Photo Taken By: Mister D
Mister D: A while back I posted an interview with Marc Shaiman which was conducted by Richard Knight, Jr. from Windy City Media. Mr. Knight and I were to meet when I made the trek to Chicago to cover the benefit that Mr. Shaiman was to preside over. Unfortunately, we didn’t cross paths…my fault, of course!:-) However, Mr. Knight was kind enough to forward me some material that was edited out of the original interview which contained Miss M references. I’m very grateful to be able to post this for all of you and would like to extend a hearty thank you to Richard for sharing this…
Marc Shaiman Q&A (Bette Midler references only)
by Richard Knight, Jr.
I HAVE TO CONFESS THAT I ONCE STALKED YOU – SORT OF. I WAS IN WEST HOLLYWOOD IN 1991 AND I SPOTTED YOU IN A CHINESE RESTAURANT. I WANTED TO TELL YOU HOW GREAT I THOUGHT—
Genghis Kahn was?
NO – “FOR THE BOYS.” YOU DID AMAZING WORK ON THAT FILM. I WAS SO DISAPPOINTED THAT IT DIDN’T DO BETTER.
Thank you. Of course, I was, too. The material was perfect for Bette – “Stuff Like That There” and “P.S. I Love You” and the rest really let her be herself in a way that no other movie has done.
MY MUSICAL PARTNER AND I HAVE BEEN OPENING OUR CABARET SHOW WITH YOUR ARRANGEMENT OF “STUFF LIKE THAT THERE” EVER SINCE – WITH OUR OWN PARODY LYRICS. IT TAKES A BIT OF CHUTZPAH TO ADMIT THAT AS I’M TALKING TO THE KING OF PARODY LYRICS (BACKGROUND ON THIS). HOW DID YOU GET INTO PARODY TO BEGIN WITH?
From reading Mad magazine as a kid. My favorite words in the English language are, “As sung to the tune of…” I remember “Bubby Strident,” the parody of Barbra Streisand’s musicals.
IT’S REALLY FUN STUFF, ISN’T IT?
Yeah. The biggest laugh that I’ve ever heard through anything I’ve generated has been through those parodies. I’ve been lucky enough to have people like Bette Midler and Billy Crystal performing them.
NO DOUBT! WHEN IT COMES TO YOUR CAREER, IT SEEMS LIKE ALL ROADS LEAD BACK TO BETTE MIDLER. HOW DID YOU MEET THE DIVINE MISS?
The first in a million examples of my life in which I’ve been so lucky is that I went to see, ironically, a show called “Boy Meets Boy” at the Actor’s Playhouse in Sheridan Square in New York with a friend from New Jersey when I was 16. When the show was over we ran into some other friends and we just walked right into this little piano bar. It was just the four of us in this place at four in the afternoon and I was playing and this bartender said, “Hey, you’re good, wait right here” and he went next door where there were a group of people putting on a comedy revue and they needed a new piano player. They said can you play “Together, Wherever We Go” cheesy? I said, “Cheesy, like at a Bar Mitzvah?” I had never met people who had that sense of humor. We hit it off immediately and I started coming in on the weekends to play for them and I would stay in their apartment. Ulla Hedwig, who was one of Bette Midler’s Harlettes lived across the hall so I was just lucky enough to meet all these people who are still my best friends including my lover, who were all part of this troop, Cocktails For Five.
AND MISS M?
Because I was across the hall and such a Bette Midler fanatic, I knew the kind of harmony that the Harlettes would sing and I would work for nothing because I was 16 and in awe, they decided to do their own cabaret act and I became their musical director for all those reasons. And lo and behold, the act was a big success and Bette decided to do another tour and said, “I’ll let you open my show if you come back and be the Harlettes again.” So the girls got to do an opening act for Bette’s show and I had to run to California to put together a half hour version of their cabaret act and teach it to the band. There I was still only 17 and my fantasy was coming true. I was sitting on a couch in a rehearsal studio with Bette Midler in front of me. It was literally a dream until she slapped me silly and woke me from my dreams and the dream became reality (laughing). That was 26 years ago.
ARE YOU GOING TO WRITE A MUSICAL FOR BETTE MIDLER?
I would love to. I’ve always thought about it but the idea of her doing eight shows a week is so hard for me to comprehend and if you say black she says white and if you say yes she says no and the idea of writing a musical for her might fall into the “Life’s Too Short” category. But the idea of seeing her on Broadway in a musical would be amazing and to be a part of that would be very soul satisfying.
