Monday, March 31, 2008

Monday, March 31, 2008

FCC seeks comments from stations and that can't be good...

It started late Thursday with an FCC Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking comment on various rules that would mandate how broadcasters serve their communities. If you are now, or have ever worked in Radio or TV, you know this is trouble. The NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) sent out 'suggestions' to the '8,300 free, local radio television stations and broadcast networks' they represent on what they might include in their comments to the FCC...

What the NAB suggests is for stations to (1) Detail descriptions of their efforts to assess the needs of their communities (when I was program director of WRKO, I was sent to the FBI to conduct an ascertainment interview and felt a bit uncomfortable wearing my 70s-style full-length beard and quasi-hippie clothes for the interview. I'm surprised I wasn't booked or whatever the FBI does to suspicious looking people); (2) How the FCC's proposals will negatively affect their station and (3) Why these new rules will not improve their already excellent local service record (the NAB is being overly generous with number #3)...

These are the areas that the FCC is most interested in: (1) Renewal Processing Guidelines, (2) Ascertainment/Advisory Boards, (3) Remote Station Operations, (4) Main Studio Location and (5) Voice Tracking/National Playlists...

Late Friday, the NAB issued a statement through Executive Vice President Dennis Wharton about 'concerns' with the scale and scope of the new proposed FCC rules. What's a poor terrestrial radio station to do? Get your shovels out...

10 Timeline Memories:
  1. 1918] Time after time: For the first time in U.S. history, Daylight Savings Time goes into effect. Clocks are moved ahead one hour at 2 a.m...
  2. 1923] They shoot horses, don't they?: The first U.S. dance marathon is won by Alma Cummings who sets a new world record of 27 hours in New York City. Gig Young finishes second...
  3. 1931] Luck of the Irish runs out: 43-year old Notre Dame coach Knute Rockne and seven others are killed in a plane crash in Kansas as the legendary coach was headed to Hollywood to make a football movie...
  4. 1940] Can Shea be far behind?: LaGuardia Airport officially opens...
  5. 1943] Another opening, another show: Rodgers & Hammerstein's "Oklahoma" opens on Broadway. Although Howard Keel played the lead on Broadway, Gordon MacRae played that role on the big screen with Shirley Jones as his wife...
  6. 1975] Going out a winner: John Wooden coaches his last game, a 92-85 UCLA win over Kentucky which gives the Bruins their 10th National Title under 'The Wizard of Westwood'. Wooden was recently released from a hospital and would love to see another title for the Bruins, a good possibility...
  7. 1976] Pulling the plug twice: The New Jersey Supreme Court rules that Karen Anne Quinlan could be disconnected from her respirator. Quinlan remains comatose until 1985 when she passes away...2005] Terri Schiavo dies at a hospice in Florida, 13 days after her feeding tube is removed in a right-to-die dispute that reached the courts, Congress and the White House...
  8. 1986] 'Happy Trails': O'Kelly Isley, who I had the pleasure of knowing, dies of a heart attack at 48. No one could "Shout" like the Isley Brothers...1998] Former New York Congresswoman Bella Abzug dies from heart disease at 77...
  9. 1992] Premiered on this date: "Dateline NBC"...
  10. 1995] Tejano tragedy: 33-year old Tejano singing idol Selena is shot to death by Yolanda Saldivar, president of Selena's fan club. The shooting takes place outside a Corpus Christi motel room...

Music Memories:

  • 1958] Released on this date: "Johnny B. Goode" - Chuck Berry...
  • 1975] Number One on this date: "Lovin' You" - Minnie Riperton. The song was produced by Stevie Wonder. I never met a lovelier person than Minnie who at one time sang backup for Stevie and led the group Rotary Connection. Minnie's daughter Maya Rudolph is a SNL cast member...

Commentary:

From Norm N. Nite: "The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum's newest exhibit: 'Take Me Out: Baseball Rocks' will open on Saturday, April 26th in the Ahmet M. Ertegun Main Exhibit Hall. The exhibit will celebrate baseball as a pop-culture phenomenon through displays of sheet music, sports memorabilia, records and film." Thanks Norm and perfect timing as the rest of the teams that haven't opened the new baseball season, do so today...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Rhea Perlman (60), Al Gore (60), Gabe Kaplan (63), Christopher Walken (65), Herb Alpert (73), Shirley Jones (74), Richard Chamberlain (74), Gordie Howe (80) and William Daniels (81)...

Timeline Countdown: 5 days until the Final Four, 7 days until the NCAA Championship Game, 19 days until Passover and 33 days until the Kentucky Derby...

Friday, March 28, 2008

Friday-Sunday, March 28-30, 2008...

Eleven U.S. States on FCC's case about XM-Sirius constraints...

Just when we thought FCC approval on the XM-Sirius merger was a slam-dunk, 11 states through their attorneys general are urging the agency to impose restrictions on the deal. The betting is still in favor of the FCC following the Justice Department's approval of the merger with their own but it won't be the rubber-stamp lock we all thought it would be. The attorneys representing Ohio, Missouri, Connecticut and Iowa have come forward and there are still 7 other states wanting provisos added to the deal. The states said the deal should be subject to restrictions designed to preserve competition and protect consumers, according to Reuters...

There are 3 big requirements the states are looking for:
  1. Interoperable radio receivers available to customers. XM-Sirius won't have that available for at least one year but a requirement to do so should be part of the deal...
  2. A la carte ordering of programming packages, something Mel Karmazin has already promised...
  3. Divesting some radio spectrum that would allow another competitor into the business. So far this issue has not surfaced...

There are about 17 million customers of either XM or Sirius with receivers that aren't compatible with one another. A new compatible radio will cost $200 when it's available in about a year. Two of six a la carte packages will require a new radio, according to XM-Sirius officials. Reason enough not to rubber-stamp the merger...

10 Timeline Memories:

  1. 1909] Feelin' Groovy: The Queensborough Bridge a.k.a. '59th Street Bridge', linking traffic between Manhattan and Queens opens to traffic, becoming the first double-tiered bridge (3/30). To this day, along with the Brooklyn and Williamsburg Bridge, there is no toll in either direction. Something to feel groovy about...
  2. 1959] When you're hot you're hot: "Some Like It Hot" starring Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon premieres (3/29)...
  3. 1963] The Name Game: Sonny Werblin, no doubt inspired by nearby LaGuardia Airport, changes the name of the New York Titans to the Jets (3/28) just before Shea Stadium becomes a runway for LaGuardia and the new home of the Jets in 1964...1992] WNSR (105.1) changes call letters to WMXV (Mix) in New York (3/30)...
  4. 1969] 'Happy Trails': Dwight D. Eisenhower, our 34th president, dies of heart failure at 78 (3/28)...1987] Maria von Trapp, whose life inspired "The Sound of Music", dies in Morrisville (VT) from heart failure at 82 (3/28)...1986] Legendary Hollywood star James Cagney passes away at 86 from a heart attack (3/30). There is a memorial to Cagney with an American flag just two blocks from here where the self-taught actor/dancer lived in Yorkville...2002] Queen Mother Elizabeth of England dies from natural causes at 101 (3/30)...2005] Attorney Johnnie Cochran dies from an inoperable brain tumor at 67 (3/29)...
  5. 1971] Guilty as charged: Lt. William Calley Jr. is found guilty of premeditated murder of at least 22 Vietnamese civilians and is sentenced to life in prison (3/29). Calley wins a court case and is paroled. He now lives free in Columbus (GA)...1971] A jury in Los Angeles recommends the death penalty for Charles Manson and 3 female followers for the 1969 Tate-Lo Bianca murders (3/29). His sentence is commuted to life in prison...1974] Eight Ohio National Guardsmen are indicted on charges stemming from the shooting death of 4 Kent State students (3/29) in May of 1970. All are later acquitted and released...
  6. 1979] Life imitates Art: A nuclear meltdown starts at Three Mile Island (PA) (3/28) 12 days after "The China Syndrome" premieres...
  7. 1981] 'Honey I forgot to duck': President Ronald Reagan is shot by John Hinckley (3/30). Reagan will make a full recovery but press secretary James Brady is left with permanent brain damage from a gunshot wound to his head, which leads to the 'Brady Law'...
  8. 1984] Under cover of the night: Colts owner Robert Irsay moves the team from Baltimore to Indianapolis in the middle of the night, like a common thief (3/29)...
  9. 1989] Oscars all around: "Rainman", yeah, definitely Rainman and Dustin Hoffman win Oscars. So does Jody Foster at the 62st Academy Awards (3/29)...
  10. 2007] Gotcha: Former major league pitcher Ugueth Urbina is convicted of attempted murder in Venezuela in 2005 and sentenced to 14 years in prison (3/28)...

Music Memories:

  • 1957] Number one on this date: "Party Doll" - Buddy Knox (3/29)...1968] "(Sittin' On) The Dock of The Bay" - Otis Redding (3/28)...1971] "Just My Imagination" - Temptations (3/28)...1976] "Disco Lady" - Johnnie Taylor (3/29). This was the first single certified 'platinum' by the RIAA for sales of more than 2 million copies. In 1989, the platinum standard was halved to 1 million due to declining record sales...
  • 1958] Recorded on this date: "Summertime Blues" - Eddie Cochran (3/28)...1966] "Green Grass" - Gary Lewis & Playboys (3/28)...1967] "Brown-Eyed Girl" - Van Morrison (3/28)...
  • 1973] On the cover of Rolling Stone: Twelve days after "The Cover of Rolling Stone" peaks at #6, Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show are on the cover of Rolling Stone (3/29)...

