Ellington Radio

Founding
Ellington radio was founded in Virgo 207 AU shortly after Ellington graduated from Flight School and it has produced quality shows ever since. However, the first show was almost the last.

Ellington described the founding of the ERN as "part joke, part something I always wanted to do, and partly a service that seemed to need doing. There just wasn't any real central news agency." Fortunately for the rest of Skytopia, the joke part wore off and Ellington began his newfound career in radio. He also commented, in the way only Ellington can, that, "Its fun using airspace that isn't mine to do a show. Plus, it appeals to my ego. It IS named Ellington Radio, after all. And I still occasionally use it as a personal soapbox.

When asked about those first few weeks Ellington said, "Well, I was willing to do a few shows, and there were and are times I get frustrated doing it, but the freedom, helpfulness, and general fun of it keep me coming back."

A Second Member Joins the Crew
"Honestly, Jarylan is also responsible for keeping ERN running. He's fun to tease, an excellent inevestigator and journalist. In many ways, ERN is nearly as much his as it is mine. He made his impression on the ERN pretty darn quickly. Like I've said, hes a natural. Unfortunately, I didn't really keep track of the early ER shows, as I had no idea it would get so big... pretty much, Jar was a rather clumsy and accident prone pilot, so we talked about his... adventures. OK, his near death disasters. However, he has confided to me that the early teasing had inspired him to become a combat ace."

--Ellington

Not long after that first show, a new face would enter into Ellington's then humble studio, a young fox named Jarylan Hundecoph. Jarylan has provided a second pair of ears and eyes for the ERN, and as, Ellington put it, " he will cover a lot of stuff I simply don't care about."

Jarylan seems to provide a balance for Ellington's more off the wall and random style of show. He "has perspective, good journalistic sense, and provided a good balance to me (Ellington), I think." His balance has provided some focus for Ellington, and a commentary to counter and bolster Ellington's.

Also, Jarylan's sense of organization, and his uncanny ability to find sources for the most obscure stories (sometimes coming under questionable methods) provides much more material for Ellington to put together a show with than he would ever have without him.

In short, Jarylan adds vital parts of the ERN that simply wouldn't be there without him. And with a new partner in crime, Ellington's ERN began to boom with success.

Skytopia's Reception
While the first show was only tuned in to by a few listeners, and the next several shows had a similar turnout, Ellington Radio has become increasingly popular. A large section of the pilot population listens in, and a good portion of the landlocked population has at least heard the name Ellington. Among the many who would profess the ERN's greatness are politicians, engineers, CEOs, and some who are believed to be in the mysterious "Cult of the Devs." This has the added benefit of often getting information to the ERN faster than it reaches the general populace's ears.

3 More Segments
"Most segments come from listeners who suggest something to me that I simply can't resist and who I think are willing to devote the time needed to make their segment good."

--Ellington

With the absolute success of the main ERN channel, a few fans of the show volunteered to make their own segments of the ERN. All of them were shocked when Ellington was interested in their ideas. Now the ERN has three more segments covering areas never considered by Ellington and Jarylan.

Ellington Radio with Ellington and Jarylan Hundecoph
The show that started it all, the main segment about just about anything and everything. Topics have ranged from the fires at the propeller factory, to the return of the Azure Wind, to kits and storms.

Ellington describes it as "That old fashioned, fireplace in a Levi feel broadcast straight from a heavily armed wandering ship to you. With love, Ellington."

((-Disclaimer: Ellington does not really love any of you. Ellington is not accepting proposals of marriage, consensual or non-consensual relations, or pictures of yourself with that signature. Gary, we especially mean you with the pictures bit.))

Plane Talk with Ikkyo and Shun Kodori
A segment of Ellington Radio led by Ikkyo and Shun which reviews all the planes of a given Tier after flight testing them.

Trade Talk with Kyra
In Jarylan and Ellington's interview with Captain Remy Sans Barbe, Captain Remy told them that if he could change one thing about the ERN, "IT NEEDS MORE GROG AN' WENCHES!" While Ellington has a large stockpile of grog he didn't have a female crew member, so Ellington approached Kyra to do a segment for his show. Trading was her strong suit, so it was only natural that she do a segment on Trading.

Trade Talk is everything you ever wanted to know about, well... trade! Kyra usually starts her segments with the interesting events in trading since the last episode, such as luxury runs and traders hitting the top ten on the boards. She then moves on to a short spiel on a trading mechanic that will help less experienced players better understand trading. Finally, she will take call-ins from the interested traders trying to eek out a living in the skies.

Combat Training with Keyo
UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Out of Character
Ellington Radio is the humbly named creation of Ellington. Sometimes labeled 'pirate radio', it began broadcasting in Skyrates 2.2, shortly after Ellington first began appearing on the radio.

Especially with the addition of other voices, such as 'Adventure Journalist' Jarylan Hundecoph, it has continued to thrive. Ellington, while slightly drunk, called the hiring of Jarylan "the best decision I ever made... don't tell him I said that." Recently, the radio has expanded even further to include Ikkyo and Shun, who lead a segment they call Plane Talk where they review all the planes of a given Tier after flight testing them. Ellington Radio has covered dozens of issues, ranging from disastrous fires at Large Prop factories to the more recent shortages of upgrades in Skyrates 2.3 (which has been affectionately dubbed "t3'd"). Occasionally, Ellington Radio is able to break interesting news before the general populace finds out about it. When questioned on the sources for such items, Ellington either claims he and Jarylan "just poke around a lot", or that "the fish tell him". Ellington Radio is also currently looking for a Grimby expert to produce a segment on the popular sport. Archives of past episodes are available.