Windy City Media Group Frontpage News

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

home search facebook twitter join
Gay News Sponsor Windy City Times 2023-12-13
DOWNLOAD ISSUE
Donate

Sponsor
Sponsor
Sponsor

  WINDY CITY TIMES

Andy Cohen: Talks celebrities, plays 'Plead the Fifth'
NUNN ON ONE: TV
by Jerry Nunn, Windy City Times
2012-05-09

This article shared 4432 times since Wed May 9, 2012
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email


Emmy Award winner Andy Cohen has taken the Real Housewives all the way to the bank on Bravo TV. He turned a then-struggling network into a Queer Eye for the Straight Guy success story. He has had the Midas touch, producing such highly rated shows as Top Chef, The Millionaire Matchmaker and Flipping Out.

Cohen is the first openly gay late-night talk show host with Watch What Happens Live, where he plays drinking games, talks current events and has two random celebrities "plead the fifth" where they can pass on one difficult question.

His first book, Most Talkative: Stories From the Front Line of Pop Culture, chronicles his journey into the spotlight. He will be in Chicago this weekend hosting Center on Halsted's Human First gala.

Windy City Times: Hi, Andy. First off, we are excited you are coming to Chicago.

Andy Cohen: Me, too. I love Chicago.

WCT: You are coming with kd lang. Have you met her before?

AC: I have never met her. I am such a fan of hers.

WCT: She has an incredible voice.

AC: Yes, she really does.

WCT: We appreciate you coming out for a good cause and human rights. If you get a chance you should check out the Center on Halsted while you are here.

AC: I hear it is great.

WCT: It is very impressive. So let's talk about the book. You had me at hello with your first interview with Susan Lucci at the beginning.

AC: Oh, good. It is a fun story, right?

WCT: Definitely; then it was full circle when you had her on Watch What Happens Live last night.

AC: Isn't it crazy? I got a little choked up at the beginning of the show. I don't know if you could tell.

WCT: You hid it well.

AC: Good. It was total full circle. Here is this woman who took me to lunch and changed my life in 1987. Here she is appearing on my show years later. It was very cool and life is so funny and amazing like that.

WCT: When did you first fall in love with celebrities?

AC: Well, I really fell in love with TV from as far as I can remember. With the Brady Bunch I just got hooked. I grew up two inches from the television, and I always wanted to be on TV somehow. The idea that I have gotten to do this for 23 years is amazing. The way it happened is a great story and it was one of the reasons that I wanted to write the book. I have so many funny stories about my life in TV. I also talk about my own coming out story, which I think is important for anybody to share and pass on.

WCT: I loved the Tammy Faye story and that mention of Queerdonna! Whatever happened to her?

AC: I am so glad. You are the first person to pick up on the Queerdonna reference.

WCT: My family is from Oklahoma and you mentioned covering [news there] in the book. Is it hard to switch and cover heavy topics?

AC: Yes, it was hard. I ultimately wound up getting burned out on the news business. It is pretty clear in the book how that happened. It was a wild time. I am glad I was in my twenties pretty much the whole time in the '90s, since I didn't get much sleep. Come to think of it, I haven't gotten much sleep since I was 18.

WCT: You must have a grueling schedule doing a live show five days a week.

AC: Doing that and the day job is a lot.

WCT: How long did it take you to write the book?

AC: Four and half months. I had a very hard deadline of Jan. 1. I started writing it in the middle of August. I did not have much time at all. I am very deadline oriented and good with them. I just had to jam it out. I spent every weekend as a shut in. It was pretty fun though. I think it was the most fulfilling thing writing a book. It is tangible proof of something that you did.

WCT: Have your family and friends read the book?

AC: Yeah; they are all amused.

WCT: It reads just like you. That Eddie Murphy part sounded so traumatizing…

AC: It really was. People forget that Eddie Murphy's whole act was built around dropping the F-bomb. That was a hard thing for me going to that show, and being on mushrooms didn't help matters. That was upsetting. There were no gay people on TV then. I felt like there were no gay people anywhere. That was a really hard time in my life. It is funny how far we have all come.

WCT: It still happens today. I went to see the comedian Jo Koy and he called an audience member a faggot and I wrote about it. Chelsea Handler even addressed the issue and the story blew up. It is not funny to me.

AC: People can't do that anymore.

WCT: Alright, before we get too heavy. It's time to play "Plead the fifth!" First question, I need the dramatic music but… Are you single?

