Take a ride with Harry Northup

The life I had chosen was not perfect, but then whose life is? I was 17, not quite a woman, but less of the child I once had been... The things my clients made me do sure made me feel like I was one... I disgusted myself with the things I did... The depravity, the inhumanity of it all, but then again it was better than living on the streets... Just...
I sat on the bed in my cold, little room on the wrong side of the Bronx; I heard shouting, men hitting women, women screaming at the men... The familiar coughs and cries of the scum of the city... The pimps, the Joes, the dealers, the addicts... It all disgusted me, but where else was a runaway supposed to go?
The glitz and glamour of New York City seemed so appealing for a girl from Pittsburgh... Ha... glitz and Glamour? The only glitz I get these days is the costumes they made me wear.... 

My phone rang, another job, but in the good end of town... Manhattan? Nice... I quickly noted down the address and put it in my coat pocket. Maybe I should shower? Then maybe not, you never know what to expect with a profession like mine...  
It was Manhattan though? It might be fancy, they might even treat me like a person... A girl can dream. Yes a quick shower and I'll even treat myself to a taxi...

So after cleaning myself up, carefully applying my make-up and getting changed, I locked and bolted my room - My place wasn't exactly the place you leave your keys under the doormat if you catch my drift - and headed out to hail a cab. 

I got one quite easily and headed up town. I checked my reflection in the glass... Was I ready to put myself through this again? Was I really?

The traffic was clear and we got to Manhattan in good time and without too much of a fare... I must start charging my clients cab fare I thought... Suddenly a nag of self doubt crept across my mind, after all this time I still got nervous before seeing clients... I asked the driver to stop a couple of blocks away, I still had an hour to waste and a walk might clear my head... and doubts. 

I walked up 8th, the air was cool and refreshing, but I needed a drink, you had to be 21 to get a drink in this town, but I knew people. I spotted a club I recognised, I done some favours for the owner, now he could do me a favour... of a shot of bourbon perhaps? 

The sign outside read "Poetry Reading, special guest Harry Northup" ...?!

Harry Northup? Actor? Poet? The actor that had been in some of the most iconic movies ever made?! Could it be him?!

Northup was born in Amarillo, Texas. He lived in seventeen places by the time he was seventeen, but mostly lived inSidney, Nebraska, where he graduated from high-school in 1958. From 1958 to 1961, he served in the United States Navy, where he attained the rank of Second Class Radioman. From 1963 to 1968, he studied Method acting with Frank Corsaro, in New York City.

Northup received his B.A. in English from California State University, Northridge, where he studied poetry with poet Ann Stanford. He has made a living as an actor for over thirty years and has been in thirty-seven films including Martin Scorsese's first six feature films: Who's That Knocking at My Door, Boxcar Bertha, Mean Streets, Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, Taxi Driver and New York, New York. He had a role in Jonathan Demme's film The Silence of the Lambs. Harry starred inOver the Edge and Fighting Mad. Northup has been a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences since 1976. He has the rare distinction of being a notable poet as well as a successful career actor. [Wikipedia]

I took a seat at the bar, smiled sweetly at the barman and ordered my drink, Harry was just ending his poem... Damn... Bad timing. But then I noticed him coming my way, he sat down right beside me... This was an opportunity too good to miss... I checked my watch, I still had nearly an hour to waste and this would be the best waste of time I could ask for. 

Never being a shy one - well you couldn't be shy in my profession now, could you? - I turned smiled and offered Harry a drink... I'm not sure if was something in the air, the audiences reaction to his work or what I was wearing, but Harry accepted my offer of a drink... and a chat... 

You moved around quite a lot in your youth? 

"By the time I was 17, I had lived in 17 places.  
Why was this? 
My dad worked for the civil service, so when there was a better job opening on another base, he would take it & we'd move.  After we lived in Amarillo for a year, we moved to San Gabriel, Ca., where my parents, my sister & one of my 3 brothers & I lived in a converted chicken coop behind my aunt's big house.  Mostly, we lived in Ordville, the housing project of Sioux Ordnance Depot, & Sidney, Nebraska. Did it affect your friendships?
The friends from my youth whom I have stayed in touch with over the years are from S.O.D. & Sidney where I graduated from high school in 1958."

