Rock Radio Scrapbook

AIRCHECK OF THE WEEK
For week of September 26, 2010
Weekly issue #599

Talent: CHARLIE GREER
Station: WABC New York
Date: November 27, 1968
Time: 8:55

Charlie Greer was the deejay most associated with the all-night show on WABC, but he was far from the only jock to work the "third shift" at the New York station. In fact, there were many.

When WABC started playing Top 40 music December 7, 1960, the overnight period was occupied by Big Joe's Happiness Exchange. This was a time-brokered talk program hosted by Joe Rosenfeld that began on WABC in 1959. Previous to WABC, Big Joe's Happiness Exchange was on New York stations WOR, WINS and WMGM. After WABC, he took his show to WHBI Newark, N.J. Big Joe passed away a few years after his WHBI gig ended in 1964.

When Rosenfeld's contract ended in September, 1961, Fred Hall took over the all-night show with a show called "The All-Nite Satellite." A puppeteer who starred in children's shows, he went on to WNEW-TV after leaving WABC in 1962. He had done 4-6 a.m. at WABC prior to taking over the all-night show. Hall died in 2008 at the age of 88.

Bob Lewis was WABC's all-night jock from June, 1962 to August, 1963. He later had a progressive rock show on WABC-FM (later WPLJ) and also jocked at WCBS-FM, WNEW-FM and WYNY. Prior to WABC, he was at WNHC New Haven, Conn., and New York stations WMGM and WINS. A top voice-over artist, Lewis died in 1987 at age 49.

Charlie Greer did the all-night show at WABC from August, 1963 to August, 1965 and again from May, 1966 to August, 1969 (Ron Lundy handled the all-night duties from September, 1965 to April, 1966 while Greer did middays.) Before WABC, Greer was at WAKR Akron, Ohio. After WABC, he was at WIP Philadelphia, WRKL New York and WHAM Rochester, N.Y. He died in 1996, aged 73.

When Greer left in August, 1969, he was replaced by Roby Yonge who was fired in October and succeeded by Les Marshak, but the latter's tenure was also short. Jay Reynolds (pictured above) took over the all-night show in February, 1970 and stayed until February, 1976 - the longest continuous stint ever for a WABC all-night jock. Reynolds came to WABC from WIFE Indianapolis. After WABC, he jocked at WGRR Cincinnati before passing away in 1996 at the age of 61.

Bob Cruz was WABC's all-night jock from March, 1976 to November, 1979. Hired because he sounded so much like WABC afternoon personality Dan Ingram, Cruz took over the former's afternoon slot in 1979 while Ingram moved to mornings. Cruz, who came to WABC from WLCY St. Petersburg, Fla., left WABC in 1981. He worked for ABC-TV as a voice-over person and was successful with commercial voiceovers. Cruz died in 1995 at the age of 42.

Mike McKay took over the all-night show briefly after Cruz went to afternoon drive in November, 1979. Sturgis Griffin became WABC's all-night jock in December, 1979 but in October, 1980 he flipped shifts with evening deejay Howard Hoffman (pictured.) Mike McKay returned to the all-night show in October, 1981 and held it until the end of the WABC's music days in May, 1982. NOTE: Starting in January, 1982, McKay and Marc Sommers split the all-night weeknight duties, with McKay doing Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and Sommers doing Thursday and Friday.

Enjoy Charlie Greer on WABC here.

(The Don Shuttleworth Collection)

More from The Best of Don Shuttleworth here!
 

RETURN TO ROCK RADIO SCRAPBOOK