For some of you, this blog post is going to feel like it’s coming a few weeks late. But I’m also well aware that many of you have not seen the new Quentin Tarantino film, “Once Upon A Time….In Hollywood.”
It’s the story of a handful of days in the life of a collection of Hollywood characters set back in the 1960s. But the movie’s soundtrack – in essence, another character – is RADIO. Specifically, radio in the car. And even more specifically, KHJ.
If you grew up with radio in the 60s and 70s – pre-MTV, pre-Internet – the car, the radio, and you – were co-stars in the movie of your life. It might have been WLS or WCFL if you lived in Chicago. CKLW or Keener 13 here in Detroit, WABC, WINS, or WMCA in New York, and other flagship AM Top 40 stations that ruled the airwaves – and your hometown.
My son – who works in the TV/movie industry – is 28 and a big fan of Tarantino’s. He saw the movie the night it opened. I started reading reviews, 
and became aware of KHJ’s omnipresence in the film – along with the music of course. For a radio guy, it was hard to miss the presence of those classic commercials, the great 60s music, and “Boss Jocks” like the Real Don Steele. It turns out the producers happened across hours of KHJ airchecks from the era, and they became the musical and cultural glue that helped stitch the film together.
I spoke with Mickey after he saw the film, and asked him about KHJ and the radio’s co-starring role in “Once Upon A Time…” and he really didn’t pay much attention to it. And it occurred to me that a child of the 2000s, why would he? Yes, there’s always been a car radio in his life, but there’s also been Napster, iPods, ripped albums, Pandora, YouTube, Spotify.
In L.A., he listens to radio in his 10 year-old Ford Fiesta, but not as a primary choice. It’s more of a last resort. And that’s a far cry from how many of us grew up – as depicted so well in Tarantino’s ode to Hollywood, the 60s, and the cross-cultural stress that was happening in America during that tumultuous era.
For Tarantino, radio – and very likely KHJ – was a big player in that drama. As he told “Today’s” Harry Smith, “I remember those radio stations, those radio commercials, those radio DJs – they’re almost like a period narrator.”
Tarantino uses radio as a transitional device that takes us from scene to scene, from location to location, from character to character – just as it did if you grew up in L.A., Detroit, or Chicago during those days of cruising Hollywood Boulevard, Woodward Avenue, or Lake Shore Drive.
While “Once Upon A Time….” is Tarantino’s ode to the TV and movie industry of that era, it is also his love letter to radio – and the role it played in our lives. I was reminded of that when Scott Westerman sent me this Chicago Tribune essay by Rick Kogan (another child of this era), “Why remember radio’s age? Why indeed?
And Kogan summed up radio’s starring role in the lives of those of who are now aging Baby Boomers, headed over the “demographic cliff,” but still hanging on to the medium we grew up with:
“It is hard for most to imagine what an important part radio played in people’s lives. Everybody listened. In 1930, some 12 million U.S. households owned a radio. By 1939 this total had exploded to almost 30 million. It was a cheap form of entertainment, providing the public with far better entertainment than most people were accustomed to or could afford.”
And as ironic as it may seen, a few contrarians are predicting that if the dreaded Recession we’re all bracing for comes anytime soon, it might actually be good for broadcast radio.
We know from our Techsurveys that one of radio’s prime benefits – even in 2019 – is that it’s free. But in a world where we think nothing about shelling out $5 each morning for a caramel macchiato, an economic downturn might cause a lot of people to reassess their daily expenses.
In a recent think piece in Hypebot, MIDiA’s Mark Mulligan suggests that Spotify and Netflix could be profoundly challenged when the global markets take their inevitable turn to the south. He contends the subscription services that don’t force consumers to sign contracts are especially vulnerable to personal budget cutbacks.
As he see it, “No contract, no commitment.” And that means that consumers may find themselves entertaining and informing themselves via free channels:
“If we do enter a global recession and it is strong enough to dent entertainment spend, then a probable scenario is that traditional distribution companies will be the key beneficiaries…This could even give these incumbents breathing space to prepare for a second attempt at combating the threat posed by streaming insurgents. It would almost be like winding back the clock.”
Mulligan reaches this conclusion:
“Streaming services have been the disruptors for the last decade. A recession may well role-switch them into the disrupted.”
In many ways, “Once Upon A Time….” depicts the struggle TV actors from the 1950s had jumping into feature films during the next decade. For every Steve McQueen and Clint Eastwood who made the leap, there were many more actors like Leonardo DeCaprio’s Rick Dalton character who had trouble adapting. That couldn’t help but remind me of radio’s transitional pain in the Internet Era.
That trip back in time was the unique glimpse that Quentin Tarantino gave us in “Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood.” And as radio companies struggle to figure out their place in America’s lives – and hearts – in the 21st century, this film provides some hope that old favorites might still win out in the end.
The story of radio may not be over yet. It may just be the beginning.
