KFI (640 AM) morning man Bill Handel is back on the air following heart surgery in mid-March.
Handel took some time off for the March 17 procedure to replace an aortic valve - during which time Bill Carroll filled in while the rest of the Handel crew maintained their posts. The surgery was described by his wife, Marjorie, as "textbook perfect."
Less than two weeks after the surgery, Handel was back on the air on a part-time basis, broadcasting from a studio described on a KFI Facebook page as being in "a secret, undisclosed, covert location."
My understanding is that the studio is in Handel's house. Regardless, though he is still broadcasting from his kitchen, he's back on for the full duration of his shift. An amazing feat, if you ask me.
Handel is one of Southern California's most popular morning show hosts and has dominated the talk scene for years. Obviously, much of it has to do with Handel himself, but the rest of the crew - Gary Hoffman, Rich Marotta and Michelle Cube - are an amazing team and in perfect harmony with each other.
Even when I try to avoid talk radio, I always end up going back. I guess it's an addiction.
A break from J and K
It sure was nice hearing Armstrong and Getty in place of John and Ken on April 7 and 8.
Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty normally broadcast to the San Francisco and Stockton areas, but they filled in last week when John and Ken were off for two
days.Why was it nice?
While I have long been a fan of John Kobylt and Ken Chiampou, their shtick is getting tiresome. Focusing on one issue - bashing unions as the solution to what ails California - has burnt their show.
They need to get back to reading the full newspaper for their preshow research as they did in the past.
Retro apps
In last week's column I discussed some of the different HD radios, as one way to hear the oldies and standards that were once heard on KGIL (1260 AM).
This week I want to mention another alternative: your smartphone or iPod touch.
Numerous apps are available for smartphones such as the iPhone and the iPod Touch, including one, StreamS, which I reviewed here last month. Eventually, station owner Mount Wilson Broadcasters will release its own app for the iPhone, but right now StreamS works pretty darned well.
In fact, if you have a way to connect it to your car stereo - and a data plan that won't drain your bank account while you drive - in my opinion it is the best option.
Not only does it sound great, you can play it anywhere - on your home stereo, in your car, through headphones and, as was done when much of the music was new, through the built-in speaker as if you were holding a transistor radio.
More retro
Near a computer?
Go to www.retro105.com and click the "listen now" box. A player will open and your favorite music will stream out of the speakers, sounding better than it ever did on KGIL itself.
Richard Wagoner is a freelance writer based in San Pedro. Send questions to him via email at rwagoner@cox.net.
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