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| Gary Radnich (left) and the late Pete Liebengooid |
THEY WERE TWO TOP PROS
Late in their KRON days, Pete Liebengood wasn't entirely in step with Gary Radnich and quietly railed against him. They hardly ever saw eye to eye. At the end, Liebengood was openly hostile but most viewers didn't know--I did.
Guess what? It didn't matter.
They killed the competition. Ratings were off the chart. Raddy's flamboyance and spectacle played to Liebengood's inner hostility. It was never to a point where they were on-air enemies but Radnich knew Pete eventually despised him. He didn't rock the boat because the money was good and he (Liebengood) was a professional.
They were both stars, Radnich, obviously, was the Superstar. Even if they were in a virtual mortal combat, it was mass identity and following to the end.
"Sports Final" was a Sunday Night appointment TV show on KRON. Big egos. Big money. And dueling egos. Behind the scenes it wasn't pretty. Who cares? Now you know the real story. How so?
I was there in the studio countless times.
Liebengood died in 2017.
Radnich is living life in West Portal. Maybe negotiating his last gig with KGO-TV.
To quote Gary Radnich, "Nobody cares"
ReplyDeleteRich, I think your desire to bring back Radnich is based on nostalgia, not his recent job performance. At KRON, he was phoning it in, not really on top of sports, skipping important local games. Plus, there's the age factor. Television is about youth -- it's why anchorwomen are pushed out in their mid-30s when the first crows feet show up. Yes, there are exceptions, but not many. And he's gained a lot of weight since that photo from his heydey at KRON was taken. What is an exec at 77 West 66th St. in New York going to say when Tom Cibrowski walks in with a photo of Raddy and says he wants to pay him 300K? Probably something like, "Why are you hiring such a fat, old turd like this?"
ReplyDeleteThis photo is a collector's item. Fatnich is actually at the stadium. This had to be from the 1980s. He was mailing it in for many years. If he comes back to pollute our airwaves, he'll be doing it again.
ReplyDeleteI just cant see a SD asking Gary to go down to 49er headquarters next season and file a report on the 3rd string tight ends groin injury. West Portal seems a lot nicer.
ReplyDeleteI never liked Gary from day 1, I liked Nettles back when he started. It gives me hope if you consider him a Superstar, a Super-Star with no talent. He reminded me of Ralph just collecting a pay check and who gives a poop if he can tell us the starting lineup of the 1962 Yankees. His personality is annoying.
ReplyDelete"Nettles never seemed to do anything for me, except for the fact that he drew in a lot of female viewers at KRON, (which ruled a few ratings blocks then) and was the big king of the hill in SF and the "it" on 1001 Van Ness Avenue."
DeleteRich Lieberman
April 21, 2012
Radnich is exactly what Channel 7 could use. Someone who isn't afraid to step out of the usual boring anchor chatter. I would stay tuned for sports if he was on. He talks like a regular person.
ReplyDeleteThey both did stints in Sacramento. Gary at KTXL (With Pete Wilson). Pete was at KCRA
ReplyDeleteLiebengood's concerns had merit. Not convinced RL blog readers at Circle 7 will believe that, but if Ashley, Finney, Matier, etc say "No Bentley, Please", then KGO-TV should pay heed to that.
ReplyDeleteWhen I watched back then you could see the real tension between the two, especially when Gary would bring on things like the hockey "Fight Cam!" I remember I wasn't a big Gary fan at the time because his style was so different back then, but I eventually enjoyed Gary's schtick as entertainment.
ReplyDelete