Karlson and McKenzie (morning show)
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The Karlson and McKenzie Show (sometimes called The K&M show, Karlson and McKenzie or just K&M) is a morning show on the Boston, Massachusetts classic rock radio station WZLX (100.7). The show broadcasts daily, Monday to Friday from 5:30 to 10:00 a.m. EST. It is hosted by Kevin Karlson and Pete McKenzie and co-hosted by Heather Ford. The show is produced by Jeremy Leahy and Braden P. Moriarty. Karlson and McKenzie first came on the air at "'ZLX" August 1, 2005, following the previous morning show, Steve Sweeney's Neighborhood. This show had been broadcasting for five years, but ended in 2005.
The premise of the K&M show centers on making light of certain current events. The show also provides comedy-laced opinions of the hosts and allows listeners to call in during the show and comment on these opinions, or the current event itself. They frequently have celebrity guests on the show, both in-studio and on the phone. Classic rock is played in between segments, but the show does not take song requests. Ever since Gary Glitter was arrested for possession of cocaine in November 2005, the K&M show refused to play any of the musician's songs.
The Karlson and McKenzie Show, being the morning show on WZLX, were the first ones at the station to report that Brad Delp (former lead vocalist for the Rock band Boston), had committed suicide. This news came after the initial news of his death on Friday, March 9, 2007. Delp had apparently suffocated himself with carbon-monoxide (via "a couple charcoal grills") in the bathroom of his home in Atkinson, New Hampshire.
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[edit] Kevin Karlson
Born March 7, 1964 (having revealed in June 2006 that he is 42 years old), currently living in Norfolk, Massachusetts and 6' 1" to 6' 2" tall, Kevin Karlson is the main host of the K&M show. Karlson himself frequently mentions that he is a rather heavy-set man (300 lb), which makes him the butt of many a joke during the show that concerns him being overweight. Some examples of these jokes include: "…You told them that they'd have to be in top physical shape, right? 'Cuz they're gonna have to fight you for the food…" (During an on-air promo for a Father's Day lunch the station was having in June 2006 – Heather Ford).
On August 28, 2006, Karlson said that he is "registered as an independent" voter. Karlson, unlike Pete McKenzie, appears to some listeners as the more practical of the various hosts on the K&M show.
As occasionally callers do confuse Karlson for McKenzie, or vice-versa; Karlson has the deeper voice of the two, McKenzie having a higher pitched, somewhat Mike Tyson-esque voice. Karlson frequently refers to Braden P. Moriarty as "Big-head Braden", despite the fact that he muses about his "large head" himself. He often mentions that he and McKenzie had been fired from "numerous radio stations" (at one point, Karlson mentioned that it was "…like, 8 or 9 radio stations…") before being hired at WZLX.
[edit] Tick Off a Trucker
"Laid to rest" in January 2006 at seven episodes (including a holiday version), Tick Off a Trucker was a listener-popular segment that would occur weekly on Thursday at around 7:15 a.m. EST, in which the show would use a CB radio that was hooked up in the station to "…mess with our trucker friends…" Karlson would put on a southern, 'redneck' drawl and insult truck drivers over the CB, using the name "The Phantom". This was because he wasn't actually on Route 19, as he often mentioned during the skit. If a 'threat' was made by a trucker, Karlson would usually say something like, "…it looks like someone wants to challenge The Phantom…"
Karlson's insults (often aimed at their 'lack' of intelligence) would let loose a barrage of profanity from the truck drivers. He usually started out the skit with some form of the phrase: "…breaker 1-9! I said, 'breaAAAker 1-9er on the '19!' Do…ya…co…py?" ("breaker" being a word used to tell other CB-users that another person would like to talk to them via the radio.) The skit usually ends with a 'southern' jingle (the first few words are frequently lost due to the laughter of Karlson, Pete McKenzie and Heather Ford):
"…so if you really wanna tick off a trucker, I'll tell you right now, mister: Take away my CB, my amphetamines And try to keep me away from my sister…"
On February 14, 2007, after a caller asked why "TOAT" was cancelled, Karlson admitted that they received "a couple death threats" and that "management told [them] to stop". Karlson said that that the trucker who threatened the show was going to "go down to Chicago and then come up and kill [them]". Pete McKenzie jokingly remarked that same day (February 14), "…it's a good thing he forgot…"
In March 2006, Heather Ford did her own version of "TOAT", in a low, soft voice, 'offering' herself to the truckers using many sexual innuendos.
