David Frost (1939-2013)

The Douglas Michael Show with Wendi McLendon-Covey

Here's a little interview I did with acclaimed BRIDESMAIDS star Wendi McLendon-Covey back in 2009.

Doug: Wendi McLendon-Covey is one of the funniest and talented women working in Hollywood today. Her role on RENO:911 won her a legion of fans - and she continues to entertain and charm audiences with her comic timing and sex appeal in film and on TV. Hello Wendi, first of I all - thank you for being the first guest on THE DOUGLAS MICHAEL SHOW! 

Wendi: Thank you for having me! The pleasure is all mine.

D: Recently you've done guest appearances on comedies like THE OFFICE and KATH & KIM. If you could be in any other sitcom from TV history - which one would it be and who would you want to play?

W: When I was in elementary school, I wanted to play “Sonny” on the show BOSOM BUDDIES. She wasn’t necessarily funny, but she was gorgeous and she got to play the love interest of Tom Hanks! I had such a crush on him! And I also thought it would have been fun to play Lucy Ricardo, Gidget, and Louise Jefferson.

 D: I’d love to see you as Weezie! LOL! Most women comics site legends like Carol Burnett or Lily Tomlin as their main influence. Who influenced you?

W: Of course I love those two women, and I used to drive my family crazy with my “Edith Ann” impression after I saw Lily Tomlin play that character on SESAME STREET. But I was also heavily influenced by Bill Cosby, Steve Martin, and Flip Wilson. I used to listen to their comedy albums over and over until the records warped.

D: Believe or not, I had all those albums too. Great, classic stand-up. You've been a member of The Groundlings for a few years - it's amazing how many of my favorite comic performers have been a part of that troupe! I've always heard it was an intense process to make your way through the program. (It sounds like a religious cult). Any advice for the young comic who'd want to try out?

W: It’s very much like a religious cult in that we are made to shave our heads and wear robes. And yes, the process is intense because the goal is to teach you to improvise, and then to use your improvisational skills as a means to write sketch comedy. It can be frustrating in the same way that learning a foreign language can be frustrating, especially when you have a teacher that refuses to speak to you in English while you’re learning. In the end, you learn more from a teacher that doesn’t coddle you. And with improv you get a better result from LISTENING and responding accordingly rather than looking for places to insert punchlines. 

D: Speaking of cults: LOVESPRING INTERNATIONAL was a funny, funny show. I know so many people who loved it – it’s got quite a growing cult following. The cast was perfection and it was so giddily over the top - I don't think the people at Lifetime understood it. Was it as much fun to make as it was to watch? Have you heard anything about a dvd release of the series?

W: Thank you! That was one of the most rewarding professional experiences of my life because it was so collaborative. And we had a dream team of improvisors – Sam Pancake, Jane Lynch, Jack Plotnick, Jennifer Elise Cox – it was so much fun to go to work everyday. But you’re right: Lifetime loved it at first, then they lost confidence in it. I don’t know that it will ever be released on DVD, but I think you can still watch entire episodes on Hulu.

D: Is there a chance we'll see you again on Lifetime - maybe in a dramatic role as Judith Light's blind daughter or something?

W: From your lips to God’s ears, my darling! Then I’ll know I’ve made it. Judith Light is a force of nature. I bought Pro-Active after watching her in those infomercials! She moved me to tears with her sensitivity towards the acne afflicted. I’m not even kidding.

D: Judith is pretty awesome. I hope you do get to work with her! One of my favorite TV shows of all-time (as readers of my blog may know) was SUPERFRIENDS - I was delighted to find out that you were also a fan! Any memories you care to share?
W: I was always scared by the episodes that featured giant, room-sized computers, because I knew that one day I’d have to learn how to use one. It really vexed me. And I didn’t like the Wonder Twins; their eyes were the same color as their skin, their voices were irritating, and they didn’t seem to take things as seriously as the other Superfriends. I mean, they were defending THE WORLD!
D: I never thought about that eye thing. The curse of cheap Hanna-Barbera animation! Well, thank you so much for being my guest - and taking the time to answer my silly questions. I look forward to seeing much more of you in the years to come!
W: Thank YOU for wanting to hear my silly answers to your silly questions!

