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Eric Johnson

2:00pm - 7:00pm

TV News I’m Excited About!

Eric Johnson August 10th, 2022
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 19: Larry David attends the premiere of HBO's "Curb Your Enthusiasm" at Paramount Pictures Studios on October 19, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rich Fury/Getty Images)

Some breaking TV news today that I’m actually excited about!

Nightly, my wife and I always have the discussion about what we are going to watch.  She is great at picking shows that I would have never found.  She just has a knack for finding really interesting shows, so I love it when she decides what to watch.

We just finished season 4 of the Netflix series ‘Virgin River’.  They finished the season with lots of great cliffhangers for season 5, but that is a year away.

So tonight’s question of what to watch tonight may prove to be difficult.  I’m sure she will find a great show for us!  Fortunately between all the streaming services, we have plenty of choices!

However I am planning for the future and I am excited about some TV news released earlier today.

‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’

As a long time fan of Larry David’s work on ‘Seinfeld’,  I’m also a fan of ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ and I’m stoked because season 12 is going into production this fall!

They are in the script writing process now.

The show has experienced a chaotic schedule  in years past with the show once taking a six year hiatus after the release of season 8.

‘The Morning Show’

Last year ‘Mad Men’ actor Jon Hamm was featured on ‘Curb’ and today we found out that just months after his “everyone but Jon Hamm” AppleTV+ commercial, Jon has joined the cast of ‘The Morning Show.’

Jon will star alongside Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon and Billy Crudup as Paul Marks, “a corporate titan who sets his sights on UBA, pulling Cory (Crudup), Alex (Aniston) and Bradley (Witherspoon) into his powerful orbit.”

I am a huge fan of ‘Mad Men’ having watched the series at least twice!  It will be interesting to see if Hamm plays a role close to brooding Don Draper or if his role will be a totally different personality.  On recent TV roles, Jon has enjoyed acting and having fun in comedies.

No specific release date has been set for the new season of ‘The Morning Show’.

Happy viewing, just remember to come back to the radio!!

The Royal Film Performance & UK Premiere of "Top Gun: Maverick"

LONDON, ENGLAND – MAY 19: John Hamm attends the Royal Film Performance and UK Premiere of “Top Gun: Maverick” at Leicester Square on May 19, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Eamonn M. McCormack/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures)

 

EJ Remembers Olivia Newton -John

Like millions around the world, I was very sad to learn the news of the passing of Olivia Newton-John yesterday. Olivia fought a courageous battle with breast cancer for 30 years. Through it all she remained positive and optimistic and never took on a “why me” attitude. She passed away peacefully at age 73 surrounded by friends and family.

Sadly, there have been so many celebrity deaths recently. We in the media are tasked with informing the public. We create programming and content to let listeners, readers and viewers know of the passing, and perhaps, help them morn.

Yesterday, Olivia’s passing hit me like a ton of bricks. When I first started seeing stories pop up on the internet, I did not want to believe it. Before I made any announcement on the air, I was sure to check multiple sources. Far too many times -in an attempt to be the first – the media gets it wrong by prematurely reporting a death.

TMZ has become a reliable source for news of this sort. Once they ran the story, I informed our WJBR listeners of Olivia’s passing.

It took a while for it to set in, because for me, since I was 11 years old in 1973, she was always there. At the same time of Olivia coming on the pop music scene, I had discovered radio and knew from that age, that’s what I wanted to do. I listened to the radio constantly from that age. I preferred the presentation of Top 40 radio.

While most of my friends loved listening to Led Zeppelin and Lynyrd Skynyrd, I also enjoyed the pop sounds of the time like the Bee Gees and Olivia Newton-John. Top 40 radio offered the variety of music and the presentation I found appealing. So needless to say in the mid to late 70’s, I listened to plenty of Olivia Newton-John. I was also coming of age during that time. Truth be told, she was my first crush!

So, losing her yesterday brought back a flood of childhood memories, including those of loved ones like my parents, who are no longer with us.

To pay tribute to Olivia during my show yesterday, I wanted to play a song from her era, that fit in with our mix from the 80’s to now. The song I chose was “Magic” from 1980. While I was playing the song, Olivia’s haunting vocals in that song took on new meaning knowing she had passed.

“Don’t let your aim ever stray-And if all your hopes survive-Destiny will arrive-I’ll bring all your dreams alive-For you!”

Many of my dreams have come alive. Thanks for being there along the way Olivia! It was a privilege to play your music on the radio!

Here are some of my favorite Olivia Newton-John videos.

  • Sunday Profile: Olivia Newton-John

    This is a 10 minute interview on CBS Sunday Morning with Gayle King. It’s a great interview that shows how fearless and positive Olivia was during her illness.

  • 'Let Me Be There' - Olivia Newton-John

    Her first big hit form 1973.  She started out with a country flair.  What makes this song cool is Olivia’s sweet vocals and the baritone backing her up.  She won a grammy for this one!

     

  • 'Have You Never Been Mellow' - Olivia Newton-John

    Big hit from early 1975.  She was moving out of her country lean and becoming more pop.  This song has always made me smile!

  • 'A Little More Love' - Olivia Newton-John

    Olivia took on a more provocative sound in 1978!  Great production on this song and her vocals soar!

  • 'Magic' - Olivia Newton-John

    From 1980’s ‘Xanadu’.  The film was a flop, but this song was a huge hit in the summer of 1980!  This video represents one reason she was my first crush and that of many!

  • 'Physical' - Olivia Newton-John

     

    Did Madonna, Bon Jovi, Journey, Michael Jackson or anyone else have the biggest hit of the 80s?  Nope it was this one from Olivia.  #1 for 10 weeks in 1981!

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