TV Talk

With Fox airing the Super Bowl on Feb. 3, we checked in with the
amiable James Brown, 50, the host and traffic cop for Fox's NFL
Sunday.

SI: You went to Harvard, correct?

Brown: Yes.

SI: That means you're the smartest guy on the set after Jimmy
Kimmel?

Brown: If that were the case, Harvard would be asking for the
sheepskin back.

SI: If James Brown is the hardest-working man in show business,
what's James Brown of Fox Sports?

Brown: I've been called the hardest-working man in sports, but
I'm not too pleased with the title the Godfather of Sports. I
think of myself as hip and relevant, though my daughter
[20-year-old Katrina] says on my next birthday she's giving me a
gift certificate for a senior citizens' home.

SI: What's the better Terry Bradshaw movie: The Cannonball Run or
Smokey and the Bandit II?

Brown: Anybody who has difficulty sleeping should fire up one of
those flicks.

SI: Did you know Howie Long was in the movie 3000 Miles to
Graceland?

Brown: The critics panned it.

SI: Is Howie the reason it tanked?

Brown: I purposely didn't see it because I like Big Boy.

SI: Have you seen Jillian Barbarie's meteorological degree?

Brown: I have not, but considering all the comments I've heard
around the country from men, no one cares whether she has one or
not.

SI: You hosted Fox's World's Funniest videos. Any regrets?

Brown: I got blasted by my colleagues, but it's an honest living,
and I showed a lighter side. The bottom line is, it's paying for
my daughter's education.

SI: Please tell us this isn't true: Did you host a PBS special
on Yanni?

Brown: I was trying to show the breadth and scope of the things I
can do.

SI: You own all of Yanni's albums, don't you?

Brown: Let me be brutally honest with you. No.

--R.D.

COLOR PHOTO: AARON RAPOPORT/FOX