Florida Today from Cocoa, Florida • Page 1D

TV ore vara Mixer uam iSectipri.D August il 1977. i i Art Contest j. Ji, 1 Brevard ians Respond 0i Maiors Whether or not more than a handful of jpeoplfi In Breyard have actually, seen on met, star Lee Majors doesn't stop anyone from talking, about his attitude, about meeting the the phoneJ more, times than 1' could, count Wednesday after asking Mr. Majors in mis column, "Why are you The callers feelings ran at least 6 to 1 that Majors' attitude is wrong. However, a few callers said their experiences when meeting vxhe.

Million Dollar been Let me "share some of the stories from both sides with you: A tnous was in a position Monday to observe Majors for several, hours as the, "niversalewtorsraneforran upcomr" episode of "The" Six Million, Dollar' Man' th'eiYAB' building at Ken r' nedy Space Centef "I have no bonetoV pick with anyone," he said, "but I did watch with interest the tourists coming through the VAB on the TWA tour.When they learned that Lee Majors "was" there they got so excited, the kids and the women 1 particularly. The men all asked where, Farrah was, naturally. Lee Majors had, a Winnebago out there on the, set that, he stayed in most of the time until they needed him. Then he'd come: a few1 minutes, do his, thing" and go back inside But when he was outside, he would keep his back to the people all the 'time. One time during "the af ternooti, one of the TWA employes who does the commentary on the building "said to Majors over the loudspeaker, 'Hey Lee, why don't you turn around and give the kids a "Well, he did, but it was the skimpiest wave and smile I've ever seen and then he turned his back on them again.

He is idolized by the youngsters watch his show every Sunday night and think of as a superman. Fof him to ignore those kids, is a shame. It's not right." Sharon Meguiar, a bartender at the Caravelle Lounge in Cocoa Beach, called with a' different sort of story. Majors has been a patron there, several times since he arrived "about a week ago. "He wasn't like what people, said at alii" said Sharon.

"Personally I can say that Lee Majors was very pleasant. to me and; to th girls who waited on him. I also saw some people go up to him and introduce themselves and he shook their hands just like a regular person;" An6merSOpT6 he had been with the crew every" time they've filmed there and "Lee. Majors was anything" but what those, people said." Hazel Lewis of Merritt Island compared, a recent experience she and her daughter had recently in California with other TV stars. "We got autographs of James Garner, Telly Savalas and Richard Anderson he plays Oscar.

Goldman on 'The Six, Million Dollar They were all so nice to us. I don't see why Lee Majors has to be the way he is. When we went on the location of 'The" Rockford we got up real early and were there whenMames Garner, "My daughter snapped his picture and hesaid, 'Oh, that'll, be the regular fee." Then he laughed, carrierover to us and she asked JfhecouldJiavelherlpic? ture made with him and he Then she took my picture with him He was rearnTce. Thesame" for" Telly Savalas. I just, think it's too bad they can't all be that way It.

not. only, happens in.Brevard...Mel bourne resident: Kathy Nail tells us that her brother in law had a bad experience with comedian Jerry Lewis. into Jerry Lewis in the Frankfurt, Germany, airport and went up' to him and said, 'How's it going, Mr. He wouldn't everi speak'to but my brother in law wasn't going to be stopped so, he bor rowed a piece of paper and a pen and went up to him and asked for his auto-graph. Lewis said.r'1 don't give my autograph to "Don was so disgusted, and hurt.

He's worked to raise money for Jerry. Lewis' kids and did he feel badl" Another caller said that her' grandmother lives in Lee Majors' hometown of Ky. ''She says he's the same, way when he. home. He won't speak to anyone there, just ignores them.

I wonder why?" Name Dropping center of attention recently when some of his friends gathered at, the Dixie Restaurant in Cocoa for a "going to the hospi tal" party vArlan will have surgery on a dislocated shoulder at Wuesthoff Memori al Hospital in Rockledge this week. .1.. TODAY IUH rht rt.rt McDwold LEE SIEGEL SAYS HIS ROLE IS CHANGING producer of "Six Million Dollar Man' By AMY CLARK jl WomW. Eltf If Lee Minors had stuck" his original decision not iJo retmit to his popular erjeste vStat; Million rV11ar Man what iLrtlil1 have happened to the" show? One bf the meA who' 'knows Lionel (Lee) who's! beerrlfr xjndj Oiit ot Brevard' for nearly "a month ar ranging for. a two part epi sode o( The showtortoeshot: here: "When he said wasn't coming back, he was convincing," said Siegel aCthe' 'Blm that would make if ap Merritt Island Holiday Jnn Just in case he really show.

