Bullfrog's Corner

Lloyd Thaxton Passed.... So What?

2008-10-10T17:55:00.000-07:00

This week I learned that Lloyd Thaxton passed away. Who's Lloyd Thaxton??? Lloyd was once a very popular variety television show host in the 1960's in Los Angeles.

Check out this cool video retro below, if you grew up in Southern California and are over 50 or so, you probably watched his show. I myself never saw a single show and up until the early 2000's had never even heard of him. (I'm way below the demo).

While I was producing the morning show over at K-Earth 1o1 for Gary Bryan, he had mentioned Lloyd's name and the question came up weather or not he was still around. He was!!! We were able to get a hold of Lloyd and also found out that he had just come out with a new book titled "Stuff Happens, Then You Fix It". It was a perfect opportunity for Lloyd to come to K-Earth and talk about his career. Now over the years, guests come and go in morning radio, they come in, do their thing, take a photo, shake a hand, sign a book or cd, then leave and never come back.

Not Lloyd!

There was something about him that made me want to keep in touch... we traded e-mails from time to time, I studied what he had done in his life and was real curious about his life. My parents were excited to hear that I met and kept in touch with him.

We had Lloyd back in the studio over the next few years and even one time we actually had Lloyd "guest host" the show while Gary was on vacation. That morning when he pulled into the old KHJ studios (now K-Earth) on Melrose, I met his car at the gate... he pulled up and was whispering to me while holding his throat saying that he had lost his voice!! I panicked for a quick second until he started laughing!!! He was only joking!!

When my time at K-Earth ended in 2005, Lloyd found out on L.A.Radio.com and sent me an email wishing me luck! I received lots of emails that day, but for some reason, I've always held on to his. It was genuine, he didn't have to do it.. I didn't write him first, he loved the fact that he was treated like a pro whenever he came to K-Earth.

And to follow-up, when Lloyd found out that I was hired by K-Frog a month later, he sent me another email to congratulate me!

It's not the fact that he sent me a note that was the big deal, it's what he said in so few words that told me that he actually cared.

Lloyd, it was a pleasure to meet and to get to know you, even if it was just for a short while. It's people like you that make me love doing what I do for a living! Thanks for the kind and encouraging words, I will never forget them.

Rest in peace, and may God watch your finger puppets in heaven!

10 Years Ago... I Had A Gut Feeling....

2008-05-21T21:21:00.000-07:00

Ten years ago, I had a gut feeling….

If my memory is correct it was a Friday before the 3 day Memorial Day weekend. Robert had been in the hospital for the past few days. I received news that morning that he was not doing well. I returned later that evening to the K-Earth 101 studios in Culver City (or the “Heart of the Barricaded Suspect District”) and began to rummage through some boxes of old tapes that I just finished packing after producing his retirement tribute earlier that year.

In one of those boxes I came across a DAT recording of a production that Robert and I had put together to send to his high school reunion in Galion, Ohio. We came in one weekend to do this. Weekend work with Morgan was fun! The stress of the show was lifted off of him and he would joke and show me some old tricks of the trade: like how to remove pops and clicks from a record using a glass of water! (I’ll save that story for another day! Back to the recording…. It was a very loose recording session… he wrote a short piece about his high school memories and how he left Galion to pursue his radio dream. We produced the piece and sent it to his old buddy… I then took the master recording and stored it away in a box.

Now back to that Friday….. It had been a few years since he originally recorded that tape and when I gave it a listen, I knew I had to do something with it. It was sort of a self-biography about his life in Galion followed by a short story about his radio career. It was perfect! I took parts of that tape and produced it with a montage of Morgan’s professional radio experience. The whole producing of this bit is kind of a blur, but I do know that I was at the station after business hours; Jay Coffey was on the air. I finished what I thought was a “rough cut” of the retro-tribute, sat back in the chair wondering what changes I could make. Usually I would produce something, walk away from it for a few hours and then listen to it again. That was a trick taught to me by the great one himself. As I was sitting there the door opened and Coffey informed me that Morgan had just passed.

I was completely blown away…. My emotions had just been drained working on this piece for the past few hours and then to get that news, I was completely speechless. Shortly afterwards Joni Caryl, Richard Turnage, and Mitch Lewis arrived at the station… we gathered, shared some stories and stated sending out releases. I remember it was late in the evening.

I went back to Studio D, K-Earth’s production studio, and began to listen back to the piece I has just produced about an hour before. I listened to it and decided that no changes were needed. I don’t know why, but it seemed like that’s the way it was supposed to sound. Of course all I could hear in my head is Morgan screaming at me to do it better!! I’m sure it could’ve been better, but it was my goodbye to Morgan. Something told me to head to the station that evening and do this. It was the early memories of my radio career where he took in an inexperienced 21 year-old intern and molded him into anything he wanted me to be. It was the memory of working with him on and off the air. It was an honor for me to be included in his circle of professional friends, even though most of the time I was a scared young man, just trying not to screw it up!!

Ten years later I have since left K-Earth 101, but the memories of those times will always start with a “Good Morgan”. I now work across town in the Inland Empire and I’m always asked to share a Robert W story now and then. I’m always more than happy to share a story or two, and as time goes by and the radio industry changes, it saddens me that the memory of Morgan is slowly fading away. The young kids joining the business today have no idea who he is! It’s up to us to keep his legacy going. It’s up to us to make sure no one forgets the reason why we got into this business in the first place!

Now as I sit here writing about this fond memory of Robert W. Morgan, and I am reminded of that “gut feeling” I had that day. It’s a memory that will forever live in my heart and in radio history.

Brandon J. Castillo
Former Robert W. Morgan Production Director at K-Earth 101

Mark In The Dark... In The Morgan!!!

2008-03-11T18:58:00.000-07:00

I came across KTLA's morning weather dude Mark Kriski's blog and noticed he wrote a piece on Robert W. Morgan. I posted this clip on YouTube of Mark visiting the K-Earth 101 Studios shortly after Robert had announced he had lung cancer. I remember that day like it was yesterday!!!

You can see me in the background, trying to look busy!!

Here's what he wrote.....

____________________________________________

Good Morgan
5:30 AM March 11, 2008

Firstly, I'd like to thank all of our KTLA viewers who have taken the time to read and respond to our Blogs. The project has been a great success, and we want you to know that we're grateful for your time, and we value your opinions. Keep it coming!

This week let's shift gears a little. Direct from the Mark Kriski "film vaults" I found an interesting video clip that I'd like to share with you.

This was a KTLA location shoot during the morning news broadcast direct from the studios of K-Earth 101. I'm interviewing Los Angeles radio legend Robert W. Morgan. This was in 1997; just days after Robert W. announced that he was diagnosed with lung cancer. Here's a little background - and why this clip is particularly special for me.

As a young guy with an interest in broadcasting living in Nova Scotia, Canada several years ago - the audio reference material we used as the "gold standard" for a contemporary radio delivery were sound bytes from major US markets such as New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. By far, the one that impressed me the most was Los Angeles DJ Robert W. Morgan. I credit him as being my biggest inspiration for pursuing a career in broadcasting.

Robert W. Morgan hit the LA radio scene in 1965 and redefined the role of the American radio jock by combining his wit, timing and topical conversation with top 40 music on AM 93 KHJ. In a few short years, his show had an amazing 20 share in the Arbitron ratings. 20 out of every 100 radios in the Greater Los Angeles Area were tuned in to his show. His dynasty had begun.

