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Paul's Radio Daze
This page features a text outline of my radio career, some
photos and some of my favorite sound bites, bloopers, and comedy cuts. Hope you enjoy!
Links on this page:
[Radio Career Notes] [Photos] [Bloopers] [Comedy
Cuts] [Other Sound Bites]
What happened to that
announcer you grew up listening to?
He/She may be listed at 440.com!
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BLOOPER!
My first major on-air case of losing it..at least the first that was caught
on tape. I was doing a live sportscast at WIDG Michigan in 1977 while  PD/Morning
man Mike Travis hopped up on a table in front of the booth window. He
placed a copy of Leo Sayer's Endless Flight album on the window sill, then
assumed a position quite similar to Sayer's. Mike then turned the
album sideways and laid down sideways. Then the album was turned
upside down and I lost it when Mike tried to stand on his head. I
threw it back to him and, of course, he sounds quite cool and collected! Click
to Listen. |
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BLOOPER!
Also at WIDG. Our barely-competent contract engineer had just finished
giving our turntables a lube job and balanced the pickup arms during the
noon newscast. I was burned badly twice in a row by his
handiwork. The second time I had nothing else ready to go so there
is a lot of dead air while I flip the record over to the other
turntable. Click to Listen. |
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BLOOPER! I
anchored an early morning news block form 5am-6am at KPRC and had probably
my most memorable on-air breakdown ever. It was New Year's day and we
had almost no commercials. I always carried a pile of wire copy into
the studio with me as filler but rarely proof-read it...beyond sorting
between State and National briefs. Well, I ran quite short and had to
read a story about an Austin boy who became known by us as "Poor Little
Lupe." I'm reading this story cold...this kid had the worst luck
in the world. Sports anchor and broadcast veteran Steve Gilmartin was
in the studio with me ready to do sports.
As the story dragged on with mishap after mishap I
was "on the edge." But when I read that his father got run over by
a taxi cab I lost it completely. I turned off the mic, put my head
down and laughed quite hard. The producer did not know what to
do. I finally turned the mic back on and introduced the sports.
Poor Gilmartin had a tough time getting started. If you listen
carefully you can hear me sobbing in the background as I'm trying to control
myself. Luckily, everything on the air at KPRC went to a low-quality
tape. I pulled it and saved this cut for posterity. Click
to Listen.
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I loved doing fake commercials, inspired by
the then-new "Saturday Night Live." Unfortunately I was working
at a very conservative radio station so most of these never made it on the
air...but it was fun doing them anyway!
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During my freshman year in college WKRQ (Q-102) in
Cincinnati was always having some sort of giveaway package. I thought
it would be funny to do a parody giveaway, play it real loud on my stereo
and run up and down the hall telling people that had to listen.
What was my idea of funny? An all expense
paid trip to witness an execution. (yeah, I know but I was 18). I
borrowed the production facilities at my high school station, recorded some
Q-102 promos and put together a package that believe it or not fooled my
classmates. Here are the telescoped versions (the originals had the
full songs and commercials.
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"Break In" recordings. I loved
hearing interviews using popular music as the answer. My favorites are
"Moonflight" by Vic Venus (New York Radio Announcer Jack Specter),
and "Mister Jaws" by Dickie Goodman. As soon as I was able I
started to do my own.
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Space Shots. A Star Wars parody I did as a
college assignment on my cassette deck. The only "A" I
recall getting in my first year of college. Click
To Listen. |
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Christmas At The North Pole: The only Break In I
used on the air. Since I was operations manager I had this in
"hot" rotation at KIKN in 1982 and 1983. Click
to Listen. |
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Getting Married: I made this for my friend Chuck
Hamlin, who took the Black and White shots of me at WMRN. Click
to Listen. |
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Cindy the Transmitter Baby Sitter: If you've ever
worked in radio you are probably familiar with transmitter buildings.
They are old cinder block structures in the middle of nowhere. KIKN
was no exception. But since we did not have remote control authority
we actually had to staff the transmitter building. For a lonely 8-hour
shift (with no break) somebody had to stay out there and do nothing but take
meter readings. They would occasionally play records for us if it was too
foggy over the bay for the audio signal to reach from the studio to the
transmitter (bare bones budget..we used a 400Mhz Marti for the audio
link.) Cindy Ennis was that poor soul when I first started at KIKN.
She did get to help for a few minutes every day by playing the daily version
of the "Ralph Emery" show...which was distributed on vinyl and
shipped to the transmitter site. That gave the studio jocks a chance
to use the restroom.
