people are trying to find their iden-
tity," she said. "People that age are
very insecure, and so they just kind
of take it out on other people."
"If they see someone achieving or
they see someone failing, for that
matter, they play on that, on each
other," she said.
But Ms. Berkley drew strength
from her family, which helped her
to concentrate on her goals. Early
support came from her grandfather,
Adolf Gottfurcht, a former vaude-
villian.
"A lot of the time when I was in
my dance class my grandfather
would came and just watch," she
said. "There was one night where
I think I was sick, which was very
rare, and I couldn't go. He showed
up because he thought I would be
there."
"I thought that was really sweet
because, no matter what, he was
there for me," she said.
"My mom's parents have died
within the past few years and that
is difficult. Because, growing up, you
couldn't imagine two more sup-
portive people," she said.
Jason Berkley says his sister has
become a lot like Ruth Gottfurcht,
Adolf s wife.
"Granny was very loving, ex-
tremely loving, but she had a hard
edge to her personality," Mr.
Berkley recalled. "Liz has the abil-
ity to brush things off and focus on
other things. That is what Granny
was like."
Ms. Berkley's family became an
even greater source of security at
the age of 15 when the Berkleys
moved to California. Both her par-
ents, Jeri and Fred Berkley, had
relatives who moved to the West
Coast, and neither could stand
another harsh Michigan winter. It
also was advantageous for Ms.
Berkley, who was now closer to the
heart of the entertainment business.
"Before we moved, during the
school year, I would fly in, do the au-
dition, take the red-eye home and
go to school that morning," she said.
"That happened quite a few times.
I felt a lot of pressure to go to each
interview. I kept thinking, 'This
could be the one."'
"In retrospect, I say to myself that
I am so glad that I grew up where I
grew up because the business is not
stable and there is no security," she
said.
"For example, my brother, who is
going to medical school for X
amount of years, knows he will be
a doctor. Here in the business that
I have chosen as a profession, you
can go for X amount of years and
never be assured of anything," she
said. "There is never that secure
feeling, but you have to just know
that the path that you are taking to
get where you want is the right one
for you and you surround yourself
with really nurturing people."
Her parents, brother and one sur-
viving grandmother continue to pro-
vide support for her. In fact, she
continues to live with her par-
ents in a town on the rim of the
San Bernadino Valley — a rar-
ity among young actors, some
of whom become legally eman-
cipated before they can drive.
"I know they are being honest
with me, always," she said.
"It is easier to be with someone
when she is going through a great
time, but my family is there through
all of it — the rejections, the suc-
cesses. Everything."
And it is through her family that
Ms. Berkley has developed a love
for her Judaism. Shabbat dinners
at her grandparents' home, going to
synagogue on holidays with her
family and celebrating her bat mitz-
vah at Congregation Beth Abraham
Hillel Moses are all significant
memories she has of growing up
Jewish.
"I love a lot of the traditions that
go along with Judaism and just the
sense of family, the spirituality. It
has all been really positive in my
life," she said.
Judaism, she feels, has also giv-
en her a positive sense about her-
self as well as her body. Although
Judaism teaches modesty about the
body, she said, it also gave her a
pride in her body to enable her to
perform nude scenes in Showgirls.
"There are a lot of Jewish women
who are brought up with a sense of
freedom about themselves," she
said. "Maybe there is a lot of guilt
in our culture, too, but not neces-
sarily in the way you feel about
yourself."
Guy Starkman, owner of Jerry's
Famous Delis in the Los Angeles
area, met Ms. Berkley when she
was 12 and immediately proposed
marriage. Every time Ms. Berkley
leaves his deli, she kisses the
mezuzah. In addition, she has at-
tended High Holiday services with
him at the Steven S. Wise Temple,
where his father is vice president.
"How often do you meet a girl
who is beautiful, who is Jewish, who
is charming, who is talented and yet
down to earth? Not too often," he
said.
As for his proposal, he is still
waiting for an answer.
"She is my favorite person. She
is beautiful inside and out. I would
love her the same if she was my
friend, my girlfriend or my wife," he
said. "But if she does go out with
someone, he better be a lot better
than me."
Although not in the market to
date anyone right now, Ms. Berkley
is interested in finding a nice Jew-
ish girl for her brother.
"He works every second of the
day so we need to set him up," she
said. "Do you know of anyone?"
Fame, meanwhile, continues to
be the order of the day for Ms.
Berkley.
TAP TO UP page 42
Nudity Was Necessary,
But Difficult
JILL DAVIDSON SKLAR STAFF WRITER
W
hen Elizabeth Berkley be-
gan appearing on "Saved
By The Bell," Forest Ele-
mentary Principal Walter
Jablonski asked for a photo to hang
on the walls of the Farmington
Hills school.
"We wanted something for the
children to see what they could do,"
Mr. Jablonski said. "It was a very
good conversation piece, too."
Chances are there won't be a hal-
lowed place in the hallway for Ms.
Berkley's latest work.
In fact, Showgirls won't be
shown in most theaters, will not be
carried in the future by Blockbuster
Video stores and will most certainly
not be available for viewing by any-
one who attends her former grade
school.
Why? Because it is rated NC-17,
meaning no one under the age of
17 will be permitted into the the-
ater. In 1990, NC-17 replaced
the X rating, formerly reserved
for racy flicks, some deemed
pornographic.
The subject of the film is the
road an 18-year-old girl trav- Being directed around a young
els from lap dancer in a strip
woman like that
club to lead dancer in a Las by Paul
who is so passion-
Vegas topless revue. Because Verhoeven
ate, so focused, so
it portrays in graphic detail the was "the most driven," she said. "It
conditions of such a life, plen- amazing
is an amazing role
ty of half-naked and naked experience?'
that anyone would
bodies are seen, including Ms.
kill for, working on
Berkley's.
a script written by Joe Eszterhas,
So how does the former Detroi- a movie directed by Paul Verho-
ter go from the goody-two-shoes even, who is one of the top directors
character of Jesse in "Saved By The in the world. How could you not
Bell" to the topless, gyrating lap want to do this?"
dancer in Showgirls?
To prepare for the audition, the
Ms. Berkley first read the script 22-year-old actress went with male
about two years ago and immedi- friends to strip clubs.
ately fell in love with the character,
"I had all of these questions like,
Nomi Malone.
`Why do people come here?' and
"It is so rare that a movie centers `What is it about?' and 'What moti-
vates people to work here?"' she
said. "I wanted to learn the whole
allure of the place."
After meeting with Mr. Verho-
even, she felt a great sense of se-
curity, which she said she needed
to be comfortable taking off her
clothes.
"(The trust) was there from the
beginning, not only because I knew
he had a tremendous talent, but
also just the sense I got from him,"
she said. "That is very important,
especially in this kind of a role
where you are so vulnerable."
After the filming of her first nude
scene, Ms. Berkley threw on a robe
NUDITY page 42