Did You Know?
During Robin Williams's interview, a man in the audience had to be removed from the theatre by ambulance. He'd laughed so hard, he'd acquired a hernia.
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The ten questions by Bernard Pivot that host James Lipton asks every guest are:
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- 1. What is your favorite word?
- 2. What is your least favorite word?
- 3. What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?
- 4. What turns you off?
- 5. What is your favorite curse word?
- 6. What sound or noise do you love?
- 7. What sound or noise do you hate?
- 8. What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
- 9. What profession would you not like to do?
- 10. If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?
Although every single seat is filled at each of the Actors Studio seminars featuring a celebrity, James Lipton recalls the auditorium was filled beyond capacity when Johnny Depp and Harrison Ford were guests on the show.
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There has been speculation which guest is James Lipton's favorite, but that answer has never been, and probably never will be, revealed. Lipton admits that certain guests have been "more memorable than others", but refuses to single out one particular favorite of the 200-plus artists that he's interviewed.
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Barbra Streisand's two-hour interview set the show's record for most viewed episode, with 1.14 million viewers tuning in. Harrison Ford's interview comes in second with 579,000 viewers.
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When asked who he'd most like to interview, living or dead, James Lipton replied Judy Garland. Lipton had the opportunity to have Garland's daughter, Liza Minnelli as a guest.
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Gene Hackman had the distinction of being the 100th guest on the series. Hackman's good friend, Dustin Hoffman would later be the 200th guest to appear.
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So far, Tom Hanks, Anthony Hopkins, Alec Baldwin, and Billy Crystal are the only guests to have been interviewed for an encore episode. (Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick both appeared a second time as well, but to discuss The Producers).
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James Lipton has actively tried acquiring numerous guests for the show, such as Brad Pitt, Jack Nicholson, Denzel Washington, Daniel Day-Lewis, Sean Connery, among others. Any and all prospective guests that elude the opportunity to visit the Actors Studio are given a standing invitation every year.
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Various guests of the show are welcomed back for another interview to further discuss their careers and how their craft has evolved since their first visit to the Actors Studio. So far, Tom Hanks, Anthony Hopkins, Alec Baldwin, Billy Crystal, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Mike Myers have revisited the Actors Studio for a second time.
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The Actors Studio made arrangements for James Lipton to interview Gregory Peck in 2003. Unfortunately, Peck passed away before his scheduled appearance at New School University.
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Ever since the show took off, James Lipton vigorously attempted to get screen legends Marlon Brando and Katharine Hepburn on the show. Although they were both members of the Actors Studio, neither wanted to interrupt their retirement from show business, be it talk-show or otherwise.
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When the program was based at New School University, Gary Oldman was the most popular request for which guest should come visit the Actors Studio.
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On only five occasions has James Lipton has conducted an interview away from the Actors Studio's home base. In Paris, he interviewed Juliette Binoche and Jeanne Moreau. In Los Angeles he interviewed Clint Eastwood, Jay Leno, and for the second time, Anthony Hopkins.
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Bruce Willis's interview was taped on September 10, 2001. The episode was respectfully dedicated by Willis and the Actors Studio Drama School "to the heroes who fell September 11th - and to the heroes who fight on."
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