when daniel day-lewis came on stage that my name was in that envelope. >> a passion of politics. >> that's what i'd like to say to my president whom i'm so proud of, but i want him to stand up on his hind legs and fight these rat bastards. >> and what happened in that hot tub with jack nicholson. >> he was still in the tub and i climbed down and he reached up and shook my hand and looked right in my eyes, nowhere else and he said that was beautiful, honey. >> this is "piers morgan tonight." >> juan williams made headlines when he was fired from national public radio after making controversy comments about muslims. now he's written a book called "muzzled" and he joins me to have an honest debate. >> good to be here. >> you feel you've been muzzled? >> once they fire you piers. >> you've gone on to bigger and better things. >> i agree. >> fabulously successful, rich, writing best selling books. you know, it hasn't gone too badly. you haven't exactly been gagged. >> well, when they take the microphone away and take away an audience i absolutely loved at national public radio, i think in essence what they're saying is you're muzzled. they're saying i violated their journalistic ethics and standards by saying what was the truth, my feeling that i get anxious when i'm in an airport and i see people in muslim garbs given what happened on 9/11. >> let's play the exact offending quote. >> good. >> in realtime. it was a year ago this week. >> yeah. >> when i get on a plane, i got to tell you, if i see people who are in muslim garb and i think they're identifying themselves first and foremost as muslims, i get worried. i get nervous. >> okay. so here's my thought of that. is that i would have steered clear of saying that. >> uh-huh. >> so you went further than my -- i instinctively would have gone. i would have thought you're into murky territory because what you're basically doing is saying hey, look, these people look a bit threatening. and you're labeling an entire race, you're saying. >> oh, no. >> that's how it could have been taken. >> no, i think not at all. in fact, this and again in the course of trying to advance honest debate, i think it's necessary to say to people, i'm not playing politically correct games with you. i'm not going to dodge, be evasive. let's go straight for it. i'm going to tell you how i genuinely feel. and in saying so, then i'm going to go on to make the larger point which is, and again speaking to your point, piers, it's not legitimate in this country given our history of internment of the japanese and the like to then stereotype any one group of people and i made the point at the time, not subsequently, not as an amendment but at that time, that in fact, we don't stereotype christians based on the behavior of timothy mcveigh or the westboro baptist church. so you don't want to do that. you don't want to encourage people liking that minister in florida that wanted to burn the koran. >> i totally agree. how would you have felt, honestly if a muslim commentator on npr had said you know something, this had been after say an african-american had committed some terrible crime. and said you know something, every time i get on a plane i see an african-american, i feel uneasy. how would you honestly have felt? >> i think it was being ridiculous. i think he was being tran densetious. they're being a provocateur in that sense because they're no such legitimacy. stop and think about it. >> are you saying you were ridiculous. >> no, i'm saying they would be ridiculous to try to draw such an analogy. remember, there is a reality after 9/11, there's a legitimate connection in this world given what happened in london, madrid between radical extreme islam and terror. if you're telling me that black people who may have committed some crime, you could say look, an african-americans are in terms of percentages more likely to have committed some sort of crime, more in jail and incourse rated in the united states but that's not what we're talking about here. we're talking about people who used airplanes as instruments of terror. >> you're talking about a very small number of people. >> that's what i'm saying. >> you didn't say that the at the time. you didn't say when i get on a plane, i worry it may be one of the 20 people that will are likely to ever do anything to this plane. what you said was, muslims. when i see them in muslim garb. >> i said people who are first and foremost identifying themselves as such. i might add i have run into people who say to me, the people who attacked us on 9/11 weren't dressed in muslim garb. they were dressed in ordinary western clothes. i take that to heart. my point is that the feeling, the visceral response, the gut is to say i know these people are muslim and they're making a point of celebrating their islamic faith at this moment as we're getting on this plane. you know what. >> you still feel uncomfortable. >> i do. that's just a feel can, it's the truth. >> what do you do when you get on a plane and see the muslim garb. >> that's exactly the point. it's not a matter of them advocating some policy or separate treatment. so many people, one of the things i take away now a year later, is first i was kind of shell shocked that people would make this accusation against me. i've written the biography of the first supreme court justice, african-american supreme court justice that i would be called a bigot and said to be a bad journalist, just incredible. then you get beyond yourself. i realized this resonated with so many people who said they had had a similar experience in an airport or even on a larger scale felt