On the return of 'Inside the Actors Studio,' and the art of talking about craft

"Inside the Actors Studio," a show in which famous actors talk about their craft, returned to television Sunday on a new network, Ovation, and with rotating hosts in place of James Lipton, who created the show and captained its previous 22 seasons into his 90s.

Lipton, whose last "Actors Studio" ran on Bravo in January 2018, is a hard act to follow. With his combed-back, dark(ened) hair, wizard's goatee and imperial eyebrows - he could play Dr. Strange's grandpa - and pedagogical fanboy manner, he has personified the series. He's been animated on "The Simpsons," played by Will Ferrell on "Saturday Night Live."

The reverential solemnity with which he describes even the slightest accomplishments of his illustrious guests has opened him to parody - see Ferrell, above - but he's a believer. That Henry Winkler, who has won