Musings, observations, and written works from the publisher of Eckhartz Press, the media critic for the Illinois Entertainer, co-host of Minutia Men, Minutia Men Celebrity Interview and Free Kicks, and the author of "The Loop Files", "Back in the D.D.R", "EveryCubEver", "The Living Wills", "$everance," "Father Knows Nothing," "The Radio Producer's Handbook," "Records Truly Is My Middle Name", and "Gruen Weiss Vor".
The latest news from Eckhartz Press, and a chance to peek into some of the great previous offerings from our humble little publishing company.
Happy Birthday!
=Another Eckhartz Press author is celebrating a birthday this week (July 21). Happy birthday to one half of the Patty & The Stump team, Spike Manton. He co-wrote (with Tim Clue) a children's book for us during 2016 that remains timely today. It's about dealing with political bullies. (Photo of Spike below with Eckhartz Press publisher Rick Kaempfer at Zanies in Chicago)
=This is always a great way to get to know the author and the book he has just written. It's a Q&A with author Jim Slusher about his great new book To Nudge the World.
=Yes, that's Eckhartz Press author (Last Comiskey) Ken Smoller with the ultimate White Sox spokesperson, the one and only Ozzie Guillen. We thank Ozzie for his support of this project!
=One of the biggest stars in WLUP (The Loop) history was Sky Daniels. Sky is a big contributor to The Loop Files, and this week he's also celebrating his birthday (July 24). (PHOTO: by Mike Bucek)
=Another key Loop contributor back in the day was Albert Brooks. (Albert's birthday is July 22). He was a frequent guest on Steve & Garry's show in both Steve & Garry Loop eras. Here he is with Steve Dahl in the early days...(PHOTO: Paul Natkin)
=There were a few years that Bears kicker Kevin Butler was on Kevin Matthews show on AM 1000 so often that he might as well have been Kevin's co-host. This classic pic of the two Kevs (by Paul Natkin) appears in the book. Butler's birthday is July 24.
=Because the book Chili Dog MVP looks back at Dick Allen's unforgettable 1972 season with the White Sox, all of Allen's teammates from that team are also featured in the book. Here are three of them who have birthdays this week, including Dick's brother Hank Allen (July 23), former Cub Moe Drabowsky (July 21), and Buddy Bradford (July 25). Only Buddy is still around. Hank died in 2023 and Moe died in 2006. (Photos from Topps)
=This week in 2017, Bobby Skafish was making the rounds promoting his rock and roll interview book We Have Company. Among the stops, WGN Radio. He appeared on the Roe Conn show, which featured Anna Davlantes at the time. Anna's birthday is this week too (July 25).
=Isn't there a rock star birthday this week that ties into Bobby's book? Well, now that you mention it, there is one. Emily Saliers (from the Indigo Girls) is also in the book.
Walter Payton
=Considering that Walter Payton is the either the greatest or second greatest athlete in Chicago history, and our press is a Chicago press, it shouldn't surprise you to discover that three different books in our catalog have great stories about Walter, The Loop Files, Records Truly Is My Middle Name (by John Landecker) and Your Dime My Dance Floor (by Chet Coppock). We still miss Walter (who would have been celebrating a birthday this week--July 25), but he lives on in the pages of these Eckhartz Press books.
=WGN radio's Steve King is celebrating a birthday this week (July 26). Steve was a long-time colleague of Roger Badesch on WGN, and plays a crucial role in the most exciting story in Roger's book. He also provided this testimonial (along with co-host and wife Johnnie) for the back cover of the book...
“This book’s cover photo was taken on a night we’ll never forget. Trust us, we never had a night like that on the radio before or since and, along with our WGN radio listeners, were praying that Roger would survive. Spoiler alert: He did! In this book Roger shares the details of that night and other adventures, including his time with Chicago’s first black mayor, Harold Washington, and first woman mayor, Jane Byrne. “The Unplanned Life” of this man we’re so proud to call a friend was obviously part of a bigger plan. Thankfully, he listened to the universe and went along for the ride. Buckle up, it’s a good one!”
