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Interview with Pat Boone; Autopsy Report Shows Ride Did Not Cause Women's Death
Aired April 14, 2006 - 15:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Long before anybody had heard of Simon Cowell or phoned in for their favorite would-be "American Idol," they were spotting raw talent on "The Original Amateur Hour" with Ted Mack. That show aired from 1948 to 1970, and helped launch the careers of some major stars. Do you recognize this bouncy little 8- year-old?
(MUSIC)
PHILLIPS: That's Academy Award and Grammy winner Irene Cara, singing her heart out in 1967. Well, she would later find fame with that hit song and movie "Fame."
Cut to 2006, and "The Original Amateur Hour," it's back in a two- disk DVD collection hosted by Pat Boone. Pat and I spoke the other day about his appearances on the show and some advice he has for Simon on "American Idol."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAT BOONE, SINGER: And that was one of the biggest shows on television.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Ted Mack and "The Original Amateur Hour."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BOONE: Actually, I had won a talent show in Nashville, Tennessee. I was 19, and I did not expect to get on the Ted Mack show. I hoped I would, but I certainly didn't think I would win it. But I won the contest in Nashville, I auditioned in New York. I got on. I won three weeks in a row.
And of course, it was what "American Idol" is now. People saw you, they voted, cards and letters and phone calls, and then the winner was brought back the following week. And then three-time winners would vie with other three-time winners when there are enough to do a whole special. And I did that, as well.
PHILLIPS: Well, let's take a little listen, back here when you were 19. Let's reminisce.
BOONE: Oh, boy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOONE (singing): And to the night I cry hurry home, come home to me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Wow! You had a little sex appeal thing going there.
BOONE: Well, is that what it is? It looked like agony to me.
PHILLIPS: Well, you sure pulled it off.
BOONE: I just a naive young kid from Nashville, like so many of the contestants on "American Idol" now.
PHILLIPS: Well, that's a perfect segue. You were mentioning "American Idol," and you look at the relationship between you and Ted Mack, how he treated the guests. Quite a switch from Simon and how he's just -- woof, brutal. He's brutal to some of these contestants.
BOONE: Yes, now, he -- of course, this thing was his brainchild, along with a couple of others, and so he's quite brilliant. But at the same time, I don't know -- he doesn't have enough sensitivity to the hopes and the ambitions and the psyches of these young performers. I love Paula Abdul because she is always so sensitive as a performer herself to the feelings of these people. And sure, some of them are hopeless and some of the things they do are not...
PHILLIPS: But you don't think it's a good idea to tell them that.
BOONE: You don't wound them and embarrass them terribly right in front of millions of people. I mean, they shouldn't even -- they shouldn't use the tape if it's that bad.
PHILLIPS: Well, you're a gentleman, Pat. You know what is surprising to me -- Lewis Farrakhan. When I saw this clip, playing the violin. Let's listen for just a sec.
(MUSIC)
PHILLIPS: Did this just blow your mind when you think of what he's doing now and then thinking about this?
BOONE: It does. And I truly wish he had continued to pursue his career as a violinist. I think he'd have been happier, maybe. I can't say that for him. But actually, you can tell he is an accomplished violinist. He's far better than Jack Benny ever was. And -- but quite good. And I think that says something about him as a person. I mean, there is that performer, there is that almost virtuoso in him. It took a different direction.
But, again, that's what makes this series, this history of the "Ted Mack Amateur Hour," so -- I think so entertaining and so gripping. Because some of the most unlikely people and performers, it's just a constant parade of humanity that is fascinating. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (singing): Let's all sing like the birdies sing
(MUSIC)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BOONE: Poor Ann-Margret sang so beautifully when she was on several years later, but she was beat that night by a guy playing a classical melody on a leash in his hands.
PHILLIPS: Funny that you should mention that Pat Boone. We happen to have a little bit of that Ann-Margret moment.
BOONE: You do? Great.
PHILLIPS: Yes, 16 years old. Here it is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANN-MARGRET (singing): You got a certain little cute way of flirting...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Wow. She had it going on as a teenager, just like you.
BOONE: Yes, she did. She did.
PHILLIPS: You mention the man playing the tree leaf. We got a little clip of that, too.
BOONE: You do? Great.
PHILLIPS: Let's look at this.
(MUSIC)
PHILLIPS: OK, Pat, how could this guy beat Ann-Margret? Give me a break.
BOONE: Well, that was the appeal of the show, because people would actually vote. They'd to the phones or they'd go -- they'd write out cards and letters, because they wanted to see that again. I mean, there was such bizarre things on the show, like the one-legged tap dancer.
PHILLIPS: Well, what about the chicken tricks. Do you remember that?