With the shifting sands of station ownership, changing formats and competitive offers; Robert W. did a tour of duty on the FM dial at the new K-100 in the early 70's, but shortly after, accepted a key position at KMPC 710 and formed the "Good Morgan Team"; taking over for another Los Angeles radio legend Dick Whittinghill. For three decades Robert W. Morgan kept Angelenos company in their cars and in their homes. He was chosen as Billboard's Air Personality of the Year in 1967, he received a star on Hollywood's vaunted "Walk of Fame" in 1993, and was unanimously inducted into the National Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 1994. Reunited with fellow rock & roll radio legend The Real Don Steele in 1992 at K-Earth 101 in Los Angeles, the "Boss Jock" manned the mic at K-Earth, and even from his home studio as he battled cancer. On May 22nd 1998 Robert W. Morgan passed away. His voice, his personality and his command of the air will be remembered for a very long time to come.

_________________________________

Thanks Mark for remembering the radio legend that Robert W was....

I Want To Play!!!

2008-02-06T19:11:00.000-08:00

So this morning this is what the Cucamonga Peaks looked like from our studio window!!

Seeing this makes me not want to be at work!!!

I remember the days when I could wake up.. look outside and decide what to do on a whim!

It's still o.k. to dream.... RIGHT??

Super Bowl Fat Tuesday???

2008-02-05T19:43:00.000-08:00

So we went from Sunday's "Super Bowl"....... to Tuesday's "Super Tuesday"..... to "Fat Tuesday"!!!

I'm confused!!!!

For one, you have to march across a 100yd field to win points.......

For the other you have to "stump" around the country to gain delegates!

And Finally for the other one... all you have to do is get really, really drunk, flash your bare breasts, and catch a bunch of beads!!!

Translation: EVERYBODY WINS!!!

Why Didn't She Change Her Name!!!!

2008-01-30T17:59:00.000-08:00

So my wife and I were watching the end of the State Of The Union Address the other day on channel 4 when my wife pointed out something very funny to me!

Paul Moyer was at the anchor desk and they introduce their political analyst.... her name: Sherry Bebitch Jeffe!!!!

Paul pronounced it: Sherry "Bay-Bitch Jeff-eee"

I'm sorry but when I see the word Jeffe, in spanish, it's pronounced "hef-fay" meaning "Boss". So to me her name is Sherry Boss Bitch!!! (flip the words in Spanish for whatever weird reason!)

Just my observation! Carry on with your lives now!!

Save Bob Banfield!!!

2007-11-30T17:25:00.000-08:00

Save Bob Banfield!!! There I said it!! What does this mean??

Bob Banfield is the Inland Empire's bureau chief for ABC7 Eyewitness News in Los Angeles. He's been there forever, 1967!!! Remember the Inland Empire is bastard step-child to the Los Angeles area.... no one really wants to claim it. There are many extreme areas... the desert, mountains and other hard to reach areas. So when anything bad happens out here.... they (ABC7) send Bob!!! Every fall we get Santa Ana winds that blow threw our major canyons at about 70mph.... he's there getting blown around!! When Big Bear Lake is suffering threw a 100 year blizzard..... he's there freezing is butt off in the cold!! In the summer when this area is on fire.... yeah you guessed it.... he's there!!

It was about the mid 90's when one of my former co-workers and I were watching Bob in the wind almost get crushed by a big-rig truck blowing over on the side of the freeway, when we both looked at each other and said... "ABC is trying to kill him!!!!" Think about it.... You only see the guy when mother nature is at her worst!! The guy is like Teflon! In some of those snowy mountain shots he looks like he's catching pneumonia!!!! When the fires are burning, i swear he's one bad wind gust from burnin' up!! So to this I say... "SAVE BOB BANFIELD!!!" He's done nothing wrong!!!

We went on the air with this last year on K-Frog and the phones went crazy. Listeners were calling in to express their concern for Bob!! They all noticed the same thing too!!! Even Bob's Granddaughter called in to say they think the same thing!!

"SAVE BOB!!"

Remembering Back A Little

2007-11-29T18:33:00.001-08:00

I came across one of those "blast from the past" photos in my collection. This photo was taken in June, 1998. Just after Charlie Van Dyke was hired to take the baton from the late great Robert W. Morgan, most of the K-Earth staff grew the "Van Dyke" beard and took this photo which appeared in the "Radio and Records" trade magazine. I'm number "15"!!

Sadly all but 2 people in this photo no longer work at there anymore.... it's radio, things change!

#9 - Keith Smith is still the Production Director
#14 - Lynn Duke is now the Chief Engineer. (#1 - Bob Kanner passed a couple of years ago)

Raising Money For The Firestorm!

2007-11-14T19:00:00.000-08:00

Here we are on Los Angeles' CBS 2 News raising money for the recent Southern California wildfires!

Are You Opened.... Or Closed???

2007-11-14T18:54:00.000-08:00

I found this on Broadway Ave. in Nashville the other week while we were there for the CMA Awards! Just thought I'd share!

Is This Thing On????

2007-07-25T17:38:00.000-07:00

So as most of you my know.... I've been producing morning shows for the past 15 years. What's a producer??? A producer is the guy/ gal behind the action of a morning show that acts as a support staff and or ring leader.... often we are the ones that deal with all the behind the scenes junk like scheduling guests, research news stories, help with the shows planning... you get the picture.

Generally the producer is rarely heard on the air and is usually only mentioned when something goes horribly wrong!! Since coming to K-Frog over 2 years ago it was quite apparent that my role as a producer came with a few more perks that my previous gig at K-Earth... For example...

At K-Earth I did get airtime, but it was very minimal and it usually involved explaining something. I always felt blessed and knew that I was doing a job that is wanted by 100's of others across the country. When Gary Bryan came to K-Earth in 2002 he opened up more opportunities for me by giving me more mic time doing stunts and on the street interviews. Lot's of fun!!

When I first came to K-Frog, I knew things were gonna be different. First of all, K-Frog is not a "union" shop, meaning that at K-Earth I was legally not able to be on mic for long periods of time. At the Frog, that doesn't apply. The guys at K-Frog invite me on, allowing me to say funny and silly things and all that good stuff.

The Dream.......

My life long goal since I first walked through the halls of a radio station was to someday get the chance to do a morning show somewhere in this country! Well that dream was finally realized today when I basically was given the keys and the go ahead to host the show.....

Here's how it happened......

Scott and Tommy (The Frogmen), never take vacation at the same time… this is to make sure that one is always on the air if one is away. Scott took his scheduled vacation this week with his family to Arizona. So Tommy has been holding down the show, but his wife is 9 months pregnant, and has been having early contractions for the past week. We all sat and drew up a scenario of what to do if Tommy’s wife went into labor this week. Our emergency “fill-in” guy is also on vacation! So our PD Lee Douglas gave the go ahead for me to wing it if I have to….. (worst case scenario). I figured I’d just put together some sort of “best of” show. Well this morning I woke up with a text message from Tommy indicating that his wife was indeed in labor! I suddenly realized that I was going to have to step in.

