‘Sandy and Frosty’ chillin’ at Star 101.3
It’s not only KFOG that’s making noises in the morning. Over on Battery Street, in the CBS Radio Mall, KITS (“Live 105”) has installed a new wakeup show, “Megan and Menace,” teaming two radio vets and pals to create a youthful alternative to all the stations playing some variation of Top 40. Megan Holiday and Menace, who made their debut in early August, play mostly alt-rock, spiced with the usual mix of gossip, banter and ticket giveaways.
But enough about them — for now. They’ll get most of the next Radio Waves. That’s because there’s another new morning show, on KIOI (“Star 101.3”) that made its bow in June, giving it seniority over the kids on “Live 105.” So Sandy Stec and Frosty Stilwell go first.
The “Sandy and Frosty” show replaced station icon Don Bleu, who moved over to Clear Channel sister KOSF (“Oldies 103.7”) in January. He’s doing fine, thank you; he’s helped boost that station’s ratings.
The same can be said for Stec and Stilwell. Stec, who arrived in March after nine years working middays in San Jose (at KEZR, “The Mix”), held down the fort (along with station staffer Jon Manuel) while management searched for a partner. Her “Star” costar turned out to be Stilwell, a talk radio vet from Denver and Los Angeles.
In just two months together, they’ve charged to No. 1 in the station’s target demographic: women ages 25 to 54. Although theirs was an arranged radio marriage, they sound good together. Stec has been doing stand-up comedy for a decade; Stilwell is naturally comedic. They’ve clicked, and so has KIOI’s mix of hits of the ’90s, the aughts and today. (Once an hour, listeners get a real oldie: something from the ’80s.)
“The best is yet to come,” said Stilwell. “The ratings are strong, the audience seems to appreciate the talk and the music, and on we go.”
But the going didn’t get going until Sandy and Frosty were put together. Here’s how it happened:
Stec heard about the job opening and contacted program director Cat Collins, attaching YouTube videos of her comedy (including her sardonic, DIY miniseries, “Leaving Milpitas”) and her work as a fill-in morning DJ on “The Mix.”
Collins, who was looking to form a male and female team, checked out Stec’s material. “I loved it,” he said. Stec came into town to meet Collins. “She struck me as incredibly funny, clever, engaging, creative and outspoken,” he said. “She’s young (31), right in our target demo. I knew there’s no way I’ll find someone better.”
While Stec settled into the morning shift, Collins waded through some 200 applications and discussed top candidates with Don Parker, operations manager of Clear Channel’s local cluster. It was Parker who brought up Stilwell, who hadn’t even applied. “I was happily semiretired in L.A.,” said Stilwell, 53.
Collins knew Stilwell from Denver in the late ’90s, when they worked for competing stations. “I loved him,” said Collins. Although Stilwell specialized in talk, he said, “I had no concerns about him being able to do shorter (talk) breaks. The only concern was if he wanted to do it.”
He did. After a get-acquainted lunch with Stec at a nearby Amici’s Pizza (Clear Channel spares no expense), Stilwell sat in with Stec the next morning. There was instant chemistry — and laughter. “He’s naturally comedic,” said Stec of Stilwell. “He could easily be a comic if he wanted to.” Said Stilwell of his new partner: “I could tell right away. She’s funny, witty, spunky, a great conversationalist. There was no dead air.”
In today’s radio, there can’t be. Like most stations, “Star 101” is tightly formatted, with a clock that allows only two breaks during which the hosts can actually talk and do bits; otherwise, it’s 10-second teases voiced over the nonstop music.
It’s all for the ratings. “You want to keep people from tuning out,” said Stilwell. “Every minute is precious, and you have to earn every minute. When you tease, hopefully they’ll stick around.” Stec added: “Those 10 seconds, you have to hold their interest.”
Speaking of time: The parking meters fronting Clear Channel were only for 30 minutes, so I had to do a feeding. The Star 101.3 morning team agreed to go with me, so we could continue our interview. As we walked, Frosty told a story about a woman who sued a city because one of its meters was giving off radiation, causing her headaches.
This is the kind of stuff morning show hosts have to find, so they can riff and, hopefully, find some humor. A school ban on hugging? Great. Frosty overheard a woman bragging about spending her divorce settlement on shopping sprees in Europe? With her kids? The nerve. Discuss! Stec told about being in an elevator after a sweaty workout and encountering two men. “Why is it always that you see someone cute when you look like crap?” she wondered on air.
Stec got into radio after attending Ohlone College in Fremont. A broadcasting teacher there, Tom Gomez, did the night shift on KEZR, and suggested her for a parttime shift. She got it and, despite having to move in with her parents in Milpitas (because of a bad debt), was on her way.
Stilwell, who was born in Indiana, was a fan of Larry King’s overnight radio show in the mid-’70s (“He knew a little bit about everything; he was funny back then”) and Midwest radio stars like Larry Lujack and Fred Winston, DJs who actually told stories. “Radio struck me as something to go into myself,” he said, “and I never left broadcasting.”
Neither has Stec, who admitted that she’s still getting used to the early morning shift. “I’m going to bed at 8 or 9,” she said, as if in disbelief. “It’s … sad.” But, she added, “I feel blessed to be here, and with this demo (of adult women). I relate to them and I want to give back to them so bad. As a chick, that makes me happy.” The Sporting Pinkie: One year since opening up shop as a sports talk station, KGMZ (“The Game” at 95.7) has announced some lineup changes. The morning show, “The Rise Guys,” is intact, with Whitey Gleason, Mark Kreidler and Dan Dibley. Chris Townsend moves from evenings to team with basketball commentator Matt Steinmetz from 10 a.m. to noon. John Lund leaves his midday slot to pair with Greg Papa (who goes from weekends to fulltime) from noon to 3 p.m. And, with co-host Eric Davis gone for a national TV gig, Brandon Tierney will host “The Drive” (from 3 to 7 p.m.) on his own. Ben Fong-Torres is a freelance writer. E-mail: sadolphson@ sfchronicle.com