‘Norman’ actors might catch your eye
North by Northwest’s latest film shoot, “Norman,” a drama with elements of dark comedy, is now under way in Spokane.
While it doesn’t have any household names, you might recognize a few of the lead actors:
• Adam Goldberg, who played Pvt. Mellish in “Saving Private Ryan,” Sol in “A Beautiful Mind” and Mike Newhouse in “Dazed and Confused.” He also has been in “Friends,” as Eddie Menuek, and “Entourage,” as Nick Rubenstein.
• Emily VanCamp, who starred as Rebecca Harper in the TV series “Brothers & Sisters” and as Amy Abbott in “Everwood.” She has also appeared in “The Ring Two.”
• Dan Byrd, who was in “The Hills Have Eyes” and “Lonely Hearts,” as well as such TV series as “Boston Legal,” and “CSI.”
“Norman” is about a high school loner who gets caught in a web of lies – and in a romantic entanglement with a charismatic girl. Jonathan Segal directs.
“Norman” will be filmed at various indoor and outdoor locations in Spokane through the end of June, said North by Northwest head Rich Cowan.
Yes, Spokane is being played as Spokane.
By the way, the outdoors thriller “A River Sorrow,” originally scheduled to be filmed in Spokane in early summer, is on hold. Cowan said that shoot will probably still happen, but at an unspecified later date. Ray Liotta is still attached to that project.
A KGA power reduction
The owners of KGA-AM (1510) have applied to the Federal Communications Commission to reduce the station’s nighttime power from 50,000 watts to 15,000 watts.
If approved, this will probably have only a minor effect on local listeners, since 15,000 watts is still plenty of punch to reach the majority of the Spokane market.
However, it would mean the end of an era. KGA-AM would have to relinquish its “clear channel” Class A status, which it has held since 1948. The station’s power would remain at 50,000 watts during the day – the maximum for any AM station – but because it would no longer blast at full power at night, it would become what the FCC calls a Class B station.
“Spokane was always proud of KGA for the fact that people could hear the message and news of Spokane all up and down the West Coast at night,” said Tom Read, founder and executive director of the Northwest Pioneer Broadcasters, owner of two stations in Spokane and former KGA announcer. “That’s something we’ll definitely lose.”
According to an engineering report filed as part of the application, the area covered by the station’s primary (i.e., local) signal, will be reduced somewhat at night, especially in North Idaho. Because the signal is aimed mainly west and southwest, coverage has always been sketchy in North Idaho – even at 50,000 watts.
KGA-AM, which switched recently to an all-sports format, carries Gonzaga University’s basketball broadcasts – and most of them are at night. However, Gonzaga athletic director Mike Roth said he does not expect the proposed change to significantly affect local listenership.
The real reduction would be in what is called the “secondary” skywave signal – the signal which bounces for long distances off the night sky. That’s the signal that listeners can pick up at night all through Oregon and much of California. As a Class B station, KGA-AM’s skywave signal would no longer be protected from interference by other stations.
The proposed power reduction would enable Mapleton Communications, which recently purchased KGA-AM, to boost the nighttime power of one of its other stations, KPIG-AM in Piedmont, Cal., which is also at 1510 on the AM dial. Under a related contingent proposal, KPIG-AM would go from its present 230 watts at night to 2,400 watts at night, and thus cover a much larger segment of the Bay Area.
The Northwest Pioneer Broadcasters are concerned about this aspect of the proposal. In an e-mail statement, Read said it was “a fair question” to ask if Mapleton would have been interested in buying Spokane stations “if it were not for the fact that by downgrading KGA, they could upgrade their Piedmont, Cal., station.”
Adam Nathanson of Mapleton Communications said it would be premature to comment since no decision has yet been made by the FCC.
Want to weigh in? The application is still open to public comment by writing to the FCC at 445 12th St. S.W., Washington, D.C. 20554. Refer to KGA’s identification number, which is No. 11234 and the application file number, BP-20070905AAK.
Sandpoint lineup change
Here’s a lineup change for the Festival at Sandpoint:
The Richie Furay Band and the Marshall Tucker Band will join the anchor act, Pure Prairie League, for the “Super Saturday” concert on Aug. 9.
The Furay and Marshall Tucker bands will replace the previously announced Firefall and Poco.
Furay is a particularly fitting replacement, since he was a member of Poco during the band’s heyday (he was also a member of the legendary Buffalo Springfield, along with Steven Stills and Neil Young).
The switch was made necessary when it was discovered that Firefall and Poco had double-booked themselves into a Colorado show the same day.
Oops.
Festival director Dyno Wahl said ticketbuyers can request a refund by June 30 if they wish – but she thinks Super Saturday will still be super.
Last Cummins standing
Dan Cummins, the comedy pride of Millwood, still is not allowed to say how he did on NBC’s “Last Comic Standing,” or when he will appear.
However, we know two things. The Minneapolis audition segment will air this Thursday at 8:30 p.m. And that’s where Cummins auditioned.
Goodbye to Wiley
John Wiley, who covered many of the region’s biggest stories as a Spokane correspondent with the Associated Press, has left to take a public relations job with the state’s Department of Social and Health Services.
Wiley had been with the AP for more than 25 years, mostly in Spokane with interludes in Seattle and Yakima.
Wiley was an influential figure – newspapers and media outlets around the world ran hundreds of Wiley’s stories about Spokane and the Inland Northwest.
‘The Impresario’
Spokane Opera’s popular “dinner opera” series continues at Luigi’s on June 17, 18, 19, 24, 25 and 26, 6:30 p.m., with Mozart’s “The Impresario.”
Singers include Heather Holzapfel, Dawn Wolski, Tim Campbell and Tony Caprile. Tickets are $65, including dinner. Call (509) 533-1150 for reservations.
‘Pot Luck’ for Dad’s Day
The Patrick F. McManus comedy, “Pot Luck,” featuring Tim Behrens playing all of the parts, will be revived for a series of Father’s Day weekend shows at CenterStage, 1017 W. First Ave.
The shows will run Thursday, Friday and Saturday, with dinner service beginning at 6:30 p.m. and show at 8; and next Sunday, lunch service at 1:30 p.m. and dinner service at 3. Call CenterStage at (509) 747-8243 for reservations and info.