Working for a comedian like Jackie Gleason was not for the faint of heart. Gleason was the brain behind the eternally entertaining series, The Honeymooners, which made him a giant in the entertainment industry.

However, according to Joyce Randolph, who worked closely with Gleason on the series, the creator's methods were more than a little abnormal.

Randolph played Trixie Norton for the duration of the series and spoke to the Daily News about her time on the show.

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"Jackie Gleason's idea of a rehearsal was one run through the day of the show and then live TV that night," said Randolph. "Jackie said, 'Comedy's not funny if it's rehearsed.' Listen, he sure knew something, because The Honeymooners is still running all these years later."

Randolph explained that the rehearsal process for The Honeymooners was swift and unforgiving.

"We'd get the scripts on Thursday night," said Randolph. "Friday, we'd get Jackie's changes. On Saturday afternoon, we'd do the read-through and go to the air live on Saturday night."

Some actors in the series seemed to adapt to it better than others at first, though it always worked out for the best.

"Art Carney, who was a sweetheart of a man, could keep right up with Jackie," said Randolph. "But Audrey was so nervous she was in tears the first time out. After that, she'd memorize everyone's lines, and if anyone forgot a line, Audrey'd lead the way. Jackie also had a rule: If you had to ad-lib, do it in character."

Although Gleason could be standoffish and difficult at times, Randolph was grateful to have him at the helm of the Honeymooners ship.

"He was odd," said Randolph of Gleason. "He kept his distance, very much the boss. But he was always a gentleman. He was misrepresented by one biographer, William Henry III, who portrayed him as a monster. He wasn't. He was tough on the writers, but he was a perfectionist - and just look at the writing he got out of them!"

Of course, all of the extra effort from the writers and cast was more than worth it in the end.

"Never in our wildest dreams did we think we were making TV history," said the actor. "But there isn't a day that goes by when I'm not deeply proud to have been part of The Honeymooners."