The Legend-News
[an error occurred while processing this directive]Back In The Saddle Again
In the television industry, shows are occasionally removed from the broadcast schedule and placed "on hiatus". This action is usually not a good one: a show that's "on hiatus" often is never seen again. And if it is returned to the schedule, it may have been changed so radically that it bears little resemblance to its pre-hiatus source.
The Legend-News has been on hiatus for three months. You may now quake in your boots, trembling at the thought that the newsletter which you have come to cherish is now a Frankensteinian monster of its former self.
But fear not! Although The Legend-News will be a bit different, it will not become a monster. It will continue to report on items related to C.W. McCall, and the story of the Old Home Café will proceed, but The Legend-News will be expanding its interests in new directions. Trust us, we know what we're doing.
Chuck Miller Receives Awards For "Convoy Rides Again"
The Truck Writers of North America (TWNA) have announced their 2003 Communication Awards, for the best truck-related articles which have been published in the past year. The recipient of the "Best of 2003 Award" is Chuck Miller, for his article "Convoy Rides Again", in the September / October 2003 issue of Road King. This look back at the career of C.W. McCall was also awarded "Best of Division", and received a Gold award in the Magazine category.
Chuck Miller is a freelance writer, columnist and author. More information about Chuck and his articles can be found at The Chuck Miller Creative Writing Service. On the main page, as of 30 March 2004, you can read about Chuck's awards and the TWNA banquet at which he received them.
Congratulations, Chuck!
The Legend-News regrets that it has not yet won any awards.
Yet Another Interview With C.W. McCall
Last summer, Rod Flory wrote to The Legend-News and asked us for help in contacting Bill Fries for a radio interview. As we always do, we forwarded Rod's request to Bill. The result of that contact was an interview on KCSN's "Classic Heartland", hosted by George Fair and Rod Flory, on 23 August 2003.
Rod has sent to us a recording of that interview, and we'll be publishing excerpts from it in upcoming issues of The Legend-News. And, like every interview that we've published so far, you'll learn more new facts about the life of Bill Fries and his trucker alter-ego.
The good news: Classic Heartland was broadcast on KCSN, which is operated by the California State University, Northridge, 88.5 MHz FM. The bad news: the Classic Heartland program was cancelled last fall. The good news: George Fair has resurrected Classic Heartland as a streaming Internet radio program, playing Western, bluegrass, and all of that classic country music that's too country for the commercial country stations to play. Visit the Classic Heartland website and give a listen.
And one of these days, Rod will be hosting his own segment on truckin' music.
Old Home Café
Episode XXIX: Remember When
(Music: Opening theme.)
ANNOUNCER: Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to another episode of Old Home Café, brought to you by TechRen Enterprises, where fiction is reality. First, a word from our sponsor.
WALTER: Say, Bob, don't you collect classic vinyl albums?
BOB: Still do! But I don't listen to them very much. Every time that I play one of those records, the disc gets worn just a little bit more. If I play them too often, I'll just wear them out. I've tried taping those albums, but it's just so much hassle.
WALTER: Have you tried digitizing them? You can have all of your favorite albums transferred to CD!
BOB: That's a great idea, Walter, but I haven't the time or the equipment to do that.
WALTER: TechRen Enterprises does! They can take your albums and turn them into CDs that sound just like the originals.
BOB: But that's not always good. I've got some discs that are so scratchy, they're barely listenable.
WALTER: TechRen can help there, too! They can reduce those annoying clicks, pops and surface noise so that you can once again hear the music.
BOB: Is this service expensive?
WALTER: Not at all, when you consider the hours of enjoyment that you'll get in return.
BOB: How do I contact them?
WALTER: They're on the Web at 'techren.com'; or you can send e-mail to 'audio@techren.com'. They'll promptly respond to all enquiries.
(EDITOR'S NOTE: that e-mail address no longer exists.)
BOB: Thanks, Walter! I can't wait to hear those old songs again!
ANNOUNCER: And now, Old Home Café. Tonight's episode is entitled "A Brand New Day." As our scene opens, Jon Bach, the owner of the Old Home Café, greets an old customer.
(SFX: Door chime.)
JON: (dead silence)
ANNOUNCER: Please excuse that dead air, faithful listeners. We seem to be experiencing some technical difficulties. Our technicians are endevouring to correct the problem, and we should shortly resume our program. Yes, I've just been told that the cause has been found and corrected. Once again, Old Home Café.
JON: (unintelligible static, followed by dead silence)
ANNOUNCER: Once again, we apologize for the problems which we are having, and that are denying you the opportunity to hear another fine episode of _Old Home Café_. While we continue to search for the source of our lack of audio, please enjoy this musical interlude.
(Music: (dead silence))
ANNOUNCER: Our problem seems to encompass more than the microphones of our cast. I'm told by the control booth that the only microphone which is working is that of yours truly. Please excuse me for one moment; I'm receiving instructions from the control booth.
ANNOUNCER: Ladies and gentlemen, as our repairs continue, I've been instructed to give you a brief recap of the events that have occured here at the Old Home Café.
Jon Bach, a burnt-out software engineer, was travelling through Iowa on a short vacation, when he passed through Pisgah and noticed that the once-popular Old Home Café was shuttered and up for sale. The Café, the famous hangout of trucker C.W. McCall, had fallen on hard times.
Upon his return to Chicago, Jon quit his frustrating job and decided to move to Pisgah and reopen the Café, which he did. For his staff, he hired several of Pisgah's residents and a biker who became stranded in Pisgah.
Jon has also hired Avis Granelli, a former accountant, to manager the Old Home Café. Unknown to Jon, Avis is the daughter of C.W. McCall and his wife, Mavis. Avis is…
Excuse me, listeners, I'm told that we will again attempt to begin our broadcast. Here it is, the Old Home Café.
(SFX: Door chime.)
JON: (static)
(Much dead air. Then finally…)
ANNOUNCER: We apologize for this week's lack of an episode, and we hope that you will join us next time for another episode of Old Home Café, when (static)
(Music: Closing theme.)
The Legend-News is published, sooner or later, by TechRen Enterprises, a place where even kids can have a ball. All contents copyright 2004 TechRen Enterprises, except for whatever we stole from someone else. "Ahhhh! Gojira!"
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