Here's the real inside scoop on what Art Carney thought about Jackie Gleason

Almost everyone knows Jackie Gleason from his role as Ralph Kramden on The Honeymooners. When you think of Jackie Gleason, you think: loud, funny and larger-than-life. But what was the legendary actor like to work for?

His co-star—and buddy—Art Carney had all the answers in a 1955 interview with the Longview Daily News. Learning about your favorite actors can sometimes be scary — you don’t want to find out anything bad about your heroes.

However, Carney made working with Gleason sound like a breeze. But don’t take our word for it.

"I’ll tell you in one sentence how I feel about Jackie Gleason as my boss: I could have had my own show, at more money, but I preferred to stay with Gleason," Carney said. "And, incidentally, he never once tried to persuade me to stay."

According to the interview, during his time on The Honeymooners, Carney had many great offers coming his way. But he was afraid of breaking up the team on the series. After all, there can’t be Ralph without Ed. The two went together so well onscreen—and apparently, the love didn’t stop there either.

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"When I finally agreed to sign a new contract and stay with him, he just said, 'That’s fine, Art. Glad you’re staying,'" Carney said. "No big speeches or fuss. Which was all right with me. And, by the way, that’s one of the reasons I decided to stay—there’s never any emotion or temperament around Gleason."

Their chemistry is what gave The Honeymooners a leg up on some of its competition. The two had a great time together... and they made each other laugh, which in any comedian’s book is a great thing. 

"He’s about the ideal guy to work for," Carney said. "For one thing—and a very important thing—our comedy styles seem to be made for each other. That just happened. We didn’t plan it that way."

While Carney praised Gleason, Gleason also gave plenty of credit to his co-stars. He was known for paying actors well and not cutting corners.

According to the interview, Carney used to make $250 a week. But when The Honeymooners was moving to CBS, Gleason wanted to raise Carney’s salary to $1,000 a week—and that’s exactly what he did.

"And there’s another way an actor measures his boss, too," Carney said. "That’s whether or not he gives you a chance to get some laughs. He’s always been the first to encourage me, help me, give me a break... Many comedians would be jealous if another comedian on their show had catchphrases that became popular. Well, Jackie not only isn’t jealous, he actually suggests such phrases to me."

Happy actors, happy show. That was the motto of The Honeymooners.