2 l June
13 - 19, 2021
Northeast Oregon TV Weekly
BY JAY BOBBIN
Michael Bolton co-hosts
“The Celebrity Dating Game,”
premiering Monday on ABC.
Michael Bolton sings a different tune with
‘The Celebrity Dating Game’
If you think Michael Bolton will co-host “The Celebrity Dating Game” without
crooning to the contestants, forget it.
The long-popular, Grammy-winning singer-songwriter starts a new chapter by
joining “New Girl” alum Zooey Deschanel to host ABC’s new take on a classic game
show premiering Monday, June 14. The idea is the same, with someone choosing
between three contenders ... who won’t know the identity of their question-asker unless,
or until, they can guess it from musical clues supplied by Bolton. First up to do the
picking: former “Bachelorette” Hannah Brown and actress-comedian Nicole Byer.
Also an executive producer of the show, Bolton explains he wants to “connect the
dots” between music and other kinds of entertainment now. “That was part of this offer,
then the music became front-and-center. And I realized, as I was doing it, that I was
accepting an invitation to bring bits and pieces of songs I’ve loved my whole life – and
of a couple that I’ve written and produced, ones that were hits for me. It was a lot of fun
doing it, with a lot of talented people to work with.”
Citing Deschanel as one of those people, Bolton is grateful for her participation:
“I know she has a beautiful voice and loves music, but in a way, she’s doing the heavy
lifting here. To stand in front of my own audience is fun and easy, but speaking to an
audience that hasn’t been holding tickets waiting to see me for six months to a year, it’s
a matter of keeping them engaged. Zooey is so good and so comfortable with that; She’s
adorable and she lights up a stage, and it would be so much work for me to introduce
the contestants and make it feel like I wasn’t reading.”
Celebrities have sampled the “Dating Game” premise before, though they weren’t
necessarily stars at the time. John Ritter, Farrah Fawcett, Ron Howard, Sally Field and
(twice) Tom Selleck were on the original 1965-73 ABC version of the show hosted by
Jim Lange.
With a catalog of enduring hits ranging from “How Am I Supposed to Live Without
You?” to “Love Is a Wonderful Thing,” Bolton – who has been working on a new
album – is following television-series guest shots (“Two and a Half Men,” “Glee”) and
appearances in commercials with “The Celebrity Dating Game.”
“Being backstage for this was one of the first times I’ve felt comfortable in a year,” he
attests, having been off the concert circuit because of the coronavirus pandemic. “The
most difficult thing about this was forgetting the songs I know (for the show’s parody
versions). I was unlearning things I’ve known for 30 or 40 years.”
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