11/16/2007 @ 9:39am PST Friday Morning, November 16th! Today, one of my favorite people ever in the radio business, Wolfman Jack!
Wolfman Jack was an original! There has never been and there will never be another radio personality like him in the world. He was not only a good friend, but back in the 80's when he still lived here in Los Angeles, we were business partners as well.
He was a Brooklyn, New York kid born as Bob Smith, until he adopted the Wolfman persona back in 1958 on XERF, a Mexican station just across the river from Del Rio, Texas. Off the air, he was one of the sweetest people you ever met.
I last saw Wolf less than a week before he died of a heart attack on July 1, 1995. We had just visited on the air here in L.A. about his new book biography "Have Mercy", and then he was headed back home to North Carolina, where he arrived at his house, walked upstairs with his suitcases, dropped them to the floor to give Lu, his wife of 35 years, a hug, and literally died in her arms.
Today on the "Tuna Clips", is another visit we had in studio on then 710 SportsTalk KMPC in 1994, and I asked him to give the listeners a look back at his career, as part of his book that he had begun working on then. On today's clip Wolf tells about his first appearance ever on stage as the Wolfman, wait till you hear! And then we talk about what got him into radio.
This is Part one of a two part interview that I'll have more of on Monday. You'll hear Wolf have everyone in my studio in tears of laughter about one of his gun battles while broadcasting in Mexico and fighting to keep his show on the air with bullets whizzing by everywhere, and barbed wire, searchlights and machineguns surrounding the radio station. It's one of the funniest stories you will ever hear about our business.
More new emails in the "Tuna Talkback" link as usual today. Thank You! As always I love hearing from you, and I'll tell you about a couple of things coming up for me next week in this "News" column.
Charlie
11/15/2007 @ 9:10am PST Thursday Morning, November 15th! The "Bee Movie" is number one at the Box Office, but what's happening to the real bees?
It was such a beautiful day yesterday in Tarzana (almost 90 degrees), I found myself outside soaking up a little sun.....and getting worried about my little bee friends. Have you looked closely at the bee numbers buzzing around flowers lately? I don't know if it was my imagination, made a little more acute by all the recent disappearing bees news stories, but it seemed there were fewer little honey workers buzzing around the garden.
You seen the headlines since last year, and even on "60 Minutes" a couple of months ago about "Colony Collapse Disorder", where beekeepers in 24 states across America are seeing seemingly healthy bees abandon their hives overnight. Billions of bees are just disappearing with no trace of them. Over a quarter of the country's 2.4 million bee colonies have been lost. In a few cases, whole colonies of bees have been found dead in their hives.
Scientists and beekeepers don't know why, but suspected causes include pesticides, mites, viruses, cold weather, fungus, antibiotic use and low-quality food for the bees.
A German study even linked cellphones to honeybee deaths, saying the electromagnetic radiation produced by our mobile phones is interfering with bees' homing abilities.
There's also indications that the immune systems of infected bees are collapsing, causing some to call it "Bee HIV/AIDS", again for no known reason. With the weakened immune systems, the bees are unable to fight off diseases. In fact, found in the stomachs of infected bees are traces of nearly every disease that has affected bees over the last 100 years.
Honeybees don't simply make honey, they are a crucial element needed to pollinate fruit and vegetable crops, amounting to a $15 billion share in the United States fresh produce. The success of crops such as almonds, apples, cranberries and many other fruits and vegetables are all linked to bee pollination.
The American Beekeeping Federation vice president has said that "Every third bite we consume in our diet is dependent on a honeybee to pollinate that food". The implications are alarming. You've probably seen Albert Einstein quoted in various stories on this subject as saying that if the bees disappeared, "man would only have four years of life left." Well, Einstein researchers have never found anything like this in any of his writings, but the fact remains, it doesn't take an Einstein to figure out this part of our life chain disappearing with no end or solution in sight is doomsday type material.
A meeting of scientists and entomologists is scheduled December 11th in San Diego to discuss this very topic. Let's hope they have some answers to our real life "Bee Movie"!
Coincidentally, the man behind the "Bee Movie", Jerry Seinfeld is featured in my "Tuna Clips" today. It's a 1985 interview when Jerry was appearing at the Hermosa Beach Comedy and Magic Club doing his stand-up bit......long before the TV series, HBO specials, and current #1 movie. It's vintage Jerry!
