Random WGN thread

[24994J 5630]

After Chicago's Best got canceled, co-host Marley Kayden left the building.

Now she's back in the building...upstairs.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CZIPi-RvnOz/

Edited February 8, 2022 by 24994J

[R.R. 96]

10 hours ago, 24994J said:

After Chicago's Best got canceled, co-host Marley Kayden left the building.

Now she's back in the building...upstairs.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CZIPi-RvnOz/

That’s been out in the news the past two weeks

[24994J 5630]

1 hour ago, R.R. said:

That’s been out in the news the past two weeks

 

It's not exactly a industry-shaking hire, and it wasn't mentioned on the forum. It flew under my (and apparently others') radar, so I posted it. No offense, but why didn't you, if you knew?

Edited February 8, 2022 by 24994J

[Spring Rubber 716]

I was also unaware...

[R.R. 96]

1 hour ago, 24994J said:

 

It's not exactly a industry-shaking hire, and it wasn't mentioned on the forum. It flew under my (and apparently others') radar, so I posted it. No offense, but why didn't you, if you knew?

It was a huge news day when it Kayden announced her NN hire, and I forgot to post about that, however it’s in my newscasts from my “Briefly Tonight” portion on YT.

[24994J 5630]

Merri Dee, the trailblazing anchor, reporter, and host, has passed away at 86.

 

https://wgntv.com/news/former-wgn-tv-anchor-reporter-merri-dee-dies-at-86/?fbclid=IwAR2kIFjw8uKd_JvAuITatp_EO07-UlZ8KWe8Fb-hjj3mtcZl3n_U_TqAjI4

[CircleSeven 1960]

I'll always remember her distinctive voice in those station promos/movie opens back in the day. 

 

May she rest in peace.

[Georgie56 3326]

From Tom Skilling:

[Spring Rubber 716]

RIP Jim Ramsey. It's hard to believe it's already been over 4 years since he retired. He was always Mr. Dependable at WGN, always there to fill in on literally any weekday timeslot while still carrying his regular weekend shifts, sometimes working like 14 or more days in a row when Tom or Paul were on vacation. Gonna miss you, Jim.

[abric 181]

A true professional in every sense of the word.

[WeatherandTraffic 54]

https://www.robertfeder.com/2022/04/11/robservations-sports-anchors-away-lauren-magiera-leaves-wgn-kaitlin-sharkey-leaves-fox-32-score-picks-gabe-ramirez/

Lauren Magiera is out. With Dan pushing his retirement back and Payton the obvious person to replace him. She maybe felt she was not getting the lead sports position anytime soon.

 

[Spring Rubber 716]

Dang, that comes as a surprise, but I can understand the reasons. I assume Payton will cover all Fridays from now on. Wonder it will be Payton or somebody else covering Saturdays.

[24994J 5630]

They're stacked in the sports department, and could easily skip hiring anyone to replace her AND Dan, if they really wanted to go cheap. Roan is obviously still there, and Tomasulo probably stays on the morning show, but they still have Payton and Frydman (the favorite for weekends, if they don't hire from outside), plus Chris Boden and Dave Eanet as fill-ins. That said, they've had a job listing posted for a sports anchor for more than a month. That could be just a formality and elevate a current employee, but I doubt they'll go too long without a female on the team.

 

Want to really shake things up? Poach Miller or Chiaverini from 7, since that feels like the pending collision course, when Rose retires, or even pluck Blanzy from 5, whose airtime has been greatly diminished with the promotion of Leila Rahimi to sports director. And I'll throw it out there. Feder had this line about Kaitlin Sharkey leaving Fox32..."What’s behind her departure should become clear when we see her next move."

[Georgie56 3326]

Dan Roan's swan song will be May 26.

[Spring Rubber 716]

4 hours ago, Georgie56 said:

Dan Roan's swan song will be May 26.

Wow, what a day for the WGN Sports department. I guess that means a really major overhaul is in store. I've got a major hunch that Kaitlin Sharkey's WFLD departure is a sign that she's going to join WGN.

