Rock Radio Scrapbook: 1968 airchecks

Long-time weekend announcer Duff Roman got his own weekday shift late in 1967 when Dick Hayes left after two years in the early afternoon slot. One of CHUM's most endearing personalities, Roman left the station in 1968 and - after a year-long stay at CKRC Winnipeg - landed a stint as program director and morning man at rival CKFH in the fall of 1969. He returned to the CHUM group in management in 1974.

Talent: J. MICHAEL WILSON
Station: WKNR Dearborn, Mich.
Date: January, 1968
Time: 15:31

Put a quick-witted Top 40 jock and a rascally rodent together and what do you get? Well, great radio of course.

J. Michael Wilson and his sidekick Rodney Rodent made some wonderful Top 40 radio over a career spanning four different decades. His resume includes several of the top stations of the time: WIRL, KOMA, WKNR, CHUM, WGR, WMEX, WWDC and many others.

One of the most appealing aspects of Wilson's act was Rodney, which was actually J. Michael himself on tape played back at a much faster speed (similar to the Chipmunks). Back in the days when deejays talked before and after most of the records, this was quite a feat, but Wilson carried it off seamlessly.

Talent: CHRIS CLARK
Station: WYSL Buffalo, N.Y.
Date: February 9, 1968
Time: 4:31

(l-r: Sean Grabowski, Gary Byrd, Kevin O'Connell, Jeff Heustis, Chris Clark, Jim Bradley, Paxton Mills)
Larger view here. (Courtesy: Terry Corcoran)

At 1,000 watts by day, and 250 watts by night, WYSL didn't exactly blanket the Eastern seaboard like its Top 40 competitor WKBW. But many outstanding talents passed through its doors, and listeners and employees still remember it fondly many years after its call letters disappeared from the 1400 spot on the Buffalo, N.Y., AM dial.

The roots of WYSL go back to January, 1948 when WXRA Kenmore, N.Y., signed on at 1080 on the AM dial. It was originally owned by Thaddeus Podbielniak and Edwin R. Sanders (The Western New York Broadcasting Company). George "Hound Dog" Lorenz was an announcer there until he was fired for playing too much "race music", as R&B used to be called. John W. Kluge bought the station in 1957 and promptly changed the call letters to Top 40 and the call letters to WINE. In 1960, Gordon McClendon purchased WINE, dropped Top 40 in favour of beautiful music and changed the call letters to WYSL (for "Whistle".) The station moved to 1400 in late 1961 and flipped to a Top 40 format in early 1966. WYSL continued playing hit music until it turned in its call letters September 10, 1986, and became a full-time simulcast of WYSL-FM.

Paul Palo was one of WYSL's early Top 40 jocks as Chris Clark. Palo tells Rock Radio Scrapbook about his career and the early days of WYSL:

"My life in this business started when I was 16 back in North East Ohio in a town call Conneaut and WWOW went on the air with 500 watts of daytime power. Being a nighttime relentless fan of Dick Biondi, WLS, I loved music and the power of communication. I figured this was something I could do, so after much looking thru the glass at DJs a couple of the jocks let me run the board for them on weekends and the next thing I was working Sunday morning running tapes and reading breaks etc. after much practice and help from those great guys from Virginia, Jamestown and Maryland.

I was cheap labor at $1.50 an hour. One of those guys in that little station was from Cleveland, the late Ernie Anderson who I would 20 something years later meet in LA at ABC where he was the voice of network promos "You know..On the Loveeee Boat". I worked my way up the food chain and finally got full time at around 80 bucks in 1964 after high school, But I had my own profitable business running dances and hops and bringing in rock acts like little Anthony and The Duprees which was part of my deal with the manager "free promos" as long as I promoted the station. I even had my own shirts made at my expense with the call letters.

