Airwaves: June 19, 2009
Finally a KMET Friday
It was Valentines Day in 1987 when the legendary Southern California album
rocker KMET (now KTWV, 94.7 FM) left the airwaves in order to make room
for The Wave.
Now, over two decades later, KMET is coming back.
On July 10th, 100.3 The Sound will re-create KMET for one day, using
as many original Mighty Met personalities as possible. On the A-list of potential
participants right now are Jeff Gonzer (recently added to the Sound’s
staff for weekends and fill-ins), Ace Young, Pat “Paraquat” Kelley,
David Perry, and the master programmer herself who led KMET into and through
it’s glory days, Sam Bellamy.
Actual recordings are being used to help set the tone for the day. Some of
these airchecks will be played on the air, while others will help recreate
the musical sets as they were played during the approximate years of 1976 to
1984, considered by most to be the best years of the station.
Unfortunately, not everyone will be able to attend. Jim Ladd, Denise Westwood,
Cynthia Fox, and Terry Gladstone, for example, all work for rival KLOS,
and I sincerely doubt that KLOS will let them off to promote another station
... even if it is a salute.
That being said, July 10th should be a fun day of radio for fans of the once
mighty station. Might be a good day to take off work. Maybe, just maybe, we
can get Dr. Demento to do a shift.
Trivia
Even though “Paraquat” Kelley’s name is taken from the name
of a chemical used to destroy marijuana plants in the 1980s, and that Kelly
used to run stories on KMET partly as a warning to users to be careful of possibly
tainted plants, Kelley himself has never touched the drug. Or so I read in
an interview once.
Star Struck
KFI morning man Bill Handel received a star on the Hollywood
Walk of Fame last Friday, and in the tradition started by the late Honorary
Mayor of Hollywood, Johnny Grant, June 12th was declared Bill Handel Day.
“Why are we giving this man a star when there are so many other deserving
people?” asked Handel Show team member Rich Marotta as he was roasting
his friend. “Mother Love never got a star, Vic the Brick doesn’t
have a star ... so why are we giving Bill Handel a star?”
I can take that one. Because his show is pretty damn good, and has helped propel
the station to its status as one of the highest-rated stations in town, and
one of the highest-rated -- if not the highest-rated -- talk station in America.
Not bad for an attorney who got his radio start giving out what Handel jokes
is “bad legal advice” on his weekend Handel on the Law program. His
legal expertise is in surrogate parenthood.
Oldies
One of the best oldies radio stations around isn’t even on the radio.
RichBroRadio.com, programmed by legendary programmer Rich Brother Robbin, covers
a huge era and features a playlist unlike anything you’ve heard on the
air in years. Check it out, and consider making a donation to help keep this
resource on the net.
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Copyright © 2009 Richard Wagoner and Los Angeles Newspaper Group.
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