But, quite frankly, we werent real excited about learning it at the time.. Enjoy unlimited access to all of our incredible journalism, in print and digital. Anyway, I was holding this animal on my shoulder, on my freshly cleaned jacket, and it got a little excited. Charlie Brown), playing records and providing character voices as stars of the popular Charlie and Harrigan Show. Bring walking sticks. Drive-time shows have opposite hours from most other jobs, starting in the very early morning hours. Ron was a longtime morning host at our sister station KVIL 103.7, where he worked with KRLD's Mitch Carr. Imagine working in a situation for five or six years where your first question every day had to be, What kind of moods he in today?, Tony Garrett got a dose of it too, though he took it philosophically. Mess with Ron and I might become an ape in heat and jump all over you. Chapman returned to the states in 1959, took a radio job in New Haven, Connecticut, and then, when a co-worker landed a job with KLIF in Dallas, Chapman went alongat $175 a week, more than double his Connecticut salary. Fort Worth was the butt of all the jokes by DJs sitting in Dallas talking about people over in Fort Worth. Last time I dialed in for any length was the first day of September2000, whenRon Chapman signed off after a 31-year stint as The Voice of KVIL and, by extension,Dallas radio. According to Littauer, Chapmans massive energy manifested itself during his youth in a series of class-clown pranks. And he admits that, in part, it is the reason his first marriage ended after nineteen years. And yet, he would never ask me to be one of the [featured] dancers. Says Littauer, Only Ron could spend two weeks on a ship, do nothing, and then get a commendation for it.. I knew I was fired. If Chapman knows just what to say on the air, he also knows what not to blurt out: no jokes that have females as the butt. We could go AOR. Nance likens her life with Ron to living with P.T. Ron Chapman Obituary - Death: Ron Chapman Obituary Kvil | Ron Chapman Cause Of Death Ron Chapman Obituary: In the loving memory of Ron Chapman, we are saddened to inform you that Ron Chapman, a. If he thought you had an iota of talent, and you wound up on that station, then the expectations for you were enormous. He was one of the greatest radio people to ever sit behind the mic. Trusted friend and colleague Jody Dean does not disagree, comparing Chapman to 1960s coaching legend Vince Lombardi, who led the Green Bay Packers to multiple championships as an unyielding taskmaster. Yes, my dear, the world is still a warm and safe and funny place to be, and you are on top of it with us, you know everything we do, which is a lot, and life keeps getting better. One time, I finally asked him, You seem to like my dancing, but why dont you ever ask me to be one of the dancers? And he said, Well, to be honest, youre too sexy for our show. ", At that age, Fairchild said with a laugh, I didnt really know what he was talking about.. Michael Selden, a DJ at KVIL from 1974 to 1979, has gone full circle with Chapman emotionally, from admiration to loathing and back again. Thanks a lot, everybody! They were pissed off, and they loved it. At the end of this, the sergeant looked at Ron and said, What is your job. Ron Chapman began his radio career the DAY he graduated high school, hitting the airwaves in his hometown of Haverhill, Massachusetts. When we first went to KVIL to do the Cowboys games, Ron brings Brad Sham and me into his office and starts giving us this big speech on how we should broadcast a football game. He is survived by his loving wife of 49 years, Deborah Chapman; mother Helen Chapman; twin sister Connie Smith; sons Eric . There was some serious speculation for a while in Haverhill about the Ghost Tuba Player. . Oh, Lord. @theoldgreywolf once told me, "Chapman was the pioneer, the seer." "I was always on the quest of doing something new and dramatic and different and surprising," Ron said in 2010. . Some 12,000 did, and KVIL donated $240,000 to charity. He was born in Pittsburg, in East Texas and was raised in East Dallas -- in the area that is now District 5 -- where he graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School. To this day I still get the shakes whenever I hear Chicago's "If You Leave Me Now," Gerry Rafferty's "Right Down the Line"and anything by Anne Murray or Barry Manilow. "It's a shame it's gone, but KVIL had a great history," he said. Next to it is a portable telephone, complementing cellular phones in his and Nances cars. Done in slick, black marble, it is an oversized rectangle, big enough for Ron to pace in. To pace in. Ronald V. Chapman, age 80, passed away Tuesday, October 11, 2022 at Mount Carmel East Hospital in Columbus. I never brought it up with him, either. Chapman's booming voice is now a shadow of its former self, the result of a stroke suffered just before Christmas in 2012. Barnum. One of his greatest talents is picking people, knowing where they fit, where they go.They gave me a little yellow van, and I drove it myself. Fifteen years later, this newspaper called it "the800-pound gorilla of Dallas radio," describing Chapman as "not only one of the top DJs in Dallas, but one of the most respected and feared in the country.". It would be rude not to let Ron Chapman give it a proper send-off. Or, according to Alex Burton, until his recent firing the voice of KRLD, Hes a right-brained man who manages to sound left-brained.. He's now a news anchor for CBS Channel 11 and will replace Chapman on KLUV's morning show. His older sister, Florence Littauer, now a motivational speaker, used her seniority to motivate Ralph, teaching him tongue twisters and then persuading him to repeat them for amazed visitors at the store-for a small fee. He likes certain things in certain places. It almost looked like a squirrel. He spent more than three decades at KVIL, toiling as a morning deejay, music director and program director, transforming the adult contemporary format into a major success on the FM band. I can walk faster than most people can run, Chapman once told The Dallas Morning News. Chapman was 85 years old. KVIL is a commercial radio station dual-licensed to Highland Park and Dallas, Texas. For example, co-workers wondered about his habit of dumping all his foreign currency into a drawer when he returns from trips. In 1959, as "Irving Harrigan" he joined the staff KLIF/Dallas, where he teamed up with Jack Woods (a.k.a. But his desire was for you to get the best out of yourself. I'm saddened to tell you that legendary Dallas DJ Ron Chapman has passed away at 85. Barack O-blame-a. Wowwwwww, Chapman warmly asserts, and Okaaaaaaay and Alllllllright and Well suuure. Chapman hired fellow broadcasting legend Jody Dean to work a late-night shift at KVIL in 1982. In 2000, as radio began to change once again, Chapman moved to KLUV, a Dallas oldies station where he stayed until announcing his retirement in 2005. Chapman maintains that the station turns down huge amounts of revenue from advertisers who are dying to get at his listeners: Massengill, Preparation H, etc. To the multitudes who wake up with him every weekday, hes Mr. Woods was Charlie Brown. Ralph Chapman passed away on May 4, 2021 in Dallas, Texas. Chapman had a . Do you understand this? Born October 11, 1942 in Ashland, KY, he was the son of the late Otis Guy and . He works on his show twelve, fourteen, sixteen hours a day. My wife made me admit it publicly: yeah. Would Stevie Wonder object if we took it out? Chapman retired from KVIL in 2000 and moved to KLUV, where he worked until 2005 before retiring again. We never worked in the studio together, for 20 years. Industry critics say that while Chapman is full-tilt today, he is not really doing much to prepare his station for Life After Ron. And guess what? Back then, Chapman says, wed latch on to anything. Selden was the Afternoon Drive DJ at 1190 KLIF at the time when 75% of the teenagers in Dallas were listening. Then by the following Tuesday, youre just gone. So I had just had my jacket cleaned. 2023 Audacy, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Youd be walking down the hall, and nothing would stop him from putting you down in a very loud voice in front of anybody. FOX 4. Ron Chapman set out to claim it. Brings new meaning to the phrase Sunday Funday. The next step from there would have been the street. Turn! In 1969, Chapman joined the staff of KVIL-FM/Dallas-Fort Worth as morning disc jockey, music director, and program director, bringing the . By Casey Carr. Remembering Ron Chapman. Its a trap: if you are situated in Dallas, you look at things from the Dallas perspective, even unconsciously. We had to beg them to stop sending checks. And this was totally not intended. They were gonna change owners and he knew the new owner. When New York-based Infinity Broadcasting bought KVIL a couple of years ago, they paid more than $80 million, the highest amount ever paid for a stand-alone radio station in the U.S. Even after he retired, he would call and ask for help, and I was always happy to do it. This duality is a big part of Ron Chapmans magic. Hes now a news anchor for CBS Channel 11 and will replace Chapman on KLUVs morning show. And the little guy loved Coca-Cola. Tags. Chapman remembers all the other long-gone-and-forgotten ones who came gunning for him: the Mobys in the Morning, the Stevenses and Pruetts. But what me and Tom Murphy did was put together a morning show for teens, Murphy and Harrigan. The rest, as they say, is history. In 1968, Chapman joined KVIL-FM, a station known for pioneering the Adult Contemporary (AC) format. Blonde, voluptuous, impeccably well-mannered, and gracious, she smiles through a mouthful of sharp teeth. He also had a stint on television with the local ABC affiliate, WFAA-TV, where he was featured in the mid-60s on the "Sump'N Else" show. Ronald Chapman July 23, 2021 Ronald Monroe Chapman, 77, of Jordan, died peacefully in his sleep at 2:32 am on July 23, 2021 while at home surrounded by his loving family. He was 85. Ron was one of those guys who made this a better place to live.. According to industry analysts, fellow media, and KVIL employees, former and current, Chapman