Larry King

Larry King (19 November 1933 – 23 January 2021) born Lawrence Harvey Zeiger, and sometimes referred to as the "king of talk", was an American television and radio host, whose work has been recognized with awards including two Peabodys, an Emmy award, and 10 Cable ACE Awards. After testing positive for COVID-19 in late December 2020, he was hospitalized, and died a few weeks later from sepsis.

If you have passion, a chip on the shoulder, a sense of humor, and you can explain what you do very well, it doesn't matter if you're a plumber or a singer or a politician. If you have those four things, you are interesting.

Quotes

You cannot talk to people successfully if they think you are not interested in what they have to say or you have no respect for them.

• The less I know, the better I feel about a person or book.
  • On why he did not read a book before interviewing its author.
  • The Radio 'King': From Midnight to Dawn, Toledo Blade, Jan. 4, 1981.

How to Talk to Anyone, Anytime, Anywhere (1994)

How to Talk to Anyone, Anytime, Anywhere : The Secrets of Good Communication (1994), co-written with Bill Gilbert)

• You cannot talk to people successfully if they think you are not interested in what they have to say or you have no respect for them.
  • Ch. 1: Talk 101, p. 28

• One of the most succinct commentaries I've come across for encouraging plain talk came from an executive who told his staff, "Don't utilize utilize. Use use."
  I try to avoid pompous language. Some people use it as an oral status symbol to impress others. Others use it because they've simply forgotten how to talk in simple, clear, everyday terms. You will be far better off, because you'll be better received and better understood, if you avoid "trendy talk."
  • Ch. 5 : Trendy Talk and Political Correctness, p. 94

Esquire interview (2015)

Life is funny, sex is funny, marriage is funny, eating is funny, sports can be funny, everything is funny.

Interview by Jessica Pilot, Esquire (26 February 2015)

• Lenny Bruce taught me that everything's funny. You can make everything funny. I don't think that assassinations are funny, I don't think you can make fun of ISIS, but almost everything is funny. And If we can't laugh at ourselves, who can we laugh at? So I don't mind ethnic humor. I like ethnic humor. I like dialect jokes. Laughter is a very subjective thing. If it's funny to you it's funny. And a lot of things are funny to me. … Life is funny, sex is funny, marriage is funny, eating is funny, sports can be funny, everything is funny. Homes, horses, real estate. Everything is funny. People who are funny are funny. If you know you're funny you're funny.

• I've never been drunk in my life. I've been high, but I've never been drunk. I think it's a fear of loss of control, but I never liked the taste of liquor.

• What you want in an interview is four things: You want someone who can explain what they do very well, who can have a sense of humor and hopefully is self-deprecating, who has a bit of a chip on their shoulder, and passion. If you have passion, a chip on the shoulder, a sense of humor, and you can explain what you do very well, it doesn't matter if you're a plumber or a singer or a politician. If you have those four things, you are interesting.

• I'll tell you the truth, I've had bad days and good days in my life, but I've never had a day when I didn't enjoy that red light going on. Whether on the radio, or on television, there's still a little bump every time it goes on. And if you can spend a life, if you can get paid well for doing something you absolutely love, well you can't beat that.

External links

• "Larry King", Encyclopedia Britannica
• Larry King on IMDb
• Back and Forth with Shawn & Larry King – podcast
• Larry King Live – Transcripts of all interviews since 2000
• Larry King — appearances on C-SPAN