T H E PA L M B E A C H E S
The South Florida Ambassador: An interview with Frank Licari
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rank Licari is a Telly — and ADDY — award winning actor, writer, producer and director, musician and Emmy-nominated TV Host who has spent the past 30 years on both sides of the camera, as well as on and off stages across five continents. He has guest-starred on FOX’s The Resident, NBC’s Law & Order, CBS’s Blue Bloods and Dellaventura, USA Network’s Burn Notice and Graceland, Netflix’s Jessica Jones and Bloodline, ABC’s Nashville and currently has a recurring role in HULU’s The Hardy Boys. He's also the current host of On The Town in the Palm Beaches with Frank Licari on South Florida PBS. His latest film, Jose Feliciano – Behind This Guitar, which he wrote, produced and directed, premiered at the Santa Barbara and Miami International Film Festivals in March 2022.
Q: Floridians can see you regularly as host of the South Florida PBS series, “On the Town in The Palm Beaches with Frank Licari.” How did you get the job? Well, this is a very funny story. I had just moved back to the New York area back in 2016, and we were unloading the moving truck when I got the call from PBS. The director of production told me that South Florida PBS was producing a new show. I mistook the call as a request for a pledge to the station to support the show. I typically give yearly to public television and National Public Radio, so I assumed they were soliciting for a donation
Q: How did you find out you were going to be the host? I tried to rush her off the phone but she mentioned that they were calling to see if I would be interested in hosting the show! After a moment of embarrassed laughter, I told her that I just moved and didn’t live in Florida anymore as of 24 hours ago. I said, “Well if you don’t mind adding a traveling budget to my offer, I’d be happy to do it.” The rest is history. We’re now five seasons into On The Town in the Palm Beaches with Frank Licari and I’m enjoying every minute of it. 16
SPRING 2022
Q: Do you see yourself as a tourism ambassador when you’re hosting “On The Town in The Palm Beaches with Frank Licari?”
I truly feel so fortunate to be able to host and contribute to this show. I absolutely feel like a tourism ambassador and, in turn, it’s made me appreciate and love South Florida even more than I already did. I lived there for 15 years and I still learn new things and appreciate more about the area with every show. I think that my genuine excitement and curiosity for the people I meet and the places I get to explore comes across in the show and resonates with the audience. My goal is to make people excited to explore South Florida — not just give them information, but create an experience with every person and place.
What kind of feedback have you gotten about the show?
I was home in New Jersey, and was getting my mail. I walk onto my front porch and my mailman sees my face and says, “Hey, you’re the guy from that show!” Now, living 20 minutes from Manhattan, I assumed he meant one of the shows I had done on network TV. So, I said, “Oh, did you see me on Blue Bloods or The Resident or something?” He says, “No, the Florida show you do. My wife and I are going to take a trip there. We searched Palm Beach County and your show came up. After watching your show, we decided to move there.” His answer absolutely floored me. Three months later, my mailman was gone! He lives in Lake Worth now — all because of my show. If that’s not being an ambassador to South Florida, I don’t know what is. FLORIDA RESTAUR ANT & LOD GING A S SO CIATION