Commentary:

Sorry to hear of the passing of a radio name that was synonymous with the city of Chicago - Wally Phillips, morning personality at WGN Radio for two decades who passed away at 82 after battling Alzheimer's disease for the last five years. When anyone we know in this medium passes away it's a loss and that's the case here. Although I never met Wally, I, like scores of radio people followed his exploits in Chicago for years. R.I.P. Wally Phillips...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

(3/28) Vince Vaughn (38), Chris Myers (49), Reba McEntire (53), Dianne Wiest (60), John Records Landecker (61), Rick Barry (64), Ken Howard (64), Jerry Sloan (66) and Charlie McCoy (67)...

(3/29) Jennifer Capriati (32), Lucy Lawless (40), Elle Macpherson (44), Walt "Clyde" Frazier (63), Terry Jacks (64), Vangelis (65), Eric Idle (65), Astrud Gilberto (68) and John McLaughlin (81)...

(3/30) Norah Jones (29), Celine Dion (40), Tracy Chapman (44), MC Hammer (46), Paul Reiser (51), Eric Clapton (63), Warren Beatty (71), Rolf Harris (78), John Astin (78), Richard Dysart (79) and Peter Marshall (81)...

Timeline Countdown: 8 days until the Final Four, 10 days until the NCAA Championship game and 22 days until Passover...

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Here come da judge...Here come da judge...

The Clear Channel buyout mess will be handled in the courts. The bell for round one in this heavyweight bout between the banks and Clear Channel rang in a Texas District Courtroom presided over by Judge John D. Gabriel of Bexar County, Texas. The judge ruled in favor of CC's claim that "irreparable harm would result if the banks were not immediately enjoined from tortiously interfering with the merger agreement." For those of you searching for a dictionary, I'll spare you. Noah Webster defines tortious as "implying or involving tort." My favorite tort is cherry but that's another story...

You know what worries me the most about this deal falling through? The banks that most of us have accounts in, agreed to the deal in the first place. Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, Royal Bank of Scotland and Wachovia may have to fork over more than $19 billion. What were they thinking???

The banks got cold feet when credit markets worsened but they won't take this Texas District Court ruling lying down or at least, without covering their feet or perhaps another part of their anatomies. The bell for round two will be ringing at any moment, this time for the banks. Here come da judge...here come da judge...

10 Timeline Memories:
  1. 1794] In The Navy: President George Washington and Congress authorize creation of the U.S. Navy...
  2. 1884] Red Sox Nation is born: The first long-distance call is made from Boston to New York in which two people argue the merits of their baseball teams before a shouting match ensues and the phrases "Red Sox Nation" and "Evil Empire" are heard often followed by the slamming of the phone...
  3. 1932] NCAA basketball trivia question answered: The first NCAA championship game is won by the Oregon Ducks, 46-33 over Ohio State. The NCAA will dominate the NIT starting in the mid-50s...
  4. 1952] Premiered on this date: "Singing in The Rain" starring Gene Kelly opens at Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan...
  5. 1971] Alive at Five: The UCLA Bruins top Villanova 68-62 for the 5th national title in a row for the John Wooden-led Bruins who won't stop until they've won 7 consecutive titles...
  6. 1977] 747 tragedy: A KLM Boeing 747 attempting to take off, crashes into a Pan Am 747 on the Canary Island of Tenerife killing 582...
  7. 1996] Have a Cigar: Cigar, the great American thoroughbred wins the first $4 million Dubai World Cup to collect racing's richest purse. It's the 14th straight win by the 6-year old bay...
  8. 1997] The wrong man?: Dexter King, son of Martin Luther King Jr. meets with James Earl Ray in prison and believes his father's alleged assassin had nothing to do with his shooting...
  9. 1998] Father's little helper: The Food and Drug Administration approves the drug Viagra, made by Pfizer to fight male impotence. Just yesterday Bayer AG, announced that its impotence pill, Levitra can be taken by men with high cholesterol. And just in time for Father's Day...
  10. 2002] 'Happy Trails': Dudley Moore dies at his New Jersey home of pneumonia, a complication of progressive supra nuclear palsy at 66...2002] "Mr. Television" a.k.a. Milton Berle, dies from colon cancer at 93...

Music Memories:

  • 1967] Recorded on this date: "Groovin" - Young Rascals...1972] "Burning Love" - Elvis Presley...
  • 1974] Number One on this date: "Sunshine on My Shoulders" - John Denver...1984] "Footloose" - Kenny Loggins...
  • 1981] Released on this date: "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" - AC/DC...1984] "Time After Time" - Cyndi Lauper...

Commentary:

David Hinckley of the New York Daily News announces that WKCR (89.9) will carry the Country Music Festival starting tomorrow at noon. For the schedule of shows and for the news that Mike Tierney was named program director of K-Rock, check it out in David's column...'Happy Trails' to legendary tough-guy actor Richard Widmark, who passed away on Monday from a lengthy illness at 93. Widmark's daughter Anne at one time was married to Dodgers great Sandy Koufax...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Stacy Ferguson a.k.a. 'Fergie' (33), Mariah Carey (38), Quentin Tarantino (45), Cale Yarborough (69) and Michael York (66)...

Timeline Countdown: 9 days until the Final Four, 11 days until the NCAA Championship game and 23 days until Passover...

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

NAB tells Google not so fast...

The National Association of Broadcasters is opposed to Google's filing regarding the use of TV's unused white space and said so in no uncertain terms with their press release. It's plain to see what's at stake here. Google is trying to broaden their market position by using the white space in order to develop Internet-ready phones. The NAB is doing what the NAB is supposed to do - protect the broadcasters they represent. Both organizations are throwing their positions squarely into the FCC's lap. FCC, it's your move...

The Channel Wire blog writes that NAB Executive Vice President Dennis Wharton takes the position that Google has failed to provide a valid method for protecting digital TV from interference from the unlicensed wireless devices that would use the spectrum under Google's proposal to the FCC. Google's Rick Whitt says they have devices to see whether a channel is open before using it, preventing any interference. Wharton disagrees in typical he-said/he-said fashion...

While the FCC has plenty on its plate now including the recently approved XM/Sirius merger by the DOJ, we live in an era like no other. With the electronic media explosion and the survival of terrestrial radio and TV as we know it, at stake, this is another one they better get right. Before you know it, they'll have another major decision to make...

10 Timeline Memories:
  1. 1885] Roll 'em: Eastman Kodak (Eastman Dry Plate and Film Co.) introduces the first commercial motion picture film in Rochester (NY). Come with us on a video trip to the George Eastman House for some motion picture film history...
  2. 1937] Popeye the Sailor Man: Crystal City (TX) unveils America's first Popeye monument. The 6-foot-tall, brightly colored concrete statue is unveiled in 'Popeye Park' during the city's second-annual Spinach Festival. Well Blow Me Down...
  3. 1953] Doctor Feelgood: Dr. Jonas Salk announces that he has successfully tested a vaccine against Polio...
  4. 1964] Premiered on this date: "Funny Girl" starring Barbra Streisand opens on Broadway...
  5. 1969] But does he make house calls?:The TV movie "Marcus Welby M.D." runs on ABC-TV and will later be made into a successful series...
  6. 1979] Bird vs. Magic: Michigan State contains Larry Bird of Indiana State with Magic Johnson outscoring him 24-19 and the Spartans win their first NCAA title 75-64...
  7. 1982] Remembering Vietnam: Ground-breaking ceremonies are held in Washington (D.C.) for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial...
  8. 1997] Where's the spaceship?: The bodies of 39 members of the "Heaven's Gate" cult who'd committed suicide are found in Rancho Santa Fe (CA)...
  9. 2000] Vote for me comrade: Vladimir Putin is elected Russia's second democratically chosen president...
  10. 2003] 'Happy Trails': Former New York Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan dies from complications suffered from an emergency appendectomy one month earlier. Moynihan was 77...

Music Memories:

  • 1965] Guitar swap: Jeff Beck replaces Eric Clapton in the Yardbirds...
  • 1969] Bed-in: John Lennon and Yoko Ono begin their 'bed-in' for peace at the Amsterdam Hilton. Cartoonist Al Capp joins them...
  • 1970] Woodstock on the big screen: The classic documentary "Woodstock" premieres. The film will win an Oscar for "Best Documentary"...

Commentary:

The clock is ticking for Isiah Thomas as New York Knicks president of basketball operations and coach. The Indiana Pacers' Donnie Walsh denies sewing up a 3-year deal which can mean only one thing - there's more money being applied to the deal that will be offered to Walsh. Don't think for one minute that NBA chief David Stern doesn't fully endorse this deal that will help turn around the dismal situation in the nation's number one market...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Keira Knightley (23), Jennifer Grey (48), Leeza Gibbons (51), Curtis Sliwa (54), Martin Short (58), Teddy Pendergrass (58), Vicki Lawrence (59), Steven Tyler (60), Diana Ross (64), Bob Woodward (65), Erica Jong (66), James Caan (68), Nancy Pelosi (68), Fred Parris of The Five Satins (72), Alan Arkin (74), Leonard Nimoy (77), Sandra Day O'Connor (78) and Bob (Bob & Ray) Elliott (85)...

