Vicki Abelson's Broadcast: The Road Taken

Jorma Kaukonen Live on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson Let your fingers do the running to the play button. Please! One of the greatest, funnest, most illuminating conversations I’ve had the privilege to share, Jorma Kaukonen, iconic legend, musical hero, rock god, (I mean, come on!) exceeded all expectations and then some. From early days in Pakistan with one pop 45 to Ricky Nelson, and Buddy Holly, 15-year-old returning expat Jorma, took up guitar and soon was in his first band, The Triumphs, with bandmate, Jack Casady, still his bandmate and best friend today, 65+ years later. Beyond amazing. And the fact that they were rehearsing moments before Jorma and I went Live blows my mind. A testament to their ongoing greatness. We talked about Antioch, and not exactly being encouraged to return. Janis, and The Typewriter Tape, San Francisco, Monterey, Hendrix, Jerry, Marty, Paul, Grace, and Jorma’s nickname that became Jefferson Airplane - his invite to Jack Casady. Psychedelia, Surrealistic Pillow, the mak

Rumer Live on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson It had been too long, too many years, since I’d last seen Rumer, whom I first heard about through our mutual friend, the late, J Marshall Craig a decade ago. As soon as I had my first taste I became obsessed with her and made it my quest to have her sing in my living room. I saw her perform at a benefit concert for Jeff Jones about 10 yrs ago and vowed to make it happen. A great friend and collaborator of the late, beloved PF Sloan, Rumer oft lived across the country and abroad, I met her at last at PF’s memorial 9 yrs ago, just after he’d performed in the living room. Rumer and I became fast friends and I’ve listened to her in heavy rotation almost non-stop since. We came thisclose to her appearing at Women Who Write in 2016, and it’s taken all this time to get her on Game Changers… good things come to those who wait. We went deep today, fittingly on 9/11. First, into Rumer’s past. Her humble beginnings, at the time, one of seven siblings. A secret reveale

Ritch Shydner Live on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson - Part Deux Ritch Shydner could come back every week and we’d never run out of things to discuss, it would always be entertaining, and he’d always be funny. Co-host! There are no accidents. Losing his signal last week on the road in Georgia was a blessing. We got a Shydner double dip. This conversation with the standup comedian who holds the distinction of making a dozen appearances on Carson’s Tonight Show, as well as numerous appearances on Letterman and Leno, had fabulous stories about the former and the latter, Sam Kinison, their 80s NY road trip before Sam’s superstardom, and how their debauchery almost cost Ritch big time, Roseanne, who handed Ritch his segue from front of the camera to writer, Jeff Foxworthy, a natural after only a few weeks of standup, who created a new joke form, Bill Maher, and True Story, Mike Binder, and Miind of The Married Man, and Robert Klein who shared a most unlikely kinship… there were gems aplenty. But, it was Ritc

Ritch Shydner Live on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson Well, that was a first! On the road with Ronna and Ritch Shydner as they traveled from Florida back home to North Carolina. Literally, in the car, in the fading light, in rural Georgia, with intermittent signal. It was as much a surprise to me as to you! Kinda like doing an interview in a disco with strobe lights. Trooper Ritch didn’t want to cancel even though he was in the midst of family tragedy, having very recently lost his dad, and was out of state with his mom to help. I knew all that, the driving adventure, not so much. Please forgive the challenges and appreciate the funny that Ritch is even in the midst of this! We talked the swing states as they drove through one, the DNC, new hope, sugar addiction, intermittent dieting, the no-matter-what club for drinking and drugging that just doesn’t work with salt and sweets. Ritch’s very early standup days, whilst in law school, getting the degree but opting out, what joy for his parents! Trying LA, ch

Will Lee Live on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson Head to head with the DNC, two news junkies didn’t walk into a bar but did get lost in conversation and fun. It’s easy when one of them is Grammy Winner, crazy talented, lovely, humble human, Will Lee. It’s been a few years and a world of changes since last we spoke, this time focusing on the road to sobriety, many moons ago, what led there, the price of using, meeting Paul Schaffer, a relationship that changed his life, the two of them holding the distinction of being on Late Show With David Letterman from day one with The World’s Most Dangerous Band, until the final days with the CBS Orchestra, also giving Will the world’s record for the longest-running bassist on late-night television. Will talked about the original band of 4, Hiram Bullock, Steve Jordan, how and why it morphed, some standout moments… Warren Zevon’s last show, Will’s MacArthur Park with Jimmy Webb… his hero, Ringo, making an appearance… Beatlemania, period. Where it all started for Will,

