Fisher Stevens Interview Fanscripts

Fisher Stevens on... Live! with Regis & Kathie Lee
12/11/1997

Live! with Regis & Kathie Lee 12/11/97
Hosts: Regis Philbin (RP), Kathie Lee Gifford (KL)
Guest: Fisher Stevens (FS)

RP: Alright, he portrays Chuck, the often sarcastic and sometimes superficial best friend of Gary Hobson in the CBS show, Early Edition. Here is a fine actor, Fisher Stevens. Fisher.

{Fisher is wearing a 4-pc suit and sporting a pair of glasses. Handshake for Regis, handshake and kiss for Kathie Lee}

RP: Look how nice Fisher looks. Fisher, how nice you look.

KL: Yeah. How are ya?

FS: Good.

RP: In a four piece suit, too, Fisher.

FS: That’s right, a four button suit.

KL: We’re not used to this here.

FS: I’m not used to it either, but I, I wanted everyone to...know that I know how to dress.

RP: It’s very nice. And not only is he an actor, but he has his own production company. {GreeneStreet Films}

FS: Yeah.

RP: He’s a business man.

FS: I am. That’s why I got the suit. Ah, yeah, actually, ah, we just produced our ah, kind of our first big movie. It’s comin’ out, ah, it’s called “Illuminata,” that John Turturro’s directing, with ah, himself, his wife Kathy Borowitz, Susan Sarandon, Chris Walken, Beverly D’Angelo, and, ah... {also stars Ben Gazzara, who portrays the warden in “Convict Cowboy”; and David Thornton, who portrays Earl Unger in “Home Alone 3”}

RP: Wow. Nice cast.

KL: Nice cast.

FS: Yeah. And my partner, ah, John Penotti, and Brad Yonover, we...

RP: You’re not in this movie? You’re just behind the scenes.

FS: I was unavailable. {he says, with feigned self-importance}

RP: Well, excuse us!

KL: Oh, my goodness.

RP: For your own movie!

FS: Fortunately, I was ah, yeah, I’m busy in Chicago shooting Early Edition, so, ah...

RP: Mm-hmm.

FS: That’s where I was last night.

RP: We’ve had the young man on the show a couple of times.

FS: Kyle.

RP: Yeah, yeah.

KL: Kyle Chandler.

FS: Kyle Chandler. Yeah. Helluva guy. Love Kyle. Gorgeous guy. Love him.

RP: Now you’re his best friend.

FS: Yeah.

RP: Fisher, you’ve played a lot of best friends.

FS: Yeah, I know, I know. You know, ah, it’s, ah, part of my repertoire. Umm, yeah. It’s, it’s been fun, though, because Kyle’s kind of ah, fun to banter with and to play off of, and, ah, we have a good time, except when it’s about 14 degrees and snowing.

RP: You’re shooting it live in Chicago?

FS: Ah, yeah, not live, but we are, yeah, we’re there in Chicago.

KL: You’re alive when you’re shooting it.

FS: We *are* alive when we’re shooting. Hopefully. Some mornings, no, I don’t feel very alive.

KL: Some days we do *this* show, but we’re not alive.

RP: That can be a cold town when that wind blows in off the lake.

FS: Actually, this morning, they’re out there shooting, ah, and the crew - I’d like to say, I love this crew. It’s amazing. They’re out there, ah, every day. And they’re, they’re like, they look like they’re on Mars. They’re all wrapped up moon people.

KL: Mummified.

FS: Mummified. And, ah, it’s gotta be the hardest working, most difficult gig in, probably in television right now, cause it’s, last night it was snowing...

RP: Lot of exterior shooting.

FS: A lot. Because the writers all live in L.A. - what do they know about Chicago?

RP: Yeah, right.

FS: They’re like in their bungalows, {pantomimes writing - using his left hand to “write” and his right hand as the “paper”} “Let’s have Fisher on a bridge, running, screaming;” “Let’s throw Fisher in the Chicago River.”

KL: They can be cruel.

FS: Brutal.

RP: But, you’ve got one of your own episodes coming up here, where you’re kind of the central character.

FS: Ah, yeah, yeah. I’ve had a few fortunately.

RP: But you fall in love with somebody.

FS: I fall in love with a Rabbi.

RP: Fisher. {he says, reprimandingly}

FS: I know. I know.

KL: But, I love the title of this.

FS: “A Bris is Just a Bris.” {sings} A bris is just a bris.

RP: {speaks} A sigh is just a sigh.

