I was particularly thrilled to learn  that renowned broadcaster Larry King was recently named a vice president of the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Larry’s an old friend of mine from the days when I owned an advertising agency in Miami and he was a leading radio talk show host.

In those days, muscular dystrophy was below the radar for both of us. But things have changed, and I recently called Larry to catch up with him on MDA and what else has been going on in his life.

When Larry Talks… People Listen

We started by discussing why so many people all over the world listen to Larry King. King’s television show, “Larry King Live,” is broadcast Monday through Friday on CNN at 9 p.m. (Eastern time).

”I think it’s a combination of a lot of things,“ he told me. ”It’s a fun show, it’s fast paced, it has great guests, it covers a wide variety of topics. I ask good questions, I listen to the answers. I don’t have an agenda, I’m there to learn and hopefully make it entertaining at the same time. It just works, and I can’t believe it will be 20 years old next year.”

“You’ve interviewed almost everybody, but not everybody,” I told Larry. “Whom would you like to interview whom you haven’t?” “I’d like to interview this pope. He fascinates me. He speaks five languages, he was raised among Jews, he lived under Hitler and Stalin, he’s been shot, he’s traveled more than any pope. In some areas he’s very conservative, in others he’s very liberal.”

“What about Osama Bin Laden?” I asked.

“Oh, he’d be right up there with the pope. You know, villains are interesting too. No one would get a bigger audience than Bin Laden.”

Larry, Jerry and MDA

King interviewed MDA National Goodwill Ambassador Mattie Stepanek on the 2002 MDA Telethon.

“I became interested in muscular dystrophy in 1985 when I was diagnosed with it,” I told King. “How did you become interested in it?”

“It started with Jerry Lewis. When I lived in New York I remember Jerry Lewis’ first Telethon for MD.   I didn’t know what it was at the time but I used to watch the stars. He and Dean Martin interviewed them.

“I got to know Jerry pretty well. I knew his father, too. I interviewed him many times. Danny Lewis [also an entertainer] came on my radio show in Miami in 1960. I knew Jerry’s children. I’ve known Jerry now for a very long time and I still regard him as a close friend.

“And then Mattie Stepanek [MDA’s National Goodwill Ambassador who died in June]. No one in my family has MD, so I didn’t have any personal relationship with it, but when I first interviewed Mattie a couple of years ago I really got into it.”

“Why is that?” I asked.

“He’s the first kid I’ve known who had MD, and he’s such an extraordinary kid and a great writer and poet. And then, of course, I went on Jerry’s show with him.”

King’s appearance on the 2002 Telethon with Mattie and Lewis was emotionally intense. “I was personally in tears,” I told him.

“It moved me, too. It was one of those great moments,” he said. “I didn’t know what to expect, but now I’ve become friends with Mattie. There’s never been a kid like Mattie — his optimism, the way he handles life, his love for people, his relationship with his mother. He’s the best symbol MDA ever had.”

I told Larry that I’d watched him for a long time and, based on personal experience when my daughter Allison died, I knew he had great empathy for people in distress. I asked if there was anything in his own life that might have caused that.

“I’ve had loss. My father died when I was 9. My mother raised two boys. So I saw death early. I myself have had a heart attack and heart surgery,” he replied.

“My Judaism counts. I was raised with the idea that you’re supposed to give to others, you have to care about others, and I do walk in their shoes. I’m amazed how people carry on when they’ve had extreme traumas — loss of limb, loss of loved ones. So I try to get into the feelings. It’s part of me.”

The Past and the Future

King has two new books published this year, Why I Love Baseball and Remember Me When I’m Gone.

“In the latter we wrote to 300 people and asked them how they wanted to be remembered. They could be funny or serious. We asked them to write their own obits,” he explained. “We got answers from a whole host of actors and politicians.

“The baseball book is a labor of love. That one I wrote. The other one is a collection of other people’s thoughts. I have loved baseball since I was a kid.”

“You’re from Brooklyn,” I said. “Were you bought up with the Dodgers?”

“I spent my early years at Ebbets Field. I was at Jackie Robinson’s first game, and I got to interview him about six weeks before he died. I was a little Dodger freak,” he recalled.

“Of course, when they left town, that hurt me so much I’ve never rooted for them since. I root for the Mets and the Orioles. The book is a collection of remembrances, interviews and thoughts I have on why I love the game so much. It’s from the heart.”

We talked a bit about Larry’s youngest children, ages 5 and 4.

“They’re the joy of my life,” he told me. “I can’t get enough of them. Jerry Lewis has met them. They’re best buddies with totally different personalities.”

I reminded him that I have three children and four grandchildren, and I’m depending on him to help raise the money MDA needs to find a cure in case they have myotonic MD, as I do.

“I think the answer is going to come somewhere in stem cell research,” he said. “I wish the administration would let loose more on that.” I was surprised to hear him say that because Larry generally tries to be nonpartisan.

“Yes, but stem cell is an emotional thing to me. I don’t support a party, I don’t announce who I vote for, but on a major issue like stem cell research, which affects so many, that’s different.

“I have adult-onset diabetes and I know that may benefit from stem cell research.”

We reminisced a bit about the advertising business in Miami in the 1970s and then it was time to hang up. I had spent 30 minutes interviewing Larry King.

Larry was a great person to interview. It was easy, and he answered every question.

MDA is terribly lucky to have him as a friend. He’s an American icon.