Well, here I am, two weeks after "black friday" at WABC Radio and dozens of Citadel owned radio stations across the country. Sometimes radio sucks. This is one of those times.After 11 years of anchoring the news, reporting from the streets and hosting talk shows, the axe fell. Citadel facing hundreds of millions of dollars in losses chopped well over 100 people in a slew of markets. This will also allow the company to pay Don Imus's multi-million dollar salary by replacing strong local hosts with a cow-poke style syndicated talk show.
My good friend, John Gambling was also cut. John is one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet and he's a great broadcaster. Like me, he's a survivor and will land on his feet. John and I often wondered how long it would be before Citadel starting cutting. We watched the stock price hit a dollar a share, while the company continued a top heavy work force of highly paid broadcasters.I've kept in touch with John and he's doing fine and enjoying himself in sunny Florida.
As for me, I'll be going national in the next few weeks, but you should be able to hear me here in New York. Dates and details to be announced.
I rebounded quickly, indeed, but I'm still hoping you'll be able to hear me full-time on a local radio station somewhere in New York City.
I'd be remiss, if I didn't mention another good friend of mine, Ron Kuby. Not only do I consider him a good friend, but he's one of the most brilliant , creative minds out there. Politics aside (and believe me, I disagree with a lot of what he says), Ron is someone I really like to be around. He might be left, but he's not always right! Ron continues his very successful law practice defending the likes of mobsters, biker gangs and as Curtis Sliwa would describe as "the assorted miscreants of society." He, his wife and daughter are doing just fine, but I miss playing with him, Curtis and Warner Wolf on the air.
As for Curtis, he's a stand up guy. What you didn't know about the leader of the Guardian Angels is that he refused to take John Gambling's post at first until he knew that Citadel was cutting scores of jobs solely because of money. Curtis is truly a decent man, a believer in truth, justice and the American way. Oh, and thanks Curtis for your kind and heart felt words on your first show.
Warner Wolf is the best in the business. He was one of my on-air partners in the morning on the Curtis and Kuby show. Hands down, Warner is THE best radio sports anchor in the country. Not only that, he's a genuinely good guy. He works his butt off, drives producers crazy, but we love him for who he is----a sweetheart of a guy.
A special thanks to Frank Morano, the producer of the Curtis and Kuby show who continues on at WABC. Frank is sharp as a cookie (why do they say, what's so sharpe about a cookie) and he's a good friend. This guy is a walking history and political book and it comes in handy when you're putting together newscasts and a show on a tight deadline. He's also really talented and creative and watch out WABC, I may try to steal him for one of my future ventures.
Phil Boyce was my program director at WABC. You should know it was NOT his decision to fire any of these people. The calling came from the uppermost levels of Citadel management, the number crunchers. I know how hard it was for him to call me into his office that Friday morning and tell me he was letting me go. After all, I had thought he was calling me into his office to announce he had just received my new contract back from corporate lawyers. I've known Phil since my days in Denver radio back in the 80's, when we were both young guys eking out our place in broadcasting. Despite my firing, he remains my friend.
My good friend, John Gambling was also cut. John is one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet and he's a great broadcaster. Like me, he's a survivor and will land on his feet. John and I often wondered how long it would be before Citadel starting cutting. We watched the stock price hit a dollar a share, while the company continued a top heavy work force of highly paid broadcasters.I've kept in touch with John and he's doing fine and enjoying himself in sunny Florida.
As for me, I'll be going national in the next few weeks, but you should be able to hear me here in New York. Dates and details to be announced.
I rebounded quickly, indeed, but I'm still hoping you'll be able to hear me full-time on a local radio station somewhere in New York City.
I'd be remiss, if I didn't mention another good friend of mine, Ron Kuby. Not only do I consider him a good friend, but he's one of the most brilliant , creative minds out there. Politics aside (and believe me, I disagree with a lot of what he says), Ron is someone I really like to be around. He might be left, but he's not always right! Ron continues his very successful law practice defending the likes of mobsters, biker gangs and as Curtis Sliwa would describe as "the assorted miscreants of society." He, his wife and daughter are doing just fine, but I miss playing with him, Curtis and Warner Wolf on the air.
As for Curtis, he's a stand up guy. What you didn't know about the leader of the Guardian Angels is that he refused to take John Gambling's post at first until he knew that Citadel was cutting scores of jobs solely because of money. Curtis is truly a decent man, a believer in truth, justice and the American way. Oh, and thanks Curtis for your kind and heart felt words on your first show.
Warner Wolf is the best in the business. He was one of my on-air partners in the morning on the Curtis and Kuby show. Hands down, Warner is THE best radio sports anchor in the country. Not only that, he's a genuinely good guy. He works his butt off, drives producers crazy, but we love him for who he is----a sweetheart of a guy.
A special thanks to Frank Morano, the producer of the Curtis and Kuby show who continues on at WABC. Frank is sharp as a cookie (why do they say, what's so sharpe about a cookie) and he's a good friend. This guy is a walking history and political book and it comes in handy when you're putting together newscasts and a show on a tight deadline. He's also really talented and creative and watch out WABC, I may try to steal him for one of my future ventures.
Phil Boyce was my program director at WABC. You should know it was NOT his decision to fire any of these people. The calling came from the uppermost levels of Citadel management, the number crunchers. I know how hard it was for him to call me into his office that Friday morning and tell me he was letting me go. After all, I had thought he was calling me into his office to announce he had just received my new contract back from corporate lawyers. I've known Phil since my days in Denver radio back in the 80's, when we were both young guys eking out our place in broadcasting. Despite my firing, he remains my friend.
