For about 1½ hours, she poked fun at the changes she’s noticing in her body and her experiences going through menopause; at the erosion of privacy brought on by online search engines and other technological advances; at several American presidents; and even at the serious matter of Osama bin Laden’s elusiveness.
"We have satellites in the sky that can see an ant (expletive) on cotton under the floorboards of this building, but somehow we were unable to find a 7-foot man with a colostomy bag," Goldberg said to an explosion of laughter that cracked her up too.
She was at SCSU Friday as the featured speaker for the ninth annual installment of the Mary and Louis Fusco Distinguished Lecture Series.
They were holding their stomachs on this one: "On my 50th birthday, I was passing a mirror and I thought, who’s behind me? I walked a little more and I said, damn! I realized I was being stalked by own ass," she said before describing her startling discovery of grooves in her home floor. "I couldn’t figure out what they were from until I found splinters in my chest."
She dabbled in politics a bit, saying people have been asking if she is going to support U.S. Sen. Barack Obama or Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton in the 2008 battle for the presidency. "Nobody’s said what I need to hear. ... It takes ’em four years to figure out the job," the New York City native said. "I need somebody to say there’s no magic pill when I get elected."
Goldberg has received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and has won a Grammy for "Whoopi Goldberg," an Academy Award for "Ghost," a Golden Globe for "The Color Purple," an Emmy as host of AMC’s "Beyond Tara: The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel," and a Tony as producer of "Thoroughly Modern Millie."
Goldberg is a radio host on Clear Channel’s "Wake Up with Whoopi" and she said she will be launching the "Black Dragon" line of bed sheets in the fall.
"We think you’re wonderful," Dawn Lewis shouted to Goldberg. "What’s your next movie? We’re waiting."
The actress replied: "Me too. ... It’s other people’s turn. You have to know that in your career. Will the people out there now have my longevity? I don’t know. Let them figure it out."
SCSU President Cheryl Norton presented Goldberg with a university T-shirt "for those hot flashes" and sweatshirt "for the chills that follow." After telling two "parrot jokes" requested by a young audience member, Goldberg left the state with a stormier ovation than the one that greeted her.
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