KGO Talk Host History
Swelf Yoffsen
nothing on this at all.
In the mid-sixties, Owen Spann was on in the morning, Jim Dunbar in
the afternoon. Wasn't someone named Harvey on in the early evening?
He was followed by the great Ira Blue (anyone know about when he died,
and whether he retired first?). I have a hard time explaining Ira to
those who never heard him. He had an unusual voice for radio. The
only way I can describe it is that it sounded a bit like Howard
Cosell's, although Ira wasn't the ego-driven caricature that Howard
was. I think Ira was the station's best-ever host.
Saturday morning brought KGO's only conservative, John Broom.
By 1969, Jim Moore, another outstanding host, was on maybe 1:00 to
4:00 a.m. I didn't appreciate him because I was still mired in
conservative Republicanism.
By this time Pat Michaels was igniting a firestorm of controversy with
his impassioned conservatism, amid charges that he'd been a liberal at
his previous station. His combative style made him sound more like he
belonged at KNEW.
About that time Jim Eason came on Saturdays (and Sundays?) as, of all
things, an anti-war liberal. I also began to hear the conservative
Russ Coughlan, whom I think eventually replaced Ira.
In the mid-seventies, Jim Eason had the morning slot. (I guess Owen
Spann was also heard in the morning.) I think Art Finley had the
early afternoon and Ronn Owens the late afternoon. (I didn't like
Ronn at first because he seemed glib and facile. He still does, but I
have other reasons for liking him.) By the late seventies, Bob Trebor
was comfortably ensconced in Jim Moore's old spot, and I think Jazzbo
Collins took it over after that. (I know Jazzbo's a legend, but I've
never understood why because he bores me terribly.)
For a while (in the seventies?) KGO had a sportstalk slot in the
evening, filled first by Ken Dido and then Hank Greenwald. Amazingly,
I just heard Dido as I was writing this! I guess he's back.
It seemed to me Eason began to overshadow the others, and by 1980 or
so he actually had a television show that came on after Nightline.
About then he read Harry Browne's _How I Found Freedom in an Unfree
World_, and moved from liberalism to libertarianism. In the
mid-eighties, he seemed to lose energy and no longer argued very much,
which disappointed me because in his prime he was a great debater.
In the eighties, Quentin Kopp had a great weekend program. Ray
Taliaferro (whom I'd enjoyed in the late sixties on KNEW with Van
Amburg, Robin King, Joe Dolan, Ron Dunn and Travus T. Hipp (Hipp still
broadcasts fascinating daily commentary on KPIG)) suddenly appeared,
as did Bill Wattenberg. (Was Wattenberg better then, or have I just
gotten sick and tired of what he's always done?) English professor
Michael Krasney came on weekday evenings after Ronn. Noah Griffin had
what's now Ray's spot (he was vastly superior to the annoying and
repititious Ray).
A somewhat boring host who might have been named Dave (something) was
Chris Clarke's predecessor. Anyone remember his name?
When Spann left, Ronn took his spot and Lee Rogers took Ronn's. Lee
invited Bernie every Wednesday for an hour-and-a-half debate, the
"Wednesday Night Fights." I made some tapes to analyze how Lee could
hold his own against the more knowledgeable and better debater Bernie.
Lee had two tools. As great a debater as Bernie is, he has
weaknesses, chief among them his tendency to take extreme and
unreasonable positions in the heat of the moment. (Conservatives won't
understand this because it looks to them as though liberals are
normally unreasonable. Many liberals feel the same way about
conservatives. But the truth is, conservatives and liberals can seem
either reasonable or unreasonable to moderates, even when the
moderates disagree with them. It's a fine distinction but an important
one.) Lee's main strength is that, when he wants to, he can always
stay within the bounds of reasonableness as I've defined it. Lee's
other tool was that his function as host was to bring up one issue
after another, presenting the first argument on each. Bernie would
always have a counter to Lee's points. If Lee didn't have an answer
to Bernie, he could just go onto the next issue, and the audience
wouldn't know because the format dictated that Bernie have the last
word on each issue.
I forget when Bernie started Godtalk.
When Lee went to Seattle[?], Duane Garrett, attorney and nationally
known Democratic strategist (he'd managed Diane Feinstein's successful
senatorial campaign), took his spot. Duane was the only KGO host as
knowledgeable about politics as John Rothmann. However, Duane was a
better debater.
About 1993, what I believe to have been a policy change took place.
Hosts suddenly became more extreme and combative, and the rule against
criticizing fellow hosts was jettisoned. Michael Krasney left, and I
suspect it was because he refused to adopt this new style. I thought
Bernie was the obvious choice to replace him, but was surprised that
he was only given the slot on some sort of trial basis. He was great,
on his best behavior, making extravagant promises about all the
marvelous guests he would have and all the special programs and
remotes. (And he has the nerve to slam politicians who break
promises.) He begged the audience to send letters to the station
asking that he be given the spot permanently. After several weeks the
station did, and Bernie's career soon seemed to take off. I think he
was the first (not counting Deannie Dell) to go into syndication.
Ever since this was cancelled, Bernie has seemed depressed. He rarely
prepares for his show and often doesn't seem to care even when he's
only the air. I think he's the best pure debater KGO has had, and
perhaps potentially the best host. But his many shortcomings limit
his effectiveness, and I can rarely stand listening to him anymore.
One highlight of the late eighties was a weekend debate between Bernie
and Duane on school vouchers. It was close, but, to my surprise,
Bernie seemed to have the edge.
Was Michael Savage only on weekends?
One day in the summer of 1995, Duane tragically decided to jump off
the Golden Gate Bridge, in my opinion because he felt he had lost his
honor. Amazingly, just before the jump, he broadcast his last show
and it sounded perfectly ordinary. He sounded as enthusiastic as
ever.
I think there were several weeks or months when different hosts were
given trials in Duane's spot. (Unless I'm confusing this with another
opening.) It was eventually given to Gene Burns, who disappointed at
first but has grown on me since.
That's about as many spots as I can remember. I'd appreciate it if
others could correct my faulty recollections, or name hosts I've
neglected, or otherwise flesh out the chronology.
Swelf
Cubit
detail.
Ira Blue was my favorite. I listenned on a crystal radio every night. He
had a lot of niagra bed commercials, as I recall. Ira would play devil's
advocate and argue the opposite of whatever the caller was saying.... I
rember hearing Rhapsody In Blue (his bumper music) a zillion times.
In the late 60s, I think, in the afternoon I would listen to Robert K Doran.
He was a hawk during the Vietnam war. He taught me about the dominoe
theory. His bumper music was the theme from the movie Patton.
Alfred Weiner
Kindly excuse the newbie :)
Swelf Yoffsen
>Ira Blue was my favorite. I listened on a crystal radio every night. He
>had a lot of niagra bed commercials, as I recall.
You're correct, as usual, Cubit. Niagra Cyclo-Massage.
>Ira would play devil's
>advocate and argue the opposite of whatever the caller was saying.... I
>rember hearing Rhapsody In Blue (his bumper music) a zillion times.
Right.
>In the late 60s, I think, in the afternoon I would listen to Robert K Doran.
>He was a hawk during the Vietnam war. He taught me about the dominoe
>theory. His bumper music was the theme from the movie Patton.
Thanks for that, although I have no recollection of him at all.
Swelf Yoffsen
>Umm..what about Gene Burns? Was he not around in 80s?
Gene may have started as a fill-in in the late '80s. I didn't hear
him until 1995, but a libertarian friend of mine was lauding him in
the late '80s, I think.
As I mentioned, I was disappointed at first, but gradually came to
appreciate him. I was shocked at how good he was tonight at the San
Jose Fairmont. The first hour was immigration, the second and third
the recent police shooting of the Vietnamese-American woman -- two
"incendiary topics," as he correctly noted. Gene had guests
representing both sides and simply moderated. He was terrific, just
as he is on Dining Around. One could never guess he would be that
good just from hearing his regular show, where he pontificates on
"issues of the day" like some politicized Frasier Crane.
>Kindly excuse the newbie :)
I actually like newbies, but you're smart to be wary. Usenet can be a
harsh mistress.
Keith
David Kaye
> Can anyone fill in some of the blanks for me? KGO's website has
> nothing on this at all.
It's really too bad, since KGO has an interesting history as a talk
station.
> In the mid-sixties, Owen Spann was on in the morning, Jim Dunbar in
> the afternoon. Wasn't someone named Harvey on in the early evening?
Hmmm...doesn't ring a bell. A KYA (1260) DJ named Les Stein moved to
KGO where he became known as Les Crane, and later went onto some fame
in Hollywood as a TV personality. He was on 7 to 10pm, I'm pretty
sure.
And let's see, there were Coyle and Sharpe on the Loose from 7 to
10pm. Folklore has it that Jim Dunbar had them on KGO until an ABC
exec from NYC happened to tune in thought the show was blasphemous or
something and had it immediately canned.
Bob Trebor and Jim Moore (who I think were both left-over staff
announcers from the old KGO) had that shift, too.
In 1972, Roy Elwell (aka Scott Bridges from KEWB) came back to town
and had a show on KGO briefly.
> He was followed by the great Ira Blue (anyone know about when he died,
> and whether he retired first?). I have a hard time explaining Ira to
> those who never heard him. He had an unusual voice for radio. The
> only way I can describe it is that it sounded a bit like Howard
> Cosell's, although Ira wasn't the ego-driven caricature that Howard
> was. I think Ira was the station's best-ever host.