Steve King & Johnnie Putman, award-winning Chicago broadcasters and authors
EveryCubEver =This week in 2019, EveryCubEver author Rick Kaempfer appeared on the Club 400 Podcast to talk about his book. The hosts of the show were blown away by the details. You can still hear it here.
=This week would have been the birthday (July 21) of the recently departed German soccer superstar Uwe Seeler, who helped the West German team win the World Cup in 1954. He also appears in an Eckhartz Press book. In the 1970s he came to Chicago and attended a Green White soccer game. That story is told in the pages of Gruen Weiss Vor!
March 17—Catholic Confession Hotline. We've called it before. Will we call it again?
March 18—Rich King birthday. The former sportscaster/author appeared on the show several times, including this one.
March 18—Adam Levine birthday. The lead singer of Maroon 5 was discovered by one our guests, famed songwriter/record producer John Denicola. He told us that story.
March 23, 2023—Marquee announces “When it was a game”
Cubs special (that I participated in). It was eventually called "Cubs Flicks". You can see part of it here.
A curation of news items
about the media from this past week, with a particular emphasis on Chicago…
RADIO/PODCASTS
*Changes to the Kiss-FM
morning show
=The Fred Show on
Kiss-FM (WKSC, 103.5 FM) has two new cast members/contributors. KeKe Hampton
and Jason Brown are joining the show. Both of them come from within the iHeart
world. KeKe has been the digital content manager for the company in Chicago and
had done weekend shifts at sister station WGCI. She was named as 2021 Future
African American Radio Leader by Radio Ink. Jason had been the promotion
director for the station for the past seven years and had frequently appeared
on The Fred Show. He has also appeared on TMZ. Both are Chicago natives.
*Pat Hughes named to Cubs
Hall of Fame
=The other two in this
Cubs Hall of Fame class include former coach/scout Buck O’Neil (already a
baseball HOFer) and Jose Cardenal. But I thought the way the Cubs handled this
announcement live on the air was excellent.
=Anyone who saw the
excellent play When Harry Met Rehab during it’s run won’t be surprised
by this news. Spike Manton and Harry Teinowitz have been nominated for Jeff
Awards for New Works. The two collaborated on the script, just as they
collaborated for many years behind the microphone at AM 1000 and The Game. The full list of nominees is here.
=WGN announced this week
that Joe Brand will continue to do the pre and post-game shows for the Hawks
this coming season (which begins at the end of September) and will host the
“Blackhawks Live” program on the station. That show airs weekly. Details here.
=Fans of old school Top
40 radio will want to check out Rewound Radio over Labor Day weekend. They will
be featuring entire shows of WLS and WCFL jocks from that era on Saturday,
Sunday and Monday of Labor Day weekend. To find out more about Rewound Radio,
click here.
*Steve Dahl recovering
from surgery
=Listeners of the
Dahl-cast have been following the saga of Steve Dahl’s surgery. His wife Janet
posted an update on Facebook on Tuesday…“Steve is resting and dealing with the
surgical pain, but discovered he had a structural anomaly in his knee that
probably explained the rapid failure, as well as made it a little more time
intensive to fix. But fixed it is, and straight. Steve has wandered around, eaten
a meal, amazed and astounded me with his walker skills and is trying to deal
with Level 8-9 pain.”
=Dave is leading the WGN Radio Northwestern broadcasting team over to Dublin Ireland for the football game tomorrow. Axios Chicago talked to him about that, and did a nice little feature-ette about Eanet. Click here to read it.
*NPR teams up with
YouTube
=NPR is really going all
in on their podcasts, many of which are among the highest rated podcasts in the
world. Over 20 NPR podcasts will now also be on YouTube. NPR SVP Anya Grundman
said: “It’ll be great to have our public service
journalism searchable and accessible in ways it never has been before, and to
have a new space to explore content ideas.”
=Kevin comes to town to
promote his Broken Mary book fairly often. Here’s the latest…
MEDIA
BIRTHDAYS/MILESTONES
The following media
figures are celebrating birthdays this week. If you’d like to read my previous
interviews with them, click on their names. The year I interviewed them is in
parenthesis.
