WVOW DAY

[genlock]

Proclamation For WVOW

As WVOW winds down its 60th year of broadcasting with a special concert by Landau Murphy on Saturday, the radio station will also receive an honor from the City of Logan. This Saturday will be declared WVOW Radio day by Mayor Serafino Nolletti.



“It’s a special privilege the mayor gets to take in honor of special people or events. WVOW and 60 years is special” Nolletti said.



Nolletti says the radio station has been valuable to the community.



“Keeping people informed, news, sports, music, school closings, the station has done a great job over the decades being a voice for the people and a source of entertainment and important information,” Nolletti said.

[Dave Allen]

I figured we were doomed when we hired Kidd Conley and Nunley within the last two years.

[Greg Goodfellow]

Congratulations to Dave and everyone else at WVOW!

Not to take anything away from this accomplishment, it makes me wonder about a station like WWVA, a station that avoided a move to Stowe, Ohio. 1170 must be around 80 by now.

Anyone with more knowledge than what Wikipedia or other sources can provide, please share.

WETZ in New Martinsville should be close to 60, when Harry Bright took over, but it may have been on even earlier. Again, anything that can be shared (Oldiesdude?) would be appreciated.

[EZ103.3FM]

Congratulations to Dave and everyone else at WVOW!
Anyone with more knowledge than what Wikipedia or other sources can provide, please share.

According to wvencyclopedia.org, WWVA is 86 this month.http://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/1958

WHD at West Virginia University received the state’s first radio station license on March 16, 1922. The year before, KDKA of Pittsburgh, since 1920 the nation’s first commercially licensed station, had broadcast the first college football game on radio, featuring a contest between West Virginia University and the University of Pittsburgh. The oldest extant West Virginia radio station is WSAZ (now WRVC) in Huntington, originally licensed in October 1924. Other long-time stations include WWVA of Wheeling, which began broadcasting in December 1926, and WCHS of Charleston, which went on the air as WOBU in September 1927.

[genlock]

I am pretty sure that Frank Stowers of West Virginia Public Radio is older than any of these stations.
He still loves his job.

Congratulations to Dave and everyone else at WVOW!
Anyone with more knowledge than what Wikipedia or other sources can provide, please share.

According to wvencyclopedia.org, WWVA is 86 this month.http://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/1958

WHD at West Virginia University received the state’s first radio station license on March 16, 1922. The year before, KDKA of Pittsburgh, since 1920 the nation’s first commercially licensed station, had broadcast the first college football game on radio, featuring a contest between West Virginia University and the University of Pittsburgh. The oldest extant West Virginia radio station is WSAZ (now WRVC) in Huntington, originally licensed in October 1924. Other long-time stations include WWVA of Wheeling, which began broadcasting in December 1926, and WCHS of Charleston, which went on the air as WOBU in September 1927.

[Oldiesdude]

Greg,
I spent a little while yesterday looking to see when WETZ-am went on the air. I could find stuff back to I think 1952, but think is was before that, but not sure. I am thinking it had other call letters before Harry Bright purchased it, at least for a few years. May be way off on that though. Not what you call a search giant. Just know I started before I graduated from High School on weekends, would have been maybe 1971 or 1972. Sure wish I had kept my old, 3rd Class Radio telephone operators license, with Broadcast Endorsement. LOL. Wonder if they even test for stuff like that now a days. Must say, it has not been 42 years of constant on air years, lots of gaps and not many stations. There where quite a few notables that passed through the station. Example: Harry Bright, (Placed in the 1 class of WV broadcasters, George Eubanks, & "The Dougger", (still alive and kicking, another WV broadcaster honoree, as is the current owner of the station, Randy Jay.), Others not as well known, but very much in these parts of the woods: "Happy Hoyer", Now a priest in Florida, with even a street named after him. Also Ty Work, and Jerry Bourrough to name a few.
I do have to go get ready the do my show in about an hour. Can not disappoint my 12 audience members. :lolis
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, to you, Greg, who more than, anyone in this area, is someone who should be placed with the big boys of WV Broadcasters. Maybe 2013.

