"Dish Nation" cast member Frank Kramer took the Minneapolis Polar Plunge for Special Olympics Minnesota last weekend.
Kramer is one of seven DJs taped in L.A. and Atlanta radio studios who dish about celebrities and pop culture for the TV show that airs locally on Fox 9 at 12:05 a.m. weeknights.
Kramer's other job is a morning radio show on KLOS-FM in L.A. with Heidi Hamilton, who looks like a ball of edgy fun, too. Hamilton is also part of the "Dish Nation" cast, which has one member of particular curiosity to me: Porsha Williams.
Williams first came onto my radar during her lavish, televised 2011 wedding to former NFL QB Kordell Stewart; they divorced in 2013. Many others know Williams from Bravo's "Real Housewives of Atlanta," of which I am not a viewer. Williams seems like a lot of work, but Kramer said I'm reading her wrong.
If you read Kramer as a prankster, he won't disappoint on my video.
Q: So you can check off your bucket list going to Minnesota for shrinkage?
A: [Laugh] YES I CAN! And I'm still shrinking. That is cold water! It's 30 degrees out there [and much colder in Lake Calhoun]. And this time we had to run into the water, not jump into the water. It was a different experience but still invigorating. In about six hours I think I'll be all back to normal.
Q: Was the firing of Playmate Dani Mathers, who got into trouble for posting a photo of a naked woman in a locker room, from your KLOS radio show the biggest boost to "Dish Nation's" profile?
A: I don't think so. [We] have Porsha [Williams] on the show and Da Brat. I think the cast is so amazing on "Dish Nation," that's what is raising the audience awareness.
Q: Where are the "Dish Nation" lawyers and editors as you guys are "on air"?
A: They are like, STOP. They are drinking! They are in a bar, we've driven them to drink. They have no fingernails. They are on the edge of their seats. They want to quit their jobs. We have a lot of fun.
Q: How often do you get bleeped, or do they just edit it?
A: All the time. They bleep it sometimes but they don't want too many bleeps. I've told them they should have "Dish Nation After Hours," all the stuff that didn't make it into the show. They could put it online, pay-per-view, because it is raw and nasty.
Q: Have you been suspended from work during your radio career?
A: Yeah. It was a tasteless joke. Fortunately for me, bad taste isn't against the law. But I was suspended for a week for saying something that, looking back, I shouldn't have said it. You're at the line so much, live radio.
Q: Are there any celebrities you would campaign to be ignored by "Dish Nation"?
A: There are some who just don't know how to have fun, they take themselves way too seriously. We're your fans. We're not going to bash you.
Q: Are you surprised by the success of your TV show featuring radio people?
A: No. I think there was a niche for it. All the other shows are, I think, scripted. The same show one after another — I'm not going to mention any shows, but you know who you are. But "Dish Nation," we are all improv. It's all how we truly feel. That's how real people talk about entertainment.
Q: Do you miss the good old days of radio when you could broadcast in your pajamas? Now you have to give thought to what you're wearing.
A: Exactly. Before, radio was only for ugly people. Now you've got to have a makeup artist for radio. Times have changed.
Q: About Porsha … is she as high-maintenance as she seems?
A: She is super sweet and very down to earth. As far as being high-maintenance, she does get her own dressing room, things like that. There's Porsha and the rest of us. You know what, that's the way it should be. She should be taken care of, she is the queen. I love her!
Q: Has Porsha ever expressed regret that her name is not spelled like the sports car?
A: [Sustained laughter] I thought it was!
C.J. can be reached at cj@startribune.com and seen on Fox 9's "Jason Show." E-mailers, please state a subject; "Hello" does not count.
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