=My publishing company
Eckhartz Press published the late Joel Daly's book The Daly News in 2014. I got to know Joel
well and really miss him. My co-publisher David Stern and I would have monthly
breakfasts with Joel in his neck of the woods until he got too sick, and we
would talk about some of the people he met in his life like Martin Luther King,
Jr, Mayor Richard J. Daley, and the Beatles. He was a great storyteller. This
was the promotional video for his book...
=I’ve interviewed the
former Score, ESPN, Drive, and Loop host many times over the past few decades,
but I think this 2004 piece I wrote about him for Lake Magazine is the best.
*Neal Sabin Named
Broadcaster of the Year in Illinois
=Sabin is Vice Chairman
of Weigel Broadcasting, and the man behind Me-TV and, more recently, ME-TV FM.
The Illinois Broadcasters Association has named him this year’s winner of the
IBA/Vincent T. Wasilewski Broadcaster of the Year award. IBA CEO Dennis Lyle
had this to say about Neal in the release announcing the award…”Neal Sabin single-handedly changed the
landscape of digital television. I’ve long admired his genius, his creativity,
and his passion for the industry. He is a true visionary and is more than
qualified for selection as IBA’s Vincent T. Wasilewski Broadcaster of Year.”
=By the way, October 1st Svengoolie is getting his own
primetime special on Me-TV called Svengoolie Uncrypted (8pm Central),
which will be followed the season 2 premiere of Sventoonie (9pm Central).
They’ll also be showing Halloween episodes of all the great classic sitcoms
including The Brady Bunch, Gilligan’s Island, Happy Days, My Three Sons,
Leave it to Beaver, Green Acres, and Beverly Hillbillies the following
night. The channel is calling the entire month Svengoolie’s Halloween BOOnanza.
*Who is this billionaire changing CNN?
=There has been a lot written about the show Reliable Sources being
canceled and what that bodes for the future of CNN. It appears that the news
channel has made an internal decision to change tactics and be less
confrontational with Fox News, but that’s not the whole story here. The man who
appears to be calling the shots behind the scenes (although he says he wasn’t
directly involved in this decision) is John Malone, an influential member of
the Warner Brothers-Discovery board, the parent company of CNN. You may
remember him as the former CEO of cable giant TCI. Al Gore nicknamed him Darth
Vader in those days. He is also the largest shareholder in Liberty Media, which
owns the Atlanta Braves, Formula One, Sirius/XM, and Live Nation Entertainment.
He also once owned a 32 percent stake in Fox.
=On the one hand, getting rid of Brian Stelter has made the
people at Fox News very happy. Howard Kurtz was dancing on his grave during his
show, saying “So now, there’s only one media
analysis program on national television, and you’re watching it.” Greg Gutfield
reported the news of Stelter’s firing this way: “First
of all, we have some sad news for this show. Brian Stelter is leaving CNN. I
know. Yes. Apparently he wants to spend more time with his food. I kid.”
=On
the other hand, CNN also announced they will be doing a seven-part series on
the Murdoch family in the fall. I can’t imagine that’s going to fit into the
“less confrontational with Fox News” basket. It will be based on the New Yorker
profile of the family from 2019.
*Chris
Stirewalt
=You may
remember his name. He was the man at Fox News who called Arizona for Joe Biden
on election night, and suddenly found himself out of a job. He testified to the
January 6th committee in an earlier hearing, and now he’s speaking out against Fox in the New York Times and in a new book. Among the things he said is that the
network inspires “black helicopter level paranoia and hatred.”
OTHER
MEDIA
*The
Twitter Whistle-Blower
=You’re
going to be seeing quite a bit of Peiter “Mudge” Zatco over the next few weeks.
He came forward as the Twitter whistle-blower this week, and the
story he tells about security lapses on the social media giant’s site has
ignited a firestorm. He should know, he was once head of security. Congress has
already called on him testify. CNN has the story.
TURNING
THE TABLES
*Radio
Girl Interviews Me
I’m
normally the one conducting the media interviews, but this week Margaret
Larkin, aka Radio Girl, turned the tables by interviewing me. That podcast is
posted below if you’re interested...