After a year or so in Ohio one of the other jocks "Charlie Brown" Larry Snyder at WOW got a gig in Erie, PA and the next thing I was working at WWGO in Erie. In 1966 I met PD Larry Vance and got the early afternoon in Buffalo on WYSL using the name Chris Clark. (I always hated that name because my real name sounded like a radio name anyway) We were know as "little whistle" with heavy echo & lots of screaming and shouting as part of the format. We didn't even need a transmitter!! We had blue blazers with the call letters and the Bills were in the playoffs so we all had to have our hair died white and blue. That was one time I was glad they lost in the playoffs early and I am a giant Bills fan. It was then I found the real joy of hats. So here we are Jack Mindy, Tim Kelly and me sharing a big house on Elmwood Ave....now that's the sounds like an on going party. It was, we did and I won't tell.

Paul Palo with Frank Zappa (Courtesy: Paul Palo)

The hair grew back, but Uncle Sam wanted me for six months of active duty with the NY National Guard. Late in 67 Sean Grabowski was the PD, but I was hired back doing the news. Now that was something foreign to rip and read me, amidst the greatness of Ed Little, Jack Mall and Brad Messer's 20 20 news. Brad Messer was one of the most amazing talents I have seen and could have written and done TV shows or anything. He made the news compelling & interesting by his very visual creative writing. Please give an hear to singing news (see below). Jim McLaughlin was the new news director and taught me so much about news, writing and ethics of reporting. I made a lot of mistakes, but finally learned to read over that hot teletype sound effect and weather jingles and such as Paul Palo. Sean even got me back on the air and I was a man with two names depending on news or DJ.

In 1969 McLendon let the FM sidesplit to go progressive and I got the job as PD and at 7 till dawn we blasted Stones, CCR, Joni Mitchell, and anything and everything. The beginning of "Sets" and free form rock. I formulated the format from tapes of KSAN in San Francisco and CHUM-FM and anything I could steal. I always thought air personalities should have their own choice as artists. Seems to me "Jack" tries to achieve that essence even today.

We brought George Hamberger for nights from the cold of the roaming Van and Jim Santella did the evening show. Then it was really a full-time job with a shift on AM and the FM was given the calls WPHD which regardless of what anyone says had no real hidden significance. We called it frequency modulation for no particular reason. It just sounded cool. Hamberger, Santella, Freddie Mann, Carl Walters and a very young Cal Brady. I still remember the first Led Zep album, we all were just blown away...it was a defining moment for progressive radio in my mind. I love George Hamberger, but on the all night show he was a little overworked and during long cuts had an enormous alarm clock strapped on with a head band set for the length of the song so he could get in a short snooze.

Well Woodstock, more free form, "progresso" starts at WPHD (what's that?) and I am asked to take a hike in 1970. Back to news and producing kind of mini docs for WUFO, the R and B station and their two other stations in Miami and Pittsburgh. Don Blakley GM, hires me to do news at WBFO and I work with inner city kids on Jefferson Ave to hone potential radio jobs. Great people, great job.

Paul Palo at WBUF in 1978 (Courtesy: Paul Palo)

1974 - Back at WYSL for weekend stint, Kevin O'Connell PD. Also during that time (mid 70s) Cal Brady and I formed a TV production company and we began making commercials and short films on 16mm. We both learned by trial and error and got pretty good, bought cameras and editing equipment and had a few good clients. I remember we would shoot things and run down to the TV stations to get our film processed. In many ways Cal was my film school and he had more experience shooting film earlier.

1977 - Cal Brady PD at WBUF. I am morning jock until 1979 with a parrot "Big Al". My wife Linda is film critic and later becomes casting director for Francis Ford Coppola. She teaches every summer at a special Buffalo comes to Hollywood for actors and directors. Cal Brady later goes on to head up production at Channel 29 on Grand Island and production director at KHJ in LA for several years.

