Access Atlanta > Entertainment > Radio Talk > Archives > 2008 > November > 21
Friday, November 21, 2008
11/21: Frank & Wanda celebrate 10 years on air
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ABOVE: Afternoon host Ryan Cameron makes a cameo on the Frank & Wanda 10th anniversary show Friday at Justin’s in Buckhead.
Past anniversaries have been big soirees, often with major music acts such as L.L. Cool J. For the 10th, Frank Ski and Wanda Smith went for a relatively modest affair at Diddy’s restaurant Justin’s this morning.
They also took a cue from Oprah and gave 10 lucky listeners 10 of their “favorite things.” The 10 gifts included a $100 Kroger gift certificate, a Verizon Blackberry, a Ralph Lauren/Polo goosedown comfortable and trips to both Las Vegas and New York City (to see “Wicked”).
“They inspire me so much,” said one of the winners, Dewanda Owens, a 38-year-old unemployed former postal worker from Atlanta who has been listening all 10 years. “They do so much for the community. You can be crying on your way to work and they make your day better.”
The only big name I saw come by was Young Jeezy, though Ryan Cameron and their boss Rick Caffey bestowed high-quality wine to them as well.
Ski said they chose to minimize the celebrity quotient to focus on thanking the listeners. “This time, it was because we wanted to give back,” he said.
Going back 10 years, he said it didn’t take long for him to be comfortable in Atlanta, that within two years, he felt like this was truly home. And he was impressed with the intellectual level of the market, enabling him to balance entertainment, inspiration and information. And he appreciates Wanda for being able to take any issue and run with it, be it silly or serious.
As for the gifts, Ski wished he could allow the winners to take a spouse or friend or other family member, but they couldn’t get that many freebies from the sponsors (which included Treasure Island in Vegas and Airtran Airlines.) So those 10 people better like each other because they’ll spending quite a bit of time together.
Frank & Wanda are also holding a big Kaya reunion party at the Velvet Room tonight. (Frank used to spin at the now-defuncct Kaya many years ago.)
-My colleague Pierre Ruhe heard that Wanda Yang Temko’s “Afternoon Classics” show on WABE-FM from noon to 3 is no longer. John Lemley will take over and provide more chatter and interviews. Temko has been at the station for three years.
