| AP |
Jay makes me nervous
Where is Chris Matthews, the famously self-assured host of “Hardball,” the least comfortable? That would be when he appears on “The Tonight Show.”
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In his latest book, “Life’s a Campaign,” he confesses that when he stands backstage waiting to be introduced, “I carefully rehearse in my head the big right angle I’ll take on the stage to shake hands with Jay Leno, the big ‘Miss America’ wave my producer Tammy Haddad has taught me, my right arm bent high over my head.”
Matthews also admits he was once “petrified” to give a speech, be it in high school public speaking classes, or as a grad student at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.
Matthews lets his guard down several times in the book, which functions as sort of a primer on power. One of the chapters is even titled “Not Everyone Is Going to Like Me.”
He also admits: “It may be a surprising thing to hear from me, the notorious on-air interrupter, but not only is it polite to let people say what they wish to, it’s also downright seductive. The best gift you can give is your attention. Believe me, I’m trying to get better at this.”
