The other day I was on the phone with my old pal, Bob Christy who is shown above with me, doing what we did best.
We were reminiscing about our days at Fairbanks broadcasting where not only were we old school, but we must have been ancient school too because we were using some philosophies that were well over a thousand years old.

One of the philosophies we used quite often was Plato’s “Principal of Influence.” Plato claimed that the only way to deal with an angry mob was to find their leader and then convince whomever it was to calm them down. It was your only shot at surviving.
A long time ago, I discovered that people with influence don’t participate in any kind of research; they’re too busy running the world. The only people who do get involved in research are the passive types, and all you get from them are the safe answers.

Unfortunately, if you ever want to launch anything new, like new movies, bars, restaurants, stylish clothing, or a new format, you’ll need to get to the Alpha types.The Alphas or as they’re better known, type ‘A’s, are born leaders, and the passive people look to them to sample all the new stuff that’s out there and then advise them which of it they should consider.
They want to know what to wear, what beers to drink, what bars or restaurants to frequent, and what new jargon they should be dropping into their conversations, along with what words they should stop saying. Fairbanks, of course, loaded up our morning shows with type ‘A’s.

As I said, the ‘A’ types don’t participate in research so if you can figure out another way to get to them, you’ll be golden.
Hey, it’s like what the LA Times wrote about my old friend, Charlie Minor, “If you want your Hollywood party to be a success, just get Charlie Minor to show up. Charlie travels with an entourage so large that your little party will turn into the party of the year.”Anyway, Bob and I were discussing all the people we knew who had influence and it reminded us of the old, Jack McCoy in Chicago story. (Jack and me above)

Jack was invited by the board of directors of WGN radio in Chicago to make a presentation. What they wanted was for him to present a plan to them and their senior management, that would show them, how to make their already big ratings bigger without hurting their image
Jack, who was heavily into rating research at the time and had done his homework, said, “You can absolutely increase your ratings without hurting your ratings. Oh and here’s the best part, it won’t cost you a cent to do it.”

“How do we do that they all chorused?” “It’s very simple,” Jack replied, “You have a whole bunch of folks who only listen to your morning show, so all you have to do is to get your morning man to start suggesting that they may want to tune into your afternoon guy.
It’s pretty obvious that he has a lot of influence with his listeners so will probably do whatever he wants them to do.”

“Oh,” they responded, “Wally (Phillips) would never do that; he doesn’t like the afternoon guy.” Undaunted, Jack pushed on and said, “Well, this isn’t nearly as good, but you could produce some great promos that talk about how good the afternoon show is and play them during the morning show.”
“That won’t work either,” they said, as they shook their heads in dismay, “Wally won’t play them!”

GEO’S LIFE-LINERS

When money enters the game, compromise is sure to follow.

I can hardly wait to hear how my Canadian countrymen have figured out how Trump is responsible for their latest dilemmas.

Women have a plan; men just fall in love.

Speaking of love, if you marry for any other reason, you’ve just entered a life of hell.

The more freedom you have, the less safe you are

Holding onto what you have keeps you from having what you want.

I worked with a lot of great talent over the years and had no idea what their political persuasions were. I was much happier then.

Sometimes the squeaky wheel doesn’t get greased, it gets changed.

Had they shot chicken little instead of listening to him running around shouting, “The sky is falling, the sky is falling,” the world would be a happier place.

We should celebrate our failures for two reasons, one because they taught us something, and two because we can have a lot more celebration parties.

COMMENTS

Bob DeCarlo: You sent me from San Diego to Dallas to listen to Ron for a few days. That was the beginning of my doctorate education in George Johns Radio 101, and man did it pay off. I can’t thank you enough for all you and Ron Chapman helped me accomplish. If he’s doing mornings in heaven, I want middays. (Ron Chapman)
Geo: I believe that when you got back from Dallas we only discussed the philosophy of Ron’s show, but hey as you figured out, that’s all you needed. As for mid-days we’re gonna have to run short shifts ’cause I gotta get Gardner in there too. You guys didn’t think you were gonna do this without me did ya

Doug Herman: When I get there, I’m signing up to be Ron’s news guy.
Geo: As you should Doug, and Jack, and I will be standing by to comfort you when Ron yells at you, and he will.

Ken Barnett: Nicely said, George.
You and Ron created Radio Greatness, the likes of which, will never be equaled. (Ron Chapman)
Geo: And you were in the middle of it all, Ken, so you would know, and I also believe that you’d know it if you ever heard that magic again, but I don’t believe you will.