Definitely, Ira Blue was a fun listen. He retired and was quite
active in local commercials later. I believe he'd been at KGO for
decades prior as a sportscaster.
>
> Saturday morning brought KGO's only conservative, John Broom.
John Broom was canned for what I thought was an unfair situation. He
kept chastising a judge, Bernard Glickfeld for apparently letting a
rapist off with a slap on the wrist. Callers kept calling him
"GlickFIELD", and Broom kept correcting as "GlickFELD". Someone
objected saying that he was emphasizing the Jewishness of the name.
To me, it seemed he was just trying to get the judge's name right.
> By 1969, Jim Moore, another outstanding host, was on maybe 1:00 to
> 4:00 a.m. I didn't appreciate him because I was still mired in
> conservative Republicanism.
Nope, KGO signed off at 1:00am until at least 1975, when Ray Taliafero
was moved from 10-1 to 1-5am. I know for a fact that it was at least
1975 because I specifically remember parking my car a few blocks from
my 1975-76 apartment and listening to the KGO sign-off at 1am.
> By this time Pat Michaels was igniting a firestorm of controversy with
> his impassioned conservatism, amid charges that he'd been a liberal at
> his previous station. His combative style made him sound more like he
> belonged at KNEW.
Pat Michaels WAS at KNEW, as was Joe Dolan. I don't remember Pat
Michaels ever being at KGO.
By the way, there were occasional guest hosts from other stations on
KGO on the weekends. Among them were ex-KEWB/KNEW newser, Ron Dunn;
Gene Nelson from KYA/KSFO, and (unless my mind is playing tricks on
me) even Russ Syracuse. These were just occasional guest shots,
probably designed to get crossover audience from their main stations.
> About that time Jim Eason came on Saturdays (and Sundays?) as, of all
> things, an anti-war liberal. I also began to hear the conservative
> Russ Coughlan, whom I think eventually replaced Ira.
Coughlan (aka "Coglin") was rather late in the talkshow game, having
been sales manager at KGO for some years. He'd had an earlier career
as a radio personality at KROW (now KABL 960), from what I've heard.
> I think Art Finley had the
> early afternoon and Ronn Owens the late afternoon.
I don't remember Art Finley on anytime but 7 to 10pm, though you may
be right. I'm still trying to find the Ronn and Art Finley jingles (I
have the Owen Spann and the generic jingles from that era).
> (I know Jazzbo's a legend, but I've
> never understood why because he bores me terribly.)
At one time Jazzbeaux was an original. But, one can only be original
for a short time before it becomes necessary to change the schtick.
Unfortunately, he never did. It was interesting that he was able to
move from being a jazz DJ to being a talkshow host, but I suspect his
demographics skewed in the 75+ male range.
> For a while (in the seventies?) KGO had a sportstalk slot in the
> evening, filled first by Ken Dido and then Hank Greenwald. Amazingly,
> I just heard Dido as I was writing this! I guess he's back.
Ken Dito ("Ken Dito, we can make it together..." arrggghhh...why does
Tony Orlando haunt me so?) has been around KGO for some time.
> In the eighties, Quentin Kopp had a great weekend program.
Great? I thought it was so awful that I figured he was on KGO as a
political move to stay in good graces with someone. The years he was
on KGO he never seemed to grasp the concepts of timing, of call
control, or any other fundamentals. To me, he violates Rich Wood's
philosophy that it's possible to teach anyone to be a talkshow host if
they have something to say.
> (Was Wattenberg better then, or have I just
> gotten sick and tired of what he's always done?)
Wattenberg was once a great talkshow host. He was an incredible
phenomenon, a fascinating listen. Now, he's a crotchety geezer. If
he has ratings, it's likely because his only competition is syndie
talk reruns and ESPN Radio.
> Noah Griffin had
> what's now Ray's spot (he was vastly superior to the annoying and
> repititious Ray).
Ahhh...and Sonny Buxton (longtime co-owner of Jazz at Pearl's). He
was a weekend and fill-in KGO host. Fabulous host; a single man who
talked about things that mattered, such as what does a single guy do
on Christmas. He got a lot of the holiday fill-ins.
> About 1993, what I believe to have been a policy change took place.
> Hosts suddenly became more extreme and combative, and the rule against
> criticizing fellow hosts was jettisoned.
An unfortunate change as far as I'm concerned. Still, KGO is *very*
tame and reasoned compared to just about any other commercial talk
station you can name. KGO sounds like an oasis of sanity in an insane
talkradio world.
> Michael Krasney left, and I
> suspect it was because he refused to adopt this new style.
He's said as much.
> One day in the summer of 1995, Duane tragically decided to jump off
> the Golden Gate Bridge, in my opinion because he felt he had lost his
> honor.
He'd swindled a bunch of customers of his sports memorabilia business,
and everybody was at his door demanding their money back.
> It was eventually given to Gene Burns, who disappointed at
> first but has grown on me since.
Gene Burns is still disappointing to me. He keeps going on about
retiring and how near death he is and all that. Who wants to hear
that kind of crap? I've been around enough of that in my own life
without turning in to hear it on the radio.
> That's about as many spots as I can remember. I'd appreciate it if
> others could correct my faulty recollections, or name hosts I've
> neglected, or otherwise flesh out the chronology.
In the early KGO days, they used to do remotes. Ira Blue broadcast
from the Hungry i, the nightclub owned by Enrico Banducci, which
featured everyone from Woody Allen to Barbra Streisand and the
Smothers Brothers and Phyllis Diller. Ira broadcast from the "other
room", where he could interview comics and other performers between
their sets.
Owen Spann broadcast from two restaurants. One was Johnny Kan's in
Chinatown and I forget which the other was. Owen Spann interviewed
lots of guests over brunch.
Jim Dunbar explained that KGO had had a ridiculously low profile for
being such a big station, so he purposely did nightly remotes to make
KGO more visible in San Francisco.
Cubit
bumper music?
Late Sunday evenings KGO had some oldtime radio shows. It included one
about the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and some detective stuff like
Sherlock Holmes, but it might not have actually been Sherlock Holmes. I
can't remeber. Great stuff!
Eric C. Weaver
> Was it Jim Eason who had The Dawning of The Age of Aquarious song as his
> bumper music?
That was his opening bumper. His break bumper was Herbie Mann's rendition of
"Hang On I'm a Comin'." I used to listen to him just to hear that.
Steven Rubio
Depending on how far back you're going, this might be Claude the
Magnificent. Played Black Museum and Harry Lime with Orson Welles,
several others. I think this was KGO. And someone told me once that
Jim Dunbar was Claude the Magnificent.
Steven
Buck
Lee was in then process of de-camping for Seattle. Everybody new who the
candidates were, and it the decision was not announced in advance. The first
day, decision day, no announcement was made. You tuned in. You waited, and
then Duane Garrett said hello. That was how it was announced.
Bernie took 10PM to 1AM.
He stayed there until Duane took his life, then took over 7 to 10. Gene
Burns came to town not too many months later, and Ward went back to 10PM to
1AM, where he remains, and will until KGO takes a pass on renewing him. He
has cost them a lot of advertising revenue, including a thirty day
cancellation by Safeway, Inc. He was booted from the active clergy for
immaturity and insubordination, and apparently learned nothing from the
experience.
Do you remember Les Crane?
Buck
"Swelf Yoffsen" <x@y.z> wrote in message
news:3fac574f...@news.sf.sbcglobal.net...
David Kaye
> Late Sunday evenings KGO had some oldtime radio shows. It included one
> about the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and some detective stuff like
> Sherlock Holmes, but it might not have actually been Sherlock Holmes. I
> can't remeber. Great stuff!
I don't remember those specific shows, but I do remember KGO Dreadful
Mysteries, which ran Saturday nights. (Sunday nights was Clergy on
the Line, with a rabbi, priest, and Protestant minister.)
It was actually the Black Museum mysteries which ran in the Dreadful
Mysteries block which introduced me to Orson Welles. I'd otherwise
had no idea who he was until years later. To me he was a radio actor.
Later, KGO ran an ABC production called Theatre Five, which consisted
of 5 new half-hour dramas and comedies. Radio actors such as Robert
Redfield, Mason Adams (then the voice of Smucker's jam), and others
were on these shows. I thought they were pretty well done considering
that the budget wasn't there for radio drama as there had been 20
years earlier.
Here is a list of Theatre Five episodes. I just now realized that ABC
ran them daily, but KGO ran them back-to-back on Saturday evening.
Swelf Yoffsen
wrote:
[...]
>> By 1969, Jim Moore, another outstanding host, was on maybe 1:00 to
>> 4:00 a.m. I didn't appreciate him because I was still mired in
>> conservative Republicanism.
>
>Nope, KGO signed off at 1:00am until at least 1975, when Ray Taliafero
>was moved from 10-1 to 1-5am.
Ray? Did he then leave when Bob Trebor took that spot? I remember
Ray coming to the station in the early '80s, and I think it was 10-1.
>I know for a fact that it was at least
>1975 because I specifically remember parking my car a few blocks from
>my 1975-76 apartment and listening to the KGO sign-off at 1am.
I'll have to defer to you on this one. I know your memory is
exceptional in any case, and here you've tied it to something very
concrete. I'm amazed, though, because my recollection of listening to
Moore late at night in 1969 seems so clear.
>> By this time Pat Michaels was igniting a firestorm of controversy with
>> his impassioned conservatism, amid charges that he'd been a liberal at
>> his previous station. His combative style made him sound more like he
>> belonged at KNEW.
