Publication Date: Friday, March 19, 2004
Diva dish
Diva dish
(March 19, 2004) Luke Yankee offers a behind-the-scenes look at growing up in Hollywood
by Melinda Casillas
Watch all the "E! True Hollywood Stories" and "A&E Biographies" you can get your hands on -- you still won't hear half of what Luke Yankee knows about the biggest names in showbiz history.
From Ethel Merman teaching him how to mix martinis when he was 12 (she was a gin gal, by the way) to Paul Newman giving him acting tips when he was 14, Yankee's childhood was a far cry from sleepy suburbia. Yankee fielded phone calls from reporters the night his mother, Eileen Heckart, won an Oscar for the 1973 film "Butterflies are Free."
This Saturday, Yankee will perform a one-man show at the Palo Alto Art Center, where he will take his audience on a journey only a handful have been on: the life of a showbiz kid.
The multimedia show, coyly entitled "Diva Dish," has an obvious but melancholic genesis: When their mother passed away at the end of 2001, Yankee and his two older brothers stumbled across a mountain of memorabilia Heckart had collected. As they sifted through photos, postcards, video footage -- even swizzle sticks -- recalling scores of famous celebrities, Yankee remembered the items' histories, but his brothers couldn't.
Perhaps the youngest son -- who had a natural affinity for the entertainment industry -- forged a deeper bond with his actress mother, or maybe it was just because he paid more attention than his brothers. Either way, Yankee's stories about Hollywood's brightest stars could fill volumes.
"Diva Dish!" begins with a retrospective of Heckart -- Oscar winner, multiple Tony and Emmy Award winner, and Theatre Hall-of-Famer -- and her starlet contemporaries. If the idea of catching never-before-seen peeks into the world of Sophia Loren, Bette Davis, Marilyn Monroe and Lucille Ball doesn't tempt you, there are another 30 or 40 names up Yankee's sleeve that might. Also on the menu are audio and video clips -- including a rare tape of Joan Crawford -- a Power Point presentation, even footage of Heckart in a 1946 commercial for tapioca.
So numerous are Yankee's cocktail-party tales that during the show's second half, he lets his audience decide who he'll dish the dirt on by shouting out requests. The anecdotes span his mother's 50-year acting career, from Mary Pickford to Ellen Degeneres.
"The show is a little different every time. After a year, I continue to refine it," Yankee said recently during a phone interview from his home in southern California.
While "Diva Dish!" is riddled with gossipy tidbits of celebs we love (Marlene Dietrich) and celebs we love to hate (Martha Stewart), Yankee is quick to point out that the show is done in poignant memory of a wonderful mother and in tribute to his family. Yankee grew up in New Haven Conn., where he went to public schools. It was important for Heckart that her children lead a normal life, but she kept her career well within reach -- they were only an hour's drive from Manhattan's bright lights.
Yankee decided to continue in his mother's thespian footsteps. He studied at the Juilliard School of Drama, New York University and Northwestern University. He has since acted, directed, produced, taught and lectured throughout the country and abroad. He has also run two regional theatres, serving as producing artistic director of the Long Beach Civic Light Opera and the Struthers Library Theatre in Pennsylvania.
Yankee first introduced the idea for the show to theater professionals and friends, who urged him forward.
"You're sitting on an absolute goldmine," he recalled them saying.
Because he and his mother would travel to the William Inge Theatre Festival each year, it was there that he chose to debut the show last April. It was received with wild enthusiasm and he eventually took the show on the road, gaining fans and acclaim wherever he went. This Saturday marks the show's Bay Area debut.
"I get a real sense of joy from doing this -- I hope to carry on the legacy not only of my mother, but my father. He was this quiet rock behind the scenes. My brothers are thrilled that I'm doing this. In fact my oldest brother, Mark, still finds postcards and letters to contribute."
With a genuinely humble air of Can-you-believe -this? he added excitedly, "I'm even in negotiations for a book deal!
"I'm so lucky; when most folks' parents pass on, they have a handful of snapshots. I've got so much more... and a sense of responsibility to share it."
What: "Diva Dish," a multi-media show about Hollywood celebrities presented by Luke Yankee
Where: Palo Alto Art Center, 1313 Newell Road in Palo Alto
When: Saturday at 8 p.m.
Cost: Tickets are $14 general; $12 seniors and students and will only be available at the door.
Info: Please call (650) 329-2366 or visit www.city.palo-alto.ca.us/artcenter.
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