Harry Connick wild about new gig
Harry Connick Jr. has a lot of fans. They just may not all be fans of the same person.
The New Orleans native has performed on and composed for Broadway (“The Pajama Game,” “Thou Shalt Not”). He’s appeared in films, from “Dolphin Tale” to “Independence Day,” and on television as an actor (“Will & Grace”), as well as a stint as a judge on the final seasons of “American Idol.” And, of course, he has had a long, awardwinning career as a jazz singer-musician.
Now he takes on a new challenge with his daytime talk show “Harry,” which premiered this month.
“If I got to do this for two weeks, and the ratings were horrible and that was the end of it, I’d feel like I really got to do something exactly like I wanted to do,” he said. “Just the fact that we have a chance to celebrate people and positive things, it’s humbling.”
The following is an edited transcript. You’re used to the grind of touring and Broadway. But a daily show is a whole new beast.
I don’t like the word “grind.” I’ve never felt that. I’ve been on Broadway, and people say, “Are you ready for the grind?” I’m an entertainer, so I love it. I’ve been on the road for months. I’ve had bronchitis and had ripped muscles. I’ve been tired, but I’ve never once thought, “This is a grind.” It’s the job of this immense and talented staff to come up with things for me to respond to. There’s music, there’s talking to people, there’s listening to people, there’s man on the street. Many talk show hosts have been actors and comedians who are used to following a script or honing a routine. But as a musician you’re used to improvising. Is that part of the appeal?
Yeah, because even if a light breaks on set, there’s a segment there. The main thing is explaining to the technical side of the crew (to be) ready for me to walk across the street to Starbucks in real time. I couldn’t do it any other way. The risk-reward ratio is higher because you never know what you’re going to get. But even if you fail, you can fail in an interesting way. Well, “fail” isn’t the right word, but...
No, no, “fail” is the right word. I like that. Do you know how many times I’ve been onstage where I tried stuff and it failed? And I’m so OK with it. Was it suggested to you to do it the traditional way?
No. When we went to NBC Universal, I said, “I want to have it completely unstructured.” Here’s an example: There’s a segment that we do called “I Got This.” I like playing across the country and meeting people. I said I want to show up at somebody’s business or house. I don’t want to know anything about ’em, but y’all got to find me somebody that may be working two jobs or is a single mom, somebody that’s struggling. Don’t tell them it’s me coming. I show up and say, “What do you do?” So I say, “Look, I’m going to take care of everything you do, and we’re going to send you off to a spa or something and just give you a little bit of a break.” Sept. 25 birthdays: Newswoman Barbara Walters is 87. Actor Michael Douglas is 72. Model Cheryl Tiegs is 69. Actor Mark Hamill is 65. Actress Heather Locklear is 55. Actor-singer Will Smith is 48. Actress Catherine Zeta-Jones is 47.