[PaulRadioWalker]

I wish WVOW streamed online instead of just podcasting, I'd LOVE to hear them. I LOVE local radio like WVOW! Can anyone aircheck them for me? I'll supply a cassette tape and a self addressed stamped envelope.

Email me.. walkerbroadcasting@gmail.com

[Greg Goodfellow]

Paul, I think you would have liked "Radio WETZ, the Valley Station" back in the day. I didn't appreciate their efforts then, but certainly do now. I'm SURE that Oldiesdude has some GREAT stories!

[PaulRadioWalker]

Paul, I think you would have liked "Radio WETZ, the Valley Station" back in the day. I didn't appreciate their efforts then, but certainly do now. I'm SURE that Oldiesdude has some GREAT stories!

Never having heard of WETZ before, is that 101.9/1290 were before they became WVOW?

[Greg Goodfellow]

Paul, sorry for not being specific. That was/is the AM outlet in New Martinsvlle. As noted earlier, it's at least 60 years old. A small-town daytimer that did some innovative things. For instance, they would record graduation exercises at local high schools, including ours (the now-extinct Sistersville High School). Our class of '73 was filled with interesting characters, some of whose comments were intentionally (I'm sure) recorded for playing on Saturday morning, along with 'Football For Breakfast.' At least that is what I think it was called. They did a phoner from Sistersville every Friday late-afternoon called "Tyler Topics." They were very well=known for putting on a tradio/"Swap 'N Shop" program. At least one local, named Virginia, called in every day, eventually singing "Happy Birthday" on a very-regular basis. For a small-town outlet, they tried to cover a lot of territory.

Again, Oldiesdude can help with some of this.

[PaulRadioWalker]

Paul, sorry for not being specific. That was/is the AM outlet in New Martinsvlle. As noted earlier, it's at least 60 years old. A small-town daytimer that did some innovative things. For instance, they would record graduation exercises at local high schools, including ours (the now-extinct Sistersville High School). Our class of '73 was filled with interesting characters, some of whose comments were intentionally (I'm sure) recorded for playing on Saturday morning, along with 'Football For Breakfast.' At least that is what I think it was called. They did a phoner from Sistersville every Friday late-afternoon called "Tyler Topics." They were very well=known for putting on a tradio/"Swap 'N Shop" program. At least one local, named Virginia, called in every day, eventually singing "Happy Birthday" on a very-regular basis. For a small-town outlet, they tried to cover a lot of territory.

Again, Oldiesdude can help with some of this.

And my dumbass should've looked the call letters up.

Some of these small town stations are very interesting and unique.

[Oldiesdude]

Greg, pretty much explained a lot of the different elements the station used to do. He even brought to light one I did not remember the taping of the the graduations. I don't recall my class 1972 being done but, hey I was a teen, there were more important things on my mind
I was part of the "Football for breakfast" for a short time. I provided color for a few of the games, Ken Spencer did the play by play. Mostly the color I provided, was what was going on with the cheerleaders. Since is was a daytime station, and signed off at sunset. It had to be recorded and played back the next day on Saturday. Thus the name.
One fond memory was a station wagon they had with a 2 way radio for remotes, (when not using a phone booth.) Although I or anyone else like jocks got to use that piece of equipment. Only Harry Bright got to use that.
The real magic was the format. Mornings with "swap and shop" around 8am or 9am, sandwiched between, artists like, Dean Martin, Como, and others. Gospel at around 10am. AP wire news at the top of the hours, sprinkled with local happening, and a 1/2 hour news report at noon. At 3pm, about the time kids were getting out of school, music switched to rock n' roll till sign off. Not till I got to take over the morning show from the 1st class, Dave Miles did the music start to chance. Harry came in one day and said he had heard a song I had played. He said, "It was a very pretty song, but the latter part, of the song got a little rocky towards the end." The song was, "Stairway to Heaven"
There was a weekend show that came in on album, called "Renfro Valley." All the jocks hated it. We could stomach the, easy listing stuff, but no one I remember could take that pre-recorded show. There were hundreds of past shows stacked in a small closet. They meet their maker one night after a "Football for Breakfast", Friday night when we burned the weeks AP Wire paper outside. Honest to God we didn't realize that it would release a plume of deadly fog, so thick when you hit it on Route 2 by the bridge it sort of just attached its self to the windshield of a car.
I used to also work at the local theater at the time and on one day of the week I needed to drive to Pittsburgh, to pick up the reels of film.
I am now, sorry to say I was the one that invented automation, (sort of.) It still required a human at the time to spin the records and insert the commercials. However I recorded intro's and outro's to the songs to a reel to reel tape. I even timed the whole thing so there were even time checks, names of who or what, and the title of the song.
I would get the weekend jock to come in on those days, to cue and, start the records, and the reel to reel tape & records, timed to hit the intro to the songs, and break to commercials etc. This was not hard to do as the weekend jock lived next door to the station in an apartment owned by the owner of the Station, Harry Bright. I think almost every jock that worked at the station lived in those apartments at one time or another.
I remember getting to listen on the way up the river to about Moundsville, WV to ME DOING, MY SHOW.
As far as I know, no one ever knew the difference.

