Mistakes come in three's, back at WLYC again

Writing this blog have evoked both good and bad memories, the same can be said about my second and third times at WLYC and WILQ. Now as you may remember I started my radio sentence at 1050 AM and 105.1 FM, in 1964, at the time they were owned and operated by Keliher Construction Company. In 1972, J.T. Keliher sold out to a company called Alpha Broadcasting, as Chuck Hoffman wrote earlier the broadcast end was part of a company that primarily was into computer services. When they bought it many changes took place. Most of the original staff, was either fired, or quit, save Ann Davis in Traffic, George McKay on air, and John Ellis the engineer. Vince Campana the G.M was out, and replaced by Henry Kirk, new announcers started appearing almost instantly mostly from the State College area as the station was switching to a more top 40 format. Wendell H. (Wendy) Williams was brought in as the Program Director. Wendy had once been at ABC owned and operated KQV in Pittsburgh. I remember that Wendy had actually applied at one time to WMPT and Dave didn't hire him, (MISTAKE) because he said, "why would anyone that had been in major market want to work in Williamsport." Wendy actually wanted to attend Williamsport Area Community College for airplane mechanics of all things. Also appearing during this time were Harry E. Gahagan, a young hippy type, Steve Migdon, and Steve Suskie, John Bower, Steve Hurr (Helms), Steve George, Teddy Genevish, Tumblewood Ted (Saul), John Bower, and Chris Walsh (News). All were pretty talented air people and WLYC was throwing a ton of promotion at the market.

I had left WMPT after the flood and for a brief period of time I was working for a small privately owned company selling emergency equipment, the only problem, neither I nor any of the suppliers got paid! So I finally decided that maybe WLYC might be a place to try as I didn't want to go back to WMPT as Harry Seltzer and I were still feuding. At first view WLYC seemed like the "hot" place to work, lots of enthusiasm, promotional money, and the pay was not too bad either, so I landed a part time job. It was about this time that a decision was made to split WLYC FM off and make it a country station, well sometimes! In the evening after WLYC signed off, ( A day timer) WILQ would continue to rock till midnight. I was approached about starting the overnight show on now renamed WILQ. The shift amounted to coming in at 11:00 pm, doing production, and going on the air at midnight playing top 40 till 2:00 am and then changing to country for the remainder of the shift, talk about block programming! Well I did the shift, at the time the FCC was looking for stations to do a lot of public affairs programming and the idea was put forth that 12:00 to 1:00 am might be the time for a WILQ music/talk format show. So that is what happened, I would come on at midnight play music in between phone calls and then at 1:00 am after the news switch back to all music. The show for the most part went pretty well save the fact that there was a half assed delay system, created by inputting the air signal into one Ampex, running the tape down to another Ampex reel to reel mounted below it in the rack, feeding the output from that machine back into the board and on the air. WHAT A mess! Well anyway, being one of the very few stations on the air, I got a lot of calls, and it was quite often that the talk show would continue till 2:00 or even 3:00 AM. The rest of the night was country pretty much wall to wall, as there were few if any commercials. I did that shift for about 1 year, somewhere during that time I was getting regular complaints about my production, missing, bad quality, Etc. I made sure I checked and rechecked the production before I put it in the control room, I can only think that someone, for some reason was sabotaging it! Finally one night I came in and there was a rather nasty note from now Manager Larry Knapp that I had better get my act together, I snapped and walked out, leaving poor Steve Migdon with his mouth hanging wide open. Do I know who, not for sure, but I have a couple of candidates in mind. Anyway, several months passed, and I actually had applied at WWPA and was going to be hired to do part time when I received a call telling me that WILQ was going to 4 hour day shifts, and would I be interested in doing a combo position or mid day and afternoon news. The money was right, and I accepted. So in late 1973 I came back and settled into mid days. As far as fan appreciation that was one of the best shifts I have ever done, lots of feedback from the listeners, and a fair amount of freedom on the air. I for the most part even enjoyed the afternoon news, I did both WLYC and WILQ local news live, two times and hour for 3 hours. I had done news before, so I still had contacts and it really did sound pretty good. I stayed with that till mid 1975 and I was offered a on road sales position working for a friend of mine selling of all things cut flowers and floral supplies!
But that is yet another story!

During time there I had the chance to work with some very unusual people, with my rather conservative upbringing I was somewhat surprised at the people, let me profile them:

Wendy Williams: He was a Morman, who at times would get fed up with the church and let loose in private. Wendy was one of the more inventive persons I have ever known, and was quite controversial on the air. There are several famous Wendy stories that I wonÂ’t take time to tell here, but ask me, they are classics. I of course worked with him in afternoon drive during my news duties.

