theater. Gleason and later, Sullivan guest stars could have a cocktail without ever leaving the building.
Unlike Hurley’s near NBC, The Cordial did not have a hotline, but the phone number was as familiar to stage manager Eddie Brinkmann as his own home number.
Speaking of Gleason, here is a great wall size photo of him in the crew lounge. The cameraman on the right is CBS legend Pat McBride who worked both Gleason and Sullivan. ‘The Jackie Gleason Show’ debuted from here, CBS Studio 50, on September 19, 1952. Although Sullivan’s show started in 1948, his show came from CBS Studio 51, The Maxine Elliot Theater till 1954, which is when the show moved to 50.
Speaking of legendary CBS cameramen, I was thrilled to see Dave Dorsett’s locker still intact…name plate and all! Dave retired from Letterman a few years ago, but comes back occasionally for fill in and, just for the fun of it. Dave Dorsett was with CBS for over 45 years and where Walter Cronkite went, Dorsett went too. Dave moved to Late Night when the show moved to CBS and was one of Letterman’s favorite foils on the set.
The staff and crew of ‘Late Night With David Letterman’ is a very warm and loyal bunch. It’s a family all it’s own and I am grateful to them for their hospitality and welcome. The Dorsett locker says a lot about their attitude and style. It’s a nice touch from some very nice people.
When I worked on Kate & Allie in the Sullivan Theater 1984-86, we’d move a group of U-Matic VCR’s from the basement of the Theater through those underground catacombs into the adjacent Ed Sullivan Office Building where the off-line editing room was located. The Office Building’s elevators reach the basement and the Theater and the Office Building are connected there.
Our record room, which held the five 1-inch Sony VTR’s and five BVU-800 U-Matic decks, was in the basement at the bottom of the front stairs to the right of the landing. The narrow hallway there led to the basement of the Office Building in one direction and to the space under the Sullivan Stage and orchestra pit in the other direction. The space under the stage now contains the control room.
Glad to see that sticker!
Take a close look. See the Cordial Bar? That space is now Angelo’s Pizza.