I have done thousands of interviews, but never with someone who has built a career as a medium working through spirit while speaking to dead people as millions have tuned in to listen.
This is the fascinating story of Teresa Caputo.
Caputo is the star of “Long Island Medium,” TLC’s reality television show about her life as a New York City mother of two who gained fame reading people while bringing them messages from their deceased relatives or friends who to bring them peace, closure, or perhaps context for a problem.
Caputo told me that he cannot “turn off” his gift, so the spirit comes with messages from deceased loved ones at any time, sometimes resulting in spontaneous readings. That was part of the charm of her show, along with scheduled readings, as the popular program aired from 2011 to 2019.
Caputo will star in a new TV show, with details to be announced in the coming weeks. She’s coming to the Motor City with her “Theresa Caputo Live: The Experience” event on September 27 at the Masonic Temple. There will be a huge video screen on stage so everyone can see what’s going on as she reads with several audience members.
The bubbly, instantly recognizable medium (her signature blonde hair is social media fodder whenever a new photo of her is posted) has written five bestsellers, has a new podcast, “Hey Spirit,” and is on the road 75 to 90 days each year with her usually sold-out show with a woman.
“Experience is not about belief in mediums,” she said. “It’s about seeing something that changes lives. It’s like a ‘Long Island Medium’ live, witnessing spiritual communication first hand.”
Caputo has been a media professional for several decades and has garnered attention with appearances on “The Today Show,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live” and “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” to name a few. She has been to Detroit and Michigan more than a few times (her nephew attends the University of Michigan).
Caputo is as talkative in person as she was on “Long Island Medium,” with a quick sense of humor. Her family was also part of the TLC show as they openly talked about personal issues. (Now divorced, Caputo is a grandmother of a young child and lives in Hicksville, New York).
In doing research on this, I learned that the spirit just appears for her. So I wondered: What if the spirit came to her during our interview, with a personal message or insight into urgent news from one of my dearly departed family members?
What if my father, Charles Kane, who worked for the Associated Press and covered cars, made it. Can he reveal the outcome before the contentious negotiations between the UAW and the Detroit Three?
What if my mother, Ruth Cain, journalist and diversity advocate, did? Can he share when the Equal Rights Amendment will finally become law?
What if my brother, Charlie Kane, longtime Lansing bureau chief for the Detroit News, did? Could it give me a snapshot of the political winds in 2024 or reveal term-limited Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s next job?
Or maybe my uncle Ed Edstrom, Hearst newspaper reporter and president of the National Press Club, can share who will be left with the keys to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave when the 2024 presidential race is over. Or my aunt Eve Edstrom of the Washington Post, an American journalist who was allowed into Russia in the early 1960s after relations warmed and who interviewed the leader of the Soviet Union, Nikita Khrushchev. Can she tell me what’s next for Vladimir Putin and Ukraine?
Yes, I was quietly intrigued by the notion of a spirit possibly passing through, although I never mentioned it to Caputo or her front team. But a funny thing happened: right before our interview started, I suddenly changed my mind and didn’t want to hear from anyone, potentially on the other side. And I can’t explain why. Interestingly, Caputo indirectly answered why as I asked her a few questions. Her responses have been edited for length.
QUESTION: You connect people with their loved ones and friends who have passed away. When did you realize you had this gift?
ANSWER: I always knew I was different. As a child I sometimes felt the presence of people (dead) or knew things from them, but I didn’t pay much attention. I really didn’t know I had this gift until I was almost 30. It became clear after 9/11 when so many people died (in New York) and there were many who didn’t get to say goodbye or recover their loved ones’ bodies people. They needed closure. (Caputo had done occasional readings for friends or family, but after 9/11 he did numerous readings for families of 9/11 survivors).
Q: What would you say to those who do not believe in mediums?
A: To naysayers, I say, “I get it. What I’m doing is crazy.” But at the end of the day, it’s not about believing in what I’m doing. I don’t care if people believe my words, I just want them to know that their loved ones are safe and at peace.
Question: How does the spirit pass during a reading?
A: I have the nerve to confirm their message with the person (who I’m reading) before we begin. I ask the spirit to bring me a story from the past that no one else will know but them. Maybe it’s something from years ago. It helps to validate them and their message.
Q: How do you find people in the audience to read in front of a large audience?
A: The spirit leads me. I come out and talk about my life and things and then the spirit makes me feel things. Sometimes the spirit makes me sense the physical state of the person who has passed and I can tell how someone died. It all comes down to the spirit.
Question: Do you always follow when the spirit leads you?
A: I keep getting messages from the spirit. But sometimes a person may not want to hear a loved one or get upset. I don’t do anything in that case.
Question: You’ve done thousands of readings. Anyone stand out?
A: They all stand out. Anyone who has lost a parent, spouse, or even a pet is grieving and needs the gift of healing. I recently did a reading for a woman who had lost her husband and had just started dating. Her husband called her and told her she was fine, but added: “The new man you’re dating is a terrible kisser.” And the woman laughed, telling me it was true.
Q: Many of us have had mentors. Have you had one?
A: John Edward (an American medium who wrote a bestseller in the late 90s and was on TV) opened the door for me. He was extremely supportive and generous. Just like I do and will continue to do for other mediums as long as they use their gift to help people.
Question: What is the life of a medium like?
A: It’s not easy… but I make it look easy. I was born this way and I live the life God intended for me. It’s normal for me to communicate and send messages to help people and give them peace of mind.
Q: Where do you see your life and career in five years?
A: As crazy as my life is, it feels normal. God willing, I’ll be doing exactly the same thing in five years, but maybe I’ll be a little smarter and wiser.
(For tickets: www.themasonic.com or 313-548-1320)
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Contact Carol Cain: 248-355-7126 or clcain@cbs.com. She is the senior producer/host of CBS Detroit’s Michigan Matters.