Rick Shaw, WCKR Miami, 1960 (15:08)

. . . Wacker broken beeper time . . .

Here is Miami legend Rick Shaw, before he was at WQAM. This is a studio recording of some of the 9 and 10 PM hours of Rick's show on WCKR (Wacker) from May 23, 1960. WCKR, a NBC affiliate at 610 Khz, became WIOD not long after this aircheck.

Rick Shaw passed away on September 22, 2017. He was 78.

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Jay McKay, WFUN Fundamental News, July 1961 (5:19)

. . . We heard them screaming, but there was nothing we could do . . .

Newsman Jay McKay is manning the MacKenzies in this bombastic backup to our original Britt Huey Fundamental newscast, one of the Repository's original exhibits from February, 1996. This one, unfortunately, is missing the beginning teaser headlines, but is intact from the official opening all the way through to the grandiose "Count Down!" closer.

WFUN Program Director Frank Ward is featured commenting on a station promotion: DJ Bruce Bartley is to enter a "radiation shelter" at a local shopping center, and live for a week under "emergency survival conditions", so that "WFUN and civil defense can prove it's fun to stay alive."

Note the use of the filter effect for "quotes" - a gimmick we haven't heard previously. WFUN Fundamental News, circa 1961, still ranks as our favorite classic Top 40 news presentation.

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Russ Knight, KLIF Dallas, August 29, 1961 (17:29)

. . . with more listeners than the next two stations combined . . .

Recorded on August 29, 1961, this one features one of the most celebrated of the legendary KLIF personalities, Russ "Weird Beard" Knight. Knight is a bit more sedate here than in some of his later performances, but this interesting sample of classic KLIF (and simulcasting KROW-FM) includes Futursonic jingles, and one instance where the tape in one of those miracle McKenzies binds and drags.

[Aircheck courtesy of Ed Brouder and Man from Mars Productions.]

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Jackson King, KFWB Newscast, March 12, 1962 (4:11)

..Good Afternoon - This is Jackson King and I have news for you...

Believe it! KFWB in Los Angeles with a genuine Top 40 News presentation in 1962. Few people remember that "Channel 98" used many of the authentic Top 40 tricks that defined the format in the early 60's.

Preceding "Jovial Joe Yokum" at noon, King's delivery for this 11:55 AM newscast is perfect. King was a true master of the style. You'll note the clever writing; Events are described in a present-tense, narrative fashion, as if they are happening NOW. The woman did not "die when her car crashed into.." she "dies when her car crashes into..."

The heightened sense of drama and immediacy created by the production elements, delivery and writing are enough to convince me that the world is about to end at any moment! Obviously, it didn't - but this 'check is an outrageous example of the Top 40 Art of "form before content".

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Joe Yocam, KFWB Los Angeles, March 12, 1962 (10:31)

. . . It's a Happy Show with a real good Joe called Yocam . . .

Joe Yocam (d. 1974) started at KFWB in 1942, and was one of the original "Seven Swingin' Gentleman" on Chuck Blore's brilliant Color Radio Channel 98 in pre-Boss Angeles. Yocam was on every weekday from Noon to 3, and is credited with naming the KFWB music list the Fabulous Forty. Except for several months in 1965 when he was terminated by KFWB (and re-hired after an action by AFTRA), Yocam worked at KFWB until March, 1968, when the station abandoned their music format and changed format to "All News."

Note the many production elements, the creative Public Service Announcement, the "Purely Personal" feature, and the classic jingles. Also featured, more of newsman Jackson King with Bannerline Los Angeles on the half-hour.

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Stinky Shafer, KXOK, St. Louis, 1962 (16:41)

. . . All the records given away or played on KXOK are furnished through the courtesy of record distributors and manufacturers. Certain records are played in consideration of cooperation by recording artists, companies and distributors . . .

Talk about truth in advertising! Stinky Shafer and KXOK had no secrets - it would seem that every adolescent in town required "Stinky" to acknowledge their budding hormones, or needed advice from Stinky's "Kay Confidential."

Jay says: "In 1962, KXOK was locked in a three-way battle with WIL and KWK, probably the reason for the many on-air contests. Stinky Shafer was the very popular night jock."

Another example of pre-Drake Top 40, this Blast from the Past is rich with early authentic PAMS jingles and classic production elements.

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Davey O'Donnell, KXOK, St. Louis, 1962 (26:21)

. . . Forty-seven dollars and eighty-eight cents divided by nine . . .

Imagine - a radio contest that requires the winner to do math! Davey O'Donnell, a long-time St. Louis personality, is featured here as morning guy for "KX-okey dokey" radio.

