Season 4: Episode 10: Marilu Henner Interview: Madwomen of the West

I am so excited to catch up with actress Marilu Henner, whom I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing in 2021.

When I heard she was returning to the New York stage, in Sandra Tsing Loh's Madwomen of the West, I wasted no time in trying to get a new interview. I am so grateful she agreed to talk with me a second time.

Marilu is known for starring in the classic TV sitcoms Taxi & Evening Shade as well as over 76 films (including 28 Hallmark movies), 7 Broadway shows, 5 Golden Globe nominations, and being the author of 10 New York Times Best Selling Books.

This time around, Marilu is Baring It All with Call Me Adam about:

• How she got involved with Madwomen of the West
• A time when her opinion was deemed outrageous
• The craziest thing she's done for at audition
• What she still wants to accomplish
• Putting her superhero memory to the test
• So much more

Madwomen of the West takes place at Jules' stunning Brentwood mansion, where hangry (she's sugar-cleansing). Marilyn is throwing a surprise birthday brunch for Claudia, who hates birthdays. Champagne corks pop — and tempers flare — when their long-estranged celebrity friend Zoey crashes the party, fresh from her TED Talks. Expect hilarity, outrageous opinions, and unexpected wisdom about what it means to be a woman (no matter what pronouns you use) in the 21st century.

Madwomen of the West plays at The Actor's Temple in NYC through January 1, 2024. 

**This audio version has been shortened from the original print format. Click here for the FULL interview**

More on Marilu Henner:

Marilu Henner has the energy of a teenager, the wisdom of a sage, and the memory of a superhero. She has done it all: 76 films (including 28 Hallmark), 7 Broadway shows, 2 classic sitcoms (Taxi and Evening Shade), 5 Golden Globe nominations, and the New York Times Best Selling author of ten books on health, parenting, memory, and lifestyle improvement.

Marilu hosted and executive produced two talk shows (Marilu and Shape Up Your Life) and the nationally syndicated radio show, The Marilu Henner Show. She competed on Celebrity Apprentice (2008), Celebrity Apprentice All-Stars (2013), and Dancing with the Stars (2016).

Marilu is one of twelve people documented with Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory and was the subject of a five-part special on 60 Minutes and on 60 Minutes Australia and served as the consultant on the CBS series Unforgettable. Marilu has spoken before Congress eleven times (Alzheimer’s, dietary supplements, women’s cardiovascular disease, The Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act, deadbeat parents), and she contributed to the 2005 and 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Marilu is a keynote speaker for professional organizations, universities, government agencies, interest groups, and corporations on topics including memory, diet and fitness, women’s health issues, cardiovascular disease, cancer survival, child rearing, lifestyle, entertainment, and business organization strategies.

Marilu can be seen in Disney’s Haunted Mansion, indy film Rock & Doris Try to Write a Movie, the Aurora Teagarden prequel, and she can be heard as the...

Episode Transcript

Adam Rothenberg (00:00):
Thank you for doing a new interview with me.
I appreciate it.

Marilu Henner (00:02):
Thank you.

Adam Rothenberg (00:03):
You're welcome.
This fall, you are starring in thenew off Broadway comedy, Madwomen
of the West by Sandra Tsing Loh.
How did this show find its way to you?

Marilu Henner (00:13):
Well, Caroline Aaron has been a really good
friend of mine for a long time.
We played sisters on Broadwayin Social Security, directed
by Mike Nichols, I might add.
And, we just became like greatfriends after that and never
lost contact with one another.
And our kids grew up together.
We do like Easter egghunts and Christmas things.
And her daughter, Sydney, andmy son, Joey, they graduated

(00:36):
from high school together.
So we never lost contact.
We always stayed in touch.
And she did Sandra's play Madwomanin the Volvo and I saw it.
It was fantastic.
And so called me right beforethe pandemic started or at
the beginning of the pandemic.
And she said, Sandra's written a new play.
She wants to cast four women.
I told her she has to cast you becauseyou're so perfect for this part.

(01:00):
So she's going to call you.
So that's how it all came about.
We were so happy when we got to doit a few months ago at the Odyssey
in California, here in Los Angeles.
And then we got extended because peopleloved it so much and then all of a sudden,
people wanted us to do it in New York.
So I think it's really just the beginningbecause it's a fabulous piece of
theatre, and it features four fabulouscharacters played by four fabulous

(01:24):
actresses, so we're very excited.
And here's the other thing, theshow is about four people who went
to college together and were besties.
And three of them have stayed in contactall those years, and one of them went off
to get her fame and fortune and becamethis international famous person, wellness
and an actress and everything else andshe comes back to this brunch that's a

(01:49):
birthday brunch for one of the characters.
That's my character, Zoey, and I comein and I'm like The Cat In The Hat.
Things get crazy and secrets are revealed.
So I've known Caroline forever.
I've known Melanie [Mayron] evenlonger, because we were in Grease
and Godspell at the same time.
She was in Godspell, I was in Grease.
So those two companies were veryfamiliar with each other and close.

