Chet in Orland

Come on out and see him!

Exactly

If you really believe the media is fake news, now is your chance to eat all the lettuce. https://t.co/FcECWp6Jn3

— Jane McManus (@janesports) November 21, 2018

Was Casey Kasem murdered?

From this morning's RAMP Newsletter, more about the strange case of Casey Kasem's last few years...

Was Casey murdered? That's the term being used by both sides of Kasem's seriously fractured family in a story that will be featured this Saturday on CBS-TV's investigative series, 48 Hours.

As the New York Post reports, the ongoing battle pits Jean Kasem -- Kasem's second wife -- against his three adult children -- Kerri, Julie and Michael from his first marriage. The whole sordid mess is laid bare by correspondent Peter Van Sant in Saturday's episode, as Van Sant said, "I have never seen such hatred within a family. Both sides tell credible, powerful stories, both proclaim their love for Casey and both blame the other and accuse the other of killing Casey -- and both use the word 'murder.'"

Kasem, the longtime host of American Top 40 and famously the voice of Shaggy on Scooby Doo, died in June 2014 (Father’s Day) at the age of 82 after battling, among other medical complications, Lewy body dementia, which exhibits symptoms similar to Parkinson's and Alzheimer's -- leaving behind an estate valued between $80-$100 million.

Jean Kasem claims Kerri, Julie and Michael conspired in 2007 to trick Casey into signing over power of attorney, giving them control over his medical decisions (which ultimately killed him). "It was always about the money," she tells Van Sant. The three Kasem children, in turn, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Jean, claiming elder abuse when she moved Casey from a rehab facility in Santa Monica, CA to a friend's home in Washington State. On June 15 he died at St. Anthony's Hospital in Gig Harbor, WA, and Jean later had him buried in an unmarked grave in Norway. "Jean killed my father," Kerri Kasem tells Van Sant, adding, "The only thing she ever wanted from my dad is money." This tragic, yet riveting episode airs this Saturday night at 10pm ET/9pm CT on CBS.

RIP Aimee Kilman

So sorry to read this blurb in Robert Feder's column this morning...

Our hearts go out to Buzz Kilman, longtime Chicago radio newsman/sidekick and blues musician, on the loss of his wife, Aimee, who died Tuesday after an 11-year battle with metastatic breast cancer. A native of Roselle and massage therapist, she was 53. “Aimee Jo Johnson-Kilman . . . she was the best!’ Buzz Kilman wrote on Facebook. “My dream girl! R.I.P. with all my love forever!” Condolences also to their 17-year-old daughter Piper.

Deepest condolences to Buzz and his family.

Gel Strong

I spent the last five days down in Atlanta, saying goodbye and paying tribute to my dear friend Mark Gelinas. In some ways, Mark is a lucky man. He is constantly surrounded by friends and family who love him. And he was well enough this weekend to gather us all together to say thank you for all we had done for him.

A few weeks ago Mark decided to end all chemo and radiation treatment because it simply wasn't working anymore. The doctors have given him only a few months to live, at best. So Mark did what he has done his whole life. He threw a party.

We came in from all over the country. Friends that have known him since grade school or high school (like me) are scattered from sea to shining sea, but we all stopped whatever we were doing and came to Atlanta. Friends he got to know during his days in Indianapolis and Atlanta did the same, along with his family. His wife. His son. His parents. His siblings. His nieces and nephews. We were all there for him.



And he gave us the most incredible gift of all. He gave us the opportunity to say goodbye.

A few of us stayed an extra day or two to spend a little more time with him, to selfishly squeeze a few more moments out of our life-long friendships. His body was frail. His mind was not. And he told us each how he felt about us and how much we meant to him while he was on this earth.

And we cried. We cried a whole lot. We cried because we are going to miss this incredible man so much. We cried because there will be a big hole in our lives.

But there was one person who didn't cry. There was one person who was at ease with his fate. That guy is just about the bravest guy I've ever met. I am so proud to have published his book, which will live on to inspire others long after Mark leaves us. As long as I'm a publisher, it will never go out of print.

For us--he will forever be--Gel Strong!

27 years

27 years of marriage.

This photo was taken on our 10th anniversary--can it really be 17 years ago?

Free Kicks, Episode 23

EP23: Adam and Rick discuss Week 12 of the Premier League season, Adam explains a foreign tradition and Rick pays tribute to two new broadcasting adjectives. This week’s quiz is about Tottenham Hotspurs.

Listen to it here.

Elton

This is a great commercial...