that there's so much now in this country given the way the extreme, the far left and far right dominate conversations, that you're not supposed to say this. bite your tongue. if you do say this, you're not a good republican. you're a rhino. you're not a good democrat, you're a dine know. you're not a good jew if you have questions about israeli policy. you're not a good black guy if you're talking about some problem in the black community. you're not a good christian if you're saying -- people are saying, there's just too much of this and it inhibits, it hamstrings honest discussions. just tell us what's on your mind. >> what was the honest debate you hoped to have by saying you feel uncomfortable around muslims on planes? >> it's right there. go to the videotape as they used to say on the sports shows because what i was saying is you know what, we need to be cautious. america is a country founded on religious liberty and we don't want to in any way put muslims in a box and treat them in such an inferior way. >> i'm playing devils advocate. isn't that what you were doing? >> no, absolutely not. >> exactly what you were -- putting them in a box. >> not in the least. >> you're saying when i get on planes these weird people in costumes makes me feel uncomfortable. >> no. >> you have no regrets? >> i'm glad you put it that way because you know, it's one of those things where the business we're in, there are times the next morning when you're waking up and said i wish i had said it this way. i've never had such a moment here. i tell you why, because it's all said there at the time. and it's said in the spirit of building an honest debate. in other words, i'm making a point of saying i understand, i'm not playing politically correct games with you, but i want you to know i'm hearing you and i acknowledge the truth that the people who attacked us in the planes were muslims and they cited their faith and talked about being in jihad and therefore, i want to go on to make this larger point. i ask you to understand and listen to me, which is america is a country of religious liberty and we do not want to stigmatize people by speaking about them in some negative way. >> why didn't you say this on your own show on npr. >> i would have, that's the thing. >> you didn't. part of the problem it seemed to me was you said it on fox. >> no, no, that's the problem for npr. >> you say it on a right wing network. you're automatically brackets you into that kind of mind-set. doesn't it? >> not at all. in fact, it wasn't any kind of right wing conversation. and it wasn't -- i was on with o'reilly and he was asking me, he said to me, what's right wing, he says tell me where i'm wrong. he was opening himself up to a real conversation. and i'm saying, bill i understand your concern in saying that in fact, the people who attacked us and everybody says don't be so insensitive. it's not politically correct to say that. >> i think the issue for you is that you were working at npr. that's the problem. npr ought to have i think better standards perhaps than some of the cable -- >> they can have any standards they like. >> cnn would be pretty upset if i had said what you said. >> i don't think so. >> they would have seen it as a form of racial stereotyping. >> no, they won't have. i don't think so. if you look at what has happened in the year that's passed and you see these executives when they brought in their own law firm to do a review of this, their own firm came away saying we don't see there are any such standards in place and subsequently you see executives leaving npr, then maybe understand. this is not a case of people who then said you really did violate some standards and cnn would say, i don't know, cnn may have its own standards but there were no standards in place at npr at the time that would have justified such an action. >> you're not allowed to throw drink on my desk. >> i caught my hand on the water glass here. >> trying to cool you down there, juan. let's go to i an break. clean-up the horrific mess you caused as usual. >> we'll come back and talk herman cain. >> it's a deal. [ female announcer ] don't just moisturize, improve the health of your skin with aveeno daily moisturizing lotion. the natural oatmeal formula goes beyond 24-hour moisture. it's clinically proven to improve your skin's health in one day, with significant improvement in 2 weeks. for healthy, beautiful skin that lasts. i found a moisturizer for life. [ female announcer ] aveeno daily moisturizing lotion. and for healthy, beautiful hair, try nourish plus haircare. only from aveeno. ever since that ol' broom dumped me here... oh, oh. oooh! will love ever come my way? oh my! ♪ i believe in miracles [ male announcer ] swiffer attracts dirt. swiffer sweeper's new, thicker cloths get deep into ridges picking up more dirt, dust and hair than a broom to help leave your floor up to three times cleaner. you sure are a pick-me-up! [ male announcer ] swiffer cleans better or your money back. consumers er wanchai ferry orange chicken... over p.f. chang's home menu orange chicken women men and uh pandas... elbows mmm [ male announcer ] wanchai ferry, try it yourself. exclusive to the military. and commitment is not limited to one's military oath. the same set of values that drive our nation's military are the ones we used to build usaa bank. from free checking to credit cards to loans, our commitment to the military, veterans, and their families is without equal. ♪ visit us online to learn what makes our bank so different. usaa. we know what it means to serve. no, i wouldn't use that single miles credit card. nice