Arts & Entertainment
CREATOR AND HOST OF INSIDE THE ACTORS STUDIO
The Insider
Former Detroiter James Lipton of Inside the
Actor's Studio shares his own incredible life with
readers in a new autobiography.
Suzanne Chessler
Special to the Jewish News
reaches back to the emotions of his early
years in Michigan and moves forward to
the emotions expressed during interviews
ames Lipton could be among the ultimate arts
broadcast into 125 countries. Besides serv-
and entertainment namedroppers.
ing as creator and host, Lipton is executive
The chain of famous people to whom he is
producer and writer of the Bravo network
connected starts with his dad, Lawrence Lipton, the pub-
series that began in 1994.
lished beat poet whose early journalism career included
Steven Spielberg, Barbra Streisand, Paul
articles written for the Jewish Daily Forward.
Newman, Harrison Ford, Robin Williams,
The links continue with the help of Laurence Rosenthal, Gene Hackman, Russell Crowe, Charlize
a friend from Lipton's days at Detroit's Central High
Theron and Dave Chappelle are but a few
School and reconnected through collaboration, specifi-
on the list of entertainment greats called
cally the stage musical Sherry!, for which Lipton wrote the upon for Lipton's questioning and refer-
book and lyrics to Rosenthal's music.
enced in his photo-filled book. (Ford, for
The chain extends with contacts made through Lipton's one, revealed that his mother was Russian-
acting, writing and production career — now highlighted Jewish, his father Irish-Catholic. 'As a man, I've always felt
on his television program, Inside the Actors Studio, and
Irish. As an actor, I've always felt Jewish," he revealed to
in his new book, Inside 'Inside' (Dutton; $27.95), which
his host.)
mixes anecdotes about his life with anecdotes about the
"I want drama students to learn through my book that
life of the program.
the most important thing of all is to study;' says Lipton,
Lipton, 81, spent two years working on the text that
dean emeritus of the Pace University Actors Studio
Drama School, a master's degree initiative he helped
develop with a seminar that turned into the TV series.
"It fascinates me that some people think acting is
entirely instinctual. It is part instinctual, but there's a lot
more to it than that. You cannot teach talent, but you can
teach technique. The purpose of technique is to free the
talent:"
Lipton's literary and performance interests moved from
amateur to professional in Detroit, where he lived with
his mother, Betty Weinberg Lipton, after his dad left when
James was 6 years old. The Inside 'Inside' author describes
hard financial times as his mother taught in Highland
Park and tells of reconnecting with his father after years
of estrangement.
Reading before he turned 2, dictating poetry at 3 and
writing novels when he was 12, Lipton went on to take
classes at Wayne State University. Along the way, he gained
attention while performing for a Catholic theater and
won a role on the Lone Ranger radio program, produced
locally, playing the Lone Ranger's nephew, Dan Reid.
After moving to New York, Lipton studied with legend-
ary teacher and coach Stella Adler, who helped prepare
him for work as an actor and writer for stage and soap
opera. He went on to produce television projects, includ-
ing Jimmy Carter's Inaugural Gala and Bob Hope specials.
"When I was a child, I would walk to the Fisher Theatre
every Saturday afternoon and watch a movie Lipton
recalls about the venue that became the starting place
James Lipton as a young boy with his mother, Betty
for the Nederlander theater network. "I didn't know the
Weinberg Lipton, near their home at 280 Hague in
Nederlander family then, but I got to know some of the
Detroit
family members very well in New York. I've told them
j
Insidelnside
what a profound influence the family had on my life."
Lipton, once married to actress Nina Foch and now
married to former model and real estate executive
Kedakai Turner Lipton, lists flying as his favorite inter-
est away from show business. Although horseback riding
became a valued activity for many years, that stopped
after an accident.
Lipton, about to celebrate the 200th episode of his tele-
vision series with some unusual fare, looks back on a life
without religion.
"I don't know why my parents distanced themselves
from Judaism, but they both were atheists:' he says. "I've
always been like my parents [in that way], and I don't
regret it.
"I confess that I am appalled by the fact that in the 21st
century, in this time of enormous scientific enlighten-
ment, the world is still ripped apart by religious wars. It's
a matter of considerable pain to me and makes me all the
more convinced that my parents were right in not bur-
dening themselves or me with any religious belief.
"I hope that doesn't offend anyone. I know so many
people who are religious and do very good things and for
whom I have the deepest respect:"
Lipton, who has written the novel Mirrors and the liter-
ary work An Exaltation of Larks, takes two weeks to pre-
pare for each televised interview and is prompted from
notations on blue cards. He keeps the show focused on
craft, conducts no pre-interviews and perpetually hopes
to drop a name not yet known to him.
"The person I look forward to interviewing most of all
is one of my graduate students who has achieved so much
that he or she walks out on that stage and sits down in the
chair next to me he explains. "That will be the best night
that I've ever had on Inside the Actors Studio." II
For a schedule of inside the Actors Studio broad-
casts, go to www.bravotv.com .
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December 13 • 2007 C11