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'Inside the Actors Studio' host James Lipton dies at 93

4 years 4 months 3 weeks ago Monday, March 02 2020 Mar 2, 2020 March 02, 2020 2:19 PM March 02, 2020 in News
Source: ABC News
Photo via Steve Adubato

Longtime "Inside the Actors Studio" host James Lipton is dead at 93 years old.

Lipton's widow, Kedakai Mercedes Lipton, told The Hollywood Reporter that her husband died Monday at his New York City home from bladder cancer.

"James Lipton was a titan of the film and entertainment industry and had a profound influence on so many," said Frances Berwick, president of NBCU Lifestyle Networks in a statement.

Lipton started "Inside the Actors Studio" in 1994 and remained host until 2018, a run of 22 seasons. The show, filmed in front of a live audience of student actors, featured Lipton interviewing some of the biggest actors of the time. He was also famously parodied by Will Ferrell on "Saturday Night Live."

One of his most famous questions, which he'd ask at the end of every interview, was: "If Heaven exists, what would you like God to say when you arrive at the pearly gates?"

Throughout his illustrious career, Lipton had a wide variety of roles in the entertainment business, including stints as an actor, scriptwriter, producer, author and more. His 1968 book "An Exaltation of Larks," a humorous examination of odd and endearing names for collective nouns, is considered a minor classic and has never gone out of print.

His acting credits included roles on "Arrested Development," "Bewitched," "Guiding Light," "The Goldbergs," "Cold Squad" and "You Are There." Lipton also wrote for shows including "Capitol," "Return to Peyton Place," "The Doctors," "The Best of Everything," and "Another World."

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