It was the strangest feeling in the world to be in the control room by myself. Dona Dower, our traffic reporter, was with me from her studio. She made me feel real relaxed when I should’ve been a nervous wreck! Although we kept the show simple, I did take the time to reflect back at my days back at K-Earth and how the ghost of Robert W. Morgan was yelling at me to “shut up…you’re only on til nine!!!!”

My Dream Has Come True..........

Nashville Day 4 On To Memphis!!!!!!

2007-06-08T18:27:00.000-07:00

Right now I'm writing from the 5th floor hotel room right smack dab in the middle of Memphis Tennessee! It's about 8:30pm local time. We left Nashville around noon today... More about that later.... but first and update from last night.......

So my last post ended with me talking about going to one of the nightly concerts at LP Field. This was going to be my wife's test.... I wanted to see her reaction to being at a REAL country concert. Now remember, every attending the concert paid really good money to be there, lots of people came from all over the country to be there! So you know for sure that the crowd is going to be filled with some serious country fans!

We show up at the stadium with Frogman Scott, Tommy was already there. You could hear Trace Adkins singing "Honky Tonk Badonadonk" while we were in the parking lot.... by the time we reached our seats in the nose bleed section, we could barley make out the bands!!! Tommy sent us a text message to let us know that our "media passes" would let us go on the field.... So we hustled down there as quick as we could.

When we got down there "The Wreckers" were performing, we staked our claim near the sound booth. After their set it was time to get some brews and food.... just in time for Deirks Bentley to perform... I like Deirks song "Lot A Leavin' Left To Do" so when he opened up his set with it, I caught myself holding two beers and yelling for Dierks!! My wife thought I was nuts. Scott and Tommy just laughed and took pics..... oh boy!

After Dierks.... Brooks and Dunn took the stage and rocked it hard!!! They're amazing on stage. Ronnie Dunn's voice reverberated from every corner of the arena! It was then that I began to notice my wife dancing and singing along.... Every time a they started another song, I would lean over to tell her the title... she looked back and would say.. "I know... I like it!"

Now the act that I really wanted her to see was Alan Jackson. Why... Because Alan is as country as it gets. If she enjoyed his set, then I think she can be a real fan. She has a blast during his set. I caught her singing "Where I Come From", you know, the "Corn Bread and Chicken" song!!! We left after his set and she was ecstatic!

We walked back to our hotel afterwards and found this bar next door called the "Flying Saucer"... over 100 beers on tap! There we found some great music by a cover band playing everything from Aerosmith to Blondie.

Later it was time to pack, because today.. (Friday) was going to be our last show from Nashville. The show went by fast this morning.. not as many artists stopped by, we did see Emerson Drive who's song "Moments" just hit number one on the charts! Afterwards we had to pack our remote gear up and get out of Dodge!!!

Tennessee Storm!

My wife and I rented a car and began our journey to Memphis about noon local time... It was nice and sunny, hot and humid. About 93 degrees! We headed west on I-40 and after about 10 miles out we could see dark clouds and lightning!!! It kept getting closer and closer and closer!!! Before you knew it we were in the middle of one of the worst downpours I've ever driven in!! My fingers were gripping wheel so hard they started to hurt! After about an hour of that we finally passed the storm.

About 80 miles west of Nashville is the Loretta Lynne Dude Ranch. She runs the place. What a beautiful piece of property...think of the place where "Dirty Dancing" was filmed and Country it up a bit... that's what this place is like. I've read that it's haunted by old civil war soldiers or something... (have to research it more). Before stopping there we ate at her local food joint. Real Southern Cooking!!!! We enjoyed some sweet tea, fried chicken, pork, meat and potatoes and lots of grease!!!!

Mississippi River

Now we're in Memphis... resting right now... later we'll head out have some fun... And then tomorrow we go to Graceland!!!!

Until then.....

JB

Nashville Day 3

2007-06-07T15:46:00.000-07:00

TIME FOR HAPPY HOUR!

Ok, so when I last left you hangin' we were just gonna get some rest before happy hour. So let me tell you about that..... Radio people will show up to anything if you just offer free booze and food. That was the case early yesterday evening when we ended up at this joint called "Baileys" on Broadway. For 2 solid hours it was an endless supply of free drinks and bar food. Have you ever been at that party where when they bring out all the food and tell you to go ahead and start eating, NO ONE GETS UP??? That's what happened. My wife and I didn't want to be the first ones up to eat. So we waited.... and waited... and waited! Finally I looked at her and said, "screw this, I'm hungry!" So we got up and before you knew it, half the room followed us to the buffet. One guy leaned over and said, "someone had to crack the seal!!"

So we drank, ate and drank some more and before you knew it, it was indeed "Happy Hour".

Angela and Mike take us out to dinner!

Afterwards, Mrs. Bullfrog and I met up with our friend Angela and her boyfriend for dinner. Angela works at CMT Radio here in Nashville, they supply country music programming and prep services for stations all across the country. They picked us up at our hotel... told us this place was haunted, then drove us out of town for some "real" Tennessee BBQ. We ended up at this place about a mile from downtown, the name escapes me, and ate more food... and drank more booze!! While there we ran into Kellie Pickler's drummer who remembered us from hanging out at the second fiddle the night before...... later we ended up at this place near Vanderbilt University called "Rumba's". We had the best mojitos!!!

This morning was a little rough getting out of bed, but I managed to drag my butt out at 4:45am!!! The cab dropped me off at 5:30 and I swear the line coming out of the convention hall went all the way around the block!! It was a good line up of artists today. We saw the likes of LeAnn Rimes (PICTURED), Troy Gentry, Big and Rich, Jamie Oneal, Rodney Atkins, and Billy Currington. Speaking of Billy, my wife has the biggest crush on him!! I told Scott and Tommy about it and they decided to surprise her on the air and Billy about it! She turned beet red!! He got up and gave her a big ol' country hug!

So later tonight we're heading off to "LP Field", where the Tennessee Titans play, for a nightly concert with Deirks Bentley, Brooks and Dunn, Alan Jackson and a bunch of other acts. I'll let you know how that goes tomorrow!!!

Until then....

Ya'll Come Back!

Billy Currington and Mrs. Bullfrog

Nashville Day 2

2007-06-06T11:57:00.000-07:00

OK... The last thing I remember from yesterday was ending up at the Second Fiddle with the boys, and our good friend Megan. She used to work with K-Frog, and now lives out here in Nashville. Good Times!!! Scott, Tommy, my wife and I had a blast at dinner last night. We noticed that Emerson Drive was sitting in the next booth over from us. We decided to crash their party and before you knew it, a lot of fans took noticed and the poor guys had to sign autographs all night.

Oh yeah, at yesterday's orientation we got a one on one with Blake Shelton. He's a very funny guy who likes to joke around. My wife got to take a pic with him and I stood up and represented the station by asking him a question.

Mrs. Bullfrog and Blake Shelton

This morning I had to drag my butt out of bed about 5am. Our broadcast went pretty good, we got to see lots of up coming artists as well as established ones. Sara Evans stopped by and the guys could hardly contain themselves. Later that morning my wife woke up and joined us at the broadcast where she sat and watch a press conference with Reba McEntire.

After a loooonnnngggg morning, we're getting a little rest before we head back out in the hot humid sun. Later this afternoon is a Premiere Radio hosted "Happy Hour" at one of the local bars, can't wait. Afterwards we're gonna meet up with a friend from CMT Radio out here for dinner, drinks, and whatever else comes our way!!

