James Lipton, who died Monday at the age of 93, made a name for himself by conducting in-depth interviews with actors, comedians, filmmakers and others on the long series “Inside the Actors Studio” when she was on Bravo TV. Although Lipton may appear important or sycophantic and has been parodied more than once, there is a reason why the show was a success. He has good things.
Here is an overview of some of his most memorable encounters:
Dave Chappelle
After abruptly leaving his Comedy Central series “Chappelle’s Show” and traveling to Africa in 2005, Dave Chappelle sat down with Lipton for a far-reaching conversation to discuss, among other things, his thinking process leading to walkout. “I had to make choices,” he told Lipton, later adding, “I love to entertain. And the higher I go, for whatever reason, the less happy I am. Below, you can see excerpts from the interview and watch it in full here.
Robin Williams
To celebrate the 250th episode of the show, Bravo asked viewers about their favorite episode. The winner was Lipton’s 2001 session with Robin Williams, although the actor was barely limited to questions about his craft:
‘The simpsons’
One of the reasons that Lipton was ripe for parody was his seriousness, his attitude towards work, no matter who was the guest, and that included the vocal cast of “The Simpsons”. He opened the episode by asking Homer (Dan Castellaneta), Bart (Nancy Cartwright) and the rest “What’s your full name?” The responses were hilarious but Lipton seemed to keep a straight face all the time:
Bradley Cooper, part 1
The show was ostensibly a preview inside a seminar for drama students (although it was also a marketing opportunity for the studio), and the students made up the audience. At the end of each episode, aspiring actors were invited to ask questions of experienced stars. In 1999, the beginner was Bradley Cooper and the veteran he sought information from was Sean Penn:
Bradley Cooper, part 2
In 2011, an emotional Lipton welcomed Cooper back as a guest. He was the first interviewee to come from the Actors Studio program, and Lipton was clearly moved by the moment. He called him later “One of the most beautiful nights of my life.” See the opening below and watch the full episode here.
