Larry King Live

What's Next for Martha Stewart?

Aired February 2, 2001 - 9:00 p.m. ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

LARRY KING, HOST: Tonight: She is a self-made billionaire who bakes her own bread and whips up home-style Chap Stick: Martha Stewart. We're dishing for the hour. It's a very good thing -- next on LARRY KING LIVE.

Guess what? It's an anniversary. One year ago tonight -- February 2, 2000 -- Martha was our guest. This must be a yearly booking.

MARTHA STEWART, "MARTHA STEWART LIVING": It's wonderful.

KING: We book you. It's like a post-Christmas, pre-Valentine...

STEWART: Did you know it was a year before you booked me?

KING: No, they just wrote -- I see it on this. It says, "Martha was last on with us February 2, 2000, one year ago today."

STEWART: Well, it was very fun last year. And I expect it's going to be fun this year.

KING: So much to talk about: Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. How many things do you have: enterprises? Go.

STEWART: Well, we have four businesses, eight core areas. That makes us about 32 businesses. And we are busy in every single aspect of the business. The four businesses: television, of course, our daily show -- one hour a day. And it is syndicated in about 90 percent of country. We have also redisplay on Food Network of our food segments, which is very popular.

KING: It's an offshoot. It's still under television.

STEWART: Yes, that's still under television. We have a daily radio spot on CBS, which is "Ask Martha." And I do one a day on a variety of subjects: anything from how do you tell a shovel from a spade to

(LAUGHTER)

KING: You're sick, Martha. Go ahead. Never mind.

STEWART: No, no, no. And people like this.

KING: I know.

STEWART: They like it very much: What kind of washing machine should you buy? Should you buy a front loader or an agitator type? Do you know?

KING: I was worried about just the other day.

STEWART: Well, I hope you are. And then, of course, we have our publishing business. And in our publishing business is our flagship, 10-year-old magazine. We're celebrating our 10th anniversary.

KING: It was a hit from the start, right?

STEWART: Oh, yes, it was. And it is called "Martha Stewart Living." We now have a circulation of approximately 2.4 million a month. So it is a very large magazine. And it is also a fat magazine.

KING: I've seen it.

STEWART: We have "Baby" four times a year. It is a new launch last year. We launched it. And it is a very popular magazine with new mothers, for new babies. And we are expanding that into kids. So it will be "Baby Kids" at some point at the end of this year. We also have lots of books that we publish, and, of course, our "Weddings" magazine four times a year.

KING: Are you always thinking of new things?

STEWART: What I'm always trying to think -- and I think I've told you this before -- is to fill a void, something that doesn't exist, something that people need and want and don't have.

KING: So you don't create a vacuum and fill it?

STEWART: Oh, no, no, no, no.

KING: There has to be the vacuum.

STEWART: Oh, there is. And there are many vacuums. I mean, there are many voids in this world. For example, I don't think -- and I don't know for sure -- but I don't think anybody had ever published a Halloween special issue for the newsstand distribution before, devoted entirely in our style to the celebration of Halloween. And that was a really excellent thing to do last year. We did it last year -- a big, big circulation.

KING: What have you had you that was a failure?

STEWART: In our business?

KING: What aspect, in your history, didn't work as you look back. Because you have been so successful, there has to be something that didn't go right.

STEWART: In businesses, not much. KING: Not much.

STEWART: No. It's been pretty good.

KING: Well, "Forbes" magazine, on the 400 richest people in America list, you are ranked 274.

STEWART: Well, see, room for improvement.

KING: Estimated net worth of $1 billion. What -- and you went public on October 19, 1999.

STEWART: Well, it was like instant, you know, because when you take a company like ours, which is a very good company with real good basic business, you take that public, the market rewards you. So I became sort of an instant...

KING: What is your need? Obviously, it's not money anymore.

STEWART: No, my need is to get things done. I have an urge to get things done -- still.

KING: All kinds of things.

STEWART: All kinds, oh, yes, oh, yes. All kinds of things.

I'm always experimenting. I'm always continuing with my curious nature, always trying to discover new areas that have not been treated in a good way before. You know, we sort of made home keeping a business. We made it a real business niche now. And so what's the next thing? I really think that maybe it is organizing the homemaker. I think that every one of us needs to be better organized. We want to have more time. We don't want to waste time. We want to make time for good things. We want to spend more time with our family. Look at you: two young kids. Don't you want to spend more time with the kids?

KING: Sure.

STEWART: So how can we help you spend more time with your children, not waste time doing silly things, or things that are everyday things that you have to do, but we could help you do them much faster. So...

KING: And you take this into what?

STEWART: Well, that is the Internet.

(CROSSTALK)

KING: ... on television or on the Internet?

STEWART: The Internet, OK? My dream for the Internet is to help organize you, organize your everyday life, so that you are happy, you are -- when someone asks you, "Oh, can I please sea Cannon's birth certificate?," you don't have to search for it. You have don't have to look for it. If you have a car accident, you -- and you have three cars, say. Most Americans have three cars now in a family.

KING: Martha, OK. You're not normal. Well, maybe they do. OK, maybe they do.

STEWART: No, they do. They do. Oh, my gosh. I mean, I don't know the statistics for sure. But I bet most families have about two or three cars, because mom has a car, dad has a car, and one of the kids probably has a car or a jalopy or something.

You know, in my family, when I was growing up with a -- I think a total family income of about $13,000, there were two cars in the driveway and a third that was being fixed to run. They probably -- maybe -- I will find out.

KING: So your goal...

STEWART: But anyway...

KING: You goal, though, isn't the dollar? The dollar is the result of what you do.