The legal department" and. that involved a. said we couldn't use our new bibnismani: We "five "men and we sti(MWxr guring 'but "'to do when he, changed his to have signed writing our scripts to accommodate the new man. i WedJLkindalDf. discussions.

Should he die? Shouldn't he "illeTJStufUike that, Obviouslyl Jie, jvasa't v'goingjocome backto us to I shoot a couple of daysTio' that he could die and let us off the hook, so what would we do? "NOR COULD we use a $3 million contract, Ma ors andHIniversal Studios bosses ended their battle a month ago and the show was rushed into production, already behind schedule. "We had talked about updating the show in terms By KEN HOFFMAN TODAY HOW WrtWr VT 'z Robert Sacchi of" the most "famous faces and voices in the world. Unfortunately, they aren't his. Sacchi, a native New Yorker," has fashioned alca reer out of impersonating Humphrey Bogart. Florid I "ans'are familiar with Sac work through his commercial spots 'for Busch 'Gardens tourist attraction When Busch Gardens "adopted its "Dark Continent" theme in manager' Rod C4 boi a decided to draw upon two of Bogey's best' films which involved African' and "The African Queen" for 'commercials.

Caborn needed an actor to portray Bogart and called Sacchi. A TYPICAL commercial finds Sacchi (as Bogart) seated at a table with Lauren Bacall alike Liz Fleming. While Stanley 'hunts Livingston' and the French Foreign Legion scurries in the background, leans toward Fleming, and, says, "Anything can happen at Busch Gardens, sweetheart," The voice and facial expressions are uncanny. Sacchi is no new comer to the Bogart impersonation. Eight years ago.

Woody Allen hired him to piayl the Jate actor in AI Selling 'We don't make any pretense that this (Busch Gardens) is what Africa is really like. What we give the people is Africa as they know it from the Rod Caborn, Busch Gardens marketing "manager len's Broadway comedy "Play it Again, Sam." When Allen Hdec'ided Jo bring the stage play to Hoi lywood, Sacchi went along. And with "Play it Again, Sam," was born a new career. Sacchi has now abandoned a budding literary career and portrays. Bogart full time in commercials for Busch Gardens, Aqua Velva and ordMotor Cov "IN 1975, Busch Gardens was having an identity problem.

There, was Gardens, i Busch. Gardensr Sunken Gardens and a hundred other gardens, too. So tp the 'Dark Conti nent' concept to distinguish our attraction. We don't make any pretense that this is what Africa is really like. What we give the people is Africa as they know it from the movies," Caborn said.

According to Caborn, the big publicity push has paid off handsomely for the Tampa attraction. More than 2 million" tourists' paid their way through the turnstiles last year, making Busch Gardens the second most popular attraction in Florida. Only WaU Disney Worldi, in drew more customers last year. "We definitely think the commercials featuring Sacchi as Bogart have' played an important part in increasing our business. Whenever we take the, commercials off the air for a short period there are phone calls and letters asking us why Jhet Commer! cials are.

just super," Caborn said. So successful, in fact, that: Busch Gardens, plans TODAY Half PIMM kv Kd Mar.on to run the spots through next year. Viewers can now see a new commercial featuring Clark Gable look alike Richard Council of Ruskin. The commercials with Sacchi are the mainstays, however, and will be shown more often than the Gables. "What the success of our commercials proves, I think, is that people will to aicommeB cial that tells an entertaining short story than to ones that just give the old hard sell," Caborn said, Follow the Flying Blimp.

Lou Deldo puts up 14 foot helium filled balloon that will fly over atwo international seminar at Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne. Balloon and blimp specialists around the world will gather for the American Institute bf Aeronautics and Astronautics sponsored seminar on lighter than air studies. "This will be a workshop devoted to updating lighter than air technology. There has been a great resurgence" In the industry both nationally and interna Jlonally' sal(UDeldo3eni Inar chairman. "People are learning that balloons can do things that airplanes and satellites can't." of the bionics, but because jpf the.

delay and the' chaos just never got around to it. (CaTdrn)Ms' frustrated Hhat we haven't updated Sour bionic stuff, but your hair, you" know WhfeCP works, and like you, televE sinh rinpsn't fnn1 flmurxl with something when' works. The only way we go taclrtothe origlnal 'Cy borg' now is in the sense of the biohics, the bionic limbs, the eye, etc." CAIDIN, WHO lives lh Cocoa Beach, wrote the bpok on which. thft'IK based. One of several producers of the show, Siegel has been with the series for two of its four years on ABC.

