KOVO (alias "Unforgettable Radio," AM-960) will probably be the only station in the area to air the special "Frank Sinatra Marathon" this weekend. The event begins at 6 tonight and continues through Sunday - Sinatra's 78th birthday.
"The marathon will feature at least two Sinatra classics per hour," said Benjamin Reed, KOVO program director. "We'll then climax the birthday bash on Sunday from noon until 7 in the evening with a new program called `Sinatra and Company.' That means seven hours of nothing but Blue Eyes himself," Reed said.At 12:30 p.m. Sunday, Sinatra and local host Pat Goodhope will be linked up on an international conference call with radio stations from around the world. Sinatra's wife, his pianist and daughter, Nancy, will host the national event.
"As far as we know, we are the only station between Minneapolis and Los Angeles to have an all-Sinatra show," Reed said.
Goodhope joined KOVO from WDOV-AM in Denver, where he had a Sinatra program for six years. He has a weekly Sinatra show on KOVO Sundays from 5-7 p.m.
- Sinatra music isn't the only big thing happening on KOVO. The station has also teamed with the Utah Division of Family Services Youth Center to spotlight children in Utah County, ages 4-17, who for whatever reason are abused or neglected and need gifts this holiday season.
KOVO is asking the public to listen each hour for the names of six children and to "Adopt-A-Child" for Christmas.
"We're asking people to purchase a new, unwrapped gift," said Dennis Kirkpatrick, station promotions director, "and either bring it to our studios in Provo or drop it off at one of our sponsors before Dec. 20."
For more holiday adoption information, call 800-960-KOVO, or 373-9600, in Utah County.
- KMGR (AM-1230) - I missed one significant show in last week's "Radio Dial" column on religious radio. The "Mormon Miscellaneous Talk Radio" program airs Mondays and Thursdays from 6-7 p.m.
The show features an open discussion of LDS history and doctrine and is hosted by Bill Forrest and Van Hale. Steve Mayfield is the producer.
"Mormon Miscellaneous" also features on-air calls by listeners at 570-1003.
- KTUR (AM-1010) is Utah's newest Spanish radio station. It has 50,000 watts of daytime broadcasting power and the potential to reach 150,000 listeners in Utah and surrounding states. It airs a series of programs of interest to the Hispanic community of the Salt Lake area.
One such program is directed by Salt Lake Police Chief Ruben Ortega. A counseling program featuring Father Francisco Gomez and Gustavo Mena, KTUR manager, helps listeners with life's problems.
The station has an exclusive contract for the preliminary soccer games of the 1994 World Cup. KTUR also airs CNN news every hour for seven minutes.
- NEW PUBLIC AFFAIRS PROGRAMS - Radio News and Feature Services of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has released two new free 30-minute programs to U.S. radio stations in its continuing "Times and Seasons" series. "Parenting" explores child rearing and its relationship to teaching values, nurturing self-esteem and promoting independence.
I listened to the other program, "Addiction." Produced and narrated by L. Gerry Pond, it is an excellent overview of all addictions, ranging from drugs, food, gambling and sex.
- KUER (FM-90.1) - "Hanukkah Lights" will air Saturday, Dec. 11, at 7 p.m.
- The annual KUER and KUED Christmas Food Drive is Friday, Dec. 17, with donations accepted from 7:30 a.m. until 5:30 p.m at the Eccles Broadcast Center at the University of Utah.
- The station will also present a Viklarbo Chamber Music Concert Thursday, Dec. 16. This concert was originally presented Nov. 16 in Logan.
- MORNING RADIO HAPPENINGS - Len Allen, KLO morning man, is one of the financial contributors to the Christmas Village lights and displays in downtown Ogden . . . "McCormick and Scotty" on KUTQ have been giving a lot more news analysis lately. They still have their own version of "Hot Rod" Hundley, too . . .
"The Wakeup Club" on KVRI gave its top five list of complaints by Santa's elves Tuesday . . . The question of the day Tuesday on the "Jon and Dan" show on KLZX was how to avoid getting fat during the holidays . . . "Fisher and Todd" on KISN-FM had another "Battle of the Sexes" Tuesday; this time, themales won, as Tom defeated Melissa . . .
"Bill and Kerry" on KXRK have been referring to their station as the news authority lately. They are enlightening listeners more on current events. For example, Tuesday they discussed the passing of Frank Zappa with a caller but hung up on her when she accused the DJs of cutting down the legendary musician . . . "Scott and Peggy" on KSFI seemed to be doing a little more talking than usual at one point Tuesday morning, but as it turned out, it was a commercial announcement for a "rocker" exercise device . . .
The "put words in their mouths" Salt Lake Tribune promotional ad that contains the photographs of five morning radio teams (KSFI, KLZX, KISN-FM, KALL-AM and KKAT) didn't get much on-air attention last week during its first week of publication. However, this week it sparked name-calling by some morning teams. First, "Ron and Allen" on KBER were so upset they weren't included in the ad that they called the Tribune and asked why they were left out. When they didn't get a good answer, the DJs said the ad was part of a continuing Utah effort to keep their morning show down. Then, the DJs made fun of the looks of the disc jockeys in the ad and called "Fisher and Todd" of KISN-FM "Barney guys."
After a listener called "Jon and Dan" to inform then about the KBER call to the Tribune, the KLZX DJs made their own commentary about the ad and, among other things, said "Cano and Simmons" on KKAT were "Laurel and Hardy." At least one Salt Lake area broadcasting executive didn't like the Tribune ad because he felt it implied radio gets much of its news and commentary from newspapers. Tuesday morning, that traditional belief did appear to be true . . .
Tom Barberi on KALL-AM knows how to perk up listener ears without resorting to the R-rated materials some other radio personalities rely on. For example, on Wednesday one of Barberi's "spies" (which he says are everywhere) found an advertisement that showed Steve Young (former BYU quaterback) of the 49ers in an apparent beer commercial. However, Gaylen Palmer, Barberi's sidekick, was quick to point out Young was actually being honored by the beer company with an NFL player award. Barberi's comeback? "Now you'll try to tell me Steve Young doesn't play on Sunday" . . .
"Tom and Robin" on KMXB Wednesday discussed some of the new children's toys available for Christmas and how some have bizarre themes, such as plastic vomit or a crocodile dentist.
- KBZN (alias "The Breeze," FM-97.9) will air continuous Christmas music beginning Dec. 24 at 6 p.m. Play lists will be available.
The Sunday, Dec. 12, "Musical Starstreams" show (8-10 a.m.) will feature Stina of "Memories of a Color" fame. Later in the day, "Jazz Trax" (7 p.m.-midnight) will have guest Bobby Caldwell.
- Here's a schedule of the station's 10 O'Clock CD" feature next week:
Monday, Dec. 12: "The October Project"
Tuesday, Dec. 13: "Polar Shift: A Benefit for Antarctica"
Wednesday, Dec. 14: "Nocturnal Playground," by Russ Freeman
Thursday, Dec. 15: "Anam," by Clannad
Friday, Dec. 16: "A View From Here," by Tom Grant