[edit] The 7:15 Senseless Survey
The 7:15 Senseless Survey is a segment in which Karlson calls a seemingly arbitrary phone number and asks the person random, irrelevant and sometimes suggestive questions under the guise of being from the U.S. Census Bureau (one exception was in the Election Senseless Survey when Karlson said he was from the New York Times. The object of the skit is to see how many questions they can ask until the person whom they called hangs up (occasionally, Karlson mentions that he has up to 300–500 questions so he wouldn't run out). Often times, the show takes caller's guesses as to how many questions will be asked before the person hung up. The caller who came the closest is sometimes awarded a prize. Senseless Survey was discontinued in early 2005, but returned from its hiatus in October 2006. However, three small changes were made to the skit when it was brought back:
- Rather than claiming to be from the Census Bureau, Karlson casually says he's from the "Senseless Bureau", hoping the person whom they called will mistake the word "senseless" for "census".
- The skit's name, "Senseless Survey", was changed to "The 7:15 Senseless Survey".
- After it's hiatus, it came to be performed each day of the week, rather than once a week.
[edit] Pete McKenzie
Born September 26, 1962, about 250 lb and residing in Framingham, Massachusetts, Pete McKenzie, a Republican (as he said on August 28, 2006), is the other main host of the K&M show.
In That Guy – Nicknames, Braden P. Moriarty mentioned that "McKenzie" was not his real name, but this wasn't explored into any further depth.
McKenzie often gives intermittent wisecrack comments on Karlson's opinions and, unlike Karlson, will sometimes do spur-of-the-moment vocal impersonations of famous people to entertain listeners. His "voices" include: Colonel Sanders, Enrique Iglesias (during which voice he makes fun of Anna Kournikova, calling her "Anna Cornaholakova".), Steve Irwin (after Irwin died on September 4, 2006) a generic, deep-voiced man (with the help of a voice alternator; presumed, by many, to be black, although this has never been said), Keith Richards, Snoop Dogg, Billy Murray (August 7, 2006), Donald Trump, "Diamond" David Lee Roth, Michael Jackson, Dave Chappelle and Bob Dylan. He will often lend his voice when a prank call (called crank calls on the show) is made, sometimes, but not always, using a voice alternator.
[edit] Sports Check
Every morning at around 6:30 a.m., Pete McKenzie does a short segment on current sports news called the Sports Check. Usually, the segment applies to whatever sport is in season at that time (e.g. winter/March: basketball and hockey; summer: baseball, etc.). The Sports Check is preceded by Heather Ford's traffic and weather segment.
The guitar intro to "For Those About to Rock" by AC/DC is played as background music to the Sports Check. McKenzie, after concluding the sports segment, says, "...and that's your check on sports, on 100.7 WZLX, Boston's classic rock."
[edit] Heather Ford
Born in April 1976 Heather Ford currently lives in Hull, Massachusetts and is a republican.
At the beginning of 2006, Ford announced she was pregnant, which evolved itself into a new category of jokes, ranging from genetically-oriented "speculation", to jokes that would usually end in a phrase something like, "…but that would come from John [Ford's husband]…" Ford's sense of humor is noted amongst listeners to be dry, clever and concise, whereas McKenzie's, for example, is noted to be more observational humor.
On August 2, 2006, while Ford was out due to a medical exam for an "irregular heart beat", her place on the K&M show was temporarily filled by an intern named Christina. It was unclear whether Ford herself or her unborn child was experiencing the arrhythmia.
On October 7, 2006, Heather Ford gave birth to 7 lb 20-inch William "Xtrelmxbve" Ford (the middle name is most likely fake). Karlson and McKenzie announced the news that Monday, September 9, Karlson saying, "Heather called me and said, 'Hey, you know that baby that was inside me?' 'Yeah.' 'It came out.'" K&M viewed this as an unorthodox way of saying that she had had her baby. While Ford was on maternity leave, WZLX's weather and traffic reporter, Frankie Foxx, took her place on the show.
On Monday, October 30, 2006, Heather Ford returned to the Karlson & McKenzie show, after being absent for about 21 days.
