September 7, 2015
Claude Hall
with Rollye James
Larry Cohen: “With Russ Regan sitting next to me on my left & Jerry Sharell sitting next to
me on my right, what a thrill it was for the three of us to witness the Hollywood Star unveiling
in front of the Capitol Records Tower for the iconic, witty & great record executive, Joe Smith
in his 87th year. Both Bonnie Raitt & Jackson Browne were guest speakers who paid
homage to Joe before he spoke. Then, like a new release from Garth, his acceptance speech
was delivered with 'timely great lyrics', artistry & great phrasing & sincerity & love directed to
his family. Sinatra couldn't have done it any better. His acceptance speech soared to the top of
the Billboard charts by the time dessert was served at the Smith's luxurious luncheon which
immediately followed the ceremony. It was a great day for the Smith family & Capitol
Records, of which Joe served as CEO. For me, it was a day to remember. And that I will.”
Claude Hall: “Joe Smith was head of Elektra Records last time we talked. He was kind
enough to give me an interview for a magazine called Casino published by legendary George
von Rosen, who also published Guns and was renown for Modern Man in the old days out of
Chicago. I wrote an article about Joe and took some photos and he loaned me some photos of
him with Linda Ronstadt and others. Damned good article! I was proud of it. I understand
that Joe Smith was one hell of a disc jockey back in the Boston area back in the day. One
thing for sure: He was one of the best things that ever happened to the music business. You
could always depend upon him when it came to “giving back.” He was always there as public
speaker and he was gifted at it. I yet have a fond memory of him delivering a talk at a media
conference in Australia. A star in the Hollywood Walk of Fame? He deserves a statue!”
Mel Phillips: “Hi, Claude (Hi, Rollye), I wanted to thank Art Wander for his mention. Art
and I go way back. Art was the very first program director of WOR-FM back in the Scott
Muni, Rosco Mercer, Murray the K days when the station was free-form for about a year
from 1966 to 1967. Bill Drake was hired as programming consultant for the RKO Group in
the summer of 1967 when WOR-FM went top 40. Art would give way to Sebastian Stone who
lasted several years before I replaced him as PD in 1972. Enough history. I learned a lot about
programming from Art when I was hired as PD of WRKO-FM in the summer of 1966. I
remember him going through the engineering strike which crippled operations at WOR-FM in
1966. What I liked about Art was his ability to handle corporate life with a ‘what-me-worry’
attitude. Little did I know I'd be sitting in Art's chair at 1440 Broadway just a few years later.
This is a belated thank you to Art Wander who just took things in stride despite the hot seat he
sat in with the suits looking over his shoulder. I learned a lot from you Art and I thank you.”
Claude Hall: “As a radio station, WOR-FM was first programmed by Tom Reynolds (I could
be wrong on the spelling). He came over from WOR-TV and hoped it was a temporary
assignment. The station was having troubles with the union about the hiring of Murray the K,
etc. Ratings increased while it was automated. I don’t know exactly when Tom went back to
TV. Then Bill Drake gained control. We met in a hotel bar down the street from the station
and I persuaded him to keep the staff and progressive rock format over a multitude of seven
and sevens. Then he brought in Sebastian Stone and, voila, oldies. Ratings increased.
However, I was able to persuade George Duncan to take WNEW-FM to progressive rock.
The first jock he hired was Bill Mercer. Alison Steele had been hanging fire from the old
“ladies” format approach. I believe this is documented in ‘This Business of Radio
Programming’ published in 1977. The book is still available in reprint via Dan O’Day. No, I
did not tell Bill Mercer or Murray the K what to say when they resigned at WOR-FM; both
men, however, phoned me at home to tell me what they were going to do so I could listen. Just
FYI, WNEW-FM was a goldmine. WOR-FM earned peanuts. Metromedia earned a fortune
from its FM stations that carried the progressive rock fortune. I understand John Kluge, a man
I met a couple of times, had a golden touch and was a millionaire by the time he graduated
from college. From distributing food to frats and sororities. L. David Moorhead, general
manager of KMET-FM in Los Angeles, said 67 cents of every dollar that came into the radio
station fell to the bottom line. By this time George Duncan, once general manager of
WNEW-FM, was president of Metromedia. For a “paper” I did for a master’s course I was
taking under Bill Randle at Phillips, Duncan provided me with stock reports, etc. All I can say
is: ‘WOW’. I received an A in the course, of course.”
