TVSquad Talks To Fran Drescher about "The Fran Drescher Tawk Show"

[JamesG]

Fran Drescher Tawks About Her New Daytime Gig, "Nanny" Similarities & Reuniting With Old Co-Stars
by Maggie Furlong
posted Nov 26th 2010


Fran Drescher is well known from shows like "The Nanny" and "Living With Fran", but her trademark will always be her voice. So it's only fitting that her signature sound -- and that trademark-worthy laugh -- get its own arena.

Enter "The Fran Drescher Tawk Show", her new daytime show which premieres in several markets today (Fri., Nov. 26; check local listings).




I caught up with Drescher to get the scoop on her new show, which she describes as a mix between "Oprah", "Rosie" and "Charlie Rose", with a splash of "The Nanny".

So what's it like being the interviewer after years as the interviewee? And can we expect some cast reunions of her old shows? Check it out ...









You've been in the business for so many years -- how is this really your first talk show?

Well, I've always been a guest! I've done every talk show on television, and every news show, but I've never been the host.

So now it's going to be a different experience -- I'm going to have to listen and let somebody else answer. But I intend to have more of a conversation with people.







So no obviously pre-planned questions and bits?

No, I don't want it to be too loosely scripted like some talk shows, where you have to hit certain questions to get certain answers. And I'm not really that interested in people coming on just to hawk something or tell some lame story.

I'm more interested in hearing people's point of view, what they're doing for the greater good ... you know, I want to get to know them.







What will a typical show look like?

You know, it's gonna be glamorous and beautiful and inviting. I'm gonna come out and do a monologue.

I've got a live band who are incredible. It's gonna open with a little animated opening ...




Like "The Nanny"?

Well, yeah, but different animation. But like "The Nanny" in the sense that we'll have a theme song and an animated opening, which I love.







Very fun. So what other elements are you mixing in?

I'm gonna have a lot of friends and family on the show, and I think that's gonna give it a little bit of a reality edge, and make it more personal and authentic.

Some subjects are going to be serious, some are going to be inspiring and motivational, others are gonna be just for the fun of it. I'm gonna have a beautiful kitchen to cook in.







It sounds like a mix of daytime shows and late night, with some "Rachael Ray" thrown in there ... do you have anyone whose show is an inspiration for you?

I'd love it to be a combination of "Oprah" and the old "Rosie" and maybe a little bit of "Charlie Rose". [Laughs]







I think you should do a "Living With Fran" cast reunion show.

Ryan McPartlin is on "Chuck", Ben Feldman is on "Drop Dead Diva" -- you must be so happy about the successes of people around you.

Yeah, definitely. In fact, they've been so caught up in trying to get "The Nanny" people together, I don't even know if they've been focusing on "Living With Fran". I should really put that on my recorder.







Do you keep up with the old casts?

I don't get to watch all that much television, but I talk to them and I hear from them.

I do talk to Ben Feldman, we're always texting each other. He's one of those people that wherever I travel, somebody will say, "Oh, I know Ben Feldman!" He knows more people than anybody else knows.




He's like the Kevin Bacon of your life!

Exactly!

http://www.tvsquad.com/2010/11/26/fr...how-interview/

[AB]

Any idea which network her talk show is on?

[howilu]

Her show is being tested on several Fox owned stations, including KMSP in Minneapolis-St. Paul.