Rover's Morning Glory

Rover's Morning Glory

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Genre	Hot-talk/Comedy
Running time	5 hrs daily MON-FRI
Country of origin	United States
Home station	100.7 WMMS - The Buzzard Cleveland, Ohio
Starring	Rover (Shane French) Duji (Susan Catanese) Dieter (Dominic Dieter) Dumb (Shaun Street) Chocolate Charlie (Mike Toomey)
Created by	Rover (Shane French)
Executive producer(s)	Rover (Shane French)
Original release	March 24, 2003 – Present
Opening theme	Antichrist Superstar by Marilyn Manson
Website	RoverRadio.com

Rover’s Morning Glory is a syndicated hot-talk radio show airing weekday mornings Monday through Friday from 6 AM to 11 AM ET on 100.7 FM WMMS in Cleveland, Ohio. Hosted by Rover (Shane French), the show is distributed by Clear Channel and features a blended discussion of current events and pop culture, targeted primarily at young (ages 18-34) male listeners. Station affiliates include The Zone (WZNE/94.1 FM) of Rochester, New York and Radio 106.7 (WRXS/106.7 FM) of Columbus, Ohio.

Rover's radio career

KXTE - Las Vegas, NV

Rover began his radio career at KXTE-FM Las Vegas, NV (X-107.5 Xtreme Radio). His first day on the air was his 21st birthday, September 21, 1996. In what is now a widely recounted story, Rover saw an ad in the newspaper looking for part-time disc jockeys on the station. With no experience under his belt, he created a fake résumé and demo tape and sent it to KXTE program director Mike Stern. When called in for an interview, Rover told Stern he had prior experience at WLUM-FM Milwaukee, as his demo tape suggested. It was at this point Stern told Rover he knew the program director of WLUM and that Rover had never worked there. Thinking he was in trouble, Rover got up to leave but was called back by Stern, who was impressed someone would go to such great lengths to get a job.

WNFZ - Knoxville, TN

In 1998 Rover left to take the evening DJ and Music Director position at WNFZ-FM Knoxville, TN (94.3 Extreme Radio), his first full-time radio position. He quit the job when he thought he had secured a job working for former boss Mike Stern at WKRK-FM (now WXYT-FM) Detroit, MI (97.1 Xtreme Radio), but it was found out the day after Rover quit that the station was unexpectedly flipping formats from hard rock to talk.

KXPK - Denver, CO

Mike Stern hired Rover in 1999 for the afternoon-drive at KXPK (96.5 FM/The Peak) of Denver, Colorado. Station management soon decided that his show was too racy for afternoons, particularly after he barged into the studios of competing station KALC (Alice 105.9) live on the air, carrying human feces in a paper bag to confront rival disc jockeys. From then on, Rover was heard evenings from 7 PM to Midnight. It was during this time he began The Thursday Hook-Up, a dating segment which continues to this day. Rover left in 2000 after the station was bought by another broadcasting company and flipped to a Spanish formant.

Comedy World - Los Angeles, CA

2000 was the first year Rover ventured into an all-talk format, at the now-defunct Comedy World Radio Network. He hosted a syndicated show heard on a handful of AM stations and on the internet. Based in Los Angeles, Rover did the morning show for east-coast affiliates, meaning he had to be live on the air from 3 AM to 6 AM PT to be heard 6 AM to 9 AM ET. Comedy World soon went bankrupt and ceased operations, and was featured in the book F'd Companies: Spectacular Dot-Com Flameouts.

KISW - Seattle, WA

Rock station KISW (99.9 FM/The Rock of Seattle) hired Rover in 2001. Working nightly from 7PM to 12AM, Rover was fired just months later after allowing a female guest to run naked through the studio.

WXTM - Cleveland, OH

Rover joined WXTM (92.3 FM/Xtreme Radio) of Cleveland, Ohio — now WKRK/Radio 92.3 — in March 2003. It was here that Rover created Rover’s Morning Glory, a name he thought of just days before the show's premiere, widely believed to be a double-entendre for morning wood. The show began syndication in March 2005.

Show affiliate	Callsign	Frequency	Location
The Big Wazoo	WAZU	107.1 FM	Columbus, OH

WCKG - Chicago, IL

CBS Radio announced in October 2005 that it would use Rover's Morning Glory to fill some of the morning vacancies created by Howard Stern's move to satellite radio. David Lee Roth and Adam Carolla were also tapped to fill many of Stern's former stations: Roth took on most of Stern's former East Coast affiliates; Carolla was assigned most of Stern's former West Coast affiliates; and Rover took on most of Stern's former Midwest affiliates. In January 2006, Rover's Morning Glory moved its flagship station to WCKG of Chicago, Illinois; new affiliates included stations in Cincinnati, Detroit, Memphis and Rochester. WXTM/Cleveland, Rover's former flagship, adopted the K-Rock brand and took on a new callsign: WXRK (incidentally, this was the same callsign used by Howard Stern's former New York flagship). WXRK/Cleveland continued airing Rover's Morning Glory, though now as an affiliate.

