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Jackson, Walter Cronkite, Ed McMahon, Robert Novak,
     Ted Kennedy, Dominick Dunne, DJ AM, and Patrick Swayze. We covered these deaths as best we could on
Larry King Live
, making sure we were honoring most of thepeople on this long list. In fact, the viewing audience tuned in to our show for that very reason. With so many deaths occurring
     and so much public grieving, they needed a place where they knew their favorite personalities would be given their due. That
     was how people looked at our show.
    And yet, a piece appeared in
Vanity Fair
magazine, in September 2009, written by James Wolcott, criticizing Larry. In a snarky, critical tone, this writer called
     the show “the funeral parlor for the gods.” He called Larry “America’s chief mourner and grief counselor,” and criticized
     him for “assuming the indispensable role of designated mourner to the stars, tollbooth collector at the last stop before the
     Hereafter, pallbearer beyond compare.”
    By the end, the author conceded that we needed Larry to help us get through these things. I suppose it was a backhanded compliment
     to have an entire article devoted to us in
Vanity Fair
, but the nature of the article was so negative, it implied we were doing it incorrectly. And then, this writer only referred
     to the deaths of Farrah, Michael, David Carradine, and Ed McMahon. What if he had waited until all ten celebrities were gone?
     What would he have said then? While we honored the rest of the people who had passed, should we have left out Teddy Kennedy?
     Or what about Walter Cronkite?
    The truth is that millions of viewers have their eyes and ears trained on our show every single evening. When someone of importance
     in this country dies, the public assumes that Larry will have something to say about it. I take it as a compliment and a responsibility.
     These deaths were very important to the general public.
    No matter what occurs and when, there is no crystal ball to tell us which direction we should take. There is no instruction
     book to turn to or anyone who has the answers. It’s basicallyup to me and my staff, so we have to keep up with everything all the time to make the best decisions we can. We try not to
     second-guess ourselves. I go with my gut (it’s usually all I have), I depend on my staff, and we book the best show we can
     produce. When it all looks impossible, I try to be the calm in the midst of the storm. Our reward is that each day, whether
     last night’s show was great or mediocre, the palette is clean and we get to start all over again, a little wiser for what
     we learned yesterday. And a little bit more trusting of ourselves.

FREAKING OUT IS NOT AN OPTION
    When you have to make an important decision and there are a variety of ways to go, the only clear path is to channel your
     intuition. Check in with your gut. We all have that intuitive gift to some degree. My psychic friends assure me of this, and
     I know it’s true. Some people just have it honed better than others.
    So, when the stress-o-meter hits ten, remember that losing your cool is not going to help or change the situation. When things
     get confusing and you feel frazzled and upset, try taking a deep breath and calming yourself down. Do whatever it takes to
     accomplish this. You may need to leave the room, sit in a quiet place with no music where you can’t be disturbed, and take
     a moment to go inside yourself. Then ask yourself,
What do I really want here? What feels right?
    When you lose your temper and freak out, that behavior negatively impacts others and can throw them off their game. Clearly,
     we all need to learn from ourmistakes, and that includes reviewing the things that did not work, but it doesn’t make sense to upset the apple cart when
     you’re standing in the middle of it. You can’t stop in the midst of a situation to figure out what happened in the past, because
     you have to be present and look forward. Once it’s over, you can take the time