The One & Only Richard Skipper!" Written by Ken Spaulding 
One of the top stars on the East Coast, Richard Skipper excels in the acting profession. As a traditional stage actor, his star shines, in the arena of female illusion he is in the upper echelon.
In the 1990's Richard's career has flourished. He has developed a fan base that is appreciative, enthusiastic, and ever so loyal. Richard's drive and talent have propelled him to the top theaters, showrooms and supper clubs of America. "All Live & No Lip Synch"...here is Richard Skipper.
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| Ken: | Richard, you impersonate Carol Channing and Judy Garland. What made you decide to re-create these two, yet very different entertainers? |
| Richard: | Well, they both fell into my lap "so to speak". I'll start with Carol. My introduction to Carol Channing was through watching Lucille Ball on the "Lucy Show". In an episode, Lucy was impersonating Carol Channing. I saw it and thought she was doing this "clownish" type of character. At the time growing up in a small town in the South, I had no idea that this was a real person. Being the class clown and mimicking a lot of voices, I began doing her. Later on, I saw Carol on her own television special, and I fell in love with her. In the summer of 1979 I moved to New York to pursue a career as a regular actor. At the time I hung out at a place called The Piano Bar. Every Thursday night they would have a tribute to Broadway Musicals, and I would get up and sing as myself. One night I had some friends up from South Carolina, and they encouraged me to do Carol Channing. The piano player asked if I could do "Hello Dolly" and I said "absolutely!" So I very embarrassingly got up and did it, and strangely enough, the place went CRAZY over this. Afterwards a woman by the name of Leola came up to me and wanted to know what my "drag" name was. I didn't know what she meant. After some explanation I told her...famous last words..."I don't do drag and I never will!" She said if I ever changed my mind, that she would like to dress me. So from that point on, every Thursday night the crowd would demand that I do Carol singing "Hello Dolly". Several weeks later I went to an audition, and the producers said, "Hey aren't you Carol Channing?", as they had seen me at the Piano Bar. I ended up being cast in their play, and impersonating Carol Channing doing a production number. Unfortunately, for artistic reasons they decided to cut my role from the play. Leola had dressed me, but now I was stuck with costumes that I couldn't use. At that point I dressed as Carol Channing for Halloween, going out and hitting all of the piano bars and performing. I did this for several years, building a nice reputation as a performer along the way. In 1990, Tony Award winning producer John Glines wrote a special part for me in the show "Men of Manhattan". I played Carl Channing, a person obsessed with Carol Channing. For this performance I got the best reviews of my life. The audience response was just phenomenal! So at this point I had really built up a name for myself here in New York City, though I was still reluctant to pursue drag as a career. |
| Ken: | Ok, let's touch on Judy. |
| Richard: |
Judy came about while I was on vacation in Provincetown. I did her at a karaoke bar and received good response. As a result of that, I collaborated with another performer, and we impersonated Carol and Judy together. He did Carol, I did Judy. I did this for several months, perfecting my impersonation of Judy. 
Finally, I brought Judy to New York, but I met up with a lot of resistance from the cabaret community. They preferred Tommy Femia who does a spectacular Judy Garland. His "take" on her is a little different than mine. All of the supporters of Tommy really came down on me saying, "how dare you do this". I was able to do my cabaret act as Judy for 46 weeks in New York. I did receive good press and had great audiences, but all from outside the cabaret community. I could not break that wall down (resistance from cabaret community). I could not even get booked for benefits as Judy. With this temporary setback, I was cast in a play called "Tell Veronica". During this time I ended up meeting and auditioning for the casting director of the film "The Associate", starring Whoppi Goldberg. Las Vegas FI Kenny Kerr ended up getting the role I auditioned for, however the casting director called me into her office and wanted to know why I wasn't pursuing FI as a career. I told her that I thought it would be a bad career move to make because of all of the negative stereotypes etc. She told me it "beats the hell out of waiting tables and "temping". You came to this city to be a performer, and you're good at it, and I don't understand why you're not doing it!" (the FI) I really thought long and hard about what she said, and I started to put together all of my press clippings, sending them out, and as a result of that I started to get bookings doing both Carol and Judy in front of straight audiences, or as I say... an older blue haired Republican audience, and that's who I consider my audience to be. I was able to do very well in Atlantic City, so now I am at the point where I am doing this full time. |
| Ken: | Who do you like impersonating the best, Judy or Carol and which one is the most challenging? |
| Richard: | Carol. I've had the pleasure of performing for Carol Channing, and she has been very supportive.