L-R: John Kluge; Claude Hall, then radio-TV editor of Billboard magazine; Dick Carr of
Metromedia; Dean Tyler, program director of WIP in Philadelphia. Occasion was a
Metromedia meeting in Philadelphia. Kluge, by this time, was one of the richest men in
the world and founder/head of Metromedia, which involved radio and TV.
Don Nelson, Dallas: “Happy Birthday, Claude! I appreciate your continued service to the
industry and wish you the best!”
Red Jones, “Carl’s Country Classics”: “A very Happy Birthday! Yours at 83; mine was Aug.
28th at #84. People born in West Texas live longer! It's in the beer.”
Claude Hall: “What beer? Actually, there was a Mitchell’s out in El Paso in the old days and
rumors about Fredericksburg. Thanks to all of those who wished me well. We had some great
years, didn’t we? Must confess: It’s extremely strange to be 83 years old. God has granted
me everything that I wanted to do. No bestseller novel. But everything else … yeh! And I’ve
been sincerely grateful for the friendships. By the way, Kevin Gershan writes that Ron
Jacobs, the Hawaiian St. Louis Rams guru, is now 78. My congratulation, Ron!”
Woody Roberts: “One of my favorite lifetime memories is Lee Baby Simms dropping me and
backpack off in Santa Barbara to hitch on up the Wonderful One. And then, YOU stopping to
pick me up on my journey to look for America. Yes, I know America is a hurtful biased term
these days. I should have said look for the United States and Simon needs to change his lyrics.”
Claude Hall: “Lots of absolute beauty up Highway One. Food, too. I cook the best red clam
chowder I’ve ever tasted, but the best white can be found at the Splash in Pismo Beach in a
bowl of sourdough bread. Add a couple of dashes of Tobasco Sauce and take your chowder
out on the pier over the water. My kids – and their mother Barbara – also enjoy the steamers
there except John, who prefers their bowl of chili in a sourdough bread bowl. Lord! I just
remembered a party at the home of Snuff Garrett in Beverly Hills, circa 70s. He had it catered
by Chasen’s, i.e., lots and lots of chili. But, no, that’s not the best chili I ever had. Chili is big
with program directors. Proof? I still have the ‘Disc Jockey Cookbook’ on this computer in
pdf form, $10 a copy. The cookbook was originally a fundraiser for Jack Roberts, publisher
of The Hollywood Hills.”
Chuck Buell: “To Larry Cohen: Thank you for your clarification last week regarding your
comments of the previous week around late 1960s Chicago Radio Record Promotion. I
appreciate you taking the time to do that and, just as importantly, your confirmation that you
were focusing on a period of time other that of mine.”
Ken Dowe in an exchange with Larry Cohen, Ken wanted to thank Larry for a child’s blanket
given to his daughter more than a bucket of years ago: Larry Cohen: “Saw your request for
my E that Claude emailed to me. Just so you know, I have never forgotten you & your warm
welcome to KLIF over 40 years ago. If my memory is correct, Dickie Heatherton was on the
air when I arrived & we had lunch at Sam's, across the street from the station. Little did I
know that the B/Bq wasn't roast beef. When I ordered a ‘roast beef sandwich’, the tall Texan
behind the counter, in his cowboy type voice said to me, ‘Hey boy, this ain't roast beef! It's
Texas B/Bq!’ And I loved it & have been eating it (ever since) whenever I can find the real
stuff. When I was in Houston, I brought back 5 lbs. of sliced B/Bq. & 2 jars of gravy for Jay
Cook & his family. Of course he loved it & had missed it. Never knew that the two of you
were so close. Jay was a real sweet heart of a guy. Most of that FIL' staff have passed on. I
want you to know that whenever the Eagles & Dallas have played, I always thought of you. If
you remember, we both spoke about ‘our’ teams & I still remember your stories when traveling
with the Cowboy's by air. And if my memory is right on, you were still doing the morning
show. This year should prove to be interesting. We have your Dem' Murray & Oregon's
Chip Kelly whose ass is on the line now that he is calling the shots. Should be for great
watching while Roma picks apart our secondary. Just so you know, with all of the people I
have met in our industry, the two names that I shall always remember for being unaffected,
friendly & real guys are both you & Johnny Holiday. I've enjoyed reading of your
accomplishments in Claude's column which is really geared for you radio folk, and offers very
little for us x-record folk. But for me it's great to follow & read about so many radio people
that I have worked with ... ‘The Good, the Bad & the Ugly’. And how can I ever forget the line
you wrote several months ago in Claude's column ‘I love Larry Cohen’. Well the feeling is
reciprocal. Go Eagles!”
