i think Cleavon little is wonderful in this. He is so suave and sophisticated, i can't imagine Ricahrd Pryor in the role.

I too thought about Pryor in the role but ultimately think Little was better than Pryor would have been. Cleavon Little had a certain leading man quality to him that made him a better fit for the role. I can imagine Little with Count Basie's orchestra backing him, with the designer western outfit, being seduced by the vampish Madeline Kahn. Pryor though? Eh, not so much.

Cleavon Little's charisma was godlike. Also his chemistry with Wilder. I wouldn't trade that duo for any other actors.

Mel Brooks almost quit because he wanted Pryor as Bart, but the studio heads would not let it happen. It was Pryor himself that talked Brooks out of quititng.

I think Pryor would have done just fine as Bart. Despite his 'earthy' reputation, he really is a good actor. Considering the chemistry he and Gene Wilder showed in 'Stir Crazy,' Pryor as Bart is a very interesting might-have-been.

• HOW kin I be so brainless, when I is so smart?

i know this could have been another instalment of the wilder/pryor movies, but i'm so used to the scenes between cleavon little and wilder in this that i know it by heart, and i think they work great together so i'm not negative on it thinking what might have been. the name cleavon little sound a bit like a rock musician, thinking of little richard ofcourse. one of my favorite scenes is when the drunk starts ranting and you can't hear what he's saying and another man stands up and says "now who can argue with that", as if he has just heard a great speech.
please don't leave me,
never meant to seem cruel in your eye,
i was only foolin around,
you dropped the play and walked off,
i cant make it on my own,
beg you on my knees,
please don't leave me.

They did good by getting Cleavon.
Still would have been a funny movie with Richard Pryor.

Richard Pryor was a great comedian and comic writer, but he didn't have the charisma that Cleavon Little had. Richard Prior may have been funnier, but I don't think the movie would have been as great.
I intend to live forever.
So far, so good.

I don't mean that he would have OD'd. I mean that what made this movie work was the innocence of Bart. Other than the shovel incident, he did nothing wrong. And, in the context of the time in which the movie took place, something like that would have been how most people handled that situation.
I don't think Pryor was innocent enough to have played the role. He always had a look about him as if he was up to no good, or at least had a chip on his shoulder.
Don't get me wrong, I've liked a lot of stuff that he's done. I just don't think he could have pulled this role off.

Richard would have been smart enough not to go overboard. he was a comedy genius. at that point in 1973 he was only snorting coke not freebasing yet.

According to the trivia page for the film, the second choice to play The Waco Kid was Gig Young. Gene Wilder replaced him after young showed up on the set drunk.

• You may have come on no bicycle, but that does not say that you know everything.

I forget who he was, and he was an alcoholic.
Brooks said he wrote the part with Wayne in mind. I really wish he would have had the foresight to spoof himself they way so many actors do now. He did some comedy stuff on shows, so he had the chops. He just couldn't get past being John Wayne.

I thought they actually had another old cowboy actor lined up to play the Waco Kid, but they found out he really WAS a hopeless drunk.

• You may have come on no bicycle, but that does not say that you know everything.

Only if Mel would have been able to keep him in line. If he went vulgar, then the movie wouldn't have worked.
Plus, Cleavon was pretty unknown and "innocent." Meaning, we had no idea of what to expect.
I think the bigger thing would have been if The Waco Kid was played by John Wayne like Brooks wanted. Wayne said he loved it, but just couldn't do it because it would have been against "John Wayne's" legacy.
I think it would have been hilarious to see John Wayne say, "The little bastard shot me in the ass."