THE DOUGLAS MICHAEL SHOW with Dee Freeman

Continuing my interviews with the cast of the new hit web series PRETTY, today on THE DOUGLAS MICHAEL SHOW, I welcome the lovely and talented Dee Freeman.
Doug: Ms. Dee Freeman is a force of nature. You play Ribina Champagne, mother of pageant contestant Annette in PRETTY. From the first second Ribina appears, it's like a comedy hurricane has swept through the room. Did you base your performance on anybody you know?

Dee: Yes, a part of this character is loosely (very loosely) based on an aunt of mine from Louisiana who owned a bar/restaurant. In a wild neighborhood, my aunt never had a bouncer or bodyguard cause she didn’t need one. It wasn’t because she was a big woman, she wasn’t. People knew her reputation and were afraid to step over that line with her. If her reputation wasn’t enough, she carried a pistol with her everywhere she went.

Doug : Wow, your aunt sounds like a hoot! Did you do any other research?
Dee: I also watched a lot of those reality shows dealing with pageants. There was a lot to pull from there. A lot. 


Doug: Ribina is a professional smoker, which is totally hysterical. On set we used those herbal cigarettes. Do you smoke in "real life"?
Dee: I used to smoke but I quit 3 years ago. Just when I was weaning myself from the addiction to the nicotine gum, this role came along. One of my friends asked me if I considered not doing the role because of that. Hell no! Actually…it was harder to quit the nicotine gum than the actual smoking.


Doug: Those fake cigarettes smelled even worse than the real thing. Ribina also tosses around "the F word" pretty freely. Was that hard to do, or did it just come naturally?


Dee: No, it was pretty f----in easy.


Doug: LOL! You've done so many TV comedies, from COACH to a continuing role on THE HUGHLEYS, (one of my mom's favorite shows). Do you have a favorite comedy series?

Dee: Tell your mom she has fabulous taste. But…favorite comedy series? I guess it would depend on when you asked me. My favorite tv show of all time is ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS. But there’s a show on the air right now that I think is simply BRILLIANT, and that’s MODERN FAMILY. I LOVE it!
Doug : I totally love AB FAB, of course. I think Ribina would fit in nicely with Edina and Patsy! Along the same lines, who are your comedy heroes?


Dee: I’m glad you said heroes as in plural, cause I could never name just one. Whoopi Goldberg is one of my shereos. (no one could have been as brilliant as she was in GHOST. NO ONE!!!) Will Ferrell is hysterical and I think Tina Fey is just genetically inclined to be funny.

Doug: I remember running into Whoopi once on the street in New York back in the 80s. This was before THE COLOR PURPLE. She has the biggest brightest smile in the world. Like Ms. Goldberg, you've done lots of drama too. THE X FILES to DEXTER. Which genre do you prefer, comedy or drama?


Dee: I actually love them equally, but If I were forced to choose between the two (It would be hard. Much like Meryl Streep in SOPHIE'S CHOICE hard) But if forced, I would pick comedy. I love to make people laugh.

Doug: And that you do so very well! You were on an ABC AFTERSCHOOL SPECIAL! That is awesome. What 
was that all about? Did you play a wise-ass school teacher?


Dee: Actually, I was a wise-ass cop. I was able to use my strength from my background as a Marine in this role. Oorah!
Doug: I think you are the first Marine I ever met. The Few. The Proud. The Pretty!!! So after PRETTY, what's next for Dee?


Dee: Well…I just finished filming a TV show called SVETLANA, which will be airing the beginning of this year. I’m scheduled to start a film sometime mid March/early April called WAY OF SEEING. I’m also performing in another play this summer (an original production written by a friend of mine). And…I’m writing two projects. I got the idea for a travel show a while back and hopefully I’ll be pitching that this year. Also…No one has really told the women Marines story. When people comment on the Marine Corps to me they’ll say…”Oh! We loved PRIVATE BENJAMIN”, or “Did it bother you to cut all your hair off?” We seem to be the service people know very little about. I’d like to change that. 