Ken Dowe to Larry Cohen: “How wonderful to hear from you! Yes, I was indeed doing
mornings on KLIF/1190 40+ years ago. Yikes. And, Dickie Heatherton was with us before
flying off to success in NYC. Sister Joey was dating Pete Gent (Tight End, Cowboys), and
later the author of ‘North Dallas Forty’. Pete also worked for us at KLIF after I left the air and
went Corporate. He was a really talented guy. But, not in league (of course) with great air
talents like Jimmy Rabbitt, Charlie Van Dyke, Michael O’Shea, Johnny Dark (John
Borders, now), and Brad Messer who was always graciously boosting my own ratings from
the news room. Plus, too many others to name from one of America's greatest ever radio
stations who kept Triangle Point humming back in the day. Sam Katz was the ‘old Texan’ you
named who was across the street (he was from New York!) and made the best (SAM’s) BBQ in
Dallas. Wonderful man and Mrs. Katz was his equal in bad humor (all an act) and good food.
It is true that my first radio mentor was Jay Cook. He worked across town 5 blocks!) at the
other station. A real live adult DJ who befriended a kid. A super jock even then and certainly
nothing like me with my slow talking cotton mouth. He was John my Hero when I knew him
as a 16-year-old Mississippi Delta high schooler. We were close friends until his death.
WHBQ to WFIL to president of Gannett.
“You have a great memory. Indeed I did have a wonderful time hanging out with the DALLAS
COWBOYS at their practice field; playing racquetball with Dan Reeves, John Niland, and
others. Lying on the floor in card games, like Crazy 8, losing to guys like the ‘fastest man
alive’ Bobby Hayes. How lucky could I be? Even throwing the football around with Charlie
Waters, Roger Staubach, and Craig Morton. Coach Landry once walked past Roger, Craig,
and me and never smiled as he flipped me the ball and said: ‘Work these guys out, Ken.
Apparently they don’t have enough to do’. Little know fact, Tom Landry was one of the
funniest men I have ever known. Incredible dry sense of humor. And, kind. Not a better man
have I ever known. Most of our music friends were Cowboy lovers, too … and I’d take them
with me out to the practice field when they were in Dallas. I remember BJ Thomas thinking
he’d awakened with all his Christmases linked together … the day I walked him in and
introduced his favorite players. BJ left after a long visit with Leroy Jordan, autographed
footballs, jerseys, and still standing 10 feet tall. But, for me, flying on the team plane was the
best. Tex Schram (omnipresent GM and divine leader) very much disliked my traveling with
the team. The owner (Clint Murchison) treated me like his son. I never heard Clint deny Tex
except once. Tex told him, ‘Ken doesn’t have any business being on the Cowboy game
flights. He’s not a sports writer!’ Clint answered: ‘You need to leave that one alone, Tex.
