The beautiful and down-to-earth “Queen of All Media,” Wendy Williams, took time out of her busy schedule to interview with Lori Alamia of TheCelebrityCafe.com after filming her show in New York City.
The Wendy Williams show is a nationally syndicated daytime talk show airing in 52 countries and outperforming other day time shows like “Ellen” “Kelly” and “Rachel.” Due to this success, it was renewed through 2014 on Fox. Season 4 will begin in the fall.
Find out how the show got started, guests she would like to see next season, how she balances it all, what else she is working on and her advice for success.
TheCelebrityCafe.com: First off, you were “Queen of Radio” and then you made your transition to TV - how did you do that?
Wendy Williams: A phone call got placed to my husband who happens to be my manager. I had been on radio for 22 years professionally. I don’t count the college years, even though without them I couldn’t have done it professionally.
Thank goodness for the internet and cyberspace. Because of that Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein, who are my partners in this, were able to research everything that is Wendy and stream my radio show to determine if I should have a talk show.
The show that they wanted was a show based on me as opposed to 'they have an idea for a show and now they are trying to plug in a host.' I have a really strong personality and it was just the best of both worlds, they called, they’re great, and four years later, here we are.
TCC: It’s so exciting that you’ve been renewed. You’ve hit the 500th episode. Are there any guests that you are dying to have on the show that you haven’t had yet?
WW: Ya know, I was trying to think about this question this weekend. I was trying to mix it up in my interviews. A lot of times you do interviews and get the same answers.
The political season is upon us. By the time we come back for the fourth season of Wendy in September, we need to be dead on it. We love to have a good time on this show and God knows I need a show like this in my life where I am laughing and kind of forgetting about the problems of the day for just a moment. However, there is a way to talk politics without boring people. As a thinking woman, as a mother, as a community person, there is a way that we are going to do politics. I have been having a few political people on during third season to check them out.
Now, I know who I want to have back. Dan Rather has been on twice, it would be great to talk in September. Meghan McCain, our political views are totally different but that’s what makes our show great. She’s young, she’s a Republican, and she’s interesting. I really loved Rachel Maddow, so I want to have her back.
The holy grail would be to have both of the Obama’s separately, her (Michelle Obama) to talk from a woman’s point of view of politics and how it relates to the cracks on our sidewalks and our school system, and our healthy lunches, and children and just being women. She is a woman. She’s more than just the first lady, so I want to talk to her as a woman. And of course, I want to have him on and talk to him about the usual things people talk to Barack Obama about. Yes, it would be politics, but from a Wendy show standpoint.
TCC: For yourself, besides the show, you are a mom, a wife, best-selling author, how do you balance it all?
WW: I have cooperation. I do have to say that first it starts with me. I know what I want. I’m not trying to figure it out anymore. And I don’t think things like that come because you are born with that type of thought process. I think its age and experience and not necessarily both. You can be 80 years old and haven’t had a lot of experiences. I have had a lot of experiences as a woman. I will be 48 in July.
I say my age, because I think it is relative to my experiences. When I was a bachelorette, I dated a lot and I was never lacking for suitors and I don’t mean that in a slutty way. I’m happily married. My husband’s office is right across the hall. He’s my manager and one of the executive producers of the show. We met; we didn’t meet as manager, client, we met as Wendy and Kevin. And when we got together, the stars were all aligned. I was finally with a guy who was supportive of my career. At the time I met him, I was already at the top of New York radio and very well established in this country. He met me as somebody and a woman who was making a particularly decent salary. So, I was able to do for myself then. He just joined in to help enrich me.
When I met him, I had already gone through the drug phase and the nightclubs, and needing a best girlfriend to hold my hair back. All the stuff that if you don’t go through it, I know as a woman I would regret not having fist pumping kick ass nights as a bachelorette.
So you ask how I manage. I have cooperation. It starts with my husband. We have my eleven-year-old Kevin. He doesn’t know anything other than, this is the family business. Before the TV show it was the radio show and he would know I would come in at 7 at night and try my best to muddle through homework. He understands school is his job and mommy is mommy but there is also this other person Wendy Williams.
I have incredible support, but mostly because I know who I am after falling down and getting up a lot and going through a lot, I know who I am I know who I wanna be. I love being this girl on the talk show. I love it. I love it!
TCC: What is your advice for women who are trying to juggle responsibilities and are striving for success themselves? What would you recommend that they do?
WW: You first because without you nobody else is good. I don’t mean that from a selfish standpoint. Even when you fly, the captain says you put the mask on you and then you rescue your kid. And it wasn’t until after I had little Kev and I gained 103 pounds. I’m already a big girl and I was 297 pounds. I didn’t even know the woman who was in the mirror. I was a radio personality in Philadelphia for a few years in my career. I was exiled from New York because my mouth did it again! So I went to the next closest city, which was Philly, and even though I enjoyed being on the radio, after I had the boy, I looked at my husband one day and said I am ready to go back home and stake claim in what’s mine.
