KNBC Gears Up for Long Run
The Los Angeles Marathon has taken a major turn. For the first time in its 18-year history, it will be televised by a major network station -- KNBC Channel 4. The station will devote four hours to Sundayâs race, with coverage beginning at 8 a.m.
In another first, the race will also be televised in Spanish -- by Channel 4âs sister station, Telemundoâs Channel 52.
The race seemed destined to someday end up at Channel 4. It was a natural fit.
âOnce NBC lost the NBA, it gave us the opportunity to do the marathon,â said Channel 4âs Fred Roggin, who will anchor the coverage from a booth at Arco Plaza overlooking the finish line.
In 1990, when Channel 4 televised the Long Beach Marathon, the station brought in Phil Olsman, a veteran producer of live television events, to oversee the coverage. At the time, Olsman was also producing the L.A. Marathonâs coverage for Channel 13.
Roggin anchored the Long Beach Marathon coverage and struck up a friendship with Olsman. Later that year, when Roggin had a chance to do a nationally syndicated show, âRogginâs Heroes,â he asked Olsman to be the producer.
âPhil became my friend, my mentor and my teacher,â Roggin said. âHe is a TV guerrilla. He has got that TV mentality -- get it done, make it look great, be on time and be on budget.â
They formed a company, Fred Roggin Productions, to do âRogginâs Heroes.â The show lasted 3 1/2 years, but the production company continued. Sundayâs race is listed as a production of Fred Roggin Productions, and Olsman and Roggin are listed as the executive producers.
Fred Roggin Productions also did the three hours of coverage for last yearâs race, when it was on Channel 9.
The L.A. Marathon was televised by Channel 13 the first 16 years. Olsman was the producer the first seven.
A Different Look
Channel 4 will use 22 camera positions, six helicopters and a crew of about 80 to cover the marathon. Joining Roggin in the booth on site will be Toni Reavis, an L.A. Marathon veteran. Newcomer Alberto Salazar, a three-time New York City Marathon winner, will be on the course, following the menâs race, and Kathrine Switzer, another L.A. Marathon veteran, will follow the womenâs race. Two-time L.A. Marathon wheelchair winner Bob Molinatti will follow the wheelchair race.
âThis is the only event that unites the entire community,â Roggin said, âand we want to give it its due. This is our NBA Finals, our World Series, our Super Bowl, our Olympics.â
Roggin and Olsman said this yearâs race would have a different look. For one thing, there will be more focus on the field and less on the elite runners.
âThere are maybe 40 elite runners in the race, and there are 23,000 others out there,â Roggin said. âOur job and our objective is to tell their stories. Weâre going to have a fast-paced show. We wonât have 10 solid minutes of people just running. Weâre going to include local people and their stories in every segment.
âWe have a database where we can call up any runnerâs number and weâll have facts about that runner. These wonât be just nameless people running down the street.â
Channel 4âs Patrick Healy, who has run in the L.A. Marathon, will serve as an on-course reporter.
Werndl Quits
Bill Werndl, who became the second half of the âLoose Cannonsâ on XTRA (690) in August 1996, has left what is now super station XTRA (690 and 1150).
Greg Ashlock, the stationâs general manager, said it was a case of Werndl not wanting to relocate from his home in the San Diego area to Los Angeles.
âBill is a good guy, and we like him,â Ashlock said. âAnd we wish him well.â
Meanwhile, Werndlâs partner, Steve Hartman, who works for Channel 2 on weekends, has agreed to a contract extension and will make the move to L.A.
Hartman worked solo on Thursday. Heâll be paired with A. Martinez when the two go to Arizona for spring training next week. A permanent partner will be named later.
Baseball Notes
It was good to hear Dodger baseball on new flagship station KFWB (980) Thursday morning. But there will be only three other weekday broadcasts until the Freeway Series begins March 28. KFWB is broadcasting mostly weekend games -- 14 in all. Meanwhile, new Angel flagship station KSPN (710) is broadcasting 33 spring games.
KFWB will wait until the regular season to do pregame shows or postgame âDodger Talkâ but KSPN will dispatch Joe McDonnell and Doug Krikorian to Tempe, Ariz., the week of March 17. Also that week, âAngel Clubhouse,â with Terry Smith and Jose Mota, will be on Monday, Wednesday and Friday instead of only Wednesday.... However, XTRA seems to be giving the Dodgers and Angels the most coverage. Lee Hamilton is in Arizona this week, Hartman and Martinez will be there next week and Hamilton will be in Dodgertown the following week.
Mota will be filling in for Rory Markas on the Angelsâ first two spring broadcasts because Markas has USC basketball obligations.... Thereâs no baseball on television this weekend, but there is softball, with some of the biggest names in baseball competing. The Pepsi All-Star game, taped at the Big League Dreams sports complex in Cathedral City, will be on Channel 4 Saturday at 11:30 p.m.
Short Waves
CBS Sports President Sean McManus said this week that if the U.S. goes to war with Iraq and news developments take precedence over the networkâs NCAA basketball tournament coverage, some games might be moved to the National Network (TNN). CBS and TNN are owned by Viacom. The tournament begins with first-round games March 20-21.... McManus no doubt was glad to see CBSSportsLine.com drop two gambling sites before making a deal with the NCAA this week. McManus made known his feelings on gambling when he fired point-spread guru Danny Sheridan in 1997. âThe perception he was an oddsmaker made him someone we at CBS didnât want any part of,â McManus said at the time.
The popularity of the Lakers is soaring. Channel 9 reported its Laker telecasts during February averaged a 7.7 Nielsen rating, up 67% from February 2002 and the highest for any February since 1997.... A 10-minute interview KLACâs Larry Burnett had with Shaquille OâNeal was aired Tuesday night during the pregame show and at halftime. As for his view of the media, Shaq said, âI donât like it when people think for me. Thatâs why sometimes I shut out the media.â He seemed particularly upset about negative remarks by ESPNâs Bill Walton and Sean Elliott. âThey wonât say it to my face,â Shaq said. âThatâs because Iâm a man and theyâre a mouse.â ... Kobe Bryant, in a taped interview that will be shown on the 8 oâclock edition of ESPNâs âSportCenterâ Sunday night, was asked about Waltonâs saying Bryant may be the MVP of the league but not his team. âShaquille is the anchor of our team. How can he not be?â Kobe said.
In Closing
Phil Jackson missed his first NBA game in 12 seasons as a head coach Tuesday night. And we all know about Chick Hearnâs streak of 3,338 games. Well, Frank Pollack, who produces or coordinates Laker broadcasts on KLAC, has a pretty good streak going. He hasnât missed a game since he got the job about a month into the 1980-81 season.