I also meet my life teacher Bill Pezimenti at BUF and produce and he writes the most outstanding humorous irreverent commercials ever heard in Buffalo. I kind soft spoken man who I proud to say I am with friends today. I owe him my first gig at TV in LA to his style of writing and creative mind and freedom to be anything.

1982 - KABC-TV Los Angeles- producer/writer for local promos for news on 14 radio stations. Worked with Ernie Anderson who I meet in Ohio years earlier. Cranky as ever. He says "Who wrote these Jokes".

1989 - Formed another production company in LA where we made documentaries, commercials and educational projects and a real estate TV show from a little space at Raleigh Studios in Hollywood. We also worked in New Media and made several CD Roms on the space program and Solar System.

3 telly awards, 1 Parents choice Award for Educational CD "Voyage Through The Solar System"

Footnotes...

- I forgot the parrot "Big Al" was being taken care of by the late Bob Allen and he was the main guy who turned WBUF progressive and deserves all due credit for that. I liked Bob and his unforgettable Franklin's Furnace show.

- 1978 WBFO Dave LaRussa starts a weekly show "Anything that's Rock and Roll" He worked in the music business and was manager of a group called "Big Sand" (which many years later spawned Calexico) in Arizona where he is still active in writing, music and human rights issues.

- Tom Hallick of "The Young and Restless" and countless staring roles on Cold Case and many TV shows was at one-time host of an experiment on WYSL into talk radio during the Larry Vance era. It was called "Talk of Buffalo" and was supposed to be confrontational and political in nature. Not sure how long the program lasted, but also remember Larry Vance doing the show as well

Well here I am Los Angeles, working with my wife casting, acting and some voiceover work. Everything I learned is the result of all the great folks in Buffalo who helped me and gave me a chance. Buffalo is always my home."

Enjoy Chris Clark on WYSL here.

(The Paul Palo Collection)

This rare aircheck showcases the talents of Brad Messer, whose 47-year radio career included time at WYSL.

In an ever-changing business, Jack "The Boy Disc Jockey" Cullen was a constant. Cullen spent more than 40 continuous years at CKNW Vancouver beginning in 1957 with his popular "Owl Prowl" program. Prior to that he worked at CJAV Port Alberni, B.C., plus CKWX and CKMO-CFUN Vancouver. He also had a previous stint at CKNW (1949-54). Cullen did his last show at 'NW on May 18, 1999, but a few of his shows aired in 2000 on CKST Vancouver.

A native of Vancouver, Cullen served in the Canadian navy during World War II as a wireless operator. His record collection of approximately 300,000 discs was said to be one of the largest in the world.

"He was the first free-form deejay in Canada, right after the war. Oh, there were deejays, but none as free-thinking as Cullen. He would do his nightly "Owl Prowl" show from mountain tops, taxi cabs and under the sea ... anything to garner an audience. He was and is totally irreverent and his rebel style created one of the largest followings in the history of West Coast radio.

He and I competed for a short period in 1955 and 1956, but he mixed Frank Sinatra (his idol) with Fats Domino and Elvis Presley. He soon abandoned the rock scene, as it was not to his liking, but not before booking acts like Little Richard and others into various venues in the city. As a matter of fact, the first real "Rock 'n Roll" concert in Vancouver was financed by Jack. It was Bill Haley and his Comets at Kerrisdale Arena in June of 1956 and he asked me to emcee it.

We all love Jack as he is a true character from the golden age of deejays. Like his idol Frank Sinatra, he did it his way with no regrets. He is the inspiration for me to get into radio and I love him."

Talent: TERRY DAVID MULLIGAN
Station: CKLG Vancouver
Date: May 16, 1968
Time: 12:08

We only have one question about Terry David Mulligan - where does he find the time?

Few Canadian entertainment figures can boast such a long and varied resume as this native of New Westminster, B.C. Originally a Mountie, TDM moved into radio in 1964 at CKRD Red Deer, Alta., and never looked back.

Mulligan's long radio resume includes stops at CFAC Calgary, CJME Regina and CFUN-CKVN, CKLG AM and FM and CFOX Vancouver. He was also at CHUM-FM Toronto, hosted the CBC Radio show Great Canadian Gold Rush and the nationally syndicated show, Discumentary. He has also had an extensive run with his weekly show Mulligan Stew on Edmonton public radio station CKUA. He has also hosted a syndicated wine-tasting show called The Tasting Room.

Mulligan's TV work has included hosting the CBC's first network video show, Good Rockin' Tonight, host of children's television show ZigZag on BCTV, host of MuchWest on MuchMusic, host and segment producer of MT-Movie Television and Senior Segment Producer and interviewer for Star! Canada's Entertainment Weekly and Star Daily! He has co-hosted the wine show "Hollywood and Vines" with Jason Priestley on Star!

An actor with a lengthy list of film and television credits, Mulligan has been named both Canadian Announcer of the Year and VJ of the Year.

Talent: ROBERT W. MORGAN
Station: KHJ Los Angeles
Date: May 27, 1968
Time: 24:27

Millions of Los Angeles woke up to those words (and many more were in fact Morganized) during Robert W. Morgan's time at KHJ Los Angeles in the '60s and early '70s. It was the cornerstone of a long and successful career that made Morgan one of radio's biggest stars. He was named Billboard Air Personality of the Year, got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and is a member of the National Broadcasters Hall of Fame and the Radio Hall of Fame. His narration of the 48-Hour History of Rock and Roll in 1969 is considered a classic.

Born July 23, 1937 in Galion, Ohio, Morgan got his start at WWST at Wooster College. Originally he thought about becoming a lawyer, but the radio bug bit him early and he worked at California stations like KACY Oxnard, KMBY Monterey, KMAK Fresno and KROY Sacramento under the air name Bob Morgan. He started using Robert W. Morgan at KEWB Oakland in 1964.

Morgan was one of the original Boss Jocks when 93/KHJ began its Top 40 Drake format in April, 1965. His morning show commanded sensational ratings, and his "Morganization" of listeners on the air became the stuff of legend. His sharp wit and smooth delivery would provide southern Californians with more than a few "Good Morgans" over the years.

After five-and-a-half years at KHJ, Morgan left the Los Angeles station in October 1970. He then moved to WIND Chicago but returned to KHJ in January 1972. Morgan then left KHJ for the second and last time in June 1973. After a six-month non-compete hiatus, Morgan moved to the FM dial in December 1973 for a stint at L.A.'s K-100. In October 1975, he achieved a long-standing dream when he started at full-service KMPC in Los Angeles. Originally Morgan worked weekends and swing, but in August 1979 he succeeded KMPC veteran Dick Whittinghill in the morning spot.

Morgan left KMPC in 1982 for three years at Magic 106 (KMGG), returning to KMPC for seven more years beginning in 1985. In August 1992, Morgan moved into mornings at oldies-formatted K-EARTH (KRTH), playing many of the songs his listeners had first enjoyed so many years ago at KHJ. In May 1997, Morgan announced he was taking time off to fight lung cancer. He died - at the age of 60 - on May 22, 1998.

Morgan, who hosted numerous television shows and was a top voiceover talent, was also an avid bass fisherman, chess player, collector of Americana and a fan of the vocal group the Four Freshmen. But we remember him as one of the greatest jocks in the history of Top 40 radio.

Anticipation was in the air in June, 1968 when CHUM announced that a new voice would be coming to the station. Just who would it be?

The answer - as revealed shortly after 6 p.m. on Sunday, June 16 - was Jackson Armstrong. And if pure excitement was what you wanted, he didn't disappoint. Nobody screamed louder or longer than "Supermouth." When he arrived at CHUM in June 1968, Armstrong had already started to build his legend at such stations as WMEX Boston, WKYC Cleveland and WAYS Charlotte, N.C. (as John Larsh). That reputation only grew during his eight-month stay in Toronto.

CHUM was on the brink of switching to the Drake format at the time of this aircheck. On it you can hear some of the classic latter-day PAMS jingles, and of course the very hyper Armstrong delivering a masterful performance. We remember hearing Armstrong live on his first CHUM show, and much later obtained an aircheck of it. Now you can enjoy it via the magic of the Internet.

Radio listeners and television fans in southern Ontario are used to Bob McAdorey's voice - they heard it for four decades. Mac started at CHUM in 1961 in the 1-4 p.m. shift, replacing the last of CHUM's original jocks, Pete Nordheimer. In 1964, McAdorey took over the 4-7 shift as he swapped shifts with Mike Darow. For the next four years, CHUM listeners enjoyed MacAdorey's personable style and features such as "Hit Pickers Hot Line. "

In 1968, McAdorey left CHUM to do middays at country-music formatted CFGM. After a stop at easy listening CHFI-AM (later CFTR) in the early '70s, MacAdorey went back to CFGM as morning man before moving to TV. In 2000, McAdorey retired after many years as the popular host of Global TV's entertainment beat. He died February 5, 2005 at the age of 69.

To enjoy Bob McAdorey, click here.

Brian Skinner was near the end of his days at CHUM in June, 1968. Skinner, CHUM's evening deejay since 1965, was relegated to the all-night show by the fall of '68 and was gone by 1969. He deserved better treatment. This rare aircheck captures CHUM near the end of the pre-Drake format.

Trudeaumania was everywhere. Elected to replace the retiring Lester B. Pearson as Liberal leader in April, former justice minister Pierre Trudeau won a majority government June 25 as prime minister and a symbol of generational change.

Baseball came to Canada for the first time with the awarding of a major league franchise to Montreal on May 27. The team became known as the Expos after the memorable Expo 67 the year before.

Wide-eyed visitors were gazing down from the top of the new Toronto-Dominion Centre. At 222.8 metres, it was the tallest building in Canada when it opened May 14.

Canada had its first heart transplant on May 31, the 18th in the world. The recipient was Albert Murphy of Chomedy, Que., a 59-year-old retired butcher. He died 41 hours later.

Medicare, providing free medical care to all for most procedures, became law in Canada on July 1.

On the radio front, fast-talking deejay Jack Armstrong arrived in Canada for his first show on CHUM June 16, and a followup program June 22. The shows went so well that he was given a full-time shift at CHUM - the only Canadian station this Top 40 legend ever worked at.

This aircheck features Taylor Parnaby with a live report from the Canadian Open golf tournament, and lots of great CHUM jingles, imaging and commercial segments from the time. As for Jack himself, he's on FIRE!

To those used to the Top 40 sound of Montreal's CKGM, this aircheck may surprise you. It's Bill Roberts doing middays at CKGM in July, 1968. Roberts does a combination talk and music show and judging from the one song we hear, there's a middle-of-the-road slant musically in this daypart. Of course, CKGM didn't go full-time Top 40 until January 1, 1970.

Prior to CKGM, Roberts was CJAD's morning man in the 1950s and '60s and also program director. After his CKGM stint, he returned to the announcer's chair at CJAD in the '70s and later did a talk show at CKO Montreal. He also taught broadcasting at the Intra-Radio School in Montreal.

Roberts' father, Leslie, did commentary on CJAD in the '40s (he was advertised as "Canada's most controversial writer".) Bill Roberts' son, also named Leslie, is a well-known anchor at Global Television in Toronto.

Jack Armstrong and Brian Skinner did back-to-back shifts on CHUM from June, 1968 to January, 1969 and they were featured in back-to-back CHUM Charts. (Logos courtesy Craig Smith/CHUM Chart Page)

Sometimes the story behind the aircheck almost as interesting as the aircheck himself. In 1968, Toronto-area resident Ron Brokenshire was planning to head back to his native England, having been in Canada since 1967 for what he called a "working vacation." Brokenshire decided to tape some CHUM programming as a reminder of Canada. He did that, then met the woman who became his wife and wound up staying in Canada.