Ken goes if and when he wants. He’s my friend’. And, did we not have some incredible
scrums with the Eagles. The wins went back and forth forever, and it was great arguing the
merits of each team! I appreciate your kind words, and what I said was true: You were, and
still are, a gentleman of the old school, Larry. All of you were like my teammates in our
businesses. I’m fond of Steve Tyrell, and so many more. And, do you remember when Mac
Davis was a promotion man? I had known him years before in Atlanta. Mac was my best
friend when I worked for my buddy Kent Burkhart at WQXI. Mac’s mom got him a job at
the Courthouse in downtown Atlanta. He and I spent most of our time-off together, dreaming
of becoming a success in radio and a star in the record business. All of it over constant dinners
with our wives at each other’s homes eating spaghetti, and drinking cheap wine. Fun, it was,
too. I figured Mac was in the door after he wrote “In the Ghetto” for Elvis. He was just
getting started. Were we not all doing the same? Ironically, Mac played COWBOYS icon
Don Meredith in the movie from Pete’s book, ‘North Dallas Forty’. And, if you read the
book do NOT … read the conversations quoted at my table literally. Joey Heatherton, Pete
Gent, Lance Renzel (who once borrowed my car and did not return it!), Calvin Hill, Dottie,
and I … with several others ... had a lovely evening at a Dallas restaurant. Pete, however,
rewrote the subject matter and added rather lurid conversations. Dottie and I had to work hard
at denial for a few years!
“You guys in the Music Business were terrific in your roles of introducing the public to
fabulous stars and hot hits. We could read about it in Vox Jox inside Billboard and Claude
Hall’s stories. It was such a pleasure to have been a part of your lives, and in particular to
count you all as friends. I’ve not forgotten any of you. Not even the telephone calls from an
irascible Morris Diamond when we didn't add his record. It was all fun. Really … fun. And,
I still love Larry Cohen! With my kindest regards.”
Claude Hall: “Ken Levine has just returned from a visit to Las Vegas … and wrote about it.
The tourist industry in town has just dropped two people. But I seldom venture into town
anyway. Jesus, but this man in funny! Wonder what it would be like to put Joey Reynolds,
Ken Levine, Joe Smith, Don Whittemore and the guy who did the wedding ceremony for
Don Whittemore in the same room together and run the tape? L. David Moorhead had an
index card file of jokes. Not Joey. Not Joe.”
Timmy Manocheo: “Claude, after reading your reply to The Rabbitt, regarding your Billboard
interview with him, I just thought I would remind you that several years ago, I transferred your
audio taped interviews for you onto CD. The best one among them is that very same Jimmy
Rabbit interview. I still have my copy, in case you have misplaced yours.”
Claude Hall: “I’ve got it. And treasure it. The only question is: Where is it? What year did I
do the original? I was moving fast in those days. The consumption of Wild Turkey probably
hit a new high. Just FYI, Larry Cohen mentioned that I do Vox Jox mostly for radio people.
That’s not entirely so. I love and cherish comments from Morris Diamond, Joe Smith, Tom
Russell, others. My policy during my years with Billboard was generally to feature photos that
had someone in music with someone in radio. I still have a few of those pictures on this laptop
… i.e., George Wilson with Juggie Gales and George Furness or Joan Baez with Chuck
Dunaway back at WIXY, Cleveland.”
George Wilson, head of Bartell radio, left; George Furness and Juggie Gales, right.
Juggy and his wife used to babysit Wilson's two kids, later Terry Moorhead and G.W.
McCoy. Furness and Gales worked in record promotion for Atlantic Records. Like
many people, I considered Furness and Gales personal friends.
Rollye: Pictures? John Rook emailed this gem:
L-R: Pete Wright, Juggy Gales, Howard Bedno, John Rook and Neil Bogart, 1969.
John Rook: “I must agree with Larry Cohen, Howard Bedno was an excellent promotion
man, liked and respected by most in radio in the 60's. I recall the times Howard insisted the
record was a hit while Art Roberts and I didn't "hear it." Virtually every time the record did
indeed become a hit. Only Bill Gavin had more clout, as in most cases Bedno was proven
right. Radio and the recording industry benefited thanks to Howard Bedno.”
Randy West: “Claude and Rollye together again for the first time! I haven't been this excited
since they snipped a polyp at my last colonoscopy! The return of Vox Jox is like going home
again. But I've gotten so old, I've forgotten where I lived. Seriously loving you two stirring so
may memories and dispensing new news from our friends. We need to find out if Dandy Don
has gotten any further with his THC-enhanced ice cream for sale in marijuana-friendly states.