The move to Chicago was broadly considered a misstep both on the part of Rover and CBS Radio. The talk format of WCKG skewed more to an audience of 35 years or older, while Rover’s show targeted persons between the ages of 18 and 34, thus the show never gained ratings traction.

Show affiliate	Callsign	Frequency	Location
97.3 Everything Alternative	WAQZ	97.3 FM	Cincinnati, OH
The Big Wazoo	WAZU	107.1 FM	Columbus, OH
Live 97.1 Free FM	WKRK	97.1 FM	Detroit, MI
93X	WMFS	92.9 FM	Memphis, TN
K-Rock Cleveland* *former flagship as WXTM: 92.3 Xtreme Radio	WXRK	92.3 FM	Cleveland, OH
The Zone	WZNE	94.1 FM	Rochester, NY

WXRK, WKRI, WKRK (all formerly WXTM) - Cleveland, OH

Rover’s Morning Glory left WCKG/Chicago in August 2006 and moved the flagship back to Cleveland at WXRK: K-Rock Cleveland. The station changed its call letters twice during the show's return: first, to WKRI, as WXRK went back to its former New York station; and then to WKRK, ironically the same callsign used by Rover's former Detroit affiliate. The station continued the K-Rock branding through both changes.

Memphis and Rochester were the only stations to remain show affiliates following the return to Cleveland.

Show affiliate	Callsign	Frequency	Location
93X	WMFS	92.9 FM	Memphis, TN
The Zone	WZNE	94.1 FM	Rochester, NY

WMMS - Cleveland, OH

On February 15, 2008, Rover reportedly informed CBS management that he had signed a contract with cross-town rival WMMS. Rover's Morning Glory was subsequently barred from airing during the remainder of their contract with CBS. On March 17, 2008 Rover formally announced he would move the show to WMMS; the move was considered "a big blow" to WKRK/K-Rock Cleveland and "a coup" for WMMS. Rover's Morning Glory began broadcasting the show from WMMS on April 1, 2008.

WMFS, the show's Memphis affiliate since January 2006, abruptly flipped its format and dropped the show in May 2009. On January 7, 2010 Rover returned to the airwaves in Columbus, OH at WRXS. The addition of the new affiliate was not announced until the morning the show arrived on the station in Columbus.

Show affiliate	Callsign	Frequency	Location
93X* *former affiliate	WMFS	92.9 FM	Memphis, TN
Radio 106.7	WRXS	106.7 FM	Columbus, OH
The Zone	WZNE	94.1 FM	Rochester, NY

Famous bits and stunts

• Jinxy the Cat: Rover purportedly tied helium balloons to various objects to see how many it would take to lift them off the ground. One was supposedly a kitten, which got away and took off on a 45-minute flight followed closely by Cleveland television stations and prompting numerous 911 calls from concerned listeners. The stunt was covered in an article in the Los Angeles Times and was promptly copied by radio stations in Philadelphia and Denver. Rover later said "No, there was no cat out there. It was all theater of the minds."

Dare Dieter

Dieter began work on the show as a phone-screener. When a full-time on-air position became available, he volunteered to start a segment called Dare Dieter, in which he would do any stunt or dare submitted by listeners every Friday. Dieter said if he ever turned down a dare he would go back to phone-screening, a promise that was often held over his head during the segment by listeners. The feature was ended by Rover and CBS Radio management after Dieter suffered a serious injury and temporary paralysis during a stunt involving a barrel roll on July 13, 2007. Although it is not certain whether the segment will return, an on-air conversation between Dieter and Rover on April 1, 2008 suggested that Dieter may attempt to bring it back.

Events and special projects

RoverFest

An annual beer-drinking festival and concert to celebrate all-things-Rover.

The first RoverFest was held June 20, 2008. West 6th Street in the Warehouse District of downtown Cleveland was closed, a large stage was built, and food and beer vendors were present. A competition for girls to be in Rover's annual Miss Morning Glory Calendar was conducted as well. Approximately 10,000 people made their way through the festival, surpassing expectations.

RoverFest 2009 was held July 24, 2009 at Voinovich Park in downtown Cleveland. The event again featured a search for girls to be in the 2010 Miss Morning Glory Calendar, along with comedian Jim Florentine, Darryl "D.M.C." McDaniels from Run-D.M.C. and the band Saliva. A television special was taped to air on MavTV in October 2009. The event sold out with over 10,000 people attending.

