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- Writer
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James Lipton was an actor, academic, author, choreographer, interviewer, scriptwriter, and producer for stage and television projects. He was known for creating and hosting the noted and popular TV series Inside the Actors Studio (1994), where successful and prominent actors discussed their craft for the benefit of acting students.
James Lipton was born Louis James Lipton in Detroit, Michigan, to Betty (Weinberg), a teacher and librarian, and Lawrence Lipton (originally Israel Lipschitz), a writer and beatnik poet. His father was a Polish Jewish emigrant, from Lodz, and his maternal grandparents were Russian Jews. Lipton's parents divorced when he was quite young. As a reaction against his beatnik father's anarchic and chaotic lifestyle, Lipton at first chose to pursue a stable and staid career as a lawyer. He originally took up acting as a sideline to finance his law studies but eventually he shifted the focus of his career to acting.
Lipton moved to New York City and undertook twelve years of intensive studies in the performing arts. He studied acting and directing under Stella Adler, widely regarded as the most respected acting teacher in the history of American dramatic arts. Adler's other students at various times have included Marlon Brando, Robert De Niro and Harvey Keitel. Lipton also studied with Harold Clurman and Robert Lewis. He studied movie/TV production and directing at New York University and at The New School. He also studied voice, modern dance, classical ballet, and jazz technique.
Lipton performed in the play "The Autumn Garden" on Broadway in 1951. He became active in several TV soap operas, joining the cast of Guiding Light (1952) where he acted and wrote scripts for several years and later became head writer, all while undertaking his formal acting studies. He was a scriptwriter for The Edge of Night (1956) and he became head writer for Another World (1964), The Best of Everything (1970), Return to Peyton Place (1972) and Capitol (1982).
Lipton wrote the book and the lyrics for the Broadway flop "Nowhere to Go But Up" (1962), and he did the same for "Sherry!" which was produced on stage in 1967 and released as an audio CD in 2004. Also for Broadway, he produced "The Mighty Gents" (1978), "Monteith & Rand" (1979) and co-produced the Tony award-winning "Ain't Misbehavin'" (1978). He choreographed "Charlot" for ballet theater, and for Moliere's play "The Doctor In Spite of Himself" he translated from the original French, adapted it as a musical version, wrote the lyrics, directed and choreographed.
A lover of words, Lipton has made a study of group terms, sometimes called nouns of multitude (examples: a gaggle of geese, a host of angels, etc.). He has published the definitive work on the subject in a best-selling book titled "An Exaltation of Larks". It has been in print continuously since its first edition in 1968. The latest edition, now expanded, contains over 1,100 such phrases. In the book Lipton himself jumps into the lexical fray by offering many new terms of his own invention, including: a score of bachelors, an unction of undertakers, a shrivel of critics, and a queue of actors. Other writings of his have appeared in Newsweek, The New York Times Magazine and The Paris Review.
In 1983 Lipton published his novel "Mirrors" which is about the lives of dancers. He later wrote and produced it as a TV movie. In television, Lipton has produced some two dozen specials including: twelve Bob Hope Birthday Specials; Bob Hope on the Road to China (1979) , an NBC entertainment special produced in China; and the first time ever televised presidential inaugural gala, for Jimmy Carter.
In the mid-1990s Lipton sought to create a three year educational program for actors that would be a distillation of what he had learned in the twelve years of his own intensive studies. In 1994 he arranged for the Actors Studio -- the home base of "method acting" in the USA for some sixty years now -- to join with New York City's New School University, to form the Actors Studio Drama School, a formal degree-granting program at the graduate level.
At the same time, Lipton created a sub-project within the drama school: a non-credit class called Inside the Actors Studio (1994) where successful and accomplished actors, directors and writers would be interviewed and would answer questions from acting students. These sessions were also taped and broadcast on television for the general public to see. Lipton himself hosts the show and conducts the main interview.
