Tuesday, May 30, 2006
It’s easy to believe it’s been three years since new KNX management discontinued the highly popular Drama Hour, which replayed the greatest shows of old time radio. It's not just because I'm a fan of radio and old actors - it's because I have imagination, and old radio fed that sense.
In the 20 or so years prior to television, people got news, information, and entertainment primarily from the radio. The entertainment value of the syndicated shows was unparalleled; the listener was led by the intricate work of soundmen who created the impression of footsteps, creaking doors, gun shots and a million other situations to bring the listener in – leading radio to become known as The Theater of the Mind.
This theatre, and the cultivation of the human imagination, is ironically what died in Los Angeles in 2003 with KNX’s poor decision to discontinue thirty years of successful programming. This wasn’t only a business decision on the part of KNX’s management: it was a slap in the face to loyal listeners like myself who supported the station and it's advertisers for decades. Repeated calls to KNX management to restore the Drama Hour have gone unheard or ignored.
This page is offered to direct those with imagination interested in the history of radio to various locations where shows can still be found:
KSUR 1260am, Los Angeles – KSUR picked up the Drama Hour baton three years ago and still broadcasts Stan Freeberg’s syndicated When Radio Was show, at 9pm and again at 2am. Though I much preferred the locally edited version that included two full shows, KSUR offers Freeberg’s 45 minute show that features one and a half shows every weeknight.
THE RADIO LADY – I've since purchased dozens of excellent quality CDs of old radio shows, burned them to my computer, and now own thousands of episodes once heard via KNX. These excellent recordings can be found at www.theradiolady.com for very reasonable prices. The difference? KNX’s advertisers aren’t there. Hey Sit & Sleep – are you listening? You killed it, Larry!!!
Bring Back the Drama Hour with a Buddhist Chant: Say again and again, David Hall is a twat. David Hall is a twat. Go ahead, it feels pretty good. You just know George Nickolaw is doing it.
Below, some interesting info from Wikipedia:
KNX is a Los Angeles, California, clear channel radio station operating on 1070 kHz with 50,000 watts of power from a transmitter site in Torrance, and a key West Coast flagship station for the CBS Radio Network. It has long featured an all news format, with a break between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. for the KNX Drama Hour, a presentation of old-time radio dramas.
In 2003 the station suddenly removed its longtime Vice President and General Manager George Nicolaw. Nicolaw, who gave weekly editorials on the station, was a community fixture, having represented KNX at numerous events. David G. Hall replaced Nicolaw, who came to fame by building KFI's talk radio format. Quickly changes occurred. In an attempt to update the image of KNX, they dropped the Drama Hour which Hall claimed was pre-empting other news programming, but on January 1, 2004 they reversed themselves by adding two talk shows titled Computer News and Food News on weekends.
Despite the name, the programs are call-in talk shows and are heavily topic-driven, with limited general news updates at the top and bottom of the hour. Hall's changes have caused great anger among longtime employees (a few of whom actually left the station, including longtime news reporters Gail Eichenthal and Alex Sullivan - Tom Haule is off the air but still works there, now as operations manager) and apparently with listeners as well since KNX, as of mid 2005, had some of its worst ratings ever. Much of the anger has been due to the replacement of longtime solid anchors by less seasoned presenters. The image has been changed substantially, with more banter between news hosts, more long form special programming, and reduced traffic reports (prior to Hall's tenure, traffic reports were every six minutes during the day; they are now updated every 10 minutes on the 5s). The morning news team of Haule and Linda Nunez was moved to the middle of the day, and the afternoon news anchors were also changed. To make matters worse, a three-hour block of business news debuted in the 9 a.m.-Noon slot, Money 101, anchored by KNX financial editor Bob McCormick. Nunez anchors only the 1 p.m. newscast, and famed reporter Frank Mottek, famous for reporting the tragic 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, anchors the 2 p.m. newscast.
The station is commonly owned under CBS Radio with fellow Los Angeles mostly-news station KFWB 980. In comparison to KFWB, KNX runs longer news features, interviews with former talk show host Michael Jackson, and simulcasts programs like 60 Minutes. The traffic reports are more focused on the core Los Angeles County and Orange County areas.
Prior to media consolidation, KNX was one of the seven "heritage" CBS news/talk stations, the others being WCBS, WCAU, WBBM, WCCO, KMOX, and KCBS. It remains a CBS Radio Network affiliate, and its reporters occasionally appear on the network. However, the station no longer runs the entire CBS Radio newscast during the day.
On August 12, 2005, at 11:06 p.m. (PDT), with a special hour-long program celebrating almost seven decades of the station's history, KNX ceased broadcasting from its longtime studios at CBS Columbia Square on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood in favor of new facilities a few miles away on the Miracle Mile.
In the 20 or so years prior to television, people got news, information, and entertainment primarily from the radio. The entertainment value of the syndicated shows was unparalleled; the listener was led by the intricate work of soundmen who created the impression of footsteps, creaking doors, gun shots and a million other situations to bring the listener in – leading radio to become known as The Theater of the Mind.
