THE
HI-FI CLUB
NOW
A PART OF THE
RATIONAL
RADIO NETWORK
SUNDAY
EVENINGS, 6PM-7PM ON KMNY-1360 AM IN DALLAS-FORT WORTH
CLICK
HERE
FOR LIVE STREAMING
- What is THE HI-FI CLUB?
- Your hosts
- THE HI-FI CLUB history
- Related websites/sponsor links
- What happened to "Retro Radio"?
- How to contact us
The
"Hi-Fi" name pays homage to the 1959-62 evening radio program at the former
KXOL-1360 known as "The Coca-Cola Hi-Fi Club." It was once hosted
by the late George Carlin just before he moved from Fort Worth to Hollywood
to make history as a comedian.
THE HI-FI
CLUB airs over KMNY-1360, the former KXOL
frequency, making for a very appropriate place to bring the memories of
'radio past' back to life!
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L-R:
Bob Schieffer, Norm Alden, Bud Buschardt, George Gimarc, Steve Eberhart,
Russ Bloxom, Bill Mercer, Pat Priest, George Carlin with Jack Burns
And you never know who might sit in or call in! Actor Norm Alden was a two-time guest; Bob Schieffer, anchor of "Face the Nation" and the "CBS Evening News," taped his reflections for THE HI-FI CLUB about his time in Fort Worth and as a newsman at KXOL (and we brought Bob's voice back to the 1360 airwaves for the first time in over 40 years!); Jack Burns, former KXOL newsman who was half of a comedy duo with another KXOL ex, George Carlin; and Bud Buschardt, longtime DFW radio personality and respected musicologist, was a guest in September, 2006 and January, 2008. KJIM owner and former KXOL personality Bob Allen shared his memories of 1360 by phone. Other callers include DFW radio legends Steve Eberhart and George Gimarc (who let us break the story of his new radio protocol, Radio SASS,) as well as John Fletcher, son of the late KXOL station manager Earle Fletcher. Former Channel 5 news anchor and KXOL/KJIM/KCLE personality Russ Bloxom also provided some great reflections of his time in local radio and TV, including an account of his broadcast contributions on the day President Kennedy was assassinated. Latest guests include DFW radio legends Bill Mercer and Bob Bruton, as well as actress Pat Priest (Marilyn from "The Munsters.")
Others that we're planning future telephone or studio interviews with: The wonderful Suzie Humphreys, perennial girl-about-town at KVIL; Sandy Shepard, son of KDNT owner Harwell Shepard; Mike Selden, son of DFW radio legend Michael Selden; Jim Thomas, DFW radio legend and host of "70s Saturday Night," who provided many of the jingles you hear on the show; Jack Schell, longtime announcer at KVIL and KBOX; and "Dark Shadows" and "Alias Smith and Jones" actor Roger Davis.
ROTATING CO-HOSTS...
HISTORY OF THE ORIGINAL "COCA COLA HI-FI CLUB"...
Logo
for the original Hi-Fi Club.
Story
by Bill Combs, former president and current vice president of the Coca
Cola Collectors Club.
See
the complete story with illustrations at www2.coca-cola.com/heritage/collectorscolumns_hifi.html.
THE HI-FI CLUB was a pretty simple, but very ambitious, idea. Kids love music and love to dance. Organizations, and parents, were looking for a way to keep those teens "off the streets" and out of trouble. Enter The Coca-Cola Company with a way to help both groups.
THE HI-FI CLUB got its start in 1958. By June 1959, Coca-Cola bottlers in 47 states sponsored THE HI-FI CLUB, and its membership was estimated at almost 2 million teenagers.
So just what was THE HI-FI CLUB? A dance club that would be supported and promoted by The Coca-Cola Company. Coke would turn to schools or any responsible group looking for a way to promote positive youth activities. Coke would supply the framework for a successful Club and the organization would do the rest. The most popular Club events were dances.
With THE HI-FI CLUB, Coca-Cola started what was one of the first national dance clubs. Coke told the organizations how to set up and run the Clubs, and provided songs and ideas for each dance and event. Membership was open to every teenager who wanted to join, with no initiation fees or dues required. Each member was given a membership card, and only members could attend events. Contests would be held at each local event, and prizes would be given on a local and national level.
