Today on another encore edition of the Rarified Heir Podcast we are talking to Charlie Matthau, son of actor Walter Matthau. We spoke to Charlie about his amazing father & their special relationship but also his incredible mother, actor/author Carol Matthau. We quickly learn that she was (wait for it), the basis for Truman Capote’s Holly Golightly from Breakfast at Tiffany’s. There is one small difference between the character and the person however and we discuss that too. We also discuss Carol’s first husband, author William Saroyan and Charlie’s grandfather Charles Marcus of Bendix Aviation – which are both bigger-than-life stories unto themselves.

Somehow we were able to parse all this out and discuss what it was like growing up the son of one of the most beloved actors of his generation. Be it comedy or drama, we get into Walter Matthau’s career on stage & film as well as the weird and wonderful curios of his career. An uncredited cameo in Earthquake? We discuss it. His viewing habits of the television version of The Odd Couple? We discuss that too.

Along the way we discuss the Malibu beach house Charlie inhabited when host Josh Mills & family along with Walter’s best pal Jack Lemmon took to Broad Beach road in the 1970s. Plus, we get to hear about Walter’s penchant for card tricks, Christmas’ spent at the Lemmon’s house as well as what it was like for Charlie to direct his father in a film, The Glass Harp. Along the way we discuss Gloria Vanderbilt and Oona O’Neill, Howard Hughes, the unsung film Mikey and Nicky his mom starred in and much more. This is the Rarified Heir Podcast and everyone has a story.

Today on part two of the Rarified Heir Podcast, we continue our conversation with Patti Weidenfeld, daughter of stand-up comedian Pat Cooper. If you heard part one of our conversation last week, prepare yourself for part two because the second half of Patti’s story is unlike anything you have ever heard before.

An idyllic life as the only child of Pat Cooper and her mother Patti Prince, comes to a screeching halt after seeing Mickey Rooney and Ann Miller in Sugar Babies on Broadway at age 8. We learned in the first episode Pat Cooper wasn’t entirely truthful with his daughter about his first family and on this episode, for the first time ever, Patti tells us her remarkable story about how an idyllic life was pulled out from under her. How family secrets her parents have kept rearing their ugly heads in the most intense way possible. It’s a story Patti’s never told anyone and we were honored she felt comfortable enough to share it with us. Thought it all, Patti maintains a grace and an understanding that are hard to believe. Ultimately, Patti’s story is one that could have made her bitter and angry and no one would have blamed her. Yet as you will hear, she is thoughtful, forgiving, contemplative and loving in ways we only wish we could be. This is the Rarified Heir Podcast. Another child of a celebrity interviewed by the child of a celebrity. And this is the first time, anyone has heard this story.

Today on the Rarified Heir Podcast we are talking to Patti Weidenfeld, daughter of comedian/actor Pat Cooper. An entertainer for more than 50 years, Pat Cooper was known as a ‘comedians comedian’, someone who other comedians look up to as a genuine talent and a show business icon. Born in Coney Island Brooklyn, Pat Cooper embodied the Mad Men era comedy scene up until last year when he passed away at age 93. What Jackie Mason was for Jewish comedians, Pat Cooper did for Italian comedians. And believe me he wore his Italian heritage proudly. One of his comedy album Spaghetti Sauce and Other Delights featured Pat posing in spaghetti sauce a la Herb Alpert’s Whipped Cream and Other Delights.

Many comedy fans today know Pat Cooper from his guest spots on Seinfeld and films like Analyze This and Analyze That. Unfortunately he’s also remembered for his many appearances on The Howard Stern Show where he became famous as an outrage comic who told tough, real family stories on air airing his dirty laundry for all to hear.

Patti on the other hand, talks to us about growing up in 70s Las Vegas and travelling with her father and mother to casinos on the strip and on the Atlantic City boardwalk opening for entertainers such as Paul Anka, Frank Sinatra, Jerry Lewis, Tony Bennett, Liza Minelli, Sammy Davis Jr. and more. When he wasn’t doing club dates, he was doing guest hosting slots on The Merv Griffin Show and The Mike Douglas Show upwards of 60 times…each. His infamous 1981 spot on Tom Snyder’s Tomorrow show interview revealed too much about headliners demands that he felt were ridiculous and got him blackballed from working in his adopted home town Las Vegas for years. Once again, Pat aired too much dirty laundry.

Still, Patti had an idyllic life with her father and mother until one day when Patti realized that some things she heard from her parents just didn’t add up. We discuss this with at length with Patti on part one of our interview which you are about to hear right now. This is the Rarified Heir Podcast, everyone has a story. This one, you haven’t heard before.