Welcome Ted The Bear Richards back to Detroit Radio!
02-03-2008
Radio and techie stuff are very important parts of my life as I have said. It is like an old friend: I get angry when it doesn't give us what I think it should, I get bored when it gives me predictable boring content that doesn't make me think, laugh or otherwise become emotionally involved. But when it's good, I mean REALLY good, it's the highlight of my day.
I have my own ideas of what constitutes "good" radio, and the people who have the talent or at least the knowledge I have about what makes "good" radio -- in my opinion of course -- are heroes.
I have a very cool job that is mostly behind the scenes at Specs Howard School of Broadcast Arts, in Southfield, Michigan. I help to make the "magic" of the equipment work day in and day out for students and instructors. Although I am a bonafide, on the younger side "baby boomer", I try to keep up on the latest stuff technically and what is GOING ON in the business itself. I love classic technology, but I embrace everything new that comes along. I also have very strong ideas of what constitutes good and mediocrity in terms of programming as well. What worked in the past still works.
Growing up in northwest Detroit, I was a fan of several different radio stations, including WXYZ, WKNR and CKLW -- all AM stations. AM radio would later be the mainstay of my career both on the air and as Chief Techie.
As I began taking my career more seriously and began having some early success myself, CKLW was always the station that caught my attention. This was a hit radio music station that also played oldies, had a top notch news department, had the best signal, and the best and loudest "sound" of any station in Detroit. No other station could touch it. I have tapes that prove it to this day.
Although they played a wider range of music than anyone does today, the format was tighter than anybody else (figure that out, but it was true). The air talent was also second to none: They had the most energy, the smoothest delivery, and from the sound of it, they had the most fun! It was a tight machine tended to by talented HUMANS long before radio automation and voice tracking even existed.
For a period of time, I was on the air doing the 6-10 PM air shift in Ann Arbor. I've told the story many times. Our format was more contemporary but I had my on-air heroes I had grown up with who were part of me developing my "schtick." One of the biggest heroes I emulated was Ted Richards at CKLW, AKA "The Big 8," who coincidently, was also their 6-10 nighttime jock (yeah, The Bear blew me away every night, but I loved every minute!).
Ted was the coolest jock on the radio, hands down. He knew Detroit and Windsor but he also knew THE MUSIC -- not just rock, not just Motown and R & B, but EVERYTHING better than anyone, and he knew how to talk around every tune on the air better than anyone. I started doing that myself by listening to Ted, but I was also a musician so I had a strong sense of rhythm as well.
Mostly I loved the guys' attitude. Still do. What can I say, he was COOL.
He was why I wanted to be in radio.
J.P. McCarthy and Dick Purtan were both well on their way to gaining their legendary status, but Ted was the COOLEST.
In my office at Specs Howard, there is a framed publicity photo of Ted Richards which he signed to me: "Thanks for listening to CK," Ted wrote in 1983. Now I can point out to those who weren't around in CK's heyday just who this guy is!
The 1980s actually brought the demise of CKLW. Ted was pretty much there to the end as I recall, as competition from FM stations and pressure from Canada's version of the FCC eventually brought the station down. But I never forgot Ted, and neither did Detroit.
The Detroit radio market has actually been smouldering for years. It has had its highlights, but some very serious low moments.
Can the highly depressed economy even support the level of radio talent we are accustomed to? Eight years ago, Jeff Deminski and Bill Doyle arrived in town and while the "hot talk" format overall, tended to be a flop in Detroit, Jeff and Bill worked their butts off with a "working class" type show and won this town over in afternoon drive. Big Time. Unfortunately, they went OFF the air this past December along with the format of their old station and again, I wondered again "Can the economy of the Detroit market support great talent?"
Next, legendary broadcaster (who also goes back to the CKLW days), Tom Ryan was taken off the air at WOMC. It seemed like the only way to hear our radio friends was via podcasts produced by radio talents who were out of work.
Gregg Henson is best known for such podcasts via gregghenson.com and greggandmichelle.com. Henson, a former co-worker of Deminski and Doyle at the ill-fated "hot talk" station, has developed a massive listenership via "Blog Talk" radio. Nobody gets paid, but everybody has fun.
So I had all but given up on so-called traditional radio that I could listen to in the car when D & D went off. I love classic rock and all the legendary jocks I also grew up with on WCSX and WRIF, but hearing the same songs every day can get old.
I don't know about you, but sometimes I need some serious excitement or at least to laugh with old friends like D & D, Gregg and Michelle, or… Ted Richards. I don't need to hear the same 30 year old song 10 times a week.