Josh Sussman on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson What fun, as I expected! What edutainment, that I couldn’t have anticipated! We got the inside scoop on the differences of the pre and post-pandemic biz scene from SAG Award Winner, Josh Sussman. Fascinating, insightful, delightful! Booking his first audition for My Crazy Life, playing Tom Green’s best friend, Derek, who ironically, my wasband worked with on The New Tom Green Show back in those days, and for the past 20+ years has been one of Tom’s best in the reals… Josh took us from his last in-person audition, for Mr. Mayor, with Ted Danson, which he also booked, and which was delayed due to the COVID craziness, resuming at the height of the pandemic with full protocols in place, and how different that experience was from Glee, where freedom reigned supreme. How once the show dropped and fame hit, watching some of the actors change, perhaps not for the better. From the Suite Life of Zach and Cody, Drake and Josh (different Josh), Wizards of Waverly Place, W

Cathy Moriarty Live on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson Girl Crush! I’ve had one for years on Academy Award Nominee, Cathy Moriarty, now after spending a virtual hour with her, forgetaboutit! I always knew she was an incredible actress, whether making me laugh or cry, but, what an amazing woman… mother, daughter, loyal friend, and pet rescuer. We talked the Bronx, where we both come from, Alexanders, our mothers, gratefully still with us, Cathy’s pre-Pesci discovery acting days… high school drama, plays, dinner theatre, no agent, no professional training, but grabbing stage time wherever she could, auditioning and then a bathing suit contest to win a coveted pair of shoes that would change her stars. The trifecta at 17, the beforementioned Pesci, DeNiro, and Scorcese––Raging Bull. Her first film which led to that Oscar nod, on-the-job master classes, and a friendship with her character’s namesake that would last the rest of Vikki LaMotta’s lifetime. Neighbors. Belushi’s last film. Ackroyd’s kindness. All

Greg Mullavey on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson When one of my life’s heroes walks off the screen into the reals and supersedes all expectations, that’s a home run. So goes it with Mary Hartman Mary Hartman’s, Greg Mullavey. I got a taste interviewing him on the Zoom a few years ago, but this go ‘round witnessing him honoring his craft onstage at The Garry Marshall Theatre as Jules Feiffer, in The People VS Lenny Bruce, being eyeball to eyeball sans screens for the first after the show, sharing a warm hug, and culminating with this chat, a master class on auditioning, acting and keeping it real, on screen, on stage, and in life, well, wow! We talked Greg’s early days, his pro-basball playing father, a Red Sox, a White Sox, who went on to coach the Dodgers, first in Brooklyn then in LA which got Greg to Hollywood and transitioned him from stage to screen and back again. A late bloomer, first appearing onstage in the Army post his philosophy degree, 100+ shows later from Broadway to stages across the count

Peter Onorati Live on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson SO FUN! Spending time with Peter Onorati is like going out in the bright sunshine after a month in a dark cave. Such joy! We talked Italy and the wondrous vacation he treated his immediate family to visiting their extended family in towns I’ve never heard of and can’t begin to pronounce. But, I wanna go! Then there was Ravello, Positano, SWAT recognition, Rome, truffles, and a funny one that once made it home. There’s funny all over the place with Peter. A great story about Peter’s first son’s birth and his callback for Goodfellas - how he made the audition his - HISterical! And, a master class on how to make the audition yours… mine… ours… and some brilliant tips on acting, and reacting, in general. He disappeared for about 2 1/2 minutes when his laptop died but came back with so much more fun. Getting blacklisted by Les Moonves, the ER debacle, to Cop Rock, the best, as a non-singing actor hired to die, singing his ass off and becoming the central

Snuffy Walden Live on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson Lemonade! That’s what you get when you take a brilliantly talented, supportive beau, and the greatest, most fun-loving, and devoted co-commiserators on the planet and mix them together on what could have been a rough one. My gratitude is boundless. What fun this was! It helps when said Beau is Emmy Award-Winning Composer, Snuffy Walden, even though we didn’t really go there. From piano to trombone, finding guitar, playing strip clubs, to living in a park with his roadie, Aphrodite in Denver to fronting Stray Dog, opening for Emerson, Lake & Palmer around the world, a near-miss with me in ’74, drinking and debauchery, recording Songs in The Key of Life with Stevie Wonder, earning a platinum record, being in the passenger seat when Stevie drove––oh yes, he did; playing with Dave Mason, Donna Summer, Chaka Khan when she was breaking I Feel For You, touring with Eric Burdon, two times, and having an epiphany, thanks to longtime friend and bandmate, Michae

