My Morning with American Idol's Ace Young and July 4th Holiday Travel Safety Tips News Interviews

(Left to right) Fox 35 weatherman Jim Van Fleet, Seminole Community College Criminal Justice's Dr. Richard Weinblatt, and former American Idol contestant Ace Young in the Fox 35 studios.

Yesterday (July 3rd) was a fun day. Early in the morning I went over to the Lake Mary, FL, studios of WOFL Fox 35 to do another law enforcement-related interview for the Fox 35 Morning News. The cast, crew, and executives over the show were as friendly and gracious as they always are. It is really terrific to work with such a professional, reliable, and friendly TV station covering the Orlando TV market.

Both before and after my live on-set interview, I hung out in the studio and caught up with my friends there including the consummate show hosts Tom Johnson, Heidi Hatch, Lauren LaPonzina, and, of course, the weatherman and singer supremo, Jim Van Fleet.

American Idol's Ace Young

A nice bonus was spending some time with former American Idol contestant Ace Young. I've met a lot of celebrities, but Ace ranks as one of the nicest. I found him to be very down to earth. Of course it helped that my pal Jim Van Fleet (a buddy of Ace Young's) gave me an introduction to him that went like this: "Dr. Weinblatt's the man to know... he knows all of the law enforcement people." Thanks, Jim.


Ace and I joked about my business card not being a get out of jail free card. We also decided that a stint in jail would not be fun for either of us. Ace said he'd have to shave his head and bulk up if he went to the big house.

Ace Young has a killer schedule and I admire his work ethic. He had come into Orlando at 3:30 in the morning and was heading to Disney after the Fox 35 Morning News. After that, he said his plan was to get some sleep and then head to to perform at Red, Hot and Boom July 4th celebration in nearby Altamonte Springs, FL, (a bunch of my cop buddies are working this event on a mandatory basis and are going to be worn out themselves). Then it was off to Tennessee. Wow, what a schedule. As I said to Jim Van Fleet, "I guess you have to ride the wave while it lasts."

Ace has got a great memory and is smoother than most young rock stars out there. He told Jim that he had listened to his music on his myspace page. Later, he told me he was going to check out my website (www.policearticles.com). Not only can he sing, he can handle people very well. I was impressed.

Tom Johnson News Interview


Fox 35 Morning News host Tom Johnson (left) interviews Seminole Community College Criminal Justice's Dr. Richard Weinblatt live on the set.

As for my news interview itself, it went well. I had approx. two minutes live on the set with host and super nice guy Tom Johnson. We discussed July 4th holiday travel safety tips.

We covered such tips as: check out your car mechanically, plan your route, let another person know your route and car description (including license plate), and have plenty of food and water. I noted that a recent study found that two thirds of all crashes happen within five miles of the home. The shorter trip venues, caused by the rise in fuel prices, are no haven from crashes and other problems.

Behind the Scenes

For those who ask me what it's like to do these TV interviews, this may be of interest. We used three studio cameras and crew. It's pretty hard to look at the right camera at the right time and also at the host asking the questions. It takes some practice to follow the red lights on top of the camera that indicate they are the one feeding the image at the moment. All the meantime, you have to come with some good ad-lib based on the tips submitted previously. And you have to do this all smoothly without looking like it takes any effort. It is not as easy as it looks.


I've done interviews with both Tom and Heidi Hatch. They are both fun to work with. Tom was especially happy as he had plans this weekend to celebrate his eleventh wedding anniversary. Congratulations, Tom!

Jim Van Fleet's Music CDs and My Wife

I know I made my wife, Anne, happy when I hand delivered to her office three CDs of weatherman and music star Jim Van Fleet's artistry. Anne has met the charismatic Jim before and likes both him and his music. She was thrilled that Jim gave me the CDs for her. You can check out his music at www.jimvanfleet.net or www.myspace.com/jimvanfleet Anne told me that she already played his CDs with my six-year-old son Michael in the car on the way home yesterday.

The interview, as well as another one I did that afternoon at the downtown Orlando studios of Central Florida News 13, is below.