On Friday, February 1st 2008, the Motor City was hit with another winter blast. Some of us actually got the day off from work! But more significantly, Detroit Radio also got IT'S biggest blast in many years. The afore mentioned Ted "The Bear" Richards' returned to Detroit radio! His much anticipated, heavily promoted arrival on WOMC 104.3 kicks off his tenure as their new 3-7:00 afternoon drive guy.
The show began with a drop from Detroit's most beloved voice, Ernie Harwell, the legendary voice of the Detroit Tigers...and of course Ted "The Bear" kicked it off reciting the first verse of McFadden and Whitehead's 1970s disco hit, "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" over the intro of the song right up to the post. He proclaimed "It's official! The Bear is back in town in the month of love in the Motor City, and I love YOU, Motor City, yes I do..."
From that point on, no matter how bad the weather was outside, having the Coolest-Jock-On-Radio on one of the most powerful FM stations in the state, we knew everything would be OK. You can't help but be in a good mood with this guy on. I would suspect it was a surprisingly emotional experience for Detroit listeners to have this old friend back.
Later, the original CKLW traffic girl, Jo-Jo was heard as well as a welcome from the Mayor of Ferndale, where the studio and transmitter is located, and at one point, a hilarious burn-out call "Hey Ted, you introduced me to Alice Cooper!"
Ted made later reference to the fact that the phone lines were knocked out obviously due to the volume of calls, but that the phone company had apparently quickly fixed the situation. Thanks phone technicians!
As a colleague of mine remarked who was listening to the internet stream in another market, "the music is actually made to sound BETTER by the talent between the songs." I couldn't agree more.
Back to back hits mean nothing. Any office computer can do that. But give me someone we can get to know, who actually cares about the City, has something intelligent, witty or otherwise down-to-earth to say, and I'll listen everyday and buy every product that is advertised on that station.
Is he one of the "heroes" of my career, such as it is? Absolutely.
But mostly it's great to have an old friend back -- someone on the air who is the very definition of a broadcast PRO in light of the what has happened in this radio market and industry-wide during the past year.
Welcome back Ted the Bear. Don't leave us again!
-Bob Burnham
02-02-2008
Superstars
In an earlier article on the Specs Howard site (written by someone other than me) www.specshoward.edu, local radio guys, Deminski & Doyle were referred to as WAY COOL SUPERSTARS of the former WKRK.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that our superstars are not on the radio at the moment, having been unable to agree to contract terms with CBS in December.
With such a massive listenership, Deminski put up a blog site for the show and it can be found here: www.deminskianddoyleshow.com/
Thanks Jeff. We never spoke – only left messages on each others voice-mails – but based on their new blog, and past correspondence I received from both Deminski and Doyle, I have come to the conclusion that they are NOT superstars! They are just regular guys like you and me, just doing a show (at least they USED to). They happened to hit on a chemistry that was good enough to survive eight years on Detroit radio. Being regular guys as they are is part of that success.
Jeff’s former colleague, Gregg Henson (www.gregghenson.com), whom I’ve mentioned before, has been out of town for a couple years. Gregg, however, has kept in touch with Detroit radio as well. Gregg has been Program Director and host at KVET in Austin, Texas, but he is ALSO now off the air, although he promises to do more podcast shows “just for fun.”
In the past, Henson managed to reunite for at least one podcast show with Michelle McKormick (his former on-air co-host from his WKRK days). Our friend, Art Vuolo has even been a guest on Henson’s podcast, revealing that he doesn’t like “dirty radio,” but variety is also what makes radio go ‘round (that's what I say!).
Gregg, apparently likes it all, as long as the hosts’ name is not Jay Towers! Best of luck, by the way, to the Henson’s on their new business, a “Jungle Java” franchise in Austin, Texas. Henson still needs to be back on the radio, however, along with Jeff and Bill. There’s way too much mediocrity on radio these days. It needs all the talent it can get.
If they all just want to do podcasts from home, we’ll listen to whatever we can get.
Can’t wait for Ted “The Bear” Richards’ return to Detroit radio February 1. Ted will be doing afternoons on WOMC 104.3. The promos that have been running on the station are great! I love the one where he’s trying to convince someone at the airport he really is who he is and the person doesn’t believe it… so he does his CKLW delivery, followed by one of the old jingles. If you were around back then, and that doesn’t make you smile, nothing will! Ted was one of my many heroes way back. In fact I have his CKLW publicity photo signed to me in 1983. I was doing a jazz show at Eastern Michigan University’s station when Ted was still on the air on The Big 8. My program director at WEMU said I sounded too “commercial.” Thank you Ted for that influence!
