I n M o u n t V e r n o n , WA , a y o u n g R o s s c o u l d n o t b e c o n t a i n e d w i t h i n t h e confines of the sleepy suburbs. “I grew up in a little farm town. I’m like a gay cartoon version of a human being, so it was a little different,” he said. Come 1998, he made the move south to Los Angeles, attending The U n i v e r s i t y o f L a Ve r n e b e f o r e f i n d i n g h i s b r e a k a s R o s s t h e I n t e r n o n “ T h e To n i g h t S h o w w i t h J a y L e n o . ” S i n c e t h e n , R o s s ’ s t a r p o w e r h a s m a d e h i m a trusted and beloved TV personality based on his positive disposition and genuine love for what he does. But even Ross can’t pigeonhole his official title. “My career is a little unorthodox. What am I? Am I a TV host? Am I a comedian? Am I an author?” he asked. “I want to be a little bit of all of it. I don't think that you have to be in a box. I'd love to do something unexpected next. Is it a cooking show? A game show? Why is there a box for me? I’m not going to put myself in one, so we’ll see what happens!”
O
One project after another, the man is relentless in his ability to keep up with demand. He attributes his stamina to his involvement in theater, debate and journalism back in the day.
“There were certain things growing up that really taught me work ethic more than confidence. I mean, I was stupidly confident,” he said with a laugh. “I never worried about getting on stage in front of people, but what theater and debate and journalism taught me was a strong work ethic. I remember realizing that if you rehearse and you practice and you put in the work, you get the reward. I [thought] ‘Oh that's how it works.’ I have called upon those skills in my life far more than I've called upon geometry or algebra.” In other words, Ross was destined to be in front of an audience rather than behind a desk, nine to five. In discussing Ross’ impressive resume, he feels he shines brightest under the pressure of being in realtime. “My favorite thing is doing live television,” he explained. “I’m not good at ‘take two.’ I'm not good at faking it and that’s why I don't do tours or stand up because I don't like saying the same joke over and over again. I like the energy of live. I like embracing the mistakes.” He has an innate capacity for cleverness and quick-wittedness that brings out the best in people, be it with celebrities or the average Joe. It is difficult not to open up to Ross as though you have been friends for years. There are no false pretenses, no angles and no shrewdness. He described his sense of humor as harmless. “There's never a victim at the end of my joke, and that's by design because I've been the butt of people’s jokes before and it's just mean. What if I made
a joke about somebody and their grandma saw it? I wanna make sure grandma is gonna be okay,” he joked with sincerity. Having seen that dark side of the industry, Ross never lets it burden his spirit. “I just struggle,” he sighed. “I just try, you know? It's tough. It’s long hours. It’s a lot, and you try to balance it all and you are only as good as your last project. You've just gotta be in the fight. I don't know how people get a big head in Hollywood because all you are is made humble every day. You're told ‘no’ every day. You're told you're too fat, you're too thin, you're not ‘this’ or ‘that’ enough. I don't know how people get big egos, but they do!” Dealing with those egos has become second nature to him. “I understand celebrities because I've been interviewing them now for almost 20 years,” he said, describing his time on “Celebrity Big Brother” as an example of how to tiptoe around difficult personalities. “That's why I did so well [on the show] because I knew how to deal with these people. You have to compliment them, you have to listen, you have to think they have great ideas.” And no matter what might be going on in Ross’ brain, you would never know if he has any jitters or fears being in front of the camera or in the face of big names in Tinseltown. “I don't get nervous; I get excited. If I'm nervous, it's for something that's important for others, like when I hosted the GLAAD awards,” an awards show that honors multiple media branches and their representation of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community, of which he has hosted six times. “That makes me nervous because I want to do right for them. I don't get nervous for myself because if I bomb I’m like ‘Okay, great,’ I go home, who cares. But I want it to be good for the people.”
45 L O C A L E
M A G A Z I N E