PAUL HARVEY.......GOOD DAY.

[Holland Cooke]

You heard it here first.

Our thoughts continue to be with the voice of several generations.

Amen!

PREDICTION, you heard it here first, and don't ask:
Paul Harvey will appear ONCE more, to say farewell.
Bet on it.

And aircheck it.
It'll be a landmark radio moment, one-for-the-ages.
It's probably already written.

WISH: Paul Harvey, Jr. will be persuaded to take the baton.
I wouldn't have bet-on-it a year ago, now I'm more optimistic.

Some listeners won't even notice; those who do will "get it;" and it's the network's best bet for hanging-onto affiliates, who give up puh-LEN-tee of spots for this special franchise.

Fingers crossed,
HC
www.HollandCooke.com

 

[Oldbones]

Re: You heard it here first.

WISH: Paul Harvey, Jr. will be persuaded to take the baton.
I wouldn't have bet-on-it a year ago, now I'm more optimistic.

Some listeners won't even notice; those who do will "get it;" and it's the network's best bet for hanging-onto affiliates, who give up puh-LEN-tee of spots for this special franchise.

Fingers crossed,
HC

If I were running Citadel/ABC, that would be the last thing I'd do. Harvey's appeal was the man himself. PH Jr. is not his old man any more than Frank Sinatra Jr. had any hope of attaining chairmanship of the board.
While it's tough to let go on any franchise, when Paul Sr. decides to put away the roving microphone it will be the end of an era.

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

Re: You heard it here first.

If I were running Citadel/ABC, that would be the last thing I'd do. Harvey's appeal was the man himself. PH Jr. is not his old man any more than Frank Sinatra Jr. had any hope of attaining chairmanship of the board.
While it's tough to let go on any franchise, when Paul Sr. decides to put away the roving microphone it will be the end of an era.

Ah.... think of this possibility. When I travel, we tour old historic sites when possible. Sometimes a replacement building is placed on the old foundation from 200 years ago and a building with modern "guts" is given the historic look and feel. This allows the docent to lead your mind to picture life the same way you would have if you were able to visit the authentic original.

What if Paul Jr. or some other "docent" discerned what was valid and valuable from the original product and modified the product enough to make it clear "this is the new and improved version" and see what happens.

Where is your imagination?

 

[Biz Listener]

Re: You heard it here first.

If I were running Citadel/ABC, that would be the last thing I'd do. Harvey's appeal was the man himself. PH Jr. is not his old man any more than Frank Sinatra Jr. had any hope of attaining chairmanship of the board.
While it's tough to let go on any franchise, when Paul Sr. decides to put away the roving microphone it will be the end of an era.

I'd hazard a guess that most listeners under the age of 40 don't share that same reverence for Paul Harvey. As I said in an earlier (and long forgotten) post in this thread, for listeners under 50, replacing Paul Harvey won't be any more difficult that it was to replace Johnny Carson with Jay Leno, or with replacing Jack Paar with Johnny Carson.

 

[Holland Cooke]

segue

<< replacing Paul Harvey won't be any more difficult that it was to replace Johnny Carson with Jay Leno, or with replacing Jack Paar with Johnny Carson >>

CORRECT!

Many listeners might not NOTICE a Harvey senior-to-junior change...a notion we-here may scoff at...but we care about radio more than Homer & Marge Listener, dispassionately pushing-the-buttons. The senior/junior vocal resemblance is strong, and Junior's been his dad's writer for a while.

And, as someone who spends LOTS of time in radio stations -- and hearing station owners'/managers' woes -- I suggest that segue-to-Junior would also be the-most-AFFILIATE-friendly. It would require less "re-selling" to any Harvey-specific local advertisers.

And, like WOR's three-generation Gambling transition, listeners WOULD "get," and find-endearing, handing-down-the-show-from-father-to-son.

 

[MikefromDelaware]

And, like WOR's three-generation Gambling transition, listeners WOULD "get," and find-endearing, handing-down-the-show-from-father-to-son.

Sort of like Franklin Graham taking over for the ailing Billy Graham. I agree with Holland that Paul Jr. would be a suitable replacement for Paul Sr. Other than that, they shouldn't try to replicate the voice and mannerisms of Paul Sr. with another newscaster. So, from my point of view, if Paul Jr. won't stay on as the successor to pop's show, then continue the newscasts, but let the new newscaster put his/her mark on it as Leno did when he took over for Carson. Both were the Tonight Show, but were very different from the other.

 

[Biz Listener]

Sort of like Franklin Graham taking over for the ailing Billy Graham. I agree with Holland that Paul Jr. would be a suitable replacement for Paul Sr. Other than that, they shouldn't try to replicate the voice and mannerisms of Paul Sr. with another newscaster. So, from my point of view, if Paul Jr. won't stay on as the successor to pop's show, then continue the newscasts, but let the new newscaster put his/her mark on it as Leno did when he took over for Carson. Both were the Tonight Show, but were very different from the other.

I agree that Paul, Jr. would be suitable. I also agree that someone with an equally distinctive yet different style could succeed. I suspect that only the really old listeners would notice and/or care about a sound alike impostor, but it would turn them off unless it was Paul, Jr. I think most of Harvey Sr's audience would accept a new person who had a style as unique as Harvey's, as long as it was also very different.

The only option I'm 99% sure would be a total failure would be to attempt to replace Paul Harvey with some white-bread, vanilla, generic-voiced "professional" broadcast announcer. That would disqualify about 95% of all the voice talent working on radio today.

 

[fb219]

funny, "young son, Paul" will be 60 next year! 60!! "YOUNG SON, PAUL!"

of course, when you're 90, i guess 60 seems "young!" lol

at any rate, "young son, Paul" may be ready to slow down himself. In any other medium,
other than radio, age 60-65 is retirement age.

In a couple of years, "young, son, Paul" can draw Social Security! RFLOL

 

[oaktree]

And your point is ....? People who don't need Soc. Sec. (young son Paul certainly doesn't,) shouldn't continue to work?

Look at Imus ... he's 68 and lord knows he should be working ... but he does. I'd say "young son" Paul has a few good years left in him.

So does John Gambling, Bill Kurtis, Bruce Williams, Bob Grant, Barry Farber ... the list goes on.

Sit down, sonny, you've got a lot to learn about "old" people. Respect your elders. And turn that hip-hop crap down.

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

In a couple of years, "young, son, Paul" can draw Social Security! RFLOL

Remember, Harland Sanders was living off his Social Security check, driving around the country sleeping in the back of his car, trying to sell his FIRST franchise for Kentucky Fried Chicken. All those years we saw him in that white suit and his little white goatee urging us to enjoy his product came during those years we all know he should have been sitting on his front porch in a rocking chair!

Some people just don't know their place in life! Speaking of places, how many of you know WHERE the FIRST KFC franchise is/was located?

 

[Biz Listener]

Some people just don't know their place in life! Speaking of places, how many of you know WHERE the FIRST KFC franchise is/was located?

Salt Lake City. I heard it on a Paul Harvey "The Rest of the Story".

 

[Tom Wells]

Regarding Kentucky Fried Chicken,

SLC may have been the first franchise, but the first "one" was in Kentucky, I want to say Corbin or some such place.


I know as I was taken there on a road trip in the mid 60's, years before extra crispy.

We had two or three in NW Indiana, all in storefronts, owned by a guy named Chuck Wheeler.
For years that name was synonomous with Kentucky Fried Chicken for me, as well as Harlan(d?) Sanders.

I knew they guy who ended up with his green 1973 Oldsmobile 98. Harland Sander's, not Chuck Wheeler's.

I wish Paul well no matter what he decides or how long he takes to make up is mind.

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

SLC may have been the first franchise, but the first "one" was in Kentucky, I want to say Corbin or some such place.

Mr. Sanders indeed operated a restaurant in Corbin, KY in his earlier years, but I believe it was NOT a KFC. It was known as "The Sanders Court & Café"

The KFC in South Salt Lake City was co-owned by Pete Harman and Sanders according to one history, and was a franchise according to another source.

Sanders told me in a broadcast interview one day that he was on the road trying to sell his concept and living off Social Security, but the KFC history site says Pete Harman bought into the concept in 1952 and Sanders collected his first Social Security Check in 1955. What's this world coming to when you can't trust a Kentucky Colonel to give you a truthful interview? ;D

As the Colonel would have said: Why doncha' know.... me and Paul Harvey are both successful. (He must have said Why doncha' know 30 times in an hour-long interview.)

 

[del_griffith]

Some people just don't know their place in life! Speaking of places, how many of you know WHERE the FIRST KFC franchise is/was located?

Salt Lake City. I heard it on a Paul Harvey "The Rest of the Story".

And now you know...........I made up the story.

 

[Biz Listener]

SLC may have been the first franchise, but the first "one" was in Kentucky, I want to say Corbin or some such place.

Mr. Sanders indeed operated a restaurant in Corbin, KY in his earlier years, but I believe it was NOT a KFC. It was known as "The Sanders Court & Café"

The KFC in South Salt Lake City was co-owned by Pete Harman and Sanders according to one history, and was a franchise according to another source.