Doug: That could be really interesting, especially if you base it on your real experiences-but inject your sense of humor. Best of luck with all these projects. Thanks so much for taking the time to chat with me. Looking forward to seeing more Dee Freeman!


Dee: Thank you! And everybody keep watching PRETTY!

The Douglas Michael Show with guest Sal Polichetti of "Sonseed"

Hello readers, welcome to a very special edition of Dougsploitation's The Douglas Michael Show. For those of you unfamiliar with the back story of my relationship/obsessesion with Sonseed, here it is in a nutshell.

I've owned a VHS tape of Sonseed performing "Jesus is a Friend of Mine" on an episode the WNBC TV show THE FIRST ESTATE for over 25 years. I've shown it to hundreds of people over the years. People of all faiths and people of no faith all just seemed to LOVE it. In August of 2008, a friend of mine converted it to digital and I posted it on Vimeo and also here on this very blog. Some crafty person stole it from Vimeo and put it on YouTube and before you knew, people all around the world were singing along with Sal Polichetti and the band. I later stole it back and posted it on YouTube myself as well- as have countless others. 2 Million viewings, several parodies and covers later, the song and the video had taken on a life of their own.

Soon after I posted the video, I was able, through a series of lucky circumstances, to get an exclusive interview with Sal, which I posted on this blog as a "Dougsploitation News Special Report". My daily visitors suddenly went from around 8 to over 8000 because there was no information about Sonseed available anywhere other than here...and then accusations began to fly that I made the whole thing up. That was fun. I even got to do a few interviews myself because of that. Now, a year later, I sit across from Sal Polichetti in a diner in Manhattan's Chelsea and we talk like old friends.
Doug : Hey Sal, it's great to talk to you again - almost a year later and this time FACE-TO-FACE! Welcome to my virtual talk-show - and my first on-location interview! If someone told me a year ago that I'd be sitting in a diner in Chelsea across from Sal from Sonseed, I would NEVER believe them. Life is strange sometimes.

Sal: You can take the boy out of Brooklyn but you can't take Brooklyn out of the boy. Although you've been living in California and I've been living upstate NY for quite some time it was obvious where we came from. Not everyone would understand that (you have to be from "New Yawk").

Doug: It's good to be back home, even if it is just for a quick visit. As you know, since I first posted the Sonseed video on my blog last year, you might say that things have kinda gotten outta control. Before Sonseed I had about 8 readers a day - then it was about 8000 a day. So, how has YOUR life changed in the past year?

Sal: I've never had a fan club in Sweden before! My brother-in-law forwarded it to me last week. I don't know what they're saying but I assume it's positive. I've also never done a telephone interview for a morning drive-time radio station in Sydney, Australia either (it's true; every other word out of their mouths is "mate"). I guess it's the wide scope of this whole thing that amazes me!

Doug: Wow, Sweden, Australia - you are an international superstar! There must be at least a dozen Facebook fan clubs. Did you ever think that Sonseed would be out on CD and available in stores like Best Buy? How did that all come about?
Sal: Greg Glover from Arena Rock in Oregon contacted me. He distributes a lot of indie, out-of-the-box stuff and thought this might be fun. We couldn't use the entire album due to copyright restrictions but most of the good stuff is there.
Doug: Oh, and it's so cool that I got a special "thank you" on the CD! What has been the reaction of your family...and friends to Sonseed's resurgence?
Sal: My sisters and their kids are blown away. I guess when you're a teenager and your old uncle Sal is a "YouTube" star that's big cred at school. My kids are sort of used to it; they've been seeing me perform in plays and with the band their whole lives. But I am waiting for my son to use "have you seen my dad on YouTube?" as a pick-up line.Doug: That's hysterical! Mabye he can get a tee-shirt made via Cafe Press that says that? I have to tell you, the part that makes me the happiest about this whole thing is you were able to reconnect with old friends because of all this and that it brought some happiness to Brother John before he passed away.
Sal: Everyone I've gotten in touch with has been really cool about the whole thing. It was great re-connecting with Frank Franco again (besides the annual Christmas card exchange) and we've actually met a few times in the past year. There are still some Sonseeders I haven't heard from yet. I find it hard to believe they all haven't heard about this whole thing. Maybe they're pissed off. Maybe they're embarrassed. Hard to tell.

