Guitars & Radio & Wild Wild Women

        Chapter III                                            Lost in the Fifties

The fifties were a great time to grow up, the post-war economy was booming, kids had money for the very first time, and of course, Mr. Businessman wanted that money. He started out by renaming us “Teenagers” then began to manufacture us some special clothing, make our kind of movies, and finally record some music that we liked. It was while doing homework one

evening that once again I heard that strange music I’d heard a year earlier at my friend Barry’s house. This time though, it was coming out of the radio.

One two three o’clockfour o’clock rock.

Five six seven o’clockeight o’clock rock

 “Rock Around The Clock” being played on the radio that day had started the evolution of music, things would never be the same again. Before long you started hearing pop acts on the radio like the Crew Cuts, The 4 Lads, and the Diamonds being mixed into the syrupy sweet sound of what used to be. I later discovered that most of this new music were only watered down versions of even a bigger sound that lay ahead.When the school year ended we moved into a brand new home in a suburb called Transcona and that shy quiet guy who loved baseball and scouting was left far behind. Unfortunately, my Dad, being the jack of all trades that he was, had bought the stripped down version of our new home and I became his reluctant assistant as we brought it up to speed. We built a garage, a bedroom in the basement, put in a concrete driveway, sidewalks, a fence, and sodded the front and back yard. It was during our building years that I guess he felt compelled to repeat the

house rules over and over to me. Don’t bring the police to our door, don’t ever tarnish the family name, and stay away from the bad girls. I understood the first two, but the staying away from the bad girls was ludicrous. If you stayed away from the bad girls, how the hell were you supposed to get lucky? According to my Dad, all crime began after midnight so to keep me from temptation he initiated a midnight curfew.

The only break I ever got from all of our construction work, was when my Dad was suffering for a few days from, what we now know, to be Depression.  On those days, I’d wander over to the nearby park hoping to play a little ball with someone. It was during one of these searches that I met the guy who turned me on to music, Peter Proskurnik. On this day though, I was just at the park to play baseball which Peter said he would do after he practiced his accordion. I remember thinking, accordion, why would anyone want to play the accordion? A short time later while throwing the ball around, he asked if I’d like to go to Teen Canteen? When I asked what Teen Canteen was, he said it was a dance. The only dances I knew about played polkas or square dances which I certainly wasn’t interested in. However, since he

played some ball with me, I decided to go.

When we arrived at the East End Community Club, the midnight sun was still high in the sky, so when the door closed behind us, we were thrust into total darkness. We must have looked just like a couple of blind guys who’d lost their canes as we groped our way down the narrow hallway towards the dim light ahead.Upon entering the dance hall, suddenly, I no longer cared anymore about seeing, what I cared about was the thunderous sound blasting out of the huge Hi-Fi speakers. The raw sexuality pouring out of them and into my soul was making it very difficult for me to breathe.I spent the whole night frozen in place in front of those speakers listening to the likes of Jimmy Reed, Fats Domino, Big Joe Turner,

Little Richard, Tiny Bradshaw, Little Willie John, and Wynonie Harris. At some point, Pete must have sent some girl over to ask me to dance. I remember thinking, “Hell, I don’t wanna dance, I just want to make other people dance, and I wanna do it for the rest of my life.”

Chapter VIII and IX Strat Me Up

Bought me a “Strat.”and put it in tune

Started singing with the “Devines.”the next afternoon.

Became “Shayne and The Rebel Raiders.”a real rockin’ band

But when we morphed to the Phantomswe had  a lot more fans

Elvis was the one who turned me on to guitars, but Buddy Holly played the one I wanted. Lowe’s Music told me that it was called a Fender Stratocaster and said that

they could have one for me in about two weeks. Man, I wanted that guitar, but it cost $473.00 where the hell was a kid like me gonna come up with that kinda dough? Lowe’s saved the day by putting me on their $14 a month payment plan. (I just ignored how long that would take to pay

off)  That purchase turned out to be one of my better investments in the music business. Knowing that you should rid yourself of anything you haven’t used in six months, I realized that I hadn’t even seen my guitar for over ten years let alone played it. Time to move on. Randy Bachman (The Guess Who & BTO) had been after my guitar for years, so I sold it to him.

