Tom Bodett

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Tom Bodett (pronounced /boʊˈdɛt/, boh-DETT; born February 23, 1955 in Champaign, Illinois) is an American author, voice actor and radio host. He is also the current spokesman for the hotel chain Motel 6, whose commercials end with the phrase, "We'll leave the light on for you."

Career

In 1986, Bodett was both building houses in Alaska and contributing content to NPR's All Things Considered show. A creative director at the Richards Group ad agency heard him on NPR and hired him to do a commercial for Motel 6. Bodett ad-libbed the famous line "We'll leave the light on for you" and has been the spokesperson for the chain ever since then. The director, David Fowler, hired him because he "sound[ed] like the kind of person who stays there."^[1]

Bodett hosted the public television program, Travels on America’s Historic Trails, in 1997.^[2]

In 1999, Bodett started The Loose Leaf Book Company, a radio program that centered around author and book interviews, discussions, and dramatizations. He also published his first children's book, titled Williwaw!.^[3]

In 2005, Motel 6 began using Bodett for their wake-up calls. The chain hoped to bring a more personal touch to people's day by using their spokesperson's voice.^[4] Bodett was also featured on the first Motel 6 podcast, released for the holidays.^[5]

Bodett resides in Dummerston, Vermont, where he was a member of the Town Selectboard.

Bodett was a regular columnist for the webzine Mr. Showbiz. He also did the voiceover for "Mime Time" and the "Good Idea/Bad Idea" segments featuring Mr. Skullhead on Animaniacs and a brief cameo in Pinky and The Brain as well as narrating the 1999 direct to video Animaniacs movie Wakko's Wish.

As a broadcaster, Bodett hosted two radio programs. The End of the Road from 1988 to 1990 and Bodett & Company in 1993.

He is currently a regular contributor to The Bob Edwards Show on XMPR and a member of the stable of panelists on Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!, a National Public Radio news quiz show.

Bibliography

Bodett's work includes:

• Norman Tuttle on the Last Frontier 2004, ISBN 0-679-89031-9
• Williwaw! 2000, ISBN 0-375-80687-3
• America's Historic Trails 1997, ISBN 0-912333-00-6
• The Free Fall of Webster Cummings 1996, ISBN 0-7868-6209-2
• The Big Garage on Clearshot 1990, ISBN 0-688-09525-9
• The End of the Road 1989, ISBN 0-688-08701-9
• Small Comforts 1987, ISBN 0-201-13417-9
• As Far As You Can Go Without a Passport 1986, ISBN 0-201-10661-2

References

External links

• Tom Bodett's website
• Tom Bodett at the Internet Movie Database
• Motel 6's info on Bodett
• Another photo of Bodett
• Radiotapes.com Featuring an unedited recording Bodett's "The End of the Road" radio show broadcast from the Old Log Theater near Minneapolis in 1989. In addition to the show as it was broadcast nationally, also heard is the interaction and dialog with the audience before the show started and between the segments that radio listeners never heard including retakes, audience instructions, recording of show promo, off-air performances and much more.