Doug: Maybe they just don't have internet access yet? You've recently appeared on stage with a few bands- performing "Jesus is a Friend of Mine" to sold-out crowds. That must have been and incredible experience. So what's next for you? What's next for Sonseed?

Sal: Same old for me. I just finished doing "The Sunshine Boys" at a small theater in Walden, NY and I'm now in rehearsals for "Kiss Me Kate" in Monroe, NY. I still play old rock and roll with 3 other old guys every so often (my first love, actually). As far as Sonseed I suppose that's it. It would probably take "Beatle reunion" type cash to get all of us in the same place at the same time again. Frankly, I don't see that happening.

Doug: Well, if that reunion happens, I wanna be there! I just have to say what an extreme pleasure it has been meeting you in person and getting to know you. I only wish I had posted the video YEARS ago, but I'm so glad I finally did.

Sal: Same for me, brother. I don't know how I would have handled this years ago but I'm in a good place in my life right now and was able to enjoy it.Doug: Thanks again for talking to me and helping put my blog on the map. I love that your family sent me a "Hi Doug" photo. That is so sweet! All my best to your daughter Christina, your wife Donna and your son Joseph. I love that I can now say that "Sal Polichetti is a Friend of Mine"!Sal: Same to you and all you care about. If we ever get out to LA, we'll do this again!

Doug: I look forward to it - LA has a lots of great diners for us to hang out in. Oh by the way, I recently got to re-screen the video at Dennis Hensley's HOME VIDEO GONG SHOW at the REDCAT Theater at Walt Disney Concert Hall in downtown L.A. - it did not get gonged this time! Here it is again, for old time's sake...ZAP!

The Douglas Michael Show with guests Chico's Angels

CHICO'S ANGELS has been an underground cult hit on the Los Angeles theater scene for over half a decade. This summer’s stage show is titled Chico’s Angels 2: Love Boat Chicas! The gals are getting all dolled up to solve another case - this time on the high seas when Charo hires the Angels to find out who is trying to kill her...and her ocean-going career!!!


CHICO'S ANGELS are Kay Sedia (the pretty one), Chita Patrol (the smart one) and Frieda Laye (the “friendly” one). These three glamorous ladies have been solving crimes, breaking hearts and making us laugh on stage for six years now–and there's no stopping them as they continue to skyrocket to fame as internet superstars.
Recently, the Angels filmed three mini-episodes to premiere exclusively on their website. Their heavenly site features weekly-updated Angel blogs, bios, hot videos, on-fire merchandise, and tickets for the stage show.
Doug: Ladies, Wow! What can I say? I've been a fan for a long time. You all look spectacular. Thanks for being my first three-way, um interview.

Kay: Aye! don be so nasty all the tines!!
Frieda: Oh, that's called a manage a trough!
Chita: Hi and stuff!
D: Let's start with your look. Each one of you has a unique and individual style. Who was your inspiration?

K: Rosarita, from Rosarita beans.
F: I would have to say Farrah Faucett & Goldie Hawn in a paintball fight with Cleopatra Jones.
C: All the sexy Latinas that came before me.

D: I've noticed that all good things (and some bad things) come in threes. Angels,

Brady children of the same sex, Star Wars movies, etc. Did you ever consider have a fourth Angel? If so, who?

K: Only if she's fat and has no chi chi's so that Chita doesn't feel so lonely.
F: Well, there my sister Juana Laye, but she's too mush of a slut to work with us.
C: No way, I can barely put up with the other two!D: With you three appearing all over Hollywood lately, any celebrity crushes or on-set romances to report?