>
>Pat Michaels WAS at KNEW, as was Joe Dolan. I don't remember Pat
>Michaels ever being at KGO.
I think this might be one of the rare cases where you're in error,
David. I don't think Michaels was ever at KNEW. It's just that he
seemed like he should be. I cite the following as support for my
recollection. From:
http://www.440.com/namesm3.html
------- Begin Website Text -------
Pat Michaels
KVEC [San Luis Obispo CA] 1944
KGMB [Honolulu HI] 1944-45
KOY [Phoenix AZ] 1947
Mutual net [Korea] 1950 - war correspondent
KWIZ [Los Angeles CA] 1952
KABC [LA] 1958
KCBQ [San Diego CA] 1963
KGO [San Francisco CA] 1967
KWIZ [LA] 1971 - station mgr
KQLH [San Bernardino CA] 1981-1989 - GM
Now: Pat says (1/03), "I produce/host a weekly news/information cable
TV program for the City of Newport Beach. I also write weekly columns
for such newspapers as The Orange County Register (CA) and The Desert
Sun (Palm Springs). I'm also contributing editor of IMAGE Magazine of
Orange County. The gaps in my radio history were when I worked in TV.
I was an investigative reporter for KTLA, LA, News anchor for XETV,
San Diego/Tijuana and also a field reporter for such stations as KTLA
and KGO-TV in San Francisco often simultaneously while working in
radio."
------- End Website Text -------
Thank you for your valuable contribution, David. I was hoping you'd
weigh in.
Swelf
Swelf Yoffsen
>Late Sunday evenings KGO had some oldtime radio shows. It included one
>about the Royal Canadian Mounted Police,
Come on, Cubit. That wasn't just any show about the Royal Canadian
Mounted Police. That was Sergeant Preston of the Yukon.
>and some detective stuff like
>Sherlock Holmes, but it might not have actually been Sherlock Holmes. I
>can't remeber. Great stuff!
I remember Orson Welles' "The Lives of Harry Lime":
"CRACK! That was the shot that killed Harry Lime. He died in a sewer
beneath Vienna, as those of you know who saw the movie, 'The Third
Man.' Yes, that was the end of Harry Lime. But it was not the
beginning. Harry Lime had many lives. And I can recount all of them.
How do I know? Very simple. Because my name is Harry Lime."
I also remember what Mad Magazine called "The Scarlet Pumpernickel."
Swelf Yoffsen
wrote:
>Duane Garrett and Bernie Ward openly competed for Lee Rodgers 7-10 spot when
>Lee was in then process of de-camping for Seattle. Everybody new who the
>candidates were, and it the decision was not announced in advance. The first
>day, decision day, no announcement was made. You tuned in. You waited, and
>then Duane Garrett said hello. That was how it was announced.
Does anyone recall about when this was? I go through long periods of
not listening to KGO, and this happened during one of them.
What you say explains why Bernie confessed during the week after
Duane's death that he'd been extremely jealous of Duane, both for his
7-10 slot and for his expensive home. They'd been quite friendly when
Duane starting filling in at KGO, but eventually became bitter
enemies, with Bernie apparently the instigator. Bernie would accuse
Duane of broadcasting "in his jackboots," just because Duane was a
moderate rather than a liberal. Duane responded by claiming that
virtually all the employees, right down to the janitors, hated Bernie
for his obnoxious personality. Bernie's eventual on-air confession
was sincere and actually quite moving.
>Bernie took 10PM to 1AM.
Probably about 1993. I think Sludge Thomson moved from KQED to KALW
about the same time.
>He stayed there until Duane took his life, then took over 7 to 10.
He wanted it, but I don't remember him moving to it. I remember Shann
doing it the first week, and then I remember a whole parade of guest
hosts trying out for weeks or months. One was Leo Laporte. But
didn't Shann have a weekday evening slot for a while before being
exiled to weekends (perhaps she had to be shunted aside when Dr. Laura
was taken on)?
>Gene Burns came to town not too many months later,
Gene had been doing fill-in for years. Had he gone back east and then
been called back for this slot by the station?
>and Ward went back to 10PM to
>1AM, where he remains, and will until KGO takes a pass on renewing him. He
>has cost them a lot of advertising revenue, including a thirty day
>cancellation by Safeway, Inc. He was booted from the active clergy for
>immaturity and insubordination, and apparently learned nothing from the
>experience.
>
>Do you remember Les Crane?
Just the name and the TV listing.
bruce thomson
A history of the talk show hosts, with lots of pictures.
leansto...@democrat.com
learn some new tricks or go the way of the Edsel.
BTW, if you heard Phil Hendrie's spoof on the alien rectal probes, it
was a riot to hear Whitley Strieber's comments last Saturday about the
same situation. I got one word for you: electroejaculation
http://www.unknowncountry.com/journal/?id=140
sfdavi...@yahoo.com (David Kaye) wrote in message news:<6b49c602.03110...@posting.google.com>...
<snip>
David Kaye
> He
> has cost them a lot of advertising revenue, including a thirty day
> cancellation by Safeway, Inc.
Do you know this for a fact, or are you just libeling him? How would
you KNOW whether he's cost the station ad revenue? Are you privy to
their books? Do you know the sales manager?
It's one thing to disagree with someone; it's quite another to libel
them because you don't agree with them.
So, how did you come by your inside information that Bernie Ward has
somehow caused a revenue loss to KGO?
Swelf Yoffsen
<bhth...@worldnet.att.net> wrote:
>With KGO tooting their horn as the best listened to radio station for =
>over 25 years in the bay area, perhaps a locally best selling book could =
>be produced by Mr. Yoffsen.
>
>A history of the talk show hosts, with lots of pictures.
Thanks, Bruce. I think KGO should at least produce a few pages for
their website.
I've been thinking of putting up some web pages about KGO myself. I'd
definitely do it if I could think of a way to attact a lot of the
station's listeners, but I can't. No one at KGO would plug it because
I'd feature as much criticism as praise.
David Kaye
> Ray? Did he then leave when Bob Trebor took that spot? I remember
> Ray coming to the station in the early '80s, and I think it was 10-1.
Ray was at KGO before that. I can't remember the exact year, but I
believe it was 1978 when he was honored by ABC for having the biggest
share of any personality at an ABC O&O. I think it was a 33 share.
> I'm amazed, though, because my recollection of listening to
> Moore late at night in 1969 seems so clear.
KGO was an anomaly in that it signed off. I remember them playing the
first stanza of the Star Spangled Banner (the same version KGO-TV
uses), and cutting it abruptly before the second stanza begins. I'd
often thought of it as odd that KGO signed off when co-owned
KGO-FM/KSFX didn't. But the FM was automated during most of that time
and was probably babysat by the TV people.
> I think this might be one of the rare cases where you're in error,
> David. I don't think Michaels was ever at KNEW.
I've sent an email to Pat Michaels; hopefully he can clarify.
> I cite the following as support for my
> recollection. From:
> http://www.440.com/namesm3.html
Unfortunately, I've found 440 Satisfaction to be wrong on numerous
occasions. I think it's mainly fans who send in listings. I'm not
saying they're wrong in the Pat Michaels case, however, though my
recollection puts him at KNEW.
Raymond Chuang
talk show hosts on weekdays:
Ronn Owens 0900-1200
Dr. Dean Eudell 1300-1400
Jim Eason 1400-1600
Lee Rodgers 1900-2200
Michael Krazny 2200-0100
Ray Taliafero 0100-0500
In my humble opinion, this was probably KGO's best lineup _ever_, with hosts
covering both sides of the political spectrum. Taliafero can get very
interesting if he starts talking about his old jazz record collection (he's
got a huge collection).
--
Raymond Chuang
Sacramento, CA USA
John Higdon
sfdavi...@yahoo.com (David Kaye) wrote:
> KGO was an anomaly in that it signed off. I remember them playing the
> first stanza of the Star Spangled Banner (the same version KGO-TV
> uses), and cutting it abruptly before the second stanza begins. I'd
> often thought of it as odd that KGO signed off when co-owned
> KGO-FM/KSFX didn't. But the FM was automated during most of that time
> and was probably babysat by the TV people.
When did the FM move to Polk St.? It couldn't have been tended by the TV
people there.
--
John Higdon | Email Address Valid | SF: +1 415 428-COWS
+1 408 264 4115 | Anytown, USA | FAX: +1 408 264 4407
Swelf Yoffsen
wrote:
>x@y.z (Swelf Yoffsen) wrote:
>
>> Ray? Did he then leave when Bob Trebor took that spot? I remember
>> Ray coming to the station in the early '80s, and I think it was 10-1.
>
>Ray was at KGO before that. I can't remember the exact year, but I
>believe it was 1978 when he was honored by ABC for having the biggest
>share of any personality at an ABC O&O. I think it was a 33 share.
You're right. KGO's website reveals that he arrived in 1977, but I
think it was the 10-1 spot until 1986. They say specifically that he
took the late spot in 1986.
I don't know if anyone will believe me, but I heard Dan Sorkin fill in
several times on KGO, probably in the eighties.
I have much more to post, but I'm short of time, so I'll have to
dribble it out in small pieces.
Swelf Yoffsen
Hello Raymond,
Yes, I saw in the archives where you posted this before, and I
appreciate your contribution. I was able to do some research last
night and I know a lot more now than I did yesterday. The blanks are
rapidly being filled in.
