AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to Meryl Streep2004

Nora Ephron:
I loved working with Meryl Streep. First I worked with her on Silkwood. Alice Arlen and I did a script for her. Meryl did Karen Silkwood, and the Polish person, and the Danish person, blah-blah-blah. But the true stretch, if I do say so, was playing me in Heartburn. I highly recommend having Meryl Streep play you. If your husband is cheating on you with a carhop, get Meryl to play you. You will feel much better. If you get rear-ended in a parking lot, have Meryl play you. If the dingo eats your baby, call Meryl. She plays all of us better than we play ourselves, although it's a little depressing knowing that if you went to audition to play yourself, you will lose out to her. Some days, when I'm having a hard day, I'd call up Meryl and she'll come and she'll step in for me. She's so good, people don't really notice. I call her at the end of the day and find out how I did, and inevitably it's one of the best days I've ever had. You have no idea how much work goes into being as good as Meryl is, or for making it look as effortless as she makes it look. But I do, because one night, while we were making Heartburn, I went into her trailer. She wasn't expecting me. She wasn't in costume. And she wasn't wearing makeup. She turned out to be a 63-year-old Asian woman named Chipack. So Chipack, tonight we honor you.