AC: Yes.

WCT: Okay, who is your favorite or least favorite Housewife?

AC: Plead the fifth!

WCT: What celebrity disappointed you after meeting them?

AC: Oh, god…

WCT: You mentioned Diana Ross in the book.

AC: She was really nice but if you build something up in your mind that it is going to be the most profound experience ever there is almost no way that you won't be disappointed in some way. She was lovely. In my mind, I thought she was a superhero.

WCT: I met her last week, actually. I didn't know what to say to her. What do you say to someone like that, who hasn't heard it all a million times before?

AC: Exactly. What do you say to this woman: "Ain't No Mountain High Enough?"

WCT: I just said, "Thanks for a great show." Is there a dream guest you would like to have on your show Watch What Happens Live?

AC: Michelle Obama! How cool would that be? The Real First Housewife…

WCT: Hey, you had a Kardashian recently on your show so that is big.

AC: I also got Ralph Fiennes, Liam Neeson and Jerry Seinfeld. Some would argue that it is harder to get them than a Kardashian.

WCT: I have really enjoyed watching the show. I think it is important that we have an openly gay host on a nighttime talk show.

AC: I think it is fun that there is an out gay late night host. I like that.

WCT: I wanted to say congrats on Million Dollar Listing New York getting renewed.

AC: Oh my God! Isn't that great?

WCT: What about Shahs of Sunset?

AC: We picked that up, too.

WCT: I hadn't heard. Looks like there is a whole new batch of shows on the way.

AC: Around the World in 80 Plates starts this week and I love it so much.

WCT: I just talked to Cat, Curtis and Gary from the show. John is from local restaurant Seasons 52. Are you getting to try some restaurants while you are here?

AC: I haven't thought that far ahead.

WCT: Well, we are looking forward to you being here. Have a safe flight and I will see you at the gala.

AC: See you there!

Keep up with all of Andy's shows at www.bravotv.com and purchase Most Talkative where all books are sold such as www.amazon.com .

Andy hosts the Human First gala Saturday, May 12, at 7:00 p.m. at the Harris Theater at Millennium Park, 205 E. Randolph St. Visit www.centeronhalsted.org for tickets on how you can join him and watch an unforgettable performance by k.d. lang that night.


This article shared 4432 times since Wed May 9, 2012
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email

Out and Aging
Presented By

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

SHOWBIZ Dionne Warwick, OUTshine, Ariana DeBose, 'Showgirls,' 'Harlem' 2024-03-29
Video below - Iconic singer Dionne Warwick was honored for her decades-long advocacy work for people living with HIV/AIDS at a star-studded amfAR fundraising gala in Palm Beach, per the Palm Beach Daily News. Warwick received the "Award of ...


Gay News

WORLD Uganda items, HIV report, Mandela, Liechtenstein, foreign minister weds 2024-03-21
- It turned out that U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Senior LGBTQI+ Coordinator Jay Gilliam traveled to Uganda on Feb. 19-27, per The Washington Blade. He visited the capital of Kampala and the nearby city of ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Queer musicians, Marvel situation, Elliot Page, Nicole Kidman 2024-03-21
- Queer musician Joy Oladokun released the single "I Wished on the Moon," from Jack Antonoff's official soundtrack for the new Apple TV+ series The New Look, per a press release. The soundtrack, ...


Gay News

RuPaul finds 'Hidden Meanings' in new memoir 2024-03-18
- RuPaul Andre Charles made a rare Chicago appearance for a book tour on March 12 at The Vic Theatre, 3145 N. Sheffield Ave. Presented by National Public Radio station WBEZ 91.5 FM, the talk coincided with ...


Gay News

Oprah, Niecy Nash-Betts honored at GLAAD Media Awards 2024-03-15
- Oprah Winfrey and Niecy Nash-Betts were honored at the 35th Annual GLAAD Media Awards that took place in Los Angeles at The Beverly Hilton on March 14. Winfrey received the Vanguard Award, introduced by iconic Chicago ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Jinkx Monsoon, Xavier Dolan, 'Frida,' Lena Waithe, out singer 2024-03-08
- Two-time RuPaul's Drag Race winner Jinkx Monsoon is headed back to the New York stage, joining off-Broadway's Little Shop of Horrors as Audrey beginning April 2, according to Playbill. The casting makes Monsoon the first drag ...


