Michael Mackie will tell you living in the middle of the map is good for business if you're an entertainment reporter. Famous people often pass through Kansas City, and he's been blessed to have interviewed most all of them. While he still isn't quite sure how he's been lucky enough to chat with celebs like Jennifer Lopez, Samuel L. Jackson, Cameron Diaz, and John Travolta, he's pretty sure it's what he was put on this earth to do. He'll tell you why The Bionic Woman's Lindsay Wagner was one of his favorite interviews, and why Tommy Lee Jones was the worst interview ever.
You Have 4 Minutes explores the art of interviewing, dishes a bit of gossip about the stars, and dives deep into Mackie's navigation through his life's biggest roadblocks: suffering a major stroke at age 40, the beast that is alcoholism, and (this is a big one, friends), a year denied of all refined sugar.
In first grade, Michael Mackie could spout inconsequential details about the 70s hit series "The Bionic Woman" with superhuman speed. By the time he entered high school in West Des Moines, Iowa, he was determined to have a career in TV.
Or on TV.
Or watching TV.
He wasn't picky.
Mackie earned his degree in broadcasting from the University of Iowa to prove to the world he was not only educated, but could help any trivia team sweep the pop culture category with his knowledge of sitcoms, game shows, music and all-things Oprah.
Through his career, he's worked a variety of jobs - spanning marketing to entertainment reporting - including stints at four local TV stations in the Kansas City market. Through the decades, he's interviewed a litany of musicians, comedians, television and film stars - including a whopping 10 Academy Award winners.
Home is now just outside Kansas City in Johnson County, Kansas. When he's not chatting up celebs, the accomplished travel writer is heading off to exotic locations (or unassuming Midwest towns), where he may be found hoping to spot his legend: the fabulous Dolly Parton. She still owes him an interview. He ain't too proud to beg.
