Everybody with Angela, Williams said it's made possible by Fireheart Pictures and viewers like you.

Thank you.

For.

On July 24th, 2020, during one of the most uncertain times in our world.

A station in Los Angeles launched a new interview show focusing on diversity in the arts, entertainment and people, created by Ty Woodson and Bill Rogers.

The show would be called everybody with Angela Williamson.

After five seasons, it's time for us to share our story.

Tonight, we talked with the producer and director of our show and bring back one of our most requested guests.

I'm so happy you're joining us.

From Los Angeles.

This is KLCS PBS.

Welcome to everybody.

With Angela Williamson and innovation, Arts, education and public affairs program.

Everybody with Angela Williamson is made possible by viewers like you.

Thank you.

And now your host, doctor Angela Williamson.

Ty Woodson is our first guest.

Ty, thank you so much for doing this.

I know I put you on the spot.

Congratulations.

I'm used to it.

Congratulations on five seasons, I know.

So when you started creating this show and there's more than one show on Cox.

And we'll get to that in a minute.

But when you created the show, did you see us getting to five seasons?

Oh, absolutely.

I knew right away it was going to be a success.

But like most shows, we had to, we're growing pains, you know, and we jumped in with whatever we had.

The crew here was fantastic.

went out in the field a couple times, told some great stories, bring people into the studio, tell some better stories.

Here we are five seasons later and, you know, trying to win awards and so Emmy season.

So hopefully we get nominated.

It's already been submitted.

So fingers crossed.

Yeah, yeah.

Wow.

Well, and you know, it's so interesting because in that first season, I mean, I think we were just trying to fill where we wanted to go, but it made a difference with some of those first guest that we have, which is why we brought one back.

what do you think is important when and why we need to tell these stories?

When I first got hired at Cox, the one thing that I told them that I wanted to bring to the station was to be hyper local.

I wanted to tell LA stories.

People who live here, people who work here, people who, you know, make art here.

You know, we don't we get enough of what's going on in the rest of the country.

But as a PBS station, I believe it's our duty to, tell our story and give our audience our our Los Angeles audience, a hyper local view of what's going on in their backyard.

And I like that you're saying hyper local, because even though we are hyper, hyper local, we actually LA is so huge.

We have so many things going on in Los Angeles and so many wonderful community organizations, so many people doing phenomenal things just within the community.

I mean, do you see how the show has evolved to tell a much deeper and enriching part of those stories?

Absolutely.

Getting the five seasons I think, helps any, television series, because we could tell people stories, but when we bring them back, you know, in season four and season five and hopefully season ten, you can.

And the audience follows along.

You know, you you kind of grow with them.

Well, you talk about telling these stories in growing not only with the people that we interview, but the the show growing as well.

I mean, I think that's what PBS does.

Well, absolutely.

I look at a show on PBS and I and I watch it grow, and I feel like I should be writing them a holiday card because they become part of my family.

And we don't see a lot of that anymore.

I mean, we have wonderful we have streaming, which is wonderful.

We have ways of seeing, all types of different types of shows.

But I think the one thing that PBS does well is that we really hone in on those stories, and we make each person we interview a part of the PBS family.

Yeah, I think a lot of that in commercial television gets lost because they're so worried about, they're so worried about their sponsors and they're so worried about being commercial.

Whereas the freedom of being a PBS station, you know, they're they're our sponsors, the audiences, our sponsors, they're the ones who are responsible to we get a lot more freedom being a PBS station.

And we do get a lot of different perspectives.

So with that being said, we go into season five and we're bringing back, I said, you know, one of our most requested guest.

So Stan Frist is coming back.

Yeah.

And he's going to tell us about the book that he told us about season one, that he was writing, and now he's done.

And but we have some other great shows happening this season as well.

So we want to talk a little bit about them.

I got it.

football fans might be interested in, watching the show with Quincy Carter, the former, Dallas Cowboy quarterback.

Yeah, but he's not the only NFL player.

We have two.

We have Reggie Barry.

That's right.

Too.

And I forgot we had two.

We have two this season.

former NFL quarterback.

So that's the great stories.

But then also two I mean we really hone in on arts this season.

You think?

Absolutely.

we got, spread the love with music with Aaron Akins.

Oh, we have the hula lady.

Oh, yeah, from Laguna Beach.

Yeah.

They get everybody gets to learn how to do the hula this season.

