Regarding the Press

I get a lot of requests these days. Many interviews are conducted via email, and I never really get to see the actual results. The following questions for instance, were sent to me by the network, on behalf of a couple magazines in Romania. (Is that not fantastic? Dirty Jobs and mikeroweWORKS are topics of conversation in Romania.) Below is the request, as I received it, along with my answers, as I submitted them. Be interesting to see what actually makes it to print…

Hi Mike, I have 2 more requests from Romania for two additional publications. They looked over the transcript from the interview you did already. If you would be willing to answer all or some of the questions below via email, it would be great! They are both key publications in the Romanian Market.

1. I know you filmed a slime eels episode. How much time did you spent in the shower?

 Not enough.

 2. What made a man with artistic skills, who used to be an actor and sing in a choir, start doing such a bizarre show?

I didn’t want to assume a role that came with typical expectations. Actors, singers, performers, celebrities, TV Hosts – people expect specific things from personalities in these categories. I wanted to create a new category – The Perpetual Apprentice. I wanted to develop a show where people expected very little from me – where my shortcomings would not only be forgiven, but ultimately rewarded. I wanted to get paid to try.

3. You don’t rehearse, you don’t have a script, don’t have such thing as take two. Is it worth applying this strategy?

Well, it worked for me. TV is full of people who are very concerned about getting everything “just right,” and controlling their image at every turn. Self-proclaimed “experts” are everywhere. I can’t compete with people like that. Dirty Jobs is a simple show with regular people who aren’t afraid to be themselves. That means we show our mistakes.

4. Which one is dirtier: cow artificial insemination or a sweatshop in Asia?

 From what I’ve seen, I’d rather stay on the farm. The cow of course, might have another opinion.

 5. What’s the dirtiest job amongst the “clean” ones?

 There are no clean ones.

 6. You said the people with dirty jobs were the happiest people you’ve met.  How would you explain that?

A more accurate statement might be that people with dirty jobs are often happier than I expected them to be. Most of us look for “drudgery” in many jobs classified as “dirty,” because on TV, those jobs and the people who perform them are almost always portrayed in that way. But in doing the show, I’ve found that many people who do “dirty work” have an attitude that is surprisingly cheerful. There is often dignity where you don’t expect to find it, and satisfaction where you might expect to see distress. The reasons for that are several, and while I can’t speak for anyone but me, I think it has to do with the fact many people with dirty jobs often feel connected to their work in a way that many of us do not. Garbage men, sewage workers, coal miners…they make a real difference in everybody’s life, and they know it.

7. “Follow your dreams and go broke”.  Did you?

 So far, I haven’t done either.

 8. “We’ve declared war on work”. These are your words regarding the American society. Do you think the rest of the world is as guilty as the USA or there’s some hope left?

No one in America can deny that the prevailing definition of a “good job” has changed. Two generations ago, Skilled Tradesmen were considered to be an absolutely critical part of our workforce. People aspired to those positions. Now, we have a shortage of skilled labor, and an infrastructure that’s falling down around us. I don’t know how people feel in Romania, but it wouldn’t surprise me to hear that the same was true elsewhere. If a society values dirty work less than clean work, that society will eventually consist of a workforce unwilling to get dirty. That’s bad.

 9. Why did you start the MikeRoweWorks campaign and what have been the results so far? Have you seen any improvement in the way people perceive hard work?

 A lot of people in the USA have come to believe that a college education is the only path to prosperity. All other kinds of training are seen as “alternative education.” That’s just dumb. Trade School enrollments have been in a serious decline for years, and that’s causing real problems. I want mrW to help focus a conversation around that issue, and promote a new appreciation for skilled labor. So far, it’s working great. On a personal level, I’ve had real success with Dirty Jobs, none of which would have been possible without the industries and vocations featured on the show. Those industries need help, and mikeroweWORKS is an attempt to give something back.

 9. If you’d have to choose one “dirty job” as your future career, which one would it be?

 Hosting Dirty Jobs is a dirty job. Trust me. I think I’ll stick with that one.

 10. What’s the most important thing you’ve learned doing the show?

 Don’t light a match in a sewer.

 11. Wikipedia says that long time ago you briefly sang with the Chorus of the Chesapeake, a men’s a cappella chorus, member of Barbershop Harmony Society. How does that relate to your current job? Did it make you happy?

 I started singing as a kid because it helped me lose a stutter. In that sense, singing helped me get into show business. I’ve performed in all kinds of theater, and sung all kinds of music, including opera. I enjoyed it, but like most everything else I’ve done, I was a bit of an imposter.

 12. How many dirty jobs have you experienced thus far?

 Over 220.

 13. How do you define dirty? Being a mercenary is a dirty job? Or a drug smuggler? Or do you focus only on “respectable and legitimate dirt”?

 For the purposes of the show, anything legal, necessary, and interesting. My personal definition is another matter.

 14. Selling stuff for a shopping TV channel (QVC) was dirty? Was it fun?

 Selling things in the middle of the night on live TV is perhaps the greatest training ground possible for an aspiring television host. It was miserable, hysterical, fun, wretched, surreal, profitable, and unforgettable. It wasn’t dirty, but I did feel the need to shower every few hours.

 15. Why and how did they (QVC) fire you three times?

 I probably never should have been hired in the first place, but I was desperate for a job, and faked my way through the audition. I was in trouble from the start for a variety of reasons, and spent three years on a kind of double-secret probation. The reasons were all perfectly justified, and stemmed from my general disdain for the products I was asked to sell, and my smart-aleck attitude toward the people who bought them. There was also chronic sleep depravation, but I have no excuses. Sadly, your magazine lacks sufficient space for a detailed response, but sooner or later a book will address the question in detail. I can tell you now though, that the answer will definitely include an unfortunate incident with a collectible Nun doll named Sister Mary Margaret, who had a music box in her bottom that played Climb Every Mountain. 

 16. You said (in another interview) that you’re paid to try – not to succeed. What do you wish to try, but haven’t yet received the budget for?

 A vacation.

 17. You were/are also a narrator for other well-known shows on Discovery Channel, like American Chopper or American Hot Rod. Do you like internal combustion motors? What do you drive and how dirty is it?

 I have no strong feelings about combustion motors, internal or otherwise, and didn’t base my decision to narrate American Chopper on anything other than an easy paycheck. Likewise American Hot Rod. Deadliest Catch however, is another story. I’ve narrated that show from the beginning, and continue to do so because I genuinely like it. I’ve been on those crab boats many times, and know the captains personally. As for my ride, I drive a Ford truck, and it’s filthy.

 18. Would you consider to try a dirty job as a reporter? Dirty enough?

 Are there still any real reporters out there? I haven’t seen many in this country, but if you have an opening over there, call me.