AN INTERVIEW WITH RICH LITTLE, MASTER IMPERSONATOR

LAUGH A LOT OR A “LITTLE”:

An Interview with Rich Little, the Man of A Thousand Voices, as he brings his one-man show to the Jewish Community Center in La Jolla for one night only

By Donnie Matsuda

Master mimic Rich Little has had an impressive career spanning over 50 years and including impersonations of over 200 people.  This Canadian-born impressionist (who recently became a U.S. citizen in 2010) currently resides in Las Vegas but tours the country with his one-man comedy shows in which he lampoons everyone from U.S. Presidents (John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, and both George Bushes) to famous actors (Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Jack Nicholson and Clint Eastwood) to Baby-Boomer friendly characters (Edith Bunker, Kermit the Frog, Robin Leach and Dr. Ruth Westheimer). 

While in his 20’s, Little was discovered after submitting an audition tape of himself doing impersonations (what else!?!) to The Judy Garland Show.  Ms. Garland thought he was great and he was immediately signed to the show.  He continued to make appearances on TV variety shows, including Ed Sullivan, Jackie Gleason, Glen Campbell, and Dean Martin, and on such TV series as Laugh-In, The John Davidson Summer Show, and The Julie Andrews Show.  Named “Comedy Star of the Year” by the American Guild of Variety Artists, Little has been the perpetrator of nine comedy albums and three HBO comedy specials, and was the host of his own variety show in the 70’s.  

Rich Little and Judy Garland.  Photo courtesy of www.richlittle.com.

Now touring the country with his two one-man shows – his stage play “Jimmy Stewart and Friends” and his nightclub act “Laugh A Little” – Little seems to have found another way in which to show off his comedic chops and impress with his penchant for spot-on imitations.  Recently, as he was in between his recent Welk Theatre run of his Jimmy Stewart play and his upcoming night act at the Jewish Community Center in La Jolla, I had the chance to chat with Little and we talked about everything from his favorite impersonations to his extracurricular hobbies to what he enjoys most about his profession.

DONNIE: When did you first learn you had this gift of doing impressions of other people?

RICH: When I imitated my teachers at school and then saw the other kids laughing.  They thought it was great and I became very popular doing it because the poor teacher didn’t know I was doing them.  If they’d ask me a question, I’d usually answer it in their voice and it was usually the wrong answer  - so that even got a bigger reaction. 

DONNIE: How do you come up with ideas for new people to impersonate?

RICH: It must be somebody I’m interested in.  It helps if I like them.  You won’t see me doing Bill Maher at any time.  It has to be people that I watch a lot, that fascinate me.  I have to watch them quite a bit to get the mannerisms.  Sometimes it comes, sometimes it doesn’t. It’s tougher these days to impersonate people because we don’t have the voices that we used to in the past.

Rich performs at the Las Vegas Hotel & Casino in 2012.  Photo courtesy of Scott Harrison.

DONNIE: Over the years, approximately how many people have you done impressions of? 

RICH: I’d say roughly around 200.

DONNIE: Which one is your favorite? 

RICH: I have a couple of favorites.  I like Ronald Reagan because I knew him so well and spent a lot of time with him.  Same with Jimmy Stewart.  We were good friends.  I think they’re two of my best.

DONNIE: Which one is the most challenging?

RICH: Probably the one I can’t do.  <chuckle>  There are a lot of people I can’t impersonate.  I do a very bad Brad Pitt.  I don’t do George Clooney.  I don’t do Matt Damon.  And I don’t think anybody will.  

DONNIE: Which one do you think is the funniest?

RICH: The one I get the most reaction from is probably Andy Rooney of “60 Minutes” because they’re all short little jokes.  If I do Andy Rooney for 3 minutes, I can get maybe 20 laughs.  Whereas some voices maybe just one joke and one laugh.  So Andy Rooney, Johnny Carson and Paul Lynde - those kinds of people I get a lot of laughter from.

Rich and his 2005 Star on Las Vegas Blvd.  He also has a star on the Canadian Walk of Fame and the Hollywood Walk of Fame.  Photo courtesy of www.richlittle.com.

DONNIE: Any current celebrities you would like to impersonate? 

RICH: Well yeah.  I’d like to do a lot of current movie stars.  But I think there are a lot of current movie stars that are impossible to do because they don’t have distinctive voices like they did back in the 40s and the 50s and so very few current movie stars can be imitated today.

DONNIE: Any impersonations currently in the works?

RICH: Yes.  Mitt Romney’s in the works.  I’m working on him, taping him a lot, and trying to get some of his mannerisms.  I think it’ll come.   I don’t know whether it’ll be a great impression, but I think it’s one everybody expects me to do because he’s going to be our next president.