Holy shit. This commercial. pic.twitter.com/aXewAG5C3i

— James Corden (@JKCorden) November 15, 2018

Q&A with "Death of the Angels" author Alex Burkholder

"Death of the Angels" tells the tale of one of Chicago's most tragic events--the fire that took the lives of so many children at the Our Lady of the Angels school in 1958. Those that have been touched by this tragedy were altered forever. Former reporter (WGN, WLS) Alex Burkholder has been interviewing people that were there that day for the past several decades. He finally put this all together into a book form. It will be released on December 1st--the 60th anniversary of the fire.

We recently got a chance to catch up with Alex and talk to him about the book...

EP: Alex, you have a long and distinguished journalism background. Where and when did you work in Chicago?

Alex: Born and raised in Chicago. In 1962 while still at Northwestern University worked for Lerner Newspapers (Skokie Life) covering various village board meetings. 1963 to WGN Radio and TV. 1984 moved to ABC7 with John Drury. Retired in 2008 after a total of 46 years.

EP: You've obviously taken that journalistic approach to this book. What was it about this fire that initially captured your imagination?

Alex: Just hearing the terrible stories that day as a high school senior and fire buff I wanted to know more about the tragedy and curiosity increased over the years.

EP: A lot of the interviews were conducted many years ago. How long have you been working on this project?

Alex: There was a great deal accomplished with the interviews done in the 1970s. I've collected more information over the ensuing years and decided in the summer of 2017 that it was time to give the public a fresh look at something that never should have happened.

EP: Is there anyone involved in the fire that you wish you could have interviewed but didn't?

Alex: Two people: 18th Battalion Chief Miles Devine for more information about his first minutes on the scene of the fire, and Family Court Judge Alfred Cilella, who in 1962 ignored evidence the fire might have been set. Cilella died of a heart attack in 1964.

EP: The book does a great job of painting a picture of what happened that day--complete with room maps, photographs, and interviews with survivors. Did you have a hard time tracking all of this information down?

Alex: No, there was a lot of information out there including new revelations from those interviews and excellent photos from the newspapers and the Chicago Fire Department.

EP: What do you think is the lesson to learn from this tragic event?

Alex: Don't ignore fire hazards, correct them immediately. If fire doors had been placed on the east end of the school's second-floor hallway we would not be doing this today.

Radio Hall of Fame

From this morning's RAMP Newsletter...

Tonight, the National Radio Hall of Fame inducts its distinguished Class of 2018: Kid Kelly, host of the Westwood One-syndicated Backtrax USA with Kid Kelly, on-air personality and programmer, SiriusXM Hits 1; Mark Levin, host of the Westwood One-syndicated The Mark Levin Show; Jonathon Brandmeier, The Jonathon Brandmeier Show, Chicago; Jim Kerr, host of The Jim Kerr Rock and Roll Morning Show, WAXQ (Q104.3)/New York; Mike Golic and Mike Greenberg, Mike & Mike, ESPN Radio and Dr. Laura Schlessinger, Dr. Laura, SiriusXM. Other inductees include Nanci Donnellan, The Fabulous Sports Babe; Mike Francesa, WFAN/New York; Joan Hamburg, host of The Joan Hamburg Show on WABC/New York, and consultant-to-the-stars Fred Jacobs. This 30th Anniversary event will be hosted by Scott Shannon and takes place at Guastavino's in midtown Manhattan.

Most of this year's inductees have Chicago ties. Obviously, Johnny B is the most famous, but Mark Levin airs on WLS, Jim Kerr was on WLS during the music radio days, Mike & Mike aired on ESPN in Chicago for a long time (and Mike Greenberg also worked at the Score), Dr. Laura aired on WLS in the late 80s/early 90s, the Fabulous Sports Babe worked on AM 1000, and Scott Shannon ran the Real Oldies network in Chicago on 94.7FM.

Liberty's Torch

This is something cool that I've never seen before...

Almost no one has set foot in the original torch of the Statue of Liberty in 100 years. Now you can circle the torch’s balcony in augmented reality. https://t.co/4bLBGV40sg pic.twitter.com/BPr0mPnc7b

— The New York Times (@nytimes) November 14, 2018

Supporters by State

What’s the 🔝 @premierleague club in your state?

[📷: @soccerdotcom] pic.twitter.com/rNLlrUnEfG

— COPA90 US (@COPA90US) November 12, 2018

Most & Least Trusted News

This survey was taken by Morning Consult and the Hollywood Reporter...

CNN Sues the White House

This is how crazy it has gotten between CNN and the White House. The cable news giant is suing the White House to reclaim Jim Acosta's press credentials. Details are here.

I personally think Acosta's a bit of a dick, but he is no worse than some of the others who have covered the White House over the years, and none of them have ever been punished like this. Certainly the reasons given by the White House for revoking his pass are pure BS.

I suspect this will be resolved pretty soon.

Fred Winston

Fans of WLS great Fred Winston take note! From Robert Feder's column this morning...

