Face to face
| Judith Owen, Sam Donaldson and Harry Shearer share a moment at Nathans of Georgetown. – Courtesy Carol Joynt |
One of the best-known fictitious newsmen came face to face with one of our most famous real newsmen on Wednesday, as Harry Shearer (the voice of Kent Brockman on “The Simpsons”) exchanged hellos with ABC’s Sam Donaldson at Nathans of Georgetown.
Donaldson sat down as part of the “Q&A Cafe” interview series. Shearer, a longtime friend of host Carol Joynt, was in town with his wife, Judith Owen, who was singing in Richard Thompson’s “1,000 Years of Popular Music” show at GW’s Lisner Auditorium.
“We’ll find out who the real fictional character is,” the actor told Yeas & Nays as he approached Donaldson after the interview.
Shearer told Donaldson he was disappointed that the journalist never uttered George Stephanopoulos’ name, because he loves the over-the-top way he pronounces it.
As for Donaldson himself, he explained that he only got a reputation for shouting at presidents during the Reagan administration because “Ronald Reagan couldn’t hear.”
“You had two choices,” Donaldson said. “You could be nice and polite, or you could ask a question. And if you wanted to ask a question you had to raise your voice.”
He also said that because both he and President Bush are from West Texas, he “knew exactly what to expect” after inauguration.
Donaldson insisted that he’s finally nearing retirement. “I’ll be 75 at the end of this contract, and that’ll be the end of it,” he said.