DONNIE: I understand that you have put your talent to use filling in for celebrities’ voices on soundtrack and film.  Tell me more.

RICH: I’ve dubbed for people that have lost their voice or have passed on, like Peter Sellers -Inspector Clouseau and David Niven for a couple of movies - Pink Panther movies.   I filled in for Gene Kelly when he lost his voice for a Christmas special.  And Tony Curtis for a movie he walked off on.  I did his voice.  And Stacey Keach one time for Mike Hammer.  I did him.   I’ve done a fair amount of that over the years.

DONNIE: What is it you enjoy most about your profession? 

RICH: The fact that I’m able to make people laugh and have a good time.  Help them forget their problems.  Just bring a little joy into somebody’s, perhaps, humdrum life. 

Rich Little performs at The Riviera Starlite Theater in 2011.  Photo courtesy of Stardust Fallout.

DONNIE: Do you have other talents and hobbies you indulge in? 

RICH: I’ve always sketched.  I’ve been an artist since I was 12.  I work in charcoal and do portraits.  I’ve got hundreds and hundreds.  I started out doing my family and gave them away.  Then I moved on to celebrities and gave a lot of those away…and neighbors and all kinds of people.  I sell authenticated replications of the celebrities I’ve done on my website and at some of my shows, but I have probably in my collection today about 60 originals.

DONNIE: You were most recently seen here in San Diego doing your show “Jimmy Stewart and Friends” at the Welk in Escondido.  Why did you choose Jimmy Stewart as your prime target?

RICH: Because I knew Jimmy quite well.  I knew him better than almost any person I impersonate.  I spent a lot of time with him, did a lot of charities with him, worked the Dean Martin roasts with him, did the Julie Andrews show with him, as well as some socializing.  So I got to know him and his career pretty good.  When I went to do a one man show, he seemed to be the ideal choice; not only knowing him, but because he worked with so many great movie stars of the past that I impersonate.

DONNIE: Now you are returning to San Diego in “Laugh A Little” at the Jewish Community Center in La Jolla.  How will this show be different than your Jimmy Stewart show?

RICH: My nightclub act is a lot different.  It has varied segments to it.  I’m doing a game show at the moment with various celebrities competing (<sneeze> “That was me sneezing as John Wayne…Achoo!”) And the show is just different because it’s a lot of impressions just thrown together with no real theme.  It isn’t a play like Jimmy Stewart and I do a lot of singing impressions which I don’t do in “Jimmy Stewart and Friends.”  I do Tom Jones and I do Neil Diamond.  I do Willie Nelson, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, and Tony Bennett, so there are a lot of singers.  People like the music, like the songs and if the impression is good, they’ll react.  These are all the singers I grew up with.  You won’t find me doing any rock stars….now or ever!

Promotional graphic for Rich's show "Laugh A Little" at the Jewish Community Center in La Jolla.  Image courtesy of the JCC.

DONNIE: In the promo materials for “Laugh A Little” it says there will be a live band.  How will that work?

           

RICH: I will do a lot of singing and the band will also play catch themes and punctuate certain jokes.  I used to, back in the 60s and 70s, work with a 30-piece orchestra.  Today I’m working with four pieces: bass, drums, guitar and piano, of course.  It’s not as great as a big, full orchestra, but one has to cut down with the economy so bad.  Theaters don’t want to pay for a large orchestra anymore.  If the economy gets any worse, I may just be working with piano.  Who knows?  Or maybe a harmonica!  <chuckle>  I think the days of the big orchestras are pretty well over, with the exception of  somebody like a Tony Bennett or Johnny Mathis or somebody that can afford a huge orchestra.  But I’d say most acts today have reduced the size of their band mainly because of cost.

DONNIE: Last but not least, is it “impressions” or “impersonations” that you do?  Or is it simply a question of semantics? 

RICH: I always say I don’t do impressions.  Van Gogh, Monet…they do impressions.  I do impersonations.  But yes, it’s pretty much just semantics.  The terms “impressions” and “impersonations” are often used interchangeably when describing what I do.

Things to know before you go:  San Diego Center for Jewish Culture’s Look & Listen Performing Arts Series presents “Laugh Out Loud with Comedian Rich Little” on Saturday, June 30 at 8pm in the David and Dorothea Garfield Theatre at 4126 Executive Drive in La Jolla, CA.  Tickets are $35-$42.  For more information and to purchase tickets, call the box office at 858-362-1348 (open 9am-5pm, Monday through Friday) or visit http://www.lfjcc.org/.

