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Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human. Hey guys, it's us, the Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what? We created our own podcast called Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. We get to ask other people questions because we're sick and tired of being asked questions.
Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it, but you know. Tired and sick. Tired and sick. Listen to Hey Jonas on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it.
Hey, I'm Dr. Maya Shankar, a cognitive scientist and host of the podcast, A Slight Change of Plans, a show about who we are and who we become when life makes other plans. I wish that I hadn't resisted for so long the need to change. We have to be willing to live with a kind of uncertainty that none of us likes. You can have opinions. You can have like a strong stance.
And then there's your body having its own program. Listen to A Slight Change of Plans on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, everyone. This is Tati Mellencamp. And Tamara Judge from Two Teas in a Pod. There's been one scandal that's consumed our lives these last couple of months. We're recapping the three-part Summer House reunion.
And as always, we're being brutally honest. We're dissecting timelines, receipts, blind items, and previous episodes. Amanda and Wes, watch out. We're not going to be easy on you. Listen to Two Teas in a Pod on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is Saigon, the story of my family and of the country that shaped us. From iHeart Podcast, Saigon.
You don't think I'm serious about a free Vietnam? One city, a divided country, and the war that tore America apart.
This is for Vietnam. They're pouring petrol all over here.
Freedom for Vietnam!
There's a fire coming to this country and it's going to burn out everything. Listen to Saigon on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. It's been a minute, but welcome back to Danielle Whip, a podcast that at one time faithfully followed my journey from normal everyday plebe to exceptional, exceptional professional dancer.
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Chapter 2: What are Tom Bergeron's early memories of Dancing with the Stars?
So I'd get there at the office at about five and loved it. Not that part of it, but I loved the actual show. What was your bedtime for a three thirty wake up? It was early as a matter of and the girls were see our daughters at that point were probably do six and four. OK, so Lois, my wife actually got them a board game called Don't Wake Daddy.
And I was basically on the same sleep schedule as my kids. Yeah, yeah. Exactly. I actually know that schedule well because my husband did morning radio out in L.A. when we first got married. And so he had a very similar 4 a.m. alarm clock. And I said, listen, I'm pregnant. Let's just start getting on that baby schedule. So we'd go to bed at 830 and then get up at four.
It's actually kind of glorious. So what was breakfast time about? Well, it was about two hours. And then a nap? Yeah, it was kind of a gonzo version of a morning television show. We had news and weather and guests and all that, but we did it in almost a morning zoo kind of format. It was like a radio show on television. Great.
There are compilation videos on YouTube and you can type in my name and breakfast time and just I'm the guy with the brown hair in those videos. But yeah, it was just wonderful. My co-host was Laurie Hibbert, now Laurie Gelman, married to Michael Gelman. Yeah.
uh what is it kelly and somebody else now mark or regis or no regis is gone i think it's mark yeah mark thank you uh well anyway that laurie's married to gellman yeah and uh but we we just hit it off i've been very fortunate with uh with co-hosts over the years yeah yeah Well, as I mentioned, my husband being a morning radio DJ and you said like a morning zoo type thing. Do you we we love radio.
We think radio is just one of the greatest formats ever. Do you think it is something there's something special about that skill set that helps with the transition then to TV? That's a really good question. And I think you're spot on.
I think the thing that I always tell aspiring broadcasters, podcasters, whatever, is that however big an audience you're shooting for, just remember, you're only talking to one person. Right. And and, you know, that was really, as a matter of fact, I first started in radio, Danielle, I had in my hometown in Massachusetts so that I could focus on one person.
I had an album cover on the other side of the microphone that had this really attractive woman's face on it. I couldn't tell you what band it was or. But I'm sure that for the first couple of years of my career, I just sounded horny. You're like, I'm going to keep my eyes locked on this one.
But I think that keeping that in mind that you're talking to one person, that was something easy to develop in radio because you're kind of in a room by yourself unless you have a morning team around you. And then for television, it was funny. There was one time on Dancing with the Stars where Some friends from the East Coast were in the audience visiting.