STEWART: Yes. And I believe in that. I believe in profiting from my efforts, as I think all of us probably should, unless we are doing pro bono work that's very necessary and people can't afford to pay for it. And I do love that kind of work. But if you are going to work as hard as I work -- and that's seven days a week, 24 hours a day, pretty much -- it is nice to profit from it.

KING: And what does it do to your personal life?

STEWART: I have a great life. You know, a great life.

KING: You do? You have a personal life, a social life?

STEWART: Yes. I'm getting better. I'm getting better. Yes, I'm spending a little bit more time on my own personal thoughts and my own personal...

KING: Do you want to remarry again?

STEWART: Someday. You always ask me that.

KING: No, because, you know, I mean...

STEWART: You are married now. Too bad.

KING: You certainly have -- we could have been -- what could have been. But you were certainly a catch.

STEWART: Oh, I don't know if I'm a catch or not. I mean, I'm probably a pretty horrible, horrible catch.

KING: How many people work for you?

STEWART: About 660.

(LAUGHTER)

KING: We'll be right back with more of Martha Stewart, the chairman, CEO of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. She is everything. She is everything Ask Eloise wanted to be. We will be right back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "MARTHA STEWART LIVING")

STEWART: Well, here at "Martha Stewart Living," when it comes to babies, we know a thing, or two or three or four or lots more. Every time we turn around, there is a new addition to our "Martha Stewart Living" family. In fact, in the last year, all these babies have been born and more. We put our experience together in this special "Martha Stewart Baby" issue.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "MARTHA STEWART LIVING")

BILL COSBY, ACTOR: What happened to the hot fudge?

STEWART: Well, no, now we are going to have that. OK?

COSBY: See, now, look, now that I put water on it, boink. You got boinks, now.

STEWART: Much better.

COSBY: Yes. Bob Culp will love these.

STEWART: But...

(LAUGHTER)

STEWART: Here, put this one in there, too.

COSBY: Huh?

STEWART: Put that one in there, too.

COSBY: OK, these floors have lot of ice cream on them. Hello, boys! How you doing?

STEWART: Now...

COSBY: There is a woman's face in there. What time is she done?

STEWART: If you want...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

KING: You have a lot of fun doing that, don't you? Celebrities come over. STEWART: Oh, yes, they come and they work in my kitchen with me. And Bill Cosby is amazing. He's just a natural. You know, no script -- he doesn't need a script ever.

KING: This is the 10th anniversary of your magazine.

STEWART: Yes. I can't believe it.

KING: It seems like yesterday you started it. There you see its cover. It seems like you just started.

STEWART: Time flies when you're having fun.

KING: It took Oprah a long while to follow up on that. What do you make of her magazine?

STEWART: I think it is very good. I think it is very good. It is a little different from ours, of course, in the approach. She is much more -- I'm much more a doer, a teacher. She is much more a preacher, you know, that kind of thing.

KING: Yes.

STEWART: But I think it is a good magazine.

KING: Is there any...

STEWART: Looks a little familiar.

KING: What are you saying, Martha?

(LAUGHTER)

KING: That's a good girl. It's good. You got it. Martha, is there any danger of overextending: too much Martha Stewart?

STEWART: Well, that is why we are spreading ourselves over a larger area. And when you do that, it is -- the danger is less. If I were just doing one thing, one thing, one thing -- but we have learned that, because we have so many good ideas in so many different areas -- and those eight core areas that I was talking about, that includes holidays. It includes weddings. It includes kids, "Baby." It includes entertaining and food.

It includes keeping, which is organizing and home keeping and pet keeping -- so many, many different areas. And each one of those areas really needs our attention. And I'm not saying that, you know, huffily or anything. It really does need it.

KING: Is your hand on everything?

STEWART: My hands...

KING: I mean, you read the magazine before it comes out?

STEWART: Oh, of course. Of course. KING: Every...

STEWART: I look at all the pictures. But that is just the part of a natural day for me. It is -- I have so many good people -- as I said, 660-some people working for me now, creating with me this amazing amount of material.

KING: "Fortune" magazine, in October of last year, ranked you number nine on its list of the top 50 women in business. Are we seeing more women in business?

STEWART: I don't think we are seeing enough women in business. You know, top 50: I think they have to sort of scrounge to find 50. And it is bad. I think we should have many, many more women

(CROSSTALK)

KING: So they're still a second-degree assistant?

STEWART: Well, I think that women have to be a little bit more forceful in the way that they present themselves. And I don't mean pushy. I mean there are a lot of women in business with very fine small businesses that you don't know about, that I don't know about. And we try to let people know. When we find those people, those women, we try to let people know about them.

KING: The image was, I guess, for a long time, in a man's world, they weren't good business people, right? They were -- they stay at home.

STEWART: Oh, there are a lot of good really good business women -- and I think not only in America. I think in Japan, there are a lot of good business women. I think in China, there are a lot of good business women. So I think you are seeing -- in India, I know there are a lot of good business women.

KING: Do you travel a lot?

STEWART: Oh, I try to, yes. We have been expanding our television, which is another one of -- I said one of our businesses -- expanding that business. We are in Brazil now, translated into Portuguese. I sound real good speaking Portuguese. And then we are also on Lala TV in Japan, which is a

(CROSSTALK)

STEWART: Yes. And that's doing very well.

KING: Are you tough to work for? I mean, that has been written you: that you are demanding and a perfectionist.

STEWART: I think I'm demanding. I think that I am a perfectionist. I think that I'm fair. And I think that people who work for me and get along with me realize what a good result there is.

