MY LIFE ON A DIET by Carol Kaufman Segal

            

When I knew that Renee Taylor was going to appear in a story about herself at the Wallis, I was anxious to make certain that I got to see her.  You see, I had interviewed both Renee and her husband, Joseph Bologna when I hosted a program on the arts at radio station KPFK.  They were delightful and charming guests, and I looked forward to seeing her again in person.

           

As I checked back to see what date that was when they appeared on my program, I could not believe my eyes when records showed me September 10, 1992!  Well, time has passed, we’ve all grown up, but I can honestly say, that Renee Taylor is still a woman who is charming and can keep one laughing continuously, as I did throughout her wonderful autobiographical comedy, My Life on a Diet, playing at The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills.  I have to admit I never stopped laughing throughout the entire play.

            

Renee Taylor was born in the Bronx, New York to Frieda and Charles Wexler.  Her Mother’s wish was for her to be an actress, and Frieda is definitely not left out of some of her humorous stories.  She goes back in time to her beginnings in New York when she worked as a comedian in the early 1960’s at a New York City nightclub as the opening act for an unknown singer named Barbra Streisand.

            

Throughout her performance, she tells salacious stories, along with tips for dieting that she received from well-known Hollywood stars, one funnier than the next – stars such as Marlon Brando, Marilyn Monroe, Barbra Streisand, and Joan Crawford, as she made her way as an actress herself.  She always had, and I presume she still has a phobia regarding her weight.  And of course, she relates stories about her late husband and partner of 52 years, Joe Bologna, who directed this performance. 

            

Theirs was a perfect partnership.  Following their marriage in 1965, they co-wrote and performed in the Broadway hit comedy Lovers and Other Strangers.  In 1970 they received an Oscar nomination for writing the film adaptation.  In 1971 they wrote and costarred in Made for Each Other.  In 1973 they won Emmys for writing the TV special Acts of Love and Other Comedies.   They co-directed and co-starred in the film, It Had to Be You, adapted from their play of the same name.  They were an exceptional talent together, and Renee has continued to prove she is, equally, a talent today.

           

 The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts is located at 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills.  The productions will close after Sunday, April 14.  To inquire about tickets, go online at TheWallis.org/Diet, or call (310) 746-7000.

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