10 Questions with ... Chris Marino

NAME:Chris Marino POSITION:Morning Show Host STATION:WSPK K104 MARKET:Poughkeepsie/Newburgh-Middletown (Hudson Valley) OWNER:Pamal Broadcasting

Please outline your radio career so far:

WNNJ, WPST, WKSS/Hartford - AMD/middays

1) Despite your programming pedigree, you're just doing mornings at K104. Do you miss being a PD?

There are times ... but honestly, the beauty of working here at K104 with PD Scotty Mac and the rest of the staff is that we do things as a team. I know that sounds cliché, but we truly are constantly picking each other's brains to do things bigger, better and most importantly - smarter than the other guys! I've been blessed with the ability to do programming and be on the air; having never done mornings, it was a challenge that I owed myself. That, plus a chance to come back home to the Northeast, was something that I couldn't pass up. It's been over a year-and-a-half now here at WSPK. and I've never regretted the career move ... even for a second! I'm having way too much fun here!

2) You replaced a veteran morning show at a station that has very little turnover. What unique challenges did this present?

The good news is that prior to my very first show, Scotty stripped the morning show down to its basic info elements, with lots of music to create a buffer between Wood's departure and my arrival. However, when a show has been here for eight years, like "Woodman In The Morning" was, you do have to have patience when answering the "You suck -- where did Wood go?" phone calls. Luckily, that lasted only a few weeks, and more of the "Hey, you're not so bad" calls came in. I think it was the naked Jello wrestling bit my first week between my co-hosts Tory and Bill that won people over. Did I mention it was ARM wrestling while naked ... over a plate of Jello? It was great for me and the listeners -- although my co-hosts were strangely not too happy about it.

3) How would you describe your first radio gig?

It was overnights at the no-longer-in-existence Top 40 "Power 103.7" WNNJ-FM (it's now Classic Hits, I believe). Yep, I started my career talking to the cows in Sussex County, NJ.

4) What led you to a career in radio?

After giving Computer Science Engineering a try for a semester at Stevens Tech in Hoboken and realizing the best part of my college experience was being on the college radio station, I transferred to Montclair State University and took up Communication Studies to make a go at becoming a radio DJ. One would think my folks would be disappointed that I gave up a possible career to make millions in computers ... but honestly were just happy to save huge $$$ on the lesser tuition!

5) How would you describe the radio landscape in your market?

WSPK is among a small handful of stations in our marketplace that have a massive 50,000-watt signal to cover the Hudson Valley area of New York, which is located about an hour outside of NYC. Many of our listeners actually live here and work in the city. They listen to us during their commute, so keeping that in mind, we hold ourselves to that "New York standard" with our performance. I'm happy to say that we are enjoying continued ratings success while we serve our loyal listeners of the Hudson Valley as their hit music station and their one-stop place for everything on the entertainment and pop radar.

6) What is your favorite part of the job?

The phone calls. I love talking to listeners. Some of the funniest moments of the show come from their mouths. Whether its call-in topics, dopey games or commenting on show members, our listeners are truly the stars of the show.

7) Could you give us a little insight into the K104 on-air staff?

My co-hosts are the best in the biz. I inherited Tory Grace and Bill Beale from the previous show and the three of us just amazingly clicked. They are real talents who easily take direction and are constantly contributing to the show, both on and off the air. Scotty Mac is the PD and middays and has been in that role for many years. He embodies the Hudson Valley and it's great having him at the helm to guide this battleship. He and I worked together at Q102/Philly back when I was the APD and he was swinging for us. Our friendship from way back then was what made this an easy job to take. Skywalker is a pro and has been rocking PM drive for a few years now, as well as being the APD. We have a new night guy, D. Knight, who is our "young pup" and it's an absolute pleasure to watch his career grow. He is super-talented. Plus we have an incredible bench of up-and-coming local talent on the weekends and overnights. Add in our other staff like Promotions Director Stevie V, sales staff and GM Jason Finkelberg, and we've got an unbeatable team!

8) What was your favorite station to listen to when you were a kid?

As mentioned earlier, it'd have to be WPLJ and Z100... it was dream realized when I actually got to crack the mic at each station during my career as a jock!

9) Do you have a favorite hobby outside of radio?

My house is now my hobby! After being a vagabond (as we radio folk tend to be), I FINALLY bought my first house and all I seem to do is work on it when I'm not on the radio. That and raising our chocolate lab pup Boca. She wants to be a DJ like her daddy when she grows up!

10) What is it about our industry that keeps you wanting to do it for a living?

This is an easy question that I've answered many times before. It is always about people and helping them have a better day than they might have had if it wasn't for their favorite radio station being there and being a part of their lives. If you forget this truth, you might as well do something else and get out of this career.

For someone vacationing in your market, what one thing would you say they "must see"?

You HAVE to take a boat ride on the Hudson River during the summer! When I arrived at the station in August of '06, my GM Jason Finkelberg took the morning show out on the station boat and I got to see Westpoint Military Academy from the viewpoint of the Hudson River -- and the fort's architecture is breathtaking.