KING: Do you get paid well? STEWART: Oh, everyone gets paid well, definitely.

KING: But you expect maximum effort?

STEWART: I believe -- well, yes. But I think any serious CEO in this country expects maximum effort from a staff.

KING: Some people say you are so good at so many things that you make people feel inferior.

STEWART: Well, that is too bad.

KING: Do you ever think that -- do you ever get that feeling that people feel...

STEWART: You know, but I think less and less. I think people really realize now that this is my schtick. I'm going to make things. I'm going to do things. I'm going to cook. And I'm going to clean. And I'm going to also, you know, go ice climbing in Alaska. And Heaven forbid, but that is what I'm going to do. And I think they realize that I'm an eclectic. I like doing a lot of things. I like mastering a lot of things. I like seeing if I can do something.

And if I can't do it, I will admit I can't do it.

KING: Do you enjoy fame?

STEWART: My kind of fame is kind of nice because...

KING: You get recognized everywhere you go.

STEWART: Yes, I went to Germany last weekend. I had to go for a business meeting. And I went into a museum. And it was a rainy day. And in comes a family: a man and a wife and two kids. The woman almost -- a German woman -- almost just had heart failure, because there I am standing in the Egyptian Museum. She had just moved back to Berlin from her -- from New York.

And she is lonely in Berlin. She misses my television show. It was like greeting an old friend. That kind of thing I like.

KING: My guest is Martha Stewart.

This Tuesday night, Ronald Reagan is 90 next Tuesday. And that night, we are going to celebrate his birthday with a special visit with his wife and some others. That is Tuesday night: a special tribute to Ronald Reagan. Tomorrow night, presidents' weekend: a retrospective of interviews with Gerald Ford, and Sunday night Richard Nixon -- on "LARRY KING WEEKEND."

Back with Martha Stewart after this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "MARTHA STEWART LIVING") UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And you like that crispy little end.

STEWART: Yum.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You dip them right in. That is a good wing.

STEWART: If you do say so yourself.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I do say so myself.

STEWART: Hot, spicy, crispy. And the only thing wrong with these wings, Sean Steyer (ph), you know what?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What?

STEWART: Is that is you have to have at least one batch person.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "MARTHA STEWART LIVING")

STEWART: What other changes did you make in here?

SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON (D), NEW YORK: This was all changed: the drapes, the wallpaper, the rug.

(CROSSTALK)

STEWART: The chandelier's original?

CLINTON: The chandelier's original. One of my biggest challenges was, you know, how to try to put the border on the top to make it look like it was, you know, drapery.

STEWART: I love that.

CLINTON: Isn't that nice.

STEWART: Oh, I think it's...

CLINTON: I had them cut out. There was a piece that was originally there between the ceiling and the wallpaper which I had cut out. And I thought it looked more like it was actually hanging there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: What did you think of how the White House is laid out?

STEWART: Oh, well, I think it's a most beautiful house.

KING: But what do you think of what they did with the furnishings?

STEWART: Well, they had a nice impact on the main rooms, yes. I did not get to go upstairs. And I have never been up there yet. But someday maybe I will visit. But that was a very interesting segment to do with Mrs. Clinton, because we got to go downstairs. We got go to the flower room. We got to go the social secretary's office, to the calligrapher's Office, all kinds of places where, generally, you are not admitted.

And it is an extraordinary place. The flower room is filled with verimay (ph), silver verimay from 19th century.

KING: And she knows her stuff, right?

STEWART: Oh, she really does know the history.

KING: We don't think of her in the homemaking venue.

STEWART: Not necessarily. Maybe now that she has a house of her own again, she will have to spend more time thinking about it. But she is business. She is all business, that lady. She's great.

KING: That had to be a hoot for you.

STEWART: Well, it the week before they were moving out, so it was a little chaotic in the White House. The social secretary was very busy packing up. The calligraphers stay. They are -- they stay with administration after administration -- a nonpolitical office. And that was kind of interesting -- as do the flower people. They stay, too.

KING: The pursuit of perfection, does it ever you nuts? I mean, because when someone requires perfection, a thread out of place drives you nuts.

STEWART: Yes, I don't think about the -- that tiny a thing anymore. I'm looking at a big picture now. As a public company, we have to look at a lot of things. And that does influence my view of perfectionism. I used to go into a person's home, and if their copper pots were a little bit tarnished, I would have to polish them. Now, I say: Well, you know, that is not that important. But...

KING: But you must cringe at a sloppy house.

STEWART: I don't cringe. I think: Oh, God, where are they, you know? What are they doing?

KING: But those people would say to you: Live a little. All you do is worry about

(CROSSTALK)

STEWART: No, they are not. Oh, no, they come to my house and they think: Oh, I just wish my house could be as clean and nice and comfy as this.

KING: You work at it yourself a lot, right?

(CROSSTALK)

KING: You are not a servant-oriented person.

STEWART: No, I'm not. I'm not.

KING: You cook.

STEWART: I cook. I still clean. I iron. But I iron because I want to know what it really takes to iron now. I just got myself one of those big new hotel ironing machines that can iron, you know, five napkins at the same time in one big sheet.

KING: There's a new iron?

STEWART: It's a new ironing machine. And it is fantastic. So it is the mechanics, too, that interest me: to see how you can save time. I want to save time.

(LAUGHTER)

KING: Do you go to malls?

STEWART: Rarely.

KING: Because there are all these stores now.

STEWART: Yes.

KING: Martha Stewart's, that's could be next.

STEWART: Yes. Well, my gosh.

KING: Martha Stewart stores.

