Meryl Streep owes it all to Jersey.
In a clip released ahead of this weekend’s New Jersey Hall of Fame induction ceremony, America’s most celebrated actress credits her Garden State roots and the state’s schools for inspiring her to pursue a career in showbiz.
“Imagination is how we fly up and out of our lives into the world that we share, and it’s where empathy and understanding were born,” Streep says. “My dreams were born in New Jersey, and my imagination was nurtured in her public schools, and for that I am very, very grateful.”
Streep, 75, grew up in Bernardsville and got her start in a fifth-grade play before going on to star in musicals at Bernards High School.
She is among 18 New Jerseyans being inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame this weekend, alongside fellow stars like actor Paul Rudd (who was born in Passaic) and director Kevin Smith (a native of Red Bank). Inductees have achieved greatness in categories including performing arts & entertainment, sports, and education & science.
During a sneak peek of the induction ceremony, Smith got choked up while talking about his home state, with a side of humor, of course. “My whole car has been a chase for relevance, and somebody needed to know I came from this place. Now they do,” says Smith, 54. “Now there’s going to be kids coming through here when I’m long dead, waving a hand over my face and being like, ‘Who’s this fool?…. Kevin James was a really good guy.”
Smith has supported New Jersey throughout his career, filming and setting his movies here, including his newest, The 4:30 Movie, which debuted in September. He’s also the owner of Smodcastle Cinemas in Atlantic Highlands and the comic book shop Jay and Silent Bob’s Secret Stash in Red Bank.
The ceremony airs on My9 on November 16 at 7 p.m. and November 17 at 6 p.m. It is also set to air on NJ PBS on December 28 at 6 p.m. and December 29 at 10 a.m.
Earlier this year, the New Jersey Hall of Fame opened an Entertainment and Learning Center that celebrates prominent New Jerseyans at the American Dream in East Rutherford.
A full list of the class of 2024 inductees is below:
Performing Arts & Entertainment
- Lesley Gore,Tenafly, singer-songwriter of “You Don’t Own Me” and “It’s My Party”
- Warren Littlefield, Montclair, former NBC Entertainment president
- Paul Rudd, Passaic, actor
- Kevin Smith, Red Bank, director, producer, writer
- Meryl Streep, Bernardsville, actress
Arts & Letters
- Gay Talese, Ocean City, journalist
Sports
- Dick Button, Englewood, two-time Olympic gold medalist in figure skating
- Tim Howard, New Brunswick, soccer player
- Ron Johnson, Madison, football player
- Phil Simms, Franklin Lakes, former New York Giants quarterback
Enterprise
- George Cooney, Bogota, chairman emeritus of EUE/Screen Gems Ltd
- Peter Cancro, Point Pleasant, founder of Jersey Mike’s
- Donald Katz, Newark, founder of Audible, Inc.
Education & Science
- Elizabeth Coleman White, Whitesbog, botanist
- John Forbes Nash, Princeton, genius mathematician
- Avi Wigderson, Princeton, computer scientist, mathematician
Public Service
- Father Edwin D. Leahy, Newark, Benedictine monk and Catholic priest, headmaster of St. Benedict’s Prep in Newark
- Geraldine Thompson, Lincroft, founder of VNA Health Group
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