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From the Daily Iowan September 26, 2000 Radio show asks I.C., 'Whad'Ya Know?' Michael Feldman's comic genius graces the Hancher stage By Jesse Elliott, The Daily Iowan Among a plastic Uncle Sam statue, a pink flamingo, six Grecian columns and an 8-foot-tall polar bear donated by the UI Museum of Natural History, radio host Michael Feldman took the stage at Hancher auditorium on Sept. 23 to a warm Iowa City welcome. Feldman's Public Radio International show "Whad'Ya Know?" was broadcast live before a crowd of 2,000. Many of the Hancher audience members claimed that seeing the show in person was better than hearing it on the radio. "It's just a radio show--go home and listen to it for free," Feldman teased the crowd before the broadcast. "I still can't understand why you pay good money to see nothing. It's like a Hawkeye game." Iowa and Iowa City jokes were a key feature in Feldman's routine. By researching the locale ahead of time, Feldman was able to draw the audience into his routine with boos, cheers and laughs. "The only difference between Iowa City and Madison is we have to go out in the woods to shoot deer," he told the crowd. "You all can just step out on your back porch and blast away." UI sophomore Brian Valentyn said he enjoyed the references to Iowa City culture. "I had heard of the show before, but never listened to it," he said. "My grilfriend dragged me along, but it ended up being a great time." Saturday's broadcast featured guests Frank Conroy, the director of the Iowa Writers' Workshop; Marvin Bell, the Iowa poet laureate and a long-time workshop faculty member; Robert Forsythe, a UI professor of economics; Evelyn Birkby, who has been a Iowa Newspaper columnist for 50 years; and local musicians Bo Ramsey and the Middle of Nowhere. "Feel free to rush the stage or throw undergarments," Feldman said. "We don't get a whole lot of that in radio." Feldman, who was introduced at the beginning of the show by sidekick Jim Packard as "the man who's the root of most evil," had other advice for the crowd on how to survive a radio show. "Always think of something to say ahead of time," he said. "When you see either a dangerous weapon or a microphone being pointed towards you, you should have something clever to say." Feldman pulled John Wiley, an audience member from Omaha, on stage to participate in the quiz portion of the show. Wiley experienced Feldman's gentle sting when he identified himself as "a private-sector bureaucrat in the insurance business." "But you must have good qualities, too," Feldman said. UI sophomore Jane Hanna bought a ticket to the show because she and her family have listened to it for years. "It was great to finally see Feldman in person," she said. "He lived up to all my expectations." After the show,
Feldman spent an hour meeting fans, signing T-shirts, and discussing local
attractions. Feldman told The Daily Iowan he "would be happy to come back
to Iowa City anytime they'll have me." More pictures at the Whad'Ya Know? web site http://www.notmuch.com/ |
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The
"Whad'Ya Know?" band--bassist Jeff Eckels, pianist John Thulin and drummer
Clyde Stubblefield--performed upbeat jazz standards that kept the audience's
toes tapping.