John McNally
Host and Producer KCRWThe front door opened, looking neither to the left or right, with a fixed determined look, fashionably dressed and carrying a briefcase, she swept though Master Control and disappeared into the office. "Who is that?", I asked. Someone replied: "That's Ruth Hirschman. She was with KPFK. Perhaps she's our new General Manager". So began the saga of the "Station that Ruth built".
The fourteen years I was with KCRW were, thanks to Ruth, my most creative years. Once a programming idea was accepted by Ruth it was up to you to swim or sink. When I proposed Castaway's Choice, Ruth said I should do one program to see how it went.
NPR picked up the show thanks to Ruth's lobbying power and the one program lasted six years.
Ruth gave the greenlight to many live music broadcasts I hosted and produced. These included a live broadcast from the LA Olympic Arts festival and Wynton Marsalis concert from the Music Center among many others. The Sunday night show "in Town Tonight" was a two hour live in-studio show showcasing LA's underground art scene and produced by four incredible volunteers. Ruth excelled in motivating the lifeblood of the station, KCRW's volunteers.
Sarah, Ruth, Will, John Huntley, Bob Carlson
From attending an NPR conference with Ruth at the time of Tiananmen Square to sitting with Ruth at 6am in the studio fundraising while Nelson Mandela was released from prison and being able to see why Ruth ran KCRW the way she did, showed me it was possible to change a Public Radio so it mattered to the community. My opportunity to do so came later when I helped KAZU-FM survive.
Ruth's legacy will live on in many different guises.
Thanks Ruth. It was a blast.