Kept powerhouse on top of the ratings WGN Radio executive Dan Fabian, who was the key to the station’s dominance in the 1980s and 1990s, died Friday at the age of 81. Fabian rose through the ranks at the then-Tribune-owned station from college intern in 1965 to Vice-President and General Manager by the time he retired in 1996. Along the […]
AM radio still matters in Chicago as local media rallies around medium A lot of electronic ink has been written in recent years about the demise of linear TV, but there’s a communications medium in even more dire straits whose fate isn’t being helped by the auto industry. Numerous carmakers – especially those who produce electric vehicles, are looking to […]
Roseanne not the first media personality to fall from the top When Roseanne Barr made several racially insensitive and anti-Semitic tweets in May, ABC canceled the successful reboot of her 1980s and 1990s sitcom Roseanne, becoming the first top-rated show ever to get canceled and the first one because of a tweet. But to […]
– WGN-TV announced last week it was adding additional weekend newscasts in early fringe, at 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, when not pre-empted by sports. WGN’s 9 p.m. weekend news team would also assume the duties at 5 p.m. A few years ago, WFLD had a 5 p.m. Saturday newscast, but was canceled. WGN, which recently […]
A quick wrap-up of the week that was in media: Winners. WGN Radio. Jonathan Brandmeier’s arrival to the storied 720 is sure to bring back the entertainment value back to the station in the morning, a la Wally Phillips and Bob Collins. Now, just don’t screw it up. NBA Fans, TNT, and ESPN. The lockout’s over and pro basketball is […]
For years, many in the radio industry here in Chicago were talking about the possibility of Jonathan Brandmier landing on WGN Radio. Ladies and gentlemen, the mission has been accomplished. In a move being considered a game changer in Chicago radio, former WLUP radio personality Jonathan Brandmeier signed a deal with Tribune Broadcasting’s WGN-AM to take over the coveted morning […]
Ward L. Quaal, a Chicago television and radio pioneer instrumental in laying the groundwork for WGN-AM and WGN-TV, died Friday at the age of 91. Quaal began his career in 1936 at a radio station in Marquette, Mich., and went to WGN Radio in 1941. As a staff announcer, he broke the news that Pearl Harbor was bombed, which brought […]
In a surprise (and shocking move), WGN-AM announced today the hiring of Greg Jarrett, formerly of KGO-AM in San Francisco in morning drive. But wait a minute, you ask. Isn’t that the slot John Williams holds? Yes it is, and he’s moving to the 9 a.m. – noon slot formerly occupied by Kathy O’Malley and Judy Markey. Williams only started […]
It was speculated in July, it’s now official: Spike O’Dell is leaving WGN-AM morning drive effective at the end of the year. No word on a replacement, but there is speculation WGN may hire two people to replace Spike O’Dell next January. Like his predecessors (Wally Phillips and Bob Collins), Spike O’Dell’s has owned WGN’s morning slot in Chicago, finishing […]
Two wonderful articles here from The Trib’s Phil Rosenthal and the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel’s Tim Cuprisin (it turned out Wally Phillips also had listeners in the Milwaukee area.)
Photo: Chicago Sun-Times The undisputed king of Chicago morning radio from the 1960’s to the 1980’s has passed away at the age of 82. Wally Phillips began his legendary Chicago radio career at WGN in 1956 and became the station’s morning personality in 1965 and had the market’s top rated morning show from 1968 until he left for afternoons in […]
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