Oh, what crazy fun! Melanie Taylor who’s sung with pretty much everybody who’s anybody is such an absolute blast, joy, whip-smart, street-smart, soulful, intuitive, talented, informative, unabashedly opinionated and dare I say… right… at least, right on! We started with traveling the world, and how Mel’s work, touring, has enabled her to do so, more to the point, how to pack, and what… I was schooled! A girly girl influenced by her stylin’ grandmother, Melanie’s got it all going on, even when she only takes one medium suitcase and a backpack for a month! A theatre major dancer, a twist of fate/favor changed the course of Melanie’s life. She insisted she doesn’t plan. Singing was not on the program. As they say, life’s what happens when we’re busy making other plans. And what a life she’s living. From Disney to the Righteous Brothers, a Bette Harlette, backing up her fan crush, John Mayer, gushing onstage with Elton, caroling with Barbra, backing Chaka, Donna Summers, a surprise which led to being the fir

Tom Bergeron on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson What a blast to sit down again with the just honored inaugural recipient of The Sam Rubin Award from The Critics Choice Association and Emmy-Winner, Tom Bergeron. The humble humanitarian was as funny and feisty as ever regaling us with one show biz gold story after another and commanding us to Google what he deemed unworthy of repeating (why he left the “dancing show”). He actually scooped it on this very show almost two years ago to the day. We started with Tom’s current FLiRT with COVID, other than some residual fatigue, in under two weeks, thankfully, it’s in the rear-view. His daily routine, well, most of it anyway, and how structure affords him freedom. We talked his and Lois’s favorite and current binges, Midsomer Murders and The Veil, for two, and favorite people. Carl Reiner, how they met, and how their friendship developed, likewise, Dick Van Dyke, and William Shatner… or Bill, as he calls him, with whom he has a show optioned - oh please let it get

Thaao Penghlis Live on Game Changers With Vicki Abelson Looking as fit, youthful, and handsome as ever, thrice Emmy nominated, Thaao Penghlis, was a model of class, sophistication, charisma, and information. As has always been the case, the conversation flowed and the time flew. We talked about Thaao’s travels to Egypt and Greece, how to best visit his family’s homeland, The Lost Treasures, his podcast, his passion for cooking, his first appearance on a cooking show, and what he cooked, the recent drop of the paperback of his Seducing Celebrities One Meal At A Time, why he’s no longer on Days of Our Lives, and the illness that he faced without fear, with grit determination to best, which indeed he did. Diagnosed with colon cancer early in the pandemic, Thaao, who’s spent his life with extreme discipline––a Mediterranean diet, little to no junk food, regular exercise, daily meditation, yet he was predisposed to the disease which took his mother. With the same no-nonsense directness, Thaao faces everything in

Susan Seidelman Live on Game Changers with Vicki Abelson I’ve been desperately seeking Susan Seidelman for 14 years… some things, some Susans, are worth waiting for! Loved every second with this film maverick whom I’ve admired since we were both kicking around Greenwich Village, kinda “bad girls,” who looked, good. There’s so much common thread (well, except the whole success thing), as Susan points out when we traded books, do all Jewish girls from New York have the word “Mother” in their subtitles? That’s how I finally got the affirmative nod. Susan’s memoir, Desperately Seeking Something: A Memoir About Movies, Mothers, and Material Girls, drops on June 18th, a few days after my mother’s birthday. Fitting. I’ve been flying through it, unable to put it down, and rewatching Susan’s classics. How many times have I seen Desperately Seeking Susan, Madonna’s first and best film role, how Susan fought for her, Roseanna, how she struggled a bit with her, lessons learned, and success beyond imagining. Smithereen’

Toto’s Joseph Williams Live on Game Changers with Vicki Abelson Hold the line! What a way to reenter this arena - with arena rockstar Joseph Williams of Toto! I had the best time - can’t stop smiling. Joseph could not have been more accessible, personable, humble, willing, thoughtful, informative… entertaining, and warm––like a fuzzy blanket on a cool summer night. Just loved every minute. I watched quite a few interviews with Joseph to get to know him a bit before sitting down with him. All that I saw were centered around the music of Toto and Joseph’s solo work––the songs, the musicians, the concerts. Fascinating! I wanted to know about the kid, the son, the man, the artist, the vocalist, the composer, who thrived, who struggled, who acted out, who cleaned up, and that’s exactly what generous Joseph gave us, no holds barred, no lines held, as it were. From his earliest days with his dad, John Williams, making genius in the other room, his actress-singer mother, Barbara Ruick, turning life into songs, he

