CKNW TV

[cart_machine]

cArtie's note: It bears repeating that nothing changes in radio. Besides the NW TV piece, I had to laugh and transcribe this as Mr. D. anticipates endless RadioWest threads almost 55 years into the future by publicly bemoaning the mistakes of newsreaders on NW and WX. The bold type and ALL CAPS HISSY FIT are as originally published. Some of the microfilm is damaged and unreadable.

Around Your Radio Dial
By DICK DIESPECKER, Radio Editor
[Vancouver Province, October 9, 1954]
Met Bill Rea on the street the other day just in from Santa Barbera, California, The owner of CKNW is the picture of health … iron grey brush cut, terrific tan and calloused hands from working in the lemon grove. He’s back in town for the step-up in power at N.W. from 1000 to 5000 watts. Says he has a feeling in his bones that CKNW is going to get a television license this Fall.
A little later I met Tiny Elphicke of CKWX and mentioned it to him casually. I think he discounted it rather heavily. Have not yet had a chance to speak to George Chandler of CJOR about it, but somehow I believe he would discount it, too.
Have been trying to find out who is going to work for the new North Vancouver radio station CKLG, owned by the Gibson Brothers and managed by Bob Bowman. So far no luck although rumor says Bob has stolen half the staff of CJOR. Last time I looked they were still down in the Grosvenor basemen.
I had a suggestion for the North Van station the other day. Saw that B.C. Lions starry backfielder Al Pollard wanted to settle here and was an experienced radio-TV announcer. So, not knowing where to get Bowman I phoned Mr. Clark Gibson a couple of times. Why not hire Al Pollard as an announcer and keep him in Vancouver? The station that does it would garner itself a million bucks worth of publicity. Also would add a nice new voice to our airwaves in these parts.
By the way, will the announcer doing the news on [a few words are unreadable but he’s referring to ‘NW] possibly take another look at the dictionary as a guide to pronunciation. He referred to a buoy … you know those things that float in the sea … not as a “boy” but as a “boo-e.”
Harmony House has been cut to a 15-minute daytime stanza due to start start later this month with Ricky Hyslop and a much-cut orchestra, Jack Martin and the Nabobettes. No Suzanne, from what I hear.
TONIGHT’S BEST BETS
RADIO
8:30—Hockey—New Westminster vs. Calgary with commentary by Jim Cox, CKWX; Western Football—B.C. Lions vs. Calgary Stampeders, with play-by-play commentary by Bill Stephenson, CKWX.

Around Your Radio Dial
By DICK DIESPECKER, Radio Editor
[Vancouver Province, October 16, 1954]
A raft of letters landed on my desk this week about the pronunciation of the word “buoy.” For the information of those who missed last week’s column I stated that a news announcer had called it “boo-e” when it should have been “boy.”
Practically all my correspondents disagreed violently, including Hal Davis of CKNW. The incident occurred on NW. He cites as his authorities A Miriam-Webster Dictionary and The Maritime Weather Station. Hal says the dictionary gives three pronunciations … boy … bwoi … boo-i.
Others cite the Columbia Encyclopedia as giving two alternatives. Still others say they’ve always pronounced it that way “boo-ee” and that it is right.
I real NOT ONE INCH from my position. My authority is the Oxford Dictionary which gives only ONE PRONUNCIATION … BOY … and no alternative. As far as I am concerned Oxford is the standard of pronunciation by which we in the British Commonwealth should be guided.
Hal Davis did quite rightly take me to task for pinpointing the station in the matter and pointed out that he caught someone on your friendly 5000 watt station calling saga say?ga and another 5000 watt station announcer referring to a quay, not as a “key” but [as a “kway” .. rest of sentence is unreadable. Dick goes on to point out another] fault among news announcers in this part of the world is to pronounce “forMIDable” formidable instead of FORMidable. Recently many of them have insisted that the RCMP vessel St. Roch is the St. Roach whereas it should be the St. Rock.
Glad to hear that Bob Bowman, manager of the new North Van station CKLG that he drove Al Pollard, B.C. Lions starry backfielder and his wife all over the North Shore and that both were enchanted. Apparently, nobody in the entire city of Vancouver had thought to do such a simple thing for the Pollards before.
• • • •
[skip letter about Dick’s endless enthusiasm in print over Bernie Braden]
Since Stan Lettner returned to CKMO it is a pleasure to listen to Open House from 8:15 to 9 every evening. One of the nicest good music shows on any man’s air. For pop music, I recommend KING in Seattle above all competitors. CBU’s A Man and His Music is almost as good as the old Bellman days … plenty of variety and easy conversational talk between discs.
SATURDAY’S HIGHLIGHTS
RADIO
5:30—Boston Symphony Orchestra, KOMO.
7:30—Western Football, CKWX.
8:30—Vancouver Canucks vs. New Westminster Royals, play-by-play with Jim Cox, CKNW.
9:00—Town Meeting in Canada, CJOR.
11:00—Bellman’s Choice, CBU.

Around Your Radio Dial
By DICK DIESPECKER, Radio Editor
[Vancouver Province, October 30, 1954]
Al Pollard, star half back for the B.C. Lions, has been signed by Bob Bowman, manager of new North Vancouver station CKLG as Sports Director. He will start his broadcasting duties when the station opens around the first week in December.
Bowman says he intends to utilize Pollard in a much broader capacity than just as a sports director. He feels that he and his charming young wife Pat can do a great deal to encourage the love of sport in young people. Al, who is a first class athlete and will make many public appearances on behalf of the station speaking to youth groups on sports and sportsmanship. The popular football star and his wife plan to make Vancouver their home.

[Jack Bennest]

this thread is honour of al pollard - yes?

October 12, 1956 'Ubyssey' newspaper







3/3/02

PHILADELPHIA -- Al Pollard, a fullback for the B.C. Lions and Calgary Stampeders in the 1950s, is dead at 73. Pollard died Sunday of lymphoma at his home in the suburb of Devon. He first played for the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles from 1951 to 1953 and later became a colour commentator on broadcasts of Eagles games, working with play- by-play announcer Charlie Swift from 1969 to 1976. Pollard signed with the old New York Yanks for $7,000. They waived him in November 1951, and the Eagles claimed him. Pollard later played in the CFL, where he played for B.C. until 1956 and finished his pro career in 1957 with Calgary. He also was sports director for CKLG radio and ran a restaurant and a beverage distributorship.

[jon]

Hard to believe that 3 years before CKWX went 50,000 watts, CKNW was still 1000 watts. Harder, too, to recall that CKNW was only 5000 watts at night until 1965.

Realizing that the CBC was still the broadcast regulator at this point in time, I am surprised that CBU was only running 10,000 watts until 1967. Especially after XEAK-690 Tijuana went 50,000 watts with a tight Northern pattern in Spring 1958.

As regulator, I can certainly see the CBC trying to protect CBUT-TV from competition. I'm sure the only reason they allowed private broadcasters in the Prairies in the mid-1950s was because the CBC couldn't afford to create its own stations there, other than Winnipeg.

[Jack Bennest]

More interesting to me was that Pollard worked with the legendary
Jack Whitaker on CBS 1961-64 doing Eagles games - he was replaced
by another footballer - Frank Gifford