The Message

Kelley first contacted Channel 31 news director Bill Dallman back in 2000, when the station's 9 p.m. newscast bowed with Zappolo at the helm. They've maintained a casual, golfing-buddy relationship since then, and when former Good Day anchor Justin Farmer was on vacation, Kelley filled in for a day. This de facto audition impressed Fox types, who'd been unable to get any traction since the morning block's March 2004 inception; even replacing Farmer with the miraculously follicled Jeremy Hubbard failed to move the masses. Once they were ready to romance Kelley in earnest, however, Channel 31 execs discovered that he'd just signed a five-year contract with KOA. The only way Kelley could get out of the pact was to be granted a release, and he received it. The decision was tough, admits Kris Olinger, the director of AM programming for Clear Channel in Denver and a onetime on-air partner of Kelley's; they teamed on Kelley and Company for five years beginning in the mid-'80s. After all, KOA's afternoon-drive slot had recently been shaken by the departure of Scott Hastings, who jumped to the Altitude cable channel, and the new tandem of Dave Logan and Lois Melkonian was trying to establish itself. Going through the same routine on the morning show was an unattractive prospect, Olinger says, "but this is something that Steve's always wanted to do, and we didn't want to stand in the way of his dream job."

Money wasn't Kelley's main motivation. He reveals that he'll actually make less at Channel 31 than he did at KOA, because his new station forbids him from making the sort of lucrative endorsement deals he enjoyed while on the radio. This seems contradictory, given that consumer advocate Tom Martino, a regular on Good Day, endorses up a storm via radio, in print and on his website, Troubleshooter.com. In the past, Martino has defended himself against conflict-of-interest accusations like this one by claiming that he's not a journalist. Dallman, for his part, acknowledges that Martino serves as a journalist for Channel 31 but views him as an "independent contractor" -- a loophole big enough to keep the cash pouring through. Other staffers, Kelley included, aren't so lucky.

The first portion of Good Day hasn't changed much thus far, but the structure's been loosened a tad in an attempt to approximate the casual, conversational quality Kelley popularized on KOA. (At present, these endeavors can feel a bit forced; they should improve over time.) The final hour, meanwhile, is dominated by extended interviews conducted by Kelley, and the idea's a good one. Unfortunately, the early chats were allowed to dribble on for far too long. Ten minutes or so with Tom Tancredo and John Hickenlooper proved to be a lot more justifiable than was even more time spent in the company of an Xcel Energy spokesman, or an Aurora public-information officer who guested following a police-impersonation incident in a different jurisdiction. Efforts to utilize audiences have stiffed, too. One rub is the setting: Folks are stuck in the Channel 31 lobby, as if waiting for an appointment. Attendance is another: For the July 25 broadcast, the eleven people present included Kathy Jo Kelley and the couple's three kids, who looked positively mortified when Dad quizzed them at the show's conclusion. That may be why ringers are already being invited -- among them Khalil Kramer, of a group called Muslims Intent on Learning & Activism, who took Tancredo to task.

Dallman acknowledges that some of Good Day's elements are "experiments," and one of them has already been modified; a coffee klatch bit with Donaldson, Clark and co-anchor Tammy Vigil was moved from in front of a green screen because the participants looked as if they'd been outlined in Magic Marker. Further adjustments should help, as will additional experience for Kelley, who's seeming more comfortable all the time. By day four, he was relaxed enough to sign off with a humorous variation on a Will Ferrell catchphrase from Anchorman: "Stay classy, Denver."

And stay away from more of those "unusual and awkward moments."

Correction of the day: The July 27 edition of the Denver Daily News contained the following statement: "The Denver Daily News would like to offer a sincere apology for a typo in Wednesday's Town Talk regarding New Jersey's proposal to ban smoking in automobiles. It was not the author's intention to call New Jersey 'Jew Jersey.'"

Oy vey.