Buck
"David Kaye" <sfdavi...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:6b49c602.03110...@posting.google.com...
> "Buck" <Bu...@BottomlessPit.Net> wrote:
>
> > He
> > has cost them a lot of advertising revenue, including a thirty day
> > cancellation by Safeway, Inc.
>
> Do you know this for a fact, or are you just libeling him? How would
> you KNOW whether he's cost the station ad revenue? Are you privy to
> their books? Do you know the sales manager?
>
> It's one thing to disagree with someone; it's quite another to libel
> them because you don't agree with them.
>
> So, how did you come by your inside information that Bernie Ward has
> somehow caused a revenue loss to KGO?
It was in the media reportage of the San Francisco Chronicle when it
happened, and again when the rumors were afoot that Ward would not be
renewed when his contract expired in the following October. That was, of
course, in the year that the meteor that is Bernie Ward, left the atmosphere
for the glory, glamor (and gelt!) of syndication, and burned to a bitter
crisp on re-entry.
It was also discussed in this forum.
It is almost impossible to libel or slander Bernie Ward. He is a culturally
and historically illiterate liar, bully and racist of the first water.
Thanks for playing,
Buck
David Kaye
> When did the FM move to Polk St.? It couldn't have been tended by the TV
> people there.
Well, let's see. George Yahraes was manager of the FM at that time.
He'd been the inventor of the "ABC Love" format, an automated format
consisting of very hippie-oriented music and magazine format
programming. This began in 1968. I believe it lasted until 1970. At
that time, George moved here and became manager of KGO-FM or KSFX or
whatever it was called.
When the disco movement was in flower, he moved the studio to SF's
disco neighborhood, Polk Street. So, I'd peg that as about 1973. I'm
trying to remember if I was living on Pine or Ellis at the time. The
station was live-assist and then automated overnight.
The situation with the FM was that the last DJ just punched a button
and locked the door behind him. At *that* time, monitoring was done
by KGO-TV. I remember George telling me that.
KSFX had an interesting studio. They were union, so had the duo
(announcer and board op) situation. But, rather than have a wall,
they phased the monitor speakers and placed them precisely so that the
the announcer and board op could sit across from each other with no
feedback and no window needed!
George Yahraes was later involved with the old City Nightclub on
Montgomery and Broadway, where he operated a jewelry store.
More than you ever wanted to know about 103.7, eh?
David Kaye
> Lee Rodgers 1900-2200 [....]
> In my humble opinion, this was probably KGO's best lineup _ever_, with hosts
> covering both sides of the political spectrum.
I never found Lee Rodgers as interesting as Art Finley, who was in
that time slot prior, but then decided to move to Vancouver.
Mark Howell
wrote:
>KSFX had an interesting studio. They were union, so had the duo
>(announcer and board op) situation. But, rather than have a wall,
>they phased the monitor speakers and placed them precisely so that the
>the announcer and board op could sit across from each other with no
>feedback and no window needed!
That's the way WABC, NY was set up during its glory years as a Top 40
station.
Mark Howell
John Higdon
sfdavi...@yahoo.com (David Kaye) wrote:
> More than you ever wanted to know about 103.7, eh?
Oh, I don't know. It is amazing what you can tell about a station when
you purchase its old automation system.
Ciccio
> When the disco movement was in flower, he moved the studio to SF's
> disco neighborhood, Polk Street. So, I'd peg that as about 1973. I'm
> trying to remember if I was living on Pine or Ellis at the time. The
> station was live-assist and then automated overnight.
Well, I definitely went the Polk St. studios in '78.
Ciccio
John Higdon
"Ciccio" <cic...@attbi.com> wrote:
And I definitely picked up the Harris automation from Polk St. sometime
in '83 or '84. But I don't recall if the station was still broadcasting
from there or not.
Ciccio
> I never found Lee Rodgers as interesting as Art Finley, who was in
> that time slot prior, but then decided to move to Vancouver.
The problem is childhood impressions. I could never shake him as Mayor Art.
Likewise with Bob March. Just about every boomer I knew who grew up in the
BA referred to him as Captain Satellite even into adulthood.
Ciccio
Swelf Yoffsen
wrote:
>"Raymond Chuang" <rch...@goodbye.mindspring.com> wrote:
>
>> Lee Rodgers 1900-2200 [....]
>
>> In my humble opinion, this was probably KGO's best lineup _ever_, with hosts
>> covering both sides of the political spectrum.
>
>I never found Lee Rodgers as interesting as Art Finley,
I agree with you, as I do about 75% of the time. The other 25% has me
shaking my head as to how anyone could possibly think as you do. I'm
sure you react the same way to some of my opinions.
You're correct to couch your remark here as a subjective call. The
only objective measure of "interesting" is "popular," which we can't
detect just by listening.
>who was in
>that time slot prior, but then decided to move to Vancouver.
In 1975, I remember hearing Jim Eason in the morning and Art Finley in
the afternoon, followed by Ronn Owens. I have no idea who was on in
the evening, or even if the news was 4-7 as it is now.
I don't know when Art left, or who took his place.
I called Ronn once in 1977, and it could have been late afternoon or
the 7-10 spot. By 1981, he was certainly on 7-10. I remember him
resisting a Reagan critic by saying, "I said I'd give Reagan a year to
win me over and that's what I'm going to do."
At that time, I think Michael Krasny was 10-1. But, if so, where was
Ray? We know Ray was "moved" to 1-5 in 1986, when a favorite of mine,
Noah Griffin, was for mysterious reasons shown the door. (In
fairness, he was given plenty of time to get his hat and coat.) But I
refuse to believe that Michael hadn't been doing 10-1 for at least
several years before that.
Owen Spann probably went to NYC in 1986 or 1987. You yourself once
eloquently described the circumstances:
------- Begin archived text of David Kaye -------
From what I remember, he didn't especially want to move to NYC, but
because a son of his commited suicide, he was so distraught that he
felt he needed to move and start a fresh life. It was an extremely
trying time for him. He and his wife had written a book about
"blended" families, and had felt that they had given all their kids a
loving home.
He was on the ABC Talkradio network in the mid-80s, but his ratings
weren't very good. When he left the slot, ABC abandoned the timeslot
and EFM Media Services took it over, launching Rush Limbaugh
nationally.
I met Owen Spann once, some years ago and found him to be a gracious
guy and a good listener. I wish him the best.
------- End archived text of David Kaye -------
I would add that I think the president of EMF was none other than Ed
McLaughlin, who'd been KGO's general manager from 1964 to 1972.
McLaughlin, incidentally, thinks Rush would have done "great" even as
a liberal. "So little of it has to do with ideology," he has said.
Ronn took Spann's spot and Lee Rodgers took over 7-10. Soon
thereafter, something happened that astounded me. The legendary Art
Finley surfaced on KCBS to go head-to-head with Lee. I was pulling
for Art and thought he consistently put on a better show, despite
Lee's undisputed professionalism and work ethic. However, Lee
apparently crushed him in the ratings, possibly because few talk radio
listeners suspected anything but news was going on at KCBS.
Were you alluding to this KCBS stint of Art's, David?
David Kaye
> Oh, I don't know. It is amazing what you can tell about a station when
> you purchase its old automation system.
Are you talking about the old Schafer 800? I thought Vern Hatfield
bought that for KNGT. Or was this a later system?
BriMaloney
retirement choice, a beautiful city.
David Kaye
> I agree with you, as I do about 75% of the time. The other 25% has me
> shaking my head as to how anyone could possibly think as you do. I'm
> sure you react the same way to some of my opinions.
If I knew who you were, I'd be able to offer a reaction, but prior to
this thread I don't recall seeing your name before. However, since I
usually pay more attention to a thread than to the particular authors
(unless they have unique styles I've seen many times before), I
sometimes have no idea who wrote what.
> You're correct to couch your remark here as a subjective call. The
> only objective measure of "interesting" is "popular," which we can't
> detect just by listening.
Not being in the advertising business, I'm not as concerned with
popularity as I am with the ability to hold my attention.
> I have no idea who was on in
> the evening, or even if the news was 4-7 as it is now.
Since its beginnings with Ray Tannehill anchoring in the early days,
KGO has always had an afternoon drive news block, either 4 to 7 or
(briefly) 4 to 6pm.
> McLaughlin, incidentally, thinks Rush would have done "great" even as
> a liberal. "So little of it has to do with ideology," he has said.
I agree. As Phil Hendrie put it so well when it was revealed that
Rush was a junkie, "He's an entertainer. He's only an entertainer.
He's playing a role."
> Soon
> thereafter, something happened that astounded me. The legendary Art
> Finley surfaced on KCBS to go head-to-head with Lee. [....]
> Were you alluding to this KCBS stint of Art's, David?
I was actually thinking that Art Finley moved to Vancouver after KGO
and then came back to the Bay Area and went to KCBS, but I could be
totally wrong. I seem to remember that Finley twice went to Vancouver
and once to Tijuana.
John Higdon
sfdavi...@yahoo.com (David Kaye) wrote:
I got the Harris 9003 automation, its successor. It was used at KDFC to
replace the legacy kidmation.
Darkjourney
Nixx is very hazy. I remember Leslie Marshall for awhile. They tried George
Weber for a spell, but he didn't work out. I am a blank otherwise.
scolopendra
>
> I've been thinking of putting up some web pages about KGO myself. I'd
> definitely do it if I could think of a way to attact a lot of the
> station's listeners, but I can't. No one at KGO would plug it because
> I'd feature as much criticism as praise.
