Four Inane Questions with Good Morning America’s Rhiannon Ally
Courtesy ABC News
Butter her—hometown girl Rhiannon Ally is on a roll. The UMKC grad and former KSHB 41 main anchor is, for all intents and purposes, watching her shining star go supernova as a newly minted correspondent on ABC’s Good Morning America. (She’s also been doing her fair share of fill-in anchoring on the popular news show recently as well.)
It’s not Ally’s first stint in the national TV spotlight. She previously hosted the nationally syndicated lifestyle and entertainment program Better TV, where she conducted one-on-one interviews with a long list of newsmakers including Madonna, Denzel Washington, and Gloria Steinem.
In addition, Ally is also an acclaimed children’s book author. Mommy, Please Don’t Go to Work! is her debut book. She wanted to write the book to “explain to kids that while mommy has to work, they are always number one,” she says. “My mother was an avid reader and taught me to read at a very early age—and you could always find me with a book in my hand.”
Now, being a mother herself, Ally tells us she’s in love with children’s literature and hopes to pass her love of reading on to them.
We caught up with the TV journo mere days after attending her first Met Gala.
“I felt like a princess,” she gushed on social media. “The dress was RVNG Couture.” We’re guessing our questions were just as—if not more—riveting than anything she was asked on the red carpet that night.
The Pitch: For what celeb would you (or did you) freak out while interviewing?
Rhiannon Ally is ready for the Met Gala. // Courtesy photo
Rhiannon Ally: I can typically play it cool with big stars because most of them are really normal in person. But recently I saw Susan Lucci backstage at Good Morning America and I told her I loved her and she said I looked beautiful. I almost passed out! This is Erica Kane we’re talking about.
It took me back to my childhood and being home sick from school, watching All My Children. She was one of the greatest villains we all loved.
What’s your best—or worst—daily ritual?
Don’t tell my doctor, but I often split my sleep. Because I often work weird hours, I rarely get eight straight hours of sleep. I’ll sleep five to six hours here and (hopefully) two hours there.
It usually depends on my husband’s and kids’ schedules. Some days I won’t get more than a couple of hours. It’s really awful sometimes, but I appreciate I get to do what I love at work. I also eat a bag of spicy plantain chips almost every day. They’re my guilty obsession.
How do you disguise a bad hair day on the air?
Bad hair days don’t exist at ABC. Just kidding! I have two fantastic hair stylists: Patricia Fitzgibbons and Deana Donofrio. Neither would dare let me go on-air with my hair looking a hot mess, which it sometimes wants to do. Sometimes I think it looks good and they’re like, “Nope! Let me fix it!”
You’re given an absolutely unrealistic news deadline. What’s the over-under that you’re gonna get it done on time?
I think all journalists have nightmares about “missing slot,” which means you—or your story—not making it in time for the show. The morning after the Met Gala, I was scheduled to be live on GMA and thanks to a series of unfortunate events that were truly no one’s fault, I showed up to the studio with dripping wet hair minutes before my slot. I was on the verge of what felt like a panic attack, but it’s truly a team effort at ABC and everyone jumped in to help. I had two stylists drying my hair and two makeup artists getting me camera ready.
Bonus 5th Question: You’re trapped as a celebrity bartender behind a bar. What drink(s) can you hands-down make better than any other news personality?
I don’t drink any hard liquor after an especially fun Britney Spears concert in my 20s. But I can pop a bottle of champagne or wine better than most—and I believe in a generous pour.
