Growing up in Canada, I was always in awe of America.
They wrote songs about her cities, shot movies in all her states, but the clincher was when the Beach Boys sang about all the pretty girls that played on her beaches. I knew then that I just had had to live there.
I was in my early 30’s before I finally made it to the US when I became the National Program Director of Fairbanks Broadcasting.
Fairbanks was based in Indianapolis, which was great because I got to take my Dad to the Indy 500, a lifelong dream.
I also had great seats down front for both the Indiana Pacers and the new hockey team, the Indiana Racers, who had a fellow Canadian playing for them by the name of Wayne Gretzky.
Not only did my kids get to go to some of the finest schools in the nation, but I also got to work at the two best radio stations in town, WIBC, and WNAP which had its privileges.
Hey, what’s not to like about Indy?
Being the National PD of Fairbanks, I traveled to Boston, where I saw my first Major League Baseball game, which happened to be during the World Series.
In Dallas, I fell in love with the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders so I designed a radio station especially for them and their girlfriends which surprisingly also became the darling of the radio industry.
In Philadelphia, Rocky used one of our Jingles in his first movie, and I got my first taste of what it would be like to live in South Florida when I traveled to our station in West Palm Beach.
No snow here, baby!Life was good in Indy; my home in Carmel had a large swimming pool out back and a Benz and a Caddy out front so I must have been deliriously happy, right? NOPE!
The Beach Boys had never stopped calling out to me, so I finally stopped resisting.
Whoa! What a beautiful city, not only did it have almost perfect weather, but everybody smiled at you. Ya gotta love that western hospitality.I loved Southern California, and it took me well over two years to get over the feeling that I was on perpetual Vacation.
The thing about San Diego was, you could even pick out the exact type of lifestyle you wanted to live because no matter where you were, you were only 20 minutes from the Beach, Mountains, or the Desert. Pick one.
I chose the beach, and for 8 years, I lived over the bridge in Coronado and officed in downtown La Jolla which overlooked the cove.
I must be finally happy, right? NOPE! (My Coronado home shown above)
I know, what was I thinking, right? Our plan was to marry, but even though it didn’t work out, we did produce a beautiful daughter, and after 25 years of living in West Palm Beach, I guess I kinda like it. (shown below)
I’m not happy about a few of the choices I made along the way, but even with all the political unrest going on at the moment, I’m still very happy that I moved moved to the US.There is no other country on earth where a kid from Transcona could have achieved half as much and lived as well as I did. Thank you, America.
GEO’S LIFE-LINERS
Do you find it as discouraging as I do that when you help some folks, they actually critique how you help them?
Until women accept responsibility for their actions, their beauty may make them more than equal, but they’re not equal.
Let’s tell Mr. Businessman to stand down and stop buying oil from all Arab countries. North America doesn’t need it, and he doesn’t need the money.
Have you ever noticed how quickly selfish people notice the selfishness in others?
There are seven intellectual gifts and six ways of looking at everything. Unfortunately, politicians don’t appear to be using any of the above.
Unlike art, nobody is irreplaceable.
Only the greedy athletes understand leaving their leaving the cities that love them for more money elsewhere. Their fans sure don’t.
Being the best at something always pays well.
I used to admire Tony Parker of the San Antonio Spurs until I recently watched a documentary about him. Obviously, being both French and black didn’t mix very well, can you say very arrogant?
It used to be about what our radio heroes said between the records that made us loyal to them, but that loyalty lasted till they played some lame music, then someone else had a shot at us.
Even though I’m an inquisitive person, I’m not curious at all about what government officials have to say. They didn’t write it.
Why do women always claim that they can take care of themselves?
Who gets to decide if you turned out alright or not?
It takes eight minutes of practice for every minute of stage time.
People with knowledge are the most powerful people on earth.
Speaking of power, it’s those who create what we really like who change the world, not those who distribute it.
I think Brady is a lot like Bird, not the best athlete in the world, just the best at kicking your ass.
Speaking of pro athletes, I wonder what percentage of them have been arrested for one thing or another compared to the general public?
My favorite story about the legendary Jack McCoy comes from his long-time partner Doug Herman. According to Doug, when Jack would come off the road all excited because he sold something, Doug would have to say, “But Jack, we don’t have that.” Jack would respond with, “What, we don’t want the money?”
Most of us know that Bill Wyman was the long-time Stones Bassman, but who the hell is it now?
In hockey, you can either chase the puck or be like Wayne Gretzky and be there waiting for it.
I don’t think black thugs’ lives matter more than white trash lives do? In fact, I don’t think they matter at all.
Do guys have comfort dogs, asking for a friend?
There is nobody poorer than the man who doesn’t have a dream.
The two lies radio people tell themselves are; “We can’t sell more time because we don’t have big ratings. And the reason we don’t have big ratings is, we don’t have enough promotion.”
Oh, and the two things that are seldom done that produce all the revenue and ratings you need are; Cold Calls & Show Prep.
A moment of encouragement is worth more than an hour of praise.
Nobody is politically correct at home.
COMMENTS
Doug Thompson: George, your radio career was stellar and amazing…but what’s even more amazing is that you’re friends with Jo-Ann Pflug… “M*A*S*H,” the movie’s Lieutenant Dish.
Course, here in the Great White North, we pronounce it Left-tenant Dish.
Wow, NOW you’ve really impressed me. (Let’s Hear It From The Girls Part Deux)
Geo: As tuff as you are, Dougie, I had to go with my ‘A’ girls. In reality, though, she had a radio show down here, and I was helping her with it. Wonderful lady.
Geo’s Media Blog is a politically incorrect look at Radio, TV, Music, Movies, Politics, and Life. For a sneak peek at some upcoming Blogs or to see some that you may have missed, go to Geo’s Media Blog @ GeorgeJohns.com.
On Twitter @GeoOfTheRadio. Sharing and commenting is encouraged and appreciated.
Steve Eberhart: You see women with support animals at the grocery store all the time, but hardly ever see a man at the hardware store with one. (Hello America)
Geo: Exactly, Steve. Also if a Psychologist had to rely on male patients, they’d go bankrupt.
Doug Thompson: George, I was loyal to the DJ’s on CHUM when I first started listening to them in 1959. Never changed the dial. That’s where I got my musical education because as you know well, radio then was a hodgepodge of rock, pop, ballads, country, instrumentals and novelty songs. Same thing when I moved to Edmonton (didn’t have a choice actually, my Canadian army father was posted there in 1961). After a brief fling with CHED (where I won my only prize from a radio station – a Hi-Fi Club binder), I switched to CJCA and 3 years later, that’s where I got my first radio job while finishing school. (Hello America)
Geo: In the late ’50s, Doug, The Dee-Jays were bigger than the tunes. I grew up listening to CKY and not only started my radio career there as a board-op but ended up consulting them.
It was kinda weird though because I felt like I was selling back to them what they taught me.:-)