That would be great. Why not? KGO's got a lot of history behind it,
and it's one of the most prolific stations around. It's kind of
surprising that they they don't have an online exhibit or a museum for
their past exploits. I'd love to hear a whole day's broadcast of
archived programs from the '60s and '70s, it sounds like a whole
different station, well it was, yes..
I started listening regularly in the early '90s, and even then it
wasn't as "normal" and conservative as it is now. What I mean by
"conservative" is that there's nothing NEW going on. At least in the
mid-90s you had specialty programs about computers, gardening, food,
TV(though Ronn Owens does his share of TV obsessing)some art..nowadays
it's about 98% nauseating political/ideology whoring, and 2% for
everything else.
and why not go forward with the critiques? No one's perfect.
John Higdon
twil...@hotmail.com (scolopendra) wrote:
> That would be great. Why not? KGO's got a lot of history behind it,
> and it's one of the most prolific stations around. It's kind of
> surprising that they they don't have an online exhibit or a museum for
> their past exploits. I'd love to hear a whole day's broadcast of
> archived programs from the '60s and '70s, it sounds like a whole
> different station, well it was, yes..
It is amazing how radio stations seem to care so little about their own
history. When KEEN's Old Oakland Road transmitter site was finally being
fully de-commissioned, I did a walk-through of the transmitter building
which had, over the years, become the repository for all of the "junk"
the station had accumulated during its fifty years of operation.
There were plaques, framed photos, including one taken the night of the
first broadcast at the Hotel De Anza, as well as 16" transscriptions,
tapes, old microphone headpieces with the call letters on them, and tons
of correspondence that was in itself a major historical document. When I
suggested to the owners that they might want to go through some of the
stuff and preserve it, they laughed and told me to take what I wanted
and have the rest hauled to the dump.
Now, there are pieces of the historical KEEN in offices and people's
homes all over the valley. It would seem that only engineers actually
take a proactive interest in preserving stations' histories, while the
performers and sales people look at the business as...well, a business.
KGO isn't the only Bay Area radio station with a rich and interesting
history. In fact some of the more interesting ones are no longer around
(as their original selves). Those who have the histories embedded in
their consciousnesses are now retired and dying off fast.
Tomorrow, interestingly enough, a group of engineering types are going
to History San José to view artifacts from San Jose's own colorful
broadcasting past. The first commercial station in the nation went on in
San Jose (not San Francisco or Pittsburgh) and each of the family-owned
stations in this city (that came on after WWII) has a colorful past.
Many of the talent that became known in San Francisco got its start in
San Jose.
This will be our last chance to see this material before it is all
shipped up to San Francisco where some powers that be think it should be
kept and exhibited.
Of course.
leansto...@democrat.com
think she was on Saturday mornings. Bryna? Brina?
The computer show was done by Leo Laporte (sp). He left to do TV and
was never replaced. The show was OK, but really aimed to much at the
novice and worse yet, Mac user.
The gardening show goes pretty far back. Buzz Berteloro (sp) the dirt
doctor? I'm not sure that was on KGO. KSFO has a gardening show on
Sunday morning and it is OK.
twil...@hotmail.com (scolopendra) wrote in message news:<4128e9eb.03111...@posting.google.com>...
Hank Fung
Well, Michael Savage got his start in that time slot before stepping
up to the big leagues at KSFO and eventual syndication. If I remember,
he left KGO around 1995 or 1996. He'd used "hop on a train" to leave
the station (with the choo-choo sound effects) at the end of his
shift.
--
Hank Fung fun...@ocf.berkeley.edu
Swelf Yoffsen
Savage went in the first wave when Hot Talk KSFO was created in
January 1995. He started on KGO sometime in 1994. According to Jake
Tapper's article in the September 2003 GQ magazine, "KGO, in San
Francisco ... on the evening of March 21, 1994, brought Savage in to
do late-night fill-in work." I assume Savage inherited George Weber's
slot in June 1994, although there's no evidence of that in the
archives.
Weber had the slot from sometime in 1993 to June 1994. He may now
have found his niche as a morning newscaster at WABC:
I can't figure out who took over when Savage left, or who any of
Weber's predecessors were.
Leo LaPorte on Computers was only on Saturdays, August 1996 to
sometime in 1997. I don't know who was on Sunday. Postings I've seen
suggest LaPorte was pre-empted for some period by Dr. Laura (prompting
howls of rage), and slated to return in December 1997. I'm not sure he
ever did come back, due to television committments.
Dr. Laura was also on 4-7, but KGO was apparently juggling her
schedule, and it's hard to track it in the archives. In general,
there's much less information on Usenet about weekend radio.
Shann's weekend run extended (I think) from June 1998 to Feb 2003. No
one seems to have cared enough about her predecessor even to say "good
riddance" on Usenet.
Swelf Yoffsen
(Hank Fung) wrote:
Savage went in the first wave when Hot Talk KSFO was created in
January 1995. According to Jake Tapper's article in the September
Swelf Yoffsen
<ragefort...@earthlink.net> wrote:
[...]
By the way, your infamous "Good, Bad, and Ugly" generated much
interest a few years ago. Why don't you update, revise, and repost?
Swelf
David Kaye
> I thought Finley moved to Victoria rather than Vancouver. Interesting
> retirement choice, a beautiful city.
You may be right. I tend to link Vancouver and Victoria because
they're close. While Victoria is charming and all that, I wonder if he
can really thrive in such an isolated environment after spending
decades in the big city.
David Kaye
> The gardening show goes pretty far back. Buzz Berteloro (sp) the dirt
> doctor? I'm not sure that was on KGO. KSFO has a gardening show on
> Sunday morning and it is OK.
KGO. Bert Bertolero and later his son, Buzz. They owned Navlet's
Nurseries, which sponsored the show. I had the impression that the
show was provided gratis to KGO in exchange for the ads, as there was
always a station host talking with Bert or Buzz.
If it was a free show, it's likely that the show was eliminated in a
policy change. It's probably a good idea. KNEW and KYCY have a
couple of those kinds of shows and they sound like infomercials to me.
As to variety, I agree that KGO is way too political. As soon as I
hear about Iraq, I change the dial or turn the radio off.
Swelf Yoffsen
<absolutel...@verislimesucks.com> wrote:
>It is amazing how radio stations seem to care so little about their own history.
>
>[...]
>
>Of course.
I'm sorry you didn't submit that to the Mercury, John. If I were an
editor, I would have published it.
Buck
"Swelf Yoffsen" <x@y.z> wrote in message
news:3fada307...@news.sf.sbcglobal.net...
> On Sat, 08 Nov 2003 23:44:58 GMT, "Buck" <Bu...@BottomlessPit.Net>
> wrote:
>
> >Duane Garrett and Bernie Ward openly competed for Lee Rodgers 7-10 spot
when
> >Lee was in then process of de-camping for Seattle. Everybody new who the
> >candidates were, and it the decision was not announced in advance. The
first
> >day, decision day, no announcement was made. You tuned in. You waited,
and
> >then Duane Garrett said hello. That was how it was announced.
>
> Does anyone recall about when this was? I go through long periods of
> not listening to KGO, and this happened during one of them.
>
> What you say explains why Bernie confessed during the week after
> Duane's death that he'd been extremely jealous of Duane, both for his
> 7-10 slot and for his expensive home. They'd been quite friendly when
> Duane starting filling in at KGO, but eventually became bitter
> enemies, with Bernie apparently the instigator. Bernie would accuse
> Duane of broadcasting "in his jackboots," just because Duane was a
> moderate rather than a liberal. Duane responded by claiming that
> virtually all the employees, right down to the janitors, hated Bernie
> for his obnoxious personality. Bernie's eventual on-air confession
> was sincere and actually quite moving.
>
> >Bernie took 10PM to 1AM.
>
> Probably about 1993. I think Sludge Thomson moved from KQED to KALW
> about the same time.
>
> >He stayed there until Duane took his life, then took over 7 to 10.
>
> He wanted it, but I don't remember him moving to it. I remember Shann
> doing it the first week, and then I remember a whole parade of guest
> hosts trying out for weeks or months. One was Leo Laporte. But
> didn't Shann have a weekday evening slot for a while before being
> exiled to weekends (perhaps she had to be shunted aside when Dr. Laura
> was taken on)?
Bernie Got it in a short while, then got bounced back to 10PM to 1AM in mid-
1998. He said 'to make more room for Dr. Laura.' Well, if such was the case,
Dr. Laura got moved to make more room for Gene Burns!
>
> >Gene Burns came to town not too many months later,
>
> Gene had been doing fill-in for years. Had he gone back east and then
> been called back for this slot by the station?
I first became aware of him in the days when KSFO was in flux between the
mixed market of G. Gordon Liddy, Peter B. Collins, and Enid Goldstein
(competing for the smug and cynical trophies), and the conservative market
it serves today. He was syndicated out of New England, and talked tough on a
lot of issues. He's just gone smoosh out here. He's a complete chameleon,
and doesn't have half the intellect he fronts.
>
> >and Ward went back to 10PM to
> >1AM, where he remains, and will until KGO takes a pass on renewing him.
He
> >has cost them a lot of advertising revenue, including a thirty day
> >cancellation by Safeway, Inc. He was booted from the active clergy for
> >immaturity and insubordination, and apparently learned nothing from the
> >experience.
> >
> >Do you remember Les Crane?
>
> Just the name and the TV listing.