Uncle Ricky has a real passion for those great old Top 40 newscasts, and this aircheck begins with KXOK "Director of News" David D. Rogers, and "KXOK Essential News", most of the elements of which we've heard previously as WFUN Fundamental News. There is one very stylish portion of this newscast that gave me goosebumps, though. Listen carefully about 50 seconds in, as Rogers does the weather, just before the top of the hour. There's a subtle "cathedral chimes" background seguing into a xylophone news underscore. VERY nice!

It's just one more example of the marvelous magic of Top 40 production.

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Ed Ripley, WTIX New Orleans, June 5 1962 (20:13)

. . . Last Saturday, three daring WTIX disc jockeys set out to break the existing roller-coaster riding record of 72 consecutive rides. The ordeal began at 2:45 Saturday afternoon, and was terminated at 7:15 by an attending physician. . . .

Jay Marks writes: "I wish (this) aircheck was better quality, but whoever made it apparently had the tuner slightly off and consequently, it's a bit distorted. Nevertheless, it's still an interesting sample of what this Todd Storz station was doing at the time. It's similar to KXOK of 1962, if not a bit grittier, but New Orleans radio has always been a bit wilder than St. Louis radio.

I've had this one since about 1967. My first station (KUZN in West Monroe, Louisiana) had a Revere combination radio/tape recorder - Curt Lundgren wrote he had a similar machine. Probably, someone from KUZN was in (or near) New Orleans and decided to see what WNOE's competition was doing. KUZN's main competition was WNOE's sister station, KNOE in Monroe. At this time, WTIX's daytime power was 5000 watts."

This aircheck is chock-full of all the wonderful Storz Top 40 enhancements, beginning with a classic, noisy newscast. It also includes a time tone we've not heard elsewhere - a short beep followed by a tremelo decay.

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Mort Downey, KDEO San Diego, February 27, 1964 (14:53)

. . . Welcome into the Mad Lad Swing-A-Thing for a tough type of Thursday . . .

Here's Mad Lad Mort Downey (Morton 'Doc' Downey, Jr.) on KDEO, San Diego, circa 1964. When you joined the Mad Lad Marauders, you also received a commission as a colonel! Mort is heard with his "live studio audience" and newsman Stan Brown (later known for sports in L.A.)

Downey worked at WPOP, KRIZ, KAFY, KDEO and in 1967 he joined WNOE. Sometime after that, he left radio, but he returned as a controversial talk show host at KFBK in Sacramento in 1982 or 1983. When Downey was terminated for politically incorrect statements in 1984, a nearly unknown Rush Limbaugh took his place. Downey went on to WMAQ in Chicago, and later, television.

Downey was a spokesperson for the American Cancer Society after successful treatment (1996) for lung cancer at Cedars Sinai hospital in Los Angeles. He passed away on March 12, 2001.

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Johnny Dark, KLIF, Dallas, 9/1/64 (5:26)

. . . KLIF, Dallas, the Star of the Nation's Great Stations . . .

A 1977 KLIF logo (left) and "The Old Scotchman", Gordon McLendon, (right) from a 1960 advertisement promoting KLIF, KILT, KTSA, KEEL, WAKY, WYSL and KABL (all McLendon stations at the time.) [Courtesy Radio & Records.]

Smooth, pleasant sounding Johnny Dark (aka Johnny Borders) was the PD of KLIF for a number of years and, as many Texas PD's of the time, did the 9-Noon midday shift. Some might remember hearing him as the voice of the syndicated Christian rock program "Powerline" in the early 1970s.

KLIF was, of course, owned and operated by flamboyant Top 40 radio pioneer Gordon McLendon, among whose philosophies was to make his radio stations places where something was always happening, where listeners would hear what was going on — everything from wild and lavish promotions, celebrity interviews, such as the beginning of the Ringo Starr sound bite heard here, and news; everything from politics, armed robberies, fires and auto accidents, all presented in exciting and often over-the-top style.

KLIF was not just a "juke box", it was truly an example of full service Top 40 radio.

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Russ Knight (Weird Beard) KILT Houston, June 1965 (43:14)

. . . Houston's Fifth Beatle . . .

Russ "Weird Beard" Knight is featured in this scoped hour of Gordon McLendon's KILT, on what Jay Marks believes was "probably June 14, 1965." Jay made this recording on a Wollensak reel recorder at 3-3/4 ips at the age of 13 while visiting relatives in Houston. Jay says, "Pretty good quality too and some really fun stuff on there," and Uncle Ricky agrees!