Timeline Countdown: 10 days until the Final Four, 12 days until the NCAA Championship and 24 days until Passover...


Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

The Media winners & losers during a recession...

If we are indeed in a recession the winners will be: Online companies and diversified overseas companies, according to a report in the Media Buyer Planner . The losers will be Radio and TV, magazine publishers, newspapers and cable operators. Wow!!! That's a heap of hurt that probably even affects newspaper deliverers...

You can count on cutbacks in ad spending in the losers category, which has already slowed. Online advertising is expected to be up almost 25% over what was spent in 2007. In the fourth quarter, online advertising was up 27% to $25.5 billion and further spending shouldn't be affected by a recession. A recession will hurt media and entertainment stocks too although Viacom and News Corp. should do well because of their global reach. There are those that paint a rosier outlook for TV advertising, predicting net revenues worldwide reaching $123 billion in 2008 thanks to the impact of the Olympics, which is another story begging to be told given the political climate in China...

North America (with nearly $46.3 billion) figures to gain the majority of the 2008 revenue, followed by Western Europe (nearly $32.2 billion projected) so it's not all gloom and doom although the media is in for rockier times if we are in a recession...

10 Timeline Memories:
  1. 1901] Nice in Nice: The Mercedes is introduced by Daimler at the "Week of Nice" in Nice, France. A look at today's Mercedes ...
  2. 1911] Up in flames: 146 women are killed at the "Triangle Shirtwaist Company" in New York City. The owners of the company are charged with manslaughter when it's discovered that the factory doors were locked. In 1914 they are forced to pay damages to all the victim's families...1990] Fire races through an illegal social club ("Happy Land") in Manhattan, killing 87, mostly Honduran and Dominican immigrants...
  3. 1913] Playing the Palace: The Palace Theatre, home of vaudeville, opens on Broadway...
  4. 1965] Marching along: Martin Luther King Jr. leads a group of 25,000 to the state capitol in Montgomery (AL) to protest the denial of voting rights to blacks...
  5. 1975] 'Happy Trails': King Faisal of Saudi Arabia is shot to death by a deranged nephew who will be beheaded the following June. Faisal was 72...2006] Legendary Country artist and radio station owner, Buck Owens dies in his sleep from an apparent heart attack at 76...
  6. 1988] Guilty as charged: Robert E. Chambers Jr. pleads guilty to 1st-degree manslaughter in the death of 18-year old Jennifer Levin in Manhattan's so-called 'Preppy Murder Case'...2003] Philip Giordano, former mayor of Waterbury (CT) is convicted of violating the civil rights of two pre-teen girls by sexually abusing them...
  7. 1995] Free as a bird: Mike Tyson is released from jail after serving three years...
  8. 1996] Monopoly money: The redesigned $100 bill goes into circulation...
  9. 1997] 'Geroni-mohhhhhhhhhhhh': Former President George H.W. Bush parachutes from a plane over the Arizona desert as #41 celebrates his 73rd birthday 3 months earlier...
  10. 2004] Fetus law: Congress passes a law making it a separate offense to harm a fetus during a violent federal crime...

Music Memories:

Commentary:

I got up for breakfast and baseball at 6 a.m. It is just very weird watching a game over coffee but I did see the opening of the baseball season on ESPN as the Red Sox took on Oakland...Congratulations to Mel Karmazin for getting the nod from the justice department on the XM-Sirius merger. The FCC will follow with their approval. The man is just a winner...Sorry to hear about the passing of Jack "Your Leeeeeeadahh" Armstrong whose body was found in his home on Saturday. Jack a.k.a. John Larsh, was 62. I remember Jack from my time in Pittsburgh and Boston. He was on 13Q and WMEX in those respective markets...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Katharine McPhee (24), Danica Patrick (26), Tom Glavine (42), Sarah Jessica Parker (43), Marcia Cross (46), Lee Mazzilli (53), Elton John (61), Aretha Franklin (66), Anita Bryant (68), Gloria Steinem (74), Gene Shalit (76), Jim Lovell (80) and Eileen Ford (86)...

Timeline Countdown: 11 days until the Final Four, 13 days until the NCAA Championship game and 25 days until Passover...


Monday, March 24, 2008

Monday, March 24, 2008

Could Apple be reconsidering their subscription service???

The idea was to offer the entire iTunes catalog in exchange for a premium on iPod music players. Since music labels would be tied in to this plan, how come the music industry isn't having any serious discussions with Apple about the plan??? Could it be the meager 5% year-on-year growth rate reported by Business Week this morning has put a damper on things???

There are some indications that iPod sales are slowing despite the record 22.1 million units sold in the quarter ending December 29th and that 5% growth figure compares with 50% a year earlier. While the Apple plan of offering customers access to the entire iTunes catalog is as tasty as a smorgasbord and the iPod equivalent of a music automat, maybe Apple is considering some tweaking to the original menu...

Apple doesn't have much time to reconfigure because competition is strong. The social darlings of the Internet - Facebook and MySpace are working on their own Web music stores. Reportedly MySpace would rely on its own ad-support that would allow free a la carte downloading like Amazon.com started doing last year...

Sadly, this is the state of music today. The fate of the music industry depending on outside (Web) sources to keep it relevant while the industry giants of yesterday watch it happen powerlessly...

10 Timeline Memories:
  1. 1900] The Bronx is up and the Battery's down: New York City Mayor Robert Van Wyck breaks ground for the New York subway tunnel that will link Manhattan and Brooklyn...
  2. 1955] Who's your Big Daddy?: Tennessee Williams' "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" opens on Broadway. The movie will star Paul Newman and Elizabeth Taylor...
  3. 1956] Don Russell: Senior Bill Russell leads the University of San Francisco to its second straight NCAA title with a 83-71 win over Iowa as the Dons win their 55th straight game - a record at the time...
  4. 1958] Elvis has left the draft board: Elvis Presley is inducted into the Army. Although he was drafted the previous December, the Army allowed Elvis to finish filming "King Creole"...
  5. 1962] Death visits the ring: Emile Griffith beats Benny "The Kid" Paret senseless in a welterweight title fight at Madison Square Garden. Ten days later Paret dies from his injuries...
  6. 1964] JFK in silver: The Kennedy half-dollar is issued by the Treasury...
  7. 1980] Debuted on this date: "Nightline" debuts with Ted Koppel. In 1979 the news show debuted with coverage of the Iran crisis. Koppel left the show in November of 2005 but the show continues to air with new hosts...
  8. 1988] Guilty as charged: Former national security aides Oliver L. North and John M. Poindexter plead innocent to Iran-Contra charges...
  9. 1989] Oil slick for the ages: The Exxon Valdez spills 11 million gallons of oil into Alaska's Prince William Sound after running aground...
  10. 1997] Oscar gold: "The English Patient" (Best Picture), Geoffrey Rush (Best Actor) and Frances McDormand (Best Actress) win Oscars at the 69th Academy Awards...

Music Memories:

  • 1973] Bum-mer: Lou Reed is bitten on the tookus by a male fan at a concert in Buffalo. Both Reed and the fan get tetanus shots...
  • 1973] Released on this date: "Dark Side of the Moon" LP - Pink Floyd, which stays on the charts for a record-breaking 741 weeks...1978] "With a Little Luck" - Paul McCartney & Wings...
  • 1975] Number One on this date: "Lady Marmalade" - LaBelle...1985] "One More Night" - Phil Collins...

Commentary:

Major League Baseball continues to have our baseball season open abroad for obvious reasons. It's one thing to promote the game on a global stage but the affect on teams going through this rigorous travel routine has affected their play during the first month of the season. Would it kill MLB to confine these games to the exhibition season instead of having the Red Sox and Athletics play two games in Tokyo, fly back to the west coast for more exhibition games and then restart the baseball season the following week? Since these two games do count as regular season games, watching them live means waking up at 6 here to do it. Enough already! Stop the global opening nonsense...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Lara Flynn Boyle (38), Annabella Sciorra (44), Star Jones Reynolds (46), Kelly LeBrock (48), Donna Pescow (54), Louie Anderson (55), Tommy Hilfiger (57), Nick Lowe (59) and Bob Mackie (68)...

Timeline Countdown: One day until opening day, 12 days until The Final Four, 14 days until the NCAA Championship game and 26 days until Passover...

Friday, March 21, 2008

Friday-Sunday, March 21-23, 2008...

All of the Beach Boys are feeling 'Good Vibrations"...

After years of bitter squabbling among the various incarnations of groups taking the stage as "The Beach Boys", a court settlement has restored good vibrations among the three surviving original members. Although terms of the deal were not made public, the years of litigation that was part of the group's legacy will end, possibly paving the way for a long-awaited reunion of co-founding Beach Boys' Brian Wilson, cousin Mike Love and friend Al Jardine...

A 50 year anniversary performance of The Beach Boys would be monumental. I mean how many acts have lasted that long? That 50th year will be celebrated in 2011 since the group started in Los Angeles in 1961. The closest we've gotten to a reunion was when Al Jardine joined Brian Wilson in November of 2006 during Wilson's "Pet Sounds" album tour. Take it from me, that was a phenomenal show. Here in New York it was at the Beacon Theater...

