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A Great Read on the Legend that WAS KVIL

I spent the first years of my career near Indianapolis, able to listen to the Fairbanks-George Johns broadcast laboratory known as WIBC/WNAP, a proving ground for a lot of what made KVIL great. KVIL's advantage, Chapman, who knew how to create a radio version of Neiman-Marcus sparkle and sheen.

Ron gets/takes a lot of credit, but don't ever underestimate the foundation Mr. Fairbanks and company gave him. Fairbanks was one heck of a broadcaster.
 
KVIL was a legend!!! Every year I had the gift and pleasure to go to Dallas to produce
my station's jingle package (Those were the days) and hear the magic of KVIL.
The one year I went and heard the station called Lite 103.7 and not KVIL, you knew the end was near.
 
I dare say, with much certainty, that there will never be another talent like Mr. Chapman. God bless him.

However, I couldn't help while reading this article to think about other things that have changed over the years. How many other things are better than they were? Are things really done differently today, or are the same tired old tricks done over and over?

Yeah, it's fun for you guys to pile on and rip on KVIL. But, really, since KVIL "fell," what's stepped up and taken its place? Nothing, because while KVIL may have stumbled, it's the whole world that fell. Terrestrial radio in general ain't what it used to be. The past will never come back and be like it was. The best we can do is look forward to the future, instead of looking back and crying about the past, and do our best every day. Or get out and do something else. ;)
 
Yeah, it's fun for you guys to pile on and rip on KVIL. But, really, since KVIL "fell," what's stepped up and taken its place? Nothing, because while KVIL may have stumbled, it's the whole world that fell. Terrestrial radio in general ain't what it used to be. The past will never come back and be like it was. The best we can do is look forward to the future, instead of looking back and crying about the past, and do our best every day.
Click to expand...

I read that link, and I think the gist of it is this: Curtis ran off Chapman. And Fig brought in another "Curtis" to fix what the previous Curtis broke. Not much of a plan.

Truth be known, the KVIL of the 90's under the Curtis/Ron tandem wasn't really the "KVIL" everyone remembers fondly. It no longer "led the parade" in creativity. It was already morphing into just another "best music of the 70's, 80's and 90's" station. The difference was the morning show remained a heritage show. And the jocks were heritage jocks. However, those great jocks were already reading liners. Also, during the 90's, some of the best testing songs in America were AC. Artists like Whitney Houston, Celine Dion and Bette Midler helped protect KVIL from falling in the ratings, despite its dependency on cookie cutter branding.
 
You can say what you want to about Ron Chapman, but when it's all said and done, there will never be another. He UNDERSTOOD the JOB! He did the JOB! And to top it all off, he always sound great.

Jay :eek:
 
When I think about KVIL, I always remember a fellow student from North Texas whose name was John Swaney. He was the morning man at the station. But more than that, he and Ann Hodges had won the national debate championship that year, beating the Princeton team.

Seems to me that was in the very early '60s. Chapman came after that.
 
BenB said:
Yeah, it's fun for you guys to pile on and rip on KVIL. But, really, since KVIL "fell," what's stepped up and taken its place? Nothing, because while KVIL may have stumbled, it's the whole world that fell. Terrestrial radio in general ain't what it used to be. The past will never come back and be like it was. The best we can do is look forward to the future, instead of looking back and crying about the past, and do our best every day. Or get out and do something else. ;)
Click to expand...
what stepped up was the country era and Terry Dorsey. It was Terry who de-throned Ron maybe late 80s probably early 90s for those who were around to remember. KSCS had a long run, 21 times market leader in the 90s. That was the end, music changed Ron didn't. Arguably Ron Chapman embodied what was Dallas Radio in his time. I remember him being aghast that country beat him the first time it did, and he even spoke of it on his show. He has much to be proud of, but couldn't fathom ever...ever being anything but number one.
 
i remember it a bit differently.

Dorsey and KSCS or KPLX, wherever he was that week, had their share of good years.

HE didn't 'do-in" Chapman and KVIL. Neither did Tom Joyner and his band of fun at K104, who had their strong years against KVIL.

Chapman and KVIL were done in by the SUITS who "thought" they knew what people wanted.
Well, not HERE, pal.

Chapman knew what people liked and they conformed to him, and he conformed to them.

he grew a following and the suits soon learned they had made a LARGE error.

Chapman tired of it and took his fun to KLUV and took KVIL's audience, too.
 
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