In the "Tuna Talkback" emails today, as one of them points out, yes I have heard from several of you who caught yet another airing of the 1977 Universal movie that I appeared in "Rollercoaster"! It was a very expensive movie ($10 million) to make at that time, and I was in awe of the people I was working with. George Segal, Timothy Bottoms, Henry Fonda, Richard Widmark and even a 13 year Helen Hunt who wasn't the big star she is today, but she's in there too as George Segal's movie daughter.
Enjoy your day....and be sure to check on your bees!
Charlie
11/14/2007 @ 10:03am PST Wednesday Morning, November 14th. An important date, another fun game for the computer, and how you can be the life of the holiday party!
I mentioned important date because I just got an email from my mom this morning reminding me it was 13 years ago today that she suffered a heart attack, just as I had started a job on a new radio station back then, and she was worried about me flying back home to Nebraska to be with her and my dad, because it might hurt my chances with the new station.
That's my mom! Always worried about me more than herself, even after a heart attack! Fortunately she survived, and is still going strong 13 years later. She had been trying to take care of my dad on her own at that time, because he was in the initial stages of Alzheimers which creates a tremendous amount of stress on the caregiver. We lost my dad a few years later, but 13 years ago that same day I flew home to Nebraska for mom, I also started the wheels in motion to check my dad into the local Veterans Hospital and then eventually the local Veterans home when an opening came, so their full time staff could look after him. Mom is of that generation that believed they took care of their own, even if it almost killed them. I can't tell you how lucky I feel to have a mom like her. So much of what I am today is because of her, and she'll be flying out in just a few weeks to spend the holidays with us once again.
Speaking of holidays, Thankgiving is just over a week away and if you want to have a little fun with your own turkey shoot, click on the link below. It's another one of those games you'll probably spend more time with than you should on your computer.
Here's one more link today, since the holiday party season is starting up too. If you want to be the main attraction, click on this link below and learn how to do the Top 30 magic tricks of all time. Your friends will be amazed after you master these video tutorials.
On the "Tuna Clips" today, one of the funniest men alive, Mel Brooks.....And another Actors Studio performance with me as a witch in "The Wizard of Oz". Hey, guys played the female parts in Shakespeare's plays back in his day. Listen before you pass judgment on the idea:)
Another bunch of new emails in the "Tuna Talkback" section are posted, and enjoy the great weather we have again today. It's days like this it really feels good to be living in Southern California!
Charlie
11/13/2007 @ 8:50am PST Tuesday Morning, November 13th! The Holidays are coming, and so are the gasoline price increases!
So I was reading yesterday that in the next 2 to 3 weeks, we can expect gasoline prices to increase anywhere from 10 to 20 cents a gallon.....that's on top of the 20 to 30 cent increase we recently endured again, and just in time for all the Holiday driving most of us do. Great. But there are some things you can do for better fuel economy.
* Don't speed. Driving 65 instead of 75mph will increase your fuel economy by 10 percent.
* Keep your tires properly inflated. For every 3 pounds below recommended pressure, fuel economy goes down by about 1 percent.
* Travel light. An extra 100 pounds in your trunk reduces fuel economy by about 1 percent.
* Leave off the air-conditioning, if possible. But also remember, open windows at high speeds increase drag and in both of these cases reduce your gas mileage.
* And if you haven't had your car tuned-up or changed the oil and air filter in a long time, it's not running at the maximum efficiency for your best gas mileage.
In the "Tuna Clips" today, a "Best of" string of interview shots from the 70's and 80's. It begins with a 1980 interview with a new Los Angeles Laker rookie star, Magic Johnson, then the original "Lois Lane" from the Superman TV series, Noel Neill, a Presidental Parody of Jimmy Carter, the real Bob Hope, George Burns, Billy Joel, and ending with Neil Diamond talking about visiting my hometown of Kearney, Nebraska to be a Godparent to his soundman Stan Miller's child. Stan, by the way, in his younger days was an audio genius and built the DJ booth that I first started emceeing Friday and Saturday night teen hops, before I auditioned for the local radio station. Stan continued to headquarter out of Kearney for years after that doing the sound systems and audio for stars like Elvis and Neil Diamond and even the Hollywood Bowl.