[edit] Mistress Heather (Heather's "Hot" Hotline)
In late December, just before the K&M show went on a holiday break (from Monday, Christmas Day, until January 2, 2007), they did two episodes of a skit called Mistress Heather (alternately named Heather's "Hot" Hotline on their website). Mistress Heather consisted of Heather Ford calling in to a "chat line" to see how many things she can make the man on the other end of the line do while in her "fantasy" (Ford is married) before he hangs up.
[edit] Braden P. Moriarty
Born August 16, 1979, 5' 9" and 180 lb, Braden P. Moriarty is considered by some listeners to be the most socially complex host on the show. On August 28, 2006, when Karlson, McKenzie and Ford revealed their political affiliations, Moriarty joked about the subject, saying, "…you know, I just realized this, but I think I'm a Born-again Christian, because I always want people to come to my house…"
Moriarty has no last name associated with him while on the air, the four of them (including Jeremy Leahy) just calling him "Braden", but does, however, have a multitude of "voices up his sleeve", so to speak: John Mark Karr, Ronald Reagan, Dr. Phil McGraw, Rita Cosby, former Congressman Mark Foley, Vice President Dick Cheney, James Lipton, etc.
It has been made evident (both by Braden himself and the rest of the "K&M crew") that Braden is a drinker ("…If you can believe it, I was at a bar this weekend…" – That Guy - Meathead). But again, as with almost everything on the show, Karlson and McKenzie make light this habit of Braden's.
In early June 2006, Braden lost to Jeremy in a 'leg-wrestling' contest and was forced to have his head shaved.
[edit] That Guy
Every Monday since mid-April 2006, Braden delivers a bit that came to be called That Guy (stemming from, according to Karlson, Braden's tendency to "walk into the booth and say 'Hey, I saw that guy again' …we'd go 'Which guy?' and he'd be like 'You know, that guy who [does that thing, etc.]'…and so we thought we'd make it into a skit called 'That Guy'…"). It is the longest running of any of the K&M skits (without a hiatus) thus far (29 episodes as of March 19, 2007), with a close second being Senseless Survey (discontinued in early 2005 at 11 episodes, but revived in October 2006; 31 episodes to date) and Tick off a Trucker coming in third at 7 episodes.
In That Guy, Braden voices his frustration with a person he sees or knows that fits a stereotype by which he can usually characterize them with a short phrase or a single word: Ex. That Guy - Jive Talk, or That Guy - Meathead. Often these terms are derogatory, but this adds to the intended comic effect of the segment. To wrap up his rant, Braden often says something like, "…now [e.g. …put away that cell phone…], or I'll cram it up your cramhole…" which tends to be Heather Ford's favorite line in the segment. Braden usually ends the skit with the phrase "…do me a favor: don't be 'That Guy'."
In July 2006, when K&M first went on vacation that summer, the skit came to be delivered not just on Mondays, but on other days, as well. It was still performed only once a week during that time.
[edit] The "That Guy - NASCAR" Incident
On Monday, March 12, 2007, Braden did an episode of That Guy about a NASCAR fan that he knew. In the episode, he used many stereotypical epithets that seemed to characterize a "redneck" NASCAR fan.
The following morning (Tuesday, March 13), Karlson and McKenzie recieved many angry e-mails from NASCAR fans in Boston who felt that the skit portrayed them in a bad light. Despite these e-mails, K&M still replayed the skit (from the previous day) on-air live and put it up on their website.
This was the first major incident where negative attention was drawn to the That Guy skit, even though Braden had done other episodes that mocked or made fun of many other different groups of people.
[edit] Jeremy Leahy
Born c. 1967, 157 lb., (Peter) Jeremy Leahy is one of the producers of the K&M show; he has been introduced at the start of each show as either "…our producer, Jeremy leahy…", or "…our producer, Jeremy the 'Radio Fairy'…" Leahy also has his own jingle that usually precedes his segment on the K&M show:
He's Jeremy: The Radio Fairy! ...he's so deep in the closet, it's scary. ...Workin' himself into a frenzy right here on Karlson and McKenzie!!
Leahy will often use a flamboyant voice when needed on a crank call. Many times, the person whom they call will mistake Leahy's character for a woman, calling him "ma'am" or "miss." He also uses a British accent, mainly when performing K&M's weekly skit, Calling London.
During one instance, Leahy did an impression of Carol Channing, but he has never 'reprised' this role.
