In the 1950s, had a staff-pianist contract at MGM arranged by his
friend André Previn. The weekly retainer was huge, and paid whether he
worked or not. On a rare occasion when he was called in to play some
glissandi effects for a Tom & Jerry cartoon, Previn advised: "Russ, use
a comb to run up and down the keyboard, don't hurt your finger."
"André, for /this/ kind of money, I don't mind bleeding a little."
(Related by composer John Altman.)