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Chapter Seven
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2021-08-22 05:29:30The private jet carrying the new owner of KKTM was about to land at LAX. Anthony Victor D’Amico put out his cigarette and fastened his seatbelt as the indicator lights signaled him to do.
He placed the confining strap around his waist, and then gave it an extra tug to make up for the slack. At forty-three, he didn’t look a day older than thirty-five. Tony gave full credit to his Italian genes for his perpetual tan, even though he hardly spent any time in the sun. His thick black hair didn’t have a strand of gray, and thanks to his daily workout routine, his body was still as trim and firm as it had been in high school.
Tony D’Amico was the type of man who knew he had the looks, but he also had the brains and knew how to best take advantage of those looks. He had spent his thirties teaching business economics for a local University where he met Beverly Stone who was working on her MBA.
Tony and Beverly became good friends. He had asked her
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Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Eight
“This is Jenny Reed, turning the microphone over to Marlene Burkowitz. Remember to listen tomorrow morning when Johnny King, the newest voice here at KKTM-98.1, turns on L.A. from six ‘til ten a.m.”Brian had added that last part to all the DJ’s signoff in order to promote Johnny’s arrival. It was one thing to have to be forced to share her show with him, Jenny thought, but to be forced to advertise the fact was cruel and unusual punishment.Jenny’s professionalism overcame her emotional disgust, as it usually did at times like these, and although she was choking on the words, it sounded as if she was delighted with the new addition to her show. She didn’t have a chance to find out more about the skeletons in the Allen closet, since Marvin had to deal with an electronic emergency during her shift, and Bill North had taken over the engineering duties.“You read that as if you really meant it,” Bill said into J
Last Updated : 2021-08-22Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Nine
Brian followed Denise into the kitchen where she was tossing some cottage cheese onto a plate.“Denise, you can’t make a major decision like this by yourself. What about the staff? What about the format? How could you just up and sell KKTM out from under me?”“I could and I did. I’m amazed that you should care. I’ve seen the ratings. For the past six months you’ve let things slide. When Father gave you that DJ job, then let you take over as general manager, I thought you’d really do something wonderful with his station. Instead you’ve managed to turn it into a financial disaster.”“Now, Denise. You shouldn’t be worried about all that. You don’t understand the business end of things. I know KKTM has had some problems lately, but with your brother working there now, and the format changes I’m going to propose, things will improve. Just don’t take this away from me. Call that
Last Updated : 2021-08-22Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Ten
Jenny was tired. She sat in Charlotte’s listening to Johnny ramble on about how excited he was to be working at KKTM, all the while checking her watch in a not too subtle way. Fortunately, Johnny was too busy listening to the sound of his own voice to notice. Kathy was going to owe her big for this one.If the radio audience could only hear him now, she thought, I wish this were on air so I could switch stations.“Of course radio is very different in Canada.”“Why did you work in Canada when your father had his own station right here?”“Dad was very well connected in the U.S. and had me blackballed at nearly all the major markets, so I headed up north. I worked at a small radio station in Barrie, moved around Quebec, took up skiing, and raised a little hell. I came back to the States for my sister’s wedding, then hung out till dad died. Since I was cut out of the will, Denise felt sorry for me and offered me the D
Last Updated : 2021-08-22Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Eleven
Jenny sat in her office conducting a silent inventory of her surroundings. Her radio license on the wall was proudly displayed next to a photograph of her accepting the Women In Communications Award for Excellence, two years ago. On the opposite wall hung the giant circular clock with that damn red hand ticking off what could very well be the last few seconds of her career at KKTM.On her desk were piles of paper. Fan mail in one, Arbitron ratings in the other. They were her only measure of success. The almighty numbers that were the constant divider between the best and the rest. No matter how many times she read her mail, it was those numbers that kept comparing her value with the hundreds of other disembodied voices in a profession that offered no guarantees and no security.Jenny looked around at her life contained within a windowless five by seven cubicle. There were no pictures of family. There was never enough time for the photographs or the relationships to dev
Last Updated : 2021-08-22Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Twelve
KKTM’s conference room was the largest enclosed area in the building. Brian had purposely installed floor-to-ceiling windows to give it an open and airy appearance. To those in attendance on this particular morning, it was a suffocating coffin. Jenny tried to look calm and confident. No one was speaking above a nervous whisper. From whatever pieces of conversation she could overhear, Jenny knew she wasn’t the only one who hadn’t the slightest clue as to what was about to happen when they were introduced to the man who would have the power to change the rest of their lives.As she looked around the room, Jenny figured she had it better than most of her colleagues. Lenny Cutler, the mid-day newsman who was known to borrow money from anyone immediately after payday in order to support a very expensive drug habit. He never used while working, or at least that’s what he told everyone. Brian figured as long as Lenny did his job well, what he did on his own t
