Dear Tell All: Help! I have a crush on NBC 15's nighttime anchor Leigh Mills. Do you think there's any chance she might marry me?
News Junkie
Dear News Junkie: Years ago, this would have been a silly question. News anchors were about as accessible as the president of the United States. But now, with email, Facebook, blogs and Twitter, we can get much closer to our local TV stars and, who knows, potentially date and marry them. (Even Barack Obama is on Facebook and Twitter. I'll address your romantic chances with him in a future column.)
Your attraction to NBC 15's Leigh Mills is understandable. On the local nightly news she is beautiful and stylish, with diction to die for. She's gravely serious when the script requires it, fixing the camera with a slightly Ted Baxter-esque expression. But she quickly lightens up just the right amount when talk turns to weather. Here is a woman, one thinks, who has the proper response to every situation.
This could all be a pose, of course - a respectable character Leigh plays at 5, 6 and 10 p.m. To find out if she's really the woman for you, News Junkie, we need to uncover the real Leigh. And now we can, by reading her blog at www.NBC15.com/blogs. Here we experience Leigh unfiltered, and it's a revelation. Gone is her TV-news reserve. She's a bubbly, chatty BFF who makes liberal use of the exclamation mark.
We learn that Leigh had a blast at last summer's triathlon in Governor Nelson State Park. She cheerfully volunteers for charitable causes. She respects Jessica Simpson's singing. (Okay, nobody's perfect.) In one post, she even generously shares pages from her high school yearbook, where we learn that she was a cheerleader, a member of the homecoming court, a track star, vice president of the student council and the girl voted Most Likely to Succeed.
Not only does Leigh seem like the catch of the century, News Junkie, but also like a warm, openhearted woman who'd at least momentarily consider your out-of-the-blue proposal of marriage.
That is, until you get to the blog post titled "I've Got BIG NEWS!" dated Feb. 18, 2008. Sad to say, but Leigh already accepted a proposal from a dude named Charlie. We learn from subsequent posts that she found a gorgeous wedding dress (March 25, 2008), had a lovely outdoor wedding (Oct. 1, 2008) and enjoyed a fabulous honeymoon in Italy (Oct. 29, 2008). You can scroll through the pictures if you really want to torture yourself.
So I guess it's a no-go, News Junkie. But luckily, unlike most of the women you strike out with, Leigh will keeping coming back into your house every weeknight. At least you can take some comfort in that.
Do you have a question about life or love in Madison? Write Tell All, 101 King St., Madison, WI, 53703. Or email tellall@isthmus.com.
