Who's Rick Hodge

Who's Rick Hodge

August 19, 2008 @ 11:01

Yesterday was another blockbuster day for FreddieP.ca thanks to Rick Hodge, but this time it was for a different reason.

The first time Rick Hodge made my unique visits go through the roof is because CHUM-FM listeners wanted to find out what happened to the guy.

And before I go on, this raises a very interesting point.

If you Google Rick Hodge's name, the first thing that comes up is a posting from FreddieP.ca.

Try it. Same with Yahoo.

And now think about it.

He was at CHUM-FM for thirty-plus years, but my posting about Rick Hodge zooms to the top of Google almost immediately.

Obviously there wasn't a lot written about Rick Hodge over the years that ended up on the internet. That or this goofy little website is more powerful than I thought.

But back to my original point.

The first time Rick Hodge helped my traffic was because people who knew him wanted to know what happened to him. But this time, it was the exact opposite.

People who Googled him, obviously CFRB listeners, wanted to find out who the hell he was. I can follow visitor paths to my website and that's precisely why they were coming.

A lot of them were confused and thought it was Dave Hodge and he hasn't been at CFRB since the mid-80's.

It tells you something about radio.

As popular as Rick Hodge was to CHUM-FM listeners and as popular as the Roger, Rick and Marilyn Show was, it's still an insular world.

Unless you listened to Roger, Rick and Marilyn, you really don't know or care who they are.

From time to time they had the biggest share of Toronto morning radio listeners, but that means squat to somebody who's faithful to the Edge or Q-107 or CHFI or CBC or more importantly, CFRB.

And that's why I'm not surprised that I had another big day in the history of FreddieP.ca.

CFRB has a lot of listeners no doubt, but the demographic has little or no connection to CHUM-FM, so yesterday they were trying to find out just who this new guy is.... and why all the fuss.

They may not know him, but soon they will like him.

True man true!

Category: Radio

169 Responses to "Who's Rick Hodge"

PartyPooper
August 19, 2008 / 12:02

First off, congrats on the milestone Freddie, you've earned it!
Now, who's Rick Hodge? I'll tell you who. He's the man who introduced an entire generation to The Sunday Funnies. My fondest memories as a kid growing up in T.O. were Sunday nights listening to comedians and song parodies make me laugh, and giving me, the class clown, fresh material for the next week of school!
It wasn't until years later that I found out Hodgie was a fountain of knowledge when it came to sports, let alone he was part of what would become one of the biggest morning shows in the history of Toronto radio. No offense Freddie, I was more of a Jesse & Gene/Humble & Fred kinda guy.
All of the names mentioned, especially Rick Hodge, fueled my passion and love for radio.

Jim
August 19, 2008 / 13:29

Holy cow Freddie, you even have more hits than the actual CFRB website. Nice job.

Grant C.
August 19, 2008 / 15:07

I'm a frequent listener to CFRB and I'll admit, I had no idea who the guy was yesterday.
I'd heard of Roger, Rick and Marilyn, but I didn't know Rick's last name was Hodge and I'd never heard his voice before.
He's OK.

Craig
August 19, 2008 / 15:36

Same here. Had seen commercials for CHUM-FM but didn't make the connection when I heard him yesterday. At first I thought the boss guy made a mistake when he said Rick and not Dave.

mediamad
August 19, 2008 / 15:56

This piece about Rick Hodge is exactly why I like coming to this site every day. Interesting, insightful and often about radio.
So much better than SOWNY!!

Jeff
August 19, 2008 / 16:19

I hope they didn't spend too much on this guy because my mom and dad are typical CFRB listeners and they can hardly hear anymore.

Jill
August 19, 2008 / 17:31

I grew tired of CHUM-FM and have moved to talk. I'm thrilled that Hodgie is on CFRB.

Rob
August 19, 2008 / 22:59

I was a loyal listener to CHUMFM, Roger,Rick and Marilyn had such a great comraderie with each other. Listening now is just not the same. I will switch stations.

Boomer
August 19, 2008 / 23:18

I'm not that old but my fondest memory of Rick at Chum-FM was when he did "School of the Airhead" each morning.

I even had a bunch of episodes on tape. Do you think I can find them? Not a chance.

Good luck Hodgie!

Mike from Lowville
August 20, 2008 / 09:50

He may be #1 on Google but, I'm #3. Check it out, type Mike from Lowville.

mike
August 20, 2008 / 11:53

He was much better in the early 80's before Roger and Marilyn. That was with John Rode in the morning.

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