I love that one.

What we'd really like people to do is, go to our contact page and let us know what you would like to see.

Give us some more story ideas if you have any ideas and please, please, please become a sustaining member if you can.

Yes, well, in support, because when they support our show, they're supporting the community and we're getting more stories out there.

But I would love to hear what our viewers would like to see.

They may know someone that has this incredible story that needs to be told and we would love to hear more about that.

So, before we wrap up our our talk, I mean, everybody with Angela Williamson is only one of several shows that we have here on Kelsey, that we need to talk about these other shows because they've been doing so phenomenal.

So let's talk about this.

All right.

So, another show that I'm working on is called, Sustaining Us, which, airs, right before the show on Wednesday nights.

And it also airs on Mondays.

it's all about sustainability.

and you would be surprised to see, like, what sustainability is in these days.

It's not just, you know, water, air.

You know, it's human beings, it's money, it's banking, it's finances.

It's well, and that's why that show is so relevant.

And I think that's why it has such a unique take on it.

Because when people think sustainability, they just think about water, air and land.

But there's so much more there.

And it's really in depth because you have David Nazar.

Yeah, they did the the infamous David, I know just.

What was it they multilevel like Golden Mike winner.

Yeah.

Super star.

Yes.

journalist.

multi Golden Mike winner.

So yeah.

Tune in for him and his storytelling.

But we also got another one our our instant to the program but still a powerhouse.

What's so south of south of Los Angeles.

People would know a little county called Orange County, which is the sixth largest county in the country, but is not being represented in any media.

We are pretty much covering Los Angeles County, Orange County, our viewers don't need to leave this station.

Never.

Please don't turn to channel.

Just stay on this channel 24 hours a day and we'll entertain you.

And also support PBS television.

Kelsey.

Yes?

Thank you.

Or the five more seasons.

Five more seasons.

And come back to hear from one of our most requested guests and learn about a new book he mentioned on our show and season one of.

The challenges our planet's animals are facing sometimes feel a bit heavy.

The animals haven't eaten in a day, two days.

They haven't drink anything.

They're cold, they're dehydrated.

But remember, there's good happening right now.

At home.

Right?

We were able to get into Unit and we have all four of your cats.

Oh.

oh.

Okay.

And around the world, for any animal, any disaster search either.

Dawg.

Forward slash disaster ready?

Welcome back.

I love when our viewers tell me about their favorite guest.

And there's a long list.

However, this guest is mentioned the most and people ask me about the book he mentioned in our first season.

I'm happy to bring back Stan Friese and his friend Scott Wolfe to discuss music mayhem in the mouse.

Thank you so much for coming back, friend.

Thank you.

This is fun.

And this is the first time that you're seeing the actual physical copy of this book.

Isn't that great?

It's fantastic.

It's a phenomenal book.

we talked a little bit about some parts of it.

In the first season, we'll probably end up talking a lot more in depth now.

But there's other parts of this book, too, that really give us the full life of Stan.

I mean, the luck of the freeze.

Yeah.

So, you know, we're going to come to that.

Okay.

We have to come to that.

All right.

But before we do that, you brought a friend because we're all about friends on this show.

So tell us about your friend Scott.

Yeah.

Oh, Scott is, a Disney historian, you know, and, so he's been we we used to go to Scott when we'd have questions about certain things, you know, call Scott up, and we just got to know each other over the years.

So he's the one that wrote this book.

Well, it's Stan story and Stan's words.

so I don't like to take that credit.

It's really Stan's.

But, we had a lot of fun putting it together.

You're getting our stories.

And there's something that I find with everybody that has ever worked for Disney.

You're the most humble people I've ever met.

I mean, you think that's just a Disney attracts those types of people or.

I mean, or do you?

Listen, I got a lot to be humble about.

I know after reading the book, I understand, brother.

Yes.

Yeah, but I mean, just wonderful.

I mean, that you have someone.

Yes.

And I mean, how does a person become a Disney historian?

Well, go.

I could give you my story, and it's kind of funny.

I kind of like to say Disney archeologists.

Someone called me that because I know with the Red watch, he's always coordinated.

Yeah, right.

But, I worked for Disney.

I started in TV animation, and in 1988, when I started, a lot of people who worked with Walt Disney were still coming to the studio.

So now it's about 17 or 18 years ago, I started interviewing them and just capturing their story.

So I can't name just every date like that.

