Tag Archives: 95.9 the Fox

Roundup: Long Lots Target Date, Video Game Magic, “100 Human Stories” …

Posted on September 6, 2024 | 2 comments

Surprise!

The start of construction on the new Long Lots Elementary School — originally planned for this fall — will not take place until next year.

That’s the most recent news from the Long Lots School Building Committee, which met Thursday for the first time since May.

As a result, the 125,882-square foot school will open later than the anticipated September 2026 date.

Site plan for the new Long Lots Elementary School.

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JT Penny understands the power of video games.

And not just because the Staples High School senior is ranked among the top 350 Overwatch players in North America.

He knows that gaming relieves stress, reduces boredom, and offers an escape into a digital playground when times are tough.

JT also knows that, for some children, video games can be actual lifelines.

In addition to defending his Grand Master gaming title — and rowing with the Saugatuck Rowing Club varsity — JT has partnered with a national non-profit charity.

Gamers Outreach has one mission: provide specialized video game stations (“GoKarts”) to kids receiving treatment or recovering in hospitals.

Over the past year, JT collected donations by livestreaming video game playoffs on Twitch from home, and at the Stream-A-Thon hosted by Gamers For Giving at Eastern Michigan State University.

On Wednesday, JT delivered his first GoKart to Yale New Haven Hospital’s Pediatric Unit.

It’s a great partnership. Through the process, JT worked closely with Yale New Haven’s child life gaming and technology specialist Tyler Mahoney.

JT has mastered a high-level video game. He’s won big crew races. Both are great accomplishments.

But his real prize is empowering hospitalized kids, at a time they need it most.

JT Penny (left) and Tyler Mahoney of Yale New Haven Hospital with JT’s GoKart donation, ready for its first patient/gamer. 

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Ever since the October 7 Israeli massacre by Hamas, Haaretz reporter Lee Yaron has been at work investigating the lives of some of the victims. She’s spoken with survivors, their family members, and first responders in Israel and beyond.

“100 Human Stories” will be published this fall.

On October 14 — one year and one week after the first anniversary of the attack — she’ll be at Temple Israel (7 p.m.). She’ll speak with Rabbis Michael Friedman and Evan Schultz about the events of 10/7, and their continuing impact on Israel today.

The event is free, but pre-registration is required. Click here for details. (Hat tip: Sal Liccione)

Lee Yaron

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Three exciting and diverse events have been added to the Westport Country Playhouse fall calendar.

At “Perfectly Westport: A Fireside Chat with Westport’s Bestselling Author Emily Liebert,” the “Perfectly Famous” writer chats with Westport Magazine editor-in-chief Samantha Yanks about story inspiration, finding an agent, getting published, editing, ghostwriting for celebrities, and balancing career and motherhood.

It’s September 30 (7 p.m.). Click here for tickets, and more information.

Hitchcock fans will enjoy “Rear Window: A Night of Suspense.” In advance of the WCP production of “The 39 Steps,” there’s a special screening of the “Rear Window” movie.

Artistic director Mark Shanahan — a Hitchcock scholar and fan, who taught a course on the director at Fordham University for over 21 years — shares his knowledge and insights about Hitchcock.

He’ll highlight key details to watch for. After the movie, Shanahan will explore why “Rear Window” is such a classic.

It’s October 2 (7 p.m.). Click here for tickets, and more information.
Then comes “Ghost Stories and Legends” — an evening of classic stories of the supernatural with Broadway’s John Rapson (“Sweeney Todd,” “Les Misérables”).

He’ll present a special version of his solo show of Washington Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” plus other ghostly tales.

It’s October 10 (7 p.m.). Click here for tickets, and more information.

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The Westport Library is a place of stories — literally, and metaphorically.

They’ll be at the forefront on Saturday, September 21, when StoryFest — the annual literary festival — features over 50 authors.

Each comes to the Library to discuss their work and experiences, and connect with fans, readers and fellow writers.

StoryFest’s Saturday concludes with The Lance Lundberg Masters Series Presents: The Power of Story.

Featured authors include Clay McLeod Chapman, May Cobb, Gabino Iglesias and Cynthia Pelayo.

The evening also includes a performance by author/puppeteer GennaRose Nethercott, a story told by acclaimed photographer Jesse Freidin, and an appearance from Northeast Storytelling President ChaChanna Simpson, who oversees the Library’s Storytelling Sundays monthly series.

The Power of Story kicks off at 7 pm in the Library’s Trefz Forum. Light refreshments will be served.

StoryFest writers include (clockwise from top left): Clay McLeod Chapman, May Cobb, Gabino Iglesias, ChaChanna Simpson, Jesse Freidin, GennaRose Nethercott, and Cynthia Pelayo).

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The switch of 95.9 The Fox — from rock to simulcasting WICC’s news and talk format — has Westport connections, beyond listeners losing a longtime Fairfield County music staple.

WFOX is owned by Westport-based Connoisseur Media. It says the move was made in part because of the departure of New York’s WCBS Newsradio 880.

The other “06880” angle: Westporter Lisa Wexler, host of a very popular morning talk show on WICC, will now be heard by many more listeners.

Lisa Wexler

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How old is the universe?

Pretty old. 13.8 billion years (give or take a hundred million years).

Don’t take my word for it. Ask David Weintraub.

The Vanderbilt University professor of astronomy discusses “How Old is the Universe?” at the Westport Astronomical Society’s next virtual lecture  (September 17, 8 p.m.). Click here for the link.

A spectacularly small portion of the very old universe.

