Wizard charms U.S. viewers

Press, 24 December 1986, Page 3

Wizard charms U.S. viewers

The Wizard’s harsh words about Americans on “Entertainment This Week” last Saturday evening may well have rebounded on him — they loved every minute of it. In an interview with Radio New Zealand’s talkback host, George Balani, the E.T.W. presenter, Leeza Gibbons, said the telephones had “gone mad” wanting to know all about the Wizard. “I think we will have to set up a fan club — people just loved, him. He is outspoken and a little brash — no, very brash — I think people were saying, ‘Let’s get him to run for some political office,’ she said.

“We got a real kick out of him — whatever you think of his philosophies what he says makes a lot of sense.” Leeza Gibbons said that when the show’s staff first viewed the tape of the Wizard they were unsure about whether it should go on air.

“Then they thought about it for a minute — and well, what he says is right!” she said.

“Americans like to kick up a little fuss and create controversy, and we like people who do that. Some of our heroes are people who are willing to take a stand and be out of step.” She said she had told the Wizard that if he got a television movie offer she wanted to produce it and split the costs 60 for him and 40 for her. "He said, ‘I don’t want the money, I’ll have the fame and we’ll shoot it in New Zealand.’ ”

Leeza Gibbons plans to return to New Zealand in July to do some ski-ing “in a place where there aren’t any trees for me to run into” and, it is hoped, to bring the whole show over.

“We are negotiating to see if it’s possible to do the show here. It would be like doing it in an outdoor studio,” she said.