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 Since the '70s,
comedian Billy Crystal has made a living by making audiences laugh. From his days as a stand-up comic to his role on 'Saturday Night Live,' the Long Island-native has been one of the most well-known comics around. Even as the decades past, his resume and fan-base only continued to grow. From stand-up to TV to feature films, Crystal managed to win over audiences wherever he went. He starred in numerous
modern day classics, amongst them 'When Harry Met Sally' and 'City Slickers,' and eventually branched out as a writer, producer and a director. His success both in front of and behind the camera eventually led to the comedian winning six Emmy Awards, six American Comedy Awards and seven Cable Ace Awards, and gave him the opportunity to host the Academy Awards seven times. However, despite his impressive résumé, Crystal's never gotten a chance to find out the answer to the age old question, 'is it really hard being green?' That is, until now. In Walt Disney and Pixar's animated film 'Monsters, Inc.,' Crystal plays Mike Wazowski, a monster whose life is turned upside down when a human child enters his world. By playing the one-eyed, green monster, Crystal was given a chance to not only find out if life is more difficult when you are green, but also to fulfill one of his life-long dreams of starring in a Disney animated
film— something he, regretfully, turned down in the past.
Although Crystal's had to live with the regret of saying no to one of Disney's most beloved recent animated features for almost a decade, with 'Monsters, Inc.' being the fastest animated feature ever to cross the $100-million mark, it looks like Crystal made the right decision after all. When I met up with the Crystal just a few weeks before 'Monsters, Inc.'s release, he was eager to discuss the film and his own expectations for it. As he explained why he felt that the movie would be such a huge success, he also discussed
what— if anything— he still has to prove to himself at this point in his career. For when you've accomplished as much as Crystal has, what is really left? The answer, for him, is quite simple... family.
UPBEAT 'Monsters, Inc.' took over four years for Disney and Pixar to make,
when did you first hear about it and how were you attached to the project?
Billy Crystal "The day before yesterday (laughs). It was about a year and a half ago. Johnny (Lasseter) called and asked, 'do you want to do it?' and I said yes before I even knew what it was. Then they sent over a model of this guy and Pete (Docter) and John came with a video tape of Mike moving on an empty stage, but he had my voice and was doing line from a movie. Then they told me the concept and I loved it. I thought it was an extraordinary idea, and it was easy. I was like, 'let's go to work.'"
UPBEAT Which quote did they use for the model of Mike?
Billy Crystal "I think it was 'My Giant.' I think it was, 'the size of the villain determines the size of the hero. Without Goliath, David is just a punk throwing rocks.' It would just repeat constantly, but it was moving around. So I said, 'that's good, but I don't think it should be my voice. I think it should be another kind of sound.' I thought of a character I did on 'Saturday Night Live' named Willy, except he kind of stammered a bit and Mike I thought should be fast and edgy; speedy and nuts; aggressive and romantic... just all those
things— and positive. Like Burgess Meredith and Rocky, Jiminy Cricket on
acid— that's what he should be. And that's how it developed."
UPBEAT As someone who came onto the film after Pixar and Disney had been working on it for over two years, did you have any say as to what the character would be like outside of its voice?
Billy Crystal "They were so open. We knew what he looked like, but that could have changed too if we wanted to."
UPBEAT How does Mike compare to the other characters you have played, being that you are simply a voice in this film?
Billy Crystal "This is one of my favorite characters. The thing is that when you get in to the guys, and working with
John— 'cause we worked together— once you put those headsets on and got into the script, I never saw my own skin. I just felt like this
guy— I never once looked down and felt like me. Even if I looked in a mirror I would probably see him. Then you're really acting. Then it's just like having a six or seven hour make-up job and you come out looking like this guy."
UPBEAT In voice-over work you record your lines apart from everyone else. I know that you and Goodman bent the rules a bit and recorded your lines together, but what about Mary Gibbs? Did you get to meet the 2 and a half
year old who played Boo?
Billy Crystal "No, I never saw her. I'm just looking at her
picture— she's so cute. I've just seen a little bit of film, probably the same stuff you saw on her and how Pete worked with her to get the line readings. It's just breathtaking how good she is."
 UPBEAT What about you and Goodman? How did
the two of you ever manage to convince the Pixar team to let both of you record your lines together? That's practically unheard of in feature film voice-over work.