BOONE: The chicken?
PHILLIPS: Yes, do you remember the chicken, Betty? Here. I've got it racked up for you. Check it out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, you're going to dance a little bit, too, tonight? Well, that's fine. Now you play your piano.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: You don't remember Betty playing the piano there, do you?
BOONE: No, I'm don't but I was told that that thing that chicken was on was a grill!
PHILLIPS: You know...
BOONE: You'd dance, too! But that was the incredible appeal of the show, is you never knew what you were going to see.
(MUSIC)
BOONE: I think it's a time capsule.
PHILLIPS: Well, talk about time capsule in different direction. This picture of you at the American Music Awards in 1997, with your whole heavy metal coming out party here. Holy moley, Pat. What were you thinking? not that -- you look pretty good. But you know.
BOONE: Well, I...
PHILLIPS: Not that you look -- you look pretty good. But, you know...
BOONE: Well, look at that, flexing my pecs with these fake tattoos and shocking the king of shock rock. And the reporters kept saying show us your muscles, and like a fool -- I was just like a puppet on a string -- I was doing it. But I was in good shape, and I am still. And I still have those tattoos, by the way. They're in a drawer at home, but I have them. I mean, they're ready for whenever I need them.
PHILLIPS: Well, you always keep things interesting and your newest CD, "Ready to Rock," Pat Boone, it's amazing this 19-year-old, good-looking young man is singing like a crooner, now all the way to heavy metal. He just -- you keep us guessing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Speaking of surprises, Pat told me that his autobiography is rolling off the presses this fall, and he says that people will be surprised by what and who will be included in that book.
Time now to say good-bye to a new friend who also was an old friend. You may remember our LIVE FROM chat with Arthur Winston. He was a Los Angeles transit worker who retired last month at the age of 100. He was still full of life when we spoke with him March 22. He even offered me a little advice on life.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Any advice for me? I'm not 100 yet but any advice on how I can live a healthy life?
ARTHUR WINSTON: Yes, I think the first is kind of be a little careful on a lot of these old credit cards. I think you shouldn't -- I don't fool with a lot of those things. I don't have to try to live above my means, so I don't have no trouble in life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: No trouble because he didn't live beyond his means. Well, we just got word that Arthur Winston died in his sleep. He began work in the streetcar era in 1924, and missed only one day of work. That's when his wife died in 1988. In 1996, Congress cited him as employee of the century.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Straight to Carol Lin, working on a developing story for us. Hi, Carol.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there, Kyra.
Back to this 49-year-old woman who died on this Disney World ride. The autopsy report has come in, and I'm going to read it to you from the medical examiners report. She was riding this ride called Mission: Space, and the autopsy so far shows that she had what is called hypertensive bleeding within the brain, and that there was evidence of severe, long-standing high blood pressure.
So, Kyra, taking advantage of our worldwide resources, obviously, we have Dr. Sanjay Gupta on our staff, and we ask him, well, what does this mean? And he said it's usually part of a long-standing disease process, and that what he's reading into it so far is that the only way this Mission ride could have contributed to her death was by perhaps raising her blood pressure higher than usual.
Now, taking a look, also, at the Disney Web site -- we had our Miami Bureau look into this. And on the Web site, it says that there are no less than 13 warning signs addressing a variety of conditions including blood pressure -- so pregnancy, height minimums, motion sickness, high blood pressure -- so it seems that the story here is that the ride may not have directly contributed to her death.
They had safety experts over at Disney World check out the ride, and it reopened yesterday. But such a tragic ending, Kyra, because you know this little boy, 4-year-old little boy, died on that ride last year and they attributed it to a heart condition. Maybe the parents didn't even know about that.
PHILLIPS: That's interesting. I mean, we started talking about that as well. Think of -- I mean, we grew up in this area, going on these rides. We bring our families on these ride, and it's a part of your lifestyle. But it's true, don't always think or know about certain conditions until it's too late in situations like this. There's just a lot of lessons to be learned.
LIN: Well, look at all the rides today, Kyra. I mean, they weren't as intense as these rides today when you were growing up.
PHILLIPS: That's a good point. We have come a long way from the merry-go-round, haven't we?
LIN: You bet. I know, and little pony rides. Now you're going at the speed of light, it feels like.
PHILLIPS: Yes, you're right. Pulling a couple of Gs. Carol Lin, thanks a lot.
Straight ahead on LIVE FROM, trees are one thing, but how do you rescue a cat stuck in a wall?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm beginning to think that she is enjoying this, that she's in the back of this building laughing at us all.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Tale of the trapped tabby coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: It's the first in half a century, a bald eagle hatched on Santa Cruz Island just off Southern California. Here's the proud new mom and pop. If you look closely, you can see their new baby just bobbing in the nest there. The bald eagle chick is four or five inches long and weighs just a few ounces. There you go. A little better look. It may soon have a playmate too. The mom-to-be appears to be guarding an egg in the nest just around the block.
