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The Radio Jobs That Got Away
I was listening to Roy Green’s show on Corus this Sunday, when he told a story that immediately caught my attention. It was about an offer he’d received from WABC New York, at the time the biggest talk station not only in North America, but quite likely the entire world.
The PD there admired a segment he did with their hosts and called to offer him a job – but only for the weekends. At the time, he was working for what is now AM 640 and noted he was interested – but was doing a 5-day-a-week gig and couldn’t afford the pay cut. To which the PD laughed and said something like, ‘This is the New York market. Don’t worry. You’ll wind up making more for doing less.’ He then asked Green to call him next week and they’d work it all out.
When Green went to management to tell him of the offer, they knew there was no way to match it, and wished him good luck. Fortunately for the veteran talk show master, he never submitted his resignation. Because next week came, he called the mighty 77 and was politely told that the guy who’d offered him the job was no longer with the company and that the new person in charge not only had no idea who he was but had no interest in hiring him.
And with that, Green continued his daily grind at 640 until that ultimately ended, too.
I listened to that story with some amusement. Because the same kind of thing – albeit on a much lesser scale – happened to me.
Twice in a row.
The first time occurred in the 80s when the Toronto station I was at suddenly changed format and fired almost all the staff. It was the first time in my career that ever happened to me and like all those who were let go, the next job search instantly began. A few weeks in, I heard about an opening at CJBK in London. I phoned the guy in charge and to my surprise, he knew who I was, he said he really liked my work, noted that the syndicated show I’d been involved with ran on his station and no, he didn’t need an audition tape. If I were willing to relocate to London, the job was mine. “Call me next week,” he concluded, as my hopes soared.
Well you can guess what happened. Next week came and I phoned ’BK and asked for the guy who all but guaranteed me the gig. “I’m sorry,” the receptionist responded,” but he’s no longer with the station.”
“What?” I probably yelled. “But he told me to call about this opening!”
She put me through to his replacement, who of course, had never heard of me and had no interest in taking the previous guy’s pick. And I never did end up in London.
About a month later, a friend passed on word about an opening at CKLW in Windsor. Although I didn’t relish the idea of moving there, it was the Big 8, which carried a lot of prestige. This time, my tape caught the ear of the production director, who liked what he heard – especially the fake promo I’d made using an ’LW shotgun jingle.
I traveled to Ouellette Ave. in Windsor, met him and we got along really well. He asked me to return in just over a week when all the final plans and budgets were being worked out.
The day before I was supposed to leave, my phone rang. “Don’t come,” he urged. “There have been some big changes here. No one knows what’s going on, or who’s going to be here tomorrow. I’ll let you know.”
But he never did. Because in a big station purge, he was one of those let go. Another chance lost!
I eventually wound up at a Toronto TV newsroom and did very well.
But like Roy Green, I’m wondering if anyone else here has ever had a near-sure thing pulled away from under them at the last minute like a loose throw rug. I’d be interested to know how many others this has happened to.
- the original hank
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Re: The Radio Jobs That Got Away
it happened to me... but not on-air, it was in broadcast sales. (way back when) i was promised the position of east-coast manager (based in halifax) for a national sales rep house (affiliated with chum). the head honcho and i golfed together, at a broadcast convention, plus he like my "outgoing personality" (i was also chair of of radio sales group in n.s.). as a result, he gave me the job "on a handshake" before the end of the convention. we were living in n.s. at the time. i also flew to toronto to meet with the honcho. no papers were signed, but i still had the job. bottom line, the person i was replacing was ticked off that he wasn't part of decision process (he was going to another position within the organization). he and i also got along well but i had the feeling my fate was doomed. the whole thing seemed strange. in the end, the job went to someone within the chum organization. perhaps the job wasn't posted (and they wanted to cover their tracks) or perhaps the honcho finally sobered up.
Last edited by the original hank (January 8, 2017 7:52 pm)
- Old Codger
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Re: The Radio Jobs That Got Away
I was guaranteed a job by a person so high up in 1 company's chain of command that it was a done deal/a certainty...no doubt about it. BUT...he didn't tell the 1 guy who was 2 inches above him in terms of 'importance' why I was moving to Toronto. I learned, after I'd arrived in 'the big smoke', that smoke and mirrors had come into play. I had landed, through no fault of my own, on the losing side. I didn't even know that there was a conflict.
