{{Short description|American writer, voice actor and radio host (born 1955)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=October 2013}} {{Infobox person | name = Tom Bodett | image = Tom Bodett on Brattleboro Community TV.jpg | caption = Bodett on [[Brattleboro, Vermont|Brattleboro]] Community Television in 2013 | birth_name = Thomas Edward Bodett | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1955|02|23}} | birth_place = [[Champaign, Illinois]], U.S. | other_names = | occupation = Author, voice actor, radio host, columnist | years_active = 1986–present | website = [http://www.bodett.com Official site] }}
'''Thomas Edward Bodett''' ({{IPAc-en|b|oʊ|ˈ|d|ɛ|t}} {{respell|boh|DET|'}}; born February 23, 1955) is an American author, voice actor, woodworker and radio personality, primarily as a host, correspondent and panelist for a number of shows that air on [[National Public Radio]] (NPR). Since 1986, he has been the spokesman for the motel chain [[Motel 6]], ending commercials with the phrase, "I'm Tom Bodett for Motel 6, and we'll leave the light on for you."
== Personal background == Thomas Edward Bodett was born on February 23, 1955, in [[Champaign, Illinois]], and raised in [[Sturgis, Michigan]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Gross|first=Ken|title=Alaska's Tom Bodett Is the Folksy Voice of Motel 6, but for Him There's No Place Like Homer|url=https://people.com/archive/alaskas-tom-bodett-is-the-folksy-voice-of-motel-6-but-for-him-theres-no-place-like-homer-vol-30-no-5/|publisher=People Magazine|accessdate=July 7, 2021|date=August 1, 1988}}</ref> {{as of|2013}}, he resided in [[Dummerston, Vermont]], where he is a member of the town's [[board of selectmen]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Tom Bodett of East Dummerston appointed to Governor's Energy Generation Siting Policy Commission|work=VTDigger |url=http://vtdigger.org/2012/11/14/tom-bodett-of-east-dummerston-appointed-to-governors-energy-generation-siting-policy-commission/|publisher=VTdigger.org|accessdate=June 18, 2013|date=November 14, 2012}}</ref> After moving to Vermont, Bodett took up woodworking. In 2019, he co-founded HatchSpace, a non-profit workshop in Brattleboro, Vermont, where residents can use tools and collaborate with others.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Salie |first1=Faith |title=Tom Bodett crafts his third act - CBS News |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/tom-bodett-writer-npr-essayiist-motel-6-spokesman-and-woodworker/ |access-date=10 July 2023 |work=www.cbsnews.com |date=2 July 2023}}</ref>
==Career==
=== Spokesperson === ====Motel 6==== In 1986, Bodett was building houses in [[Homer, Alaska]], and contributing to NPR's ''[[All Things Considered]]''. A creative director at the [[Richards Group]] ad agency heard him on NPR and hired him to record a commercial for [[Motel 6]]. Bodett ad-libbed the famous line "We'll leave the light on for you" and has been the chain's spokesperson ever since.<ref name="six"/> The director David Fowler hired him because Bodett "sound[ed] like the kind of person who stays there."<ref name="aa">Williams, Kimberly D. "Actually, you can get the light", ''Advertising Age'' 78, no. 35 (September 3, 2007): 8–8.</ref> Fowler said he thought, "Gosh, if I only had an account for a national budget motel brand with a sense of humor and humility, I could make a heck of an advertising campaign with this guy."<ref name="six">{{cite web|title=Who is Tom Bodett?|url=http://www.motel6.com/about/bodett.aspx|publisher=Motel 6|accessdate=June 18, 2013}}</ref>
In 2000, Motel 6 began using Bodett for their wake-up calls. The chain hoped to bring a more personal touch to people's days by using their spokesperson's voice.<ref>Jayne Clark. "This is a new recording: Souped-up wake-up calls", ''USA Today'', December 30, 2005.</ref> Bodett was also featured on the first Motel 6 [[podcast]], released for the holidays.
In November 2015, a new marketing campaign featuring Bodett's voice premiered, highlighted by TV and radio commercials touting the investment in and renovation of Motel 6 properties nationwide.
In June 2025, Bodett filed a lawsuit against Motel 6 for $1.2 million, claiming the motel chain missed the annual payment he has been receiving since 1986. Bodett's contract was due to end in November 2025. Motel 6 is still using Bodett's voice and tagline on their national phone reservation system.<ref>{{cite web | last=Stempel | first=Jonathan | title=Longtime Motel 6 spokesman Tom Bodett sues chain over using his name, voice | website=Reuters | date=2025-06-10 | url=https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/longtime-motel-6-spokesman-tom-bodett-sues-chain-over-using-his-name-voice-2025-06-10/ | access-date=2025-06-16}}</ref>
====Jamesway==== From 1993 to 1994, Bodett was also the spokesperson for [[Jamesway]] department stores in [[Delaware]], New Jersey, New York, and [[Pennsylvania]], and recorded radio commercials for it. A discount chain, Jamesway filed [[Chapter 7, Title 11, United States Code|Chapter 7]] bankruptcy in the fall of 1995 and closed at the end of the year.
=== Media appearances === ====Radio==== As a broadcaster, Bodett hosted two radio programs: ''The End of the Road'' (1988–1990) and ''Bodett & Company'' (1993).