While putting the deal together, Randy mentioned that Neil Young had recently told him, “George had one of the first cool guitars in Winnipeg.” The value of a ’58 “Strat” is all over the place, so we settled on a price somewhere in the middle. Unfortunately, Randy is now pissed at me because he didn’t realize that in 1965 I refurbished it, which he claims diminishes the value. I guess like a car you should also never sell a guitar to a friend.Be that as it may, let’s get back to the day the music store called and said,  ” Your Stratocaster is in.” When I arrived at Lowe’s, I immediately strapped it on and staring back at me from the mirror was a rock star. I bought a couple of guitar books and then spent hours and hours down in my room trying to learn a few chords. I realized soon enough that dreaming about becoming a “guitar man” was sure a lot more fun than learning to be one. So far, all I had to show for my efforts, were bleeding fingers.Out of the blue one day, I received a surprise call from Shayne inviting me to join his group. Within weeks of becoming one of the Divines, I’m already on stage. We’d entered a talent show where we came in third and were also booked for an upcoming car club dance. Even though I still couldn’t play the guitar, I

instantly became a professional musician when we were paid us for our appearance.I was unplugged for the start of my musical career as I was when it ended some 30 years later. That though is another chapter for another story..

“Please Forget Her”was still on the charts.

When my baby girl Candisgrabbed hold of my heart.

Time to grow upand be a man

But I still sorta miss being a kid in a rock&roll band.

Getting ready to hit the road, the postman dropped off a box of our first release, “Until You Do.” We had to go right by CKY on our

way out of town, so I dropped off a few for Jimmy Darin and the rest of the KY Good Guys. With Winnipeg in our rear view mirror, we heard Jim say, “Ladies and gentleman, a KY exclusive, Until You Do by The Jury.” We almost blew the speakers out of the car radio when we cranked it up and sang along.There’s no way to describe the feeling you get when hear your record on the radio for the first time, other than to say that it may be better than sex. I would venture a guess that even the biggest stars in the world can tell you what they were doing when they first heard theirs.I used to sit in my room for hours practicing my guitar and dreaming about that moment. I mistakenly thought that when you had a record out; you became a member of a very exclusive club. Your only problems were trying to figure out what you were gonna buy next. Unfortunately, dreams and reality have

very little in common. It was while doing a short tour with Ral Donner, Troy Shondel, and Ernie Maresca that I began to realize that the music world had a tier system. It was while sitting around Ral’s room having a beer after our last show when I realized that recording stars weren’t all equal.Ral was telling us how excited he was about seeing Bobby Darin at the “Copa” the next night in Chicago. I could tell that Ral didn’t think that he was in Bobby Darin’s league just as Bobby probably didn’t think he was in Sinatra’s.After thinking about this for years, I may have finally figured the system out. Imagine if you will, a pyramid-like structure seven stories highLevel 7– This is the top floor and where all the legends are, Sinatra, Elvis, The Beatles, The Stones, Michael Jackson, Elton John, etc.

Level 6–   Is where the “Hall of Famers” reside, Neil Young, Rod Stewart, Johnny Cash, Dion, Roy Orbison, Ray Charles, Eric Clapton, Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis, the Beach Boys, Chicago, and Bobby Darin, to name only a few. Perhaps by now though, Neil Young may have moved up to the rare air of level 7.Level 5– Hanging out here are, The Guess Who, BTO, Freddy Cannon, Tommy Roe, Bobby Vee, Bruno Mars, The Moody Blues, Ral Donner, Del Shannon, Maroon 5, and a bunch of others who have all had several hits.Level 4– This where you find the local groups who have released a few records but haven’t gone national yet, The Devrons, The Galaxies, The Jury, The Quid, The Shondells, Sugar & Spice, The 5th and others.Level 3– This is the floor of hopefuls; you know, the acts who deserve to be signed but aren’t.Level 2– This is the place where all the folks who have just learned to play Louie Louie or whatever the entry level tune is today hang out. They, of course, are thinking about starting a band.Level 1– On the very first level, you have all your dreamers. These are the kids who are thinking about buying a guitar and becoming

a rock & roll star just as I had many years before after seeing Elvis on TV for the first time.The reality of the situation is that you better be doing it for the love of music. The money doesn’t even start to show up until you get to at least the 5th floor.

