Some 15 years ago, then-KTVX anchorwoman Kathleen Sullivan was at the Ch. 4 studios watching "Good Morning, America" on a monitor.
"Somebody there - I think it was the director - said, `You know, I think you'd be good at that,' " Sullivan recalled. "I just laughed it off. It seemed impossible."Today, doing a morning show is in her past. Sullivan left Ch. 4 to be one of the first anchors on the then-new CNN back in 1980, then moved on to ABC where, among other things, she co-anchored the early morning news, anchored the Saturday evening news, was a major on-air presence during the network's coverage of the 1984 Olympics, and guest-hosted "Good Morning, America."
In 1987, Sullivan moved to the morning couch full time, co-hosting "CBS This Morning."
Three years later, Sullivan made news herself when she was rather unceremoniously dumped by CBS in favor of Paula Zahn. But Sullivan said she has no regrets about any of her career.
"I really see my firing as a blessing," she said in a telephone interview. "If I had continued with that, I would have missed a lot of life."
The grind of doing a network morning program is unbelievable, she said.
"It was so exhausting. You're working seven days a week. During the week, it's 4 in the morning until 4 in the afternoon and 7 to 11 at night," Sullivan said. "And then you work all weekend, too. People just don't know how tough it is.
"I'm on a much better path. I did as much growing as I could, and I'm really thrilled with everything that happened to me."
Sullivan's latest project is an NBC special - and pilot for a possible midseason replacement series - called "After the Headlines . . . " It's about people who achieve sudden fame, then fade from view.
(Unfortunately, Utah viewers won't see the special because KUTV-Ch. 2 is pre-empting it tonight for a Billy Graham special.)
It's a topic that intrigued her because, although her fame lasted considerably longer than 15 minutes, Sullivan knows what it's like to be up and then down again.
"When I was first fired, I was offered a couple of tabloid shows - `A Current Affair,' `Inside Edition' - but I just couldn't do that," she said. "I had nightmares about it. They're not the truth, they're speaking to the really prurient interests. It's the really seedy side of life.
"This, on the other hand, is a wonderful family show. It speaks to the best of us. It's not about
heat, it's about light."
Among the segments are looks at
the DeBolts and their 19 kids, Baby M eight years after the sensational custody case, and Fay Wray more than 60 years after King Kong took a shine to her.
Sullivan found fame again recently with a series of commercials for Weight Watchers and admits she was surprised at the reaction.
"Isn't it amazing?" Sullivan said. "You never know."
She said she's dropped about 20 pounds, feels great about herself. "And I've had a lot of people tell me, `I did it because of you,' " Sullivan said.
Among those who've talked to her about the program was former first lady Barbara Bush. "We were talking on the phone and she said, `I'm eating the (Weight Watchers) lemon tart!"
And, through all her ups and downs, Sullivan said she retains a soft spot in her heart for Utah.
"Being a success in Salt Lake City led me into a wonderful life," Sullivan said. "Tell your readers I'm very, very grateful."