P.S. During the credits at the end of the film, Tarantino leaves us with a KHJ promo for “The Batphone Secret Number Contest.” It’s exciting, colorful, local, and very L.A. – even though cynics among you will remember it’s longer than the acceptable promo boundaries of PPM. But it’s not a national contest, it’s bigger than life, it’s dialed into the pop culture of the day, and you have to believe a whole lot of people were trying mightily to listen and win.
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
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Radio was ‘born” during The Great Depression. We don’t need another one for the original good guys of broadcasting to give us a timely, no cost renaissance. “Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesterday,,,,”
Clark, there you go.
Actually radio was “born” in the roaring ’20s. Most people don’t realize that cable television was stillborn during the depression.
The Batman promo-PRICELESS!
I was all-in on the Batmania…and Would have loved to win that contest!
Holy Megahertz, Fred!
POW! BAM! (If you know any of the Batphone numbers, post them here!)
Fred, Loved the movie, loved your take, loved the Batman promo and loved KHJ. Those were the good old days but I believe we can still experience “great old days1”
I’m hoping so, too, John.
Fred: Heady days indeed. I have always considered PD Ron Jacobs as one of my “mentors”. I connected with him by e-mail and on Facebook before he died. I asked him in my first e-mail if he could give me some “advice” as I was about to take my first PD’s job. He responded with ten PAGES of information and basically laid out the Boss Radio strategy to me. I still have the e-mail somewhere at home here. Some day, I’ll pass it along.
It was fundamentally great radio – focused on entertainment, information (they all ran the news), community, the culture zeitgeist, and thinking big. Thanks, Kevin.
I love everything about this column and ESPECIALLY love the KHJ/Batman promo at the end!
Growing up in San Diego, I was more than blessed to enjoy truly great top 40 radio from the lies of KCBQ and KGB. But there was always something extra exciting about listening in to those bigger-than-life L.A. stations–KHJ being the biggest! I can still feel the excitement of those days even as I type. Hopefully there are many more “big days” for radio yet to come.
And a quick aside, the promo reminded me of a contest I did many years ago. I recorded the touch tone numbers of one of the back office lines of the station–some non-public number–and played them on the air. I told listeners to hold their phones up to the radio while I played the numbers on the air and that the first one through would win a prize. And it worked!! I don’t remember what I gave away but I do know it wasn’t a cool “color console TV”! Still, whatever it was, it was a lot of fun–just like radio is SUPPOSED to be!!
I loved the 1966 color TV prize – like a car. Thanks for the comments, Dave, and glad the post resonated.
My wife and I (both radio folks) were the most excited people in the theater. Great movie and the KHJ stuff put it over the top.
After contacting all our friends to go see it, I ordered the soundtrack from Amazon. Yes, it includes the KHJ stuff! My question: Why is the “KHJ radio broadcast courtesy of Relevant Radio”? I understand the courtesy to Betty Mann (daughter?).
I have friends at Relevant Radio and will ask. Many thanks, Bob.
Relevant is the current owner of KHJ but they certainly didn’t provide the airchecks. I supoose they still had to clear the branding (but what about Johnny Mann’s organization, or a long defunct agency that produced the Tanya commercial?)
No, I read I story about those airchecks – I believe a collector had them. Whatever the case, it made the movie (for me). Thanks, Brad.
Rights were given by Betty Mann, Johnny’s widow. (I’m Betty’s son-in-law.)
Mystery solved. Thanks, Jim. Best to Betty.
WFMU in New Jersey has a 24 hr webstream that plays all those old radio promos/commercials with DJ drop-ins from Real Don Steele, et al.
https://wfmuichiban.blogspot.com/
Thanks for the heads-up, Tina.
I think live, local top 40 could work today. The challenge is finding what music local people are actually buying because we can no longer call the record stores. Radio used to be a cultural reflector that the listener shared the experience of with the jock. Local businesses commercials fit right into that experience.
I had thought just that about your premise while I watched the film, Bob. Thanks for the comment.
Having just absorbed the news of KFOG’s impending demise, I can envision a future movie set in San Francisco in 104.5’s heyday. Although I grew up in NYC, KHJ was similar to the AM Top 40 stations I listened to in my early teens that dominated the culture till FM Rock Radio took root. My appreciation for Tarrantino’s attention to detail while creating an alternate reality in 1969 was heightened by his having the radio glued. I loved your take and thank you for posting the use of the Batman promo. Worth staying for the credits at the end of Once Upon A Time In Hollywood. When 16, I promoted a dance at the 92nd St. Y. The theme was Batman, and ABC even donated the TV Show Billboard Art for a huge, hanging backdrop on the stage in the hall. Pow! Zap! Away!
I was impressed with a contest from 1966 that was impressive-sounding today. As for SF, there are a lot of Fogheads wondering what happened. But maybe they’ve been wondering that for a few years now. I worked for The Bone across the hall and our directive was to get strong ratings, but don’t do anything to hurt KFOG. Sad that things worked out this way. Thanks for chiming in, Paul.