Mikey & the Mrs are leaving…

Mikey & the Mrs are leaving their radio show on B92.1 after 10 years on the air. Mikey and Bonnie have decided to move on following this Friday’s show. It came as a shock to the B92.1 community as they have been entertaining listeners in Southern Utah for such a long time.

I am sad to see them go. As the person who originally hired Mikey, here's the story of how he went from tire salesman to radio DJ, and then on-air with Bonnie .  

I was working as the Operations Manager at the time over several stations. I had recently lost a morning show person and was looking for a replacement. When I put the job out there, I asked that only people with radio experience apply. Nevertheless, many send in resumes with little job experience anyway. Mikey was one of these, but he had some background in standup, and I decided to talk to him. 

When I walked up to talk to him in the lobby of the radio station, I had the thought that I was going to hire this guy. We talked and I thought he was funny. I felt some kinship since I had also done some standup when I was in college. I let him know that I planned to hire him. 

My corporate boss was less than thrilled with my plan. “You want to put someone on the morning show with zero experience in radio?” he asked. 

“Yes, that’s what I want to do." 

He asked me to look at other resumes and verify other candidates. He also said he would put it out in the national trades and see what we could find there. I said I would do as he asked and when I was done, I would hire Mikey. 

“Why do you want to hire him?” my boss asked. 

“Because he’s the right person,” I answered. 

This went on for almost six weeks. He would ask if I found some good candidates and I would say I had. He would ask who I wanted to hire, and I would answer, Mikey.  

Finally, he got fed up with my stubbornness and told me to hire him. 

It’s been nothing but fun since. Mikey began at one radio station, and I eventually moved him to B92.1. Later his wife Bonnie came on with him and 'Mikey & the Mrs' was born.  

I have one more story about Mikey. When I hired him, I told him he could drive the radio station vehicle which had a standard transmission. He informed me that he didn’t know how to drive a stick. I told him I would meet him at his house at 5 AM the next morning in the vehicle and I would show him how. 

The look on his face was so funny, and even more so when he came out of his house in the dark pre-dawn. I had him sit in the driver’s seat and showed him where the clutch was. 

Surprisingly, Mikey was pretty good at it right from the beginning. He might have stalled it once, but by the time we got to the station on Bluff Street, he was a pro. I handed him the keys and said, “Well, now you drive a stick shift." 

It’s been nothing but fun working with Mikey and Bonnie over the years. Many good laughs and only a few really angry phone calls from listeners. I’m going to miss seeing them every day. 

People have asked me many times since they announced they were leaving, “Where they are going?”

I’ll tell you the same thing I told Mikey: I don’t really need to know. And wherever they end up, If it’s good for them, then it’s good with me. Here’s wishing you the best Mikey and Bonnie, 

Always a fan,

Dave Hiatt