In March, 2000, this tape and others came to light as a result of a chance conversation I had with Ron at our local curling club. Thanks to Ron - and his desire to tape a reminder of Canada - we can now hear what CHUM sounded like in July, 1968.

Subject: TAYLER PARNABY (newscast)
Station: CHUM Toronto
Date: July 16, 1968
Time: 13:21

In this 1968 newscast, Tayler Parnaby comments on the latest price increase by the Toronto Maple Leafs. He figures that to take your wife to a Leaf game, it'll cost $14.90 - and that includes five cents for a pack of matches if you forgot your lighter! It's a rich man's game, says Parnaby. Well, hockey is still a rich man's (and woman's) game these days, only now you can move the decimal over one digit to the right.

Parnaby's comment is one of several delights on this CHUM newscast from July 16, 1968. There's a report from the late Bob Carr, and Arthur Lewis checks in from Parliament Hill. CHUM talk show host Larry Solway and former Toronto mayor Phil Givens are heard with the opinion segment "Give and Take." There's a taped commercial with John Spragge, are live (and taped) spots with Bob McAdorey, Jim Calloway with the sports and the race results with Daryl Wells. There's even a little bit of Jack Armstrong on this fabulous audio time capsule from 1968.

Talent: MARK RICHARDS
Station: CKLW Windsor, Ont.
Date: July 24, 1968
Time: 12:36

He's perhaps best known for his nearly decade-long run as popular morning man at Toronto's CFTR. But Jim Brady was also one of the early voices at the Big 8, appearing as Mark Richards in 1968 and 1969.

Brady, whose long career includes stints in Los Angeles, Dallas, Louisville and his hometown of Toledo, Ohio, does a masterful Top 40 performance in this rare aircheck from his pre-'TR days.

From 1963 to 1966, Dave Boxer is the undisputed champion of Montreal's English-language evening radio landscape on Cuff Cuff (CFCF 600). Armed with his trusty "fanortonizer", a trombone-like whistle used to announce his contest winners, and surfing high on the wave of the British musical invasion, Dave Boxer is "the cool daddy-o on the radd-io" that thousands of teens tune into weeknights, 6-11 p.m. ... with transistor radios tucked strategically under the pillow, anticipating the latest Beatles, Dave Clark 5 or JB and the Playboys hit.

By the time of this aircheck in August of 1968, Boxer is in his final days on Cuff Cuff as rival 1470 CFOX is now the teen buzz for English language Top 40 music in Montreal. Dave would soon be joining, for a short period of time, the equally-troubled 980 CKGM, a station he appeared on in the early '60s prior to his heyday on CFCF and an address two years away from its major renaissance as a hit music monster.

Boxer would later work in radio sales for Standard Broadcasting in Montreal, returning to the airwaves on 95.9 CJFM's Solid Gold Sunday Show in the late-70s to mid-'80s before finally moving on to other business ventures in Vancouver. He's still out on the west coast, now semi or fully-retired.

You will hear in the final two minutes of this brief but magical aircheck the nightly signature Boxer show-closer over Boots Randolph's "The Shadow of Your Smile" and the big "Elevensville" send-off "into the land of the giant marshmallows to sleep deliciously ... dee-lli-ciously..."

(Dave Boxer CFCF August 1968 aircheck reproduced and posted here through permission by marcdenis.com (Marc Denis's CKGM Super 70s Tribute Page). This aircheck cannot be duplicated or distributed without prior written permission and consent by the proprietor(s).)

Talent: COUSIN BRUCIE
Station: WABC New York
Date: September 9, 1968
Time: 15:57 (Part One)

"Movin' and a-groovin'
Havin' a ball
With Cousin Brucie
Go, go. Go, go. Go, go."

