May 31st

My morning ritual won't be the same again. For the last fiften years, I've been turning on NBC's "Today" Show and I've been greeted by the smiling face of Katie Couric. She's leaving NBC for the anchor job of the CBS Evening News. I'm writing to let her know how much I'll miss her in the mornings, and to congratulate her on the new job.

Katie Couric

May 26th

Television legend Johnny Carson stepped down as host of NBC's "Tonight" show fourteen years ago this week. His successor was a man who is considered one of the nicest guys in show business and one who I've been compared to, both physically and vocally, over the last few years. He has put his own unique stamp on the job, and will be missed when he retires in a few years. I'm writing to express my admiration before it's too late.

Jay Leno

May 27th

My wife, my Dad and I went to Atlantic City tonight. As usual, I left more money there than I came with (how is that possible??) Our favorite spot to visit in AC is Bally's Wild West, which is a great themed resort. Bally's does a great job in making people feel welcome (and making them forget that they actually lose most of the time) so I'm writing to the CEO to let him know how much of a good time we had.

Gary Loveman

May 28th

Baseball history was made today, as Barry Bonds hit his career home run number 715. This put him in second place on the all-time list, ahead of Babe Ruth. Normally this accomplishment would be celebrated throughout the land, but it wasn't. Barry Bonds has alienated the media and many of his teammates with a churlish attitude. He has also been tainted with the association of steroid abuse, though nothing has been officially proven. I've met Barry Bonds a few times, and he's always been nice to me and my Dad. I'm writing to congratulate him. In addition, I'm writing to another misunderstood slugger who is high on the home run list.

Barry Bonds

Reggie Jackson

May 29th

Today is Memorial Day in the United States, a day set aside to remember all servicemen and women who have fought and died in the defense of our nation. I'm writing to the heads of all the branches of our armed forces.

Peter Schoomaker - US Army

Admiral Michael J. Mullen - US Navy

General Michael Mosely - US Air Force

General Michael Hagee - US Marine Corps

May 30th

The 95th Annual Indianapolis 500 was held today.

Jim Nabors

Mario Andretti

Danny Sullivan

May 25th

The original "Star Wars" debuts - 1977

George Lucas

Mark Hamill

Carrie Fisher

Harrison Ford

Anthony Daniels

Peter Mayhew

David Prowse

Kenny Baker

James Earl Jones

May 24th

The "American Idol" finale was today. A new winner was crowned. I'm writing to him, as well as the host of the show, and a past winner.


Taylor Hicks

Ryan Seacrest

Clay Aiken

May 23rd

Former Texas Senator Lloyd Bentsen died today. While he had a long, distinguished career in the Senate, he is probably best remembered as the Vice Presidential candidiate in 1988. I'm writing to his running mate in that election.

Michael Dukakis

May 22nd

The saxophone,invented by Adolphe Sax, debuts on this day in 1840.

I'm contacting two of the greatest sax players of all time.

Clarence Clemons

Kenny G

May 21st

The Wright Brother's "Flying Machine" is patented on this day in 1906. I'm writing to the CEO's of some of the biggest airlines in the world.

Gerald Grinstein - Delta

Dermot Mannion - Aer Lingus

Glen Tilton - United

Gerard Arpey - American Airlines

Gary C. Kelly - Southwest Airlines

May 20th

I saw the very funny film "Keeping Up With The Steins" today

Scott Marshall

Gary Marshall

Jeremy Piven

Daryl Hannah

May 19th

I saw the film "The DaVinci Code" today.

Ron Howard

Jean Reno

Paul Bettany

May 18th

The classic novel Dracula , by Bram Stoker is first published on this date in 1897. I'm writing to some actors who have portrayed the Prince of Darkness over the years.

Frank Langella

George Hamilton

Gary Oldman

Chris Sarandon

Daniel Roebuck

Joe Flaherty

Michael Nouri

Christopher Lee

Leslie Nielsen

May 17th

New York Stock Exchange founded - 1792
(In an incredible coincidence, that was 214 years ago, and the stock market index lost 214 points today!)

John Thain - NYSE CEO

May 16th

Root Beer invented by Charles Hines - 1866

Todd Stitzer - Cadbury Schweppes CEO

May 15th

City of Las Vegas founded - 1905

Mayor Oscar B. Goodman

Steve Wynn

Joey Bishop

May 14th

Mother's Day. I'm writing to some of my favorite TV mothers.

Florence Henderson

Jane Kaczmarek

Yvonne DeCarlo

Julie Kavner

May 13th

Velcro invented - 1958

Wil De Hollander - CEO, Velcro, inc.