In 1999, Bodett started ''The Loose Leaf Book Company'', a radio program that centered on author and book interviews, discussions, and dramatizations. [[File:WaitWaitTanglewoodTaping.jpg|thumb|Bodett as a panelist on ''Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!'']] He was a contributor to ''[[The Bob Edwards Show]]'' on XMPR and remains a member of the stable of panelists on ''[[Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!]]'', a [[National Public Radio]] news quiz show.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tom Bodett {{!}} Panelists {{!}} Wait Wait Don't Tell Me! Stats Page |url=https://stats.wwdt.me/panelists/tom-bodett |website=stats.wwdt.me |access-date=2 July 2023}}</ref>
In 2015, he was interviewed as a guest on Episode 301 of [[Public Radio International]]'s ''[[Live Wire Radio]]''.
====Television==== Bodett hosted the [[public television]] program ''Travels on America's Historic Trails'' (1997).<ref name="six"/><ref>Stump, Julia, and Bette-Lee Fox. "Video reviews", ''Library Journal'' 122, no. 19 (November 15, 1997): 87.</ref> He also appeared on the ''[[Animaniacs]]'' cartoon series, doing the voice-over for "Mime Time" and the "Good Idea/Bad Idea" segments featuring [[Mr. Skullhead]], had a brief cameo in ''[[Pinky and the Brain]]'', and narrated the direct-to-video ''Animaniacs'' movie ''[[Wakko's Wish]]'' (1999).
====Webzine==== Bodett was a regular columnist for the [[webzine]] ''Mr. Showbiz''.
====Podcasts==== Bodett's name was used humorously for various non-playable characters in the ''[[Dungeons & Dragons]]'' [[podcast]] series ''[[The Adventure Zone]]'', though these were voiced by [[Dungeon Master|DM]] [[Griffin McElroy]], not Bodett himself.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://maximumfun.org/transcripts/adventure-zone/transcript-the-adventure-zone-murder-on-the-rockport-limited-chapter-two/ |title=Transcript: The Adventure Zone: Murder on the Rockport Limited: Chapter Two |date=March 26, 2015 |accessdate=April 13, 2020}}</ref> In the [[graphic novel]] under the same name, an uncanny likeness of Bodett can be seen interacting with the series' main characters.<ref>{{cite web|last=|first=|date=2019-06-26|title=The page|url=https://cdn.pastemagazine.com/www/articles/assets_c/2019/06/TAZVol25-1126218.html|archive-url=|archive-date=|accessdate=2019-08-30|website=|publisher=Cdn.pastemagazine.com}}</ref>
== Writing == In 1999, Bodett published his first children's book, ''Williwaw!''<ref>Maughan, Shannon. "Bodett Brings Kids' Books to the Airwaves", ''Publishers Weekly'' 246, no. 51 (December 20, 1999): 29.</ref>
=== Published works === * ''As Far As You Can Go Without a Passport'' (1986), {{ISBN|0-201-10661-2}} * ''Small Comforts'' (1987), {{ISBN|0-201-13417-9}} * ''The End of the Road'' (1989), {{ISBN|0-688-08701-9}} * ''The Big Garage on Clear Shot'' (1990), {{ISBN|0-688-09525-9}} * ''The Free Fall of Webster Cummings'' (1996), {{ISBN|0-7868-6209-2}} * ''America's Historic Trails'' (1997), {{ISBN|0-912333-00-6}} * ''Williwaw!'' (2000), {{ISBN|0-375-80687-3}} * ''Norman Tuttle on the Last Frontier'' (2004), {{ISBN|0-679-89031-9}} * "Alaska A to Z: The Most Comprehensive Book of Facts and Figures Ever Compiled About Alaska" (1993), {{ISBN|1878425757}} * "The Free Fall of Webster Cummings: Volume One of "Tom Bodett's American Odyssey" (1960) * "America's Historic Trails: With Tom Bodett" (1997), {{ISBN|0912333006}} * "Growing Up, Growing Old & Going Fishing at the End of the Road" {{ISBN|0553470183}} * "Those Grand Occasions at the End of the Road" * "As Far as You Can Go Without a Passport: Views from the End of the Road" (1985) * "First Words" * "Old Fools & Young Hearts" * "No Place Like Home" * * "(The) Last Decent Parking Place in North America", {{ISBN|055345272X}} Audio Cassette - 1991 by Random House Audio "The Free Fall of Webster Cummings: Volume One of "Tom Bodett's American Odyssey" (1960) Audio Cassette * "The Great Divide, Volume Two (Tom Bodett's American Odyssey)" (1995), {{ISBN|1561008567}} Audio Cassette * "Peach Picking Time, Volume Three (Tom Bodett's American Odyssey)" (1995), {{ISBN|1561008575}} Audio Cassette * "No Place Like Home, Volume Four (Tom Bodett's American Odyssey)" (1996), {{ISBN|1561008583}} Audio Cassette * "Ed's Fruits and Vegetables, Volume 5 (Tom Bodett's American Odyssey)" (1996), {{ISBN|1561008591}} Audio Cassette Song, Tom Bodett by Mark David Manders * "Better Part of the Road"(1992), {{ISBN|0553470191}} Audio Cassette
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{Official website|http://www.bodett.com}} * {{IMDb name|id=0090909}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bodett, Tom}} [[Category:American children's writers]] [[Category:American humorists]] [[Category:American radio personalities]] [[Category:American male voice actors]] [[Category:Audiobook narrators]] [[Category:Writers from Michigan]] [[Category:Writers from Vermont]] [[Category:Writers from Alaska]] [[Category:Writers from Washington (state)]] [[Category:Writers from Illinois]] [[Category:People from Sturgis, Michigan]] [[Category:People from Homer, Alaska]] [[Category:People from Champaign, Illinois]] [[Category:People from Dummerston, Vermont]] [[Category:1955 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Actors from Champaign County, Illinois]] [[Category:Male actors from Illinois]]