Over the past month, Michael Rapaport has been traveling like crazy promoting his highly-anticipated and buzzed-about directorial debut, “Beats, Rhymes and Life: The Travels Of A Tribe Called Quest.”
The film has gotten props at Sundance, Tribeca and the LA Film Festival and is set to drop this Friday, July 8th in New York and Los Angeles (then nationwide after).
Mike took time out of his busy schedule to stop by GlobalGrind offices and talk about his crush on a popstar, his surprise dream acting role, and a children’s TV show he can’t stop watching.
Who are your favorite people to follow on Twitter?
I like @LMAOTwitpics. It’s like these silly pictures they send out. Those are good. Maybe I’m too negative for Twitter. Twitter is so like “Hey everybody! I hope you’re having a great day! It’s so warm out! Enjoy it!” I’m like “what the fuck?” you know? I don’t wanna hear that. @English50cent tweets are good and @shitmydadsays. And Bill Simmons.
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What’s your favorite pick up line that works?
My pick up line that works is probably the same as one that doesn’t work. “Hey how you doing… you wanna go get some ice cream?” Sometimes that works and sometimes they’re like “what the fuck you talkin’ bout?” I’ve been using that since my ex-wife. It worked on her.
What’s your favorite pick up line that doesn’t work?
“Nice to meet ya, love ta eat ya.” It gets you a laugh but just doesn’t work. Actually that can work too if a woman doesn’t take it the wrong way. I got that because I heard that Walter Mathau apparently when he met Sophia Loren on “Grumpy Old Men” he said that to her. That would work for Walter Mathau. It depends on how you deliver it.
Who is your celebrity crush?
I haven’t gotten over J.Lo. Rihanna. I feel like I’m not her type but I feel like she’s looking in all the wrong places. I like Lady Gaga. I like Blake Lively, but she’s tainted because of the Leonardo DiCaprio thing.
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What is a guilty pleasure of yours?
Sportscenter. The redundancy of Sportscenter. I’ve seen the highlights, I already know what LeBron did, but you just want to watch it again. I’ve seen the interview with Kobe. Especially during the NBA man, it’s fucking terrible! I’m looking forward to the NBA season being over because I don’t watch it in the summer. There’s too much. Sportscenter is a guilty pleasure because I overdose on it. It’s so relaxing and it’s just great.
What would be your dream sports movie role?
I could do an R-Rated the Chris Mullin story. I would love that. Not necessarily his story, but like a white kid from New York City who played ball in the ‘80s. I love Chris Mullin. We’d have to hype up the story because he doesn’t have any scandal. I would love to play a dysfunctional basketball coach that coaches kids. I love basketball and I love kids and I coach my son’s basketball team. Sometimes I feel like if shit hits the fan I’ll do a reality show coaching kids because it’s such a funny exchange between me and the kids when I coach basketball. I would love something like that. I heard they’re doing a [Larry] Bird and Magic [Johnson] play because there was that great documentary on Bird and Magic that was so good. I’d have to learn how to shoot righty. If that came about that would be cool. But I want to play Magic. They’d want to typecast me to play Bird. I think the stretch for my Oscar role would be to play Magic. People will assume I want to play Bird. Nah see … Don’t keep me in a box man! Why can’t I play Magic Johnson!? (laughs)
What’s your favorite television show to watch with your sons?
My favorite show to watch with my two sons has to be “SpongeBob [Squarepants].” They love Spongebob. Spongebob, “iCarly” and either the NBA or NFL. Mark my words: “iCarly” will be the hip guest spot to do because it’s so well done and such a good show. Like doing a guest spot on “30 Rock” [is for adults], “iCarly” will, mark my words, be the hip guest spot for celebrities to get exposure among kids. It’s absolutely great whether you have kids or not.
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What’s inside your carry-on bag?
My laptop, my son’s iPad which I hijacked from him because he doesn’t use it and I wanted to explore it. I essentially stole a 9-year-old’s iPad. My iPod. There’s always at least one camera. Usually a digital camera and a film camera. Gum. The floss sticks and my Burt’s Bee’s Lip Balm. And a nail clipper. I always have a nail clipper nearby.
What is your favorite brand of sneakers?
New Balance. The comfort factor is number one. Styles are good. The low keyness of them. As much as I like Nike Air Force Ones I don’t find them comfortable. I love how they look aesthetically but I like New Balance. I wear Nike to play basketball but on a day-to-day basis 99 percent of the time I’m wearing New Balance.
What’s your favorite book?
“The Brief Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao” by Junot Diaz which is a book that I read twice. It’s the first book in a long time that I’ve read twice. It’s a coming of age story about a Dominican kid growing up in New York City. It interweaves his life and his family and covers how his family came to the United States. But it’s a coming of age story about this kid who’s a little bit shy and offbeat. I think the rights to it have been bought for a film but it’d be a great film if it were done correctly in the right hands.
