Mount Pleasant Magazine Nov/Dec 2019

47 www.MountPleasantMagazine.com | www.BestOfMP.com | www.ReadMPM.com feature L ife rarely goes exactly as you plan, or at least that’s the case for Steve Shippee. But it’s safe to assume that when you are raised in a Rhode Island lighthouse, your path in life is destined to be different than the norm. From the lighthouse to the bright studio lights of “Saturday Night Live” and now to the shores of Mount Pleasant – and everywhere in between – he’s had an interesting ride. Shippee was a self-proclaimed “lifer” in General Electric’s financial department after a successful run at Cornell University. GE management whetted his appetite for more by allowing him to run their film library on the side. They had amassed a collection of film assets – programs from the Ronald Reagan MonogramTheatre days and the Rankin/Bass animated library, famous for titles like “Rudolph” and “Frosty the Snowman.” It was his involvement in the film library that led to an unexpected change in life’s plans. Lorne Michaels’ (of “Saturday Night Live” fame) entertainment division bought GE’s film library, and Shippee flew to New York to finalize the deal and transition the assets. While there, Michaels invited him to his office. “Lorne starts talking to me, and in walks Dana Carvey, interrupting us. Then Jon Lovitz, then Victoria Jackson, then Jan Hooks. This was 1988 and I’m 26 years old and I’m seeing all this and part of me is saying, ‘I’m not sure why I’m here,’” he grinned. But Shippee got a call later and was, much to his surprise, offered a job as head of finance for Lorne Michaels’ entertainment division. “Turns out he was interviewing me. He said, ‘Do you really think I would have let those people walk in and interrupt me? This was a test. If you’re going to lose it when someone famous sits next to you, then you can’t work for me because you’ll meet famous people all the time.’ Thankfully, it didn’t really phase me.” Shippee moved to New York and spent the next decade working with Michaels in the heyday of names like Farley and Sandler, and climbed his way up to CEO. Three kids and a move later, the commute, the 2 a.m. phone conferences and the high-stress environment were enough for Shippee. He went into semi-retirement in 1998 at the age of 36. But that was just the beginning. With a keen interest in spirituality, he became a certified transgradient healing counselor and had a private practice of clients for several years. Then six years later, contrastingly, he was recruited to become the CSO of a global tech company, which he managed to do while still holding limited hours in his private counseling practice. He grew the company to over 800 employees worldwide and met his wife, Tricia, there. He stepped away from the company a few years ago while BY ANNE SHULER TOOLE Photos courtesy of Jess Wood. The Curious Life of Steve Shippee