10:17 am ET Updated May 25, 2011 I have spent the majority of my life surrounded by women. After the birth of my older brother, my parents got it right and had three daughters (me in the middle). My teachers have been predominately female. Though I happily discovered the allure and value of boys, my best buddies are girls. The Odd Woman Out. Working in tech without a technical background. When we talk about women in tech, we talk about female engineers and how we need to have more of them.
EPISODE SUMMARY:
From voicing iconic characters such as Didi and Minka Pickles in the animated series Rugrats to writing on the late-night comedy show Fridays, Melanie Chartoff has spent decades securing her mark on Hollywood and making millions of people laugh. On today’s episode, we sat down with Melanie to discuss her career and her experiences working in the entertainment industry during the 70s. Melanie’s book, Odd Woman Out, is compiled of essays written during various times in her life. One of the first stories is about an encounter with Larry Flint, and she started the episode by telling us about meeting Larry Flint in a sex shop. After being prescribed to buy a dildo by her gynecologist, Melanie went to a sex store to purchase one when she happened to run into Larry Flint. He was being interviewed by Entertainment Tonight, and Melanie ended up being photographed buying a dildo with her picture in tabloids. We asked about Melanie’s early career, and she told us about how she started out doing theater performances at Yale. She also studied dance in New York. We also asked Melanie about experiencing sexism in Hollywood, and she told us how it took being in the industry for her to realize how much women were manipulated and taken advantage of in Hollywood. She said a lot of men don’t even realize they’re doing it, since that behavior has been normalized for a long time, and that now, that behavior is being more called out.
When asked about the comedy show “Fridays”, Melanie told us about the stressful but rewarding experience she had working on the show. At the time, she was performing at live comedy shows, and even told us that she went on after Robin Williams a few times. Melanie was first recruited to audition for “Fridays” after being seen at a comedy show, and when she got the job, she worked with comedians like Larry David as a writer. She did notice while working there that she was one of few female writers, and that, for the most part, she and the other women rarely wrote a sketch that would actually make it onto the show. We then asked if Melanie preferred acting on Broadway or in movies, and she told us that she is motivated to do a project not by its platform but by if she feels she can bring something to a character. Melanie spoke to us about what it was like working in comedy during the seventies, and she told us that for a lot of people, especially women, the entertainment industry was hectic. A lot of women were far too busy at that time to start families, and in the writers’ rooms, writers and comedians would do cocaine as a way to keep themselves alert.
She also spoke about how doing improv during that time kept her on her toes, for it made her be more reckless and open to trying new things. When asked about getting married in her sixties, Melanie said that married at that stage in her life was made her relationship even stronger, for both she and her husband felt confident and strong in their bond. In regard to voice acting, Melanie’s journey to voice acting started when she was doing voice overs for commercials. She then auditioned for and booked the voice of Didi Pickles on Rugrats and was also asked to audition for and then voice Didi’s mother, Minka. For Didi’s voice, Melanie drew inspiration from her own mother, and for Minka, she found inspiration after visiting older women. We asked Melanie about her favorite comedians, and she told us a few that she admires, including Amy Schumer, Tiffany Haddish, Sarah Cooper, and Phoebe Waller-Bridge. We then asked about the inspiration behind her book, Odd Woman Out. Melanie spoke to us about how, originally, she’d written the story as a one-women show. When that didn’t feel right, she then made it into a stage play and then a movie script. Eventually, a literary agent approached her and told her that the story felt as if she should be a book, and a year later, Melanie finished and published her book. Along with being a writer and comedian, Melanie also hosts zoom classes on Charisma. She told us that she’s been teaching for years, and that in her classes, she helps people break their own glass ceilings and have the confidence to present as their best selves.
Melanie Chartoff
From Melanie’s Website:
Melanie Chartoff’s career as an actress and singer began early, onstage, with “Three Penny Opera” for Yale University, and the New London Opera Company, and in the children’s company at Long Wharf Theatre in her hometown, New Haven, Connecticut. She backed up the Ronettes and the Crystals as a wholesome go-go girl for Phil Spector, and backed up those experiences with a degree in Theater Arts and TV Directing from Adelphi University, and Hofstra, N.Y.
