I've been in broadcast TV for 50 years. I started on a show called Panorama as a broadcast journalist covering the Kennedy Assassination, Watergate, and more. In the late 80's, I hosted the TV show A Current Affair. After that, The Maury Povich Show ran for seven years, and then in 1998, The Maury Show was launched. And we've had tens of thousands of guests since then, along with tens of thousands of paternity tests.

I'm very proud of the fact that in May 2007, I launched the newspaper the Flathead Beacon (http://flatheadbeacon.com), news for Montana's Flathead Valley, and my clothing line that I launched that is made in America, called Mother Freedom, is made in New Bedford, Massachusetts (http://motherfreedom.com). I'm an avid golfer, and a huge sports fan (especially baseball and football). I'm married to a woman named Connie Chung, who may be one of the great news reporters of all time. I have 3 children - 2 with my first wife, and 1 with Connie. And my adorable dog is named Birdie. He's going to be 4 years old in a month. He's a kind of reddish-brown Golden Retriever, born in Montana where we have a home, and he's a Canadian Breed Golden. You can follow me on social media at:

video proof

Facebook proof: https://www.facebook.com/mauryshow/photos/a.10150327244867518.394623.39921022517/10153332773782518/?type=1&theater

Victoria's here to assist me in person. AMA!

Update Well, I'm just shocked at - first of all - how popular this has been for reddit, and I'm just amazed at how knowledgeable the viewers are about my show! I want to thank profusely our new historian, /u/MauryAddict, and I am very touched by how much people truly watch the show in all of its aspects. And wow.

I'm blown away.

Thank you.

Comments: 2899 • Responses: 40  • Date: 

oscarveli4138 karma

Am I the father?

MauryPovichHere4043 karma

Hahahahahaha!

Well... hahahahaha!

If you wanna be, you can always be!

allycatraz2893 karma

Maury, you're amazing!

Many years ago you had a segment on your show where you would give away your famous blue sweaters to people who wrote into the show. I wrote you when I was nine years old and never received one. Any way I can score one of those blue sweaters? :D

Edit 4:18pm EST: RIP my inbox. I PMed Maury with my info and I believe Victoria passed my info along to his team as well. As soon as I receive the sweater, reddit will be the first to know :)

MauryPovichHere3095 karma

Just get me a address.

We'll get one out of mothballs!

samerners2683 karma

Maury - Any chance of you guys doing another makeover episode in the near future? My mom got her hair cut off on your show in 2000, and hasn't cut it since!

EDIT: Before: https://youtu.be/uAXNweoPD0I

During: http://youtu.be/ZJfU7lyUC74

After: http://youtu.be/d1u3JkeExWw

MauryPovichHere3365 karma

HA HA!

Tell her to call our show, we'll be glad to have her back, and do it all over again.

jallen18682661 karma

Maury! What's up man, long time watcher of your show. In your opinion what do you think is the most memorable thing that's ever happened on your show?

MauryPovichHere4967 karma

It's happened twice.

A woman accused a guy of being the father of her twins. And when I opened the envelope - and I don't know the answers before anybody else does - he was the father of one of the twins, but not the other.

And they were fraternal twins. And science says that's a million-to-one shot, that there could be two fathers of twins. And it's happened twice.

So the million-to-one shot has come in twice.

And that's the most surprised I ever was.

DoctorDavidBanner1725 karma

Maury - What can you tell us about covering The Kennedy Assassination?

MauryPovichHere3569 karma

Well, I was a very young radio reporter, in 1963. And I grew up in Washington DC, and that's what happened. I can remember exactly where I was the moment we all heard about it. I was covering a local story at the District Building, which is basically city hall in Washington DC. and my starkest memory of the ensuing days was that night, the radio station asked me to go to Andrews Air Force Base, and I saw Jackie Kennedy come off that plane, in that bloodied suit, and the casket coming out the back of the plane, and... we're talking... over 50 years ago.

