Were Ethan and I Meant to Be a Team? The Numbers Say Yes

August 22 of this year marks the 10-year anniversary of the Ethan and Lou Show.

We were asked by the radio station how we should mark the occasion. Rather than throw another party, I proposed recreating our show on stage. So, the week before the anniversary, we are doing just that. We will have an Ethan and Lou Live Show at the Ridgefield Playhouse. I will give you a lot more detail on that as we get closer.

Since I started constructing the show, I have been examining our history together. What I came up with was actually pretty amazing. There are certain calendar dates and facts that line up for us in a big way:

• Ethan's first day at I-95 was February 28th, 1979. I was born March 28th, 1979.
• My first child, Louis, was born May 30th, which happens to be Ethan and his wife Mindy's wedding anniversary.
• My second child, Christopher, was born July 17th, which is Ethan's wife Mindy's birthday.
• My daughter, Vida, was born February 25th and that is one day before Ethan's birthday.
• Both of us as children would record fake radio shows.
• Ethan's oldest son, Matt, and I are close. We are the same age and we came up in the radio business together.
• I am close with his son, EJ.
• I watched his daughter, Allie, grow from a little girl into a woman.
• In times of crisis, I always found myself at Ethan's house asking for advice and talking things out with Ethan and Mindy.

We have an unmistakable bond. The first year of the Ethan and Lou Show, we just were not very good. What we did have an abundance of, however, was chemistry from day one. That chemistry, I think, was evident to everyone, and we thought we might have something special here.

People think it's odd sometimes, with our age difference, that we are so close. I mean, the guy is a 66-year-old man who happens to be quite nice. I'm a 38-year-old jerk. He's Jewish, I am Catholic. We don't have the same taste in music, movies, or sports. We don't even look at the world the same way, and yet, Ethan is as close to me as anyone in my life. Other than my parents and sisters, Ethan is the longest relationship I've ever had.

The most annoying question I get about him from listeners is, "Do you guys really get along?" It annoys me, because I don't think anyone could fake the kind of fun we have together. We are REALLY having as much fun as it sounds like we are having. He is one of my closest friends, and we have been very lucky to have ten years together doing what we love. It's a reminder that your life's direction is not all about the route you have chosen. I think some people are put in your life purposefully. You don't choose them, it just works.

P.S. - If you read this and try and talk to me about it, I will deny I ever wrote it.