A student of the legendary Stella Adler, Chartoff soon appeared on Broadway in Galt MacDermott’s “Via Galactica,” and “Scapino,” with England’s Young Vic Company. She studied lyricism with Lehman Engle at BMI’s Musical Theater Workshop. Off-Broadway, she sang in Sondheim and Rodgers’ “Do I Hear a Waltz?” and was featured in the improv musical revue, “The Proposition.” She was a singing ingénue stand-up, goofing on glamour at the Improv Clubs of NY and LA. West Coast Premieres of “Sunday in the Park with George,” “March of the Falsettos,” “Big River,” and “Beyond Therapy” followed in Los Angeles. When television called, she starred and wrote for ABC’s late night comedy show, Fridays, alongside Larry David and Michael Richards. She had starring and recurring roles on the Newhart Show, Married with Children, Seinfeld, Wise Guy, Allie McBeal, Parker Lewis Can’t Lose, and the animated Jumanji. She co-hosted the syndicated What’s Hot What’s Not with Fred Willard, and Dick Clark’s special Where Are They Now?
Chartoff’s voice is recognizable for more than singing. She shares an Emmy and a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for voicing the iconic characters Didi and Minka in the animated series Rugrats, which still streams around the world.
She’s been a popular guest on talk shows, including Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, Merv Griffin Show Entertainment Tonight, and Good Morning programs in NY, LA, Chicago, etc. Most fans are surprised to learn that Chartoff is also an environmental inventor. During the last LA drought, she patented a recycling device, the Grayway Rotating Drain™, that directs used, filtered shower water to irrigate gardens and flush toilets.
She co-created, co-produced, co-wrote and directed the pilot and first special episodes of Extraordinary Faith—celebrating traditional church art, architecture, music and Latin liturgy, — now seen monthly on EWTN — a Catholic network.
She’s also the creator and director of Charismatizing℠Improvising seminars, her popular workshops which empower clients to have a stronger presence when needed in both private and professional realms. She has given talks at UCLA Andersen Business School and Chapman University on Charismatic Communication.
Melanie writes for Jewlarious, One the Table, The Huffington Post, The Jewish Journal, The Funny Times, Defenestration Magazine and performs her pieces as spoken word events for Comedy Central, Jewish Women’s Theater, and Tasty Words, LA.
In addition to the Emmy, Chartoff shares a Dramalogue Award for “March of the Falsettos.” She is a voting member of the Television Academy, the Screen Actors Guild, and belongs to the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, PEN, Women in Film, Jewish Women’s Theatre, Theatre 40, and Actors Equity Association.
Recognition for her charity work includes a Mayor’s Certificate of Appreciation, Los Angeles Certificate of Appreciation, and Citations from the City of Hope for creating and co-producing “Halloween for Hope” – “taking the scariness out of Halloween for kids with cancer and the people who love them.” She mentors two Oaxacan sisters, graduates of high school and college, through the M.O.S.T.E. program. She has also performed her one-woman musical memoir to benefit breast cancer research, at-risk theaters, and children’s charities.
Chartoff is a recent first-time newlywed/stepmom, with a prefab family of brothers-in-law, son-in-law and two terrific kids in their twenties.
Recent projects include the role of Mary Pickford onstage in “The Consul, the Tramp, and America’s Sweetheart” at Theatre 40, the role of Maureen in the YouTube RED feature “Alexander I.R.L;” she currently recurs as Miss Charisma on the Cartoon Network hit “OK, KO;” is directing and starring in her original screenplay “Vivian’s Voice” with Jenny O’Hara and David Proval.
In this episode, we discuss…
- [0:01] Introduction
- [0:22] Guest Introduction
- [3:53] Start of Interview
- [4:54] Larry Flint Story
- [9:00] Melanie’s Career
- [13:20] Sexism in Hollywood
- [15:33] Melanie’s Experience on the Comedy Show “Fridays”
- [19:27] Broadway or Television?
- [21:26] Comedy in the 70s
- [28:27] Getting Married in Your Sixties
- [30:28] Voice Acting and Working on Rugrats
- [35:01] Melanie’s Favorite Comedians
- [39:42] What Inspired Melanie’s Book
- [42:42] Melanie’s Charisma Zoom Classes
- [44:25] Closing Thoughts
- [45:35] Outro
Useful Resources:
Melanie’s Website I [http://www.melaniechartoff.com/]
Melanie’s IMDb I [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0153589/]
Odd Woman Out I [https://www.amazon.com/Odd-Woman-Out-Exposure-Stories-ebook/dp/B08KFNH246]
Charismatizing I [https://charismatizing.com/]
Melanie’s Twitter I [https://twitter.com/melaniechartoff?lang=en]
Melanie’s Facebook I [https://www.facebook.com/melaniechartoff]
Melanie’s LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/melaniechartoff]
Melanie’s YouTube Channel [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQKfBmARoKxHWgUe3c1JAiQ]
Melanie’s PO Box Address for Business and Fan Mail:
10573 West Pico,
#314 Los Angeles
California 90064
Can’t Get Enough? Find Us Here!
