Ron and Fez: Encyclopedia II - Ron and Fez - WJFK-FM 2000-2005

Ron and Fez - WJFK-FM 2000-2005

Jeremy Coleman, the PD from New York's WNEW in 2000, had become aware of Ron and Fez when he was still a program director for WJFK-FM, the sister talk station in Washington D.C. he helped put on the map. He had intended to bring them to DC, but he soon became PD of WNEW. One month later, however, on March 27, 2000 Ron and Fez began tape delay syndication in DC where they found a small, but loyal, group of listeners during the early hours of the morning. Finally, in November 2002, WJFK's evening radio show, The Sports Junkies relocated to WHFS, opening up a timeslot for Ron and Fez to syndicate their show live in Washington, D.C. (7p.m. - 11 p.m.), following The Don and Mike Show.

Ron and Fez - Relocation To Washington D.C.

After WNEW changed formats in early 2003, Ron and Fez began broadcasting their show on WJFK. Although only heard in Washington DC, Ron and Fez chose to remain in New York until June 2003, when they finally relocated their lives to the Washington D.C. area and their show to the WJFK studios in Fairfax, Virginia. Over the course of the next year, several memorable characters, listeners and staff helped give this era its own identity. While the WNEW show had been heavily influenced by a dedicated and funny, core group of callers, WJFK proved to be fertile ground for unique regulars who came on the show. Each brought a different level of compulsion and humor to the show. Perrynoid, Cherrynoid, David Lee Kinison (aka Elfish), Cigar Sid, Bobo Golem and Crazy Jen became call-in and studio regulars.

Known for being team players, Ron and Fez worked on split shifts, did drop-ins for WJFK's Redskins broadcasts, did live commercials and appearances, helped mentor the hosts of a weekend show, The Hideout, and developed a positive relationship with Don and Mike, their lead-in show. This, along with improved calls, fresh and funny game shows and bits, a community that needed a good laugh during the 2004 presidential election and a sense of momentum propelled Ron and Fez to a stellar ratings book in January 2005.

Ron and Fez - The Fastest Hour In Radio

In mid 2003, after being on WJFK (and Washington) exclusively for just a few months, Ron and Fez agreed to host a one hour mid-day show entitled "The Fastest Hour in Radio", between Howard Stern, and conservative talker Bill O'Reilly. This timeslot would be in addition to their evening duties, and would not be caller driven. Instead, they relied on themselves, and a brisk and humorous discussion of the day's headlines. When the nighttime show became syndicated in Baltimore, Maryland and Tampa, Florida in the summer of 2004, Ron and Fez went back to concentrating on their evening show, where they hosted the "Fastest Hour" between 7:00-8:00 p.m.

Ron and Fez - Politics

Until 2003, Ron and Fez were not known for their political observations. However, with them moving to the nation's capital, their recent addition of "The Fastest Hour of Radio" to their resume and the 2004 Presidential Election, they began to contribute some of the most interesting political discourse on the radio. Not only did they allow themselves to be passionate, but they encouraged all sides to call and participate.

In 2003, before he became the cornerstone for Air America, Al Franken did an interview and in 2004, shortly after the election, Tom Shales from the Washington Post called and discussed the political ramifications of the FCC crackdown. Always keeping it fun, Ron and Fez also managed simulcasts of the 2004 presidential debates and election returns to become, for many, the radio equivalent of The Daily Show.

Ron and Fez - DC Area Appearances

Ron and Fez continued to reach out to their listeners with several local appearances during their time in DC. These included:

• Ron and Fez Pool Tournament at (2003) - Included a billiards tournament, Fez performing a karaoke version of "Harper Valley PTA", Cigar Sid performing "Sugar Sugar", J Dubs' "Hot Pepper Challenge" and "Fairyoke" (listeners performing karaoke versions of effeminate songs).

• Caddyshack Movie Night (2003) - Included a screening of "Caddyshack" (Paul O. was featured as a waiter), "Nut Putt" (where listeners tried to putt golf balls at J Dubs' genitals), "Bobbing for Baby Ruths" (where listeners bobbed for fecal looking candy bars in a kiddie pool), "Gopher Hunt" (where listeners fired paintballs at Paul O), and a new "I Blow" tattoo for Paul O.

• Ron and Fez Poker Tournament (2003) - Included a poker tournament, the "Honeymooner Game", the "Gong Show", the "Mating Game", J Dubs' and Crazy Jen's Fire and Ice Challenge", performances by Monty Love, and a very drunk Silera (more).

• Hard Rock Cafe - New York Reunion (2003) - Ron & Fez returned to New York for a Crankcase gig at the Hard Rock Cafe and played to a packed upstairs room. Many of the staff alumni like Hawk, Tasteless Ginny, MikeyD, Tenacious C and Billy Staples came by along with many NY friends of the show (more). Anthony Cumia made a surprise appearance and a huge O&A chant erupted, causing WJFK to pull the plug on the show for over an hour, playing a Best-Of and saying that it was because of technical difficulties.

• The St. Pat's Spat (2004) - included the following boxing matches: Spoon vs. Tommy Bateman, El Jefe vs. J Dubs, and Mikey D vs. Wonderboy where Mikey D quit in the ring. Also featured were the "Monster Toss" (a competition to see who could throw intern Monster the furthest) and Crazy Jen's failed attempt to eat 50 hard boiled eggs.

• 2nd Annual Ron and Fez Pool Tournament (2004) - included billiards tournament, hypnotism of Fez, Crazy Jen and listeners, a performance of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" on sitar by Bobo w/ intern Chapin on vocals (more), football trivia, and a listener jingle contest.

• Battle of the Local, Unsigned Bands (2004) - Ron & Fez hosted a showcase of unsigned area bands.

