I think we should just go ahead and declare this the Decade of Jane Lynch. The Glee star’s supposed over-night success only took 30 years, 60 movies and 70 TV roles. But now, finally, the actress’ charm has won over pretty much all of America (and beyond). Now it’s even won over interviewer extraordinaire Katie Couric.
The CBS Evening News host had Jane on her online show @katiecouric to talk about her career, Glee, being out and more in a 30-minute relaxed chat. Katie practically gushes at the start of the interview calling Jane “friendly and outgoing,” before confessing that she was a little scared at first because of her Sue Sylvester persona. But instead what Katie received is the full Jane Lynch charm offensive.
Of course, it’s easy to see why Katie would be such a smitten kitten. From joking about her love of getting her makeup done (“Oooh, they’re going to brush my hair!”) to sharing her excitement about her wedding next month and revealing Glee‘s winning formula (“three acts of snark and the final act of sweet.), Jane is a delight to watch. In fact, you should really watch the whole thing. I’ll wait, don’t worry.
See? Jane is just delightful as ever. The world really is her oyster at this point. A few of the highlights.
On the Glee writers Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan:
They say if you laugh at something, Ian wrote it. If you cry at something, Brad wrote it. And if you think something is just off the wall, Ryan wrote it.
On being gay:
Ellen DeGeneres and Melissa Etheridge and Rosie O’Donnell, I have all of them to thank for paving the way. It’s not such a big deal anymore. I guess I really don’t think about it. It’s not like I have a strategy of how I’m going to dealing with my orientation. I’m kind of just very open about who I am. And I’m more than just that. if I’m sending a message – and I don’t consider myself a messenger but sometimes you can’t help it if you’re in the public – is it is just one aspect of who I am. And I would like for it to be viewed that way for everyone.
The Newsweek controversy:
I applaud everyone’s right to say what they think. You don’t have to agree with him, and I don’t. I defer to Aaron Sorkin, who wrote a wonderful blog on the Huffington Post, who said you know, “You can no more play gay than you can Catholic.” It’s kind of just one part of who someone is – unless they’re like a flamer or a butch dyke, if you’re going overboard with the stereotype. But I don’t think it really matters. I mean, I play straight people all the time and no one is upset about it.
On being out in Hollywood:
Hollywood is so gay; everybody is gay….Hollywood is just a mix of all different kinds of people. Nobody really cares what your orientations is. I think it would have been a bigger deal 10 years ago. I think Ellen’s coming out was huge and groundbreaking. Women from the Midwest, mothers, they love Ellen.
On people who can’t accept gays:
There are some people who will never shift. And that’s OK. They’ll probably be dead soon.
Oh, Jane. Perhaps I was too hasty in calling for that decade – how about a millennium instead? I think this week’s Entertainment Weekly has it almost exactly right on their cover. But instead of “The Crazy Genius of Sue Sylvester,” it should read “The Crazy Genius of Jane Lynch.”
So, who else is embarrassingly smitten along with Katie? Raise your hands. Don’t be shy. Mine’s been up for years.