STEWART: Wow. You know, we have this huge department in 2100 stores. That's Kmart. And 2,100 stores is a lot of stores to pay attention to.

KING: Selling?

STEWART: Oh, very well, very well.

KING: All kinds of things?

STEWART: Well, it's now sheets and towels. It is everything to do with the bathroom. It is housewares for the kitchen: pots and pans and dishes and glassware and flatware. And that is really amazing stuff -- garden stuff, everything...

KING: Quality stuff?

STEWART: Very good quality and very inexpensive.

KING: Our guest is the amazing Martha Stewart. This is LARRY KING LIVE. Don't go away.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "MARTHA STEWART LIVING") STEWART: I just love taking my dogs out any time of the year, but especially in winter. These are chow chows. And they love the cold weather. And a dog pack that I like to take out with me is especially handy when I take my dogs on long hikes. And in this pack, well, always take a favorite snack, a bottle of water, because a dog will get thirsty.

And this little fold-up bowl is just extremely handy. Pour water in there and they can drink very nicely. And also, don't forget, even in the wilderness, it is important to take a few little plastic bags for picking up after the dogs.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, LARRY KING LIVE, DECEMBER 28, 2000)

KING: Martha Stewart.

JULIA CHILD, AUTHOR, "JULIA'S KITCHEN WISDOM": She is great real.

KING: You like her?

CHILD: And she is a real pro. Oh, I have been on with her two or three times. And she really knows what she is doing. And she is tough.

KING: Is she a cook?

CHILD: She is a cook. Everything she does, she does very, very well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: Nice compliment.

STEWART: She's amazing, isn't she?

KING: She is incredible.

STEWART: I just saw her out on the West Coast. She travels like a maniac. She's just...

KING: Got that little cane.

STEWART: Oh, boy, does she...

KING: She whisks everywhere. We have a picture of you taken by Kevyn Aucoin. Now, that is you. It's not Veronica Lake.

STEWART: That is last year. Isn't that great?

KING: How did they do that? STEWART: Well, first of all: a wig. He had that wig specially made for me. My hair was plastered down on my head and tied in a knot in the back so that it would be good and, you know, tight and flat.

KING: And that is in his book called "Face Forward."

STEWART: Yes. And he...

KING: Kevyn Aucoin.

STEWART: Aucoin.

KING: Yes.

STEWART: Yes. Yes. And then, in about 45 minutes, he applied that makeup to me and dressed me in this old beautiful antique black lace dress, ala 1930s, '40s whatever -- you know, whatever the era. And he photographed me himself.

KING: OK. And what did you think of it?

STEWART: I thought it was very glam.

KING: Glam.

STEWART: Glam.

(LAUGHTER)

KING: But people would not say it is you. They say it's Veronica Lake.

STEWART: Oh, no. He happened to meet my daughter on the street with his portfolio. And he showed her the Veronica Lake picture, which was his inspiration. And she said, "Oh, that is my mom when she was modeling." And she thought Veronica Lake was me. So...

KING: You -- did you wear your hair like that?

STEWART: Oh yes.

KING: Always so fashionable.

STEWART: Oh yes.

KING: Do you start as a model?

STEWART: I did. I did. And...

KING: Did you always have hopes, though, of other things?

STEWART: Well, no, when I was in school, when I was 13, instead of going to the football games on Saturday with my friends, I would go to New York and model. I had a contract with Bonwit Teller at the time. Remember Bonwit's?

KING: Sure do -- 57th and 5th.

(CROSSTALK)

STEWART: On 57th, yes. And I would model in the coat department or in the bridal department on Saturday afternoons. And I think I was making like $15 an hour when I was 13. And that was a lot of money then. And it was certainly a fun thing. And then I got discovered by an agency. And I did a lot of television commercials. And it was a very good preparation for what I do now.

KING: But did you always want to do more than, say, just be the world's most successful model?

STEWART: Oh, I couldn't have been the most successful model. I wasn't pretty enough. I mean, you know...

KING: You knew that?

STEWART: Oh, yes. You know that when you are doing it. And you look at your pictures and you look Susie Parker's (ph) pictures -- who was my idol at the time -- and you know there is a little difference.

KING: What did Martha Stewart -- when Martha Stewart was 17, what did she dream about being?

STEWART: At 17, I dreamt about being an architect and -- or a chemist. They were -- I had my -- those were my two favorite subjects in high school. And so then I went to Barnard College here in New York City...

KING: Famous.

STEWART: ... to study chemistry.

KING: And?

STEWART: Little did I know that -- oh, I was very good at the lab. But then, I was getting A's in the lab and about C-minuses in the other part of chemistry. So I decided that maybe I would go for my architecture interests. And I majored in art history, architectural history and history. So it...

KING: What was your -- for want of better term -- break?

STEWART: Writing my first book in 1982.

KING: It was a how-to book.

STEWART: Oh, yes. But...

KING: What was it called?

STEWART: It was "Entertaining." You had me on.

KING: That's right -- on my radio show. STEWART: And it was -- oh, yes. And it was a very -- it still is a very useful, beautiful book. It sold close to a million copies. And it was a huge success. If you call that a break, that was the break. It was the breakthrough of the idea that the homemaker could pursue her interests, her beautification of the home, and make it very important.

KING: What's the Internet going to do to change all of us?

STEWART: Make everything easier. I mean, I really look at it as...

KING: No downside?

STEWART: I don't think there is a speck of downside in the Internet. I think that we are suffering some major glitches right now. A lot of my friends' companies are not doing very well or now don't exist any longer. But it was an experiment, a very, very vast experiment trying to make an instant business. And what you learn -- and what I have been taught in running a business -- is that there is no such thing as an instant business.

