Spotlight on

Her years of experience exceed those of most talk radio hosts. Loyal listeners repeatedly offer comments expressing appreciation of her knowledge on just about every subject. Rollye James is warm and witty, but not shy at cutting to the chaff and telling it like it is.

The subject matter most nights is about the days most meaningful events, often not mentioned elsewhere. She has little patience for the unimportant reports that clutter network news. Her Friday night �trivia� is a big favorite that entertain and informs. �Bumpers� on her nightly syndicated radio show are from a vast library of mostly Rhythm & Blues music, of which Rollye is a recognized expert not only on the song but also each artist.

While she deserves being in our �Spotlight� for all of the above, its her long established policy of delivering a �live� broadcast on virtually every holiday, including Christmas and New Years that makes her special.

�I think it�s important to be there for anyone who may be alone during the holiday,� says Rollye. So while most all national talk radio hosts are taking the day off, Rollye will be on - LIVE.

Tune her in on XM satellite channel 165 or on numerous AM/FM stations, 10pm � 1am EST or 7pm � 10pm PST. Visit Rollye James here

Sharing the Spotlight with Rollye is another veteran talk show host that favors his nightly audience with a LIVE show on holidays, George Noory of Coast to Coast.

George sez, " I do the show and pull in my staff as well.....its a promise I made to my audience, some of them don't have family, we are there for them."

Coast to Coast is the nation's #1 night time radio show due to George, his staff and their desire to provide the listener with a variety of subjects including the hottest issues of the day.

Spotlight on . . .

Doug Banks

In the late 70�s I discovered a young man in Kansas City, whose enthusiasm equaled his talent and a personality that bubbled from the radio speaker. KFI�s on-air line up had very little change during my seven years as program director, but I enticed Doug Banks �to travel west young man� to present his act on the giant KFI stage.

Unfortunately, he soon received an offer from Chicago, one that would give him even more of a stage than KFI�s. Asking me for advice, I told him of my disappointment in loosing him but suggested he take it.

Never looking back, Doug not only moved to the windy city, he rode the wave of his success there to being a national radio star for ABC Radio Networks for more than ten years.

So in recent days, I was most pleased when Doug and ABC jointly announced they have agreed to continue with several more years of the Doug Banks Morning Show to his national audience.

Doug deserves this �Spotlight��.I�m proud of him.

The playing field is littered with those who tasted success early before crashing to earth unable to resurrect their lives�their career.

If I were a betting man, I�d wager an Atlanta born Christmas Eve baby named Ryan Seacrest will survive his early stardom and last as long as those he has replaced�.Dick Clark and Casey Kasem. His sharp wit and natural sense of timing is an attribute often missing in those who thirst for life as an entertainer.

At the age of 16, while still a high school student in Atlanta he landed his first radio job. While attending the University of Georgia as a journalism major, he hosted a TV show for ESPN and was soon on his way to Hollywood adding his star on the Walk of Fame and becoming a millionaire several times over.

As host of the top rated American Idol TV show, Seacrest keeps his focus on radio by filling some very big shoes vacated by the legendary Rick Dees at KIIS-fm. With wholesome All American looks and demeanor Ryan doesn�t rely on �shock jock� antic�s�.he doesn�t have too. His clean cut style is reminiscent of Brad Pitt or George Clooney and I would not be surprised to find him along side them in the future.

Forget it Howard, the �King of All Media� is Ryan Seacrest. Born of radio and now a TV star, he�ll be on stage long after you have left the building.

Growing up in a small southern town, Phil Valentine�s childhood would lead him toward a legal career following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather before a sharp turn would instead introduce him to radio in Raleigh and then Greensboro.

With Tennessee in his sights, he found his way to WLAC and in time to Supertalk 99.7 - WWTN-fm as a talk show host that would make him a favorite with Nashville listeners eager for some common sense.

Phil�s two book releases, Right From The Heart: The ABC's of Reality in America, and �Tax Revolt� establishes him as an author.

Substituting for syndicated talk shows, Phil has received broad national approval and soon syndicated by Cumulus Media.

Phil Valentine�is destined for major national success. Grab him before your competitor does�contact Leslie Pardue at 615-321-1067.

Certainly George Noory was well prepared for taking over the reins of the worlds most successful late night talk show from its original host, Art Bell . Not only has the show prospered, it continues to attract new listeners.

Consulting radio stations thirty five years ago, Chuck Blore, Ken Draper and I counted WCAR in Detroit as one of our clients. At the same time a 21 year old cub reporter named George Noory was cutting his teeth on the beginning of what would become a legendary career in broadcasting. His experiences at WCAR prepared George for success as a television producer and News Director and before taking over Coast to Coast three years ago was a top rated talk show host in St. Louis.

