Late Summer early Fall media updates
Jeremy Levy back with you with some more radio, TV, and podcast stories.
Kathy Hernandez is now back with KPRC TV in Houston. Kathy started her career with KDVR in Colorado. She had a baby boy back in May. Congratulations to her.
Troy Renk is no longer with KMGH channel 7. He has moved back to the Denver post. He will be covering sports for the Denver Post again. Lionel Bienvenu has taken over Troy’s sports reporting for channel 7 for now.
Sticking with former anchors that used to be in Colorado that have moved on to Texas, Crystal Ayala has been named co-anchor of Telemundo Houston evenings. Crystal was an anchor in Colorado back in 2007 or 2008 for Univision in Colorado. Good luck to her with this new position.
Mark Schlereth has started a new Sports TV show from 6-8 on the TV station FS1 alongside Danny Parkins from Chicago, and a third host Craig Carton who was with WFAN and KKFN back in the late 1990’s. This show will be on for 2 hours. Is Mark Schlereth leaving 104.3 KKFN radio? No, he isn’t. After he is finished with TV, Schlereth is going to join 104.3 KKFN’s morning show for two hours from 8-10 AM every weekday morning. Mark Schlereth said that it’s the best of both worlds. He has moved to New York and will join the show from New York remotely from the New York studios. Mark really likes KKFN radio and the listeners of the show. Mike Evans seemed really happy about Mark still being on the air on KKFN radio. If you would like to read the article you can read it by clicking on the article on the Barrett’s sports media website. https://barrettmedia.com/2024/09/30/mark-schlereth-brings-a-team-oriented-focus-to-fox-sports-breakfast-ball-on-fs1-104-3-the-fan/
Also on the Barrett Media website there is an article put out on Thursday August 30, 2024 about Mike Gallagher getting new listeners to his program on the Salem news channel on Tv. The channel is called Pluto. You can catch the Mike Gallagher show in Colorado on 560 KLZ radio. Mike seemed happy that he was getting new listeners to the show. https://barrettmedia.com/2024/08/28/mike-gallagher-ive-seen-my-audience-expand-since-salem-news-channel-was-added-to-pluto-tv/
On September 2, 2024 on The Fan, Chad Andris and John Davis filled in for Zach Bye and Phillip Lindsay. I really like this combination of hosts. Also, NPR is adding a segment to their news programming called a joy segment covering positive stories without political or news related stories. This will be on the radio broadcasts, but not digital yet. Perhaps this might come in the future.
KUVO celebrated their 40th anniversary on August 30, 2024. Congratulations to that station. I interned there about 15 years ago.
A couple of radio stations in Salida Colorado are being sold. Three Eagles’ communications is selling three stations in Salida Colorado to Highwater House Media. These stations are : KVRH Hot Adult contemporary 92.3, KWUZ radio Classic hits 97.5 radio, KBVC radio 104.1 country, and KGKG soft adult contemporary 102.9 radio.
107.5 radio is changing the name of the station to throw back’s 107.5 radio. That is interesting news there.
When 107.1radio and 101.5 radio made the transition to Pillar Media, some of the staff was let go from 910 KPOF. 3 members of the staff retired -Roy Hanshke, Denise Washington Blomberg, and Jack Peelin all retired. Good luck to all 3 of them. Becky Ross was the one who stayed and is now the program director of 910 KPOF radio. I really enjoyed Roy and Denise as a team. Jack Peelin was fun to listen to on Sundays. I remember Roy and Denise from their time on 91.1 KWBI radio.
Bryan Avila who was a DJ on KTCL radio is no longer with 97.3 KTCL radio due to budget cuts. That is too bad for him. I really enjoyed his work with I heart media, and I enjoyed his producing work for KOA radio, and 630 KHOW radio as well. My best memory from his time with 850 KOA radio was when he was involved as a producer for the Big Al and JoJo show. He was a good contestant on the Initials game. I enjoyed the couple of times when he and his wife were playing the game on the show. Good luck to him with whatever his next career move would be.
Switching to sports now. Jeff Strigle, who is with the Motor racing network, is calling it a career after the 2024 season of Motor racing. He has spent close to 20 years on the Motor racing broadcasts. I have only listened to him for 2 or 3 years, but my friend Lucas from South Carolina has listened to him for many more years. There is no word yet on who will replace Jeff on the radio broadcasts. Good luck to Jeff Strigle. I have enjoyed your coverage over the years. Lucas can recall many dominant wins that Jeff Strigle called with our favorite driver Martin Truex Jr.
Mark Johnson who is the announcer for CU Buffs football had some hip surgery over the summer, but he announced the first game on 850 KOA radio tonight August 30, 2024, a big CU Buffs win. Mark was doing some horseback riding and fell off the horse. He is recovering. It has been a month since the surgery. His voice is good, and his eyes are good even if the rest of his body isn’t. He is going to be sitting to do the games. The Buffs won the game 36 to 28. That was a close win for them.
Tuesday August 28,2024, I got to meet Jeff Hunt, and Bill Thorpe from 710 KNUS radio. I met them at Doug’s Diner in Parker near where I live. They have a good burger and French fries by the way. While meeting them, they wanted me to come on their show to promote my blog and podcast. I did this appearance on August 30, 2024. My Dad and I will be put a link on my website where you can listen to this. www.jeremysjourneyllc.com or directly from this link. https://omny.fm/shows/the-jeff-and-bill-show/jeff-and-bill-8-30-24-9am I am hoping many of you tuned into the show or will listen to the rebroadcast from the link.
Thanks for tuning in.
Dr. Joy Brown tribute
Jeremy Levy back with you. Today, I’m going to be writing about a radio host I started listening to when I was 10 or 11 years old, Dr. Joy Brown. Dr. Joy Brown was born on October 24, 1944, and lived in Colorado for a time. She also lived in St. Louis and New York. She died in August of 2016. Dr. Joy Brown hosted the Dr. Joy Brown show first on the WOR radio network, and she then hosted a nationally syndicated show after that. I first heard her on 710 WOR radio when I visited my grandpa and Grandma Steinmuller in New York. I was a listener to Dr. Laura at the time when I would be at home from school in Colorado Springs at CSDB. When I visited New York, I realized that there was an alternative to Dr. Laura. Sometimes I thought that Dr. Laura would be rude to callers. Dr. Joy Brown wasn’t that way. She would listen to their concerns and try to help them with their problems. The calls I really enjoyed of hers were the calls about parents calling in about their children. Parents would call in asking about problems they were having with their kids. I really thought that Joy Brown had some good tips for parents having trouble with controlling their kids. Also, she had one piece of advice which people can use when you are in a situation that is difficult with another person. Instead of bringing it up to them, which you know will cause an argument or friction between the two of you, be stupid and cheerful. This way the situation between the two of you might not happen. People can use this around difficult people. Some people didn’t understand that the best way for her to help them was to call at the beginning of the hour or when the hour started. Many people would wait to call near the end of the hour, and she would not have time to help them. Many times, she would try and make this clear to the listeners at the beginning of the hour. Dr. Joy Brown was nationally syndicated by a couple of different radio networks. One of my favorite memories is listening to her in Kauai Hawaii on 570 KQNG radio. She would be on from 11 AM-. 1 PM in the afternoon. One of the days I was there during Christmas, and at the beginning of that our she played Alvin and the Chip Monks version of the 12 days of Christmas. At the end of the song, she was glad it was over. She didn’t really like that version. Back in 2014 or 2015, I found her at night on 760 radio in Colorado from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Her show did evolve over time to include the producer reading comments from listeners about a topic that Dr. Joy Brown would pose at the beginning of the hour. The listener would respond to the question on Facebook. She had some great producers during this time period. One of them was named Greg, and I really liked that he would talk back and forth with her during the show. Her show was also broadcast in Canada. I found a you tube video of when she had an appearance in Canada, and that was good. She really enjoyed visiting Canada. She had a great affiliate there. The radio station that she was on was a more news radio station. I think the only talk show was hers on this station. One call I identified with was a caller from New York who was blind. This caller was a teenager. He wanted to have some purpose in his life. Dr. Joy had the wonderful suggestion of volunteering. I took that suggestion back in 2016 or 2017, and started volunteering at Life Care of Stonegate playing the piano for the patients during their dinners. I really enjoyed this, and it seemed the patients did as well. One year I won regional volunteer of the year. During the 2010’s shows, one day during the week she would devote a segment of her show to movies. She had a link on her website for movie reviews. She wasn’t as good as Reggie McDaniel was, but her movie reviews were really great. Many people will miss her including me. She had a great radio career. Thanks for tuning in.
September 2024 Media Updates & Changes
Jeremy Levy back with you with more media changes and updates.
If you are a Spanish listener in the Fort Collin area, there is a new station called La Guapa. La Guapa Radio Ideas has closed on its $200,000 purchase of Classic Country "K96.9" KYAP Nunn/Fort Collins CO from Northeast Digital and Wireless’ Appaloosa Broadcasting Company and has flipped the station to Regional Mexican. That is interesting news there.
Tim Ryan has retired from KUSA TV. Good luck to him. Speaking of KUSA TV, Chris Speers has returned as a part time forecaster for KUSA TV after leaving KCNC TV. He still owns the Outside the Box stores near Denver Colorado. This is good news there. This is not a fulltime position for Chris right now. Chris is pretty busy these days. He is doing some part time teaching while owning that business.
Switching to the southern Colorado and New Mexico area, Megan Marie has been named mid-day host for KRST radio in Albuquerque. She is the mid-day host on 95.1 KATC country radio in Colorado Springs. This is due to the departure and retirement of Eddie Haskell who retired from KRST radio. Good luck to Megan with this new opportunity. She will be heard in both markets.
Melissa Moore is leaving Kosi 101 radio. This was a surprise to me. She had been with Kosi 101 since 2017 or 2018. She started with Kosi 101 back in the early 2000’s. She then was with KYGO radio 98.5 and then moved back to Kosi 101 radio. She has worked in a couple of other markets such as Minnesota and Orlando, Florida. What does this mean for Kosi 101 radio? Well, Kosi 101 radio is looking for a new afternoon host. You can apply for this through the Bonneville website. It has the full job posting there.
VSIN sports network is making changes to their lineup. You can find this on 950 radio on Colorado dial. The lineup is built around a new morning show “The VSIN Morning Line” hosted by Michael Lombardi and network newcomers Harrison Sanford and Grace Remington from 7-10am Eastern/4-7am Pacific. Sanford will continue to host weekends on ESPN Radio and work at MSG Network in New York. Remington joins VSIN from CBS Sports HQ and 24/7 Sports and has previously held local television positions in Tampa, Charlotte, Birmingham and Gainesville. Gill Alexander’s “A Numbers Game” will follow from 10am-12pm and “Money Moves” with Lombardi’s former co-host Stormy Buonantony from 12-2pm. John Hansen joins to host “Prop Points” from 2-3pm. Hanson and Adam Schein will lead “Make It Rain” from 3-4pm. The former morning show “Follow The Money” hosted by Mitch Moss and Paul Howard will move to afternoons from 4-7pm Eastern/1-4pm Pacific. Evenings will feature “VSIN Primetime” with Matt Youmans, Jonathan Von Tobel, and Tim Murray from 7-11pm Monday through Thursday and Youmans and Van Tobel from 7-9pm Fridays. Joe Ceraulo will host “Cashing Out” from 11pm-2am Sunday through Thursday. Youman’s “Circa Friday Football Invitational” will air on Fridays from 9-11pm with Sean Green and Ryan Kramer’s “Sports Gambling Podcast” following from 11pm-2am.
VSIN also adds former NFL quarterback and CBS Sports NFL analyst Rich Gannon to co-host “VSIN’s Pro Football Tailgate Show” on Sunday mornings and contribute to other shows during the week. Gannon also currently hosts for SiriusXM. Former NFL offensive lineman Geoff Schwartz will appear on “Live Bet Saturday” and “Live Bet Sunday” as well as make appearances on Buonantony’s show. Schwartz continues to co-host shows and a podcast for Fox Sports Radio and SiriusXM.
