LA Radio reunion - pics!

It's been a couple of years (darn COVID-19) but Jeff Leonard, with an assist from Carson Schreiber, was again able to host a reunion of Los Angeles radio talent out in the San Fernando Valley. I was able to attend for the first time (I'm normally in Japan this time of the year), it was an absolute pleasure. So here's some pics for your enjoyment, along with some commentary:



Shadoe Stevens, The "Insane" Darrell Wayne

It was fun to remind Shadoe of his alter ego "Fred Rated" from the Federated Group TV ads in the 70s. Darrell and I both served as editors for Don Barrett's LARadio.com

 

Jim Carson, Joe Collins

I was always impressed at the tenacity and versatility of Jim at K-100 / FM100 / KIQQ before he landed at K-EARTH. Joe is a veteran of the "Mighty Met."



Ashley Paige, Doug Dunlap

Before her days doing country at KZLA and KKGO, I was one of her "Lite 92.7" (KMLT) listeners. Doug kept me out of more than one road obstacle as a reliable traffic reporter.



Richard Friefield, Tammy Trujillo, Ron Shapiro

More on Tammy in a bit. Richard is a big KHJ fan, it was fun to compare notes with him. Ron had some cool stories about working with Casey Kasem's American Top 40, I'd also like to someday hear his stories about working at KIIS-FM.



Kim Lohman (daughter of Al Lohman), Jeff Leonard
 
I "met" Kim via social media, it was a pleasure to finally meet her in person. She carries on the legacy of her Dad, the great Al Lohman, but she's also fun to talk to on her own. So grateful to Jeff for putting this reunion together.



Jane Platt, Rochelle Staab

Jane is a true radio journalist, I remember hearing her both on KRLA and later as the West Coast correspondent for ABC Radio. I was glad I was able to tell Rochelle in person how much I enjoyed KIIS when she was the PD a few years ago, particularly how she balanced the AM and FM stations.



Lane Quigley, Gary Bombalicki, Jim Carson

It was cool to learn Gary is the President of the Los Angeles Mission College Foundation. Before KUSC went all classical, Lane hosted the Memory Lane show, now heard via podcast.



Randy Kerdoon, Ken Jeffries

Reuniting two of the best of KFWB News 98. I watched Randy Kerdoon and his "K-Files" on FOX 11 (KTTV), he continues his podcast "Talking About Cars." Ken was the voice I heard when the Northridge earthquake hit in 1994. It was amazing how he kept his cool while I'm sure everything was swinging and falling in the studios. 



Jim Carson, Shadoe Stevens, Ken Levine, Ken Jeffries, Randy Kerdoon

I was able to remind Ken that I remember the days of "Beaver Cleaver" on Ten-Q (KTNQ), it was years later I realized he was famous as a writer for Cheers, Frasier, and M*A*S*H. His blog is a kick to read about his work in TV and radio.



Peter Skye, Toby Petty, Jhani Kaye

I think Peter was "behind the scenes" as a radio engineer, whose work is often underappreciated but quite important. Toby is another AT40 who continues to research and write for Premier Networks. Someday I want to do an interview with Jhani to hear more about three of my favorite radio stations, KKDJ, KOST, and K-EARTH, as well as hear more stories about our mutual friend, the late (sigh) T. Michael Jordan.



Ron Shapiro, Toby Petty, Joe Cipriano, Jhani Kaye, Ashley Paige, Carson Schreiber

Carson was there during the magical days of KLAC, when they were "the" country station. I wish I had the chance to say hello to Joe, but I need only tune into K-EARTH to hear him as the "voice" of the station.



Tom Patterson, Maggie McKay, Jim Carson, Ken Levine, Lane Quigley

Tom had some wonderful stories about KGIL, he's now working with CBS at their Fairfax facility. Something about Maggie in a moment.



Maggie McKay, Tammy Trujillo

Maggie currently holds the title of L.A. radio's most versatile talent, seamlessly transitioning from the music of the WAVE (KTWV) to the news anchor chair at KNX. Tammy is a true journalist, having travelled across the dial. I want to hear more of Tammy on KPCC!



Chuck Southcott, Tom Patterson, Bill Moran

Who knows more about the Adult Standards format than Chuck Southcott? He worked with the best, including Gary Owens and Dick Whittinghill, Bill has been an entertainment insider for three decades. 



Lew Irwin

Besides his work with the Credibility Gap at KRLA, I was his loyal listener when he hosted "Earth News Radio" on KKDJ back in the 70s. 



Yours truly, Kerri Kasem

A privilege to meet Kerri who continues to preserve the legacy of her aforementioned Dad, the legendary Casey Kasem, she also was heard on the local airwaves during the talk days of KLSX (I think during the "FREE-FM" moniker).

Again my thanks to Jeff Leonard for inviting me to the festivities. Once again, I had the opportunity to meet in person the voices that I've admired for years. 

ayodaradio@gmail.com






















Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Update: RIFs at Total Traffic and the grounding of "KFI in the Sky"

Image
  While we were out of town last week, we'd been hinted the 2024 edition of layoffs at iHeart Media were not yet completed. We can confirm the latest changes involve their Total Traffic & Weather Service  (TTWN) which also is affiliated with their "24 / 7 News" which now feeds KFI and other iHeart stations from a regional hub. Twenty-eight year TTFN veteran Mike O'Brien is among those who were laid off from Total Traffic. He most recently served as the afternoon airborne reporter for "KFI in the Sky." He is a native of the Inland Empire, a graduate of Redlands High School. The Riverside resident also studied at Saddleback College and California Baptist University. O'Brien previously provided traffic reports for country station 95.1 K-FROG (KFRG) as "Commander Kermit," before heading to all-news KNX and later KFI. Nick Pagliochini was "the traffic guy" for KFI's "Wake Up Call," Bill Handel 's morning show, the Gar...
Read more

So what happened at KFI?

Image
  My mailbox has been full over the past few days. I first became aware of the controversy involving evening host Tim Conway Jr. and executive producer Sheron Bellio  via a May 14 article in AsAmNews , a publication that offers both original stories and aggregates news about the Asian American community (read it here ). Louis Chan, their national correspondent, wrote about a skit done during Conway’s May 3 program. Among the highlights from the story:   ·        When (listener) Keith Kawamoto heard a bit by Tim Conway Jr on KFI-AM 640 imitating a Japanese American woman, Kawamoto “couldn’t believe” they were doing that. The sketch on May 3 involved the long time Los Angeles radio host supposedly interviewing the wife of (KLAC-AM 570 LA Sports) sportscaster  Vic “the Brick” Jacobs , Yuko Sakamoto.   ·       “The imitation was so stereotypical with the character saying “Moshi-moshi” & “Ah-so” type comment...
Read more

Bulletin: Layoffs at KNX

Image
We're hearing from "sources on the street" some veterans of Audacy's all-news outlet have been let go. Frank Mottek , business correspondent and Randy Kerdoon , morning sports anchor have exited KNX, along with Rich Hudson, a production coordinator. Mottek arrived at KNX from South Florida via WMJX ("96X") -- where he started when he was 16 years of age -- and then all-news WINZ. He was heard nationally along with CBS News correspondent Christopher Glenn  when they covered the Challenger explosion in 1986. For the past 29 years at KNX, Mottek has served as field reporter and news anchor, but is perhaps best known for his work reporting from the financial desk. He hosted a weekly program entitled "Mottek on Money" and previously anchored the daily "KNX Business Hour." Mottek was also seen on both TV on KTLA and KCBS-TV. When he arrived at KNX, one of his first field assignments was to cover the festivities at the West Hollywood Halloween c...
Read more