The Dream Guest
Insider Info
Jan. 19, 2019
You might not be surprised to hear that one of the most frequent questions we get is "Who was your favorite guest?" That answer varies for different people involved with the show. For some, it was The Count from Sesame Street. For others, Tom "Bones" Malone. Richard Troxell has received votes, as has Kara Dioguardi from "American Idol," David Mallett, Paula Cole, Dave Cowens, Ed Asner, Weird Al (although not actually a guest), and Rob Bartlett from Imus. Dan is surprisingly non-committal to an answer, but often sites Marc Summers from "Double Dare" (who has received many votes himself) as being the most helpful and influential to the show. Usually, most people will name a guest from "away" before quickly adding a few names of local guests that have stuck out over the years. It's truly an impossible question.
But what about that guest we've never had that we've always wanted? That's another question we hear often and - again - it is not an easy answer. Everyone's answer is different. We thought we'd go to the source - Dan - and see if he could widdle it down to a Top 5.
#5 - Anna Kendrick
There's no question she's talented. I wish I heard her speak more about Maine. But that's okay. She seemingly won't do much for interviews here in her home state. That's okay too. I think she's great and always have. A friend of mine lives in the house she grew up in in Portland. Maybe we'll connect over that? I've also recently discovered a mutual connection. Truthfully, that's the only reason she's #5 on the list...it gives me a small glimmer of hope for an otherwise unattainable A-list guest.
#4 - Tom Caron
I'm a die-hard Sox fan, through and through. I'm also a fan of great broadcasters and Mainers who done good. Tom Caron is from this state and spent time working at one of our affiliates - WGME CBS 13 in Portland. He is as synonymous these days with the Sox as Don Orsillo was. I would put him in the same boat as Jim Rice and Jerry Remy too...but they both played for the team as well as connected with viewers over TV. Caron is a pro. He's in high demand. We've communicated. We've tried. He hasn't said "no." But his schedule is crazy. Although, he just did a live interview with our pals at the Portland Press Herald, so who knows. There's always a chance we'll work it out.
#3 - Andrea Barber
You might know her best as Kimmy Gibbler the neighbor on "Full House" who became the roommate on "Fuller House." I grew up on "Full House," and I'd be lying if I didn't say that I've seen more than a few episodes of the new version. Kimmy Gibbler is a fun - although sometimes annoying - character. She reminds me of a blend of two of my cousins. I won't say which two for fear of retribution. Outside of portraying Kimmy Gibbler, she reminds me of another blend of two of my cousins - one that is also in the Kimmy Gibbler blend, and one that isn't. Because of that, I feel like Andrea Barber is like a member of the family. Having seen her do other interviews and knowing a little bit about her through those interviews, I think she would be an amazing guest on our show. It's what I would call a "selfish guest" - meaning, one that I REALLY want to have a conversation with - but with no real connection to Maine (that we know of). I think that our audience would absolutely love it if she were to visit us here in Maine.
#2 - Stephen King
I don't know why he's still on the list. I'm fairly certain our e-mails to his people should go to spam by now. I'm also fairly certain that if he wanted to do our show, he would hae done it by now. Here's the thing...and this may come as a shock to our viewers. But Stephen King doesn't
need to do our show. Of course, neither do some of the big names we've had on "from away." But Stephen King is different. He's the greatest horror writer of all time who has given back to charitable organizations, Eastern Maine, and the places he and Tabitha have a strong connection time and time again. He owns 3 radio stations and people who work there are treated very well in this day and age of corporate radio rule. I cannot be upset that he's never done our show. And I don't even necessarily have anything pressing I want to find out about him. I think it's more that we are a little show in Maine, doing something that very few people are doing in other parts of the country (if anyone), and it would be nice if he stopped by to say hi. That's all. But at the same time...he doesn't have to. And if he doesn't want to give it his stamp of approval, then I suppose we should just be okay with that.
