Transcript of Ray's AOL Chat, Sept. 23rd, 2002

Livemc: Tonight we have the pleasure of presenting comedian Ray Romano in AOL Live, star of the hit show 'Everybody Loves Raymond.' Be sure and tune into the season premiere immediately following the chat on CBS at 9PM.

Livemc: Welcome to AOL Live, and congratulations on last night's Emmy Award for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series.

Ray Romano: Thank you. Thank you very much.

Livemc: Spidermanof2003 asks:

Question: How does it feel to win an Emmy?

Ray Romano: LOL. Well, ah, there's still a lot of hoopla going on, with interviews and telegrams and thank you calls, so I haven't really had a moment yet to sit back. But I can sense it's starting to feel good, although I don't like feeling too good -- that's not where my comedy comes from.

Question: Whose idea was 'Everybody Loves Raymond'?

Ray Romano: Well, David Letterman's company signed me to a development deal after I did stand-up on his show seven years ago. And I met with Phil Rosenthal, and we came up with the premise for our show and basically tried to base it on the characters in my real life, and he took some characters from HIS real life and mixed it in there, and basically we had the characters in our show. That's the sad part -- they are all based on real people.

Livemc: VendettaLi asks:

Question: Hey, Ray! Congratulations on the Emmy! I was wondering, have you considered doing any movies in the future?

Ray Romano: Right now, I have three possible movies that are in development, so they are working on the scripts, trying to find the right director, etc., etc. They have all been offered to me. So if everything goes right, hopefully during the hiatus in April, I will do one of them. I'm pretty sure that 'Ice Age 2' will be popping up soon, so I will probably do that again.

Livemc: Elmowhite248 asks:

Question: Who is your favorite actor?

Ray Romano: Well... hmmmm... I probably don't have ONE. I like Pacino. I like De Niro. all the Italians -- just kidding. Oh, there are so many good ones. Can't even narrow it down. I got a few favorite directors. I like Spielberg. I like Chris Nolan, who did 'Memento.' Scorsese.

Livemc: SupersonickJFreak asks:

Question: Were you funny when you were young?

Ray Romano: Ah... I was, kind of. I wasn't the class clown in grammar school, but I was one of his co-stars. But when I was a teenager, we had a little comedy troupe and we put on sketches in our community playhouse. And that was my first taste of performing live comedy, so to speak. Yeah, but I was somewhat of a joker, but not the funniest guy in my neighborhood, that's for sure.

Question: What is your biggest fear?

Ray Romano: Oh, no. LOL. I will just answer this as a comedian. I think it's a common fear as a comedian that they will be found out as an impostor, that the funny police will come and say, "The jig is up. You're not funny." So that is one of the biggest fears -- that you will lose it or just not be perceived as funny anymore. It scares me to even talk about it.

Livemc: LilSweetDevil83 asks:

Question: Did you ever want to be something besides a comedian?

Ray Romano: Well, if we are talking fantasy, I fantasize about being a singer. And I mean REALLY fantasize, 'cause I have the worst singing voice. If you know my voice, just imagine it singing something. But I do have that fantasy, that if I were a singer... I think I have the passion to be a singer. But, fortunately, comedy lets me channel that passion somewhere else. LOL

Livemc: Brittney91784 asks:

Question: Do you laugh all the time when you are on the set?

Ray Romano: Do we laugh? Ah, Brad Garrett is the funniest guy on the set. Fortunately, he's not in a lot of scenes. LOL. But, yeah, it's a pretty nice feel on the set. Everybody is usually in a good mood. And we do... sometimes I cry, but that's a different issue.

Livemc: RisingStar203 asks:

Question: Do you write your own material for 'Everybody Loves Raymond,' or do you have your own writers?

Ray Romano: I have 10 GREAT writers. I am involved in the writing, but without them, we have no show. I do write two or three scripts a year myself.

Livemc: Chrissy1238 asks:

Question: How many children do you have, and do they have your sense of humor?

Ray Romano: Four children. The youngest one is a mini-me -- 4 years old, and unfortunately not only my sense of humor, he's got my rear end, my shoulders. We will stop at that. But he is a goofy guy. And the others are funny also, just a little shy.

Livemc: Twenty-five percent of AOL members who voted in the AOL Emmys poll said 'Everybody Loves Raymond' should have won the Emmy for Best Comedy. A member tonight asks:

Question: Are there any surprises in store for us this season?

Ray Romano: I can't give away any story arcs, but our show usually doesn't have any major plot twists or character twists. But this year, Robert (Brad) will go through some pretty big events -- all good, we think.

Livemc: BABYLUV9992 asks:

Question: Hey, Ray, it's such an honor to meet you online. I always wanted to know where you are originally from.

Ray Romano: Queens. I'm from Queens, N.Y. Five years ago, I moved out here to L.A., when the show was in its second year. But my family still lives in Queens -- my extended family, not my immediate family. My relatives.

Livemc: Here's another interesting member question:

Question: What is the one gift you have always wanted but you never received?

Ray Romano: Ho! Wow. I don't know. Well, since being a parent, the gift of going to the bathroom in private has eluded me. Otherwise, I really can't think of anything that I long for that stands out. Peace on Earth.

Livemc: Here's one from the other side of the world. MissRooGirl007 asks:

Question: Hi, Ray, congratulations on your Emmy win. Great speech. When you told the world you "love your wife," I think that is the most sweetest thing she could ask for. My question is: How did you celebrate last night, and what does this Emmy mean to you? -- Ranee, Australia

Ray Romano: Well, my wife and I had a hair-pulling fight. She won. Actually, I had to do about two hours of interviews after, so by the time we got to the after party, which was at Spago's, people were kind of wiped out. I did get to talk to Tom Hanks a bit -- holding my Emmy in my hands, of course. He's very nice and pretended to be interested in what I had to say. And by the way, I would mention him as one of my favorite actors, also. And then -- it's a good problem to have, but a lot of people want to take pictures and get autographs, so I did that for a while. And then my father was drunk enough that we could take him home. Got to bed at 3:30AM, woke up at 7AM, got the kids ready for school with my wife, and then back at work rehearsing. And now, here I am. But it's been fun.

Livemc: Janesuniverse asks:

Question: Ray, are you planning to do any stand-up specials on cable or elsewhere?

Ray Romano: No specials are in the works. I will be doing stand-up again. I usually go out for a week and do a tour. Last year I did the Midwest. This year, with the possibilities for these movies, we have to wait and see. And I perform in Vegas at least four times a year, at the Mirage in Vegas.

Livemc: AOL Member Leahbuggy asks:

Question: Have you ever had your parents on a show as extras?

Ray Romano: My father was actually on this week. He played one of Frank's steam room buddies, so look for it. It's Episode 5 of the new season. Don't look too close, 'cause he's only wearing a towel.

Livemc: Well, thank you so much for joining us. Just a comment from one of our members, Farkels1:

Comment: Just to tell you that I think you're the funniest man on TV today. You seem like the guy next door, and it's good to have some good, clean laughter. Congratulations on your Emmy. You deserved it.

Ray Romano: I appreciate that. I appreciate all the fans out there, and thanks for talking to me tonight. And if you get a chance, go to rayromano.com, and we got some outtakes and videos, pretty good stuff. And get going -- the show's on on the East Coast. What are you doing here? It's one hour tonight, don't forget.

Livemc: Thanks for joining us! It's been a pleasure.

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