So, when did you know you wanted to become an actor?

"When I was 14, Connie Madsen, director of the Panhandle Players, in Sidney, cast me as Eddie in "Time Out For Ginger."  When I was 16, she cast me as George in "Our Town." 

That was the beginning of my love of acting & theatre.  I also did the male lead in the Junior class play "Headin' for a Weddin'."  I have always loved movies, so that's in the equation. 

After high school, I joined the Navy.  My tour of duty was from 1958-1961.  While I was in the Navy I thought I would save money, go to college & become a hgh school English teacher.  After being honourably discharged, I enrolled in Nebraska State Teachers' College, Kearney.  I did several leads in theatre there & fell passionately in love with theatre.  In the spring of 1962 I quit college, hitchhiked to New York City  & began to look for acting work.  I studied Method acting with Frank Corsaro from 1963-1968."

You studied with the Frank Corsaro?! Wow!

"The first scene I did in Corsaro's class was a scene from Eugene O'Neill's "The

Great God Brown," in which I played Billie Brown.  I did it just like I had done it in college & it was too artificial.  Frank liked me a lot & he suggested, for my second scene, that I do a scene from "The Grapes of Wrath," with Hector Elizondo.  I was Tom Joad; Hector, the Uncle.  Hector simplified acting for me.  I used a personal memory, learned how to place my inner concentration, relax, believe in the scene & behave realistically on stage.  Everything clicked.  Frank loved the scene & me.  Frank Corsaro gave me the foundation of acting, & poetry, by teaching me how to use  my own experiences in my work.  He was a brilliant teacher; he had deep erudition in theatre, opera, film, literature & human behaviour.  I have stayed in touch with him over the years.  I love Frank Corsaro."

I heard that Harvey Keitel was in the class with you? 

"Harvey Keitel recommended me to Scorsese & introduced me to my first wife.  Harvey is a strong, emotional, daring actor, with a great sense of humor & explosiveness.  We were in 5 films together.  He is a good friend.  The last time I saw Harvey was at the Walter Reade Theatre at Lincoln Center where we both participated in a tribute to the late Victor Argo.  That was about 10 years ago."

And how was your new life in NY? 

"All I did was study acting, see theatre & films, seek acting work, live in a cheap hotel or apartment, work as a messenger, waiter, clerk typist to pay my room & board.  It was a great experience, an education.  My friends were Italian, Jewish, Puerto Rican.  I learned a lot about art & culture & intellectual ideas & poetry.  I remember when I was a messenger at Quicksilver Messenger Service, on 41st St. off Fifth Avenue, men brought in 7 different New York City newspapers every day."

You studied Method acting... 

"In Method acting, you work from within.  You are the character.  You use your own first hand experience.  You learn how to relax, to concentrate.  You use sense memories to evoke emotion, to help you create belief, to be a real human being on stage or on film.  To allow the emotion to take you where it may.  But, you also have to create the external character as well.  But, it comes from within.  To live in the present."

Now I have to talk Scorsese, how did you first meet/ work with him?

"When I first met Marty, he was a true lover of cinema & an independent filmmaker. Everyone around him in those early years knew he was a true filmmaker.  His ambience

was authentic.  He made personal films.   His vision has enlarged over the years.  He's a brilliant American film director.  He's the Statesman of American film.  Scorsese is a joy."

Does he just phone you up and offer you the part, or do you have to audition each time?

""Who's That Knocking At My Door":  I met him & talked to him & he gave me the part.

"Boxcar Bertha": I went after the part of Deputy Sheriff Harvey Hall & he cast me & Roger Corman hired me.  "Mean Streets":  I called him, went to see him; he offered me two parts & I took the Vietnam Vet & improved on it.  "Alice

Doesn't Live Here Anymore": He came to a poetry reading I gave for the publication of my second book, the jon voight poems.  After the reading he said, "I have a part for you in my next film.  I went in to the studio & read for a part that I didn't get, but got Jim & Joe's Bartender.