Switching to News Talk radio, on the Barett’s media news website on Tuesday September 10, 2024 Mark Lavin wasn’t on Mondays show because of an injury he suffered. He tore his quadricep in his knee. He wrote in a Facebook post that he would be out the next couple of days. He had surgery on Tuesday September 10. Good luck to him with this and hoping for a fast recovery. I hope the surgery goes well, and I hope that he recovers quickly. Ben Ferguson substituted for Lavin on Monday and Thursdays show. Brian Mudd from WJNO radio in Florida substituted on Tuesday. Rich Valdez was in for Mark on Wednesday 9/11 of 2024. Mark Laven has been doing 2 hours of his show in a wheelchair while recovering.
Thanks for tuning in.
More August media updates
Jeremy Levy back with you to write more about Colorado Radio, TV, and podcast changes.
Ed Green has retired from KUSA channel 9 TV.
John Rayburn who was with KUSA TV and might have done some music radio shows on KEZW 1430 radio when that was a station passed away. Condolences to his family.
105.9 KALC’s morning show hosted by Jamie White, and B.J. Harris has gotten a contract extension to remain for 4 more years at the station. This is good news there. There is a new mid-day host for KALC radio as well. Heather Collins is on KALC from 10 AM to 3 PM. She started in Las Vegas at a station there. She also tracks for WTDY radio In Philadelphia. This is good news also.
I don’t like what Audacy has done locally by bringing in people from other parts of the country to do shows. It doesn’t bring the local flavor into the station.
Joel Burke, who used to be with KYGO radio back in the late 1990’s early 2000’s, who was with Southwest Media Group, is no longer with Southwest Media group. These stations are in Texas. He was with the country station there. These stations are being sold. There is no word yet on where he is headed next. I really miss him on KYGO radio.
In Colorado Springs, the Bob and Tom show has been extended to still carry their show on KKFM radio in Colorado Springs. Kendra Carr has been named new morning host on KRCC radio also in Colorado Springs. She is the new host for morning edition. Luke Story has been named as one of the board members of the Colorado Broadcasters association. He came from Arkansas. A couple of names from the Colorado Springs I heart media have been laid off. Tammy Oakland is no longer with Sunny 106.3 radio in Colorado Springs. She has started her career with Cumulus media on 95.1 KATC Country, and then to 92.9 KKPK radio. I really enjoyed listening to her on the Peak, and on Sunny 106.3 radio. She was a great host, and a great interviewer of Mike Boyle. Mike used to come on Tammy and Jim Berry’s show on Friday mornings at 8:30. Tammy, you are certainly someone I would like to interview for my podcast one of these days. Also Kevin Chiba Hopkins is no longer with 96.1 KIBT the beat radio. He had been with them since the early 2000’s as well.
Rameen Madani has also exited I heart Media in Phoenix; He was in Colorado Springs in 2008 until 2013. He was a digital program director there.
Jeffrey Ramsey has also exited as afternoon host at 95.7 KDHT radio in Denver. He came from Maryland before that.
Bronco’s training camp is wrapping up this week, and it has been a good camp. My dad and I went out there this past Monday. I really appreciated how we were both treated by the Bronco’s organization, and I enjoyed watching training camp. I will be talking more about this on my September podcast. I didn’t see any of the media out there like I thought I was going to. Maybe next year or in the next couple of years.
One highlight from Altitude Sports radio’s coverage from Wednesday August 14, 2024 was when Mark Moser was being followed by a wasp. He tried to kill the wasp and was like a sports person in the Olympics. This took a whole segment of the show. You can listen to this on the podcast on apple podcasts. https://www.altitudesportsradio.com/static-pages/moser-lombardi-and-kane-podcasts/
The first pre-season game was broadcast on 850 KOA radio. It was great to hear Dave Logan, Rick Lewis, and Susie Wargin on the call of the game.
Alex, who is a weekend producer on 104.3 KKFN, is doing some different things for the station, and won’t be producing on Saturday mornings any more for the Terry Wickstrom outdoor show anymore. Good luck to him with whatever he is doing for the station. A producer Joe will be now producing on Saturdays. That is good news there. Also, on 104.3 KKFN radio, Matt Smith has been filling in for Mike Evans this week. Brandon Stokley and Mark Schlereth have a little bit of a mystery going on. The microphone that they use in the studio has something sticky on it. Brandon thinks it is Mark while Mark thinks it’s Brandon. This is entertaining to listen to.
On the first weekend of August, Focus on the Family had a celebration. Focus on the Family is who produces Adventures in Odyssey. They had a celebration for the one thousandth adventures in Odyssey episode that will be coming out next Spring. Many fans of the show, including some that do podcasts about the show, were there, and it sounded like it was a big success. That is great news there.
During the first weekend of August Peter Boyles left for the annual trip to Sturgis, South Dakota for the annual motorcycle rally. He has always had a great time doing that, and this year was no exception. He was a guest on the Jeff and Bill show on Monday the fifth of August, and it sounded like he was having a great time. He was back on the air on Saturday August 11, 2024.
Jon Caldara also took a bucket list trip to England to see the studio where the Beatles recorded their music. He said it was a great trip. He actually got to go in the studio where they recorded the music. It makes me think of starting a bucket list of places where I would like to travel. When I hear Mike Boyle talking about places where he has traveled it makes me think about this as well. Speaking of Mike Boyle, “The 22nd annual Taste of Douglas County was a ball this year!” Quote from Mike Boyle. Many people came up to him at the event, and he enjoyed that. He is looking forward to the next one coming up next August 2025.
Some podcasting news that I would like to share now. There is a podcast that has been around since February of 2006, and is celebrating its 2000th episode this past week Thursday August 8, 2024. This was one of the first podcast that I subscribed to when I was taking some computer college classes at Pikes Peak Community college. This podcast is called The Giz Wiz. Back in 2006 it was hosted by Leo Laporte and Dick Debartolo. After 2015 or 2016 it was canceled by Leo Laporte and the TWIT network, and Chad Johnson took over hosting the program with Dick. Chad has his own channel for podcasts. This could be found here. https://www.gizwiz.tv/ This podcast is about different gadgets that Dick and Chad have both discovered. I have enjoyed the music that is used on this show which is done by Dan Leuters. It is so hard to believe it has been 2000 episodes already, and I am hoping that it will continue for years to come. They were the first ones to get me interested in podcasting. Thanks to Leo, Chad, and Dick for getting me interested in podcasts. I am also hoping that my podcast will be around for this long as well.
Thanks for tuning in.
August 2024 media updates
Jeremy Levy back with you to write more about Colorado radio, TV, and podcast changes.
Pillar Media’s 107.1 radio is changing the name of the station again. It is going back to Flow 107.1. It will be a hip-hop format. That is interesting news there. There are 2 new program directors to the Pillar Media formats. Becky has been named program director of 910 KPOF radio, and Tony V. has been named program director of 107.1 radio which is the hip hop station. Becky is on in the afternoons on KPOF radio. Tony V used to be with Jefferson Pilot communications when that was a group here in Colorado. He did some work for the hip-hop station KQKS and some work with KYGO radio. Becky has been with 910 KPOF radio since the early 2000’s.
Switching to the Colorado Springs side of things, KILO 94.3 rock radio is searching for a DJ to work nights on the rock station. This station is owned by Bahakel Communications. They would like a DJ who has some experience with being on a rock station. They are looking for someone who knows rock music as well. They also are looking for someone who is good at creating bits and content to bring the show to the next level. If anyone is interested they need to e-mail a resume and a cover letter plus a sample of their work to jobs@kilo943.com. No phone calls please.
Kosi 101 radio is doing a great promotion for first responders. This is put on with Smash Burger. People who donate new teddy bears will be given a smash burger. Smash burger will give the Teddy Bears to first responders who will then give them to children who have experienced tragedy in their lives. The program director Jim Lawson said that he likes doing events like this in the community. I also like it when radio stations do this kind of event. You can take a look at participating locations of Smash Burger by going to the events page on the Kosi 101 radio website.
Albuquerque is one of my favorite places to visit, and Albuquerque is relatively close to Colorado Springs (5 hour drive). On July 28, 2024 Juan Valesco passed away. He was the host on KRST radio. Many listeners, and the staff will miss him. He did mid-days for a while when he was on that station, and then he moved to afternoons in 2019. RIP Juan. Many people will really miss you. He was in his 60’s.
Switching to the sports radio side of radio: there was an interesting article about Mark Schlereth on the Barrett media website. The title of the article is: Mark Schlereth doesn’t like statistics. Mike Evans, and Mark Schlereth were talking about Nicola Jokic being in the Olympics. When Nicola wasn’t on the court his team was outscored. When he was on the court the score was tied. Mark Schlereth said he likes statistics when they mean something. He doesn’t like people throwing out statistics just to throw out statistics. I thought it was an interesting article. If you would like to read it for yourself, you can do this by clicking here. https://barrettmedia.com/2024/07/29/mark-schlereth-i-only-like-using-stats-when-it-fits-my-narrative/
Also, on the Barrett media news website there was an interesting article about Dave Ramsey who is on Freedom 93.7 radio from 7-10 PM. This article had to do with an expression that he uses on the show when callers ask how he is. He responds with Better than I deserve. An e-mailer into the show asked him how they can practice contentment without feeling guilt, Ramsey said having the recognition is half the battle, leading him to tell thousands of callers that he’s better than he deserves. Dave quoted in the article that he balances consumption with his generosity,” He went on to explain that the blessings in his life are beyond his smarts and his hard work. I really liked that, and it gives me a good understanding of why he uses this phrase when callers ask that question of him. If you would like to read this for yourself, you can do that by clicking here. https://barrettmedia.com/2024/04/18/blake-thompson-led-a-digital-revolution-for-dave-ramsey-and-ramsey-solutions/
Clay Travis isn’t going to Israel for a trip this year. Maybe in future years. A couple of other national hosts are there this week. Mike Galigher and Tony Katz being two of them.
Larry Elder is re-joining Salem Communications to host from 4-7 PM mountain time. This includes stations 710 KNUs and 1460 KZNT radio in Colorado Springs. He will be replacing the Officer Brandon Tatum show time slot. Brandon told radio insight that he will still be broadcasting on his you tube channel, and he is excited to welcome Larry back to the air waves. Larry tried for some political positions in California and didn’t get them. Good luck to Larry with the new show.
Back Bone radio is no longer on 710 KNUS on Sunday nights anymore. That show was originally hosted by John Andrews, then by Krista Kafer and Ross Kaminsky, and finally by Matt Done. Good luck to Matt with whatever he is going to do now. Ark Midnight with John B Wells is on from 5-8 PM in the time slot that was the Back Bone radio time.
A couple of podcasting notes. Sometimes when a podcast that has been going on for a couple of years needs a transition. Transition can be a little bit hard for the listeners. The listeners gets used to hearing how a host does things or hosts the podcast when a different host takes over it can be a little bit difficult with the changes. This being the case with the Freedom Scientific podcast= https://www.freedomscientific.com/training/podcast/ - put out by Vispero, who developed and maintain the screen reader jaws. This podcast has been going on since 2007 and was originally hosted by Johnathan Mosen from Australia. A couple of years ago in April of 2020 a second host took over for Johnathan named Glen Gordan. Glen Gordan has been a wonderful host on the podcast, and he has enjoyed interviewing different people who are with Vispero, and people who are blind. Glen enjoys working on Jaws as well. He wants more time to work on Jaws, and not spend time with the podcast. In episode 247 of the podcast, Glen introduced the third host of the podcast who will be taking over for him. His name is Oleg Shevkun. Good luck to Glen and good luck to Olev. I know the podcast will be great in your hands. Thanks to Glen Gordan for doing such a great job over the years with hosting the podcast. Your information was always great.
Thanks for tuning in.
Summer 2024 media updates
Jeremy Levy back with you with some more summer 2024 radio, TV, and podcast changes.
Katie Orth has left Channel 2 news to move back to Texas, this time to Austin, Texas. She will be the new evening anchor alongside Dave Fruelick. Good luck to Katie. I remember when she was on channel 2 in Colorado. I also remember when she moved to channel 2.