Carla DiMare who represents the Carl Wilson estate made this statement, "Mr. Love and Mr. Jardine are looking forward to bringing more great Beach Boys music to the United States and around the world." Carl, along with Dennis Wilson, two of the original members of Beach Boys have passed on. There aren't any quotes from either Brian Wilson or his attorney. We know Brian has no problem performing with Jardine but patching up his differences with Mike Love might be tough. We can only hope that for the sake of Beach Boys music-lovers everywhere that they will...

10 Timeline Memories:
  1. 1775] Liberty or Death: Patrick Henry calls for America's independence from Britain, telling the Virginia Provincial Convention: "Give me liberty or give me death." (3/23)...
  2. 1894] The Stanley Cup runneth over: Hockey's first Stanley Cup championship game is played with Montreal beating Ottawa 3-1 in Montreal (3/22)...
  3. 1950] Debuted on this date: "Beat The Clock" premieres on CBS-TV hosted by Bud Collyer (3/23). The original show will run through February, 1958 when the show moves to ABC-TV until January 1961, then it goes into syndication where it lasts until September of 1979...
  4. 1952] Cleveland rocks: A riot breaks out at the "Moondog Coronation Ball" in Cleveland as Alan Freed a.k.a. "King of the Moondogs" hosts what many consider the spark that ignited Rock 'n' Roll (3/21). This is what the 54th anniversary of the original show looked like in 2006 ...
  5. 1958] 'Happy Trails': Movie Producer and third husband of Elizabeth Taylor, Mike Todd dies in a plane crash (aboard "Lucky Liz") (3/22). The couple had been married for just one year. Todd was 51...1978] Karl Wallenda, 73-year old patriarch of The Flying Wallendas, falls to his death while attempting to walk a cable strung between 2 hotels in San Juan (PR) (3/22)...1987] Dean Martin Jr. dies in a plane crash during a blizzard while serving in the Air National Guard (3/21). The former member of Dino, Desi and Billy was just 35...
  6. 1963] Wedding Bells: Barbra Streisand and Elliott Gould walk down the aisle (3/21). The marriage will last for 8 years...
  7. 1993] Spring Training Tragedy: Cleveland Indians pitchers Steve Olin and Tim Crews are killed in a boating accident in Florida. Another pitcher, Bob Ojeda is literally scalped but will survive (3/22)...
  8. 1995] Guilty as charged: Colin Ferguson is sentenced to life for the LIRR massacre in which he killed 6 people in 1993 (3/22). Ferguson is now making license plates at Attica Prison...1999] Acting as his own lawyer (like Ferguson did) Dr. Jack Kevorkian a.k.a. "Dr. Death", goes on trial for murder (3/22). He tells the jury he was carrying out the wishes of his patient in an assisted suicide broadcast on "60 Minutes". Kevorkian served seven years but was paroled in December, 2006 due to a terminal illness...
  9. 1997] Tara's Place: Tara Lipinski becomes the youngest female World Figure Skating Champion at 14 years, 10 months (3/22)...
  10. 1998] Titanic is the word: "Titanic" wins 11 Oscars tying "Ben-Hur" and "The Lord of the Rings (the Return of the King)" with the most Academy Awards in history (3/23) including "Best Picture" ...

Music Memories:

  • 1939] Recorded on this date: "God Bless America" - Kate Smith (3/21)...1961] "Can't Help Falling In Love" - Elvis Presley (3/23)...
  • 1963] Released on this date: "Surfin' U.S.A." - Beach Boys (3/23)...1970] "ABC" - Jackson Five (No other station in New York would introduce this song by plugging WABC at the time) (3/21)...
  • 1964] Number One on this date: "She Loves You" - Beatles (3/21)...1970] "Bridge Over Troubled Water" - Simon & Garfunkel (3/22)... 1980] "Another Brick in The Wall" - Pink Floyd (3/22)...1981] "Rapture" - Blondie (3/23)...1983] "Billie Jean" - Michael Jackson (3/23)...1985] "Uptown Girl" - Billy Joel (3/23)...

Commentary:

Happy Easter to those of you who celebrate on Sunday. Spring is here and baseball is right around the corner as the World Champion Red Sox take on Oakland in Tokyo bright and early (for us anyway) on Tuesday morning with live coverage starting at 6 a.m. Baseball is back and all is right with the world now. Enjoy...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

(3/21) Matthew Broderick (46), Rosie O'Donnell (46), Stylistic's lead singer Russell Thompkins Jr. (57), Eddie Money (59), Timothy Dalton (62) and Solomon Burke (68)...

(3/22) Reese Witherspoon (32), Stephanie Mills (51), Bob Costas (56), Wolf Blitzer (60), George Benson (65), Jeremy Clyde (67), Roger Whittaker (72), William Shatner (77), Easy Ed Macauley (80), USA Today's Allen Neuharth (84) and Karl Malden (96)...

(3/23) Keri Russell (32), Jason Kidd (35), Amanda Plummer (51), Chaka Kahn (55), Ric Ocasek of The Cars (59), Sir Roger Bannister (79) and Marty ("Hello Dere") Allen (86)...

Timeline Countdown: 2 days until Easter Sunday, 4 days until opening day and 29 days until Passover...


Thursday, March 20, 2008

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Online Radio listening is up...

Listeners who are tired of listening to the same old terrestrial radio continue to sample the Internet. Arbitron and Edison Media Research report that 33 million listeners age 12 or older listen to Internet radio during an average week. That's an increase of two percentage points in the last year, in case you're keeping score, terrestrial radio people...

What also showed up in this report is a connection between Internet listening and social-networking. Nearly two-thirds of online radio listeners have a social-networking profile on MySpace, Facebook or Linkedin. If you're wondering about the 12+ national figure, only one-quarter (24%) of the U.S. has a social-networking profile which would clearly indicate that once you're on the Internet you stay there and peer influence among Web users is spreading. "One-third of online radio listeners log on to their social networking site nearly every day or even multiple times a day" says Diane Williams, senior analyst, custom research for Arbitron...

If you're programming a terrestrial radio station and looking at these results you better be producing the best damn product you're capable of producing and you better be interacting with your audience on your Web site to have any chance of competing with Internet radio...

10 Timeline Memories:
  1. 1760] Fight fire with fire: Boston's "Great Fire of 1760" destroys 349 shops and homes along King and Congress Streets. As a result of this fire and several others, Boston will become the first town in the nation to have professional fire fighters...
  2. 1852] Debuted on this date: Harriet Beecher Stowe's book "Uncle Tom's Cabin" (subtitled 'Life Among The Lowly') is published. It's also made into a silent movie ...
  3. 1899] Wired: Martha M. Place of Brooklyn becomes the first woman to be executed in the electric chair. She's put to death at Sing Sing for murdering her stepdaughter...
  4. 1954] The Real Hoosiers: Milan beats Muncie Central for the Indiana state high school title in the game that the movie "Hoosiers" was based on. The final score of the game was 32-30. Obviously there was no clock in use yet...
  5. 1969] Wedding Bells: John Lennon and Yoko Ono rock down the aisle in Gibraltar. To commemorate what would have been their 30th anniversary in 1999, a set of postage stamps was issued in Gibraltar...
  6. 1973] Going to Hall: Eleven weeks after he's killed on a mercy mission, Roberto Clemente is voted into Baseball's Hall of Fame in a special election. The Puerto Rican's last hit is number 3,000, a double off of the Mets' Jon Matlack on September 30, 1972. Clemente was only 38 at the time of his death...
  7. 1976] Guilty as charged: Newspaper heiress Patricia Hearst is convicted of armed robbery for her part in a San Francisco bank holdup...1981] Jean Harris is sentenced to 15-to-life for the murder of lover Dr. Hyman Tarnower. Harris is released, her sentence commuted by New York Governor Mario Cuomo after 12 years served in 1992...1996] Erik and Lyle Menendez are found guilty of first-degree murder in the killing of their parents. Both are serving a life term in prison...
  8. 1990] Highway tragedy: Gloria Estefan fractures a vertebra when a tractor-trailer crashes into her tour bus near Scranton (PA). Surgeons implant two titanium rods to stabilize her spinal column. The singer will resume her career in 1991...
  9. 1991] City tragedy: Eric Clapton's 4-year old son Conor dies when he falls out the window of a 53rd floor apartment in Manhattan. Clapton will win a Grammy for his song written about Conor, "Tears in Heaven."...1995] Twelve are killed, more than 5,500 sickened when the nerve gas Sarin is released in the Tokyo subway system. Terrorists belonging to a doomsday cult in Japan are responsible for the attack...
  10. 2004] Gotcha: The U.S. military charges 6 soldiers with abusing inmates at Abu Ggraib prison in Iraq...

Music Memories:

  • 1961] Recorded on this date: "Hello Mary Lou" - Ricky Nelson. Ricky sings the song on the 'Ozzie & Harriet Show" ...
  • 1967] Debuted on this date: Brit supermodel Twiggy makes her U.S. debut and WRKO News Director Roger Allan interviews her. Roger and Twiggy are featured on the front of the NOW 30...
  • 1967] Released on this date: "The Happening" - The Supremes (who sing the song at a WRKO show at the Boston Arena shortly after it's released)...1972] "Back Off Boogaloo" - Ringo Starr...
  • 1972] Number One on this date: "A Horse With No Name" - America ...1982] "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" - Joan Jett...