Thunderstorms lead the Jim Corolla news at the top of the hour, and are prominently featured, shrouding the otherwise remarkably good fidelity with sizzling and splashes of static. You'll hear 3 complete newscasts, featuring the wonderful KILT bells & whistles of the period. Knight devotes a lot of time to nearly inaudible phone calls and some genuinely funny bits, including Awful Cigarette Company and a bogus Hurricane Report presented by Tony's Gluesack Parlor. Flashback specials: Roy Orbison for Coca-Cola and a spot for Wildroot (Grooming without grease!). Also, a promo for Murray the K Beatles Reports from Paris. Apparently, Murray was syndicating Beatles reports and was heard on stations other than WINS during this time.

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Jay Cook, WHBQ Memphis, 2-10-66 (18:31)

. . . Jay Cook, your little bitty buddy . . .

The late Jay Cook is featured in this sample of RKO General Boss Radio - Memphis-style, early 1966. Sizzling with PAMS Series 30 and simmering in thick reverberation, this WHBQ brand of "Boss" bore virtually no resemblance to its Los Angeles counterpart.

Cook, who claimed Memphis as his hometown, followed the Boss moniker, the jingle signature and even the frequency to Philadelphia, where he spent ten years as Program Director of Famous 56 WFIL.

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Bob McCord, KILT Houston, July 6, 1966 (01:00:42)

. . . The real Bob McCord is a wealthy playboy who yachts on the Mediterannean - I'm the underpaid typical teenage security risk who makes the noise nighttimes on KILT! . . .

Bob McCord, who called himself "the fattest loudmouth Canadian red-headed radio personality in all of Houston" was at Gordon McLendon's powerhouse, KILT, during the summer of 1966. He was actually hired by KILT's sister station, KLIF in Dallas early in 1966 and swapped places with KILT's night jock Russ Knight the Weird Beard for about a month as a promotional gimmick. (Russ Knight had been the night man on KLIF several years earlier).

The last I heard of McCord, he had returned to Canada and was on CHED-Edmondton. By the way, the voice on the "Bedtime Story" appears to be none other than the Wizard of Oz himself, Frank Morgan.

[A 'scoped version of this exhibit was published on September 29, 1996. The complete unscoped version was published on May 24, 2009.]

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Charlie Van Dyke, KLIF 11/20/66 (4:06)

. . . or any bread, for that matter . . .

This is a fine example of Charlie Van Dyke in his formative years in radio! From what I understand, Van Dyke was only about 18 years old at the time of this clip. He was already doing Noon-3PM and displaying a jovial dry wit as well as a true knack for smoothly turning a phrase.

Also, think drive-by shootings are a rather recent urban phenomenon? Listen about 2 minutes into the clip for the report of "teenagers in a green Mustang armed with shotguns and firing at persons...".

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Buzz Bennett, WTIX New Orleans, June 1968 (8:27)

. . . maintaining my margin for the most music . . .

Jay Marks writes: "By the time of this aircheck, WTIX had upped its daytime power to 10,000 watts.

I think this aircheck of the legendary Buzz Bennett was taken right off the program line, possibly from a skimmer type setup. Interesting to hear the fake-Drake elements mixed in with the reverb, and some great music from the Summer of '68."

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Jay Cook, WFIL Philadelphia, 10-28-68 (14:57)

. . . inviting you to listen for King George Michael tonight at nine . . .

Jay Cook, WFIL, 1972

Jay Cook spent nearly 14 years at WFIL, ten of those as Program Director. Cook moved to Philadelphia from RKO General's WHBQ in 1966.

Cook lost his life to cancer on April 2, 1999. He put legendary Top 40 KIIS-FM and Rick Dees on the air in Los Angeles. Before retiring in 1994, Cook was President of Gannett Radio.

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Johnny Williams, KHJ, 1970 (10:10)

..And now, Ladies and Gentlemen - Johnny Williams!...

I got an E-Mail from John Williams (hijohn@aloha.com) saying that you would be interested if I had any of him on KHJ.

The one here from 1970 wasn't of the best audio quality, but I played with it until I got it sounding reasonably ok.

(Note from Ricky): Please visit our friend John at 440:Satisfaction. (The picture at the left is from 1974.) Thank you Jay, and thank you Johnny!

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Jeff Christie, KQV, Pittsburgh, 1974 (10:45)

..the Marconi Award for Excellence in Broadcasting...

(Photo courtesy Jeff Roteman)

Listen up, you people! All across the fruited plain, Mary Snerdly and all the other rich kids were enjoying the Award-Winning Jeff Christie Rock and Roll Radio Show on KQV, Pittsburgh, in 1974. You may not recognize the voice immediately (it's pitched lower these days), but you will recognize a few of the trademark phrases that Christie still uses today. This is an excellent aircheck of late-model KQV, and the fun and frolic therein is a classic example of Excellence in Broadcasting, presented by the man we know today as . . . Rush Limbaugh.

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