In Braden's bit, That Guy, Braden sometimes would poke fun at Leahy, saying things like, "…don't worry, Jeremy. I took down his name and number…"
Joke references such as these were often made about Leahy, but on June 19, 2006, he asked Karlson & McKenzie (and Ford) to "cut the 'gay' crap…" He stated that "…it's getting ridiculous." This may have meant that the above tune might not have been played anymore in reference to Leahy, but it continues in this way.
On Friday, January 5, 2007, Leahy discussed with the rest of the show that he used to work at an insurance firm with his father. He then went by the name "Peter" (which, according to Leahy, was also his father's first name), but was "annoyed because [he] was always getting [his] father's calls", so he began to go by his middle name ("Jeremy") to avoid confusion. Leahy also mentioned that he is "not a 'Jr.'", since his father's middle name is not "Jeremy" and that he has an older brother named Michael.
Jeremy Leahy experiences the morning show vicariously, as he is in a separate booth for the duration of the show.
[edit] Calling London
Each week, K&M does a skit called Calling London; the show crank calls London, England to see how many different "synonyms" for common terms can be railed off before the person on the other end of the call hangs up. During this skit, it is usually Jeremy Leahy who actually talks to the person in England. He puts on a British accent and uses the pseudonym "Walter Chesterfield".
The vast majority of these "synonyms" are made up (probably by the Karlson & McKenzie show members themselves beforehand). Examples of these alternate terms include: "The bye-bye box" or "The sentencing cell" (both other names for prison: Calling London - Prison). Sometimes these terms are suggestive in nature, but Leahy says then in rapid fire to keep the person on the line. The terms are designed, however, to cause the person to, perhaps, take a slight interest in the diversity and/or cleverness of the names, but at the same time get them to hang up.
The song "London Calling" by The Clash is played as background music for this skit. So far, there has been 13 episodes of Calling London, the most recent being Calling London - Prison.
[edit] Miscellaneous
At times, especially when there is a discussion between the hosts concerning an event, a comedian will call in, pretending to be a famous person. It is unclear whether these are other people, or whether McKenzie, Braden or Leahy (Karlson and Ford are not normally known for their "voices", save Karlson's October 10, 2006 quick Dale Earnhardt, Jr. voice) leave their booths to make these calls.
There never seems to be any dispute as to whether or not these people are the real celebrities or politicians they impersonate. However, on June 15, 2006, a man did call in saying, "…I don't know if that was the real Mayor Menino, or not, but…" to which Karlson replied, "…we're just having fun…" in a tone that implied that the caller was being ridiculous.
[edit] Larry and Robert
When a subject came up that concerned homosexuality, two men named "Larry" and "Robert" would call in, pretending to be gay. Very flamboyant, they usually added to K&M's conversation with a joke that used some kind of homosexually-related innuendo. Their occasional skit was often preceded and ended with (amidst their giggling) a jingle:
The world's gone gay, gone totally gay... don't know how; it just happened one day... suddenly, same-sex lovin' is okay…
[edit] Senator Ted Kennedy
When Senator Ted Kennedy's plane was struck by lightning on May 14, 2006, "Ted Kennedy" himself called to weigh in on the subject. "Senator Kennedy" also calls the station whenever news concerning him arises.
[edit] Mayor Thomas Menino
"Thomas Menino, Mayor of the city of Boston" frequents the station's airwaves as well. The "Menino" that calls in has a severe speech impediment, probably mocking the real Menino's trouble with words.
[edit] Kenny DelMonte
At times, a man named Kenny (Peter) DelMonte will call in to the show, wanting to talk with K&M, but they will tend to poke fun at him instead. DelMonte frequently ends his sentences with "…ya know?" which Karlson often makes fun of, saying things like, "Yeah, I see what you're saying, ya know…" On October 19, 2006, Karlson mentioned that DelMonte is gay. Kenny has his own audio clip on the show:
[touch-tone phone dialing in background, announcer cuts in:] When he comes a'callin', ya know, you shouldn't be nervous, ya know… [Kenny's voice:] This is Kenny DelMonte at your service…
Karlson has said that DelMonte has always wanted to meet the K&M crew in person, so the show organized a special in-studio party for DelMonte on Thursday, October 19, 2006: "Kenny DelMonte Day". During this day, Kenny was picked up by limousine at his house and driven to the WXLZ studios. He was also treated to breakfast at any restaurant (Kenny chose Dunkin Donuts) before arriving at the Prudential Tower (the WZLX studios were, until recently, located on the 24th floor of the tower). Jeremy Leahy accompanied DelMonte on his ride to "The Pru".