(02:09):
And I helped to find herapartment in New York.
And then Brooke [Adams]I've known forever, as well,
when I moved to Los Angeles.
And Caroline's been close to everybody.
So, I mean, it's like a love fest.

Adam Rothenberg (02:21):
Oh my God.
It's almost like, it's almost likeart imitating life in that you all
have this history together and youhave the friendship and hopefully not
the drama that comes out in the show.

Marilu Henner (02:34):
Oh, well, you know, it's funny with friends who
can fight and love, you'd feelcomfortable getting in their space.
You get comfortable withcleaning them up, fixing their
hair, you know what I'm saying?

Adam Rothenberg (02:43):
Oh I love that.
And so what do you relateto most about Zoey?

Marilu Henner (02:47):
Well, she was kind of written for me, so her career as an
actress, her career as an author, and awellness person, tours the country and
does TED Talks and things like that.
And I also relate to her memory becausethey threw my memory in there too.

Adam Rothenberg (03:02):
And what is it like to have a role written
for you, specifically for you?

Marilu Henner (03:07):
Sometimes it's harder to play yourself, but Sandra is so
brilliant in her writing that itjust kind of flows, and it's fun.
And, and, and We talk to theaudience and the audience talks
back sometimes and that's really funbecause we break the fourth wall.
And the whole piece is just so much funto do, and I think that that reads to

(03:28):
the audience, so they have a great time.
We had so many people that came back, andwe felt like we had our little madwomen.
And it's men and women!
Because I think the charactersare so well written that you will
recognize yourself or your friendsand you'll say, Oh, I'm a Zoey.
Oh, I'm a Claudia.
I'm a Marilyn.
I'm a Jules.
You know, one of the shows that Idid forever and ever was, was Grease,

(03:49):
I played Marty in Grease and didthe original company in Chicago.
And I think one of the reasonsGrease is so successful is that
people recognize themselves.
Everybody's gone to high school,so you recognize yourself in one of
those characters and I think whenthere's that recognition factor,
the specificity of each charactermakes people really latch on.
It's not just generic.

(04:10):
It'll be so interesting to see whata New York audience grabs on to.
Like, at one point, somebody sayssomething about Bristol Farms.
One of the characters says tothe audience, think Citarella.
So things like that happenthroughout the piece.
There are so many surprises thatstart to happen in the show that
people are always like, Oh mygosh, I didn't see that coming.

Adam Rothenberg (04:31):
According to press notes, it says that audiences
should expect hilarity, outrageousopinions, and unexpected wisdom
about what it means to be a woman.
So what is an opinion you have sharedpublicly that got deemed as outrageous?

Marilu Henner (04:49):
In my very first book, my first health book,
people were outraged that I talkedabout, being anti dairy products.
And now people say, oh, she was thefirst person that I ever talked to that
wrote about, or talked about dairy.
I'll tell you something else.
I was on the Rosie O'Donnell Show,talked about people's digestive tracts
and I said on the Rosie O'DonnellShow, floaters, not sinkers, right?

(05:12):
And I'm saying that, they cut it out.
I saw the show after, I said,why'd you say, she said, you can't
talk about poop on television.
And I said Yes, you can.
And then sure enough, years later, Dr.
Oz has whole show's about it.

Adam Rothenberg (05:24):
And when have you received unexpected wisdom in your life?

Marilu Henner (05:28):
Well, every day there's something that you learn.
I'm a real student, so I'm alwaystrying to learn from people.
I feel like everybody's a work in progressand you're in the laboratory of your
life, so there's really no bad data.
It's just data.
You can't beat yourself up for,oh, I did this or I did that.
It's like, well, you justwent to that experiment.
It didn't work, but that's okay.
Nothing is wasted.

(05:49):
I think you learn that early in your life.
Everything gets used somewhere.
I had such an advantagewhen I was eight years old.
And I sat in a classroom, and there was aquestion on the test that asked, How many
pencils are in a score, I thought What?
Pencils in a score?
What's a score?
And then I thought, Oh!
I heard that before.
Four score and seven years ago.

(06:10):
And all of a sudden I went, Oh my gosh!
There are twenty pencils in a score.
And I thought nothing is everwasted, it's all just connected.
Even as a tiny little girl,I thought every experience
is going to be used somehow.
Because everything isconnected to everything.
That's why I say I could walkaround this room right now.
And look at your purse, or your wallet, oryour gym bag, or anything, and I can tell

(06:34):
you how you're taking care of your health.
Because how you take care of thesmall things, is usually how you
take care of the bigger things.

Adam Rothenberg (06:41):
Oh my gosh.
Don't come to my apartment.
That is a cool skill.
Between your memory and that,I, I, I mean, what can't you do?

Marilu Henner (06:51):
Oh, man.
You don't want me onyour team in Pictionary.
My niece and nephew laugh at mebecause they're 8 and 10 and they just
cannot believe how much I can't draw.
Auntie Lu can do a lot ofthings,, but she can't draw.

Adam Rothenberg (07:08):
Well, I have a few general questions to ask as well.
So, at this point in your career,do you still have to audition for
parts, or do you get offer only?