K: Crushes? I prefer Fanta.
F: Aye jes, I always had a thing for Jason Statham, Huge Jackman and Cantinflas.
C: I'm in love with ...... What's today?....oh yeah.....Jake Gyllenhal.

D: As Latina role models, is there any advice you can give to young chicas out there?

K: Make chure it's tight and shiney!
F: Learning to talk Enlitch good, 'cause the peoples will judge ju and think ju don't know nothing.
C: Use a Sharpie #4.

D: I just noticed that your initials add up to KFC - is that an happy accident?

K: No accident, were a bunch of breast , thighs, and dumstick (that's not misspell!)
F: Aye, no! ...but I can tell ju about accidents...
C: No, cause we're tender and finger lickin good!D: What can you tell me about your upcoming webisodes? Any juicy spoilers?

K: Lot's of shirtless men's! And me getting the boys!
F: I'm not allowed to say nothing, cause I signed a competency agreement, but I will say they sexy, sexy and action pack!
C: Kay getting the boys, I hate her!!
D: Any other places fans can catch the Angels? Any trade shows? Parades?
Supermarket openings? Tupperware Parties coming up?

K: I'm on the Garden Grove and Pacioma Tupperware tour at the moment. An ju can find me on my soon to depute web site . Oh and in the basement of a Mexican restaurant doing our thing!
F: In addition to the webs, facebook, myspace and the chicosangels.com, I can be found around Santa Monica & Orange depending on the hour.

C: The show has been extended thru August 2nd. You better come or I'll kick you in the shins!
D: Ow, Chita! Okay - I will be there this weekend. Thanks so much for chatting with me, I hope the next time I see you gals will be on primetime TV - because I think you're all more talented that most of what I see on the boob tube these days.

K: Oh, ju chould see Chita wearing a tube top! So funny when et's around her knees!!
F: Aye, thank ju! Now tell me more about these boobs that are like tubes....
C: Thank ju! We hope to be spreading the Chico's Angels love all over the world!

The show's extended run goes until August 2nd - with 2 Sunday matinees added on July 26th and August 2nd at 2:00pm Shows are Thursday – Sunday 8PM. Tickets on sale at chicosangels.com Location: Cavern Club Theater inside Casita Del Campo Restaurant 1920 Hyperion Los Angeles, CA 90027

MORE ABOUT THE ANGELS:

Kay Sedia: Born in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico, Kay is the youngest of 18 children and the prettiest of them all. Chico discovered her from an ad for girdles in the Penny saver Magazine. When not being chased by hunky hotties and creepy criminals Kay finds time to make a modest living selling Tupperware . Kay’s job title is detective/model/Tupperware sales lady, but any crime she uncovers is always by accident. Kay thinks of herself as voluptuous and the pretty Angel.
Frieda Laye: Fredida was born in what is known as La Frontera de Chihuahua, Ciudad Juarez Mexico, or as it's come to be known across the border, J-Town. Frieda was left under the door mat of a convent, Las Hermanas de la Madre Guadalupe de los Chavos. She realized that her destiny was to be one of Chico's Angels and that she was to use her special abilities to fight crime as a private investigator. ...and to supplement her income as a private dancer as well. Frieda is proud to be one of Chico's Angels, and while she may not have the brightest halo, it is the blondest.

Chita Parol: She was born in East Los Angeles, California as a first generation Mexican/American. As the smart one, and angry about it, Chita keeps focused on the job, except for those small moments, far and in between, where she gets to shine. She never seems to get the guy, mainly due to her anger management issues. She’s working on that, and getting better. Now she only hates everyone just a little bit. Chita fancies herself the pretty one.

Coming Soon: THE DOUGLAS MICHAEL SHOW

In the tradition of THE MIKE DOUGLAS SHOW, Dougsploitation announces...
Featuring actual interviews with real live stars of TV and Film (and possibly other media) on this very blog! Check back soon for the beginning of a new era in Dougsploitation!