C.J.: Let's dish up a healthy helping for Rosey's mom

Emmy winner Doris Rosen could use your prayers, encouragement and good thoughts.

The mother of WCCO-TV's sports anchor Mark Rosen is dealing with new health problems. "She's been going through some anxiety but she is calming down a little," Rosen said Monday.

Note that I'm not being more specific. As my mother always says: "You don't need to know the details to wish somebody well."

"Your mom is a wise woman," said Rosen. "My mom doesn't have any idea how many people like her, love her out there. I get that all the time." Mark and his sister Barb Rosen are supporting their mom "like kids do all the time," he said. "You do it out of love. We consider ourselves fortunate to still be in the same city as our mother."

In 2011 Doris and Rosalie Vascellaro, mother of WCCO-TV anchor Frank Vascellaro, won Emmys for their grandmotherly take on the "Grammys."

Get well, Doris!

Locals turned on 'Talk'Even though Minnesota and WCCO-TV anchor Amelia Santaniello got short shrift from Rielle Hunter on "The Talk," local viewers gave the CBS network show its highest ratings ever in this market.

"Thought you'd like to know that Amelia's guest-host appearance was the most watched episode of THE TALK on WCCO-TV since the show premiered in the Fall of 2010. The June 27th episode of THE TALK was seen by 115,000 total viewers, which is a 167% increase over what the show has been averaging in the month of June," Kiki Rosatti, WCCO's director of communications, told me via e-mail.

Santaniello has to feel loved. But when I ran into her Friday night all she talked about was disappointment about not getting a chance to talk about WCCO, Minnesota and, of course, to razz-in-absentia her husband and co-anchor, Frank Vascellaro.

My FOX9 colleagues Jason Matheson and morning shows EP Hayley Herst started the confab when Matheson tweeted they were having happy hour at Ivy's Porter & Frye. That prompted me to show up, and then Santaniello and her WCCO colleague Aristea Brady. (Brady enlightened me regarding her first name: It's Greek.)

"Talking up Minnesota and WCCO is what the plan was for the first segment," said Santaniello. Instead they jumped right into Hunter, who's written a book about being John Edwards' former mistress and mother of his child. "I get it. She's the hot topic of the day. It's live TV. She was on 'The View,'" said Santaniello. "She has guts coming on knowing she's going to get hammered with questions but why is she even bothering? She isn't even answering anything."

Hunter was treated with kid-gloves on "The Talk."

"The Talk" producers "wanted [us] to ask tough questions but maintain a civil tone," said Santaniello, even though "very few people are supportive of her."

CNN's Soledad O'Brien did an outstanding, civil interview that still caused Hunter to whine "harsh." Twitter's @Soledad_OBrien said she intended no harshness -- and there wasn't any. She was thoroughly on-point seeking explanations for Hunter's contradictory answers and behavior.

Hunter is employing a miscalculated strategy: seeking sympathy for her poor decisions by saying nasty things about the late Elizabeth Edwards.

Credit where it's dueLast week, I mistakenly gave WCCO Web producer Sara Boyd credit for a Twitter remark that was actually the original thought of the Pioneer Press' @AmyGustafson. "@WCCOAmelia is not buying Rielle Hunter's answers," wrote Gustafson in a remark that Boyd repeated while Santaniello was on the "The Talk."

Frank wants equal timeWCCO-TV staffers playfully tortured anchor Frank Vascellaro with the memory of his wife touching hunky Adam Rodriguez on national TV.

"I want to pet somebody," said Vascellaro, reacting to his wife's interactions with Rodriguez.

Rodriguez started it, reaching over and touching Santaniello while he was on "The Talk" promoting the movie "Magic Mike," which did very well in weekend box office numbers.

"He's a good-looking guy but I think my jaw line is better," said Vascellaro, "although he's got to be 20 years younger than I am. Maybe that was the attraction. She looked great, did great on the show.

"I think she was actually petting him, like a dog," laughed Vascellaro. "Some funny people at work put a picture of him with me together and sent it to me. He's a good-looking dude, but I think I'm in the running."

If "The Talk" continues to fill co-host vacations with anchors from various CBS properties, seems fair that Vascellaro should be offered an opportunity for recompense.

"Katie Upton, Halle Berry, Christie Brinkley, Jennifer Aniston," mused Vascellaro. "Believe me, I'll pet just about anyone. I've been married 14 years. I'm not choosey."

And it's all good clean family fun because the "petting" will be restricted to a national TV show set.

C.J. is at 612.332.TIPS or cj@startribune.com. E-mailers, please state a subject -- "Hello" doesn't count. Attachments are not opened, so don't even try. More of her attitude can be heard on FOX 9's "Buzz," Thursday mornings.