Music Of The Stars
Encyclopedia
The Music of the Stars is a four-hour radio program in the Chicago
-Milwaukee radio
market; it is heard worldwide from WLIP
in Kenosha, Wisconsin
, and is produced and hosted by Lou Rugani. The program in its original form first aired over WLIP AM 1050 on Sunday, May 30th, 1992; with its original title "The Big-Band Show", it was then broadcast during a six-hour window each Sunday morning and afternoon. After some time-shifting over the years, it has aired for most of the decade from 7 AM CT to 11 AM CST and since 2007 WLIP has repeated it in an encore
re-broadcast from 12 noon to 4 PM CT.
, the program slowly began to adopt an anthology
or "omnibus" motif by the mid-1990s, and today begins its first segment ("The Torch Hour") with a torch song
theme, transcending into "freeform radio" thematic segments in music, prose and comedy based on various concepts in everyday life, i.e. the varied seasons, moods, aspirations, life stages, etcetera. The Music of the Stars has been compared to such historic radio programs as "Music from Studio X
", Martin Block
's "Make Believe Ballroom", and the various Chicago overnight radio programs with Franklyn MacCormack
, John Doremus
and Jay Andres.
is "More than Love" by Herschel Burke Gilbert
. (At the program's 1992 beginning, the opening theme had then been a Nelson Riddle
arrangement
of "Reveille
".) The closing theme is "Magnificent Obsession" by Frank Skinner and Frederick Herbert. (For some years previously, "You Are Never Far Away from Me" by Robert Allen and Allen Roberts had signaled the program's end.)
.
The Music of the Stars received heavy promotion in early 1992 prior to the program's premier broadcast, but on that day all power to the station and the general area surrounding WLIP had been cut due to massive highway construction nearby.
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
-Milwaukee radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
market; it is heard worldwide from WLIP
WLIP
WLIP is a radio station located in Kenosha, Wisconsin, U.S. serving the Chicago-Milwaukee metropolitan region along the west shore of Lake Michigan with 250 watts effective radiated power, and also streams worldwide at www.wlip.com...
in Kenosha, Wisconsin
Kenosha, Wisconsin
Kenosha is a city and the county seat of Kenosha County in the State of Wisconsin in United States. With a population of 99,218 as of May 2011, Kenosha is the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Kenosha is also the fourth-largest city on the western shore of Lake Michigan, following Chicago,...
, and is produced and hosted by Lou Rugani. The program in its original form first aired over WLIP AM 1050 on Sunday, May 30th, 1992; with its original title "The Big-Band Show", it was then broadcast during a six-hour window each Sunday morning and afternoon. After some time-shifting over the years, it has aired for most of the decade from 7 AM CT to 11 AM CST and since 2007 WLIP has repeated it in an encore
Rerun
A rerun or repeat is a re-airing of an episode of a radio or television broadcast. The invention of the rerun is generally credited to Desi Arnaz. There are two types of reruns—those that occur during a hiatus, and those that occur when a program is syndicated. Reruns can also be, as the...
re-broadcast from 12 noon to 4 PM CT.
Format
At first following a strict big-band radio formatRadio format
A radio format or programming format not to be confused with broadcast programming describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. Radio formats are frequently employed as a marketing tool, and constantly evolve...
, the program slowly began to adopt an anthology
Anthology
An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...
or "omnibus" motif by the mid-1990s, and today begins its first segment ("The Torch Hour") with a torch song
Torch song
A torch song is a sentimental love song, typically one in which the singer laments an unrequited or lost love, either where one party is oblivious to the existence of the other, where one party has moved on, or where a romantic affair has affected the relationship...
theme, transcending into "freeform radio" thematic segments in music, prose and comedy based on various concepts in everyday life, i.e. the varied seasons, moods, aspirations, life stages, etcetera. The Music of the Stars has been compared to such historic radio programs as "Music from Studio X
Music from Studio X
Music from Studio X was an American network radio program of recorded music on the Mutual Broadcasting System originating from WOR in New York. The program premiered on July 9, 1956 with host John A. Gambling; it was heard Monday through Saturday between 9:05 PM and 1 AM EST, and on Sundays between...
", Martin Block
Martin Block
Martin Block born in Los Angeles, California, was an American disc jockey. Walter Winchell is said to have invented the term "disk jockey" as a means of describing Block's radio work.-Early years:...
's "Make Believe Ballroom", and the various Chicago overnight radio programs with Franklyn MacCormack
Franklyn MacCormack
Franklyn MacCormack was an American radio personality in Chicago, Illinois from the 1930s into the 1970s on his radio program, The All Night Showcase...
, John Doremus
John Doremus
John Doremus was an American radio personality, best known for his radio syndication of "The Passing Parade", a series of short stories of remarkable but relatively unknown episodes throughout history.In the late 1950s he acquired the rights to the series, which until then had been a television...
and Jay Andres.
Themes
The introductory themeTheme music
Theme music is a piece that is often written specifically for a radio program, television program, video game or movie, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits...
is "More than Love" by Herschel Burke Gilbert
Herschel Burke Gilbert
Herschel Burke Gilbert was a prolific orchestrator, musical supervisor and composer of film scores as well as television scores and theme songs, including the themes for The Rifleman , Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater and The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor...
. (At the program's 1992 beginning, the opening theme had then been a Nelson Riddle
Nelson Riddle
Nelson Smock Riddle, Jr. was an American arranger, composer, bandleader and orchestrator whose career stretched from the late 1940s to the mid 1980s...
arrangement
Arrangement
The American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
of "Reveille
Reveille
"Reveille" is a bugle call, trumpet call or pipes call most often associated with the military or summer camp; it is chiefly used to wake military personnel at sunrise...
".) The closing theme is "Magnificent Obsession" by Frank Skinner and Frederick Herbert. (For some years previously, "You Are Never Far Away from Me" by Robert Allen and Allen Roberts had signaled the program's end.)
Trivia
Each program during the entire month of October features themes related to HalloweenHalloween
Hallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
.
The Music of the Stars received heavy promotion in early 1992 prior to the program's premier broadcast, but on that day all power to the station and the general area surrounding WLIP had been cut due to massive highway construction nearby.