I still... I can see that as if it was yesterday.

killeroncampus1566 karma

hey, Maury! you're the first television personality I ever followed after Lamb Chop.

how did/do you feel about the parody South Park did of the show?

MauryPovichHere3512 karma

Well, it was fascinating.

First of all, it was brutally remarkable.

I was taken by it. To the point where I called up the creators, and I couldn't get them, for several days, because I guess they thought I was mad at them. And I wasn't at ALL! I was so humbled by their efforts that all I wanted was a couple of the cartoon cells so I could put them on my wall. And finally, the powers that be answered the call and I have them! And they're displayed prominently in my home.

anti_body1542 karma

maury, a while back, you had a guest on your show who was the mother of a 15 yr old girl called victoria who had sex over 300 times and had been caught by her mother having sex in the mom's bed. when she came on your show, she desperately wanted to have a baby. do you know if victoria had her baby, or did she remain a reformed girl after being put through your bootcamp?

girl i'm referring to is here: https://youtu.be/ysC76zBS6YQ

MauryPovichHere1628 karma

I don't know.

But I have people here who are getting this question, and will try to respond to it. Hopefully we had an effect.

geebee7651250 karma

Hi, Maury! You have been married for over 30 years to Connie Chung. What is the most valuable lesson you have learned from the guests on your show?

MauryPovichHere2646 karma

HAHAHHAHA!

Well, I'll tell ya - it could apply to the guests on my show. It's okay to argue, and it's okay to have separate feelings from each other, in terms of subject matter, and argue, and things like that. But you've GOT to make up before the head hits the pillow at night.

And also, I've learned (unfortunately a lot of my guests haven't with the lie detector show) you've got to give your significant other a long leash, and have a lot of trust in them, so they can remain independent and you are a couple at the same time.

durrtyurr772 karma

You manage to be both entertaining and also like a grandfather to the people on your show. how do you manage both of those goals?

MauryPovichHere915 karma

Well, I'm very fortunate because all I have is my own instincts to rely on.

And people who know about the history of talk say that since I started my talk show in...whew, 1991... there are 80 talk shows in the graveyard. And we have more young viewers than any talk show in the country. And I think that I just have relied on my storytelling instincts, the fact that I was in news for a long time, the fact that I always wanted to do more about stories than just a minute and thirty seconds on the news. I wanted to delve into stories to find a true meaning. So that's what we do. And I know that there's a whole aspect of entertainment in the show, so that's well and good, but these are serious subjects, and the most gratification that I get is that my guests and viewers have somehow found a way to trust me.

And I don't know how I've earned that trust. But I just think... I have the human instincts that everyone has.

homie_jesus737 karma

Maury,

How is it possible you are nearly 80 years old?? I hope I'm in your shape when I'm 60!

MauryPovichHere1179 karma

Hahahaha!

Well, I mean, I think genes have something to do with it. My father was 92 when he passed away, and he was the sports columnist for the Washington Post for 75 years, and he died the day after he wrote his last column. And my mother lived to 95, and I don't work real hard at exercise, but I work out because I like to play golf. I am a firm believer- and it's becoming more and more popular - the doctors say "Look, if you walk 20-30 minutes a day. That's really good."

Just don't be sedentary. I don't care what you do. Just don't sit around, or lie around.

courtiebabe420732 karma

Maury -

Is the current version of your show what you expected it to be when you first started?

I remember watching you with my grandmother in the afternoons after school, and loving it. What you have on now is so insane - how much of it is real versus scripted?

Thanks for hanging out with us today!

MauryPovichHere1271 karma

All of it is real. There's not a moment that is not real. There's not a moment that is scripted. I could make a case that we were maybe one of the first reality shows that came onto the scene. The show never started out this way. We tackled a lot of different subject matter that was in the news. We didn't become a show of society behavior for a long time. And once the lie detectors, and the DNA, kicked in, that's the road we took.

scandi_flick678 karma

Hey Maury, Do you ever feel like you are about to get punched by the crazy hoes whenever you prove the father of their child isn't who they think it is?