Microsoft is 20 years old this year. Do you know that? -- 20 years old. It is not an instant business to be that good a company and that successful. So you can't do it in a year. My company is 10 years old.

KING: Martha Stewart is our guest. We are only halfway through on this Friday night. This is LARRY KING LIVE. Don't go away.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "MARTHA STEWART LIVING")

STEWART: A lot of people always say: Oh, your hydrangeas are so much bluer than my hydrangeas. What do you do?

And it used to be that, if you had a very acid soil, the hydrangeas would be bluer; more alkaline soil, your hydrangeas would be pinker. But I think, now with the strong hybrids that these flowers are coming in, they stay truer to their color than ever before. Look at that fantastic mop head.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE")

ACTRESS PLAYING MARTHA STEWART: I'm Martha Stewart. There are a lot of charming traditions associated with Cupid's holiday: fine Belgian chocolates, red roses, French champagne, and of course, these delightfully nostalgic candy hearts.

But today on "Living" we'll celebrate what I feel is the real essence of Valentine's Day, loneliness and shame. I'll show you some innovative ways to enjoy this holiday solo, by yourself, in the deafening silence of your own home. (LAUGHTER)

A terrific way to combat Valentine's depression is to treat yourself to an erotic cake. I modeled this almond sponge cake after Michelangelo's David.

Now that's a sweet piece of ass.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: Do you enjoy that?

STEWART: She's great. She's really amazing. And I had her on my Christmas special because...

KING: Oh, you did?

STEWART: Oh, yes, .

KING: She did you on the special.

STEWART: We did ourselves together.

KING: You did each other?

STEWART: Yes.

KING: The dueling Stewarts.

(LAUGHTER)

STEWART: She was great. When she called, I said, "Hello me." She said, "Hello me."

KING: First time you saw it, you liked it?

STEWART: Oh, yes, yes. She's a riot. And she has mastered that art of parody very nicely.

KING: Yes, she has. She's got you down.

STEWART: And she doesn't look anything like that. She has black hair. She's much smaller than I am, but she really can put it on.

KING: Jeannie Williams (ph) in "USA Today" recently quoted you as saying about Laura Bush that you like her because she seems so organized. That's big with you. She is very organized.

STEWART: I like -- I like organization. Oh, yes.

KING: So is George.

STEWART: Oh, yes, I gathered that. I haven't -- I haven't witnessed it yet. KING: Never late -- 6 o'clock dinner, they arrive at 6:00. He's never been late.

STEWART: Yes

KING: You like that?

STEWART: Well, I think that's admirable...

KING: Are you punctual?

STEWART: I am pretty punctual -- pretty. It depends. Social events, a little less punctual.

KING: Why is organized so important?

STEWART: Well, if you have a lot to do, it is a good thing to be organized. This morning, I had to write my -- apropos on the subject -- I had to write my forward to my new organizing book...

(LAUGHTER)

Just this morning, I'm not kidding. And I had to write about why -- you know, people always ask me, how do you get so much done? And it is because I am probably more organized than other people.

KING: You have 21 fully stocked kitchens in your life.

STEWART: Yes. Isn't that interesting?

KING: All over?

STEWART: All over.

Yes, those include, of course, the test kitchens, the television, the kitchens that we film in, the kitchens at my office, at my magazine, wonderful kitchens, and in my houses.

KING: OK.

STEWART: They're my laboratories. .

KING: What's -- what's new in the world -- what is -- they told me to ask you about this, because I have no idea what this is, and I may not even pronounce it right. But what the heck -- is this a person or a thing? Feng Shui.

STEWART: Oh, feng shui.

KING: Is this a guy?

STEWART: No, no. Much more important.

KING: Feng shui.

STEWART: It is... KING: It's a Chinese dish.

STEWART: Well, sort of. Except that it is the placement of you in your environment and your environment in the world to make your life harmonious. I think that's the best way to describe it.

KING: Give me example of what you're talking about.

STEWART: Well, is your bed on the right wall facing the right way so that you can sleep well? People really believe this, OK? They really do.

KING: Do you?

STEWART: I have never applied the science of feng shui to my life.

KING: This is an Asian concept?

STEWART: It is. But it is something that many, many, many, many people, many books, many articles have been devoted to in the last few years especially, because all of a sudden the spiritual, those who are really quite spiritual or feel that they can live better if they are oriented in the right direction. I'm oriented in the right direction all the time, so...

KING: You know you're right.

STEWART: Yes.

KING: Is there a special place the bed should be? Will you sleep better if the bed is on that wall or...

STEWART: Well, maybe my feng shui is that I must have air and light and windows that open. All my offices are like that. I searched New York for buildings where the windows open, even on the 24th floor. So our offices have windows that open. The building must have natural gas, and I don't mean that rudely, but gas to cook by, because I like cooking on gas stoves. So it has to have gas. It has to have sunlight.

KING: Do you drive hotels nuts?

STEWART: No.

KING: You don't.

STEWART: No. All I care about in the hotel is that my room isn't the last room down a long dark hallway. I'd rather have it close to the elevators so I can get out fast.

KING: The last time you were on you said, I learn something new every day.

STEWART: I do.

KING: Still true.

STEWART: Absolutely, absolutely. And if I don't, I feel I failed that day. So I will open a special new book. I will go -- I'll stop by at 11 o'clock at night to run into Barnes & Noble to look at something, a new book, if I feel like I haven't learned anything that day. And now I'm not kidding. I really do.

KING: Are you very demanding on yourself?

STEWART: Oh, very.

KING: Obviously.

STEWART: Very.

