James Lipton, creator and host of Inside the Actors Studio, has died at the age of 93. He died Monday, March 2, in his Manhattan home from bladder cancer, according to The Hollywood Reporter who received the news from Lipton’s wife, Kedakai Mercedes Lipton.
Lipton is best known for Bravo series Inside the Actors Studio, which he created in 1994 as a way to teach students of the Actors Studio Drama School. Lipton hosted the show and spoke with actors about their performances and careers in film during a one-hour one-on-one interview each episode.
Since its conception, Inside the Actors Studio aired on the Bravo television network until it moved to Ovation TV in 2018. Lipton stepped down from hosting the show when it moved to Ovation TV. In the show’s 22-season run on Bravo, Lipton interviewed nearly 300 actors, directors and more. The latest episode of Inside the Actors Studio aired on December 15, 2019, with Lupita Nyong’o of Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Us fame, as the guest.
“I made a vow early on that we would not deal in gossip — only in craft, and Ovation, as a network dedicated to the arts, will continue that tradition with the next seasons of the series,” Lipton told The Hollywood Reporter at the time of the show’s transition to Ovation TV. “I’m excited to see the new hosts engage with the guests and students and continue to entertain viewers in the U.S. and around the world.”
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Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.
Source: IGN.com James Lipton of Inside the Actors Studio Dies at 93