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| Phil Collins with Ron Parker, John Lander, and Pogge during 93Q Q Morning Zoo days. (Courtesy Joe Pogge) |
Joe Pogge has been behind the microphone of the "Smokin' Joe's Driving Range" radio show for over two decades, but his Houston radio and later PR career extends far beyond that.
Name some legendary Houston radio station or on-air talent. Chances Pogge was behind the scenes helping make the magic happen. That goes for Houston sports, too, as he helped launch the Houston Aeros and later the Texans.
In honor of Smokin' Joe’s Driving Range's milestone, which can be heard every Saturday morning at 8 am on HoustonRadioplatinum.com or on the app, I spoke with the 2022 Texas Radio Hall of Famer about his show and his impressive broadcasting and sports marketing career.
Mike McGuff: Tell me about the twenty-plus years of hosting Smokin Joe’s Driving Range? How did the idea of the show come about?
Joe Pogge: Pat Fant launched FM News Channel 97.5 KFNC and called my ad agency to see about a furniture trade with our client for their green room. I asked what programming will be featured on Saturday mornings – he said they were open to ideas, and I sent him concept for golf show. He liked it! I started researching individuals to host the show and got two statements – how much money is there, and I think the show should go this direction. Frustrated, my wife told me, "You did Smokin' Joe on 93Q. Why don’t you do it?" I did and have tweaked and fine-tuned it over the years on ESPN, Sports Radio 610, Sports Radio 650, and now Houston Radio Platinum. The show is basically the 19th hole of a golf course – where you sit around with music playing and talk about golf, sports, and what’s happening in the world.
MM: Early in your radio career, you worked with Stevens and Pruett at 790 KULF. What were they like in those years before they joined 101 KLOL?
JP: Stevens and Pruett were two of the most creative individuals I have had the opportunity to work with. Every morning – no matter the weather, news, challenges – they made the day better with humor. But one of the most amazing talents was their ability to turn on a dime and deliver a human touch that made a difference. Outside the control room, they were two of the nicest individuals you could call friends. I saw them leave the Houston market as leaders and have a run in Dallas. When they returned, they turned up the talent even more and were a dominant force in morning radio in Houston.
MM: Many Houstonians will hold a special place for the Q-Morning Zoo on 93Q KKBQ with John Lander and the crew. What was it like marketing a station that made an impact in the wild 1980s?
JP: Unbelievable! I still cannot believe I called that a job. It wasn’t just a job but launched my career. I’ve been blessed in my life and had many unbelievable career moves but never have I had the opportunity to work with the genius of John Lander. He made work fun. Every day you wanted to get up and be in the office when he went on the air. Working with John allowed us to let the creative juices just flow freely. There is no way today’s radio could have been as spontaneous as we were. I’ll never forget when we announced that we would give every fan at the Summit for the Lakers vs. Rockets game Jack Nicholson sunglasses, a motivation to beat the Lakers. Turned the promotion in 3 days and in 1986 it went viral – front page both Chronicle and Post, ABC 13 did live from the Summit the day of the game from 5 till 7 pm wearing sunglasses, Southwest Airlines was giving out sunglasses to arriving passengers, a bank put up a billboard with a basketball wearing sunglasses! It was huge – and we did it with no approval on a budget or concept.
John once told me – In radio creativity is the key – if you tell the story correctly listeners will get up in July and look out the window to see if it was snowing because we reported it. He is one of a kind and I’m truly lucky to have worked with him and call him a friend.
MM: Former Houston Post and Chronicle columnist Ken Hoffman, who recently passed away, was a feature on the 93Q KKBQ Q Morning Zoo show. Do you have any memorable stories from working with him in those days?
JP: Ken was a major parrothead and we all knew it. So, Jimmy Buffet was playing Southern Star Amphitheater in the mid-80s, and 93Q was the host radio station. So, I pulled Ken aside and asked if he would like to emcee the concert and introduce Jimmy Buffet to the audience. He was over the top excited. Day of the show, we had a typical Houston monsoon, and everyone is soaked. Ken goes out to deliver the opening and up comes Jimmy Buffet next to me. I told him Ken was his biggest fan – have some fun and go out and ask him who the hell he was and why was he on your stage. Jimmy did it and I thought Ken was going to die right there in front of 18,000 parrotheads.