Keep you posted!!!

JB

Nashville Day 1

2007-06-05T14:00:00.000-07:00

I’m blogging to you from 35,000 feet above the great state of Texas…

Yes for a moment I put on Pat Green’s “Wave On Wave” and gazed out the window. How cool. This Southwest flight we’re on is booked full, lots of interesting characters on this flight. Mrs. Bullfrog pointed out a guy in a salmon colored coat!!! I mentioned to her that it was just a colored blind Elvis!!

Shortly we’ll be coming up on the Mississippi River and will be crossing over Memphis about an hour away from Nashville. Memphis is where our trip will conclude with a visit to Graceland. It’ll be my second time, but I’m excited because now I can share it with someone special.

Once we land in Nashville, life is gonna move kinda fast. We’ll have to get to our hotel, check in… relax for about 30 minutes, then head on over to the Hotel where we’ll need to pick up our badges and credentials. Then from there we head over to the broadcast center to set up and attend an orientation.

Afterwards, the rest of the team, Scott and Tommy, will arrive. We’ll probably head out for a few drinks and dinner. Along the way of course we’ll meet up with some old and new friends in the business. Tomorrow’s blog will have all the details.

I'm Still Here!!!! Heading To Music City USA!!!!

2007-06-01T18:24:00.000-07:00

Boy it's been busy here at the Frog!!! The last couple of month's have been filled with concerts, Vegas and lots of sleepless nights!!!!!

Next week we head to Nashville for the CMA Music Fest (formerly Fan Fair). Can't wait!!! Mrs. Bullfrog will be coming, because at the end of the week we're gonna rent a car and drive to Memphis to visit Graceland!!!

I'll try to post updates while we're there... Until then see all the fun we've been having by checking out: THE FROGMEN PAGE or My MYSPACE PAGE!!!

I Met An Oscar Winner!!!

2007-01-25T20:35:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to one of the nicest people in showbiz!! Earnest Borgnine!! He just turned 90 and he's still great!!

About 10 years ago, my wife and I attended the taping of "The Single Guy", a sitcom starring Johnathon Silverman on CBS. We were guests of one of the co-stars of that show, the doorman, played by the one and only.... Earnest Borgnine!

He and Robert W. Morgan were buddies and he was a frequent guest of the show. I can't remember the exact details... but from what I can recall, Robert read a TV review about "The Single Guy", then a new sitcom, and the review said something like: "if the show fails it'll be because of Earnest Borgnine!" Robert was livid, he spent the entire show ripping apart this guys review.... got him on the phone and tore him a new one live on the air. He called Borgnine and told him about he review. It was great radio!!!

Shortly after that I wanted to attend a taping of the show. Ernest's assistant Jackie set us up to attend and we had a blast! After the taping of the show I introduced myself to him and told him I worked with Robert. He was pleased to hear about Robert defending him and called him a true friend.

One moment I recall during the taping of the show was during the filming of one scene, Ernie had a punchline that didn't grab the audiences laughter the way he wanted it... they wrote and re-wrote that line until it got the laugh it deserved! A true pro!

Now fast forward a few years later. About 3 years ago, I was in the midst of producing the USO Radiothon for K-Earth 101 and KNX 1070. I was lining up interviews with celebrities who were giving testimonials on why you should donate money to the USO. I decided to call Ernie's assistant to see if he would like to stop by the studio and lay something down for us. After going back and fourth, it was decided that the best thing to do was go to Ernie's house and record the interview!!! Wow!!

Gary Bryan a I drove down to this beautiful humble home south of the Blvd. in the Valley, where we set up shop in his living room. Ernest showed up, sat down and got to business. We only wanted to get a couple of lines from him but we ended up interviewing him for over a 1/2 an hour!! At one point we got to talk about him winning an Academy Award for his role in Marty! He pointed to his entertainment center and said, "there it is... what to hold it??"

It was heavy!!!! I was stoked and will never forget that day!

I was great to see him on TV the other day celebrating his 90th b-day.... he still looks and sounds the way he did ... still full of energy, and still a really nice man!

The Super Bowl Is Coming!!!

2007-01-25T19:27:00.000-08:00

Well since my Denver Broncos are not in the Super Bowl this year... Like we reallllllyyyyy had a chance!!! I could really care less about this years game!!

Who will I root for?? Well Indy has in the past ruined some key games for me and I've never really been a fan of them. Also, who wants to root for a team with a quarterback that's posing like this?? (Above Photo) JK!!

This year I took a trip to Chicago on business in August, just as football pre-season was getting started. I saw a lot of Bears stuff all over town. It was obvious that this town loves football. I like a city like that! So I guess I'll root for the Bears!! (see now they'll lose!!)

Now just for kicks... I had a little fun with photoshop today and wondered how Peyton Manning would look in the movie "Brokeback Mountain".

Here you go.......

Peyton's Holding Jake's Gun!!!

Merry Freakin' Christmas!!!

2006-12-18T17:19:00.000-08:00

HERE'S WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU AGREE TO DO A RADIO STUNT AROUND XMAS TIME.

Listeners were asked to stop by and decorate me as a Human Christmas Tree!! It was all for a good cause. You only got to decorate me if you brought by a new unwrapped toy for the Spark of Love Toy Drive!!!

See the lighting ceremony here!!!

Also, find out what happens when a fruitcake meets a 57' Chevy!!! HERE!

Happy Holidays!!!!

Now MySpacing!!!!

2006-11-28T18:10:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I cracked to the peer pressure!!! My wife is into it and decided to set me up with an account!! Check it out!!!
www.myspace.com/bullfrogradio

This And That

2006-10-19T21:06:00.000-07:00

Well quiet a bit has happened since my last entry. So I'll be brief.......

Thanks to everyone that have been checking out my blog! You never know who's gonna read this stuff until you get feedback. Recently I recieved an e-mail from an old friend in high school who came across my blog while doing a random search for something totally different! Amazing. If there's anyone else out there, don't be afraid to drop me a line..... you can reach me at jeremiahbullfrog@kfrog.net or recplayer@earthlink.net. You know who you are!!

We had a really cool experience the other weekend. Our show was invited to do stage introductions at the "Country Bash" concert at the Verizon Wireless Amplitheater in Irvine. It was a lot of fun, the country fans are great and Phil Vassar rocked! He invited us up on stage with him durning his rendetition of Billy Joel's "Piano Man". That was cool! "Country Bash" was put on anually by our Los Angeles competitor KZLA, who recently changed formats about 2 months ago.

Here's a Video of us being introduced: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6KDSe4aKg8

Remembering September 11th

2006-09-10T21:38:00.000-07:00

On the morning of September 11^th 2001, I was producing the “Jim and Joni” show at K-Earth 101 in Los Angeles. I showed up to work that morning one person and went home that day another. Here’s my story:

It was a very routine morning, I woke up, left my house in City Terrace (near East Los Angeles) around 3:30am to arrive at work in Culver City around 4am. We had a very typical show planned for the day, we had a scheduled phone call with Family Feud host Louie Anderson in the 7am hour and the rest of the show was already laid out. Our morning show office had a system of VCR’s that we set to record various TV programs that we can pull audio from. We changed out the tapes from the night before, and loaded the new ones for the morning news programs. My assistant producer Tim arrived at work and later Jim and Joni arrived at the station about 4:30 and we were ready to go at 5! The way the studios were laid out at K-Earth was simple. We had 4 main studios…. A-B-C and D. Studio A was the main broadcast studio, Studio B was a mirrored layout of A and used as a backup / commercial production studio, Studio C was an interview only studio… it only had microphones. Studio D was dedicated to production only. We ran our morning show out of Studio B and C because our PD wanted Jim and Joni in the room together. Tim ran the board out of Studio B and I was in Studio D doing production throughout the morning. All of these studios were side-by-side with windows looking into each one. At about 5:35am we did a segment called “The Joke Of The Day”. It ran as planned, and the rest of that day would change forever.

