Talk to Me with Gary Cee

Mike Geier is the alter ego of Puddles the Clown. At 6'8", Mr. Geier cuts a commanding presence when he becomes Puddles for his theater act 'Puddles Pity Party.' Puddles doesn't speak on stage, but he does sing, and he sings beautifully. This is quite an original show.Puddles has played nearly all over the world, including a headline-act residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. He even made it to the quarterfinals of 'America's Got Talent.' His YouTube videos have attracted millions of viewers.You can't interview Puddles, but you can interview Mike, and that's what I did in October of 2019 before a performance at the Newton Theatre in Newton, New Jersey.

Will Shortz has been editing the New York Times crossword puzzle since 1993. I've been writing crosswords since 2007, and I've been lucky enough to have 39 of my creations published in the Times to date, all of them edited by Will. He is the master of the art, America's King of Cruciverbalism, and with Will at the helm, the subscriber base of the New York Times Crossword Puzzle app has grown to a remarkable 500,000 solvers. That's a lot of folks reading clues and filling in grids, and it translates into an abundant source of revenue for The New York Times.I traveled to Pleasantville, New York to interview Will at the Westchester Table Tennis Center, which he owns. Here we discuss what it takes for a crossword to make it from a constructor's idea all the way to the Arts section of The New York Times. Listen closely and you'll hear the patter of ping-pong and squeaks of sneakers as Will talks about the craft and business of what he does, and why he believes we're currently living in the Golden Age of Crosswords.

The red-hot Sebastian Maniscalco has been a stand-up comedian since the mid-90s. He's toured all over the country and has built a loyal fanbase built on his TV specials, which you can now see on Netflix. Lately, he's been packing arenas like the Boston Garden, the Los Angeles Forum and Madison Square Garden. His book, released in February of 2018, is called 'Stay Hungry.' He was great in the film 'Green Book,' and he plays mobster Crazy Joe Gallo in the Martin Scorsese movie 'The Irishman.'I spoke with Sebastian on October 8, 2019 about his stand-up act, 'The Irishman,' and what he wants to do next. Photo by Manny Carabel/Getty Images.

Danny Goldberg is a music industry veteran. He started Gold Mountain Entertainment back in 1983, and managed Nirvana starting in 1991. He was the CEO of the Mercury Records Group, and president of Atlantic Records. He ran his own Artemis Record label from 1999 to 2006. These days, his management company is called Gold Village Entertainment.Danny's book about Kurt Cobain and Nirvana is called "Serving the Servant" and he talks about that book in this episode of 'Talk to Me.'

In the mid-Sixties, my sister Jeanne brought home all the Gary Lewis And The Playboys records. We'd stack up those 45s and play 'em nonstop; great songs like "This Diamond Ring,""Count Me In," "Save Your Heart For me," "Everybody Loves A Clown ,""She's Just My Style,""Sure Gonna Miss Her," and "Green Grass." I loved those records.So you can imagine what a thrill it was to sit down with Gary Lewis in October of 2018 and talk about his career in music, his band, his time in Vietnam, what's he's doing today, and of course, growing up in Hollywood with his famous father Jerry. This show was recorded backstage at the Newton Theatre in Newton, New Jersey just before a Gary Lewis And The Playboys concert.

Jeff Idelson has his dream job. He's the President of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York.He grew up loving and playing the game, but realized early on that his talents would only take him so far. That didn't shake his determination to pursue a career in baseball. He became a vendor at Fenway Park in junior high school, which led to an internship and later on, a position in the PR department of the Boston Red Sox. At the age of 25, he moved to New York to work as the Director of Media Relations and Publicity for the New York Yankees under George Steinbrenner.Jeff worked for World Cup USA before taking a job as the Director of Media Relations and Publicity for the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1994. From there, he worked his way up to the top of the Hall's corporate lineup. Now, he calls the shots.I talked to Jeff about America's greatest game in a conversation that touches on the 2018 HOF inductees and also includes mentions of Tom Seaver, Pete Rose, Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle, Mike Piazza, even Mordecai Brown. This interview was recorded in Jeff's office in Cooperstown.

Allan Rich (birthname Benjamin Schultz) was born in the Bronx in 1926 and knew he wanted to be an actor when he was five years old. He appeared in several Broadway shows in the 1940s including a memorable play with Claude Rains called "Darkness at Noon."In the mid-forties, Allan led a Theatrical Action Committee to free Willie McGee, a black man from Mississippi who had been convicted of rape in 1945 and subsequently electrocuted in 1951. Allan's devotion to civil rights led to accusations of involvement with the Communist Party, and in time, landed him on a Hollywood blacklist. Ostracized from show business, he found work on Wall Street and worked as an art dealer before landing sporadic film and TV roles in the Sixties. In 1973, Allan played district attorney Herman Tauber alongside Al Pacino in "Serpico" and from there, his career took off. Allan's filmography on IMDB lists nearly 150 roles, including appearances on "All in the Family," "Barney Miller," "Happy Days," "Two Broke Girls," "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and dozens more. Mr. Rich has simply had an amazing acting career. And I loved talking to him. This program was recorded at the Actors Fund home in Englewood, New Jersey. Big thanks to Allan's daughter Marian Rich who allowed me the opportunity to interview her dad. Marian even stepped in a couple times during the interview to help Allan with recollections of his remarkable career.

