Inside Inside (Paperback)

~ (Author) "I made myself a promise that I would not begin this book with the first-person singular pronoun I... and I've already broken that promise four..." (more)
Key Phrases: emotional memory, inaugural gala, soup man, New York, Actors Studio, Bob Hope (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

When the Actors Studio faced possible extinction in 1994, Lipton (An Exaltation of Larks) engineered a partnership between the Studio and the New School for Social Research to create a degree-granting program. Thus was born the Actors Studio Drama School, with Lipton as both founder and dean. The school's craft seminars, in which Lipton interviewed leading actors and directors, became the basis for Bravo's Inside the Actors Studio, and since 1994, he has been that series' executive producer, writer and host. Looking back over the show's parade of personalities, he intercuts autobiographical flashbacks with quotes from the TV interview transcripts. These brief selections, excerpted from his sessions with Tom Hanks, Anthony Hopkins, Jack Lemmon, Mike Nichols, Sean Penn, Julia Roberts, Steven Spielberg, Meryl Streep and many more, may leave some readers wishing Lipton had published the transcripts in full. Raising the curtain on his own memories, he traces the path of his multifaceted career as radio actor (The Lone Ranger), TV actor (The Guiding Light), Broadway lyricist (Sherry!) and novelist (Mirrors). Along the way, theatrical truths emerge and amusing anecdotes abound since Lipton is a witty and engaging writer. The free-associative transitions from interviews to autobiography occasionally read like two different books shuffled together, but that only makes this exaltation of Lipton doubly enjoyable. The 48 illustrations include Al Hirschfeld's caricature of Lipton. (Oct. 18)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

“If you have watched the show, you’ll love this book... If you haven’t seen the show, you’ll love this book.”
—Billy Crystal

Inside the Actors Studio has brought more than 200 of the world’s most celebrated actors, directors, writers, and performing artists into 84 million homes in America and 125 countries around the world. Now host and creator James Lipton is offering readers a backstage pass to the award-winning series—and to his own amazing journey to its stage. “Great, colorful stories about every side of show business. James Lipton lets it all go; his openness about himself, and artists of all stripes, is refreshing.”
—Paul Newman

“Once in a blue moon a person comes along whose genuine interest in craft excites an artist, and rekindles his own interest in his craft. In these pages you’ll find out how James Lipton does it.”
—John Travolta

“Theatrical truths emerge and amusing anecdotes abound...A witty and engaging writer.”
—Publishers Weekly

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: NAL Trade; Reprint edition (October 7, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451225015
• ISBN-13: 978-0451225016
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #69,798 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

58 of 65 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I respectfully disagree, November 4, 2007

By	Linda A. Marlia "classic hollywood buff" (Portland, OR USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

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This review is from: Inside Inside (Hardcover)

I respectfully disagree with the reviewers above. In addition to being a fan of Inside the Actors Studio, I'm a fan of James Lipton's. His love of language was legendary before Inside - this is, after all, the author of An Exhaultation of Larks which celebrates the richness of the English language so well it's been in print for something near 40 years. Yes,Inside Inside is written using words that aren't as commonly encountered today as they once were. I consider it a treat to find them tucked into what I regard as his very readable prose.

Mr. Lipton has led a fascinating life and I'm glad he's shared it with readers. His show doesn't settle for trite interviews featuring anecdotes rather than thoughtful content and I was pleased to find his book didn't either. Perhaps the title should have indicated the breadth of the book rather than focus on the show, but, since he was the creator of the series, knowing his story does put you Inside Inside. If you want a simple book about actors, you'd do better elsewhere, but if you want a visit with an interesting man who has talked with many of the greats about their passion for their craft, this is a fine choice for you.

63 of 72 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Too much Lipton, too little "Inside", October 25, 2007

By	D. P. Hock (Healdsburg, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Inside Inside (Hardcover)

This isn't really an inside look at "Inside the Actor's Studio." It's an inside look at James Lipton, with occasional tales about the show and the actors who've graced its stage.

On the tv show "Inside the Actor's Studio," James Lipton comes across as pompous and pedantic and far too impressed with himself. This impression is only reinforced by this book, where Lipton manages to quote Charles Dickens, Chaucer, Moby Dick, John Donne, Yeats, Coleridge, Robert DeNiro, Orson Welles, and Irving Berlin and refer to DW Griffith, Renoir, Eisenstein, Scorsese, Spielberg, W. C. Fields, James Bond, Fellini, Marcello Mastrioanni, Will Ferrell and more in just the first five pages. Lipton's linguistic showing off gets tiresome quickly. It doesn't support him as a story-teller; it just makes Lipton sound like he's trying much too hard to sound clever.

Which isn't to say that Lipton is not intelligent. As he goes through the history of acting theory and of the Actor's Studio, it's apparent that Lipton is thoughtful and insightful about his world. He sees common themes among different people, and he knows how to bring them together and display them in the context of the performing arts world. That ability -- one of the strengths of Inside the Actor's Studio -- is at work here, too. But this book would have been so much stronger if he'd gotten himself out of the way, even a bit.

Indeed, while promising that the book won't be about him as much as "the vibrant troop of other people who have quickened the most exciting adventures of my life," Lipton goes on at far too great a length about himself. As with Inside the Actor's Studio, the high points of this book are the words and stories told by guests on show -- their words, not Lipton's. The low points are Lipton's floridly written tales of his own life.

Still, if you can skim through (or skip over) those parts, the book is worth reading as a collection of reflections by some of the most talented actors of our time. Here, Lipton collects their comments thematically, which provides for interesting and enjoyable contrast. And, as on the tv show, hearing these artists talk about how they approach the art and craft in their work is fascinating and enlightening.

36 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Was there no editor on this book???, October 28, 2007

By	Lizzie64 (Weston, CT United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Inside Inside (Hardcover)

This book struggles with every problem mentioned in the "too much of Lipton" review, and then some. Not only is the first 1/3 to 1/2 of the book almost strictly about Lipton, his stories are so buried in flowery, pompous prose that it's hard to understand what he's talking about.

The rest of the book, while somewhat entertaining, is perhaps the most poorly edited book I've ever read. There is no flow, and apparently no rhyme or reason as to which guests and Lipton anecdotes are paired up in the various chapters. One passage begins with the interview with Michael Caine, then abruptly shifts to a discussion of how an appearance on the show can help to garner an Oscar nod. This happens constantly throughout the book, and is enough to give you literary whiplash.

Much of the book is basically a transcript of snippets of interviews, interspersed with anecdotes designed to make Lipton appear charming, clever, or a powerful member of Hollywood's inner circle.

All in all, entertaining enough if you enjoy watching the show, but if you've watched the show, you won't get much new info about the guests. If you want to read endless drivel about Lipton, you've found the book for you!