I was in Studio D, I’m not sure what I was working on at the time but I always made a habit of putting CNN on the TV in the studio. Jim and Joni usually had Channel 2 (CBS) on in their studio because at that time of the morning there was local news. I remember glancing up at the TV and seeing a stationary camera shot of the World Trade Center. I saw smoke coming out of it and the caption below said something like: “Small plane is reported to have hit the World Trade Center”. The first thought that went through my head was the story I read in history about a plane hitting the Empire State Building a long time ago and how it survived. I clicked the intercom and alerted Jim and Joni to look up at my TV. Honestly we really didn’t think anything of it at that moment. I told them I would keep my eye on it to see how big the plane was that hit it, because at the time CNN didn’t know. After about 5 to 10 minutes footage of the crash was starting to appear on all the network channels. We started to read wire reports that this was no small plane, but instead quite possibly a jumbo jet. I told Joni, our news person, that I’d help her track down the facts of the story, so no I was completely focused on the news. I was running back and fourth from the morning show office to the studio with new reports, some suggesting that a hijacked plane may be involved. It was starting to get a little exciting until…………

6:03am I walked into the morning show office… by now all of the channels were covering the burning tower. I, for some reason, decided to look up at the TV just when the 2^nd plane hit the other tower. I saw this huge explosion of fire and could hear the TV anchors speak out in horror of what they’ve just witnessed. “What the heck was that?” I remember one anchor saying. My jaw dropped and I went running full speed to the studio. I opened the door and said something like: “Another plane just hit the towers and I think this is a terrorist attack!! They both looked at me with a stunned expression. What do we do?? The wire services were going crazy. Next thing you know reports were coming in from all over. Lots of unconfirmed reports, I remember one saying something about the Capitol Building being hit. One report came in that mentioned that there was fire at the Pentagon. All this was happening real fast. I made the decision to call Mike Phillips, our PD and ask him for advice. I phoned him and he answered the phone like he had just woken up. “Mike, what do we do??” I asked. “About what?” he said. Oh my god, he had no idea what’s going on! I told him to turn on his TV. He was speechless! Let’s keep and eye on this and tell Jim and Joni to just keep the show simple until we could figure out what’s happening. I ran in and informed the guys what Mike had said.

I don’t know how much time went by but here’s what I can remember about what happened next.

I remember walking into the morning show office, my eyes were fixed to the TV. Jim was watching with me. The next thing I knew I saw what I first thought was another explosion. What the hell is that?? I remember not really thinking anything drastic at first…. The smoke grew larger and larger and the next thing I could make out is that one of the towers was gone!!! I jumped back on the phone with Mike and was direct when I told him that we needed to do something NOW!!! Get me KNX!! (our sister station) I needed to get some reliable sources on our air. One of our Engineers was there and was able to dial into KNX’s ISDN lines and we preceded to put KNX on our air. Mike instructed us to break in with station identifications and time checks. I was hanging out in Studio B with our board op Tim when I began to notice a crowd forming in Studio A. They were in the back of the studio watching news coverage on the TV. Before I knew it, there were more and more sale persons and staff crowing into that studio. We had other TVs in the building and I found it real strange that they all wanted to see the one in the studio.

I casually asked our engineer Lynn why everyone was still in there and he asked me out of the room and in to the hallway. He told me that I was not to tell anyone, but there was a bomb threat across the street at the Department Of Water and Power Sub-Station. He wanted the staff in that studio because it was furthest from the street and built like a bomb shelter. He told us to stay in the studios until they can figure out what to do. By then Mike our PD had arrived. Before I knew it we were being asked to evacuate the building. We put KNX up on the air and walked out of the rear exit of the building. We were taken to the grassy field out back where the KHJ-AM towers and transmitter building were located. Was this safe??? Confused co-workers were arriving to the station and were parking in the grassy field.

Our PD came up to Jim and I and asked us if we wanted to volunteer to go back in the building to continue broadcasting station id’s and updates. We went back in and stayed there for about 15 minutes. How strange, here we were, Jim and I sitting here and wondering what would happen if we heard an explosion. I joked with Jim that I wasn’t going to die listening to KNX. So I loaded “Sleepwalk” by Santo and Johnny and told Jim that the moment I hear a boom I’m pushing this button!!! The next thing that happened is the door opening and our chief engineer gave the order that Jim was to leave the building and that I could stay if I wanted to. I agreed to stay, but did ask for a hard hat and walkie talkie to communicate if anything was to happen. I called my wife and mom and told them what was going on. My wife was angry at me for staying behind but I told her that I needed to do this. My mom was crying on the phone and yelling at me to get out of there, but I reassured her that I was safe……. ( I didn’t really know if I was). After about 20 minutes being left by myself in the studio, I was given the order to evacuate the building. I joined the rest of the staff out back and before I knew it we were given the all clear to return to the building.

I remember wandering around the hall, I wanted to get out of there and get home. By then all air traffic was grounded and the Los Angeles skies were very quiet. I think it was about 2pm that I finally realized that I had nothing else to contribute, so I decided to go home. My trip home was eerie. The freeway was wide open and you couldn’t help but look up at the skyscrapers in downtown L.A. I was gripping my steering wheel the whole way home.

I learned a lot that day, I matured as a producer and matured as a human.

Rattlesnake In My Backyard!

2006-09-08T05:54:00.000-07:00

This Rattlesnake was lurking in my patio the other day!

Hangin’ With A Chicago Radio Legend!

2006-08-14T21:55:00.000-07:00

So last week I took a business trip to Chicago for this thing called “Morning Show Boot Camp”. For those of you that have never heard of this, here’s what it’s all about. Every year a bunch of Morning Show people from all over the country get together for a few days to share ideas, attend seminars, and do lots of “networking”.

What most of you don’t know is that for the last 8 months I’ve been on a new business venture with my past radio boss, Gary Bryan. Gary does mornings on a “Local” Los Angeles Radio station. I’ve been working with him on this new prep service called “Radio Genius”. What is this you ask?? A prep service is a company that provides daily content to radio stations across the country. For example, it’s kind of like a daily newsletter that contains everything you need to know for that day. Celebrity birthday’s, this day in history, the latest news and gossip and other hot topical stories of the day. Gary and I attended this event to do what we refer to in the biz as “networking”.

One of our partners in this new business venture is a friend of mine David Gilbert. David supplies audio content for our service and I used to work with him in Los Angeles. David is also a former resident and radio employee of the city of Chicago! He came with us. Dave used to work this radio guy named “Fred Winston.” Who is he?? Fred is to the city of Chicago what “Robert W. Morgan” was to the city of Los Angeles. He’s been on the air in Chi-Town for over 30 years! If you’ve seen Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, then you’ve heard his voice. He’s the opening DJ in the beginning of the movie when Ferris’s alarm clock goes off! Dave told Gary and I that he was trying to get Fred to join us for lunch one day while we were out there. Finally, he was able to make that happen.

