Omelette & Finster make a splash

Aug. 15, 2007

Northern Michigan has several options when it comes to morning radio shows. There are around a couple dozen in all, but let’s face it: ever since The Captain and his crazy antics disappeared from the airwaves, morning radio in these parts has been about as exciting as a morgue.
Okay, one could argue that Bob & Tom keep things interesting in the morning with guests like Larry the Cable Guy and other top comedians, but there is another duo on the horizon that is offering something “for the people” that Bob & Tom can’t.
Localization.
Since arriving last September, Omelette has been at the reins of the WKLT morning show weekdays, from 5:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. on 97.5 and 98.9 on the FM dial. Originally from Connecticut, Omelette came to Northern Michigan with a vision of shaking up mornings in the region.
“I think people are tiring of the canned laughter and satellite programming that has no local focus,” said Omelette. “When I came here I wanted this show to be about and for the people of this area.”
For some, his stereotypical East Coast attitude was challenging on the air at first.
“I found it hard to keep being ‘mean’ to callers because everyone around here is so nice,” said Omelette as he reflected on the first weeks of his show. “The station wanted to soften my high energy testosterone approach to the program, so they brought in a gal to work with me. It didn’t work because she wanted to sit behind the console and play music and I wanted to get out and meet the people. I wanted to entertain the people. She didn’t last.”

Enter Finster.
“I got into radio a few years after Omelette,” said Finster. “We both grew up in Connecticut, but met for the first time while we were working in Florida at competitive stations. We hit it off and said someday we would work together.”

RETURNING LISTENERS
When Finster arrived at WKLT last April, the morning show took on a new personality. All indications point to the fact that the duo has brought back a lot of listeners.
“The phone is ringing off the hook around here,” said Omelette. “We go out of our way to answer every call and answer every e-mail we get. We are in this for the people.”
“The People,” as they refer to their listeners, are very much a part of the program. Every regular caller has a nickname. There is Mr. Windy, a redneck who goes out and performs pranks or challenges throughout Northern Michigan. There is Hard Days Robert who walked around downtown Traverse City in his underwear holding a sign that read, “Listen to Omelette & Finster on KLT.” There is Donut, Stuttering Mike and Naked K.
“We were doing this promotion up in Petoskey and partying with the people and some of the people came back to our hotel room to party,” said Finster. “Well, at the end of the night this K. and her husband were the only ones left and her husband went to get more ice so Omelette said, ‘Hey why don’t we freak him out and take off all our clothes and get in bed,’ he was kind of joking, but before we knew it she had all of her clothes off.”
The crazy antics or the “we dare you” challenges they ask of their listeners are nothing they wouldn’t or haven’t done themselves.
“We paid our dues, both of us, when we got started,” said Omelette. “When I was in Florida the Panthers were in the playoffs and for a radio station promotion between periods I would slide bare ass on the ice into the net. Well, they won, so I had to do it for every home game in the playoffs. Once, when David Letterman was coming to Florida to visit, they put me in a Velcro suit and hung me on a billboard. It cut off my circulation and I passed out. Fortunately, someone noticed me with my head down and I was rescued.”

BAR TOUR
Since teaming up this past spring, Omelette & Finster have been on a whirlwind tour to get to know “the people” and familiarize them with the area.
“We went on this ‘bar tour’ of all these small bars in Northern Michigan, places where KLT had not visited before,” said Omelette. “To kick off summer we had Kamp Omelette in Benzie County. We are all about taking the show to the people.”
If Omelette & Finster were not known by “the people,” especially “the governmental people,” that all changed with their June 21 broadcast and a prank that fooled many in Northern Michigan. They went on the air and announced the coming of the “Mall of the World” that would stretch across most of West Grand Traverse Bay. They even had Finster’s brother call in as the spokesperson for the mall project.
Despite suggesting that the mall would be built on stilts, that a faux wall would be built around it so area residents would see water landscape and that all boats would have to be out of West Bay by July 30, some of the people believed the story. Their delivery was so convincing that several people showed up to the noon protest of the building of the mall at the Open Space that the radio pranksters organized as well. They announced at the noon rally that it was all a prank.
“There were people in suits from downtown Traverse City wanting to know what was going on. We wanted to come up with something that would let people know we were here in town,” said Omelette. “We didn’t fool everybody, but we caused a big stir. The people were calling government officials, the newspapers and other media. The next day we had people laughing and we had people angry calling the show. We even had some from the media angry with us and they called saying, ‘what you did was inappropriate as journalists.’ We’re not journalists – we’re morning guys.”
Finster corrects that statement.
“We are nighttime guys trapped in morning show radio bodies.”