ring. knock it off. ignore him. with the capital one venture card you earn... double miles on every purchase. [ sharon ] 3d is so real larry. i'm right here larry. if you're not earning double miles... you're settling for half. really? a plaid tie? what, are we in prep school? [ male announcer ] get the venture card at capitalone.com and earn double miles on every purchase every day. what's in your wallet? i was gonna say that. uh huh... that is better than today. since 1894, ameriprise financial has been working hard for their clients' futures. never taking a bailout. helping generations achieve dreams. buy homes. put their kids through college. retire how they want to. ameriprise. the strength of america's largest financial planning company. the heart of 10,000 advisors working with you, one-to-one. together, for your future. ♪ back with my guest juan williams. interesting point before you started smashing my desk to pieces with the water. >> yes, i know. >> the interesting point about the political correctness in america right now. i spent an hour with herman cain, very charismatic man. very determined it 0 say i'm not going to play is the normal political game here, not going to talk in the way that i'm supposed to talk, not going to hide away from opinions that i genuinely have, nor am i going to ram these opinions down the public's throat. he was all for free expression. i'm not sure you can do that though if you're going to be the president of the united states. >> you know what, i think people are hungering right now for honesty from the politicians and they're not getting it. and they see they're not getting it when it comes to difficult conversations. just take a range. immigration reform, congress paralyzed. can't get it done. conversations stop. people stop talking about terror babies, anchor babies, herman cain with electrified wall. he says it's a joke. >> i think he genuinely does think it's a good idea to have an electrified fence on board. >> are you talking about you're willing to kill people trying to come into the country. it's a diversion from the real conversation. talk about an assault on honest debate, the sub title of this book. if you want to say there are 13 million illegal immigrants in the country country, most of these people do not come by scurrying across the border. they fly into the country i think it's almost half of them come into the country and overstay visas, and we have a situation in arizona, alabama, where even the chamber of commerce, the business community is saying we need workers, especially low wage workers. let's have an honest conversation. everybody's saying build an electrified fence. immigration is one issue. guns is another issue. budget is another issue. race relations another issue. >> is the tea party racist? herman cain said to me again, he said there are probably racist elements within the tea party but he doesn't believe that the party itself is inherently racist. if it was, what is he doing as the standard bearer for the tea party now? >> i would agree with him. i think there are elements that have popped up when they're making monkey cartoons about the president or i think those signs that have the president as the joker, some of the kind of very personal attacks and then you know, it gets so closely linked to people involved in the birther movement and say obama is a muslim, he's a communist. at some point you feel like they're trying to define him as the other and you think is this race related because the fact is he's the first african-american president. >> so what herman cain is not racist. is there a danger for him also being a black american that he is being used in some tokenist way as if to say look, we're not racist. look, we've got herman cain. >> that's the critics' point. >> do they have a point? >> i don't know they have a point because they haven't proven it. the fact is herman cain is doing more than a sort of token performance on the republican side. in some polls he leads the pack. that's no oh, we'll make a gesture to this black guy in order to excuse our racism or the elements of race yim that exist in the party. to the contrary, herman cain is outperforming any projections. if you would have asked me early on, does eshave a chance of leading this race in the late october, i would say absolutely not. and i would say that you know, this 9-9-9 plan is going to be mocked. and i think he's coming in for heavy fire but you know what? lots of americans like him. i was down in florida after the straw poll. people said to me, you underestimate herman cain. this is a republican. >> i liked him because he made me laugh. he's a funny guy. he's self-of aware. >> right. >> and he knows where he's come from. part of his i didn't agree with him, for instance, about his attack on the occupy wall street protesters. i think he's wrong to say the bankers aren't really to blame and blame yourselves and go and blame the white house. can he win the nomination? could we be in a situation come january where you have a black american as he likes to call himself. >> right. >> against as he calls president obama an african-american? >> i wrote just such a column, just such a column for foxnews.com. >> i read it. >> and yes, i think this is possible and i'm telling you why it's possible. because as we sit here, you've just come from this republican debate. you realize even as they become more combative and high energy, it's in large part a deal where mitt romney has a substantial bankroll and he has been consistently performing getting about a quarter of the vote. but the other side of that is