NPR: All Things Considered
Movies I’ve Seen A Million Times Series
Reporter & Producer
What I Learned
This series taught me the value of perseverance and not taking no for an answer. When I first pitched the idea of doing a series centered around the movies that people watch over and over again I was told that it would be a hard sell because it wouldn’t involve the host.
At the time, being a producer who also reported meant I could get my own pieces on the air from time to time, but a whole series which would potentially feature my voice and not the host’s was a whole other thing. But my boss told me that if I really believed in it, I should create a fully-produced pilot and present it to him and the host. And if it was good enough, they’d have no choice but to greenlight it. So I did – my very first episode was with the VERY generous and kind director/screenwriter, Lawrence Kasdan, who signed up to talk about “Out of the Past,” even though I told him there was a very real chance that it would never air. That’s how much he loves talking about movies, and that’s how much the nearly 50 filmmakers that I spoke with over the life of the series do as well.
The Movie Whoopi Goldberg's 'Seen A Million Times'
Heard on All Things Considered — June 17, 2012
By Lily Percy
The weekends on All Things Considered series Movies I've Seen a Million Times features filmmakers, actors, writers and directors talking about the movies that they never get tired of watching.
For comedian and actress Whoopi Goldberg, whose credits include The Color Purple, Ghost, and ABC's daytime talk show The View, the movie she can't get enough of is Robert Mulligan's To Kill a Mockingbird. "[The] performances are spectacular," says Goldberg, "It's what I strive for, it's what I want as an actor: I want to be that good."
Listen Now:
INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS
On when she saw the movie for the first time
"I think the first time I saw it I was probably 10. I was by myself, but I told my mother about it. And I said, 'I just saw this movie, it was called...' And she said, 'Yes, I've seen it. Did you like it?' I said, 'Oh my God, it was really great ... and Boo Radley, I want him to be my friend.' I was an odd child, you know."
Photo credits: Lilian Vo.