December 1, 2015
Milestone In New Orleans Broadcasting.
My mother used to say that self-praise stinks. Nevertheless, I can't resist nothing this:
When I signed on to WSMB to host a daily call-in talk show about food, I had some misgivings. At the time, I had a pretty steady flow of freelance writing assignments. I had not been tied down to a regular schedule in an office in many years, and I liked the freedom. But the money that WSMB offered me sounded good. And if the commitment became too onerous, I could always resign and go back to freelancing.
This was the summer of 1988. I was thirty-seven. The woman who hired me put a twinkle in my eye. Unfortunately for her, she would not be working at WSMB much longer. Unbeknown to either of us, we would be married seven months later. And then we had our first child. I had to hang on at the radio station to pay the bills. Not exactly what I had in mind when I took the gig.
But something in the formula worked for me and everyone else involved. So much so that, starting today, The Food Show can claim to be the longest-running program on any subject in the history of New Orleans radio--same concept, same station, same host. Twenty-seven years and five months, and still reeling in the years.
Making a statement like that begs for proof. But the records are few, and people who might have had a longer run aren't talking anymore. Even so, I've done a lot of searching, and haven't found any shows than can top ours. Here's are the previous records the Food Show has surpassed:
● Nut & Jeff, WSMB. March 1961-July 1988.
● Charlie Douglas And The Road Gang, WWL. March 1971-September 1995. The show went on for another five years after Charlie retired, but with new hosts.
● Arthur Godfrey Time, on WWL from the CBS radio network, April 1945-April 1972.
● First News With Bob Del Giorno, WWL. He did two stints, interrupted by four years in Chicago and four more on New Orleans television. He hosted WWL's morning show from 1978 to 1985, and again 1993 to February 2012
● The Dawnbusters, WWL. September 1937--December 1957.
Now, this is no big deal, really. It is probably easier to do something for a long time than to be the very best at it--not something I dare to claim. Television guys have gone much longer than I have. Eric Paulsen has been on Channel Four continuously since 1977. Johnny Carson was on thirty years, and David Letterman thirty-three.
Radio being as changeable as it is, I owe many thanks to the listeners, sponsors and programming executives who allowed me to present The Food Show every day with essentially with no changes over the decades. I mean, how long could a radio show about food last, really?--Tastefully yours, Tom Fitzmorris.
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Sunday, November 29, 2015.
A Record. Routines Ease The Load.
What with the arrival of my first grandchild, Manresa, and Thanksgiving, I am horribly behind in my labors. And to that must be added the annual task of surveying all the Reveillon menus, rating not only the restaurants but the dishes too, and building all this data into fifty web pages. I spend almost the entire day working on that, and I don't quite get it all done. But I probably would done even less were it not for the struture I build into my weekends.
I notice right away that the Reveillon menus show much more variety than in recent years. Except for the Gumbo Shop--whose Reveillon menu is set in stone by its many regulars--all of the menus are new from top to bottom. Some are very inventive. If I had a finite supply of stars, I would have run out of them.
I break the eye-straining project by singing at St. Jane's. Our morning gig has moved from nine to ten. I also learn that the group I sing with will perform at the vigil Mass on Christmas Eve. I can't make it for that.
Also, our leader tells the adults among us that we must attend a presentation to make sure we understand the crime of child abuse. This choir is about two-thirds adults, but for many years it has also included youth choir singers. I'm for anything that eliminates the scandals that have infected the Church in recent years. I used to go through similar programs at least annually when Jude and I were in the Boy Scouts, so it's nothing new.
I take another break from compiling Reveillon menus at around three with an hour-long strut around the Cool Water Ranch. Back to work for a few hours, then out to dinner at Zea, where I order exactly what I did last week at this time. I advise people not to get into such ruts, but I like the three items (tomato soup, southwestern-style crab cakes, and the Asian-inspired house salad) I get again tonight.
