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If you don't want your name to be used or an email to be quoted, please state that at the beginning of your message.

Unless otherwise indicated, all commentary and photography on this site are by Grady McAllister.

Added August 21, 2008

KODA Commercials, promos, and production

Gene Arnold sent these materials. All of them are connected to KODA in the 1960's.

King Family concert spots
My memory about this is vague, but I think there was a heavily promoted King Family concert which was canceled due to lack of ticket sales. I don't know if it was the same year as these ads, but it is possible I heard the commercials on KODA.

Jose Jimenez promos for KODA
His "real" stage name is Bill Dana. The Jose Jimenez persona became a comic version of an early astronaut.

ABC sales demo
This promotional material was probably released on a 1963 phonograph record. Aimed at potential affiliates, it gives an inside look at ABC's effort to meet the radio needs of the 60's. Includes excerpts from Flair and Don McNeal's Breakfast Club.

Don't miss the collection of old ABC theme music at the end. Even the Christmas chimes are there.

"And the Happy Set listens to KODA!"

The KODA Fabulous Houston jingle

Web master's note:

I recorded this item myself.

This "Fabulous Houston" jingle was first aired on KODA-AM 1010 in the latter half of 1962.

My copy was recorded in the spring of 1965 when I called the station and arranged for them to play that already outdated jingle over the air. (It became outdated when the Houston Colts became the Houston Astros in the fall of 1964.)

I know that this jingle aired in other markets with different lyrics. I once heard part of a version for Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

This are more KODA materials from me and from Gene Arnold on the News and Talk page.

Hard & Heavy

Who is Range Fire Rita?

KTRH, Houston, PSA, Range Fire Rita, 1970

I recently stumbled onto this PSA which I had neglected to put on line. All I can tell you about it is that I recorded it off KTRH sometime in the early 70's, probably 1970.

I can't tell you what motivated me to preserve this spot. When I listened to my radio recordings after 22 years of storage, I found this item sitting on a reel with other odds and ends, neatly organized with a leader tape on each end.

How many Texas women do you know who actually talk like this?

Houston Retro Radio is hosted as part of VASTHEAD.COM.

You can also access these pages by going to http://houstonretro.com.

Getting Things Done with Work-Life BalanceNo matter your level of priorities, emails and calls, you're only MINUTES from finding a balance. A balance between busy, yet relaxed. A balance between work and home. David Allen's 5-phase automated system reveals your simpler, most successful life.

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Ads, Promos, PSA's & Production

"All advertising advertises advertising."

— Marshall McLuhan (1911-1980)

San Jacinto Materials

harbor_statue

The Houston Chronicle:

SKULLS, SLAVES AND SEX

"The role of slavery in early Texas, the naughty escapades of Texas' early leaders and the scientific stories of six Mexican soldiers whose skulls were collected from the San Jacinto battleground"

The above news story is a Houston Chronicle post-modern take on the meaning of San Jacinto Day.

The statue commemorates the Battle of San Jacinto, but it is located in Galveston, not the actual battleground. It stands atop a large memorial in the middle of Broadway at 25th Street.

Below, Houston Retro Radio highlights the now neglected San Jacinto holiday with classic Houston radio airchecks that relate to the San Jacinto Monument and San Jacinto Day.

"When twilight falls on San Jacinto, history time cannot erase..."

The KPRC Sound of the City sign off, 1965

Around the time I recorded this, one of my fellow students remarked: "There is something sad about hearing a station sign off." Of course, over the years, a lot of our favorite stations have signed off permanently or changed beyond recognition.

A KILT San Jacinto Day message from 1967

Features the voice of Bill Young.

NEW EXCERPT... Robert B. McEntire on KILT for San Jacinto Day, 1967

The oldest San Jacinto item comes from KXYZ...

A 1961 KXYZ promo for the San Jacinto Monument

This PSA ran when KXYZ had just begun its beautiful music format. The music in the background is "There'll Be a Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight."

There is lots more about KXYZ on the Adult Format page.

San Jacinto Day is April 21.

Texas Independence Day is March 2.

March 6 is the anniversary of the fall of the Alamo in 1836.

". . . under the flag of independence, we are ready to peril our lives a hundred times a day, and to drive away the monster who is fighting us under a blood-red flag, threatening to murder all prisoners and make Texas a waste desert."

On this web site:
Urgent messages from Col. Travis at the Alamo



More about the Alamo

More about the messages

"If the rumors floating in your head all turn to facts..."

Below are some songs by The Who to help you relax while you visit this page. They have been endorsed by the Armenian Medical Association.

These songs are:

1. Armenia City in the Sky. An imaginary place to escape when bad rumors have changed into bad facts.

2. Odorono. A soap opera in one song about a girl whose life is ruined because her deodorant fails her.

3. Tattoo. A song about two brothers who each get a tattoo in order to "become a man."

New song lyric on The Vasthead...

"Armenia City in the Sky" by The Who

Buy The Who Sell Out album, and you get a full blown Radio London show, complete with jingles by PAMS of Dallas.

(Woman singing) "It's smooth sailing with the highly successful sound of wonderful Radio London!"

(Choir-like group singing) "Radio London remind you, go to the church of your choice!"

More about The Who Sell Out


 

 

 

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Below: Sunrise at Gulfgate, August 26, 1968. Photo by Grady McAllister.

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http://newsfronts.com

Bertha Rita McAllister (1924-2002)

Robert J. Ringer's SIX STEPS FOR HANDLING DISASTER WHEN IT STRIKES:

  • Call time out and mentally and physically come to a complete stop.

  • Stop the hemorrhaging by stabilizing the situation. In financial terms, don't throw good money after bad.

  • Step back and get a big picture perspective of the battlefield.

  • In a rigidly self-disciplined manner, focus exclusively on the problem.

  • Carefully and honestly analyze the problem in terms of what you did wrong.

  • Start moving in the right direction as soon as possible. Forget about the cataclysm you've just experienced. Let go of it and get on with the next deal.

"Concentrate on maximizing the situation and implementing long-term, permanent solutions in order to avoid setting up still more balloon notes down the road. It is, above all, important to keep adversity in proper perspective. To look at it as a learning experience…that will pay enormous future dividends to the happeneur who keeps an expansive mental paradigm. In reality, set backs just opportunities to grow."

From Robert J. Ringer's 1988 audio program, Living Without Limits. Ringer is best known for his 1970's books, To Be or Not To Be Intimidated (a.k.a. Winning Through Intimidation) and Looking Out for Number One.

Robert J. Ringer's web site