Last Updated : 2021-08-22Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Thirteen
It was nearly ten o’clock when Jenny finally arrived at her health club. She had told Denise to meet her, but was relieved to find that it was only her and the usual small group of late comers who found the after-hours fitness gym a place to go when they didn’t have a date on a Friday night. Jenny hated to exercise, but found lifting free weights and sweating to loud music was a good way to work off the frustrations and anxieties of the day.She had just started her warm-up routine when she spotted Denise coming through the door. Denise waved meekly at her and was immediately approached by a salesman. Most of the clubs operated the same way. Five seconds in the door and they put the contract under your nose even before you have a chance to try out the equipment. Many of them couldn’t tell the difference between a muscle and a clam.“She’s just here as my guest, Brad. If she wants to join, it’ll be at the monthly rate, so don’t
Last Updated : 2021-08-22Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Fourteen
Jenny stopped by her office before beginning her shift and was surprised to find a dozen white roses on her desk. The card read “I know we’ll be great together.” It was signed “Johnny”. She was hoping he was only referring to their show, but from everything she had seen and heard from her new partner, she had her doubts.“Like the roses?” He said when she got to the studio.“They were very nice, thank you.” O.K., I can do this. He’s trying to be nice. Jenny sat in the chair next to Johnny’s waiting for the newsbreak to end. They had about five minutes before she was to introduce him as the “newest, hottest, addition to the KKTM morning team”. If she could get the line out without gagging, she figured the rest of the day would be a breeze.“Roses are a delicate flower,” Johnny whispered to her as he put his hand on her thigh, “the petals fall off so ea
Last Updated : 2021-08-22Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Fifteen
The next few weeks merged into one large blur. There was no doubt that Johnny’s appearance on the morning show was quickly becoming a radio sensation and Jenny was both pleased and slightly annoyed that the latest Arbitron ratings showed that their show was only slightly behind the number one shock jock’s, and he’d been on the air for over two years.Except for that first day, Johnny had actually begun to show that he could really be a decent radio personality. The ratings certainly reflected as much. Jenny was almost starting to enjoy working with him and she began to relax about their working relationship. That was her first mistake.It was a Thursday, Jenny would recall in saner times. The weather was overcast as California skies can sometimes be. There was slow drizzle, silent but deadly when it hit the freeways causing the usual rush hour traffic to become scattered with broken glass and twisted metal. It was the type of day when all you wanted t
Last Updated : 2021-08-22
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Red Wine for Breakfast Author's Notes
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, except as noted below, and actual events is entirely coincidental. Some real people, such as radio personalities appear as actual persons in the book by their oral or written permission. Others appear as characters and events in the book to give a sense of historical accuracy; however specific incidents are entirely fictitious and should not be considered real or factual. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in articles and reviews.
Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Forty-Eight
The station was quiet when Jenny arrived at five-thirty. Johnny was still asleep when she left and she didn’t see any reason to wake him since their shift didn’t begin for another three hours.The studio felt a bit strange to Jenny after being away for an entire week. With all that transpired, and her decision to leave, KKTM didn’t feel like home to her anymore.She went into her office and mentally figured out how many boxes she would need to pack the few things that belonged to her. She went through her desk and started throwing away papers she had collected over the years. She was reading though some of them and didn’t see Brian standing in the doorway.“Spring cleaning?” He asked. “Must be that time of the month or maybe something else. You’re not pregnant, are you?”“Dammit, Brian. Why is it that whenever a woman does something a little out of character men all assume she’s either got
Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Forty-Seven
Temple Adat Elohim was located in a small section of Sherman Oaks, not far from Jenny’s apartment. Johnny met her at the front of her building and they arrived about fifteen minutes before the ceremony started.“Isn’t this beautiful.” Jenny said. “Here, you need to wear one of these.”“A yamaka?.”“You know what it is?” Jenny was surprised.“All the guys I worked with in Canada were Jewish. Didn’t I tell you? I was invited to weddings and even attended a bris. I went to so many Bar Mitzvahs and Bat Mitzvahs, everyone thought I was Jewish because I knew the words to the prayers and the songs. I was actually thinking about converting, but when I moved back to the States, I never found the right Temple.“I never knew that.”“My engineer’s birthday was in December, so every year we’d combine all the holidays and celebrate Chanubirthdaymas. I nev
Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Forty-Six
Johnny looked around his apartment. It seemed to him as if someone else had been living there. He was confused and more than a bit concerned about Jenny and how he was going to tell her that he was leaving KKTM.After Jenny had left the party, he tried to talk to Brian about the station and what Johnny planned to do when they returned to Los Angeles. Brian had laughed at him, calling him Denise’s albatross and telling Johnny that if it weren’t for his sister, Jenny would have sole ownership of Red Wine. Johnny nearly hit him, but he realized that Brian was drunk. He also realized that there was no way he could continue at KKTM.Johnny hadn’t spent all his time at the slot machines while he was in Vegas. He began formulating the first part of his plan early in the week. He made the right contacts, made the right moves, and finally hit the jackpot during the awards presentation.He put together the second part of his plan at the party wh
Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Forty-Five
Johnny parked the car in front of Jenny’s apartment and opened the trunk to get her luggage. She hadn’t spoken more than a few words on the flight or during the drive from the airport. Johnny thought she might be angry at him for keeping the party going till three a.m., but she’d told him she was just tired, so he let it go.Jenny was tired, but it wasn’t only fatigue that was causing her silence. Her decision to leave KKTM and the repercussions that she knew would follow, were draining all her energy.“Want me to come up?” He asked as he helped her take her things into the building.“No. You have to get home and unpack and I still have to get a gift for Ann and Don. Why don’t you pick me up tomorrow and we’ll go to the wedding together.”“Tomorrow?” He sounded disappointed. “What about later tonight?”“Johnny, we just spent a wonderful and exhausting
Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Forty-Four
There was a brief, deafening silence followed by subdued clapping as Melody bounded onto the stage to accept her award. She held the acrylic pillar over her head in victory and shot a triumphant glare towards Jenny who was having difficulty joining in the congratulatory applause.“Sorry, Jen,” Johnny said. “I really thought you were going to win.”“To tell you the truth, so did I.” She tried to hide the disappointment in her voice. “Ya know, up until they announced Melody as the winner, I didn’t know how much I wanted that stupid award. Oh well, there’s always next year. But it would have been nice.”She smiled weakly and tried to listen to Melody’s acceptance speech, but there was a loud commotion in the back of the room that was making it difficult to hear. Everyone turned to the back of the room to see Melody’s husband, Ned, obviously drunk, trying to make his way to the stage with two se
Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Forty-Three
The reception for the nominees was more for sizing up the competition then actually congratulating other’s success in the industry, unless they were nominated under a different category. Jenny heard the other nominees sprout the I don’t care if I win, it’s just an honor to be nominated, line even though it was total insincere bullshit, it was the classy, professional response to being honored by their piers in the broadcasting industry. Unfortunately, one radio personally who was in direct competition with Jenny, was neither classy nor professional. Melody Miller, from rival station KLZY-FM the entire evening was telling everyone she was going to take the coveted award and dishing Jenny Reed at every opportunity. Jenny and Johnny intentionally managed to avoid a direct confrontation with her, and spent the evening in more polite conversations.“Interesting group of vultures on line over there.” Johnny said when he returned from the bar.&l
Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Forty-Two
The flight attendant recognized them as soon as they were in their seats. Minutes later, she brought each of them a small bottle of Beaujolais.“I listen to you two every morning. I just love your show.”“Thank you, Michelle,” Johnny said, using his now-famous voice to read her nametag. The flight attendant’s face turned bright red.“I’ll be back with the rest of your breakfast when we’re in the air, Mr. King.”“Look what you started.” Jenny said, picking up her bottle. “Now everyone thinks I drink this stuff for breakfast.”“We wouldn’t want to disappoint your fans now would we? We have a reputation to uphold.” Johnny poured his wine into the glass.“Yeah, reputations as a couple of drunks.”“One little glass of wine won’t turn us into candidates for AA, now relax.”The plane took off into a cr
Red Wine for Breakfast Chapter Forty-One
Jenny stood in the shower and let the hot water cascade down her back, but it did nothing to wash away the memory of Johnny’s touch on her bare skin, or the confusion that raced through her mind. How did this happen? How did I let him get to me like that? Gayle, damn you for dying. I wish like hell you were here to talk to. But in spite of her protests, Jenny had to admit that being with Johnny had been an incredible experience. It both excited and frightened her to death. Doris Levine had been a shy little push-over, and it wasn’t only her name that had changed that day she’d sat in front of the microphone. Jenny Reed was born a new, confident, stronger person then Doris ever could have been, and Jenny Reed was always in control. She dated in high school, but never went steady with any one boy. They all seemed to want her to be something other what she was; bigger bust, smaller waist, less outspoken, less intelligent, less independent, les