there ever, three quarters of these republicans and especially the tea party folk who are so behind herman cain don't like mitt romney. they see mitt romney as the establishment. they consider him a flip-flopper, all the rest. and don't so much respond to the idea that he among all the republicans would do best against president obama. >> because the thing i discovered about herman cain is beneath the smile, there's pretty extreme views. you get him on homosexuality for example, abortion, whatever the issue of the day may be, he's pretty far right. >> you know what i think, people forget not only is it the case that he was a successful businessman, federal reserve chair, even a rocket scientist at some point in his career but he's a radio talk show host. i think a lot of this kind of thing that drives the base politics in the country comes from people who exercise this provocative language, this rhetoric that excites the base. when you're watching the republican primary debates right now, you're watching a very limited slice of conversation on the american political scene. it's red meat from republican candidates who are trying to appeal to the far right, the extreme base of the party in order to win that nomination. and that's basically mitt romney's problem is that you know what? if he gets in there and starts doing it, then he's going to lose his largest calling card which is that he could appeal to independent voters and pull them 'from president obama. >> let's take another break and come back and talk about the state of america. how do you think obama is doing? i'm going to presume you were very proud as a black american to see him elected. are you as proud today as you were two or three years ago? >> we'll talk. [ mom ] scooter? your father loves your new progresso rich & hearty steak burger soup. [ dad ] i love this new soup. it's his two favorite things in one... burgers and soup. did you hear him honey? burgers and soup. love you. they're cute. [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup. gives you a 50% annual bonus! so you earn 50% more cash. according to research, everybody likes more cash. well, almost everybody... ♪ would you like 50% more cash? no! but it's more money. [ male announcer ] the new capital one cash rewards card. the card for people who want 50% more cash. what's in your wallet? woah! [ giggles ] so i wasn't playing much of a role in my own life, but with advair, i'm breathing better so now i can take the lead on a science adventure. advair is clinically proven to help significantly improve lung function. unlike most copd medications, advair contains both an anti-inflammatory and a long-acting bronchodilator, working together to help improve your lung function all day. advair won't replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms and should not be used more than twice a day. people with copd taking advair may have a higher chance of pneumonia. advair may increase your risk of osteoporosis and some eye problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking advair. if you're still having difficulty breathing, take the lead. ask your doctor if including advair could help improve your lung function. get your first full prescription free and save on refills at advaircopd.com. back with my guest juan williams. juan, america is in a pretty rough state right now, isn't it? why is that? i've asked every guest in the last few months what's going on with america. i get a variety of answers. what do you think? >> well, you know, i think there's no question we're not solving our problems, that we are not taking action, that we are stuck, we are paralyzed politically. the leadership of the country is ineffectule. if you ask the american people some basic questions in polling like do you have a sense the country is on the right or wrong track, 80% now wrong track, what it was at the time of president bush leaving office and the disaffection with him. we're back to that point again. you ask them about the occupy wall street people, they think that wall street's leadership is basically made up of thieves and liars. >> people say what are they protesting about. my answer would be probably everything. i'm amazed there hasn't been protesting before in america in the last year. i've been amazed people have just been taking nearly 10% jobless figures, massive foreclosures of property because bankers got greedy. i'm amazed there hasn't been more of this. >> no, i think the american people are pretty persevering and optimistic. tough people. but you know, the thing i think that prompts the protests is the inequity involved, the sense that these guys are coming in, we're going towards christmas, they're getting their big bonuses and big paychecks. >> that's when herman cain began to backtrack. i said come on, you defend wall street and yet, companies like goldman sachs bailed out by the taxpayer. >> absolutely. >> the very first thing they do having been bailed out is noses straight in the trough snorting bonuses again. >> from the political perspective, here's something that's incredible. they're furious with the obama administration and you think wait a second. didn't the obama administration help to bail these guys out? you would think that they would be -- but now they're mad and they're talking about, oh, no, we think that you are vilifying us and we want less regulation. the american people not only want dowd frank, they want more regulation of wall street but somehow wall street is absolutely tone deaf to this reality. >> how is president obama doing? as a black american, what did you feel the day that you had