"This is like the Last Supper with Barbara as Jesus!"Joy Behar gets in one last joke on Barbara Walters' final day on The View.
I began writing this column in August 1995. Two years later, I moved to L.A., since work necessitated me being in Hollywood more and more. My apartment had a pullout sofa and my trusty television. On that first morning, ABC launched a new talk show. Throughout my professional journey, I have started every day with the ladies of The View. In fact, if you look on either side of my much larger TV, you will see every single "View" mug.
Last week, Barbara Walters left not only The View, but television. She left with a caveat: "If Fidel Castro or a former president dies, I would do something for ABC News, where I'll keep an office." Her penultimate installment of The View was particularly memorable. Cleverly called "Déjà View," it featured each and every co-host of the show. Not only that, but chronological seating dictated that sworn enemies found themselves side-by-side ( Debbie Matenopoulos and Star Jones, Rosie O'Donnell and Elisabeth Hasselbeck ). The show was short on sparks but high on nostalgia, culminating in a memorable final segment. Coming full-circle, the original cast was once again sitting around the original table ( with, I should add, their original mugs ). For better or worse, these ladies together changed daytime talk shows forever.
Barbara's final shows featured a few surprises. We got to meet her college roommate, who bore a striking resemblance to Mary Todd Lincoln. There was a fantastic video of Barbara being interviewed by Barbara Walters, as embodied by my pal Cheri Oteri. We saw a gaggle of newswomen who owe their careers to Barbara Walters ( not that I really consider Kathie Lee Gifford or Lara Spencer newswomen ). But for me, the most memorable moment was the first person Barbara acknowledged on that final show. For 17 years, she has talked about her housekeeper. She always refers to her as "My Icodel"in fact, the only other person she calls "My" is Whoopi Goldberg, as if she carries the proof of purchase in her purse. Barbara finally brought out "My Icodel" ... a small Tubman-esque woman who looked like she desperately wanted to make a run for it, had it not been for the shackles.
Something I look forward to every year is the Eurovision Song Contest. The famed competition has brought us people like Abba and Lulu, leading me to believe that you don't have a chance of winning if you have two names. That proved no deterrent for the glamorous Conchita Wurst. The Austrian entrant ( real name: Tom Neuwirth ) is a 25-year-old drag queen sporting a fabulous golden gown, long dark hairand a beard! S/he belted out "Rise Like a Phoenix" with all the conviction of a young Shirley Bassey with a five o'clock shadow. Conchita's win brought in congratulations from many celebrity fans, including Cher, who tweeted, "Darling you deserve a lovelier name and better wig." Thanks, Cher. You can see Conchita's winning performance on BillyMasters.com .
I was thrilled to be invited to a special reception thrown by Debbie Reynolds to get a last glimpse of her movie memorabilia before it hits the auction block. This is the last of three auctions for Debbie's collection, and it was a bittersweet moment for the film icon. As she told me: "On one hand, it's been my life's work to gather and protect all of these treasures, so I'm sad to see them go. On the other hand, I can't take them with me!" I was quick to note that Reynolds appeared positively youthful next to some of these ancient tchotchkes. Daughter Carrie Fisher was there, as were Ruta Lee and Alex Trebek.
There's something Debbie didn't have in her collectionthe big dice from High Rollers. Frank DeCaro was given a mission from his hubby, TV Guide correspondent Jim Colucciget a quote from Trebek. Since DeCaro is known for his popular Dead Celebrity Cookbook, I told him he should really be asking the people assembled for recipes. It's never too soon to plan for volume two!
All sorts of people were in an uproar after seeing Michael Sam kiss Vito Cammisano when he was drafted by the St. Louis Rams. People felt ESPN gratuitously lingered on the lip lock between Sam and his boyfriend. I wonder what they'd think if they knew that Vito ( who has a rockin' body, as you can see on BillyMasters.com ) has a notable exprolific porn gay star Austin Wilde.
Down in Florida, a judge in the Florida Keys abruptly announced his retirement once his Manhunt profile became public knowledge. Judge David Audlin made it clear that no one pushed him to leave his post four years early. "I'm looking forward to my constitutional rights being restoredmy right to privacy and to be left alone in my private life." That's all well and good, but when a judge is promoting 6.5 inches on a gay hook-up site, the gloves are off.
This leads perfectly to a story about Clay Aikena man who is inching toward a life in politics and has also had his private inches exposed online. ( You can check them out on BillyMasters.com . ) The American Idol also-ran got a bit closer to his goal of Congressman from North Carolina when his closest opponent in the primary suddenly died! Keith Crisco, 71, died after a fall in his home. Clay, who was only ahead by a few hundred votes, issued a statement calling Crisco "a gentleman, a good and honorable man and an extraordinary public servant." Privately, I suspect Clay's grief sounded more like this: "Why, God, why? Why didn't this happen to Ruben Studdard?"
When Clay is talking about Crisco and it doesn't have anything to do with sex, it's definitely time to end yet another column. Some weeks, this column just writes itselfas you'll see on www.BillyMasters.com, the site where you can find my writings alongside a healthy collection of celebrity nudes. If you have a topic you'd like me to tackle, send it along to Billy@BillyMasters.com and I promise to get back to you before Cheri Oteri replaces Barbara Walters and nobody notices! So, until next time, remember, one man's filth is another man's bible.