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CITY PAGES
DOWN THE TUBES?
The unknown figure of cable
channel ONtv
Most American cities are blessed and
cursed with local cable programming of the
“access” variety. While cable-access chan
nels provide valuable hands-on experience
for Dungeons & Dragons fans, conspiracy
theorists, skinheads and sex addicts, the
fruits of their labors ^arely make for a pleas
ant night of quality television.
Nor so ONtv, cable channels 7 and 17. Its
programming is not generated by the public,
but by local video whiz Theodore Radford,
who has produced a string of shows that (at
their best) strike a particularly Athenian bal
ance between rough-arour.d-the-edges ama
teurishness and professional sheen.
“I couldn’t believe no one was taking
advantage of all of the things that make
Athens cool," Radford says, recalling his
early days at TCI Media Services, before
ONtv was created.
However, it’s likely that Athens won’t be
seeing these shows for much longer.
Radford, the man responsible for conceiving
the ONtv concept and producing its pro
gramming, is leaving TCI Media Services in
order to pursue his own business. In his
absence, the future for some of his programs
is currently unknown.
Though the official word from Billy
Porter, general manager of Intermedia, is
that it is too early to determine the fate of
ONtv without its creator, it’s possible that
the station will change to infomercial status.
“Intermedia wants to provide [the sta
tion] as a classified ads opportunity for
everyone in the community,” was the only
comment Porter offered last week.
Radford says there were no hard feelings
involved in his decision to leave.
“I liked what 1 was doing there; I didn’t
mind working myself to death," Radford, 30,
explains, referring to the fact that although
his official title at TCI is “producer.” he basi
cally managed ONtv himself.
“But 1 have a brand-new baby daughter,"
Radford says, “and it got to a point that it
was obvious that it’d be better off for the
future of my family if I started this new
thing."
The “new thing" Radford refers to is a
new business that he is pursuing with Jason
Martin, a producer of local commercials who
also quit Intermedia. The business, called
Radar Multimedia Productions, will be based
in downtown Athens and will produce com
mercials and television shows for both the
Athens and Atlanta markets.
With Radford’s departure, the fate of
ONtv’s shews — Best of Ricker, Box Office
Banter. Spy Girls, Second Reel, Chamber
Chat, Cult Classic Theater and Adopt-A-Pet
— are cloudy, though two shows have
already found new homes.
Those shows are Box Office Banter, in
which local film critics Paul Trudeau and
Ballard Lesemann review recent movies in
an on-air partnership Radford likens to
Laurel and Hardy’s, and Sound Check, in
which footage of local bands playing in Hubs
is augmented with interviews conducted by
musician Kitty Snyder.
Radford will produce Box Office Banter
Theodore Radford of ONTV. Photo oy Jason Martin.
and Sound Check for Media One, the largest
cable company in Atlanta, which broadcasts
to 900,000 households (and will broadcast to
an estimated million households by next
year, according to Media One officials), as
opposed to the 34,000 households that
Intermedia reaches. Minor changes will be
made to Sound Check, in order to accommo
date the Atlanta music scei.e, while Box
Office Banter will be “totally revamped” for
Atlanta businesses, Radford says: Buckhead
eateries will take the place of familiar Athens
restaurants as background locales.
• Radford’s fortune in taking these cre
ations to an Atlanta audience is tempered
with one possible disappointment for the
original fans; “The sad thing is, I don’t know
if Athens can see the shows," he says.
Radford is negotiating to keep Box Office
Banter and Chamber Chat (a show focusing
on local businesses) on the air in Athens,
with hopes to add other shows in time.
However, the chances of keeping other ONtv
gems on the air in Athens without Radford’s
presence at TCI are slim, he says.
Other ONtv programs will probably “die
out,” Radford says. This fate will most likely
befall shows such as Best of Ricker, a compi
lation of local filmmakers’ work; Spy Girls,
produced by Christopher Coleman (since
fled to L.A.), in which the adventures of
super-fly Lynda Barry proteges Starlene and
Maybonne are chronicled; and Second Reel,
which featured archival film footage dug up
in the UGA library.
Snyder recognizes the impact that ONtv
shows have had in the community.
“1 think there are a lot of bands in this
town people don’t know about,” she says.
“Television is an incredible way to get peo
ple to look at the music ccene.”
The music scene was not the only artistic
enclave to be affected. Angie Grass, who
cooroinates Ricker, acknowledges that most
people aware of the festival outlet for local
filmmakers owe it to the Best of Flicker
show. Although Ricker will continue to show
periodically at venues such as the 40 Watt,
Grass says she doubts that the TV show will
last without Radford. Moreover, she’s not
sure if comparable local coverage will con
tinue in the same vein.
“I hate to imagine what it’s going to be
like,” she says, referring to the expected
demise of ONtv. “It’s obvious that we need
something like it for this town, and it’s amaz
ing that it hadn’t happened until [Radford]
did it."(Mary Jessica Hammes)
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D FLAGPOLE SEPTEMBER 9, 1998