Wednesday - November 02, 2011

long ago and very far away …. a bit of personal history

Yeah, that’s me with hair and carrying about 50lbs or more less weight. Gee, I do miss the hair.

This photo had been lost to me for a number of years and has resurfaced within the last month.  It was among other things being stored in California.

Some time ago I wrote about this pix and what it represented. Well, a thousand words and no surprise, is no substitute for this one picture.

You must understand firstly that I regarded KFI as a kind of religion, and the building was my church.  I loved KFI and still do but over time I think what I loved most and worshipped so much, was the history and what the station once stood for and the many very talented people who lived behind the microphones, in the booths and earlier on the old broadcast stage itself.  For me personally, being at KFI was living the American dream.

See that glass dome?  Underneath sits the transmitter built by Earl C. Anthony, that’s part of his portrait on the wall behind me.  He built that on his mother’s breadboard.
I don’t think it broadcast very far, but by the time I got there around 1968 or 69, it was known as the Pacific Powerhouse.  50,000 watts of clear channel power.
Mr. Anthony not only owned KFI, in the day he was the Packard Auto distributor for So. Calif.  Which is how he got the money I suppose, to start KFI.  It wasn’t my job but I was forever making sure there wasn’t any dust or fingerprints (even mine after this shot) on that dome.  It was in the lobby (where I hope it remains today) on public display.  Every time I noticed someone looking at it or reading the info on display, when they left I’d quickly run over to it and wipe it down. 

BTW …. KFI had a jingle package that was without any doubt the best and most musical and most beautiful that any station anywhere ever had.  And I’m not saying that just cause it happens to be true.  I have the series on an old reel to reel stored someplace between Nashville and Calif.  Would love to get my hands on it again and convert it to play here, just to prove it. 

At one time, when the radio’s theater was in use, some of the best known and loved talent of both screen and radio graced that small radio stage. Another age altogether. One of glamour and some grace and lots of magic.
I miss all that.

I didn’t beg my wife to marry me, but I think I begged to have our wedding in the old KFI theater.  She didn’t care for that idea at all.  I never understood why.

We got married here instead. In San Marino, Calif. on July 15, 1970.

Posted by peiper     on 11/02/2011 at 12:32 PM   
Filed Under: • Personal •  
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Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:

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It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.

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