But I'm all about capturing the story.

And that's how, at one point when I was doing that, I said, I need your story.

Stan and I started getting his interview.

He was still working for Disney at the time, so he tell me stories and he would say, this isn't for the public yet when I retire.

And that's now all in there.

Yeah.

Now.

Yes.

And it's so entertaining.

And in fact, when I was reading the book, at first I thought, wow, Stan reached out to all these people and they wrote letters.

But then when I started reading, I realized that's where Scott comes in and that you interviewed all of these people.

And in fact, we can actually go to a website right now and listen to these interviews.

What's that website?

Well, I have Mouse clubhouse.com.

It's really, a link to not only the the interviews, but now I'm doing YouTube videos and I have one that stands in all about the Disneyland Band as well.

So it's little clips from the interviews, and then I like artifacts.

I brought some Stan artifacts to today.

Well, and you know what?

Great way to segue to what we want to do right now.

Okay, so we're going to do a show and tell.

And then I do have some questions based on the book.

I don't know if we'll get to all of it, but maybe we all can take this to YouTube and finish it up.

okay.

First one here.

All right, Disney World.

So I was the first leader of the Disney World Band when we opened in 1971.

Right there.

Yeah.

Right there.

So, so that's the album and it's fun.

Yeah.

All right.

Yeah.

So so it was it was this your idea to record an album?

Because that takes a lot of work.

You know, that was a couple.

Of these songs.

That was the company's idea.

Yeah, Disney World 1 or 2.

So at the time, I could go to Disney World and I could go into the shop and buy this album and take it home with, yeah.

Yep.

Wow.

Yeah, I know, fun.

I mean, you are all celebrities.

Yeah.

Right.

I mean, amazing, amazing.

So I have the says the official album of Disneyland, Walt Disney World.

So I it seems like one time you were at both.

Right.

Well no.

No.

Well kind of kind of.

Yeah.

so once I came back to Disneyland, they still needed me to go down there and do things that Disney World.

So I would just leave the park for 2 or 3 weeks, go back down there again.

Wow.

But you did this for quite some time.

Yeah.

46 years.

Now.

The, album, it's songs from Disneyland and Walt Disney World that it was.

I think this one was their first official album that was mine when I was a kid.

Actually, the same one.

You took out the book.

Mark.

Let me show you.

May I borrow the book?

Yes, I guess so.

In here, you'll see that now, this is the Disneyland Band, so that's Disney World band.

Yeah.

And this has a track from the Disneyland Band.

And once again, here's Stan.

the interesting story with this is the track that they used is actually the Disney World Band, even though they said it's the Disneyland Band.

But by this time Stan was leading the Disneyland Band, but they used to track off that album, so it's still Stan leading the band on this official album.

Wow.

And so at the time, you as a parent could buy this and yeah, sad.

yeah, maybe.

Some of our audience might remember this.

I know you can sing along with this.

Yeah.

Oh, yeah.

The words are in there and everything.

It was like the karaoke before.

Karaoke?

Yeah.

Right.

Yeah.

Oh, wow.

Okay.

And then this.

So.

Okay, this is, this is.

From.

1994.

Well, no, this was the show then.

Maybe an ad on the back.

Yeah, this was free.

They would give it out at Disneyland.

I'd I save everything.

And what I love about this is inside.

it refers to Stan Stanford freeze and the Disneyland big.

I think it's the Stanford Freeze and the Disneyland big swing band.

Now, Stan had been directing the Disneyland Band, but by this point he was hiring the talent for Disneyland already.

Although, you took over their first Disneyland big band.

Great, right?

Yeah.

Carnation.

Largely.

Carnation flash.

Cards.

I read about this in the book, and it was so fascinating because I was even I was telling, you know, my husband, I said, people used to go just for date night.

You talked about some really interesting dancers.

So give me one story about one you.

There are several couples, but tell me about one couple.

Oh, boy.

Rosen.

Rosen.

W if you got to tell about that.

Yeah.

Rosen w we're from Chicago, and, they loved to dance and they came.

They were in their 70s, and they would come out and dance every night out there.

And they would really dance.

Do so in rows.

I would have my back to the audience leading the band.

And if she thought the tempo was wrong, she'd just come right up, yank on the back of my coat, you know, about pulled me off the stage and tell me that it's too fast.

It's too slow, you know.

But she was wonderful and I.

And that's.