Within' 15 months I had arranged for my departure. The guy who offered me the initial 'job' had the balls to say "How can you leave a company when it's down?" I replied..."with ease". The guy who was 2 inches above him in terms of importance offered me another fairly decent position within the company but elsewhere in the country. I informed him that it was too little/too late, that I had given the new company I was going to MY WORD that I would join them and, that unlike 'you', I would be keeping it.
It gave me great pleasure to best 'them' in the ratings far more often than not. I think that the decline of radio, as I knew it, began the result of a severe snow storm. That I had seen 'it' through a door left accidentally ajar didn't help either.
Then there was the other coke hound I had the misfortune of dealing with. I was just the poor unfortunate employee who found out, again, by accident. And my departure was pretty much a fait accompli. Friggin' losers!!!
I'd land with my butt in the butter. Them? I occaisionally wonder how their septums are doing? [but hardly ever.]
Last edited by Old Codger (January 8, 2017 9:33 pm)
- unclefester
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Re: The Radio Jobs That Got Away
I was at a media function many many years ago and maybe 21 years of age when I was spotted by a highly respected and very prominent nationally known sports broadcaster who inquired just who I was...
Several days later this same gentleman (and everybody knows him -- he's still with us) telephoned me and asked if I would be interested in being considered for an opening in his radio sports department. My answer was yes and so we arranged a time for an interview and all was going along swimmingly until this very straight laced -- very conservative sports director asked me..."are you married" ....to which I replied..."are you kidding"...
...perhaps a simple "no" would have been sufficed....
sigh...
- RadioActive
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Re: The Radio Jobs That Got Away
unclefester wrote:
I was at a media function many many years ago and maybe 21 years of age when I was spotted by a highly respected and very prominent nationally known sports broadcaster who inquired just who I was...
Several days later this same gentleman (and everybody knows him -- he's still with us) telephoned me and asked if I would be interested in being considered for an opening in his radio sports department. My answer was yes and so we arranged a time for an interview and all was going along swimmingly until this very straight laced -- very conservative sports director asked me..."are you married" ....to which I replied..."are you kidding"...
...perhaps a simple "no" would have been sufficed....
sigh...
You just reminded me of something else that happened to me – although it wasn’t through any fault of my own. During that period where I was out of work, I called an old employer where I’d originally started to see if they’d be interested in round 2. A new news director was there by then and when I got him on the phone, he was familiar with who I was.
Some still remembered me at the station and the place where he used to work carried a syndicated show I was involved with. So he invited me to come up and see him. I thought I’d hit the jackpot. Instead, it was the jerk-pot.
After traveling for about an hour to get there, the guy kept me waiting for at least another 30 minutes, then ushered me into his office, where he proceeded to tell me how much he hated the stuff I’d contributed to the aforementioned show, didn’t understand why we put that “silly” stuff in there, and was highly critical of everything it contained.
Stunned and realizing I had nothing much to lose at that point I asked him, “Well then, if you feel that way, why did you ask me to come in to see you?”
I’ll never, ever forget his reply.
“I just wanted to see what you looked like.”
I’m normally pretty fast with a response but this was such a stunningly stupid statement, I admit I was completely lost for words. I left there very angry, albeit happy to renew some old acquaintances. I never did work there again, and soon after, the place was sold and went off the air entirely. I can only hope that idiot was there at the time and given a pink slip.
I would have liked to see what THAT looked like.
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Thread Starter- kevjo
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Re: The Radio Jobs That Got Away
While they were far from $1 situations, there were two occasions in which the stations' respective PD's made the initial contact asking me to submit T&R ASAP. This was just before e-mail became commonplace so I shelled out the extra $$ to Xpresspost them ensuring prompt delivery.
Then I waited about almost a week without hearing anything back so made my usual follow up phone call starting with "just want to check to see if you'd received it". Well, I never got to speak directly to them as I was continually directed to voice mail...messages were never returned and that was the end of the story.
It seems rather strange that both were independently owned stations in two different locations with PD's who actually are there to this day. Could it be that both cases were of mistaken identity?