1,026 talking about this. names in music, and helping launch the careers of many of the classic rock bands, He joined WONE in early 2013. So, segments on the show, whether it was news, traffic or a bit of some kind, had to air at the same exact time every morning so people would know if they were running on time or not. Kinzbach says of his on-air partner. ‘The Buzzard Morning Zoo’ had it all -- great music, current events, top-notch guests, sports, traffic reports and, most importantly, humor. Kinzbach later returned to Northeast Ohio radios, taking over mornings at WONE with new partner Sandra Miller in 2013. First of all, a few words: We had a wonderful staff during the classic days of WMMS.. Jeff Kinzbach's professionalism and Flash Ferenc's nuttiness and news chops was perfect for the morning, Matt the Cat had a sincerity and likability that great for mid day, Kid Leo was second to none as an interviewer and music trend spotter -- just look at what he is doing with Underground Garage which is fantastic! For twenty years he was the morning personality at WMMS radio in Cleveland, Ohio with record h... igh ratings.... igh ratings. We hit it at the right time for music and for our age group. “I’m sure Jeff would agree, that was our greatest accomplishment,” Ferenc adds. “I really felt that we needed somebody on the air who has an incredible sense of timing, that was vital, but who also had a great voice, an authoritative voice who could relate to our audience.”. (Robert E. Dorksen / The Plain Dealer)Cleveland Plain Dealer. View Jeff Kinzbach’s profile on LinkedIn, the world's largest professional community. “Jeff and I started at the station in 1973, maybe one or two months apart,” Ferenc recalls. I've met so many great people, and had so many great experiences. Lakewood, Ohio. Jeff Kinzbach Exits Mornings On WONE/Akron, OH | AllAccess.com “As the show evolved, he became the traffic cop in the studio. He realized listeners timed their commutes by what they heard on the radio, not according to a clock. Kinzbach became a household name for his role on the “Jeff and Flash” show, which aired on Cleveland ’s 100.7 WMMS. Please hit my "LIKE" button. That means gassing up the RV with Patti and heading south on the scenic route to Los Angeles, where their daughter, an aerospace engineer, lives. I can’t do the show, I think I have food poisoning.’ Yeah, right. “Jeff was one of the best production directors in the country of any radio station,” says John Gorman, the program director at WMMS during its Buzzard glory days. "Spaceman Scott" - Scott Hughes, better known as Spaceman Scott, was a member of WMMS-FM/100.7's top-rated "Buzzard Morning Zoo" in the 1980s, along with Jeff Kinzbach, Ed "Flash" Ferenc, and others. While majoring in Communications at Cleveland State University, he started working at WMMS Radio is 1973. Education. “The Buzzard Morning Zoo” became the voice of Cleveland, which gave it tremendous clout when the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation went looking in the mid-1980s for a city to build its shrine to rock music. We went nuts on it on the air and off the air,” Kinzbach recalls. He went on to work for stations in Detroit before returning home in 1973 when WMMS hired him as a production director to produce commercials, bumpers and stingers. “One night, somebody didn’t show up for work and they pointed at me and said, ‘You know how everything works, just run the radio station if you want for the next four hours. That’s what made Jeff and Flash so unique.”. (Photo courtesy: John Gorman)Image supplied by John Gorman, “We were the soundtrack to northeast Ohio,” Kinzbach says. In 1975, WMMS hired Charlie Kendall, a popular nighttime DJ from Boston, to do mornings. Celebrities Jeff Kinzbach Net Worth Jeff Kinzbach Net Worth 2021, Age, Height, Relationships, Married, Dating, Family, Wiki Biography Longtime Cleveland personality Jeff Kinzbach took to social media on Saturday night to announce he will be retiring from mornings at Rubber City Radio Group Rock 97.5 WONE-FM Akron on Wednesday, September 30. He had a stint at 98.5 WNCX and was the voice of WOIO Ch. It was a daily thing we would talk about. Kinzbach became a household name for his role on the “Jeff and Flash” show, which aired on Cleveland ’s 100.7 WMMS. “Jeff was always called to fill in because he lived 15 minutes away,” Ferenc says. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the... Jump to. So, I went in and did his show.”