Les Crane was Les Stein, running the music programming at KYA. In '62 or so,
the GM at KGO brought him on to do talk from 10P to 1A. It was revolutionary
for the town. He broadcast from the Hungry I, and had as guests people the
like of Johnathan(SP?) Winters and Bill Dana. The City was pretty hip and
user friendly in those days. North Beach was all jazz and food. A few Beats
still around. The flower children were still in junior high school. Crane
was VERY successful. He got picked up by TV, went to NY against Johnny
Carson. GOT KILLED. Did a very big flop movie. (Minor role, 'An American
Dream', from Mailer's crappy novel.) Married Tina Louise for four years.
Stayed in LA Radio, last I heard, if he's still breathing.
That three years on KGO made him. (He also recorded that lame-ass fraud
'Desiderata'. Ken Nordine he wasn't!)
I actually think that he was the big kick behind talk taking off in Northern
California, not Ira Blue. Most college agers in that time listened to and
talked about Les Crane; nightclubbers, jazz fans, comedy fans, et al.
I used to dump off a lot of studying to listen lat into the night to les
crane. He was the regional radio equivalent of Steve Allen.
Buck
Mark Howell
wrote:
>
>KGO. Bert Bertolero and later his son, Buzz. T
Bert was on KCBS when I worked there.
Mark Howell
David Kaye
> Les Crane was Les Stein, running the music programming at KYA. In '62 or so,
> the GM at KGO brought him on to do talk from 10P to 1A. It was revolutionary
> for the town. He broadcast from the Hungry I, and had as guests people the
> like of Johnathan(SP?) Winters and Bill Dana. The City was pretty hip and
> user friendly in those days. North Beach was all jazz and food. A few Beats
> still around. The flower children were still in junior high school. Crane
> was VERY successful.
This is the best description of that era I've come across in a long
time. I wasn't old enough to partake in it, except by radio, though.
> I actually think that he was the big kick behind talk taking off in Northern
> California, not Ira Blue. Most college agers in that time listened to and
> talked about Les Crane; nightclubbers, jazz fans, comedy fans, et al.
Even the name, "Les Crane" has a certain hipness to it. This is one
thing missing from the talkradio landscape these days, hipness. I go
to hip clubs, but none of this translates to the radio. It's an
invisible universe if one's only connection to Bay Area culture is
listening to the radio or reading the Chron.
John Higdon
sfdavi...@yahoo.com (David Kaye) wrote:
> Even the name, "Les Crane" has a certain hipness to it. This is one
> thing missing from the talkradio landscape these days, hipness. I go
> to hip clubs, but none of this translates to the radio.
I sure wish I knew where you found all this time to hit the bars, clubs,
and parties.
Swelf Yoffsen
wrote:
>I first became aware of him in the days when KSFO was in flux between the
>mixed market of G. Gordon Liddy, Peter B. Collins, and Enid Goldstein
>(competing for the smug and cynical trophies), and the conservative market
>it serves today.
My libertarian friend may have simply heard him on KSFO, then. It
begins to sound like Gene wouldn't have filled in at KGO before Ronn's
walkout.
Great background on Les Crane. I was just a bit too young, but I'm
sorry I missed him.
[snip much excellent history]
>That three years on KGO made him. (He also recorded that lame-ass fraud
>'Desiderata'. Ken Nordine he wasn't!)
Here, I would respectfully disagree, Buck. Desiderata was erroneously
attributed to a church in 1692, but not fraudulently.
From:
http://www.snopes.com/language/document/desidera.htm
------- Begin Snopes text -------
As pureheartedly meaningful as its words are, Desiderata's history
doesn't quite match up with the fable built around it. The poem wasn't
penned by one of our nameless ancestors many centuries ago; it was
written in 1927 by Max Ehrmann (1872-1945). This selfless writer of
many centuries ago was actually a lawyer from Terre Haute, Indiana.
Like most of Ehrmann's writings, Desiderata failed to attract much
attention during his lifetime; three years after his death, his widow
had it and some of his other works published as The Poems of Max
Ehrmann.
Confusion over Desiderata's authorship arose in 1956 when a Maryland
pastor used the poem in a collection of mimeographed material for the
congregation of Old St. Paul's Church in Baltimore. He'd been fond of
essays and poems of an inspirational nature, and it was often his
practice to mimeograph writings he liked, form them into booklets, and
place them in pews around the church. The Desiderata booklet was
printed on letterhead emblazoned "Old St. Paul's Church, Baltimore,
A.D. 1692" (the year of the church's founding).
Some member of that congregation must have liked the poem well enough
to pass along to a friend. From there it passed through many hands,
along the way losing the attribution to Max Ehrmann and gaining --
through a muddling of the letterhead's message -- the claim that the
work itself had been discovered in Old St. Paul's church in 1692.
The poem then found a foothold in California, where San Francisco's
"flower children" embraced it delightedly as a centuries-old
affirmation of their philosophy of love and peace. From there it
spread as underground printers, thinking they were dealing with a work
in the public domain, started cranking out inexpensive posters.
The piece hit a new level of popularity after a copy was found on
Adlai Stevenson's bedside table when he died in 1965. He'd been
intending to use the "ancient" poem in his Christmas cards.
The spoken version of Desiderata earned a Grammy award for Les Crane
in 1971. Like many others, he'd seen the words on a poster and
mistakenly thought them to be in the public domain. That error cost
him -- he was later forced to share the royalties with the late
Ehrmann's family. (Ehrmann's original 1927 copyright was renewed in
1954 by Bertha Ehrmann, and is now held by Robert L. Bell of Sarasota,
Florida.) It seems Crane had failed to heed the poem's exhortation to
"exercise caution in your business affairs."
------- End Snopes text -------
However, "Desiderata" itself is but a pale shadow of the far more
beautiful "Deteriorata," intoned by the great Norman Rose on 1972's
_Radio Dinner_.
------- Begin Christopher Guest's text -------
Go placidly amid the noise and waste, and remember what comfort there
may be in owning a piece thereof.
Avoid quiet and passive persons, unless you are in need of sleep.
Rotate your tires.
Speak glowingly of those greater than yourself, and heed well their
advice, even though they be turkeys.
Know what to kiss, and when.
Consider that two wrongs never make a right, but that three do.
Wherever possible, put people on hold.
Be comforted, that in the face of all aridity and disillusionment, and
despite the changing fortunes of time, there is always a big future in
computer maintenance.
Remember the Pueblo.
Strive at all times to bend, fold, spindle, and mutilate.
Know yourself. If you need help, call the F.B.I.
Exercise caution in your daily affairs, especially with those persons
closest to you; that lemon on your left, for instance.
Be assured that a walk through the ocean of most souls will scarcely
get your feet wet. Fall not in love therefore; it will stick to your
face.
Gracefully surrender the things of youth; birds, clean air, tuna,
Taiwan. And let not the sand of time get into your lunch.
Hire people with hooks.
For a good time, call 606-4311. Ask for Ken.
Take heart, in the deepening gloom, that your dog is finally getting
enough cheese. And reflect that whatever misfortune may be your lot,
it could only be worse in Milwaukee.
You are a fluke of the universe. You have no right to be here. And
whether you can hear it or not, the universe is laughing behind your
back.
Therefore, make peace with your god, whatever you conceive him to be
-- hairy thunderer or cosmic muffin. With all its hopes, dreams,
promises, and urban renewal, the world continues to deteriorate.
Give up.
------- End Christopher Guest's text -------
Squelch
AB>Tomorrow, interestingly enough, a group of engineering types are going
AB>to History San José to view artifacts from San Jose's own colorful
AB>broadcasting past. The first commercial station in the nation went on in
AB>San Jose (not San Francisco or Pittsburgh) and each of the family-owned
AB>stations in this city (that came on after WWII) has a colorful past.
AB>Many of the talent that became known in San Francisco got its start in
AB>San Jose.
Crud, I would have attended. Teaches me for not being glued to my
mailbox 24/7. Is there a website that lists such events? I actually
have some artifacts from the Wooster site back in the 80's. I wish I
could have attended.
-Mike
Bang
> > wrote:
> Crane was VERY successful. He got picked up by TV, went to NY against Johnny
> Carson. GOT KILLED. That three years on KGO made him. (He also recorded that > lame-ass fraud 'Desiderata'. Ken Nordine he wasn't!)
He must've had the TV gig around 1966 or so--I clearly remember a
print ad for his show that was everywhere, showing Crane holding one
of the "phaser rifles" used on the old Star Trek series.
> I actually think that he was the big kick behind talk taking off in Northern
> California, not Ira Blue. Most college agers in that time listened to and
> talked about Les Crane; nightclubbers, jazz fans, comedy fans, et al.
Yep, Crane was certainly king during that mid-to-late Sixties
"Frank Bullitt" kind of San Francisco...
B.V.
John Higdon
> Crud, I would have attended. Teaches me for not being glued to my
> mailbox 24/7. Is there a website that lists such events? I actually
> have some artifacts from the Wooster site back in the 80's. I wish I
> could have attended.
Unfortunately, not all of life is on a website. Personal networking
still counts for something. If you want to see the stuff, go on Friday.
Details are in another post in this thread.
Buck
"Bang" <Bang_V...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:137f73b6.03111...@posting.google.com...
Yep! It used to be a class town.
No Mas!
I slip in the back door (Ocean Beach/Geary), leave my money at O'Joe's, and
head back home.
Buck
>
> B.V.