He describes Jhe star as "interesting, quieT arkT has a senseor humor. "He's shrewd, I 1 ieyeL He's srgood worker? responsible person seldom if ever late, knows his words and he's impatient with those who don't. "eesnot a gregarious person. It takes him quite'a while to get to know soitun one. He's loyal, often going his way to friend.

Farrah isn't a gregarious person, either. They're very much aliltel Who are his friends? 0i; VinCe" Dietrich, his" stunt double, Vince Abrams," .5 make up man and Cliff our director. And. Frank Price who's presi" dent of Universal TeleyP sion." Not claiming to be personal friend of the star Siegel goes about his work with professional relish, spending long hours rewriting the script, reworking scenes that simply won't work given the circumstances of location and budget and deadlines. A producer in television today has a multi faceted job, more than it was in the Hollywood heydey when the archetype cigar smoking producer raised the money and selected the stars.

NOW, EXPLAINS Siegel "An intelligent, pro; "ducer finds writers: who have the ideas, he helps the story editor or staff develop story ideas, submits ideas to the network for approval, nd thennlevelops it; intoa" script. A script for an hour's show is 59 pages lA writer gets $76,900 for an hour's show. "A producer holds meetings with the production department to see what we can afford to do with this show, if so, how. chooses the director, approves the "sets, props and wardrobes and checks into the area one week before shooting begins. "He also sees dailies', of the film shot the day before, once the shooting begins! If anything needs to.

be shot again, he informs the director." Siegel, who has a jour, nalism degree from" the, University of ganlhiS yaried an agent in New York City, in 1952: When he turns 50 in See SIEGEL, 2D Col. 4 'Pen and Paper Friends' Meet at Last By OLINE COGDILL TODAY lion Writer When two stamp "collec tors' become pen pals it 'seems only natural for their friendship to begin via a packet of stamps That's Ka plan, 14, of Rockledge and 15 year old Art Diskin of Is rael began their corre spondence. But neither was' content to have just a "pen and. paper friend." They met for, the first, time March 1976 when i Gerry and his family traveled to Israel celebrate: his bar mitzvah. Now Arl is a month visiting the Dr; Stanley Kaplans'.

''Our' fathers started' friendship'' said Ari. "Mjf dad, like.Gerry's) is a chiropractor and when he ''was planning to come to the United States about 18 months' ago he knew he going to met Gerry's dad. "MY DAD asked me to get together a' gift for Jerry so I got some stamps and sent them to Gerry. Gerry wrote, thank: me: and we've been; writing ever since. rael I met them at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem but I didn't know what they looked like," continued Art.

"As people came up to the wall. I'd ask them, if, they; were the Kaplans until we finally found each Although the fathers' started the the twq, men have never met, Dr, Diskin's plans1' to visit the United States 18 months "ago were cancelled. Jn Israel there was communication' 'confusion at1 the hotel and the two families didn't "We got to spend some time. with each other," said; Gerry, who will be a ninth 'grader at Rockledge High School. "That's' when we started making plans for.

Art to visit us in Florida. It wasn't: until; a couple of i months ago that I finally P'clock in the morping with Ari saying at the other, 'end, can i CURRENTLY' ARI is enjoying his stay in Florida with Gerry, Dr. Kaplan, his wife Marcia and 8 year old Lisa. The Kaplans have shown their visitor Walt Disney the Kennedy Space and other Florida sights. Ari also has by himself to other parts of the Sunshine State.

"there are a lot of parts: Florida that really like," said Ari who has an older brother living In Texasi "St. Petersburg and Palm Beach were very, nice but I didn't like, Miami that much. Key is a nice, place to visit for a weekend but I wouldn't want to live there." time with his new found friend Art has another motive for visiting the His family is. planning to move to. 'Florida so Ari also is looking for an area; suitable for the family.

"My" father was born, in York and was Iri da briefly while he was Jn. the navy," said Art, will, join his parents in Tulsa during "But he hasn'i seen the area since. I'm keeping my eyes open'for a place we'd all 'JJE2 TODAY lion PImH ky tftwl ARI DISKIN NOW STAYING ROCKLEDGE Kaplan family, and pen pal Gerry!.