We sit down with Hollywood's super producer who tells us how his curious brain has gotten him into a whole lot of interesting situations.
ET sat down with Hollywood super producer Brian Grazer, who told us how his curious brain has gotten him into a whole lot of interesting situations.
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"I think inspiration comes from this engine or motor of curiosity," Grazer said.
It's his curiosity that drew him inspired Grazer to partner with Ron Howard nearly 30 years ago and what brought him to small screen projects with big followings like Arrested Development, 24 and Empire.
While it's helped in his career, his curiosity can sometimes make things awkward -- like the time seven years ago when he brushed off Jennifer Lopez to talk to Oprah Winfrey.
"I'm in my office, and I'm with J.Lo," Grazer recounted. "J.Lo is singing in Spanish to me and my assistant comes in and says, 'Oprah is on the phone.' I go, 'Oprah Winfrey?' [My assistant] says, 'Yes, Oprah Winfrey herself is on the phone.' I go, 'J.Lo, I am so sorry.' And she looked at me like, 'C'mon, Brian. I'm singing to you.'"
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This phone call sparked a friendship with Lady O that could lead to an appearance on Empire. According to Grazer, the media mogul is thinking about accepting his offer to appear on the show.
Curiosity is at the heart of Grazer's new book, A Curious Mind: The Secret to a Bigger Life, which details meetings he's had with some of the most distinguished people to ever walk the planet, including Princess Diana.
Grazer bypassed royal etiquette during an encounter with the late princess after the London premiere of Apollo 13.
"I thought if I didn't break their royal etiquette, I wouldn't get to know her," Grazer said. "The crescendo was at the end of this dinner I said I'd really like to get some ice cream and she got it for me. So she took a spoon and I took a spoon and we alternated taking dips into the ice cream bowl."
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A Curious Mind is available now. Grazer will be speaking and doing a book signing at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books on Saturday, April 18 at 4 p.m. PT at the Ronald Tutor Campus at USC.