After releasing “Until You Do,” we knew that the checks wouldn’t show up right away, but surely Dick Clark would be calling soon to ask us to appear on American Bandstand. While waiting, we went back into the studio and cut “I Tried To Tell Her,” hoping it would move us one step closer to stardom.Unfortunately, the only thing rising faster than our records on the charts were our expenses. And oh yeah, where the f**k was the call from Dick Clark?  When “I Tried To Tell Her” slipped off the charts, we went back into the studio and recorded “Back In My World.” However, the only thing that was growing was our frustration. Ok, let’s give it one last big push.  We booked Kay-Bank studios in Minneapolis and changed record

companies. We were hoping by signing with a smaller label; maybe they’d have more time to promote us.Out of our Kay- Bank session came “Please Forget Her” which I’m proud to say went on to become the #1 Canadian record in Canada. The flip side, “Who Dat?” ended up being a cult favorite, and was recently listed in a publication as being 50 years ahead of its time. I also saw it on E-Bay the other day for $125.00 and am now wondering, what the hell did with the box of them I used to have. Would you like the Canadian or American version of that sir? ( click on the picture below)

until you get to at least the 5th floor.

After releasing “Until You Do,” we knew that the checks wouldn’t show up right away, but surely Dick Clark would be calling soon to ask us to appear on American Bandstand. While waiting, we went back into the studio and cut

“I Tried To Tell Her,” hoping it would move us one step closer to stardom.Unfortunately, the only thing rising faster than our records on the charts were our expenses. And oh yeah, where the f**k was the call from Dick Clark?  When “I Tried To Tell Her” slipped off the charts, we went back into the studio and recorded “Back In My World.” However, the only thing that was growing was our frustration. Ok, let’s give it one last big push.  We booked Kay-Bank studios in Minneapolis and changed record companies. We were hoping by signing with a smaller label; maybe they’d have more time to promote us.Out of our Kay- Bank session came “Please Forget Her” which I’m proud to say went on to become the #1 Canadian record in Canada. The flip side, “Who Dat?” ended up being a cult favorite, and was recently listed in a publication as being 50 years ahead of its time. I also saw it on E-Bay the other day for $125.00 and am now wondering, what the hell did with the box of them I used to have. Would you like the Canadian or American version of that sir? ( click on the picture below)

Trust me you have to read the rest of this :Click here to read the entire story :http://georgejohns.com/the-blog/guitars-radio-wild-wild-

woman-inside-the-world-of-radio-records-chapter-xii-and-xiii-so-you-wanna-be-a-rock-roll-star-edited-june-1017/

Packed up my familyand headed to Saskatoon

Promised them allwe'd be back real soon.

Knew upon arrivalI'd need my own team

If this move was ever gonnakick start my dream.

When my daughter Candis was born, it put me through some major changes. Even though we had records out, deep down I knew that I wasn't a good enough musician to support a family. So when Bill Grogan (pictured above center) offered me the music director's job at CKY, I left the Jury.Leaving the Jury was no easy matter, it meant giving up on the dream that Rolly Blacquiere and I had dreamt when we were kids. Surprisingly, when Randy

Bachman heard that I'd left the Jury, he tried to recruit me for the Guess Who. When I told Randy that I wasn't near good enough to play with them, he stated, "I can teach you the music. It's all that other stuff you do that The Guess Who needs." I told him that I was very flattered by his call, but I'd made my decision to give radio a shot.Luckily, I turned out to be a hell of a lot better at radio than I ever was at playing guitar. The only drawback about giving up the band for radio was that all the Americans left. Now, radio wasn't as much fun as it used to be, but it still beat working for a living. The only good times we had were when John Wells and I would go up to Chan's Moon Room to drink somebody goodbye. These going away parties were always fun, and I loved flirting with Embree McDermid. Em was

neither a wild woman nor a "bad girl," but she

definitely was a MILF.One day I received a surprise phone call from my old boss Jim Hilliard. (pictured above with Barb) He was the new program director of WFIL and wanted me to jump on a plane and come to Philly and talk to him. What he wanted to discuss was the possibility of me moving to Philadelphia to produce promos for him as I did at CKY.After filling out all the necessary paperwork, we then jumped into his bright red Caddy convertible and headed for dinner with his wife, Barbara. When we arrived at Bookbinders, the joint was just jumpin' with lawyers. They, of course, were all wearing their official uniforms. You know, navy blue pin-striped suits with matching vests, yellow striped power ties, and of course the regulatory red suspenders. They were no