. “We complemented each other. I could do as I please,” Kinzbach says. That’s all Jeff & Flash needed to hear to spring into action. He spent over 20 years at WMMS in Cleveland as the morning It’s not fun as it used to be. “It goes fast, it really does,” Kinzbach said of the past five decades of life and work. But, my God, it was great.”, Jeff Kinzbach, left, and Ed "Flash" Ferenc of Cleveland's WMMS 100.7 in February, 1978. It was the first crazy Cleveland project that actually happened,” Gorman says. Jeff set records as one of the highest-rated morning “Jeff & Flash” would eventually leave WMMS as a team and spend some time at WWWE (1100 AM)before leaving Ohio in the late 1990s. show host. Sections of this page. The legendary disc jockey called it a career on September 30 after spending parts of six decades on the local airwaves. Jeff & Flash were radio royalty and lured some of the top names in the music industry to Cleveland, from Bruce Springsteen to the Rolling Stones. By utilizing innovative comedy, interviewing some of the biggest names in music, and helping launch the careers of many of the classic rock bands, Jeff Kinzbach and Ed "Flash" Ferenc One of Cleveland radio's most popular -- and enduring -- morning teams, Jeff Kinzbach and Ed "Flash" Ferenc … “We got together with local businesses, a lot of politicians. Buzzard Morning Zoo, 1985 Token Jokes of the Morning feature. He had strengths that I didn’t have and I had strengths he didn’t. The open road will give Kinzbach plenty of opportunities to look back in the rear-view mirror at his truly amazing career. The new cast of characters included Len “Boom” Goldberg, Kenny Clean, Ruby Cheeks, and others. Front row: Kid Leo, Bruce Springsteen, Shelly Stile, Dan Garfinkel. After 52 years in radio, I retired. "I can't thank everybody enough. Please support high-quality local journalism. (James A. Hatch / The Plain Dealer)The Plain Dealer. “We felt the fact that Jeff and Flash were the same age, they both grew up here, they know the market and they’re already working together at the same station. “I never would have imagined any of this. The travels and adventures of Jeff & wife Patti as they take on the open road and travel around the country. The trouble is, when you get invited to every party in town, it’s very hard to get up the next morning.”, “I remember Charlie came over to my house one night and he had a young lady with him whom he met at the Brown Derby and she was just a knockout,” Kinzbach says. He joined WONE in early 2013. "If you remember, Cleveland had a history since World War II of coming up with all of these great ideas and none of them ever came to fruition. We were also both half-nuts, but at the same time very dedicated.”. Relive and learn new and interesting facts on Jeff and his career spanning 5 decades. © 2021 Advance Local Media LLC. Kinzbach and the rest of WMMS were major players in the drive to bring the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to Cleveland. So, we put them together and created all of these bits, everything from ‘Token Jokes’ to ‘Blow Something Up’ and they would run at the same exact time every day. “[When] Jeff became the morning guy, all his creative talents bloomed and he ended up having the highest ratings that Cleveland radio had ever seen," Spero says. Jeff has 3 jobs listed on their profile. They just left me alone. He joined WONE in early 2013. “There’s a lot on my bucket list, from Yellowstone to the Grand Canyon and all the points in between. https://jeffkinzbach.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Vid-pic.jpg, http://jeffkinzbach.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/JK-Web-Logo-500w.png, https://jeffkinzbach.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/DSC_0223.jpg, https://jeffkinzbach.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/DSC_0221.jpg, https://jeffkinzbach.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/zoo.jpg, https://jeffkinzbach.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Springsteen-April-1976.jpg, https://jeffkinzbach.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/bw-guitar.jpg, Copyright 2020 Jeff Kinzbach - All Rights Reserved. That’s how long Jeff Kinzbach says it took him to get used to not having to wake up at 4 a.m. after hosting morning radio for 30 years. “But having Jeff and Flash lead the campaign, it galvanized the community to the point where the rest of the country took notice and realized it had to be in Cleveland. When Kendall left in 1976, Gorman went looking for someone with a particular skill set to take over the morning show. In 1996, I became the station's Program Director/Head of Operations. But there was one big problem. by John Benson Legendary WMMS/WONE disc jockey Jeff Kinzbach loves Richfield. Jeff Kinzbach has been a broadcaster for over forty years. Gorman and his boss immediately thought of Jeff and paired him with Flash. Note to readers: if you purchase something through one of our