John Cleese launches one-man-show to help pay the bills

A: No, no. Not at all. It was just that, as I said, I do have to earn a million a year to hand over in alimony and that means I’ve got to get out and earn money and this is not a very good time. My agent told me recently that this has been the worst year for films that he can remember for his clients. There’s not much in television unless you want to get involved in something that might involve five years and there’s no way I want to do that at my age. The speeches that I’ve been delighted to get the last few years have rather faded away because a lot of conferences have been canceled or are not taking place because of the financial situation. And commercials, which I’ve been lucky enough to get in the past — well if I tell you that the last commercial I did was for an Icelandic bank, you’ll realize that they won’t be coming back. So the question is, under those circumstances, what do you do? And back in April I was told by one of my agents that he could arrange some one-man shows for me this November and that’s what I’m doing.

Q: I understand that you or one of your representatives inquired about performing specifically at the Alex Theatre, rather than on other stages in the Los Angeles area. Why is that?

A: If that’s the case, that is my agent, because he knows pretty much which theaters are good to perform and which theaters are not so welcoming. I mean, I’ve just been in Norway, for example, and several of the shows I did there were basically in concert halls and they don’t have the warmth and intimacy that a good theater does.

Q: What will attendees see at your one-man show here?