More new emails in the "Tuna Talkback" link too! Thanks for taking the time to send your thoughts and questions.
Charlie
11/12/2007 @ 8:59am PST Monday Morning, November 12th! It's all about friends and family today!
First of all, I hope at least some of you are enjoying an extra day off with the Veterans Day holiday being observed today. Here's a terrific YouTube video honoring our servicemen and women who have and are serving to make days like this possible in America!
Today in the "Clips" section, it's about friends and family! First there's a clip of my friend Danny Bonaduce of Partridge Family and Morning Radio fame. When we were both on the air at Clear Channel, our broadcast studios were right next to each other, and even though we had never met in person up until that point, we became good friends. Danny has had his share of problems and bad publicity, but to me he's always been a basically good person who is dealing with a lot of demons, some real and some imagined. His ex-wife Gretchen was the love of his life when I worked next to him, he even put me on the phone with her one time on the spur of the moment. He reminded me of the Warner Brothers cartoon character "The Tasmanian Devil", both in voice and energy, and he always made me laugh. The clip of Danny today is when I was completing the list of Celebrity Birthday's one morning a few years ago and I forgot one......HIS. Wait till you hear his hilarious reaction!
The other "Tuna Clip" today is my son Bryan, who so many of you have thanked in your emails for updating the design and links of my website (still a work in progress). I came across a flyer from Guitar Center a few years ago that was advertising an appearance and concert featuring Bryan's band "Last Falling". He had never mentioned it to me, as is the case with all my children, they like to achieve things on their own merits and not trade on Dad's name or notoriety. But when I saw the notice, I asked Bryan if I could give him a plug on my show, which would make for a rather interesting and potentially awkward interview. Listen for yourself and hear what happened. Here's Bryan's band website link. He does their Web and MySpace pages too, along with the CD artwork.
Today marks 8 weeks since my last show on the air, and the emails continue to come in to the "Tuna Talkback" link. Thank You!
Charlie
11/09/2007 @ 8:15am PST Friday Morning, November 9th! Since everybody has a chance to putter around the house or apartment on the weekend, today...some handy household hints!
There are so many things in life they never tell you about or you never read anywhere, but that's why I've always loved my job in radio. I enjoy tracking things down no one else has heard about and passing them along to be helpful to you, the listener.
It's with that credo in mind that today, I present handy household hints!
* Spray cut flowers with hair spray to make them last longer.
* Sprinkle salt between bricks in a walkway to prevent weeds from growing.
* When buying lemons, choose those that have the smoothest skin and no points at the end...Those are the ones with the best flavor and more juice.
* Use a cloth soaked in beer to get mirrors squeaky-clean.
* Peanut butter will get scratches out of CD's. Wipe off with a coffee filter paper.
* Birds will be attracted to a birdbath if you drop colored marbles in the water.
* Need to unseal an envelope - put it in the freezer for a few hours, then slide a knife under the flap. The envelope can then be resealed.
* Rub petroleum jelly on your hands before painting to make it a lot easier to wash off afterward...it seals your pores, making paint clean-up much quicker.
* Clear smoke odors quickly by dampening a cloth with vinegar and waving it throughout the room.
* Clean wax from candleholders by putting them in the freezer for a couple of hours, then peel the wax off easily.
* Before folding freshly laundered bed linens and placing in your linen closet or drawer, sprinkle them with a few drops of lavender oil. This scent will promote relaxation and a deep, restful sleep.
* Leave slices of apple around the house. Within a couple of days, they will dry out and emit fresh apple scents.
In the "Tuna Clips" today, It's the "Would You Rather" game, play along and make your choice...it's not that easy. More new emails posted in the "Tuna Talkback" section, and this weekend I'm going to catch up on answering the bunch of the latest ones to come in.
Have a great weekend yourself, and good luck to the writers in their strike efforts. If it ain't on the page, it ain't on the stage.
Charlie
11/08/2007 @ 8:58am PST Thursday Morning, November 8! Ever wonder if there really is a "Hell"? 27 years ago, I talked to a former atheist Doctor who found out.
Every morning we get up and go through our day wondering what life is all about sometimes. Some days our thoughts even skip to the inevitable "what happens when it's over"? Is there really something after this? Is there a Heaven or a Hell?
