Nancy Cartwright.

All The World…
Remember that song of the same title by Willie Nelson — On the Road Again? I wonder if Willie wrote that song while he was touring some foreign country, lonely and longing for some good old-fashioned home comforts? I sure as heck am. Here I am, sitting in the business center of the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Auckland, New Zealand. I have been on the road in Australia and New Zealand for three weeks now touring my one-woman show, My Life as a 10-Year-Old Boy.

The show was developed around my book of the same title but with the additional contributions of writers Rose Goss and Peter Kjenaas. The three of us collaborated on what developed into a very special aspect of my voice-career: A Live Stage Production Of The Behind-The-Scenes Of This Short, Blonde, Voice-Over Artist.

I have been traveling with my co-writer/director/friend and co-conspirator-of-causing-trouble-wherever-the-heck-we-go — Rose Goss. The tour started at the beginning of May 2006. After a 14 1/2 hour flight from L.A. to Sydney, we didn’t have much time to “settle in.” The PR machine was already up and rolling and we hit the ground running — literally. The Simpsons is one of the most watched TV shows over here, so as you can imagine, I was asked to do “the voice” a lot. I just say, “No way man,” as Bart, and everybody wins.

After some intense non-stop days of radio and early morning television (it is amazing what a good make-up artist can do to a face at 6:00 in the morning), we were off for a quick trip over to Melbourne where I appeared on the most popular talk show in Australia, Rove Live.

On My “Favorite People” List
I have to tell you, Rove McManus is a hoot, and if you’ve never had the pleasure of seeing his show, you might drop in on his website and check him out — there is no way to describe him. His personality sparkles, he makes his guests really shine and he gives them all the attention, while at the same time entertaining the audience with his own quick-wit and ability to poke fun at himself. This is just my opinion, but Rove sets the standard as a talk show host: he is interested rather than being interesting.

This was the second time I was asked to be a guest on Rove Live and hopefully it won’t be my last — I had a ball. It really boosted our ticket sales as well. Every day, in every city, people came up to me in airports, in restaurants, and even in elevators to say, “I saw you on Rove!” After such a warm reception, it made the fact that I had no sleep for nearly 48 hours worth it in the end!

Keeping It Fresh
The publicity was only just the beginning. For the next eight days we continued to pound the pavement, moving from one radio station to the next, doing interview after interview, often I’d find myself repeating, repeating myself. (Sorry about that.) Oh well. I really try to keep my interviews fresh, but frankly, sometimes when you’re on the road and lacking sufficient sleep, you just can’t remember what you had for breakfast.

The challenge at this stage of my career (25 years later, but who’s counting?) is “How to make every question sound like it is the first time it is being asked?” And let me tell you, there is a real skill to it! The idea is NOT to make the interviewer feel like an idiot. Believe you me, after having the done The Simpsons for over 17 years, I don’t doubt for one second that the challenge is not only for me, but for whoever is doing the interviewing!

By the way, I promise a signed Bart Simpson t-shirt to whoever can come up with some inspired question that has never been asked of me before. And I admit, it actually occasionally happens. One time a journalist asked me, “When you are making love, do you squeal in orgasmic euphoria as yourself or as Bart Simpson?” All I had to say was “security.” (And you think Michael Jackson has problems!) That was a first! I of course, use that precious line in my one-woman-show.

The PR was pretty intense and reached not only throughout the entire country of Australia, but eventually across the water over into New Zealand where the last leg of my show would end. After Rove, we flew back to Sydney. Another week of trekking around to the various studios, and opening night in Sydney was a smash.