During his visit to WZLX, DelMonte sang along to "Centerfold" by the J. Geils Band while "playing" an inflatable guitar. He also brought other inflatable guitars for Karlson, McKenzie, Braden and Leahy to "play" as well.
[edit] The Stinking Drunk of the Day
Each day, the show would find a news story about a citizen of a U.S. town who said or did something strange or outrageous while intoxicated. If they found it unusual enough, Karlson or McKenzie named them The Stinking Drunk of the Day. The following clip was usually played after the story was read:
To some… You may be a worthless bum… But congratulations… You're the stinking drunk of the day…
This short segment didn't usually occur at the same time each day, but not too often was it missed altogether. However, in mid-October, K&M ceased doing this skit.
[edit] Match Game
Each Monday, just before Braden's That Guy, the K&M crew play a radio version of the television game show called Match Game. This version of the game consists of Karlson, McKenzie, Heather Ford, Braden and Jeremy Leahy making a guess about the answer to a question about a current event or celebrity. Listeners then call in and try to guess the answer as well. If a listener's guess is the same, or similar to, one of the K&M show host's answers, then the show awards that listener with whatever prize they're giving away that morning (e.g., Boston Red Sox tickets, tickets to a comedian's show, free passes to WZLX's "21st Birthday Bash", etc.).
[edit] 10 Seconds of Radio Rage
Every Tuesday, at about 8:00 a.m., since September 2006, K&M have occasionally allowed callers to have 10 seconds of time on air to rant about whatever is aggravating them. If a caller's rant is considered to express an especially clever idea by Karlson, McKenzie or Ford, then that person is held on the line to receive a prize.
[edit] Anthony the intern
In July 2006, Karlson and McKenzie was accompanied by an intern known only as "Anthony". Due to his outward appearance, Karlson, McKenzie, Braden and Leahy tended to call him "Weird Al", "Kenny G" or "Tiny Tim." Heather Ford did not label him as such ("…we call him 'Anthony' when he's an artist [in reference to the Big Dig Song], but under any other circumstances, we call him "Kenny G" or "Weird Al…").
In late July 2006, Anthony played a song on the air about the Big Dig, in which he comically satirized it for the incident where four of the ceiling tiles from the I-90 Connector tunnel fell onto a passing vehicle, killing 38-year-old Melina Del Valle.
In August 2006, it was Anthony's last day on the K&M show, which he attended for college credit. During his last Friday and Monday on the show, he read a few entries from his journal, in which Carter Alan, who was filling in for Karlson and McKenzie while they were on their last vacation in Cape Cod, was mentioned. When K&M returned from their vacation, Anthony read one last journal entry. He also revealed what college he was attending while on the show, of which Kevin and Pete were completely unaware.
[edit] Whose Lie is it Anyway?
Starting late January 2007, K&M began to do a skit called Whose Lie is it Anyway? (the name is derived from the popular improvisational game show Whose Line is it Anyway?). In this skit, Kevin Karlson, Pete McKenzie and Heather Ford each tell a caller a "fact" about their lives. The object of the game is for the caller to guess whose "fact" is false (i.e., who is lying). If the caller's guess is correct, Karlson and McKenzie awards them a prize.
[edit] Sucky Song of the Day
Each morning, at around 6:30 a.m., the K&M show played a song that they considered "sucky". Most times, these songs were obscure in nature or seemed to be out-of-date (i.e., not popular in American pop-culture anymore), hence K&M having viewed them to be "sucky".
Not long after the Sucky Song of the Day began, it was cut from the show; there was no explanation given.
[edit] Paul "Fitzy" Fitzgerald
Occasionally, K&M has a local comedian, Paul "Fitzy" Fitzgerald, either come in, or phone in, and give a comedic monologue about current events. The show also has put a link to "Fitzy"'s website on their site. Paul Fitzgerald has become a regular guest on the Karlson and McKenzie show since mid-January, 2007.
[edit] See also
- Steve Irwin's death at Wikinews
- The Big Dig incident at Wikinews
- Brad Delp's Death at Wikinews