Catch you all later…
Bob
Next month, I have been asked to do a gig at a private party in Commerce Township, Michigan. I have agreed to do it. This area is familiar to me!
A couple months back, I became the bass player of the Tri-County Blues Band featuring Tom Scola on lead guitar. I am now in two bands, which is pretty normal for local players. The website is: www.myspace.com/tricountyblues
Commerce Township was the site of a small AM station that several of us operated in the 1970s and ‘80s. It had the slogan, “Power Rock,” when today’s “Classic Rock” was actually new music. The signal reached the northern Detroit suburbs. A later version of the station reached Flint. I know personally, because we routinely would drive around the area to verify coverage.
We had great times, and many legendary New Years parties. I took my first real girlfriend there once, and within a year, she dumped me! I guess she didn’t like radio people. Today, I find that quite amusing because every female I’ve ever had anything to do with as a friend or otherwise was / is in radio like me (although there have been some band “rock girls” as well).
Some of the best New Years celebrations of my life were spent in that studio. I was always the straight guy, since I didn’t drink much or anything (which would apply today as well). Because of that, I usually got the most air time including the “Midnight Hour” airshift.
I would sometimes end up hanging around keeping the scene under control long after everyone had left. The most memorable years, I actually came WITHOUT a date and would find myself still on the air when the sun came up. My “date” was with the microphone! What a boring date I would’ve been (at least to humans)! At the time, that’s all I wanted and it would give me the seasoning I needed to get some of my better on-air jobs.
It was that burning desire that led to my success. If you want to be in that business, you can’t approach it in a leisurely manner. There was NOTHING more important to me then than doing radio.
Now, I’m more active playing in bands than I was back then. Having spent my career playing so many songs with a such a variety of formats, I am familiar with most of the songs people still want to hear.
I haven’t been in the Commerce area for at least 10 years, maybe more, but I look forward to “Returning to the Scene of the Crime.” This particular band, however, doesn’t play any Boston cover tunes, like we did on the “Power Rock” station. Fleetwood Mac, however, is on the playlist and Kelly is of the best local female singers I have ever worked with.
Maybe we can eventually work in some Stones, too!
Happy New Year.
Bob
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2007 - A year of changes...
It was a tough year for a lot of people. People lost loved ones, there were national disasters, people lost jobs, and their homes. Some people moved for good reasons. I decided I HAD to move for survival reasons (but haven’t done so yet) – not financial but because of growth of my business operations. I guess that WOULD be financial.
I continue in my daily duties as one of Specs Howard’s tech guys, but I took on at least two major radio projects. One was out of town and one in town: Motor City Casino’s “Radio Bar” became another of my “babies.” Also, a few trips to Charlotte NC would result in a new FM transmitter site and amazing signal coverage that I played an active role in achieving. You can read about it as part of the ERI Antenna article in the December ‘07 issue of Radio World.
As those of you know who read this semi-regularly, I’m both a radio guy and musician.
Playing music this time last year… One year ago just before Christmas 2006, after a fall out with my friends in the band, “Impact 50,” we got back together and did a holiday gig with the original line-up. It just felt right! We would all continue to stay in touch and get together every so often. The band itself would go through member changes, but I was no longer a part of it except as a “third call” bass player. We would however, actively support each other and sit in at each other’s gigs.
My own band “Wherez My Limo?” would evolve with me mostly on lead guitar – a role I was handed by default. As part of the fallout, the original Impact 50 singer, jumped in with the “Limo” band after our original lead singer had to leave the state. Our old singer simply couldn’t keep a job in Michigan. Also, we had to say goodbye to our other guitar player, but that move was by choice.
In early winter, I was asked to sit in on bass with another guitar player, Tom Scola, best known for his local work on the blues scene. His musical aggregation had some big pluses for me. Apparently, I brought something positive to the party, too. I guess it’s a minimal requirement that those of us who play actively MUST be in a minimum of two bands at all times.
As far as the Beginnings and Ends in my playing world, for me personally, at least in ’07, there really weren’t any. They just evolved from one era to another, and there were lots of OTHER players I worked with as well.
Meeting famous players…
This year I also met some great LEGENDARY musicians after their Detroit shows: Saxophonist David Sanborn and keyboard legend, George Duke. George’s music but especially his “groove” has been in the back of my mind since the 1970s. If you were around during the 1980s, you may remember his charted song, “Sweet Baby,” and the fact he was in Frank Zappa’s Mothers of Invention going way back. The man hasn’t lost his touch. In fact, even with his stripped down band, he “has it” more than ever. The show ended with an unplanned (and very EXTENDED) encore during which George invited members of the audience to sit in on one of his rigs and jam.