Harry Gahagan: I described him as a hippy type, long hair, nervous type, he always played with a pen while he was on the air. Harry was tapped as the Program Director at WLYC after Wendy started school and resigned. I got along with Harry most of the time, as I really didnÂ’t work directly for him except when I was doing Top 40. Harry eventually went to WOND in Atlantic City, N.J. owned by the Green Group, yes the same company I worked for in Elmira, as Howard Green owned WENY/WLEZ/WENY TV 36.

Steve Migdon: was a nice quite kind of guy who loved pranks, and we were always working each other over. I never saw him too much except at station events as he worked evenings and I was gone by the time he came in. I remember once after a station softball game, he and I tackled several bottles of Boones Farm wine, neither of us were worth much the next day. I really don't know what ever happened to Mig, although for some reason I think he might have gone to Harrisburg.

Steve Suskie: I was probably closest to him of all the WLYC staff, we worked a lot of promotions together, not the best voice on the air, but a hard worker.

Joe Dalto: We had other names for him, he was a kid that just didn't grow up.

On the WILQ side were the following:
George McKay: I had known George a long time, I believe he actually replaced me when I left WLYC in 1966. He was promoted to Program Director of WILQ when the split happened and did a fair job. George did not have the greatest radio voice, but he was a good guy. We got quite close as for several months I dated is sister in law. George stayed at WILQ for a long time, I eventually worked with him again in 1992 at KISS FM.

Lynn Bloom: "Big Time Bloomie." Now there was a real character, looked like everybody's grandfather should look, was probably the biggest lush I have ever worked with. It was not un common to get a call from the city police that they found him passed out someplace or he would stager into the station at 2:30 am and tell me to wake him up for his air shift. More often than not he would go on the air totally plastered, but you would never know it when he turned on the mike. "Bloomie" had the absolute worst rug (wig) I have ever seen, it was yellowing from age and neglect, and when he got drunk it would wind up crooked on his head. Eventually he was fired and I think went to Roaring Springs.

Bill Wilson: He replaced "Bloomie" That was not his real name, but for the life of me I can't even come close to spelling his real name. He has worked with Harry Gahagan and Wendy in State College and if I remember was pretty good on the air.

Ron Shobert; Yes that is right after I left Ron was hired to do the all night show, he like a lot of other people got shafted by "Moose and Squirrel." (more on them later)


Chuck Hoffman: He was hired as the "Group" Program Director for the Williamsport stations and WGGO AM/FM in Salamanca, N.Y. I liked Chuck, I am not saying that just because he reads this, he was my kind of P.D., a bit laid back, and had a pretty good sense of humor. I used to stay around and "help" Chuck do his show when I was doing all nights. Chuck was not well liked by the "State College Crowd" who called him "Huffy Chuckman" behind his back. Be sure and read Chuck's notes about his time on the second floor of the Carone Building at 4th and Pine Streets, it is very interesting.

Larry Knapp: He became the General Manager, and his wife was one of the sales staff. In my opinion Larry was not the most honest of persons, I don't believe he had much radio experience, except working for Cary Simpson (Allegheny Mountain Radio network). I believe he was always out for Larry, and didn't care who got the shaft along the way. I understand that there was some questionable tactics used in assigning commercial accounts, with some being listed as house accounts on the lists given to the other sales staff and his wife being paid commission of those same accounts. By the way, we used to call them "Moose and Squirrel" as George Vadja who was Mr. Alpha Broadcasting looked like and had an accent like the Rocky and Bullwinkle character Boris Batenov. Larry eventually opened a motorcycle and recreational vehicle business in Galeton, I talked to him just once, when I was managing WLEZ in Elmira, as he was trying to convince me to give him a glowing reference, as he wanted to advertise on TV 36 and wanted credit approval! YEAH RIGHT!!!

Looking back over the last 41 plus years in radio Alpha was probably the absolute worst operator I ever worked for. They we constantly late with paychecks, would fire you for no reason and were on your back constantly. One of Alpha's favorite tricks to fire people was to remove their name from their mailbox. If you went in and you didn't have a mailbox then you were done! The other was to fire you by letter in your mailbox. I remember that Steve George, who was going to college in Bradford, Pa, came home one weekend to do his shift and walked in only to find "the letter." But that was Alpha's and Larry Knapp's style, backhanded and underhanded in dealing with employees and customers. Vince Campana who was fired not long after Alpha took over filed suit against them and won, the day it was announced all of us who disliked Alpha cheered loudly!! Learning Alpha's tactics and how they operated really was benefical when I went back to WMPT in 1975. With the ground work that Chuck had laid at WMPT and what I was allowed to do, we really cut into Alpha's bottom line. It was not too long after the start or 1975 that they sold out to Kerby Confer and Paul Rothfuss, but that too is another story for another time! Thanks again for your kind words, till next time, when I once again cross the river and head down East Central Avenue!