Be Funny!
So I watched Inside the Actors Studio with cast of The Simpsons tonight on Bravo and I must say, the whole experience was a bit lacking for a number of reasons I will now detail.
1. James Lipton. Can this guy be any less talented? Maybe I'm missing something since I've never seen any other one of his shows but he has got to be the worst interviewer I've ever seen. Let me play it out:
JL: Asks inane question so that actor can do a voice impersonation.
Actor: Responds.
JL: Asks a completly different question from a clearly prepared list, completely ignoring any specifics in response from the actor.
Lather, Rinse, Repeat for 45 minutes.
If you want to hear what a real interview should sound like, listen to Terry Gross on NRP. I would have liked to gotten to know the actors a bit better as a whole and a little less of them doing their schtick.
2. Why did the the actor of the voice of Marge Simpson and her sisters, Julie Kavner just vanish halfway through the show, without any comment about it? That was creepy.
3. Did they really bleep the word fart? Oh no! They said fart! Sheild your ears kiddies!
4. I was glad they gave, albeit a bit short, the kudos to the writers who clearly make the show what it is.
5. Why was there no mention of the voice of Mrs. Krabappel or any of the work done by the late great Phil Hartman. Ok, he's dead and the show doesn't focus on the dead people but Marcia Wallace has been doing the show forever.
6. Did I mention that this Lipton Fellow is a complete putz of was clearly all stary-eyed at mere sight of his guests.
All of that being said, as a whole I found the show pleasant to watch. Nothing more or less. But to add insult to injury, my Tivo flipped out on me and taped a really old episode of The Sopranos instead of the new Simpsons so I didn't get that taped. Oh Tivo, how have I wronged you?
I'd love to hear comments from others who watched this show.
Comments
you're right.. I've never seen this show before tonight (I watched it on tape) and this Lipton is completely inane. I also noticed that they didn't show Kavner doing her voices and her unexplained disappearance during the show... very strange...
Posted by: Al | February 11, 2003 9:00 PM
There's a link to a possible explanation about Julie Kavner's disappearance. Creepy, though.
Posted by: Jakeline | February 16, 2003 11:41 PM
Okay, that didn't work as well as I had hoped. Here's something else I found on Kavner's disappearance from the Sun Times:
"... And why didn't host James Lipton ever explain that Julie Kavner left halfway through the taping because her discomfort with being onstage was exacerbated by the fact this taping went on for hours?"
Posted by: Jakeline | February 16, 2003 11:47 PM