Did they really blow up KIXI?

[FatRadioGuy]

Heard they blew up KIXI and got rid of all the live guys in favor of Wink Martindale on Satellite. Is it true?Is it temporary to stunt for a new format or is it just a budget cut?

 

[LITTLEBOYBLUE]

I was just listening an hour ago and it's still local talent in PM drive (as usual).Maybe just a rumor ....

 

[billybee]

LIVE GUYS??? KIXI has used extensive voice-tracking since before voice-tracking was common... maybe 15 years... way back when CD players were still used...Bob Liddle, who recently retired for the 2nd time, was coming in a couple times a week to VT the all-night show, over a dozen years ago.Last I heard they were live in drive time, at least in the morning...

 

[70radio]

Oh, God...if KIXI abandons that format---the last of its kind in this market and one that could rebound and goes satellite---one could possibly find something positive about the move, but NOT with Wink 'why the Hell am I still in this business, well, 'cause I'm still great and no one could possibly know that I've had more plastic surgery than Kenny Rogers' Martindale?" David Lee Roth, anybody but Martindale! Hang it up, dude if, in fact, it's true!!!

 

[SmartestNewbieAround]

Inside info from an employee says that long time PD Bob Brooks cleaned out his office today as the rest of the staff was notified that the station goes to some syndicated stream in the morning. Details were sketchy at best of who would be the jocks on this new station or what it would entail, but one things for sure, An era has ended in Seattle radio. Best of luck to the outgoing staff there. There were some Giants of Seattle Radio there. And they shall all be missed

 

[DangerousDan]

Oh no...it's gotta be "The Music Of Your Life" ... interestingly the format of the first "big city" station I ever worked at WSHO/New Orleans in the late '70's. It was a semi-automated format with huge 10" reels and a couple of hundred "insert" carts so that the order of the songs could be somewhat varied and backtime to news.From their website:Music Of Your Life® is a National Radio Network featuring the Adult Pop Standards - music from Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Perry Como and other great recording artists of the past five decades. Presently there are nearly 500 radio stations targeting the 50+ market, and nearly 1000 additional radio stations that provide 50+ market programming from time to time.Music Of Your Life® had been historically distributed to affiliate radio stations via the Format Tape Service with reel-to-reel recordings sent to member stations. Support services included sales, programming and promotions consultation. The Music Of Your Life® radio format tape service had been available to radio stations in the United States since 1978. Music Of Your Life® is hosted by Superstar personalities including: * Gary Owens, of TV's "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In" fame * Wink Martindale, America's favorite TV Game Show host * Peter Marshall, Boy Singer & host of TV's "Hollywood Squares" * Chuck Southcott, legendary KMPC Los Angeles Radio HostSure KIXI was mostly voice tracked (how many stations can Frank Shires feasibly be on?) but it had a terrific local flavor to it. I hope they'll maintain that community presence.

 

[airwaver]

Just Heard the switch

Yup - at 12 mid they changed to "The Music Of Your Life"...Last song played on KIXI before the switch: "The Three Bells" - BrownsMorton said NOTHING beforehand, no proper station ID, no announcement, no goodbyes....(sniff)A VERY sad day in Seattle radio.

 

[LITTLEBOYBLUE]

Yesterday when I mentioned "business as usual" (post above) .... I should have clued in. Had just visited the web site and noticed it didn't have any content ... just links to streaming, jobs, etc. and NO local references.What a shame because these guys were firing on all cylinders with their marketing and so forth. Now, presumably, all that goes away for the most part?WHEN WILL RADIO EVER GET ITS HEAD OUT OF ITS %%%??? Presumably this is to save some $$ to pay for the marketing and launch expenses involved with Movement 92.5......The one thing that is generally consistent ... if there is an obvious "right" solution we can count on radio management to veer the other way these days. In this case it's taking a decent local station that still had some great local talent and presence and blowing it up.Sad.

 

[OttoM]

The one thing that is generally consistent ... if there is an obvious "right" solution we can count on radio management to veer the other way these days. In this case it's taking a decent local station that still had some great local talent and presence and blowing it up.Sad.

It's nothing to do with bad management. It's just that the demos KIXI has are too old. And that's a tough sell to ad buyers (just ask djdan how many buys he's placed with KIXI lately). That alone signed the death warrant to live (or locally voicetracked) programming. Within 24 months MOYL on 880 will give way to something else - something that can make more money (like brokered programming).

 

[LITTLEBOYBLUE]

THIS IS PAINFUL!!!!!Someone (I always thought it was Brooks) took obvious pride in the execution of the format ... every segue sounded awesome, whether it was two songs that just naturally sounded awesome in a silent segue; or drawing on the perfect transition element to make it all flow. Now....we're back to the 1970's style of automation. LINER ..... pause .... song starts (maybe) ..... couple beats of silence. Another song .... more silence .... back announce.And, RS ... I get the economics involved ... but it goes back to the points I was making in my yammerings a couple weeks ago (my stupid essay) about how it would be SOOOOO easy to make a station that sounds great and it would pick up some following. But the trend is to save a buck anywhere you can and the result is blandness that apparently offends no one --- but I argue that most of it also very effective at entertaining no one too. The trend seems to be "why take a risk" by spending anything and the result is two entire bands of "who gives a rip" kind of programming. Then everyone goes to conventions and wonders why the industry is having its butt handed to it??? That's what I mean by "bad management". If everyone wasn't 100% focused on appeasing the next level up (GM's to regional ... regional to corporate ... corporate to shareholders) they just might focus on making some product that solves most of their problems in the first place.

