STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
We are remembering Tim Curry this morning. The actor died Tuesday in Los Angeles at the age of 80. Curry played the gender-bending extraterrestrial mad scientist Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the 1975 musical "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." He also played villains and the occasional hero. Glen Weldon hosts NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast. He's a hero. Glen, good morning.
GLEN WELDON, BYLINE: Good morning, Steve.
INSKEEP: What made Tim Curry stand out as an actor?
WELDON: Well, he always committed to the bit. And when he did throw himself into things, he invited you to come along with him. And with any other actor, that level of, you know, heedless commitment might come off as self-indulgent. But with him, it was always knowing and self-aware. You kept expecting him to break the fourth wall and address you directly. He did that very famously in "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," where he played that gleefully queer mad scientist and, of course, had high heels and makeup.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "SWEET TRANSVESTITTE")
TIM CURRY: (As Dr. Frank-N-Further, singing) Well, you got caught with a flat? Well, how about that? Well, babies, don't you panic. By the light of the night, it'll all seem all right. I'll get you a satanic mechanic.
INSKEEP: Oh, the expression there, Glen. How about that?
WELDON: (Laughter) Absolutely. Well, he's going to be remembered for that voice, right?
(Impersonating Tim Curry) He's just a little brought down because when you knocked, he thought you were the candyman.
INSKEEP: (Laughter).
WELDON: In the 1985 film "Legend," he - where he played an actual demon - you know, giant horns, red skin, black fingernails - he had these monologues of pure evil that he just revelled in. You'll hear in the clip that I'm about to play that he did - they did modulate his voice a bit, but they didn't have to do a lot to it.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "LEGEND")
CURRY: (As Darkness) Mother night, fold your dark arms about me. Protect me in your black embrace.
WELDON: And that same year, he played the butler Wadsworth in the film "Clue," based on the board game. That was an ensemble movie full of stars. But what you remember about it is that ending when his character runs from room to room, explaining how he figured out how all the murders happened.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "CLUE")
CURRY: (As Wadsworth) And monkeys' brains, though popular in Cantonese cuisine, are not often to be found in Washington, D.C.
INSKEEP: (Laughter) So he says. Anyway, he also played a clown - Pennywise the clown in the 1990 TV adaptation of a Stephen King story, "It." Eugh.
WELDON: Yeah. I mean, he was a hilarious actor, and he could play heroes. Like, he played the goofy King Arthur in Monty Python's "Spamalot" on Broadway. But he could also tap into something really scary when he wanted to.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "IT")
CURRY: (As Pennywise) Aren't you going to say hello?
INSKEEP: I looked up images. He is pretty creepy in that role.
WELDON: Yeah. And even when he was playing a villain, which he did a lot, he couldn't help but make them charming - Long John Silver in "Muppet Treasure Island," Rooster Hannigan in "Annie," and even as the concierge in "Home Alone 2."
INSKEEP: OK. I got to ask about one other thing, though, Glen. How did he later become a social media meme?
WELDON: Yeah. Specifically, he played an evil Soviet commander in an otherwise forgettable CD-ROM game called "Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3" in 2008. And even there, all he had to do was sit in a chair and stare down the barrel of the camera and read some very cheesy lines off a teleprompter, but he couldn't hold back. He didn't hold back. He just ladled on some extra cheese. And that's why he was so loved.
(SOUNDBITE OF VIDEO GAME, "COMMAND & CONQUER: RED ALERT 3 ")
CURRY: (As Premier Cherdenko) I'm escaping to the one place that hasn't been corrupted by capitalism - space.
INSKEEP: Can you just tell me a little bit about his story and what makes it stick for you? I mean, just - this is a guy, obviously, who would inhabit other characters to an extreme degree. But behind them was a person.
WELDON: Well, he was a kid from the north of England, a town between Liverpool and Manchester. His father was a Navy chaplain. His mom was a secretary. And he started out as a boy soprano, but, of course, puberty changed all that. He flirted with the idea of becoming a rock musician, and he released a few albums. But the stage was what he loved, and he returned to that often. He never married and was very protective of his public life, and he refused to discuss it publicly. So what we're left with is this outsized, very public persona. And you know what? That's enough.
INSKEEP: Glen Weldon is a host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast. Thanks, Glen.
WELDON: Thank you.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "I'M GOING HOME")
CURRY: (As Dr. Frank-N-Furter, singing) I'm going home. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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