Marilu Henner

In her two-and-a-half-hour interview, Marilu Henner talks about her early years doing commercials and appearing as "Marty" in the stage play Grease in Chicago. She discusses her time touring and on Broadway, and describes almost being cast on the CBS drama The Paper Chase, but holding out for the ABC comedy Taxi instead. She recounts her time as "Elaine Nardo" on Taxi, including working with show creator James L. Brooks, director James Burrows, and cast members Judd Hirsch ("Alex Reiger"), Danny DeVito ("Louie De Palma"), Tony Danza ("Tony Banta"), and Christopher Lloyd ("Reverend Jim Ignatowski"). Henner discusses working with Andy Kaufman as "Latka Gravas," and relates the story of Kaufman's alter-ego Tony Clifton "guest-starring" on the show. She speaks of the cancellation of Taxi by ABC, and its subsequent revival and cancellation by NBC. She talks about being cast in several feature films, including The Man Who Loved Women with Burt Reynolds, which led to her being cast in the sitcom Evening Shade. She discusses several other projects, including her short-lived talk show Marilu, her appearance on Celebrity Apprentice, and her guest roles on Unforgettable and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. She also speaks of her remarkable, scientifically documented ability to remember dates and specific details, which led to an appearance on 60 Minutes. Adrienne Faillace conducted the interview on May 15, 2015 in Los Angeles, CA.