Greetings Manoverse. I am James Lipton. Today it is my distinct pleasure to tip-toe outside the realm of acting & actors to speak with a man who has not conquered stage & screen but has…for the past four years…taken cyberspace by storm. He has created an intellectual cornucopia of faith, literature, pop culture, sports, and…in his words…”random thoughts, observations, and commentary on life”. In the past two decades I have had the immense delight of conversing with true giants in their field…DeNiro, Pacino, Eastwood, Costner, Coppola, Streisand, Hackman, Hanks, Minnelli, Midler, Spielberg, and Queen Latifah. And it has been my distinct privilege to spotlight young up-and-comers like the young man from Harry Potter, those kids from Glee, the gal whose career peaked with Jerry Maguire, and the well endowed red headed lass from Mad Men. But they all pale in comparison to a man so wise, so gifted, so inimitable in his linguistic prowess that he is not known by a simple, ordinary, pedestrian name but rather by a grandiose title that he alone richly deserves. Please give a warm welcome to the supreme leader of The Manoverse, the Godfather of Cyberspace…your humble Potentate of Profundity.
Thank you James. I truly do not deserve such an extravagant introduction. I’m a little embarrassed.
Let us begin at the beginning. Where were you were born??
I was born & bred in a little town called Mount Clare, West Virginia.
Delightful!How big is the mountain and when did you first climb it??
Well…there’s not actually a mountain…just a lot of hills.
What is spina bifida??
Simply put it is a hole in the spine. It means that my legs can’t receive the message from my brain allowing me to walk.
Share with us your first intimate experience with a woman.
Ummm…no.
You often reference a talking bird called The Owl in The Manofesto.
He’s not a bird. The Owl is a real person named James as well. We became friends in college. The Blue Owl is a nickname.
In 2009 you started The Manofesto as it is currently known. Where did the name come from??
I love puns and plays on words, so the name comes from the term manifesto except I utilize my own last name.
Brilliant!! Who is Rocco Tiberius Mano??
Rocco is my 5 year old pug.
Does Rocco enjoy The Manofesto??
I’d like to think that he would. But then again sometimes I think he gets mad when I am writing instead of playing with him.
You are one of only 8 people on Earth that actually liked the 1994 Christmas film Trapped in Paradise. Why??
I don’t know. I realize it’s not a good movie. Lovitz is annoying and Dana Carvey adopted a horrible New York accent for his role. But it is a Christmas movie and I love Christmas movies.
It’s 2am. Your house is on fire. You have exactly three minutes to save 5 things. Name them.
I get to save 5 things?? I’m not sure I have that many things worth rescuing. My dog Rocco would obviously be first on the list. Then I’d grab all my photos of my family. My laptop. I’d pack a box full of as many books as I could. Oh…and my phone.
You once owned an N’Sync CD. What kind of mental illness were you suffering from at the time??
Actually I might still have that CD.
Can you sing a few lines from Bye Bye Bye??
No.
Is it true that you have an irrational dislike of the number 3??
And its multiples. Yes.
That is indeed strange.
Yes…yes it is.
How did you get started in blogging??
Well…it was 2007. I was in the hospital with an ulcer on my tailbone and my friend Slack suggested I open a MySpace page. It had a blogging feature. I had always enjoyed writing and had an ample amount of free time. I did the MySpace thing for awhile but eventually my friend The Owl…
Who you say is a real person??
Yes. Yes he is. Anyway…
Do you have a scar on your buttocks??
Yes.
May I see it??
No.
Okay so you were saying…
Yes. So I was pondering taking the blog to the next step by leaving MySpace, which had been kind of usurped by Facebook, and putting it on its own domain, and The Owl…
Who is one of your fraternity brothers??
Yes.
Which fraternity??
Alpha Sigma Phi. Beta Delta Chapter at Marshall University in Huntington, WV.
I understand that you once drank an entire bottle of Jim Beam at a party??
Yes.
And you once went streaking down 4th Avenue in Huntington at 4am??
Oh my God. How do you know these things??
I know everything.
I guess you do!!
I wish we had more time.
Me too. This was…interesting.
We will wrap up the festivities with the famous questionnaire by the formidable Bernard Pivot.
What is your favorite word?
Plethora. Facetious. Poppycock. Superfluous. Tranquility.
What is your least favorite word?
Handicapable. Differently abled. Any kind of politically correct euphemism. Let’s just call it what it is. I am not easily offended.
What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?
Laughter. Intelligence. A good book. Jesus Christ.
What turns you off?
Arrogance. Stupidity.
What sound or noise do you love?
The sounds of my puppy breathing, snoring, & sighing…as if he is content & happy.
What sound or noise do you hate?
Children crying or screaming.
What is your favorite curse word?
Assclown.
What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
Writer. Commissioner of the NFL or MLB. Movie Critic.
What profession would you not like to do?
Anything related to the medical field. I’ve spent far too much time in hospitals and near doctors. I avoid it if I can.
If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?
“Well done good & faithful servant. Enter in.”
The Manofesto 