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PAGE 4 OF 8
LL: He had open-heart surgery, a bypass. It went shockingly well.
Lisa Ling with fashion designer Vivienne Tam and David Kim, Anheuser-Busch Director of Sales Development and Community Relations, at the Opening Night Gala Preview of The International Asian Art Fair 2004.
GS: How old is he?
LL: He's 66. But he looks 45. He has a very young spirit. I flew my aunt out to come to because I couldn't be here right away. She walked up to the third floor of the hospital where he was and as soon as she arrived on the floor he mooned her in front of all the nurses. That's the kind of personality he has.
GS: You must have gotten a little of that.
LL: Yeah, I would say. We have kind of a kooky family.
GS: Tell us about your background.
LL: My father worked for McLellan Air Force Base for decades
GS: As?
LL: Civilian engineer. And my mom has been a jack of all trades. For a time she was working for the state government, but she moved on to become a paralegal, then started her own company. Now she does PR for a hospital.
GS: What kind of company did she start?
LL: Import/export company.
GS: So she's the entrepreneurial one.
LL: She definitely is.
GS: How did you get involved in a teen magazine show when you were 15?
LL: They were having auditions for it in a local mall. My speech teacher encouraged a couple of us to audition. I went and about 500 other kids auditioined as well and miraculously I was chosen as one of the 4. That's how my TV career began. I've been doing it ever since. I don't really think I know how to do anything else at this point. [laughs]
CONTINUED BELOW
GS: To what do you attribute the fact that you were picked out of all those kids?
LL: I wish I knew. When I watch my tapes back I am confounded as to what they saw in me. But it's funny because I just had breakfast with the guy who gave me my first TV job with Scratch. He said, “When I saw you, I just knew.”
GS: Of course he has the benefit of hindsight.
LL: The people who did that show ended up doing fairly well, so he's someone I respect and it's really great to catch up with hm after all these years.
GS: You must have had some early interest in broadcast journalism to have been taking speech.
LL: I always knew I wanted to work in television in some capacity. Scratch was just the easiest way in. I was sort of raised by television. My parents got a divorce when I was seven, and TV was my babysitter for my whole life. Growing up I really identified with certain characters and people and I just wanted to be a part of that world. Three's Company was my favorite. And yes, I'm completely devastated by John Ritter['s death].
GS: Any TV journalist you had your eyes on back in those days?
LL: I always had my eyes on my girl Connie Chung. Who didn't? Any aspiring young journalist revered her. One of the most gratifying and exciting moments for me was when I got my job at The View. I got a card completely unsolicited from Connie saying, “I just wanted to let you know that I've been reading about you and I'm really proud of you.” We've subsequently become friends. She tried to fix me up with all these guys. She's just the coolest. She was such a pioneer at the time.
GS: You hadn't met her before that?
LL: No, never.
GS: What impact did your parents' divorce have on your childhood?
LL: It was definitely traumatizing. I was seven years old and the only Asian kid in a completely white communjity. Already I was already a bit of an odd kid, different from all my friends. Then to not have one of my parents around compounded the problem.
GS: Are you an only child?
LL: No, I have a little sister.
PAGE 5
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| “Already I was already a bit of an odd kid, different from all my friends. Then to not have one of my parents around compounded the problem.” |