(The Hollywood Reporter ended its review of "Alice" by saying "The emotional honesty of the cast is exemplified by the acting of Harry Northup as Jim & Joe's Bartender.")

"Taxi Driver":  He called me to come into Columbia Studios & he gave me the part of Doughboy -- 2 weeks & 2 days work in NYC.  "New York, New York": The casting director Jane Jenkins called & said "Marty wants you to play Alabama -- a week's work."

You are an extremely versatile actor, but what is your favourite character style? 

"If you are talking about roles, I have played a  New York City cabbie in "Taxi Driver," sheriffs in "Boxcar Bertha," "Over the Edge," "Fighting Mad" & "Beloved."  In the CBS remake of "In Cold Blood," I was the Minister & in "Bad

Girls," the Preacher.  In 5 "Knots Landing" episodes, I played Wayne Harkness, who killed  Sid Fairgate, played by Don Murray.  When I get hired to do a character, I do my research & try to do it in the most honest, real & deepest way that I can.

Do you have a favourite?
The best part I ever did was Sgt. Doberman in "Over the Edge."  It was the only time in my career that I got top billing in a film.  I love that part,  I will always be thankful to Jonathan Kaplan, the director, for casting me & to the producer, George Litto, who hired me."

Are there any parts you wish you’d played?

"I really do not go around wishing for things.  I live within my reality."

Jonathan Demme once said of you "Harry Northup is one of the actors I have worked with many times. I've worked with him for thirty years. He's a wonderful guy and a beautiful poet and a gifted actor.". What an accolade?! How does it feel that such a prestigious man thinks so much of you?

"Jonathan Demme is a Prince.  He hired me for 10 parts: FBI man in "Crazy Mama";

Sheriff Skerritt (starring role) in "Fighting Mad"; The Red Baron in "Citizens Band";

Marine in "Swing Shift": a cop & a construction worker in 2 "People For the American Way" commericals (Produced by Norman Lear): Postal Worker Juror in "Philadelphia"

 (3 weeks and 2 days work); Mr. Bimmel in "The Silence of the Lambs"; Sheriff in "Beloved"; Congressman Flores in the remake of "The Manchurian Candidate." He has

also been a great supporter of my poetry & he is a wonderful friend.  It makes me feel good that he cares for me as a person and as a creative person."

And how is he as a director?

"Most good directors are keen observers & they hire you because they have observed you & they see a quality in you that is right for the role.  Jonathan is a warm postive person.

That shows in his films.  He has great compassion & warmth for the characters in his films.  He is a film lover & a brilliant director."

As Mr Bimmel (In Silence of the Lambs) and a father, did you channel any of that parental emotion into the part? 

Mr. Bimmel is the father of the first victim.  I have never experienced the death of a child. When my son Dylan, whom I love with all my heart, was a teenager, he got into trouble several times & that caused me a lot of pain.  Being a Method actor, I chose a time when Dylan got into trouble & I recreated that particular time.  The emotional memory I used evoked emotions that were parallel to the scene when Mr. Bimmel tells Clarice that his "daughter went to Chicago for an interview and never came back."  I prepared emotionally; I chose the clothes that I wore, with one exception.  If you remember I wore a knit cap that had the colors of red & gray, which are the colors of Ohio State, which is near the film scene location; I also had my character dress in layers as people who work outside do in that area."

And I heard that you even kept pigeons to prepare for the role?

"A friend of mine kept pigeons, so I asked him to teach me about pigeons & show me how to hold one.  You hold it with its rear end pointing away from you because pigeons go to the bathroom a lot & you don't want it to poop on you.  He gave me one to take home & work with.  I got the script 2 1/2 months before the shoot, so each day, for 2 months, I brought the pigeon, "Champ" from Lebanon, inside -- I kept him in a cat cage on our patio -- & took him into the bedroom after I had put papers down all over the place & spent an hour or two with him every day.  When you take care of a pigeon, he becomes your mate, so that was part of my character work, because Mr. Bimmel had pigeons.  Champ liked to fly up & land on the top of the drapes.  Pigeons like to be up high."

