It all began at a small 5000 watt radio station in Fresno, California . . . Ted Knight is Ted Baxter, or vice-versa. Ted is the guy who would throw a surprise party for a heart patient coming home from the hospital. Ted's the guy who spends his day off getting his tennis balls refuzzed. And Ted's the guy who's contributing to the alleged vinyl shortage by making available his anchorman voice, set to music, on his debut album.
Ted Knight really needs no introduction, but they're paying me to write one, which may be the most significant economic indicator yet for our nation. People who know Ted say that trying to separate the Baxter from the Knight is about like trying to figure out what that clown at Jack-In-The-Box has got to smile about these days.
Ted's career has taken him from a real-life 500 watt radio station in Hartford, Connecticut to the stage as an actor, to the "California, here I come" decision a little less than two decades ago, to cartoon voices and television work as commercial pitchman, finally climaxing as an Emmy-winning regular of "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." "Reader's Digest" is rumored to be considering his full-length life story under the section titled . . .I am Joe's Heartbreak of Psoriasis.
Living an affluent Southern California lifestyle, Ted Knight finds time between TV and recordings to walking his pet rock "Hudson," who Ted has successfully attack-trained to answering his fan mail whenever a letter pours in, to playing the Flight of the Bumble Bee on his naval whenever the opportunity presents itself.
When you finally decide to stop paper training your pet with the album cover and play the record, "Hi Guys" has thirteen heavy hits featuring everything from ballads to bomp. Ted cautioned the music industry after hearing the first playback of the enclosed LP, "Look out, Sinatra! Watch it Springsteen!" And, Ted added, with the technical and production staff that helped put this package of music together, "I could have hummed it and got away with it." As to personal favorites, Ted's taste centers on a remake of the original Larry Verne hit of "Mr. Custer" to a serious treatment of "A Man Who Used To Be."
So go ahead, live dangerously, and put the album on the turntable. At least after
hearing both sides, you'll be able to accept the fact that life does exist elsewhere in the Universe because Ted Knight can't be all that much a Superior Being. And take with you Ted's own philosophy that has propelled him from there to here . . . "Persevere, Persevere, Persevere . . . and in time . . . you'll all get tired and quit!
Charlie Tuna
KIIS Radio