No Room At The Little Ticket

[Triple Fake Jerry]

The Ticket has a lot of up-and-comers, but there's not been a chance for them to break through into a daypart slot except as a ticker guy, a board op or a producer.

I was saddened to see Scot Harrison and Matt McClearin leave for a day job in Alabama. I've enjoyed Scot for years in other markets. Other stations in town are littered with solid Ticket exes. (Guess that puts to rest the rumors that the hosts will bolt when their contracts are up.)

Other than Greggo, the Ticket's weekday lineup has been unchanged since Gordo wronged Rocco and Norm switched from KLIF. That was a LONG time ago. Isn't it time to start mixing in some farmhands? And how do they do it?

 

[Steve Eberhart]

First, what weekender, board-op, ticker-man, traffic reporter, wannabe or other underling who is working at the Ticket is good enough to kick to the curb a current legendary primetime host and replace them on the staff.

Okay, that being said, there is no need for a second question.

 

[Unaffiliated Observer]

You can't fix something that isn't broken. I think the Ticket B team is very solid and if some of those guys can wait 5 years then you'll see several of them sprinkled into the weekday mix.

Good riddance to MASS. I was wondering why I heard Jake, Sea Bass, and KT this morning.

 

[salemjedi54]

So Matt is not doing the Dallas Stars pregame show anymore?

 

[KSA]

Matt did his final Dallas Stars radio broadcast as a studio host back on Friday. Bruce LeVine, who worked alongside McClearin as a studio analyst, was promoted to studio host.

 

[longtimelistener]

Bruce Levine is a good man and a damn good broadcaster. Congrats to him!

 

[Blood Monkey]

It is amazing how many personalities that are now tied to other stations in the area were nutured in the confines of the little biosphere know as The Ticket.

 

[Sperry]

I like Scott as a broadcaster but when the discussion would turn to serious sports he seemed to be, sometimes........a little lost. Maybe it was just the pro stuff he was not up to snuff on but I'd listen to him sometimes and think to myself "Hell, even I knew that" when he'd get something wrong.

Matt, I thought he was great as the Stars pre-game host and it took me forever to realize that he was the same guy who was working on Sunday morning. As great as he sounded on the Stars gig he seemed equally out-of-sync and just unnatural as a show host. I never though he and Scott had that great an on-air chemistry. It wasn't prime time major market stuff but for Sunday morning it was fine.

Having worked in Birmingham, AL and listened to the radio fare it had to offer.........they should settle right in. Not a bad place at all....kind of like a Ft. Worth nestled in the green hills of southern Appalachia.....but the radio there isn't anything to pine for.

 

[trying2getn]

I love Norm Hitzges, but you have to wonder how much longer he has.

 

[Sperry]

As long as he wants I suppose.

He's been asked and has addressed the question of "retirement" before on the air. As he said on that occasion when it was brought up.... "All I know and do is talk about sports, I'll do it whether or not I'm on the air and getting paid for my time. Why not do it on the air and be getting paid for it?"

I don't see Norm going anywhere anytime soon. He's far from out of touch with the modern sports scene. His health issues don't keep him from sitting in front of a microphone and talking. I can see another decade in him.

And, why not? Norm is one of the greatest sports talkers to have ever pervaded the radio landscape. Any reason to shuffle him out the door before he's done?

 

[317C50KW]

Besides, Norm is the only true interviewer on the Ticket. I just wish he'd hold a couple of horse-racing seminars again. The man knows how to teach the racing form!

 

[Blood Monkey]

Besides, Norm is the only true interviewer on the Ticket. I just wish he'd hold a couple of horse-racing seminars again. The man knows how to teach the racing form!

Actually I would say Bob is a true interviewer and so is George, and when he takes an interest Ryner is a good interviewer.

 

[Triple Fake Jerry]

Being a day-one fan of the Bohemian Rant, I guess I am simply easily impressed with some of the back-benchers.

I'd love someday to hear a station on 104.1 HD2 called "The Stub" with some of the JV team.

I'd love better to hear Gordo do a solo political/topical weekday news show.

 

[jrprogrammer]

Besides, Norm is the only true interviewer on the Ticket. I just wish he'd hold a couple of horse-racing seminars again. The man knows how to teach the racing form!

Actually I would say Bob is a true interviewer and so is George, and when he takes an interest Ryner is a good interviewer.

If you discount the overbearing, overstating, pretentious, not really questioning but stating his knowledge in every single interview, then yeah I'd say Bob is a great interviewer. True on Jub though.

 

[Sperry]

If you discount the overbearing, overstating, pretentious, not really questioning but stating his knowledge in every single interview, then yeah I'd say Bob is a great interviewer.

Yeah, apart from that. He guilty.

 

[Unaffiliated Observer]

Besides, Norm is the only true interviewer on the Ticket. I just wish he'd hold a couple of horse-racing seminars again. The man knows how to teach the racing form!

Actually I would say Bob is a true interviewer and so is George, and when he takes an interest Ryner is a good interviewer.

If you discount the overbearing, overstating, pretentious, not really questioning but stating his knowledge in every single interview, then yeah I'd say Bob is a great interviewer. True on Jub though.

I was thinking the same thing. Bob is a terrible interviewer. And again...

Really, Norm is the only one that is truly good at interviews. I go back to the old saying: they'll never know how much you know until they know how much you care. Norm is the only one in local sports radio that I feel actually cares aboutthe subject of his interviews.

 

[marcuszero]

Norm more than likely will die at that mic, as he's that dedicated to the job. I respect the fact he's from another era of the business,one where it wasn't about playing the same bit over and over (See: The Musers and "enter topic" talk, ebreaks, ect..) or letting the mentally challenged on air (See: The Hardline). He actually researches his topics and guests, not to mention is the only on-air personality whom encourages callers. Add to that his outside interests(Austin Street) and his dedication to being a great citizen.

Also, I liked MASS, it was a fun show and they got a chance to cut their teeth, it stinks that they had to go of all places Alabama to get a shot at a daytime slot, I know for a fact Austin is dying for decent sports talk. I also wouldn't mind seeing Gordon Keith getting out of the Yuck Monkey position once a week to do a political/social commentary show.

 

[Triple Fake Jerry]

Speaking of Ticket-exes, a little spec on the hosts who look like the number 10 on another thread.

 

[firstimelongtime]

Besides, Norm is the only true interviewer on the Ticket. I just wish he'd hold a couple of horse-racing seminars again. The man knows how to teach the racing form!

.........when he takes an interest Ryner is a good interviewer.

when was that? I'm 62 and it must have been before me. Maybe I wasn't listening when he interviewed Tom Petty.

 

[Gopher]

Why are we not seeing some cross pollination from the other Cumulus stations when the Ticket regulars go on vacation? Mike Ducey and Radigan sit in from time to time why not Hawkeye or Dorsey or lord forbid Steve Lamb. Hal Jay doing e-news might be a bucket list item. ;D Monty Cook got anything? (TCU football and basketball stadium announcer)
Nice to see the little Ticket bringing some of the underlings along but there is potential gold in the cluster they are not using.