Admittedly, he likely speaks on a daily basis, just not with
me, and not on the record. But, seeing as I am simultaneously a Notre Dame fan and a Cincinnatian, apparently because God feels He owes me one, and I was able to conduct a phone interview with Mike on Friday.
In real, actual life, I'm an entertainment columnist for MSNBC.com. With all the new developments going on with Cinematic Titanic and the recreated MST3K site, I pitched an article about the splintering of the cast, and how this is functioning as a case study for the opportunities available in the new media. Mr. Nelson quite graciously consented to an interview, and I am deeply appreciative to him and the good people at Rifftrax for making it possible so quickly.
Allow me to pre-empt some FAQs from my fellow Traxxers:
Q: OMG!!
A: I KNOW!!!!!!!!!!!
Q: Did you ask him about Cinematic Titanic and the new MST3K site!?
A: I did.
Q: What did he say?
A: As I like my job, I can't tell you before the piece is posted, but I'll come back with the article link when it goes live-- then you can read all the dish. For the moment, I'll just say that we did discuss each new project separately. He was forthcoming with comments concerning both.
Q: What else did you talk about?
A: The California fires,
Death Rat, homemade coffee, the fact that the Bots cartoon is on Cuts, and the writers' strike.
Q: Will everything you discussed be in the article?
A: There's not room, especially since we briefly touched on some very MST-specific things that are beyond the scope of an article for general readers, but with the consent of the honorable Messieurs Pizza and Nelson, I'll post the transcript of what was left out.
In-the-meantime details: Visit Anatomy of a Freakout at:
http://blondechampagne.blogspot.com/2007/11/70-worth-of-hero-worship.htmlQ: Was afraid of you?
A: I would be shocked if he weren't, poor man, but he was, as expected, very classy, very funny, and very pleasant.
Q: How did you not projectile vomit out of sheer nervousness and awe?
A: Who says I didn't?
