Page "Jack Lemmon" Paragraph 16

In his autobiography, " My Life ", Burt Reynolds recalls Lemmon as the quintessential gentleman who never spoke ill of anybody, even if they deserved it.

This niceness actually backfired for Reynolds: prior to accepting the lead in W. W. and the Dixie Dancekings ( 1975 ), directed by John G. Avildsen, Reynolds asked Lemmon, who Avildsen had directed in Save the Tiger ( 1973 ) for advice about Avildsen as a director.

Lemmon told Reynolds that Avildsen was " okay ", whereby Reynolds accepted the role.

Much later, after the film was released and his experiences during its production proved unhappy, Reynolds complained to Lemmon and described Avildsen as an " asshole ", whereby Lemmon replied, " I guess you could say that ".