MauryPovichHere1198 karma

Well, you know, there are times...when you have to learn...the technique of "duck and cover."

But I can read my guests pretty well. And fortunately, believe it or not, even though there's a lot of emotion, somehow they seem to respect me, and they do a lot of things, EXCEPT attack me.

SputtleTuts667 karma

Is my underage sister sleeping with my transsexual meth-addicted boyfriend for cheeseburgers? If so, which one?

MauryPovichHere656 karma

HAHAHAHAHA!

Well... we've had people... who say that... they've slept for cheeseburgers. I get very distressed about stories like that.

Transgender people usually show up on my show where you don't know whether it's a man or a woman. We love those shows. "Is it a man or a woman?" And I defy anyone to get 10 out of 10.

Snowbank_Lake512 karma

With the paternity tests, why does the woman get all the sympathy and the man gets booed, when she’s the one who slept with enough guys to not know who the father is? Curious to hear your thoughts on this.

MauryPovichHere687 karma

Well, it's interesting, because in the beginning, we set up the story where this woman is searching for the father of her child, and that promotes sympathy on the part of the audience. However, as the story unfolds - and then of course the man comes out, because we hear the woman's story - and the man is defiant - and then what happens is, as the story unfolds with the guy, let's say the woman messed around with other people, the feelings change among the audience. The success of the show, I think, is because we have back & forth emotion during the storytelling. And the key is that we come to a climax where the audience individually has made a decision as to whether he's the father or not. And in a significant amount of the cases, it goes the other way. And so that's why in the end, sometimes the women don't get the sympathy. They get the scorn.

The key is that we can use this kind of dramatic story in a 12 minute segment. And everyone knows the answer.

SputtleTuts486 karma

What was the most disturbing situation or guest that you've met over your career? What set this one apart from the others?

MauryPovichHere929 karma

Well, the stories that really get to me are the ones in which I have a 15 year old girl who's trying to accuse a 15 year old boy of being the father of her child. I mean, the teenage pregnancies, and the teenage kids, who have to deal with babies is the most disturbing part of the show. And we have been very involved in the prevention of teenage pregnancy, because of showing what it can lead to. And I'm happy, in terms of our involvement with the prevention of pregnancy people, but at the same time, it's very distressing to me to have these kids on the show.

SputtleTuts351 karma

Thank you for the response! What do you think are the biggest factors in the teenage pregnancy issue? I know lack of education and poverty are contributing aspects, but are there other factors that play into this, that people don't generally think about?

MauryPovichHere1235 karma

I think the number one factor is - young boys are stupid, if they get in that situation, and don't have protection. For girls, I think one of the main reasons they search for getting pregnant and having a child is they're looking for unconditional love, that they're not getting at home, they have problems with their parents, they think that the only thing that will love them unconditionally is a baby.

And that's the worst possible thought. Because what we try to show is that your whole life will change for the worse.

Aerron481 karma

How do you feel about your image and your line "proved that was a lie" are used so often humorously on sites like reddit?

MauryPovichHere866 karma

It's just all instinct.

I mean, "You are NOT the father," "You ARE the father," and "That's a lie!" just came out. It was never written, it was never enunciated to me, it was just the way I responded... to those themes, once we did them. I mean, I guess it's like Donald Trump saying "You're fired" or whatever signature lines from somebody - it's just become part of my demeanor. It's become part of my being. And I see all kinds of ... Christmas cards... "Maury Christmas," "Joseph, you are NOT the father!" and when somebody is lying on a big news story, I see that on YouTube... I see various billboards, so it's almost become part of Americana.

chipkellyeagles472 karma

Hi Maury-

Thanks for doing this AMA.

Important question here. Yesterday on Reddit there was a spirited debate about this question: "If identical twins (M) had a threesome with a girl and she got pregnant, DNA tests wouldn't be able to prove who the father was". Is that true? How would you get to the bottom of this?

Thank you!

MauryPovichHere920 karma

I'm thinking about this.

Uh... ponders

I'm thinking.

Uh...

