TV Personalities

Bob Dorian

Bill Thompson

Ever since there have been movies in America — that’s over a hundred years now — people have been putting together their lists of their favorite movies. Their favorite classic movies.

Some 30 years ago Bob Dorian, the longtime host on American Movie Classics (now known simply as AMC) assembled a list of the greatest “classic” movies.

Now these weren necessarily ‘t classic” in the sense that we typically think of classic movies, but they were movies that were timeless and important in their own way.

I had a chance to talk with Bob Dorian in 1990 when that book came out. So here now from 1990. Let’s talk some old movies with Bob Dorian

Bob Dorian died in 2019. He was 85.

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Catherine Crier

Bill Thompson

Catherine Crier had a remarkable legal career. By age 30, she had become the youngest elected judge ever in the state of Texas.

But the number of years and Crier became a journalist and television personality, eventually hosting her own show on Court TV.

And along the way, she developed some strong opinions about the profession that she began her career in, the law.

Her 2002 book The Case Against Lawyers became a New York Times bestseller. And that’s when I first met her.

So here now, from 2002, Catherine Crier..

Catherine Crier is 68 now, and is a partner and a firm that develops TV, movie and documentary projects.

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The Amazing Kreskin

Bill Thompson

He’s not a psychic nor a fortune teller. The Amazing Kreskin is a mentalist, perhaps the best known mentalist in the world.

But is he for real ?

After years of hearing people conjecture about his skills, Kreskin in 1996 wrote a book called How To Be a Fake Kreskin.

Listen to this interview and then you decide: fake, or real?

So here now, from 1996, The Amazing Kreskin.

The Amazing Kreskin turned 87 earlier this month. He still performs and is seen on TV regularly. He lives in New Jersey.

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Bob Vila

Bill Thompson

Perhaps no one other than maybe Martha Stewart has helped more Americans gain the confidence they need to do things around the house then Bob Vila has

His popular home fixer upper show on PBS, this Old House, premiered in 1979, and for years afterward top millions of us how to do simple projects ourselves. And sometimes not so simple projects.

I met him in 1986, when he published a reference book and guide for us do-it-yourselfers. And we talked all about hammers, saws, plumbing, and wiring.

So here now, from 1986, Bob Vila.

Roy Firestone

Bill Thompson

When he was still in his teens in the 1960s, Roy Firestone got an up-close look at Major League Baseball, as a spring training bat boy for the Baltimore Orioles in Florida.

But instead of following that career path and becoming a bat boy the rest of his life, Roy Firestone cut into television. Starting in Miami, then moving to Los Angeles, Firestone established himself as a skilled Sports commentator and interviewer.

In 1980 he joined ESPN, posting their so-called “Up Close.”

I met him in 1993, what he wrote a book called up close and in your

So here now, from 1993, Roy Firestone.

Roy Firestone will be 68 in December. He is still seen on television on “Good Day L.A.”

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Cesar Millan

Bill Thompson

A dog may be man’s best friend, but many of us unconsciously do things that can undermine that relationship, says Cesar Millan, otherwise known as The Dog Whisperer.

When I met him a 2006, his show was just nicely taking off, he had a large following, and was so very eager to talk about the dogs he had known.

So here now, from 2006, Cesar Millan.

Cesar Millan will be 52 in August. And he remains active in dog training, as well as advocacy for abandoned and abused animals.

R. Lee Ermey

Bill Thompson

It takes a certain kind of man to be a successful u.s. Marine drill instructor. It seems to come naturally to some men.

And one of them turned it into a successful acting career.

R. Lee Ermey was nominated for a Golden Globe for his work in the 1987 film “Full Metal Jacket.”

He went on to play tough, rugged authority figures in a number of other movies — even “Toy Story.”

In 2002 the History Channel came calling, and made Ermey the star of the show “Mail Call, which quickly became the network’s most popular show.”

It was in the middle of that show’s seven-year run that I met R. Lee Ermey, when he came out with a book based on the series.

And no need to cover your ears. This interview is G-rated.

So here now, from 2005, R. Lee Ermey.

R. Lee Ermey died in 2018. He was 74.

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Terri Irwin

Bill Thompson
Photo: Eva Rinaldi

In the ’90s and early 2000s, one of the most popular TV personalities in the world was Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin.

He happily and enthusiastically introduced his viewers to some of the world’s most exotic, and dangerous, wildlife.

Ultimately it was a fatal encounter with a stingray that prematurely ended his life in 2006. Steve was just 44.

Photo: Richard Giles

The following year his widow Terri published a book called Steve And Me. And that’s when I met her.

So here now, from 2007, Terri Irwin,

Terri Irwin and the couple’s two children continue to operate Australia Zoo.

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Terry Bradshaw

Bill Thompson

Most people consider Terry Bradshaw, formerly of the NFL’s Pittsburgh Steelers, to be among the greatest quarterbacks ever.

His list of accomplishments, on and off the is impressive.

He’s had a long and fruitful career as a broadcaster, and he’s done some acting.

And he’s also written a couple of books. That’s how I met him, in 2002.

And no, football is not the center of his life.

So here now, come 2002, Terry Bradshaw.

Terry Bradshaw will be 73 in September.

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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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