I'm glad you told that story, because that was the one that resonated with me also, too, because didn't she used to be professional dancer or weren't they professional dancers?

And that's amazing.

I mean, Chicago.

We had so much talent just in the guest alone.

And you tell those stories so eloquently.

So I think I think it's so wonderful.

Okay, so we're going to continue our show and tell okay.

All right.

Okay.

So, Mr.

Tap Toe.

Well, what this is a news article.

Right?

Right.

And Lawrence Welk, for anyone who doesn't know, was very popular.

He had a show where he led his own champagne band.

They called it with bubbles and everything.

And they had dancers.

He started a new show where they would bring on, new talent, and he had a 14 year old tuba player as the special guest.

It says it at the bottom.

And that was stand at the time.

was that the first time you had TV, right?

Yeah.

When you were on Lawrence Welk?

Yep, yep.

And your dad took you?

Yeah.

Flew to California.

and you flew back.

And what happened to dad?

Oh, yes.

We had there was a funeral, down in southern Iowa.

So we had to get down there.

And my dad was not feeling well.

So I was 14 years old, and I drove the car all the way down to southern Iowa, sober.

I'm happy at 14.

Yeah, yeah.

Oh, wow.

So this that's the great memory.

I mean, just the stories within the stories in this book.

So here's here's our other one.

Well, now that's just a wide shot.

And then I just went close.

But that other document you have is related.

The one just below that.

that's the original, show rundown of when Stan was on the Lawrence Welk Show.

The Welk company gave that to me.

And what's really neat, there's a couple guests I want to point out to.

Stan was on the show with one of them, and I never thought, what are the odds?

I wasn't even born yet.

And yet I know two of the people.

One is cubby O'Brien.

He was one of the original Mouseketeers.

He was.

It was Cubby and Karen with the two little kids on the show.

Yeah.

And, then the other one is Pete Fountain, a legendary clarinet player.

Now, Stan, you could take over because, that was the first time you met Pete Fountain.

Wasn't it?

He's from New Orleans.

Yes.

And, so Pete would march into Mardi Gras every year, naturally, with his band.

And so he invited me to come down, and I used to march in the Mardi Gras with Pete Fountain's band, which is fun, you know, except you're carrying a big tuba.

That was also nice.

But you're in Mardi Gras.

Yeah, but it was.

It was alive.

It was wild.

So what you're trying to tell me, Scott, is by the early days, by 14.

Stan.

Well, I'm going to say, Stan, I know they call you Stanford, but I love Stan stans.

Destiny was already set for the mouse because he was already moving in those circles.

Isn't that something?

Yeah, I love that.

I love that, your book, we talked about different parts of the book in our first interview, but there's so many other things that I was able to pick up to when I read your book.

And there's this quote, and I'm going to try to read it without crying because it made me cry the first time.

And it's towards the end.

And you say this and and this is just a great way to sum up how you looked at life as well.

the mouse gave me dignity when I felt I had no dignity left.

Yep.

I mean.

So do you want to know a little bit about that?

Yes.

Well, I had a problem with alcohol, a real problem with thought.

Well, I didn't think I did.

Everybody else did know, so.

So, you know, when I got sober and, went into rehab, the fact that I worked at Disney, it kind of gave me just a little bit the people that I was in there with, that interested them, you know, and I just thought, you know, here I am, down.

Really down on everything.

And, like, my my roommate was a bank robber.

That that impressed me.

He'd robbed six banks a that.

Yeah, he's my hero right off the bat.

So that's what that's about.

Well, and what's amazing is that even after you move through probably the darkest time of your life, but your outlook and how you've helped so many other people.

So I actually have another question for you as well.

you are really responsible for helping a lot of women.

Right.

In to Disneyland and play in the bands.

And so my question to you is, why did you feel gender equality was important in the music industry?

Because you talk about that.

Yeah.

And you know what?

There just weren't a lot and Disney didn't have a lot of instrument A-list, women.

And my own mom was a pretty good example.

You know, she, she was the captain of the girls basketball team at Drake University, you know, and she was a go getter, man.

You didn't want to mess with her.

So I kind of got my respect, for what women could do for my mom.

And I just always thought, you know what?

There's all these great lady musicians.

I'm going to make them leaders.

The ones that deserve to be leaders, you know?

And so that worked out great for me and made me look good.

Well, and also to they were phenomenal interviews.

