Rudy Maxa

Rudy Maxa is a former Washington Post investigative reporter and columnist (1971-1984) where his reporting was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. He joined Washingtonian magazine as a senior writer and columnist (1984-1993) before becoming Washington, DC, bureau chief for SPY magazine. In 1990, he wrote an episode of the ABC-TV dramatic series, "Capital News." He is the author of two non-fiction books, "Dare To Be Great," and "Public Trust, Private Lust." As a free-lance writer, his articles appeared in GQ, Playboy, Ladies Home Journal, Penthouse, Travel & Leisure, the Los Angeles Times, the London Evening Standard, Modern Maturity, and dozens of other publications. Maxa became a consumer travel commentator for the public radio business show "Marketplace" in 1991, which led to a one-hour, national travel radio show on public radio called "The Savvy Traveler" that Maxa co-created and hosted for four years before launching a television travel series on public television in the US in 2001. "Smart Travels: Europe with Rudy Maxa" produced by Small World Productions was public televisions first High Definition series. Maxa became co-executive producer of five seasons of "Smart Travels" before taking over ownership of the show and renaming the series "Rudy Maxa's World" in 2008. As of the summer of 2011, Maxa had 85, half-hour travel shows on public television. His shows are broadcast overseas by Travel Channel International. He also hosts America's most widely syndicated radio travel show, "Rudy Maxa's World," a two-hour weekend interview show broadcast on more than 115 mostly news/talk stations as well as on XM Radio Channel 165. He is the father of two children and lives in St. Paul, MN.