It was Friday afternoon; we had just sponsored a tribute to another Chicago radio icon, Steve Dahl. He was the dude that blew up all those disco records at a White Sox game between a double-header. It went down in history as “Disco Demolition”. Afterwards the three of us hailed a cab to the Mother Goose Bar in Wrigleyville. That’s about one block away from Wrigley Field. We were expecting Fred to arrive any minute and proceeded to order a pitcher of beer. After about an hour of nursing our pitcher in walks Fred Winston. He had walked about a mile from his place along the shoreline to this bar and was ready to spend the afternoon with us! “Round of shots!” he yells. Gulp…. “Another one!!! And Another!!! Another pitcher of beer!!” The drinks just kept on comin’!! We shared radio stories and he and Gary seemed to hit it off real great.

At one point we were throwing names of a bunch of other radio legends around the table and the name Charlie Van Dyke came up. “I know him!!” Fred says. “We worked together in the 60’s and 70’s”. I proceeded to bust out my cell phone and it just so happens that I had Charlie’s number on me. Long story short, I worked with Charlie in Los Angeles as well and he was the minister at my wedding. He now lives in the Phoenix area working out a studio doing voiceovers for TV and Radio stations across the country. Well anyways, I called him up and passed the phone over to Fred. He played 20 questions with Charlie until he figured out who he was talking to…… wow another radio reunion!! These two haven’t talked for almost 25 years!

5 shots of tequila and 5 pitchers of beer later we headed out towards Wrigley Field. Wow what a sight!!! There’s a baseball stadium in the middle of a neighborhood!!! Nothing I’ve ever seen before! Fred wandered over to a bar named Yak-zees. It’s located in what would be considered the 3rd base side of the ballpark. Another 3 shots and 2 pitchers of beer later we were walking along Waveland Ave. This is the street in the outfield where all of the home runs land. How different this all looks in person. When we got behind the center field area there was another bar called Murphy’s. It’s on the corner of Waveland and Sheffield Ave. Everyone in that bar knew Fred. He was a regular. 2 more shots and a pitcher of beer later it was time to go!

We proceeded to walk towards the lake. It was about a ½ mile away. We stopped at this little hole in the wall bar and grill to re-hydrate ourselves before heading back to the convention.

Afterwards we finished our walk with Fred to his condo on Chicago’s “Lake Shore Drive”. He hailed us a cab…. We got in… and the rest is history! Wow!!!

Ladies and Gentlemen.... The Heat Goes On!!!!

2006-07-21T18:34:00.000-07:00

OK, I’ll be blunt!!! “It’s Freakin’ HOT!!!!!!!”

I moved to the Inland Empire about 4 years ago in a house that was built in the mid 80’s. Well…. The air conditioner that I have at home is the original unit. Every summer since we’ve been here its fizzled out in the worst of heat waves. Well we’re in another heat wave, and you guessed it, it’s fizzled out once again!!! I know…. What a wus right?? Well for those of you keeping score, I spend the majority of my day here at home. I work early hours and I’ll usually home around 1pm.

Try taking a nap in 110 degree heat! Today (Friday) I woke up in a puddle of sweat. I got so frustrated, that I got dressed and went to the Ontario Mills Mall just to cool off! I’m hoping to finally get this sorry air conditioner replaced! Until then… the sweat goes on!!!

My Vacation Timed Just Right For Launch!

2006-07-01T10:59:00.000-07:00

I'm totally stoked!! I'm on vacation, I have tivo, and the Space Shuttle Discovery is going into space!! So in case you haven't heard on the show, I'm a total space geek when it comes to the Space Shuttle. I guess it's because the first launch of the Shuttle "Columbia" occurred on my birthday on April 12, 1981! My tivo will be tuned to the NASA channel for the next week or so!

It's The Chocolate Chunk That'll Get You!!!

2006-06-27T05:58:00.000-07:00

Typical Friday night snack!!!

Beating The Inland Empire Heat, Just 30 Minutes Away!!

2006-06-25T17:22:00.000-07:00

So I woke up on Saturday morning dreading the weekend heat! Mrs. Bullfrog just ended her job and is startinga new one this Tuesday. I thought to myself.... "Now's the time to get away! Where do we go??" Lake Arrowhead!!!
We spent the weekend kickin' it in the beautiful mountain communities just north of us!

Summer's Coming: Night On The Town!

2006-06-12T19:04:00.000-07:00

Hey, thanks to everyone who's been coming by! Please visit often, I'll be sharing more memories of working with Legendary Boss Jock and Morning Man Robert W. Morgan!

But for now........

The Hometown Handshake Tour is winding down and preparations are now going on for our Hometown Handshake Tour Finale broadcast at “Corona Yamaha”. During the past couple of months we’ve been driving all over the Inland Empire, shaking hands and kissing babies! Unlike our last Handshake, this one was different. We’ve been towing this cool “Waverunner” with us to all our locations. While there, listeners signed up for a chance to win it! The winner will be drawn at our finale broadcast that will be held on the first official day of Summer, June 21st!

Let’s see what else is going on….. We’ll Mrs. Bullfrog and I went out on the town this past weekend. My wife’s cousin has a friend that graduated over the weekend and was hosting a party at one of Hollywood big night spots, “The Standard”. If you’ve ever seen it, either the one in Hollywood, or the one in Downtown L.A., the first thing you notice is the upside-down sign out front. Good attention getter. Our evening began earlier that afternoon when we were invited to lunch by my Radio Genius boss, Gary Bryan, at “Mel’s Drive In” on Sunset. Driving from the I.E. we had an hour and a half drive ahead of us. If you’ve never been, I highly recommend it. Cool 50’s/60’s style diner, juke box, and good burgers. After that we went to the famous “Tower Records” location on Sunset and Holloway. This is where some of the biggest musicians have done midnight record release parties. Now it was about 3:30pm. We had to meet for dinner at the House Of Blues on Sunset at 8pm. Well instead of driving all the way back home and all the back to Hollywood, we had planned ahead and packed our evening clothes with us and headed over to my parents house in the San Gabriel Valley.

We spent a couple of hours catching up on family gossip at my parents and before we knew it we were headed back to Hollywood…… ahem…. West Hollywood! We were joined by my wife’s sister at The Standard and we went down to the hotel’s diner to wait for their cousin and friend to arrive. While there we ordered a round of drinks and appetizers. Just a round!!! Total tab: $76!!!! WOW! Later her cousin and friend arrived and we headed over to the House Of Blues. It was only 2 blocks away but the ladies were wearing heels, so we drove. At the H.O.B. we were seated right away (I made reservations). The food was great. Not too pricey, no drinks… saving $$$$ for later in the evening.

We headed back over to the Standard where we then met up with my wife’s cousins friends. About 20 total. Her cousin knew one of the managers at the hotel and he had reserved an area at the night club just for us. No waiting in line!!! Once in the club we socialized, had some drinks, danced, and more socializing! We later went up to one of the rooms and hung out before heading back home. We ended up back at our place and in bed at about 4am!! ZZZZZZZ!!!!

