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The best radio station ever that lasted only 72 hours, what it feels like to lose $12 million in a week, Woman on Top, and more.
By Tim Rogers |

The 72-Hour Radio Station

Even in the turbulent, topsy-turvy radio business, Cafe 990’s three-day run had to set a record.

KATIE PRUETT WAS SO EXCITED about her new job. The
program director of KCAF-AM 990 (Cafe 990) was set to put her station
on the air in about a week,
and, sitting in her 16th-floor corner office overlooking Central
Expressway, she was describing how she had screamed and dropped the
phone when she’d learned the gig was hers. Pruett had worked on the
Dallas airwaves for more than 10 years, on KRLD-AM 1080 and on KYNG-FM
105.3, back when it was Young Country. But a female program director in
a top market? Nearly unheard of. And for an innovative format, no less.
Talk radio for women. Just one other station in the whole country was
doing it, way up in Minnesota.

Now only minor details remained. What to do with the
turntable labeled “Ron Chapman Memorial Record Player” (left behind by
the former tenants, KVIL-FM 103.7)? How to tell her all-female air
staff that this weekend they’d be coming up to paint the studios?

If it wasn’t such a sad story, it would be funny.
Cafe 990 did launch on Monday, October 21. But it sank two days
later—making it what has to be the shortest-lived format ever in
Dallas-Fort Worth radio.

“It was really something,” Pruett says, having just
packed up her office. “I keep finding myself saying that. But I
honestly have to say, except for the ending, I wouldn’t change a
thing.”

Basically, Cafe 990 ran out of money before it ever
got off the ground. Dave Schum, who owns the Corner Tap bar and s the
president of Renaissance Radio, the station’s parent company, says his
bridge financing fell through about two weeks before Cafe 990 went on
the air. He says his New Jersey-based financing outfit proved less
savvy about the radio business than it claimed to be. When the lender
learned that Schum’s FCC license was up for renewal in just two years,
it decided to back out of the deal. But, as Schum is quick to point
out, FCC licenses come up for renewal on a regular basis and are only
rarely declined.

“We should have never launched the station,” says
Schum, who wrangled for more than five years with the FCC to get his
frequency on the air in Dallas in the first place. “It just never
should have happened. When you’re lining up the dominoes like this, and
one doesn’t fall right, it wrecks everything beyond that.”

When the staff learned, just one day into the
station’s existence, that the owner had run out of funding two weeks
ago, they threatened to quit unless Cafe 990 was sold to a new owner.
Renaissance’s CEO, Scott Savage, put together an offer in 24 hours, but
Schum called the price “ridiculously low,” and Renaissance’s 30
full-time employees walked.

Katie Pruett says she had a hard time leaving. On
her last day, she learned that her old office was actually Ron
Chapman’s old office. “I mean, I was sitting in Ron Chapman’s office,” Pruett says. “There was a lot of crying and a lot of hugging. It was like the last episode of M*A*S*H.”—Tim Rogers

Photo by Mark Mahan


TXU and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Week

OVER A PERIOD OF SEVEN DAYS IN
early October,
TXU’s stock plummeted from $40 a share to about $14, as the company was
forced to restate its earnings. It would get worse (at press time, the
price hovered above $12). In the middle of it all, with his personal
TXU holdings down about $12 million, ERLE NYE, the chairman and CEO, took time to talk to D Magazine.

“Losing $12 million is the least of my worries. You
know, I never had it anyway. I mean, it’s just paper. I’ve been at this
a long time, and I’ve been successful. I’ve accumulated a little bit of
money. And I have security. And everybody’s healthy. I’ve got six
grandchildren. So my life’s pretty good.

“My concern is for this company. I guess, if you get
philosophical about it, beyond my family, my country, my church—some
would say my university [A&M], but I don’t think that’s right—this
company is real important to me. When we do well, I feel really good
about it. I’m proud. And when we do poorly, I take it personally.