In addition, Fez raced in 2004 and 2005 in an annual charity 5K with fans of the show. In 2005 Fez would meet listeners and friends of the show every Friday night at a Fairfax, VA bar called "Thursdays" for drinking and laughing in a tradition that became known as "Friday Night Lights." Ron made his only appearance at Friday Night Lights at the last FNL, held on July 29, 2005.

Ron and Fez - Stunts & Bets

For whatever reason, seemingly normal and well-adjusted people are willing to do outrageous things on the Ron and Fez Show. This is something that goes back to their “Ron and Ron” days and their good friend Paul O., and resurfaced with a vengeance when they came on the air in Washington.

During the WJFK years, interns have tackled eating challenges and bets, producers were involved in head-to-head matches with other staff and listeners. There have been also been boxing matches, and some show regulars made wild claims of stunts they knew they could not possibly do.

The old stand-by has been the “Hair Vs. Hair” bet. J. Dubs got to shave El Jefe when he beat him at “The St. Pat’s Spat,” Giant Brian and Benicio shaved Elfish when he lost a bet with Fez on the outcome of the 2004 MLB American League Championship Series, and Fez, when he lost a 2005 summer movie bet to ADF (his nemesis), shaved all of his hair completely off.

In one of the odder show moments, Fez, for no particular reason, seemed to make a bet with himself to go the entire 2004-2005 NFL season without shaving. After the Super Bowl, in February 2005, Fez spent a week removing his big, gross beard in stages, and having the process documented by an avalanche of photographs taken by remote producer Mikeyboy. Friend of the show, Bobo, collected some of the clippings, and planned to begin working it into a painting of Fez he was planning. Little did anyone know, this new content, which was shared on the web within minutes, would provide so much joy to so many people. These pictures of Fez with big beard, with giant mutton-chops, with a wacky handle-bar mustache and finally clean shaven, became the cornerstone of inspired Photoshop material (See Photoshop Mike).

Crazy Jen has been at the center of many of these stunts since Ron and Fez arrived at WJFK. Whether it's attempting to drink a gallon of milk in less than an hour, get a date with Fezzie, enduring Chinese water torture, eating hot sauce while sitting in a tub of ice, quarters Super-Glued to her bottom, attempting the world record for most clothespins attached to her face, or trying to eat 50 hard boiled eggs like Paul Newman did in the movie Cool Hand Luke, Jen and her mullet seemed to enjoy her stunts more if she knew she would fail. In the spring of 2005 Crazy Jen was punished for making a dumb bet about pizza being available at a McDonald's in Times Square and was “banned” from the show for 30 days. Always going with "the bit," her most recent dumb wager with Ron and Fez involved the documentary "Grizzlyman" winning the "Best Picture" Oscar in 2006, and her bare ass hanging out of a polar bear costume.

Ron and Fez - Parody Song Outbreak

Ron and Fez have been working with this radio staple since their earliest “Ron and Ron” days in Florida. Their original “Parody Guy” is still writing and performing music in Atlanta. When they arrived to New York, a number of people made attempts to be go to parody song creator, but it was Perrynoid, out of the Washington D.C. region, who stepped forward with consistently funny and timely observations on the show. This relationship continued when Ron and Fez moved to DC in 2003, with more frequent in-studio appearances, occasionally providing themes to game shows, and sometimes as “The Trubanoid.”

In 2005 Perrynoid had some competition when WJFK listeners Bobo and Tender began dependable and funny contributions of parody songs to the program. Both men had interesting musical backgrounds and stories – Bobo played with many of the Mid-Atlantic regions punk and blues musicians for the better part of 30 years, including Half Japanese, and Tender was part of the rock combo “The Bouncing Balls,” whose video was one of the earliest played on MTV. (more)

Some of Perry’s many stand-out originals include ones he wrote on "Circus Boy," the hysterical "Fat Baby," and his goodbye to “J. Dubs.” Bobo’s prolific songbook, which he performed on a variety of musical instruments, includes "You Can’t Say Taint on the Radio," "Pope Bobo, Baby," and the almost controversial "Your Mom's Box.” And Tender’s most notable tunes includes the "Friday Night Lights" theme, "Pee-Shy Fezzie" and "The Call that Melted Fezzie Down," about the on-air meltdown by Fez on his 2005 birthday (see Mikey D.).

And while it wasn’t a parody song, Bobo’s 2004 Dave & Busters performance of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" on the Sitar, featuring intern Chapin on vocals left many people scratching their heads.

Ron and Fez - The Worst Kept Secret In Radio

Things began to look bleak for Ron and Fez's future at 106.7 in January 2005 when (after their best ratings book to date at WJFK) the station was forced to absorb the talent from WHFS - a "sister station" that switched formats from modern rock to spanish dance. Ironically, this talent included The Sports Junkies, who were given the midday spot many had hoped would go to Ron and Fez. The first station casualty, however, was "The Hideout" who lost their late night shift, and eventually relocated to Florida (ironically, to WTKS 104.1, former home to Ron and Ron and current home to former Ron and Fez intern Tuddle). With nowhere to advance in the station line up, and with a seeming lack of respect shown the show by frequent pre-emptions for infomercials on University of Maryland Terrapins basketball ("Man on Man") and "Redskins Radio" Monday nights, the hosts had no choice but to entertain the Internet rumors that they would leave terrestrial radio and join their WNEW-FM friends, Opie and Anthony, on XM satellite radio. Much of 2005 was filled with speculation and hints, but nothing was confirmed until the last segment, of their last night on the air in Washington D.C. - Friday, July 29, 2005.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "WJFK-FM 2000-2005", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki