Thur«.. July 7. 1877 (Sac. 2) SANDY (Ora.) POST - 15
B EFO R E RICK Metsger deliver» sporU new* live Io area
television audiemes on weekend», he rehearses with a
stop watch. Kick doesn’t memorize his script because he
found that gets him In "trouble "
RICK M E T S G E R . KO IN television weekend sports broadcaster, is on air.
Preparation of news script, practice for timing and last minute grooming
lead up to the brief time on air.
Live into your living room
The room buzzes with noise
Teletype machine« clack
School teacher. Is happy when he has pre
The floor
director shouts the time Camera« are
moved around by a floor crew checking
different angles
Rick Metsger sits at the KOIN television
sports desk and practices his script aloud,
preparing for his brief air «pot It s 10.80
p m and he’s nervous
As the minutes tick down, the weekend
sports broadcaster does some last minute
p rlm p ii* In front of a m irror he keeps in
his desk At exactly 11 p m the camera
cuts to a live shot of the newsroom and the
show is under way.
Rick, a 1WW Centennial High School
graduate and former Sam Barlow High
show jitters,
"When I ’m nervous, I do OK," Rick said
with a smile ’’When I ’m confident I blow
It”
Is he conscious of the television audience
as he delivers the latest sports news’
"When I was first on the air. I did feel all
those people at home watching m e." he
remembered ’’Now I ’m just talking to the
camera "
Rick landed his job as a sports reporter
with a top 25 market television station in
an unusual way.
" I ’m not really the best example of how
moat people get a job on television,’’ he
said His was a case of being remembered
at the right Ume.
"1 was coaching and teaching at Lewis
and Clark College when I decided I didn't
want to continue teaching I went to see
Ted Bryant, news director here, in
December 1875 I knew his son because I
was trying to recruit him for basketball. "
Rick told Bryant he would like toqpme in
and talk about the business
"A fte r we talked at length, he said it was
essentially impossible to break into a large
m arket station without working your way
up through smaller stations.
"M y wife Kay (Lauderback), who
graduated from Barlow in 1970, has a great
Job at the University of Oregon Medical
School, and I wasn’t anxious to leave the
area.”
Rick had abandoned further thought of a
broadcasting career until he received a
call from Bryant a year later
“ He said he had an opening in the sports
department and asked me if I wanted to
audition " Rick was offered the job in late
January.
"They really stuck their neck out to hire
m e," Rick said " I hardly knew what a
cam era was ”
He has learned quickly. He came on the
job as the T ra il Blaters approached the
play-off series. Brian Drees, the main
sports reporter for Channel 6. ac
companied the Blazers while Rick held
down the fort at the studio
" I didn’t really have to do much with a
great story like that," he said " I t was
hectic, though."
When CBS neglected to give locker room
coverage after the championship game,
K O IN decided they had better do a special
as soon as possible
" I found out at 11 a m. Monday morning
that I would do it that night," Rick said,
shaking his head "W e really had to put
SJ’
our tails to the grindstone
"E ven when we went on a ir I wasn’t sure
how much time it would take It might
have been s h o rt-b u t it came off well "
Rick’s work day starts at 10 a m. on
weekdays He is the sports anchorman on
Saturday and Sunday with shows at 5 and
11 p m .
"On weekdays I come and prepare film
and stories for B rian," he said Rick is not
necessarily assigned stories — he is
responsible for bringing in his own.
"W h e n I'm in the field w ith a
cameram an, my first job is to interview
the principal party Then I talk to the
camera person to give him an idea of the
story for the cover film .
"Once the cameraman gets the idea, it ’s
isiually up to him to create the visual
scene He’s the professional. For example,
he might film a person storting out of track
blocks which would be used with the voice
of a coach
1.IFF. IN a lelevlsl«» newsroom I«
generally disciplined, but a sense of humor
Is never «mt of place. Rick Metsger takes a
;//a '
break while editing his copy for the I I p.m.
Munday news.
"Sometimes the film saves the story by
telling it," Rick said " In the case of a
meeting, it can be the other way around
Rick has learned about interview
techniques
"There are good and bad interviews." he
said. " I try to ask questions that w ill put
people at ease The worst questions are
ones that require just yes and no answers
" I try to make people evaluate their own
answers. If they give a short answer, L
. M Aw ?
might ask them what they mean
Jack Ramsey is a super interview. Rick
said.
"H e's concise’ and articulate. Brian
T iler of the Tim bers is good, too — he tells
you what you need to know "
Before each show, Rick writes up his
stories He then rehearses with a stop
watch, since timing is essential
He also has to make himself up
"Y o u ’re* responsible for how bad you
look," he said with a laugh
Rick has had some close calls with
timing. One night he didn’t know the final
score of his lead story
"The Mavericks' game was still going on
when the show started I kept waiting for
the phone call with the score, but it didn t
come
"Just as I was finishing the report, it
was handed to me
Rick didn t pause as
he said "And thev went on to win 9 to t."
He is his own biggest critic He reviews
each show when he's finished.
" I can pick up a lot of little things that
way. I tend to talk too fast," he said. "One
night I may be bouncing around
Rick has avoided any bad bloopers on
a ir
"1 used the wrong tense when ad libbing
once."
Ratings at K O IN have been high while
Rick has been with the station.
"That means we’U all keep our Jobs for a
couple months." he smiled One of Rick’s
biggest fans is his mother, Velm a Hall, a
Gresham High School secretory
His
father. John Metsger, is postmaster in
Sandy, where Rick attended grade school
Rick thanks his proverbial "lucky stars
for the chance at being a sports broacE
caster He wants to stay in TV sports
"N o one ever calls you out of the blue
like that," he said He recommends a more
conventional route for persons interested
• in the field
" I t ’s .easier to get on in a smaller
m arket, A person should be willing to
write, film , edit or just help out. You've got
to have initiative
"A n internship through school is a good
experience So is radio work Then when
you want to move to a bigger market,
you'll have credibility.”
IF YOU look bad on camera. It’s your own
fault. Weekend television »port» reporter
Rick Metsger. longtime area resident,
makes a few last minute adjustments
before he steps into the newsroom.
story by V icki Irwin
photos by Douglas G antenbein