Jodie Foster is such a tour de force, what was she like to work with? 
"When I met Jodie on the set of "The Silence of the Lambs," she held one hand  across her forehead & one below her face, both parallel to the ground & said "Jonathan likes to shoot close, does that bother you?"  "Doesn't bother me," I replied.  We shot the exterior when Clarice comes up to me & says, "Mr. Bimmel?"  & I said "That's me."  In the script, Mr. Bimmel is adding a wooden segment to his pigeon coop when she arrives.  When I arrived on the set, Jonathan asked me, "What do you want to do 

with this scene?"  I pulled out a white napkin on which I had printed that I would be holding a white pigeon up to the light looking for mites when she arrives & read that to Jonathan.  He said, "Great."  So, that's what I was doing when she arrives & asks me the question.  We shot the exterior & then moved in doors.  It was a very emotional scene about my daughter Fredrica going to Chicago for an interview & never coming back.  She was the first victim.  I could have cried but didn't.  I remember asking Jonathan if I should have cried & he said, "No, let the audience do that."  I looked upstairs to my daughter's room at the end of the scene.  Clarice goes up to my dead daughter's room, searches & finds a clue to the killer.  There are photos of Fredrica & Mr. Bimmel in the room.  The Production Designer had contacted me before I went to location & asked for personal photos to use in the scene & so some of the photos are real pictures of me & my son as a baby.  I

remember one was a photo of me in a cowboy shirt.  There were also movie photos of the actress who played Fredrica & of me in the room.  Jodie was a real professional.  She's a real pro, one of the top ten film actors in the history of film in my opinion.  We had been in two previous pictures before, "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore" & "Taxi Driver," though not in the same scene.  We talked about that.  When I wrapped, I shook her hand, said some nice things to her & she said, "Let's make it a fourth film soon.""

... And late, great Richard Pryor...

"The first time I worked with Richard Pryor was in "Which Way Is Up?" a film directed by Michael Schultz.  Richard played 3 roles in it.  I think that's his best work as an actor.  I played Chief Goon who throws him off the farm. When I came on the set of "Blue Collar," in which I played Hank, in Kalamazoo, MI., Pryor remembered me from "Which Way Is Up?"; he made his hand into a fist, raised it to me in a greeting.  Of the 3 leads, Pryor, Harvey Keitel, Yaphet Koto, I think that Rchard did the best job.  He was trim, funny & tough; he stood up for the consciousness & humanity of his heritage.  At the end of "Blue Collar," Pryor's character takes over Keitel's job & I Pryor's.  Working with Pryor, I found him to be the fastest & most imaginative improviser next to De Niro.  I worked on "Blue Collar" for 3 weeks in Kalamazoo, MI. & 3 weeks in Detroit.  We came to Detroit looking pretty & left looking raggity."

Scorsese, Demme and Johnathan Kaplan have repeatedly hired you, it must feel tremendous to know that they respect and want you so much… What do you think is the attraction? (I know it’s obviously your extreme talent and natural charisma, but it would be nice to know what you think!)

"From 1963 to 1968, I studied Method acting with Frank Corsaro in Manhattan.  In that class, was Harvey Keitel.  In 1967, Harvey recommended me to Scorsese for a role in Scorsese's first feature, "Who's That Knocking At My Door?"  It wsn't called that at the time; it was "I Call First" & then "J.R."  I was working as a waiter at the Friar's club in N.Y.C. & I got off my lunch job & went to a 42nd St. office that Marty was using.

