[BC] WGN...

[Rob Atkinson]

Wish I could remember more, like what mics they used etc. but I was too 
young to pay attention to that kind of detail.

The time I wrote about was around 1969 or 70.   Since we were younger, we 
had an advantage.  Interested kids are seen as cute and harmless, or at 
least they were then.  Even an old grouch such as what I have become, can't 
be overtly nasty ("Scram kid, yer boderin me.") without incurring a bit of 
wrath from the more tolerant.  So we had doors opened to us.  I recall we 
got in to see Roy Leonard but I have no recollection about what was said.  
But if we had been 8 or 10 years older it probaby would have been "I'm 
sorry, Mr. Leonard is busy today."

Great story about Collins.  that sounds like him.  I heard he liked to keep 
the studio where he did his show at around 60 degrees.  Everyone else froze 
to death.

the funny thing is that today, i would have almost no interest in the audio 
end, but I'd sure like to see the tx site.  that's probably harder to see 
than the production side.

rob atkinson

From: "Alan Kline <akline at netins.net>" <reader at oldradio.com>
Reply-To: Broadcast Radio Mailing List <broadcast at radiolists.net>
To: Broadcast Radio Mailing List <broadcast at radiolists.net>
Subject: [BC] WGN...
Date: Thu, 14 Jul 2005 11:02:25 -0700

Ah, yes...2501 W. Bradley Place... an address that, for me, has the same
magic as 30 Rock or 7800 Beverly Blvd...  My first impression was the
official freeway guide signs reading "Addison Street...WGN Studios"...

I never got up to the radio studios, but was on the TV studio floor
several times between 1979 and 1982, when Phil Donahue taped there. Pretty
impressive for this 18-year-old from Iowa.  Even the cafeteria--I was
sitting there, about 1982, filling out a job application at lunchtime,
when Bob Collins came in with someone for lunch.  Mine was the only table
with any open seats, and my backpack was on the table.  Uncle Bobby saw my
name on my pack, and said, "Mr. Kline, move your s***, would you please?"
in the same, friendly way that he had on the air.  Naturally, I was
delighted to move my backpack and enjoy a couple of minutes in his
company.  I'm sure my application ended up in the dumpster out back, but
it was worth it...  I think Wally or Floyd Brown or someone from the TV
side was in there, too, but I thought it would be too unprofessional to
disturb their lunch in their workplace by asking for autographs...

And I think Rob's dead-on about Wally's engineer leading him with those ET
drops.  Still, absolutely seamless...

ak



On Thu, 14 Jul 2005, Rob Atkinson wrote:

 > when I was around 12, and one of those oddball kids who went to radio
 > stations to ask obnoxious questions, this other kid and I got on the 
train
 > and somehow (don't remember what we did) made it to west bradley place 
and
 > got into WGN.
 > this would never happen today.  Today, our mom's would be called, and 
we'd
 > be turned over to DCFS.


_______________________________________________
This is the BROADCAST mailing list
To send to the list, email: broadcast at radiolists.net
For sub changes, archives and info on this other lists: 
http://www.radiolists.net/

_________________________________________________________________
Don’t just search. Find. Check out the new MSN Search! 
http://search.msn.click-url.com/go/onm00200636ave/direct/01/