Now the hard part was that the very next day we had been invited to Frogman Tommy’s son’s 4th birthday party at noon. That was rough….. We showed up, barley awake!

Bye for now.....

J.B.

"Good Morgan", Now Get Back To Work!

2006-06-06T19:39:00.000-07:00

Ok, here's the deal. The gentleman to the left is Robert W. Morgan. Who is he and why do I have him on my blog?? Let me tell you!

In the Spring of 1994 I was working at Pasadena's KPCC 89.3fm and attending Pasadena City College, taking a bunch of radio / communications courses. I had been at the KPCC for about 2 years and was getting the itch to move on to bigger things.

One day I noticed that one of my classmates had a "Intern Wanted" flyer on his desk. I peaked over and wrote down the phone number. I put the number in my pocket where it stayed for about 2 weeks (yeah, that's how long before I washed my pants!). I was afraid to call the number because it had been so long since I saw the flyer, plus I was turned down a year before to intern for Rick Dees at KIIS-FM. (He wanted pretty girls working for him!) I called and Mitch Lewis answered, he was the producer at the time. "I'm intrested in the intern possition, is there still an opening?" I asked. "Yes," says Mitch.... "When can you come in?" I told him "tomorrow"! "OK, I'll see you tomorrow, be here at 4:30am!" he said.

4:30AM!!!!!!!! My god! I'm a college student, plus I worked 6 to midnight at the college station! How was I going to get up for this??? Well I managed to drag my butt out of bed and before I knew it, I was pulling into the K-Earth 101 studios at 5901 Venice Blvd. Mitch came out and greeted me, he was huffing and puffin' walkin' real fast, all he said was "keep up with me, we walk fast around here!"

I was impressed by what I saw... this was really the first big time radio station I'd ever been in! After about 15 minutes of shadowing Mitch, he looked over at me and said... "Ok, you're going to meet Robert, be prepared, if he doesn't talk to you don't take it personally." Now I had NEVER seen this man, I knew nothing about Boss Radio, KHJ, Solid Gold, Magic 106, KMPC, and so on.... All I knew is that I came across him a few times while scanning radio on my way to college. I remembered who he was because he made all the callers say "Good Morgan".

I pictured him lookin' like a guy in his mid-40's dark hair, skinny and friendly. Oh no!! Was I in for a BIG surprise!!!! I walked into the smoke-filled morning show office (it was the only place in the building you could still smoke in!), and at this desk was a man, I couldn't see his face because he had the L.A. Times blocking it. Mitch says: "Robert, this is Brandon (yes my real name!), he's our new intern." The paper lowers, he looks up at me and says: "How old are you?" I said: "I'm twent...." He interupted me with a big "WHAT?" "I CAN'T HEAR YOU, SPEAK UP GOD DAMMIT!" I yelled: "I'm 21!" He yelled back: "I'm not deaf! Don't yell at me, I just hate it when young kids don't speak up! My daughter's 21, she'll be going to school!" The newspaper goes back up. Mitch looks at me and says: "that's it... let's go..."

I'll continue this story through time on this blog, please check back!

Long Time Listener, First Time "Donor"!!

2006-06-03T15:29:00.000-07:00

This week was the 7th Annual K-Frog Blood Drive for the Blood Banks of Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. We did a live broadcast from a hospital in Upland. I decided to donate blood live on the air! Oh did I mention, this was my first time??? Yes, after all these years, i've never donated blood. Why? I don't know. I guess I just never gave it much thought... the cause is great don't get me wrong, but I never made the effort to actualy go to a donor location and give! I know there's many out there that were like me. It's really not a bad experience at all.

First of all you fill out an application, answer about 50 medical questions about yourself, just so they're sure you're a safe donor. Afterwards you take an Iron test, this is the part that freaked my out more than anything. They "prick" the tip of your middle finger (ouch!!!, but only for 2 seconds does it hurt!) they squeeze a little drop out and drop it in a liquid. If it sinks you're good to go....

Now you lay down on a bed, a nurse cleans your arm, puts a blood pressure cuff on you and now you're ready to donate! They insert a needle... no worries you don't feel anything but a slight pinch and before you know it, the pain is gone! After about a minute of hooking up the hoses... you're ready to pump!!! Pump??? Yes, they give you a soft ball-like toy to squeeze. The squeezing helps the blood flow out quicker. Now the average donor takes about 7 to 8 minutes to fill up a donor bag... me..... 4 minutes!!!!!

When your done the take the tube out and bandage you up, and tah dah!!! You're done!!! Now for the coolest part, for the next 10 minutes you sit at the recovery table that's loaded with every snack and cookies known to man!!! Chow Down!!! I felt soooo good afterwards knowing that someone will be using my blood to save a life!

ACM's In Vegas BABY!

2006-06-01T20:21:00.001-07:00

Well last week I went to Sin City to work the Academy Of Country Music Awards. The trip was paid for by Westwood One, but since we live nearby, they made us drive to Vegas in our own cars! Oh Well! I guess if you consider the time it takes to go to the airport, check in, fly, land, deplane, wait for luggage, wait for taxi, check in to room, it easier just to drive!!

While there we were required to interview a ton of country stars! Here's how it works. We get up early to do our regular 5 to 9am show to the Inland Empire, then at 10am the stars begin to arrive. Now, we're in this conference room with about 35 other radio stations from across the country. Each artist gets escorted around the room to various stations. When they stop at our table, we get exactly 5 minutes with them.... that includes the interview, picture taking, and autographs. They get escorted away and before you know it, another artists is brought in! This goes on for 4 hours!!

Scott and Tommy left on Tuesday after a second round of interviews. That left me to attend the actual awards show on my own. I had a blast! It's amazing how they put on a live national broadcast for the East Coast. They treat it just like you're watching TV. You're get to watch a video feed while the show is going on... even the commercials!!!!

It was the coolest! Afterwards I was invited to attend an after party thrown by Capitol Records. It was an amazing experience! There was a lot of record star power in this room. I couldn't believe I was there! I finally turned in at about 4:30am!! I set a wake up call at 6:30am so I would be able to call in to K-Frog to give a recap of the show. I don't even remember making that call. Later when I returned to the radio station I listened to my mummbling self back on tape!! WOW I was out of it!!!

Finally A New Update - Trip To The DMV!

2006-04-19T19:52:00.000-07:00

Finally I actually have time to post a new updated blog!!! Things have been pretty busy here in radio land. We've just kicked off our "Hometown Handshake Tour!" It's that time of year to take the morning show on the road to all the local communities in the Inland Empire area and beyond!

My 33rd birthday was last week. Do I feel older? No. That probably won't happen until I turn 35 or 40. One important thing that I had to take care of before my birthday was to renew my drivers license. I had my old license since 1999! Going to the DMV was quite the adventure. First of all, let me remind you that everyday I get up at 3am!! I get to work at 4am, and usually leave around Noonish. By 2pm it's nap time! Around 4pm I wake up and start working at home on show prep for the next days show. So with that in mind, let me run Monday, April 10th by you.

It was 2 days before my birthday. I knew I needed to get my license renewed before Wednesday the 12th. But before I could do that, I needed to take care of a traffic ticket I received from one of those red light cameras!!!! $300 that I didn't have at the time. Well after work I came home and took care of the ticket online. I called the court to see if my license was clear, so that when I went to renew it, I wouldn't have any problems. They told me "yes" I was clear and there "shouldn't be a problem." Well that wasn't good enough for me. I was paranoid that something wasn't going to be right, so I sacrificed my nap and headed for the nearest DMV..... without an appointment!!