The TV show Inside the Actors Studio (1994) has become a substantial success. In the more than 12 years that it has been on the air, the craft of acting has been discussed by the show's over 200 guests who have included Paul Newman, Barbra Streisand, Harrison Ford, Tom Cruise, Meryl Streep, Angelina Jolie, Robert De Niro, Francis Ford Coppola, Kate Winslet, Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Charlize Theron, Robin Williams, Gwyneth Paltrow, Anthony Hopkins, Samuel L. Jackson, Johnny Depp, Morgan Freeman, Al Pacino, Cate Blanchett, Martin Scorsese and Dustin Hoffman. The show is viewed in 80 million homes in the USA on the Bravo cable channel and is seen in 125 countries. It has been nominated for 12 Emmy awards. The Actors Studio Drama School performed very well also. During Lipton's term as dean, the school became the largest graduate-level drama school in the United States.
Important changes began in 2004 for both the TV show and the drama school. The New School underwent a major reorganization and seriously cut back its support for drama education. The Actors Studio's collaboration with the New School came to an end and a new drama school as well as a new venue for the TV show were both set up at Pace University, also in New York City.
Lipton's TV show made him so famous that he was frequently parodied on Saturday Night Live (1975) by comic Will Ferrell. Lipton continued to host and produce Inside the Actors Studio (1994), and served as a vice president of the Actors Studio. He held the lifelong title of Dean Emeritus of the Actors Studio Drama Program. In 2007, he wrote a book about the TV show and his life, which was titled "Inside Inside."
The last episode of Inside he hosted aired on January 11, 2018, with Ted Danson as guest. The show began rotating hosts in its 2019 season. James Lipton died on March 2, 2020, in Manhattan. He was survived by wife Kedaki Turner.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
David Schurmann was born on 7 June 1943 in London, England, UK. He was an actor and director, known for Blind Date (2019), Warehouse 13 (2009) and Side Effects (1994). He was married to Maureen del Degan. He died on 2 March 2020 in Parkdale, Ontario, Canada.- Actress
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Eva Astor was born on 3 March 1944 in Graz, Austria. She was an actress, known for The French Sex Murders (1972), Le 10 meraviglie dell'amore (1969) and Interpol (1963). She died on 2 March 2020 in Garching an der Alz, Bavaria, Germany.- Elaine Hyman was born in Detroit, Michigan, USA. She was an actress, known for Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999), The Sopranos (1999), Dark Shadows, and Toma (1973), among others.
As a child actor starting around the age of eleven, Elaine had regular roles in well-known radio shows, including The Lone Ranger with Brace Beemer, and The Green Hornet, emanating from Detroit, Michigan.
In the 1970s and 80s, she toured the U.S. with Dom Deluise, Sid Caesar and Jack Weston in various productions of Neil Simon's "Last of the Red Hot Lovers." On Broadway, she appeared in several productions, including "Children, Children" with Gwen Verdon, "General Seager" with George C. Scott, and "The Norman Conquests" trilogy with Richard Benjamin and Paula Prentiss.
She studied at Wayne State University in Detroit and Columbia University. - Production Manager
- Producer
- Transportation Department
Raymond Hartwick was born on 23 September 1928 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA. He was a production manager and producer, known for The Untouchables (1987), Scrooged (1988) and The River Wild (1994). He died on 2 March 2020 in Florida, USA.- Director
- Writer
- Actor
Ulay, born Frank Uwe Laysiepen,1943 is a German artist, now based in Amsterdam, Holland, and Ljubljana, Slovenia. Ulay received international recognition for his work as a photographer, mainly in Polaroid, from the late 1960s, and later as a performance artist, including his collaborative performances with Marina Abramovic from 1976 to 1988. His work has continuously dealt with politics, identity and gender. In 2016 Schirn Kunsthalle in Frankfurt, Germany, held the first major retrospective show of his work 'Ulay Life-Sized'. In recent years Ulay's work has also been on show at the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam and GNYP Gallery in Berlin. Ulay's work, as well as his collaborative work with Marina Abramovic, is featured in many collections of major art institutions around the world such as Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, Centre Pompidou in Paris, Tate Modern in London and Museum of Modern Art in New York.- Peter Wieland was born on 6 July 1930 in Stralsund, Germany. He was an actor, known for Ferienheim Bergkristall (1983), Gute Zeiten, schlechte Zeiten (1992) and Zwischen Frühstück und Gänsebraten (1959). He was married to Marion Sauer, Dagmar Frederic and ???. He died on 2 March 2020 in Berlin, Germany.