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Our “Westport … Naturally” feature sometimes showcases egrets doing their thing: hanging out, looking smooth, in water.

This one is doing its other thing: soaring majestically, above the Riverwalk by the Westport Library.

Kudos to Johanna Keyser Rossi, for this very cool capture:

(Photo/Johanna Keyser Rossi)

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And finally … in honor of our 13.8 billion-year-old universe (story above):

(“06880” is where Westport meets the world — and the universe. But we can’t do it without our loyal readers’ help. Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution. And thank you!)

 

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Posted in Education, Library, Politics, Staples HS, Westport Country Playhouse

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Jeff Warshaw: Westport’s Radio Connoisseur

Posted on November 10, 2022 | 7 comments

With so many options for music — Spotify, Sirius, personal playlists — how do 92% of Americans listen each week?

Radio.

The good, old-fashioned way: in a car, or at the office.

And the good, new-fashioned way: streaming on a laptop or phone. Or through Alexa.

In Connecticut, chances are good that the station is a long-time favorite: WEBE 108, WPLR, the Fox, Star 99.9 or WICC.

If you’re on Long Island, it may be WALK 97.5.

They’re 6 of the 13 radio stations owned by Connoisseur Media. It’s one of the most highly regarded companies in the industry: community-minded, well-run and profitable.

And it all happens from a downtown Westport office.

On Tuesday morning, Jeff Warshaw sat at his desk overlooking the Post Road. It was 8 a.m. He’d already left his home a view minutes away, voted, and had coffee.

Jeff Warshaw, and his expansive view of Westport. (PHoto/Dan Woog)

He settled back, and talked about his lifelong passion: radio.

His father and uncle were in the business. (Wolfman Jack was one of their DJs). Warshaw built his first station — literally constructing it, in Portage, Indiana — after answering an ad in Broadcasting Magazine. At the time, the Long Island native was a sophomore at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School.

He sold it, then bought and sold a number of distressed stations. In 1993 — still in his mid-20s — he founded Connoisseur Connoisseur Communications Partners, with a station in Flint, Michigan.

Seven years later, he sold what had become a 39-station group (in places like Youngstown, Ohio and the Quad Cities in Iowa and Illinois) to Cumulus Broadcasting. The price was $258 million.

A few years later, he started his second Connoisseur company from scratch. This time he concentrated on Connecticut and New York.

None of the original stations remain in his portfolio. Selling and buying brought him his current stable. He looks for “a strong local presence, good facilities, and good people.”

The dozen-plus stations play different formats. But all share core values, Warshaw says: community service, dedication to listeners, results for advertisers, an excellent work environment, and integrity.

Nine Connoisseur Media stations …

Under Connoisseur, WEBE and Star 99.9 — once “blood enemies,” according to Warshaw — have become different. Both are thriving.

So is WICC. Bridgeport’s first radio station, and one of the first in the state (it signed on 96 years ago Tuesday, with call letters standing for “Industrial Capital of Connecticut”), it is unlike the other Connoisseur stations.

WICC programs mostly talk radio. But — defying trends in the rest of the country, while holding true to the company philosophy — much of it is locally based.

The daytime slots are filled by Melissa in the Morning, Lisa Wexler (a Westport resident) and Paul Pacelli.

“You can hear national talk radio anywhere,” Warshaw says. “The local commitment makes us special.”

It’s more expensive. Syndicated talk show costs just 2 commercial minutes an hour.

But, Warshaw says, that’s the Connoisseur way. And it’s their way whether a station hosts talk shows, or plays music from the ’70s, ’80s, ’90s or today.

… and 4 more.

“It’s easy to be cheap. We have more people, and we pay to have them. We have more vehicles than some New York stations. We sponsor dance-a-thons, and food and toy drives.”

Connoisseur works closely with organizations like Bridgeport Rescue Mission, and veterans’ groups. WEBE’s holiday gifts to needy listeners are a particularly costly — but beloved — tradition.

Warshaw says that the format — and the budget — pay off in the end. “I’ll stack my team against any radio company in America.”

That’s not just a CEO bragging. Connoisseur wins awards — for management and ad sales.

“It’s our responsibility. We enjoy it,” Warshaw insists. “And we make money. Otherwise we’d say, ‘Just listen to Spotify.'”

On the wall in Jeff Warshaw’s office: a guitar signed by Jeff Beck, and a collage with the faces of hundreds Connoisseur Media employees. (Photo/Dan Woog)

Warshaw is bullish on the future of radio. It’s multi-platform: anyone can tune in via a dial, computer, smart speaker or app. And in an age when so many people worry about privacy, radio stations don’t rely on knowing who, personally, every listen is.

So how big will his company get? Will they outgrow their Westport headquarters?

“We’re connoisseurs, not gluttons,” Warshaw jokes. “We will do the job we think is important. But being great is more important than being big.”

The CEO moved from New York to Westport in 1996 — both his office and home, on the same day.

He came for the same reasons as many — great schools, space, a wonderful town to raise kids — and he has never regretted it.

Looking out over the Post Road — “There’s David Waldman!” he said, spotting the commercial real estate developer across the street — he has no reason to move.

He’s in a vibrant town. There are plenty of excellent restaurants. He works just a few minutes from home, and the club where he plays tennis.

Every Connoisseur radio station has a tagline: “Fairfield County Rocks.” “The Rhythm of the City.” “Long Island’s Best Variety.” “Today’s Best Mix.” “Connecticut’s Music Variety.”

Jeff Warshaw’s might be: “Loving Radio Life.”

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Posted in Local business, Media

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