For years, Bruce Morrow began his nighttime WABC show with that tune. Recorded by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Morrow's "Go Go" theme song is one of the most famous deejay themes in history. But that's only part of the story of the man known to millions as Cousin Brucie.

Born Bruce Meyerowitz October 13, 1937, Morrow got his professional start as a 19-year-old in the summer of 1957 at ZBM Bermuda. After a year there, he returned to his native New York for his first big-time jocking gig, at the legendary WINS. In 1960, he was off to WINZ Miami, only to return to New York in 1961 for the nighttime shift at WABC.

Morrow really established his legend at WABC, whose powerful signal could be heard up and down the eastern United States and Canada. It was a special time where AM radio with personality jocks ruled, and Brucie was one of the best with a friendly on-air personna that allowed him to easily connect with the listeners. His show regularly captured 25 per cent of the New York listening audience, and an amazing figure considering the size and diversity of the market.

After 13 years at WABC, Brucie jumped to rival WNBC in 1974 for what turned out to be a three-year stint. Disenchanted with on-air work, he went into radio station ownership in the late '70s, finally returning to the airwaves in 1982 at WCBS-FM. Initially, he only filled in every third week on Jack Spector's Saturday Night Sock Hop. But by 1986 he was on every Saturday night and Wednesday night too. He also hosted the nationally-syndicated "Cruisin' America" from 1987 to 1992 (the show continued locally in New York on WCBS-FM as "Cruisin' With the Cuz" until 1993).

Brucie left WCBS-FM in 2005 when the station became JACK-FM, and soon after signed on at Sirius Satellite Radio. Named to the Radio Hall of Fame in 1988, he was also inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame (radio division) in 2008

Talent: CHUCK McCOY
Station: CKFH Toronto
Date: September, 1968
Time: 6:11

CKFH was a breeding ground for many great radio talents who would go on to success elsewhere. Morning man Don Daynard went on to become a legend at CKFM and CHFI. Tom Fulton's CKFH career preceded a 20-year run at CJRT-FM. Keith Hampshire went from CKFH to a career as a recording artist and later became one of Canada's top commercial voice talents.

Another example was Chuck McCoy. After his stay at CKFH, McCoy went to the high-profile evening shift at CHUM and now is in radio management with Rogers Communications. "The Chucker" was one of the early stars of CHUM's Drake format.

Roy Geldart appeared on CKBW Bridgewater, N.S., and CFNB Frederiction among other stations in the 1960s before moving to CBC Saint John. N.B.

Talent: PAUL SKI
Station: CHLO St. Thomas, Ont.
Date: October 7, 1968
Time: 13:48

This classic aircheck begins with a complete and unedited newscast by Bill Williams (real name Bill Vigars) followed by the Paul Ski show. Fans of CHLO from that period will remember Ski and some of the other personalities from that period, including morning man Dan O'Connor, Jerry Stephens and Tom Lodge. Ski and Lodge at the same station, how fitting!

It was October, 1968 and Jack Armstrong was at about the mid-point of his stay at CHUM.

Armstrong arrived at CHUM from WMEX Boston in a blaze of publicity in June, 1968 and departed in February, 1969, eventually landing in WPOP Hartford. In between, there were a number of major changes as the station changed to the Drake format in mid-summer. That included the departure of CHUM stalwarts Bob McAdorey and John Spragge from the daytime lineup, the move of Bob Laine from the all-night show to middays, and Brian Skinner going from evenings to the all-night show.

When the smoke had cleared it was Jay Nelson continuing in mornings (5-9 a.m.), followed by Solway (9-11 a.m.) and Laine (11 a.m.-3 p.m). J. Michael Wilson (3-7 p.m.) replaced McAdorey in afternoon drive, followed by Armstrong (7-11 p.m.) and Skinner (11 p.m.-5 a.m.)