Sometimes in radio interesting things happen to hosts that they think about how they would handle a situation. This was the case with Mark Bertagnoli on Altitude sports radio. Mark was filling in for Andy Lindahl this past Monday, and that past weekend he had a story to tell. At altitude sports radio they have doors that go into the studio, and these doors are really heavy. Mark was doing the pre-game, and post-game show for the soccer game that was happening on the station on Sunday. After the post-game show Mark was going through the door, and the doorknob came off in his hand. This meant that he was locked in the studio. He was thinking to himself how am I going to get out. He tried calling the engineer who works at the station, and the guy said to send an e-mail. I think Altitude sports radio might need to get a more caring engineer for Altitude sports radio 92.5. He was the only one in the building. He tied his shirt around the door to open it, and after a couple of minutes he was free from the studio. Nate Kreckman asked an interesting question which was "were you nervous about coming back to do the show today?" Mark said no. He wasn’t nervous to do the show today. They spent a whole segment on that which was humorous. The other guests for the rest of the week were Jeff Legwald from ESPN on Tuesday and Wednesday, and Mark Springer was on Thursday for Andy. Mark Bertagnoli was on again on Friday. Andy was on vacation. Since Mark Springer was hosting, a different producer named K. J. was producing the show and did a fine job. Nate Kreckman also said he did a fine job.
Sticking with Altitude sports radio, the NBA draft happened on Wednesday June 26 and Thursday June 27, 2024. There was an article on the Barrett’s sports media blog that a couple of the national guys were putting out the picks on Twitter before they were announced on the TV broadcasts. Brett Cain didn’t like this. He thought it took away from the enjoyment. Vic Lombardi explained why they did that was to get attention for reporting the pick first. If you would like to read the article, you can do this by clicking here. https://barrettmedia.com/blog/
Also, during the 4th of July week, Altitude sports radio 92.5 did something fun and special on the third of July. It was their summer switching around of hosts. This meant that different hosts worked together with other hosts on the station. Starting out the day they had Darren Mckey, Chris Dempsey, and one of the other hosts. Then they had Andy Lindahl, Brett Cain, and Kim who usually hosts some days with Chris Dempsey. That was a fun hour. Then they had Vick Lombardi, Alex Raj, and Tyler Polumbus on. Then they had Nate Kreckman, Mark Moser, and Mike the coach on. Each show had some good parts to it for the hour. The only one that wasn’t a part of this was Scott Hastings. Scott was on vacation that week. They said this isn’t going to be the last time that they do this kind of a day. My favorite segment is the beginning of the Bret Cain, Andy Lindahl, and Kim segment where they talked about sports injuries that they have suffered. I got a chance to know Kim a little bit better. Kim used to work for Disney on Ice and told a story about an injury that she suffered. When Mark Moser and Coach Mike did their show with Nate, Nate played a game with them called: Who is more wrong? Mark Moser or Coach Mike. He would ask them sports related questions, and then he would decide which one of them was more wrong. Mark and Coach Mike didn’t know that Nate was Judge, Jury, and executioner. Coach Mike ended up winning the game.
On 104.3 the fan this week Matt Smith got to fill in for 3 days with Brandon Stokley. That was fun to listen to. Matt was filling in for Josh Dover. They were talking about the Bronco’s training camp that is coming up. Usually, Matt Smith is filling in for the morning show with either Mike Evans or Mark Schlereth.
On 850 KOA radio, one of the listeners to Mandy Connell’s show developed a song for her show. She had the listener on, and said she really liked the song, and would start using it for the beginning of her show. Mandy went and broadcasted from the Republican Convention. Mandy will also be broadcasting from the Democratic National convention. I really think these will be fun shows to listen to.
Mike Boyle has had podcasts of his Denver Show, but now he has the Colorado Springs show podcasted as well. I am really looking forward to catching the Colorado Springs show as well as the Denver show. https://710knus.com/radioshow/the-restaurant-show
On the fifth of July, KKFN radio 104.3 had some great substitute hosts. From 6-10 A.m. was Matt Smith and John Davis, and then from 10-2 p.m. was Mike Rice and Kevin Kisner. That was a really special treat. From 2-6 P.m. it was Dan Jacobs. That was good as well. That was a fun day to be a listener.
On Saturday, when I tuned into the Dan Jacobs show, I found out that he is going on a trip to Africa for a couple of weeks. I am really looking forward to hearing about the trip when he gets back.
I would like to now give a podcast recommendation to the followers of my blog. This podcast is called the Fantasy for The Ages podcast. This podcast is hosted by Jim Scriven and his son Zach. Jim Lives in the state of Washington, and Zach is going to college somewhere. They try and get together every couple of weeks to record episodes. They talk about Fantasy books, Science fiction books, and other nerdy things they enjoy. Many of the episodes are hosted by Jim, because Zach isn’t available to record. I really like this podcast because at the beginning of the month Jim has a monthly reading plan that he talks about, and he and the listeners come with him to see how many books he gets through that particular month. He has 3 different categories of books- physical reads, books that he reads on his kindle, and audio books. At the end of the month, he talks about how many of these 3 categories he has read. I have found some new authors through this podcast. I am hoping if you like fantasy books and podcasts that you will check this podcast out.
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fantasy-for-the-ages/id1544680047
Thanks for tuning in.
Early summer 2024 colorado Radio, TV, and Podcast news
eremy Levy back with you with some Radio, Podcast, and TV news. I am really looking forward to the summer. I am hoping all of my readers are as well.
Scott Ginsburg the owner of Chansler Media who had some stations in Colorado including Kool 105 ,KALC( in the 1990’s), KIMN radio, and KRRF radio 1280 in the late 1990’s has passed away. Chansler Media had many stations across the United States. Scott was in his 70’s. I remember many fun times in the late 1990’s listening to Kool 105, and 1280 KRRF radio.
Switching to a lighter note, good wishes go out to Jon Caldara. During the week of the 16th of June, on that Tuesday, Jon wasn’t feeling well, and it turns out he had a heart attack. He was in the hospital for 2 or 3 days. I have been listening to him since the early 2000’s, and I am glad that he was back on the radio Saturday the 22nd of June. He said he is really happy to be with the listeners on Saturday.
A quick KNUS note also, I found out that Leroy Daughenbaugh who was a producer on 710 KNUS radio passed away in April of 2024. He passed away in his sleep. He was a truck driver, but he also was a producer for several radio stations including 710 KNUS radio. I remember him producing for the Steffan Tubbs show and Wake Up with Randy Corporon. I will remember him the best as one of the Mike Boyle Restaurant show producers. He did a great job producing for that show. Condolences go out to his family. He is survived by his 3 sons, and many nieces, and nephews.
On Memorial day, 104.3 the Fan had a good fill in show for the morning hosted usually by Mike Evans, and Mark Schlereth. Matt Smith and Kyle Reese were on. They are normally the hosts on Sunday mornings on 104.3 the Fan. They are a good team together. They were talking about the Bronco’s, the Nuggets, and the Avalanche. They were also on for Josh Dover and Brandon Stokley.
On 850 KOA radio, Grant Smith did a great interview that aired on the Taking it for Granted podcast. His interview was with Dave Logan. You can find the podcast by searching for Taking it for Granted on the KOA website or by clicking here https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/taking-it-for-granted-ep-162-dave-logan/id1548380354?i=1000652786441.
Andy Lindahl was doing a show in the middle of the Nuggets and Avalanche run in the playoffs. This was a classic show hosted by Andy because he had 3 different co-hosts. For the first hour, he had Jason Cosmitsky on as a co-host. Then in the second hour Connor Mcgahee was the co-host for the second hour, and Jeff Legwald from ESPN was on for the last hour talking about the Bronco’s and the draft.
Speaking of the Nate Kreckman and Andy Lindahl show, one day at the beginning of June Nate was not on for an hour and a half because of some water that was coming out of a pipe at his home. Andy Lindahl did a great job hosting for that hour and a half. Nate learned an important but funny lesson. The room where this room was located didn’t have a name for the room. He learned that his wife, and him needed to come up with a name for that room so they would both know what they were talking about.
I found out on the Mike Boyle restaurant show that Louis Gonzales, the Sunday producer of the Mike Boyle Restaurant show, has moved to Florida. He got married. I will really miss him producing for the Mike Boyle Restaurant show. The one memory I have is one Sunday when Mike was on vacation, Louis Gonzales was the fill in for him. This was a fun show. He talked about different sandwich places. Good luck to Louis. I will miss you. You were a great addition to the weekend programming on the station.
850 KOA radio Ben Lasiter is no longer with 850 KOA radio. He is moving on from that station. He said on the air that he really enjoyed doing the news for Mandy’s show. He also really enjoyed the Of the Day segment. He did pretty well. On his last day he lost in the jeopardy round by one point. We will have to see who fills that position. I am personally hoping it will be someone who can do a better voice for of the day.
The Avalanche, and the Denver Nuggets were in the playoffs this year, but neither made it out of the second round. The Nuggets lost to the Timber Wolves, and the Avalanche lost to the Stars. Dave Logan said on the Dave Logan podcast that the Nuggets needed to be tougher against the Timber Wolves. It was fun having both these teams in the playoffs. Perhaps next year they will get further.
Speaking of Sports, there is a new documentary coming out called Receiver. This documentary is about some of the receivers that are in the National Football League. There was an article about this documentary from the Barrett’s sports media blog about Mark Schlereth’s thoughts about this documentary. Matt Smith who was filling in for Mike Evans on Friday June 14 asked Mark Schlereth would he watch this documentary? Mark Schlereth said no. He wouldn’t watch it. He watched the first one called Quarterback. He thought it was boring. At the end of the segment Smith asked Schlereth if he would watch a documentary that was called Offensive Line? Schlereth said he wouldn’t. He had played that position and wouldn’t want to re-live this experience. He thinks that his life as an offensive lineman in the NFL was boring. My thought on this is that I don’t think so, and I am maybe looking forward to doing an interview with Schlereth sometime down the road. I think he would be an interesting person to interview. If you would like to read the article, you can find this at the sports radio news of the Barrett’s sports media blog. You can also find the podcast of this on the KKFN radio podcasts or by clicking here https://barrettsportsmedia.com/.
The Rockies have had a slow start to the season, but I enjoy listening to Jack Corrigan and Jerry Schemel. Not having the Nuggets and the Avalanche in the playoffs has given me a chance to listen to podcasts as well.
Some podcasting news. The audio theatre Central podcast celebrated its 200th episode at the beginning of June. It’s hard to believe it has been around that long. It was a wonderful episode filled with industry guests that I was familiar with, and others that I wasn’t so familiar with that I would like to check out. A couple of the guests I was familiar with were Katie Leigh, Phill Loller, Paul McCusker, and Marshall Younger. One of the guests I wasn’t as familiar with was Jason from Marquail productions. I will have to check some of the shows when I have an opportunity. Also in this episode, J.D. had listeners call into the voice mail line to tell him their congratulations. I did this, and my voice was featured on this special 200th episode of the podcast. This was really special for me, and I think it was special for J.D. . You can find this episode at Audiotheatrecentralpodcast/200.
One other podcast note that I would like to mention is that the For Fawkes Sake podcast episodes in their episode 221 of the podcast they had a question for the listeners to respond to. This question was should Harry Potter have put in the luck potion into Ron’s drink. How should Hermione should have handled this when she found out that Harry faked putting in the luck potion? They asked listeners to call into the voice mail line for them to hear the listeners thoughts on this were. I did this, and my voice was featured in the 222 episode of the podcast. It was hard for me to think what the right decision would be. It was fun calling into the podcast voice mail line. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-222-drama-drama-drama/id1485908641?i=1000658968098
Thanks for tuning in.
Spring 2024 radio/TV changes
Jeremy Levy back with you with some more radio and TV changes in 2024. I am certainly ready for Spring. I hope everyone had a great Winter season.
Kristine Noell had a baby in February of 2024. Congratulations to her. She is still not sure what she is doing yet for a career. Right now, she is in Colorado, but might be moving back to Houston. She was most recently with KPRC 2 in Houston. Before that she was with KUSA TV in Colorado.
There is still no word yet on who is replacing Rob Quirk who retired at the end of 2023. Hope media Group is looking for a program director to lead its radio stations. Hope Media group owns 910 KPOF radio and 101.5 radio. You can find the details on the Hope Media website and apply there.