With experience being the best teacher, George Noory is well prepared for rewarding his nightly audience of millions worldwide. Offering a wide variety of topics, he is a master in communication. Guests being interviewed and listeners who call in are treated with respect and a warmth often lacking on talk radio today.

Noory is a role model for a new generation of radio talent who often seem to fly by the seat of their pants winging it.

We often rode the elevator together in Chicago�s Stone Container Building, me departing on the third floor at the WLS studio�s as he continued upward to the ABC studio where he broadcast his daily radio program to the nation.

While he appreciated me calling him Mr. Harvey, he suggested �Paul� would do. He seemed slightly amused that I would think of him in the same light as Will Rogers. �Well we both are from Oklahoma�, he said nodding his head.

I was stunned in 1967 when the president of ABC radio advised me the network would not be renewing the option on Paul Harvey�s contract explaining, �he doesn�t fit the demographics we want�. Not only has Paul Harvey outlived that president, the network recently signed him to a new contract worth nearly a million dollars a month.

Born and raised in Tulsa, Paul Harvey Aurandt while still in high school began his radio career as an announcer at KVOO-AM in 1933, later serving as the stations program director. He reported the news on KOMA and KXOK before enlisting into the Army Air Corps, where he served until 1944 after which he arrived in Chicago to resume his radio career and by the early 1950�s was being heard by millions nationally each day as he reported the news and began to cultivate his now trade mark style of delivery. His well-planned pauses and seemingly searching for the right word originate from notes he makes to guide his carefully planned comments on the days events.

Now nearing 90, with his wife �Angel� seated beside him in the White House, Paul Harvey is awarded the nation�s highest civilian award �The Presidential Medal of Freedom� by President Bush.

Even with 50kw signals, many of my favorite talk show hosts have a difficult time reaching my little sliver of paradise in north Idaho. I could only hope to pick up the night time sky wave of former AM coverage kings KFI, KGO, WLS and KOA. In recent years even those stations have a difficult time being heard here and when they are static takes its toll.

Streaming on the Internet, many stations have expanded their coverage day and night to the point I have so many choices. Hosting America at Night from Las Vegas, Ernie Brown was one of my favorites until he tired of starting his day at midnight. For a few weeks I missed him until he returned to Texas, where he once was heard in Dallas, Austin and Houston. Back on the air in mid-days at KRLD, Ernie is again a regular treat thanks to the Internet.

With an unequaled honesty, Ernie dismisses the hum drum issues heard on most of talk radio. His wit is a breath of fresh air.

Tired of a daily political menu liberally sprinkled with liberal or conservative pabulum? Then join me in listening to Ernie Brown�s humorous view of the world via the Internet. He�s addictive.

Those who appreciate the factual information provided by Dr. Bill Wattenburg have for many years looked forward to hearinghis view on just about every subject during his KGO-San Francisco,�Open Line tothe West Coast�.

No stranger to providing a differing view than those peddled by others, it was true again in the aftermath of hurricane Katrina. With the media chumming the political water to place blame on the Federal government, Dr. Bill was telling a different story that led to the office of Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco. As usual, days later media sharks would follow his lead.

Wattenburg recently challenged his listeners to name the employer with more than 500 employees who had been arrested for fraud, accused of writing bad checks, done time for assault, been arrested on drug-related charges, arrested for shoplifting or arrested for drunk driving among other charges.

The answer surprised almost everyone�.except Dr. Bill.

Known as the "World's Smartest Man", hardly a subject or issue arises he doesn't know about. Click here to see a menu of Dr. Bill's wisdom.

Certainly no rubber stamp for anyone, including the Bush white house, Dr. Bill�s rational view is addictive to listeners across western America.

Bill Wattenburg is in the �top five� of the nation�s talk show hosts via my scorecard. A teacher of many subjects, Dr. Bill has for many years contributed to KGO's unequaled success as the nations top rated radio station.

Rollye James holds a front row seat on the edge of the Lunatic Fringe. She�s never heard a conspiracy she won�t consider, if not outright believe and one of her greatest honors was being named �radio jock most likely to make Rush Limbaugh seem rational.� Politically she�s a libertarian constitutionalist who can�t find much difference between �republicrats and demopublicans,� but her loyal listeners simply consider her a close friend, as her stream of consciousness revelations bring them into her world each night�a world of socialist panic, crackpot guests, devoted callers and obscure R&B oldies. Having lived in 32 cities, Rollye�s vampire lifestyle and unusual hobbies, such as driving the US Interstate System, bring a local relatability unduplicated by any national radio show.

In this day when Premiere Radio and Westwood One dominate radio syndication, it's a struggle for a lone wolf like Rollye to compete, but she does....with coverage of her show provided by numerous AM & FM stations, XM satellite and streaming on the internet.