This could be above my pay grade.

I don't know how you would tell the difference. And I would love to be able to call in a geneticist. Because... I'd be very confused.

All I can tell you is... don't do it! HAHAHA!

chipkellyeagles402 karma

Thank you for your answer, Maury! You need to do a show like this!

"This week on a very special Maury: She had a threesome with two identical twin brothers and doesn't know which one is the father. Join us as we discover how to solve this question!"

MauryPovichHere868 karma

I want to tell you - we would get a prime time, nighttime special for that. If it EVER happened.

pieceolisa359 karma

Maury! My friends and I love you and have been dying to ask you this.

How many paper cuts do you think you've gotten from opening various envelopes while taping?

Secondly, and least importantly, what do you do if/when you get a paper cut? Do you have to redo the entire sequence or what?

YOU'RE THE BEST.

MauryPovichHere539 karma

HAHAHAHAHHA!!!

That's a great... you're showing a great deal of knowledge, because guess what? At least a handful.

No, I just suck on my finger during commercials.

geebee765353 karma

Hi, Maury. Which cities have provided the most entertaining guests for your show?

MauryPovichHere751 karma

Hahahahahaha!

Well, it's interesting. I've always thought there are certain states that have been popular in terms of our guests. And I would say - first of all - NYC, because we tape in the New York area. So that's been a very popular place for our guests.

Atlanta, Chicago... Texas... California...Florida, definitely Florida... but I would not say that, you know, it's an urban draw. Because many of our guests come from small towns. I mean, I can't tell you how many times I've heard "We live in a small town, and everybody thinks she's running around with everybody in the town!" or "Everybody thinks he's cheating on me in our small town!"

So that's why when people say "Where do you get your guests?" and I say "This show is made in AMERICA!"

We get them from everywhere.

scandi_flick2288 karma

Hi Maury, HUGE FAN here! Thanks for doing this AMA I really am excited that youre here answering questions.

I saw an interview with you once where you said you never know the results of the paternity or lie detector tests until you open the envelope. What I want to know is was there any particular occasion where you were particularly shocked? Could you share that story?

Also, you are my spirit animal, and if you ever are considering retirement please give me a heads up. Thanks

MauryPovichHere770 karma

So somebody's gonna put me on a cave wall? I might be a spirit animal? I think that's great. Wow.

I think the answer to the last question really answers that one, where I was shocked the most. But I will say that the smartest thing I ever did - and sometimes it's just by pure luck - when I first had the paternity test story, and the producer was briefing me before the story, the first one ever ever did - and so the first time I was briefed, the producer gave me the outline of the story, and I read it, and then she said "here's the result of the test, here's the answer" and I said "I don't want the answer. I don't want to know anything more than what my guest knows, or my live audience, or my television audience. Because I would ask questions differently if I knew the result. And I want to be as surprised as anyone."

MAURYADDICT281 karma

Hi Maury, judging by my username, you can tell that I ADORE your show! I am on a mission to watch every single episode ever created!

What do think about women like Marisol, Georgetta, Tabitha, Chakka, Kim, Simone, Telia, Moyisha etc. etc.?

Oh, and don't forget Sholonda and the 19 men she tested for her babies!

MauryPovichHere558 karma

Wow.

You know, it's very interesting you mention all those names, and they all bring memories to me. It's like 30 Sundays hit the calendar, all those names.

My producer had a great idea one time. We've never pursued it, but we should. And that is to bring out a book called "The Maury Book for Baby Names."

All I do is think about those kids.

I wanna tell you something - those women, who come here, searching for the fathers of their babies, they, in a way, demonstrate such courage. They don't do it for money. They just do it because they want - they know that their child has a better chance with two parents. And they are searching for this father. And despite their indiscretions, they still seek their child's father. So that the child will have a better life.

So I give them a lot of credit.

And I'm only hoping and praying that those kids have a good life, even if it's with a single mother.

Ericovich267 karma

Hi Maury

How do you keep a straight face after some of your contestants 4th or 5th not-the-father?

