So on Friday, Oct. 23, "The Cort and Fatboy Show" was calmly, unceremoniously cancelled by KUFO's new owners. The show's hosts -- Cort Webber and Bobby "Fatboy" Roberts -- were shown the door. Later that day, word got out that the much-loved "Rick Emerson Show" got the axe, too.
Cort and Fats have become good friends over the past three-and-a-half years of Friday movie-gab appearances. Maybe the highest compliment I can pay them is that they're the same funny, generous, big-hearted, down-to-earth nerds off the air as they are on the air -- a rarity. I've also developed a sincere respect for their radio craft, which is so much harder than they make it sound. (I even made a comic strip about it.) I love these guys, I love their love of Portland, and I loved being on their show and tagging along while they were putting together amazing communal experiences like "Firefly at the Mission" and "Battlestar at the Bagdad."
And I'm hardly alone in that love. I think it's telling that within hours of their firing, the following things happened:
- Dozens of media geeks and pros from several different local outlets converged on the Horse Brass for an impromptu "cancellation wake." Here's a picture.
- Popular local podcaster "PDX Sucks" threw together a stunningly angry online tribute that kicked off with a relentless stream of supportive voicemails from listeners. (And they're still leaving messages, apparently.)
- And a bunch of fans had a new non-KUFO message board up and running by the end of the weekend -- and were trying to back up the entire online history of both cancelled radio shows for safekeeping before KUFO decides to wipe it from cultural memory.
I'm biased. Two friends of mine just lost their livelihoods in yet another ruthlessly zero-notice (if fairly polite) broadcast-industry firing. But I'm not going to rail too much against KUFO's new owners. It's their train set. If they want to crow about how "local" their new ownership of KUFO is going to be, and then a few months later replace two of the most local, well-liked radio shows in Portland with a new staff that includes a guy from Philly fired for playing a racist song parody; a fellow from San Diego named "Ditch" who specializes in prank calls; a dude from Seattle named "The Ricker" who started a band there called "Courtney Killed Kurt," says "bro-ski" entirely too often, and apparently got in trouble in 1999 for some politically incorrect shenanigans of his own; and a local jock who once engaged in one of the most mind-blowing examples of on-air recklessness in radio history ... well, hey, KUFO's new owners totally get to do that.
And furthermore: If KUFO's new owners want to follow their firings of well-liked locals with an aggressive, weird publicity-stunt campaign that depicts their "new and improved" station as a maurauding, flesh-eating alien horde descending on our city, well, um, that's a really interesting choice. (It's certainly more interesting than when the new owners put TVs playing nothing but Fox News Channel in every broadcast studio in the building. That was just annoying.)
And finally: If the new KUFO wants to piss off the local media right out of the gate by giving out the newsroom phone numbers of TV stations and alternative publications as an on-air prank? Hey. Go nuts.
And by all means, KUFO: Feel free to let a Twitter account that wants to represent you make fun of DJs you just fired and, while it's dishing out insults, make fun of DJs who were recently fired by other local stations. You stay classy. (UPDATE: "KUFORules" tells me that those last two tweets were part of a prank spoofing KUFO, and that he is very disappointed in me as a reporter. Huh. UPDATE 2: Have since called KUFO's Susan Reynolds; she tells me "KUFORules" is not an official KUFO Twitter account. Let's replace "huh" with "whoops"; feelings about friends made me careless.)
Anyway. Cort and Fatboy announced on KGW's "Studio @ The Square" tonight that they plan to keep podcasting. They've already moved their URL, which they own. And they're still hosting midnight movie screenings. Their next one is "Raising Arizona," Nov. 6 at the Bagdad. I hope they find a new media berth soon. They deserve it. The rest of this post is an unsorted list of links to media coverage and online listener response to the firings of my friends, which I've been collecting over the past few days. It's an overwhelming reaction -- Portland media has seldom seen the like. I hope other radio stations in town are paying attention. If anyone else finds anything to add, feel free to link it in the comments or drop me a line. -- Cheers, Mike Russell.