I’m filled to the brim with love, compassion, and inspiration. I so enjoyed every moment in Lydia Cornell’s most excellent company. A strong, talented, generous, capable woman, who knows who she is, where she’s been, and where she wants to be, allowing for godshots that may alter her future at any turn, AFI Best Actress nominee and People’s Choice Award winner Lydia, best known for her starring role in Too Close for Comfort, is all that and a standup comedienne, writer, director, public speaker, and activist. We went back to Lydia’s early days in El Paso Texas, her Russian father, and challenging mother… the haircut, the Barbies, the boys, oh my! Moving to Scarsdale, starring in High School plays, college in Boulder., Colorado, and Hollywood by way of the music biz, Caribou Ranch…. some great stories there… Billy Joel, Joni Mitchell, Dennis Wilson, Henry Diltz, dating Paul Stanley and Donnie Most, and how her naive approach to breaking into the biz, worked! On her third audition, she landed a starring role

Rick Vito Live on Game Changers with Vicki Abelson What a lovely way to spend a sunny afternoon. Grammy-nominated guitarist, singer, and producer, Rick Vito, probably best known as a member of Fleetwood Mac, was a sunny delight, hisself. Coming to us Live from Franklin TN, following the release of his recently dropped latest album, Cadillac Man, we wiled away the hour talking his tastes… The Stones, Duane Eddy, BB King, his passions, Jimi Hendrix, Peter Green, his custom guitars, and his history… a 41-year marriage, two great kids, starting out with Delaney and Bonnie and Eric Clapton, what a story there! Moving to LA, crashing with Todd Rundgren, Something/Anything? Could I have played that album more freshman year? John Prine’s Common Sense… oh please! An all-time favorite! Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne, with our friends Russ Kunkel and Kootch, Bob Seger, and that idea of Rick’s to play slide on Like a Rock, a tasty choice that would become an iconic anthem for Chevrolet and a generation. A great story ab

Hal Linden Live on Game Changers with Vicki Abelson Does it get better than this? Someone’s gonna have to prove it to me. Wow, what a time with Hal Linden! As nice, charming, handsome, and tall (well, I’m guessing on the last), as his Barney Miller, Hal was all that and a hefty bag of Cheetos. Absolutely age-defying - I want to see his birth certificate. It’s unfathomable that he’s 93. Still dashing, his voice strong, mind sharp, wit crackling, and his talent will be on display next weekend in Flat Rock, co-starring with Marilu Henner in Ed Weinberger’s, The Journals of Adam and Eve. I wanna go! Road trip? Hal took us through his early days, one of six cousins, all professional musicians, he a clarinetist first, classically trained, in the musicians union at 15, then the sax called, a hysterical story there, the army, and then the theatre… to hear Hal tell it, it all makes sense. From summer stock to Broadway as an understudy in Bells Are Ringing with Judy Holliday. I won’t dare ruin that story. It was 8 ye

Warren Ham Live on Game Changers with Vicki Abelson What an absolutely delightful sit down with multi-instrumentalist and vocalist, Warren Ham. As much as I was blown away seeing him do his thing (s) Live with Ringo and his All Starr Band, singing lead, background vocals, playing flute, sax, harmonica, keyboards, and percussion, I’m exhausted just typing it, let alone watching him work the entire multi-level stage, I was equally impressed chatting with him. What an engaging, fun, open, self-effacing, lovely, ridiculously talented, accessible, human. Warren started us with his family’s gospel group, recording his first album at 5. What a slacker! Country music and mandolin with his guitar-playing older brother Bill followed. While Warren sang and played harmonica with every garage band in Fort Worth, Bill was playing on TV on The Sonny & Cher Show, paving the way for things to come. Bloodrock and three albums followed and then dueting with Cher for three years in Vegas and meeting… well, pretty much everyon

Butch Patrick Live on Game Changers with Vicki Abelson What a fun chat with Butch Patrick, aka Eddie Munster, who’s warm, easy and so comfortable in his skin that it’s impossible to not feel like an old friend coming home. Butch makes everyone in his path feel seen, heard, and important. What a gift. We talked about current events… living in Arkansas, his Munster Mobiles, getting out and meeting his fans, his girlfriend, how they met, and how they keep it going. And we went back… how a 7 yr old got his start in film, had a career in TV, and at the age of 10, a starring role on one of the most iconic and endearing television shows of all time. Thank goodness Bill Mumy took a pass. There are no accidents. This was Butch’s path. We talked Fred Gwynne, Al Lewis, Yvonne De Carlo, The Cowsills, and The Monkees, and his amazing episode and time shooting with them at the height of all of their fame. There were crazy days and trouble. Pot, booze, and drugs, and then, 13 years ago, getting sober. Butch’s ease a