Commentary:

On this first day of spring comes the results of a Sienna College Sports Poll that indicates that only 2% of New York State respondents polled call the Knicks their favorite team. The Knicks finished behind the Yankees, Mets and Giants, Buffalo Bills, Red Sox and Sabres in fan popularity. That just might indicate it's time to replace coach Isiah Thomas and while you're at it - the owner (Charles Dolan) too...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Holly Hunter (50), Spike Lee (51), Mike Francesa (54), William Hurt (58), Bobby (#4) Orr (60), Pat Riley (63), Jerry Reed (71), Hal Linden (77), Carl Reiner (86) and Marian McPartland (90)...

Timeline Countdown: 3 days until Easter Sunday, 5 days until opening day and 30 days until Passover...




Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

RADAR won't put food on your table...

The new Radar 96 figures show Radio reaching 235 million listeners over the course of a week, a number that has increased from last year's RADAR 92 estimates. And there are lots more glowing numbers from the survey which should make sales people salivate but never does. To begin with let's look at what RADAR represents. RADAR is the "standard currency for national network radio ratings", measuring 57 individual radio networks which include ABC, American Urban Networks, Crystal Media, Dial Global Inc., Jones MediaAmerica, Premiere Radio and Westwood One. The sample size of the survey is huge - 225,000 respondents...

My hope is that RADAR matters in Network sales. The medium that gave me a living is in deep enough stuff that it needs all the help it can get to survive. The rub with RADAR is this - it doesn't help the bread-and-butter sales of local radio, the very lifeline of what keeps a station ticking - local sales...

If you're still in local radio, here's some advice - show your local sales people respect and provide all the help that you can offer, short of making any programming changes. There are far too many programming people who distance themselves from sales. Big mistake! I always felt that the sales people were feeding my family. Without them - the check won't be in the mail. RADAR results won't help them at all. Never has, never will. Your support will...

10 Timeline Memories:
  1. 1629] Welcome to the Bay State: The Massachusetts colony is founded by Englishmen. The Massachusetts state song is: "All Hail To Massachusetts" which should be replaced by the Bee Gees ...1822] The city of Boston is incorporated, something noted by Dave Loggins ...
  2. 1831] Stick up, highway robbery: The first bank robbery in America is reported. The City Bank of New York City loses $245,000 in a stick-up...
  3. 1953] Oscars bring Hope: Bob Hope emcees the first televised Academy Awards Show on the network. 174 stations give viewers a look at Gary Cooper winning for "Best Actor" in "High Noon" and Shirley Booth accepting the "Best Actress" award for "Come Back Little Sheba". "The Best Picture" is "The Greatest Show On Earth"...
  4. 1957] Gracing Memphis: Elvis Presley buys the mansion he names "Graceland"...
  5. 1966] Glory Road: Number three ranked Texas Western upsets #1 Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament's final game to win the championship of college basketball. The Miners, composed mostly of blacks beats the Wildcats 72-65. The story was made into the movie, "Glory Road" ...
  6. 1976] "D-I-V-O-R-C-E": Buckingham Palace announces the separation of Princess Margaret and her husband, the Earl of Snowdon after 16 years of marriage. They divorce two years later...
  7. 1984] Debuted on this date: "Kate & Allie" starring Susan Saint James (Kate) and Jane Curtin (Allie). The show will run 5 seasons, ending in 1989...
  8. 1987] Get the Kleenex out: TV evangelist Jim Bakker resigns as chairman of his PTL ministry amid a sex-and-money scandal involving former church secretary Jessica Hahn. Ted Koppel investigates...
  9. 2003] Shock and Awe: An American-led coalition launches a war against Iraq, beginning with the launch of U.S. Cruise missiles and precision-guided bombs aimed at Saddam Hussein near Baghdad...
  10. 2007] 'Happy Trails": Calvert DeForest a.k.a. Larry "Bud" Melman dies at 85 after years of poor health. Here's Larry "Bud" in happier times on the Letterman Show ...

Music Memories:

  • 1962] Bob Dylan's self-titled debut LP is released...

Commentary:

Science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke whose most famous work was "2001: A Space Odyssey" passed away in Sri Lanka early this morning at 90. Clarke, had been battling debilitating post-polio syndrome for years. We also lost writer-director Anthony Minghella yesterday at 54. Minghella gave us "The English Patient", "Cold Mountain" and "The Talented Mr. Ripley". Minghella died from a brain hemorrhage following routine neck surgery. "Happy Trails" to both...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Bruce Willis (53), Glenn Close (61), Ruth Pointer (62), Joe Kapp (69), Clarence 'Frogman' Henry (71), Ursula Andress (72), Renee Taylor (75), Philip Roth (75), Phyllis Newman (75) and Patrick McGoohan (80)...

Timeline Countdown: One day until spring, 4 days until Easter Sunday, 6 days until opening day and 31 days until Passover...




Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Brackets = Big Bucks...

There's a reason it's called March Madness. There are two sides of the big coin generated by the NCAA basketball playoffs that begin tonight with the play-in game between two teams that are lucky to be seen in primetime. The winner of this game (Coppin State vs. Mt. St. Mary's) gets their remains scraped off the floor by North Carolina. The loser is fortunate not to face the same fate. You want the final four when this tournament wraps as March turns to April in San Antonio? Here they are: CBS, ESPN, Yahoo! and Fox...

CBS, just online alone at CBSSportsLine.com expects to generate $21 million, up from last year's $10 million and ESPN, Yahoo!, Fox, Direct TV, etc. will gladly bottom-feed. Now for the other side of the coin. According to an estimate by consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, March Madness could cost America's employers $1.7 billion from the 28.3 million to 37.3 million employees who will be checking brackets instead of, well, whatever they're supposed to be doing. $1.7 billion? Holy Christmas!!!

Here are some more eye-popping numbers. The number of people who played Yahoo!'s Tournament Pick 'Em game jumped 66% last year to about 1.5 million users. CBS Sports will intensify the March Madness mania by making all 63 games available on the Web for the first time. Whatever increase the Yahoo! Pool yields this year just went up by one...

10 Timeline Memories:
  1. 1850] The stage is set: Henry Wells and William Fargo found Wells-Fargo. 158 years later they're still in business: http://youtube.com/watch?v=QBQ7V2IBv60&feature=related ...
  2. 1909] Can you hear me now?: Einar Dessau of Denmark uses a shortwave transmitter to talk to a government radio post about 6 miles away. It is believed to be the first broadcast by a 'ham' operator...
  3. 1922] Slammed: Mohandas K. Gandhi is sentenced to prison in India for civil disobedience. Gandhi will serve two years of a six-year sentence...2005] Former Connecticut Governor John G. Rowland is sentenced to a year in prison and four months under house arrest for corruption...
  4. 1931] Premiered on this date: Schick Inc. markets the first electric razor...1961] The Poppin' Fresh "Pillsbury Dough Boy" is introduced: http://youtube.com/watch?v=icWy4eeTJuU ...1968] Mel Brooks' film "The Producers" premieres, starring Gene Wilder and Zero Mostel. The movie wins an Oscar for "Best Screenplay"...
  5. 1953] The Braves leave Beantown: Boston loses the Braves as NL President Warren Giles and all the NL team owners approve the team's decision to move to Milwaukee. They eventually wind up in Atlanta where they are now...
  6. 1959] Aloha: President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs the Hawaii statehood bill, giving us "Hawaii Five-O": http://youtube.com/watch?v=AepyGm9Me6w ...
  7. 1986] Happy Together: Buckingham Palace announces the engagement of Prince Andrew to Sarah Ferguson...
  8. 1990] Reunited and it feels so good: Baseball owners and players agree to a new labor agreement, ending a 32-day pre-season strike...1997] Joni Mitchell reunites with the daughter she gave up for adoption many years earlier. Peaches and Herb kvell: http://youtube.com/watch?v=rS_wik3Rum8 ...
  9. 1992] Guilty as charged: Leona ("Queen of Mean") Helmsley is sentenced to four years in prison for tax evasion...
  10. 2005] Pulling the plug: Doctors in Florida, acting on orders of a state judge, remove Terri Schiavo's feeding tube. The brain-damaged Schiavo will die 13 days later...

Music Memories:

  • 1963] Number One on this date: "Walk Like A Man" - Four Seasons...1973] "Killing Me Softly With His Song" - Roberta Flack...1983] "Billie Jean" - Michael Jackson: http://youtube.com/watch?v=9U2eFPMg-u8 ...

Commentary:

The 125th Audio Engineering Society Convention has been set for San Francisco's Moscone Center for October 5-8, 2008. Industry professionals are invited to send brief proposals for broadcast-related subjects to the AES at 125th_broadcast@aes.org . Taken from a press release from the Session's Chair, David Bialik. Good luck with your 125th, David...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Queen Latifah (38), Bonnie Blair (44), Vanessa Williams (45), Irene Cara (49): http://youtube.com/watch?v=alZ2EcckQjg, Charlie Pride (70), John Updike (76), John Kander (81) and Peter Graves (82)...

Timeline Countdown: 2 days until the first day of spring, 5 days until Easter Sunday, 7 days until opening day and 32 days until Passover...





Monday, March 17, 2008

Monday, March 17, 2008

No Irish jigs at Bear Stearns...is Microsoft-Yahoo next???