Well, if you had to be trapped, there are far worse places than a New York deli. But things are getting pretty serious for Molly the cat, who has been stuck in a wall in Greenwich Village for two weeks.
CNN's Randi Kaye is following Molly's ordeal for "ANDERSON COOPER 360."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): She was last seen at this delicatessen in New York City. Her name is Molly. She is 11 months old with bright green eyes.
PETER MYERS, MOLLY'S OWNER: I'm told that a dog chased Molly into a gap between the two buildings.
KAYE: Peter Myers is not Molly's father. He is her owner. Molly is a black cat. She was on mouse patrol inside Myer's Deli when she slipped through a crack in the wall. Thirteen days have passed since. A massive effort is underway to save her.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Molly, we hear you. Everybody wants you to come out. We're not going to hurt you. Molly, please.
KAYE: Molly is still meowing. We heard it through the walls for ourselves late Thursday night. The landmark building was built in 1849, so tearing down a wall to reach her could weaken it.
KAYE (on-camera): Are you concerned at all about the cat's condition?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, we are concerned about dehydration at this point. I still think he's in fairly decent shape, but we're starting to get into a critical time.
KAYE: They have tried cat food, cages, still nothing.
(on-camera): To catch a cat you have to get creative, so animal control brought in a handful of kittens like this one. This is Kissy, and she is just about five weeks old. They put them all inside one of the holes in the building hoping that the cat Molly would hear their cries and come to them, but after 35 minutes still no Molly.
(voice over): A tiny video camera attached to a plumber snake gave rescuers a glimpse of Molly Wednesday.
JOSH SCHERMER, VOLUNTEER: When we saw Molly we saw the perfect outline of two eyes, a curving down nose -- the way theirs do. And Mike who is from animal control saw whiskers.
KAYE: But just how far should the city to go to save Molly?
PETER FOGES, ONLOOKER: Well, I think they should knock the house done. And I think it would be wonderful if they did something really miraculous to save this little cat.
KAYE: Molly's owner is convinced she is enjoying the spotlight.
MYERS: I'm beginning to think that she is enjoying this, that she's in the back of this building laughing at us all.
KAYE: Still Myers, who has seen the return of mice to his shop since his faithful feline disappeared, hopes Molly is home soon.
Randi Kaye, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: And you can join "ANDERSON COOPER 360" weeknights at 10:00 eastern.
Just in time for Easter, we have got the bunny -- actually about 2,000 of them. We'll update you on the great bunny roundup in Reno just ahead on LIVE FROM. Come on, don't hop away, please?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: The great bunny roundup out in Reno, Nevada. The folks at the Best Friends Animal Society got called to a home in Reno to rescue more than a thousand of those rascally rabbits. They still don't have a final tally though on how many there are because they are breeding, well, like rabbits.
But they have managed to separate the boys from the girls. That is probably a good thing, and they have had more than 150 offers to take some of those cute little critters in.
With hippety hoppety Easter on its way, well the people at the Best Friends want you to think twice before you give a bunny as a gift. They require a lot more care than a kid can provide.
Ever wonder how a bunny came to symbolize Easter? We did. Here is a "Fact Check."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice over): Before the time of Christ, Pagans greeted the coming of spring as a time of rebirth. The Saxon goddess of spring was known as Ostara, which sounds a lot like the term we now know as Easter. Ostara had a companion, a rabbit, the most fertile animal known and a symbol of spring's renewal.
Ostara's sacred hair it seems was one of the many Pagan symbols absorbed by early Christians. The first written reference to the Easter bunny comes from 16th century Germany. Germans also produced the first chocolate bunnies and built nests of grass that the Easter bunny filled with eggs, another fertility symbol.
When the Germans came to the new world they brought their Easter traditions with them. Because of its Pagan roots some Christians reject the Easter bunny tradition and some avoid the term Easter, preferring less secular terms like Resurrection Sunday.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(WEATHER REPORT)
PHILLIPS: Well, from the sort of fun childlike aspects of Easter to the more serious spiritual side. We're going to a live shot. This is so amazing to watch every year. In the evening there in Rome around the Colosseum where the Pope -- actually Pope Benedict's first Good Friday services there at the Vatican, absolute beautiful scene, as we go into the weekend to celebrate Easter.
That ends our Friday edition of LIVE FROM. We sure hope you have a wonderful weekend. We will see you back here on Monday.
Now it is time for "THE SITUATION ROOM."
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