"Cort and Fatboy in first full interview since KUFO massacre" -- Oregon Media Central
Cort and Fatboy's final podcast (mp3)
The fan-made "Mehfugees" replacement message-board forums for C&F and Emerson listeners
The "Mehfugees" news and archive page
Talk Box: Fired KUFO DJ's on the new direction of media -- KGW's Studio @ The Square (video)
Twitter search: "rick emerson"
Well, Fuck. Cort and Fatboy Just Got Fired. -- Portland Mercury
Dead air update: KUFO’s Rick Emerson Show crew fired. Cort and Fatboy fired. KUFO responds. -- Willamette Week
Shake-up at KUFO leaves Emerson and his crew off the air -- The Oregonian
The PDX Sucks instant podcast tribute/rage session, with voicemails from angry listeners
"The Cort and Fatboy Appreciation Thread" -- Mehfugees forum
"The Rick Emerson Show Appreciation Thread" - Mehfugees forum
The KUFO Facebook page -- at this writing, the wall posts by Emerson and "Cort and Fatboy" fans have a remarkably vitriolic tone.
Photos from the impromptu "Cort and Fatboy Cancellation Wake" at the Horse Brass: [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ] [ 4 ] [ 5 ] [ 6 ] [ 7 ] [ 8 ]
Swedish "Cort and Fatboy" fan @annosuperstar offers a sweet farewell to the lads
Cort offers a post-firing message to his listeners: Read it here or here
Nice post about the "Cort and Fatboy" cancellation from Rhode Island fan @momlovesfilm
Three DamnPortlanders posts on the KUFO shuffle: [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ]
Listener @veraciously on "Cort and Fatboy": "the german and the movie douche"
Chris Walsh reports from the Cancellation Wake
Posts tagged "kufo" at Oregon Media Central.
@pdxsucks keeps collecting Cort & Fatboy response voicemails. Nice. And not-nice.
Urban Dictionary definitions for "KUFO"
PDX Sucks goes off on KUFO. Again.
Say the Call Letters Backward -- OurPDX
In memoriam: The Cort & Fatboy Show
Cort and Fatboy: Just not enough hair on their chests for new KUFO. -- Willamette Week
J-Dubb's Theatre: The Day the Radio DiedOops, it happened again! -- Tim Reilly's Press Club
Live like a Mehfugee! -- Geek in the City
Cort and Fatboy We Will Miss You!!!! -- videolog entry by erikolson100
"MSPaint comic inspired by KUFO's 'refueling.'" -- by "therealthing"
"Boycott KUFO for firing Cort and Fatboy!" Facebook group
Posts tagged "kufo" at Oregon Media Central
"The Beast Must Flee" -- remix of the KUFO viral-marketing video.
Facebook: The Rick Emerson Show Bottom Line Brigade
"Portland Airwaves Dumbed Down Again." -- The Age of Geek
"The Future of Radio" -- Wet Oregonian
"Radio Gaga" -- Willamette Week, Oct. 28, 2009
"Boycott KUFO for firing Cort & Fatboy!" Facebook group
"The New KUFO: Cue Tool's Eulogy" -- OurPDX
New KUFO PD: 'We're just here to have fun, man' -- Oregon Media Central
"Hitler Learns of Alpha Broadasting's Firing on KUFO" -- Why yes, it IS a YouTube "Downfall" remix full of Portland-media in-jokes.
"Rick Emerson returns to radio -- for an hour" -- Oregon Media Central
"K-U-F-Oh, holy crap." -- Live Wire! Radio
Cort and Fatboy talk about their new lives on the PDXSucks podcast
Here's an MSPaint comic I did yesterday about KUFO's "refueling."
http://twitpic.com/n1duh
Posted by: twitter.com/therealthing | October 27, 2009 at 12:05 AM
MARCONI is BAAAAAACK?! WTF? Seriously? Ugh. Why wont that guy go away????
Posted by: Adrienne | October 27, 2009 at 01:12 AM
Thanks for the shoutout Mike! I do hope on the new podcasts you will be able to visit/call in!
www.mehfugees.com
Posted by: Gabriel | October 27, 2009 at 06:50 AM
Well done Mike. This is a wonderfully written piece. I am certain good things will come from this recent unpleasantness.
Posted by: Aaron Duran | October 27, 2009 at 08:45 AM
Wow what a bummer! I love you guys and think your shows were just what we wanted. I hope this new owner does not fuck up kufo any more than he all ready has. If they start playing crap music it is by by KUFO.
Posted by: www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000147596123 | October 27, 2009 at 10:02 AM
Well done, sir. I know that the response by media and audience for both shows has been overwhelming and I personally have had a hell of a time just keeping up with it all (in addition to the Save-RES page, I try to keep the RES Bottom Line Brigade up to date for the 300 members on Facebook). Every time I turn around, there's another person -- like yourself -- with something fantastic or insightful or angry to share.