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Chapter 3: How did Tom Bergeron become a host for America's Funniest Home Videos?
I wish he was still with us. Everybody misses him. Such a wonderful... lovely man with just the right amount of snark. Yep, exactly. Yes. And, you know, sometimes the judges were a little harsh and I try to be like a comedic shield between the couples and the judges. Yeah. And try to and just keep the show moving, just keep everything going, because as you know, there are a lot of moving parts.
There sure are. What can you tell me about that first season? Because I have to imagine it was like the Wild West. Yeah, it was the summer of 2005. I was on hiatus from America's Funniest Videos, so when ABC asked if I would host a summer show, I thought, well, you know, sure, okay, six weeks, live TV, why not?
Expecting nothing of it other than it might come back next summer, if it's a hit this summer. But, you know, we didn't know what we had. I mean, I was really skeptical about a celebrity ballroom show, you know, but I'll give it a go. What the heck?
Chapter 4: What insights does Tom share about hosting Dancing with the Stars?
The one thing that I insisted on changing by the time we got to season two, in season one, there were a lot of scripted jokes. Okay. And the joke writer is actually a friend of mine. He's award-winning, great guy. But it always felt weird. I finally said to the producers, you know what? We're a live show. I should be reacting in real time to what I'm seeing and feeling.
And sometimes that might be with a joke. Sometimes it might be with a hug. But to have something scripted days earlier that has no bearing on what we just saw, What's the point of that? So I made the pitch. I said, just I'm asking you to trust me. And and thankfully they did. And and from season two on, I pretty much abandoned having anything prepared. Right.
Other than getting you to the commercial and bringing you back. Yes. Yes. That's so great. I like it. And in the script, just Tom reacts. Yeah, that was basically. Yeah, whatever happened, Tom reacts. We'd be in script meetings and especially leading into season two. And I'd look at something that, you know, on its own was a good joke, but not germane to anything. Right.
And I would go, I'm not doing that. as a matter of fact on america's funniest videos in the early years before they kind of got my rhythm and my voice we would sit in a room before the taping and uh the head writer was todd thick and he would turn to the other writers and he said okay guys here's where tom kills your babies and don't be too attached to anything don't be too attached yeah
Now, a lot of fans talk about how the focus of the show has moved away from the drama packages of the early days, the arguments between partners, the bickering. Do you miss that element at all? Is there room for it in 2026? Um, I, in all candor, um, I hadn't been watching. So, you know, I had mixed feelings. You had mixed feelings. Yeah, exactly.
So I wasn't really watching until the few weeks prior to being the guest judge. I mean, I still, I think that was evident when I was back, have great fondness for everybody there. And and the people that I didn't have fondness for pretty much were all gone. We're gone. Yeah. Made it easy to come back. But so I can't speak to how the the the packages have changed.
But I will say since Conrad Green came back as the showrunner, who was my original showrunner.
Mm hmm.
The ship has been righted. I know it got a little rocky for a couple seasons there and seemed to spiral a bit. But I think Conrad got, you know, got back in there. And as I said on the show last November, It's having a ratings resurgence.
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Chapter 5: How has the format of Dancing with the Stars changed over the years?
Getting a racist statue removed. And here's something that should be a whole lot easier than it is. Getting a new one put up in its place.
As long as there's a politics of race in America, there's going to be a politics of remembering the Civil War. To get to school, I had to go down Robert E. Lee Boulevard. To get to the grocery store, I had to go down Jefferson Davis Parkway.
If you're an historian and you leave out half of what the history is, you're not doing your job. I'm Akilah Hughes, and Rebel Spirit season two goes deep on both of those things, the fights, the politics, the people who won, and my personal campaign to add something to the Kentucky State House that's actually worth the wall space. We are more than our bodies. We contain essence.
