Andy Flores Noya says he is the kind of person who cherishes moments of solitude in a caf* with a cup of coffee and a good book.

As a child, he says, he was a loner who enjoyed drawing and often found himself deeply absorbed in writing.

His opinion of himself hardly befits his career as one of the country's most successful journalists in showbiz today -- or perhaps ever -- for hosting the popular Oprah-like TV talk show bearing his name, Kick Andy!

The 47-year-old confesses he has no choice but to take on the burden of popularity, which means losing a life of seclusion, for something that he believes in.

Life has been quite busy for Andy in the past two years: His show has proven to be somewhat of a magnet, pulling the interests of different kinds of people.

"It is actually kind of weird for me to be noticed by strangers, with all those hand shakes and small talk. I'm a journalist, not a celebrity," he says.

Bloggers recently posted a rumor that media mogul Surya Paloh, the owner of Metro TV, which broadcasts Kick Andy!, fired Andy as chief editor of the news station, making the fate of the popular talk show uncertain.

"Some people say I was fired, others say it was all because of money, and there are people who say that the joint-venture between Surya Paloh and Andy Noya is breaking up. Well, it's alright, I guess there will always be sensational rumors," he told The Jakarta Post at the office of Rolling Stone Indonesia.

Yet, he dismissed the rumors as baseless. "There is no way that I got fired ... But it is true that I quit Metro TV. I proposed my resignation from the Media Group three years ago, but they just didn't want to let me go, while my relationship with Surya Paloh and my other colleagues there has always been good," he says.

After lengthy negotiations, Andy officially resigned from Metro TV on May 1. However, Paloh asked him to become an adviser for the media corporation and a member of its editorial board. He says he accepted the request as a "compromise".

As for his job as host of Kick Andy!, he says;"(the show) belongs to the public, so I can't leave it."

The reason behind his resignation, he says, is that he wants to develop his own businesses, including the American franchised magazine Rolling Stone Indonesia, in which he is a shareholder. He now divides his time mainly between Kick Andy! and the music magazine.

The talk show is more than a job for Andy, who used to write short stories and draw cartoons to help finance his studies. His father was a typewriter technician, who passed away while he was still in college.

"I often sent off my short stories along with my illustrations, but the editor always told me, 'Andy, don't take it all on by yourselves, why don't you just let somebody else do the illustrations?', he laughs.

He also created illustrations for Idul Fitri and birthday cards and sold them to his colleagues in the early 1980s.

"I would go to Blok M (in South Jakarta) and buy a piece of paper for about Rp 20,000, from which I could make 10 drawings. I usually sold an item from Rp 3,000 to Rp 3,500, so I could earn Rp 15,000 profit for each piece of paper I bought."

A graduate of a technical high school, Andy was not allowed to apply to study at Sekolah Tinggi Publisistik (a journalism school). But he was able to convince the school's rector of his love for writing and was admitted.

This never-give-up attitude is the message of the talk show he hosts, in which almost all the guests, he says, are beacons of optimism for the unfortunate, who, despite their physical limitations manage to rise up and assist not only themselves but others too.

"It was hoped that the power of the show would rely on the persona of Andy Noya. But along the way, Andy Noya turned out to be the weakest element of the program.

"You know, I don't think I'm attractive on screen, I'm also a bit awkward as a host and I have poor articulation. So, after two years, we found out the power of Kick Andy! actually lies in its moral message. It is something that inspires and motivates," he says.

Unlike many other TV programs -- loaded with lame jokes, male comedians in drag, cheesy gossip about two-bit artists and uninteresting political interviews, the talk show offers more than just information and entertainment. For Andy, it also gives hope, enlightens, moves and inspires people.

In this coming Thursday's episode, the show will present Sugeng, a man from Mojokerto, Central Java, who, after losing his feet in an accident, crafted his own prosthetic feet.

Sugeng previously appeared on the show and boosted the morale of those who suffered the same fate. "We never knew before how great an impact a man like Sugeng could have on society," Andy says.

Sugeng, he adds, inspired the Minister of Research and Technology Koesmayanto Kardiman to initiate a movement called One Thousand Prostheses, through which the Kick Andy! crew, with support from enthusiastic sponsors and viewers' donations, will distribute prosthetics for free. The minister would also provide Sugeng with a mold so he will no longer have to make prostheses manually and could produce more.

But the show offers more than heart-breaking and inspiring stories, and has not evaded controversy.

Andy says that after airing a controversial interview with Major Alfredo Reinado, many people, including Vice President Jusuf Kalla, State Intelligence Agency head Syamsir Siregar, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials and the Military Commander of Udayana asked him: "Where was it?" (the location of the interview).

The interview led to Horta accusing Metro TV and senior journalist Desi Anwar of supporting Major Alfredo, who was outlawed by the Timor Leste government during the interview for his alleged role in a military riot. He was shot dead while attempting to assassinate Horta.

Desi and the Metro TV management denied the accusations and asked for clarification from Horta. Andy, however, refused to disclose the location of the interview.

"I promised Major Alfredo I wouldn't disclose it. Even though he's now dead, I think I should keep my promise," he says. "And I think it is better for Timor Leste and Indonesia if I keep the information to myself."

Andy seems to have accepted the fact that enjoying a quiet coffee in a caf* without distractions is now virtually impossible. What he needs now, he says, is more time with his wife and three children in public places.

"I once tried to wear a cap to cover up, but people still recognized me. My children always laugh at me and say, 'just deal with it, Dad'."

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