May 12th

The State of Israel is founded - 1948

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert

May 11th

Being a lifelong Disney fan means that my three year old son has no choice but to join the fraternity. Our house is covered in Disney memorabilia, and we have every Disney movie on video and DVD (his favorite is "Monsters Inc., which is also a Pixar film. I just took him to see "The Wild", which was cute, but not up to the usual Disney standards.) This week, the Disney Channel premiered a new series that my son is hooked on. It's called "The Mickey Mouse Clubhouse." The idea is that it' a 21st century CGI version of the Mickey Mouse Club featuring the "sensational six" classic Disney characters. (Which used to be the fabulous five - Mickey, Minnie, Goofy,Donald and Pluto. Daisy Duck was added to keep two couples on the show and to increase the appeal to girls.) It's a great show, made even more special by the voices of the characters, who have captured the spirit and tone of the originals from the 1930's. The first voice of Mickey was none other than Walt Disney himself. Donald's voice was provided by Clarence Nash, and Goofy was done by Pinto Colvig. When those gentlemen passed away, three new artists took over, and they are still embodying the voices. I am writing to these current voice-over artists to thank them for their service to the Disney family.

Wayne Allwine

Tony Anselmo

Bill Farmer

May 10th

The Muppets debut - 1954


Brian Henson

May 9th

Paramount Pictures founded - 1912

Sumner Redstone

Brad Grey

May 8th

1886 - Coca Cola introduced


E. Neville Isdell - CEO Coca Cola

May 7th

The FOX TV show "Family Guy" which was saved from cancellation by loyal viewers, aired an episode tonight that parodied my alltime favorite movie, 1982's "Poltergeist." I'm writing to the creator, and some of the voice talent who make this show so great.

Seth MacFarlane

Alex Borstein

Seth Green

May 6th

Call to post!! It's the first Saturday in May, and time for The Kentucky Derby. The 132nd "run for the roses" will have the attention of the world, even those who don't follow horse racing on a regular basis. It's often called the most exciting two minutes in sports. My family has always watched the Derby, and the two races that follow (the Preakness and Belmont Stakes.) I live near the Meadowlands racetrack, so I have a passing interest in horse racing and the way trainers and owners operate. In honor of the day, I'm going to sit back, enjoy a mint julep and drop a line to one of the most notable names in horse racing.

D. Wayne Lukas

May 5th

I saw the Tony Award winning Broadway show "Hairspray" tonight. It's been playing for a few years, but I haven't had the opportunity to see it before this evening. It was all I expected, and more. I left the theater still humming the music (the mark of a good show in my book.) The play takes place in 1962 Baltimore, and is filled with musical homages to that era. I already knew the plot, because I'd seen the movie version on which this musical is based when it debuted years ago. (Ricki Lake was the star.) The cast was excellent, and consisted of Broadway veterans, comedians, a 60's rock icon, and an American Idol finalist. I'm sending a note to a few of them, as well as the creator of the original film.

Judine Somerville

John Pinette

Kevin Meaney

Darlene Love

Diana DeGarmo

John Waters

May 4th

I've been living in the NYC area my whole life and have been to Lincoln Center many many times, but never took the opportunity to see the NY Philharmonic - one of the world's finest orchestras - perform in person (shame on me!) Until today, that is. I was priveledged to be able to sit in on a rehearsal of their opening night performance. It was an incredible experience, and a joy to watch fellow artists at work in a relaxed setting. I'm sending a note to the conductor to let him know how much I enjoyed it.

Lorin Maazel

May 3rd

Tarzan has come to Broadway. I was always a fan of the character, and pretended to swing from vines as often as I could as a kid (of course, there weren't too many vines around in Jersey City, so I had to improvise with curtains and extension cords.) I was happy to get a ticket to today's performance, and enjoyed the adaptation of the Disney animated film. The official opening isn't until next week, but it was just as good as if it had been running for years. I'm sending a letter to a few of the key cast members, the composer, and to the guy who I grew up watching as Tarzan on TV in the 70's. (By the way, Cheetah doesn't appear anywhere in the Broadway show.)

Shuler Hensley

Josh Strickland

Phil Collins

Ron Ely

May 2nd

Radio legend Larry King made his debut on this day in 1957, from a small station in Miami. By the 1970's, he was syndicated all over the country, and my Dad used to listen to him every night. I have fond memories of hearing Mr. King's voice as I drifted to sleep. Eventually he moved to his nightly talk show on CNN, where he has become a role model as someone who wishes to communicate better with those who inspire me. I'm sending him a note of congratulations and thanks.

Larry King

May 1st

My favorite comic book character, Batman, made his debut on this day in 1939 (Detective Comics #27.) Over the years, he has become the standard for superheroes, along with his DC counterpart, Superman. Where Superman is light and virtuous, Batman has always been a darker character. If you only watched the TV show from the 1960's you wouldn't get that sense. The best representation of this dark nature would be the 1989 film "Batman" with Jack Nicholson as the Joker. I can't write to the creator, Bob Kane, who passed away in 1989, shortly after the film was released and I've already sent letters to the TV and most current versions of Batman, so today's letter goes out to the man who played him in 1989 and in the 1992 sequel.

Michael Keaton