KING: Who -- who are your heroes in a sense? Who do you admire the most?

STEWART: Well, I admire people who invent, people who really stick to their guns and accomplish a task that's very difficult. I admire people who -- artisans who really master their work, artists, too, who stick with it through thick and thin, and master what they're trying to get at. Writers are like that for me, good writers, that really -- that are really craftsmen, artists, serious. That's what I -- that's what turns me on.

KING: But you're funny, too.

STEWART: I hope so.

KING: We'll be right back with Martha Stewart. If I have to tell you who this is, you've got severe problems. We'll be right back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEWART: This year, I want to make everything white and we're going to create the most glistening white Christmas.

ACTRESS PLAYING MARTHA STEWART: Although, Martha, without any snow outside Christmas isn't Christmas.

STEWART: Well, you know what I always say: If you want to do something right, you have to do it yourself. And just watch how I turn this greenery white-ery.

ACTRESS PLAYING MARTHA STEWART: You can turn that greenery white-ery and make this Christmasy bettery.

(LAUGHTER)

Did anyone ever tell you you're very pretty?

STEWART: Well, they usually say that I look so much better on "Saturday Night Live" than on my own show.

ACTRESS PLAYING MARTHA STEWART: Me too.

STEWART: Well, I thought I'd show you how to make a really lovely homemade Christmas card that shimmers. Try this idea that I came up with.

ACTRESS PLAYING MARTHA STEWART: Actually one of our craft elves dreamed up this bit, but it's our TV special, so we're going to take the credit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEWART: So these crampons allow you real mobility.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. They really allow you to get around on the glacier and see things in a nice, safe way.

STEWART: Oh, it's very nice.

I am here on the Mendenhall Glacier in Alaska, right outside of Juno. It is an incredible place. Alaska, one of the last frontiers of the United States, is a land of contrasts. There are verdant forests, soaring mountains, snow-capped and ice-capped. And today, we're going to introduce you to some of this amazing, majestic scenery. And we're going to also to talk to some of the unique people who live in this region.

Welcome to Alaska.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KING: It's a beautiful state, huh?

STEWART: It's amazing. I had never been there before last summer, and I fell in love with Alaska.

KING: You bring -- always bring us a present.

STEWART: I always bring you a present. But that's not for you. That's for your newest child.

KING: For Cannon (ph), the little one.

STEWART: Yes. Oh, you can just open it I think, just lift up the top. Yes.

KING: A fake wrap. Oh...

STEWART: Will he like that?

KING: He'll love this.

STEWART: That's from Martha by Mail. KING: And what is Martha by Mail?

STEWART: That's our catalog and our Internet e-commerce site, and that's -- we sell lots of stuff like that. We design, and Stife (ph), the legendary stuffed-toy maker, makes those for us.

Isn't that cute?

KING: Schife (ph).

STEWART: Stife.

KING: Stife.

STEWART: That's a very, very...

KING: Boy, he feels great.

STEWART: Oh, he's the cutest little guy. Very...

KING: This is the kind of mice they do experiments on. Thank you very much.

Now, this box, see, it looks like the wrap went all the way around, but it comes right off.

STEWART: I know, but we did that just so you could open it easily. I'll tie it again so your son will think it's his and that you didn't look at it.

KING: You're very creative. Valentine's Day is coming.

STEWART: Yes, it is.

KING: What do you have this year for Valentine's? You always do something.

STEWART: Well, a new thing, because remember I'm saying the Internet saves you time. And we have a new thing called Martha's Cards, which I think is really breakthrough interesting. You can go with your own picture, and you can upload your own photography or you can choose an image from us and you can make a card. You can put in your own message. We can put a message in for you, or you can choose from our messages.

But you can write: "Dear Sue and Harry, Happy Valentine's Day. Love, Larry."

And then we will address the card for you and send it with a real stamp. So we lick your stamps. We lick the envelope. We send it off for you. And it's all done while you're sitting, you know, 11 o'clock at night thinking, oh, my golly, I haven't sent my Valentine's cards.

KING: And I just go into your We site to order this.

STEWART: Yes, to Martha's Cards, under MarthaStewart.com or Martha by Mail. And it's a very interesting -- you can do Christmas cards. You can actually give us your whole calendar and all the birthdays in your life, and we will send appropriate cards with your messages during the year.

So in one afternoon on a rainy day you can put in all your cards for the rest of the year, and Martha's Cards will send it off.

It's really good. I do it all the time.

KING: Where did you learn to cook?

STEWART: At mom's side in the kitchen. Mom's on my show a lot. I don't know if you've ever seen here. But Martha -- big Martha is quite wonderful.

KING: Big Martha?

STEWART: Yes. She's 87 this year. For her birthday we got her a Volvo car, a beautiful new Volvo, and she's driving around. She has her car phone now.

KING: Colin Powell's favorite car.

STEWART: Oh, is it? I didn't know.

KING: Loves Volvos.

STEWART: Oh, I will tell her. She's going to be very happy. But she's very happy in it. And she's still very active. She's in Arizona visiting her sister right now, and they're having a good time I hear. But...

KING: You've got good genes then.

STEWART: Oh, very good. Yes, we're a healthy family.

KING: Everything's good for you.

STEWART: Well, hopefully.

KING: What about food in America, the state of American cuisine, fast foods and the like?

STEWART: Well, I'm not so interested in fast food as I'm interested in good food. And on our show, we have...

KING: Can that be the same?

STEWART: Oh, they can be the same, and that's the rub. And if you can make it as good as Jean George cooks it or Daniel -- those guys are really the geniuses of the modern age of food. I think that they really understand the ingredients, they understand the fresh aspects, they understand the lightness.