SHOWS OPENING IN JANUARY 2012: Times They Are A Changin'

Aside from death and taxes, it seems that change is the only sure thing these days. And nowhere is that more apparent than in this month's theatre offerings. Here is a run down of what's opening this January in sunny (yes, sunny!) San Diego:

North Coast Repertory kicks things off on January 7 by reviving a classic play from their first season: William Goldman’s The Lion in Winter. The play is a family drama of sorts, focusing on the problems King Henry II of England has reigning in his power hungry sons (who all want to be king) and his spiteful wife (who he imprisoned for helping one of his sons take the throne). Despite its focus on historically famous royalty, it is supposedly a very accessible play with real, relatable characters who speak a language that is both witty and poetic. And to top it off, North Coast Rep has assembled a dream cast to bring this medieval tale to modern life, a cast which includes Old Globe Associate Artist Kandis Chappell, TV actor Mark Pinter, and local favorite Kyle Sorrell. [The Drama King will review “The Lion in Winter" on 1/7/2012.]

Cast of "A Hammer, A Bell, and A Song to Sing." Photo by Daren Scott.

Next up is San Diego REP's production of A Hammer, A Bell, and A Song to Sing, which has been getting lots of press as of late. As we all know by now, this original musical was written by the REP’s associate artistic director Todd Salovey about the inspiring life and songs of Pete Seeger. Since Seeger pulled out of the project a few weeks before the show’s opening, Salovey (who is also directing) and his cast of three (Jim Mooney, Dave Crossland, and Vaughn Armstrong, who were supposed to represent Seeger at three different stages of his life) are now scrambling to rewrite and refocus the musical. The show must go on…and it will. The word on the street is that the show will now focus on music as a means of bringing people together, featuring songs that are about change and the betterment of society. While press are invited to see the show, it is being billed strictly as a “workshop production” and no reviews are allowed. [The Drama King will attend “A Hammer, A Bell, and A Song to Sing” on 1/15/2012 but will not review]

Speaking of last minute changes, ion Theatre was supposed to stage a world premiere play this January called Goodrock, written by the company’s co-artistic director Claudio Raygoza. However, the show is now being replaced by a short run of the one-woman show Request Programme starring powerhouse performer Linda Libby. Request Programme will open Jan 17 at the BLKBox@6th&Penn.

And the season for change continues, as Diversionary Theatre has also altered its current lineup of LGBT-oriented shows. Their 2012 season now includes two limited engagement cabaret productions. First is “The Facts of Life: The Lost Episode” which runs January 12-22 and the second is a one (wo)man show called “Beth Malone, So Far.” It features versatile performer Beth Malone, who is described on the show ads as: “Part dude. Part Lady. Full-time lesbian.” It runs for only three performances, from January 27-29.

Meanwhile, the folks over at Scripps Ranch Theatre are mounting Brooklyn Boy at the intimate Legler-Benbough Theatre on the campus of Alliant International University. The play (which opens January 21) is written by Donald Margulies and is a witty, emotionally rich tale of a novelist who hits a professional high, just as his personal life begins to fall apart. [The Drama King will review “Brooklyn Boy” on 1/21/2012]

And up in North County, Moonlight Stage kick starts its winter season at the AVO Playhouse with a production of Agatha Christie’s whodunit, The Mousetrap. The show is directed by Jason Heil and features Jonathan Sachs, Jessica John, and Phil Johnson. [The Drama King will review “The Mousetrap” on 1/20/2012]

In Carlsbad, New Village Arts is premiering two new plays as part of its New Play Festival. "L.A. (Lost Apollonia)," is written by Rob Novak and runs Jan 13-15, while "M," is written by Karen Li and runs Jan 20-22.

And over at the Welk Theatre in Escondido, they will be teaching us all How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, starting on Jan 19. This classic (if a bit dated) musical about J Pierrepont Finch’s meteoric rise from mail room to executive at the World Wide Wicket Company is being directed and choreographed by Ray Limon and stars local SD favorite Scott Dreier as Bud Frump and Allen Everman as Finch. [The Drama King will review “How to Succeed” on 1/28/2012]

Over in Old Town, Cygnet starts its year off with the Southern California premiere of Martin McDonagh's hilarious black comedy, A Behanding in Spokane. Guest director Lisa Berger’s cast features Jeffrey Jones and Mike Sears, along with Cygnet debuts of Kelly Iversen and Vimel. [The Drama King will review “A Behanding in Spokane” on 1/29/2012]

And, finally, if felines are more your fancy, then the tour of CATS will be taking up residence at the San Diego Civic Theatre (under the auspices of Broadway San Diego) starting January 10.

Happy 2012 and happy theatre-going, everyone!