Oh, hi there! It's Tom.
WFMU’s two-week long fundraising marathon just started. If you’re not aware of it, this is how the station raises money to stay on the air. The station is 100 percent listener sponsored. We don't run ads and we don't take corporate funding or government grants. And that's what keeps the station 100 percent freeform, letting me do something as willfully stupid as The Best Show On WFMU every Tuesday, letting me and Jon Wurster do our thirty-five minute calls without commercial interruption or editorial feedback from anyone at any point.
It's not cheap running a radio station, especially one that streams the show on the internet 24/7 (at
www.wfmu.org) and maintains an extensive archive selection of virtually every show I and every other DJ have done in the last eight-plus years.
I'm doing two shows during the marathon. The first one is Tuesday March 2nd between 8-11 PM EST. And if you're a fan of Scharpling and Wurster or me or the people who call or the guests I have on or the podcast or freeform radio or stations that shouldn't exist in the face of all the corporate creepiness, it's a cause worth supporting. If we don't reach our goal of 1.2 million dollars by the end of the marathon, we are In Trouble.
If you want to throw some support, please call 800-989-9368 or pledge online at
www.wfmu.org BETWEEN 8-11 PM EST ON MARCH 2nd! In addition to your money going to a worthy cause, you get a lot of stuff back.
Everybody who pledges 75 bucks or more automatically gets The Best Show On WFMU’s 2010 CHUMP STEAMROLLER FUN PACK. I've been cranking on this thing for awhile and it's going to be AWESOME. But first let me tell you about the show on Tuesday March 2nd between 8-11 PM EST.
We are going to have the one and only TED LEO in the studio! He'll be playing songs and having fun and I know he has some surprises up his sleeve. JON WURSTER is going to be in studio as well, and you know how great that is going to be. Again, there is a sleeve and there are surprises up it.
Now the details about The Best Show On WFMU 2010 CHUMP STEAMROLLER FUN PACK.
The first item in the Fun Pack is the first ever BEST SHOW ON WFMU DVD! It's a full-length DVD called FANTASIA IN BEST SHOW MINOR, and it's going to be amazing. It features stuff you're never going to believe. Here are some of the people who are going to be involved in the DVD:
PATTON OSWALT
TED LEO
PAUL F. TOMPKINS
ZACH GALIFIANAKIS
FUCKED UP
TIM AND ERIC
JOHN HODGMAN
AIMEE MANN
SCHARPLING AND WURSTER
YO LA TENGO
KURT VILE
MATT FRACTION
TODD BARRY
JASON WOLINER
And SO MANY MORE. There's going to be puppets. Animation. Scharpling and Wurster stuff like you've never seen before. Travelogues from callers like Fredericks from New Port Richie, Julie from Cincinnati, AP Mike and more! Seriously - there are so many people working so hard on this thing. It's gonna be legendary. And when the marathon is over, this thing is COMPLETELY UNVAILABLE.
The second part of the Chump Steamroller Fun Pack is a set of BEST SHOW TRADING CARDS depicting your favorite callers and characters from the show. They are being designed by Chris Moses and Joe Allen - two guys who have done amazing jobs with previous Best Show projects - and they are outdoing themselves on this! We're lining up artists - for starters Michael Kupperman and Brian Musikoff are on board - and they gonna be jaw droppingly great. And again, these cards will be GONE FOREVER if you don't pledge DURING MY MARATHON SHOWS!
Last but not least, the first ever BEST SHOW BUMPER STICKER. Also awesome and also available ONLY BY PLEDGING DURING MY MARATHON SHOWS.
Once the marathon is over, THEY ARE GONE FOREVER.
There are pledge levels at $150, $365, $500, $1000 and $3000, and the station takes care of you big-time with a TON of awesome prizes and shirts and CDs that you can’t get anywhere else. And unlike that PBS or NPR crap, WFMU’s premiums are all top-notch and well made – who hasn’t seen a cool WFMU t-shirt in their travels? And everything is 100 percent TAX DEDUCTABLE!
And as an added bonus, anyone who pledges $1000 gets something special just from me. It's a secret. Seriously - I know I'm being vague here but trust me on this one. I've got something JUST FOR YOU. I'll make you happy with it - I PROMISE.
And if you want to support the station but don't have the money right now, YOU DON’T HAVE TO PAY YOUR PLEDGE RIGHT AWAY! The station sends you a bill in the mail and you can take care of it later. You can structure your payments in EASY MONTHLY INSTALLMENTS! But the important thing is pledging and being a part of something Good in a world that is filled with Too Much Bad, especially in These Troubling Times.
IF YOU ARE UNABLE TO CALL OR PLEDGE ONLINE DURING MY SHOW, I will gladly write the pledge up myself. You can email me your information - name, address and pledge amount - and I will fill it out myself. All addresses and information is completely confidential and is not sold or distributed in any way shape or form, so don't worry about your privacy. Write me at toms@wfmu.org and I’ll take care of it.
And PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT THIS! Put it on Facebook and Twitter and MySpace and maybe even Friendster if you can still remember your password. Post it on like-minded message boards! Tell co-workers and friends and family members and whoever! The station has a huge mountain to climb this time, but we can do it if enough people step up to the plate and pitch in.
THE FACTS:
Tuesday March 2nd between 8-11 PM EST
Ted Leo and Jon Wurster LIVE IN STUDIO
CALL 1-800-989-9368 or PLEDGE ONLINE at
www.wfmu.org on TUESDAY MARCH 2nd between 8-11 PM EST and be counted!
Thank you!
Tom Scharpling.
