'Wait Wait, Don't Tell Me!' welcomes new judge and scorekeeper

"Wait Wait, Don't Tell Me!" welcomes its newest scorekeeper this weekend. Alzo Slade succeeds Bill Kurtis.

Transcript

A MARTÍNEZ, BYLINE: The NPR news quiz Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me is entering a new era.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR CONTENT)

BILL KURTIS: I'm legendary anchorman Bill Kurtis.

(CHEERING)

MARTÍNEZ: The show's beloved scorekeeper of 12 years, Bill Kurtis, retired after taping his final episode last month. Here's host Peter Sagal saying his goodbyes.

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PETER SAGAL: And he has said the most ridiculous things...

KURTIS: (Laughter).

SAGAL: ...In that most serious of voices. And...

MARTÍNEZ: And while there's no replacement for Bill Kurtis, he will have a successor.

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ALZO SLADE: I'm the man they bring in when Bill Kurtis gets busted for claiming Peter as a dependent.

(LAUGHTER)

SLADE: I'm Alzo Slade, and here's your host at...

MARTÍNEZ: That is comedian and former philosophy professor Alzo Slade. He's a familiar voice on Wait Wait, having appeared on the show many times. And this weekend, he officially becomes America's favorite judge.

First off, congratulations. My goodness. I talked to Bill a little while ago. Now I'm talking to you. It feels like I'm, like, a boy entering puberty with your two voices that I have to contend with.

SLADE: (Laughter) Well, there's no comparison to Bill's velvety, buttery voice. You know, I'm just going to have to, you know, step in and do my own thing. You know, it's funny 'cause people are like, Alzo, do you sing? I'm saying, no, I'm the guy on the R&B album that just talks.

MARTÍNEZ: Yeah.

(LAUGHTER)

MARTÍNEZ: Everyone needs - every R&B album needs that, though.

SLADE: (Laughter).

MARTÍNEZ: Now, you know, I used to be in sports, so I used to, like, deal with a lot of sportscasters, especially sportscasters that have been with one team for, like, decades, you know?

SLADE: Right.

MARTÍNEZ: I'm always fascinated by the person that has to replace that beloved longtime broadcaster because as much as people are going to be excited about you, there's going to be some people that'll be like, well, he's not Bill Kurtis.

SLADE: I feel like I've been called up from the minors to replace a Hall of Famer.

(LAUGHTER)

SLADE: You know what I'm saying? And I'll tell you a story I told Peter the other day. Let's say 10 times I've subbed in for Bill Kurtis, and at least seven out of those 10 times, people will come up to me and say, we were really hoping to see Bill, but you did a great job.

(LAUGHTER)

SLADE: No, but it's - all jokes aside, Bill said something special to me. He was like, Alzo, you could bring things to this role that I wasn't able to, and we'll figure out what those things will be.

MARTÍNEZ: Have you figured out what some of those things are?

SLADE: Well, there's a considerable amount of difference between Bill and I.

(LAUGHTER)

SLADE: And since it's radio, people won't be able to tell, I don't think.

MARTÍNEZ: (Laughter).

SLADE: Well, you know, it's the NPR crowd. They don't hear color anyway, so...

(LAUGHTER)

MARTÍNEZ: Now, the main job of the scorekeeper, of course, is to keep score. Panelists are quizzed on events in the news, and at the end of the show, you know, the scorekeeper announces how well they've done. So you, Alzo, have a particular approach to this aspect of the job, so let's have a listen to that.

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SAGAL: Alzo, did Dulce do well enough to win?

SLADE: No, not really.

SAGAL: No.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: Alzo, did Luke do well enough to win?

SLADE: Absolutely not.

SAGAL: Uh-huh.

(LAUGHTER)

SAGAL: Alzo, did Adam Burke do well enough to win?

SLADE: Nope.

(LAUGHTER)

SLADE: He did pretty bad, actually.

(LAUGHTER)

MARTÍNEZ: You see, some might say, Alzo, that that is mean. I say that's just tough love.

SLADE: Yeah. That is tough love, and I think it's important to let them know that there's always room for improvement.

MARTÍNEZ: Oh, yeah, of course. I mean...

SLADE: (Laughter).

MARTÍNEZ: So you're right next time, yeah.

SLADE: Exactly.

MARTÍNEZ: So, Alzo, I'm going to give you one last question here. Did I do enough to keep my job? You're the scorekeeper. You tell me.

SLADE: Absolutely not.

(LAUGHTER)

MARTÍNEZ: Well...

SLADE: A, there's always room for improvement (laughter).

MARTÍNEZ: Thank you. Alzo Slade is a new judge and scorekeeper for Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me from NPR and WBEZ in Chicago. He makes his debut this weekend. Alzo, thank you very much.

SLADE: Thanks for having me. You're a class act - appreciate it.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.