While appearing on Larry King Live in 2006, Howard Stern was asked about his best and worst interviews. On the “best” side, Stern remembered both Arnold Schwarzenegger and Stevie Wonder being great guests. For his worst interview, however, Stern mentioned only one name: Saturday Night Live star Gilda Radner. According to Stern, Radner was “really freaked out” by him during their lone encounter back in 1983.
“She came in, I guess she had heard I was insane,” Stern recalled. “And she came in, and she was very shaky and kept sort of getting up, and she got up quick to leave and hit her head on a speaker. And she was just—it was a disaster,” he continued. Listening to the audio back now, it’s easy to understand why Stern would feel that way. Things somehow managed to go downhill almost immediately following Radner’s introduction.
Howard Stern Says His Worst Interview Ever Was With Gilda Radner
To begin with, Stern presented Radner as a mystery guest, but Radner initially spoke in her regular voice before launching into her famous impression of Barbara Walters. As a result, the very first caller guessed who she was.
“You ruined it,” Stern told Radner. “She came here and ruined my show. Now what the hell do I do with her for the next half hour?” he then barked at the person who called in, adding, “I have no questions to ask.”
Within minutes, Stern decided to bring up Gene Wilder’s penis size (Radner and Wilder had just started dating) and instructed listeners to call in with sexual questions for Radner. Though Radner said she’d prefer not to discuss such matters, most callers ended up inquiring about her sex life. By the end, Radner called the experience “pretty scary,” and Stern’s co-host, Robin Quivers, (correctly) predicted that Radner would never return.
Radner’s friend, actor Charles Grodin, later claimed that Radner cried after the interview was over. You can check out the full recording for yourself above.
The post Howard Stern Called This ‘SNL’ Legend the Worst Interview of His Career: ‘It Was a Disaster’ appeared first on VICE.