I don't think it can be stressed enough. All of these people -- Rick, Sarah, Tim, Cort, Fatboy -- these are real people. Honest people. They care about their friends and their audience and their craft. They don't pretend to be anything they aren't. They aren't douche bags. They aren't hacks. They aren't doing anything for a dollar.
Everything radio gets a bum wrap for being -- insincere, inane, daily demonstrations of the pending Idiocracy of the planet -- these guys all are not.
I am grateful to count many such people as my friends and to be allowed to be a dedicated fan of the others. These people are all part of this amazing wheel of creative geniuses in Portland (and reaching radially outward around the world) that have so much great content to give to us.
As for KUFO? Well, I only listened because of Rick and then Cort and Fatboy. I couldn't care less what happens to the station. Or any radio anywhere for that matter. In 2009, there is so little content over the airwaves and so MUCH on the internet (podcasts, etc) that it's hard to justify wasting your time tuning into any point on the dial. Unless you have snagged the RES or C&FB.. in which case you have something compelling and unique worth me putting the mouse down for and picking up the radio.
Posted by: SaveRES | October 27, 2009 at 08:57 PM
So what about Buzz? Did he get fired as well? He was well liked yet no one is talking about what happened to him? Why is Adrienne bitching about Marconi being back? He is a local DJ that should be on the air, he's on KUPL anyways so what are you whining about? I miss his show on KUFO.
While I'm not as liberal as Cort and Fatboy are I did enjoy their humor which will be missed. Rick Emerson I deeply enjoyed your unique humor on air. You all will be missed.
Posted by: Mike Rota | October 28, 2009 at 06:16 AM
As with much of what of modern day mass commercial entertainment anything that's a step above the lowest common denominator (and Emerson and C&F were several steps above) is not long for this world. If you find yourself thinking "this television or radio program is just too damned clever for it's own good" then odds are it probably is too damned clever, at least for the boneheads in suits who sit in the corporate offices.
Most of us don't listen to terrestrial radio for the music anymore. Partly because the music is boring and repetetive. Mostly it's because probably everybody owns some form of mp3 player and can listen to the music they really like when they really want.
It's the personalities that draw us to the radio. Whether it be by design or simple fortune KUFO had three of the best , most interesting local jocks on their station this last couple of years.
The cool thing about the station during that time was that it really felt like they were part of Portland and vice versa. Anything weird, fun or just plain different taking place in the Portland-Metro area would get support from Rick, Cort and Bobby. From the Midnight Movie, to the Rocking the Redshirts, to the Pirate Festival and on and on they built a community that was uniquely Portland-centric. A little geeky for some tastes? Welcome to Portland.
You aren't going to come close to that with Marconi's mafia or rubber chickens. Worse; you've just told the commmunity, your listeners, that you think we're stupid.
I do look forward to whatever the boys wind up doing in the near future but as for KUFO- it's dead to me. May they suffer forever in the Sarlacc Pit of Mediocrity.
Posted by: twitter.com/deanwormer | October 28, 2009 at 11:34 AM
You have spoken my mind, sir.
Posted by: Calvin Lotz | October 28, 2009 at 12:00 PM
After listening to what these new DJ's are doing it sounds like the suits have them playing more music and doing less talking! While I for one enjoy that, I can see how it might offend others. I will miss the humor of our departed DJ's but I will also enjoy having our station more like it was in Phoenix(98 KUPD). It's all about the Rock!
Posted by: Mike Rota | October 28, 2009 at 03:42 PM
It is nice to see that I was not the only who laughed so hard on my drive home listening to C&FB that I might have peed a little.... more than once. I will never listen to KUFO again. They have officially made Portland dummer (See? It has beegun). I will have to add more Tool to my iPod since there is no point to listening to the radio. I will not sit through commericials to listen to the witless drivel now broadcasting. Shame on you Alpha! Here's the the "mothership" taking you back to where you came from!
Posted by: Kerrie | October 28, 2009 at 10:34 PM
www.cortandfatboy.com & forums.cortandfatboy.com have been parked :(
Posted by: Kevin | November 01, 2009 at 10:01 AM
Not to worry, Kevin -- Cort and Fatboy own that URL, and Fatboy tells me the reason it's parked is because they're in the process of moving it.
Posted by: Mike Russell | November 01, 2009 at 11:14 AM
KUFO sucks, people! I don't really understand their decision of firing these guys. I had so many hilarious moments listening to them, and now it comes to be that the show is over. I'm outraged!
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