match for our table though. Jim was wearing a maroon colored Nehru suit with a huge gold medallion dangling from his neck. Barb was decked out in what can best be described as a toga which was snow white and trimmed in gold. On her feet were white Roman sandals with straps that crisscrossed their way up to her knees. The fancy baubles that she had on her fingers were all gold as were the bracelets that snaked their way from her wrists to her elbows. Her long golden hair was piled high on her head and crowned with a gold tiara.We spent a lot of time catching up on all that had transpired since we last hung out in Winnipeg which included the fact that Lana was now pregnant. At some point during dinner, I began to notice that we were being stared at, when I mentioned it to Jim he said, "they're just pissed 'cause I make more money than them."

I was very excited about maybe joining Jim in Philly, but unfortunately, we soon found out that unlike today, you can't just wander across the border. What you needed back then was a work permit and the way you got one of those was by starting out

in the back of a very long line. When my name went on that immigration list, I was a board op in Winnipeg, and Jim was a program director in Philly. By the time I was notified that my name had finally risen to the top of the list, Jim was the CEO of a radio group out of Indy, and I was a station manager in Toronto.Meanwhile, back at CKY, I was growing more and more restless with each passing day. Realizing that rising to the top of that list was going to take some time, and not knowing what to do about it, fate intervened. One day I just happened to overhear George Dawes (pictured above) telling someone on the phone, thanks but no thanks. When I queried him about the phone call, he said that CKOM in Saskatoon was looking for a Program Director. When I mentioned to him that I was interested in becoming a program director, he called them back for me. The next thing I knew I was on an airplane bound for Saskatoon where I became their new Program Director. As exciting as this all was to me, I do have to admit that it did have a little hair on it. I was taking the first grandchild away from the doting grandparents, my wife Lana wasn't excited, and I knew nothing about programming.

 Chapter XIV

We, Gotta, Get Outta This Place

My first radio hirewas a hippie named Gar

He helped me a lotas we gathered our stars

 

Sebastian & Woodywere part of our gang

When we added Ron Doc & Alfiewe came on with a bang

The thing about Saskatoon was that it was even colder than Winnipeg. I spent my first two days there hunkered down in a motel room with the heater blasting full time. Management wanted me to monitor the station all week then come in to meet the staff and discuss my findings. After just two days, I was nearly crazed. I didn't know much, but I knew enough to

know that what they were doing would never work.They started off each day with easy listening music until a piano player showed up at nine to play some sing-along tunes. At 10:00 they switched to Country which was followed by CHR at 4:00. During the evening they went back to easy listening music again and then did some talk. As I said, I knew none of this would ever work so into the station I went.After meeting most of the staff, I sat down with my immediate boss to go over my notes. He was quite surprised that I was there so I explained that I didn't want to listen anymore because I was fearful of what I may hear. I started off our session by telling him what I thought we immediately needed to rip off the air. About halfway down my list, I noticed that all I heard was crickets. When I looked up, my boss was sitting there red-faced and trembling with anger. That's when I realized; I was talking to the guy who put all that s*it on the air. 

That meeting cost me at least six months of my life. Now he took everything I had to say under advisement and would ask other people what they thought. Needing to regroup, and because production was my first love, I decided to fix the sound of the station's production first. The station was also short an announcer, so based on J Robert Wood's recommendation; I hired Gary Russell. (pictured above with me) When Gar arrived on the scene, he only had one question, "What the f**k is this?" 

Management loved our new production sound so much that they gave me a raise. When I tried telling them that fixing production wouldn't be enough to improve the ratings, they just waved me off. Sure enough, when the ratings come out, they're a disaster. Management panics and now all they want to know is how long it would take me to completely change the sound.The owner it seems was returning from his winter home in Palm Springs soon. They wanted to be able to say, yes the ratings are terrible, but as you can hear we're no longer doing that.

The definition of luck supposedly is when preparation meets opportunity. Gar and I had been hoping for this moment for a long time, so we were totally prepared. We already had most of the replacement staff lined up and Gary, who was familiar with CKLW, had our format clock ready to go. We kept Ken Sebastian Singer from the old crew, brought in Keith Elshaw from Toronto, Doc Harris came in from Vancouver, Ron Andrews from Regina, and Woody Cooper from Omaha. We only got a talent like Woody because he preferred the freezing cold of Saskatoon to the torrid heat of Nam.Everything fell into place quickly, not only was the sound completely different when the owner got back;

we also launched in time for the new rating period.