We contain spirit. How do you represent that? They are just fueling a fire that is really catching. You'll see what I mean. Listen to Rebel Spirit Season 2 on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can have opinions. You can have like a strong stance. And then there's your body having its own program.
I'm Dr. Maya Shankar, a cognitive scientist and host of the podcast, A Slight Change of Plans, a show about who we are and who we become when life makes other plans. We share stories and scientific insights to help us all better navigate these periods of turbulence and transformation. There is one finding that is consistent, and that is that our resilience rests on our relationships.
I wish that I hadn't resisted for so long the need to change. We have to be willing to live with a kind of uncertainty that none of us likes. Listen to A Slight Change of Plans on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. June is Black Music Month, and on the Drink Champs podcast, we're speaking with the hottest names in the culture, like Sway Lee.
Do you realize how legendary you are?
I appreciate that. I be seeing it, but I'm like, man, I still got, like, so much more to do. Like, Prince, he dropped, like, 30 albums. We dropped, like, five right now. Like, that's the rate we gotta be going.
Yep, that's a good attitude. You'll also hear stories from industry legends and hip-hop pioneers like Fab Five Freddy. I directed one of Nas' early videos. Which one? One Love. What? I literally filmed in his apartment in Queensbridge. His moms were still up in that apartment. Noms was just beginning to take off. His pops used to live near me in Harlem.
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Chapter 6: What advice does Tom have for new contestants on Dancing with the Stars?
And she actually was in the audience at one point, and he was able to, I think he did the actual waltz. Oh, that's beautiful. Layla Ali danced for her dad. Muhammad Ali was in the audience. And it was sort of at a point where the Parkinson's had taken his speech from him and he was able to be there. And you could still see the sparkle in his eyes, though. Oh, those are such special moments.
I'll never forget having my children in the ballroom when I dance. Like I'll never forget that moment. So I will say, and this isn't just me trying to cope. It feels like nowadays contestants like Whitney Leavitt or Alex Earl, these are superstar athletes basically doing insane moves different than the old celebrity trying to dance model. Yeah. Like Andy Richter. I'm not naming any names.
No, but that's part of it. There's always been an aspect of the show, going back to the early seasons, where athletes were part of it or people who... And it was no surprise to me that a lot of NFL players did so well because they're used to being coached. They're used to being part of a team mentality. They tend not to have as many...
yes people around them as some of the celebrities do from entertainment. So they're better able to adapt to the environment, I think, of dancing. That's always been part of it. I used to say when people would say, oh, it's just a, it's a popularity contest. I said, well, look, if you want a pure ballroom competition, I would suggest PBS. Yeah, exactly. Yeah.
We're still putting on a show that people want to tune into every week. Yeah. Here's a newsflash. Bruno isn't that flamboyant off camera. He's just, you know, he ratchets it up. I mean, Len- God love him. He would, you know, sometimes be very direct and almost borderline hurtful with comments. He never was lying about his critique.
He actually felt it, but he'd amp it up a little bit because we're doing a TV show. Of course. And then he'd call me over during the commercial and he'd go, that was good, right? Did you like it? Do you think it's fair to have prior dance experience before coming onto the show? Yeah, look, I think that ship has sailed.
I mean, they've had people with prior dance experience going back to 2006, I think. So yeah, that's part of it. But by the same token, it's somebody like Andy Richter, who really stole everybody's heart, I think, because he epitomized a lot of what the best parts of the show are.
Somebody coming in completely out of left field and really embracing it and working hard and being supportive of the other couple. I mean, it's just he kind of epitomized the best of the show. Now, did he deserve to win? No, of course not. Right. Right. But, you know, at the end of the day, if you had a bunch of people who never danced before on a two hour show, you'd be going for the remote.
Yes, correct. There's only so much learning and fumbling around that you can see. You want to see some actual jaw dropping performances as well. Correct. That's it. You know, it's a tough show to to produce for all those reasons, because you're never going to please everybody 100 percent of the time. Yeah, it's just not going to happen.
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