In February of 2024, Robbie Knight who was a Westwood one, and 995. KQMT radio DJ for many years has passed away from a form of throat cancer. This started back in 2022. Mike Casey former program director at the station will best remember her from her voice. She had a very distinctive voice. I will best remember her from when she was supporting KBDI channel 12 during a TV auction they had. This was on a Sunday evening. Robbie and Jackie Selby, who was with KOSI 101 radio, talked about some items. I really thought that Robbie and Jackie did a great job. She seemed like a wonderful lady.
Charlie Cook of cumulus Nashville retired. He worked at “95.5 Nash Icon” WSM. He spent a little time in Colorado during the 70’s and 1980’s. Good luck to him in his retirement.
It is great to hear that a long-time country program director has been hired in Colorado. That’s right! Johnathan Wild: Yes, the Johnathan Wild who was with Steve Mudflap Mcgrew and Kelly Ford back in the 1990’s and 2000’s has been hired to do mornings at KXBG radio in Fort Collins/ Wyoming. He is doing mornings on the station. That is great news there. I really enjoyed his work at KYGO radio, and I am quite confident that he will do well on KXBG radio. Good luck to him with that wonderful career move. Speaking of Johnathan Wild, Kelly Ford, and Steve Mudflap Mcgrew, Kelly has been named the Beasley Media nighttime show host at the country radio stations. She has taken over for the host there. That is great news there. She started last week. Who knows! KYGO radio might be picking up the show.
Raj Sharon has been named afternoon host at KATC Country 95.1 radio. Raj was most recently with 104.3 The Fan as it’s program director after exiting KKFN radio. I didn’t know that he was into Country music. I am thinking that Country music and sports radio have really similar listenership. Good luck to Raj.
On Altitude sports radio, Marty O, The Altitude sports radio morning show producer got the award for best employee of the month back in February of 2024. Bret Cain wasn’t there that day and the promotion guy Rob Trigilio was filling in. Marty and Rob talked about this. That is good news there.
Also, congratulations are in order for Baylee B who used to be on 97.3 KBCO radio. She is still looking for a radio job, but in the meantime, she has gotten her Real Estate license. That is good news there.
On February 11, 2024, KALC 105.9 had their annual radiothon to help Children’s hospital. They had another successful year. On February 23 and 24 of 2024 Winter Park and the NSCD had their annual fund raiser up at Winter Park Colorado. Ross Kaminsky was up there for Friday the 24th to do his show. He did a wonderful job with the interviews. My favorite interview was when he interviewed a lady who was a blind skiier, and she teaches P.E. at a school near Winter Park. The only disappointing part of the day was that Mandy Connell wasn’t up there this year. She had a trip scheduled for that next week with her mom, and husband. Hopefully, she will be there next year.
There are some interesting changes happening on 710 KNUS radio on Saturdays. The Jimmy Sengenberger show that used to be on from 7-10AM is no longer on the air. He had been with 710 KNUS ever since 2013. It’s hard to believe it has been that long. I remember when he started on 710 KNUS radio. His time was 5-8 PM on Saturday nights. Then his show was moved to Saturday mornings from 6-9 AM on Saturday mornings. Starting in January of this year, his show moved to 7-10 AM on Saturdays. What made this show fun for me to listen to was the music guests that he had on. He would have blues musicians on to talk about their music. I also enjoyed it when he had a voice actor Jimmi Viles on. Jimmy has started a couple of podcasts. One of them is relating to music. His first episode should be released as of this posting. What does this mean for the Peter Boyles show? Well, Peter Boyles show has been moved from 9-Noon to 10 AM to 1 PM. Jimmy invited people to check out his website Jimmy.segenburger.com and subscribe to his newsletter to find out what his next activities would be. His newsletter is the Intrepid Inquiries. Jimmy said he really enjoyed doing the show and he will miss doing it. He has some other projects on the horizon that would prevent him from continuing the show. Jon Caldara has been put into that 7-10 AM time slot for now.
Speaking of 710 KNUS, this time it is the weekday schedule that has gone through some changes. George Brauchler is no longer on 710 KNUS doing the morning show. He is running for Douglas County Commissioner in DC 4. What has replaced this show? Well, Jeff Hunt and Bill Thorpe have started the Jeff, and Bill show from 6-10 AM Monday through Friday. Jeff Hunt is from the Colorado Conservative Summit and Bill Thorpe is from Colorado Christian University. That is interesting news there. One more note about 710 KNUS radio, Denis Prager’s show has been cut back an hour, and now is on for 2 hours. Denis is a national personality. His show used to air from 11 AM to 2 PM. It is now on from 11AM to 1 PM. These are certainly interesting changes.
A couple of quick podcast notes. The Giz Wiz podcast hosted by Dick De Bartalo, and Chad Johnson celebrated their 18 anniversary. This podcast started back in 2006 with Dick and Leo Laporte, and Chad started hosting back in 2014. I started listening in 2007. This show is about different gadgets that Dick and Chad have discovered. Chad and Dick had a cake made for them. The next quick podcast note is that I found a couple of new Harry Potter podcasts to listen to. The first one is For Fawkes Sake podcast. This is hosted by 2 friends who decided to host a Harry Potter Podcast together. They also have a YouTube cooking show together. They celebrated their 200th episode in January of 2024. I really think they do a great job covering the books and they bring up some good questions. The only criticism I have about their show is they do have a tendency to swear. If kids are listening, they would want to be aware of this, or parents would want to be aware of this. The second podcast I found is called Broomsticks, and Butter Beer podcast. This show is hosted by Daniel Rino and his wife Jessica. They are from St. Louis.In January of 2024, they celebrated their 200 episode. That is wonderful news there. They also bring up some good questions while reading the books. Both of these Potter podcasts are talking about book 6 Harry Potter, and the Half Blood Prince.
Thanks for tuning in.
Larry Zimmer Tribute
“Larry Zimmer, was such a wonderful radio announcer in Jeremy Levy’s opinion.” Jeremy Levy back with you with the sad news that Larry Zimmer long time voice of the CU Buffs and the Denver Bronco’s has passed away at the age of 88 years old. He was surrounded by his family and friends, and died peacefully. Larry was behind the microphone for 486 CU Buff’s games. He started his career at the university of Missouri. He was also the sports director of 850 KOA radio back in the 1990’s.
I don’t like to go to games because of the loudness, so I really enjoy listening to them on the radio. Whenever I listen to sports on the radio I feel like I am right there with them at the game When I listen to sports on the radio I love hearing the announcers call the games. In the early 2000’s, I would sometimes listen to the CU Buff’s games even though I wasn’t a football or college football fan back then. Larry Zimmer was the first one to help me enjoy the CU Buffs.
Andy Lindahl knew Larry well and said that when he first became an intern at KOA radio Larry wasn’t sure about hiring him. He was a young kid, and KOA was looking for older people to take the job because older people listened to that kind of radio at the time. I think that Larry made the right decision to hire Andy. When I meet a radio host, I think it is surreal. Mark Johnson had a story that he told many times on Monday January 20 2024. He and Larry Zimmer were talking to a fan of the CU Buffs before one of the games. They talked for several minutes, and the fan said, “This was amazing!” Mark asked him what is so Amazing? The fan said I’m sitting here, and I am talking with the voices of my favorite college football team. This is so Surreal! This is the way I feel when I meet a radio personality and when I do an interview with a radio personality. I hope that my followers can understand this by reading this blog, and by listening to my podcast. I really wish I could have done an interview for this blog with Larry. I am sure he would have many stories about his times announcing games.
Larry was the same person announcing a CU Buff’s game that he was in person Mark Johnson said. Way back in 2004 when Mark Johnson was set to take the job as the CU Buffs football announcer people told him not to take the job because no one could replace Larry Zimmer. Mark was a little bit nervous his first couple of games, but it sounded like to me both by listening to Mark tell the story, and by listening to Mark take over for Larry that he was a great radio announcer. The transition was seamless thanks to Larry Zimmer. It was all due to his kindness and his warmth by welcoming him into the booth. For 12 years he was his mentor. When Mark did games with Gary Barnett, Mark would often get texts from Larry saying great broadcast today. You did a great job in covering the game for the fans. I really agree with that.
Dave Logan was Larry’s partner for the Bronco’s games in the early 1990’s. Dave said on Colorado’s morning news that he doesn’t think he would have a job in this business if it weren’t for Larry Zimmer. Dave got to see him in the hospital before he passed away, and he said it was good for him to see him. Dave said Larry’s mind was sharp as it was when he first knew him. His body might not have been totally functional, but his mind was certainly functional. Mark Johnson also got to see him in the hospital. They talked for many hours about the CU Buffs, and they would read bible verses together. The last week that Lary was in the hospital it was tough for him. If it weren’t for Larry Zimmer, Dave Logan and Scott Hastings wouldn’t have a show together. I believe, though I can’t back this up, that Lou from Littleton got hired by Larry as well. He did a great job over the years that Lou and Larry worked together.
Mark will miss him as a partner and as an announcer. Most of all Mark will miss Larry as a friend. Dave Logan feels the same way. The play from the Bronco’s that Larry called and will always stick in my mind is one of John Elway’s games. “Here is the fourth down play. Elway’s got the ball. John drops back. Runs up out of the pocket. Let’s the pass go. It is caught by Rod Smith! It is at the 40- the 35- the 30- the 25- the 20- the 15- the 10- the 5- touch down touchdown Bronco’s! The Bronco’s strike in a hurry.” You could hear the excitement in his voice. Dave said as the color guy, “That was unbelievable!” The Bronco’s walk off the field a winner. In my opinion Larry Zimmer was and will always be a Colorado football winner. Thanks for tuning in.
Jeremy’s winter Colorado media changes 2023
Jeremy Levy back with you to write about Colorado media changes for winter of 2023.
I hope everyone has had a great holiday season so far. Let’s start on the TV side. Rick Salinger is retiring from KCNC TV good luck to him. He is retiring because of health issues. Also speaking of CBS KCNC channel 4, Brit Moreno who used to be with KCNC 4 TV, but moved to Austin Texas is now back in Austin on the TV station KXAN after an absence. She explained about this in a Mike Mcguff blog post.
Kathy Sabin had an accident and has been off the air recovering at home. Well wishes go out to her. Kathy has done weather in Colorado since the early 1990’s.
There is a second story on the Mike Mcguff blog about a former TV anchor for KUSA TV Christine Noell. The post said that she is back in Colorado. We don’t know what she is doing yet.
I was looking on linked-in a couple of days ago, and there were a couple of reporter positions at TV stations, and a couple of other TV jobs available. There were also 2 positions available for either a full time traffic reporter that can go in the traffic helicopter to report traffic, and a second traffic reporter position. Look at the I heart media website for the details on where to send your resume.
Johnathan Steel has been doing a great job as a fill in as well as Cynthia Bale, Kelly Cane, and Daren Coplin. Kathy J., who was with 107.1, 107.5 and 101.5 radio for over 20 years is moving to Kosi 101 radio to be its next afternoon DJ. She is taking over for Jim Lawson who just wanted to be the program director at Kosi 101, and not to do afternoons anymore. When Kathy started her radio career she was a promotions person for Kosi 101. She knows her way around the building well.
Jammin’ 101.5 is looking for someone to replace Kathy on that station. Jammin’ 101.5 is owned by Max media. You can find the post and apply on the Max Media radio website. On December 22, 2023, I found out that Jammin’ 101.5, and Flow 107.1 are being sold to Pillar of Faith media. This was surprising news. Pillar of Faith Media owns 910 KPOF radio. This means that Max media isn’t in Colorado anymore.
The V Bros have launched at nights on 95.7 KDHT radio which is owned by I heart media and is a Hip Hop radio station. This show is broadcast in Boston. The V Bros are Mikey and Frankie Vinci . Mikey, and Frankie have done shows around the United States, but this is the first time that they have teamed up to do a show together. They will have a third person joining them, Gianna Gravalese. This show will be launching more affiliates in 2024.
Kosi 101 radio did their annual Ronald McDonald House radiothon and raised some good money for that organization. Cumulus radio stations in Colorado Springs did a similar radiothon, and they met their goal.
You might have seen that Bailee B. who was with KTCL radio for some years got a job at Cumulus media in Kansas City at the classic rock station. Unfortunately the information that was posted on the radio insight about her getting this job was not accurate. She was at that station, but after Thanksgiving, she is no longer with that station. She told me she is enjoying the time off but is hoping to find a new radio job at the beginning of 2024.