Website I [http://hotflashescooltopics.com/]
Mail I [hotflashescooltopics@gmail.com]
Instagram I [https://www.instagram.com/hotflashesandcooltopics/]
Facebook I [https://www.facebook.com/hotflashescooltopics]
Twitter I [https://twitter.com/CoolFlashes]
Pinterest I [https://www.pinterest.com/hcooltopics/]
There are times when you know that you are just…. THE ODD WOMAN OUT.
This weekend I had what I consider to be a unique opportunity – I won a giveaway sponsored by Duncan Hines® to be a guest of one of their bloggers at a unique and fun event at their headquarters.
I entered for this on a blog — and while usually the prizes given away on blog sites aren’t a trip, this one was one that sounded like an opportunity I couldn’t miss.
And yes, I won it from a cooking/baking blog called RealMomKitchen. I wasn’t even the first name drawn, as the first choice didn’t respond to the win notice. That means that I was double lucky. I was lucky the first person didn’t respond and then lucky enough to be chosen as the replacement.
I really was excited and thrilled to have won. I absolutely love to cook and bake. I absolutely love the Pinnacle® Brand of Products of which Duncan Hines® is only one…. and I considered this — for me — an opportunity of a lifetime.
I don’t usually enter for trips to travel alone — but because this was in NJ (where I was born) and because it was to a Duncan Hines® Event – I considered it was going to be more than just a trip for me — AND IT WAS!
The entire weekend was fabulous!
There were some other candidates for the odd woman out title …. those who felt they were “ignored” by the blogs representatives where they had entered – feeling that as a fan and subscriber they meant nothing to the blog owner — and there were some other minor (in my opinion) things to make others feel as if they too were the odd woman out.
But I think I qualified and won that event – because I spent the entire weekend hungry. I was not only hungry for the information provided, and for the companionship of the other accomplished bakers, but physically hungry.
You see I have allergies. Severe allergies. And the foods provided by this spectacular food company just couldn’t really avoid using corn, fructose and fruit, or related products in what they provided to us to eat. Don’t get me wrong, they provided a ton of food, including unbelievable desserts and everyone but me got to eat well. Some ladies were even hitting the gym in the hotel to work some of it off, I instead felt like I was going to pass out from hunger.
It was not 100% their fault, I mean although I filled out my questionnaire listing my allergy, I just don’t think it must have been taken that seriously. Most people do not realize that there is hidden corn/fructose in products they eat every day – and for the most part don’t have to. But even commercially prepared bread has corn syrup or fructose added – and although it’s necessary in many cases to be able to provide a consistant product – do you think about that when you serve it? Usually not.
The first night, when I had some green beans and a couple slices of meat/turkey — since it was at the hotel — I thought it would be better the next day. It wasn’t.
Do you know the ingredients I asked in the ranch dressing? And they acted like I had asked them in a foreign language. The answer, oh it’s just regular ranch. Helpful? Not really. Their reason for not knowing, “oh we’re just the marketing people”. I asked because there are products, and even commercially made ranch dressing that I can eat. For lunch I was having only lettuce and tomato (the only things provided that I could eat) and I would have to eat it dry if I couldn’t find out the ingredients of the dressings. I couldn’t even have the chips because Lays® products use oils, including corn oil to make their products (which I learned the hard way trying it one time).
To their credit they have a kitchen and they did make me a balsamic vinaigrette that was fabulous — but it didn’t quench my hunger. I really needed some protein which wasn’t available.
We spent the entire day learning about great stuff from decorating cakes to making simple sauces, and decorations for our creations. I would never have wanted to miss a minute of those demonstrations, they were that good!!! But I couldn’t eat or even taste any of that because almost every item contained or used corn syrup.
I didn’t feel “left out” because I know my allergies limit me to what I personally can and cannot have. I am used to doing without, and not sharing in many of the wonderful things that I love to cook and bake — including desserts. I cannot eat most commercially made products and/or even indulge in most fast food choices. I didn’t expect, nor would I ever expect a menu to be made around what I could or could not eat. But, I can’t just have a bagel, or a waffle till I know what’s in it. Sometimes they use flours that have corn flour mixed it (from a previous allergic reaction having a pancake in Maine).
My reactions can be just from my lips and nasal passages swelling, to migraine, to asthma attack, to having to use all the techniques in my arsenal, including my epi-pen to quell it. It’s not an easy journey. I cannot take a chance and just “try” something without considering it could be the last bite I take.
What made me the Odd Woman Out contest winner this past weekend was that no one even vaguely considered how hungry I would be all weekend without being able to eat the provided food?
But, am I still a Duncan Hines® Sweet Star? You bet I am!
Why Am I Always The Odd One Out
**Disclosure: I was not compensated in any way for this post, and all the information contained here is 100% my personal observations and perspective.