If Only Mothers Ruled the Emmy's
Not even American Idol host Ryan Seacrest and a Sopranos sendoff, could save the Emmy Awards from a mud slide , as its audience fell to a how low can you go 13.1 million viewers Sunday night, down 17 percent from last year's broadcast, according to preliminary data released by Nielsen Media Research.
Lost in all the hullabaloo over Sally Field's acceptance speech meltdown, and Fox bleeping her ``if mothers ruled the world'' tirade, was the tribute paid to Tom Snyder by the late night heavyweights.
It was classy tribute to a genuine talk show titan, one who conducted some brilliant interviews through the years, including, John Lennon, Jackie Gleason, and Charles Mason.
An unforgettable interview wasn’t even his own show, it was when the combative host filled in for Bob Costas on NBC’s Later in 1991, and Howard Stern popped in. It was a highly flammable exchange between Snyder and the shock jock; and one of the funniest, entertaining, and honest interviews I ever recall watching.
An unforgettable interview wasn’t even his own show, it was when the combative host filled in for Bob Costas on NBC’s Later in 1991, and Howard Stern popped in. It was a highly flammable exchange between Snyder and the shock jock; and one of the funniest, entertaining, and honest interviews I ever recall watching.
Speaking of tributes and talk show hosts, I was disappointed more attention wasn't devoted to Merv Griffin, other than the brief morsels in the obituary montage.
My favorite recollections of Merv was coming home from school on some lazy afternoons; flipping on the TV and finding him surrounded by a mob of cantankerous guests pinned to their chairs, firing volley’s at each other; so many shows were downright free for all’s, guests usually in a stew about the Nixon administration, the war in Vietnam, others giving voice to the sexual revolution, and promoting the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment.
Most, if memory serves, didn’t give a lick about promoting their movies, TV shows, or albums; they merely showed up to chat with the affable host to grumble about all the ills in the society; or engage in witty, reflective, thought provoking conversations.
I remember absorbing the joys of talk shows after Merv fed us a steady diet of guests like Gore Vidal, Orson Welles, Peter Ustinov, Shelley Winters, and Todi Fields, all engaging (and entertaining) personalities woefully absent from today's late night circuit.
-Bill Lucey
billlucey@bellsouth.net
Most, if memory serves, didn’t give a lick about promoting their movies, TV shows, or albums; they merely showed up to chat with the affable host to grumble about all the ills in the society; or engage in witty, reflective, thought provoking conversations.
I remember absorbing the joys of talk shows after Merv fed us a steady diet of guests like Gore Vidal, Orson Welles, Peter Ustinov, Shelley Winters, and Todi Fields, all engaging (and entertaining) personalities woefully absent from today's late night circuit.
-Bill Lucey
billlucey@bellsouth.net
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