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"I started on all-nights (2am to 6am in those days) between JJ
Wright and Dale Dorman. The news guys were required to work
an 8 hour day so Bill Rossi would do news starting at 2:45AM and work
straight through morning drive. Dale Dorman was very kind to
me and I loved hanging out with him, listening to radio stories and
watching him work. It was an incredible experience. My first
Saturday shift (actually midnight to 4am Sunday, then God) I followed
Mike Addams. Outside the building in Government Center that
night, were about 50 young girls milling around waiting for Addams.
Screaming, screeching. Amazing." "After
a few months, I was moved to 10pm to 2 am, the worst shift ever, from a
personal standpoint. I was young, single, stupid and getting union
wages but I couldn't go out before I went on the air and by the time I
got off work all that was left was the Combat Zone and HoJo. Even
in a city the size of Boston, there were only a handful of all night TV
stations and all that was on was what they dumped there. Remember
that this was before HBO and only someone like Harry or Dale could
afford a VCR. In fact, the first VCR I ever saw was at Harry's
house. It was a beta format Sony about the size of a small
refrigerator." "Soon
after that, the changes came fast. The last few months of
1977 and early 78 were really the very last of the golden age of top 40
on AM. The onslaught of FM was just too much even by the end of
1978 for the station to survive with that format. During my time
at RKO, I was rated in every daypart, including mornings (Oct/Nov 78).
I spent my last year at the station on afternoon drive. Among the
guys I hung out with were Scott Burns, Brian Phoenix and Tom Murphy.
Especially Burns. That guy can still make me laugh until I drool.
Among the astonishing talent that I had the privilege of working with,
aside from the folks already mentioned, were: Ed Walsh, Tim Kelly,
Big Ron O'Brian, Charlie Van Dyke, Mark McKay, Sandy Weaver, Melody
McShane, Bill Rossi, John Masters, Charlie and Harrigan, Caroline
Murdock, Roger Allen, Jordan Rich, Dude Walker, Joe Morgan, and Ned
Martin to name just those who come to mind after all these years.
There was also an incredible engineering staff and the best promotions
department I've seen to date." |
(The
following was sent to us in 1999
by Dennis):
"My
first day on WRKO was in August of 1977, the 11th I think.
Although it's true that the first time Harry Nelson heard me was at WJDX
in Jackson, that had happened about a year before. Between JDX and
RKO, I worked in Baton Rouge (WJBO) and Richmond (WLEE). My
car died in Richmond so I wound up taking a grueling 8-hour train ride
to Boston. Harry hired me over the phone, we had never met when he
picked me up at South Station. I was just 21 years old.
Harry literally plucked me from obscurity and dropped me into the
control room of one of the premiere American radio stations of its day."