This is a tongue-in-cheek description of how lonely
it can get at the transmitter. I do all voices and the sound effects
came from an "AL Air Force" album somebody purchased for
production effects. It was never used on the air but I played it for
Cindy so she could listen to it (while she was playing the Ralph Emery
disk). Click
to Listen |
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Fake Commercials A collection of some of my
more tame fake commercials. I have some really raunchy ones I don't
dare put here.
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Body Count Sweepstakes: My first fake
commercial. Friends loved it but there's no way it would make it
on the air. Click
to Listen. |
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Idi's Place: Poking fun at dictator Idi Amin. Click
to Listen. |
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Johnny Studs: A pet cloning facility. I feel as
if I was very forward thinking since this was recorded in 1980. Click
to Listen. |
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Bank Commercial: It could be any bank... Click
to Listen. |
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Red Guard: An in-home defense radar system.
Click to Listen. |
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Rock Bottom Grocery: A poke at the new concept of
warehouse type grocery stores (this was also in 1980). Click
to Listen |
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Xaviera's Place: This is as racy as I care to get
on the web site. Click
to Listen. |
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Home Watt: A home-nuclear power plant.
Sound track was done in 1980. I added video in 1995 or so when I
was unemployed. (Requires Windows Media Player) Click
to View.
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My first time on the radio...as a caller to the Gregg Mason
show on WTUE-Dayton in 1972. (Mason went on to be Terry Dorsey..a big-time
country personality in Dallas Fort Worth. Click
To Listen. |
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WCWT-Centerville, Ohio
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My "second" first time on the radio. A
cut of my voice cracking on one of my first air-shifts at WCWT
Centerville (a high school station) in 1973. Click
to Listen. |
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"Highlights" of WCWT in 1974. Click
to Listen. |
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Our instructors had a policy of "Do It
Right." When I "wowed" a record on the air I
decided to cue it on the air to avoid the wow. A fellow student could
not believe it. Click
to Listen. |
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This is a trick I heard someone do years earlier...slow
the record down at the singer's request. Not so easy to do
nowadays when playing music off of a computer. Click
to Listen. |
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WCOM- Urbana, Ohio
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"Pirate" station. I got anxious to do
some announcing during my freshman year in college so I bought a wireless FM
microphone, took it apart, attached a larger antenna and an RCA jack for an
audio input. For about 2-weeks in 1976 we covered the West wing of
Anderson Hall at Miami University in Oxford Ohio with Rock and Roll and free
giveaways. I even utilized 1960's jingles from WBBF-Rochester which
were included on "hit music" collection marketed by WBBF. My
grades soon dictated that I stop the jocking. Click
to Listen. |
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WIDG- St. Ignace, Michigan summer of 1977
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Highlights of my mid-day shift at WIDG. Click
to Listen. |
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See Bloopers section for two more! |
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WOXR- Oxford, Ohio Autumn, 1977
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My one and only stint as a "Album Rock"
host. It was a free-form format but there were apparently some
limits. After my first night, Music Director "Doc" told
me I played too many "known" songs. The next night I
chose music by turning my back and reaching for an album and thinking in
my head "Side 2, Track 4" or something similar.
"Doc" said he was blown away by my music selection. On
my last night I had my college dorm room-mate have a cassette deck
standing by and I would tell him when to start the deck before a music
sweep...and when to stop it afterwards. That night I played my
favorite songs and still have the cassette today....commercial free
music! Here are some highlights of my 3-weeks at WOXR (I gave a 2-week
notice after the first week after getting the job below.) Click
to Listen. |
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WPFB- Middletown, Ohio Autumn, 1977
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I worked at WPFB weekends for about 5-weeks before I got
my first full time job and dropped out of school. Top-40 was my
"dream" job and this was my last chance (other than top-40
country). Click to Listen. |
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WMRN- Marion, Ohio. 1977-1981
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My first full-time job...as an MOR jock and various
other duties over the years. |
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In my final WMRN air-check I broke format to create
something I thought would "sell myself" better than Frank
Sinatra and the Lennon Sisters. Click
to Listen. |
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My "farewell" to the listeners after GM George
Joachim took me off the air so I could baby sit the Larry King
show. Click
to Listen. |
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On April Fool's day in 1980 co-worker Paul Michaels and
I decided to switch shifts and use each other's names. Here's a
promo we did for the "stunt" which is about as daring as it
ever got on "Marion Radio." Note how we switch names
near the end of the promo. Click to
Listen. |
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Paul and I teamed up for several commercials...including
this one: Click
to Listen. |
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I used my three-stooges imitation to open my evening and
eventually mid-day show. The guy who says "OK we're rollin'"
was lifted from the "Heartbeat" program which was accidentally
included on a tape. Click
to Listen. |
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KIKN- Corpus Christi, Tx (jock/Production
Director/Ops Mgr) from 1981-1984
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From one of my first shows at KIKN. Click
to Listen. |
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Here's a sample of a 1984 aircheck. I didn't
realize how much I slurred by S's. Click to
Listen. |
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 My
favorite stunt. Utilizing a cut from a National Lampoon album I
panned Slim Whitman shortly after we got a promo copy of his new
album. Click to
Listen.
