Martin gets complicated
When you talk to Steve Martin about his dizzying array of pursuits, it’s hard to know where to begin. It’s easy, though, to know where to end – the 64-year-old comedian gets antsy during interviews because, well, he’s got better things to do than talk about all the things he’s doing.
“I wish,” Martin said, “I had more time these days.”
Martin was phoning from New York to chat about his latest film, “It’s Complicated,” and his Grammy nomination for his album of bluegrass music.
Martin also has another big tuxedo night on the calendar: On March 7, he will be at the Kodak Theatre for the 82nd Academy Awards.
“I am happy to co-host the Oscars with my enemy Alec Baldwin,” Martin said in November when the “It’s Complicated” costars were announced as an emcee tandem.
The frenemy gag reflects the on-screen rivalry in the Nancy Meyers comedy, and Martin says it’s an easy rhythm for the pair.
“Alec and I hit it off in a sort of adversarial comedic way, both on-screen and off-screen,” he said. “But, really, we get along great. He is so game to try anything and so gung-ho about everything. I went to him and with some trepidation I said, ‘They might want us to sing.’ I expected him to say, ‘I’m not going to sing, I’m not going to embarrass myself.’ Instead he says, ‘Good, I can take lessons.’ He’s really, really funny. I should actually be afraid.”
Baldwin will be busy filming “30 Rock,” so the heavy lifting for their duologue will be jammed into the week leading up to the gala. Martin hosted the show in 2001 and 2003 but said there are new challenges.
“It’s hard to try out material because you don’t want it to get exposed on the Internet,” he said. “But we’ve all been around. We’ll figure it out.”
In “It’s Complicated,” Martin plays Adam, an architect who finds himself with an unexpected rival for the affections of Jane (Meryl Streep) – her rakish ex-husband Jake (Baldwin), who has remarried but yearns for the woman he left.
“It’s Complicated” finds Martin four dozen films into a career that started with pure farce and became, well, more complicated. It was 30 years ago in December that he starred in Carl Reiner’s “The Jerk,” which holds a robust 83 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes Web site.
The birthday bunch
Record producer Sir George Martin is 84. Actor Robert Loggia is 80. Dabney Coleman is 78. Stephen Stills is 65. John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin) is 64. Victoria Principal is 60. Mel Gibson is 54. Actress Shannon Sturges is 42. Jazz musician James Carter is 41. Danica McKellar is 35. Nicholas Gonzalez is 34. Kimberley Locke (“American Idol”) is 32. R&B singer Lloyd is 24. Actor Alex D. Linz is 21.