Last we spoke, he was working on it.
“Seeing Joey Reynolds' name so close to Rollye's revives the memory of the night that Ms.
James complained to Mr. Reynolds about her cash flow being so tight, that she had to sell her
body to pay the phone bill. Joey's retort: "Good thing you didn't make any long distance
calls!" That story, and a million more will be in a new book of experiences from my showbiz
adjacency. It's tales including Bob Barker, Bob Hope, Johnny Carson, Tony Curtis, JayLo,
Steve Harvey, Carole King, Ben Stein, Dick Clark, Joan Rivers, Ryan Seacrest, and
a sprinkling of insane radio moments. I can only hope it's half the page turned that Rollye's
"How Did I Get Here?" is. Finally, did you just write that Kevin Metheny passed away?
Wow, that is sad news to me. Great memories of BS'ing in his office at WNNNNNNNNBC
while Imus was circling outside in Kevin's intentionally imposed holding pattern just after his
airshift. Peace, all.”
Rollye: More like selling body parts, though I like Joey Reynolds’ line a lot better. It was
medical trials and I was about to say that I haven’t been right since… until Joey’s voice echoed
in my mind reminding me I wasn’t right to start with. It is our common loss that Joey
Reynolds is not on the air right now. And the long-time, wrong-headed radio-logic that keeps
him from us, graphically explains why overall listenership continues to decline. Not only do
we cast aside anyone over 54, but for the past 30 years we as an industry have also celebrated
‘blowing off the teens’. Is anyone surprised radio is losing young adults to other media? If
baseball and beer followed broadcastings’ misguided reasoning, there’d be no one in the stands
today, no one buying pricey boxes anymore. Can’t thank you enough for your kind words
about my book over the years, Randy. You’ve been my biggest supporter. I’m so looking
forward to returning the favor after I read yours. Already, I know it’s gonna be great!
Scott St. James: I was very sorry to read about the news about Charlie Tuna and Shotgun
Tom Kelly. Sad news being about both of these great talents being told (in essence to) "Hit
The Road Jack", air-wise. I had the pleasure of working with Charlie at KRLA and KMPC in
L.A. I didn't have the opportunity of working with Shotgun here, but I have had the
opportunity of getting to know him while we've both been (and still are) members of the
Pacific Pioneers. Great guy. As is Charlie.
Richard W. Irwin (Uncle Ricky): “No one seems to understand the unhappy situation at
REELRADIO these days. I've found that repeatedly publishing bad news is not good for us, so
I'm writing directly to you for advice and assistance. I know you have had an interest in the
site, and you know there are others I can go to for help, but why can't all those old guys who
"love" radio so much support a site that only wants to present and preserve the best radio ever
made?
“We are currently offering only one kind of subscription - for $10, those who try to help us
reach our 20th Anniversary get access until February 14, 2016. Actually, our anniversary date
is February 12, so they get to stand around and watch for two days, and see what happens next.
Of course, supporting our site is tax-deductible. I never thought REELRADIO would end
with a whimper, but that looks like where we're going. We got a very good lawyer to help keep
presenting our airchecks the way we always have, on demand. As our reward, 800 subscribers
left!
“There are a few more airchecks from our friends that I want to present. In fact, if any of those
veteran superstars have been holding out, now is the time to contribute those old recordings.
We already have 3,365 online, I know there are more. I'm always interested in hi-fidelity, rare
and full-length recordings. Please just check the site first to see that we don't already have it.
20 years online! Few web sites have done that. We were online, streaming airchecks before
YouTube, Google, before Microsoft had a browser, REELRADIO will have been online for 20
years on February 12, 2016. We just need a little help. Some people are surprised to hear this.
They think we will be here forever.”
Rollye: Uncle Ricky’s email stopped me in my tracks. I found it impossible to believe that
there aren’t sufficient fans of radio back in the day for this site to prosper. I immediately got in
touch, and that led to his joining me on my show last Friday night. (Here it is, if you want to
hear it.) We spent two hours talking about radio’s glorious past and playing a number of
priceless airchecks to punctuate our points. With 3365 of them on reelradio.com, even if you
don’t want to access any of them (which is hard to believe since names like Lee Baby Simms
come up often in this column, and reelradio.com may be the only place you’ll not only hear
him, but see him in action as well, courtesy of Shotgun Tom who shot video of him on the air
in Phoenix in the ‘90s), supporting reelradio.com, which is a 501c3, to keep our history alive
seems like a no brainer to me.