At the beginning of the 2007, we traveled to Philadelphia to catch “Fourplay,” a jazz-fusion “super group” in their only U.S. show for the entire year. Fourplay features Nathan East, my all-time favorite bass player (best known in recent years as Clapton’s bass player), Harvey Mason, one of my favorite drummers, Larry Carlton, guitar groove-master, and Bob James on keys isn’t too shabby either. Didn’t get a chance to meet these guys, but it was one of the best shows of the year for me.
Speaking of legendary players, Mark Pasman’s “Supersessions” also brings to mind locally several memorable shows this past year at Memphis Smoke. At least a couple come to mind where I was again invited to sit in on bass with the best musicians in town. Thanks Paz!
And On a Less “Happy” Note…
Toward the end of the year, I went to two funerals only about a week apart for first for an uncle, then for an aunt (his sister). I never know how I am supposed to feel at these things. They had both lived fairly full lives and had been ill for some time. The best way is to think of these events is as celebrations of the lives of the departed. At least that’s the way my uncle felt and it makes sense. Go in with that mentality rather than be sad. But when the U.S. Army shows up and gives full military service with the flag presented to the wife, it’s a little tough to handle for the on-lookers.
Anyway, as I always say, everything has a Beginning and End. For these people, who knew me best before I was even a teenager, it was their time to go – their End.
Computer End Time
At my home office, I had made the decision to replace some computer equipment. Since 1986, I had Apple Macintosh, but now it was time for the last of the Macs to go. It was more than eight years old and I had thrown various upgrades at it over the years but it was too far gone. Hundreds of catalogs, my entire customer database, video and audio databases, entire books and a good part of my life was developed on Macintosh. But my home network was fighting Mac. The audio software I was using was available on PC (not Mac) only. My laptop was PC. It was just a pain, so I went all PC.
The Gateway blew up after six months. Gateway replaced the motherboard, and I threw 3 gigs of memory into it, the complete Adobe Creative Suite, FileMaker database software and everything it needed to do everything the Mac did. It has been a workhorse ever since. My main audio computer (custom built from components) grew a couple more hard drives. An aging Sony VAIO got replaced with another custom built computer it does everything the others are too busy to do. With the growth of my business, it was not just a convenience to multi-task, it was a requirement.
So it was End Time for both the Macintosh and the Sony VAIO at my office.
And to wrap it (like a Christmas Present) up on a positive note…
I have been lucky to have and expanded the friends I have at work and play. They are all important and valued. I can always fix equipment (or send it back or replace it), but people are the reason we have equipment to begin with, and for that matter, the reason for music, radio and everything I rant about. I try to keep this in mind, along with the realization that nothing lasts forever. Change is constant. Everything has a Beginning and an End. Phases of your life and everyone else’s, including Life Itself has a start and finish. Mine is far from over, at least as far as I know!
Now that 2007 is at its End, let’s work to make everything we did this past year (and to date) equal out to an even better 2008.
Sound good to you?
My favorite afternoon drive show, Deminski and Doyle heard on the former CBS “Free FM” outlet in Detroit came to an end after a brief morning stint on the new sports station that couldn’t make up its mind what to call itself. First, they’re the Sports Powerhouse. OK fine. Then it’s the Ticket. How original, guys! Hey, I was briefly Chief Engineer for the local station that was FIRST called the Ticket from which several of their hosts came: WTKA in Ann Arbor! I’m glad some of my former co-workers landed in Detroit, because they’re good people, but there is always fall-out. There are always bodies to step over.97.1 -- whatever it’s called (and it’s AM sister station, WXYT, which was already sports) turned itself into a 24-hour sports outlet. D & D, the top-rated duo who built up a huge loyal listenership during the past eight years simply were not given acceptable contract terms by CBS. That is the bottom line, and money was not the major issue.The word is D & D's show basically kept the station in the black, pulling numbers that brought in 70% of the stations’ revenue. The station is airing is re-runs through the end of the year. Enjoy while you can!
The talk show arena is pure feces right now. All the popular talk shows are in re-runs! Jay Leno, David Letterman and Deminski and Doyle are all “best of’s.” The CD collection in my car keeps growing, and you can bet it is for everyone else. Local radio is not in good shape, unless you’re looking for music. D & D was yanked off the air a week early, as some kind of “power” move on the part of CBS. This action prompted other area media columnists to call station owners (CBS) and management “gutless”. Nothing lasts forever in radio though, and eight years of becoming Detroit’s most beloved afternoon drive hosts, is still a helluva long time. But if CBS can yank Tom Ryan off WOMC (in the same year), it’s no big deal to do the same to D & D. Kick them to the curb. It sucks and I've been kicked myself, but I got back up and kicked some butt. D & D will too, and in a big way. Why? Because they rock! The best rise to the top. Losers wind up OUT OF THE BUSINESS.
