Mark & Brian entertained us for over a quarter of a century at KLOS. It came to an end last summer. Others have had a long run – Mark & Kim at KOST and Lohman & Barkley at KFI – but no team stayed together as a team at one station longer than Mark Thompson and Brian Phelps. Think maybe Mark and Brian have spent the last year reminiscing from time to time over a few drinks about their unique journey together?
That couldn’t be farther from the truth. “On my last day with the M&B show (Aug. 17) I finished my last farewells on the air and took off those particular headphones for the last time,” said Mark, from his new home back East. “There were many well-wishers in the hallway, so I shook every hand and kissed every baby. I walked out to the back of the building where my car was parked and found Brian and Jill Whelan sitting together. We exchanged nice words and encouragement and I left. I haven’t seen or spoken to Brian since.”
Same thing happened to Lohman & Barkley when Roger Barkley finished the KFI show one morning, took off his earphones, got up, walked out and never spoke to Al Lohman again. Apparently Barkley was just done. He never explained what happened.
For Mark & Brian it was just time. After all, they spent six hours a day cooped up in a radio booth every day for 27 years. Husbands and wives don’t spend that kind of enforced time together. When they were doing the NBC TV show, they added another 6-8 hours together beyond their radio shift.
“That’s enough for a while don’t you think?” Mark asked rhetorically. “Brian and I are both trying to find our own identities in the world of broadcast. I’m simply trying to find what my existence is now, and I’m sure he’s doing the same.”
Mark thinks there will come a day when they will sit down and chat and pick up exactly where they left off. “I firmly believe that he and I will stand side by side behind some podium to accept our induction into the Radio Hall Of Fame.
When it was time to end the KLOS morning show, there were no surprises for Mark. “I was aware of what I was stepping away from and aware of what I was stepping into,” said Mark. “My decision to leave was 10 years in the making. I was aware that I would step away, it was simply a matter of when.”
Whenever Mark and his wife Lynda (they do a podcast together) are in the Southland to visit their kids, they usually show up on the KLOS replacement show with Heidi & Frank.
Frank Kramer loves having Mark visit the studios at KLOS and tell stories. “Mark has always been a big supporter of the show and I have much love and respect for the man,” emailed Frank. “He is truly a class act, which is something you rarely find in the world of radio hosts. His endorsement is something that we value immensely.”
Frank would love Brian to join the show anytime. “Brian has yet to join us on the program, but for no other reason than we haven’t been in touch with one another since the transition.”
Is there a solid revenue model for podcasting? “No challenges really,” said Mark. “I knew what I was walking into. I had a model in mind of what I wanted the show to be and have implemented that, keeping in mind that the show evolves on its own. I have always been open to the idea that an entertainment program is a living, breathing thing and needs to evolve to survive. I built a state-of-the-art studio in my home and a website to match, and those come with huge price tags. I may never fully pay for either of them so I am still in the red, but what start-up business isn’t? I am loving doing this and have a business model in place that may show profit in the near future.”
Mark doesn’t miss the Southland traffic. They now live in Lake Norman, N.C. “Yesterday I had to drive from Beverly Hills to Agoura Hills and it took me an hour and a half. I almost had a panic attack.”
If you have missed the antics of the Thompson family, you can listen to their daily podcast at: www.markandlynda.us.
Frosty Unthawed
Frosty Stilwell, formerly part of the Triplets (Frosty, Heidi & Frank) for over a decade at KLSX and KABC, has landed a terrific job at Talk 910 in San Francisco. As the new noon – 3 p.m. personality, Frosty is sandwiched between Rush Limbaugh and Gil Gross (ex-KLAC).
Contact the writer: Don Barrett is the Register’s radio columnists. Email him radio-related questions or comments at db@thevine.net