I remember we talked about Corsaro's acting class, Harvey, where I was from & "Lilith," directed by Robert Rosen, in which I had gotten my screen Actor's Guild card.  We also discussed "The Hustler," which Rossen had directed.  I had seen the film 7 times when it

first came out.  I had been a pool player in my youth.  Marty & I both loved the film.  Marty liked me & hired me.  I remember him saying something about my large range of emotion.  In "Who's That Knocking At My Door?," I played The Rapist.  That was the first film that I had a real part in.  I learned that film is shot in pieces.  Drive up the road.  Stop.  Back up.  Do it again.  Turn onto the country road.  Cut.  Again.  Stop the car.  Put your arm around her.  Lock the door & then the attempt to force myself on her & she gets out of the car & I chase her & hit her & drag her up the hill & back into the car & then the rape.  It was learning to maintain the emotion through all the many actions & cuts.  & all the while I was being led by a Master.  Everyone around Scorsese at that time knew that he was a great filmmaker.  It is just rare to work with a great filmmaker & I cherish the memories of working in cinema with Scorsese.  He hired me for his first six feature films & his first TV show.  Why did he like me?  I do not know other than he liked me; he  trusted me; knew that I was genuine & I had good instincts. 

In 1974, after my first wife left me, I was living in West Hollywood & was hanging around with my fellow actors: Gene Borkan, Warren Miller, Carmen Argenziano & John Aprea.  One night, there was a gathering at Carmen's apartment around the corner.  I went there &  met Jonathan Demme & his first wife.  Demme had seen me in "Mean Streets" & liked me.  In the spring of 1974, Demme hired me to play the FBI Man in "Crazy Mama."  That was produced by Julie Corman, Roger's wife; we shot it in Griffith Park.

Demme later starred me as Sheriff Skerritt in "Fighting Mad," which he wrote & directed for Roger Corman.  I worked on "Fighting Mad" for 6 weeks in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

That was a thrill.  Peter Fonda, Philip Carey, John Doucette, Lynn Lowry, Scott Glenn

were in the cast.  I remember Jonathan calling me from Arkansas & talking to me about my part & he said "If there is anything you want, let me know."  I said, "There is one thing, but it is minor."  Jonathan said, "Nothing is minor."  So I asked him if my character could have a silver barrelled shotgun to use in a scene when he confronts Fonda & the bad guys in a scene & Demme said he will tell the prop guy to get one for me.  Demme was always a loving & brilliant director.  He means a great deal to me.  He subsequently hired me to play the Red Baron in "Citizens Band," which was shot in Marysville, Ca.

That was a wonderful film.  The film got a great review by Pauline Kael.  To go back to "Fighting Mad," I remember coming out of ADR with Demme & he said, "Remember when I told you that you were getting Co-Star billing?"  'Yes," I replied, my heart sinking.  "You're not; you're getting Star billing."  That thrilled me.  In "Fighting Mad," Demme has the Peter Fonda character do many things, shoot a pistol, a bow & arrow,

ride a motorcycle with his son on it -- I used to ride my motorcycle with my son Dylan on it in West Hollywood where Demme & his wife were living & I wonder if he saw my son & me on the motorcyle & put that in the movie.  Demme hired me many times after that & I will always be grateful to him for that.  Demme has such a warm heart.  He, like Scorsese, is a lover of cinema.

In the summer of 1978, my agent Michael Rosen called, "There is a great part coming up that you will audition for, so stick around; don't leave L.A."  Soon after that, I auditioned for the first of five auditions for the part of Sgt. Doberman in "Over the Edge." 

"Over the Edge" was the first or second film produced by Orion when it was at Warner Brothers.  It was brilliantly written by Tim Hunter & Charlie Haas; produced by George Litto & directed by Jonathan Kaplan.  At the fifth audition, I had 5 scenes memorized & plenty of improvised dialogue in my mind.  At that final audition, I was sitting in the outer waiting room among other actors.  Kaplan came out, kneeled down beside me & whispered in my ear, "I want you for this role.  You have to go in there with four balls, look at the producer, show warmth to him & make him like you."  I did a great audition & got the job.  The best role I ever did.  when we were shooting in Greeley, Colorado, Kaplan said, "I love working with you.  I've wanted to work with you since I saw you in 'Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore.'  I thought you were the real thing, that Marty had

just hired you off the street."  Later, he told me that Martin Scorsese & Sandra Weintraub had recommended me for Doberman.  Jonathan Kaplan is a magnificent American film director, strong & with an enormous range of feeling.  He hired me for 12 acting jobs in film, TV & a music video.  I will always be grateful to him for hiring me. I love Jonathan Kaplan.  He cares for me.  He is a true friend."