your first not you, america had its first black president? >> well, i'll tell you two things. one thing is in i way, i was there when he won the iowa caucus for fox news. said this is the most incredible moment that i've lived through as an american. >> emotional for you personally. >> absolutely. then when he was inaugurated, when he won, let me just say the night he won when he went into grant park in chicago, i was on the air and i started to cry. for me, that's you know, nothing. >> what were you thinking when you were crying. >> look, there's so much. i mean, my parents you know, were both dead but they could not have imagined. literally subsequently all the headlineses on magazines were couldn't believe in our lifetime. it's an amazing moment when the you can see people you know who have gone through so much as an american minority and had to overcome so much and so here is a child of this much maligned minority oftentimes said to lack intelligence, patriotism, heart, leadership capacity and all of a sudden here the american people black, white, asian, hispanic an firmed this man is our leader and put such hope in him at that moment. it was truly to me, i said on the air, i said, you know, this is not just one for the history books, this is the cover of the history book. has he been disappointing. >> i think the whole situation's been disappointing. >> how is he different? >> i think personally he's been trying. if you look at again, i hope you're not going to lash at me but if you look at the numbers, the american people still like president obama. his personal approval numbers are pretty high. look at the failure to gocracy party lines. >> i think you can like him to a certain degree, but then you have to give equal credit to things like the way he saved the car industry, for example. so it's not all bad. i mean, he's inherited this terrible economic hospital path and he probably hasn't lived up to the wild expectation that he came in with. but nobody could have lived up to that. there's been a realty check. but as we stand, the republicans still i think despite all the poll numbers have a tough job to oust barack obama i would imagine. >> i think it's very tough. as we sit here tonight, i would say if you had to place a bet you're just back from vegas, i would say you would bet on obama. why? because if you look at the numbers head to head, no matter which of those candidates on the stage you put up against obama, pretty much they lose except for somebody this mythical creature called generic republican and there is no such creature. you can say let's run john kennedy or ronald reagan against him but they're not here. >> who is the republican holg right now do you think would have the best chance of beating barack obama? >> mitt romney. >> do you think he could beat him? >> could is a very strong word. >> anything on the economy. as has to a certain degree herman cain. what i do like about herman cain is you may not agree with the nitty gritty of 9-9-9, but it's a great thing to throw out there. i read a "wall street journal" op-ed piece yesterday, very praise worthy by a big financial expert. i was like it's a good debate to have. the simplifation. >> this is the arthur lavor piece? >> yeah. >> he is behind herman cain's whole flat tax idea. >> of course. when you read it, there are two ways of reading it. the simplify indication of the code as a starting point for the debate is not a bad place to have, is it? >> no, and it resonates with the american public that's absolutely fed up with the idea of so many loopholes, deductions and the idea ta ge and other large corporations pay no taxes while you and i are looking at the bill and screaming bloody murder. the american people want simfully indication. the thing that's going to hurt cain and this comes from his pierce, wait a second, how come this is such a regressive tax. this is making people pay more taxes. how do you justify this? tea party people, especially the older folks so concerned about health care and having to pay more taxes in order to generate coverage for those uncovered, they're not going to want to pay more taxes to satisfy and say we have a flat tax. >> would you like to see barack obama unmudsalled himself? do you feel like he's allowed himself to be muzzled. >> love it. this is what i think has been missing for president obama. he's gotten caught in this theater of the absurd with the political extremes dominating the conversations, republicans locked in in terms of intransigence and saying we're not going to support anything you do, mitch mcconnell famously saying i'm here to prevent this man from having a second term, not to serve the interests of the american people. >> one williams, thank you very much. >> my pleasure, piers. good to be with you. >> we'll be rig [ drew ] give me volume. not clumps or gaps. the answer... it's all in the wrap. new covergirl lashperfection mascara perfectly wraps each lash for up to 3x more volume. new lashperfection. wrap it up. easy, breezy, beautiful covergirl. oscar withiner kathy bates is literally the $50 million woman. she's made over 40 films grossing $2 billion. combined. and that translates to $50 million a picture. impressive figure and so is kathy bates who joins me now. what a remarkable statistic. >> yes, it's lovely. i didn't know the it till this morning. >> $50 million guaranteed star. >> i love hearing that. i think i'm going to get more business thanks to you. >> your agent should use that. >> she will now. >> when you look back over this extraordinary run you've had, what do you think of your career? >> well, i think