MauryPovichHere771 karma

Hehehe. Well... you know... you hope that the 6th will be.

So I've been asked that question, about how do I do this thing with a straight face. I knew a President one time. And he asked me one time, because he was flipping through stations, and he saw my show, and he said "How do you do that show with a straight face?"

And I said "Well, Mr. President, think of all the things you have to do every day with a straight face."

Leoncelli_3388225 karma

When are you going to be hosting SNL?

MauryPovichHere507 karma

Well, I can tell you that I have appeared on Saturday Night Live once. And it was - gosh, maybe 25 years ago? And Ed O'Neill, who's on Modern Family, was the star of a show called "Married with Children," years and years ago. And he was one of FOX's first hits. And because he was the star, he was asked to host SNL. And he was supposed to come out, and be very excited because he was the first FOX hit. And I kind of interrupted his monologue, because i was doing A Current Affair, which was a FOX show, which started before "Married with Children," and was really the show which paved the way (in terms of money) for the FOX network, and I pushed him out of the way, and talked about a Current Affair.

So that was my only appearance on SNL. According to Lorne Michaels, it went well, and I've never been asked back since.

MauryPovichHere505 karma

But they reference me a LOT in Weekend Update!

Jazzkevin223 karma

What has your wife, Connie Chung, been up to lately? I miss seeing her on TV. Good reporter.

MauryPovichHere611 karma

Connie has been the main parent in my son's life. She has raised this young 19 year old. He was born in 1995, she went to work for a while at ABC and CNN after a few years of raising Matthew, then she went back to raising him through his formative years, and I think because of the climate of news, and because so many outlets have an agenda, and that news cannot be disseminated the way she grew up in that business, taking a very objective and observant attitude, whereas now everyone seems to have an agenda for their programming - she's kind of glad she's out of the game.

If she could find a way to get back in a situation which she feels is appropriate, she would do it.

Squidling1148 karma

Hi Maury, you rock! Thanks for doing this :-) How did the baby daddy shows start and what is the highest number of possible baby daddies in the show's history?

MauryPovichHere275 karma

smiles

Well, I don't know. I think my producers just came to me with the idea. I think when we first started the show, we were not as...edgy? As the show has become, in terms of our themes. And the paternity shows have proved so popular, because you have all this drama, and it's all wrapped up, with a conclusion, in 12 minutes. And I think we just tried it blindly to see how it would go, and it's been a huge success.

The highest number? We've had one person that's been well in the teens. She's been back something like 14 times. And I don't think she's ever found the father of at least one of her children.

MAURYADDICT701 karma

I remember Sholonda has been on Maury 15 times, Simone 14 times, and Marisol 14 times. Simone never found the father of her son, but Marisol found the fathers of half of her kids and I think Sholonda found the fathers of 2 of her 3 kids except the one she tested 17 men for.

MauryPovichHere753 karma

Wow.

Can you please be the official historian of the Maury Show?

madmaxpower9134 karma

what is your favorite charity?

MauryPovichHere399 karma

I have several, but I'm a huge believer in education. Early education, college education, I'm a huge supporter of charter schools, I give a lot of money to my university and my high school, so that underprivileged kids from those towns are able to attend the best schools. I'm a huge supporter of the National Adoption Center, which is headquartered in Philadelphia, because Connie and my great joy, our son, is adopted, and we know how much of a gift adoption can be.

bloodgrin946107 karma

Hey Maury, I was just wondering whatever happened to D. West, the guy you used to have on the bad kids/abusive husbands episodes?

Also, what would you say is the most memorable moment you've had hosting your show?

MauryPovichHere159 karma

Okay.

D was a terrific part of the show for many years. He was great with those kids, those out of control kids that we used to have on. I think that what happened was he moved into a different direction. He wanted his own show, so he pursued that on his own.

myrmidons106 karma

Do you run the paternity tests twice to help eliminate false-positives and false-negatives? Or do you only do it at the insistence of the guests or not at all?