So, what is your favourite movie of theirs?

"Martin Scorsese: "Mean Streets"; Jonathan Demme: "The Silence of the Lambs"; Jonathan Kaplan" "Over the Edge.""

Now I know you are an accomplished poet, and you use your film experiences in your poetry… but do you ever use your poetry in your acting?

"One thing that I have learned in poetry is how to use time & space.  That awareness has been valuable to me in acting.  Film is very expensive & it helps to be prepared.  Kaplan, Demme & Scorsese have allowed me to contribute dialogue to their films, & in some cases, actions.

... And do you do readings?

Yes, I have done hundreds of poetry readings & David Lloyd Glover, a marvelous artist & my co-blogger on timestimes3.blogspot.com, has shot many videos of me reading my poems.  Here is the link to my poem, "the Crying Alone, (video, 2:38):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpld19xLgYk"

And does your acting experience help?
Yes, it helps me to be centered & relaxed.

Robert Peters wrote "Harry Northup is a wild language explosioneer." – that must feel great!?

That was very kind of the late Robert Peters.  Peters was the most important poet/critic  on the West Coast since Kenneth Rexroth.  I believe he wrote that about my poetry in  the accalimed anthology, The Streets Inside: Ten Los Angeles Poets, edited by Bill Mohr.

Momentum Press, 1978).  Peters always stood up for the individual."

How often do you get to sit and write?

"Daily & nightly.  I have been reading & writing poetry since 1966.  I write at home, in cafes, on buses.  One of my favorite times to compose poesy is at 2 or 3 A.M.  I am always grateful to the Divine Feminine."

And who are your influences? 

Walt Whitman, Leland Hickman, Paul Blackburn, William Carlos Williams, Ann Stanford, Holly Prado.

And do you have a favourite poem? 

""Song of Myself," by Walt Whitman.

We've talked a lot about acting, film, filmmakers; I would like to talk about

Cahuenga Press which is a poets publishing cooperative comprised of poet-members James Cushing, Phoebe MacAdams, Harry E. Northup & Holly Prado Northup.

These poets are significant voices in our community.  Recently, Cahuenga Press celebrated its 25 anniversary with the publication of its 22nd poetry book. The Magicians' Union, by James Cushing."

I noticed harry checking his watch, he must be preparing to read again, excellent, I thought... I might not miss it after all... But I could squeeze in one more question, sure I could... And since finding out where he was from, I just had to ask...

…So harry, do you know your way to Amarillo?

"Yes, I was born there on Sept. 2, 1940.  My dad worked at the Northwest Hospital in Amarillo, Texas.  We lived there a year & then we moved.  My sister Dorothy told me that when I was about 10 months old, our mother, Dorothy, my brother Jim & I went to see "Gone With the Wind" in Amarillo.  She said that was the first movie I attended."

I spotted the clock behind the bar... Crap, I was going to be late if I didn't get a move on... Damn I was going to miss the reading, but money was money... I thanked Harry and rushed out. That had been amazing and for a just a moment there, for just a moment, I had forgotten what I was about to do... Forgotten about this crazy life I'd mapped out for myself... I'd forgotten about why I was sitting here... For a moment there life was... great...

I checked the address on the crumpled up piece of paper in my pocket, it was only across the street now. I took a deep breath and walked over the crossing - didn't want to get done for jay walking, not now! - I got to the door and rang the bell. 

My client answered the door, he was young, mid thirties I guessed and not bad looking...

"I hope you're ready" he said "It might get messy"

"Oh I'm used to it" I replied and smiled, straightening my pink tutu and popping on my red nose "I'm ready for them!"

"I don't know how you do it" he said with a smile as six little 8 year olds ran towards, me dragging me and my balloons inside....

Nor do I.... Nor do I...


 

To find more about Harry the Actor go to his

IMDB page , Wikipedia page 

Or Harry the poet go to:

"Library Girl Presents: Cahuenga Press Turns 25!":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUGHyVMORSM&feature=youtu.be

or the Cahuenga Press website

Song of Myself by Walt Whitman