Ciccio
news:7Tusb.138$l_7...@newssvr13.news.prodigy.com...
> Yep! It used to be a class town.
>
> No Mas!
I agree. Or I should say, I have agreed for the past 25-30 years. If there
is one thing I am glad I did in my life, it's moving from SF. I was born and
raised there, as was my dad, and my first family members arrived in 1900.
When I was a kid SF was loaded with my family members. Heck, in North Beach
alone, you could drop me anywhere and I'd be within 2 blocks max of a family
member's house. Now, I have just 2 cousions who live anywhere in SF. My
sister 2 years ago was the last one to flee and she's kicking herself for
having waited so long.
It's too bad I was only able to enjoy living in the ol' San Francisco for
just a few years of my adulthood. As much as I wished otherwise, I saw the
handwriting on the wall, so I got the hell out. But I sure did enjoy
growing up there as a kid. I do continue to visit, however, SF haunts
where natives, who also moved out, congregate. It's almost like an
underground reunion.
Ciccio
David Kaye
> I sure wish I knew where you found all this time to hit the bars, clubs,
> and parties.
I *have* to if I'm going to continue to promote music and make
connections for gigs for myself. I devote evenings to this, usually
from about 7 to 10pm or 8 to midnight. This is one of the ways I
learn so much about things.
For instance, last night I went to a bar (tonic water and lime), and
met the bar manager, who knew about a certain restaurant that had gone
out of business. I traded info with him about another restaurant that
had gone out of business and that might be available cheap. So, I got
some info to trade and I gave him some useful info. It's called
"networking".
In one of my sidelines (my life is all sidelines at the moment), I
provide bands to play at parties, nightclubs, etc. I know dozens of
great bands because I socialize with them and go out and hear them.
So, every social event is actually part of my work.
My goal the last few years has been to become a fulltime impressario.
That was the reason for originally wanting to go into the nightclub
business. But, with the economy tanking, it didn't seem like a
reasonable option. Still, I have to keep informed about the
entertainment business in the Bay Area if I'm going to stay viable.
If I can sell a couple big corporate parties, I'm set. Already I have
an alliance with a radio station for some parties. I'm hoping to be
able to parlay that into more stuff.
For more info, check out my poorly designed website:
http://www.davidkaye.net/
(I've *got* to get rid of the register.com bug...<sigh>)
Swelf Yoffsen
>Weber had the slot from sometime in 1993 to June 1994.
I'm guessing his predecessor was none other than Russ Limbaugh.
Swelf Yoffsen
The question concerned weekends 7-10, btw.
Swelf Yoffsen
wrote:
>I started listening regularly in the early '90s, and even then it
>wasn't as "normal" and conservative as it is now. What I mean by
>"conservative" is that there's nothing NEW going on. At least in the
>mid-90s you had specialty programs about computers, gardening, food,
>TV(though Ronn Owens does his share of TV obsessing)some art..nowadays
>it's about 98% nauseating political/ideology whoring, and 2% for
>everything else.
I actually like the predominance of political talk. Right now, I like
Karel, Gene and Ronn. I'd like Bernie better than anyone if he
handled himself differently. Much differently.
Ray might be good if he avoided politics entirely. (Fat chance.)
He's great on jazz. One of the best programs I've ever heard was one
of Ray's on Bay Area locations he visits during different seasons just
to take in the beauty. I remember the Berkeley Rose Garden was one.
It was an unforgetable show that showed me a whole different side of
Ray.
>and why not go forward with the critiques? No one's perfect.
I'm just saying no one from KGO would mention any site that wasn't
100% positive about them. It's short-sighted, of course, because an
obviously honest mixed review would probably generate more interest in
the station.
Swelf Yoffsen
And without mention from some KGO-related souce, I couldn't get much
traffic. Ronn's site used to mention a site run by a KGO fan, but it
was all positive.
d...@removethis.area.com
> I don't know if anyone will believe me, but I heard Dan Sorkin fill in
> several times on KGO, probably in the eighties.
I remember. I also remember the controversy because had had been an
upper-level member of Synanon, a mind-control cult.
--
(C) 2003 When cows sneeze, does milk come out of their noses?
David Kaye
Robert Morrisette
Pat Michaels was on KGO the same time.
Sabu
"Bang" <Bang_V...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:137f73b6.03111...@posting.google.com...
edfi...@gmail.com
> Was it Jim Eason who had The Dawning of The Age of Aquarious song as his
> bumper music?
>
> Late Sunday evenings KGO had some oldtime radio shows. It included one
> about the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and some detective stuff like
> Sherlock Holmes, but it might not have actually been Sherlock Holmes. I
> can't remeber. Great stuff!
I just happened upon this thread ten years later. The two posts above comment about (1) not remembering Pat Michaels ever having been on KGO and (2) "The Age of Aquarius" as bumper music. For what it's worth, I clearly remember Pat Michaels being on KGO in the evenings around 1969 give or take. Perhaps he didn't last a long time, but he was there. His bumper music was "Up, Up and Away" by the Fifth Dimension (as was "Age of Aquarius"). At first I thought maybe Cubit was confusing the two songs, but the more I think about it the more I think someone at KGO also used "Age of Aquarius" for a time. Can't recall for sure.
David Kaye
"
I just happened upon this thread ten years later. The two posts above
comment about (1) not remembering Pat Michaels ever having been on KGO and
(2) "The Age of Aquarius" as bumper music. For what it's worth, I clearly
remember Pat Michaels being on KGO in the evenings around 1969 give or take.
Perhaps he didn't last a long time, but he was there. His bumper music was
"Up, Up and Away" by the Fifth Dimension (as was "Age of Aquarius"). At
first I thought maybe Cubit was confusing the two songs, but the more I
think about it the more I think someone at KGO also used "Age of Aquarius"
for a time. Can't recall for sure.
"
on KGO. I didn't remember well enough to associate him with KGO. I believe
I posted the correction here.
edfi...@gmail.com
> On 8 Nov 2003 02:32:38 -0800, sfdavi...@yahoo.com (David Kaye)
> >Nope, KGO signed off at 1:00am until at least 1975, when Ray Taliafero
> >was moved from 10-1 to 1-5am.
>
> Ray? Did he then leave when Bob Trebor took that spot? I remember
> Ray coming to the station in the early '80s, and I think it was 10-1.
>
> >I know for a fact that it was at least
> >1975 because I specifically remember parking my car a few blocks from
> >my 1975-76 apartment and listening to the KGO sign-off at 1am.
>
> I'll have to defer to you on this one. I know your memory is
> exceptional in any case, and here you've tied it to something very
> concrete. I'm amazed, though, because my recollection of listening to
> Moore late at night in 1969 seems so clear.
Not to sound argumentative, but I specifically remember listening to Bob Trebor (and, I think, others on occasion) between 1:00am and 4:00am going back to at least 1970. The likely explanation, it seems to me, is that KGO probably broadcast all night most days but still signed off at 1:00am on Saturdays and/or Sundays through at least 1975.
David Kaye
"Not to sound argumentative, but I specifically remember listening to Bob
Trebor (and, I think, others on occasion) between 1:00am and 4:00am going
back to at least 1970. The likely explanation, it seems to me, is that KGO
probably broadcast all night most days but still signed off at 1:00am on
Saturdays and/or Sundays through at least 1975. "
old newspaper radio logs and see what's up. But at some point and I could
swear it was around 1975 I remember sitting in my car listening to KGO play
the anthem. Could've sworn it was on a weeknight, but I could be wrong.
Lynn Kelly
>I just happened upon this thread ten years later. The two
> posts above comment about (1) not remembering Pat
>Michaels ever having been on KGO and (2) "The Age
>of Aquarius" as bumper music. For what it's worth, I
>clearly remember Pat Michaels being on KGO in the
>evenings around 1969 give or take.
on this ng on-and-off for about 25 years and missed it
the first time. It's fascinating and entertaining to read
63 posts about KGO Radio and its on-air talents.
--
Lynn K.
Eric Weaver
nights, anyway.
He also used "Hang on I'm a-Comin'" by Herbie Mann for subsequent hours
post-news bumper.
chape...@gmail.com
> Can anyone fill in some of the blanks for me? KGO's website has
> nothing on this at all.
>
> In the mid-sixties, Owen Spann was on in the morning, Jim Dunbar in
> the afternoon. Wasn't someone named Harvey on in the early evening?
> He was followed by the great Ira Blue (anyone know about when he died,
> and whether he retired first?). I have a hard time explaining Ira to
> those who never heard him. He had an unusual voice for radio. The
> only way I can describe it is that it sounded a bit like Howard
> Cosell's, although Ira wasn't the ego-driven caricature that Howard
> was. I think Ira was the station's best-ever host.
>
> Saturday morning brought KGO's only conservative, John Broom.
>
> By 1969, Jim Moore, another outstanding host, was on maybe 1:00 to
> 4:00 a.m. I didn't appreciate him because I was still mired in
> conservative Republicanism.
>
> By this time Pat Michaels was igniting a firestorm of controversy with
> his impassioned conservatism, amid charges that he'd been a liberal at
> his previous station. His combative style made him sound more like he
> belonged at KNEW.
>
> About that time Jim Eason came on Saturdays (and Sundays?) as, of all
> things, an anti-war liberal. I also began to hear the conservative
> Russ Coughlan, whom I think eventually replaced Ira.
