Chatting, Chuckling Duo Just Keep Plugging Along

Listening to Mac Hudson and Joe Bauer’s morning show on KFMB-AM (760) is like eavesdropping on two old cronies grousing about current events over coffee and cheese danish at the local diner.

With nowhere to go and not much to do, they have time to chat about any ol’ thing that comes to mind. They chat about the weather, politics, their pets. One makes an observation, and the other chuckles. Sports Guy Ted Leitner comes in, and they chat some more and chuckle some more. As it gets later in the morning, the chuckles grow longer.

It is meandering radio. Killing time between news and traffic segments appears to be their only real goal. Maybe they take a few phone calls from bored-sounding listeners, or pull a prank, or slide into one of the stale character voices they employ from time to time, such as the auntie from hell, Mother Butterbreast. Last Friday they spent half an hour talking to a woman about her cat caught in a tree.

Some may wonder why anyone under the age of 60 would tune them in, but the Hudson and Bauer show is an undeniable phenomenon.

For 16 years they’ve been the station’s morning show. Their ratings have faltered from time to time, leading to the decision to promote Leitner as more of a full-time player and to speculation that their days were numbered.

But Hudson and Bauer keep plugging along, and the Arbitron ratings released last week for the fall quarter of 1991 show them as strong as ever. According to the report, Hudson and Bauer’s show was the most listened-to morning program among listeners 12 and over, and it was in a solid third place among listeners 25-54 (KSON’s morning show is No. 1 in the 25-54 category with an 8.0 rating, followed by KFMB-FM with a 7.7, and Hudson and Bauer at 7.6).

In general, this was a mediocre book for the station, which placed 10th in both the overall 12-and-over category and the 25-54 age group, but Hudson and Bauer’s numbers were stellar, especially considering that they were not artificially inflated by Padres baseball, which always helps the station’s ratings.

Now, it should be noted that Arbitron is not necessarily a flawless mirror of the community. In fact, KFMB has temporarily dropped the service, in part because management is fed up with questions of accuracy and fluctuations of the ratings service. But, for better or worse, Arbitron is the only real measure available, and it shows Hudson and Bauer as San Diego’s favorite, most-listened-to morning show. To one degree or another, it certainly reflects the listening habits of San Diegans.

The word “inexplicable” comes to mind. But a lot of people voted for David Duke and a lot of people watch “Studs.” There are clearly things happening in society that cannot be readily explained.

The ratings book was also kind to the mellow hits of KYXY-FM (96.5), which jumped from seventh position in the summer to second among listeners 25-54, with a 6.7 rating (KSON was first with an 8.7). The modern country format of KSON, simulcast on AM (1240) and FM (97.3), was once again No. 1 among listeners 12 and over, with a 7.5 rating.

Beginning today, KFMB-TV (Channel 8) will offer closed-captions for all its newscasts, which is groundbreaking news for the deaf community.

Up until now, only a handful of local newscasts have been offered with closed-captions, a service allowing people with a special receiver to read dialogue scrolled across the screen as it is spoken. Several national programs are closed-captioned, but it’s always been a struggle to fund close-caption local newscasts, which give the deaf a link to the community.

But the modern world has provided an answer. After lagging behind its competitors in technology for many years--it was the last station to get computers and to develop digital effects--Channel 8 is now becoming the Robotron of television stations. Not only does it use remote-controlled cameras in the studio, it is now using computerized TelePrompters. With the new system, the computer can automatically caption the programs, or at least the scripts the anchors are reading.

The good news is that the deaf community now will have access to all Channel 8 newscasts. The bad news is that the system won’t allow for the closed-captioning of live segments and features, or for the witty banter between news anchors.

Or maybe that, too, is good news.

An exchange from “Northern Exposure:”

Maurice: “Give them what they want, that’s journalism.”

Joel: “No Maurice, that’s wrestling.”

More than two years after management proclaimed it ready to go on the air, low-power television station Channel 17 has finally hit the airwaves. It began airing music videos last week and expects to begin full-fledged 6-to-l0 p.m. nightly programming this evening. The signal should reach a 10-mile radius from the station’s Mira Mesa headquarters. . . .

Former Noble Broadcasting exec Norman Feuer reportedly has purchased a station in Portland to go along with the stations he has been trying to buy in Richmond and Norfolk, which have been in financing limbo for several months. . . .

The revolving door continues at KJQY-FM (103.7). Kurt Kelley is out, less than a month after moving from Houston to take over as program director. . . . Those who opted not to get their information from local TV news Thursday night missed the saga of Twiggy, the water-skiing squirrel. . . .

After Landmark Theaters garnered a truckload of loving publicity about how the new Hillcrest Cinemas would be a boon to the local art-film scene, Landmark moved “Bugsy” into the Cove Theater in La Jolla. It’s not the first time it has brought a mainstream film into the Cove, but it left some wondering if it is an indication of future bookings. In fact, Bert Manzari, who books films for Landmark, says the Cove may feature more “class” commercial films in the future.

CRITIC’S CHOICE

JOB-SEEKERS TAKE NOTE

In one of the more novel community-oriented television events in recent memory, KGTV (Channel 10) will devote two hours of air time tonight to “San Diego’s Job Exchange,” a telethon designed to help San Diegans find jobs. Working with local agencies, the station is soliciting listings of job opportunities from local businesses and will try to link the unemployed with jobs and resources to help them find work. The telethon begins at 7 p.m. . . . KTTY-TV (Channel 69) is calling it “Pet Peeves Week,” but they should call it “The Critters’ Revenge.” All week, the station will devote its 8 p.m. movie slot to films featuring animals reaping their vengeance for years of enslavement in “Garfield” and thousands of other supposedly cute books. The series begins tonight with “Dogs,” the 1976 camp classic with a stellar cast that includes David McCallum and Linda Gray. Those inspired by watching animals chomp on humans will have an opportunity to get a pet of their own--Friends of County Animals Shelters will dislay adoptables during commercial breaks.