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KTRH- Houston, Texas 1986-1989
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I didn't do much air work here since I was a news editor
for most of my tenure. But here is one of the first stories that
got on the air for me. Click to
Listen |
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KPRC- Houston, Texas 1989-1993
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Here's a cut of a feature I did that won the 1990 Texas
AP award for Best Feature. Click
to Listen. |
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KFRD- Rosenberg, Tx 1989-1990
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My last stop as a disc-jockey was at this small station
in suburban Houston. I did Sunday afternoons for a few weeks just
before an ownership change. Here's a sample aircheck...including a
caller claiming to be a relative of Elvis. Click
to Listen. |
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WIDG
St. Ignace, Michigan
Summer of 1977
WIDG was located in a former car
dealership so there was a huge
picture window so the outsiders
could see the studio. The jocks
could see Lake Huron. |
A view of the studios (in yellow
rectangle) from Lake Huron. When we vacationed here I told my mother that I
would work there one day. Of course I also told her I'd work for WLW.
I did get a news report aired on "The big one" once but that's
as close as I got. |
That's me in 1977 "on the air." |
A view of the transmitter building |
The control board was a 1950's TV sound board. I
heard it caught fire shortly after I left.
Yes, we played vinyl for oldies.
The "top 40" was all on cart. We had
one ITC 3-stack cart deck. Luckily
it never broke! Note the RCA curtains
over the picture window. |
Sign located on side of studios |
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News intros and live spots were kept in the notebook
you see in front of my face. On the left side is a temperature conversion chart for
each town in the listening area. We added or subtracted 1 to 5
degrees from the "official" temperature to give the impression
we actually had thermometers in the various towns. |
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WPFB
Middletown, Ohio
Autumn, 1977
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WPFB-Middletown, Ohio
That's my brother's Camaro on the
left. I Think WPFB used to be
someone's house. All the audio
and control cables were run down
into the floor through the basement
Since there was little or no
documentation, when something
stopped working a new wire was
strung. It was a complete mess
down there!
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WMRN
Marion, Ohio
11/1977 to 6/1981
Me on the air 1979 |
Outside of the station after
the "blizzard of '78" |
Me on the air in 1978
during my disastrous
4-week trial using contact lenses. |
Top: AM Master Control room in 1978
Right: "Stereo Marion" automatiom
system for fm using Shulke
Beautiful music reels, a primitive IGM
automation system, and IGM 48-slot
rack cart changer for spots. This
system was retired in 1981 when we got
a new automation system
and country
format. |
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FM production room ('78) with
another view of the automation
system
The "remote" van complete with
telescoping 75-foot antenna
mast. Used primarily for
news and sports remotes. |
There are more WMRN photos Sound bites
and a narrative
on my memories of working there at
WMRN Memories
(Click the link above) |
KIKN
Corpus Christi, Texas
7/1981 to 8/1986
Calls changed to KDAE in 1984 when purchased by
owners of KIOU FM
KTRH
Houston, Texas
8/1986 to 10/1989
Production room in the
Rusk Street Studios |
Master Control Room |
The news editor's desk. This is
where I spent most of my time. |
KPRC
Houston, Texas
10/1989 to 6/1993
KPRC Main on-air studio when the
station was co-owned with KPRC-TV.
My children Angela and Danny are
sitting where I anchored the 5-6am
news block. |
KPRC News Production studio. That's me.
This is where the hourly newscasts
were delivered once the morning drive
news block was over. |
Radio was my first and favorite career.
As long as I can remember I was playing DJ by talking over intros to songs
played on the radio, and even made some tapes which were fortunately lost long
ago. My real inspiration at the beginning was Tom Campbell, the night-time
DJ at WONE-am in Dayton, Ohio. WONE was top-40 and in stiff competition
with WING in those days in the mid 60's. "Tall Tom" even called
me from his mobile phone which was a great thrill for a third grade would-be
disc jockey. I'm not sure how long Tom was at WONE but I was heartbroken
when he announced he was leaving for a gig in San Francisco.
