ira

i wish i remember more hilarious witty things that ira glass said on saturday night, but just know he was awesome. if you listen to TAL, you already love him. if you don't, you should listen. he talked about what makes a good story and he said this: "you know what's destroyed good stories? THE TOPIC SENTENCE...and that was just a topic sentence. i can't get away from it!"
i loved it. i love the way that he chronicled the way he came up with This American Life, why he chose to do the show the way he does, and he did all the music and clips right there. the best thing ever is when he would click on a piece of dialogue on his right side: he would lift his arm back, float his hand down to the switchboard dangling there, and touch the button for dialogue just like you would putting your finger in the baptismal font. so elegant. lovely.
the question/answer time was awesome. when asked who is the worst person to interview he said, "hilary clinton...i mean, i'm joking. but yes, i don't like her. it seems like every time she talks she's just utterly humorless. which i don't understand because bill is so funny. but i heard her talk years ago, i made that judgment and she will never redeem herself in my mind."
there's one This American Life, the only one that has a celebrity voice, that has johnny depp on it reading for a boy who has a voicebox. when asked how ira got johnny depp to be on the show, without skipping a beat: "i banged him."
and THAT is why ira glass is awesome.