[PaulRadioWalker]

Greg, pretty much explained a lot of the different elements the station used to do. He even brought to light one I did not remember the taping of the the graduations. I don't recall my class 1972 being done but, hey I was a teen, there were more important things on my mind
I was part of the "Football for breakfast" for a short time. I provided color for a few of the games, Ken Spencer did the play by play. Mostly the color I provided, was what was going on with the cheerleaders. Since is was a daytime station, and signed off at sunset. It had to be recorded and played back the next day on Saturday. Thus the name.
One fond memory was a station wagon they had with a 2 way radio for remotes, (when not using a phone booth.) Although I or anyone else like jocks got to use that piece of equipment. Only Harry Bright got to use that.
The real magic was the format. Mornings with "swap and shop" around 8am or 9am, sandwiched between, artists like, Dean Martin, Como, and others. Gospel at around 10am. AP wire news at the top of the hours, sprinkled with local happening, and a 1/2 hour news report at noon. At 3pm, about the time kids were getting out of school, music switched to rock n' roll till sign off. Not till I got to take over the morning show from the 1st class, Dave Miles did the music start to chance. Harry came in one day and said he had heard a song I had played. He said, "It was a very pretty song, but the latter part, of the song got a little rocky towards the end." The song was, "Stairway to Heaven"
There was a weekend show that came in on album, called "Renfro Valley." All the jocks hated it. We could stomach the, easy listing stuff, but no one I remember could take that pre-recorded show. There were hundreds of past shows stacked in a small closet. They meet their maker one night after a "Football for Breakfast", Friday night when we burned the weeks AP Wire paper outside. Honest to God we didn't realize that it would release a plume of deadly fog, so thick when you hit it on Route 2 by the bridge it sort of just attached its self to the windshield of a car.
I used to also work at the local theater at the time and on one day of the week I needed to drive to Pittsburgh, to pick up the reels of film.
I am now, sorry to say I was the one that invented automation, (sort of.) It still required a human at the time to spin the records and insert the commercials. However I recorded intro's and outro's to the songs to a reel to reel tape. I even timed the whole thing so there were even time checks, names of who or what, and the title of the song.
I would get the weekend jock to come in on those days, to cue and, start the records, and the reel to reel tape & records, timed to hit the intro to the songs, and break to commercials etc. This was not hard to do as the weekend jock lived next door to the station in an apartment owned by the owner of the Station, Harry Bright. I think almost every jock that worked at the station lived in those apartments at one time or another.
I remember getting to listen on the way up the river to about Moundsville, WV to ME DOING, MY SHOW.
As far as I know, no one ever knew the difference.

Good stories, oldiesdude.. neat stuff!

I'm working on getting some WVOW airchecks