So, now I'm going to transition to Scott because a lot of those interviews was actually in that chapter.

And I mean, a lot of them one, Grammys, they became successful in their career, leaders of their band.

They got one point, one of the women you brought forth and gave her a job, she had one of your sons as part of her band as well.

if I remember that too.

So how did you feel listening to all of these stories and capturing these interviews?

Because that's what you do.

Well, you know what, Angela?

I think it's similar to you.

I love learning about people.

It's just so much fun to learn people's stories.

And so, for those people in Stan's book was a lot of fun to be able to capture their stories.

Some of the stories in there, I had already interviewed some of the people, but, Stan chose his real shining stars for this one, and it was a real treat for me to learn their story.

Now, Stan didn't tell you you performed with the Mariachi Divas on their Grammy winning album.

Stan plays the tuba with them.

Oh, wow.

Well it was yes, indeed.

She, is this wonderful trumpet player girl that I had at Disney.

So, as a favor to me, she said, hey, you want to do our album?

And, so I said, yeah, so I want to play it on their album.

And then that became a Grammy nominated album, you know?

So.

And then she ended up winning a Grammy.

I don't know, I don't know which album, whether that one she is actually one.

But I mean, just to hear how you were just the front runner of making sure of equality is just wonderful, especially in a business that's very competitive.

And it needed to transition and change.

And you just saw it and you got it done.

And that's really the theme.

And I don't know, you can chime in too Scott, but this is a theme I see with this book is you saw things and you were always like this big picture thinker and then you actually got it done.

I mean, how difficult was that?

Because you're dealing with executives at the time.

Now, you did talk about Sunny Anderson, but and and how he was a mentor to you.

But how difficult was that?

Because you're a big thinker.

Well, you know what?

It wasn't as hard as you might think because it was something new for these people.

So when I introduced the fact that I wanted to make so and so, a leader or have a whole band of girls, you know, I put that whole mariachi diva thing with Cindy together and, you know, it was just everybody kind of accepted it going, hey, this is kind of cool.

So it wasn't a battle for me at all.

Oh, I love that.

As Sonny was wonderful.

And it was stands mentor.

And I got to know Sonny at the end and get his stories as well as Sonny.

Didn't he perform with Pete Fountain at the Mardi Gras?

Both.

Yeah.

So today.

Yeah.

The other thing that's interesting is, Stan, if I'm correct, you were the first one to bring some women into the Disneyland Band.

I believe they were subs at first, yes, because, you know, women wouldn't be in a marching band.

I love how he was sneaky that way.

He's like, I know, but he's out.

I'll bring this.

I'll bring a woman to cover, I love it.

Yeah, there's another where they were going to change clothes because they couldn't change clothes in the in the dressing that the guy.

So that was my big challenge is finding a place for him to change clothes.

Well, believe it or not, we are almost done with our time today.

If you could tell our audience one key takeaway that you would love for them to take away from this book, what would it be?

probably the respect in the entertainment world for women.

You know, it's, it's a big deal for me.

That's it.

So.

And I take that from my mom.

before we close, I wanted to actually take this book.

There was something that your son said in this book that I think sums you up and how I feel, because when we started this show, we were doing it under Covid, and you had never met me before.

So I could almost feel these words that Jason says whenever my dad sees someone who he believes needs help, it doesn't matter what they look like, what religion they are, what color their skin is.

My dad just likes to help those in need.

And then he adds, look at his dog.

She's got three legs.

Your name's trio.

Because I could always count on the priest family to make me laugh and cry at the same time, but I just put it just sums up Stan.

So Stan and I in the first episode, it was just all.

It was wonderful.

But to read this book, it just sums up the way that you've been through your entire life.

And I cannot wait to see what's next for Stan and Scott together.

Totally.

as you start to publicize this book, you know you always have a friend on the show.

Great.

Thank you.

Thank you so much for being here.

And it's such a pleasure to meet you.

It's a pleasure to meet you.

Yes.

Next project we'll have to bring you on to and talk a little bit more about that.

Thank you.

Thank you, thank you.

And also to thank your beautiful wives, too.

Oh, thank you.

Totally got to have them in.

We have here.

They're both.

Thank you ladies and thank you for joining us on everybody with Angela Williamson.

Thank you.

From the bottom of our hearts for supporting us from the very beginning.

Viewers like you make this show possible.

Join us on social media to continue this conversation.

Good night and stay well.