KL: {sings} Even when there’s no one.

FS: Yeah, actually, ah, its funny, cause, ah, my, ah, my third cousin is, ah, had a baby, and he’s about to, the mohel who cuts the, ah, foreskin of the...

KL: Child.

FS: Child, ah, and Kyle reads in the newspaper that the mohel slips, and is gonna miss, and is gonna alter maybe my nephew, my cousin’s life.

KL: Whole future.

FS: Whole future. So, ah, Kyle comes to the rescue and there’s this *beautiful* rabbi, ah, his name is Alfred - no, I’m just kidding - her name is, ah, this beautiful woman named Karen Fineman plays, ah, is playing the Rabbi, and I’m just like, {affects a sexy voice} “Hello, Rabbi” and, ah, and...

KL: Shall we pray?

FS: Yeah, yeah. {sexy voice again} “Teach me about the Talmud.” And, ah, and my character really is a greedy, kind of self-centered guy who doesn’t like to tell the truth, and he meets this woman who forces him to tell the truth and, ah, Chuck realizes that he doesn’t like himself when he’s honest and noble. So he breaks up with her.

KL: This is not destined to work out.

FS: No.

RP: Not gonna happen.

FS: Not that I wanna give it away, but, ah...

KL: No.

RP: That’s on December 20th. And we’ll be right back with Fisher in a moment.

{Commercial}

{Return from commercial. Fisher is still seated in the tall chair and he’s doing a little arm dance thingy}

RP: We’re with Fisher Stevens, more than just an actor. Producer, director,

KL: He’s a world traveler.

RP: World traveler. Skis in the Alps, and incidentally, is looking for the right woman.

FS: {shocked expression} What? {looks around to see if there might be *another* Fisher that Regis could be talking about}

RP: In his timetable. In his timetable of life he would like to settle down within two years, I’m told.

FS: {gives a small shake of the head “no” and says sarcastically,} Oh, yeah, I’d love to. So difficult.

RP: Have you had, have you had a good bachelorhood though? That’s important.

FS: It’s been fun.

RP: Yeah?

FS: It’s been fun. Yeah, I...

RP: What’s been so, what’s fun about it?

FS: Ah, well, you know, meeting different people from all over the world, and different cultures, and women from different places, ah, yeah, it’s...

RP: Who produces the most exotic women in the world?

FS: Ah.... New York City! {big smile, does the arm dance thingy again}

KL: Oy-yoy.

FS: No, it depends, you know, there’s ah...

RP: It depends on where you are!

FS: Yeah, I love Chicago, too. And I love Bali and Cuba...

RP: Are you a good skier, Fisher?

FS: Ah, I am *not* very good. But I am adventurous. Actually, ah, Rob Morrow is one of my dear friends who is on, was on Northern Exposure, he was shooting up near Whistler, Canada, and he’s like, “Fish, come visit me during a shooting,” and I went to visit him. And he’s like, “We’re going heli-skiing,” and I’m like, “Rob, you know, I’ve been living in New York most of my life - I’ve only skied a few times,” he’s like, “Dude - no problem.” “Here, put this on.” And he attaches like avalanche tags on my skis, “Just in case, Fish. Just in case.” And I’m like, “all right.” We get into a helicopter, and, ah...

KL: You’re *way* up there, too.

FS: Oh, it’s so scary, it’s, it’s very frightening, and I’ve never skied in powder - skiers know that powder’s a different kind of skiing.

KL: Um-hmm.

FS: And, ah, he goes, “Alright - listen - we’ve gotta jump outta the helicopter while it’s in mid-flight,” and I’m like, “What?? No, dude, no!” He’s like, “Get ready - One,” I’m like, “No, I’m not going.” And then the helicopter lands, and he’s goin’ “Ha, ha, dude - just kidding, just kidding.” And then, and then, ah, we get down there, and the guide is like, “If you go to the left, you will not *ever* go to the left again in your life,” and I’m like, “Oh, no.” And, anyway, it was frightening, ah...

RP: Oh, it’s terrifying, it really is.

FS: But I love to ski, and I’m going to Telluride this Christmas.

RP: But I was up at Whistler last Christmas - had the biggest storm we ever had then.

KL: Never got to ski.

RP: Never got to ski because of it. Early Edition’s on Saturday nights on CBS at 9 o’clock.

FS: Gino! I’d like to say hello to Gino, if I may.

RP: Go ahead.

FS: Gino! Good luck with Angelo, your baby. Gino Credidio.

{Commercial} and End.

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