Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Wednesday Wash; 415 Media; NBC Bay Area Rio Factoid; Steve Aveson; Radnich/KRON Misery; KTVU Castaneda Envy; Plus Some Zingers Too

 WEDNESDAY WASH

*The NBC Bay Area (KNTV) News Anchor Princess has quietly told the bosses she wants no part of Rio in August at the Olympics because of Zika. And she's not alone.

*Steve Aveson did have scheduled time off but he's spending his time away from KRON pondering his immediate future--like, "Fuck this guy, Radnich!" He didn't say it like that, specifically, but a KRONvict source told me he said as much off the set.

Radnich, meanwhile, has issues all over the place with KRON personnel: him and Catherine Heenan are de-facto non-communicado; he can't talk to weatherwoman, Brittney Shipp because she wants none of his shit (and this was before the Heenan video); he daily embarrasses anchor, Grant Lodes, who's beginning to get real pissed off; oh, and he's alienated almost every woman at the office except Pam Moore and even Pam thinks he's an asshole (off the air) Quite a guy, that Radnich --maybe he can audition for the late lounge show act at Binions in Vegas.

*You read it here first: I wouldn't be surprised if this was Gary Radnich's last year at KRON; there's only so much they (KRON) can take; Radnich himself has 30+ years at the station when it was in its NBC glory days; now, he routinely mocks its existence and only works there because he needs the extra money to feed the family. His main dough, though, comes from KNBR, which serves him up a vehicle so he can say, "I'm headed after the show for my 'Buster Brown' act." Way to bite the hand that feeds you, Raddy.

*Most overrated show on local TV: KQED's suddenly garish, "Check Please", where every week a bunch of yuppie baby boomers highlight "this beautiful Indian restaurant in Pleasanton!" Check Please, I'm checking out.

*Julie Watts, your career is now really taking off or is doing fill-in weather at PIX the next step before New York.

*Then again, Julie is better to look at than Brian Hackney, who might be the longest-lasting Bay Area TV News retread since Lawrence Karnow.

*KTVU Morning mainstay Sal Castaneda --who makes roughly $400K a year is beloved by most of the staff --except one on the set who isn't too crazy about Sal's extra coin. I don't believe any of the reports that a 15-round encounter outside in the back is in the offing but wounded egos make for possible blood.

*Hey Tracey Watkowski: even your most loyal staffers at 900 Front can't stand Donnie and Marie in the morning. They make jokes about them and some get e-mailed to me --I can only say you're doing swell at KGO, except in the AM. Maybe you should call Kevin Keeshan or would that be beneath you?

*Hey, Raj Mathai? You're too-cool look and persona is beginning to wear on people like me who used to be allies. Maybe it's time to look back at the lean years when you were posing in pictures with Radnich.

HOLD ON, ONE MINUTE: Yes, the  Donation Request has been up more frequently of late because, get this, I RELY on your CONTRIBUTION(S) to keep 415 MEDIA going. Survival is a bitch. So look, if just a few hundred of you that come here (of the 50,000+ each week) were to make a $25 one-year Subscription, that would enable me to keep going and not have to go to Pledge Breaks every other day. It's your call. Go to the PAYPAL/DONATE Icon on the Right Side of the Blog.

*Back to more mundane things like what's with the "uh's" that Jon Miller, uh, says, uh, on Giants post-game wrap? I, uh, have, uh, counted quite, uh, lot of UH's --maybe it's just me.

*Mark Purdy, the fine SJ Merc Sports columnist told me about ten years ago that the Bay Area would one day soon have only 2 major newspapers. Today we have the SF Chronicle and the San Jose Merc with a few fish wraps like the East Bay Times and SR Post Democrat. I think Mark's prediction is pretty damn spot on.

*The last time the Chronicle was relevant Glenn Dickey wasn't wearing hairpieces.

*KTVU: Your Bay Area TV News Scientology outlet. Where the atmosphere in the newsroom is akin to an L. Ron Hubbard speech and BBQ in the conference room.

*Ken Wayne: damn, Kenny, that new look and those threads? Wow! Hell, I thought Mark Ibanez had the market on best-dressed TV anchors. Of course Mark has a new career path going: taking Pete Lupetti to Plank after work to pick up chicks from Fremont.

*Mark has a busy schedule: between sports reports and planning on that new book, "Leslie Griffith: the High-Heel Days", doesn't have much time to waste.

*That once respectable KSFO Morning Show is back to its dumb, unnecessary, overload of sound gimmicks, drops, whatever...more alarming: running previously-aired banter between host and co-hostess as live conversation when in fact, same conversation ran an hour earlier. That's not kosher, even by Cumulus standards.

*The high-up at PIX who had a bender the other evening at Hunan should be aware that pork-fried rice after about 12 Bud Lite does not make for a swell ride home.

*You really want to know about Radnich tact, ask former KRON reader, Emerald Yeah.

*PIX: more blonds than a Walnut Creek Nordstrom.

*Frank Somerville next Facebook posting: "I'm against Diabetes!" --4000 Frank followers: "You rock, Frank!"

*Larry Krueger and Damon Bruce: A fine couple of sports talk radio hosts only, Damon, might be beneficial to keep the GF a distance away from Krugs.

*Ray Ratto: I never met a tuna melt I didn't like.

*Dave Feldman: "How in the hell have I kept this gig?" Feldman: more vanilla than a San Lorenzo Baskin Robin's.

*KNBR: More White guys than a KKK Rally.

*Kate Scott: makes Mindi Bach look like Amelia Earhart.

*Paulie Mac: Darwin was wrong.

*John Lund: Penis jokes at KNBR feeds my family, thanks Justin.

27 comments:

  1. I read on the Bay Area Sports Guy blog yesterday that Lund is joining Tolbert. That's a shame, because Tolbert and Ratto make a pretty good team and actually know what they're talking about, unlike most of the other KNBR hosts.

    And I take issue with Krueger being knowledgeable about sports other than football. I listen to him and Radnich on the way home to and from lunch and I'm astounded at the ridiculous conjectures Krueger makes talking about hoops and baseball. The other day he said that the Warriors small lineup is really good when they're making shots. I said back to the radio, "Most lineups are good when they're making shots."

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think Ratto and Ray Woodson make for a far more intelligent and better show than the mentally deficient Tolbert paired with anyone. And to think he'll be with Lund, that will be just a horrible show!

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    2. Ratto is knowledgeable about all sports. Tolbert is good with basketball but prefaces his responses too much with "I don't know . . ."

      Delete
  2. I saw the beet red Radnich. Its like he gets to KRON one minute before his segment- and runs Crank like (the movie) to the podium. The other day he was a few minutes late.
    He also looks to be wearing his slippers,minus socks.
    Radnich,rounding third..

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  3. Ken Wayne- set the record for longest tie ever worn by a man. I swear- he sat there yesterday in a green tie that went down to the groin. He was unbuttoned but one,and so you could see that green tie all the way down. Like it was designed for a man 8' 4".
    A new style?

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  4. I wonder if Fitz and Brooks realize that KNBR has decided it would be better to have Paulie Mac on air double the time that they are. That's when you know you're bad.

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  5. Rich - I love your comment on Check Please.

    I've thought for a long time KQED has gone to hell too... I don't consider KQED like other stations but their replacing good PBS shows with so much foodie crap is annoying.

    Like other media KQED has been going down hill for a long time. It is hard if not impossible to follow PBS shows with all of the other junk they put up in their place. In the old days I worked on the auctions as I believed in them but even back then they were a bit snooty with the volunteers...

    Their milking the old pop-psych trend from the 60's with the elderly boomers including myself is so stale. If I see Dr. Wayne Dwyer and his bs shows any more I'll scream...

    Like you Rich KQED provides a public service unlike you Rich they are top heavy with overpaid manangement so overall the quality of their programming has been reduced to near zero unless you are a foodie - I'm not...

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  6. I happen to like "Check, Please Bay Area". I'm REALLY, REALLY surprised you haven't been on there. I mean, Raj, Liam, even Stanley Roberts has been on there. Seems like right up your ally. Apply. Apply again. Leslie give this man some airtime and Rich... NO we don't want a review of Tommy's Joynt.

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    Replies
    1. I like it too. Especially when some smug mofo gets his recommended restaurant ripped to shreds by the other two. The expressions are priceless.

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    2. "Even" Stanley Roberts???

      The guy used to have a foodie blog.

      Delete
    3. @1707 Yes you are correct. We8There.com
      My bad. I was really referring to the ilks of minor Bay Area "celebrities" of which I think Rich would fit right in with in Check-- Please. BTW, Stanley's review of House of Prime Rib wasn't bad.

      Delete
  7. The East Bay Times IS the San Jo Merc. There hasn't been a legitimate East Bay Daily that represents the East Bay since the Trib was bought by the Merc. Example-- Marc Purdy columns appear in both the Merc and the Times but he shills for San Jose-- especially concerning the A's. There was no Oakland voice.

    While I can't stand their liberal stance sometimes (being moderate), the East Bay Express is the ONLY legitimate bayside East Bay news source. Claycord coming in a distant second. The Express has some pretty damn good muckrackers.

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    Replies
    1. @1:33
      "...the East Bay Express is the ONLY legitimate bayside East Bay news source."

      Spot on. The others are merely posers.

      Delete
  8. forward this to krukow- agood name for a morning talk show duo...Bastardo And Gyorko in the morning!

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  9. Here's hoping the next newspaper to fall is the San Jose Monkey News. All the news fit to print for a primate.

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  10. Is that "Sal"-ary for real? What a waste! Totally baffling.

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  11. Rich, did you catch KGO this morning? It was just Marie for a hour and a half, it was actually watchable, no banter bullshit, just news.

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  12. Kate T Scott makes the ass end of a donkey look like Marilyn Monroe.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It sounds like she writes her own commercials too for My Pillow and Certa Pro painters. She refers to her current and past things going on her life like we care. I tweeted KNBR and told them I wouldn't buy any products she hawked because of that - petty, yes, but they make me cringe. I wish they wouldn't let John Handlery write his own commercials too for the Handlery Hotel - I would bet money he writes them himself. He probably thinks they're insightfully funny, but He's a very bad comedy writer.

      Delete
    2. 7:41,

      I don't think it's petty, it's valid listener feedback. Her style is obnoxious and repulsive, and she's a poor representative for the station and it's advertisers.

      Delete
  13. Three words... The Foodie Chap

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  14. Who is Raj Mathai?

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  15. Rich can review Grumpy's on "Check Please, Bay Area!"... Dare you to not stare at Leslie's cleavage.

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  16. Radnich last night on KRON : "Viki(Liviakis) and I have been friends for years"..THE SAME DAMN THING HE SAID TO CATHY HEENAN.I thought he was going to say Viki stayed with his mom.
    Sure Viki acted like she can take it. But,she just started doing work with Radnich. Lets see how long that last. He will push more.
    NO shame in Radnich,like he's in his own world.
    He's a scary guy. He scared all the sponsors away too.

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  17. *KTVU Morning mainstay Sal Castaneda --who makes roughly $400K a year is beloved by most of the staff --except one on the set who isn't too crazy about Sal's extra coin. I don't believe any of the reports that a 15-round encounter outside in the back is in the offing but wounded egos make for possible blood.

    Gasa or Heather?

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  18. KRON had Viki.Pamela and Radnich. That's about 200 years of anchor and it showed as they went on a laugh bender over nothing that was funny. Or even understandable.
    "Let all do another snort!"..on that level.
    KRON is just surfing the gutter.

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  19. Since Steve''s been on vacation..Moore has woken up. What a backstabber she is. I think the guy who said Media General should just dump Radnich and Moore is right. They make most of the toxic fumes at KRON.

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