True confession: While I’m a collector of all things on air, at first I didn’t see the value in the
pristine unscoped aircheck, which is much of the material on reelradio. But while I was
working on an unrelated task last week, I had a Jim Runyon aircheck playing in the
background, and for an hour, it magically took me back to 1965. It was also a joy to hear the
Real Don Steele from ’69, not only to marvel at him playing Beach Music (The Tams) on
KHJ, but especially to mourn the loss of the creative commercial. The spots were woven into
the fabric of the format and were every bit as entertaining as the music. Not that I ever
doubted it, but it again confirmed what an amazing standout Steele was. If our history means
anything to you, you’ll sign up. And I, and countless others, will appreciate your help in
keeping this resource available.
David Martin: “Bravos, Rollye!! Looks wonderful, outstanding job. Thank you very much. I
wrote about Claude, you and this amazing new effort via my blog. Check the link. All the best
to you, Dave”
Rollye: David’s N=1 blog is also a terrific resource. Who else is gonna remember Rose
Bimler (other than every Dan Sorkin fan)? The archives are worth taking some time to peruse.
And Dave is a terrific guy. He willingly hosted a hospitality suite in an elevator at the ’84
Billboard convention. I can still see David, dressed to the nines, with a towel wrapped over his
arm, holding a tray of hors d’oeuvres…. And knowing that in addition to my love for R&B
oldies, I am manic about Brazilian music from the ‘50s and ‘60s, David thoughtfully got us
seats for Antonio Carlos Jobim in New York. One of my greatest regrets was being just a few
miles from the venue and being too sick to go (maybe it was those medical trials). My big time
loss. But it’s radio’s gain that he’s among us.
Speaking of reading and perusing, I’ve recently finished Kipper McGee’s “Brandwidth”. An
eye opener for many, a confirmation for others, plus plenty of neat catch-phrases.
Ron Jacobs sent along this link. Compelling headline— Lawsuits Against CBS iHeartmedia
Cumulus Could Wipe Out Oldies Radio As We Know It. Yes it overblown, but even more
astounding in its irony. (In short, it’s about a class action suit filed against major radio players
to attempt to recoup the RIAA royalties for songs prior to 1972.) When many of us got into
radio, we witnessed the near hysteria over record labels paying for airplay. That radio was the
main promotion vehicle for records is undeniable. Granted the venues today have increased,
but it gives one pause that we’ve done a 180 and now the record industry wants to be paid.
Their argument, that the artist deserves no less, is hollow.
Of course the artist deserves no less, but apart from the oft heard sentiments that the record
companies deserve their digital-copying fate as for too long they hijacked the consumer who
had to pay $20 for a CD when all they wanted was one cut (aptly described in one of the links
Chuck Buell shared last week), is there anyone who can not envision Morris Levy hanging
someone out a window upside down who dared to ask for the royalties they should have
gotten— from him? As the business matured, major labels (and some swell minors too) had
accounting integrity. But early on?… You can count on one hand the labels with a reputation
for compensating their artists. And what really galls me today, is how many writers and
performers will never seen a dime from royalties that were, and will be, collected for
distribution. I have proof:
When I was writing a book a few years ago, I wanted to include one of my favorite lyrics: My
anger clouded my judgement and I saw a red flash, then my mouth wrote a check that my heart
couldn’t cash. It’s from “Don’t Be Sore At Me” by The Parliaments on Revilot in 1967. You’re
in good company if you don’t remember it. Being a by-the-rules kinda gal, I wanted to clear it
with the publisher. I’ll cut to the chase. No one admitted being the publisher. Like many
songs, it was sold in a bulk catalog, and probably resold a few times. Eventually someone at
BMI took pity on me and got me a contact for who he claimed was indisputably the publisher.
