The Basics.
Age (aint nothing but a number)
41
Occupation/Day job.
Host/creator, The Next Big Thing from PRI (heard weekends on WNYC, New York Public Radio).
How long have you lived here?
Five years.
Where are you from and where do you live now?
I grew up in Whitehouse Station, NJ. Now I live in Brooklyn.
One For You.
Since your show is noted for calling out The Next Big Thing, what is the best old thing?
Theyve always been one and the same for me. The title of the show is tongue-in-cheek. Half the time were playing historic tape or interviewing octogenarians. Were not into trend-spotting.
Proust-Krucoff-Nichelle Questionnaire. [ie. the butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker]
What's your New York motto?
Its a privilege to live here. Comes in handy when youre waiting on a sweltering subway platform or when youve failed to elude something left by a dog on the sidewalk. Whenever you suffer the inevitable indignities dished out by this city, just repeat after me: its a privilege to live here.
Whats the most unusual pitch you heard from a panhandler?
That guy who imitates the sound of the subway tones tops the list. Perfect pitch.
What is the best improvement to New York City in the last year?
Hands down, the smoking ban. Finally, going to a bar is a viable option. Except for one thing. Now that the smoke has cleared, whenever you go into an old barone of those places with exposed wood that reek with characteryou realize that what they really reek of is beer. It permeates the walls with an ammonia-like intensity. I wonder what smell is underneath the beer...
What outerborough place you always say you would like to see but probably never will?
I'd put my money on Fresh Kills.
9pm, Wednesday - what are you doing?
Usually Im arriving home from work. Any other night of the week Id be able to come up with something way more interesting, but Wednesdays are when our production crunch is at its worst. Too bad you didnt ask about Thursday. For that I would have had a really great answer.
Whats the one thing you miss whenever you leave New York?
Only one? Come on, thats not fair. I kiss the ground whenever I come back to New York. Its easier for me to tell you the one thing I dont miss, and thats the noise. The noise has gotten so loud there should be a different name for it.
Where is the best place in the city for semi-public sex?
I am definitely traveling in the wrong circles. There are places for semi-public sex in New York??? Tell me where, and I'll rate them.
Dean Olsher's show, "The Next Big Thing" airs Saturdays at 2PM on AM 820 and Sundays at 11AM on 93.9 FM. Photo above by Christine Butler.
- Interview by Nichelle Newsletter