the first thing that pops into my mind is i'm happy but i want more. and. >> is that the secret to always stay hungry, do you think? >> i think so. you know, back when i did "fried green tomatoes" with jessica tandy, god rest her, i loved her so much, when i first saw her on that set at a nursing home in this little town in georgia, she was 84. she had on jeans and a jean jacket and she looked 16-year-old like a 16-year-old girl out of drama school had her first part and she had such a bright light coming out of her, and i thought wow, i've got to find that. when i had my first opportunity to direct a little tiny piece for pbs, she agreed to come and do one of the six monologues. but that was the summer that she was dying of ovarian cancer, and she called me a couple of weeks later and she said, i'm on the downward slope, i have to pull out. and two weeks later she called back and said do you need help finding somebody? i mean it was extraordinary. really when a lot of actresses in hollywood at that time wouldn't even return my phone call. she's always been my beacon. >> you yourself have survived ovarian cancer. >> yes. >> interesting you kept it quiet and you took advice i think from a physician, but you decided no the to tell anybody in case it damaged your work potential i guess. is that right? >> exactly. i had been contracted to do a film that fall, little black book and i was very concerned. it was a good payday. and i have to work. you know, like all of us. and i was very concerned about being well enough and fit enough and i just didn't want it to get around. >> how did you feel when you first heard the bad news? >> how old were you if you don't mind me asking. >> it's been eight years so i would have been 55. >> wow. >> i remember not to be too graphic, but i remember being at the gynecologists being examined and hearing her go, oh. and my head whipped over and i looked at the sonogram or whatever you call it and she said you have a mass. and i began to shake. >> i mean, that is the moment everybody dreads, isn't it, just right there. >> i just began to shake just nonstop all afternoon. she sent me right away to get all these tests to find out because she couldn't tell. you know, they had to do all the dying nos ticks and it took several hours and it was terrifying. i just kept shaking. somebody recognized me sugg. i was in my gown in the waiting room and somebody went aren't you -- i was like i can't talk right now. >> if you had the time again, would you go public, do you think? >> yes, after i went through mine, i saw melissa etheridge come out. i don't know if you remember that moment and she played this amazing song and she had a bald head. and she just knocked it out of the park. and i thought, gosh, i wish i had done that. >> what impact did it have on your life, the whole experience? >> well, i lost my hearing a little bit. >> permanently? >> yeah, from chemo. as a matter of fact, i was online reading about that last night on the ovarian cancer national alliance site which i did my psa for. and apparently taxol and some of the things that i was on can damage the hairs on the inside of the ear and that's it. either that or i've been listening to too much rock 'n' roll music. >> you can hear me well. >> when we work in the courtroom, i can't hear a thing. >> you wear aids on the set then, as well as microphones and stuff? >> yes. >> quite complicated. >> it's okay. they're so tiny now, it's -- but i get vain about it. >> are you completely clear of the cancer? >> yes. >> how did it change your outlook on life? >> it sounds corny to say and it took me awhile because right after it, i went through depression which i'm hearing is more and more common. as more and more people survive, it's common for people to get through that and go through depression. i don't know if it's a reaction to the chemo. it's like okay, i am going to survive. life does come rushing. life becomes simple when you're facing just the one thing. then when you have to go back to the complexity of life, it's overwhelming. then you get through that period. now i feel younger than i did before, more grateful. more relieved to be here. more aware of how much time i have left. more aware of how much i want to give and do. and i'm just -- just as we say [ speaking foreign language ] >> let's take a short break. when we come back, i want to talk to you about your glorious nude scen instantly you know what i'm talking about and also your thoughts on president obama. i hear they're quite lively. >> i do have some things to say. >> excellent. [ male announcer ] it's true... consumers er wanchai ferry orange chicken... over p.f. chang's home menu orange chicken women men and uh pandas... elbows mmm [ male announcer ] wanchai ferry, try it yourself. exclusive to the military. and commitment is not limited to one's military oath. the same set of values that drive our nation's military are the ones we used to build usaa bank. from free checking to credit cards to loans, our commitment to the military, veterans, and their families is without equal. ♪ visit us online to learn what makes our bank so different. usaa. we know what it means to serve. and i owe my great hair to head & shoulders. it gives me a healthy scalp and great looking hair. you making fun of me? no. you making fun of me? yes. [ male announcer ] head & shoulders. 7 benefits. 