Inside Inside
by James Lipton
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Book Summary Information
Author: James LiptonEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-10-07
ISBN: 0451225015
Number of pages: 512
Publisher: NAL Trade
Book Reviews of Inside Inside
Book Review: "Take your profession (not yourself) seriously" -- Clint Eastwood
Summary: 4 Stars
James Lipton doesn't take himself nearly as seriously as his critics -- while adhering to Clint Eastwood's witty and wise advice, about how to enjoy life as well as your career.
I would leave to others here -- including any who know theatre as well as James Lipton -- whether his book [as reviewer "Jessica" states, (above)] is a "must-read for aspiring actors, directors, writers, agents, or fans of Mr. Lipton and the Actor's Studio . . . "
For an ordinary soul, with a smattering of theatre knowledge (like me) -- this is an enjoyable read, deserving 3-and-a-half stars (rounded-up to four).
Two years after this book's publication, two of the "spotlight" reviewers, I see, claim to find Mr. Lipton's style of writing, as well as his manner of speaking on TV -- "pompous." I don't. His overflowing love for, (and encyclopedic knowledge of,) American theatre history, I find entertaining. Bet most people here at the world's biggest website, if they read the book, would agree!
Anyway, as other reviewers suggest, you can always go "straight to the second half" of this book -- focusing on Lipton's interviews and behind-the-scenes quotes from actors: that's where the real fun begins - the laughter and the tears.
I went in search of laughter - the kind that promotes tears (notice how they're intertwined in all our lives?)
Eddie Murphy was recently one of the first guests on "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien." Mr. Lipton recalls how the comedic actor was "a famously private person who for years declined every request for an interview" (including those from Conan in his New York "Late Night" program - 17 years worth of "No, thank you.")
Lipton said Eddie Murphy "after years of watching INSIDE THE ACTORS STUDIO, had decided he wanted to appear on it. And, to everyone's delight Eddie "stayed late in the classroom, communicating - communing - with the students . . . concluding the evening with a manifestly heartfelt summing up of the importance of laughter:
"You can't put a price tag on it. I feel so blessed that I have the ability to make people laugh. Because, you know, it's really healing. It's documented, medically. It's good for you to laugh. I love when someone comes up to me and says, `I went and saw (you) and it was the first time I laughed in so long!' Yes, comedy - making people laugh is really, really important."
"Bette Midler," says Lipton, "established a speed record for tears, within minutes of walking on stage - as we talked about her childhood." Just as quickly, while "still dabbing at her face with a tissue," Midler credited a friend, "Beth Ellen Childers" with changing her grey skies to blue, each time they met.
No one ever made Bette laugh harder: "[Beth Ellen] thought I was a riot. I couldn't say anything she didn't think was hilarious. And SHE was hilarious! She used to make me laugh so hard until tears rolled down my cheeks. And you know, if you have never experienced that kind of laughter, it's too bad! Because that's the greatest thing in the world - better than sex! I'm convinced of it."
Dustin Hoffman "shattered Bette Midler's speed record for tears," Lipton writes about one of his all-time favorite interviews, provoking tears before the laughter - and the REAL truth about actors, according to the dean of the Shakespearean theatre, Lawrence Olivier - just before he died.
"He was ill," Dustin Hoffman said concerning his last dinner with Olivier, when he asked him: "We all wonder (as actors) what makes us do what we do?"
Impersonating his tidal wave of a whisper, Hoffman quoted the reply of "Lord Larry" verbatim:
"You want to know WHY? dear boy: (it's) "Look at me, Look at me! Look at me!! Look at me!! Look at me!!! Look at me!!!
This book's 18 "chapters" (none listed at the front, and no appendix) concludes with the "10 questions" with which Lipton liked to end all his interviews; ranging from the trivial -- "Your favorite curse word?" --- to the sublime: "If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?"
As always, with good humor, (one hopes) the replies may be true as well as witty! (My favorites include one from the 'Queen of chick flicks,' the second, from the funniest of Oscar winners)
MEG RYAN: "You big dope . . . I've been with you all along!"
ROBIN WILLIAMS: "The concert begins at five. (First up,) Mozart, then Elvis . . . Oh to know there is laughter (there). Just to hear God say, "two Jews walk into a bar . . . "
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