The Regular Guys: three more years on Rock 100.5?

By RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com, filed January 3, 2011

Larry Wachs on Dec. 17 told listeners at Rock 100.5 that he had been signed for another three years.

Since then, I haven't been able to get a firm confirmation if anybody else on the Regular Guys has done so. "We'll all be back on Jan. 3rd for a great 2011 and beyond," is all Wachs told me in an email last week. His agent Eric Weiss said he's confident Wachs will be at Rock 100.5 for quite awhile longer but wasn't more specific. Senior VP Gary Lewis declined to comment.

Each Regular Guy (Wachs, Eric Von Haessler, "Southside" Steve Rickman and Tim Andrews) has a different agent so I'm not sure how negotiations are playing out for each person. On air Monday morning while talking to Scott Ferrall, Von Haessler said he's still talking about extending his time with the show. I presume all four signed contracts in early 2008 about the same time. At least one person's contract is up January 18, 2011.

The show in its current incarnation carried strong ratings for Rock 100.5 until recently. Among 25 to 54 year olds, a key demographic, its ranking fell from 6th to 18th since July, according to Arbitron. Its 18-to-34-year-old numbers dropped from fourth to 19th over the same period. Is this a temporary blip or something more serious?

Eric and Larry have now been together on and off in Atlanta for a dozen years. They achieved their biggest ratings with 96rock in the early 2000s. They've been let go twice from 96rock for debatable infractions but have found a new life on Rock 100.5, adding Andrews and Rickman as official "Regular Guys" (though both have worked with Larry and Eric before at 96rock.)

Critics of the show on radio-info.com cite several issues, saying segments with DUI lawyer George Stein and Oxygen Financial have become tiresome, the show remains too political, that Rickman isn't as relatable. A former 96rock colleague Tim Rhodes wrote, "Being funny 4 hours a day, 5 days a week is not easy. But that's what people want to do on their way to work... laugh!"