There's a new meaning to 'the wearing of the green' at Bear Stearns on this St. Patrick's Day and the betting is that the Microsoft takeover of Yahoo is next. That's what the overwhelming majority of financial analysts just told a Reuters poll. Yahoo will be in much better shape than Bear Stearns which settled for $2 a share from former rival JPMorgan - 1% of what the investment bank was worth just 2 weeks ago. The original proposal to Yahoo by Microsoft was $44.6 billion, rejected by Yahoo...

Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer would give his left, you-know-what, to gain market share against Google in online advertising and Web searching and the betting is despite the fierce opposition by Google and Yahoo, he will get it - the purchase of Yahoo, that is. Meanwhile the Webs are struggling about getting Internet ads to look like TV ads without turning off viewers like TV does...

Here's the problem with Web advertising, according to Geoffrey Coco, an ad executive with Microsoft, "users love free content and advertisers love to fill up every minute and pixel with the messaging, and publishers do have to find that balance." ...

With spending on online ads representing less than 4% of all Internet advertising and just 1% of the amount spent on TV, growth is imminent over the next few years as viewers watch full-length TV episodes and other online video vehicles containing ads. But they better be creative and entertaining enough not to turn off Web viewers like TV does...

10 Timeline Memories:
  1. 461] 'Happy Trails': St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland dies from unknown causes. Honoring the good saint with music by The Chieftains and Corrs: http://youtube.com/watch?v=Vtp4adNTP0Y&feature=related ...1993] Legendary actress Helen Hayes dies of congestive heart failure at 92...
  2. 1756] Happy Times: New York City's first St. Patrick's Day celebration is held at the Crown and Thistle Tavern. Red Sox stopper Jonathan Papelbon dances a jig: http://youtube.com/watch?v=ST2Z-mqYTDo ...
  3. 1776] Redcoats don't wear green: British forces evacuate the city of Boston during the Revolutionary War. On St. Patrick's Day? Now they're really asking for it. John McCormack soldiers on by singing "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling": http://youtube.com/watch?v=_EgmZl4qWVU ...
  4. 1897] Falling: Bob Fitzsimmons, a 167-pound middleweight KOs Gentleman Jim Corbett in the 14th round to claim the world title. After the fight, Fitzsimmons says of the 183-pound Corbett: "The bigger they are, the harder they fall." Here's what it looked like: http://youtube.com/watch?v=BOFdL5VkcQM ...
  5. 1905] Wedding Bells: Franklin D. Roosevelt marries his distant cousin, Eleanor Roosevelt in New York City. President Theodore Roosevelt, FDR's 5th cousin, gives his niece away. Quite conveniently Eleanor doesn't have to change her last name but how distant a cousin was she???
  6. 1910] Happy campers: The 'Camp Fire Girls Organization' is founded by Luther and Charlotte Gulick. Two years later they begin operation...
  7. 1959] Get out of town: The Dalai Lama a.k.a. Lhama Dhondrub Tenzin Gyatso flees Tibet for India. The Chinese took over Tibet in 1950 and opposition to their regime by Tibet's Monks is causing all hell to break loose in Tibet now...2003] President George W. Bush gives Saddam Hussein 48 hours to leave Iraq. He rejects the ultimatum. Tick...tick...tick...
  8. 1969] This I swear: Golda Meir is sworn in as the 4th Premier of Israel...
  9. 1973] The 'L' word: The Philadelphia 76ers set an NBA record for futility, losing their 68th game of the season. They will finish the season 9-73 and remain the only NBA team in history not to reach double figures in wins...
  10. 2005] I smell a rat: Rafael Palmeiro, who rats out teammate Miguel Tejada, and Sammy Sosa (who forgets how to speak English) testify before Congress saying they never used steroids. Mark McGwire, also testifying, turns into a sphinx: http://youtube.com/watch?v=4PRi-Xsnxh8 ...

Music Memories:

  • 1958] Recorded on this date: "Yakety Yak" - Coasters...1967] "Come Back When You Grow Up" - Bobby Vee: http://youtube.com/watch?v=7oFLp3lHaGU ...
  • 1962] Debuted on this date: Ray Charles starts his own (Tangerine) label...
  • 1997] Gold Standard: The RIAA announces that the Eagles' "Greatest Hits" LP has tied Michael Jackson's "Thriller" as the all-time best-selling album...

Commentary:

You don't have to be Irish to celebrate "St. Patrick's Day". Here's what last year's parade up 5th Avenue looked like: http://youtube.com/watch?v=D9V2FPmLbnI ...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Caroline Corr (35), Mia Hamm Garciaparra (36) (Nomah!!!), Rob Lowe (44), Gary Sinise (53), Lesley-Anne Down (54), Kurt Russell (57), John Sebastian (64): http://youtube.com/watch?v=7d2XN7dv7hQ , Patti Boyd (64), Paul Kantner (67), Gene Scurti (70) and Adam Wade (71)...

Timeline Countdown: 3 days until the first day of spring, 6 days until Easter Sunday, 8 days until opening day and 33 days until Passover...


Friday, March 14, 2008

Friday-Sunday, March 14-16, 2008...

Overwhelmed...

The power of Radio. I should say the power of good radio. Your response to my anniversary (March 13, 1967) tribute to WRKO was just overwhelming. I never expected so many e-mails from colleagues, competitors, students raised and influenced by WRKO, promotion people and just fans. I knew I had to do a follow-up to acknowledge your response...

There was the boss, Perry S. Ury, who thought so much of the tribute he sent it to his grandchildren to read, other members of management weighed in (Harvey Mednick and Paul Power), talent (Frank Kingston Smith a.k.a. Bobby Mitchell and Ed Walsh who does morning drive for WBZ these days), the technicians who we couldn't of done without (Harry Weinstein, who wanted us to remember Sid Gaynor, another tech. and Gordon Brown), college students who started their radio careers at WRKO (Jack Casey and Charlie Roberts). There were also those so influenced by listening to us when they were growing up that they made radio a career (John Gorman, Russ Oasis and Hartley Pleshaw). Former competitors who would become colleagues and friends also responded (Dick Summer who was at WBZ then, Arthur Katz a.k.a. 'Rock Needleman', sometime sidekick of Bruce Bradley). Ernie Campagna reminded me that there was a week in 1970 when A&M Records had the cover of the 'Big 30' with a picture of The Carpenters and 10% of our music list with Karen & Richard, Miguel Rios and the Sandpipers. And then there was the writer who recorded the history of WRKO for Billboard, Claude Hall who said not only did he get his copy of the tribute but another one from Joey Reynolds...

If you didn't respond that's okay too. If you were moved by the WRKO tribute, if it brought back some good memories for you, then I did my job and I couldn't ask for anything more...

10 Timeline Memories:
  1. 44BC] Beware the Ides of March: Roman dictator Julius Caesar is assassinated by a group of nobles that include Brutus and Cassius (3/15): http://youtube.com/watch?v=_EBMo8xHGNs ...
  2. 1802] The long gray line: Congress authorizes the establishment of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point (NY) (3/16)...
  3. 1954] Debuted on this date: CBS-TV debuts it's "Morning Show" and any day now viewers will discover it (3/15)...1965] T.G.I.F. (Fridays) first restaurant opens in Manhattan (3/15)...1977] "Eight is Enough" debuts on ABC-TV. Tom & Joan Bradford & the entire Bradford clan entertain us until August of '81 (3/15)...1978] The movie about Alan Freed ("American Hot Wax" premieres with newcomers Jay Leno and Fran Drescher) (3/15). Here's the trailer: http://youtube.com/watch?v=f3k-teQmZpg ...
  4. 1964] Guilty as charged: A Dallas jury finds Jack Ruby guilty of murdering Lee Harvey Oswald (3/14), seen live by about 50 million people on November 24, 1963...
  5. 1964] Wedding Bells: Richard Burton becomes victim #5 for Elizabeth Taylor (3/15). These two lovebirds are married for 10 years (64-74) and for another year (75-76) before finally calling it quits...2002] Liza Minnelli takes her 4th trip down the aisle, marrying her producer and boyfriend David Gest (3/16). They're still working on that mess of a divorce...
  6. 1968] Sgt. Slaughter: U.S. troops under the direction of Lt. William L. Calley Jr. destroy a Vietnam village consisting of mostly women and children, killing hundreds. It was called the "My-Lai Massacre" (3/16)...
  7. 1970] 'Happy Trails': Tammi Terrell dies from a malignant brain tumor just a month and a half away from her 25th birthday (3/16). She had collapsed on stage in October of 1967 while singing with Marvin Gaye. Here are the two of them together: http://youtube.com/watch?v=Xz-UvQYAmbg&feature=related ...1975] Aristotle Onasis, husband of former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy, dies of bronchial pneumonia at 69 (3/15)...1998] Child care expert Dr. Benjamin Spock dies at 94 from natural causes (3/15)...2002] 13-year old hockey fan Brittanie Cecil is hit by a puck during an NHL game between her hometown Columbus Blue Jackets and the Calgary Flames (3/16). She will die 2 days later from her injuries...
  8. 1978] Kidnapped: Italian politician Aldo Moro is kidnapped by left-wing guerrillas (3/16). Moro is later found murdered by the group...1984] CIA station chief in Beirut, William Buckley is kidnapped (3/16) by gunmen and will die in captivity...1985] AP newsman Terry Anderson is taken hostage in Beirut (3/16) but is finally released in 1991...
  9. 1997] The Dean: North Carolina basketball coach Dean Smith passes the legendary Adolph Rupp as the winningest college coach in history with his 877th win (3/15). Bobby Knight has broken Smith's record since...
  10. 2003] Free as a bird: Robert Blake is released from jail on $1.5 million bail (3/14) after being jailed for the murder of his wife Bonny Lee...