Thinking further, perhaps the local economy is a factor and the market can no longer afford to support the caliber of talent we’re used to. Or perhaps too many high-end management people are brought in from outside the market that treat talent like commodities. The reality is it’s probably a combination of both.
Who loses? Us. The loyal listener. Big time. It’s a vicious cycle. Not everyone wants to hear sports babble around the clock, day in, and day out and have it on multiple stations on top of that. So the numbers will continue to drop with revenue falling further. Those local shows will be replaced by syndicated shows. The so-called “powerhouse” stations will sound the same as the remaining 1Kw smart market AM stations who can just barely afford to pay for the power to keep the transmitter on. The difference is now the stakes are much higher, and it costs a helluva lot more to keep 50Kw on the air...and NOBODY is listening!
12/12/2007
The holiday season is a good time to prove your value to your radio station. That plus having a track record of proving your value to the station could lead to big things.
I spent a good part of 1979 as Assistant to the Chief Engineer, Randy Custer at that time at WAAM in Ann Arbor. I was also doing weekends on-air. I was a combination promotions, remote techie, cart machine and miscellaneous repair dude along with the oh-so-important on-air weekends and fill-in jock. Our Operations Manager and morning host was Jack Hood who had actually hired me earlier that year.
This was way before the days of automation that we have today. Jack had a special “Voices of Christmas Past” package on 7” reel to reel tapes that ran for 24 hours on Christmas Day… at least when we got done with it! We copied the entire package plus station Ids, spots, liners and promos to 10” reel to reel tapes. There was a stack of 24 tapes when we got done and the board operator merely had to shuttle back and forth between reel decks once an hour on Christmas. We made a big deal out of promoting and selling it. It was a great package.
Jack did some of the work himself, but he asked for my help and I ended up doing the bulk of the “grunt” work, literally “living” in the Production studio overnight. You wouldn’t think this would be the case, but it was actually exciting for me! I was “building” a whole day of broadcast using equipment in use at the time. I was not “officially” a full time employee, but was working full time hours with all the people taking vacations and the large number of remotes I set up (at least once a week for “Fat Bob” Taylor alone, who was doing middays).
The staff holiday party was almost missed by me because I was so busy at the station. I was late, but Jack rolled out the red carpet for me and made sure I was served a full meal. The first week of December, Jack offered me the full time position of Production Director and his 6-10 PM Monday-Friday host. Naturally, I accepted!
I had some spots on the air that I had produced, so he was already familiar with my work. But I feel like jumping in with both feet and finishing the work for the holiday programming ahead of time played a part in landing my promotion. No matter how “good” you are, or THINK you are, that is really only a small part of your success.
“Getting stuff done” has been a pre-occupation that I carry with me today. Sometimes – not always but SOMETIMES – hard work and dedication DOES pay off. Even when it doesn’t you have a sense of accomplishment when a project is completed.
Figuring that out for myself, and being lucky to work for people like Jack led to where I am today. Jack tapped into my youthful enthusiasm and tossed in a few words of encouragement as any good manager will do. Sometimes you run into bad managers and in that case, just make the best of the situation. Get the most of you can possibly get out of a situation, personally, and make plans to leave as soon as possible.
People who are struggling, getting discouraged or impatient just need to keep the brain securely in place, keep on working and put in their best effort at all times, no matter how bad the situation is.
I had already been in radio a few years prior to landing at that station, so it didn’t happen overnight.
Jack was also a programming genius, although he would deny it in his later years. We were hoping to meet at Specs Howard for lunch just prior to his untimely passing a few years ago. He wanted to give radio "another shot."
Besides Ann Arbor, he had radio stints in Flint, Bay City, Louisville KY, and at one point at WJR. He would also be a pioneer in a wildly successful video tape rental business.
As far as radio, his “reward” to me 29 years ago for MY work and dedication will never be forgotten. His morning show will always be a “voice” in my Christmas’s Past.
Hope you’re having a good holiday season!
Bob Burnham
Thanks to Ken Calvert at WCSX for playing Adam Sandler's hilarious song about the Festival of Lights.
It made my day! OK, it SORTA got me in the spirit. With apologies to Mr. Sandler (he's doesn't get any money) here's the words I found on the internet:
www.asandler.com/lyrics/hanukah.shtml
I'm not Jewish, but sure proves you guys have just as much fun as The Santa Claus people!
