January 28, 2009 | 8:39 pm

Teresa Strasser Shines…and Bows to Robin Quivers

Posted by Rob Eshman

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Teresa Strasser

Teresa Strasser loves her husband, her job, writing, recovery and Robin Quivers.  That’s the gist of what she tells LAist.com in a full-length interview today.

Strasser is the co-host of the morning drive time Adam Carolla Show on KLSX-FM 97.1.  She’s also an on-air personality for the TV Guide channel.  And she’s also a long-time, award-winning and very very popular columnist for The Jewish Journal and jewishjournal.com.  Her most recent piece for The Jewish Journal appeared last week, about her mano a mano confrontation with everyone’s favorite Jew-baiter, Pat Buchanan.

So, LAist asks, what does she like best: radio, TV or writing?  Teresa responds:

I think that writing is the thing I’m best at doing, but I haven’t really figured out a way yet to make a living doing that. When you hear about the ninth lead on the West Wing buying a house in the Hollywood Hills, and I’m getting $200 for a piece in the LA Times…

I think writing is the only one of those three where I have a knack. I’m not the fanciest writer, but I think I’m able to be honest. When I’m editing a piece, I think how can this be more true? There’s something to be said for that even though my prose is pretty mediocre.

The interview is typical Teresa: literate, funny, honest and surprising.  She talks about coming out as being in recovery for an eating disorder, about feeding the “Lion’s Mouth” that is Adam Carolla, and about which people and pieces she loves most.

And she very graciously takes time to acknowledge her debt to that other morning co-host, Robin Quivers.  Strasser credits Quivers, of The Howard Stern Show, with perfecting the role of the female radio sidekick, and tells LAist that whenever she’s unsure of what to do9, she asks herself, “WWRQD?”—What would Robin Quivers Do?

In Malcolm’s Gladwell’s book Outliers, he talks about needing 10,000 hours to master anything—chess, cello, computer programming. Robin probably started with a natural gift for radio, and has probably doubled those 10,000 hours of air time. To me, she’s a master—smooth, tough, seemingly impervious to douchebag callers who give her shit, and excellent at picking news stories that fit her show.

Sometimes, people ask themselves, WWJD, What Would Jesus Do? Occasionally, I ask myself WWRD? I look forward to having the kind of ease and experience she brings.

Congrats Teresa!  When’s your next piece?

More on Teresa Strasser
More Jewish Journal pieces on Howard Stern, including an exclusive interview with his oldest daughter.