I've never met Don Bleu. Only know he's been here on the radio for about a thousand years. Other than that, I can't tell you much. Maybe there's a reason for that.
Irrelevancy matters these days. The old business model is in place. I think relevancy doesn't matter any more. Case in point, Gil Gross. When's the last time he moved the needle? Please, tell me if you know because I haven't listened much to Gross and from what I hear, I'm not alone.
There's a symmetry here. It's called the stalled-radio effect. There's no there there. It's a fancy way of saying that these old vets are in the twilight of their career and the company that employs them are getting discounted prices.
In the meantime, blah, blah, blah.
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Where have you been man? Don Bleu is one of the nicest people I have ever worked with and he's willing to do whatever it takes to have a successful show. Don Bleu started on KYUU in 1980, then X-100, K101 and finally STAR. 33 years in mornings in 1 market, you have to be be doing something right to last that long! Even Dr. Don Rose didn't last more than 13 years on KFRC.
ReplyDeleteAlso, have you bothered to look at the PPM numbers? Oldies 1037 is near 1 million cume.
Don is one very successful broadcaster, hell I should know, I was his boss for a couple of years!
zzzzzz.
Deletestay classy Rich!
DeleteGil Gross does a boring show and has his even duller wife Rhoda on the air with him because he has no supervision at KKSF. Really.
ReplyDeleteThe suits don't care and Gil feels why should he?
So he takes the easy way out and the listeners and Clear Channel get a shitty show.
He has told this to friends in the biz.
Who could listen to him 4 hours a day?
He should be ashamed.
Seems it would be much easier to pick a topic, maybe have a guest lead off the hour, and then open the phones to callers. Forum works that way; KGO worked that way. This new industry trend of having a news magazine format where you pick several topics an hour, interview some "expert" for a few minutes, make a few comments yourself and then move to another topic is not what I like in "talk" radio. Here and Now on KQED is that, Gil is that, Frosty is that, I guess All Things Considered is that. I find I don't listen to any of them anymore. Once in awhile I tune in if I want some background company while I piddle around the house or yard. When I do, it seems they all end of covering the same issues, often even interviewing the same "experts".
DeleteSome people here have mentioned in the past that they don't want to hear what Joe Blow the caller thinks. The best callers are those who ask questions of the guest (or about the topic of the hour) that haven't been thought of (or at least asked) by the host. ALso, callers often have experiences of their own relevant to the issue at hand that add a lot to the discussion. Just having a caller weigh in with an opinion isn't the greatest, but the call screeners can take care of that.
Gil has mentioned on facebook several times that this is the format advertisers seem to want. He also has said that call screeners are way less expensive than producers who have to line up all the guests. Why do they program all of "talk radio" this way now? I don't really know because it doesn't seem to be filling the need of what listeners want to hear. Program directors maybe are sheep, doing what everyone else is doing and somehow thinking that they can do it better even though it's not what people want to listen to. Can't just ONE station decide to go back to the tried and true talk format with callers?
Molly hit it right on. This "new" talk radio is not what the former KGO listeners wanted when 910 picked up Len and Gil. We've already seen how 910 shot itself in the foot with the Len debacle. And Gil talking to himself for 4 hours is not what I had in mind.
DeleteGone is the day of the topic for an hour, and the callers get at least half of that hour. I resent the assumption that I have ADD and can't listen to a single topic for more than 5 minutes.
910 is insulting its listeners to the benefit of its advertisers, is that the take here?
Gil Gross has always been just ok nothing Special. Gill to over at KGO for a boring book pimping show that is all. As far as Don Bleu his station pimps to the over 40 crowd not there yet.
ReplyDeleteDon Blue, how does he not age?
ReplyDeleteGross, nice guy, but I haven't listened to him much since he left KGO. And what does the future hold for KGO? What a disaster, throwing the baby out with the bath water. They could have purged people like Karel, Christine Craft, and the new Socialist woman... and aded some new blood and tweaked things. For example, its nice hearing Dr. Bill when its not late into the night... probably good for him and his family, and let's working adults hear his insights. I also don't know all of the syndications and such, but what if they had added Savage.. as he kept switching stations and was difficult to get sometimes.,
Half of the Mattress Man's guests are halfway to their grave and no longer relevant commenting on the MsTopic of the Day... Dr. Harry Edwards, actresses from Laverne & Shirley, the Hat Lady food reviewer. Why not a hip reviewer in their 30s, or for God sakes, a reviewer who reviews plaes WE CAN ACTUALLY AFFORD TO EAT AT!! Not these Michael Mina, Cirqu This, Jardinere That. blah blah blah. I thought Copeland might be a possibility, but his depth of knowledge wasn't there, and every fourth show was about racism. Ugh.
Gil Gross is boring. Fridays are especially bad because wifey is there. Too much giggle.
ReplyDeleteThey really ought to split the 4 hours in two; bring Len Tillem back as well.
I find it amazing that with the current line up they have the ratings they have.
Imagine what would happen with a couple of better talkshow hosts.
I just listen to the radio once in a while, mainly conservative talk with a few exceptions. Gil Gross and X.(Alex?) Colmes are two of those exceptions. They tend to go left, but I forgive them that sin, because both have a sense of joy about them, and lots of common sense, especially Gil. I feel the JOIE DE VIVRE when I listen to Gil or Mr. Colmes. I get the feeling Gil has lived a full life and met most of his career goals. Gil understand how to be a good broadcaster and communicator, if my opinion.
ReplyDeleteI see youse guys snippin and rippin and dissin Gil all the time! I don't get it. What is it that you expect of a radio man you don't get with Gil? What is so horribly lacking that cannot be called an individual approach by an individual artist? These people are performing artists, yes they are. I couldn't do it; put a smile in my voice and intellectually mine the EIDs of popular topics. You also have to sound as though you give a damn. I think the talkers discussed do care, or at least their pretty good actors.
There are very few people alive now, working now who'd qualify as Renaissance Men or Women of Radio. So what? It's still a medium available to us for free or at a low, low cost. It's mainly for entertainment. Some of YOU PEOPLE outdo me for naysaying. I thought I had the 'Wet Blanket de Jour' title down pat.
I, personally, like Gil's personality and joyfulness and all of that. He seems like a truly good and nice man. I just don't like the format of him and the guests doing all the talking. That's what for me makes it just too much. After awhile, you've heard most of his life experiences and you pretty much know his opinions on the world events. That's what I find so much less interesting and tiresome. A caller show can go in directions that aren't quite so scripted. There are many people in the area who have had fascinating lives and life experiences that will never be the media experts that are always consulted. I like hearing from them at least once in awhile. And another feature of the "old" talk format was interviewing authors or some other movers and shakers in the news and letting callers ask them questions as well. These were one-hour topics, not just 5 minute interviews.
DeleteIt's not personal about Gil. He was my favorite at KGO, but the reincarnation on KKSF is not doing it for me. Too many topics, too little depth. I guess that's what America is becoming - fast and superficial. Rarely listen, and certainly not on Fridays. What's the point of having Rhoda on? Don't get it.
You are right it is nothing personal with Gil, he seems like a nice man, very compassionate. However, radio is an entertainment medium, and when I turn the radio on,I want to be entertained, if I'm not I turn the dial, to another host, or a music station. You don't get a free pass just because you are nice. I agree with several posts Gil's wife adds nothing, absolutely nothing to the show. This is not an age thing, I'm Gil's age or possible a few years older, but his stories sounds old, and I'm really not interested in what happened with so and so producer or other talk show host 10-20 years ago. I want to be hear about what is going on today, today politics, news etc. not just Gil's take on it or some expert, I really want to hear from Bay Area callers. John Rothmann and Bill Wattenburg always said the learned much from callers (even though Dr. Bill can be very arrogant). Gene Burns was older than Gil, he never bored me, John Rothmann is around 60, Rush Limbaugh, Tom Sullivan, Bill Press and Tom Hartmann are all in their fifties and sixties, but their show is interesting (for me John, Tom and Bill Press) Rush has many followers, even though I don't like him, so I don't believe it has anything to do with age, it has to do with the format and the personality of the show. Bill Press has a similar format to Gil's although he always have people in the studio, but I like his show, I like his voice, his sense of humor. Gil's voice grates on me, his jokes are stupid and nerdy, and I can't stand the way he tries to project what the listeners might be thinking, why not actually take calls, and find out what we are thinking? I liked Gil on KGO, he was never one of my favorites, had good shows. He did a show about what old (sixties, folk, blues rock) music did callers have in their collection, it was very entertaining and informative, it was fun listening to the callers and the names of tunes and musician they brought up (Richie Havens, Tom Rush others) however, without callers that show would have come off as self indulgent and all about Gil and HIS music collection, and I think that is his problem with his show these days.
DeleteA few months ago, in utter frustration, I e-mailed Gil, saying I was not going to listen to him anymore.
DeleteI received the following reply:
"I miss the way we used to do things as well, but the fact is radio is changing, and telephone shows are doing horribly in the ratings. Since we changed format the ratings have done nothing but rise from a 0.3 to a 2.0 which is an increase of almost seven times the audience in just one year.
We don't get to do the formats we choose. The stations choose that whether it was KGO where the phone format worked for 30 years before it collapsed or here at KKSF. I know people believe the hosts are completely in charge, but, as with any job, you can do the job that's offered to you or you can quit. If KKSF asked me to change my personal beliefs or lie about a product, I would quit, but this is just a format change, just as KGO went through a format change, because advertisers stopped buying the phonetalk format because the demos weren't what they wanted. These are businesses and they own the place. Everyone here and at KGO is paid by advertising and if a format no longer attracts it, no one gets paid inclusing the 90% of the staff who are not on the air.
The new ratings system has killed off a bunch of formats including smooth jazz, and classical has survived only as a non-commercial format. Phone talk has faced the added problem of smartphones and younger people no longer calling in or finding the format appealing. Yes, older people [I'm now one of them] have money, but for whatever misguided reasons, advertisers have no interest in us, which means as a commercial format telephone talk faces the same problems as smooth jazz and classical. Even NPR has cancelled Talk Of The Nation, I show I listen to every day on the way into work and will miss greatly.
I'm sorry to see you go. I'm the same person, but I've been ordered to execute a different format, and it is working, though it is frustrating to people, like yourself and many others, who loved the way talk radio was for many years. It is why KGO changed and why KKSF is moving in the direction it is now. There are reports in the trade magazines that major radio groups are thinking of abandoning Talk as a format altogether. We'll see where this goes, but the times they are a changing.
I wish I had an answer that was more satisfying, but it is, at least, the truth."
I still listen, but I don't schedule my day around him like I used to.. I really don't know what to think. I enjoy Sebastian. I think his producer (the male one) is a total idiot, and not sure what in the devil a producer does, but this guy complained about getting to work and no one told him that the Bart strike had been canceled (the one in July). I do not think he ever listens to any news and probably has never read a paper. The whole thing is a sad state of affairs. I miss it all..and hang on waiting.
LC
EXCELLENT post, 11:52! Thank you for your eloquence.
ReplyDeleteI am a big Gil fan, and I suspect he has many in the Bay Area. Maybe not so much on these blog comments with the heavy troll involvement, but in that Real World, Gil is still one of our treasures.
Agreed. I listen to Gil every day.
DeleteOne day you're ripping "the scene" because nobody in the market "knows the turf" - the next day you're ripping some people that have made the local scene what it is and have survived for decades (no small feat)...
ReplyDeleteMake up your mind Rich.
And now that you are doing a radio show yourself, it's really kind of uncool to slag other hosts.
I think Gil is ok, nothing special, but the Mrs. has gotta go. Anoyying laugh and adds nothing to the show
ReplyDeleteDon Bleu disproves the rule that nice guys finish last. He's been around for thirty something years. Good for him. That doesn't make him particularly interesting though. He also used to so some segments on the old KPIX "Evening Magazine" that were similarly good natured if bland.
ReplyDeleteNick, you took the words out of my mouth; a typical glass of orange juice is probably more offensive than Don Bleu.
DeleteI like Gil's real estate show that KLIV plays on the weekends.
ReplyDeleteHe always has good information and does a good job interviewing guests, IMHO.
Don Bleu? You've got to give him credit for longevity, if nothing else, in a notoriously fickle industry. Plus, there's nothing wrong with being a nice guy!
I'm unable to listen to any of the fired hosts since I can't get the stations they are on in Northern California. KGO WAS a great station. Mostly great hosts, including Gil. The information and entertainment was a class act. Now it's just a dead station. I'll listen in desperation at times just for the company while driving. But as a listener since the late 60's when I was just a child, I know that station is no longer what it was. And it's not because the hosts were the problem.
ReplyDeleteKGO was a great station, with great hosts, after they changed format 910 am picked up several of their hosts, as fill ins, or as permanent hosts, unfortunately after doing some positive changes, they went back to be mediocre at best, they let Len Tillem, John Rothmann and Ed Baxter go. They replaced Tom Sullivan with Frosty, and Frosty no Tom Sullivan, even though I probably agree more with Frosty on issues than Tom, Tom was a much better talk show host than Frosty, but then Tom actually does a talk show, not a one man monolog like Frosty and Gil is doing. Try to listen to KGO on week-end Pat Thurston, Brian Copeland and some of the fill in hosts are actually quite good, forget about Tim Montemayor, and Maureen Langdon. KGO is nowhere what is use to be, but when the pickens is slim, you can't be choosy.
DeleteYes, Don is an overpaid dinosaur. Yes he is nice and an amazing guy. Radio is full of these guys like Chuey and it's ending.
ReplyDeleteGil Gross has a deep voice, and women love a man with a deep voice. If his radio career implodes, he can always find work doing romance audiobooks. I'm sure a lot of gals would love that! ;)
ReplyDeleteGill Gross should not be on Radio anymore he is boring and thinks only of himself. How I want the good old boys back and you know who I mean Gene Burns ect. Frostie is even worse. I am not listening to them any more. What a shame that radio is not my media anymore and t.v. even less I love my books they give me pleasure and I don't have to listen to the bla bla. Have a good day everyone.
ReplyDeleteGil is not that interesting anymore. What happened to KGO Gil? Unfortunate. It would be a light in a dark time.
ReplyDeleteKGO is a mess. Why is it I feel like the substitute hosts are better than the mainstays? Am I crazy to think that? I've heard people on there the last few months who are markedly better than all of them!
So very true, haven't heard Christine in ages, Stacy Taylor (who in my book could easily become one of my favorites, next to John Rothmann) has not been on for a long time (6 months a year?) same with Peter B Collins, both are so much better than Maureen Langdon, and especially Tim Montemayor, those 2 are a joke as talk show hosts. Can't even begin to describe what is wrong with Montemayor (hardly ever listen to Maureen) his use of the English language, his repeating of subjects, how he presents the subject, i.e. not very well, as well how he totally fail, for the most part, to engage the callers.
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