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| Earl Campbell and Joe Pogge during BBQ team partnership with Mix 96.5 to introduce Earl’s Sausage during Rodeo BBQ in 1991. (Courtesy Joe Pogge) |
MM: MIX 96.5 KHMX was a revolutionary station when it debuted in Houston at the beginning of the 1990s and went on to fuel a format now heard on stations across the US. What was it like launching what, at the time, was surely seen as a far-out format?
JP: I remember sitting in a conference room with 8 or 9 individuals debating what the radio hole was in Houston. Was it rock, alternative rock, hip hop, new country – what? After going on and on for seems like days – Ellen Cavanaugh (station general sales manager) got up and said – I have enough of this. I’m going to go and put together a sales team. I don’t care what you play, but if you give me every female 24 to 44 years old in this market, we will print money. Clancy Woods turned to Guy Zapolean and asked, "Can you research women in Houston, aged 24 to 44 years old, and find out what they want to hear?" Guy said absolutely, and we found the right mix – they wanted more music, more variety, and a better mix. Which became the Mix 96.5 tagline. So, the music and secret was to find out the specific demo in the respective market and play their music. Several stations tried to copy our playlist – but a Chicago female has different tastes than a Houston female. You need to be market-specific. We launched in July of 1990 and were in the top 3 stations by the end of the year. Amazing launch.
What we learned was females did not want all the BS. They wanted their music, they wanted their radio station to do things in the community and they wanted to be entertained. Our marketing plan was aligned with the music – less promotions, key charity events and concerts. One of the best combination was April Fools Day 1991. We had celebrity deejays from 7 am till 8 pm, and each one got to play the music of their choice, talk to the listeners, and received $1000 to the charity of their choice. Our celebrities included Buddy Ryan, Dave Ward, Lyle Lovett (brought his guitar and played an hour acoustic, and so many others. TV media ate it up and the listeners loved it. Great radio magic.
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| ABC 13 live broadcast before Houston Rockets vs Lakers game featuring the Jack Nicholson sunglasses promotion – right to left – Shara Fryer, Bob Bodreaux, Pogge, and Steve Patterson. (Courtesy Joe Pogge) |
MM: One very famous name that launched her career at KHMX, is Dominique Sachse. Back then, did you predict she would be a legendary name in Houston broadcasting and now YouTube?
JP: Dominique was and is a rock star! She had a glow and a talent. Started doing traffic and overnights on the Mix and earned her way into the lineup up then reached for the stars with KPRC Channel 2. We could tell from her ambition, hunger, and people skills, and she was like a sponge – she soaked up everything she could. In addition to all the talent, Dominique is one of the best friends in the world. She could talk to anybody anytime, anywhere, and make them feel special. What you saw on Channel 2 was Dominique and she loved Houston.
MM: You went on to promote 94.5 The Buzz in its early years, too. What was it like to help bring attention to the new Houston alternative format?
JP: I came late to the game and The Buzz foundation had been set. My challenge was not to screw it up. Once again, I found myself in the middle of a Super Bowl championship locker room with unbelievable talent. Cruz and Steve Robinson had a sniper viewpoint of the target demo and the music they wanted. My job was to provide additional insights and contacts and stay out of the way.
MM: When you weren't involved with a radio station, you managed the marketing plan that launched the IHL Houston Aeros Hockey Club in 1994. Was it challenging to reintroduce a sport like hockey to Houston? Could it ever make a comeback as an NHL team?
JP: Another talented team of individuals led by Steve Patterson (former Houston Rockets GM that put together the championship team that summer). The hole for hockey was indeed huge in 1994 as the Houston Oilers had announced they were leaving, and baseball went on strike in August. So, our introduction played perfectly into the market. The other advantages we had were the history of the Aeros with Gordie Howie and influx of residents that had moved from the east and north and the NHL Dallas Stars' success. Once each of us had our introduction to the game, we knew if we got the fans to the Summit, the game would sell itself.
