By Craig Michaels
When you tune into K-NEWS 94.3 FM in the morning, you’ll hear more than just news, weather, and sports. The Bill Feingold show featuring Kevin Holmes is exceptionally entertaining and takes pride for being live and local.
The unlikely radio pair knows how to use their age difference to their advantage. Bill, who is 20-years Kevin’s senior, discloses how fun it is to reference all of the older celebrities that Kevin doesn’t even recognize. Bill specifically remembers when Kevin tried to book Loretta Young for the show, only to discover that she had died some 12 years prior. The real attraction is their on-air transparency: “I think what’s true for both of us are that we’re totally open and honest with our audience. We are exactly the same off-air as on. I love meeting our listeners and they always seem surprised that we really our radio personalities are the same as our real life personalities,” Bill explains.
The Bill Feingold Show hit the airwaves six years ago at the Desert Radio Group (DRG) in Palm Springs for one hour every Saturday. Bill had no problem filling the 60 minute time slot with the help of Kevin, who was originally assigned to work as the board operator for the show. The two began an on-air friendship which quickly grabbed the ears of local listeners. Soon they could be heard five nights a week and their show went from one hour to three! Capitalizing on their popularity, the DRG moved the duo to the morning drive where they can be heard broadcasting weekdays from 6am to 9am. If you’re a channel surfer you’ll also find them on 970 AM and now in the high desert on 103.7 FM.
You would never know this was the first attempt at a talk show for both Bill and Kevin. Like a well-oiled machine they have settled into their respective duties on and off the air. Bill is quick to give kudos to Kevin for his role in booking the guests for each show. Listeners have had the pleasure to ease drop on interviews with A-list celebrities in the past such as Larry King, Liza Minnelli and Jonny Mathis. On any given morning you might also see desert residents, Suzanne Somers or Gavin MacLeod (of Captain Merrill Stubing) roaming the hallways of the DRG waiting for their turn to grace the show.
While flipping on the mic and chatting with celebrities sounds fun and easy, there is a lot of prep work involved to making sure there is no dead air. Bill explains what a typical morning is like for him: “I am usually in the office by 2:30am and work up until the show goes on at 6am. I want the news to be the very latest that you will hear. I want you to hear stories you haven’t heard the day before and if a celebrity or author is coming on, I want to be well prepared for them.”
While they both contribute to the show off the air, it’s what happens once the two get behind the microphones that’s the interesting part: “I think the listeners will appreciate the fact that when the show starts, Kevin has no idea what the show is going to be about— so in a sense, I am presenting the show and the topics to Kevin and the audience at the same time. It makes for great spontaneity and that’s where many of the laughs come in,” Bill confesses.
The show continues to grow and has an impressively loyal fan base. Their “Odd Couple” like relationship has earned them the number one local morning radio talk show in the Valley. Even though they promote their program as the “Voice of the Valley,” you can hear them online around the world atwww.knewsradio.com. They truly love making people smile and are grateful for the advertisers who make it possible.
If you want to contact them you can email: bill@knewradio.com or call: (760) 416-8446.
Written by: Craig Michaels
Craig Michaels Productions
(760) 880-3848
