Over the holidays, Keith Guerke appeared on five morning shows in Wisconsin and Illinois to promote his new cookbook and prepare some meals made from leftovers. One little problem: Chef Keith doesn't know how to cook.
A ham, pie, and gravy smoothie. A mashed-potato ice cream cone with corn sprinkles. Perhaps the reporters, who happily sampled Chef Keith's gross concoctions, should have been wary when he compared his work to GG Allin's.
Morning shows are tough work. With hours of airtime to fill five days a week, maybe the vetting process for guests isn't what it could be. That's how legends like K-Strass, the incompetent yo-yo master, are born.
You might have guessed by now that K-Strass and Chef Keith are kindred spirits. K-Strass, portrayed by Mark Proksch was co-created by Joe Pickett. Pickett and co-conspirator Nick Prueher, who are responsible for Chef Keith, are the creators of the Found Footage Festival, which begins touring this week. Prueher played the part of Chef Keith, and said the reporters and anchors couldn't have been nicer to him—even after the segments went awry.
Prueher and Pickett said it wasn't tough to make in on the air at the five stations (in Milwaukee, Rhinelander, and Wausau, and two in Rockford, Ill.), all desperate for holiday programming. But since most restaurants were closed for Thanksgiving and Christmas, the food used in the segments was day-old KFC.
Here's Chef Keith's entire segment on WITI, Milwaukee's Fox affiliate: