Wednesday, September 24, 2014

The Five SF Bay Area Best/Worst TV And Radio Shows; KNBR Morning Show Leads The Pack; KPIX Night Beat Too; Karel And Gil Gross

 Five Best, Worst Shows on Bay Area TV/Radio. Not necessarily in order.

1. KNBR Morning Show: The all-white, Irish frat boys in the morning zoo are not horrible, merely Gothic bad. The cacophony of noise; the relentless sound barfs orchestrated by the fake New Jersey guy who thinks he's Al Pacino, is mind-numbingly bad-good. Combine noise, a gargantuan tumble of the word, "dude", and the onslaught of B. Murphy's wimpy, pop-culture girdle, human excrement machine and you have your AM dreck-- part of the Sports Bleeder menu for impaired, horny, fat, Caucasian truck drivers from Union City with Giants caps on. A virtual broadcast Gitmo. Talk about torture.

2. KPIX/KBCW "Night Beat": I applaud the PIXers for trying something new and innovative--too bad this abysmal attempt at an actual newscast is so horrific as to nauseate the senses. PIX wants the millennial crowd who are busy tweeting and facebooking for roughly 22 minutes of their time on a weeknight only problem is their designated demo wouldn't bother viewing this miserable and wretched program that looks and sounds as if it were created and directed by a bunch of attention-deprived misfits. For one, if you're trying to get a Heather or Grant 30-something why the hell would you format the newscast toward precisely the crowd most notably not watching TV news? I mean, here you are highlighting Twitter and Facebook--in essence plugging the devices whose people you're attempting to draw away from the computer? Screw the concept of just reading a breezy newscast with some flashy graphics and tight storylines --in reality, PIX dumbs down its own audience and makes them look like fools. The end result is a mish-mash hodgepodge of garbage programming, uneven content, phony phrases like, "Game On!" to introduce the sports segment, (which makes the sports guy look like a moron), and "Trending"--another insincere toss to the Twitter crowd. BORING! Uninspired. Nothing original. Lost. Night Beat is fun to watch because it's so bad it makes you laugh uncontrollably and you find yourself, like me, singing "Gaaaaame On!" throughout the day. Sick and perverted pleasure.

3. Karel Show: KGO Radio: Karel, excuse me, "The entertainer" is worth listening to if the only other alternative is to take a frying pan and hit yourself on the head about 10 times. About a million years ago when kgo was KGO, Karel had an OK program and actually hit home runs every now and then. He could do a decent interview and talk about real topics with real people. Now he's a clown at the circus of the mentally-impaired. Furthermore, Karel is phony and insulting. The constant barrage of gayness from a guy who resents being labeled "openly gay, talk-show host", then shut the hell up and do a goddamned program you blathering idiot! The endless "boyfriend" references, the fake crying game with the insufferable "Andrew" references, (as if we hadn't heard the 20,000 times of Andrew's demise.) About six months ago I actually called Karel because I felt bad for him; I told him the program sucks, nothing personal, but dammit, clean it up! He mumbled back something about the "new format in today's radio world"; yeah, whatever, it still sucks Karel now go to Ireland and have a Mac attack and walk the red carpet--if you're an entertainer, I'm Barney Fife.

4. Gil Gross: Gross is what's wrong with the idiots who run radio stations today--they'd rather bleed with the truly retread department of has-beens that are filled with a bunch of stammering, bloated mumble guys like Gross who somehow get jobs despite their significant lack of creativity and talent.

5.Brian Sussman: KSFO: Lee Rodgers politics were polar-opposite mine but I listened because Lee did a great radio show. A real radio show that didn't have to resort to fart noises, phony screaming and yelling, ranting and raving, fake outrage. Sussman and his gravel-voiced female partner, (who at times sounds as if she's some dopey teenage Heather), provide some of the worst radio on the Bay Area airwaves. The constant Obama, Obama, Obama is evil is as tired and boring as most political talk. The American people are pretty much sick of all politicians--have you seen Congress' approval ratings? Fact is both parties are despised so Sussman's "lib-turd" act with accompanying daily Joe Biden misfits doesn't ring genuine. Moreover, picking down the line from Drudge Report headlines and repeating them every 10 minutes doesn't attract an audience other than a few conservative white guys from Pleasanton. Cue the mattress choo-choo train sound effect. That's your 2014 KSFO.

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41 comments:

  1. I can't stand Murph 'n Mac's show, but why is it relevant to a critique of said show to describe it as "all-white"? Is that a negative in your opinion? If so, why? If not, why was it necessary to use that term?

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  2. What I love about Night Beat is the end where Veronica Da La Hairflip introduces Liz "Daddy-Promised-Me-Better" Cook and the two of them act like BBFs, even though I can imagine the cats screeching and the fur flying the moment they cut to commercial. Still, they do a pretty good job acting. TRENDING!

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    1. This point may be the worst part of night beat.

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  3. I like Murph 'n Mac's KNBR Morning show. It's a typical two-guys-talking-sports radio sports show. The audience must like them because they continue to hold down the critical morning drive time spot on KNBR.

    Obviously Rich Lieberman doesn't care for the show. That's his prerogative but not many people I know agree.

    Lieberman's criticism that the show targets "impaired, horny, fat, Caucasian truck drivers from Union City with Giants caps on" is ridiculous because that cohort barely exists in the Bay Area.

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    1. There are barely any white people left in Union City. And why would there be any truck drivers in suburban Union City? You could drive across Union City in 5 min.

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  4. Can't believe you didn't mention Corey & Joel. This is, by far, the worst show on radio!

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  5. "Best/Worst"? Seems like this is all BAD. Where's Fatnich?

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  6. Well,in calling Andy Bags a prick,Radnich invoked RL410 into the discussion (He says,me or Kate!) as Rich's past post once screamed. To make a long story short..Kate from the time Radnich went into EVERYTHING Rich wrote, virtually a word for word recital, Kate became visibly upset...it simmered into a commercial break. As usual,Raddy did what makes him look best..never said to Kate "Did the Rich story upset you?..sorry I brought it up"..nah,he went and ran with some idiotic rant about Murph and Mac and he's not like them,blah blah. In other words..her fault. Another commercial break and Kate Scott,then claimed "Lack of sleep" as an apology. Yep,she's learning from Radnich.
    Funny too,Radnich was ripping the Giants for boycotting Andy Bags truthful reports...and then HE had to ADMIT "We don't have that prick on for calling Larry, "Krabgrass Krueger"-lol. And I really am loling. Vintage Radnich playing both sides..supports Bags vs the Giant players..and then calls Andy a "Prick" who's not welcome on his show.
    And I thoroughly enjoyed it all.

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    1. Drunk, drugs or just plain insanity? Will Stan finally melt down and go streaking down Lombard street with a red wagon trailing behind him? Developing..

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    2. Kate got upset because it was true and more of her cover is being blown. I thought Raddy handled that one beautifully. She on the other hand showed what a spoiled brat she is.

      Uncomfortable radio for sure, but hopefully it helps get Kate off the show.

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    3. I left out that Kate was gesturing and almost shouting "I'm tired of talking about this".before the break where she claimed sleep,etc.
      Also..Raddy went to Andy Bags wears "colorful" clothes". And we know what that insinuates. Sort of like last year when Radish head said Andy is light in his loafers.
      I notice too,Kate is sensitive to woman comments...but she sure seems quiet when Radnich teases gay guys and their habits,or says they are toxic. I wonder with her silence on that if we have a sort of "Light Skinned black people feel superior to dark skinned black people." -The gay culture version?

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    4. One problem with publishing Stan comments here is that the guy is so convoluted and incapable of writing clearly. It's impossible to understand what he's trying to say.

      Neither of his two comments above are intelligible..

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    5. I think he has some neurological problems, judging by the, um, interesting punctuation and sentence structures he creates. Maybe he's one of those "beautiful mind" types.

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    6. Neurological problems, possibly. Beautiful mind, out of the question.

      Stan references a myriad of extraneous issues without recognizing that it's impossible to know what he's talking about.

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    7. So,Rich you didn't post my remark that 1156 saw it my way...no attack on him.
      You also posted three haters all saying the same tired remarks. Might as well have been the same Obama hater type I always get.
      You want to explain why?

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    8. How many posts by the same guy saying the very same thing? I have to come up with clever...and maybe you post it.
      Notice..they dont even mention what I wrote.They (all one of him) puts out three versions of the same thing!..lol I thought Rich,you wanted less clutter?...
      I cant debate spam.

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    9. For whatever reason, Stan spews out nutty, indecipherable comments. Hard to tell if it's his muddled thinking or inability to write clearly and grammatically.

      Obviously this has nothing to do with politics or Obama haters or whatever other ridiculous excuse Stan mentions.

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    10. Stan@8:08, If you are unhappy with which comments from you or others are displayed here I have an easy solution.

      Stan, you've got your own blog. You've mentioned how popular your blog is. Since it's your own blog, you can express your thoughts fully. You can control the comments section. It's a perfect opportunity for you to communicate more clearly with all your followers.

      Delete
  7. The morning show's pretty bad but there's a reason that Fitz and Brooks is on 12-3pm. The condescension towards callers is too much to bear sometimes. I sometimes wonder if KNBR pays masochists to call in so they can take the abuse. On the other hand, the masochists probably pay KNBR. But they are terrible.

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  8. Obviously, it's all personal taste and interest....but I like Murph and Mac in the morning. They have the right blend of pop culture ---(love the Springsteen and UCLA references), love the digressions on their youth (Murph is a local) as well as Pauley's NYC comments, enjoy comments on Murph's little league experiences---and sports. It's a nice mix with the Giants, 49ers stuff. Pauley's creative work on the songs is great too. Murph is intelligent and does a good interview. His one downfall is that because he seems to be a nice guy, he can come off as too much of a marshmellow.....but I'm ok with that. I don't always need the edge of an Alex Bennett or Howard Stern. It's not must listen radio, but it's certainly better than most stuff in the morning and of all the stuff KNBR has, they, by far, work best for the morning..

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    1. The other hosts, Radnich and Tolbert/Ratto dismiss Paulie's song parodies when the engineer/producer play snippets. That tells you how the other hosts take them. I turn the channel when they start playing. They're terrible and only enjoyable to the hosts. And that's another thing, Murph and Mac seem to be doing the show for themselves and their small cadre of acolytes - not for the rest of us. I think Murph has a good cheery voice for the morning - I listen from 5:40 to 6:15 and again from about 8 to 8:30, but his digressions and Paulie's limited music references - the Dead, Springsteen, KISS or the other 10 albums in his collection, get tiresome.

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  9. Murp and Mac are just plain horrible, hate the Springstein and Grateful Dead crap. Total Blowholes.

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    1. Well, I'll agree with half of what you say. Murph and Mac are horrible, but I do like Springsteen and The Grateful Dead.

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  10. Also the morning show on the game is horrific, the good news is that I don't have to even try to listen to it. The signal does not work in the San Jose Palo Alto area.

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  11. I miss Frank & Mike, with news reports by Gene D'Accardo & Hap Harper handling traffic chopper duties. No condescending Kaiser Permanente ads. Good times...

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    1. Don't forget that Kim Wonderley was part of that show. It was a good show, much better than the garbage that is on nowadays.

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  12. Murph and Mac and 'P-Con' are annoying to listen to, and act like giggling frat boys half the time. Fitz and Brooks are just plain painful to listen to, as they present this know-it-all, manic (Brooks), condescending (especially Fitz) style of broadcasting. . Gary has gotten old and tired, but at least he's sometimes somewhat entertaining with his fake 'angry-man' rants. Krueger keeps him honest because he at least knows sports, watches the games and is interested. Gary on the other hand, probably has gone to one or two games all year and his favorite expression is "NOBODY CARES!" That's right Gary, NOBODY CARES MUCH ANYMORE ABOUT YOUR TIRED ACT!"
    As for "Kate T. Scott, the fact that KNBR use a traffic person to do sports updates is bad enough, (and they call themselves the 'sports leader?') but her constant annoying interruptions during Gary and Larry's show make her sound like some little kid in the back of the class who's trying to be noticed. "Hey look at me! Look at me!" I guess Hammer must like it though, because she's been on for a couple of years now. Kate unfortunately is like 'Amy G.' on Comcast. Very few people give either any credibility and if they do, it's because they know little about sports themselves. The best woman sportscaster by the way in the bay area: Mindy Bach on Comcast by far.

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  13. Rich, the people wearing Giants hats in Union City are our Filipino brothers.
    If you're not a Giants or Niners fan, it's pretty hard to listen to the cheerleaders on the 680 morning show.

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  14. Best new thing in radio: HD channels.

    Bravo for "Pride Radio" on KBIG - 1 HD here in LA. Gay oriented, but if you can overlook the lisping announcers, the music selection is great.

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  15. No mention of Joel and Corey? This really is the worst of the worst of Bay Area radio, if not any major market in the country. (I tune in to Gil, hoping it will get better, as I used to like his show on KGO, but cannot fathom why he won't take callers?) Then I discovered Joel and Corey. I cannot believe no one has fired these clowns yet. Everyone must listen to this show once to see what is going on! It sounds like 2 little girls bitching about boyfriends then they all of a sudden try to debate world politics and issues of the day. The best is when they try to talk about sports. Please whomever is in charge of 910, actually listen to their show and realize that these morons should not be on airwaves anywhere.

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    1. I could have written this blog, you are so spot on, I wrote similar sentiments when they first came on, and asked the rhetorical question who is in charge of programming at 910? Well, it is Corey so that perhaps explains why they have not been fired. My guess is 910 is in deep financial trouble. Corey is the program director and Joel does dinning around on Saturdays, so my guess, just like in many corporations, is they are being asked to work more for the same pay, or perhaps a miniscule raise. That is the only explanation I can come up with, that makes some sense.

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  16. Never heard of 'em. Who in the name of Sam Hell are Joel and Corey?

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    1. They are on 910 am from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Randi Rhoades use to be on in that time slot, and although she could be a little tiresome at times, I liked her, and at least she was liberal, not that I only listen to liberals, but they keep getting fewer and fewer (to quote Richard Burton from the movie "The Longest Day"). There use to be Thom Hartmann, Stephanie Miller (never cared for her format) and Norm Goldman, also Bill Press (who is one of my favorites, knows Washington and politics) but they are all gone. Joel and Corey are neither interesting, well informed, and although I think they are both fairly liberal it does not matter, their show stinks, and I don't know who can stomach listening to them for very long. However, you might want to check them out, so you know what we are talking about on this blog.

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  17. Rich, you analysis of Sussman is spot on, I wonder if he reads this blog. His vocabulary is pathetic for a talk show host. Can't help to think back to Gene Burns and his awesome knowledge and use of the English language, so a pleasure to listen to, no matter the subject. Sussmann keeps using the same phrases over and over again. If I had a penny for each time he says "Listen folks" I would have a nice sum of money. I posted on his Facebook page, asking if he realized how often he uses the phrase, and how awful his show is. I did notice the next day he didn't say is as much, but that didn't last. Right now I have a long commute so I switch back and forth between Sussman and Armstrong and Getty, usually A&G wins, at times I listen a little to Glenn Beck, depends what his subject is, he can be interesting and reasonable, other times outrageous and way out there.

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    1. We don't have quality talk radio here anymore. Period. Even Sussman has gone downhill in the time he's been in that slot. I never thought he was very good and now he's worse. There are so many others who could do better but none of them want to come to San Francisco and endure the cost of living or politically correct mind screwing that goes on here every day. People here aren't interested in any opinion other than their own and they have the money, muscle and political clout to make it stick. As long as the food, wine and sunsets are top drawer nothing will change. Bank on it.

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  18. I guess my biggest complaint about Murph and Mac is with all the sound affects and song parodies, it's more Dr. Don Rose or Rick Dees than sports talk.

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  19. I happen to like Night Beat. What is the problem? Bitch Bitch Bitch If you do not like the show, don't watch it. Veronica De La Cruz at least keeps you awake, unlike most of the news anchors in the Bay Area. You get all the news you need in half and hour.

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  20. Katy Green and Sussman are at the lower levels of hell. What a low class act. She is between a blubbering idiot and an uninformed teen in a locker room.. Sussman is a Lee Rodgers plus Michael Savage wanna be minus the talent, vocabulary and charisma! At least Michael Savage's rants have panache and wicked humor.!

    How insulting for the BayArea to have such bubble-heads!!!!!!!!!!!!

    I do not listen to morning radio anymore.

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  21. Why is lame ass Dibley not on this list?

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