and i was very lucky i had someone like marty bergman and sydney lamet around.y else. during the course of this time, bragman was on me, i said, marty, i don't want to do this. if you stop drinking for a while. just stop for a while. i said, okay. for a while, and read the script. no, i mean it, just don't drink. i didn't drink for a couple days and i read the script. it was clear, i said, why am i not doing this? i should be doing this. and i called him, i said, you know, marty, you're right, this is a great script. he said, okay. talk to you later. and he got on it. and he, somehow, wiggled it as only he can and he knows how to do it and i was very lucky. i had him there. >> larry: how did you stop drink something. >> i didn't just stop dead-on. it was in increments. you graduate from one stage to the another. it takes a while as they say, to unscramble your brains, as they say. you have a certain period of time and then slowly, i got to understand what it was and -- >> larry: are you ever tempted? >> you know, as norman mailer once said, why he keeps drinking

but have you disagreed -- >> look, with a guy like lamet, he tells you this is where you go when youank. you go around here. you do this. and you know what? you are in a bank robbery. you don't have to act. you are just doing what he tells you and you're there. there's the bank robbery. that's genius. so when you work with a genius, that's what you -- that's good. that doesn't happen often. but sometimes you get lucky. >> larry: one of the great movies ever made. you made some of the great movies ever made. "dog day afternoon." >> yeah it was great. >> larry: and that actor you worked with. >> john cassell. he was a great actor. great artist. >> larry: when he was frado, was -- he had to play such a weak -- >> yeah. >> larry: -- character, yet the oldest brother. that was quite a job he did. you were sympathetic to him. >> yeah. yeah. i tell you, yeah, nobody liked john. how about the guy in "dog day." >> larry: in that character, yeah. you were two gay guys robbing a bank. >> he wasn't. and remember when that moment comes. >> larry: he -- you were gay? >> i was gay. well, i was acdc