MauryPovichHere253 karma

I can tell you that maybe - MAYBE - we've done 5 tests again, only because of the insistence of the guests. And it's never gone the other way.

I mean, when they say 99.999 - they're not kidding.

operation_hennessey99 karma

What was it like working with the 30 Rock crew?

MauryPovichHere269 karma

Well, it was - first of all - I was touched by the fact that they asked me. Tina Fey has told me that it was one of her absolute favorite episodes. It's an episode in which Tracy Morgan was the illegitimate child of Thomas Jefferson, who was played by Alec Baldwin, and Sally Hemmings was played by - I can't remember who played her - and Alec and Tracy were at my show, and we did it on the set, and I just, I mean, I was just blown away that this hip, primetime sitcom would use me. And when Tina - at some point I saw her later - said it was one of her favorite shows I was just blown away.

iwouldrun500miles89 karma

Maury - if you couldn't be in your current line of work (or anything TV related, for that matter) what line of work would you want to be in?

MauryPovichHere184 karma

I was a dreadful student.

And one of the reasons I think I was so bad was that I had very few teachers that I remember. And so I really think that I could teach. But I don't think I could teach with a huge syllabus.

I think I would be more of a storytelling teacher than a teacher who gave out huge reading assignments.

Skweres8889 karma

Hello Maury, once in a while your show will feature past guests who may or may not have turned their life around since being featured. What is your favorite success story?

MauryPovichHere234 karma

We have had - I think my favorite success stories are two, just thematically.

One in which the father has denied being the father, was proved to be the father, and they get into the child's life. And the second is that young teenager who ran in the streets, who wanted to get pregnant, or wanted to run away and be a stripper, turned their life around and went back to school and didn't get pregnant and is living a productive life.

Those are my favorite success stories.

neonklingon87 karma

Hey Maury,

How has the landscape of daytime tv changed since you were first on the air?

MauryPovichHere307 karma

Well, what's happened in daytime TV is that there are less and less traditional talk shows.

And when I say "traditional" - like when Oprah was on the air, and back in the 80's, there was no only Oprah, there was Phil, there was Joan Rivers, there was Jenny Jones, there was Sally Jesse Raphael - MANY shows to pick from. And the daytime audience is unfortunately shrinking. So there aren't that many shows that can garner an audience. And the "traditional" show - where you have a show that has a variety, celebrities, cooking food, human interest stories - you don't have as many shows. Ellen? Yes. Maybe Steve Harvey, you could say. Meredith's is out there, but it's a tough market. And in the traditional way, that's all there are.

So you've got to have some kind of signature. Some kind of... uniqueness. In order to survive. And fortunately, we've had it.

Look - no television researcher could ever explain my show.

I've been on the air longer than anybody out there.

I am older than anyone out there.

And I have the youngest audience of anybody out there.

I mean, that's an inverse equation. Nobody can figure it out. And quite frankly - I don't want to figure it out.

two_off43 karma

How often do you tape the show?

What do you spend your free time doing?

MauryPovichHere115 karma

Well, we tape the show probably 27, or 28, weeks a year. We tape twice a week, Wednesday evenings and Thursdays. We do two shows a day. I have a very understanding wife, and now that we are empty nesters, I spend most of my daytime hours on the golf course. Or on the practice range.

HoserUSC19 karma

What's the craziest fan gift you've ever received?

MauryPovichHere55 karma

Hmm.

Well. I think maybe the best thing anybody gave me was when I dressed up on Halloween as Flavor Flav, and they put a clock around my neck.

SputtleTuts2 karma

Are you my father?

MauryPovichHere4 karma

HAHAHAHHA!

I'm the father to some, but not to many.

RedPandaGirl0 karma

Hi, Maury. Has any guest offered to smoke weed with you, and have you accepted? You seem like a cool dude to smoke with.

MauryPovichHere5 karma

Hahahaha!

Well... no. But I have, on occasion, walked outside to get something in my car, and the aroma is... palpable, hahahaha! It is... very, uh... very sensuous.