 

[Tig1150]

This takes KIXI back to the start of Adult Standards. KIXI 910 was one of the first MOYL stations in the U.S.. It has also used AM only from Westwood and Stardust from then SMN over the years.I wonder how much of this came about by the drop in KLSY revenue over the last few years?

 

[pbf1]

Within 24 months MOYL on 880 will give way to something else - something that can make more money (like brokered programming).

Or Espanol!

 

[DeltaDon]

No debt service (this station was paid for long ago), no high overhead, no big corporation, no stockholders, no consultants, and I'm told that not so long ago KIXI's income was more than twice its expenses. Even if the revenues had fallen somewhat with the ratings in recent years ...Was this really necessary???!!!!A valiant, noble, professional, LOCAL effort now replaced by sloppy, out of town, out of touch has beens. Nice going, Sandusky.

 

[ronrob]

I've heard a lot of KLKI Anacortes playing MOYL off the satellite. It allows them as a small market to sound professional, with the small air staff adding a healthy component of local news, sports & weather. (I wonder if Glenn Harris ever has a day off when he doesn't have to come in to record stuff.)So far KIXI is not adding anything in the way of local "awareness." In two hours of monitoring I haven't even heard a forecast.

 

[ronrob]

PS... Sad to say my wife who's only a casual listener, feels no outrage "as long as they don't change tbe music."Proabably speaks for a large chunk of the audience.

 

[multiplex]

I'm sorry to see the format replaced by satellite, too, but I disagree with the"sloppy" description, and the derision of the personnel as "out-of-touch has-beens." Wink Martindale is friendly and entertaining, with a huge stockpile of sound clips from many interviews with artists. He may not seem hip due to his game-show image, but he's a pro. Gary Owens is still funny, although his voice isn't what it used to be.Johnny Magnus still sounds good, and he has immense knowledge of the music.There's a wide variety of tunes in the format, too.As I said, I'm disappointed they changed to the satellite format, but this one's the best of the big three satellite standards offerings.

 

[CMMUMU]

What a depressing morning. I woke up to take my shower and listen to "Jim and Jim and Bonnie" on the Kixi morning show. I always look forward to hearing a bit of Elvis, the banter, and Jim's "Wall of Knowledge". But instead I got "Peter Marshall" - and not any of the local info I usually get. "Peter" didn't even say what time it was. I got a sick feeling in my stomach and by the time my shower was over I realized that my favorite station had changed. When I got to work I checked the Kixi website, and found more validation of my worst fears. So I hunted the web and found this cool website, which was the only place that seemed to have info about what was going on at Kixi. (Couldn't the new Kixi website at least have a note about the change?) I'm not in the radio business or an advertiser, I'm just a listener who is really disapointed. Yes, I love the music. But I also really relied on the local info. I'll have to find another station for my morning routine. (Guys, do you have any recommendations of a local station with a similar flavor?) I hope that Jim and Jim and Bonnie are out having drinks today. They deserve it.

 

[semoochie]

Do the people of Seattle realize how lucky they are to have had a locally programmed Standards station for all these years? There are only a handfull left that are locally programmed and in many places, the format doesn't exist at all!

 

[LITTLEBOYBLUE]

Sad KIXI Postscrip

Talk about weird timing. Was at a lunch (with several others from this board) today at which Dean Smith and Wally Nelskogg were both present. We talked about the KIXI transition and it was heart-wrenching to see their reactions. Dean reminded me "I only worked at two stations in my career (much like Bob Liddle) -- Great Falls and then KIXI". Wally VERY taken aback that "they just call these people in and tell them they are done ... no warning or anything" and clearly surprised that broadcasters would treat people that way.I know several of the folks who are on the syndicated format ... and agree with the comments that they are very good for this format and so forth. I don't think it's WRONG to go this way ... but think we're all in agreement that it's just sad to see a station that was so well programmed and LOCAL be pushed aside for reasons that had nothing to do with their product or ability to execute it. That's GOTTA be sending a tough message for anyone who wants to find inspiration in the industry to consistently perform as well as they can.

 

[70radio]

NOTE TO multiplex....I may have gone a little overboard on Martindale, but I really think he is simply in love with himself; I think viewers/listeners know it, too. No question he is a pro as is (and even more so) Gary Owens. Listening to KIXI on the way home this afternoon, the music was great (MOYL has always played the right stuff), but as someone else mentioned, not much local feel during the local breaks. BUT, whomever the MOYL host was, he nevered ID'd himself and just sounded old. Just because you play old(er) music, it doesn't mean you have to sound old--the ex-KIXI crew was a great example of playing music as far back as the 40's, yet they sounded hip, you know, 21st Century relatability. Today's 60 year old listeners are as hip as 35 year olds and don't want to hear some old, burned out dude on the air. Sad, sad for any of the KIXI staff who were dismissed with zero notice! Hopefully, we'll hear them on the Seattle airwaves again elsewhere soon!