From Cincinnati

Welcome to another edition of From Cincinnati!

On this week's show: Katie Laur. Katie has done a bit of this and a bit of that in Cincinnati and far from Cincinnati - and it's safe to say all of it is top-notch. From The Katie Laur Band - which made her the first (or maybe second, as we discuss) woman to front a bluegrass band anywhere - to writing for Cincinnati Magazine, it's very safe to say Katie Laur can weave a tale as few can. That's why it's so lucky to get to sit down with her and reminisce a little and talk about plans for the future.

It was also fun to hear about her and her longtime radio partner, Wayne Clyburn, "mashing the button" on Sunday evenings at WNKU-FM, the now-defunct public radio station at Northern Kentucky University. Katie also shares about her many times appearing with her band on Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion and the time June Carter-Cash heard her play. Or the other time she found out her music was being regularly played on Saturday Night Live. She's got a lot of stories, continues to have an amazing life and has had some amazing experiences...a true national treasure who just so happens to be from Cincinnati.

Many thanks to Katie Laur for allowing us to use music in the podcast from The Katie Laur Band. Also thanks to Jake Speed and The Freddies for allowing us to use music in the show as well.

Enjoy the show! And be sure to check out From Cincinnati so you can rate our show and leave a comment, suggest a future guest, ask a question and share feedback. Hearing from listeners is a real thrill! Thank you for listening. We'll see you next week with another special guest...From Cincinnati.

You may not have heard of fashion designer David Meister. He's one of those behind-the-scenes people who make the glittery stars look so glittery and beautiful on the red carpet and elsewhere. But if you like clothing and you like celebrities, you may have heard of him. And he just so happens to be from Cincinnati.

After graduating from the University of Cincinnati's Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning college, Meister left Cincinnati and headed for fashion stardom - with a few bumps and bruises along the way. Whether it was helping Joan Rivers hilariously rate some celebrities outfits on TV or talking fashion with various talk show hosts, Meister has made his mark. It seems just about every woman in Hollywood has, at one time or another, worn Meister's gowns: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jane Seymour, Jane Fonda, Pamela Anderson, Tina Few, Sofia Vergara and Demi Lavato - to name a few. Or his very first star to wear clothing he designed - Sharon Stone, whom he still considers a friend to this day - this guy has seen and done a lot in the world of fashion. And he doesn't like taco socks, as Joe finds out.

Meister grew up in Colerain Township and that's pretty fascinating to host Joe Wessels - because so did he. On the same street. Directly across the street from David Meister, his parents and two brothers. But the two had never met before and Joe had no idea David was David - until he started Googling Cincinnati famous people. So, they had a great get-to-know-you conversation with lots of laughs and Cincinnati talk and learning David used to play with Joe's uncles. It was a fun conversation.

Also thank you to B. Shields for allowing us to use his great song "Cincinnati" on the show today. Check him and his tunes out. A true local original.

Enjoy the show! And be sure to check out From Cincinnati so you can rate our show and leave a comment or ask a question. Thank you for listening.

Maybe you only know Michael Flannery as the guy who occasionally appears on those Goodwill donate-your-car commercials. If that's the only way you know him, though, you're missing quite a lot. You would be surprised to know that Goodwill's mission is a bit more than a job to him - it hits very close to home. You might also be a little shocked to know the guy is quite funny. In fact, that's how he got his start in show business (unless you count the days running camera for Time Warner Cable) - as a stand-up comedian and later road comic who got to know some very interesting people. Oh, and he also happens to be from Cincinnati.

Also, if you're of a certain age and from Cincinnati, you most definitely know him as the head of Club 19, a ragtag band of 1990s afterschool cartoon watchers who were entertained by his sense of humor and easily recognizable with those red-rimmed eyeglasses. He was on your square, little television, keeping you entertained when you were really supposed to be doing your homework. Flannery was their leader, of sorts, beaming into latchkey homes across Greater Cincinnati on WXIX-TV, or FOX19 to today's viewers.

Or you might know him as the reporter behind the 9 On Your Kids' Side reports on Channel 9 (WCPO-TV). Those stories (and that job) ended more than 10 years ago, but you would not believe the impact that gig had on Cincinntians in general, but, moreoever, Flannery himself. He looks at himself merely as the vessel for this overabundance of goodness emanating from the Gilbert Avenue studios, translated into real action by Cincinnatians and their overabundance of generosity. But, to many, he's much, much more than all of that.

Listen in to hear his amazing and often funny story, as only could be told by Michael Flannery himself. He's a husband, dad to three amazing kids and a great example of what it means to be From Cincinnati. We think you'll enjoy it.

If you have a question or comment about this episode - or want a question answered on the show - send us an email at [email protected] or call (513) 899-6397 and leave us a voice mail (or text a question to that same number). You can also email an MP3 or WAV file with your question that might be played on the show.

Heather French Henry, or Heather Renee French, or as I once knew her, just "Heather" the page designer. Or maybe the-one-who-would-not-go-out-with-us, as I would remind her.

