Jordan in the News

And...

The Boston Globe, March 26, 2000

March 26, 2000, Sunday ,THIRD EDITION

SECTION: CITY WEEKLY; Pg. 10

HEADLINE: CITY WEEKLY / NIGHT & DAY;
HE KEEPS THE NIGHT OWLS AWAKE TALK SHOW HOST HAS GIFTS OF GAB AND LISTENING

BYLINE: By Rob Azevedo, Globe Correspondent

BODY:
    It was 37 degrees at six minutes after midnight on a recent Friday night, and the atmosphere in the WBZ-AM radio studio was getting tense. The all-night radio host, Jordan Rich, stared down at his call box, praying that those party lights were in the mood to shine.

Then suddenly, after Rich read aloud the story of a man who had tossed a bichon frise into oncoming West Coast traffic, the night owls began creeping into the airwaves.   "I hope he dies the same way the dog died," one female caller said, referring to the man who killed the dog.

"Did you say he tossed the dog out the car window?" another caller inquired, his voice mixed with disgust and confusion.

The teaser had worked. Rich had managed to stoke the coals beneath his audience's feet; night owls seethed with abomination for the dog killer.

"Is the news of the dog's death overkill?" Jordan asked his listeners, fanning the flames he had ignited. Later, Rich would acknowledge, "Sometimes it takes them a little while to come. But they're here now."

"Here" is where the insomniacs, toothache suffers, elderly, and lonely-hearted lovers hang out on Friday and Saturday nights from midnight until 5 a.m., and Sundays from 10 to midnight.

Rich, 41, looked a little ragged that night. He had put in a full day running his audio productions and marketing firm, Chart Productions.

Rich is ready to roll. Sitting behind the monitor in the studio, he took a quick pull off his cup of water. He spread out a section of the newspaper, then pointed to his producer, Neil Martin, signaling it's show time. It's then that Rich's voice began flexing.

Rich became host of the overnight shift four years ago following the death of longtime host Norm Nathan. It was while Rich was filling in for Nathan that he got his big break. Nathan, whom Rich called a "longtime friend and mentor," taught Rich how to connect with an audience by being genuine and entertaining. Through the years, Rich has interviewed authors, psychics, sports figures, and corporate bigwigs as the overnight radio host.