Photo credit: Courtesy of Arena Stage
“If I’d never even met her, I still would have created it this way,” said Kathleen Turner back stage after her red hot performance of Red Hot Patriot: The Kick-Ass wit of Molly Ivins at Arena Stage.
For those who knew Ivins, Turner’s performance was eerily Molly, with special attribution to her body language and smile. Molly was unforgettable whether you met her in passing or knew her personally and both were captured brilliantly by Turner.
“I got to meet her several times. I got to meet her because I’ve been on the board of People for the American Way for about 23 years now, and Molly was a guest speaker one year – protection of the First Amendment, which was part of Molly’s mission,” said Turner.
“She was quite wonderful of course, as you would imagine, as our highlighter – but then more than that, when Ann Richards moved to New York for her treatments and her illness, she sublet an apartment in my building.
I met them one day in the lobby. They were waiting for the elevator, and they said, “well, you’re just coming with us,” and they took me up to Ann’s for a while and told me stories.”
What was it like going out with her for drinks and stuff, we stupidly asked Turner, forgetting the reason Richards was in New York?
“We didn’t. We went up to Ann’s apartment. No, and of course, by now neither of them were drinking at all, so that was never a part of it.
That’s kind of private. It’s a very special memory because it was….…I just had such admiration, and one of the funny things is that one of my best friends is Holland Taylor and she’s written and is performing Ann Richards now on a one-woman show. It’s great,” replied Turner.
Myra MacPherson and Kathleen Turner. Photo credit: Janet Donovan
“Molly was a great satirist of all things worth assaulting in Texas and most of America – and her whiskey voice came alive again in the whiskey voice of actress Kathleen Turner.
What people need to know is that, like Twain and Will Rogers and her long time pal and First Amendment Laureate John Henry Faulk –Molly used wit not just to make people laugh but to think. Or tried to. She always said her all time failure was when “Shrub” as she named Bush, got elected twice.” said prolific author and journalist Myra MacPherson who hosted an after party at Station 4.
“I knew her for 35 years and I would like to disabuse people of this notion that deep down she was lonely, primarily on account of because she never married or had kids. Ho hum. She was “aunt Molly” to not only her nieces and nephews but a battalion of friends’ kids, including mine. She had tons of friends and was unbelievably generous.
The great pity is that the New York TIMES hired her to “be Molly” and then fired her for “being Molly.” No journalistic poohbahs had the guts to give her the Pulitzer she so deeply deserved, settling for pablum instead of a rich meal. Molly was unique; even the good stuff Gail Collins is writing can’t match her fabulous and outrageous outrage at political insanity and injustice.”
How did Turner prepare for the role?
“I don’t know. I mean, it’s never been part of my thinking to mimic or to imitate. That’s not what I do, so if anything, it’s what I think Molly would be like.”
“Oh, I have a ball. I have so much fun, and the people in the audience change and that changes how you (perform),” Turner concluded.
