Some would say Donny Deutsch has it all. Money? He sold his ad agency, Deutsch Inc., in 2000, for a reported $250 million. Fame? In 2004, the creative director made the leap to TV, hosting The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch on CNBC, a success-oriented talk show, and he’s been an outspoken fixture on other shows since, popping up everywhere from NBC’s Today to Morning Joe on MSNBC. Women? He’s known a few. There was, however, one thing missing from his own bucket list: a sitcom. But Donny Deutsch also has a motto: “Just fucking go for it.” (Take note, fellas!) So he did, and he now stars in his own eponymous scripted series, Donny! (which airs Tuesdays at 10:30 p.m. EST on USA), on which the real-life Donny Deutsch, 58, is reimagined as a trashy talk-show therapist. Here he helps us separate fact from fiction.
How did Donny! come about?
I had been doing TV for a number of years. I had my show The Big Idea on CNBC, then I was doing the “Today’s Professionals” segment on the Today show, and then I did some Morning Joe stuff. But I was kind of hitting a creative wall. I thought, “How do I break out of this?” I was with my production company, and we were talking about doing a daily talk show with a live audience. At the end of the meeting I said, “I’ve got this crazy idea...”
Is there a show that inspired yours?
Curb Your Enthusiasm was the real inspiration. I feel like an idiot even putting myself in the same sentence as Larry David, but as a genre, I would. Somebody told me it’s like a more current male Sex and the City, which I thought was interesting. It has a very urbane quality to it. But I think it is its own thing.
You play a sort of fictionalized version of yourself on Donny! Have you always been playing some sort of “Donny” character?
As an agency head, I was a guy who ended up being seen in the business as a maverick, so you start playing the maverick. On Morning Joe, I’m the guy who fights with Joe [Scarborough], who flirts with Mika [Brzezinski], who’s a little bit more liberal, who tends to be rogue. It’s not that it’s not me; it’s a presentation of me. It’s exaggerated.
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You’ve called yourself a feminist. But you’re also known to be kind of a ladies’ man. How can you reconcile the two?
At my agency, nine of my 11 partners were women. I feel very protective of women. I’ve always had a lot of girlfriends, and if they ever get hurt, I want to punch people. I’ve been single a big chunk of my adult life, so of course I’ve dated. The only thing I’m not proud of, and I would never do again, is getting involved with a married woman. It ended up in the New York Post. It’s the only mistake like that I’ve ever made in my life, and I would never do it again.
You’ve always been known to have a well-developed physique, and working out is a big part of your show. Talk a bit about that.
It’s an important part of my life. I work out every day. I always thought being in good shape in business was good business. I think if you’re very successful in an intellectual enterprise and you can bring a physical appeal on top of it, it’s surprising. I also went through a tough period in my life, a divorce 11 years ago, and I put on 40 pounds. I never wanted to be that guy again. I try to do an hour of cardio five days a week, and I try to work out with a trainer five days a week, doing weights, core, and stretching.
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Do you ever fight the urge to pour yourself a drink instead of working out?
I’ll pour myself a drink after the workout. Tonight I’ll go to dinner at one of my favorite Italian restaurants, I’ll have a glass of wine or a vodka, no problem. I’ll eat well. I’ll have snapper and a steak once a week, once a month a veal parm. You’ve gotta treat yourself, and then get right back on that workout.
In the second episode of Donny!, you get advice about manscaping. Does the real-life Donny manscape?
I do basic. You don’t want to go too crazy. Just make sure it’s a non-event down there.
What’s the biggest myth about Donny Deutsch?
I don’t want to say I’m a dork, but I’m a lot nerdier than people think. My personal life is not as daring as what I’ve done in my business life. If I slept with one-tenth of the women people give me credit for, I would be a pretty hip guy.