- William Johnson was born on 23 April 1931 in Kapuskasing, Ontario, Canada. He was married to Carol Bream and Joan Sergeant. He died on 2 March 2020 in Gatineau, Québec, Canada.
- Actress
- Casting Director
Elizabeth Nelson Adams was born on 22 January 1941 in Columbia, South Carolina, USA. She was an actress and casting director, known for The Last Confederate: The Story of Robert Adams (2005), Elizabeth Adams - Art and Selected Poetry (2010) and Once Upon a Time in the South: Behind 'the Last Confederate' (2007). She was married to Weston Adams. She died on 2 March 2020 in Columbia, South Carolina, USA.- József Zana was born on 20 December 1938 in Újpest, Hungary [now in Budapest, Hungary]. He was an actor, known for Retúr (1997), Pirx kalandjai (1973) and Nyitott ablak (1988). He was married to Kocsis, Renáta and Ilona Kassai. He died on 2 March 2020 in Budapest, Hungary.
- Additional Crew
Alex Kontsalakis was born on 31 October 1975. Alex is known for A History of Violence (2005), Jason X (2001) and RoboCop (2014). Alex died on 2 March 2020 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.- Mike Hope and Albie Keen were 1st cousins and formed the comedy duo Hope and Keen, following in the footsteps of their comedian fathers who were the comedy duo Syd and Max Harrison. Mike and Albie were educated at public schools and made their first appearance at Dartmoor. They were trained gymnasts, judo and karate experts, could sing and dance and play the trumpet, trombone and guitar
- Writer
- Director
- Producer
Suat Yalaz was born in 1932 in Çiçekdag, Kirsehir, Turkey. He was a writer and director, known for Karaoglan: Bizansli Zorba (1967), Camoka'nin Dönüsü (1968) and Karaoglan: Yesil Ejder (1967). He died on 2 March 2020 in Istanbul, Turkey.- Jean Bara was born on 23 March 1923 in Troyes, Aube, France. He was an actor, known for Jérôme Perreau héros des barricades (1935), Boule de gomme (1931) and Sapho (1934). He died on 2 March 2020 in Courbevoie, Hauts-de-Seine, France.
- Walt Mills was born on 14 July 1936 in Dallas, Texas, United States. He was married to Betty Feemster Mills. He died on 2 March 2020.
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Visual Effects
Robert Rice was born on 15 November 1952. He is known for The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996), Crimson Peak (2015) and The Ref (1994). He died on 2 March 2020 in Lindsay, Ontario, Canada.- Jacqueline Dutoit was born on 19 June 1959 in Epsom, Surrey, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Maisie Raine (1998), Down to Earth (2000) and London's Burning (1988). She was married to John Durnin. She died on 2 March 2020 in Dundee, Scotland, UK.
- Rafael Cancel Miranda was born on 18 July 1930 in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico. He was married to María de los Ángeles Vázquez and P R. He died on 2 March 2020 in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
- Additional Crew
- Art Department
- Producer
Timothy Skelly was born on 19 October 1951 in Ohio, USA. He was a producer, known for Tail Gunner (1979), War of the Worlds (1981) and Starhawk (1979). He died on 2 March 2020 in the USA.- Abdullah Turhan was born in 1931 in Turkey. He was a writer, known for Tolga (1975). He died on 2 March 2020 in Istanbul, Turkey.