This theatre, and the cultivation of the human imagination, is ironically what died in Los Angeles in 2003 with KNX’s poor decision to discontinue thirty years of successful programming. This wasn’t only a business decision on the part of KNX’s management: it was a slap in the face to loyal listeners like myself who supported the station and it's advertisers for decades. Repeated calls to KNX management to restore the Drama Hour have gone unheard or ignored.
This page is offered to direct those with imagination interested in the history of radio to various locations where shows can still be found:
KSUR 1260am, Los Angeles – KSUR picked up the Drama Hour baton three years ago and still broadcasts Stan Freeberg’s syndicated When Radio Was show, at 9pm and again at 2am. Though I much preferred the locally edited version that included two full shows, KSUR offers Freeberg’s 45 minute show that features one and a half shows every weeknight.
THE RADIO LADY – I've since purchased dozens of excellent quality CDs of old radio shows, burned them to my computer, and now own thousands of episodes once heard via KNX. These excellent recordings can be found at www.theradiolady.com for very reasonable prices. The difference? KNX’s advertisers aren’t there. Hey Sit & Sleep – are you listening? You killed it, Larry!!!
Bring Back the Drama Hour with a Buddhist Chant: Say again and again, David Hall is a twat. David Hall is a twat. Go ahead, it feels pretty good. You just know George Nickolaw is doing it.
Below, some interesting info from Wikipedia:
KNX is a Los Angeles, California, clear channel radio station operating on 1070 kHz with 50,000 watts of power from a transmitter site in Torrance, and a key West Coast flagship station for the CBS Radio Network. It has long featured an all news format, with a break between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. for the KNX Drama Hour, a presentation of old-time radio dramas.
In 2003 the station suddenly removed its longtime Vice President and General Manager George Nicolaw. Nicolaw, who gave weekly editorials on the station, was a community fixture, having represented KNX at numerous events. David G. Hall replaced Nicolaw, who came to fame by building KFI's talk radio format. Quickly changes occurred. In an attempt to update the image of KNX, they dropped the Drama Hour which Hall claimed was pre-empting other news programming, but on January 1, 2004 they reversed themselves by adding two talk shows titled Computer News and Food News on weekends.
Despite the name, the programs are call-in talk shows and are heavily topic-driven, with limited general news updates at the top and bottom of the hour. Hall's changes have caused great anger among longtime employees (a few of whom actually left the station, including longtime news reporters Gail Eichenthal and Alex Sullivan - Tom Haule is off the air but still works there, now as operations manager) and apparently with listeners as well since KNX, as of mid 2005, had some of its worst ratings ever. Much of the anger has been due to the replacement of longtime solid anchors by less seasoned presenters. The image has been changed substantially, with more banter between news hosts, more long form special programming, and reduced traffic reports (prior to Hall's tenure, traffic reports were every six minutes during the day; they are now updated every 10 minutes on the 5s). The morning news team of Haule and Linda Nunez was moved to the middle of the day, and the afternoon news anchors were also changed. To make matters worse, a three-hour block of business news debuted in the 9 a.m.-Noon slot, Money 101, anchored by KNX financial editor Bob McCormick. Nunez anchors only the 1 p.m. newscast, and famed reporter Frank Mottek, famous for reporting the tragic 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, anchors the 2 p.m. newscast.
The station is commonly owned under CBS Radio with fellow Los Angeles mostly-news station KFWB 980. In comparison to KFWB, KNX runs longer news features, interviews with former talk show host Michael Jackson, and simulcasts programs like 60 Minutes. The traffic reports are more focused on the core Los Angeles County and Orange County areas.
Prior to media consolidation, KNX was one of the seven "heritage" CBS news/talk stations, the others being WCBS, WCAU, WBBM, WCCO, KMOX, and KCBS. It remains a CBS Radio Network affiliate, and its reporters occasionally appear on the network. However, the station no longer runs the entire CBS Radio newscast during the day.
On August 12, 2005, at 11:06 p.m. (PDT), with a special hour-long program celebrating almost seven decades of the station's history, KNX ceased broadcasting from its longtime studios at CBS Columbia Square on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood in favor of new facilities a few miles away on the Miracle Mile.
Thursday, May 25, 2006
Too Close: I got into a friend's car the other day and KNX was on. It was soothing for a moment to hear some of the old voices and programming, but still I turned it off for him. Even after three years, there is no forgiving new management's betrayal of the loyal listeners who patronized the station and their advertisers for decades.
Wow - The Arbitron rating listed for April show KNX now at 0.6 - this is compared to their 2.1 share a couple years ago. How could such a powerful signal be going unheard?
Hey David Hall - want your Arbitron ratings back up? Put the Drama Hour back into circulation and bring back the voices L.A. has loved so long. Change may be inevitable but your ideas haven't worked. Another good idea? Charter a fishing boat out on the Pacific, tie the anchor to your feet and dive in after that bobber you lost last year.
Wow - The Arbitron rating listed for April show KNX now at 0.6 - this is compared to their 2.1 share a couple years ago. How could such a powerful signal be going unheard?
Hey David Hall - want your Arbitron ratings back up? Put the Drama Hour back into circulation and bring back the voices L.A. has loved so long. Change may be inevitable but your ideas haven't worked. Another good idea? Charter a fishing boat out on the Pacific, tie the anchor to your feet and dive in after that bobber you lost last year.