Steffan Tubbs is no longer with 710 KNUS radio. He retired from the station back at the beginning of November. He is going to be working on a documentary. After that, he isn’t sure what he is going to be doing. The one main thing I have learned from listening to Steffan is that when you are doing interviews that sometimes you need to ask the tough questions of the guests that you are interviewing. That is what Steffan did for the years he was at KOA and 710 KNUS.
Deborah Flora is no longer with 710 KNUS radio either. She is running for a political spot that was Ken Buck’s in the U. S. Congress. Replacing Steffan in the afternoons will be the Officer Brandon Tatom show which is broadcast nationally on many of the Salem Communications radio stations. Sebastian Gorka is on from 2-4 p.m. on 710 KNUS radio. Brandon is on from 4-7 p.m. Also, Charlie Kirk show is on from 10 A.m. to noon on week day mornings on 710 KNUS radio. Jay Sekulow is on from 7-8 p.m. on weekday evenings on KNUS as well. The rest of the lineup is unchanged.
On Sunday nights, Casey and Scott Bloyer’s show the Bloyer effect is no longer on the air from 7-9 P.m. on KNUS. Scott has moved to Greely to join a different church, but Casey is still at Launch Pad Brewery. It was a great show while it lasted. They both said that on October 29, 2023 which was their last show. After Backbone Radio is Arc midnight with John B. Wells from 7-10 P.m. Also, the national program Jill on Money is on twice on Sundays. She is on from 7-9 a.m. and 2-4 p.m.There seems to be many scheduling changes on KNUS radio.
Speaking of 710 KNUS, Randy Corporon had a little bit of arm surgery, and was off the air for a week recuperating. Matt Dunn was his substitute. The week that Randy was back on the air on the 10, of December Matt Dunn wanted to celebrate the holidays with his family. Randy filled in for Matt on Back Bone radio on Sunday night from 4-7 p.m. . Peter Boyles had some great shows on Saturdays in November and December. The toy run that he does every year was a success. One interview that I really enjoyed was from Sandy Clough on the Peter Boyles show This was also on the 10th of December. I really enjoyed the imaginary thanksgiving day parade that he did on the day before thanks giving. The Mike Boyle restaurant show had a successful Christmas gift card drive for taps. They were able to support 63 families in the Colorado Springs area with gift cards for restaurants, and for stores like WalMart and Target. They got ten thousand gift cards from the listeners of the Mike Boyle Restaurant show. They had a great Christmas party for the families at Lui’s pizza restaurant at Tutt Blvd in Colorado Springs. That is excellent news there.
Speaking of sports radio, Dmac (Daren Mckee) has joined 92.5 Altitude sports radio, and is partnered with Scott Hastings and Tyler Polumbus. The title of the show is PHD again, and can be heard from noon to 3 on Altitude sports radio. Daren sounds like the job he has at Altitude is really exciting to him. Also speaking of sports, Amanda Brown is the new program director replacing Raj Sheron. Amanda came from 710 KESPN radio in Los Angeles. She got cut by that station. Maybe some good changes will be taking place on that station in 2024. There is no word yet on what Raj is going to be doing. Jeff Brantly is a new producer for the AM. for IHeart media radio stations 630 KHOW, and 850 KOA radio. Jeff and Raj used to work together at ESPN radio 105.5 radio when that was a station back in 2012-2013. Jeff is a great producer for all of the shows on KHOW and KOA radio.
Speaking of 630 KHOW radio, Ryan Schuling filled in on the Troubleshooter show on December 2nd and 3rd. This was a new show for him to fill in on, but he did a great job. Tom and Marc Mager were both busy doing other things. Tom mentioned that he is looking for a few more deputies to help him with his show. Those that are interested can e-mail Help@troubleshooter.com.
Cecil Lamee’s show is only on from 6-7 p.m. on week day evenings. Mike Rice is on KFKA radio doing College women’s UNC bears basket ball games. I don’t know if he would be doing anything else with that station. It is good news that he is getting some part time work. One quick podcast note that I would like to mention is the Wod Fam Choc Pod podcast had it’s last episode in October of 2023. They aren’t going to be podcasting any more. Their last episode was a good one. They reviewed broken Window in the Novicom Saga of Adventures in Odyssey podcast. They thought this was a good episode to end on. .
Thanks for tuning in.
Thoughts on Talk Radio
Jeremy Levy back with you. Today I’m sharing my thoughts on talk radio.
As many of you know, I have been a talk radio listener since 1996. I first started listening to the weekend programming which is called brokered programming. The hosts brokered their time. Warren Byrne, Gabby Gourmet, The Media Show with Dusty Saunders and Joanne Ostro, The Mr. Fix-it Show, The Gardening sshow with Jim Bourland and Keith Funk, Bird talk, the Mike Boyle Restaurant Show are just many examples. As caller Jay said on the Peter Boyles show said on July 15, 2023 “those shows he really learned things from, and they weren’t politics.” I agree with him. I learned things from those shows. I really liked it back then when they would take calls. I got to hear many people’s opinions on things. Some of the national shows on the weekends are still good at this. I always enjoy it when Mike Boyle takes calls.
In the early 2000’s, I started listening to some of the weekday shows. Peter Boyle’s shows were really interesting when he had on authors or other radio personalities as well. I really like the way Peter Boyles does his research for his shows. As Mike Boyle said, “how do you expect me to recommend a book if I haven’t read the book? How do you expect me to recommend a restaurant if I haven’t been there?” Tom Martino’s shows have always been entertaining for me. It was also a good way for me to learn about politics as well, even though I might not have agreed with the politics that they were discussing.
As I have learned over the years, I have been able to understand politics a little bit better. Sometimes I take what they are talking about on the radio and discuss it with my mom and dad so I can understand it better. It has opened up enlightening conversation with them. Politics on the radio have their place in the radio industry. I enjoy it when callers can call in to say what they are thinking.
I enjoy hosts that can talk more than politics. A couple of hosts that do a great job with this are Mandy Connell and Ross Kaminsky. On July 14, 2023, I heard 2 interviews with Christian Toto a movie reviewer. The movies that he was talking about I might not want to see, but I enjoyed his opinions on the movies. On Mandy’s show she has a life coach which I like as well. When Jon Caldara is substituting host, he sometimes talks about politics, but sometimes he has entertaining stories. I enjoy the entertaining stories. Michael Brown doesn’t take calls, and I don’t like that Michael does use the talk back feature in the iHeart media app, because that is interesting on other shows. Peter Boyles explained on the show on July 15, 2023 that they might be afraid of their image on the air. Leland Conway doesn’t take calls either. I do enjoy on Fridays during the last hour of the Leland Conway show from 2-4 p.m. on 630 KHOW radio when he does the twisted view where he invites other hosts from the IHeart stations into the studio to talk about fun topics. It helps me get to know the other hosts that work in the building.
Since 1997, when I would travel to different places, I listened to the different talk radio stations around the country. When I visit certain places, I enjoy finding out how different radio stations are programmed and what the different hosts are talking about. Some other states have more local talk shows than others. California and Texas have more local hosts than Colorado does. This is because there are more listeners to the stations, and the states are bigger states. Oahu Hawaii has the most interesting radio stations. The local shows on Oahu talk about Hawaiian issues. This is interesting to me.
Recently, I read a book series by Lev Grossman called the magicians book series. There are 3 books in the series. In the third book the world that the main characters in the books visited was going away. They didn’t want it to, and tried to stop it from going away. The world had to go away in order for a new world to take its place. I feel that the world of talk radio is a world for me. Whenever I am interviewed by a radio host, or I meet a radio show host, my world of Talk radio has opened up an opportunity for me. I have learned over the years that sometimes people in my talk radio world go away even though I don’t want them to. Examples I have are Lois Melkonian and April Zesbaugh. When those people went away in my talk radio world, it brought in the opportunity for other people to take their place. Examples would be Mandy Connell and Jeana Gondeck.
When I was at Pikes Peak Community College, I was exposed to podcasts, and that also opened up more of my talk radio world. I am certainly ready to explore more of this world by creating my own podcast called Jeremy’s Journey. I believe radio is wonderful, and so are podcasts. I also believe when I listen to talk radio, I feel the connection. In my producer Dan Mandis interview he said that podcasts are wonderful, but a podcast can’t give you that instant connection that the radio can. In May of 2023, Peter Boyles was talking about AM radio not being in cars anymore. In my opinion this was a sad thing to talk about, and many callers felt the same way. The callers that called in would really miss the talk radio in their cars. Peter Boyles asked was it going away? He hoped not, and I agreed with him. There was an update with this. It doesn’t seem that car radios are going away. Some laws are in the process of being passed to see that they don’t.
This is something I am happy about.
Thanks for tuning in.
Fall 2023 Radio and Podcast updates
Jeremy Levy back with you with some Colorado radio updates. “The Colorado Rockies can turn things around in the next few years.” Quote from Ed Henderson scout for the Colorado Rockies, and one of the Rockies insiders on KOA radio. The Colorado Rockies wrapped up their season the last weekend of September. The last broadcast of Rockies All access was on September 30, 2023. Jerry had Ed Henderson on. Ed said Azekiel Tobar, Brenton Doil, and Noland Jones were 3 players that really impressed him as players that can grow even more in the next couple of years. He also said the College pitchers they have signed are going to be great pitchers in the future. When they do get some of the older pitchers back that will help them as well. Ed is a great Rockies insider because he has been around the game for many years.
The CU Buffs are now 4 and 4 on the season. They made the September 30, 2023 game against the USC team a close one. They lost 49 to 42. The second half of the game was really exciting. They unfortunately lost their next game to Arizona State in a close one as well.
The Air Force Falcons are now 7 and 0 on the season. They have a great team this year. I love listening to the games on 104.3 the Ffan either on Friday nights or on Saturday nights. Jim Arthur is a great announcer for the team. I really enjoy listening to when he calls the games on the radio.
Paul Jaxon has taken over mornings on WBIG radio. He used to be with KBPI 106.7 when that was KBPI radio in Colorado. in the late 1990’s. It was 1998 to 1999. He worked with Willie Bee when Willie first started at KBPI radio. He replaces The Don Jeranemo Show on WBIG radio. That whole story of why Don is no longer with WBIG radio is that when he was at the Commanders training camp back at the end of July or the beginning of August he made a comment about a TV reporter that wasn’t flattering. Don was fired after that. Don used to host the nationally syndicated Don and Mike show on 1280 KRRF radio Colorado when that was a talk station in Colorado. Good luck to Jaxon. I hope he does well on WBIG radio. I e-mailed Jaxon to congratulate him about this, and he seems really excited to be taking over at WBIG radio.
Tyler Fry who was a host at 107.5 radio in Denver is now in Kansas City to take over a cumulus radio station there. Good luck to him. Tyler was with 107.5 radio in the early 2000’s.
If you have tuned into 91.1 K-love recently, and wondered where Skip Mahaffey went to? Well, Skip has not been on K-love’s morning show since August. October 9, 2023, I read that he has moved to take over programming of Pillar media in Cincinnati Ohio and New York. He will be on the air in Ohio, and just program the station in New York. I will miss him on K-love radio. He had a very calming and sincere voice. There is no word yet about who is replacing the Skip and Amy show on K-love.
A program director from the 80’s who did some work at KRXY radio in Denver has moved to Cumulus radio in Chicago to take over programming for WLS F.M. radio. This person would be Todd Cavanah. Good luck to him with that move. Long time viewers of my blog would remember him from the 80’s when he was with KRXY radio.
KUAD radio K-99 radio is looking for a co-host for its morning show. Interested candidates need to look at the Town Square website under the link jobs. They need to send their resume as soon as possible. Town Square is growing and they are looking for people.
Podcast highlight time! In this blog I would like to highlight the Odyssey Geek podcast. This podcast is hosted by Austin Peachy. He is a big Adventures in Odyssey fan just like I am, and he is a big audio theatre listener as well. In some of the Odyssey Geek podcasts, he highlights some of these audio dramas. One of my favorites is Paws and Tails. On these episodes he is joined by Michael La Favor who hosts some podcasts of his own which I will talk about in a future blog post. Austin announced that these podcasts will not be on the Odyssey Geek podcast feed anymore. Are these episodes going away? No, they are not going away! They are just going to be their own podcast called a walk through Wildwood. These will have the same great content that people have come to know and love. This will be coming soon, and I am really looking forward to these new episodes. Austin and Michael make a great team together reviewing and discussing the episodes. When the podcasts were on the Odyssey Geek feed, they were the most listened to podcasts. That is excellent news there.
