And my respect and admiration for those who do it for a living, like Jerry, was just, you know, enormous.CRANSTON: Yes. Bryan Lee Cranston was born on March 7, 1956 in Hollywood, California, to Audrey Peggy Sell, a radio actress, and Joe Cranston, an actor and former amateur boxer. He's not well-known actor.BRYAN CRANSTON: (As Walter White) Chemistry is, well, technically chemistry is the study of matter. And people come and people go and, you know, in those days - it was the '60s, late '60s by then - and divorced couples were still an anomaly. It's such a great scene. Ooh. "CRANSTON: Well, no, that's - you're thinking of "Paint Your Wagon.
Someone once said: Without the law to mandate these changes, the Emancipation Proclamation was just a proclamation.Pace is a subjective point of view. You know, and things like that.CRANSTON: It was observational.
And that's how he made his living.CRANSTON: Thank you. 'Cause you wife has already died of this whatever it is that you think is trapped in your head and was also trapped in hers.It opened on Broadway earlier this month.
I didn't want any color in his life.CRANSTON: You know, a lower voice is always a little more intimidating, isn't it? No. In order to get what I want, for the greater good of the country, I need to know that it’s going to cost me such-and-such over here. You know, like everything has to be just a little bigger onstage than in front of a camera.CRANSTON: You're the last one. And he's a different man too now - as we go through our passages, to be able to be open to them and to accept these changes in ourselves and others and to forgive. My father left and I didn't see him for 10 years.
And, of course, he starred in "Breaking Bad" as Walter White.GROSS: So I'm wondering what it was like to look in the mirror and see some of Walt in there because that was Walt's look and not Bryan Cranston's.CRANSTON: I did a series, you know, talking about - you know, how out of Detroit there's been a reduction in the amount of cars that are being sold and, you know, they should really appeal to men to buy more cars because women are now becoming the decision-makers. That's great for Jon, and he's a friend and I love him, but I don't know that you would buy him as Walter White. And - but it was, it was a great, great experience, very humbling. So there's a larger range of roles that are available to me than are available to Jon Hamm, simply because of physicality. "GROSS: This is FRESH AIR. It gives me great pleasure to whisper to a friend, I voted for you, not because you’re my friend, but because it was the best performance. This scene takes place when LBJ is trying to get enough votes to pass the Civil Rights Act. And it was kind of way out of there. He's a nice man. Skyler is worried about her family. But because he wrote me as this despicable character saying awful things, it put the emotional dilemma in his central character. Bill O’Reilly loves this country and he is espousing his beliefs of what he thinks is best.I think I would, but it would be a conversation with my wife. So you looked like evil Walt, you know, in your personal life.GROSS: Was it hard to find him?CRANSTON: Yes, but unlike other actors, I don't look in the mirror that often, quite frankly.CRANSTON: I haven't heard that in a while.CRANSTON: And I went on down a list of them. Or that import, that very safe import, the Vulva, you know.CRANSTON: Yes. Your mother had been a radio actress before you were born. And he did a lot of radio shows and with - and that's where he met my mother, doing radio. We got in free and they gave him a free lunch and that sort of thing. So you go outside; you don't just like stay home and not talk.GROSS: If you're just joining us, my guest is Bryan Cranston. LBJ’s agenda and MLK’s agenda were on a pace.
Bryan Cranston brings his Tony Award-winning interpretation of President Lyndon B. Johnson to television on Saturday night in an adaptation of … And all of a sudden his emotions were spewed everywhere, and that's why he became sloppy.GROSS: I would not recognize your voice from that commercial, and if you just showed it to me I don't think I would've recognized your face either.GROSS: I'm assuming the beard was really yours.GROSS: Bryan Cranston, welcome to FRESH AIR.He would have to fight against his looks in order to do that. Well, I have a very fortunate look for an actor.