Gay News

Queer Eye's Jai Rodriguez is set to slay at The Big Gay Cabaret 2024-03-05
- Out and proud performer Jai Rodriguez is set to play at The Big Gay Cabaret this March for three days. Presented by RuPaul Drag Racer Ginger Minj, this monthly series highlights the wide world of cabaret ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Queer actors, icons duet, Hunter Schafer, Oscars, Elizabeth Taylor 2024-03-01
- Queer actor Kal Penn is set to star in Trust Me, I'm a Doctor—a film that chronicles the final days of actress/model Anna Nicole Smith, whose overdose death in 2007 at age 39 sparked a tabloid ...


Gay News

SAG Awards honor Streisand, few LGBTQ+ actors 2024-02-25
- Queer entertainers made their mark—although not a major one—at the 2024 Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards, held Feb. 24 in Los Angeles. The event was live-streamed on Netflix for the first time. Indigenous and Two-Spirit actor ...


Gay News

THEATER Dot-Marie Jones talks Goodman production, 'Glee,' 'Bros' 2024-02-12
- Running through Feb. 18 at the the Goodman Theatre, the production Highway Patrol works with a script conceived entirely from Emmy-winning actor Dana Delany's (TV's China Beach) digital archive of hundreds of tweets and direct messages ...


Gay News

GLAAD finds missed chances for LGBTQ+ inclusion in Super Bowl ads 2024-02-12
--From a press release - Sunday, Feb. 11, 2024 — GLAAD is reacting to a lack of LGBTQ storytelling in ads that aired duringSuper Bowl LVIII on Feb. 11 and is reminding brands, corporations and advertising agencies why including the LGBTQ ...


Gay News

SAVOR 'The Bear,' new pizza lounge, Chicago Black Restaurant Week 2024-02-11
- "Bear" necessities: The third season of the Chicago-set series The Bear will debut in June, per Variety. FX chairman John Landgraf made the announcement during the network's presentation at the Television Critics Association's winter 2024 press ...


Gay News

Quantum Leap reboot springs into LGBTQ+ representation 2024-02-09
- Through the magic of television, Quantum Leap is once again jumping into the past to bounce back into the future—and in a recent episode, "The Family Trasure," non-binary artist and performer Wilder Yuri and writer Shakina ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Raven-Symone, women's sports, Wayne Brady, Jinkx Monsoon, British Vogue 2024-02-09
- In celebration of Black History Month, the LA LGBT Center announced that lesbian entertainer Raven-Symone will be presented with the Center's Bayard Rustin Award at its new event, Highly Favored, per a press release. She joins ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ JoJo Siwa, Tom Holland, Bowen Yang, Pet Shop Boys, Mariah Carey 2024-02-02
- In the wake of Nigel Lythgoe exiting So You Think You Can Dance, queer personality JoJo Siwa is returning to the series, per Deadline. Siwa, who was a judge on season 17 of the Fox show, will replace Lythgoe, who left ...


 


Copyright © 2024 Windy City Media Group. All rights reserved.
Reprint by permission only. PDFs for back issues are downloadable from
our online archives.

Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, drawings, and
photographs submitted if they are to be returned, and no
responsibility may be assumed for unsolicited materials.

All rights to letters, art and photos sent to Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago
Gay and Lesbian News and Feature Publication) will be treated
as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and as such,
subject to editing and comment. The opinions expressed by the
columnists, cartoonists, letter writers, and commentators are
their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature Publication).

The appearance of a name, image or photo of a person or group in
Nightspots (Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times
(a Chicago Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature
Publication) does not indicate the sexual orientation of such
individuals or groups. While we encourage readers to support the
advertisers who make this newspaper possible, Nightspots (Chicago
GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay, Lesbian
News and Feature Publication) cannot accept responsibility for
any advertising claims or promotions.

 
 

TRENDINGBREAKINGPHOTOS







Sponsor


 



Donate


About WCMG      Contact Us      Online Front  Page      Windy City  Times      Nightspots
Identity      BLACKlines      En La Vida      Archives      Advanced Search     
Windy City Queercast      Queercast Archives     
Press  Releases      Join WCMG  Email List      Email Blast      Blogs     
Upcoming Events      Todays Events      Ongoing Events      Bar Guide      Community Groups      In Memoriam     
Privacy Policy     

Windy City Media Group publishes Windy City Times,
The Bi-Weekly Voice of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Trans Community.
5315 N. Clark St. #192, Chicago, IL 60640-2113 • PH (773) 871-7610 • FAX (773) 871-7609.