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Wednesday, December 3, 2008
12/4: Clark Howard talks more about not running for mayor
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
WSB-AM’s syndicated talk show host Clark Howard, whose radio advice is more invaluable than ever given the current economy, has bowed out of the Atlanta mayor’s race.
He decided it would demand too much time away from his kids, a three-year-old son and a nine-year-old daughter. (He also has a 19-year-old daughter from a first marriage.)
He said he may go for it when his kids are older.
There may also be a financial factor, too. His show, heard on 235 radio stations nationwide, has benefited from the lousy economy, with stations giving him better time slots. And he makes good money since he owns his own syndication and pockets 3/4 of the revenue.
“The money is good,” Howard told me Wednesday. His next window of opportunity to walk is the end of 2010. So if you’re a fan of his radio show, he will be around at least another two years.
Clark, 53, said he’s wanted to run for public office for 40 years. But he first pondered running for mayor in the 1997 to go against then mayor Bill Campbell. He has never been shy about expressing his distaste for Campbell. (“You know the bull with the red cape? He was the red cape.”) He had just gotten married to Lane a couple of years earlier and didn’t want to unduly strain the relationship by entering a political race.
Two years ago, he thought about the mayoral post again and even considered statewide office. Somehow, it leaked out, he said, to Creative Loafing and he decided to be honest with them (and us) about it.
His wife, he said, was okay with it since “she’s already used to me being a public figure.” His radio staff, naturally, wasn’t thrilled. He figured he needed to make a decision by September of 2008 this year when he had to re-sign his radio syndication contract.
But after a summer with the kids, he figured again it wasn’t the right time. So in his life up to this point, the most serious office he’s ever held is vice president of his condo board.
Clark does have something new up his sleeve (and it’s not at all political) but won’t say until next week.
-And brace yourself if you still care about “The Apprentice.” NBC has asked the shows be two hours long instead of one hour, according to tvweek.com
“Donald has always felt the boardrooms were too short, and I think he’s right,” Mr. Burnett said. “Right now, there’s really only about nine minutes of footage that we use and the boardroom (scenes) go on for hours sometimes. The problem has been trying to squeeze it all in. Every season we go through the struggle of cutting the show down.”
The celebrity version will start in February (exact date TBA), which includes Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins of TLC from Atlanta.
-The New York Daily News did a nice job re-writing what I wrote yesterday about “Real Housewives of Atlanta” star NeNe Leakes and her eviction. The Defamer was simply snarky. So is NY Metro blog