#1 - David Letterman
I'm not an idiot. This will never happen. But, then again, we haven't asked. We have had others from The Late Show on our show, and we have made various connections. But we haven't officially found a way to formally ask the King of this Late Night era. We HAVE asked Paul Schaffer. He declined. That's why he is not on the list. It wasn't a scheduling thing. Just...no. But, Dave? It's not unheard of. When Conan was the new host of Late Night and struggling, Dave appeared on his show giving him - and his staff - a much needed boost that was noticed in the industry. He's done Kimmel's show a couple of times. And, yes, we realize we aren't Kimmel or Conan, but he's done some local interviews since leaving The Late show too. We'd love to find a connection we feel comfortable enough asking. And I truthfully don't know who that would be. I also am sort of afraid of the answer. So I'll just keep the dream alive by continuing to simply keep the possibility just that...a dream.
Honorable Mentions
Bob Marley - Love what he does. He was on our Letterman tribute when Dave retired. But a busy schedule and busy home life have proven this one difficult to book.
Patrick Dempsey - He's done a whole lot more now that he's apparently spending more time in Maine. He's someone else we haven't formally asked. I feel like he's on the stations of NewsCenter Maine so much that it wouldn't be a big deal if we got him on our show. But I have a few ideas for him that are things I have not seen him do on Maine TV...so we would make it a big deal. :-)
Jim Gaffigan - I respect this guy on every level I can think of. I think if we were to land him, we would fill 2 shows with him...something we've never done before.
Gov. Janet Mills - We've had Gov. Baldacci and Gov. LePage during their tenures as governor, and Sen. Angus King who is also a former governor. We'd like to keep the streak alive. For that matter, we'd like to see former governors John McKernan and Joe Brennan visit the show as well.
The Kid - The longtime morning show host at Z107.3 in Bangor and I go way back. I worked with him for a while. He'd be a great guest. But, when we brought the show back to TV the first time back in '01, he said he would never come on "your stupid show, so don't bother asking." I've honored the request. If I hear that he's changed his tune, we will ask him. He DOES share lots of clips of our show on the Z107.3 website, so hopefully he doesn't think it's stupid anymore. :-)
The Ghost of Paul Revere - Quite a talented group. They did Conan's show. We haven't heard back with our request.
Howie Day - I got to interview him when I worked in radio around the time that "Collide" was becoming a hit. Having him perform it on TV would be great.
Anyone from "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" - He - and it - inspired a generation of comedians and broadcasters. It's cultural impact cannot be overstated. We've reached out to Doc Severinsen, Jeff Sotzing, and Peter Lasally. All have respectfully declined. It would be a thrill to talk to someone on "the inside" to hear about Johnny and the magic that America fell in love with called "The Tonight Show."
Conan O' Brien - I feel like this is even more of a stretch than Dave. He's busy producing a show in Los Angeles. And he's traveling a lot doing his incredible "Conan Without Borders" series. But he seems to have a soft spot for the little guy and for New England.
Jay Leno - LOL. Just kidding. Actually we'd be delighted to have him on. It's no secret my loyalty has been with Letterman. But, they apparently buried the hatchet. Also, he's ALWAYS been an amazing talk show guest, going all the way back to his appearances with Dave on "Late Night."
Jimmy Fallon - Yeah we know. We're sucking the well of late night talk show hosts dry. But we had to include Fallon because we wrote two songs for him as invites. While he didn't respond, we did hear that the songs made their way around 30 Rock to the delight of those who saw them. That's something. Plus, he lit up social media in Washington County last year when he and Lorne Michaels strayed from the SNL creator's new home on the coast to visit a local watering hole in Lubec. Soooooo...maybe?
There are many more honorable mentions. Too many to list. But this gives you a good idea.
You might have noticed that our season premieres in recent years have featured some names recognizable beyond Maine. Ed Asner and Celtics legend Dave Cowens have kicked off the last two seasons for us. We tentatively booked our guest for the 2019-2020 season premiere almost a year ago. I've been excited about it since then and hope we can confirm it soon. But even if we do, we won't announce it until the Summertime. Stay tuned!!