10 Questions with ... Chet Buchanan

NAME:Chet Buchanan POSITION:Mornings STATION:KLUC MARKET:Las Vegas, NV COMPANY:CBS Radio BORN:Seattle, WA RAISED:Monroe, WA

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

I started at 15 at KRKO in Everett, WA. It was a Top 40 on AM then. I moved on to the old KNBQ in Seattle. Got the "big break" at 17 doing nights at Z100 in Portland....where I ended up going back to two more times. I spent about six amazing years at KUBE 93 in Seattle, sandwiched around a stop at KZZP in Phoenix, where Dave Ryan tortured me mercilessly. I got a chance to really get my hands dirty programming two stations (KZHT & KURR) while doing mornings on KZHT in Salt Lake City. After a year and a half back in Seattle at KBKS, I found my home in Las Vegas at KLUC.

1. Why radio?

It's all I've ever wanted to do...literally!! I grew up out in the sticks outside of Seattle and spent HOURS outside shooting hoops with KJR (and later KUBE) on. I was the kid that had a tape recorder and spent hours doing interviews with family members and putting on shows. My grandma kicked ass on my 7th grade history project! I got a chance to go hang out at a little AM Top 40 station and wash the van and stuff like that. The rest went from there. I was just in Seattle last weekend and had an amazing dinner with one of the guys who gave me that start at KRKO, Jeff Chase. He told me they used to bet they could come up with the job I wouldn't do. It got old when they found out there wasn't one!

2. You've been doing mornings for a long time now. Once the alarm goes off, what gets you excited about the show?

Fear of failure!! There are other people that depend on me to be there and be on my game. The host can't hide very easily! I can't stand it if I feel like I've let Spence and Lauren down. I owe it to them, and Cat, and everyone else at KLUC to bring it every day the best that I can.

3. Off the top of your head...worst bit you've done in the morning?

75% of what we did in Portland. That was pretty rough all the way around. I almost never felt comfortable. That's why it's well known around Las Vegas as "The Big Mistake." PK and Nelson & Terry were really rolling then, I couldn't get it going. The whole thing makes me cringe. Big ups to those guys, and love to CK, Ryan, Nicolle, Tanner and Raizin. Tough spot...I didn't make it any easier. Spence, Lauren, Davey, Juicy and Cat Thomas and JB are all the difference here in Las Vegas. I'd KILL for them....as well as the rest of the KLUC team.

4. Back to the top of your head for the best bit?

Toy Drive every year is pretty hard to top. It's amazing, and very humbling to see everyone come together every year. Just when you think it's peaked, it keeps growing! Our April Fools "walkout" was pretty good this year. 99% of the stuff Spence does is Home Run material. Sign up for Delicious Audio and reap the rewards yourself. He's all over it every day.

5. The Zoo has been in place in its current form for what three years now? What's been the key to the success and longevity of this particular line-up?

Four years!! The answer is Cat Thomas. Period. KLUC is a great place to work, our new Market Manager, Bob Proffitt, is a true stud that really gets it from both the Sales and Programming sides, and that's NOT a suck up, just truth. We work hard, and everyone feels validated and appreciated. Juicy just got promoted into a promotions spot, and we miss her terribly, but in this age of people losing jobs, we're glad she's still in the building and able to help in a different capacity. I've told Spence this many times, and I'll 100% include Lauren in this, too...I NEVER want to do a single radio show without either of them EVER again!! Davey is that role player that's so hard to find. He may complain, but he never says no.

6. If you were going to be on a TV reality show...which would you want to be on?

Because my buddy Natalie Gulbis is on it, I've gotten into this season's Celebrity Apprentice. I'd like to become "Celebrity" enough to be included, and the dynamic of that show is really intriguing to me. I got chosen to be in the first Dancing with the Las Vegas Stars....that dancing ish is hard! In two weeks, I've picked up enough to really appreciate it. I'd love to see what could happen if that was the total focus. Video is coming soon! My partner is sooooo friggin' hot!

7. You guys are coming off a stellar April Fool's Day prank...what happened?

We "intercepted" a "mis-sent" email from Cat to Bob (who among us hasn't sent something to the wrong person when you were thinking about them?) saying, "This isn't my choice to do it this way...but I understand the economic climate and tough calls have to be made. I can probably have the new show here May 1." Lauren was doing her entertainment report and Spence and I were totally distracted. We confronted Cat, he said, "We'll talk about it after the show..." Spence says, "Apparantly, there is no more show!!" I pulled the plug, banged on the window to have Davey come in and run the board, and we all left with the mics still on. I rigged the board so Davey would struggle for a minute, and we walked. Spence even squealed out of the lot, while Lauren and I talked for a few seconds. The key was...NO ONE outside of Cat and the three of us knew. Listeners freaked! Clients freaked!! Sales people freaked!! The rest of the staff freaked!! Cat set up a special voice mail, and told the front desk he wanted all calls to go there so his wouldn't get filled with all the haters. The next day, April 1...we didn't come in. Finally, at 7:30, Cat came on with announcement regarding what had happened. After a minute of "corporate economic climate" bs and how KLUC would be even better moving forward....he started laughing and sprung the "April Fools!" Listeners had already planned protests...the voicemail had filled with hate calls...and Lauren had three job offers!! We worried that it may offend a few people who had lost jobs, and it did...but the second key to it was the plausibility of it. These are crazy times, and something like that was just crazy enough that it might happen. When we replayed some of the calls, we inserted some (obviously us...) calls saying, "I never liked those douchebags anyway!!" just to keep it light...then we announced a Zoo Night Out with Flo-Rida so there would be some sort of payoff. I'm still getting those, "Don't ever do that again!!" reactions a week later....

8. You and Cat Thomas have had your heads shaved for charity within the last two years...How do we get JB King under the shears?

No...it's within the last six months. There's all kinds of bald domes around here. Cat's growing his back but I like mine. We don't need to see JB's lumpy melon! He's all high and tight smooth anyway.

9. What's your favorite part about living in LAS VEGAS?

The opportunities. This is the Entertainment Capital of the World. The place everyone wants to come. Saturday, I hosted the Miss USA Arrival Ceremony, a few weeks ago I did the same thing with Miss America. I've hosted numerous shows on the Strip, with another on the way. (There's good cash in that racket!!) There are numerous TV opportunities, syndication is probably somewhere in our future if we decide that's attractive, and in two weeks we begin our 4th season of "Rehab Radio" at the biggest pool party on the planet at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. I was tweeting the other day about how much I love it here for that very reason. I can do things here that I'd never do anywhere else.

10. How hard is it to do mornings in a city that never sleeps?

Not hard, you just have to be disciplined. I've seen this place eat people up. But if you are going to succumb to those types of urges, you can fall just as hard in any city. I don't go out during the week unless it's for work. Most weekends, I'm working...and catching up on sleep!!

Any advice for aspiring air talent in this tough radio economy?

Even in the good times...get to work! Don't be too good to do ANYTHING. From Cat on down, we always say, "We may not be more talented than you...or maybe we are. But we will ALWAYS out work you. You may put up a decent fight...for awhile. In the end, we will ALWAYS beat you down!!" NEVER miss an opportunity because you were lazy.