One of the most important factors in a successful Club was the proper disc jockey. Coca-Cola would supply the DJ with plenty of material, and the DJ was to learn about the product and its history. The DJ's name or image would appear on advertising and point-of-sales materials. Coke provided the DJ with "The Monthly Disc Jockey Package" that included a record or transcription with the theme song for Coca-Cola, a series of special cuts containing interviews and programming from other Hi-Fi Clubs (there were breaks where the DJ could act like he was talking to others "live,") some other open-ended interviews where the DJ could pretend to be live with the artist, a segment called "Around the World Hit Parade," and a "Popular Records" set that included commercial recordings of artists who appeared on the program. The DJ package also had scripts and commercials, which in total included over two hours of music and programming ideas.
WHAT HAPPENED TO "RETRO RADIO"?
Retro Radio was a short-term project that was broadcast over KMNY-1360 during May and June, 2008. Once the station's owner, MRBI, lined up a new lessee for the airtime, Retro Radio's time on the air ended. Retro Radio still maintains a MySpace page; visit www.myspace.com/retroradio1360 for more information.
Live
streaming of THE HI-FI CLUB:
Click HERE
THE
HI-FI CLUB is now on MySpace! Go to
www.myspace.com/radiohificlub
The
Rational Radio Network airs THE HI-FI CLUB
each week...check out their website HERE
Links
to current and former local radio/TV personalities, radio history sites,
radio forums, etc - Click HERE
Ray
Whitworth, longtime jock and production whiz, does many of the jingles
and sounders for the show. To find
out about Ray's voiceover and production services, send an email HERE
Norm
Alden, character actor and former personality on KXOL-1360, has a new website!
Click HERE
Jim
Thomas, perennial DFW radio personality and host of the long-running "70s
Saturday Night," provided
several sounders and jingles for the show. Check out his website
HERE
Bill
Mercer's home on the web can be found HERE
George
Gimarc's new radio protocol, Radio SASS, can be evaluated HERE
Mike
Shannon's tribute to DFW radio and TV can be found HERE
John
Lewis' salute to KXOL-1360AM in Fort Worth can be accessed HERE
Retro
Radio's MySpace page is still operational...click HERE
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Restarting
"The Hi-Fi Club" on 12/30/2007: 1. (L-R) Mike, John and Chad.
2. Mike Shannon at the KMNY board. 3. Ray Whitworth.
CONTACT INFORMATION/SPONSORSHIPS...
Listener questions, advertising/sponsor opportunities, or to inquire about bringing THE HI-FI CLUB to YOUR station? Email us!
Or you can contact the hosts directly:
Mike
Shannon: shannon914@wans.net
John
Lewis: john@kxol1360.com
Chad
Hoker: chadhoker@yahoo.com
Ray
Whitworth: eskimoradio7@aol.com
THANK YOU'S...
THE HI-FI CLUB has lots of folks to thank for its existence and for its continued success. Ray Whitworth, who took a job with BizRadio 1360 back in 2005, and got Mike Shannon on board thereafter, is the root of the whole process. Without Ray, there wouldn't have been the networking opportunity that led to the existence of THE HI-FI CLUB. Ted Sauceman, general manager of KMNY, took a chance with THE HI-FI CLUB and gave us the airtime to use, and worked with us to allow the creation of the Retro Radio project. John Lewis and Chad Hoker have both contributed greatly to the show's success and growth; Melissa Rasmussen has bailed us out of streaming issues for quite a while now, and was a tremendous help with the Retro Radio project; Dave Clifton and Jack Bishop of the Rational Radio Network, for allowing us to continue the program on our original frequency and time; Doyle King, Jim Thomas and Ray Whitworth for all the great imaging and production; and to radio enthusiast Ned Wolens for listening intently to 1360 and letting us know about recent changes in programming that created space once again for THE HI-FI CLUB. And of course, a BIG thanks to our listeners and supporters and guests; your faith and encouragement and kind words are greatly appreciated!
© 2008 The Hi-Fi Club. All rights reserved