Even though our new format scared the shit out of the sales staff, we knew that we were attracting new fans and one of them was Joni Mitchell. (pictured above) Joni, who is a native of Saskatoon, was back in town for a short visit. When she heard us launch our new format, she and a companion came by to give us her new album. What a great lady, not only did she explain what the tunes on her album were all about, she did it while we taped an interview with her. During a break in the taping, Joni finally introduced us to her friend, Graham Nash of the Hollies. Graham told us that he'd just popped into Saskatoon to visit with Joni before heading to LA to form a new group called Crosby Stills & Nash. (pictured below)

When the ratings came out, they were killer. We zoomed way up to # 2 in the morning but everywhere else we were #1. Everything was beautiful, or so I thought until the owner popped into my office to ask if I was ready for the big meeting. I just laughed and said that I didn't need much prep for a celebration meeting. He shocked me by saying that this meeting was anything but a celebration. He claimed that the sales department was getting a lot of resistance to our new format, so they wanted to return to some of their old ways.Now, I'm really in shock, but before I panic, I call my mentor Jim Hilliard. Jim advises me, "Go into the attack mode." Knowing that I'm about to rain hell down on everybody, I call my wife to warn her. Instead of panicking, she tells me to do whatever I have to do because if worse comes to worse, we could always live with her folks.It's easy for a man to be strong and brave when his family is backing him. When I walked into that conference room, I was walkin' tall and loaded for

bear. Strangely, even though I'd arrived a few minutes early, everyone was already seated. Things started out cordial enough; the GM began the meeting by congratulating me on our great showing in the rating book. However, when he got to the part about our having a few problems with it, I stood up and interrupted him. I said, you're right you do have a few problems, and most of them are sitting right here in this room. Somebody should have expected that there'd be some resistance to our new sound and should have come up with a plan on how to overcome it. We should be out on the street showing our clients how to take advantage of all our new listeners. Instead, it looks to me like our sales department was caught flat-footed. For some reason, they weren't aware of the all the buzz we were creating in town. Now we are more than just buzz; we also have statistical justification proving we're right. "Not only does the format sound good I said, we're also #1. So if you want the old ways brought back, I can assure you that I won't be the one doing it." With that, I walked out.

Chapter XX

The Future Is Now

Toronto was the citywhere it started

We made a little magicwhich I took when we parted 

Still surprised that I’m going to be the new program director of CFTR, Lana and I head to Toronto to house hunt. While there, Ted Rogers graciously invited us to his home for Sunday brunch. When the taxi dropped us off in front of a beautiful old mansion, and we were greeted at the door by a butler, I remember thinking, this is sure a long way from Transcona Toto.Just before brunch, Ted proudly showed me a

rare tube which was enclosed in a beautiful glass case. Ted informed me that this tube, that allowed radios to be plugged into an electrical outlet, was invented by his father, E.S. Rogers. (shown above on the box containing his invention) While admiring the display, he said, “George, what you’re looking at is the past. After brunch, I’m going to show you the future.”Once done eating, Ted led me to the den where he turned on the TV and sat me down in front of it. He then handed me an 11″ x  6″ brown plastic box containing three rows of beige buttons which he instructed me to push. Damn, every time I clicked on one of them, a different channel would pop up. Ted explained, “What you’re watching George is called Cable TV. In the not too distant future, this will be the way that most of us will watch TV.” Once we were done and he asked what I thought, I told him that it was mind boggling. However, I told him, couldn’t help but notice that every fourth button had the same programming. “That’s your problem, Ted said, you’re the programmer; I’m just an engineer.” 

 

Chapter XXVII & XXVIII "BIG D little a

Hung out with Chapmanat KVIL

We made a little magicand gave 'em all hell.

Kay-Ville used to bethe best in the nation.

But now she'sjust another radio station.

I was hired at Fairbanks Broadcasting mostly because when Jim Hilliard paid a million eight for KVIL in Dallas, he no longer would have time to do it all. Later, CBS would pay 85 million for it which less than it was worth, but soon they'd have worth much less. Today,

they'd be lucky to get stick value for it.During my second week at Fairbanks Broadcasting, Jim and I made an unofficial visit to Dallas to meet a couple of the KVIL folks off the record. We were met at Love Field by GM Bob Hana who upon hearing that I'd never been to Dallas before, said, "Then let's get this out of the way."