 

What's the current situation with GN Sports? I haven't watched in quite a while. Is Dan Roan hosting Sunday-Thursday while Jarrett Payton hosts Monday-Friday, or did they finally unify their schedules? I'm curious how they would re-tool these lineups in a post-Dan Roan era.

[Spring Rubber 716]

I'm curious to see how WGN will handle Dan Roan's goodbye tonight. I know they've still been enforcing social distancing in the studio. I wonder if they'll lift those restrictions a bit in order for the anchors and crew to give him a proper goodbye.

 

I'm also curious if they would do two separate goodbyes - one at the end of the 10pm news and one at the end of GN Sports - or if they'll just do a single goodbye.

[24994J 5630]

All farewells, so far, have been dominating the final 20+ minutes of GN Sports, so I'd imagine the FINAL farewell will be there. He doesn't do sports on the 10, but they could still do something there. I wouldn't be surprised, though, if his big, though maybe less formal speech was at 9, with the main team. As for distancing, they've recently accommodated 3 at the main desk with someone sitting between the main anchor positions. Stand Skilling behind the roll-away portion, and they can get everyone in the same vicinity. Still, despite the return to distancing, they haven't stopped having guests in-studio, so I can't imagine that there'll only be a small on-air group, plus family.

[Spring Rubber 716]

They did stuff throughout both the 9 and 10pm newscasts, but yeah, they did the big final farewell during GN Sports. Ray, Micah, and Tom re-joined Dan and Jarrett at the desk during GN Sports, also bringing in Rich King, Josh Frydman, and many others. For the very final segment, the on-air staff left the desk, instead having Dan sit at the desk surrounded by his family while Dan delivered his final remarks. They wound up staying live over their timeslot, ending the show at 11:01pm.

 

Dan did remark that they have hired their new sports anchor, but they can't announce it yet. He said the announcement should happen next week.

[cbs2worksforyou 44]

Mark giangreco

[24994J 5630]

I'd honestly be stunned if it was Giangreco, unless it was so they could elevate Josh Frydman and have Mark as a fill-in. Dan certainly implied that Frydman is in the long-term plans. I don't love J.P. as an anchor, but he's a great personality, and I'd be down for a J.P. & Josh weeknight platoon.

 

As for the send-off, it was very nice, and I LOVED the cake, adorned with past and present logos.

[abric 181]

Here is the link:

Messages and well wishes for Dan Roan as he signs off after 45 years | WGN-TV (wgntv.com)

[24994J 5630]

Chris Boden gets promoted to full-time, while Kaitlin Sharkey, who voluntarily exited Fox32 the same week Magiera was let go from 9, joins WGN. Neither are being named to a broadcast slot, at least for now.. Payton and Frydman are also in the mix, so that'll mean any/all of 4 sports anchors on any given night. That's not at all messy and annoying.

 

https://www.robertfeder.com/2022/05/31/wgn-names-chris-boden-kaitlin-sharkey-full-time-sports-anchors/

[Spring Rubber 716]

16 minutes ago, 24994J said:

Chris Boden gets promoted to full-time, while Kaitlin Sharkey, who voluntarily exited Fox32 the same week Magiera was let go from 9, joins WGN. Neither are being named to a broadcast slot, at least for now.. Payton and Frydman are also in the mix, so that'll mean any/all of 4 sports anchors on any given night. That's not at all messy and annoying.

 

https://www.robertfeder.com/2022/05/31/wgn-names-chris-boden-kaitlin-sharkey-full-time-sports-anchors/

This is exactly what I expected in terms of hires. Sharkey leaving WFLD at the same time Magiera left WGN made it all-too-obvious.

 

What I didn't expect was WGN taking a WMAQ-style approach to just having any sports anchor appear on any given night. I figured they would go with assigned roles right out of the gate. I would assume they'll have defined roles before November sweeps, but hey, you never know.

[24994J 5630]

The wording about the 3 longer-tenured staffers seems to suggest that Payton and Frydman might be getting weeknight WGN Sports, outright, no matter how things shake out. But really, I don't see the WMAQ model serving well for the long-term. Cemented spots by the fall feels like a solid bet.

[Georgie56 3326]

WGN is launching a new longform reporting/documentary division called WGN Films. The first installment premieres Saturday with "Medicine is Sick".