Wednesday, March 19, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
Jack, Janet and Chrissy must not be running the all-sports stations in Las Vegas. Either that or they got busted by Mr. Ferley.
In regard to the number of 24-hour sports stations in the valley, "Three's Company" does not apply.
KORK 920-AM will join KENO 1460-AM to become Las Vegas' second all-sports station Tuesday. And there has been talk KXNO 1140-AM will become the third later this spring.
It's questionable, however, if the market can sustain that many all-sports stations.
"At this point, I don't think there is room for three," said Tom Humm of American Radio Systems, the owner of KXNO. "I'm not so sure it's viable at this point."
Virtually all of the national programming is on KENO and KORK, which are owned by Lotus Broadcasting. KENO has ESPN Radio and One-on-One Sports. KORK has a combination of the Sports Fan Radio Network, Premiere Radio, Prime and Westwood One.
"I doubt very seriously there's enough programming left for three stations," KENO and KORK program director Seat Williams said. "All of the good national programming is consumed by the two stations we have."
ARS wouldn't have that problem if it hadn't dropped the highly successful nationally syndicated Jim Rome and Scott Ferrall shows from KXNT-840 AM. It could have switched those shows to KXNO instead, rather than losing them to Lotus.
Said Humm: "For us to think sports, it would have to be very carefully scrutinized. Everything's locked up. I don't know if there's much sports talk left."
KXNO currently operates a 24-hour tourist information format. Humm wants to keep that emphasis.
"Within 60 days there will be some changes, but we haven't done the proper research," he said. "If we do change the format it'll be some type of hybrid that will enhance that tourist information or something else that still maintains (tourist info)."
Another stumbling block for KXNO is its studio. It doesn't have one.
But once it settles into the ARS complex currently under construction, it could have a chance to succeed as an all-sports entity if it can distinguish itself from Lotus' stations.
One way to do that is to proclaim itself the hometown sports station. Although KENO has the Las Vegas Thunder and KORK has the Las Vegas Stars, Lotus maintains a national focus.
In terms of local programming, area listeners always lend an ear to gaming news. An afternoon drive-time, call-in show with a noted oddsmaker could prove a money-maker. High school action also is available.
KXNO also has a tie-in with UNLV athletics. KXNT, also owned by ARS, owns the rights to Rebel football and basketball games.
The lineups
Here's the rundown on each of Lotus' all-sports stations, starting next Tuesday.
KENO 1460-AM: The Fabulous Sports Babe 7-11 a.m.; Peter Brown 11 a.m.-3 p.m.; Joe Chevalier 3-7 p.m.; Arnie Spanier 7-10 p.m.; Bob Kemp 10 p.m.-3 a.m.; Steve Czaban 3-7 a.m.
KORK (call letters will change) 920-AM: John Renshaw 7-10 a.m.; Jim Rome 10 a.m.-1 p.m.; T.J. Rives 1-3 p.m.; Pete Rose 3-5 p.m.; Bob Golic 5-7 p.m.; Scott Ferrall 7-10 p.m.; J.T. the Brick 10 p.m.-3 a.m.; The Clubhouse 3-7 a.m.
Static
* TOURNEY TIME: The first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament drew an average Nielsen rating of 5.6 for CBS Sports, the highest numbers in three years. Last year's two-round rating was a 5.3 and 1995's was a 5.1. Each rating point equals one percent of U.S. homes with television or 972,000 homes. ... For its Thursday games, local CBS affiliate KLAS Channel 8 opted for Utah vs. Stanford at 4:40 p.m. and Iowa State vs. UCLA 30 minutes following the completion of Clemson vs. Minnesota, which starts at 4:55 p.m.
* STOP IT ALREADY: A memo to all sportscasters, ESPN, CNN, Fox and local stations included: Stop the annoying practice of trying to invent the next cute team nickname by lopping off everything but the last syllable. Cut the 'Cuse (Syracuse). Enough with the 'Lanche (Colorado Avalanche). Knock off the 'Yotes (Phoenix Coyotes). And for crying out loud, no more 'Ning (Tampa Bay Lightning). Are you too cool or too pressed for time to utter the entire nickname? Do you think viewers listen in awe as you drop these gems? The whole thing is 'pid.
* SPINNING THE DIAL: HBO Pictures will begin production of "Don King" later this spring. Ving Rhames, who appeared in "Mission: Impossible" and "Rosewood" will play the Quaffed One in a movie based on the best-selling Jack Newfield book "Only in America: The Life and Crimes of Don King." ... ESPN has added former major-league pitcher Joe Magrane as its "Wednesday Night Baseball" analyst. ... Fox Sports News added a pitcher to its bullpen, too, with the addition of Rob Dibble as in-studio analyst and feature reporter. ... Terry Bradshaw will host the Bull Riders World Championships, which take place at the Thomas & Mack Center, on Fox Sports April 5.
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