“My days have been a little longer. I’m not able to
return all my calls. It’s surprising how many people out there really
care. I had one fellow call. He’s got two little twin granddaughters.
And he said, ’The twins are for you. I bought them stock.’ And, you
know, all that makes you feel very good. Now, I’ve had a few calls from
shareholders that are unhappy. I can understand why they’re unhappy.

“But I guess I’ve gotten over the mourning period.
And I’m about getting this thing fixed and getting it resolved and
getting us back to a premium position in the market, which we’ve always
enjoyed.”—T.R.

    __________________________________________

Woman on Top

BONNIE-JILL LAFLIN can’t be trusted. She’s the kind
of girl who would rather watch football with the boys than go shopping.
You can’t trust her because her first name is hyphenated and she’s
about to buy a house in Valley Ranch. Because she has cheered for the
San Francisco 49ers, the Dallas Cowboys, and the Golden State
Warriors. Because she owns a Super Bowl ring and three NBA championship
rings (from working in the Lakers’ front office, no less). Because
she’s the official spokesmodel for Coors. And because she has posed for
men’s mag FHM in a very unladylike pose! Laflin recently taped
a few segments for Fox Sports that might air during the network’s Super
Bowl broadcast. “I read the sports page every day,” Laflin says. “Guys
don’t believe it, but then they quiz me and find out I know what I’m
talking about. Come on, I’m just like one of the guys.” Exactly why she can’t be trusted.—Kristie Ramirez

Photo by Mark Daughn 


The Fifth Dixie Chick

Robin Macy left the band before the fame and fortune. But she has no hard feelings.

TEACHERS
GIVE US LESSONS THAT GO far beyond the classroom. For instance, not
only did my seventh-grade math teacher at St. Mark’s Robin Macy teach
me how to solve for x, but she also taught me how to keep a positive
outlook if my friends go on without me to win several Grammys, make
millions of dollars, and become one of the biggest country bands ever.

Robin Macy was one of the four original members of
the Dixie Chicks when the band formed in the late ’80s with sisters
Emily and Martie Erwin and singer Laura Lynch (later replaced by
Natalie Maines). Macy sang and played guitar on the Chicks’ Thank Heaven for Dale Evans and Little Ol’ Cowgirl
but left the band in 1992 for artistic differences—really. She wanted
the Chicks to stick to their bluegrass roots, while the rest of the
ladies wanted to go more young country, more marketable. All of which sounds a bit ironic, given that the Chicks’ most recent release, Home, features a whole lot of banjo and fiddle. In other words, the Chicks have returned to their bluegrass roots.

But Macy says she has no regrets. She now lives in a
small town in Kansas and still teaches to pay the bills. She plays in a
band called Big Twang, doing bluegrass festivals here and there. And
VH1 still hounds her to do a Behind the Music on the Dixie Chicks. She’s not interested. —Adam McGill

The Dallas Symphony Gets Down and Dirty to Balance its Budget

WHEN TELEMARKETERS CALL, I PASS THE phone to my
3-year-old son. The caller eventually tires of hearing about his yellow
racecar and hangs up.

But the other evening during dinner, a woman
representing the Dallas Symphony Orchestra listened to my son for five
minutes before asking, again, if Mommy and Daddy were interested in
buying more tickets, possibly a whole concert package. My wife and I
had attended the symphony a few days earlier, and the DSO was looking
to turn onetime customers into full-time subscribers.

Like other orchestras across the country, the DSO
has been hit hard by the stock market’s effect on donations and its
endowment. In 2001, the operating budget came up $850,000 short, even
though attendance numbers are basically flat. Mirroring national
trends, season subscriptions are down, while single-ticket sales are
up. With subscriptions, orchestras can anticipate annual costs, but
individual sales put more guesswork into the budget.

As a result, the DSO is avoiding productions that
require overtime and extra musicians. Similarly, it’s staying away from
some pieces that carry higher royalties. And it’s tweaking its
marketing strategy, even if that means bugging people during dinner.

“I’m actually delighted you got the call,” says Fred
Bronstein, who became the symphony’s president in July. “What better
time to get a call from the organization than right after you’ve been?
Telemarketing works. I just consider it being very proactive.” —T.R.