The rest of the world is wonderful, but nothing beats New York, no matter what. Not Hong Kong, not Paris, not Philly, nothing beats New York in terms of the spirit of the city. I needed that and I looked at him one day and said I am ready to go back home. I wasn’t fulfilled just being a mother and just being a disk jockey in Philly, I wanted bigger and better. I wanted to take care of myself and through that I’m very happy.
I’m taking care of myself with others in mind. My husband loves it. He’s a very smart man, he’s able to keep up with everything, keep all the balls in the air and we know our roles.
For women asking how to juggle, know your roles. If you have a partner whether you’re married or not, if you have a partner, know your roles. Who empties the dishwasher? Who is responsible for emptying the dishwasher? Do you both do it together and there’s nothing wrong with that. Or am I responsible for it? At my house, I am responsible for it.
A sock on the floor does not get me pissed. I have bigger things to think about, I am not necessarily doing that stuff hands on, but I am in charge of how it’s going to get done. We know our roles. When the show is over, after a few interviews, I will become Wendy Hunter, Kevin’s mom and leave Big Kev here... I know what my priority is to my family. I run out to LA and I run back.
And I don’t do it the best but, I like to think I do it well. I do all my own grocery shopping. I made a fabulous meatloaf and baked potatoes. I cook three times a week. It sounds corny and it sounds silly but, you know, after you’ve lived your life, through all kinds of stuff, it’s nice to be like Wendy June Cleaver, with an edge.
TCC: Can you share what you are working on in Hollywood?
WW: There is a TV writer Ed Weinberger. He's working on a new sitcom called Belle which is going to be on TV 1 which is like BET, it’s a walk on thing. I’ve got some scripts including some stuff from Disney. Ever since I did that little role in “Think Like a Man,” people have been sending scripts. I’d like to get into acting. Not getting into acting to supersede the talk show, but along with the talk show.
TCC: What else are you working on?
WW: I am also working on the shoe line. The soft launch is in the fall, bigger launch is in 2013.
I don’t like to just sign my name off onto things. I like to be a genuine part of whatever it is. I’ve got my line of accessories on QVC. There is not an accessory on the line that I did not have a hand in. I work with a great team of designers. Having the merchandising, the natural progression would be to have a line of wigs. But you have to understand, I don’t want to put junk out and if I put out wigs, good costs. Economically speaking I don’t want to sell you anything expensive. My stuff on QVC is good for the economy. Everything on QVC is good for the economy. My shoes are going to be good for the economy.
As for wigs, I don’t want to sell you a junky wig so the verdict is still out.
TCC: What do you enjoy most about the talk show?
WW: I am having a good time. I do love doing the talk show and I am very appreciative of the community that the talk show has formed. In the audience there’s everybody, there’s old people and young people, it’s the United Nations.
My son said it best. He said mom, “Your show is good for race relations.” I said “You’re right it absolutely is.” Sometimes I look in the audience and people are a little awkward and I’m like, look loosen up. It’s just such a fun show.
TCC: The show has been so successful, when you started, did you anticipate that it would be this successful?
WW: The talk show is based off my radio show. There are so many guests that come on this talk show that I have known from radio. Suzanne Somers, Lisa Rinna ,Vanessa Williams and Ne-Yo, so many people. I also did Ask Wendy on the radio show.
Did I know it was going to be successful on TV? No, because there are so many components, I needed partners who believed in me and sometimes people get impatient. How many of our good shows like GCB get cancelled right away they don’t even give them a chance. It’s expensive to make TV shows and you need partners willing to say hang in there. No one wants to lose money, the economy is screwed up. The watchers needed to hang in there.
I knew I had a successful thing because it was successful on the radio, I also knew then that I had the ability to transition into TV very comfortably just being exactly who I am. But I did not know whether my partners and the public would have the patience to hang in there. I know at first you turn on the TV, and think “oh a loud black girl in the middle of the stage what in the world did she just pull out of her wig, this is too much for me.” And then if you stay just for a moment you realize, she’s not out of her mind, she’s a mom like me, or she’s got eczema like me or you know what she’s got body issues like me or whatever it is, she’s raising aging parents like me or she’s a crier like me or whatever it is, I just feel as though if you just give the show a chance. So, no I did not know the show was going to be successful not because me but because of the impatience of people.
Thank God people gave it its chance. This is like the best job ever for a person like me. Like some people want more. I don’t want more. I want to rock this until retirement. I don’t want another job, this is it.