Dave Hovel Named SVP of Programming for iHM Salisbury-Ocean City. Programming and on-air pro
Dave Hovel is the new SVP of programming for
iHeartMedia's Salisbury, Maryland station group that includes country WWFG "Froggy 99.9," adult contemporary WQHQ "Q-105," CHR WKZP "Kiss 95.9," urban contemporary
WSBY "Magic 98.9," news/talk WJDY "Newsradio 1470AM," and sports talk WTGM "Fox Sports 960AM." During his career, Hovel has served with
West Virginia Radio Corp's country WICL, Williamsport, Maryland;
CBS RADIO Baltimore; and
Delmarva's country WXCY, Wilmington. iHeartMedia markets group area president
Chris Walus comments, "Dave has an extraordinary record of success in leading media operations, developing formats and coaching top-level personalities. This, coupled with his remarkable skill for driving breakthrough revenue growth set Dave apart from the pack. The Salisbury team is excited and eager for Dave to start."
Who the Heck Is Marvin Robert Klopfenstein? He's one of the most seasoned and storied radio professionals in the business – better known throughout the industry as
Bob K – and he's this week's guest on the
PodcastOne award-winning hit series, "Up Close and Far Out with
Michael Harrison." Today, the former (self-described) "nerd" from Chino, California – who took accordion lessons, owned a ventriloquist dummy, had a pet duck and pushed around an AV cart in high school – maintains a relatively modest profile as the owner/operator of the Boston-based production company,
Bob K Sound & Recording. But back in the day, he programmed and/or managed some of the most important music and talk stations in the nation (KABC, KOA, KFWB, WIND, KING, KOB, KMPC, WBZ and more) and coached some of the biggest-name talent (
Jerry Williams,
Larry Glick,
Tom
Leykis,
Doug Stephan and the legendary
Alan Berg to name a handful). The conversation between Harrison and Klopfenstein is a radio geek's delight! They talk about Bob K's experience serving as the radio consultant on the successful, multi-Emmy Award-winning "Frasier" television sitcom back in the 1990s – and is still playing to huge audiences on
Netflix. It starred
Kelsey Grammer as the pompous Seattle radio psychiatrist
Dr. Frasier Crane. One of the many assets that made "Frasier" one of the best TV shows of all time was its atypically accurate depiction of the radio station, studio and employees – due in large part to then-KABC program manager Bob K's expertise and participation in designing the set and coaching the actors. Fans of the classic TV series will love this podcast. Harrison and Klopfenstein also talk about the late Alan Berg (whom Bob K hired at KOA), the liberal/Jewish personality murdered in cold blood by anti-Semitic, white supremacists in 1984, who inspired the
Eric Bogosian/
Oliver Stone play and film, "Talk Radio." To listen to the podcast in its entirety, please click
here or click on the "Up Close and Far Out" player box located in the right-hand column of every page of Talkers.com and RadioInfo.com.