Now go tell your friend Veronica, you need a new Harmonica, and stop smoking so much Marij-uanica! LOL!
Bob
Things don’t always turn out as you hoped, so you make the best of it…
By Bob Burnham
Well, now we’re headed full steam into the holiday season now, and there’s no turning back! A year ago, I took a short trip to be at a holiday party put on by a broadcast client. The trip, however, was cut short.
This past summer, I supervised construction of a new tower / transmitter site for the same client. That trip, in a sense, was also cut short but for a different reason.
In both cases the activities were well intentioned but didn’t play out exactly as expected.
That is often the way a lot of activities go. The key is to keep a positive attitude. While they are underway, they may be mentally or financially taxing, but with a proper mental attitude, they can be kept from going into the “disaster” mode.
If you know me, you know I always have many “irons in the fire.” This is how I have always preserved my future and my career. For example, my “End of Year” promotional mailing for the old-time radio and classic TV show business was planned in the midst of the craziness. Thousands of copies sent out, and I am already working on a 2008 catalog not even knowing if the current promotion will be successful.
The process of doing this involves going through my many thousands of audio masters, and sometimes discovering stuff I didn’t know I had. The most interesting, of course, are tapes I saved from my various on-air antics. Those for my own amusement and are not marketed! Who’d care about them anyway!?
My on-air show came to WCAR in the Detroit area in 1988, before I actually became Chief Engineer at the station. I had archived the first several shows on reel-to-reel tape including the programming preceding and following my show. It is interesting to hear voices of the past who were part of the station almost TWENTY years ago.
Don Kostyu hosted an interesting talk show called “The Town Meeting” following my show. While I never really knew Don on personal basis, he was a bit of a pioneer as Rush Limbaugh was also just getting started at that point. Sadly, a few years later, Don committed suicide. Obviously, HIS life wasn’t turning out the way he wanted, and he couldn’t deal with it.
Another thing that might not be turning out as we hoped: That is, our friends, Deminski and Doyle at WXYT-FM (Formerly WKRK ‘Free FM’ which is now a sports station). Is there no hope for Detroit radio with all the out-of-town executives basically running their operation as a cut and dry business?
Their contract is up at the end of this month and last show is reportedly December 14. Is it their last show in Detroit? I’m getting that impression!
Broadcast execs that were imported from other markets obviously have no regard for the end product and especially no regard for the “End Product User.” That would be You and Me – and anyone who listens to local radio in the car, or anywhere. The only hope of maintaining any kind of listenership is through development and maintenance of high-end Content, which is primarily focused on morning shows.
Radio is completely a numbers game. Listenership numbers seem to be far less important these days than dollar numbers required to operate a radio station. I always thought the two were tied together – and in reality, THEY ARE. But the enormous economical pressures are starting to take their toll. Turning red ink into black and eliminating risk in a market with an economy that is in desperate condition has already taken some broadcast legends off the air decades before “their time,” or is at least sending some to more prosperous markets.
So if a manager comes to Detroit from New York (or anywhere) and his task is stop the station from hemorrhaging money he or she does LOGICALLY what they feel they MUST do. Maybe their actions (popular or not) will be successful in the long run, maybe not. Maybe he’s just putting off the inevitable. The fact is the pool of listeners just aren’t there they way the used to be partially because there is a lot less to KEEP THEM THERE.
So it is a vicious cycle. Hopefully it won’t be repeated too often and enough creative people will make it into management who know how to balance dollars and cents (or is that SENSE) with quality content.
Or perhaps one day, to get our talk radio fix we will be limited to people doing (and listening to) podcasts. The best of them will of course, come from RADIO backgrounds.
Good luck D & D, no matter what happens.
-----------------------------------------------
I want to mention my two favorite BLOG sites:
At the top of my list is Gregg Henson of Gregghenson.com fame.
Gregg offers a lot of content about Detroit radio (since he came from it himself).
He is still a talk show host himself in Austin, Texas. Gregghenson.com also includes sports and curious items in the news as frequent features. Whether you always agree or not, the guy has a perfect mixture of common sense and logic with edgy humor. The local media are always quoting items from his website. He was one half of the most successful version of 97.1 FM's Motor City Middays along with Michelle McKormick...another show where the chemistry actually worked well, but it was busted apart.