Music Memories:

Commentary:

WOR's Joey Reynolds will be blogging from the Celtic Gloves Boxing event at Madison Square Garden Saturday (tomorrow) night. It sounds to me like Golden Gloves with shamrocks. Joey: cc: us with your blogs and we'll compare writing styles...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

(3/14) Monaco's Prince Albert II (50), Jerry (Ben & Jerry) Greenfield (57), Rick ("Disco Duck") Dees (58), Billy Crystal (60) who struck out for the Yankees yesterday, Michael Caine (75), Quincy Jones (75), Phil ("Sea of Love") Phillips (77) and former astronaut Frank Borman (80)...

(3/15) Eva Longoria (33), Mark McGrath (40), Terence Trent D'Arby (46), Fabio (47), Sly Stone (64), Mike Love (67), Jimmy Swaggart (73), Judd Hirsch (73) and Ruth Bader Ginsburg (75)...

(3/16) Lauren Graham (41), Nancy (Heart) Wilson (54), Kate Nelligan (58), Erik Estrada (59), Chuck Woolery (67) and Jerry Lewis (82)...

Timeline Countdown: 6 days until the first day of spring, 9 days until Easter Sunday, 11 days until opening day and 36 days until Passover...

Thursday, March 13, 2008

Thursday, March 13, 2008

The dawning of WRKO Boston... I was new to New England, having arrived in late summer of '66 to program WRKO-FM, the robotic, automated, top 40 rocker that played nothing but hits and new music 24 hours a day, no jocks and no spots. Now that format was moving to AM. Monday, March 13th, 1967 was the big day. We were one week away from spring and having spring-like weather, hitting the 50s on Sunday. On that Monday morning, none of us thought about the weather...

The original jock lineup on that Monday, March 13, 1967 was: 6-9 a.m. Al Gates (and alter-ego 'Feathers'), Palmer Payne (news) and Curt Gowdy (sports), 9-12 p.m. John Rode, 12-3 p.m. Joel Cash, 3-6 p.m. J.J. Jeffrey, 6-9 p.m. Arnie "Woo Woo" Ginsburg and 9-12 midnight Chuck Knapp. Dick Burch did the all-night show for a quick minute before Jon Powers joined us a couple of weeks later. Last year on our 40th anniversary, J.J. Jeffrey and I reminisced for close to an hour about the people we worked with, the great times we enjoyed but most of all - the great success we had. Claude Hall would mention in the August 19th (1967) edition of Billboard that WRKO had climbed to #1 with these comparative numbers: WRKO 13.9 WMEX 9.9 and WBZ 9.0. On Saturdays we had a phenomenal 20.1 share and we never looked back...

Two years ago, thanks to Donna Halper's research, I was able to put an accurate timeline together, in detail, on the birth of WRKO which is documented by both local and national publications, notes and memos and is included in this post...

I arrived at WRKO as WRKO-FM programmer and then WRKO-AM program director thanks to Bob Henabery, the first WRKO program director and VP/GM Perry S. Ury. Enjoy all the personal tributes that tell how vitally important a role WRKO played in each person's career and life. History is still being made at WRKO, but there is no station, no history without March 13, 1967...

The rise of WRKO from the beginning:

The new day dawned for Boston radio when WNAC the flagship station of the Yankee Network gave way to the most exciting contemporary radio station ever heard in New England and there are those that would argue, the entire United States: WRKO...

The genesis of WRKO began when General Manager Perry S. Ury dispatched Program Director Bob Henabery to research the feasibility of following in the footsteps of RKO's successful sister stations in Los Angeles (KHJ) and San Francisco (KFRC). The results of that research indicated that we would indeed be successful, there was room in Boston for such a station if it was positioned somewhere between WBZ's variety of contemporary music, heavy news and public affairs commitment and WMEX's more frenetic approach. We would be the exciting new, hip (remember, this was 1967 when hip was "hip") top 40 station that would turn Boston radio on its ear with exclusive releases, great jocks, exciting promotions and a terrific signal with which to reach a huge audience…

I was fortunate enough to play a part in the success of WRKO-FM, "ARKO, your friendly robot", the first Boston rocker in the fall of 1966 and another factor in deciding that we had to move this format over to AM. In late spring I was named Program Director of WRKO and with great support provided by Paul Power (production and music director), Harvey Mednick (promotion director), Roger Allan (news director), Chief engineer George Capalbo and the best GM in America, Perry S. Ury and a great staff of jocks, how could we lose ? We didn't !

The following timeline has been substantiated by copies obtained of both local and national print media articles, memos, accurate website information, the memory of those of us that were there and lots of hard work by those of us who cared enough to make sure that this information was accurate. In light of a few websites that continue to use the wrong dates, most notably for the format change, we hope this will enlighten them and that they will make the necessary corrections:

10 Timeline Memories from 1967:

January 25, 1967:
Paul Kelley Jr. sends an internal memo to the Blair Radio sales team mentioning a conversation he had with a salesman from WNAC indicating a format change to contemporary music taking place no later than April 1...
February 25, 1967 (Billboard Magazine):
In an interview, GM Perry S. Ury states that a format change to the "Hot 100" (Billboard terminology) will take place in mid-March and announces the new call letters as WRKO. Perry adds: "FM and AM will simulcast from 6am to 6pm with separate programming from 6pm to 6am". Ury also indicates that oldies will be played on FM...
Week of March 6, 1967:
All of Boston's newspapers use "WRKO" in their radio program listings...
March 10, 1967 (Boston Traveler):
Eleanor Roberts, music and radio/tv critic of the Boston Traveler (which will soon be absorbed into the Boston Herald) mentions that the Now Crowd will debut on March 13th. The new WRKO jock lineup is now listed in all newspapers...
March 10, 1967 (Billboard Magazine):
"Vox Jox" announces that Arnie Ginsburg has joined WRKO to do 6pm-9pm and that Al Gates is already at the station...
Monday, March 13, 1967: While the staff at WNAC started using pop music and new call letters prior to this date, this was the launch of the new format with the new jock lineup as seen above... A footnote on Arnie Ginsburg: Arnie was on the air briefly but would be enjoined by the Massachusetts Supreme Court for violating his WMEX contract prohibiting him from working within a 50 mile radius of Boston (from a May 13 Billboard article). Arnie would then join the sales staff...
April 25, 1967 (Variety Magazine): Variety announces that an IBEW strike started at WRKO with jocks refusing to cross picket lines. For 3 weeks I sat in for Al Gates from 6am to 9am and while we segued music the rest of the day, Perry Ury, Bob Henabery and other management people did the news...
May 28, 1967: There is a John Rode aircheck made on this date which indicates the strike had ended. There is also an aircheck of me doing the morning show made earlier in May which is floating around much to my dismay...
July 15, 1967 (Billboard Magazine): Billboard mentions that in addition to consulting KHJ and KFRC, Bill Drake will consult the rest of the RKO chain (including WRKO) starting immediately...
August 19, 1967 (Billboard Magazine): Claude Hall mentions that WRKO has climbed to #1 in the Hooper ratings (the first indication that we had taken over the market): WRKO 13.9, WMEX 9.9, WBZ 9.0. On Saturdays (10am-6pm) we had a phenomenal 20.1...
Music Memories:

All of these songs were Number One and played on WRKO in 1967: "I'm A Believer" - Monkees: http://youtube.com/watch?v=2VUqgZ-kl-Q ..."Kind of a Drag" - Buckinghams: http://youtube.com/watch?v=Hq1fpN1qWv8
..."Love is Here and Now You're Gone" - Supremes: http://youtube.com/watch?v=Lns5ICIPI6I "Penny Lane" - Beatles: http://youtube.com/watch?v=YHBKAyn17vw "Happy Together" - Turtles: http://youtube.com/watch?v=qjUx6vHPjSQ "Something Stupid" - Frank & Nancy Sinatra: http://youtube.com/watch?v=gNmLzfiP0qU "Groovin" - Young Rascals: http://youtube.com/watch?v=5KjkEQgslWA "Windy" - Association: http://youtube.com/watch?v=hU8vOQNvd3c "Respect" - Aretha Franklin: http://youtube.com/watch?v=YP4VDbmfi8k "Light My Fire (long version) - Doors: Commentary:
It was vitally important for me to set the record straight on the start-up date for WRKO. This station was too important to those of us who played a part in making it what many consider, the best sounding radio station in America. Almost everyone I talk to about their days at the legendary WRKO believes it was the best radio station that they ever worked at and that includes such stations as WABC, WFIL, WLS and KHJ among them. I never worked at any of those stations but did program stations in New York (WOR/WXLO-FM, WNBC) and Pittsburgh (KQV) and jocked at too many other markets to mention. I too put WRKO at the top of my list...
Now for your quotes (compiled over the last 2 years and updated):
From Perry S. Ury: "For me it was a day of pride and vindication for the decision to change the format and put the "Boston Rocker" on the air. My most vivid memory was an extremely nasty call from Mr. McCurdy, the head of the engineer's union. The threat to "ruin WRKO and General Tire" for making the format move was very real at the time. As you now, they tried and failed later in the spring. In retrospect - every one involved, especially Bob Henebery and you, did a herculean job, without Bill Drake's crews input. I would like to have been privy to their reaction. It was a day of true radio drama for all of us". Perry S. Ury...
(Perry was the 1st VP/GM of WRKO after serving in the same capacity at the former WNAC/WRKO-FM)...
George Capalbo, remembering the day WRKO was born - March 13, 1967: "Happy anniversary. I vividly recall filing the change of call letters with the FCC to make it legal. I was working long and exhausting hours to prepare for the big changeover. I have fond memories of the management and staff all pulling in the same direction and the elation we still experience at the success of the legendary WRKO"...
(George Capalbo was our chief engineer who put together state of the art studios at WRKO from scratch. George, like Perry Ury and Harvey Mednick would go on to work at the corporate level. I remember meeting George on a plane headed for Harris Corp. as we bought our automation system for WRKO-FM)...
From Roger Allan: "How can I ever forget the day we kicked Boston in the ass? The Now Generation hit Boston big. It's a 'happening'. There was the Globe, the Herald and the WRKO top 40 sheets. We had the newest of the new broadcast styles with 20/20 News which won innumerable news awards from UPI, AP & RTNDA thanks to people like John ("the barrrrrrometic pressure") Masters & Bob Stevens, Bill Rossi and Bob Cusack. The George Capalbo studios had the nation's best equipment. What a time for all of us."
(Roger Allan was News Director of WRKO starting at WNAC and The Yankee Network before the call letter change)...
Gordon Brown remembering the day that WRKO was born - March 13, 1967; "I was promoted from Production Supervisor to Engineer as management wanted younger guys spinning the rock for the new jocks. I was matched with Chuck "Chuckles" Knapp on the 9-midnight shift. He was the screaming DJ from Fargo (ND). My first assignment as a Prod. Sup. was to transfer "Here Comes My Baby" by the Tremeloes to cart. We first had to learn how to get 'em tight, but not so tight as to hear the song re-cue when the tape came back to its start and not recording over the splice so it would be clean on the air. I bet I had to hear that song a half dozen times until I got it right. I was tired of the song before it ever hit the air."
(Gordy Brown, class of '67-'76) (Gordy was one of the best of our 'younger' technicians both on air and in production. Chuck Knapp loved him)...
From Harvey Mednick: "For me the lasting friendships, you among them certainly, have been the best part of this adventure. In my mind's eye, I was the luckiest of the lot inasmuch as WRKO led to KHJ that led to KFRC and on to corporate. Without you, Perry and Bob, who knows where my career might have gone? Perry told me 'in two years I don't want you here. It's NY or LA' and he was true to his word. Best of course has to be the 'Casino Royale' promotion. The remake DVD is being released this spring - 50,000 people out in trenchcoats at 6 a.m. on a drizzly morning at the Sack Savoy theatre responding to a few promos from an upstart top 40 station barely a month old to see a crappy James Bond movie with Woody Allen as 007! Remarkable. I get goose bumps just writing this e-mail. Happy Birthday WRKO and God Bless all who sailed on her." Harvey Mednick (Harvey was our promotion director, one of the best, who would wind up as corporate VP of Promotion)...
From Paul Power: "Mel, as you know I have a million lasting memories but probably the greatest was while working at stodgy old WHDH and reading a story about Arnie the Woo signing with the new WRKO. I remember listening to the debut of WRKO but little did I know that about a month later I'd be working there after calling Perry Ury and sending a resume. I got a call back from you and we interviewed and a few weeks later I was hired and it was the greatest experience of my life." Paul Power (Paul was our Music Director, handled production and would later become assistant Program Director)...
Frank Kingston Smith a.k.a. Bobby Mitchell: "Not having been part of the original cast, I was doing afternoon drive at WICE Providence. WRKO had a lousy signal into and south of Providence but another radio guy called me to dial up 98.5. I didn't have FM in my car but when I got home and heard Arnie Ginsburg (what's he doing there?), I listened for the next 4 hours into Chuck Knapp and said, 'that's where I want to be!'. Less than 15 months later, I was!. What an experience!"
("Smitch" became our production voice and was voted by Bill Drake & consultants as voicing the best original version of the "History of Rock & Roll" of all the RKO stations, including KHJ Los Angeles. You may remember Frank Kingston Smith when he was on WABC)...
Shadoe Stevens: "Sorry Mel, I wasn't there yet. But there are a host of vivid memories for some other time. It was an exciting time. Congratulations on having lived through it. Good luck with the salute"...
(Shadoe worked from 6 to 9 p.m. for WRKO and had the greatest set of pipes I think I've ever heard. He would leave us for KHJ, hosted American Top 40, became one of the biggest voice-over announcers in the world and then Hollywood called and Shadoe has become an accomplished actor)...
Chuck "Chuckles" Knapp remembering WRKO on - March 13, 1967: "I remember when we gave away an original oil portrait of the Sgt. Pepper LP cover to that young man in a contest. I hope he still has it and now knows how valuable it must be. I loved the games at Fenway, meeting Bobby Orr, watching Bill Russell and when Curt Gowdy introduced me to Ted Williams at that charity softball game with the Boston Playboy bunnies - wow! I remember the metro bus driver shouting hello to Arnie (Ginsburg) as we walked in Kenmore Square when WMEX forced him off WRKO by producing an area radius clause signed by Max Richmond's brother that Arnie forgot he signed. Arnie used to intro me as "the kid from Fergus Falls, Minnesota" just before 9 o'clock. When he left I moved up into his slot and worked 7 days a week for 8 months without a day off and I loved it. Who could have known that a kid could jump from Fargo to Boston and 41 years later still be practicing the craft that I love. How great is that? Happy anniversary to all the listeners and all the people who loved radio and made WRKO shine. Proudly and thanking God for his blessings." (Chuck, now retired is living in Minneapolis. He reminded me that Shadow Stevens replaced him twice. Once when he left Fargo to come to WRKO and again at WRKO)...
Ed Walsh remembers WRKO: "I was a student at Holy Cross College in Worcester when WRKO debuted and had already been listening to WRKO-FM ("R-KO, your automated all-music station."). Unfortunately, I couldn't get the AM until my next weekend visit home to Wellesley. Little did I know I'd start at WRKO 9 years later and stay for a decade". (Ed is now the morning anchor on WBZ)...
John Gorman on being influenced by WRKO: "Let me add my "Happy Birthday" to WRKO. Your first week on the air convinced me to make radio my career. It was truly the first top 40 station in Boston that played rock and r&b hits without the peppering of middle-of-the-road. It was young, fresh, exciting and obviously Boston's biggest radio success story and my preference was the pre-Drake "6-8-0 WRKO". What other radio station, especially back then, could've distributed a button that just read "NOW" with nearly everyone between 12 and 20 knowing that by wearing it, you were one of WRKO's "Now Crowd"...
(John would go into Cleveland radio and have tremendous success programming the legendary WMMS. He now consults stations and has his own blog devoted to the medium)...
Sales executive Bill Wayland remembering the day that WRKO was born - March 13, 1967: "Perry (Ury) flattered me by asking my "youthful" view of flipping the format to "Rock". Can't recall my words but I was 'for it'. All of us were aware of what was happening at KHJ & KFRC. WMEX had a great signal in Nova Scotia, not so hot in Natick (west of Boston). WBZ was doing whatever it was doing 'professionally' but this 'youth' found it boring. Did I know any jocks who might fit in? Well there was this crazy kid in Pensacola (FL) named J.J. Jeffrey, and so it went. One summer day, before our 1st book, I walked the length of the Irish Riviera in Southie, Carson Beach to Castle Island and I could hear WRKO all the way and back. Wow! On March 13, 1967, thanks to a lot of hard work by other people (thanks Perry), the balloon began to rise and I happened to be holding on to the string."
(Bill, an ad executive was a carry-over from WNAC who would leave Boston after several years for corporate sales in New York)…
Record executive Bob Sherwood remembers WRKO in the late 70's. "I flew up to Boston for a non-music day, early morning meeting with MD Christy Wright, arranged by the late Ed Hynes, then the local Columbia promotion man in Boston. Ed and I showed up with bagels and every other form of early morning delight, enough for the entire staff of WRKO. In comes Lenny Collins, Epic's legendary promotion guy who clearly discovered our cunning plan. In his excitement at trying to trump us in our otherwise exceptional visit to Christy, Lenny had somehow misplaced his promo records thus becoming the 1st promotion man in history to lose his records inside the music room of a major market radio station. To this day I can't recall if we got our record on WRKO but I know Lenny didn't get his. At least that week."
(Bob was head of national promotion for Columbia Records at the time)...

The information contained was put together with much love and care as a document of events relating to the beginning of WRKO, Boston on March 13, 1967 and the success of the top 40 format and station’s number one ranking. The words used are yours and I’d like to thank all of you for your quotes. My hope is that you will save this as a keepsake and never forget the contributions each of you made in establishing WRKO as one of the great radio stations in contemporary radio history…Mel Phillips, March 13, 2008...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":

Johan Santana (29), WRKO (41), Dana Delany (52), William H. Macy (58), Neil Sedaka (69) and songwriter Mike Stoller (75)...

Timeline Countdown: 7 days until the first day of spring, 10 days until Easter Sunday, 12 days until opening day and 37 days until Passover...