While updating my audio archives last night, I ran across this 1980 interview with Dr. Maurice Rawlings, who had written a book in 1978 called "Beyond Death's Door". I put it on today's "Tuna Clips" because in listening to it back, there hasn't really been any new information on the subject in the years that have passed. It still is as relevant today as it was then. I realize there are a lot of people who don't believe in the hereafter, but if you listen to this clip, it may at least make you think.
"Beyond Death's Door" by Dr. Maurice Rawlings is still available, (I checked), on sights like Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble in limited numbers. There was even a movie out about the same time with the same title. The book was written by this highly credentialed cardiologist who was a self-described atheist.....until he stumbled onto the information which comprises the theme of this book: Life continues after bodily death, and a few people have had a peek behind the curtain and have described what they saw.
Dr. Maurice Rawlings did go on to become a born again Christian, and authored several more books on the subject including one called "To Hell and Back", which coincidentally was my comment at the end of this interview that came about as the result of an article in "Omni Magazine" (The magazine ran from October 1978 to Winter 1995, with an internet version lasting until 1998)
Whether you're a skeptic or not, there is a lot of common ground in the sights and feelings that people reported to the Doctor. What made this interview a little more personal in hearing it again, was a cousin of mine that had this experience years later. He literally died in an ambulance on the way to the hospital with his wife at his side. He reported he saw the bright light that he was going into, and being greeted by friends and family that had passed before him. He went on to describe things as being so beautiful and peaceful and this overwhelming emotion of love enveloping him. It was like nothing he had ever felt on earth, but then suddenly in the distance it sounded like, was his wife crying out to him that he couldn't leave her and the family.....and suddenly he found himself back in the ambulance with her and the Emergency Paramedics working frantically to revive him. It was a total shocking jolt to his system at that moment, and in all honesty he confessed later, he didn't really want to come back because the place he had been in was perfect in every way.
That's a brief version of my cousin's experience, there's a lot more details, but it was dramatic for all of us family members when we heard about it. I'm sure a lot of you know someone who may have gone through the same thing, but a lot of them don't want to talk about it because it is so profound, as you'll hear the Doctor mention in the clip today.
Have a great day, and thank you again for the emails which continue to put a smile on my face!
Charlie
11/07/2007 @ 11:10am PST Wednesday Morning, November 7th! Finally, the answer to Friday's Riddle!
Last Friday I had mentioned an age old riddle, and promised the answer on Monday for those who had not figured it out by then. Blame it on the time change, Joe Torre's press conference, or the Writers Guild strike, but I failed to follow-up. This is the riddle, legend has it, that 80% of kindergarten kids got correct, compared to 17% of Stanford seniors.
What is greater than God, More evil than the devil, The poor have it, The rich need it, And if you eat it, you'll die? The Answer......Nothing!
That being taken care of, Got a call this morning from Cousin Brucie, the famed New York City radio personality who's been on the air in the Big Apple for as long as I've been in L.A. Bruce and I first met back in the 80's on my radio show in Los Angeles, and it was a mutual admiration society that morning. He's coming to town next week promoting his new book "Doo Wop: The Music, The Times, The Era". Cousin "Brucie" Morrow is currently heard on Sirius Satellite Radio, which I know from lots of your emails is what you're listening to, until I'm back on the air in Los Angeles.
Got a reminder notice about the 4th Annual Invitational Golf Tournament at Spanish Hills this coming Monday, November 12th, Benefiting Children's Hospital Los Angeles from the guy who puts it all together, Mitch Rosenberg. Mitch knows the value of Children's Hospital because of his own daughter, Paige Rosenberg, who was one of my "Tunathon Kids", and is living proof that Children's does help kids who really need a world class facility like they are. Mitch has sponsored and organized this event the last 4 years as a thank you to Children's, and to help raise the awareness and the money that Children's Hospital always needs.
If you want to participate or just attend the Auction and dinner Monday evening, here's the link for more info. Mitch said the entry fee discount has been extended.
Here's another link to check out today. Veteran's Day is coming up on November 11th. Having done 6000 Armed Forces Network Shows over 25 years, our servicemen and women are very special to me and I still get emails every month from at least a dozen of them who heard my show somewhere in the world when it was on AFRTS. This link will take you to a tribute site featuring the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall and a song by George Jones. I remember my first visit to that wall around 1990, and I was so struck by the emotion that you are overwhelmed with just being in the presence of that site. It is something you have to experience first hand yourself. It will leave a lasting impression!
