WATCH: James Lipton interviews Tina Fey as Sarah Palin
The Inside the Actors Studio host requested that Fey resurrect her most famous impersonation. Did she? You betcha
Tina Fey kicked off the latest season of Bravo's Inside the Actors Studio this week, and longtime host James Lipton made the most of the opportunity. Among the things he pried from Fey, says Caroline Shin at Vulture, are that the 30 Rock star and Saturday Night Live alum "can do a hilarious Lorne Michaels impression," she thinks it's just fine to cry at work ("It often scares the shit out of people"), she has a favorite curse word (spoiler: It's "shitballs," because "you can almost use it in polite company"), and she'd love to room with Oprah in heaven.
But the highlight was when Lipton, as he often does, asked if he could interview his guest as one of her most famous characters. Since the guest was Fey, "it was a not-so-surprising delight that he asked her if he could speak to Sarah Palin for a few moments," says Matt Wilstein at Mediaite. She "happily obliged, showing off her sharp improv skills by answering questions as Palin and offering unique insight on some of the biggest issues facing the country."
Whether you think Fey's Palin impersonation is funny, it's pretty clear she can think on her feet. Here's what else we learned: People still have strong opinions about the former Alaska governor and GOP vice presidential candidate. "It doesn't matter that it's not an election year, and it also doesn't matter that Sarah Palin is more irrelevant than ever," says Laura Beck at Jezebel. "This impression will never get old. NEVER EVER."
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Palin fans were divided between insulting Fey — "Pitiful Tina Fey is at it again," says Michelle Malkin's Twitter-gazing site Twitchy — and defending Palin from Fey's barbs. Fey's Palin "shtick gave her nationwide fame and earned her a warm spot in virtually every liberal celebrity's heart," says Christian Toto at Breitbart's Big Hollywood. And she is still acting as if "Palin is as dumb as the left would have us believe. Anyone who caught Palin's rip-roarin' CPAC speech a few days ago, or any of her fiery public appearances knows otherwise, but Fey understands the liberal narrative regarding the Tea Party favorite, and she's sticking to it."
I'm pretty sure that Fey is indifferent to the criticism at this point, and I doubt Palin cares much about Fey's impersonation anymore, either. Fey summed it up quite succinctly when Lipton asked her Palin character what she thinks of Fey's impression: "It's the best one I never watched."
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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
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