But in passing, Gregg once credited a good friend of mine, Mark Pasman (The beloved “Paz” of Motor City Blues Project fame) of WCSX as helping him in the earliest days of his career. In some of my circles, we regard Paz as “The Coolest Man on the Planet.” Obviously, he saw something worth encouraging in Gregg Henson. The fact that Henson apparently didn’t forget Paz either, is obvious proof this guy is the real deal as well. If you want the phart jokes, he’s got those as well, but there’s some real depth here folks. It’s another sad thing that Henson was also forced to leave Detroit, which is his hometown.
My other regular blog reading is Michiguide.com, which is mostly radio. The writings of “Radio’s Best Friend,” Art Vuolo as well as columnist Mike Austerman are regular features of this site. Michiguide has everything you could ever possibly want to know about radio and television stations in Michigan.
So make the best of it: Wherever D & D end up, I’m sure they will be streaming on the show on the internet. Gregg’s show from Austin is on there too. Some time back, he also did some independent internet shows featuring people from his old show in Detroit. It's all big fun and it's all good, if you don't whine and complain about how terrible things are. Do something about it yourself. Radio is changing like everything does. Go with the flow. Listen on your computer... or DON'T change and go listen to your 1905 Edison Wind-Up Gramophone!
Yes, in December ’07, there still is a Santa Claus. But he’s having to deliver more computers and computer speakers these days. Radios just aren’t as popular anymore.
Tom Profit is Operations Manager at the Specs Howard School of Broadcast Arts in Southfield, Michigan.
His illustrious career at Specs Howard began 30 years ago. But I knew of his reputation long before I knew him, when he hired me eight and a half years ago.
At one point, I worked for WXYT. The Chief Engineer at the time, Bill Vellner, actually BRAGGED to me that “Tom Profit at Specs Howard is a personal friend,” like I was supposed to be impressed!
Of course to me, the name meant absolutely nothing to me at the time!
Later, a few grads who I had trained at various radio stations had stated Tom’s Transmitter Operations class Was the Toughest One at Specs Howard!
But I could easily tell which students did well in Tom’s class, and which ones barely passed.
After I came on board and before we discontinued the Transmitter Operations class, a couple times, I did some substitute teaching for Tom. The material was simple. At least I thought so. The real challenge was helping the students understand the material, of which Tom is a master of.
Early Tom Encounters recall memories of the first conversations I had with Tom. His sarcastic sense of humor at first led me to believe Something Wasn’t Quite Right About This Guy.
The conversation began with me saying to Tom:
“I talked to Dave Shank…” (Dave was an instructor at that time)
Tom interrupts with a comment drenched in sarcasm:
“Oh you were THAT lucky…”
“Dave said I should call you…”
Dave’s comment later on reassured me: “Tom’s not such a bad guy, except he’s fussy about cold solder joints!”
You’d think it was some kind of illegal substance the way Dave talked about it, but he was referring to the art of making electrical connections using molten tin and lead with a hot pointy tool!
The reality was Tom knew his way around a soldering iron as well as anyone.
Today, Dave Shank is one of the best live sound guys in the Detroit area, and it was he who convinced me to go work for Tom Profit, when in reality, I had no such plans.
In Tom’s past, he was the original WCSX Chief Engineer, and did plenty of the dirty work Chief Engineers do back then, as well as before and since. This was back when stations were still playing actual records over the air. You can be sure Tom changed more than his share of phonograph needles, or styli as we “professionals” called them.
Tom had his First Class FCC license around the time I was still playing DJ with my measly Third Class License when such things existed.
He will begrudgingly admit to "being around that long," but it's one of the attributes -- like it or not -- of most the best engineers in the country.
Tom was still teaching how to calculate “the direct (AND indirect) method of determining a stations’ power” during the two times in my career I had to personally prove to the local FCC that my station was operating legally. I can personally vouch for Tom’s teachings for anyone who had his class back then. He was teaching The Gospel as far as the FCC was concerned!
During the years I have worked for Tom, he has never failed to trust my judgement implicitly as to how to handle a project or solve a problem. This level of respect and trust is greatly appreciated.
I have been in many situations with management who had far less knowledge than me, who were intent on micro-managing the most trivial details, or never being satisfied that I had gotten enough quotes and even though I had done my research,
“ How could such and such equipment cost THAT MUCH!?”
Tom could teach a class to General Managers on how to manage their technical help and the world would be a better place. Of course, he has the reference point of having been there himself, which makes a difference. But he could easily be a grouchy old ogre with his level of experience, but he never is.
As we progressed upgrading the school, I cultivated many relationships with manufacturers and distributors that has benefited the school in many ways including saving us thousands of dollars. When I would make a decision to change suppliers or distributors, Tom would back that decision fully.