>
> In the mid-seventies, Jim Eason had the morning slot. (I guess Owen
> Spann was also heard in the morning.) I think Art Finley had the
> early afternoon and Ronn Owens the late afternoon. (I didn't like
> Ronn at first because he seemed glib and facile. He still does, but I
> have other reasons for liking him.) By the late seventies, Bob Trebor
> was comfortably ensconced in Jim Moore's old spot, and I think Jazzbo
> Collins took it over after that. (I know Jazzbo's a legend, but I've
> never understood why because he bores me terribly.)
>
> For a while (in the seventies?) KGO had a sportstalk slot in the
> evening, filled first by Ken Dido and then Hank Greenwald. Amazingly,
> I just heard Dido as I was writing this! I guess he's back.
>
> It seemed to me Eason began to overshadow the others, and by 1980 or
> so he actually had a television show that came on after Nightline.
> About then he read Harry Browne's _How I Found Freedom in an Unfree
> World_, and moved from liberalism to libertarianism. In the
> mid-eighties, he seemed to lose energy and no longer argued very much,
> which disappointed me because in his prime he was a great debater.
>
> In the eighties, Quentin Kopp had a great weekend program. Ray
> Taliaferro (whom I'd enjoyed in the late sixties on KNEW with Van
> Amburg, Robin King, Joe Dolan, Ron Dunn and Travus T. Hipp (Hipp still
> broadcasts fascinating daily commentary on KPIG)) suddenly appeared,
> as did Bill Wattenberg. (Was Wattenberg better then, or have I just
> gotten sick and tired of what he's always done?) English professor
> Michael Krasney came on weekday evenings after Ronn. Noah Griffin had
> what's now Ray's spot (he was vastly superior to the annoying and
> repititious Ray).
>
> A somewhat boring host who might have been named Dave (something) was
> Chris Clarke's predecessor. Anyone remember his name?
>
> When Spann left, Ronn took his spot and Lee Rogers took Ronn's. Lee
> invited Bernie every Wednesday for an hour-and-a-half debate, the
> "Wednesday Night Fights." I made some tapes to analyze how Lee could
> hold his own against the more knowledgeable and better debater Bernie.
> Lee had two tools. As great a debater as Bernie is, he has
> weaknesses, chief among them his tendency to take extreme and
> unreasonable positions in the heat of the moment. (Conservatives won't
> understand this because it looks to them as though liberals are
> normally unreasonable. Many liberals feel the same way about
> conservatives. But the truth is, conservatives and liberals can seem
> either reasonable or unreasonable to moderates, even when the
> moderates disagree with them. It's a fine distinction but an important
> one.) Lee's main strength is that, when he wants to, he can always
> stay within the bounds of reasonableness as I've defined it. Lee's
> other tool was that his function as host was to bring up one issue
> after another, presenting the first argument on each. Bernie would
> always have a counter to Lee's points. If Lee didn't have an answer
> to Bernie, he could just go onto the next issue, and the audience
> wouldn't know because the format dictated that Bernie have the last
> word on each issue.
>
> I forget when Bernie started Godtalk.
>
> When Lee went to Seattle[?], Duane Garrett, attorney and nationally
> known Democratic strategist (he'd managed Diane Feinstein's successful
> senatorial campaign), took his spot. Duane was the only KGO host as
> knowledgeable about politics as John Rothmann. However, Duane was a
> better debater.
>
> About 1993, what I believe to have been a policy change took place.
> Hosts suddenly became more extreme and combative, and the rule against
> criticizing fellow hosts was jettisoned. Michael Krasney left, and I
> suspect it was because he refused to adopt this new style. I thought
> Bernie was the obvious choice to replace him, but was surprised that
> he was only given the slot on some sort of trial basis. He was great,
> on his best behavior, making extravagant promises about all the
> marvelous guests he would have and all the special programs and
> remotes. (And he has the nerve to slam politicians who break
> promises.) He begged the audience to send letters to the station
> asking that he be given the spot permanently. After several weeks the
> station did, and Bernie's career soon seemed to take off. I think he
> was the first (not counting Deannie Dell) to go into syndication.
> Ever since this was cancelled, Bernie has seemed depressed. He rarely
> prepares for his show and often doesn't seem to care even when he's
> only the air. I think he's the best pure debater KGO has had, and
> perhaps potentially the best host. But his many shortcomings limit
> his effectiveness, and I can rarely stand listening to him anymore.
>
> One highlight of the late eighties was a weekend debate between Bernie
> and Duane on school vouchers. It was close, but, to my surprise,
> Bernie seemed to have the edge.
>
> Was Michael Savage only on weekends?
>
> One day in the summer of 1995, Duane tragically decided to jump off
> the Golden Gate Bridge, in my opinion because he felt he had lost his
> honor. Amazingly, just before the jump, he broadcast his last show
> and it sounded perfectly ordinary. He sounded as enthusiastic as
> ever.
>
> I think there were several weeks or months when different hosts were
> given trials in Duane's spot. (Unless I'm confusing this with another
> opening.) It was eventually given to Gene Burns, who disappointed at
> first but has grown on me since.
>
> That's about as many spots as I can remember. I'd appreciate it if
> others could correct my faulty recollections, or name hosts I've
> neglected, or otherwise flesh out the chronology.
>
> Swelf
I also remember my dad, Pat Michaels, being on KGO. And the bumper stickers "Upward & Onward with Pat Michaels"
David Kaye
>
> I also remember my dad, Pat Michaels, being on KGO. And the bumper
> stickers "Upward & Onward
> with Pat Michaels"
Anyhow, at the time I wasn't sure about Pat Michaels having been on KGO,
having remembered him only from KNEW and from a TV thing he did on maybe
channel 36 or channel 2. So, I emailed him and he told me that he had
indeed been on KGO.
---
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kempe...@gmail.com
kempe...@gmail.com
A source within KGO at the time of Duane's death insists that Duane was thrown or pushed off the bridge. His sideline was dealing in sports memorabilia when that phenomenon was exploding on the scene; The number of Lou Gehrig and Babe Rush bats, uniforms, etc. he offered for sale (and for donations on KGO's leukemia cure-a-thon) seemed too great to be legit, and my informant is convinced that he burned the wrong investors.
Ira Blue had quite a show. His theme song was Rhapsody in Blue, which worked great for a late show. He made a remark about his identity that I'll never forget. I can't recall why had was revealing what kind of Jew he was, but after a dramatic pause, he proclaimed that he was a "lip-service Jew!"
The Saturday morning programming I recall from the early days was a bunch of canned comedy material, presumably from LP albums.
There was a crazy character doing weekends for awhile named Carlo Prescott. This would have been ca. 1969. He was an arrogant, black, ex-con who was totally full of --it. His presence was appropriate for an era when black power and black pride were huge, especially in the Bay Area, when affirmative action was extremely popular, and when KGO's "talent" was almost exclusively while and male.
kempe...@gmail.com
I didn't care for his work there. He had a tendency of letting the most idiotic callers repeat their silly points over and over for twenty minutes or more, but would cut of insightful callers with something informed, interesting, insightful and of some practical value off before they had time to make their brief, astute points. The quality of those long calls with idiots was childish, and not in a charming or ironic manner. "is so", "is not", "is so", "is not", etc.
David Kaye
Ira Blue, Bob Trebor, and Jim Moore were all holdovers from the previous
incarnation of KGO as an MOR news/music/sports station. Ira Blue had been a
longtime sports commentator, Trebor and Moore were staff announcers.
When Jim Dunbar took over as PD at KGO and turned it talk, he'd felt that
KGO for being a big station had become invisible to current-day listeners,
so he decided to bring some of the shows out of the studio. Thus, Owen
Spann's interview shows in the morning were done at Johnny Kan's and Senor
Pico's restaurants. Ira Blue's show was from the Other Room at the original
Hungry i nightclub. So, he'd often get a comic like Mort Sahl or Phyllis
Diller or Irwin Corey right after their shows at the club.
KGO wasn't full news/talk in its early days, though. Weeknights they had
Coyle & Sharpe on the Loose, until an ABC manager happened to hear the show
and ordered it off the air. (Ask Mal Sharpe about that one!) And on
Saturday nights, they had Dreadful Mysteries, with reruns of the Black
Museum series from the 1950s, along with some other mystery programs. In
the mid-60s, KGO ran the ABC new theatre program Theater Five on Saturday
afternoons. (It also ran on rockers WABC and other ABC O&Os at the time.)
KGO also carried the entire line-up of ABC network programs (as rocker WABC
did), with Paul Harvey News & Comment, Don Allen commentary, Frank
Hemmingway comment, Alex Dreier Man on the Go, the Breakfast Club, etc.
Also, in the beginning of the news/talk format, KGO carried a mix of local
news, ABC features, and even music until 11am. And they even carried the
World Tomorrow religious broadcast.
sipth...@gmail.com
Always stuck with me, his rooster style and that little Latin catch phrase.
Yet, I couldn't bring his name to mind. Age is a bitch lol. Thanks again.
skc...@gmail.com
Ras Mikaere Enoch Mc Carty
wrote in message
news:d673ff7d-1b1d-472a...@googlegroups.com...
I'm trying to remember someone who had a talk show in the evening around the
time of the OJ trial. I remember there being debates about OJs innocence. I
think this person was also an actor, an orator, or maybe a singer.
C.I.A. Freemason Nigger Stooge Total Operative: Brian Copeland ?
Ras Mikaere Enoch Mc Carty
GET A LIFE LOSER !
YOU OLDE BITCH !
wrote in message
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