“Wentyworld” is the name of my blog, and my promotional Facebook page. And it’s also the catch-all title for the events and occurrences of my life. So you’ll get a little bit of both here. As a bachelor, I don’t have nearly enough interesting things to fill a “Christmas letter”. But I think I can handle this.
Before we get started: The final event of my year will be hosting KCOW’s “New Year’s Eve Live” December 31st from 9:00pm to 1:00am. You can listen on AM 1400, 92.5 FM, Tune In, Alexa, Google Play, and some newer models of the George Foreman grill. It’s a fun, live show with talk, music, friends calling and stopping by…look forward to it every year! Okay, end of plug.
January: I turned 49. 49 would be the year that my lingering pandemic gut made it necessary for me to buy new pants. I was 32×30 for over 35 years. Hopefully they’ll bury me in 33×30, or maybe even 32×30 if I get out and walk a few steps now and then.
January Blog Highlights:
-My frustration at the isolation of COVID life expressed itself in unusual writing like this short story
-.The first in an ongoing series profiling great, yet perhaps unremembered broadcasters.
-Memories of a Wentworth family adventure in the Golden State.
February: To my utter shock, I received the Eagle Communications award for Individual Performance.
“Jason Wentworth has been an asset to Eagle since he packed up his life and moved over 20 years ago to Alliance, Neb,” said Olivia Hasenauer, Eagle’s regional manager in Nebraska. “Jason gets up religiously every day before the sun comes up to do a live morning show and he loves what he’s doing. You can tell it when you listen to him on the air and you can tell when you walk into studio 14A and his music is going and he’s dancing in his seat!”
I am awfully lucky to do what I love. That I get recognized in this manner is simply stunning to me.
February Blog Highlights:
-I love classic TV…but not all of it.
-This radio script, based on an actual game of “The Oregon Trail” played by my friend Dave and me, got some attention…at this point we had gone over a year without producing any internet radio plays, and I felt like the next best thing to was to write one and let people imagine how it would sound.
March Blog Highlights:
-Everybody loves a sequel
-Another bit of whimsical fiction...
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April: CHICAGO! After over a year of lockdown, I was finally able to use my Amtrak credit and get the #$%^ out of town for a few days! It was a magnificent journey via train from Denver to Chicago, followed by a grand few days of touristy fun. This trip will live forever in my memory as proof that things were changing for the better. At the moment it’s not quite that rosy a picture.
April Blog Highlights:
-Sometimes I write something about local chatter or the like. This was one of those.
-If you’re going to write a book and appear on TV with the host of the series you’ve written the book about, it would help if you didn’t include rumors and other nonsense.
May: My pal Tami and I made a day of it in the Black Hills, checking out the faces, lunch at Texas steakhouse, visit to the candy store, and more buffalo sightings than one could possibly imagine!
Kalin Krohe returns to the live stage…and I am there! We were emcees of a fundraising concert held at the Sandhills Drive-In for local adoption charities.
May Blog Highlight:
-A look back at a memorable, bittersweet night in television history.
June: Cartunes Week on KCOW celebrates the return, after 2020’s pandemic hiatus, of the Thunder On The Prairie Rod Run.
After an incredible fund-raising campaign, June marked the time to welcome everyone to the newly installed pillars and sunken garden. It was a beautiful summer day and I was honored to serve as Master Of Ceremonies (aka introducer of things).
July:
Tam and granddaughter Jaymie brought me along on their day-long adventure at Fort Robinson. Among the activities: a Jeep ride through rugged territory!
The Happiness Boys brought their monkeyshines to KCOW for a live broadcast from Heritage Days, which roared back to its pre-pandemic level of fun and frolic.
After missing Christmas 2020 with my family due to COVID, I made a rare summer visit to my hometown of South Otselic, NY. I spent some quality time with Dave, Jeremy, Jo, Seamus, Alfie, Kay, Nick and the whole Wentworth side at the family reunion. My first New Year’s Resolution: make a few days in South Ot part of my summer of ’22.
July Blog Highlights:
The first in a months-long series of “Happy Days” recaps…
Sometimes I drum up the courage to write about COVID and related subjects.
August: Broadcasting live from the Box Butte County Fair. More fun with the Happiness Boys.
August Blog Highlight: Danger Will Robinson!
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September: My friends Kalin, Dave and I spent a Saturday doing something I can’t tell you about. Here’s a picture that will reveal nothing.
September Blog Highlights:
Nostalgia can sometimes turn into a stubborn resistance to anything new, even good things.
My weird celebration of Mike Glesinger’s 35 years in broadcasting.
October: Kalin Krohe performs live at Alliance’s first (I’m pretty sure) Pagan Festival! Won’t someone please think of the children?!?!?
And Dangerous Dave and I had an absolute blast at the Denver Fan Expo, where we met cartoon voice legends Maurice LaMarche and Rob Paulsen, comedy icon Jon Lovitz and the legendary William Shatner! I also bought a “Happy Days” lunchbox.
October Blog Highlight: A review of an autobiography by a TV studio audience warmup guy. Interesting job!
November: After over a year of inactivity (do you sense a sameness in some of these writeups?), the Main Street Players presented a murder mystery one-act play and improv comedy set to a large (for us!) audience at Newberry’s. It was great to be in front of a live audience again, and we’ve got plans for more in 2022…
November Blog Highlight: A beloved character returns in one of the last of our “Happy Days Epics” series.
December: Christmas.
December Blog Highlight:
This post is so arcane, I never even shared the link. So you probably haven’t seen it. Click here if you wanna.
Awesome year….you were a busy fella! Lots of family & friends around you….and a new Happy Days lunch box….i would say it was a stellar year! Heres to the New Year and more awesome memories!!!