Marilyn Denis likes to keep busy - very busy. The Toronto radio personality and ex- Cityline host has returned to television with The Marilyn Denis Show, which launched on CTV last week to nearly 400,000 Canadian viewers.
Born in Edmonton and raised in Pittsburgh, Denis was already a radio fixture in Canada and the United States before signing on to host the syndicated TV series Cityline in 1989. For 19 years, she hosted the show while holding down daily morning duty on Toronto radio station CHUM-FM. She left Cityline in 2008 and has spent the past two years prepping for her new show, which now brings her perky presence to a national audience.
And yes, she's still on the radio every morning. She recently took a breather to chat in Toronto.
How much will your new show be scripted?
I'm not a scripted person. Bottom line, the show will be great information, better living, lifestyle ideas and having fun. My dad asked me what the message of the show would be and I told him it's about making people feel better about themselves. Just being a good girlfriend to people out there.
Your last broadcast of Cityline was back in May of 2008. How does one get back into TV mode?
You continue to work out each day. You continue to do the radio show, which I did. You just keep doing your thing, you know?
But to be clear: The Marilyn Denis Show is not Cityline, correct?
No, this will be a very fluid show. It's a talk show that's going to change every day. Sometimes we'll have something planned, sometimes some big celebrity will arrive, so we'll accommodate that person or those people. There are no days designated for certain things.
And you really plan to keep doing your daily radio show?
Absolutely. Radio has been a constant in my life since 1976. I stay with it because I love it. Radio is the love of my life, along with my son, of course.
Describe your typical work day, please.
Up at 4 a.m., which I would do for the radio show anyway. Be at the radio station for 5:30 a.m. Finish the show at 9, drive to the studio, then hair and makeup. Go live at 10, wrap it up at 11. Talk to the audience as they're leaving. Then meetings and I'm outta there at 1 p.m., because I need to work out at 2 p.m. It's a full day.
What time do you go to bed in order to get up at 4 a.m.?
During the week I go to bed probably around 8 p.m. Of course, this is not going to help me get a date.
Where does your energy level come from?
You'd have to ask my dad. My mom, who has since passed away, said that when I was a baby, when she came into the room each morning, I was always up and ready to go.
Why use average people as correspondents on the show?
I think a lot of people have this thing where they're an accountant by day and an unbelievable chef by night. We wanted to cover those categories familiar to everybody - fashion, cooking, decor - but with fresh faces.
Will viewers be able to interact with the new show?
Oh, big time. We're on Facebook, Twitter, all that stuff. We're totally involved in social networking.
But do you social network yourself?
No! [Laughs.]But once I got onto Facebook, my old professor from the University of Idaho was the first person to contact me. He was the person who got me into radio in the first place and he was the first person to contact me on Facebook. That is some magic.
This interview has been condensed and edited.
The Marilyn Denis Show airs weekdays at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on CTV, and 5 p.m. on A channel.