Do You Love Him?
This is a joyous find. On The Dean Martin Show, one of the series’ regulars was Kay Medford. She was a wonderful actress with a long career on stage and in film, appearing on Broadway in such musicals as Paint Your Wagon and Carousel, and getting a Tony nomination as Best Supporting Actress in a Musical for playing the mother of Barbara Streisand’s ‘Fanny Brice’ in Funny Girl – repeating the role in the movie and getting an Oscar Supporting Actress nomination. So, she was no slouch. I mention all this because on the February 25, 1971 episode of the show, the guest was Zero Mostel. And he and Medford recreate the “Do You Love Me?” number from Fiddler on the Roof.
It's not done in period costume – Mostel, in fact, is in a tux. But the performances together are a joy. Natural, achingly tender, funny and lovely. Mostel takes the number a little slower than on the cast album, but he plays it with richness and character touches. And Medford is excellent, combining the weariness of ‘Golde’ with a modern, almost matter-of-fact “I’m busy, why are you bothering me?” sensibility, appropriate for how the scene is set.
Mostly, though, there is so little footage of Mostel in the role, that anything of him performing from Fiddler on the Roof is a treasure.
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