1 bottle. [will be giving away passafree copies. of the alcoholism & addiction cure. to get yours, go to ssagesmalibubook.com. it will just be you and me while the kids are out on the slopes. here we are. a divorcee and a widower. sounds like a perfect match to me. >> that was kathy bates in other oscar nominated role in the 2002 movie about schmidt. what a scene that was, kathy. glorious. >> thank you. >> when you watch it back now, how do you feel. >> like i wish i had another cosmopolitan. >> how many did it take? >> it took a couple to get in the tub. i'm telling you. >> when you see that in a script, because your sister said look at your accomplishments. at your age, your size, your gender, et cetera, et cetera, you've done an amazing job which is typical sister thing to say. >> yes, exactly i was like" -- >> false flattery really. but to see a script where it says right, at this point you're going to get naked and get into a hot tub, what is your first thought when you see that? >> i'm glad i did it now. originally, it was written much more graphic. and i felt that will both the author of the book and that maybe alexander payne who directed it were having an agenda about older women's bodies. and trying to make a comment about it. and in fact, there were a lot of e-mails between myself and alexander. we had never met and here we were talking about intimate parts of the body and what i was willing to show and would i wear a mer kin which is to cover your pubic area and i just said wait a minute, wait a minute. so there was a negotiation that went on with the e-mails because i felt very protective of her and didn't want them to make fun of her body were you also being protective of yourself? >> oh, i'm sure. i'm sure. >> a little part maybe. >> yes, a little part. and the day we shot it, i lit it. i'm telling you, i got behind the camera and i watched my stand-in and i said all right, all right, okay. all right. that's it. clear the set. we'll do it. >> what did jack make of it all. >> he was very cool. he was lovely. we had our bathing suits on you know and when it was all said and done, you know, he was still in the tub and i climbed out and he reached up and shook my hand, he looked right in my eyes, nowhere else and he said, that was beautiful honey. so, it was worth it. >> are you friendly with jack nicholson. >> no, i must say i'm not. >> he was my absolute hero. >> is he really. >> yeah, he hasn't done a tv interview in about 50 years apparently. if you're watching, it's an open invitation. what's he like to be around, to work with. >> he's an enigma really. i didn't get to know him very well. there is that moment when we kind of looked at each other and said i can't believe we're doing this. i said we're making film history, come on, jack. and you know, that kind of thing. and we mainly just sort of sat there for five hours and turned into prunes, you know. >> i want to play a clip now from "misery," because it was in many people's eyes your greatest role. very hard to choose. but this was one of the greats. watch a bit of this. >> thank god. >> shh, darling, trust me. >> for god's sake. >> it's for the best. >> please! >> almost done. >> that was terrifying. >> well, thank you. thank you, piers. now you've just knocked out another 20 years of no dinner dates. thanks for broadcasting that. >> almost like a female version of hannibal lecter. it was that terry phiing. >> anthony hopkins told me because i had the privilege of handing me his oscar, he told me he watched "misery" six times. >> that's where he got it from. >> obviously. >> how did that impact on you, your life, your career, misery? because it was such a huge hit? >> it was. er from i go, people remark on it. i have an rv. i was traveling to canada at one point. friend of mine, young man was driving me. we were crossing over to get in the ferry and the guy that was guiding us looked up at him and said, man, i don't know how you sleep at night. so it's followed me everywhere. but it will certainly opened doors for me. it was amazing to me that i won that year because the field was so -- >> it was amazing. >> julia roberts, meryl streep, you know, angel cal houston. >> what a moment, an as your name is read out, that's a moment every actor must dream of, best actress, boom. what are you feeling inning that second? >> i think i closed my eyes and thought, here we go. and i said to my husband at the time that night, he said do you think i'm going to win and he said no, no, i think he was trying to protect me from being terribly disappointed. and i said i think i'm going to win. so in that moment, i just knew when daniel day-lewis came on stage that my name was in that envelope. i know i forgot to thank my husband that night. >> did you really. >> i did. i walked off stage. i said, i forgot to thank my husband. >> no wonder you're not together anymore. >> exactly. >> i need to have a break because that's such a shocking thing to have confessed. when we come back, i want to talk to you about president obama. like i said, you have got strong views. i just don't know what they are. so i'm fascinated. >> okay. [ beep ] [ mom ] scooter? the progresso chicken noodle you made is so good. it's got tender white meat chicken. the way i always made it for you. one more thing.... those pj's you like, i bought you five new pairs. love you. did you see the hockey game last night? [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup. [ female announcer ] find yourself sometimes cleaning up after your dishcloth? bounty extra soft can help. it's super durable, and in this lab test bounty extra soft leaves this surface three times cleaner than a dishcloth. even with just one sheet. super clean. super soft. have you tried this yet? save on bounty extra soft and other innovative products with your p&g brandsaver. your core competency