The Amazing Kreskin, professional mentalist, has been thrilling audiences since the late Sixties. He made countless TV appearances with Johnny Carson, Mike Douglas, Merv Griffin and David Letterman. Kreskin was even the subject of his own Milton Bradley board game.These days, the Amazing Kreskin, age 83, makes appearances not only on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, but all around the world, including an Off-Broadway show called "The Amazing Kreskin - Live" at the Lion Theatre on Theatre Row in New York City.This program was recorded at the carriage house adjacent to Kreskin's New Jersey home.

Legoland New York is currently under construction, ahead of schedule and due to open in the Spring of 2020 in the town of Goshen. This will be a 170-acre theme park on a 500-acre parcel of land off Exit 125 on Route 17. As you drive from Middletown to NYC, you can see the site just past exit 125 on the right-hand side.Hayley Coriaty is the Community Relations Director of Legoland New York, and she fills me in on everything this park will offer: the rides, the theater, the coasters, the 250-room hotel, you name it. The project is expected to bring 1300 jobs to the area.

Guitarist Steve Hackett played in the classic lineup of Genesis with Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins, Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks. He left the band in 1977 to pursue a solo career, and also formed GTR in the Eighties with Steve Howe. Mr. Hackett talks about those great days with Genesis, his current world tour and recent CD "Wuthering Nights: Live in Birmingham."

The great actor Chazz Palminteri is the brains behind "A Bronx Tale," which began as a one-man show, then became a popular movie, and is currently a Broadway musical playing over a year now at the Longacre Theatre.I talk to Chazz about the show and growing up in the Bronx in a program recorded at his delicious restaurant, also called Chazz Palminteri, on West 46th Street.

Katy Tur hosts the 2pm hour every weekday on MSNBC. In 2015-16, she was the NBC news correspondent assigned to the Trump campaign and appeared on NBC Nightly News just about every night. She took a lot of heat from candidate Trump, who called her "disgraceful,""third-rate," and "not nice."Katy wrote all about it in her new book "Unbelievable." She talks to me about her new book, politics, broadcast journalism, and life on the campaign trail with Trump in a show recorded at the Montclair Public Library.

Longtime concert promotor John Scher shares candid stories about Frank Sinatra, Bruce Springsteen, Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young and John's days as owner of the legendary Capitol Theatre in Passaic, New Jersey.

John Sebastian was the lead singer of the The Lovin' Spoonful and the voice behind "Do You Believe in Magic?," "Summer in the City," "Daydream," "Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind?" and a whole bunch more, On his own, he had a huge hit in 1976 with the theme song to the ABC sitcom "Welcome Back Kotter." I travel up to Saugerties NY to speak with John about his long career as a musician.

Comedian Vic DiBitetto is one of the busiest stand-up comedians in America. You might know him as the "bread and milk guy" on You Tube. He also appeared in "Paul Blart: Mall Cop." I talk to Vic in a very funny episode recorded at the iHeartRadio facility in Franklin, New Jersey

Rob Dyson is a businessman, philanthropist, former race car driver and he once owned radio stations in the Hudson Valley. Without Rob, there probably wouldn't be a Walkway Over the Hudson or a Dyson Center for Cancer Care. I talk to Rob about finance, fast cars, broadcasting and the meanings of legacy and success.

Comedian Gilbert Gottfried is the subject of a new documentary called "Gilbert." He's been a stand-up comic since the Seventies, and has also been the voice of Iago the Parrot in "Aladdin" and the Aflac Duck. I talk to Gilbert backstage before a show in Blairstown, New Jersey.

Rock-and-roll legend Tommy James has been the leader of Tommy James and the Shondells since the 1960s and is the voice behind timeless hits like "I Think We're Alone Now," "Mony Mony," "Crimson and Clover," "Crystal Blue Persuasion" and a whole bunch more. I talk to Tommy about his long career and his terrific book "Me, the Mob and the Music" in a conversation recorded in Tommy's kitchen in his New Jersey home.

"Elvis Duran and the Morning Show" is heard on over 80 iHeartRadio stations. Elvis talks to me about his long career in radio and how he stays passionate about what he does every morning.