Hollywood's center square came to Harvard Square yesterday afternoon when Academy Award-winning actress Whoopi Goldberg responded candidly to questions from a crowd of students and staff in Sanders Theatre.

When Goldberg appeared on stage shortly after 3 p.m., dressed casually in jeans and a black shirt, she was greeted with an extended standing ovation.

"This is really cool, I have to say," the comedian gushed.

Although tickets were distributed through a lottery, the 1,100-seat theater was filled to nowhere near capacity.

In his deadpan introduction Dean of the College Harry R. Lewis '68 called Goldberg an "artistic genius" and presented her with a picture of soon-to-be-sent official Harvard rocking chair engraved with the inscription "Rock on, Whoopi."

Goldberg, who is currently the executive producer of the "Hollywood Squares" game show and has starred in critically acclaimed movies includingThe Color Purple, Clara's Heart, Sister ActandGhost,thanked the audience for its "long and disturbing" welcome.

During the 80-minute question-and-answer session, Goldberg offered to answer questions on any topic, noting that all of her private warts--drug addiction, poverty and bad marriages--had already been aired publicly.

Goldberg's discussion, which mixed serious social commentary with her distinctive comic shtick, covered everything from abortion rights and spirituality to talk-show-host-turned-movie-star Oprah Winfrey and her new movie, Beloved.

The first question from the audience dealt with her efforts to secure a new trial for a man currently on death row in Pennsylvania. Goldberg answered with a criticism of the media's habit of rushing to judgment.

The entertainer pointed to coverage of falsely accused Olympic Park bombing suspect Richard Jewell as an example of this trend, saying he is "not a guy whose picture should be that big."

The actress drew applause when she addressed the twin issues of morality and fairness with references to abortion and the Lewinsky affair.

"Morality is something you have to do for yourself," Goldberg asserted. "Know thatyour ideas on morality are going to change. If youare going to take a moral stand...as we saw in theelection...then your house has to be clean. Eitheryou can walk on water or you can't. Someone iswaiting in the wings to bite you in the butt."

Goldberg sidestepped when asked whether OprahWinfrey represents all of black womanhood.

Goldberg smirked at the assertion, joking thatsomething "flew up my nose." Goldberg said onlythat "it's great to see that someone can create afrenzy the way Oprah has, but it's unfortunatethat it sort of backfired on the movie."

From the front row DuBois Professor of theHumanities Henry Louis "Skip" Gates Jr. followed,asking Goldberg why she thought Beloved"failed at the box office." Goldberg declined apublic debate with Winfrey.

Of the movie she said only, "I don't thinkpeople are there yet. I believe that you have tobe very careful when you're as big as Oprah thatyour audience doesn't get lost."

The afternoon's most poignant moment came whenRobert M. "Rusty" North '02 thanked Goldberg forher autobiography, saying that an essay he wroteon the book won him a scholarship that allowed himto attend Harvard.

A teary-eyed Goldberg ushered North to thefront of the theater where, from the stage, shegot on her knees and hugged him twice to sustainedapplause. After the lecture North joined studentleaders, including Undergraduate Council PresidentBeth A. Stewart '00, in a private meeting with theentertainer.

Many of the questions offered Goldberg anopportunity to address her experiences with raceand ethnicity. The comic credited John F. Kennedy'40 for coming to her neighborhood in and makingher feel like "I had a place in this country."

Goldberg denounced the practice of cloudingAmerican identity with ethnic identity, saying shewas especially annoyed by the term"African-American."

"Rosa Parks didn't sit on that Goddamned bus soI could hyphenate who I am," she said.

Goldberg also addressed the heated criticismthat she has received for her unconventionalbehavior and appearance.

"Black folks were pissed because I didn't lookblack enough," Goldberg said. "I don't know howthat could be, it's pretty much a constant" in mylife.

Throughout her talk, Goldberg addressed a hostof topics, twice extending the number ofadditional questions she would address. Sherecounted a trip to Germany during which shevisited Anne Frank's home and was influenced byFrank's words: "In spite of everything, I stillbelieve there is good in people."

Goldberg was the first lecturer in the AmySmith Berylson '75 series, part of the HarvardCollege's women's initiative, in a programsponsored through Learning from Performers programat the Harvard and Radcliffe Office for the Arts