is...competency. and you...rent from national. because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle...and go. you can even take a full-size or above, and still pay the mid-size price. i'm getting an upgrade. [ male announcer ] as you wish, business pro. as you wish. go national. go like a pro. now through january earn a free day with every two rentals. find out more at nationalcar.com. no, i wouldn't use that single miles credit card. nice ring. knock it off. ignore him. with the capital one venture card you earn... double miles on every purchase. [ sharon ] 3d is so real larry. i'm right here larry. if you're not earning double miles... you're settling for half. really? a plaid tie? what, are we in prep school? [ male announcer ] get the venture card at capitalone.com and earn double miles on every purchase every day. what's in your wallet? i was gonna say that. uh huh... >> she is the tip of the iceberg. our jackie has done some pretty stupid things in our live. poked in some sorry trash bins. we got to stop them before they stop us. we got to crush them and sweep them up. from now on, you can call met dust buster. you know, honey child, i'm stronger than dirt. >> i believe you. >> that is kathy bates in 1998 "primary colors," is a cat satire of political life. >> the movie didn't do well, everybody was focus canned on the real thing in washington. it was much more interesting. >> what do you make of what's going on now in washington, president obama, the whole political shakeup at the moment? >> well, you know, i have to kind of go back and say that i -- i grew up in memphis, tennessee. i grew up in a segregated town. when i went back my first year in college, that spring, i had my first black friend, i wanted to bring her home and my father said, are you crazy you want to start a race riot? i was like, i didn't understand it my parents were from another generation. my dad was born in 1900 had, my mom in 190 to 7. i came very late in life to them. long story short, that was the spring that martin luther king was slaughtered in my hometown. fast forward now to, what is it three -- two years ago, i'm in paris, i'm on my computer watching these election results because i've gotten so inspired by this man, and i'm so apolitical. and for the first time in i don't know how many years, i was just galvanized by this election. it was so emotional to me. the last two years, i want to go back, something my father said to me, he always said, stand up on your hind legs and fight that is what i would like to say to my president, whom i'm so proud of, but i want him to stand up on his hind legs and fight these rat bastards. and he has got do t >> piers: who do you mean by the rat bastards? >> well, i think he has got to indict these guys from wall street. somebody's got pay for that mess. and i don't think it's the american public. >> piers: 'cause you believe that basically that was the catalyst for all the problems going on now you? >> i think it was the catalyst for many. it certainly was the catalyst for our loss of faith. >> piers: extraordinary, not one of them has ever been put in jail. not one. the biggest financial crisis in history. it came out of pure greed. and wanton irresponsibility and nobody has ever carried the can. >> it is like steinbeck said in "grapes of wrath," heat bank? when everybody was losing everything, who is behind all of this? who's really running the country? who's really pulling the strings? and i think we have all lost faith and we don't know what to do and there are no jobs and we are looking at a lineup in my opinion, of republicans, like -- >> piers: do you feel alarmed by what you see? >> i do. i do feel alarmed. >> piers: see the tea party very polar rising, increasingly popular, when you see the tea party candidates ant views that they espouse, what do you think? >> i don't espouse their views. i'm not that conservative. i do feel -- i guess i'm more of a democrat at heart, although i've never affiliated myself with a particular party. as you can tell, i'm not very politically savvy it is very emotional for me and so i am maybe not speak investigate well. >> piers: awe con their to use the french that you used earlier, i think you have made your views very he will he consequently played out there >> but i just -- i had just such a moment of home. >> piers: do you still have it? you think obama has it in him? >> i think hes that in him. it seems to me that the gop has been out for him ever since he took office. >> piers: that's true. but then they would be. i think is a certain naivete, of course they would were going to. just thrown out of office after eight years, they will hammer the new president for as long as they can. >> ruthless at the expense of the american public in my humble opinion. >> piers: don't you think playing devil's advocate, watching "primary colors" it has always been ruthless? >> in my show, we have a guy in "harry's law," tommy jefferson, a scene about this, she said you have got play dirty. they are playing dirty, you got play dirty. >> piers: talking of "harry's law," emmy nominated, very exciting. >> unexpected and i hope our audience is going to follow us to a second season, i think we are going to knock it out of the park. >> piers: take a little look from the new season. >> i'm in x we all agree? >> dying to know what made you say yes? >> i was married to two pricks, one thing they can't do is lie convincingly. your boy's telling the truth. i'll defend him. be in touch. >> it's great character. it's a great part, isn't it? >> yeah. >> you must love playing it it. >> she is who i would love to