"KJHK seems to be Lawrence's premier drunk-dialing destination."
a caller from out of Lawrence, such as one call in from New York City. One night he urged listeners to call in to request songs or to talk, and one female caller took the invite further than he expected. "I had this lady who said some rather suggestive things to me," he
—Chris Shively,
KJHK program director
says. He says she breathily asked him what he wanted to talk about, and he responded by acting confused and ending the phone call. Horn says he has also had female callers consistently call in and ask him on dates.
"It's really the people that call that makes it pretty funny," says fellow DJ Paul Steolucki whose callers keep him awake. The Overland Park junior's show receives many phone calls from intoxicated listeners, which he says keeps his shift interesting. He's not worried that no one is listening because he has people call in from places other than Lawrence, and he says he averages about 10 calls per show. He says his best call came from a man in Olathe at about 2:30 a.m. who told him he was sitting on top of his trailer, holding an antennae to listen to the show.
Even though it may sound exciting, the job is not always fun. "There are some downsides to having your voice out there in front of everybody," says Falenstine Ruzik, KJHK production director. She says she has had anyone from an old friend to ex-boyfriends to the same person repetitively call in. "It's hard to hide from people," says the Minneapolis senior. During her first semester as a DJ, she worked the 4 a.m. to 6 a.m. shift and had a man call in who was persistent in keeping her on the phone. She says it took her awhile to realize the man was masturbating to her voice.
Some DJs find comfort in surfing the Internet. "That's what we have the Internet for," says Jessica Glauberman, who searched for a pair of boots online during her show 12 a.m. to 2 a.m Friday. "DJS multi-task. That's why we're hired." She says the shack gets lonely when no
one calls, even though she knows someone is listening.
Like most KJHK DJs, the Overland Park junior started out working an overnight shift. She says the energy she forced herself to have during the shift normally resulted in her
staying awake until 6 a.m., which brought larger consequences. "I hated it because I never went to class the day after the show," she says.
Chris Shively, KJHK program director, says KJHK DJs traditionally begin working an overnight rotation show because it's a safer place for them to learn the ropes. He says the station is on the air 24/7 because it attracts hundreds of potential DJs.
Shively says the station's main purpose is to provide quality programming while training professional staff. "What is a better lesson in professionalism than being organized enough to keep an organization running non-stop, year round?" he says.
Although DJs have their stories, some listeners call in to simply make requests or to ask questions. He has had people call in and ask for the Saferide phone number. He says he is surprised that these intoxicated listeners can remember the number for KJHK but not 864-SAFE.
Shively, seemingly proud of the station's late-night status in Lawrence, notes that some of KJHK's claims to fame vary from marriage proposals, sexual propositioning, masturbating callers, accusations of being an alien and many calls from people who think they dialed KU Info. "KJHK seems to be Lawrence's premier drunk-dialing destination," he says.
These radio DJs may work a graveyard shift, but they definitely do not have a dead audience. The DJs are on their toes keeping up with your requests, stories questions and eccentricities, which keeps the radio station alive all night.
—Julie Jantzer, Jayplay writer, can be reached at jjantzer@kansan.com
Kim Elizabeth, dayplay writer, can be requested as kathmandu writers. see
thursday, september 25, 2003
jayplay. 11