A Conversation With Rosie O'Donnell
Rosie O’Donnell (A League of Their Own, Sleepless in Seattle) stars in the Hallmark Hall of Fame presentation, Riding the Bus with My Sister, which premieres on CBS Sunday, May 1, 2005. She also serves as executive producer of the film, which is inspired by the autobiographical book by Rachel Simon. In the film, Rachel is played by Andie MacDowell (Groundhog Day, Four Weddings and a Funeral). Her developmentally challenged sister, Beth, is played by O’Donnell. Academy Award winner Anjelica Huston (Prizzi’s Honor, The Royal Tenenbaums) directs. O’Donnell was interviewed on the film’s set, in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Just click on a question to see its answer.
What drew you to this book, this story?
Have you met the real Beth?
How did you come to look the way you look?
Was it difficult for you at first to grasp the notion that Beth really does spend all those hours, six days a week, riding the bus?
That's quite a family she has on the bus...
What's it like working with Andie MacDowell?
Anjelica Huston. Daughter of a legend. A legend herself...
Can you give us an example of that sensitivity?
Final thoughts?
What drew you to this book, this story?
I was very moved by the relationship between the sisters, and how different they are. I identified with that.
My sister and I are also very different. I’m loud, outspoken, a rabble-rouser. My sister’s quiet and conservative. She keeps very much to herself. I’m the opposite, always going on talk shows and saying, "And then this happened to me..."
I also liked the way the sisters balanced each other, and ultimately helped each other. I thought it was a very touching and beautiful story.
Have you met the real Beth?
No, but I’ve seen a brief videotape of her, and that helped me a lot. I could study her cadence, the way she speaks, the way she moves, her mannerisms.
I remember she was drinking a soda during the interview, and as she drank it she would shake the can. And when it was empty, she still played with the soda can. Little things like that can be very helpful.
I actually have a friend named Cynthia who’s 42 years old and who’s mentally challenged. She works for the Department of Transportation in New York, and she loves Broadway shows. I took her to see Bombay Dreams, and then we went out to dinner. And I had an art opening, and she came to that.
Before we started this movie I explained to Cynthia that I was going to be playing someone similar to her. She wanted to know when it’s going to be in the movie theater. She’s looking forward to seeing it. Cynthia’s sweet and very gentle – unlike Beth, who’s quite a bit more aggressive.
So what I’ve done is take Cynthia and amp her up a little bit, and we came up with "Cool Beth."
How did you come to look the way you look?
Well, when [director] Anjelica [Huston] and I first spoke on the phone, she said she wanted the film to be really gritty, very realistic. I remember her saying, "I want you to be able to feel and touch and smell the people on the bus when you’re watching this movie." She wasn’t interested in a sanitized version, and I was thrilled with that.
Then she said, "I’m thinking no makeup for you." I said, "Great." Then she asked, "Would you cut your hair?" And I said, "Yes, whatever your vision is, I’ll do it."
The day before we started I was at the Tony Awards with what I must say was for me a pretty fancy hairdo, with my hair pretty long. And when I got here the first thing the hair guy does is take a fistful of my expensively-coiffed hair and go – chop, chop, chop! I was horrified.
And it got worse! He then proceeded to thin out all my remaining hair.
When Anjelica came in for a look, she said, "We’re almost there. Now, could you get a perm?" So this is what we ended up with. I look like Rosanne Rosanna-Danna! But I think it really works for this character. I wasn’t interested in wearing a wig – I think you can tell, sometimes.
Was it difficult for you at first to grasp the notion that Beth really does spend all those hours, six days a week, riding the bus?
Well, not only does she do it – she loves it, and she loves her life!
You have to understand that before she started riding the buses, she lived in a group home. She didn’t see anyone except other mentally challenged people. One day she decided just to go out and get on the bus and see what would happen. And she found a whole new world out there, a whole life, a whole family.
I understand that some people hearing about Beth for the first time might say, "Are you kidding me?" But you have to understand that compared to where she was – isolated in a bit of a closet – she was able to enter the world thanks to the bus and bus drivers.
That was enough for her. Don’t forget, for some people a crumb is a whole meal.
When she began her bus journey, she started to thrive. You know, her clothing got brighter, her spirit was lifted. It’s very moving, actually.
That's quite a family she has on the bus...
It is! You know, Beth found a place where she fits in, where people don’t judge her or – for the most part – demean or diminish her. She found a place where the pieces of the puzzle fit rather nicely together.
What's it like working with Andie MacDowell?
She’s very giving – and forgiving! I love working with her.
During a couple of our emotional scenes together, when the camera’s tight on her, instead of saying the line I’m supposed to say, I’ll say something that I know will choke her up. Today, for example, we did a scene where she says to me, "You’re weird, Beth." And I’m supposed to say back, "Well Rachel, you’re weird, too. Weird, but cool."
Instead, I said, "I love you. I love you so much."
Andie was devastated. As the camera was rolling, she just broke down. It was brilliant.
Then, when Anjelica said, "Cut," Andie said to me – through her tears – "Damn you!" Actually, she’s such a Southern lady she probably said, "Darn you!"
Anjelica Huston. Daughter of a legend. A legend herself...
She’s a brilliant, brilliant actor, and an amazing director.
We had a very good friend in common who died of AIDS, and while I was caring for him toward the end, Anjelica would come often to visit him. That’s how we first met. Then she asked me to be in a movie she directed, Agnes Brown. I wanted badly to do it, but had to pull out a month before shooting began. So I’ve always felt I’ve owed her one.
When the script came in for Riding the Bus and discussions began about who should direct I had just one name on my wish list: Anjelica Huston.
This is the first movie I’ve ever done where the performance of the actor is the number one concern of the director – not technical things like lighting and sound. It’s also the first time I’ve had a full week of rehearsals before we began shooting.
Anjelica encourages ad-libbing, which I believe in if it helps the character come alive off the page.
She is so sensitive to the actor.
Can you give us an example of the sensitivity
The first week I had a very big scene. I had to call and tell my sister that our father was dead.
Anjelica cleared the set. There was basically just the cameraman, Anjelica and me. Just before the camera rolled she came up and whispered in my ear, "He was your whole life."
Then she quietly said, "Action."
I don’t remember what happened next, I was so devastated.
Afterward, people came up to me and said, "That was brilliant."
My response to them? "Thanks. But what the camera captured wasn’t really my doing. It was Anjelica."
She’s amazing. She knows what she wants, and she knows when she’s got it. She doesn’t do a dozen takes. Usually just one or two. She knows how to help you access what’s within you.
You can’t ask for anything more than that.
I trust her completely.
Final thoughts?
Well, I hope when this airs people will see that we have to accept each other for who and what we are. The bottom line is that to smooth everyone over and rub away everybody’s rough edges would make for a very bland world and a very boring life.
If you have a sister like Beth or a sister like me, you should try to work through whatever the differences are between you, in order to come to a place where you can accept and love each other.
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