Billy Crystal "I did the first two sessions alone and I didn't like it all. It was dull and they kept wanting something different and I can't do something differently if I don't have the other actor. I just insisted we record our lines together. I don't
understand— it just seemed like a no-brainer to me. You have these two guys who are in every scene together, why are you recording his tracks separately from mine so then the one who's creative is the sound editor? When you are picking takes they are never going to perfectly match. I said, 'we'll give you stuff. He's very fast and a good listener, we'll be
good— something is going to happen.' I'm just better that way— any actor is. It's easier and it cuts the schedule down because we did the stuff together. Otherwise I'd do mine, then he'd do his, and if you are having an off day then you can't come in that day or it doesn't match, the performance isn't right and you have to do it again, so just get us together and maybe something great can happen. It makes the work real good because it keeps the acting acting and not voice-over work."
UPBEAT You and Goodman both have this amazing chemistry together and it definitely came across on-screen. Have you two worked together in the past?
Billy Crystal "I never met him before."
UPBEAT Being a stand-up comic, you tend to use your body a lot to get across certain jokes. Did you have to restrain your movement while they were recording your lines at all so that the microphones didn't pick up the sounds?
Billy Crystal "They actually wanted you to move because they videotaped you during the session. They usually had two or three cameras on you to see how you move. So I moved
around— I knew he was animated anyway, and I can't just read a high-energy scene and keep my hands in my pockets. If you watch him he has very fluid wrists, and I am like that when I work, so they just took that and magnified it. He walks like Sammy Davis, Jr., he has the same little bowlegged thing. And the mouth, I just knew what he felt like. I'm telling you, when I put on the headphones I'm that guy."
UPBEAT At the end of the film when Mike is doing stand-up comedy, it almost seems as though viewers are watching Billy Crystal tell the jokes and not Mike Wazowski because the scene fit you so well. Was the ending something you created, or was it actually in the script?
Billy Crystal "This was a new ending, but there was another version of it. I knew that I was going to be doing stand-up for one person, and I've done that before, so I just decided to bomb. From there I just came up with stuff. There was different kind of jokes, different material. I think that was it. There were about four or five different endings, but it was more material type of stuff."
UPBEAT So how old were you the first time you went to Disneyland?
Billy Crystal "Thirty-five."
UPBEAT Being an actor, director, writer and a producer, what do you consider the most important aspect of a film?
Billy Crystal "The story. That is why I wanted to do 'Monsters, Inc.' You know it's going to look great. You know that Pixar's going to come up with
something— that is just what they do. 'A Bug's Life' and 'Toy Story' were stunning
movies— I voted for 'Toy Story' for Best Picture. So that's not the concern. The concern is, 'is this story good?,' 'is this character
fun?'— that's what I look at and I thought the character and the story were extraordinary. This whole concept of this movie was so special and so mature I have to say. It's a very, very smart movie."
UPBEAT You have starred in so many films over the years, many of them being huge successes. Which roles and films do you hold near and dear to your heart?
Billy Crystal "I love you
guys (laughs). All of the roles really. I'm thrilled to have had a career and keeping having one. It just keeps getting better. There are highlights for me that I like better than others, that's true of anybody. There's 'When Harry Met Sally,' 'Throw Momma From the Train,' working with Bob De Niro in 'Analyze This,' all the Oscar shows... I could go on and on fortunately. But the ones that I love the most...
'61'— probably the most— when the work is good I tend to remember those. The others I don't remember so well."
UPBEAT In your bio, it states that your greatest achievement isn't your career, but your marriage to your wife. How long has it been since you said 'I do,' and what do you think makes you and your wife one of
those rare couples who can go the distance— especially in Hollywood?
Billy Crystal "It's been 31 years and the reason is because I live out of town (laughs). No seriously, it's easy. If you met her you'd go, 'oh, I get it.' We've been best friends since we were
both 17 years old."
UPBEAT We also heard that both of your daughters are expressing an interest in the entertainment industry as well. Are you one of those parents who support their decision to enter the business, or are you secretly forbidding them to work in Hollywood?
Billy Crystal "No, Jenny is doing great and Lindsay is a budding director. She's worked on several movies with me as a PA, she was an assistant editor on '61.' She's a wonderful editor, which will make her a very good director."
UPBEAT So would you star in a film she was directing if she asked you to?
Billy Crystal "Yeah, if the part was good (laughs)."
UPBEAT You have said that you no longer have anything to prove as far as your career goes. Does that apply to your real life scenario as well? Have you accomplished everything you've wanted to accomplish?
Billy Crystal "No, I don't have to prove anything to myself anymore about certain things. I constantly have to prove to myself that I can have fun doing different things. That's the thing is to challenge yourself all the time. As far as the Oscars and all that other stuff, if it can be fun and it can be
important— if I have something to say and they want me— I would definitely do it or consider doing it. I loved most every of the seven shows that I did, but it's a lot of work."
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