I get the Norco DMV around 2pm (remember, that's nap time!). First I had to stand in a line for 1/2 an hour just so I can tell some dude why I was there! Then he gave me an application to fill out, then he gave me a number and told me to be seated and wait for my number to be called. The running matrix board was scrolling avg. wait times. Non-Appointments: 40 - 50 minutes!!!! My number was finally called and I proceeded to the window. I gave the woman my old license and new application. She looked up and said: "Are you wearing contacts?" Oh my.... I forgot!! I got laser surgery!!! I told her I don't need glasses anymore and she seemed non-impressed. "Cover your right eye and read the letters on the board sir..." Perfect.... "Now cover your left eye and read the letters...." Perfect again! She removed the "corrected lenses required" off my license. NICE!!! So she finally gave me my temporary license and told me to head over to the photo window to take a new picture. Remember, I'm supposed to be napping!!! My eyes are red, my hair is not combed right, I'm not dressed for a picture, and my mind was beginning to get sleepy. (you know the feeling)

So now I head over the photo window.. another line! I get up to take my photo, stand behind the line, look forward, the goofy guy taking the photo says: "Are you camera shy or something??" I glanced up at him cracked and goofy smile and then "FLASH - CLICK" PHOTO TAKEN!!! The result: The UGLIEST PHOTO I'VE EVER TAKEN!!!!

Hollywierd!

2006-03-06T20:06:00.000-08:00

Well, another year, another Oscars! Did you watch? I did. I didn't want to, but I had to for work purposes. Jon Stewart I thought did an good job hosting. I kinda figure that if you've never seen his show before, you probably didn't get his material. It's kinda like seeing Dennis Miller for the first time. I enjoyed the opening, it was pretty cleaver. I was surprised to see Letterman, he always makes fun of the fact that he blew as Oscar host in the 90's.

I saw some of the Red Carpet show's. I was watching Joan and Melissa on the TV Guide Channel and during Joan's opening monologue, she was bleeped at various times. I could sort of make out what she was saying and some of her content was questionable. I guess now a days the networks are sensitive to anything that might trigger a fine. Then I switched over to E! to see of Isaac Mazerahi (spelling) was going to grab any breasts! He behaved. Oh well maybe next year!

Less Than Super Sunday!

2006-02-06T20:28:00.000-08:00

What a drag! Probably the most boring super bowl I've ever watched in history! Two teams I could care less about..... I've always hated the Steelers, and that was enforced even more when they knocked off my Broncos. And then there's Seattle.... What else is there to say? I guess I was sort of rooting for the Seahawks. My wife and I spent week down there a few years ago. Lovely town!

Now for the commercials! OMG! What the hell is so funny about a Godzilla-like monster getting pregnant with a metal robot?? Everyone at the Super Bowl party I was at just had that stunned "what the hell" look on their faces.

The "Awe... how cute moment" came when that Budweiser spot with the pony pulling the beer cart played. Obviously the ads this year were geared more towards the female audience. The one I liked that won over most of America was the revolving fridge spot from "Bud Light". Love the stoner dudes on the other side. Reminded me of some old high school friends.

I think the most "effective" selling of the product ad that aired was the "Gillette" razor ads. Not Funny... they weren't supposed to be. Instead they actually talked about their product.

All in all I couldn't wait for the game to be over!

Bye for now.....

JB

The State Of American Idol

2006-01-31T21:12:00.000-08:00

TV burn-out! Just sat thru the President's State Of The Union Speech and American Idol! Do you think the president will ever come on and say: "Ladies and gentlemen, the state of our union is..... well it sucks!!" I THINK NOT! I want my 52 minutes back! I like watching the speech for various entertainment reasons. First of all, it cracks me up to see grown men and women play the "clap for my guy - don't clap for my guy" routine. The President will say something.... only one half of the chamber applauds..... please!! Ever notice the VP and Speaker of the House dudes behind the President? I swear they almost doze off about 10 times during the whole thing! By the way... he did say "New-Cler"!

Then came American Idol afterwards...... I saw the funniest rendition of "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix A Lot.... Some HUGE large rumped woman from S.F. was singing it and slappin' her BIG booty! LOL LOL LOL!!!!

Anyways...... My eyes have now settled down from the surgery I had last week. Everything is a o.k.!

Check back soon!!

Dr. My Eyes!

2006-01-26T19:57:00.000-08:00

We'll it's Thursday night and I'm all done with work. Today was a little tough for my new eyes. I had to take a couple of Tylenol. I was out all day yesterday and I think the lack of rest made my eyes real sensitive. After a nice loooonnnggg nap this afternoon everything feels much better.

I'm watching Access Hollywood right now... Paris Hilton is singing.... what the hell??? I guess all you need is $$$$$ and you can do anything... right???

I kinda bummed out that my wife and I can't attend the K-Frog Poker Run event in Glamis this weekend. Dr.'s tell me that I might get blowing sand in my eyes... not a good idea. Anyway, next weekend in Super Bowl Sunday! Football and guacamole! Yumm!

I Can See Clearly Now........

2006-01-25T08:18:00.000-08:00

Well it's Tuesday and I CAN SEE!!! I went in for Laser Eye Surgery yesterday and WOW what an experience! I woke up this morning and without thinking about it, reached for my glasses that were no longer there! My eyes feel a little funky right now.... kind of like how they feel when you've been swimming all day... or like a bad allergy. I highly recommend this to anyone with glasses!

Last Night With The Specs!

2006-01-23T20:35:00.000-08:00

Monday night...... no more football.... Watching "King Of Queens". Probably won't make it to 9pm. Missed out on my daily nap today. I guess I'm full of excitement because tomorrow I'm going in for Laser Eye Surgery! Finally! I've been trying to do this for, it seems like, forever!

I was remembering the first time I got my glasses. I has just graduated from 8th grade... I was blind as a bat! I remember seeing a lawn sprinkler for the first time.... I could see all the water droplets! Amazing...... I could see airplanes..... raindrops.... blades of grass. The TV looked weird at first. It was hard to focus because now I could see the actual "screen". The first movie I saw with glasses was "Ferris Bueller's Day Off". My aunt rented on VHS. I think I'm going to go out and buy the DVD version and watch it just for kicks!

I bought my first pair of sunglasses today in preparation for the surgery. The only pair I have are prescription. The last pair I had were the old Carls Jr. sunglasses they were selling in the summer of 1988! Remember those?

I'll let you know how the surgery goes!

Zap!

Sunday Sucked! Well At Least This One Did!!

2006-01-22T15:33:00.000-08:00

Oh well, I guess we'll do it next year!!! So I sat at home watching the Steelers lay into my Broncos. Had a couple of ham sandwiches in the first half.... Needed a antacid by the 3rd quarter! Of course I got a couple of calls from relatives and co-workers to harass me.... I was prepared! No worries, I'm just glad my boys had a great season! Tomorrow should be interesting....

It's Finally Friday!

2006-01-20T13:29:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone it's Jeremiah Bullfrog! Hope all is well! It was a busy week at work and now the weekend is here! I'm awaiting the BIG game Sunday... BRONCOS BABY!!!