Heather and I have known each other since college, where she was the very kind, very capable DAAP fashion design major and, apparently, a beauty pageant contestant who happened to kill some time doing ad design and layout at the illustrious University of Cincinnati student newspaper, The News Record. That also happened to be the same student newspaper where I cut my teeth in journalism, was the assistant photo editor and one of the many admirers of From Cincinnati's second guest.

We talk about this in the show, but she went on to do something kinda significant - just a few short news cycles after she and I would occasionally grab a pizza slice and drink together at The Rhine Room (a former Tangeman University Center establishment, for you youngins' out there).

That "something" happened to be - while everyone waited for Donny and Marie Osmond to manufacture a little history - being crowned freakin' Miss America 2000. And now I know why she would always diss us amid our repeated invitations to join us on college weekend nights just so she could compete in a beauty pageant. Turns out there was actually something to that (and it wasn't just because we weren't cool enough). Go figure?

Heather is as nice and kind and smart and funny and forthcoming as she was back in the late 1990s. It was fun to catch up with her again while she was on the campaign trail this fall - running for Kentucky's Secretary of State (a race she eventually lost). We met at, of all places, a Holiday Inn in Bowling Green, Ky.

It was great to catch up with her and hear her amazing story - from growing up in Augusta, Ky. horsing around with her old neighbor, George Clooney, to marrying the then-Lt. Gov. of the state of Kentucky - 21 years her senior - Steve Henry. They're still married, have two kids, work hard and seem to have fun doing it.

Thank you for listening to From Cincinnati. Special thanks to Chris Collier, a Cincinnati musician, raw talent and a great person for allowing us to use her music in today's episode. Thanks, Chris!

In From Cincinnati's inaugural edition we welcome Jay Moriarty, television writer and producer - now author (see below) - and a guy who is definitely From Cincinnati.

As you'll hear in the episode, Moriarty was a boy on a mission who turned into a man on a mission, when, in 1968, he took his new bride (after they married in Cincinnati) and headed west with one goal in mind: Get a job writing for television.

After some years learning the ropes - but not too many - he found a TV show and a man he would like to work for - none other than the legendary Norman Lear and his groundbreaking TV show "All in the Family." That would later translate into working on other iconic shows like "The Jeffersons," "Good Times" and "What's Happening Now," among many, many others.

Some luck - including a chance meeting with another guy from Ohio and finding a writing partner (and we hear why finding a writing partner is very, very important in Moriarty's view), Mike Milligan (whose grew up in Los Angeles but his father grew up in... you guessed it, Cincinnati), and the path was set. Moriarty would go on to have one of the most illustrious TV writing and producing careers Hollywood has ever seen.

And he grew up in Golf Manor and Finneytown. Who knew?

Moriarty also discusses his time working with Bill Cosby on "The Cosby Show" and other very notable shows you will undoubtedly remember, plus his marriage to Nancy Allen, who you might remember as well.

Jay has written an account of his life that is a brisk read with some great tips for aspiring television scriptwriters - or people who just remember and loved the iconic TV shows he helped get on the air. Get a copy of "Honky in the House: Writing and Producing The Jeffersons" (affiliate link) on Amazon. It's also available on Kindle.

Thank you for listening to From Cincinnati. Special thanks to Chris Collier, a Cincinnati musician, raw talent and a great person for allowing us to use her music in today's episode. Thanks, Chris!

Cincinnatians – and especially many former Cincinnatians – love and appreciate their hometown. No matter where you go after you graduate high school, some things define a Cincinnatian. It doesn’t matter whether they settle in Price Hill or Knob Hill, North Hollywood or North Avondale, Cincinnati - for good or bad - kind of sticks to your insides. And because Cincinnati and the region proudly boast some of the best secondary and post-secondary educational institutions in the world, kids heralding from Cincinnati often do pretty well out there in the big, broad world. Not bad for the world’s biggest small town.

From Cincinnati's first episode: Monday, December 23, 2019.

From Cincinnati is a Podcast from Loveland Local News and High Priority Partners LLC hosted by longtime journalist and experienced radio show host, Joe Wessels. It aims to track down people with Cincinnati-style chili in their DNA to hear their story and tie it into their upbringing in Cincinnati – whether they left and found their way in the world and now only visit, or they still live in town. Everybody has a story – but not everyone is from Cincinnati.

From Cincinnati isn't a show with a specific agenda. Casual, free-flowing, long-form interviews and the conversations goes where it goes. It’s a chat more than an interview, but there will be questions – and likely lots of them.

If you’re interested in being a guest or know someone who could be, please contact producer/host Joe Wessels at [email protected] or call/text (513) 899-NEWS (6397). Visit us online at www.FromCincinnati.com or www.facebook.com/FromCincinnati. We’re also on Twitter @FromCincinnati. Subscribe to the Podcast in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn, iHeartRadio, Spotify or just ask your smart speaker to play “From Cincinnati.”

Special, special thanks to Cincinnati musician, the super-talented Chris Collier for giving us permission to use her music in this episode and future episodes. We appreciate her "Cincinnati Love" and hope you'll give some of yours in return. Check out her website and give it a listen.

(From Cincinnati will also be featuring other musicians From Cincinnati in future episodes.)