Miss Morning Glory Calendar

In 2003 Rover produced his first Miss Morning Glory Calendar (for the 2004 calendar year). The show conducts a search for local, non-professional girls to be in the calendar and offers cash and other prizes to the girl who is crowned Miss Morning Glory, who gets to be featured on the calendar's cover. A large party is held for the release of the calendar (usually in November or December), which usually has all 12 girls in the calendar and everyone from the show on hand to autograph copies of the calendar.

War on the Shore

On Saturday, July 16th, 2005 Dieter fought professional boxer Eric “Butterbean” Esch in a bout billed as “War on the Shore.” Months earlier Dieter called Butterbean a fat slob on the air, and the two got into a fight in the studio. Over the next couple of months Dieter trained for his first-ever boxing match with a professional fight instructor.

Rover worked with the City of Cleveland to shut down a street in the downtown area, had a ring erected in the middle of the road and brought in beer-vending trucks. Rover told the city he wasn’t sure how many people would attend, but low-balled the guess at 750. Police estimated over 12,000 people came out to see the three-round fight, resulting in a near-riot as throngs of fans climbed light polls and street signs to get a better view of the ring. Police forced the show to start the fight almost an hour early because of concerns the crowd would become uncontrollable.

During the first round Butterbean seemed to toy with an uneasy Dieter. But during the second round Butterbean went on the offensive, aggressively trying to knock Dieter out. He succeeded in knocking him down and temporarily unconscious, but Dieter was able to get back to his feet just before the bell rang. Seemingly annoyed at his inability to knock Dieter out, Butterbean let his fists fly in the third round, knocking Dieter down a few more times. But each time Dieter was able to get up before the ten-count.

The fight ended in a unanimous decision for Butterbean on all judges’ scorecards. Dieter suffered a broken rib and serious bruising from the fight. Afterwards Butterbean expressed a great respect for Dieter’s ability to withstand the punishment doled out by a professional fighter, and the two became friends. Butterbean has since been in-studio and participated in other events with the show.

Controversies

Weird Al Yankovic

An incident on the September 21, 2006, broadcast sparked controversy when, during an on-air telephone interview with "Weird Al" Yankovic, the crew asked about the death of Yankovic's parents, causing him to become audibly upset. At the end of the interview, Yankovic hung up abruptly. This was followed by numerous angry calls from both concerned listeners and Al's publicist, during which Rover defended his line of questioning.

SuccessTech Academy School shooting

After the SuccessTech Academy school shooting on October 10, 2007, the "Rover's Morning Glory" website leaked a crime scene photo taken of the gunman after his suicide. A Cleveland policeman, Walter Emerick, was later found to have taken the picture using his personal cell phone camera. It’s unclear how Rover obtained the photo. Rover stated on the air it was his intent to show kids the real final result of a school-shooting (the perpetrator lying dead), as opposed to the glorified version of events put out by the media (surveillance video of inside the school as the perpetrator shot at helpless students).

Steve Loomis, president of the Cleveland police union, claimed the picture could have been taken for legitimate evidentiary purposes. This claim has been widely panned, as the picture was taken with a low-resolution cell phone camera not suitable for investigative purposes, and the officer distributed the photo to acquaintances.

Rover has stated on-air that he did not intend for the officer to get in trouble and that the purpose of posting the picture was not to go after the police, but rather show kids the true cowardice and horror of school shootings.

Television projects

• Rover was a Cleveland Browns pregame reporter for CBS affiliate WOIO-TV Cleveland for two seasons. He would roam the stadium parking lots partying with fans prior to the game.

• Rover was a commentator on Rover’s Fightfest TV, a mixed-martial-arts fighting program that aired on the SportsTime Ohio network.

• A pilot for a reality-TV program based on Rover's Morning Glory has been filmed and produced. It was shown at the Miss Morning Glory Calendar Release Party in 2009.

Awards and recognition

• Nominated Radio & Records Morning Show of the Year, 2005
• Winner Best Morning Radio Show Cleveland Scene Magazine 2004, 2005, 2007
• Winner Best Morning Radio Show in 2007 Cleveland Freetimes Reader's Poll
• Rover named one of Cleveland's Most Interesting People by Cleveland Magazine, January 2007
• AIR Award: Best Show, 1999

External links

• Rover's Morning Glory official website
• Flagship station
  • 100.7 WMMS: The Buzzard - Cleveland
• Affiliates
  • Radio 106.7 - Columbus • Rover's Morning Glory page
  • The Zone @ 94.1 - Rochester • Rover's Morning Glory page