I almost needed CPR myself when I heard that Dan Drayer, the mellow voice of Colorado Public Radio’s “Colorado Matters,” is leaving town.
He will seek his fortune – at what is yet to be decided – in Washington, D.C. He likens his uncertain situation to being an air-traffic controller. “There are a lot of planes above the airport, but nothing’s landed.” His last day with CPR is May 27.
Drayer is the consummate interviewer, able to make the nosiest question sound like a query about your health. He and the staff at KCFR 1340-AM take on issues and ideas without the bombast of commercial talk-show hosts.
“It’s hard to leave,” he said Monday, “but it’s time to move on. I’ve been doing public radio for 17 years. There’s a lot more I still haven’t done.”
Drayer won’t disappear completely. He did hundreds of interviews in four years as the voice of “Colorado Matters,” and the station plans to do a series of “best-of” repeats while looking at options for Drayer’s replacement.
His two-part interview with CPR cohort Mark Sheldon, who died of cancer in 1993, definitely deserves another airing.
Come back, Martha
The return of the syndicated TV show “Martha Stewart Living” is inevitable, but when?
Who knows? The show, which debuted in 1993 and went to an hourly format in 1999, won seven Daytime Emmy awards before, you know, Martha’s time of trouble.
It’s expected back, but a spokeswoman for KCNC-Channel 4, where Martha previously did her thing, says, “We aren’t sure when it’s going to air. Final decisions have not been made.”
Beermaker hits TV
New Belgium Brewing, the maker of Fat Tire Ale, has launched its first television advertising campaign.
The highly successful Fort Collins regional brewer spent a year formulating the nine ads ranging from 15 to 60 seconds long. They were shot in Hotchkiss and Paonia.
The spots air until November in the western U.S.
Around the dial
Emily Wilson, a 19-year-old actress who attended Standley Lake High School, is featured on Tuesday’s episode of “NCIS” (7 p.m., KCNC-Channel 4). She plays a young version of guest star Mariette Hartley in a series of flashbacks … KWGN-Channel 2 anchor Tom Green narrates Copland’s “Lincoln Portrait” with the Colorado Wind Ensemble at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Littleton United Methodist Church … Signatures and memorabilia from Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, Tom Cruise, Lily Tomlin and other stars are part of the fundraising auction for KBDI-Channel 12 from 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday. … Quotable: “Never say more than is necessary.” – Richard Brinsley Sheridan.
Dick Kreck’s column appears Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. He may be reached at 303-820-1456 or dkreck@denverpost.com.
