Preston & Steve

Preston & Steve
Genre Comedy, Talk, Rock
Running time 4+ hours
Country of origin United States
Home station 93.3 WMMR
Starring Preston Elliot
Steve Morrison
Casey Foster
Kathy Romano
Nick McIlwain
Marisa Magnatta
Executive producer(s) Casey Foster
Nick McIlwain
Marisa Magnatta
Original release 1998 — February 23, 2005 (Y100)
May 23, 2005 – Present (WMMR)
Website http://www.prestonandsteve.com
Podcast http://prestonandsteve.libsyn.com/

Preston & Steve show is a morning radio, comedy and variety broadcast on Philadelphia Active Rock station 93.3 FM WMMR featuring DJs Preston Elliot and Steve Morrison. The show, which originated at Y100 in Philadelphia, features daily telephone interviews, in-studio guests, celebrity impersonations, unusual news stories, and numerous sound clips and running gags. It broadcasts live on the radio as well as streaming audio via the station website from 6 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. EST, Monday through Friday, and is a featured podcast in the comedy section of the iTunes Store.

History

Preston Elliot, Steve Morrison and Marilyn Russell were among a group of radio personalities introduced to the Philadelphia market through the now defunct radio station WDRE.[1] With several of their WDRE co-workers, they departed the station for Y100 in 1997 when WDRE changed format.[1] After four successful years of (then known as) The Y100 Morning Show with Preston, Marilyn, and Steve, Marilyn Russell left the morning show on March 1, 2002, for family reasons. She has worked part-time on many stations in the Philadelphia area since then, including WMGK, and SoJo 104.9, WYSP, and joined morning personality Dave Cruise as co-host on "The BENFM Morning Show on 95.7 in 2007.[2]

WPLY's owner, Dan Lerner, one of the last independent owners in the Philadelphia market, sold the station to Radio One, a national broadcasting corporation, in 2001. Coincidentally, Radio One was the same group that bought Preston, Marilyn & Steve's previous radio station 103.9 WDRE. Radio One and hosts Elliot and Morrison did not successfully negotiate a new contract, and the personalities agreed to a deal with local broadcasting group Greater Media. The hosts' contract with Radio One expired on February 24, 2005, and Y100 changed format and became WPHI "The Beat" at 11:50 p.m. EDT that same day.[3]

A legal battle between Radio One and the Elliot and Morrison team over the hosts' non-compete clause was resolved by a ruling that they were no longer in competition with WPLY. Their new show officially debuted on the air on Monday, May 23, 2005.[4]

In 2006, Elliot and Morrison received a long-term contract extension[5] and in 2008, the station gave them a new 1,800-square-foot (170 m2) studio with their own production equipment.[6] They signed another multi-year deal in 2011.[7]

On-air staff

Preston Elliot
Born Preston Elliot Nelson
(1968-01-25) January 25, 1968
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Residence Harleysville, Pennsylvania
Other names Kenny Knight
Spouse(s) Rachelle
Children Parker
Carter
Caroline
Steve Morrison
Born (1959-06-12) June 12, 1959
Long Island, New York, U.S.
Residence Wissahickon, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Spouse(s) Clair

Awards and ratings

The show has been named the "Best Morning Show" by Philadelphia Style magazine,[8] and "Personality/Show of the Year" in the active rock category by Radio & Records trade magazine.[9] Before switching to WMMR, the show won various Philadelphia A.I.R. Awards, including the "Best Weekday Morning Team" award for 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2005,[10] and was voted best local morning show in the country in FMQB's Year End Leaders Poll for 2004 and 2005 in two different formats.[11]

In the Summer 2004 Arbitron ratings book, the show was rated fourth in market share for all people ages 18–34, and second for men in the same category.[12] The Preston & Steve show's ratings surpassed Howard Stern's during his last month on the air, and they outranked each of David Lee Roth's, Opie and Anthony's, and Kidd Chris's tenures at WYSP.[13] As of 2009, Preston & Steve was the top rated show in Philadelphia,[14] and over a four-year period, they had the #1 show in the Arbitron ratings for the 25–54 adult demographic a total of 42 times.[7]

In 2014,Elliot and Morrison were nominated by the National Association of Broadcasters as finalists for the NAB Marconi Radio Awards for Major Market Personality of the Year.[15]

Publicity events

Camp Out for Hunger

Since 1998, the show has held an annual Camp Out For Hunger, in which both Elliot and Morrison "camp out" (i.e., live in a motorhome) for one week in November to raise food for Philabundance. The show awards prizes to individuals and groups that donate the most food. Since 1998, the event has raised hundreds of tons to feed the hungry across the Delaware Valley.[16][17]

Results

Year Tons of Food US Dollars
2005 87.4 $10,000
2006 151 $18,337
2007 232 $27,427
2008 223 $40,540
2009 187 $45,000
2010[18] 264 $64,119
2011 288 $80,000
2012[19] 313 $106,000
2013 386 $240,522
2014 420 $110,518
2015 580 $158,995
2016 683 $74,870+