Also, he never made me count the number of squares in a roll of toilet paper to make sure we were getting the best value on our janitorial supplies! Thank you Tom.
That frugal General Manager, however, became a friend, and was one of the people who told Tom it was OK to hire me.
We can’t really say, “best wishes for ANOTHER 30 years” as no one can predict the future. No one really knows how much longer Tom expects to subject us to his warped but keenly sarcastic sense of humor, his diverse knowledge of Everything Operations, and his unique wordsmithing expertise
(Find the most obscure word in the English language and Tom will know the definition and use it in a sentence).
What we can say is THANKS for the PAST 30!
It’s true some of MY blood and guts can be found in many the schools’ studios, but not nearly as much as Tom’s……… Congratulations, Tom.
=30=
“Thanks for taking so much of your time the other day…”
Sometimes I get handwritten cards that begin that way, as one of the “techie dudes” at the Specs Howard School of Broadcast Arts, and I know the others on staff get a lot more that I get about the same thing, usually after landing at a job they never expected to get.
Revisiting people of the past also seems also like an exercise many of us go through every so often. Sometimes those people from way back even become active in your life again. But there’s nothing like the present and those I get to hang with today.
Almost two years ago, I was surprised with an award I was given at a radio convention I normally attend. The convention chairman and I go back a lot of years.
As I am now, I was a dealer of “old-time” programs, and published a newsletter during the 1970s (no cracks, I was in HIGH SCHOOL at the time!) called News & Reviews.
This old friends’ profession was that of a graphic artist. He was just a tiny bit older than myself, and well established and respected in his field. I was a newbie, or a hobbyist, or an entry-level broadcast person ready bid a fond farewell to my teenage years.
Yet I could string a few words together than made sense and what I listened to on radio or tape, or record made for lots of written content. I had developed both fans as well as people who hated me. Some would even call me on the phone using a creative collection of profanity, call me names or make threats. Ahh, such is the life of a writer who speaks his mind!
But there were bright moments as well. In 10th grade I had published an underground newspaper simply called “Rock Review” that one of my favorite teachers quietly ran on the school “ditto” machine. Once I even wrote a feature about Dick Purtan who was then doing mornings on WXYZ-AM, and sent a copy to Mr. Purtan. Much to my surprise, a week or so later, I received a hand-typed note of thanks from Dick Purtan himself on WXYZ/ABC letterhead. There was an aside from Dick to give “his best” to my long-haired ultra-cool English teacher I had at that time.
Much later (after my school days) during the latter years of the 1970s, that afore-mentioned Cincinnati graphic artist / radio fan and I plus another friend would soon team up to publish one of the largest circulating old-time radio magazines of its type. During the mid 1980s he would also start a radio convention in Cincinnati, which is still going strong.
Only this year, I stumbled on an interview he did early this year in a national publication, crediting me by name as the very first “old-time” radio person he was in contact with. It is a cool thing to be remembered and acknowledged. It is never necessary, but it is appreciated.
Back in the day, we called our publication “Collector’s Corner,” which was never a newsletter or newspaper. It was always a magazine and we soon absorbed some of our competition. “National Radio Trader” became a logo that became part of ours. Typesetting services were expensive back in the days before computers, but WE HAD a graphic artist who gladly took old radio tapes as “payment” plus we had our trusty IBM Selectric and Smith Corona typewriters with “film” ribbons that reproduced well.
My co-editor had a business called Nostalgia Warehouse (which I would absorb into my own in later years) and I had a similar business that I had started in high school.
It is no surprise that all of us have remained friends to this day. What is sometimes a surprise – a pleasant one – when one or more of us gets a chance to remember each other to an audience that might not have been around when we were publishing magazines and getting accolades just because we knew how to write and manage each other.
I have “artfully” NOT mentioned most of the names here since you wouldn’t know them anyway. They do know who they are, although they may not realize the impact they made on my life and to a degree, still do.
But again, there is still nothing like the people of the present – those who may wonder what led to us knowing what know. They may actually be surprised that someone like me will so readily stop on a dime to help someone regardless of what we may have been in the middle of.
My colleagues today may have the same attitude, but simply arrived at that mentality in a different way. But they are, in fact, my teachers of today, yet they may also be my students on a different day. Obviously, we don’t need anyone to sneak into the office during lunch breaks to “publish” our thoughts. No "ditto" publications these days with the purple ink!
Instead, we publish it on a blog site.
As for the Collector’s Corner-National Radio Trader “Art Director,” today he has a computer too, and is not afraid to use it. But he has not forgotten those people who gave him content when the typewriters were still on our desks, or who sent him that missing I Love a Mystery episode.
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