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| Ken: | So how do you portray Carol in your performances? |
| Richard: | I've taken the elements of Carol in her prime combined with where she has been the last five or ten years, and it's all really come together. It works perfectly for what I do, and the audiences have taken to her (Richard's portrayal) like you wouldn't believe. A lot of places don't think doing Carol is a big enough draw, yet when they take the chance and book me, my shows do very well and I get standing ovations at the end of my shows. |
| Ken: | I think your Judy is one of the best on the scene today. What kind of reaction do you get from the "fanatics" of Judy Garland? |
| Richard: | There are two different factions. When I was first doing Judy there were a couple of people who are well known in the "Judy Circle". They came to see all of my shows, they were always out there cheering me on and very supportive of me. I'm a member of the "Judy List" (on-line) and someone from the list came to see my show and made a very nice post on the list and "raved" about my show saying I was the next best thing to seeing Judy...I mean it was a wonderful post, then I got a back-lash from people who don't even know me, people who haven't seen my work... how dare I say I was Judy Garland, and I never even said I was Judy Garland...I don't profess to be Judy Garland... I am an actor. |
| Ken: | Do you have a philosophy for how you work as a performer? |
| Richard: | My philosophy is not to offend anyone. There is enough of that in the world. If you come to my show, you will have a good time and not be offended by anything I do or say. |
| Ken: | What do you think is your strength as a performer? |
| Richard: | I think one of my biggest attributes is that I am quick on my feet. I can take people out of the audience and make them a part of the show, making them feel as much a part of the show as I am...and that's what it is all about for me. |
| Ken: | Richard, you also work as a "stage actor". What has been your favorite role to this point in time? |
| Richard: | I would have to say it was doing Carl Channing in "Men of Manhattan." |
| Ken: | Have you had a lot of formal training as an actor? |
| Richard: | No...I started acting when I was 13 years old. When I graduated at 18 I came to New York to be an actor, but I ended up being disappointed with the acting classes I had taken. So really I have learned on my own. |
| Ken: | When it comes to marketing your act, you do it "your way". Tell us a little about the obstacles and other things you have to endure. |
| Richard: | At times it's like a pioneer creating new territory. I've been doing this for a few years, and there are so many double edge swords. People feel they are going to get a gay act, or a drag act. I hate the word "drag" because there is so much negative stuff out there. Back in the 1960's we had Jim Bailey, Charles Pierce, Craig Russell and Danny La Rue playing Carnegie Hall, the London Palladium, legitimate venues. That's what I would like to see in the profession, that's what I want to be a part of, and then what happened in the 1970's ... people started doing lip synch. So now as a "live" performer I find I have to keep proving myself. |
| Ken: | Wow! As a live performer I would think that you would have an advantage over someone who lip synchs, since entertainers of your ilk are so rare. |
| Richard: | You have to understand that club owners don't want to pay the expense of bringing in a live act. A lot of these clubs are not even set up with a piano. |
| Ken: | So the clubs are just being cheap? |
| Richard: | They're being cheap, that's the bottom line. I cannot work with pre-recorded instrumental tracks because I do so much interaction with my audience. If I want to talk with someone in the front row, I just can't go over and turn off the tape! |
| Ken: | I always thought that the "live" talent was drying up in FI, and that was the main reason for the proliferation of lip synching, but one of the realities is economics. |
| Richard: | It's economics. I know some incredible " live" performers, and it's the same, as we struggle to get those bookings and make a steady career out of this. |
| Ken: | Do you allocate a certain percentage of your time to FI and straight stage acting, or do you take the gigs as they come? |
| Richard: | On a typical day, I get up in the morning sit down at the computer and I am "busting my ass", excuse my French, trying to get work. This summer I am doing two straight shows, "Anything Goes" and "South Pacific". I am also doing a burlesque show where I do Carol Channing. My work from three years ago led to me getting the roles in "Anything Goes" and "South Pacific" with this company. It's been awhile since I've done straight musical theater, so I am looking forward to that. |
| Ken: | Going through your bio, I noticed that you have a very special dog, a Yorkie by the name of Chip. He is a performing dog, correct? |
| Richard: | Chip is a special dog, well behaved, and travels everywhere with me. Three years ago, at Hampton Playhouse, Chip made his debut and had his own scene in the show. The audiences loved him, and I felt like a proud parent. He's been on stage with me while I'm doing Judy, at the end of the show I sometimes bring him out and sing to him. The audiences just ooh & aah over him. |
| Ken: | How much work and time did it take for you to get the voices of Carol and Judy down? |
| Richard: | It's a hard question to answer. It is really something that has just evolved over the years. I am still learning and doing new things. After awhile, it's like walking and breathing for me. I get the character in my head and somehow go into this mind-set when I hit the stage that I am this person (Judy or Carol). Once I'm in that mind-set, everything seems to fall into place. (*Writer's note: Richard then goes into a couple of improv vocal re-creations of Carol and Judy that are brilliant. I thought I was hearing the real Carol & Judy) |
| Ken: | Do you have a favorite Judy song that you like to sing? |
| Richard: | Yes, "The Man That Got Away". |
| Ken: | Do you have any new characters that you are working on and would like to do as an FI? |
| Richard: | Just recently in Atlantic City, I did Ethel Merman. I wasn't happy about it because the Musical Director felt that for me to get up there and sing the way I wanted to sing as Ethel every night, that I would probably end up blowing my voice out. I fought him on this. I said to him, if I'm singing, I want to sing in a key that is comfortable for me. Rather than putting me in a key that was comfortable, he still gave me this loud belting key to sing in, and although I was singing in this loud belt (music jargon) I wasn't being able to be as brassy as I wanted to be. The audiences loved it and I got good reviews for it, but I wasn't happy. |
| Ken: | What's your take on reviews? |
| Richard: | If I get a bad review and I know that I gave a good performance, then it doesn't bother me, because I think it's the critic who has had the bad night, and yet I have had nights where I gave a lousy performance and received good reviews. It's nice to get great reviews because they end up in the press kit, but it really doesn't matter in the long run. |
| Ken: | Well Richard, I'm glad we caught up with you. Before we go, are there any engagements you would like to tell us about? |
| Richard: | Probably the best thing for everyone to do is to go to my web site at www.richardskipper.com There anyone can get a good overview of what I do through photographs and reviews. The site also has updates as to what is happening in my career and where I will be performing. |
Judy would have to be the most challenging because she is so loved, so revered in the world, especially in the Gay community. The people have become very protective of her, and they can be very, very critical. There are so many people who impersonate Judy, that many just assume that the person is another drag queen, and they don't take you seriously.
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