If you have any media stories (Chicago or national) that you think I might like to share in future columns, feel free to drop me a line at rick@eckhartzpress.com or amishrick@yahoo.com
Every week I send my Minutia Men Co-Host Dave Stern a list from our audio archives for this week's Studio Walls feature. These are the possibilities for this week. Which one will he choose?
*July 17 is Fast Times at Ridgemont High star Robert Romanus' birthday. He appeared on our show a few years ago to talk about the film. (Listen to entire interview here)
*July 18, 1910 is the anniversary of the classic poem about the Cubs, Baseball's Sad Lexicon. We have the audio of a famous actor reading that poem. (AUDIO)
*July 19 is Wayne Messmer's birthday. We have audio of Wayne singing a song written by Rick when he was the producer of John Landecker's show. (AUDIO)
*July 20, 2002 is the debut of the cartoon Jimmy Neutron. We interviewed the voice of Jimmy, Debbie Derryberry, a few years ago. (Listen to the entire interview here)
*July 21 is playwright/author/broadcaster/comedian Spike Manton's birthday. Spike was nice enough to join us as a guest on the program a few years ago. (Listen to the entire interview here)
*July 22 is composer Alan Mencken's birthday. We interviewed his songwriting collaborator Glen Slater a few years ago, and Glen told us all about the genius of Alan. (Full interview here)
*July 23, 1965, the Moody Blues released their debut album. We had Moody Blues member Alan Hewitt on the show last year. (Listen to the interview here)
Not to be confused with the recent series on Apple TV. This was the story of the original $everance...
Tom Zagorski was one of the most popular morning radio personalities in Chicago for nearly twenty years, but the financial realities of the new corporate-owned media world make him obsolete. His boss is doing whatever he can (including public and private humiliation) to make Zagorski quit so he doesn’t have to pay the severance. Zagorski pushes back by passive-aggressively needling his boss into firing him — without ever crossing the line that could get him fired for cause.
When neither side budges after six months of battle, an exasperated Zagorski sends an e-mail to the CEO of the corporation, sarcastically suggesting a massive firing of anyone who doesn’t actually bring in money. Instead of firing Zagorski in a rage, CEO takes the e-mail at face value, eliminating thousands of jobs and sending the stock price soaring. To reward the genius who came up with the idea, the CEO makes Zagorski his new COO.
Getting fired suddenly becomes a monumental task: Zagorski has become the darling of Wall Street. In order to get fired, he has to get the stock price to go down and/or irritate his mercurial boss so much that he can’t take him any longer. Zagorski takes great glee in pursuing both of these options, and, along with his on-air partner Richard Lawrence, plunges headlong into the world of media finance, politics, and personalities.
It was particularly appreciated by people in the media who knew what I was writing about...
"Rick cuts the modern media conglomerates to the quick in his alternately hilarious and disturbing Severance. Some readers will think his moguls and media personalities are exagerrated. I'm here to tell you they're pretty dead-on." --Roe Conn, WLS Radio
"It's about time somebody told this story. $everance certainly captured the world of radio, warts and all." --Legendary broadcaster Clark Weber
“Severance is a black comedy that would be funnier if its darkness weren’t so true. And it crackles with the insights and cynicism that made Network and Broadcast News the seminal cinematic treatments of today’s dumbed-down news business. Move over Christopher Buckley----Rick Kaempfer is in town!” --ABC-TV News Reporter Andy Shaw
"Other than 'love', 'Severance' is the sweetest word in the English language. This really made me laugh." --WGN Radio's Steve Cochran
"Told with the keen insight of a veteran insider, it's a humorous indictment of an industry that has lost all sense of purpose -- except for making money, of course." --Former Chicago Sun Times media columnist Robert Feder
"A hysterical critique of corporate morality" --Chicago Tribune's RedEye Columnist and WGN-TV Morning News Anchor Larry Potash
"I was with it the whole way, and I love the appended real life figures at the end. I enjoyed the hell out of $everance." --The Beachwood Reporter's Steve Rhodes
"Brilliant satire! I got a paper cut from the sarcasm. I wish I could say it was great fiction, but having worked in radio, I think it’s just really funny non-fiction. The reality in between the laughs will scare the hell out of you." --Longtime radio personality and playwright Spike Manton