John King: It was my privilege and pleasure to represent KVIL in FCC matters under Fairbanks’ ownership. Here is a story I am fond of telling and bears repeating in honor of Ron Chapman’s legacy:
I was a young associate in the boutique communications law firm that represented Fairbanks Broadcasting, which was earning runaway ratings with Ron Chapman in the mornings on KVIL-FM in Dallas. One morning Ron called to ask what he should do about a contest. It seems he offered a sports car (a 240Z for those who can remember that model) to the person who called within ten minutes after their name was announced on the air. The caller that morning was the wife of the contestant. She said her husband was a serviceman on the flight line and could not call in, so she was calling for him. Ron asked me, ‘Should I give her/him the car?’ I advised that the FCC’s contest rule requires stations to conduct contests as announced. If the station’s rules required the person whose name was announced to call and did not say that someone else could, then the station could be held in violation if it gave the car to the contestant’s wife. Chapman plied his unequaled skills as a master of public relations – he went on the air and related the whole story to his audience, asking them what they thought he should do. He wound up giving away two cars – one to the serviceman’s wife, and another one as a nod to the FCC contest rule. (Ron Chapman)
Geo: As you may remember, John, our relationship began shortly after blowing up at Mr. Fairbanks. (My one and only time. Whew! Anyway, whenever I created something new, I was ordered to run it by the head of your firm and each time I did, he would tell me no.
After about the fifth no, (Hilliard was out of town) I stormed into Mr. Fairbank’s office and yelled, “I DIDN’T MOVE TO AMERICA JUST TO HAVE SOME FUCKING LAWYER SAY NO TO MY BEST STUFF. STUFF THAT I BELIEVE WILL INCREASE OUR RATINGS AND REVENUE, I NEED SOME YESES.” And with that, I stormed out.
The next day, I received a call from you, and after you introduced yourself you said, “I’ve been ordered to figure out how to say yes to you.” John, thank you for your friendship over the years, but mostly, thank you for keeping us on the air, and me out of jail.

Debra Martin: George
So sorry to hear this news. I know the two of you were very close. May he Rest In Peace.
My thoughts and prayers are with you and his family.
Geo: Thank you so much, Debbie, I miss you.

Tim Moore: I was 27 when legendary TM Productions & Programming asked that I consider becoming their VP of Sales! I worshiped (and used) TM’s commercial campaigns and had used their station jingles.
They tracked me down in Michigan! So knowing what this meant for my career, I took the job and moved to Dallas where I had never visited (nor had wanted to)

The radio buzz was all “KVIL” with its incredible staff captained by Ron Chapman.
As a northern Radio snob I thought I had heard “great radio” but quickly realized while I had come from “good” radio, KVIL was on a different plane.

Eventually, I met Ron and several other staffers; a rare collection of class and talent! George Johns’ fingerprints were on the Fairbanks chain and clearly a major part of the “K-Vill” architecture.
I’m thankful beyond words for those sun-and-honey days in Dallas as they became the conceptual foundation for the stations we later built in Michigan and Florida!

Today they remain an influence on station-craft in our consultancy.
There will never be another Ron Chapman (or another KVIL). (Ron Chapman)
Geo: Tim as we’ve discussed, a lot of Ron’s stuff was very simple but a lot of radio guys didn’t “get it,” they were too busy peering into the mystic.

Bill Gardner: Well written, as always, George. A wonderful concise summary of almost fifty years of a great radio partnership with you and Ron. May I add the few things you left out?#1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1. (Ron Chapman)

Tom Hoyt: Well said, George. Your loyalty to friends is a great part of who you are. Ron was a giant in Dallas but you held the bean pole for him. (Ron Chapman)

Cat Simon: So Blessed to have been part of such a small part of it all. To witness the magic was amazing.
Things we will never see again; The Beatles, Elvis, nor Ron Chapman. (Ron Chapman)
RIP:
Geo: True Dat, Cat!

Jed Duvall: There were a couple of occasions in the late 1970s and in the 1980s, where Ron caught wind of something we were doing at WIBC, called through Chuck Rhodes and then Michael Rey (X-Rey), and I did not call back on Ron’s timetable. Both times, I got a call from Ron, chewing me out for the lack of a timely response. Another example of “Excelsior, You Fathead !”, but that’s why Ron was great. His drive was unparalleled!
Geo: He was all about attention to detail, Jed.

Dave Charles:Ron Chapman left a huge creative RADIO footprint in our heads and hearts.
I got into the radio business because of talents like this. I never measured up on air but I tried my hardest to improve my engagement. Thanks for the memories, Radio George.
Geo: I have a ton of ’em, Dave.

Geo’s Media Blog is an inside look at Radio, Music, Movies, 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 appreciated.