U.S. symphonies with some of the biggest deficits

DeficitSymphony
$1.3 millionPhiladelphia Orchestra
$1.3 millionCleveland Orchestra
$850,000Dallas Symphony Orchestra
$719,000Seattle Symphony

 

 

ETC.

The New Gossip

Most flagrant case of disrespect to Magnum P.I.:
Mavericks coach Don Nelson returned from the summer break sporting Tom Selleck’s manful mustache.

Clearest violation of a billionaire’s privacy, which will likely lead to a threat against our twig and/or berries:
So far as we know, no one has yet reported that Mark Cuban threw a wedding reception for himself and his blushing bride, Tiffany Stewart,
on October 18 at the American Airlines Center. So we’re reporting it,
right here. About 500 or so of the couple’s friends turned out. Musical
entertainment was provided by—ahem—Sammy Hagar.

Best new line of products for the Dallas Police Department:
“People no longer have to have an ’in’ with their dealer to get a fix. Soapfiend is moving its products into a retail store near you. Watch as eager people clamor to get their Fix, Dope, Smack, Rock, Chronic, Junk, Buzz, or Blow. Soapfiend lures in professional men and women with the promise to Stay Clean.”
—from a press release for Dallas-based Soapfiend, a line of bath products launched by Dina Light and Sarah Symns

Strangest obsession with a seasoning:
At NoCilantro.com, you can learn why Dallas copywriter Wayne Geyer thinks cilantro is a “deeply rooted and ultimately destructive trend in our society.”

Least penetrable name for a new magazine:
In October, we told you about the imminent launch of Dallas-based Lucky Trucker,
a national magazine focusing on the culture of the SUV and described as
“a fusion of man, road, and style.” Well, its editor was fired, and the
concept has been retooled. The new title, slated to launch this month,
is M3—which stands for “man, machine, and more.”

Shocking Statement

“We’re gradually going out of business.”
—American Airlines CEO DON CARTY, speaking about the entire airline industry, while in Washington asking the government for emergency funding

THE LIST

Kimberly Borelli
Mary Ceverha
Candy Brown
Candace Krause
Leigh Olson
Connie Sanford
Louise Sude
Virginia Jackson
Nancy Campbell
Amy Wheeler
Elizabeth Hosch
Yolanda Nolan
Karen Rodman
Amanda Wacker
Maria Martineau
Donna Tartar
James Langford
Fulton Murray
Betty Plumlee
Will Hartnett
Steve Reinemund
Gilbert Andres
Paul Tomaso
Peggy Anschutz
Alicia Tisdale
Vicki Gunning
Sue Pickens

QUESTION & ANSWER

TOM SUMMERS is handsome. In fact, Cosmoplitan
magazine named him the Hottest Hunk in Texas in its November issue. The
30-year-old lives in Deep Ellum and recently opened a Genghis
Grill franchise in Las Colinas. Ladies, take note: Summers told Cosmo that he likes foot rubs.

D Magazine: Were you at all insulted when Cosmo named you the Hottest Honky in Texas?

Tom Summers: Insulted? Ah, no. You know. Intrigued? Yes.

We keep an eye on the American Idol so you don’t have to.*

This month: The Kelly Index!

22.8 million Viewers of the two-hour American Idol finale on September 4

58 Percent of call-in votes Kelly received to win

$2.13 Hourly wage (plus tips) that Kelly earned while waitressing at Hyena’s Comedy Club

$1 million Value of the RCA Records contract she won

1 Number of marriage proposals Kelly received while appearing on Live with Regis and Kelly

50-1 Odds Vegas bookmaker Benjamin Eckstein gave Kelly to win a Grammy Award

12 Number of reporters with a byline on the September 23 Us Weekly cover story about Kelly

*For those who missed the news becuase they
have a lofe or at least a job and errands to run: Kelly Clarkson
hails from right here in Burleson. And she won the American Idol TV talent search. 

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