SCORCHING PACE
Omelette & Finster keep a scorching pace to make their show happen daily. They both have their alarms set at 3:33 a.m., and whoever gets up first phones the other to make sure he is up. They arrive at the station by 4:30 a.m. to prepare for their show that is so intense and demanding that Omelette stands the entire time and even works up a sweat.
“It is very labor-intensive. We don’t have a producer, call-screener or a staff of 16. We do it all ourselves and we like it that way,” said Omelette. “Both Finster and I have studios in our homes, so we do a lot of stuff there as well. We live, eat, sleep and drink this show all the time.”
With a commitment to their show, the 30-something morning show personalities make some sacrifices.
“We don’t have families or wives. We are married to this show,” said Finster. “We both have lost serious girlfriends over our work. As for family, we see each other as brothers and the people tuning in every morning – they are our family.”
The Omelette & Finster sensation that is sweeping across the Northern Michigan airwaves almost didn’t happen.
“My morning show partner in Florida was having personal problems and they dropped us. So I was without work, sitting around on the beach drinking beer and responding to blind ads in trade publications,” said Omelette. “I was hoping to return to the East Coast when I got a call from Charlie Ferguson of WKLT. I thought to myself ‘Northern Michigan, no way – but what the heck – I will take the free plane ride and the free steak dinner.’”

CAVING IN
Omelette remembers flying in he was pretty impressed with the beauty of the area, but wasn’t 100% sold.
“After I left, Charlie kept calling and so I caved in,” said Omelette. “It has been great. KLT has been the best place I have worked because it is not so corporate. At most corporate-owned stations you spend three hours after your show in the GM’s office reviewing the show and talking about what went right and what went wrong. Here they are giving us a lot of rope to hang ourselves with.”
The two have one objective and one mission. Their objective is to entertain “the people.” Their mission is to be number one in their time slot.
“One thing in corporate radio is all this synergy with your sister stations. We don’t believe in any of that crap,” said Finster. “We know we are shaking things up because the other morning shows are listening to us and giving us prank calls. I guess they don’t know about caller ID.”
Their morning show is working because it is connecting to the people. Omelette & Finster discuss their female troubles, hangovers and the highs and lows of living up north daily on their program. The people seem to be digging it. When the duo sends out Mr. Windy on a Michigan Impossible (some wacky prank) the phones ring off the hook with the people willing to help Mr. Windy accomplish his task.
“The people get drawn in. Everyone is so helpful. Some of the pranks Mr. Windy attempts have required hiring him,” said Omelette. “We even have people showing up late to work to listen to see if Windy or someone else accomplishes the task at hand. Even after the show ends people will call if they missed something to find out what happened.”

NOTHING TABOO
While Omelette & Finster poke fun at the people all the time, there are two people they are always poking fun at: each other.
“Nothing in our lives or what we say to each other is taboo,” said Finster. “Sure, we get a laugh out of what the people do and say, but we laugh just as hard at each other.”
With all the craziness and hard partying, the guys knew they needed someone to balance things out. That came with the hiring of Union Kate.
“We thought it would be fun to have our own American Idol, but we called it American Anchor. We auditioned people for the role of newsperson on our show,” said Omelette. “Union Kate won and she has been fantastic. She had no prior radio experience. She is bringing some structure and organization to the show that we need.”
As for their success, both guys credit their listeners.
“A lot of those satellite shows have fake people, with fake voices,” said Finster. “All of our people are real – they are characters of the community. The people like hearing about real people.”
Omelette agrees and feels the show’s success will be in its being “local.”
“We are not being fake about this – we love it here. We want this to be our last stop,” said Omelette. “We want this show to be about local people, businesses and events. There is so much to do up here. We can’t keep up. I think a couple outsiders like ourselves fumbling around trying to figure things out has been good for the people. We hear from the people all the time that we are helping to give them a new appreciation for this place called Northern Michigan.”

ROCKING OUT
Their next public appearance will be this Friday at Union Street Station (August 17) when Finster, a bass player, debuts his band, Twisted Finster. The group, made up of four complete strangers, answered an audition call four weeks ago by Finster.
“Our show has decided to get behind A.C. Paw of Mancelona, the no-kill pet shelter. I want to raise $10,000 for them over the next year. So we are going to get things going with this benefit concert,” said Finster. “The band has been rehearsing hard for a month and we are going to perform three 55 minute sets of killer rock songs.”
Omelette & Finster in the mornings has brought back that feel of the hard edge ’70s morning rock radio with a lot of laughs, pranks and the occasional tune.
“We definitely are not musicologists,” said Omelette. “We don’t care who the third bass player was in the Doobie Brothers. Sure, we play some tunes when we get tired of talking or when we feel the people have heard enough of us.”
Whatever they are doing, it seems to be working. Their show simulcasts online as well and they are building up a following all over, as listeners are e-mailing from Indiana, New York, Florida and a dozen other states.
Move over Bob & Tom?
“We expect to be number one when the ratings come out in January of 2008,” said Omelette. “We are leaving it in the hands of the people, so we will see.”

To catch the zaniness of Omelette & Finster tune into 97.5 or 98.9 on your FM dial Monday through Friday from 5:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. They will air their “Best Of” the week of Aug 27-31. To learn more and view pictures of their escapades visit wklt.com.