There is a quick update with the audio theatre central podcast with the audio theatre awards that I blogged about last time. J. D. the host of the show thanked everyone for sending in feed back to him about this. He said they are still evaluating things. He really wants this show to be the very best audio drama presentations as possible. No decisions have been made yet They have a donation button on the audio Theatre Central website, and I would encourage people to donate to this website, so they can continue this wonderful work. This is still a developing story.
A podcast I have found recently is the Newest Olympian podcast. This podcast is about the Percy Jackson Fantasy book series and is hosted by Mike Schubert. As it is described in the introduction of the show, Mike is a 30 year old man who has never read the Percy Jackson book series, but he is reading them for the first time to see if this is a book series we are all sleeping on as a society. In my opinion the answer is yes. This sounds like a really fun book series. Coming up this Monday October 24, 2023 is Mike’s 100th episode of the show. This should be a great episode. I wonder if there will be anything special for the 100th episode. It turns out that for the 100 episode it is the live show from Chicago In some episodes of the show, he goes to a specific venue to perform the show live from an audience. He mentioned there are 4 shows coming in Texas in December.
Thanks for tuning in.
Fall updates 2023
Jeremy Levy back with you with some more updates for fall of 2023.
On Christian Salem station 94.7 KRKS their schedule has changed in the afternoons. They don’t have New Life Live on at 3 o’clock anymore. This show is a nationally syndicated call-in program that was broadcast in both Denver and Colorado Springs. Those who listen to that show will have to listen to it on 10.7 the word in Colorado Springs at 11 o’clock a.m. This station is also owned by Salem Communications. I got this information from Tom Moller who does mornings on 94.7 KRKS radio. The website says that New life Live is still on at 3 o’clock on 94.7 KRKS radio- this is INCORRECT.
“Touch Down! Touch Down CU Buffs! This is amazing I haven’t seen anything like this!” Mark Johnson play by play announcer of the CU Buffs. Mark Johnson has called 3 very exciting first games of the Deion Sanders Erra of the CU Buffs on in September of 2023. The games were against TCU in Dallas Texas, Nebraska, and CSU in Colorado. The Buffs won the first game 45 to 42. The quarter back for the Buffs is Deion’s son Shadeur. Deion said that many people didn’t have belief in the team, but that they had belief in themselves. It is great to hear the team talking that way. I am hoping for a successful season with the CU Buffs. As a college football fan, I root for two teams in Colorado to do well, the CU Buffs and the Air Force Falcons football team. The reason why I root for Air Force is because that is close to the Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind in Colorado Springs where I went to school during my high school years. The reason why I root for CU is because 850 and 94.1 KOA radio are two of my favorite radio stations to listen to, and they are the flagship stations for the CU Buffs. The game against CSU was amazing and a late night for everyone involved.
Rod Mackey is no longer with KUSA TV as it’s sports reporter and has moved to KCNC TV channel 4. This is a great move for him. He said when he left channel 9 that he really enjoyed his time with KUSA 9. He said that Kathy Sabine, and Matt Renoux have been there the longest, and he was glad to be with channel 9 for that long period of time. Who will be the next sports anchor for KUSA TV? We will have to wait and find out.
“Another successful ATC Senica awards”. J. D. Sutter from the audio theatre central podcast. One of the podcasts I really enjoy listening to is the Audio theatre Central podcast hosted by J. D. Sutter. Every year they put together an awards ceremony for the best audio theatre family audio dramas. This is the only thing of this kind out there. This isn’t like the Grammies or the Oscars. This is a special awards ceremony. It takes some very hard work by J. D. It takes 8 months out of the year to put this together. J. D. has recently had some stresses in his life. One of the big stresses in his life is this awards ceremony because he is involved with it in some big way. His doctor has told him to take some of the stresses out of his life. J.D. has a full-time job. Much of the preparation for the awards has to be done at night and on the weekends. He has a great time doing the awards every year. It isn’t profitable to do this every year. They need to find some sponsors for it every year as well. J. D. explained that he doesn’t mean for this to sound like a begging for money segment. It is coming out of his finances. For the first couple of years of the event, J. D. had to pre-screen the submissions. In the last couple of years, he had to bring in help because many of the submissions didn’t meet the criteria that he was looking for. They weren’t family friendly. That is a concern. J.D. doesn’t know if people are intentionally trying to slip something past him, and the people that help with the awards. They don’t charge people to submit their projects. It is free to submit the projects. It hasn’t grown like they hoped it would. J. D. is wondering would they need to charge money for the awards? JD’s question is what would it take for people to show up and watch it live? J. D. wants to hear from the listeners about this. I am a loyal listener to this podcast, and I know that J.D. would love to hear from friends of my blog to e-mail him to let them know their thoughts. I don’t want this to end. There are ways to make it more enjoyable or more profitable. I am not an expert on this. I will be letting him know my thoughts, and I would encourage you to let him know your thoughts. You can e-mail him at J.D.at audiotheatrecentralpodcast.com or at feedback@audiotheatrecentral.com. I loved listening to this episode. Adventures in Odyssey (my favorite Audio Theater drama) really cleaned up big this year in the awards. One other note- September is their anniversary month. They started in 2010. J. D. is hoping to keep the blog and podcast coming for years to come. That is great news there.
Some sad news to report for Dan Caplis and the Caplis family. Dan’s youngest sister Joanne passed away suddenly on Thursday night the 7th of September. Dan went back for the funeral. Dan wasn’t on Friday the 8th of September. Kristy Berton Brown filled in for him, and said to keep Dan and his family in your prayers as they go through this difficult time.
Steffan Tubbs went on a vacation to Florida the first week in September. Randy Corporon and Peter Boyles were my favorite fill ins for him.
“A new generation of 1043 KKFN Sports radio is on its way”. Announcer of the Fan. Yes, you read that right! KKFN 104.3 the Fan has a new line up. They have 2 new mid-day shows. The morning show is still hosted by Mike Evans and Mark Schlereth, but they will be adding an extra hour. Their show will be on from 6-10 A.m. The show that was hosted by Orlando Franklin, Chad Brown, and Nate Jackson that was on from 9-11 A.m. has been taken off the air They have been let go from the station. Who is on starting at 10 O’clock? It is Brandon Stokley, but he is joined by Josh Dover. As many of you know Josh was with Altitude Sports radio 92.5 radio for 7 years. The show from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. is called Josh and Stoke. Where did Zach Bye go, Stokley’s former co-host? Well, Zach has taken over as host of the drive show from 2 P.m. to 6 o’clock P.m. Who is Zach co-hosting with? Well, it is none other than Phillip Lindsey former running back for the CU Buffs, and the Denver Broncos. Where did Darren Mckey go? Daren has been cut from the station. Darren wrote on twitter that it is now on to the next opportunity. Some listeners weren’t happy with the show that Darren was doing with Derek Wolf. Derek left at the end of July. In my opinion The Fan had trouble finding a great partner for Darren. Some people were saying the show was better when Alfred Williams was co-hosting with Darren. Alfred seems happier on 850 KOA radio. He has matured on KOA radio. Who will replace Josh on Altitude Sports radio? We will have to wait and find out. They haven’t named a co-host with Scott Hastings and Tyler Polumbus.
Jimmy Sengenberger had his 10-year anniversary show on Saturday the 23rd of September. It was a great show. He had his grandpa on the show. His grandpa first got him listening to Rush Limbaugh when he was 12 or 13 years old. It brought back some wonderful memories for me of when I used to visit my grandparents, and I used to listen to talk radio in Florida, or New York. Sometimes I used to record tapes of me doing a radio show, and my Grandpa Ed would be a caller to the show. I think that Grandpa Ed and Grandma Bernice would be proud of my starting my own podcasts. Thanks for tuning in.
Late summer radio changes and Broncos
Jeremy Levy back with you to write more about some late summer 2023 radio and TV changes.
Alex Waters has taken over nights on KKMG 98.9 radio in Colorado Springs. This will be a great move for him.
Audacy has tapped DJ Buck as ks107.5 radio program director. He is still programming the FM
Audacy Hip Hop station in Conneticut. Audacy has been making changes to its radio stations to save money. This means that different program directors have been programming Audacy stations that are not in the state that the station is in. In my opinion, this isn’t a smart thing for them to do because if a station has a problem there wouldn’t be a program director there to help with the problem.
The Colorado radio blog wants to send its condolences to the family of Frank Cody who passed away recently. Frank was the one who formed KBPI radio, and he also formed many of the smooth jazz radio stations around the country. He might have even formed KHIH radio which was a smooth jazz radio station in Colorado. People will miss him. If you would like to check out his work his website is still working at Frankcody.com.
Brit Moreno has taken leave from KXAN TV. She has been having some emotional
issues. I got this information from Mike Mcguff blog. I hope that Brit gets better soon, and will be back
soon on KXAN TV.
John Moug is no longer working for Lotus KPLZ radio in Washington. John was
with 92.5 KWOF radio when that was a country station. John and his co-host Angie have a short non-
compete clause and are available immediately. In Seattle their show performed well, but they are looking for their next opportunity. Good luck to them whatever their next opportunity.
“Another successful Taste of Douglas County for their 24th year.” Quote from Mike Boyle from the Mike Boyle restaurant show. Yes, the 24th annual Taste of Douglas County was held on Thursday August 17, 2023, at the Douglas County Events center. Steffan Tubbs was broadcasting from there this year again, and did a wonderful job covering the event. Congratulations to Mike Boyle for the 24th successful event in August.
The week before Steffan Tubbs was out with a lung illness. He was back on Tuesday August 15, 2023. He seemed to be feeling better.
Speaking of 710 KNUS, Peter Boyles had a great trip to Sturgis, South Dakota.
Before the trip in July, Peter Boyles had Gary Defrange, Tom Tancredo, and Frank Diangelis on
the show. That was a fun show to listen to, and you can listen to the podcast on the Peter Boyles
710 KNUS radio website. They had a great time together.
Ross Kaminsky was broadcasting from Bronco’s training camp on Thursday August 17, 2023. That was a great live broadcast. My Dad and I attended Bronco training camp that day. The Broncos started limiting the number of people attending and we needed reservations, but it still seemed as crowded as other years. There is a lot of optimism with new Coach Sean Payton. I'm hoping they make the playoffs.
Howard Garett is no longer on 1460 the answer on Sunday evenings from 5-7. He is still on Sundays from 7-10 AM right before the Mike Boyle restaurant show. Howard is national, but he has great tips about
Colorado gardens. Many people really enjoy listening to him in Colorado Springs.
At the beginning of July Dan Caplis went on a vacation to Africa. He said it was a great trip. Kristy Berton
Brown, Ryan Schueling, and Jon Caldara were fill ins. Those were great shows.
Also at the end of July Tom Martino the Troubleshooter on 630 KHOW radio had a second back surgery. It was to repair a disk in his back. The surgery went fine, but he had to spend a couple of extra days in the
hospital. He is back home now, and he is recovering well. Thanks for tuning in.
Spring/Summer 2023 updates
Jeremy Levy back with you to write more about some more Colorado radio changes.
The Colorado Avalanche were in the playoffs again this year, but they were swept in the second round of the playoffs. They just didn’t have the depth this year. I am looking forward to next year. In April, when the Avs were playing the Kraken of Seattle, I e-mailed Dick Fain who is one of the sports hosts on KJR 93.3 radio in Seattle, and he said that the Kraken were a hungrier bunch. They needed to play a complete game if they had a chance of winning. Luck would have it, that is what happened. The Avs lost and the Kraken won.
After the Nuggets won the NBA trophy, I found a video on you tube with the announcer of the Nuggets Jason Cosmitsky. This was from channel 9. Kim Christiansen asked him if he knew what he was going to say when the Nuggets won the trophy. He said that he wrote it all out. He didn’t want to mess it up.
