Cloris Back on Malcolm

• Feb 6, 2004 03:00 AM ET
• by Daniel R. Coleridge

Cloris Leachman is certifiable. Um, certifiably funny, that is! On Sunday at 9 pm/ET, she's back as Grandma Ida on Malcolm in the Middle. The 78-year-old actress adores playing Jane Kaczmarek's mama — it's a role that's earned her three Emmy nods, including one win in 2002. Here, TV Guide Online attempts a phone interview with the zany Leachman, which is no mean feat, as you'll see!

TV Guide Online: Good afternoon?
Leachman: Daniel? It's Leachman here. Let's keep this short. I want to go meet my daughter at the dog park.

TVGO: Sure! Tell us what Ida's doing on Malcolm this time.
Leachman: This is one of the funniest episodes, if not the funniest one, I've done. It's about Grandma Ida's boyfriend. He's an unlikely person. It's a Chinese man! Oh, the dialogue is just rare. [Giggles]

TVGO: Is the funny part that he's Chinese? Interracial dating isn't so shocking anymore.
Leachman: No, no, it's not about that. It's how I got the boyfriend! We'll let the rest be a surprise.

TVGO: Definitely. So tell me about...
Leachman: Wait a second. [We're interrupted by call waiting, but she keeps saying "Hello? Hello?!" to TV Guide Online, never actually connecting with the other party.]

TVGO: It's still me.
Leachman: I'm left-handed and right-brained, and I'm not good at these things. Well, screw them is what I say!

TVGO: So tell me about your movie, Mrs. Harris, which costars Ben Kingsley, Annette Bening and Ellen Burstyn. Great cast!
Leachman: Oh! I suffer from overthrill and this has really kicked me up. I can't wait to start work on it. Mrs. Jean Harris murdered the doctor who wrote the famous Scarsdale Diet book. There was a big scandal and a trial, and I play Ben's sister. I'm either going to call him Mister Sir or Sir Mister.

TVGO: Oh, yes, he's a knight. Well, how have you addressed him so far?
Leachman: I haven't met him yet! I'll let you know after we have dinner this week. There's a little party at the director's house. I might call him Sir Mister Sir or Mister Sir Sir. Er, which do you like better?

TVGO: Hmmm... I think you'd better consult Emily Post on that one.
Leachman: Alright, you're no help. She's dead.

TVGO: But her relatives are still writing the etiquette books under her name!
Leachman: [Laughs] Alright, thank you for your suggestion.

TVGO: What else are you working on?
Leachman: There's an independent feature called The Californians, which will come out sometime this year. It's based on The Bostonians, but it's called The Californians. It's about real estate developers versus environmentalists. I'm [the latter]. There's wonderful, funny stuff in it.

TVGO: Do fans who know you from Malcolm realize you're also a dramatic actress?
Leachman: If anybody is old enough to have seen The Last Picture Show, I won an Academy Award for that! [Laughs] I love doing both comedy and drama very much. They just asked me today to do another Malcolm episode. We'll try to schedule it around my movie.