Sanders told me in a broadcast interview one day that he was on the road trying to sell his concept and living off Social Security, but the KFC history site says Pete Harman bought into the concept in 1952 and Sanders collected his first Social Security Check in 1955. What's this world coming to when you can't trust a Kentucky Colonel to give you a truthful interview? ;D

As the Colonel would have said: Why doncha' know.... me and Paul Harvey are both successful. (He must have said Why doncha' know 30 times in an hour-long interview.)

According to my shaky memory from a Food Network show (or maybe it was the History Channel), Sanders operated a restaurant called "The Sanders Court and Cafe" where one of the most popular items on the menu was "Kentucky Fried Chicken". At first, Sanders attempted to franchise just the menu item to other restaurants while he continued to operate his own restaurant. That would explain franchises like the one in Salt Lake City, or the Morgan restaurants in Butler, PA which had Kentucky Fried Chicken on their menus alongside pork chops, meat loaf, and other diner food. I do not know what financial arrangements Sanders made, whether it was a per-piece royalty, a lump sum, an exchange of ownership, or some other deal. I do know that back in the early 1970's I ate Kentucky Fried Chicken at the Morgan's Diner in Butler, PA. It was just another menu item as I described it.

When the new interstate highway was going to leave his regular restaurant on an untraveled piece of road, Sanders then decided to go into full time franchising of chicken stands that only sold his chicken and related side dishes, and that bore the name Kentucky Fried Chicken on the entire store, not just on the menu item.

To bring this post on-topic, that would be like Paul Harvey beginning his career as a newscaster on a regular news show and then later on turning it into his own personal syndicated show.

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

Much of our talk has focused on: Can the "vehicle" continue without Paul Harvey at the wheel?

I think it would be next to impossible for some talented young broadcaster today to sit down and say: "I have the prototype, I have the template.... I'm going to replicate what Paul Harvey did!"

The infrastructure of traditional network radio 50 years ago was a great launching pad.

I don't think a youngster today can just pick up the Paul Harvey script and play the part again. I don't think a youngster today can just pick up the Rush Limbaugh script and play the part again.

If someone has the push, the drive, the energy, the hormones and at least a little bit of talent, what would be the rewritten script for the next talking broadcast hall of fame candidate?

 

[Biz Listener]

If someone has the push, the drive, the energy, the hormones and at least a little bit of talent, what would be the rewritten script for the next talking broadcast hall of fame candidate?

There won't be a next one. The suits that run radio won't let it happen. Radio is in its twilight years. It might hang on as a sort vestigal afterthought in the world of electronic media. If there's a re-written script it will be a return to "guerilla" radio, on extremely low budgets, operated by hobbiests and afficianados. The big corporate chains will eventually achieve their apparent goal of using their local stations as nothing but repeaters for their homogenized national programming.

The stations not operated by the major broadcast corporations will either sign affiliate deals like the ones that television stations have with the major networks, or they'll air nothing but brokered shows.

It's a sad future, but that doesn't mean it's not what is likely to happen.

 

[quadraphonic]

Paul Harvey deserves to go out however he wants to go out.
Or at least his family needs to make that decision, not listeners.

I would not be surprised if we hear Ryan Seacrest on there though. Because radio decisionmakers are THAT bad.

 

[N_D_Radioguy]

Paul Harvey deserves to go out however he wants to go out.
Or at least his family needs to make that decision, not listeners.

I feel that way in my heart, too.

Unfortunately, the fact that affiliates have to pay a rights fee on the programming is what complicates things. If it were still a straight barter, I would say the decision should be the family's alone. However, stations are paying cash out-of-pocket for a product they aren't getting.

I think Jr. is fine; I really like Gil Gross; and I even enjoyed Fred Thompson and the Keith Olbermann fill-in stint from about seven or eight years ago.

At the end of the day, though, none of them is the original Paul Harvey.

It's time to stop looking for the "next Paul Harvey" for this franchise and to just build the next franchise altogether.

 

[Biz Listener]

It's time to stop looking for the "next Paul Harvey" for this franchise and to just build the next franchise altogether.

The next franchise (if there is one) will be the "next Paul Harvey". No matter how different his schtick, no matter how he changes the sound of the newscast, the next guy who does a syndicated, mid-day news and comments show will be as much the "next Paul Harvey" as Johnny Carson was "the next Jack Paar" and Jay Leno was "the next Johnny Carson", and Conan O'Brian will be "the next Jay Leno". The issue is who much of an impersonator/clone the next Paul Harvey will be.

I wonder how many people back in 1952 thought Paul Harvey was "the next HV Kaltenborn". I'll wager there are very few people posting here with first-hand memories of that time.