Mike Evans (morning show host of KKFN radio’s morning show) was very confident about the Nuggets being successful in the playoffs. If you would like to check this out, there is an article about it on Barrett’s sports media.
One of the podcasts I listen to, the Audio Theatre Central Podcast, has a couple of openings on the Audio Drama Alliance. They are looking for sound designers, and some composers for their audio dramas. If you are interested, you can go to the website Audio Drama Alliance.com, and fill out the form. They will get back to you. I have found the Audio Theatre Central Podcast to be a great podcast over the years. This is hosted by J. D. Sutter. On the podcast they said that you don’t have to have vast experience.
For those of you in The Colorado Springs area, you might remember a TV multi-media journalist named Chandler Jordan. After leaving KRDO TV news, he moved to Texas for a couple of years. Now he is moving to South Carolina to WIS TV in South Carolina. Good luck to him. He graduated from a school in North Carolina, so he is closer to where he graduated.
Tyler Gunter has taken over some radio stations in Elco Co. Tyler is in charge of 5 T LLC. He has acquired Elco broadcasting from Paul and Ketra Gardener. These stations are KELK, Jack Fm, KRJC, KLKO, and Fox sports KEAU radio. This is exciting for him. He was previously with the company a few years ago. He owned a real estate company before.
KDZA returns to Pueblo. Mountain radio group has shifted Variety hits (101.9 the lake) to KDZA radio station. This would be classic hits. It is a great move for them.
Shawn Lucero has left KILO and KRXP radio in Colorado Springs. He has moved to Denver to become program director of 102.3 the sound in Denver. This is a public radio station that plays Colorado music. Congratulations to him.
In April, IHeart media went through some re-structuring. This affected Colorado as Mike Rice and Susan Whitken have left KOA radio. Mike Rice was let go. Perhaps he might resurface again when the Bronco’s season gets going again. Susan Whitken has retired. Good luck to the both of them. I will miss them. Haley Mae has taken over doing news for the Mandy Connell show. At the beginning of June Mandy Connell had throat surgery and was off the air until July 7, 2023. Krista Kafer, Mary Walter, Ross Kaminsky, Jon Caldara, and Ryan Schueling have been filling in for her. Good wishes go out to her.
The weekend of July 15, Jon Caldara of the independence institute, participated again in the Courage Classic bike ride for Children’s hospital. This is always a great supportive event for Children’s hospital. Jon was on the Dan Caplis show the week before and mentioned if people can support the cause at the Independence Institute website. I have donated to this in past years, and I would encourage you to do the same.
Good wishes go out to Michael Brown of 630 KHOW radio. He had some back surgery and Ryan Schueling was his fill in on the days that he was gone.
Speaking of talk radio stations, 710 KNUS has been having some changes in their programming. Matt Dunn, who hosts Back Bone radio on Sunday nights was off the air in April and May. He came back in the middle of May and explained his absence from the station saying that his wife had cancer. He had to take care of his kids while she was going through treatment. It is great having him back on Sundays. When Matt Dunn was taking care of that, Randy Corporon was a fill in for him some Sundays. After Matt came back, Matt has been filling in on Randy’s show on Saturday evenings from 5-8. The reason is Randy’s wife, Tonya, passed away. She had been having some medical issues. If you would like to read the obituary of Randy’s wife, you can do this at https://www.dignitymemorial.com
The Colorado radio blog sends its condolences to the whole Corporon family. I found out last Saturday that Randy will be back the 28th of July.
Craig Carton has left WFAN radio to do some TV work for FSN. If you remember in past blogs, Craig started in Colorado with 950 KKFN radio, and spent a little time at KBPI radio as well. Good luck to Craig. If you are looking for a couple of podcasts to listen to, I have a couple of new ones to check out. The first one is about the newer episodes of Adventures in Odyssey which is an audio drama that I really enjoy. This podcast is called All Things Adventures in Odyssey and is hosted by clint. The link is
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/all-things-adventures-in-odyssey-an-unofficial-podcast/id1693273384
The second podcast is called Hot Mike with Scott Hastings and Andy Lindahl. I didn’t know that Andy and Scott Hastings did a podcast until recently. I listened to the most recent episode and they talked about some good things. They were talking with people on the phone instead of texting people to talk to them before they started getting into Colorado sports. You can find this podcast at
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hot-mic-with-hastings-lindahl/id1493146377
Thanks for tuning in.
Radio updates
Jeremy Levy back with you with some more radio updates. I first wanted to send my condolences to Tad Swensen’s family. Tad used to be with Kool 105 radio in Colorado. My friend Gary Outlaw told me that he passed away. Condolences to him and his family.
Speaking of family. Tyler Polumbus hasn’t been on 92.5 Altitude Sports radio. He will be back as he is gone for family reasons. Scott Hastings and Josh Dover have been doing a great job holding down the fort while he has been gone. Tyler was back on Tuesday January 31, 2023.
Speaking of sports radio 104.3 the fan. Derek Wolfe shared a story with Daron Mckey about when he hunted a mountain lion. Barett’s sports media had an interesting article about his experience, and how some of the national sports media thought about the story. This article discussed how Pat McAfee heard the story. Derek thought it was interesting. If you would like to check it out it is under the sports radio news section of the Barrett’s sports media website.
104.3 the Fan has started a new brand. The brand is Denver sports. They got in trouble with some of the branding. There is a lawsuit going on relating to the brand. This is a developing story. The Denver sports will also have a new app to go along with it.
Jessamyn McIntyre has been named program director of 93.3 KJR radio after the departure of their program director left to take the program director post at 92.5 Altitude Sports radio. This program director is Kevin Shockey.
Good wishes go out to Dave Logan who is recovering from throat issues he has been dealing with. He was back at the start of the third week in January. Ryan Edwards has been named the third co-host of the KOA radio sports zoo from 3-6 on 850 KOA radio congratulations to him
Good wishes also go out to Dan Caplis and his wife Amy. Amy fell in their home and had to have surgery. Dan was off with her for the last couple weeks of January, but was back on January 30, 2023
On 710 KNUS, good wishes go out to Steffan Tubbs who had some hand surgery. He will be back at the start of the fourth week in January.
The show bird talk had their last show on 710 KNUS back a couple of weeks ago. Barb Shlinker’s Colorado Springs Real Estate show is on during their time period. Good luck to Dave and Scott with their retirement. They sold the stores to their franchise partners. The stores are still around. I’ve been listening to them since the late 90’s. Peter Boyles had them on his show, and it was a great interview. You can go back and listen to that hour on the podcasts page on the 710 KNUS radio website. I met Scott, and David at the stores when they did a broadcast, and it was a great time. I will miss Dave and Scott’s show.
Randy Corporon has moved to 5-8 PM now on Saturdays. That is great news there.
Dana Meyers has been named morning host on KVOQ radio. KVOQ is owned by Colorado public radio. It is located at 102.5 on the dial. She replaces Jeremy Peterson. Jeremy is no longer with the station. She started at KVOQ radio on January 16. Dana most recently worked for WZBA in Baltimore Mariland. She got her radio start at the student radio station at the University of Boulder. The people at the station will miss Jeremy, but the station is very grateful to have found Dana.
The station 101.5 radio has a new title for the station now called Jammin 101.5 and will be branded as the R and B hits from yesterday and today. Kathy J., has been named Mid-day host on the station. Kathy was most recently with Fox 31 news doing her mid-day show. This is good news for her.
Thanks for tuning in.
Denver Nuggets blog
“You can take the D out of the Dover because this thing is over! The Denver Nuggets have won the 2023 NBA finals! The Denver Nuggets are at the top of the NBA world!” said Jason Cosmitsky Denver Nuggets radio announcer.
“The Denver Nuggets are going to become world champions!” Lou from Littleton former 850 KOA radio host said , when he joined Julie Browman on the Dave Logan podcast. Julie’s reaction was what really? Really?
If you remember in my blog from last summer about the Avalanche, then you would remember the question being asked: Who will be the next Colorado team to make it to the finals? This question has been answered this year in the Denver Nuggets winning the trophy.
Jeremy Levy back with you to write about the Nuggets run to the NBA finals. I’m going to take you back to the start of the 2023 Denver Nuggets play offs. Winning the championship has been something that the Nuggets haven’t done in their 47 year existence. They have been in the play offs before, but they never have won the trophy. . They first played the Minnesota Timber Wolves. They won that series in 4 games. Then they played the Phoenix Suns. They lost a game against the Suns at home. Julie and Lou from Littleton substituting for Dave Logan on the Dave Logan podcast were hoping that this wouldn’t be the end of the Nuggets run. Lou was right again. They won that series in 5 games. It was the gentleman’s sweep. My friend Kathy Blanchard who lives in Arizona was hoping that the Nuggets would win. She was excited for that series. She said that she didn’t want the Suns to win. 98.9 KMVP hosts were a little bit sad that the Suns didn’t win. The next series was against the Los Angeles Lakers. The Nuggets won that series in 4 games. Kathy Blanchard wrote to me after the fourth game “Bye By, Lakers!.” I was feeling very confident that the Nuggets were going to win the NBA trophy after that game. Then it was onto the Miami Heat. My prediction was that the Nuggets were going to win the series against the Heat in 5 games. I was right with this prediction Julie Harrison my former music teacher at CSDB e-mailed me a friends reaction to the series- Julie wasn’t a basketball fan, but she had a friend of hers that was. He thought the Nuggets really had a great team. Melissa Riveros who lives Near Miami Florida said that she was excited for the series. She said she was happy the Nuggets won.
Bret Cain said at the start of the play offs that this is the Nuggets year. He thought the team really stuck together. On the last night that the Nuggets won, it was loud at the stadium. Dave Logan said that everyone was standing at the beginning of the 4, quarter, and they didn’t sit down until a half an hour after the game ended. Dave Logan got to go to some of the games. He hopes that people notice the wonderful talent that the Nuggets have in Nicola. My 2 favorite players are Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. Jamal and Nicola Jokic are the best duo’s in the game now. Dave Logan said that those 2 are really special players. Scott Hastings was really excited about the Nuggets winning the trophy. I have been a listener of Scott’s since 2004. I know that he has been in Colorado for some special moments. He has been in Colorado for Super Bowls and a couple of Stanley cups, but this was his first time calling a Denver Nuggets championship. This must have been really special for him. You could hear the excitement in his voice when he was color commentating on the radio. Bret Cain and Mark Moser went to the game together. As the seconds counted down Mark Moser was blubbering like a fool. He was so happy for them. Vick Lombardi asked a great question. What does this mean for the fans? I liked that question and I will answer that at the end of this post. Bret Cain got to go into the locker room after the last game. This was one of the best moments of his life. Bret Cain said it was a very loud locker room. They had music blaring and players were really happy. Altitude Sports radio 92.5 radio had coverage all of Monday night into Tuesday morning, and so did 104.3 KKFN radio. The parade took place Thursday June 15, 2023. KOA radio was broadcasting live bright and early on Thursday morning. They started at 5 o’clock. Marty Lenz and Brandon Kristzahl were in Civic Center Park. Jeanna Gondek had the weekend off. It would have been great to have her opinion being a transplant from Michigan. Ross Kaminsky and Ryan Edwards were broadcasting from the parade route. My 2 favorite parts of listening on 850 KOA were two former staff members from KOA radio came out of retirement for the big parade. These 2 people were John Morrisey and Jerry Bell. John used to be the KOA radio traffic reporter. He used to do many traffic reports from the KOA helicopter. For this parade he was broadcasting from the helicopter. Jerry Bell was broadcasting from different places around the parade route. It was good to hear John and Jerry’s voices again. I hope they are doing well in their retirements, and I am hoping they are doing well. They sounded the same as ever. KOA radio was the only station covering the parade from the sky. The second best coverage was Altitude sports radio. They had all of the crew. Altitude sports radio was noisier and louder than 850 KOA radio’s coverage was. Michael Malone was really proud of the team. His speech at the end of the season was “We want More,! More,! I certainly agree with this. Many of the fans were really excited about the Nuggets winning the trophy. Dave Logan said last week that he thinks there were more people at the parade than last year with the Avalanche parade last year There weren’t as many people as there were for the Bronco’s superbowl parade. When the Denver teams are doing well it really brings people together After the parade, Nate Kreckman and Andy Lindahl talked about the coverage. They talked about a story with a woman reporter asking a fan who is a kid what they thought about the championship Denver Nuggets? The child fan was kind of shy and didn’t answer the question. Nate, Andy, and I felt sorry for the reporter. Brandon Kristzahl got to hold the trophy. He got to see Nicola in the truck close up. That was a big highlight for him. Speaking of duo’s, I liked what Lois Melkonian put in her newsletter. She wrote that Jamal and Nicola had a couple of Triple Doubles in the game. She was encouraging saying that people can be their own triple Doubles, and to work hard for what you want. I am hoping through this blog and my podcast that I have shown you some of the people I have considered to be people who are Triple Doubles. Some examples are: Steve Kelley, April Zesbaugh, Steffan and April, Marty Lenz and April, Marty and Jeanna Gondek, Dave Logan, Scott Hastings, Dave, and Susie, Dave and Lois, and Mike Rice, Jack Corrigan, and Jerry Schemmel, and many others. I have learned from these people that hard work pays off. These people and many others I didn’t mention have brought the triple Double attitudes to their work every day This is where my hard work attitude comes from. . In my life, I appreciate these people. That’s what this season means to me. I appreciate all of you supporting me through out my life.