So I wrote…. and they denied it too. Agreed, it’s not bringing anyone a windfall (or enough
for lunch), but of one thing I’m certain: when I pay for music rights and play this song (both of
which I do), no one involved living or dead, is getting anything for it. But I digress… again.
Neil Ross: Just checkin' in. Tried emailing you at the address on your website a couple of
times but never got a reply. Thought I'd give this a shot. My current email addresses below.
Now residing in Rancho Palos Verdes in a lovely home with views of San Pedro, the harbors,
Long Beach and the coast down to Dana Point, weather permitting. Still committing
voice-overs when they let me.
Rollye: Judging from Neil’s site (and hearing his powerful work), lots of folks “let” him. And
he deserves all the success he enjoys. We worked together at KPOL decades ago. And I
hereby state that I did reply to his emails— which brings me to the latest state of our mailing
list. I give up. There is still about 20% of Claude’s list not included. As I mentioned last
week, a few folks I added, reported me as a spammer and stopped me cold. So I moved
heaven and earth— and added an easy link to immediately remove oneself from our list at the
start of each mailing. But apparently that wasn’t enough. This week there were three more
spam reports. One of them left me flummoxed: It was from someone who asked for (and
received) a link to your left (though I’m thinking about removing it)— someone who sent a
complementary email in response to the mailing he got. I know when I’m beaten.
When spam reports come in, I am stopped from sending all replies and group messages from
info@voxjox.org, until I can fix it. Groucho Marx had an easier time getting a contestant to
say the magic word, than I have in coming up with the magic phrase that unblocks me.
Fortunately, I’ve succeeded for the second time, but I’m not going for three— so… I’m asking
Claude to send an email to his list including a link to subscribe to the weekly notice that this
column is up. If you're not on the list and want to be, just click on this:
voxjox-subscribe@voxjox.org and that's it. You don't have to put anything in the subject line
or body, but make sure you're sending from the email address you want to receive our notices
Claude Hall: “ Rollye, as you're probably aware, my opinions were often influenced by the
radio broadcasters that I knew and respected. Bill Stewart, Gordon McLendon, Harvey
Glascock, Bill Randle especially, Murray the K, George Duncan, Gary Owens, L. David
Moorhead, George Wilson. For some reason -- perhaps my own experience and knowledge
-- I've always had enormous respect for you and, except for George Wilson, who loved and
admired you, this had little to do with anyone else. It's just you, Rollye. I think you're great!
Thus, in these my ancient years, I'm proud to be associated with you in our modernized version
of Vox Jox. Believe me, I can think of no one else with whom I'd do this. Or wish to. Thank
you. May Marconi bless and keep you!”
Rollye: You're so very welcome, but the thanks is all mine, Claude. Over all the years that
I’ve done talk radio, I’ve been blessed that the audience liked me, and cursed that most general
managers and program directors didn’t. I’ve laughed at the honest admissions from bosses
who said they couldn’t understand why I had ratings, but were glad I did. I was not as jolly
over those who removed me from situations I was enjoying simply because they didn’t get it.
But truthfully, the view was usually mutual. You can’t feel too bad by the words of someone
you don’t respect. The reverse is even more true. When George Wilson told me I was the
best talk show host he’d ever heard, it not only made up for every bad thing KOA management
ever said, it took me to a profound place. Reading that you think I’m great is just dazzling—
and humbling.
When Robert W. Morgan told me he listened every night.. when Don Steele’s wife told me
he loved me… humble does not begin to express my reaction. (Confusion was more like it. I
couldn’t believe they actually thought anything close to that.) In recent years, I’ve joked that a
lot of good it does someone when their biggest fans are all dead… but the truth is that their
words are occasionally the biggest thing to keep me living. Their thoughts will forever be in
my heart because they came from people for whom I had reverent respect. I feel much the
same about you, Claude. And I can’t tell you how happy I am you’re still alive! It is an
honor to help with the column, and a privilege to be able to contribute my own
experience-shaped views. May Marconi bless you too— and everyone in our online group.
Without all of you there would be no column, and I believe I can safely speak for both Claude
and myself when I say we are indebted to every one of you for being a part of it.