The "Tuna Clips" today features "Part 2 highlights" of my 25th Anniversary show on the air in L.A. in 1992 at KCBS-FM then. And more emails on the "Tuna Talkback" link. The first one today was very cute, and you'll see my reply at the bottom.
Charlie
11/06/2007 @ 12:05pm PST Tuesday Morning, November 6th! It's just over 2 weeks away...a milestone anniversary! Click on the "News" link.
November 23, 1967 was the first day on the air for me in Los Angeles Radio. 93/KHJ had pre-promoted the debut of my show that morning with the line "Tuna for Thanksgiving". It was Thanksgiving Day-1967!
This year, November 23rd marks 40 years in Los Angeles radio for me officially. Thank You for making that possible! You're the ones who have kept me on the air all those years by listening, and God-willing, for many years ahead. Without listeners and ratings, no radio station in the world will hire you, especially these days in the quest for every dollar in advertising revenue that management is under pressure to get for the bottom line, and the only way they can is to show that they have listeners.
Today on the "Tuna Clips" link is the another in a series of my look back at all the fun these past 4 decades I've had in Los Angeles. Today's clip is some of the 1992 celebration of my 25th Anniversary show with Loni Anderson (WKRP), Bo Derek (The perfect"10"), and Lily Tomlin (an extraordinary comedian and actress). My morning partners then were Producer Clark Macy, Newswoman Lynda Lambert, and Traffic Reporter Lin Durling. You hear my conversation with Lin as the Clip begins. I'll have more highlights from this same day tomorrow too.
More new emails too in the "Tuna Talkback" link. Some days your notes to me make it almost seem like a eulogy, but I do appreciate your sincere feelings. The feeling is mutual when it comes to caring about you too.
Well, I'm off to my regular Tuesday TV taping in Burbank for an International Movie Countdown show I do for worldwide markets called "Cinema, Cinema, Cinema". And no, it's not available in the U.S., but everywhere else in the world from London to Singapore.
I've been doing this show since the early 80's. It really keeps me plugged into the movie business.
Enjoy your day! I've got a teeth cleaning appointment too today, so your day has got to be better than mine:)
Charlie
11/05/2007 @ 8:53am PST Monday Morning, November 5th! Watch yourself today, Your body clock is probably off!
This past weekend, we changed our clocks back one hour in observance of daylight saving time. But did you know that the extra hour of sleep and more sunlight in the morning has a significant disruption on the human physiology and health.
Sleep experts say it's like jet lag. The body's circadian rhythm, or internal clock, is in tune with the natural change of light. It is interrupted during daylight saving time. We train our body to the clues in a 24-hour cycle and yesterday they were a little bit offset.
That change takes a toll on a person's sleep pattern and ability to perform daily activities, which is why traffic authorities always notice an increased incidence of auto accidents when we spring ahead and fall back, among other problems.
The best way to reset your body clock quickly is to get a good dose of sunlight the day after the time adjustment, without sunglasses if you can. This also works for jet lag.
The other big story today that affects all of us in one or another is the Writers Strike! if you love Leno, Letterman, Kimmel, O'Brien, Ferguson, The Daily Show, etc., get set for reruns starting tonight. Plus the economic impact on all sorts of jobs related to the industry will cause millions of dollars in collateral damage. Oh, and the reality shows, don't forget, most of them are "scripted" too.
The actors on the other hand have a few options, if you look at their previous jobs before they became famous.
Tom Hanks dropped out of Sacramento State University and worked as a bellhop at a Hilton Hotel.
Brad Pitt dropped out of the University of Missouri-Columbia and got a job standing outside a fast-food joint wearing a giant chicken costume.
Whoopi Goldberg dropped out of high school, worked as a bricklayer, and even took a job at a mortuary dressing the hair and applying makeup to corpses.
Beverly D'Angelo began her career as a cartoonist for Hanna-Barbera Studio.
Ellen DeGeneres once worked a paralegal.
Today on the "Tuna Clips" link, Richard Simmons will reset your body clock with a studio workout, and this year marks a decade of "Doh" awards with a 1998 edition featured today. More heartwarming new emails posted in the "Tuna Talkback" link too.
