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Behind the Mike: Seven continents of experience for Stofflet

John Stofflet has survived 'grizzly' competition on way to Channel 15 anchor

Mike Lucas  —  5/15/2008 10:01 am

While the intrepid John Stofflet and his cameraman were on assignment to shoot an Alaskan surfer, Stofflet also had to give some serious thought to shooting himself. Literally. That was Plan B for a grizzly bear attack. As the surfer was getting ready to jump into the water, he handed Stofflet a rifle and a pistol.

"He says, 'You're on the shore and you're going to have to protect yourself and your photographer,'" Stofflet said. "The rifle is for the bear and the pistol is for you if you miss,' and he goes like this ... "

Forming an imaginary gun with his right hand, Stofflet cocked his thumb and pointed his index finger at his temple. "I laughed," he recalled, "and he said, 'I'm not kidding. If you miss the bear, you're going to want to use the pistol.' "

As the piece turned out, Stofflet and his photog wound up shooting the surfer (figuratively, of course), but it still made for a good story -- one of many the WMTV (Channel 15) news anchor could share about his travel experiences as a television broadcaster who has set foot on all seven continents.

Stofflet can thank Scott Klug, the former WKOW news anchor and 2nd District congressman, for opening his eyes to a brave new world. Stofflet has had the pleasure of seeing 40 countries in all, from African nations to Antarctica, and has gone from "sky-jumping" off a 70-story building in New Zealand to mingling with the tribal chieftains in New Guinea.

Armed with his childhood ambition ("I wanted to be the next Johnny Carson and interview famous people") and a degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Stofflet began working at Channel 27 after graduation. But his path to the anchor chair was blocked by Klug, who, at one time, had been an investigative reporter for KING-TV in Seattle.

Small world.

Stofflet sent out his tapes and ended up at KING-TV. He was hired for a nightly magazine show, a mix of news and show biz. "Sort of like 'Dateline' meets 'Entertainment Tonight,' but it was done locally in Seattle," he said. "And, it turned out, phenomenal because they had the resources to send me around the world."

Some of Stofflet's favorite celebrity interviews -- usually four minutes in length -- included Julia Roberts ("attractive, friendly, intelligent"), Robin Williams ("he was just bouncing off the walls"), Woody Allen and Mel Brooks ("a remarkable experience''), and Charlton Heston ("deflated the tension immediately by shaking my hand").

Stofflet was bound to stay sleepless in Seattle, too, because he was also freelancing for the National Geographic Channel, accounting for much of his worldly travel. There was a drawback. While he was living in an apartment in Seattle (and sometimes a co-worker's basement), his wife and kids were living in the Madison area. And the commuting got old.

"When I got to Antarctica, it was a symbolic thing -- it was my seventh and final continent,'' said Stofflet, adding that he has no desire for space travel. "Something else happened in Antarctica. I missed one of my kids' birthdays. When you spend your life on airplanes, by the very nature of that life, you're never attached to one place."

To remedy that situation, Stofflet packed his bags (and the 18 Emmys that he has won for reporting, writing, etc.), returned to Madison and began anchoring for Ch. 15. That was three years ago, and the high ratings for the 6 p.m. news block have reflected his viewer acceptance. "No one can take away the experiences I've had, but it's simpler now," said Stofflet, 46. "This is live TV in a community that I love."

There are still challenges, like engaging and sustaining a connection with the audience. But given his adventuresome past, nothing can be as challenging as diving with sharks, wrestling bears or interviewing Holly Hunter. Not that Stofflet, by his own admission, will be mistaken for Indiana Jones. "I'm the biggest coward," he said, "but when there's a camera around, I'll do really stupid stuff."

To this day, his favorite memories and stories are tame and devoid of star power. There was Paul Smith, who overcame cerebral palsy and created art on a typewriter. There was Edith Haisman, who was 100 and one of the last survivors of the Titanic. And there was Mike McKinney, the former Ch. 15 anchor, who raised the bar with his charitable endeavors, and energy.

"The last time I saw Mike was two days before he died (from colon cancer)," said Stofflet, who has taken an active role in what was McKinney's passion: the Second Harvest Food Bank of Southern Wisconsin. "Mike was and still is an inspiration. His picture is still hanging in the (WMTV) lobby, and I think it's more than just symbolic."

Mike Lucas  —  5/15/2008 10:01 am