affiliate links we may earn a commission. Jeff Kinzbach , 51, lives on a 150-acre ranch an hour's drive east of Dallas with wife Patti and 8-year-old daughter McKenzie. Denny hired Jeff [Kinzbach] as production director. WMMS ruled the airwaves with its Album Oriented Rock format in the 1970s. “We just started to realize that we really should retire and do a lot of the things that we want to do now because you just never know how long you have,” he says. After several years off the air, he reemerged at WONE in 2013. Radio personality. He spent over 20 years at WMMS in Cleveland as the morning show host. Bruce Springsteen visits WMMS on April 6, 1976. “The Buzzard Morning Zoo” enjoyed a nearly 20-year run, dominating the ratings while Rolling Stone readers voted WMMS the Best Radio Station in the U.S. nine straight years. Well Jeff congrats to both yourself and you wife, enjoy your long awaited rest and relaxation. I'm very fortunate.". “Next thing I know, my phone is ringing at 4 a.m. ‘Jeff, man, this is Charlie. Jeff & Flash teamed up again on 1100 WTAM for a time. We were basically a bunch of 20-year-olds that really wanted to build a radio station that we wanted to listen to. The radio business isn’t what it used to be. Take a listen to rocktalk. Northeast Ohio radio legend Jeff Kinzbach ends 50-year career Jeff Kinzbach is proud of how WMMS used its power and popularity in the industry to help get the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. Adapted by Dan Garfinkle, Denny Sanders, and Jeff Kinzbach. Indeed, the two were close off-the-air, too. “It was really an ideal situation for me as far as being creative. Starring Charlie Kendall, Kid Leo, Denny Sanders, Murray Saul, Matt the Cat, Ed "Flash" Ferenc, Len Goldberg, David Garfinkle, Michael Stanley, Jeff … Jeff tells some amazing, some unbelievable stories that are all true. ... 97.5 WONE 100.7 WMMS. Jeff Kinzbach grew up on the west side of Cleveland and is a life-long resident of Gorman received a tip that San Francisco was being considered. Jeff Kinzbach grew up on the west side of Cleveland and is a life-long resident of Northeast Ohio. The WMMS Buzzard Theater of the Air presents Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol." Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your California Privacy Rights (each updated 1/1/21). WMMS-FM's onetime morning drive-time team are leading relatively tame lives compared to the days when they hosted the rock station's top-rated "Buzzard Morning Zoo." We made the most of it and became the Rock n Roll Capitol. Wonder what happened behind the scenes in Jeff’s radio days. Jeff Kinzbach was a broadcaster and spent nearly thirty years in the radio business. “It’s a funny feeling,” Kinzbach says one week into his retirement. “We went nuts on it. Just don’t say anything.’ So, I pushed all the buttons and I thoroughly enjoyed it.". Thank goodness the masses agreed.”. Back row, Left to Right: Steven Van Zandt, Charlie Kendall, John Gorman, Jeff Kinzbach, Steve Lushbaugh, Matt the Cat, Denny Sanders. Longtime Cleveland personality Jeff Kinzbach took to social media on Saturday night to announce he will be retiring from mornings at Rubber City Radio Group Rock 97.5 WONE-FM … L to R: Matt the Cat, Betty Korvan, Joel Frensdorf (WMMS sales), John Gorman, Debbie Ullman, Jeff Kinzbach, Denny Sanders, Kid Leo, and Bob Zurich (RCA Records). Subscribe to cleveland.com. Kinzbach began his career at 1260 WIXY Cleveland … "It was just great to be part of it," says Jeff Kinzbach of his nearly 50-year career in Cleveland radio. 19 before leaving the spotlight and doing consulting work. We often worked together on weekends and quickly became friends.”, Cleveland morning drive hosts Ed "Flash" Ferenc and Jeff Kinzbach are photographed at the WMMS studios in 1978. All rights reserved (About Us). His production skills and timing to contain the craziness of the show was a work of art. They were the best man at each other’s wedding and partnered together in three nightclubs. Kinzbach worked mornings on Akron’s 97.5 WONE since 2013 but is best known for hosting “The Buzzard Morning Zoo” with Ed “Flash” Ferenc on 100.7 WMMS from 1976-1994. Doing as he pleases is his full-time job now. “The Buzzard Morning Zoo” ended in 1994 after WMMS was sold the previous year. “But as every day goes on, you kind of pause for a second and say to yourself, ‘Wow, I don’t have to work. Retired Morning Show Host. So many joked about the place we call "Home." “He could’ve easily gone to New York or L.A. or become an editor for motion pictures or TV.”, “I was doing morning drive at the time, so when my shift was done I joined him to record all the voice-overs,” remembers former WMMS disc jockey David Spero. “One thing I can say about Jeff is he is extremely disciplined,” Ferenc says. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Kinzbach worked mornings on Akron’s 97.5 WONE since 2013 but is best known for hosting “The Buzzard Morning Zoo” with Ed “Flash” Ferenc on 100.7 WMMS from 1976-1994. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. “It was obvious of his talent that he wouldn’t last long-buried in that studio.”. “He grew up in Lakewood and I grew up in Seven Hills. “By the time he got to Cleveland, WMMS was growing by leaps and bounds, and he was being invited to every party in town. News Bites for October 1.....The 50-year career of Northeast Ohio radio icon Jeff Kinzbach came to an end Wednesday, Sept. 30, as he broadcast his last morning show on Rubber City Radio classic rock WONE Akron (97.5). To think 50 years have gone by, it’s a blur. It was then when Kinzbach met his future radio partner, Ed “Flash” Ferenc, who was reading the news for sister station WHK at the time. personalities in northern Ohio. Jeff Kinzbach is on Facebook. “When we first started doing the campaign for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, there was no guarantee we were going to get it,” Gorman adds. I can't say "Thank you" enough. He didn't have an interest in being on the air, but he was a whiz at production. Join Facebook to connect with Jeff Kinzbach and others you may know. It was still very satisfying for me, but I realized it’s time to get off the stage.”. For twenty of those years he was the morning personality at WMMS in Cleveland, Ohio that earned record high ratings. Among the more significant moves taken by WMMS was the formatting of the morning zoo concept created by Z100's Scott Shannon onto the show Jeff & Flash (Jeff Kinzbach and Ed Ferenc) were already hosting. Three years later he teamed up with Jeff Kinzbach and started “The Jeff and Flash Show” which eventually ruled the airwaves in Cleveland for over 15 years. Love stories?! We were both 19. He joined WONE in early 2013. Northeast Ohio. We just wouldn’t let it die from the headlines.”. Whether it was during his time on WMMS waking up radio listeners with Ed “Flash” Ferenc on the Buzzard Morning Zoo or during his current morning show on WONE, the Ohio Radio/TV broadcasters Hall of Fame inductee has always had a soft spot for northern Summit County. Jeff was the glue.”, “You know how you are when you have a best friend and you’re always on the same wavelength?" I don’t have to get up in the morning.’ That’s a damn good feeling.”. “The planets totally aligned. But we showed them! Over the next few years, the show became increasingly popular -- and bigger, taking on a morning zoo format even before a deejay at WRBQ-FM in Tampa coined that phrase. After I left WMMS in 1986 after 15 years, and after a short stint helping to launch the original WNCX, I joined WMJI where I spend the next 13 years. Former top-rated morning host on WONE and WMMS. “Jeff was a … From there, he landed his first on-air job doing the news on a tiny AM station in Saginaw, Michigan, while visiting his sister over the summer. The following year, the station won the National Association of Broadcasters Marconi Award for Large Market Station of the year. You had to use a razor blade to splice magnetic tape together. By utilizing innovative comedy, interviewing some of the biggest Kinzbach began his career at 1260 WIXY Cleveland in 1969 and joined 100.7 WMMS in 1973. “They wanted us to be newsmen, so that didn’t really work out,” Kinzbach says. “Charlie Kendall was not a morning guy,” Gorman remembers. About Jeff. Kinzbach, a Northeast Ohio native, began his radio career when he was 16 years old, working as a gopher at WIXY 1260 AM. He and his wife Patti are planning to literally ride off into the sunset by traveling the country in their recently purchased RV. Ed “Flash” Ferenc is a life long broadcaster and media specialist. Kinzbach became a household name for his role on the “Jeff and Flash” show, which aired on Cleveland’s 100.7 WMMS. Jeff Kinzbach, the former WMMS deejay who was part of the long-running "Jeff and Flash" show, will take over the 6 a.m. morning slot on Akron-based WONE FM/97.5 starting Monday “Jeff was a major force in getting the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame located in Cleveland,” according to WONE.net. Get off the air, but at the station won the National Association of Broadcasters Marconi Award Large... Would have imagined any of this part of it, '' says Kinzbach! Rear-View mirror at his truly amazing career give Kinzbach plenty of opportunities to look back the... Hit it at the same time very dedicated. ” ” ended in after... 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