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 Fame & Fortune: Eric Bogosian
For Eric Bogosian, the goal is art, not money
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Eric
Bogosian has been one of the alternative theater world's premier
iconoclasts. With shows such as "Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll,"
"Drinking in America" and "Wake Up and Smell The
Coffee," Bogosian has skewered every possible vision of Americana,
and become an art house icon in the process.
But Bogosian has also dabbled in
the mainstream. His play "Talk Radio" became a highly
acclaimed film (that he starred in) directed by Oliver Stone. He
portrayed a terrorist in Steven Segal's "Under Siege 2,"
a project he says bankrolled several of his more-artistic endeavors.
And, he has worked in television, including at one point creating
a TV show with Steven Spielberg.
Bogosian began portraying characters in New York City's
punk clubs in the '70s, before he knew what a one-man show was.
But the attention he attracted there led to a performance of his
first one-man show, "Men Inside," at the opposite end
of the artistic world -- the New York Shakespeare Festival.
His one-man shows have introduced us to a plethora
of urbane, abrasive and hysterical characters portraying the seedier
side of American life, but Bogosian recently announced his retirement
from the format, saying he's now looking to concentrate on different
creative avenues, including writing his second novel.
Bogosian spoke with Bankrate about the one-man show
format, and some of his more profitable endeavors.
Bankrate: John Leguizamo, another actor renowned for
one-person shows, became the highest paid actor on Broadway at one
point due to those shows. Has putting on one-man shows been a profitable
venture for you?
Eric Bogosian: I was never on Broadway. I have
never been part of that world because it's a different set of dynamics
in terms of bringing a thousand people to the theater every night,
and the kind of marketing that has to go around that. I'm personally
not comfortable with it. I did really well, though. I predate John
by 10 or 15 years. The first show that really took off for me was
"Drinking in America," in 1986. I did very well with it.
I did well with a number of the solo shows, but I didn't think,
'Oh, this is why I'm doing it.' Also, my solos get performed all
around the world. Some of the runs of the shows in foreign countries
have been quite lengthy, and for much larger houses than I ever
performed for, so that has dividends.
Bankrate: Where do you make the bulk of your income?
Eric Bogosian: In the mid-'80s I became somebody of
interest to Hollywood, and I began to work as a screenwriter, and
more recently as a TV writer. If you look at all my Writers Guild
and Screen Actors income, my income splits three ways. I write for
screen and TV, I act in screen and TV, and I perform live. Generally,
the invisible part of my income over the last 15 years is that I've
written for all the major studios, and it's very lucrative. It's
my day job, I guess.
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