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Children's authors
Today, I would like to share with you about two of my favorite authors from when I was younger.
One would be Beverly Cleary. Beverly was born on April 12, 1916. And died on March 25, 2021. She had a long life. She was 104 when she passed away. When Beverly was a child, she was a troublemaker, and she didn’t like reading. As Beverly got older, she wondered why didn’t authors write books about kids like her. This was interesting to me because when I started with the idea for this blog, I wondered why a blog wasn’t there that talked about talk radio and Colorado radio. After College, Beverly became a librarian, and was forced to ask this question again. This is why she became an author. From an article in the New York times I read about her she has published over 40 books., She has also sold over 90 million copies and she won many awards. In 2000 the Library of Congress declared her a living legend. Many of her stories grew out of Beverly’s own life. One thing I didn’t know before was that Beverly was an only child. Beverly wrote in one of her memoirs that she felt restless, angry, rebellious, disloyal, and guilty even though her parents were told that they had a wonderful child. In my opinion Beverly’s books still do resonate with kids today. It said in the New York Times article that Beverly wrote that Ramona helped her process the world that she grew up in. In writing my blog, it has helped me process the radio world around me. I feel I am very fortunate that I have gotten to share my interviews through this blog. I feel that learning about these hosts has helped me process the radio world around me.
I first was introduced to Beverly when I was 5 or 6 years old. I listened to the book called Ellen Tebbits. This story showed 2 girls who became best friends. This book showed me how important friendship is. I remember my mom and dad reading the Henry Huggins book series to me as well. Henry was a character that I could relate to. Around this time, I remember one of my teachers Mrs. Lisa Hardert reading Dear Mr. Henshaw. This story was interesting to me. The book taught me that teachers care about the things that their students are going through As I have gotten older, I feel it would be great to write to some of my favorite authors. The name of the second article I read had a verry fitting title in my opinion. Beverly wrote about real life, and her readers loved her for it. I couldn’t have said it better myself. The question that one article asked was from the Newberry medal award to the national book award. Will Beverly Cleary’s books remain in the imagination of every child who met Ramona, Beezus, Henry Huggins, and his dog Ribsy, or any of her dear flawed characters? The answer for me was a resounding yes. When I used to read the books in Braille, or when I used to listen to them on tape, and situations came up I would think, I could relate to that situation, and it helped me in my childhood when these types of situations would come up in my life.
After reading all of those books, when I was 7, I started listening to the Ramona Quimby books. This series was about a girl named Ramona who had a wild imagination and would always get herself into some kind of a mess. I could tell that Ramona was a stubborn character. Some of the parts of those books were humorous. One of my favorite scenes was when Ramona wore her pajamas to school. That was a humorous and an embarrassing chapter. Beverly wanted her books to speak for themselves and resisted publicity. She named the street for the Ramona books after a neighborhood that she grew up in. Beverly wrote in her second book about her life. In my opinion that is very true. People will remember her books for the intelligent wit. In her later books, Beverly said that Ramona was more aware of her growing up. This is something that I have learned as well. The way I heard about Beverly’s death was from a radio host Richard Mckan who hosts a home improvement talk radio show on WRVA radio. He talked about how he used to read her books and enjoyed them. This brought back many fun memories for me. Thanks to Beverly for her imaginative, and creative books, and imagination.
Patricia Reilly Giff. Patricia was born on April 26, 1935. And passed away on June 22, 2022. She had a long life. She grew up in Brooklyn New York. One of the colleges that she attended was Hofstra University. This is where she got one of her degrees. Giff resided in Trumbull, Connecticut. Other authors that wrote similar books to hers were Elise Broach and Tonny Abbot. Giff was married to Jim and had 2 children Alice and William. She was a teacher before coming an author, and her first books came through her teaching experiences. Her first series of books were the Polk Street School series. Her characters in this series represented some of the children in her classes when she was a teacher. My favorite character was Dawn Bosco. Dawn was very much like me because she really enjoyed mysteries. Dawn wanted to be a detective when she grew up, and she started by solving mysteries in school. My favorite book featuring Dawn was one where Dawn went to camp and solved a mystery there. Back then the name Dawn became one of my favorite names. When I would hear the name Dawn it always made me think of the character Dawn Bosco from the Patricia Reilly Giff books. Patricia also wrote the book Pictures of Hollis Woods. This was about a girl in Foster care. I remember reading this in Mrs. Campbell’s class, and the book brought out many emotions in me. Patricia won a Newberry award for that book.
Patricia’s children William and Alice honored her this way. This was taken from an obituary I read about her. "Our mom was a warm, loving mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. A mentor to a generation of writers, she inspired everyone with her humor, positivity and friendship. She made everyone feel special." When I read her books, I found that to be true. I will always remember her characters, and how they would forgive themselves in the books when they couldn’t forgive themselves personally.
In my opinion Patricia and Beverly Cleary were two fantastic authors who wrote books that kids, and adults could relate to. When I started my writing of stories, I think of these 2 authors and try to write stories that people of all ages can relate to.
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Winter Colorado Radio and TV updates
Jeremy Levy back with you to write more about radio and TV changes.
The biggest news for KOA radio is they have hired someone to replace April Zesbaugh on KOA radio from 5 to 9 AM. It is Jeana Gondek. Jeana is originally from Michigan where she started her career there and then she moved to Jacksonville Florida. She was with WOKV in Jacksonville. Jeana has joined Marty Lenz on Colorado’s morning news. This is great news for KOA radio I think that Jeana will become one of my new favorites in this era of radio.
Gary Shapiro has semi-retired from KUSA TV channel 9. He will still help out on special projects. Jordan Chavez has taken Gary’s spot-on KUSA TV. Jordan came from KAMR Amerillo Texas which is the NBC affiliate there.
Natasha Verma has left KUSA TV as well at the end of 2022. She was there for 3 years.
Jim Benemann has retired from KCNC TV channel 4 at the beginning of December of 2022. Good luck to Jim. I remember Jim being at KCNC TV for a long time. April Zesbaugh talked with him during her last week at KOA radio, and it sounded like he was looking forward to retirement. Michael Spencer has taken over for Jim on KCNC 4.
In October of 2022 Dereck Wolfe was named co-host of the Fan Afternoon show with Darren McKee. Congratulations to him.
Tyler Polumbus has joined the mid-day show with Scott Hastings and Josh Dover. Altitude Sports radio has also added a new show from 10-12 hosted by Chris Dempsey. It is called Dempsey and Company. That is a great show to listen to. Josh, Tyler, and Scott come on from 12 until 3 PM, and Andy Lindahl, and Nate Kreckman come on from 3-6 PM.
KALC radio had a holiday concert called Alice in Wonderland at the Fillmore auditorium starring many of the bands that they play. This was a great concert that they had.
Art Labow passed away at age 90. Art coined the oldies but goodies slogan for stations like Kool 105. He died in California.
The Country radio awards are out, and the Bobby Bones show was selected as large national country morning show of the year. That is great news for them.
Rich Valdes has been named the host of the Jim Bohannon show after Jim’s departure from the show. Valdes has served as a sub host for the Mark Lavin show. The show will feature a mix of guests and features. Rich said that no one can replace Jim, but he is looking forward to the opportunity.
Nia Bender who did traffic is now back doing some shifts on News radio 850 KOA radio. She was doing traffic for 99.5 The Mountain.
Thanks for tuning in.
Barbara Walters Tribute
Jeremy’s Barbra Walters blog. Jeremy Levy back with you. Today I’m going to write a blog about Barbara Walters. Barabra was born on September 25, 1929, and died on December 29, 2022. She was married 3 times. She worked from 1959 until her retirement in 2015. She was famous from being a news correspondent for ABC news.
My first experience with Barbara Walters came when I was watching Sesame Street. In the late 1980’s Sesame Street did a special of different celebrities’ singing songs with different characters. This special was called Put Down the Duckie. As I wrote about in my Bob Mcgrath tribute, Barbra Walters came to Sesame Street to find out what Bob Mcgrath was really like. They talked about her job as a news correspondent. They sang a verse of People in Your neighborhood together. Barbra asked Bob Mcgrath about something personal that many people wanted to know about. She asked the question this way: “Bob, everyone knows that you and Linda have been keeping company for a time. Where is this relationship going and do you two have any future plans?” Bob Mcgrath said, “As a matter-of-fact Linda, and I are making plans.” Barbra asked, “Could you tell us about them?” Bob’s response, “I would love to. Tomorrow we are going to go to the park, and then Linda and I are going back to her place for a game of checkers. Those are our plans.” Barbra acted as if she seemed a little taken aback with the answer.
The second special that Barbara was in was All-star 25 birthday Stars on the Street Forever. In this episode she was a news anchor. She explained that a grouch by the name of Ronald Grump wanted to destroy Sesame Street forever. She then went to a reporter to tell us more. In my opinion, Barbara was in her element as a news anchor on Sesame Street. At the end of the special Sesame Street was saved.
I know that many news anchors when they were growing up loved watching Barbara Walters knowing that someday they wanted to grow up to be news anchors as well. Barbara wrote a book about her life called audition. I might read this book one of these days. On an episode of the Howard Stern show, he asked what was the obsession to do everything? She answered in her book she talked about her father being a manager of clubs. He owned these clubs in Boston and New York. He lost everything. He lost his wealth from owning the clubs. Barbara had to work. She felt like she was always on the outside looking in. Later in her career the host of the Tonight Show after Hughe Downs wouldn’t allow Barbara to ask any of the serious questions. The hosts' name was Frank McGee.
Barbara’s sister was disabled. The other kids would make fun of her. Barbara’s sister died of Ovarian Cancer 15 or 20 years ago. Her sister was the most influence in her life. When she was writing her book, she wanted to call the book Sister. She never resented her. When they were growing up Barbara had the good looks. Barbara also has a daughter named Jackie. Her sister was named Jackie as well. Her daughter runs a program for adolescent girls called New Horizons. It is a therapeutic program. Because of her sister Barbara said in the interview that she had an understanding and a passion that she might not have had if her sister didn’t have the disability. She had much empathy for her because she had to take care of her.
Barbara didn’t worry about her hair when she was on TV. People recognized her from her voice. She said this during an interview with Cathy and Judy from 720 WGN radio interview. Barbara told the quick story in this interview when she was with her daughter in Bloomingdales in New York, she told her not to touch what was on the shelves. Someone would say “Aren’t you Barbara Walters?” She thought that was funny When this interview was done Barbara was at a great place in her life. When she was writing the book her worst fear was losing the book on the computer.
Barbara Walters never liked to drive. She took lessons, but she never liked to drive. She received a star on the Hollywood walk of fame in 2000 as well as other awards. She was close friends with Tom Brokaw. She also was friends with Joan Rivers. In my opinion she gave women in news radio a good start like Denver's own Lois Melkonian and April Zesbaugh. One of her best friends was Beverly Sills, who was an operatic soprano. 10 years after leaving the New York Opera she gave Barbara a ring. The ring said, "I did that already.” The advice in that ring when you feel you have done that already than you don’t have to audition anymore. Thanks for tuning in.