it seems the new owners of Crave 95/CISL are less than impressed with the performance of there newly acquired radio stations on the west coast.
Just got word Astral's current GM Gary Russell will take the fall for a less than stellar performance and head into an early retirement.

I spent several years working with the man known as Gary Russell, and he was a fair, honest, good man, to the people he worked with and who worked for him.  I hope he carries on in the biz, because we need guys like him.  If he retires, I wish him nothing but the best.  He's helped a lot of people with their radio careers.  But I think he has a lot more to contribute to the right situation, and I hope it comes about.

Hey Gord...

I'm one of the many people who crossed paths with Gary Russell during his Z95 stint  here in Vancouver and have to say that I found him to be pretty much the complete opposite of the man you describe.  That said, 2 radio truisms come to mind:

1)  Anyone who's been in the business as long as Russell will have a long lineup of people willing to both praise and vilify them

and

2)  anyone who's been in the business as long as Russell can always find a new gig/position/title if they want it.  This industry has a notoriously short memory.

And while I won't exactly wish Mr. Russell well, I will extend that handshake to you ....we worked in Edmonton during the same phase in the 80s for awhile   Hope you're doing well!

OK, Simon Says....fair enough.  I am just defending my old friend.  It was great working with him when I did, and he's OK in my mind, and I just want to put a good word in for him on his retirement.  Any of us that can get thru a career in this biz without any criticism would have to be a saint.  Good Luck GAR.

Gar helped me out a great deal when I first came to CITI FM and he was PD of CKY.  As far as I'm concerned you can count me in the good column as far as Gary Russell is concerned.  We shared many lunches together at the old Tipsy Bull in Polo Park! I even remember some of them. All the best to you Gar whatever you choose to do.

I too had a 'GOOD" Gary experience when I was at CJAY 92 in Calgary.

He was very helpful when I worked with him there.

And was a great guy to deal with.

When Gord Robson AND Steve Young show up,  you know its a good thread!  And since Marty Forbes is hovering out there somewhere...here's my bit:

Best wishes Gary.  I hope you break 70.  And, you did make a difference in this business.

Merry Christmas to all of you.  And take a look around..the people you know today are the ones you're going to be working with, or blogging with, 25 years from now, if you make it.

I suppose it should be pointed out that there are, in fact, two Gary Russells. And this is not a "two-face" reference.

The Gary Russell I know is in Prince George at Cariboo Central (now Vista) radio. Has been for close to 3 decades. When I tell people I work with Gary Russell, they always assume I mean the guy from Standard. I'll bet both men have probably lost and gained credibility from each others' reputations and word-of-mouth.

Hovering Matthew?  I feel so dirty.     Some of us have worked for not just 'good' radio stations - but GREAT radio stations - virtually our entire careers...for Gary it's around 40 some years - at legendary radio stations - CKY - CKLG in the 'heyday' of the LG/CFUN era - moving on to 'building' great radio stations like CJAY in Calgary to name just a few...and when you do what we do 24/7/365 in striving to build 'great' radio stations not everybody makes the cut and the hardest part of what PD's and 'GM's do is to let people go, thus bitter comments from those people who DON'T make the cut are understandable...but simply by seeing the people that use their real names on these boards as opposed to those hiding behind monikers with their comments and criticsm - I can assure you the praise for Gary is coming from life long highly respeted radio veterans who's names you see here.  The greatest gift 'any' boss can give is by teaching and helping others...there's a long long list of broadcasters in many markets across Canada who have learned much from Mr. Russell.  I wish him all the best and I've enjoyed every moment working across the street from him in Vancouver in the early 1980's to working in the same company with him for the last 16 'great' years in Standard Radio.  

Gary was definately the smartest GM I had ever worked for. Others in Standard/Astral are downright dumb. This guy was top notch. Always gave great advice and direction. I hope that he'll surface again, as he's far too young to not be somehow involved. There are a ton of factors that come into play in making a radio station a success. Some GM's have PD's that are better at doing crossword puzzles than steering the ship. Sometimes they are inherited, sometimes not.

Nobody "hovers" with more class than you do Mr. Forbes.  And it's great to see Bruce Barker, Matthew McBride and Gord Robson show up here too.  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all.

I have heard Astral plans to fine tune 30 stations within the next 12 months all former Standard stations. I heard certain am stations are planned to become some sort of sports and talk combo. any ideas what may happen to Crave?

I was lucky to work with Gary at CJAY. He was my GM for just about a year and he was nothing but helpful.
Good luck.

I've heard that Eric Samuels has had some responsibilities taken away from him, specifically the VP of Programming for the chain.   Any truth?

Gaqry Russell was always a great to me, and a real treat to work with. He was always imaginative, excited about making great radio, valued the opinions of those around him, and was pretty fair, too. I hope he stays with the business, as the industry needs more like him!