The next thing I know we were in Dealey Plaza where he was directing my attention to a window in the book depository. This same window was the one where Lee Harvey Oswald took that horrifying shot heard around the world. Next, he pointed out to me the famous grassy knoll which over the years has fueled hundreds and hundred of conspiracy theories. Once done with that Bob then said, "Ok were done with the bad news George, but if you look across the street, you'll see the good news." Out there walking on their lunch break were the most gorgeous women that I'd ever seen in one place at one time. In fact, they all looked like Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders, and I could hardly wait to design the perfect radio station especially for them.The next morning Bob and his program Director Ron Chapman, who was also the station's morning man, met us at for breakfast. Ron recalled that breakfast meeting, some forty years later, at the KVIL reunion. He remembered thinking at the time; this quiet Canadian is going to be our ratings savior?

Recently, I had the honor of inducting Ron into his third " Hall of Fame, " and while having a nightcap at the lobby bar, we reminisced about KVIL. We'd worked together there for quite a few years, and Ron claimed that he still remembered the day I changed his whole career.He recalled our walking down the hall together at KVIL where he was explaining why he didn't allow a phone in the studio. Ron felt that it only distracted the air talent which was followed by complete silence from me for an uncomfortable period of time. Finally, I said, "Ron, we're doing a bunch of new stuff now, you may want a phone in there if only to hear what the folks are thinking." Ron said a phone went in the

studio the very next day which he spent the rest of his career answering.

Over the years, a lot of people, have taken a lot of credit, for KVIL's success. At our 40'th reunion, when I asked Jack Schell if he could to point these geniuses out to me, he claimed they were too busy parking cars outside. The truth is that no one person was responsible for KVIL. It took a lot of very special people to take it from $35,000 a month in billing to the two million dollar mark where Dave Spence and Jerry Bobo had it when Mr. Fairbanks sold the station. Mr. F told me that the only reason he had sold it was because the bubble was going to burst. The bubble did burst, albeit, some 20 years later.

We did a very soft opening when we launched KVIL. Jim Hilliard was waiting for Arbitron to combine the Dallas/Ft Worth rating books before turning the heat up. He knew that when they were finally combined, it would move the market into the top 10. Our problem was, the FCC had already approved the sale of the station, so now we had to operate it. It is often said that necessity is the mother of invention, so with that in mind, we came up with a stalling technique called "build your own radio station." We began with the special blend of music that I'd devised in Toronto along with some outstanding Heller Jingles.The produced promos dramatically claimed that 103.7 on the FM dial had just been turned over to the people

of Texas and we were all standing by to do their bidding. When the folks called in and said that they loved the music but needed to know what the time was now and then, we gave them Ron Chapman. When they got up each morning and wondered if the world was still out there, we put Bob Morrison and Andy McCollum together to assure them that all was well. When they worried about getting to work on time, we put Suzie Humphreys up in a jet chopper to keep an eye on the traffic. If they looked out the window and saw what looked like a bad storm approaching, we got Color Radar so we could better figure it out. When they wondered about how the Cowboys had done on Sunday, we had the Mayor of Dallas, Wes Wise, standing by with all the scores.When we added the good Mayor to Ron's show, we also threw up a billboard or two promoting the fact. One of these billboards caused a little controversy when it made its way onto the front page of The Dallas Morning News with a headline that read "Mayor Moonlights On KVIL." For some reason, this above the fold colored photo of our billboard, which read "Wise with Ron," upset all the other radio stations.

As I mentioned, we were trying to stall as long as we could before attacking the market. When Arbitron finally combined the rating books, we went on a promotional rampage which caught all the other radio stations with their pants down. We began with non-stop contests where we gave away huge prizes like trips around the world, diamonds from Tiffany's, and a

ton of cash. Hell one listener even won a brand new car every year for the rest of her life.However, the biggest promotion KVIL ever did, didn't cost us a cent. One day, on the air, Ron  just said, "If you've got an extra twenty, could you send it to me?" Within in a couple of days, he received well over a quarter million dollars, and it was still rolling in. When Ron began begging them to stop, because he didn't even know what he was going to do with the money, the story went viral.It was featured in most of the big publications like "People" and on national TV shows like "Entertainment Tonight."

