WLS Radio is looking for a few good men, or at least one, to keep
”Fantalk” alive since its original host, Mike Murphy, jumped ship last week for the new all-sports talk station.
”We`re trying to keep it fans talking to fans,” said station operations boss Drew Hayes. ”It could take a while.”
This weekend, for instance, Dan Azzaro (”a sports comedy guy”)
auditions Saturday between baseball games, and Keith Spence (a talk-show producer ”and a sports fan”) gets his second shot after the Sunday night contest.
”We got a lot of listeners who called and said, `I can do that,`
” added Hayes. And to that end, he has asked ”Fantalk” listeners to write on one sheet of paper their pet peeves and loves ”and tell me why they want the job.”
In the meantime, Hayes wished Murphy well in his new venture.
Also making the move to WKJZ is Dan McNeil, former producer for WLUP`s
”Coppock on Sports.” According to WLUP General Manager Larry Wert, an
”amicable separation” was reached with McNeil, Coppock`s producer since 1988, that has Diamond Broadcasting agreeing to a non-compete period (30 days) and also buying out a portion of McNeil`s contract.
”Dan has worked hard for WLUP, and now he sees a career opportunity which he wants to pursue,” said Wert. ”We wish him good luck.”
In the meantime, Diamond Broadcasting officials were awaiting the Federal Communications Commission`s approval of the license transfer that would put the station on the air.
”We have it pretty well organized,” said Diamond executive Daniel Lee.
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”We`re waiting for the green flag. There`s a lot of talk on the street. We feel we`re going to do well.”
Lee`s partner, Seth Mason, expects to have the station ”up and running” by the time the fall Arbitron ratings start Sept. 19. ”There`s no sense giving away 10 days of the book,” said Mason, who added he plans to have a sports director and some on-air talent in place by next week. ”And then I`ll step out of the way.”
While Lee confirmed the hirings of Murphy and McNeil, he added ”We`re still talking to other people.” At what hour the new personnel works will
”depend on how the other people fit in.”
If Diamond`s WXRT-FM is any indication, Lee and Mason are willing to follow the demographics. Using a format called ”day-parting,” album-rocker WXRT is almost two stations in one-oldies on Saturday mornings and during the day, progressive groups at night.
”We`re not afraid to vary formats,” said Lee. Mason added that only Murphy`s show, whatever time period it lands in, will be ”caller intensive. Some shows won`t have any phone connection with the audience.”
– Two persons the station won`t be hiring are Steve Klauke and Red Mottlow. Klauke, a popular Aurora sportscaster before the demise of WMRO there, has latched onto a job at Salt Lake City`s KISN-AM after 20 months of
unemployment. Klauke will host a sports-talk show in addition to handling the Utah Jazz pre- and postgame shows.
Mottlow, out of work since WFYR-FM changed formats 4 1/2 months ago, hasn`t been as lucky. Mottlow, 65, has spent nearly a quarter of a century in Chicago radio, yet finds himself unemployed. And he doesn`t like it.
”It looks like the end of my career,” he said the other day. ”I`ve tried to get through to people (about various openings), but I can`t get through. It`s kind of embarrassing. It`s kind of insulting. It`s kind of frustrating. I`m retired unless somebody offers me a job. But I don`t expect to get one.”
Mottlow said his run-ins with Bears coach Mike Ditka didn`t hurt his prospects as much as his age.
”I don`t think they want to hire guys 65 years old,” said Mottlow. But
”I can outwork guys half my age. I was the first full-time sports reporter on the street. No one was doing it. . . . But the business has changed quite a bit over the years.”
For now, Mottlow attends to household chores because his firing
”happened so fast, I didn`t prepare for it. I`m ready to keep working. It`s a very frustrating feeling. I covered the Bulls for 22 years and didn`t get to see them win a championship.”
– SportsChannel has signed a three-year deal with Notre Dame for a package of Irish athletic events, including live telecasts of football games not broadcast on NBC, ABC or ESPN. In addition, SportsChannel will air a Sunday morning replay of all ND football games, at least 10 live basketball games, the Lou Holtz and John MacLeod shows and a limited number of other events. While SportsChannel will provide the production, talent and sale support for several of the projects, Host Creative Communications, as part of its own three-year agreement with the university, will syndicate the telecasts nationally.
– Mark Grace tries his hand at radio when the Cubs` first baseman co-hosts WGN Radio`s ”Sports Central” with Randy Minkoff at 6:30 p.m. Sunday. . . . White Sox rookie Wilson Alvarez`s no-hitter is featured on ”This Week in Baseball” at 12:30 p.m. Sunday on WGN-Ch. 9. . . . Channel 9 kicks off its 30-game Bulls coverage at 7 p.m. Nov. 2 at Milwaukee. The package includes 14 home games and 16 road contests. . . . SportsChannel will air all 20 Canada Cup hockey games, including 12 live telecasts, beginning with the Sweden-USA contest at 1 p.m. Aug. 31. Triple-headers are scheduled Sept. 5 and 9. Naturally, neither game at the Stadium will be shown live. Two pre-tournament specials, featuring highlights of the 1972 and 1987 series, start Aug. 23.