![]() THE CHUM CHECKS | |
The origin of these gems is a story in itself. Seems Kent was at a flea market a few years ago, when he asked a woman if they had any radio memorabilia. She replied that they did----specifically tapes of Jay Nelson, Brian Skinner and some other legends from the mid-60s, when CHUM ruled the Rock & Roll Roost in Toronto. Turns out the lady used to be a receptionist at the station during that time, and while the checks weren't for sale--they were available for dubbing! It took an all-night marathon session, but the copies were made, and the tapes returned to their original owner. Little did she know the world would one day have this unnamed heroine to thank for some vintage--and otherwise lost--radio history.
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The story goes that a teenage Frank Coxe called WARM in Scranton, Pa. one day in the early 50s to complain to the P.D. about the overnight guy, to which the P.D. supposedly replied "If you think you can do it better, you're welcome to give it a try!"
True or not, there were few who could "do it better". Or longer. Eventually, the newly renamed Jay Nelson ended up at WKBW Buffalo, doing morning drive in the early 60s. And by 1963, that led to a popular afternoon TV kids show, complete with pith helmet and stuffed gorilla--thus the "Jungle" nickname that would follow him the rest of his career. Meanwhile, just across the border in Toronto, Al Boliska had left the CHUM morning show for arch rival CKEY, and the station announced it was launching a North America-wide search for a new A.M. driver. The owner's daughter was a big fan of Nelson's TV gig, and suggested him for the slot. It was an opening he would fill for nearly 2 decades.
Jay Nelson died much too soon, in February of 1994. He was only 57 years old. |
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![]() ![]() "I told you Y.A. Tittle was coming to Toronto..." This check comes from the days when "Full Service Radio" meant just that. Imagine a Top 40 station with hourly news, sports updates, ski reports and shtick--and all on the overnight show! Bob Laine was a serviceable jock who did the midnight run for several years on CHUM. Sounding more like an MOR announcer than a classic Top 40 wailer, Laine kept Toronto rock fans up for years. That is, until he shifted time zones, and ended up doing afternoons in the latter part of his on-air career. You'll hear some great long-unheard PAMS jingles, (including one featuring a "Tiptoe Through The Tulips" insert, about 3 years before Tiny Tim brought the song to everyone's attention), a spot for an upcoming Beach Boys concert (which proves some things never change--they STILL come to Toronto every summer), and a small mistake on just who did "Suspicion" in 1964. Laine is still a part of Toronto radio. From the air chair, he went to the heir chair---as a Vice President of the company, where he remains to this day.
Laine passed away August 31, 2011. He was 72. ![]() ![]() |
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. . .
Do you like whipped cream?
Although the morning hosts get all the attention (and all the money), anyone who was a teenager back in the late 50s or 60s knows who the real stars were--the early evening jocks. Those were the guys you listened to doing homework after school, hanging out with friends-or in the car on a hot date. And in Toronto that guy was Brian Skinner.
Skinner was involved in some of the more unusual station promotions--including a months-long on-air debate about whether the boss would make him cut his long hair. (That was important back in the late 60s, and was played out both on the show--and on the station's long-running CHUM Chart.) In the end, of course, Skinner won. But as you'll hear from this check, the real winners were those of us on the other side of the transistor radio speaker who got to listen to this guy every night. |
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![]() ![]() . . . Canada's Powerhouse of Popular Music . . .
By the way, Hal's reaction to the Rochdale request for "Laughing" is understandable. The infamous University of Toronto residence was the collegiate center for drugs in the hippie era. Now you know what they were "Laughing" about.
Also note the odd jingle where the jock's name comes AFTER the call letters. A decidedly unusual package. As for Weaver himself, he left the station in 1971 for a gig in Vancouver. It was a fateful and ultimately fatal decision. Some believed he was killed in a traffic accident there in the mid-70s; but Repository visitors say he died of cancer.
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