News Item
Pace University Statements on the Passing of James Lipton
Pace University Statements on the Passing of James Lipton
NEW YORK (March 2, 2020) – Andreas Manolikakis, Chair of the Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University issued the following statement on the passing of James Lipton:
"The Actors Studio Drama School mourns the loss of James Lipton, the creator and Dean of the program from 1994–2004, the Dean Emeritus from 2005 to today, as well as the original host of Inside the Actors Studio. The faculty, the administration, the current students, the alumni, and I are forever grateful for his vision, his leadership, and his continued support and care for the school. His legacy lives on in each episode of Inside the Actors Studio and within each student who has or will graduate from the Actors Studio Drama School. We extend our deepest sympathies and heartfelt love to his wife, Kedakai, who has also been such a great supporter of our school."
—Andreas Manolikakis
Chair, Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University
Pace University President Marvin Krislov today issued the following statement on the passing of James Lipton:
“James Lipton was a great writer and actor, a great interviewer, and, most important, a great teacher. He was a revered leader of the Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University, and we are all deeply saddened by this loss. We send our condolences to his wife, Kedakai, and we know that his legacy will live on in the generations of actors he inspired.”
—Marvin Krislov
President, Pace University
Lipton served as the creator and Dean of the Actors Studio program from 1994-2004, the Dean emeritus from 2005 to today, as well as the original host of Inside the Actors Studio.
Pace University Dyson College of Arts and Sciences Dean Nira Herrmann issued the following statement on the passing of James Lipton:
"Dyson College of Arts and Sciences mourns the passing of James Lipton, the honored Dean Emeritus of the Actors Studio Drama School (ASDS), which he co-founded nearly a quarter century ago and helped recreate at Pace in 2006. He had a larger than life personality and led a full, varied, and interesting life, rich with accomplishments, contributions and mentoring of others. He was dedicated to the education of ASDS students and inspired established members of The Actors Studio to teach in the program, and share the depth of their knowledge to encourage and shape the next generation of actors, directors, and playwrights.
He graced our stage with his unique craft-oriented interviews on Inside the Actors Studio that showcased the journeys of major stars, who often stayed for many hours after their interviews, talking with his students and frankly answering their questions. He had the knack of connecting with all of them, sometimes in the most surprising ways (like his discussion of ballet lessons with Dave Chappelle).
Every September, he welcomed the ASDS entering class, promising them they would be transformed by their experience and their time at ASDS would pass faster than they could imagine. Every spring, he attended the ASDS repertory season productions, and on the last day of the semester, he would remind the students of what he had said on their first day, to knowing nods. And always, he launched them into their new lives with Christopher Logue’s poem Come to the Edge which ends:
So they came,
And he pushed,
And they flew.
Jim will be remembered for the way he pushed and the way we all flew, lifted by his encouragement and faith in what we could accomplish together.
Our deepest condolences to the students, alumni, faculty, and staff of the Actors Studio Drama School and to his wife, Kedakai Lipton, a force in her own right, who attended so many ASDS events with Jim in support of students and faculty."
—Nira Herrmann
Dean, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences
About Pace University
Pace University has a proud history of preparing its diverse student body for a lifetime of professional success as a result of its unique program that combines rigorous academics and real-world experiences. Pace is ranked the #1 private, four-year college in the nation for upward economic mobility by Harvard University’s Opportunity Insights, evidence of the transformative education the University provides. From its beginnings as an accounting school in 1906, Pace has grown to three campuses, enrolling 13,000 students in bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs in more than 150 majors and programs, across a range of disciplines: arts, sciences, business, health care, technology, law, education, and more. The university also has one of the most competitive performing arts programs in the country. Pace University has a signature, newly renovated campus in New York City, located in the heart of vibrant Lower Manhattan, next to Wall Street and City Hall, and two campuses in Westchester County, New York: a 200-acre picturesque Pleasantville Campus and a Law School in White Plains.
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