Talk:Jon Kelley

The Mole Episode 1 - Welcome to The Mole ... Blog
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to The Mole ... Blog."

Oh, by the way, my name is Jon Kelley. Great meeting all of you, live and in living color, via the World Wide Web. From what I’m reading on these message boards, there’s a long list of you seriously juiced up for this show’s return. It’s been 4 long years - 'bout time we got the magic and green kool-aid flowing again.

I’m a blog fanatic and I can tell by these message boards that fans are amped. "Mole-a-holics"... getting "Mole-a-fied"… feeling "Mole-liscious"... just a few of the new phrases I’ve picked up around the blogosphere.

One of my all-time favorite comments so far? That Anderson Cooper and I actually resemble each other! No joke. One guy even wrote that we must be, "brothers from another mother." That is CLASSIC! For those of you who might get us mixed up, I’ll help you out with a little hint: if you look very closely, I have a small freckle under my right eye. He doesn’t. So as long as you stay aware of that, you should be good. Oh, and I’m black.

For the record, I, like many of you, thoroughly enjoyed watching Anderson Cooper lead the way through season’s 1 & 2. He’s smart, funny, talented and I dig his style. Cooper no question was an important thread and a solid part of the show’s appeal. Knowing he held the reigns to this hosting position before I did, made this role even more appealing.

So where do I start? How about Los Angeles? Los Angeles, Chile, that is. It’s a small, rural town that served as the site of our first mission. As soon as we rolled up to our hotel, it reminded me of my old summer camp from back in the day: Camp Kataki. Camp Kataki on steroids ... especially the mosquitos. At least this time I didn’t have to share a bunk bed w/ little Teddy Williams. Nice enough kid, but damn, he could not control his bladder. Don’t worry, I rocked the bunk up top -

My first few days were spent settling in … bouncing around getting acquainted with the virtual army of Team Mole. It’s a force… a movement that gives off the vibe and hum of a well-oiled television machine. The stories, the heartfelt camaraderie, enthusiasm and pleasure of reuniting for another season … I hadn’t even shot the first episode, and I was already feeling the fever.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner were usually a trip. Beat up little local joints, tables full of Mole warriors, great conversation, a menu I really couldn’t read, soccer on all the television monitors around the room. Since my Spanish is muy limited, I’d stick to the only word I recognize on the menu: Pollo. Using some weak mime moves, I’d show our server how I’d like it grilled. Somehow it worked. Eventually, I figured out, "Pollo ala plancha" was my go to, money phrase in Chile. Also a huge hit in Chile ... instant coffee. Thought that was discontinued back in the 70’s - who knew?

Well, fast forward to 2008 and prepare yourselves for a premiere that will reach out of your plasma, grab you by the collar and snatch you inside for the ride of your life. The show comes strong right out of the box. Our Exec Producers and entire Mole team are going above and beyond to create nothing short of memorable television. In the colorful words of EP, Clay Newbill, "It’s The Bionic Mole. Bigger… faster… stronger… better than ever!" Steve Austin, eat your heart out.

Remember: trust no one. Gonna be a lot of of dirty games, underhanded moves, deceit and betrayals. After all, we do have a killer mix of personality types. I can tell this is going to be one wild, exciting, dynamic run.

I have no idea who The Mole is ... to this day. So, let the game... and the games begin.

~ Jon Kelley, 06.02.2008

http://blogs.abc.com/molehost/2008/06/episode-1.html