Forty-seven years after he first went on the air in Chicago, radio legend Fred Winston is getting behind a microphone again. From 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. (Eastern Time) Friday, he’ll be a guest on Fred Lange’s “All Over the Planet” on Radio Harbor Country WRHZ 93.5-FM and WRHC 106.7-FM in Three Oaks, Michigan. (It streams at radioharborcountry.org.) Winston, who now lives on a farm in Michigan, says he’ll tell stories about famous recording artists he met during his years at former Top 40 powerhouse WLS 890-AM, where he started in 1971. “I haven’t been on the air in any shape or form for awhile, so I’m really looking forward to dusting off the cobwebs and firing up the bilge pump,” he added.

Our Latest Charitable Endeavor

Eckhartz Press is thrilled to team up with childrens book author Tom Latourette to help kids fighting cancer. Tom has all the details below...

Hello! I'm Tom Latourette, I'm a Children's Book author and co-founder of the BTB Foundation. Last year, at the tender, young age of 53, I followed a life-long dream and saw my first Children's Book - "I Had a Runny Nose", published by Eckhartz Press. The cool thing is that we were able to have 100% of the proceeds from that book go to support local families fighting cancer.

Now I'm asking for your help to up the ante and make an even bigger impact on families, especially kids! I'd like to enlist you to powerfully launch my 2nd Children's book - "I Had An Upset Stomach" (you can see the trend) by getting it into the hands of children fighting cancer or the children whose parents or siblings are suffering. I'm also hoping to give those families some relief by offering them a creative respite from their battle!

We've combined the power of 3 foundations I'm involved with and have created a cool and unique program. We're hoping, with your help, that we can bring thousands of kids laughter, smiles and creativity while they're fighting this horrible disease.

OUR MISSION:
For my new book, I've teamed up with an incredibly talented artist, Ben Olson, who runs the Chicago Chapter of the Chuck Jones Center for Creativity through his non-profit the backyard EXPERIENCE. Ben and I are looking to expand the reach of our 3 foundations by combining

*My new book,
*The art therapy of Sally's Studio
*AND Ben's the backyard EXPERIENCE foundation / Chuck Jones Center for Creativity Chicagoland Acme Creative Cart

Then, we're bringing this trinity to the kids and families fighting cancer at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, Swedish Covenant, Amita Healthcare in Hoffman Estates and other Chicagoland hospitals.

What We Need & What You Get
In order to get this program off the ground and get the best pricing for books and art boxes we're looking for some pre-order help and funding commitments from our supporters!

*If you help us, we've created some cool ways for you to get in on the fun and giving!

*Buy a book and give a book to kids fighting cancer!

*We'll acknowledge your generosity inside each book!

*Each book funded will also fund a daily art experience for a child or family member battling this disease!

*You'll also have a chance to get your hands on one of Ben's custom, limited edition lithographs!

The Impact You'll Make!
Your donation will bring smiles and laughter while igniting the passions and creativity of children battling cancer. The benefits of art therapy are numerous and can make a HUGE difference in a kids' struggle. Please help us get these tools in front of thousands of kids and Chicagoland families!

Click here to participate, and thanks in advance for your help.

Felix's Anniversary

"On November 13th, Felix Unger was asked to remove himself from his place of residence. That request came from his wife.” pic.twitter.com/WJueEurwQX

— Phil Rosenthal (@phil_rosenthal) November 13, 2018

Fox News Protesting Twitter

Fox News is upset that Twitter didn't more pro-actively protect Tucker Carlson when he was attacked (although the police report doesn't match up with what Tucker has been claiming). So, they are currently refusing to Tweet and instructing their people not to Tweet. TV Newser has the details. It's an informal protest.

I personally think it can't be effective unless they do it permanently. Seriously. No other way to make your point. Silence. Please. Forever. That'll show 'em.

New WLS lineup possibilities

Conservative wonderboy Ben Shapiro is slated to take over afternoons for Steve Dahl on WLS, according to today's Robert Feder column, but only the 2-5pm slot. The rest of the moves will probably be as follows...

WLS did not announce a replacement for the 5 p.m. hour of Dahl’s show, but insiders said one scenario would be to move morning host Big John Howell to a two-hour slot from 5 to 7 p.m. Howell’s morning co-host, Ramblin Ray Stevens, is expected to leave. Morning news anchor John Dempsey will continue.

Erich Mancow Muller is said to be in line to host mornings, but no agreement has been finalized. It would be a return to WLS for Muller, who co-hosted middays with Pat Cassidy from 2008 to 2010. Muller most recently hosted mornings for Cumulus Media on the former WLUP (aka The Loop) before it was sold in March.

Sounds like it will be 100% conservative talk now. Time to take it off the pre-sets.

Next Summer

If this is as good as the first three, it will be great. My kids aren't even little anymore, and I still plan on seeing it...