is a man of planned spontaneity, of freeze-dried warmth. He will later say that its almost like having an extra lobe in his brain. Ive got a speech at the Board of Realtors this morning, and Im getting my hair done., And I said, Hes giving me a real nice blow job., Oh, Lord. Thirty-two of them at the same station. Most of the radio folk we talked to have a love-hate relationship with the man. Ive had two scoops of everything, Chapman likes to say. He is single-minded, living and breathing and eating KVIL to the detriment of everything else in his life. The country was going to get in shape. Ron in makeup for his role in an episode of Police Story. Rons face superimposed on the body of Michael Jackson. Catch up on the day's news you need to know. This is a first, he admits. 1 radio show . Ron Chapman passed away earlier this week at the age of 85. In a 1985 issue ofBillboard, the music industry's trade publication, a radio consultant called it "dominant" -- "the best-run radio station in Dallas" among a pile of worthy contenders, including K104. Chapman is an obsessive-compulsive perfectionist, Selden says. "Well, they had to do something," the National Radio Hall of Famer said. . The radio industry took to social media to reflect on Chapman's life and career. Bud Buschardt worked as the unit manager on Away We Go and Sumpn Else, two television shows that Chapman did for WFAA Channel 8 in the mid-60s. In honor of his life, we reproduce this 1989 profile of Chapman. I now think about retiring. Read our daily updates at 12:30, 2:30 and 4:30 p.m., and our complete obituaries in The Herald-Dispatch on Wednesday and Didnt think about it until after I handed the keys back to him. Each ratings point represents a percentage of the audience market share and is said to be worth about $1.3 million in advertising revenues yearly. But you could hear this blow-dryer. Ron preparing to parachute out of an airplane and broadcast all the way to the ground. But the most telling aspect of Ron Chapmans house may be his shower. Hes now an announcer and does several shows for ABC radio. January 20, 2023 by Jacob Pococontons. It was also an opportunity, and that night Rons car found itself parked outside every cool bar and nightclub on Greenville Avenue. Incidentally, the quarterback is the guy behind the center. Even in a social setting, conversation revolves around radio and the show and the things that are, for other people, rather peripheral., Chapman says he has always had to be aggressive because back in the early days, the ratings were so low that they didnt even show up on Arbitron. After working for two years with the Voice of the United Nations Command in Korea , Chapman moved to Connecticut and station WHNC/New Haven. We play some stuff that cooks pretty good, but there are a lot of songs we wont play at all. Suite 2100 HE IS AN EAST TEXAN: Judge Ron Chapman is a native Texan, an experienced public servant and a dedicated member of his community. I know something the others havent figured out.. "But it's a different world in radio, isn't it?" In one infamous stunt, notes his Hall of Fame bio, Chapman told his listeners to each send $20 to the station; within three days, the station had received $200,000. Some estimates put the final amount even higher. He knows what people want to hear. A ratings war is brewing between two oldies stations, and a controversial gadget might decide who wins. And I do have a good memory. Jan 3, 2017. His wife says the best way to get him frantic is to put him in a car without a phone. We are very grateful for the care and compassion he. The man who sat at the top of the hill, a legend in broadcasting. Born plain old Ralph Chapman in Haverhill, Massachusetts, Ron began performing at the ripe age of three. The Emperor is in his tower, conjuring, working on the exact wording and inflection of the incantation that will once again secure his seemingly unending supremacy. There is no excuse for making a mistake. Hollywood actress Morgan Fairchild first met the radio maestro when she was a student at Lake Highlands High School. Hes the sports anchor on ABC Channel 8. On the mike, butter wouldnt melt in his mouth. Chapman rounded out the 1960s by joining the staff of KVIL-FM in 1969, when AM radio was yielding the spotlight to the purer sound of FM stations. Ron Chapman Obituary KVIL - Death : DFW Radio Legend Died: Funeral - KVIL and DFW Radio legend, Ron Chapman died aged 85, on April, 26th, 2021, with. After a brief, hoarse "Oh my God," he shrugged off the news with all the oh-well of an 80-year-old man who bowed on Dallas teenybop radio juggernaut KLIF-AM when the Beatles were still known as TheQuarrymen. And the 01 Man on KVIL is still saying, aint this great? who served as KVILs newsman for a couple of years during the early Seventies, Chapman is obsessed with his work. Chapman had served as emcee for a couple of years in a row and had complained both times about the sound system. CBS Radio has rebranded 103.7 on Your FM Dial as the Amp, a moniker also bestowed upon energy drinksand vitamins that promise "alean, ripped physique."