WILV Rebrands

From Radio Insight...

Hubbard Adult Hits “Rewind 100.3” WILV Chicago is undergoing a rebranding. Just as it has at two other times in recent history, WILV has dropped the “Rewind” moniker for just “Chicago’s 100.3“. The station also used the city and frequency name while evolving between formats in 1997 in between its “100.3 The Point” and “Windy 100” brands and in 2008-2010 between Rhythmic AC “Love-FM” and the launch of the then 80s centric “Rewind” identity. The current move comes as they station moves further away from its 80s base and added songs from the 2000s.

The move follows a similar rebranding by Hubbard at its former “Rewind 94.9” WREW Cincinnati. As the station became more current/recurrent based, it relaunched as “The New 94.9” on October 1.

WILV ranked tied for 15th in the Chicago market with a 2.4 share in the November PPM ratings. With 93.9 WLIT currently playing Christmas music despite its shift from AC to Hot AC earlier this year, this give WILV a chance to once again go after the AC hole in the Chicago market as a flanker to sister Adult CHR “101.9 The Mix” WTMX.

Huckabee to Sign Off

From this morning's RAMP Newsletter...

The Cumulus Media-syndicated The Mike Huckabee Show will be ending "by mutual decision" next Thursday, December 12. Huckabee, the former Governor of Arkansas and ex-Presidential candidate made the news official last week in a Facebook post, saying, "The Mike Huckabee Show on radio, which was heard 3 hours a day on over 200 radio stations across the country since April of 2012 will conclude its run at the end of the final show on Thursday, December 12." Huckabee continued, "I have loved doing The Mike Huckabee Show, and its success of going from launch to over 200 stations in less than two years is significant, but the contract was at a decision point for both Cumulus Media and me, and we mutually agreed to conclude." The end of Huckabee's long-form radio show will not affect the Huckabee Report commentaries, which will continue to be heard three times a day on more than 500 radio stations.

Never heard the show.

Who Killed the Catchphrase?

The New York Times asks a good question this morning. Who killed the catch phrase?

Even without invoking a certain currently-on-hiatus show that romanticizes the glory days of ad agencies, you might have noticed that the catchphrase, while not quite extinct, has lost much of its resonance in recent years.

This is especially the case for the humorous one-liner wedged into the middle of a TV spot, as opposed to the more self-serious tagline, like “Just do it.” Rather, the most popular ads these days star recurring characters who tend to eschew idiosyncratic utterances. Even one of the best-known spokesmen around, Dos Equis’s “The Most Interesting Man in the World,” is probably less recognized for his kicker — “Stay thirsty, my friends” — than for the conceptual joke behind his persona.

On the other hand, it seems like "What day is it today? It's hump day" is pretty close to achieving catchphrase status.

Glad I Didn't Hear About This in College

The Denver Post has created a whole new career path for the youngsters out there.

This week they unveiled their brand new...Pot Editor.

Amazon's Drones

Did you see the piece on Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos last night? If not, Reuters has one of the highlights. They are experimenting with drones to deliver their products.

I wish they would also experiment with taking less than 50% of the profits from their vendors, but I guess I'm just a dreamer.

UPDATE:Here's the video...

BlogThis!

Chicago Radio 1975

Whoa. See some of your Chicago radio favorites...in 1975. I've actually interviewed all of these guys except for Chuck Schaden.

Who in Fiction Are You?

I took this personality test put together by Scottish Book Week, and it turned out that I am most like the character Atticus Finch in "To Kill A Mockingbird". This is the description...

You are Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird Atticus Finch is often held up as the perfect example of a ‘father figure’, yet he was very insecure about his parenting skills. Does this overly self-critical side sound familiar? Your great intuition about people, thoughtfulness and listening skills have helped you to form a strong values system. Indeed, people like you are often committed to making the world a better place and to find meaning in life. Despite, or maybe because of, your people skills, you are uncomfortable with conflict but will fight for causes you are passionate about.

To see what character in fiction you are most like, click here.

Elton Jim

For casual listeners of the Garry Meier program on WGN, you've probably heard Garry refer to his sidekick on the air as "Elton Jim". If you've ever wondered why Jim Turano is called that, check out his facebook page from this weekend. He attended his 150th Elton John concert this weekend. Here's what he wrote...

I never could have imagined, when I was 12 years old and my mom took me to see my first Elton John concert in July 1976, that more than 37 years later, I'd add 149 to that number, and ultimately, be acknowledged from the stage my Elton, thanking me for being such a lloyal fan through the years.

Two years ago, when I reached my 132nd show in Windsor, Canada, it dawned on me that I was approaching 150, and I was 48 at the time. So, the old PR guy in me figured reaching 150 by my 50th birthday in January 2014 had a nice ring to it, and also gave me a fun quest to set forth on. And so the "150 x 50" quest was born. Because Elton tours so much, and with his residency in Las Vegas, I knew the potential to reach 150 in two years was possible, but it would take lots of planning and lots of day trips, which have included Las Vegas, North Carolina, and even the remote location of, get ready for it -- Grand Forks, North Dakota!

The fates played a role, with a late November show in my hometown of Chicago planned. With a show in Atlanta on Nov. 16, I could do back-to-back shows in Detroit on Nov. 29 and coming home to make 150 the next night.

I made a sign stating it was my 150th show, and at most, expected Elton to hopefully see the sign and give a nod in recognition. After the third song , the lights went up and Elton spoke to the crowd, so I figured this was a good time to flash the sign as he'd have a good chance to see it, read it, and react to it. And he did! He read it pointed to it and mouthed, "Wow." That was a nice moment, but nothing like what occurred about 2 hours last.

After signing autographs att he lip of the stage, the lights were again up, so I figured I'd flash the sign one more time. This time, he read it again, and then paused, pointed to me and the sign and began to address me.



I'm still dumbfounded and for the first time, speechless. Elton's kind and heartfelt gesture of appreciation was a special moment and made all the airports, all the long car drives, all the motels, all the frantic hunt for tickets, all the time killing waiting for show time, all worth it and so much more.

When I was nine, I chose Elton John as my favorite performer...and 49 years later, I'm happy to know a picked not only a special entertainer but a special person. My only regret is that my mom couldn't be there to share the moment with me. She took me to my first Elton concert in 1976, and so knew how much it meant to me. And always so supportive of everything I did, and I know she would have enjoyed this moment. But as Elton sings, "Now she's in me, always with me," and I still share this moment with her.

People ask how can I go to so many Elton John concerts. And my answer, I know I've been to 150, but there are about 3,100 that I haven't been to...and that's what bothers me!

So, I'm thinking, "200 x 60"? Hmmm...

When will I stop seeing Elton John concerts?
I think it's gonna be a long, long time...

America Sucks Less

A beautiful message...(and probably pretty accurate). Warning: there are a few swears (as my kids call 'em)

Green White History

One of my on-going writing projects is chronicling the history of Green White Soccer Club, a club co-founded by my dad in 1956. Each month I write about one year in GW history. This month it's 1982, the year the club officially moved from Chicago to Mt. Prospect.

You can read it here.