We interrupt this blue tsunami to share some more personal victories. Pinky promise I’ll have something to say about that eventually. I’ll say this much for now: Congratulations, America. Those of you that cared enough to show up did so–and in some cases historically. Take at least today as a victory lap if you must.
I’ve had a lot more to say lately about other things that I clearly know a lot more about. And thanks to the generosity and trust of a couple of longtime friends and colleagues who’ve got the resources and chops to do so, I’m doing them audibly–and now even visually. Because who should be denied a punim this adorable?
I’ve been fortunate enough before to be a guest on Simon Applebaum’s TOMORROW WILL BE TELEVISED. As his site trumpets:
Tomorrow Will Be Televised is a twice-weekly program covering the television scene. Journalist Simon Applebaum hosts the program, featuring live guests, breaking TV news and commentary. Guests include network TV executives, show producers/creators, entrepreneurs launching new TV services, TV critics and pundits.
I first met Simon decades years ago when he was a senior editor for now-defunct trades like Cablevision and Cable World when we discovered we were both unapologetic TV trivia geeks. For the last 12 years of the 38 he has been steadily employed he has hosted TWBT, whose format mirrors old-school call-in radio. He “airs” live via BlogTalk Radio and just about every audio feed you can imagine. And if you click on the link in the previous sentence, you can hear yours truly, fashionably late for his stint because when things are live inevitably things can and do go wrong.
My most recent appearance before this week was to educate his listeners about the life of Jamie Kellner, the first president of the FOX network who I knew just well enough to be able to offer up an informed opinion and a couple of anecdotes. I had offered up my own tribute when I first got wind of his passing; Simon’s apparently fan enough to have noticed. I did the same last week for Sandy Frank–a musing that has mushroomed into one of my most well-read and engaged with of this year. So I suppose I’ve become the go-to celebrity necrologist.
I will further tease you with the fact that Simon’s infatuation with Sandy’s product extended far beyond my own limited purview. I haven’t thought about shows like THE NEW YOU ASKED FOR IT and LIE DETECTOR in decades–I’m gonna guess you may have never had even heard of them. But Simon sure knew about them–right down to the production details. Let’s merely suggest that we both demonstrated our respective eidetic memories. Yeah, it’s worth a few minutes of your ears–and I’d add his eclectic guest list is worthy of a like AND a subscribe.
Alas, Simon’s platform is audio only, and there’s only so much of my braying anyone should be forced to endure. My latest endeavor features video as well. I’m co-hosting a series of podcasts for which teasers began to be dropped on Facebook and Instagram yesterday. They’re being produced as a lead-up to a forthcoming book about one man’s journey through five decades of broadcasting and politics and how those worlds became inexorably intertwined. See if this doesn’t grab you:
TWO INCREDIBLE CONVERSATIONS. TWO REMARKABLE TELEVISION JOURNEYS.
Jeff Stern sits down with Bertice Berry and Gordon Elliott for conversations filled with stories, experiences, and unforgettable moments from the world of television.
From the personalities in front of the camera to the stories behind the scenes, these conversations bring broadcasting history to life.
📺 NEGOTIATIONS AND LOVE SONGS
The stories behind the screens. The people behind television history.
Jeff’s the dapper guy with the hat, an affable chap who both sold and bought a lot of top notch shows–as well as a few that bombed even quicker than LIE DETECTOR did. Berry and Elliott both hosted talk shows during the 1990s that were part of a tsunami in its own right–a time way before the words pod and cast ever were conflated, and just about anyone with shtick and an aggressive agent was getting an hour a day with a full staff to do their thang. Neither show lasted into a second season, but the stories behind their launches and their quick hooks are as engaging and enduring as any of the topics they actually dedicated episodes to. And most of all, they’re both pretty darn nice people who’ve both done much, much more with their professional and personal lives since they received their pink slips.
I’ll ask that you follow his feed for more snippets and teasers in advance and in support of the episodes that will be rolled out over the coming weeks. Buy his book when it’s published. After all, the midterms are over. You’ve got time.
Until next time…