Marilu Henner (07:19):
Sometimes you want to audition just to see if
you're compatible with peopleand if you can do the material.
I haven't had to audition for a while forthings, but it depends on the project.

Adam Rothenberg (07:29):
And what's something you still want to accomplish
that you have not done yet?

Marilu Henner (07:33):
I would still love to create a role on Broadway, I loved doing
Getting the Band Back Together five yearsago, and I did have a wonderful song
that I loved, but I want to do somethingon Broadway where I really get to sing,
because I do my club act now all overthe country, and I've done it 40 times
since the pandemic started, and I didit actually, that's three weeks sit down

(07:53):
at Bucks County, and I love doing that.
My voice has gotten stronger, so it'slike, put me in coach, I want to do
another musical dance, singing, that kindof thing, originate in a Broadway musical.
Really sink my teeth into somethinggreat in a Broadway musical.

Adam Rothenberg (08:09):
Now, since the play is called Madwomen of the West, What do
you feel is the craziest thing you'veever done to prepare for a role or at
an audition, when you did audition?

Marilu Henner (08:20):
Oh, I ran into Steve Martin, at a restaurant and Steve
said, what are you doing right now?
And I said, oh, I was in aproject and it just fell apart.
They said, we're goingto send you a script.
So they sent me a script, andI read it and I thought, Oh,
I'd love to play this part.
She was vegan and she wasearthy and everything else.
And I went there dressedreally earthy and vegan ish.

(08:43):
And they went, No, no, no.
Would you come back and read Trudy?
And I came back the nextday dressed to the nines.
And I worked with my acting teacher,and he said, Okay, Marilu, this
character is a total bitch, andshe makes everybody wait for her.
So when you do the reading withSteve, dump your purse out, and take

(09:08):
your time putting everything back.
I thought, really?
And he said, no, do it, just do it.
I thought, okay, I'm listening to you.
So I did it during theaudition with Steve.
This is for the movie L.A.
Story and I just took my timeand Steve's a great improviser
and I love to improvise.
So we improvised all this dialogueabout how much time I was taking

(09:32):
and how we always had to waitfor me and blah, blah, blah.
And I'm just like blowing itoff like I could care less.
I'm so fabulous.
You just have to wait.
Anyway, not only did I get thepart and get a comedy award for it.
But, uh, the improv that we did atthe audition, they put in the movie.
So, that's probably the mostoutrageous that I ever did.

(09:52):
And it paid off.
That's one of my favorite stories,to just take that chance, and
be that character in the moment
.Adam Rothenberg: Oh my gosh, I love it.
Well, I want to end the interviewsimilar to our previous interview
together, where we play with yoursuperhero memory, in which you can
recall every single day of your life.
So, I'm gonna list some datesand I want you to tell me what

(10:13):
you were doing on that day.
So the first one is goingto be April 6th, 1962.
So it was my 10th birthday, 1962.
It was a Friday.
You could always get what you wanted foryour birthday dinner with the family.
So I remember we got these little lobstertails because I wanted lobster tails.
I was also in rehearsalfor a play South Pacific.
My sister was choreographing itfor Notre Dame Boys High School.

(10:35):
So I went to rehearsal for that,had our little lobster tail
dinner, and then went to rehearsalthat night to do South Pacific.

Adam Rothenberg (10:44):
Wow.
December 25th, 1967, which ismy parents wedding anniversary.

Marilu Henner (10:51):
December 25th, they got married at Christmas?

Adam Rothenberg (10:53):
They did, yes.
The one advantage of being Jewish.
Ha, ha, ha, ha.

Marilu Henner (10:58):
Oh my gosh, that's so funny.
So, I remember what I got for Christmas,was, I was obsessed with, Gone With
The Wind at the time, and got a ScarletO'Hara doll, which I loved and, helped
my mother with the food, it was one ofthe last Christmases with my father,
because he passed away, years later.
And, so, I remember, I waswearing this, Blue velvety dress.

Adam Rothenberg (11:24):
And the last two I have are.
September 12th, 1978, which wasthe day that Taxi premiered on TV.

Marilu Henner (11:32):
It was a Tuesday.
But I was, with John Travolta at thetime, and so we were actually in London,
but then we flew to New Orleans thatFriday morning, September 15th, and
all the Taxi guys were there becauseit was for the Ali vs Spinks fight.
And that night, the show had justpremiered, but we walked down the
street and people were honking, going,Louie, Nardo blah, blah, blah, blah.

(11:56):
And I thought, ourlives have just changed.
We're on TV, and peopleare loving our show.

Adam Rothenberg (12:01):
Wow.
The last date is May 23rd, 1994, whichwas the series finale of Evening Shade.

Marilu Henner (12:10):
I had just had my son, Nick.
Nick Lieberman, director ofTheatre Camp he was like just,
ten days old, eleven days old.
I was in the throws of motherhoodand working on my new Marilu show.

Adam Rothenberg (12:21):
Wow.
So exciting.
All right.
Well, I thank you so muchfor your time again, Marilu.
I really appreciate it.