Truman's Conscience

Welcome back Frank

Though professional sports lost me years ago [that last baseball strike in the early 90's was the final straw for me] up until last year I continued to listen to local sports analyst and radio talk show host, Frank Frangie, because of the cultural insight he always seemed to give sports in general. His in depth knowledge and thoughtful perspectives regarding the average fan made him a must listen. But he gave listeners more than that. For me he seemed to be able to put sports issues in a larger context and what it means culturally as a whole while at the same time satisfying this markets rabid desire for slavish attention to detail regarding team match ups and play breakdowns.

While in the hands of others this type of show would usually have the effect of boring me to tears, somehow, in Frank's hands he managed to make me want to listen anyway. Compared to his contemporaries in this market they were and still are nothing more than cookie cutter hacks who are quite interchangeable. That's why when he left the 4:00pm time slot last year, for me, it seem to leave a black hole for that kind of recreational listening. As a UF alumnus his take on anything relating to Gator sports was highly valued.

Last week I was delighted to discover he planned to return to the afternoon time slot via a new local station: WJXL 1010 AM teaming with co-host Mike Dempsey. I couldn't be more delighted. This past week, especially in light of the Florida Gators repeating as NCAA basketball national champions, this return couldn't be more timely.