11/28/2007
Why is this day different from all other days? Well, it’s different for me- because today is the lucky 13th anniversary of my coming to work at WCIU! Yes, way back in 1994- I officially walked into an L-shaped office on the upper floors of the Board of Trade Building in downtown Chicago, and became a part of this station.(The original studios and offices were in that building, and had been since the early 60s.)
Johnnie from WGN Radio pointed me in the direction of one Neal Sabin- who had made WPWR a success, and now was going to turn what had been an outlet for Univision Spanish language programming and the venerable “Stock Market Observer” into a full –fledged local independent station- like channel 9 and channel 32 had originally been. I know I’ve told this story before, but- Neal and I hit it off immediately- we both had grown up with same interests in broadcasting, love of great old TV shows and movies- and were both dyed-in-the-wool 3 Stooges fans. (Was that wool, or Larry’s hair?!) Neal’s excitement and vision of what the station could become certainly sold me on the idea of getting in on the ground floor of what could be a unique Chicago television station.
Now, 13 years later- it sure seems like it worked! The station succeeded faster than anyone had expected- and has expanded with our sister station Me-TV, and our company’s other stations in Milwaukee and South Bend. A lot of the stuff we wished for back at the start- getting the broadcast rights to the 3 Stooges for the station, getting the amazing Universal monster movie classics, and so much more- have become a reality! Not to mention- this 13 years has been the longest job I’ve ever had- which is really saying something in the world of broadcasting.
I’m happy to be here, and I hear from so many of you, every week, saying the same thing- that you’re happy I’m here, doing the stuff that I do- which no other local station provides. So, thanks- to Neal, to the powers that be here at Weigel Broadcasting, and to all of you out there who support us. Just remember- it’s YOUR support that keeps us here (I know, sounds like Pledge Night at Ch. 11)- so, support our advertisers- and come out when we do appearances! I’ll tell you about the next one tomorrow! Right now, I’m going to go put those 13 candles on a rubber chicken (somebody get the fire extinguisher ready!)
Johnnie from WGN Radio pointed me in the direction of one Neal Sabin- who had made WPWR a success, and now was going to turn what had been an outlet for Univision Spanish language programming and the venerable “Stock Market Observer” into a full –fledged local independent station- like channel 9 and channel 32 had originally been. I know I’ve told this story before, but- Neal and I hit it off immediately- we both had grown up with same interests in broadcasting, love of great old TV shows and movies- and were both dyed-in-the-wool 3 Stooges fans. (Was that wool, or Larry’s hair?!) Neal’s excitement and vision of what the station could become certainly sold me on the idea of getting in on the ground floor of what could be a unique Chicago television station.
Now, 13 years later- it sure seems like it worked! The station succeeded faster than anyone had expected- and has expanded with our sister station Me-TV, and our company’s other stations in Milwaukee and South Bend. A lot of the stuff we wished for back at the start- getting the broadcast rights to the 3 Stooges for the station, getting the amazing Universal monster movie classics, and so much more- have become a reality! Not to mention- this 13 years has been the longest job I’ve ever had- which is really saying something in the world of broadcasting.
I’m happy to be here, and I hear from so many of you, every week, saying the same thing- that you’re happy I’m here, doing the stuff that I do- which no other local station provides. So, thanks- to Neal, to the powers that be here at Weigel Broadcasting, and to all of you out there who support us. Just remember- it’s YOUR support that keeps us here (I know, sounds like Pledge Night at Ch. 11)- so, support our advertisers- and come out when we do appearances! I’ll tell you about the next one tomorrow! Right now, I’m going to go put those 13 candles on a rubber chicken (somebody get the fire extinguisher ready!)
0 TrackBacks
Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: 11/28/2007.
TrackBack URL for this entry: http://www.wciu.com/blogs/mt-tb.cgi/71
Leave a comment