At the close of my freshman year at Centerville High School
in Ohio I applied for and was granted early admission to the school's radio
program....which left me quite anxious all summer just waiting to get "on
the air." at WCWT, then a 10-watt non-commercial FM at 91.9.
Fame would have to wait, however, as instructors Ken Carper
and Roy Grimes made us learn the basics. Our initial test was a scoped
down 5 minute taped show in which we would read announcements, and ad-lib intros
to songs (on vinyl discs). Each song could play for no more than
30-seconds and we could not stop the tape. This was a great chance to put
some real "cue burn" on the station's record collection.
Requirement number two was to get both our FCC third class
license AND the element 9 endorsement. As I recall, I got the third class
ticket on the first try at FCC testing conducted in Dayton, Ohio but I failed
the "E-9" portion. With a little more study and a long road trip
to Cleveland in a Ford Pinto loaded with 4 radio hopefuls with Mr. Grimes at the
wheel I tried again.
I got the good news in the mail on my 16th birthday and that
very evening hit the airwaves for the first time. I was really bad but I
didn't know that at the time.
After my Junior year in High school I got a part-time job at
what was then WCOM-FM (101.7) in Urbana, Ohio. This station was owned by
Jim Bissey and was located on the second floor of a building that once housed
the Urbana newspaper. I did a 30-minute newscast, complete with news cuts
on cart and commercials (we had only two cart machines so I would change them
while reading.) After the news it was a 3-1/2 hour shift playing MOR
standards...all on vinyl disks (even the High School station put the current
songs on cart!). Sunday mornings I would set up the studio for a string of
three live religious programs before I got to read obituaries and do a brief
"show" leading into the afternoon. I kept that job throughout my
Senior year in high school, making the 40-mile trip to Urbana each day after
school then scooting 40-miles back home after the 10pm sign off.
I took one year off of radio to attend my Freshman year at
Miami University in Ohio. But after my "summer of 1977" job at
top-40 WIDG in St. Ignace Michigan I grabbed the first full-time opportunity
that came along..at WMRN am and FM in Marion, Ohio....and dropped out of school.
After 4 years in Marion, it was off to Corpus Christi Texas
in 1981 where I was Production Director, then Operations manager at Country
formatted KIKN (1590.) When KIKN was sold I stayed on as News
Director.
Doing news opened new opportunities and I landed as a
Reporter/Editor at KTRH (740am) in Houston in 1986. In 1989 I moved on to
become Anchor/Editor at KPRC (950am) also in Houston. I was news director
at KRPC for about 3-months after the Hobby family sold the station...then I was
laid off. I signed on as Assignments manager and occasional reporter at
KNWS-TV, which was the first all-news non-cable TV station in the country (or so
we were told.)
Then in 1995 I said goodbye to my radio/TV career and became
a full time computer geek.
That's it in a nutshell. The rest of this page has some
photos and audio links to what I refer to as my radio "daze" which ran
from 1973 to 1995.
Full list of stations:
WCWT-fm (Centerville, Ohio - 10 watts)
Variety |
1973-1976 |
WCOM-fm (Urbana, Ohio - 3kw)
MOR |
1975-1976 |
WIDG-am (St. Ignace, Mich - 5kw)
Top 40 ala WLS |
Summer of '77 |
WOXR-fm (Oxford, Oh - 3kw)
AOR |
2 weeks in Fall of '77 |
WPFB-am (Middletown, Oh - 1kw day, 100 watts night)
Top 40 on weekends (which is when I worked) |
5 weeks in Fall of '77 |
WMRN-am (Marion, Oh - 1kw day 250 watts night)
MOR/Full Service
WMRN-fm (25kw?)
Shulke Beautiful Music (automated) |
1977-1981 |
KIKN/KDAE-am (Corpus Christi, Tx - 1kw day, 500 watts Night)
Country
KIOU-fm (25kw ?)
Bonneville Beautiful Music (Live Assist) |
1981-1986 |
KTRH-am (Houston, Tx - 50kw)
All News |
1986-1989 |
KPRC-am (Houston, Tx - 5kw)
News/Talk |
1989-1991
1992-1993 |
KFRD-fm (Rosenberg, Tx (3kw)
Country (worked weekends for about 6-months) |
1990-1991 |
KNWS-tv (Houston, Tx)
All News |
1993-1995 |
That's it....hope you enjoyed this page!
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Bloopers, Comedy cuts, Air Checks and Photos from Paul's radio career
