ST. LOUIS – Before stopping by his alma mater earlier this week, celebrity Andy Cohen sat down with NewsRadio 1120 KMOX Radio on his new book, fatherhood, getting kicked off his high school water polo team, and more.
Cohen is known for his late-night talk show, “Watch What Happens Live,” on Bravo and for producing “The Real Housewives” franchise. He has won an Emmy and two Peabody Awards for his work and currently lives in New York City.
His new book “Glitter Every Day 365 Quotes from Women I love” recently debuted. It’s a collection of inspiring quotes from “the larger-than-life women that defined his life,” according to the book’s description.
“During the pandemic, I was looking for something to do as we all were, so I got this idea of this book — which was inspired by all the great women in my world: my mom, my sisters, to housewives, and mentors,” Cohen told KMOX.
“It’s 365 quotes from women I love. My mom is definitely represented in there. My mom starts the book on Jan. 1 with a quote. Sometimes she’ll say to me when she thinks I’m going rogue, ‘Snap out of it, Andy!’ It’s a slap in my face and it causes me to take stock of whatever situation I’m in. It’s not snap out of it, it’s ‘Get a hold of yourself.’ ”
There was one quote in particular by his mom that Cohen included when he came out to her.
“That’s another quote that’s in the book because she very famously said, ‘I probably would’ve hated your wife anyway.’ You know what, she probably would’ve hated her,” he told KMOX.
“There’s probably some woman living her life peacefully in St. Louis today, not realizing she would’ve had my mom as a mother-in-law terrorizing her day in and day out … her quote was a relief, and she was right.”
On being a parent himself, Cohen told KMOX that his experience has been “great, so far so good.”
“I have a lot of support. I have a lot of women in my life who are helping me out, and he makes it really easy. He’s a cheerful, great kid, he makes it fun. I learn things every day. I think also having a kid later in life is really fun,” he said.
Even with a busy schedule, Cohen said he is still able to spend time with his son.
“I’m trying to be as laid back as I possibly can. You want him to know you will always be around, and that’s hard for me because I have a lot of jobs. I’m really in and out all day in my home. He gets to see me throughout the day. I don’t leave for my show until past his bedtime. It really works out,” he said.
Cohen is a 1986 graduate of Clayton High School where he got in trouble for being chatty and was taken off the water polo team for it.
“I was punished a lot in the Clayton School system for talking and for my mouth. I have to say looking back on those punishments, I still hold a grudge on those teachers, and I feel that they were not fair with me,” he told KMOX.
“The water polo thing, if I could contest that tomorrow to the Clayton School Board, I would make an appearance and plead my case. I never got my letter.”
Cohen’s talkative characteristics most likely have helped him in his television career and has looked up to other well-known television personalities for inspiration.
Cohen added that his talk show was influenced by a combination of Graham Norton, and Howard Stern, and Larry King, however, “I try not to rip off other people’s materials.”