This is a guest post from my brother Mitch Slater, who worked for Larry King. Larry passed away recently and this is Mitch’s remembrance along with two marketing lessons he learned from The King.
Elvis may have been the King of Rock and Roll, but there was only one King, Larry King, when it comes to the art of interviewing.
The world lost a giant when Larry passed away on January 23rd, but it was very personal as I lost a friend, mentor, and first boss. As a 21-year-old college senior at George Washington University, my dream was to work in radio.
I wanted to work my way up to one of the best shows in America, which back in 1982 was The Larry King Show, coast to coast on Mutual Broadcasting. Little did I know that after asking Larry to lunch while being an intern for another talk show that I would have jumped years of paying my dues within a week, I would report to work a week later as the nighttime Associate Producer for Larry.
I was one lucky kid, and I knew it. During my tenure working with Larry, I met just about every childhood hero you could imagine, from Astronauts like John Glenn to comedians like Jerry Lewis, Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, and Presidents like Jimmy Carter.
What was even sweeter was that Larry and I formed a bonding over the world of sports and attended baseball, football, basketball, and hockey games when we could. Larry even came to my Super Bowl party with all my 20 something friends. Like I said, I was a lucky kid. What makes me even prouder was that despite a career change for me years later,
The King and I remained close and shared many bagels and noshes in Beverly Hills, Washington DC, and New York City. He even appeared on my syndicated radio show in the 90s and made two appearances on my current podcast, Financially Speaking with Mitch Slater.
A Life Well-Lived
Larry King indeed was the poster child for a life well-lived, and I was so fortunate to know the man, not just the legend. But what sticks out is what I learned from my experience watching Larry interview night after night on the radio, then CNN and kept interviewing right up to Covid19 forced him into the hospital where his journey ended.
So here are my two lessons. As Larry would say all the time to me -It ain’t rocket science, kid!
#1 – ABC – Always Be Curious
Larry grew up a poor kid on welfare in Brooklyn, and after losing his Dad at age nine, he mostly hung out at Ebbets Field when the Dodgers were home, trying to peek inside and watch the game and then ask the players questions when they left. He was always curious.
He had this desire to learn something every day from someone different. He could have never imagined that he would be learning things from Frank Sinatra, Queen Elizabeth or Nelson Mandela, or his mentor and hero Jackie Gleason.
I loved watching Larry each night ask the questions the man or woman on the street was thinking. That observation taught me that if I wanted to be successful in business or honestly in anything I have ever done, I had to have this thirst for knowledge and caring about everyone I talked to for work or pleasure. That skill has taken me to heights I could never imagine and recently led me to interview some of my heroes and interact with others in a much more personal and caring fashion. I work in a field based on trust. Nothing builds confidence more than showing you care.
#2 – Be an Extraordinary Listener
Larry told me when I was 21 that he never learned anything with his mouth open. You have two ears, and he would say, use them- that is the secret of life. Listening seems to most people a simple and obvious skill, but very few people ever master it.
As someone that started out wanting to be on stage or the center of attention, trust me, it’s hard to keep your mouth shut sometimes.
I had Larry King show me that by listening, you learn things about people that will help you a better return on your relationship with everyone you meet or interview. Larry rarely used the word I in a conversation because he wanted his guests to know he was listening, and the only thing that mattered in the world at that moment was what they had to say.
In a world today filled with so many distractions and the search for immediate gratification, this is a skill that if you can master -again, it is not rocket science- can help you take your business and life to a whole new level.
Bruce Springsteen wrote famously he learned more from a three-minute record than he ever learned in school.
I have thought about that line a lot since losing Larry. My three-minute description was knowing and watching Larry King work. There is no school in the land that could have taught me what I was lucky enough to learn from my friendship of 38 years with Larry King. I will forever be thankful for the lessons I learned and developed from this kid from Brooklyn who dared to dream big against all odds and taught this kid from Jerse, and more importantly, the world, a master class in communications.
Here is a short video tribute I made and dedicated to his kids, Chance and Cannon King.
This is a guest post from my brother Mitch Slater is a Senior Vice President and Financial Advisor by day , Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band historian and was friends with Larry King (his first boss) for nearly 40 years. He hosts the popular podcast “Financially Speaking with Mitch Slater” on Spotify and you can follow him on Twitter @mpslater or Instagram @MPS1960.
Need help with your marketing?
I can help. You can set up a time to chat with me about your marketing challenges using my calendar. Email me jeffslater@themarketingsage.com Call me. 919 720 0995. The conversation is free, and we can explore if working together makes sense. Watch a short video about working with me.