10,000 marbles

To celebrate the anticipated 10,000th loss in Philadelphia Phillies franchise history, executive producer Nick McIlwain rolled 10,000 marbles down the steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum as Bill Weston (WMMR's program director) looked on. After being cleaned up by the show's production crew, the marbles were donated to Toys for Tots and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.[20]

"Totally Office Calendar"

In 2006, Elliot had a slip of the tongue while trying to say "awesome" and instead said "office". Later that year they announced that they would be releasing a calendar featuring one (sometimes two) woman a month. Lauren Harris had been the only woman to appear in the calendar every year, until the 2015 calendar, when other commitments kept her from participating (she will be returning in the 2016 calendar). Release of the Calendar is typically accompanied by a "Totally Office Calendar Party", which can draw thousands of participants to see the women depicted in the Calendar in person and receive signed copies of the Calendar.[21]

"I Bleed for Preston & Steve" blood drive

This annual blood drive is hosted by Preston & Steve in coordination with the American Red Cross. The event typically attracts a very large crowd, and various promotional items and free concert tickets are often given out. The 2011 (6th annual) blood drive collected a total of 1,174 units of blood, and gives them a 6-year total of 6,409 units.[22] The 2016 (11th annual) drive collected a total of 1,297 units of blood.[23]

In media

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Boris, Alan (2011), Philadelphia Radio, Images of America, Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, p. 126, ISBN 978-0-7385-7508-7, OCLC 706018831, retrieved December 2, 2011
  2. ↑ "The Greater Media Grapevine" (PDF). Fall 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-05-13.
  3. ↑ "Radio One Displaces Y100 Philly With The Beat". 2005-02-25.
  4. ↑ "The Greater Media Grapevine" (PDF). Summer 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-10-23.
  5. ↑ "WMMR's Preston and Steve Extend Contract Through 2010". Greater Media, Inc. 2006-03-14. Archived from the original on 2007-10-26.
  6. ↑ Klein, Michael (2008-05-04). "Inqlings". The Philadelphia Inquirer.
  7. 1 2 "WMMR Inks Preston & Steve To Multi-Year Contract Extension". FMQB. 2011-08-23.
  8. ↑ "Best of Style". Philadelphia Style. 2006. Archived from the original on 2006-07-14.
  9. ↑ "WMMR-FM's Preston & Steve Take Top Honors at 2007 Radio & Records Convention". Greater Media, Inc. 2007-09-28. Archived from the original on 2007-10-12.
  10. ↑ "Philadelphia A.I.R. Award Winners" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-10-02.
  11. ↑ "Q&A with WMMR/Philly Morning Hosts Preston & Steve". FMQB. 2006-02-16.
  12. ↑ "Y100's Preston & Steve Cross The Street To WMMR". FMQB. 2005-01-14.
  13. ↑ "WMMR/Philadelphia APD Chuck Damico and MD Sean "The Rabbi" Tyszler". FMQB. 2007-08-24.
  14. ↑ "WMMR/Philadelphia's Preston & Steve Morning Show". FMQB. 2009-05-15.
  15. ↑ "2014 NAB Marconi Radio Award Finalists Announced". FMQB. 2014-07-01.
  16. ↑ staff (December 6, 2007), "Local Radio Show Camps Out For Hunger", NBC10.com, archived from the original on January 9, 2008
  17. ↑ "Preston and Steve's Camp Out for Hunger – Record Setting". Greater Media, Inc. 2007-12-11.
  18. ↑ DiSanto, Lauren (November 29, 2011), "Preston and Steve Camp out for Hunger", nbcphiladelphia.com, NBCUniversal, retrieved December 2, 2011
  19. ↑ "WMMR's Preston & Steve Camp Out For Hunger". All Access Music Group. December 3, 2012.
  20. ↑ "Marbles Roll Ahead Of Dubious Milestone". NBC10.com. 2007-07-13.
  21. ↑ Vallee, Joe (November 15, 2010). "Preston and Steve's 2011 Totally Office Calender Party brings thousands to Chickie's and Pete's". philly2philly.com. Game Time Media, LLC. Archived from the original on November 28, 2010. Retrieved November 28, 2010.
  22. ↑ Segel, Whitney (June 30, 2011), "WMMR Listeners Give Back During Annual Blood Drive" (press release), Penn-Jersey Blood Services Region, American Red Cross, retrieved December 2, 2011
  23. ↑ "11th Annual I Bleed For Preston & Steve Blood Drive : Greater Media". www.greatermedia.com. Retrieved 2016-06-23.
  24. ↑ "Spice Up My Kitchen". HGTV. Archived from the original on 2008-04-11.
  25. ↑ "Kathy Romano" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-10-02.
  26. ↑ "Casey Boy Plays for the Philadelphia Soul!". WMMR. Archived from the original on 2008-06-11.
  27. ↑ "'Always Sunny" Third Season Debuts". phillyedge.com. Archived from the original on 2008-08-28.
  28. ↑ ""It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" Eagles Shoot". philadelphiaeagles.com.
  29. ↑ "Remember the Bazaar?". Philly.com.
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