Article Archive/September 2013
Updated September 2, 2013


Ms. S. Epatha Merkerson -- Law and Order!
History-Maker!


By Jay Whipple/Trend Magazine Online™

I must admit that the reality of this one-on-one interview was just as much as a pipe dream as my past interview with Mr. Glynn Turman at the 2011 National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, NC. In fact, it took the same nerves as I had to overcome to ask Ms. Lisa Cooper – my first and only true love – if we could sit together on the motor coach to Disney World (Orlando, FL) from Miami Beach High School, to play in their signature daily parade back in the late 1970’s. Fortunately, they both said yes, just like Lisa. This go round I actually prepared to interview two other stars in attendance just in case my first choice did not come through for whatever reason. As they say, it is good to have a Plan B, and sometimes C, and D. Plan A, although confirmed, still presented the challenge of getting over the “What the heck did I just do,” fear and rising to the next level of “I am supposed to be here.” As we walked up to the second floor for our interview I kept saying to me “man I wish that there was some way to peek at my notes again before we get started.” I could have stalled for time by pretending to have to go to the bathroom but I ruled that out because of the likelihood that my interview would be postponed to never again. Needless to say, I decided to approach this situation as I had done many times during my 23-year stint in the U.S. Army/Army Reserves; I sucked it up and continued the mission.

I decided to just be honest about my genuine love of her work on Law and Order, and Lackawanna Blues, and let the rest to just flow freely. We were actually moved from our first interview location to another room which actually gave me more time to shake off the old nerves. One must admit that although her role as the tough as nails character -- Lt. Van Buren -- on Law and Order is just good acting; it is still a bit intimidating – at first --when she is sitting within arm’s reach of you, staring you in the face. In the back of my head I was thinking she was going to say something like “Get to the point, boy!” Well, actually, she was more like her Lackawanna character in terms of being very polite, understanding, patient, and accommodating throughout the entire interview. In fact, she came across as anyone’s favorite aunt that will bend over backwards to help someone. At least that is the vibe that I received. I can actually tell when a person feels comfortable around me; just like a dog can sense comfort or fear in a person. There was this really awkward scene at the end of our interview where I wanted to get a picture of us but was not sure of how to do it without the assistance of a third person. She tried her best to help me but my camera phone did not have the two-way lens/screen which left us both sort of fumbling with it until help arrived. The interview, however, went a lot smoother as she was more than eager to answer all of my questions…

Q (Jay): Was the transition from theatre to the small and big screen difficult or more of a natural flow?

A (Merkerson):  I think it was a natural flow; I did start in the theatre. I have a Bachelor of Fine Arts in theatre from Morgan State University (Baltimore, MD) so it was a natural sort of flow, you know, you work to let people see the kind of work that you do, to let them know that you are dependable and that you come through with the goods. And, you continue to work in a way that will have you growing in each piece that you do and you are learning something new. If you stay long enough, there is sort of a natural flow. People then get to know you and you start doing a little television and film.

Q (Jay):  Was that transition from stage to the little and big screen a bit daunting at first?

A (Merkerson):  No, not really. They all three have certain focuses; you use certain muscles for them. I think probably the only adjustment actors have to make is that they have to be much smaller for television or film as opposed to the stage where you need all of your power.  The camera tends to pick up everything that you need, so you have to find a way to sort of hone in on all of that energy that you use on stage. You don’t need all of that [energy] for TV or film. That’s probably the biggest adjustment most stage actors have to make.

Q (Jay):  On TV you get to do it over several times.

A (Merkerson):  Absolutely, but you get to do that on the stage as well; except you have to wait til the next day. [Laughs!] 

Q (Jay):  I like it when an entertainer has a college degree. How has yours helped you as an actor?

A (Merkerson):  Performance is all about education; you may have a natural talent but to hone that natural talent and to allow that natural talent to carry you goes beyond just the natural abilities that you have. You have you have technique which comes from training which comes from school.

Q (Jay):  What was it like being on the Cosby Show in 1984 and working with The Coz?

A (Merkerson):  It was lovely, not only did I do The Cosby Show; I did a show called “Here and Now” with Malcolm Jamal Warner [Theo] which was one of those early shows that were spin offs of The Cosby Show. Anytime you get a chance to work with someone that has been in the business as long as Dr. Cosby, it is a feather in your cap -- the ability to be exposed to that. So, it was quite an experience to do that show.

Q (Jay): You played Reba in Pewee’s Playhouse, what was that experience like?

A (Merkerson): That was actually my first TV show in 1986. It was great! We did six seasons of it; it was a lot of fun, a real interesting show to work on. Paul’s [Reubens] a great comedian, he’s a lovely man and we’re still very good friends. It was a lot of fun to be able to do that show.


Q (Jay): You do a lot of work with lung cancer, tell us about that?

A (Merkerson):  I do, I do. I was a heavy smoker; I smoked for about 23 years. By the time that I stopped, it was about 3 packs a day. And when I quit – about 1 or 2 years later – I lost two of my dearest friends to lung cancer; and my sister Debbie is a lung cancer survivor. So it just makes sense for me to be involved with something that I knew about. So, that’s why I became involved with Cancer Care, the campaign for tobacco free kids; these kinds of organizations that do outreach work for lung cancer survivors, their families, and people who smoke.

Q (Jay): Was it difficult quitting smoking?

A (Merkerson): It’s a difficult thing to do. It was cold turkey when I finally quit, and in the interim, I knew it was something I wanted to do. You never see me smoking on film; even when I was smoking, I never wanted to see myself on film smoking. So, I never did; but it is a difficult thing to do. By the time I quit, I was ready.

Q (Jay): Back to Law and Order. I read somewhere that New York cops approach you while walking down the street wanting to be in your precinct?

A (Merkerson):  It’s funny, I think that’s the highest compliment when I walk the streets or when I’m on the subway; sometimes the police officers will yell out “Hey Lieu.” [Reference her Law and Order character Lieutenant Anita Van Buren]. So, it’s fine to be recognized by them because it also means that what I did really resonated with them. It’s quite a compliment.

Q (Jay): Your character in Lackawanna Blues [2005] was a completely different character than your Law and Order Lt. Van Buren character. Was that an easy transition?

A (Merkerson):  It’s not so much a transition as it is a different character; so you just put yourself in a different place. I don’t know if I would use the word transition. The difficulty in that [Movie and Show] was I was literally filing Law and Order the same time [As Lackawanna Blues]. Law and Order was on the east coast, Lackawanna was on the west coast; so, physically it was a different transition. It was an opportunity for me; I’d never had a lead in a film; and it was an opportunity for me to play a very interesting woman [name] who lived around some incredibly interesting people. It was quite a learning experience. Everything I try to do, I try to learn from it. It was a great experience on how to lead a film; and how to hold a film, and hold the focus of the character through the film. So, it was a great learning experience and the response that I got from it was really extraordinary.

Listen to the full un-edited interview. Also, check out Ms. Merkerson’s documentary film entitled The Contradictions of Fair Hope.

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