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Happy Wednesday everyone!
It’s chilly out there. I’m not sure Mother Earth realizes it’s spring, but I’m ready to pack the winter attire away any day now. I suppose the bright side (literally and figuratively) is that the sunshine is beautiful today.
This week, I saw a clip of an interview with actor Nathan Lane that’s making its way around the internet. Lane, whose breakout role was in 1996’s The Birdcage alongside the late Robin Williams, was talking about a time when Williams protected him during an interview on the Oprah Winfrey Show.
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It all went down during the press tour for the film. Lane and Williams were just about to go on Oprah (the biggest talk show of the era), but right before the interview Lane, who is gay, confided in Williams that given the premise of the movie — Lane and Williams played a gay couple whose son was set to marry a right-wing conservative couple’s daughter— Lane thought that discussing his own sexuality might come up, and he wasn’t ready to address it.
“I don’t think Oprah was trying to out me, but I said to Robin beforehand, ‘I’m not prepared. I’m so scared of going out there and talking to Oprah. I’m not prepared to discuss that I’m gay on national television. I’m not ready. (Williams) said, ‘Oh, it’s alright, don’t worry about it — we don’t have to talk about it. We won’t talk about it.’”
Almost immediately after walking onto that stage, Oprah did ask Lane if he was “afraid of taking that role and being like typecast and people forever saying, ‘Are you? Are you not?’” (See around the 17-minute mark) which seemed like Oprah’s questions were headed toward a place Lane wasn’t comfortable going. However, it didn’t get that far — thanks to the legendary comedian.
“(Williams) sort of swoops in and diverts Oprah, goes off on a tangent and protects me because he was a saint,” Lane explained.
In 1996 Nathan Lane starred in The Birdcage. (Yukio Gion / The Associated Press files)
Lane eventually answered the question after Williams’ tangent but did so in a way that made him comfortable. He didn’t address the “Are you? Are you not?” part of it.
I thought this little story was such a beautiful testament to Williams and the legacy of kindness he left behind after his 2014 death. Such a simple act that, even all these years later, was very meaningful to Lane, and to those of us who are touched by this story. It’s a good reminder our actions, and the kindness and love we show others lives on — even after we’re gone.
I hope you all have a wonderful week, stay warm and enjoy the sunshine!
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