Our inaugural year we pulled out all the stops and planned promotions for every Friday and Saturday night game with sell-out as our goal. Disco night, Tuxes and Pucks with the Houston Symphony, Aerostock, Brady TV Show night, MASH night – you name it we threw everything out there to get fans to the games. It worked –in our inaugural season, we averaged 15,000 per game.
Houston is definitely ready for the NHL. The fans are hungry for it. The questions are several – is the NHL expanding? Is there an NHL team for sale that we could move? Can you get a fair arena deal because you have to capitalize on every revenue stream available? Do you have Houstonians who could afford it? Lots of questions to be answered but the bottom line the fans will come.
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| Pre-game of the Houston Texans' inaugural season with honorary uniform models Dusty Hill and Frank Beard of ZZ Top. (Courtesy Joe Pogge) |
MM: You also helped launch the Houston Texans marketing plan as they brought the NFL back to H-Town. Was it hard to launch a new team in the shadow of what happened with the departure of the Oilers?
JP: I was very blessed. Houston and Texas is football capital of the world. The Oilers' departure only created a hunger in the fans we had never seen or experienced. When we didn’t get the NHL, Steve Patterson, our hockey president, went to work for Bob McNair on the quest to secure an NFL team. In July of 1999, I opened Pogge Marketing Group (later to become Strike Marketing), and Patterson was convinced they had done everything to secure the NFL team hired us Labor Day Weekend 1999. On October 6, 1999, Bob McNair was named the 32nd NFL owner. We immediately went to work on the marketing plan. Phase one was selling team seat licenses and phase two was creating the brand. Our vision was to use the NFL calendar and events to market the team.
The timeline was the following:
- Name the team with a media-driven name for the team contest – millions of suggestions were narrowed down for possible consideration.
- Phase two was working with the NFL with 4 names to be considered – Apollos, Stallions, Texans, and Toros. With 5 graphic design firms hired for a minimal fee and written contracts releasing all rights to the names, fonts, and logos, the teams were assigned to provide font and icons for each name – separate from each other.
- We combined one team font with another team icon for the final name – The Texans.
We used the kickoff for the 2000 season to produce a free event in downtown Houston in front of Bayou Place on Texas Avenue, to unveil the name and logo. ESPN carried the event live at 6 pm, and over 25,000 fans showed up to cheer on the unveiling of the The Texans.
- We used the 2001 draft to introduce Toro, the team mascot.
- We planned to introduce the cheerleaders and unveil the uniforms on September 13, 2001. Never forget 9 – 11 – we had a planning meeting in Bob McNair’s office in the Pennzoil Building as tragedy struck and we postponed the unveiling for two weeks for normalcy to slowly return.
- To unveil the uniforms, we had no players, so we used Houston celebrities – ZZ Top, Clay Walker, AJ Foyt, and many others to show the Liberty White, Battle Red, and Deep Steel Blue uniforms to a crowd of 20,000 in front of the Wortham.
- The Houston Texans kicked off to a sellout crowd in NRG Stadium on Sunday night football on ESPN on September 8, 2002. We beat the Dallas Cowboys in the inaugural game, and the rest is history.
As mentioned, I was blessed and worked with a championship team of individuals branding the Houston Texans for 12 years. A time in my life I cannot describe and cannot believe I was fortunate enough to be part of.
MM: As an active alumnus of the University of Houston, why do you think it's important for graduates to give back to their school years after earning a diploma?
JP: My career is based on the lessons, experiences, and road maps that some incredible individuals gave me. Many of those individuals were the classmates and dormies I knew at the University of Houston Today having the opportunity to teach in the UH Bauer School of Business provides me the opportunity to share my career/lessons with my students and secure guest speakers that can provide insights to the real world and what key business tips helped them the most. The key messages they have heard were network, relationships, and good work. Today’s students are tomorrow's leaders. If we can provide them with just a bit of experience on what did work and could work the world could be a better place for these young individuals.
MM: Is there anything else you'd like to add?
JP: Life is short. Maximize every minute and find the adventure that gets you out of bed and ready to go. Find a team of talented individuals and win the championship by working as a team. Celebrate to the max, but remember, tomorrow is a new day. It’s easy to get to number one but extremely difficult to stay there. Your best friends are your best mentors. Give back – the rewards are amazing.
