Ask American Profile

George Lindsay, Harry Connick Jr., James Horner, Star Jones

George Lindsay played Goober on The Andy Griffith Show and on Hee Haw. What is he up to now?
—Jennifer G., Pennsylvania

George Lindsay, who lives in Nashville, Tenn., makes about 30 appearances a year as his alter ego, Goober, including at The Andy Griffith Show reunions. But he spends a large part of his time working on the George Lindsay Film Festival at the University of North Alabama (UNA). Lindsay attended the school on a football scholarship, so the festival allows him to combine his two loves—UNA and films. “What we are trying to do is build the biggest archival script library in the country,” he says. In addition to Lindsay’s scripts, actor Ernest Borgnine donated more than 200 of his. As for his Goober legacy, Lindsay isn’t surprised that his character is in demand. “When I was on the show, it was the No. 1 show on television, so we thought we were doing something right, so its popularity isn’t surprising.”

Harry Connick Jr. is such a musical fixture for someone so young. How long has he been performing?
—Leo D., South Carolina

Harry Connick Jr., 33, was 3 when he first touched piano keys; three years later he played at his father’s swearing-in ceremony as a New Orleans district attorney. The musical prodigy made his debut with a New Orleans jazz band before he was 10. After winning several piano competitions and playing with the New Orleans Symphony, he moved to New York and began a career that would include multi-platinum records, Grammy Awards, Broadway, television, and movies. Despite his success, Connick is very much the family man with his wife, Jill, and two children. “I love music, I love acting, but at the end of the day, the most important thing is home and family,” he says.

One of my favorite CDs of all time is the soundtrack to Titanic, scored by James Horner. What other soundtracks has he done, and how does he manage to do it so well?
—Leah W., Indiana

Besides Titanic, which sold more than 28 million copies and is the biggest-selling film score album in history, James Horner has written scores for numerous films, such as Casper, Clear and Present Danger, Patriot Games, Sneakers, Honey I Shrunk the Kids, The Land Before Time, Cocoon, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Apollo 13, Braveheart, Legends of the Fall, Aliens, and The Perfect Storm. “Films speak to me right away,” he says. “The atmosphere, the overall mood dictates the kind of orchestra I will use. Watching a film the first few times, I make a charcoal sketch; later I put the colors in.”

Star Jones, a co-host on The View, seems so knowledgeable about legal matters. What is her background?
—Serena T., Arizona

Star Jones—born in Badin, N.C., (pop. 1,380)—got her law degree at the University of Houston, passed the New York Bar, and immediately started a law career in the Brooklyn, N.Y., district attorney’s office, where she prosecuted high-profile cases. She debuted on television in 1991, moonlighting as a studio commentator for Court TV, and eventually became a legal correspondent for Today and Nightly News. In 1995, she was named senior correspondent and chief legal analyst for Inside Edition. Two years later, she became a co-host with the launch of The View, a daytime show currently featuring Meredith Vieira, Joy Behar, Lisa Ling, and Executive Producer Barbara Walters.

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