We didn't just contest at KVIL; we also did major promotions like having Ron Chapman and Mike Seldon race each other around the world. The way it worked was, one headed east and the other west, and to prove that they really made it to places like Paris, London, and Rome, they had to bring back something unique from that city. Next, we lowered Ron into a tank with seven sharks when people were even afraid to go in their pools because of the movie "Jaws." Then after jumping out of a perfectly good airplane, Ron described what his first ever parachute jump felt like as he floated down to the TV cameras waiting below. 

Oh yeah, and from the "You Can't Lose For Winning" files, KVIL was challenged to a tug-a-war across the Trinity River by the city's big TV news team. Our staff,

when they arrived, were all fired up for what they assumed was yet another of our many victories, and I was surprised that they weren't wearing war paint. Just before the start of the big event, Ron gathered the staff around and handed out white sweatshirts with huge call letters on them and said, "We lose!" Waiting for the moaning and groaning to subside, he explained, if we win, I doubt it'll make the news, but if we're smart and lose, I guarantee it will. Later that night, I really enjoyed watching the staff being slowly dragged through the mud as they lost, but we made both newscasts. 

Oh, did I forget to mention that KVIL was also responsible for choosing which lovely ladies got to try out for the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders back when they were bigger than the "Cowboys?"

Besides Ron Chapman, we had a lot of other gifted characters like Bill Gardner who won Billboard's personality of the year during our first year of operation. Or how about Major Tom Lewis, who I believe was the first to go #1

at KVIL. Tom, when he became a big time weather dude in DC and filled in on the "Today" show, was replaced by the wild man, Cat Simon. Speaking of weather, our mid-day guy Jack Schell delivered the best weathercast I've ever heard.  "Look at that sky," he said, "Cecil B DeMille would pay a million dollars for it, but you've got it free right here in Dallas." Mike Selden was our boogie maniac in afternoons until our talented "looker" Larry Dixon replaced him along with Billy Bob Harris was doing Texas-style stock updates from his pickup. When Suzie Humphreys became fearful of flying after becoming pregnant we put Ben Laurie in the KVILowcopter and moved Suzie to the van. Suzie knew where the superstars were staying so the next thing you knew Willie would be singing "On The Road Again" on Ron's show from the van.The result of all this mayhem and madness is that I'm now very proud to say that most of KVIL's original staff who are pictured below are deservedly in the Texas Radio Hall Of Fame. Below that is what they

sounded like in their first year of operation.

https://youtu.be/o0fEinNcAPs 

 Chapter XXXII United We Stand edited July/17

It was a bunch of yearsago today

They brought the bandsback home to play.

 

Bachman Cummings & Youngdid a set

Which was a momentI'll soon not forget.

Where oh wherehave all the years gone

Let's bring 'em backwith some Jury songs.

Some twenty years after leaving the Jury to begin my radio career, I found myself winging my way back home to Winnipeg for a band reunion. Rock author, John Einarson had written a book called "Shakin All Over, " and now they were reuniting all the bands that he wrote about. The concert, which was completely sold out, was going to be held at the Winnipeg Convention Center and broadcasted on TV. Who would have dreamed that a bunch of kids from Winnipeg would be good enough to have records out let alone become worldwide stars?Not only hadn't I seen the guys from my band in twenty years, but I also hadn't touched my guitar. The only reason I was even going to the reunion was to hang out with the guys. The amazing part was that we were all still alive which was not so true of the younger bands. It is said that life is measured by its breathless moments. As my plane began its descent into Winnipeg, I realized that I had more than my fair share of them with The Jury. When asked, by the more than stiff customs officials, What is the purpose of your visit?" I replied, "I'm back home for the big band reunion." They responded by breaking into a huge grin and said, "Welcome home Mr. Johns, the whole town is buzzed about the show." After dumping my stuff at the hotel, I headed out to Transcona to pick up my old friend Rolly Blaquiere. Rolly, it turned out, wasn't at all excited about the

reunion. I guess there'd been a few incidents after I'd left the band and the scars hadn't completely healed yet. When Rolly and I arrived at the Convention Center, he wandered off to see other band guys and I tracked down Terry, Bruce, and Ray. They presented me with a special satin band jacket which was a total surprise and very cool.