They understand that -- you know, have you seen chefs lately, most of the chefs? They are the most handsome guys on earth. They are thin. They are...

KING: Wolfgang Puck is flying through the air now.

STEWART: Oh, he's just doing amazingly well. He...

KING: Who's the other guy that's the rage?

STEWART: Oh, Emeril.

KING: Emeril.

STEWART: Emeril on the Food Network. But these guys are -- he's a -- he's a little sloppy. You know....

KING: Emeril's a little sloppy?

STEWART: Yes, a little sloppy, and his food is a little sloppy. But not -- but he's good.

But I'm talking about -- I'm talking about...

KING: Do you mean the food, does it have to be perfect in the pan for you?

STEWART: No, no. I'm saying that the food has to be that healthy, delicious, beautiful, you want to eat it all the time kind of food.

KING: Martha Stewart is our guest. She's amazing. We'll be right back with more. Don't go away.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEWART: If you're going to make a smoothie, make sure that it's fresh juice -- really important. And then add your mangoes and your strawberries right to the orange juice.

At Lucky's Juice Joint they have another name for this. I won't tell you what the name is. You'll have to go there in New York to find out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KING: Boy, you go and do things, don't you?

STEWART: I love doing things. It's a lot of fun. And the more distant and the more exotic the place, the better actually.

KING: What's it like for someone to date you? I mean, they've got to live really in your shadow.

STEWART: Oh, no.

KING: They don't? STEWART: No.

KING: You meet strong men who...

STEWART: Oh, yes, or intelligent men who can teach me a lot of stuff, too.

KING: How about the a-list in New York? Denise Rich has now become famous. A good friend of yours, right?

STEWART: Well, I know Denise. I'm not best friends with her, but I certainly know her. She's a very lovely and lively person.

KING: Hard -- boy, she can write good music.

STEWART: Doesn't she?

KING: Yes.

You know Puffy Combs.

STEWART: I do. I do.

KING: Worried about him?

STEWART: Well, you know what? I'm not in favor of guns. I'm not in favor of packing guns, and I just -- I just hope it all works out.

KING: Are you into New York set, so to speak? Are you at the -- all the right parties?

STEWART: Well, there are so many parties in New York. Do you know there's like five parties a night in New York? So you sort of have to pick and choose, and I'm so busy that I have to really pick and choose where I can go and what I can see.

I really like going to movies. I really like going to see the best of Broadway. I really like -- I don't like to sit at big long dinners every single night. I love to eat out. But I don't like to go to the big, you know, those big dinners. I'd rather buy a table and not go.

KING: With your kind of money, wouldn't you rather winter in Hawaii?

STEWART: I have -- I have an office, Larry. I have...

KING: Yes, but you can phone it in.

STEWART: Oh, I cannot. I have to be there. I like being at my office. No, I'm not going...

KING: And you like trudging through 29 degrees.

STEWART: You know, 20 years, I'll see you in Hawaii. KING: So you never have thoughts of just going out and watch the dancers.

STEWART: No, no way. I'm not a watcher. I'm a doer.

KING: The ideas that come to you -- do they come to you all the time? Are you the kind of person walking down the street, looking at things? Oh, that's it.

STEWART: All the time. Nonstop, nonstop. In Berlin -- I mean, two days in Berlin in the dark cold rainy weather I came home with -- I don't know -- maybe 100 ideas. And that's great. You know, it's like I get rejuvenated even -- even being away for 72 hours or 36 hours, whatever. I get rejuvenated, because it's like -- it's like an infusion of newness every place I go, everything I do.

KING: There always is something new.

STEWART: Very much so.

KING: What about clothes? Do you design clothes?

STEWART: Maybe -- oh, I design garden shoes, my garden shoes...

KING: Garden...

STEWART: My garden shoes are legendary. Everybody wants my garden shoes. They're at Martha by Mail. But those are -- those are very good shoes.

KING: What...

STEWART: They are rubber shoes that you can slip your foot into so you don't ruin your shoes out in your garden, and they are comfortable, they are wearable. You can wear them in bad weather, you can wear them in good weather. They're really nice. But that's as far as I've gone in the clothing area.

KING: Have you ever thought of a line of clothing?

STEWART: Oh, sure. Oh, sure. I make clothes. I like to sew.

KING: For yourself.

STEWART: Oh, yes.

KING: But have you ever thought of a line for distribution?

STEWART: Well, anything that I like, generally other people like. That's part of the success.

KING: So you're not going to have a line of clothing?

STEWART: I don't know. You never know. You never know. But I'm not going to be fashion. I'm going to be utilitarian.

KING: You like gardening, huh?

STEWART: Oh, yes.

KING: Always liked it.

STEWART: Always. I have been in the garden since I was a baby. I remember the first day that I was put out there on the garden path. We had this cobblestone path in our garden, and it had weeds in it, you know, in between -- my father gave me a little broken off screwdriver, and he said, take out all the grass. I think I was 3. So I sat out there all day, you know, and I became his pet because of that. I was the only one of the six kids that would actually pick out the grass from between the bricks.

KING: We'll be back with our remaining moments with Martha Stewart, and as per usual, I think there are some cookies coming.

STEWART: Oh, yes.

KING: Don't go away.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEWART: Now there is one last thing to do other than to feed and nurture this little guy, and that is to snip off the mean growing tip. It might seem cruel, but now this is going to have the opportunity to start forming, sending out lateral branches and forming that ball that we're looking for.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEWART: How you would like to have a glass of pink lemonade? Well, this is a very beautiful variegated lemon. It's called pink lemonade.

