Howard Monroe And The Morning Show

Seperated at birth?

2 fat men with grey beards who can't dance.

One is a small market talk show host and one is a mega-millionaire.

But were Howard Monroe and Steve Wozniak seperated at birth? You be the judge.

 

 

Mail call

                          

They start gathering around 10 each morning. The residents of Windsor Manor, where Broadcast House is located. And they sit and wait. I'm sure they gossip a bit...maybe even chat about the guy who runs the radio station upstairs. But mainly they wait. For the one big moment of the day: Mail Call.

They MADE me dance!

The wedding is over. My oldest son Jason is now half of Mr. and Mrs. Jason Monroe. Natalie was beautiful. Jason made me proud. Yes, I teared up a couple of times--I'm just a softie at heart. Every parent wonders it: when did they grow up? Wasn't it just last week I was making up bedtime stories?

So far this week.....

Getting ready for my oldest son's wedding on Saturday. Haven't been updating as often as I should this week. But let me catch up on some of the local news I want to talk about.

Friday

After all the flap over AIG bonuses, you would think big companies would get the message, but at Citigroup, they are planning a $10Million make over of the bosses office.

He managed a couple of jokes, some serious conversation and at least one gaffe that has the conservative talk hosts all-twitter. It was Obama on Leno.

As always on Friday, we were travelling with Bill Bryson from Uniglobe Ohio Valley Travel.

Remember to catch me on WLTV-Comcast Cable Chanel 14 this weekend for our weekly show At Issue:The Week In Review. Wheeling newspaper Managing Editor John McCabe and I, along with former federal prosecutor Bill Kolibash, kick around the big stories in our Valley. First showing is always 5:30pm on Friday with repeats throughout the week. Check the logo/link in the right-hand column if you would like to watch on-line.

Thursday

Thursday is food day! My friends from Ye Olde Alpha were in, as always. We had some "Duck Drummies"--duck dumsticks in a sweet/sour sauce. Yum-O (as Rachel Ray would say)! I love duck. Soup of the Day today was "Guiness". 3 seperate soups made by the Alpha cooks based on Guiness. A stew, a black bean, and a cheese soup. All good. My vote is for the stew. And our beer of the day was a giant can of something called "Camo Black Ice". Mark Thomas found it in a convenience store on his travels. A sip. Then we poured it down the drain. Yuch. Thursdays are my favorite day :)

Can't get away from the AIG bonus controversy. Outrage continues, but I sense some of the anger is turning away from the corporate execs and turning towards Congress and the Administration. We've been in this bail-out game for months. Why aren't we getting control of these things?

Marshall County deputy says he found pubic hair in his hamburger. Kids who were working at the fast food restaurant apprently have confessed. Investigation continues. What I find most interesting is how many people commenting on the newspaper and TV websites find this funny, or even laudable.

Wednesday

Fascinating conversation today with Pittsburgh author Cathy Day. She gave us some interesting behind-the-scenes info on book "branding". Her love-story-combined-with-the-Super-Bowl novel was originally titled "Super Bowl Ring". But the publishers said women won't read books with sports themes in the title, so it was renamed "Comeback Season: How I Learned to Play The Game of Love". Titles, covers, and more all are carefully planned to reach a specific audience.

AIG outrage remains strong. Several callers say they worry about the precedent set if Congress would go thru with a plan for a punitive tax on of the execs who take their bonus--if they can target those guys, who might they target next--but no one likes to see the people who drove a company into financial ruin getting $Million-dollar plus bonuses, expecialy when it's paid with OUR money!

Reaction continues to roll in about the new BOB NEY RADIO Show starting April 13th. I spent the day with the former Congressman yesterday as we worked on plans for the program and I can tell you he has some tremendous guests lined up, a range of topics that will amaze you, and stories to tell that will mesmerize you. In addition to the national political scene, Ney will be focusing a lot of talk on the politics and policies coming from Ohio's Statehouse in Columbus. This is going to be gooooooood.

Tuesday

It's bad enough that big oil companies continue to watch their profits rise to record levels while the impact of energy prices rips through the economy, but the insult to that injury has been the continuing tax breaks and federal giveaways those big boys get. President Obama's budget plans to cut them out. Bob Furnas, a research associate from the Center for American Progress joined us to explain it.

Statewide Talkline host Hoppy Kercheval was with us to kick around a couple of items pending in Charleston. There are a lot of "talkradio issues" this year--the Barbie ban, drug testing for unemployment benefits--stories we kick around on shows like mine, but don't really mean much in the end. But one issue of substance is a proposed change in the unemployment compensation law.

Monday

After Sunday News Register columnist Al Molnar broke the story of former Congressman Bob Ney joining the WVLY team, we had lots of calls and reactions. Almost all of it was very positive. A few folks feel Ney abused the trust of his office in the Jack Abramof scandal, but the overwhelming majority of calls think Ney will bring a fresh and interesting perspective to talk radio.

West Virginia State Senator and Senate Judiciary Chair, Jeff Kessler, was with us to update the legislature at the halfway point of the Session. One bill getting Kessler's support puts more money into community health programs.

An interesting turn of talk when we chatted with one of our DC reporters. Victoria Jones gave a glimpse into her ealier years when she flirted with being a witch....casting spells, making potions. Says it's not something  she's still  involved in, but we had a fascinating chat about spirits, spells, and the supernatural. You never know where a conversation will take you.

All those in favor say "NEY"......

When Bill O'Reilley announced he was ending his radio show, I promised we would replace him with something truly exciting.

So, mark your calendars for April 13th, when WVLY debuts the "Bob Ney Radio Show".

At one time, Ney was named the 11th most powerful man on Capital Hill. He ended his career called the "poster boy for the culture of corruption" in the wake of the Jack Abramoff scandal. Ney was the only member of Congress to go to federal prison in the scandal and a lot of folks think he was just an easy scapegoat.

I've been a personal friend of Bob's for a long time. I am eagerly awaiting his new radio show. He is personable and smart. Has tremendous knowledge and contacts. This won't be another radio show with a host who offers un-informed opinions. This will be the voice of a man who has been at the center of power--and also behind bars.

I expect there will be controversy. A lot of folks feel Ney is a villain (read the comments section below News Register columnist Al Molnar's story about the new Ney Show) and will no doubt be eager to confront him on his radio show. That will be part of the excitment surrounding this new program.

Bob will--initially--air from 1-3pm, right after Dr. Scott Shalaway and Talk of the Town.