Rolly, it turned out, had a much better time than he had anticipated. The other band guys remembered him being a legendary party guy back in the day and were excited to see him again. The backstage area was like a scene from a rock movie, Neil Young was hugging his old band mates from the Squires, Randy Bachman was chatting with Chad Allen about the early days of the Guess who, and Burton Cummings was laughing it up with his old band the Devrons.

When I finally got to meet John Einarson, whose book had inspired the reunion, he told me that he'd actually bought our first record so he could learn to play Terry's guitar intro.Later that night, I was blown away, when Bachman Turner Cummings & Young did a 20-minute version of "American Woman. " You haven't lived until you've seen Randy Bachman and Neil Young trading guitar licks with each other. When it came time for the Jury's appearance, I got as close to the stage as possible to offer them some moral support and maybe even some cheers. All of a sudden, from out of nowhere, Randy and Burton strapped a guitar on me and pushed me onto the stage. Then, they yelled, "It's not really the Jury if George Johns ain't with them."Can you imagine how horrifying this was to me? I was standing on the stage, in front of a sold-out crowd, with a bunch of TV cameras pointed at me, holding a guitar that I hadn't played in 20 years. The rest of the guys just laughed when I told the stage hand that if he valued his life, he would make sure that I was unplugged.  As frightened as I was, it became even more frightening when I heard, "Ladies and Gentlemen, let's give it up for The Jury."  (see below)

When Terry kicked into "Until You Do," the years just melted away, and just like that it all came back. Mark Knopfler had it right when he sang, "Guitar George knows all the chords," 'cause I sure did that night. As I walked off the stage, I remember thinking how appropriate this all was. I was unplugged when I began my musical career some 30 years earlier, and now it had just ended the same way. Perfect!

Born and educated in Winnipeg, Manitoba - Canada

  THE 60's

Guitar - Shayne and The DevinesBand Leader & Guitar - The Rebel Raiders

Band Leader & Guitar - The PhantomsBand Leader & Guitar - The Jury

The Jury released four singles..."Until You Do"

"I Tried To Tell Her"

"Back In My World""Please Forget Her" b/w "Who Dat?"

Began Radio Career...Board Op - CKY Winnipeg

Music Director - CKY WinnipegProgram Director - CKOM Saskatoon

Program Director - CKSO AM/FM Sudbury

  THE 70's

Program Director - CFRA OttawaProgram Director - CFTR TorontoStation Manager - CFTR Toronto

Moved to and became a citizen of the United StatesV/P of Programming - Fairbanks Broadcasting...

Stations included:WIBC/WNAP Indianapolis

F-105 BostonWKOX FraminghamWIBG Philadelphia

WRMF/WJNO Palm BeachKVIL FM & AM Dallas

Studied with Mike Vance Dean of Walt Disney University

  THE 80's

Formed The Johns Company which consulted Radio Stations in the US and Canada.

Merged The Johns Company with Fairwest.Syndicated:

Continuous CountryMusic Of Your LifeThe "Class" format

Radio Station Ownership:KLLS San Antonio

K103 PortlandWZPL Indianapolis

WMET ChicagoSTAR Milwaukee

THE 90's - TODAY

Radio ConsultantTalent Coach

Weekly Blog: GeorgeJohns.com

Writing three books:Guitars & Radio & Wild Wild Women.

50 Ways To Keep Your Lover101 Lifelines

HIGHLIGHTS / MUSIC

The Jury's "Please Forget Her" became the #1 Canadian record in Canada. The flip side, "Who Dat?"

became a cult favorite and was recently listed in a publication as being 50 years ahead of its time.

Opened for music legends, Roy Orbison and Johnny Cash plus early British Invasion acts, Peter & Gordon,

Manfred Mann, and The Zombies

HIGHLIGHTS / RADIO

Owned and operated several radio stationsCreated and launched the first ever Adult

Contemporary music format at CFTR in Toronto in April 1972

Launched America's first ever AC station on KVIL in Dallas

Created and syndicated the "Magic Ticket" which was a sales/programming promotion

Co-Created "Fantasy Park"Created and launched North America's first "Class

FM" station on KLLS San AntonioSyndicated "Class" on over 40 radio stations in the US

and Canada.Put "Music Of Your Life" up on satellite

Co-created and launched WKLB, Boston's first Country station

Email radiogeo@gmail.com. On Twitter @GeoOfTheRadio.