Author: Bill Thompson

Candace Gingrich

Bill Thompson

It’s not always easy to babysit money of a very famous politician.

Photo: dbking

But, perhaps, especially if you’re a lesbian and your brother is one of the nation’s leading right-wing conservatives.

In 1994 a republican wave took over Congress, and Newt Gingrich became Speaker of the House.

And suddenly, his half-sister Candace — who pronounces the family name “Ging-rick” — found themselves, as they later described it, as an “accidental activist.”

I met them in 1996, just as the issue of same-sex marriage was being debated in Congress and the courts. You’ll hear about that in this interview.

You may also hear some terminology which sounds a little dated. The term “LGBTQ” wasnot yet in wide usage, and as a result, is not heard here.

So here now, from 1996, Candace Gingrich:

Candace Gingrich celebrated their 55th birthday last week, and is married to Kelly Cassidy, a member of the Illinois state legislature.

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PD James

Bill Thompson

For decades, going back to the 1970s, one of the most popular contemporary British mystery writers was PD James.

In a style sometimes reminiscent of Agatha Christie, James wrote about cases solved by her fictional detective she named Adam Dalgliesh.

He was a character she named after a teacher at Cambridge High School.

Book after book, a reputation and popularity grew, until in 1991 James was named a Life Peer in Britain’s House of Lords. She was Baroness James of Holland Park.

I interviewed her several times over the years, about her various Dalgleish nysteries. And then, in 2000, we talked about her autobiographical book “A Time To Be In Earnest.”

So here now, from 2000, P.D. James.

P.D. James wrote four more books in the years after this intervoew, the last of them in 2008.

The Baroness James of Holland Park died in 2014 at the age of 94.

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Bob Denver

Bill Thompson

Robert Osbourne Denver graduated from college with a degree in political science, then caoched physical education and even taught math and history at a California elementary school.

But today, this well-educated, smart, soft-spoken man is best remembered for this…

Gilligan’s Island only lasted three seasons in the mid-1960s, but thanks to reruns and syndication the show has effectively never been off the air since.

And, like so many other popular TV actors, Bob Denver found himself typecast.

So, like many of his peers, Denver stopped resisting the Typecast and embraced it, appearing in several made-for-tv Gilligan’s Island movies, as well as other walk-on roles in which he played Gilligan.

In 1993, Denver wrote a book called “Gilligan, Maynard, and Me,” a reference to the other popular TV series he co-starred in, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis.

The day I met him, the day before Thanksgiving in 1993, I brought my 13- and 11-year-old daughters to meet the man they knew only as Gilligan.

So here now, from 1993, Bob Denver…

Bob Denver died in 2005 at age 70.

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Julia Child

Bill Thompson
Photo: Kingkongphoto

Julia Child is probably the reason many people became professional chefs. She’s also the reason many many millions of us have attempted things in the kitchen we never thought we could do.

For many years Child was America’s most famous chef, thanks largely to her public television series The French Chef.

In 1993, as another of her TV series was premiering, Child collected culinary wisdom from some of her peers, for a book called “Cooking With Master Chefs.”

And tyjhat’s when I met her.

So here now, from 1993, Julia Child.

Julia Child died in 2004, two days before her 92nd birthday.

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Al Neuharth

Bill Thompson
Photo: John Mathew Smith

Do you have to be kind of an SOB to be a success?

What kind of connotation does that term even have anymore?

Those were two of the key questions that Al Neuharth tried to address in his bestselling memoir “Confessions Of An S.O.B.”

Al Neuharth was the founder of USA Today, as well as The Freedom Forum, and the Newseum. So apparently being an SOB helped him.

So here now, from 1990, Al Neuharth:

Al Neuharth died in 2013, at the age of 89.

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Winnie Smith

Bill Thompson

Memorial Day is an occasion to pause and honor those who have given their lives in military service.

But we can also remember those who went to war to save lives.

In 1963, a 21-year old student nurse named winning Smith joined the Army, and in 1966 was sent to Vietnam, where the war was escalating. She was there until 1967,

But it wasn’t until years later that she realized that she, like many of the servicemen she treated, or suffering from PTSD.

I met her in 1992, to talk about her book called “American Daughter Gone to War.”

So here now, from 1992, Winnie Smith.

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Betty DeGeneres

Bill Thompson
Photo: Danlev / Dan Leveille

We learned recently that daytime TV’s Ellen DeGeneres Show is coming to an end next year after 19 seasons.

Her show made its debut just a couple of years after I met and interviewed her mom, Betty DeGeneres.

In 1999, Betty published a book called “Love, Ellen,” a memoir of her relationship with her famous daughter — and the challenges both mother and daughter experienced when Ellen revealed her sexual orientation.

Betty DeGeneres celebrated her 91st birthday last week.

Steve Allen

Bill Thompson

Long before Jimmy Fallon, way before Jay Leno, before Johnny Carson, or Jack Paar .. NBC’s Tonight Show was hosted by its co-creator Steve Allen.

In the fall of 1954, the 32 year old comedian and entertainer became the host of televisions first-ever late night talk show.

Largely thanks to Alan’s intelligent humor, The Tonight Show became a hit.

Steve Allen soon moved on to other Ventures, but was always widely popular and in-demand.

I first met him in early 1987, when he wrote a book he modestly called How To Be Funny.

So get ready for some tips from a master of his craft. Here now, my 1987 interview with Steve Allen.

Steve Allen died in 2000. He was 78.

Dan Bongino

Bill Thompson

A new nationally syndicated radio talk show is debuting this week.

Photo: Gage Skidmore

Its host is conservative commentator Dan Bongino, who was, for several years, a Secret Service agent who’s assignments included the presidentia protective l detail.

After unsuccessful bids for US Senate and the US House, bongino turned to writing books .. and radio.

I met him in the fall of 2013, after he wrote a book called Life Inside the Bubble.

So here now, from 2013, Dan bongino.

“The Dan Bongino Show,” debuting today, is heard from noon to 3 Eastern Time.

Charles Schulz

Bill Thompson
Photo: Roger Higgins

Is there any man, woman, or child in America — or anywhere around the world, for that matter — who does not know Charlie Brown, Lucy, Linus, and Snoopy?

Those, and the other characters created by Charles Schulz more than 70 years ago are among the most popular icons in American art.

He is widely considered one of America’s greatest cartoonists of all time, and the roster of other famous cartoonist who say they were inspired by Charles Schulz is a long one.

I was offered the chance to interview hin in 1989 after a book about him by author Rheta Johnson was published — she called it “Good Grief.”

So here now, from 1989, Charles Schulz.

Charles Schulz died in 2000. He was 77.