"I thought this novel was just going to be an amusing story about radio. But the way Kaempfer has woven in elements of all media and politics is masterful, to say nothing of insightful, and frequently laugh-out-loud funny! It’s a brilliant first entry. I can't wait for his next page-turner!" --Legendary broadcaster and programmer Bob Dearborn
"$everance is a comical, suspenseful, thought-provoking novel about the frightening realities of corporate media in America. Kaempfer writes with ease, quickly drawing the reader in to the satirical-yet oddly realistic-world he's created. This one is tough to put down-a delightful page-turner!" --Julia Perla, Managing Editor, Shore Magazine
"Too bad Zagorski (the main character) is fictional. Today's media could use someone like him to shake things up. He's the personification of fairness with just enough wicked cynicism to make him completely irresistible. The thought that a team like Zagorski and Lawrence might actually exist should make some big bosses more than a little uneasy." --Leslie Keiling, WGN Radio
"Rick Kaempfer’s “$everence” is whiplash-fast, choke-on-your-coffee funny, and ultimately frightening. Kaempfer has seen it all in the radio business, and has some dire predictions for the rest of the media, too. It’s the summer’s must-discuss beach read – and probably a sign of the apocalypse." --Paige Wiser, Chicago Sun-Times columnist
"I laughed out loud many times while reading it - yeah, it's that funny! If you work in the radio business you'll love the inside view of the industry and if you're not in the media you will certainly learn a lot of eye-opening trade secrets." --Cara Carriveau
"I began laughing almost immediately! The first paragraph alone made me feel like I was back at my first radio job trying to avoid doing anything remotely near the station’s break room! I absolutely LOVE the book! The plot twists and turns were totally unpredictable!" --Darren Marlar, "Marlar in the Morning", 101-QFL
"As funny as this book is, $everance is a must read for anyone who cares about the state of radio and the media in general. The more ridiculous the plot gets, the more one realizes that it's probably the closest to the truth about what comes out of our radios, tvs and newspapers every day! Kaempfer has done his homework and manages to weave a delightful tale questioning the terrifying possibilities of truth for sale." ---Jeanne Ashley, Star 102 KCKC, Kansas City
"Richard Kaempfer has peeled the lid off your favorite radio station and shown what's inside. $everance turns the radio business on its head and makes you laugh out loud, but it also asks some tough questions. A great read!" --Reed Pence, Media Tracks
"Got this book and read it in one sitting. Fantastic. I'm realizing that I worked with - and for - most of the characters in this book!" --Len O'Kelly, WFGR Morning Host
"It's a ripe satire that rips the media giants a new one. Kaempfer throws his rocks with a keen insight." --Jeff Hoover, WGN-TV Morning News
"Rick Kaempfer's novel Severance reveals the scary truth about the state of our media industry today. In a country where the First Amendment and the Fourth Estate were created specifically to keep our government in check, Severance is a must read for anyone who listens to the radio, watches TV or reads the newspaper—and who cares about the information they’re being fed. This is an extremely important book, one the mainstream media doesn’t want you to know about!" --Kim Strickland, author of "Wish Club"
"A fast moving read that gives the reader insight into the fast moving radio industry; Kaempfer folds the reality of the business with the ridiculous...which is more often than not, the reality of the business!" --Andi Kuhn, longtime radio personality
"Severance may be a novel – but the storyline it presents is a very realistic – albeit extreme look at the corporate media world – written as only an industry insider could do." --Dan Kelley, longtime radio programmer
Sadly, most of the things I predicted would happen (as satire) have happened. Even more sadly, in the case of political media, I wasn't savage enough. Reality has gone beyond satire. I still think it's the best thing I've ever written. But that's just my opinion.
I wish it had gained a bigger audience, but after my round of local media appearances (who embraced it), I realized that the national media would never give me a platform to point out how corrupt they were. At the time, my family was also struggling financially (I had recently left the business permanently, and was working as a free-lance writer), so this was the extent of my advertising budget. It was highly mobile, but it turns out, it wasn't too effective...
.jpg)
