King and the prophet: a most unusual friendship

Three years into President Gordon B. Hinckley's tenure as head of the LDS Church, CNN talk show host Larry King asked the then-88-year-old leader if he'd thought about retiring.

"No, there's no chance," he replied. "Got to keep going, right until the end."

"You're going until the calling comes?" King said.

"Right," President Hinckley replied.

By all accounts, the 15th president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints worked a full schedule until he died Sunday evening.

King is among a long list of notable media friends President Hinckley acquired during his nearly 13 years at the head of the church. Now retired "60 Minutes" reporter Mike Wallace was another.

"His clarity was enormous. I've interviewed a few people in their 90s. None were as clear of thought as he. He had absolutely no memory loss," King said Monday from Los Angeles. "He was interested in things beyond the scope of faith or religion."

King, who interviewed President Hinckley on his program three times and socialized with him other occasions, described him as "like your grandfather," adding the adjectives "mellow" and "cute."

"He was kind of pixie-ish. I meant that as a compliment."

King's descriptions contrast with that of his wife, Shawn Southwick, a member of the LDS Church, who along with her husband met with President Hinckley prior to his first interview in 1998.

Southwick, in tears, whispered to her husband, "That's the prophet."

"It was a very powerful experience in my life to be able to sit there in the prophet's office and be there with the man that I loved. It just overpowered my whole being," Southwick said.

King said he didn't know what being a prophet meant. "To me, he was a very nice little man."

A self-described agnostic, King said LDS Church beliefs did not rub off on him during his association with President Hinckley, and the president didn't push religion on him.

"He made some points. He was never grab-your-lapel. That wasn't his style. He did say I was spiritual, although I never felt that."