This tree will go to about 4 to 5 feet. It has fuchsia pink buds. The buds open up to a white flower. Here's one of the flowers right here. And then, very shortly, you have these wonderful striped lemons.

Inside the flesh is a little bit pink, and you can make your pink lemonade.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STEWART: Do you like those?

KING: Yes.

STEWART: You can have those in your garden in Los Angeles.

KING: Really? STEWART: Yes, you can grow all kinds of citrus.

KING: What did you bring us?

STEWART: Oh, as usual, I had to bring you something to eat.

KING: Matches the color of my shirt.

STEWART: Oh, let's hope I can get this open. Oh, wow, this is like tight.

KING: Do you think -- whoa! What are these?

STEWART: Those are called Cookie Kisses.

KING: Oh, they're like little Hershey Kisses, but they're cookie kisses.

STEWART: Yes. Aren't they cute? They're filled with strawberry. Tasty?

Take them home. Your 2-year-old will love them.

KING: Cholesterol.

STEWART: Oh, yes. You shouldn't -- well, if you don't...

KING: I've got one. One can't harm me, right?

STEWART: Your crew will like them.

KING: The crew, they can't wait.

Do you think you could go to the outback of Australia? Could you be a survivor?

STEWART: Oh, I've offered my services.

KING: Really?

STEWART: oh, yes, I could survive easily.

KING: You think they'd throw you off? Get rid of her, she's too particular?

STEWART: No, actually, I probably would win.

KING: Ah-hah.

STEWART: Actually.

KING: So you would like that.

STEWART: Oh, yes. I am a survivor. I mean, I can -- I can -- you know, I can find food where other people couldn't. I know all that stuff. KING: Can you understand why that show is such a hit?

STEWART: Yes, I can.

KING: Because?

STEWART: Because people really like to see struggle, success, extravagance, craziness, and they like to see people bashing each other. They just do. It's a natural thing. They love to see people just kind of pushing other people around. I don't know why, but they do.

KING: This is a human trait. We enjoy this.

STEWART: Oh, definitely. And everyone likes to see you fail. Everyone likes to see you succeed. It's just natural.

KING: What's next for Martha Stewart?

STEWART: Oh, all kinds of good things. We are working on a wonderful series of pet videos, Pets 101...

KING: Pet videos?

STEWART: ... which -- yes, I think...

KING: For pets to watch?

STEWART: No. Well, pets can watch it, too. But if you're going to go out and buy yourself a parakeet, you should really see the video first. It's one of those kinds of things.

KING: Ah. Help -- with different breeds of dogs?

STEWART: Yes, all the different breeds, all the different birds, the hamsters, the gerbils, the guinea pigs. Anything that is a popular pet will have a video 101 to go with the pet.

And it's a lot of fun. We're working with veterinarians. We're working with Mark Marrone (ph). We're doing a lot of good things in the pet world.

KING: How many pets do you have?

STEWART: Oh, I have probably about 220 pets right now.

KING: Of all kinds and...

STEWART: Yes. I have about 17 canaries at last count. They are breeding like crazy. You know, they tell you to get your canary to sing you have to have a male in a cage by himself. Well, I have several males and lots of females in a great big cage, and they sing like crazy all day long.

KING: They're having a good time. STEWART: They are having a great time. And then I have eight cats. I have three dogs. I have hundreds of chickens. I have three horses -- that I know about. These are the pets I know about. Who knows how many other pets are living here and there?

KING: So you -- you're the kind of person that sees an animal, takes it in?

STEWART: I love animals. I do.

KING: What -- is there anything you're not happy about?

STEWART: Umm...

KING: I mean, your life seems on such a roll. What's missing?

STEWART: Well, it's good.

KING: Anything missing, Martha?

STEWART: No, no.

KING: Come on, Martha. Anything you'd like?

STEWART: Anything I would like.

KING: Would you like a mate?

STEWART: More time. You keep going back to the mate thing.

KING: Yes, well...

STEWART: Give me time. Give me time. I'll find a mate when I want one. But I just want more time, just more time.

KING: 24 hours isn't enough.

STEWART: We all want more time, don't we?

KING: Do you sleep well.

STEWART: No.

KING: You wouldn't. You get up early?

STEWART: I get up a early, and I -- and I read a lot. I want more time to read actually. That's what I'd like the most right now: more time to read, more time to travel.

KING: Do you ever pinch yourself? I mean, do you ever say...

STEWART: No, I get black and blue. I don't want to pinch myself.

KING: So you don't have those kind of little, wow, look at all that's happened to me? STEWART: No, I just think, oh, what am I going to do tomorrow, what's going to happen tomorrow? I'm always forward-thinking and forward-looking, and I think that that's really the best way to be as me, as a person, and also as a CEO. You better think about tomorrow.

KING: You're incredible. Thank you as always.

STEWART: Thank you.

KING: Happy Valentine's Day.

STEWART: Thank you.

KING: Thanks for the cookie.

STEWART: All right. Enjoy. Take them home.

KING: The crew will have to have some, and I'll take some home.

STEWART: Great.

KING: They're good. I'm not supposed to eat this. Thanks, Martha.

STEWART: It's only a little

KING: Have a great weekend, folks. We'll see you tomorrow night on LARRY KING WEEKEND, Gerald Ford. Sunday night, Richard Nixon. Next Tuesday night, a tribute to Ronald Reagan on 90th birthday with Nancy Reagan and others.

Stay tuned for Bill Hemmer and "CNN TONIGHT."

From New York with Martha Stewart, I'm Larry King. Good night.

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